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laurelcloud 's review for:
Neuromancer
by William Gibson
dark
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Man, this book sucks. The writing is DREADFUL. If you asked me to describe what happens in the book to you, I honestly don't think that I could. It felt like reading someone's drug-addled ramblings. The plot is indescribable, the characters are essentially non-existent, the settings are an absolute mess. I don't think there is a single coherent thought in this book. Look, I don't care if this dude created a couple words and revitalized the science fiction genre, this was AWFUL to read.
The misogyny and racism is off the charts. Every single woman in this book is both violent and sexual and those are the sum of their existences. Most if not all of them are sex workers - which, don't get me wrong, I love and support sex workers but when every single woman in a story is one it feels pretty pointed. They're also all very soft and submissive in a gross way.
The way that the author described the Rastafarians' dreadlocks was particularly uncomfortable. They're always a "mess" or a "tangle" or "matted". Just disrespectful and frankly ignorant. They also perpetually smoke and/or stink of weed. Main character spends most of the book in black-/brown-face. Yet another 80s scifi novel where the white author is jonesing for the existence of "melanin-boosting" and extreme tanning. How about no.
The dialogue in this book is truly a nightmare. It's harder to decipher than Trainspotting-type phonetic dialogue. And why did everyone talk like they're on The Sopranos? They all sound like east coast mobsters and it's just impossible to take seriously.
The only character I liked was Maelcum. He's literally the only person in this whole book who has a personality that isn't just melancholy and/or apathy. He was a breath of fresh air. I wanted to like Molly but god she was just so poorly written, there was nothing there for anyone to like. His dialogue was also.... questionable.. but better than the weird mobster talk.
Overall, I recommend this book to people who view women as sexual objects and crypto bros who pretend they know anything about tech but actually don't. I'm sure there's a lot of overlap. Everyone else stay far, far away. This is not worth your precious time. There is no story here, there is nothing to be gleaned from this writing, it is pure, nonsensical slop.
The misogyny and racism is off the charts. Every single woman in this book is both violent and sexual and those are the sum of their existences. Most if not all of them are sex workers - which, don't get me wrong, I love and support sex workers but when every single woman in a story is one it feels pretty pointed. They're also all very soft and submissive in a gross way.
The way that the author described the Rastafarians' dreadlocks was particularly uncomfortable. They're always a "mess" or a "tangle" or "matted". Just disrespectful and frankly ignorant. They also perpetually smoke and/or stink of weed. Main character spends most of the book in black-/brown-face. Yet another 80s scifi novel where the white author is jonesing for the existence of "melanin-boosting" and extreme tanning. How about no.
The dialogue in this book is truly a nightmare. It's harder to decipher than Trainspotting-type phonetic dialogue. And why did everyone talk like they're on The Sopranos? They all sound like east coast mobsters and it's just impossible to take seriously.
The only character I liked was Maelcum. He's literally the only person in this whole book who has a personality that isn't just melancholy and/or apathy. He was a breath of fresh air. I wanted to like Molly but god she was just so poorly written, there was nothing there for anyone to like. His dialogue was also.... questionable.. but better than the weird mobster talk.
Overall, I recommend this book to people who view women as sexual objects and crypto bros who pretend they know anything about tech but actually don't. I'm sure there's a lot of overlap. Everyone else stay far, far away. This is not worth your precious time. There is no story here, there is nothing to be gleaned from this writing, it is pure, nonsensical slop.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Drug use, Gore, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Incest, Misogyny, Racism, Forced institutionalization, Medical content, Schizophrenia/Psychosis