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sterling8 's review for:
The Quantum Thief
by Hannu Rajaniemi
This one reminds me strongly of Charles Stross's work. You kind of get thrown in the deep end of an alien future world and figure out what's going on as you read.
I didn't find it too difficult or intimidating- it was fun! We get game theory, a society that uses time as money and has an actual physical sense of privacy that they can use as they like to alter how much someone knows about them or even if someone remembers them, and an artificial death called the Quiet. Lots of great ideas, explored through the lens of a caper novel.
Our main character, Jean le Flambeur, is actually somewhat of a cypher, with only one defining character trait- if he wants something, he'll get it. Curiosity, whim, profit, all are equally viable motives to him. I'd like to see him developed more in the second book.
Because everything is new and it's hard to find context, it's hard to know exactly how good a thief he is. In addition, he is constrained in the technology he has at his disposal by Mieli, the warrior-who-really-isn't that broke him out of prison. So we never see the full extent of technology in this universe, or anything beyond our own solar system. The technology of the Oubliette, where the bulk of the novel takes place, also places constraints upon technology.
I enjoyed exploring this world immensely. Probably it's more setting-driven than either plot- or character- driven. I'd like to see more of the latter in his next book. But I'll definitely be picking it up- I'm very interested to see what ideas the author comes up with next.
I didn't find it too difficult or intimidating- it was fun! We get game theory, a society that uses time as money and has an actual physical sense of privacy that they can use as they like to alter how much someone knows about them or even if someone remembers them, and an artificial death called the Quiet. Lots of great ideas, explored through the lens of a caper novel.
Our main character, Jean le Flambeur, is actually somewhat of a cypher, with only one defining character trait- if he wants something, he'll get it. Curiosity, whim, profit, all are equally viable motives to him. I'd like to see him developed more in the second book.
Because everything is new and it's hard to find context, it's hard to know exactly how good a thief he is. In addition, he is constrained in the technology he has at his disposal by Mieli, the warrior-who-really-isn't that broke him out of prison. So we never see the full extent of technology in this universe, or anything beyond our own solar system. The technology of the Oubliette, where the bulk of the novel takes place, also places constraints upon technology.
I enjoyed exploring this world immensely. Probably it's more setting-driven than either plot- or character- driven. I'd like to see more of the latter in his next book. But I'll definitely be picking it up- I'm very interested to see what ideas the author comes up with next.