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I enjoyed this book. It is structurally-similar to the two previous entries, Look to Windward and Matter, but corrects some of their deficits: Surface Detail is paced better, and locations and alien races serve a purpose. The same goes for the central characters, although the Quietus agent's arc was weak and could have been dropped.
One thing though: the contentiousness of the virtual hells and the War in Heaven is never sufficiently developed to match the apparent in-universe furor for them. The Pavulean perspective is in the middle of changing towards anti-hell. And other advanced civilizations (like the Culture) are anti-hell because they oppose the barbarism of virtual hells. But, counter-arguments from advanced, pro-hell civilizations (like the Nauptre) aren't shared in detail. This didn't affect enjoyment of the book because the War is just something happening in the background, and is not central to the main character's story.
I enjoyed this book. It is structurally-similar to the two previous entries, Look to Windward and Matter, but corrects some of their deficits: Surface Detail is paced better, and locations and alien races serve a purpose. The same goes for the central characters, although the Quietus agent's arc was weak and could have been dropped.
One thing though: the contentiousness of the virtual hells and the War in Heaven is never sufficiently developed to match the apparent in-universe furor for them. The Pavulean perspective is in the middle of changing towards anti-hell. And other advanced civilizations (like the Culture) are anti-hell because they oppose the barbarism of virtual hells. But, counter-arguments from advanced, pro-hell civilizations (like the Nauptre) aren't shared in detail. This didn't affect enjoyment of the book because the War is just something happening in the background, and is not central to the main character's story.
Pacing is slow because most of the book is Major Quilan traveling and Mahrai Ziller playing tourist. Action and intrigue are mostly kept to flashbacks, which lack urgency. Only the end has any true tension ... well, the subplot involving the Culture researcher has some too. But, that subplot turns out to be a feigned plot twist, and a waste of an interesting character and locale.
The ending wraps up everything so neatly that it feels contrived. That said, the reveal of the real twist is satisfying and adds some subtle shades to Masaq Orbital and Admiral Huyler's actions—depends upon how much risk you think they really took with the orbital's population (in exchange for maybe unmasking the conspirators).
Pacing is slow because most of the book is Major Quilan traveling and Mahrai Ziller playing tourist. Action and intrigue are mostly kept to flashbacks, which lack urgency. Only the end has any true tension ... well, the subplot involving the Culture researcher has some too. But, that subplot turns out to be a feigned plot twist, and a waste of an interesting character and locale.
The ending wraps up everything so neatly that it feels contrived. That said, the reveal of the real twist is satisfying and adds some subtle shades to Masaq Orbital and Admiral Huyler's actions—depends upon how much risk you think they really took with the orbital's population (in exchange for maybe unmasking the conspirators).
Cat's Cradle is organized into 127 short chapters, many being maybe 500 words or less. Chapters in the first half are mostly self-contained vignettes about Felix Hoenniker, an important figure in the story. These read like an endless string of tangents so that I was glad when they were behind me. After, the story moves to San Lorenzo and concerns itself with the narrator's experiences there—and becomes more enjoyable as a result, because the narrator is a more sympathetic character than Felix.
Given its themes and setting, Cat's Cradle is ostensibly an allegory for the Cold War, the Cuban Missile Crisis, and the doctrine of mutual assured destruction. The full impact of this was lost on me because I read this book fifty years on from those events. I am also pessimistic about our species' capacity to learn from its mistakes, so any cautionary lessons get a shrug from me.
I still look forward to rereading this book for the pleasantly digestible chapters, the satire, and the subtle humor.
Cat's Cradle is organized into 127 short chapters, many being maybe 500 words or less. Chapters in the first half are mostly self-contained vignettes about Felix Hoenniker, an important figure in the story. These read like an endless string of tangents so that I was glad when they were behind me. After, the story moves to San Lorenzo and concerns itself with the narrator's experiences there—and becomes more enjoyable as a result, because the narrator is a more sympathetic character than Felix.
Given its themes and setting, Cat's Cradle is ostensibly an allegory for the Cold War, the Cuban Missile Crisis, and the doctrine of mutual assured destruction. The full impact of this was lost on me because I read this book fifty years on from those events. I am also pessimistic about our species' capacity to learn from its mistakes, so any cautionary lessons get a shrug from me.
I still look forward to rereading this book for the pleasantly digestible chapters, the satire, and the subtle humor.
Matter progresses similarly to Look to Windward, the preceding novel: the main characters spend most of the story traveling before facing the big bad, a subplot attempts to misdirect, then a drastic asymmetry between opposing sides leads to a swift conclusion.
My criticisms are also similar:
- While traveling, the main characters learn about their situation and gather allies—it's setup, for the final confrontation. All this time setting up slows down the pace of the story.
- Banks wastes some interesting locations and ideas here. First, by zooming past them during the main characters' travels; and second, by burning them in an ultimately insignificant subplot.
- The swift conclusion makes the ending feel rushed. The epilogue doesn't mitigate this. Also, knowing about mind-state backups wrecks any heroism in the ending for me.
Matter progresses similarly to Look to Windward, the preceding novel: the main characters spend most of the story traveling before facing the big bad, a subplot attempts to misdirect, then a drastic asymmetry between opposing sides leads to a swift conclusion.
My criticisms are also similar:
- While traveling, the main characters learn about their situation and gather allies—it's setup, for the final confrontation. All this time setting up slows down the pace of the story.
- Banks wastes some interesting locations and ideas here. First, by zooming past them during the main characters' travels; and second, by burning them in an ultimately insignificant subplot.
- The swift conclusion makes the ending feel rushed. The epilogue doesn't mitigate this. Also, knowing about mind-state backups wrecks any heroism in the ending for me.
I enjoyed this book. It is structurally-similar to the two previous entries, Look to Windward and Matter, but corrects some of their deficits: Surface Detail is paced better, and locations and races all serve a purpose. The same goes for the characters, although the Quietus agent's arc was weak and could have been dropped.
One thing though: the contentiousness of the virtual hells and the War in Heaven is never sufficiently developed to match the apparent in-universe furor for them. The Pavulean perspective is in the middle of changing towards anti-hell. And other advanced civilizations (like the Culture) are anti-hell because they oppose the barbarism of virtual hells. But, counter-arguments from advanced, pro-hell civilizations (like the Nauptre) aren't shared in detail. This didn't affect enjoyment of the book because the War is just something happening in the background, and is not central to the main character's story.
I enjoyed this book. It is structurally-similar to the two previous entries, Look to Windward and Matter, but corrects some of their deficits: Surface Detail is paced better, and locations and races all serve a purpose. The same goes for the characters, although the Quietus agent's arc was weak and could have been dropped.
One thing though: the contentiousness of the virtual hells and the War in Heaven is never sufficiently developed to match the apparent in-universe furor for them. The Pavulean perspective is in the middle of changing towards anti-hell. And other advanced civilizations (like the Culture) are anti-hell because they oppose the barbarism of virtual hells. But, counter-arguments from advanced, pro-hell civilizations (like the Nauptre) aren't shared in detail. This didn't affect enjoyment of the book because the War is just something happening in the background, and is not central to the main character's story.
The frame structure is well-deployed here to simultaneously develop the characters, the pilgrimage, the greater setting, and the nascent faction conflict. The stories are all good, and distinguished by different styles and tones. The Detective's story clumsily quickens its pace halfway through though.
Oh, there are several sex scenes if you're into that (Netflix in the 2010s should have been all over this).
The abrupt ending is disappointing.
The frame structure is well-deployed here to simultaneously develop the characters, the pilgrimage, the greater setting, and the nascent faction conflict. The stories are all good, and distinguished by different styles and tones. The Detective's story clumsily quickens its pace halfway through though.
Oh, there are several sex scenes if you're into that (Netflix in the 2010s should have been all over this).
The abrupt ending is disappointing.
I read Virtual Light recently which was such a slog, that I questioned my fond memories of Neuromancer and had to crack it open again. I'm relieved that my original sentiments remain largely intact, although some elements of the story are showing their age.
The action begins quickly, and the stylized, scene-setting descriptions are all well-balanced. The pacing is smooth, propulsive. At its core, Neuromancer is a heist story, so it keeps moving out of necessity.
The world is futuristic but grounded, and still feels realistic ... mostly. Some stuff is really dated now, like graphical hacking. Films keep getting away with it because of the visual medium, but reading about it nowadays is underwhelming.
The same goes for the lack of technical details for Case's skillset. E.g., he uses microsofts but doesn't code them; the Kuang Eleven virus, also not coded by Case, is instead delivered on a 'one-shot cassette' like it was bought off Amazon. Case even has the Flatline execute some commands and navigate because it's faster.
Actually ... I suppose that makes Case kind of like a 'vibe hacker'. Depending upon how all this real-world AI garbage plays out, Neuromancer's portrayal of hacking might just become prescient yet.
I read Virtual Light recently which was such a slog, that I questioned my fond memories of Neuromancer and had to crack it open again. I'm relieved that my original sentiments remain largely intact, although some elements of the story are showing their age.
The action begins quickly, and the stylized, scene-setting descriptions are all well-balanced. The pacing is smooth, propulsive. At its core, Neuromancer is a heist story, so it keeps moving out of necessity.
The world is futuristic but grounded, and still feels realistic ... mostly. Some stuff is really dated now, like graphical hacking. Films keep getting away with it because of the visual medium, but reading about it nowadays is underwhelming.
The same goes for the lack of technical details for Case's skillset. E.g., he uses microsofts but doesn't code them; the Kuang Eleven virus, also not coded by Case, is instead delivered on a 'one-shot cassette' like it was bought off Amazon. Case even has the Flatline execute some commands and navigate because it's faster.
Actually ... I suppose that makes Case kind of like a 'vibe hacker'. Depending upon how all this real-world AI garbage plays out, Neuromancer's portrayal of hacking might just become prescient yet.
The stories aren't bad, but they don't linger in the brain after reading either. Except Pearls are a Nuisance—Walter is amusing, and there's a nice twist. And maybe Spanish Blood, with its memorable ending.
Unlike the similar collection, Trouble is my Business, none of the stories here feature Philip Marlowe. All the protags still get up to sleuthing, but there's variety in their backgrounds. For example, the previously-mentioned Walter is a dandy playing an amateur detective, while Delaguerra in Spanish Blood is a police lieutenant. Unfortunately, the other main characters are forgettable, never developing beyond the basic brooding, hardboiled archetype.
The stories also vary in perspective and tone and other matters of prose. Some are written in the third-person for instance, and Pearls is playful in tone. Also, compared to Chandler's novels, the lyrical similes are few, descriptions and scene-setting are short, and aggressive brevity gives these stories a quick but tiring pace.
The stories aren't bad, but they don't linger in the brain after reading either. Except Pearls are a Nuisance—Walter is amusing, and there's a nice twist. And maybe Spanish Blood, with its memorable ending.
Unlike the similar collection, Trouble is my Business, none of the stories here feature Philip Marlowe. All the protags still get up to sleuthing, but there's variety in their backgrounds. For example, the previously-mentioned Walter is a dandy playing an amateur detective, while Delaguerra in Spanish Blood is a police lieutenant. Unfortunately, the other main characters are forgettable, never developing beyond the basic brooding, hardboiled archetype.
The stories also vary in perspective and tone and other matters of prose. Some are written in the third-person for instance, and Pearls is playful in tone. Also, compared to Chandler's novels, the lyrical similes are few, descriptions and scene-setting are short, and aggressive brevity gives these stories a quick but tiring pace.
Excession follows several Minds responding to a strange sphere (the Excession of the title) in Culture space, while tenuous allies—the Affront—also encroach. This is the Culture novel for fans of the AI: Minds are the focus, with humans in the supporting role. There are plenty of ship names sans gravitas, exhibits of obscenely powerful Culture technology, and repartee between Minds (the names sometimes make it difficult to follow along though).
But, because the Minds carry the main story (and the Minds have their omnipotent reputation), from the beginning it feels like whatever happens with respect to the Excession, the Minds and the Culture can't fail. This defuses any tension in the main story and makes the unfolding of the plot feel just okay. This is why, to my surprise, I was more invested in the Genar-Hofoen and Dajeil subplot: their reconciliation is not guaranteed—it might fail.
I wish Banks had cut Ulver Seich out of the story though; she doesn't add anything, and her character is insufferable. Many Culture stories feature immature characters but Ulver is the worst of the worst, being something like a combination trust fund baby-social media influencer.
Excession follows several Minds responding to a strange sphere (the Excession of the title) in Culture space, while tenuous allies—the Affront—also encroach. This is the Culture novel for fans of the AI: Minds are the focus, with humans in the supporting role. There are plenty of ship names sans gravitas, exhibits of obscenely powerful Culture technology, and repartee between Minds (the names sometimes make it difficult to follow along though).
But, because the Minds carry the main story (and the Minds have their omnipotent reputation), from the beginning it feels like whatever happens with respect to the Excession, the Minds and the Culture can't fail. This defuses any tension in the main story and makes the unfolding of the plot feel just okay. This is why, to my surprise, I was more invested in the Genar-Hofoen and Dajeil subplot: their reconciliation is not guaranteed—it might fail.
I wish Banks had cut Ulver Seich out of the story though; she doesn't add anything, and her character is insufferable. Many Culture stories feature immature characters but Ulver is the worst of the worst, being something like a combination trust fund baby-social media influencer.
The stories aren't bad, but they don't linger in the brain after reading either. Except Pearls are a Nuisance—Walter is amusing, and there's a nice twist. And maybe Spanish Blood, with its memorable ending.
Unlike the similar collection, Trouble is my Business, none of the stories here feature Philip Marlowe. All the protags still get up to sleuthing, but there's variety in their backgrounds. For example, the previously-mentioned Walter is a dandy playing an amateur detective, while Delaguerra is a police lieutenant. Unfortunately, the other main characters are forgettable, never developing beyond the basic brooding, hardboiled archetype.
The stories also differ in perspective and tone and other matters of prose. The lyrical similes are few, descriptions and scene-setting are short, and the aggressive brevity gives the stories a quick but tiring pace.
The stories aren't bad, but they don't linger in the brain after reading either. Except Pearls are a Nuisance—Walter is amusing, and there's a nice twist. And maybe Spanish Blood, with its memorable ending.
Unlike the similar collection, Trouble is my Business, none of the stories here feature Philip Marlowe. All the protags still get up to sleuthing, but there's variety in their backgrounds. For example, the previously-mentioned Walter is a dandy playing an amateur detective, while Delaguerra is a police lieutenant. Unfortunately, the other main characters are forgettable, never developing beyond the basic brooding, hardboiled archetype.
The stories also differ in perspective and tone and other matters of prose. The lyrical similes are few, descriptions and scene-setting are short, and the aggressive brevity gives the stories a quick but tiring pace.
Added to listOwnedwith 71 books.
