Amnesia

Disappointing. Peter Carey has written some of my favorite novels ever (Oscar and Lucinda, The True History of the Kelly Gang), but this one seems like it is not fully formed. The synopsis sounds good: mysterious woman unleashes a computer virus which open up prisons in both Australia and the US. Discredited journalist is brought in by a friend connected to the hacker to interview her and write her story. People turn out not to be what they seem and a journalistic cyber thriller ensues. Lots of the connecting parts are engaging and well told, but they don't connect very well into a cohesive whole. I have a pretty good idea of what happened, plot-wise, but certain parts of the storyline which seemed significant frustratingly don't amount to much. Point of view shifts at odd times, so I was occasionally confused about who the narrator was. A major focal point of the story is a 1975 coup-like political action that Americans pulled on the Australian government, which obviously has reverberations into the future and plays a part in the hacker's motivations–but although the significance of that political action is clear, it's not clear how it fits into the main action of the story. So, this book is messy.

Bright spots: Funny dialogue between the discredited journalist Felix Moore and his frenemy Woody Townes. The dramatic story of Celine's mother and how Celine came to be. The love story between Gaby and Frederic.