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cdc95's review
adventurous
challenging
funny
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Gun violence, Violence, and Death of parent
Minor: War
nishidake's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing, Blood, Kidnapping, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Body horror, Death, Drug use, Gun violence, Violence, Medical content, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Death, Vomit, Cannibalism, Dysphoria, and War
molls's review
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
3.5
I enjoyed the bulk of this book. The chapters are short and readable with a pretty quick pace. The concept of the Jackpot is scarily plausible and the timeline still feels believable 9 years after the book was published. The tech is cool and enough of the characters are interesting.
There are many scifi books written by men that get gross about women's bodies, either in service to the "women's sexual degradation as evidence of society's immorality/decline" trope or just to be lurid. Gibson could've very easily gotten gross here or subjected Flynne to some serious abuse but for the most part he didn't, and his female identifying characters weren't any more or less developed than the others.
Unfortunately the situation that draws Flynne and all of the over characters into the action is confusing and not very well resolved. The big bad was underdeveloped as a character. I still don't totally understand the icky plastic life forms that appear in the first scene and one other with Wilf. The TV show does a much better job of creating an inciting incident for the escalation of stakes that follows. Having watched the Amazon adaptation first helped me connect to the characters, visualize the settings, and get past the bizarre and somewhat confusing opening scene of the book.
There are many scifi books written by men that get gross about women's bodies, either in service to the "women's sexual degradation as evidence of society's immorality/decline" trope or just to be lurid. Gibson could've very easily gotten gross here or subjected Flynne to some serious abuse but for the most part he didn't, and his female identifying characters weren't any more or less developed than the others.
Unfortunately the situation that draws Flynne and all of the over characters into the action is confusing and not very well resolved. The big bad was underdeveloped as a character. I still don't totally understand the icky plastic life forms that appear in the first scene and one other with Wilf. The TV show does a much better job of creating an inciting incident for the escalation of stakes that follows. Having watched the Amazon adaptation first helped me connect to the characters, visualize the settings, and get past the bizarre and somewhat confusing opening scene of the book.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Alcoholism
Minor: Torture, Murder, and War
themysteriouserk's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
funny
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Like the best among Gibson’s other books, this novel balances thrills with speculation about the future and thoughts about where we are now. In this novel, Gibson considers ecological catastrophe, class struggle, veterans’ lives, the influence of megacorporations, and the decreasing importance of national borders and identity alongside a plot involving alternate realities, organized crime, and dangerous nanorobots. In short, it’s both fun and scary as hell, and feels relevant even when it’s speculative or unrealistic.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Mental illness, Violence, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: War