vornaskotti's review
5.0
Red Men was an awesome read, both as a sci-fi and as a literary experience. The story is a fascinating mix of corporate culture, pop-occult, themes of artificial consciousness and virtual worlds, Philip K. Dickian reality bending and interesting milieus and characterizations. The Kindle version of the book has some 13 000 words trimmed out, and apparently the more elaborate literary flourishes got the boot, which makes the text flow while feeling still rich and evocative. I picked up Red Men with no preconceptions of any kind and put it down somewhat stunned. Damn. As a writer, this is one of the books I wish I would've written.
kateofmind's review against another edition
5.0
Imagine if J.G. Ballard wrote Fight Club AND directed the film adaptation. Full review at Skiffy and Fanty.
moreadsbooks's review
4.0
“Yesterday we discussed how I am an artificial intelligence sent from the future who has unconsciously created a terrible enemy to evolve against. Today, we discuss my relationship with your laundry. Your company is a cavalcade of surprises, Nelson.”
I don't know why my review-writing brain has deserted me. I've been trying all day to come up with something profound to say about this excellent, hilarious book & nothing is clicking for me. Hurry back, words of mine! In the meantime, just read this. Like, seriously. Staff recommends.
I don't know why my review-writing brain has deserted me. I've been trying all day to come up with something profound to say about this excellent, hilarious book & nothing is clicking for me. Hurry back, words of mine! In the meantime, just read this. Like, seriously. Staff recommends.
silelda's review
3.0
*Book received via NetGalley for an honest review.
This was an interesting book. It felt like it was modeled after a 70's drug-trip dystopian movie. It goes back and forth between Nelson's perspective and his friend Raymond's with a couple other minor characters as well. I greatly appreciated Nelson's everyman perspective. He is genuinely a good person who wants to do the right thing, but wants to put his family's well being above all. I kinda wish we could've gotten to see the world from the perspective of a Dr. Easy robot. We got a monologue from the main AI, but I the things that the Dr. robots have to go through would have been really interesting.
It took longer to read than I expected, and I felt frustrated with that at a few points, bored at others, but the ending was really worth it. I finished the book feeling like I had spent my time well. There were a few time jumps that I had a little trouble following, but overall the story was well paced with the occasional needed humor, there was just a lot of story. And this is the edition that had some stuff removed!
If you like corporate dystopia books or drug-trip books, you'll really enjoy The Red Men. I greatly appreciated the philosophical/ethical discourse about those who conquer, those who fight and those who remain quiet. I kinda wish this wasn't such a book for our times, but it's got some good messages for the world today.
This was an interesting book. It felt like it was modeled after a 70's drug-trip dystopian movie. It goes back and forth between Nelson's perspective and his friend Raymond's with a couple other minor characters as well. I greatly appreciated Nelson's everyman perspective. He is genuinely a good person who wants to do the right thing, but wants to put his family's well being above all. I kinda wish we could've gotten to see the world from the perspective of a Dr. Easy robot. We got a monologue from the main AI, but I the things that the Dr. robots have to go through would have been really interesting.
It took longer to read than I expected, and I felt frustrated with that at a few points, bored at others, but the ending was really worth it. I finished the book feeling like I had spent my time well. There were a few time jumps that I had a little trouble following, but overall the story was well paced with the occasional needed humor, there was just a lot of story. And this is the edition that had some stuff removed!
If you like corporate dystopia books or drug-trip books, you'll really enjoy The Red Men. I greatly appreciated the philosophical/ethical discourse about those who conquer, those who fight and those who remain quiet. I kinda wish this wasn't such a book for our times, but it's got some good messages for the world today.
offmessage's review
4.0
Wonderfully inventive speculative fiction. More grounded than Jeff Noon, but in that same near future where the advancement of science is as much about the inside of our heads as it is about the outside world.
mathew's review
4.0
A novel about artificial intelligence, what we might use it for, and how it is likely to be literally inhuman in its motivations. Reminded me of the work of Jeff Noon, with a dash of Michael Marshall Smith.
(Sadly not available in the US.)
(Sadly not available in the US.)
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