gabrielgiil

I liked this book, but it was a bit of a wrestle. Rajaniemi (who is Finnish, which wasn't my first guess when I saw his name) drops the reader right into the middle of a fairly complex sci-fi world. Lots of physics and technology stuff here and you have to pay attention to catch the bits of information that help you understand the world he has built. An additional thing that makes this book a little tougher is that not everything is revealed here--this is the first of a trilogy, and I'm still a little confused about what exactly has happened what the different groups in the solar system want and do. I intend to read the other books in the trilogy, and will re-read this one when the others come out (and I hope that this one will make a little more sense during the re-read). Rajaniemi has worked some cool ideas into his book. A society where privacy is such a huge issue that even memories have public key cryptography going on, use of quantum technology, uploading of human personalities, prisons where the automated wardens run iterations of the Prisoner's Dilemma, time as currency, etc. Very cool. But as of right now (without knowledge of the rest of the plot), it reminds me a bit of Rainbows End--tons of really cool ideas without a really awesome story to help carry those ideas. So, if the book's synopsis / jacket text sounds of interest and you've got a little bit of previous sci-fi reading under your belt, go for it. If it sounds interesting but you don't have previous sci-fi, but you're feeling brave, then I suppose you could give it a shot, but it might be best to start somewhere a little easier first. Rating: R, for some moments of strong language (f-words), some PG-13 violence and sexuality.

2022-11-14 14:19