Neuromancer by William Gibson Summary and Reviews
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Book Reviews of Neuromancer
Book Review: I dont understand what all the hype is about
Summary: 3 Stars
I had some mixed feelings about this book. On one end it was great and William Gibson is brilliant because all of the things that had to do with technology, computers, matrix, etc werent around in the early 80's. There is no doubt that he is a genius. But I thought this book was terribly boring and difficult to read. Large amounts of the terminology I had to look up so I could know what the heck was going on. I thought Case and Molly were both interesting at points, but then weird things would happen in the book and I would be confused. I'd find myself skimming forward or going back to see if I missed something. I wanted to read it because it was on one of those lists that say must read books before you die, and now I have. I can cross that one off and make a note to never read it again.Book Review: I've read this book 4 times and loved it every time
Summary: 5 Stars
This is one of these rare books that I can pick up and re-read without any hesitation. The main character is easy to like despite his shortcomings. Although the genre caters to fans of the typical sexy bimbo side-kick, the main supporting female character is the toughest and most dangerous entity in the story. The futurism is believable. The tale is compelling and the author poses valid moral dilemmas for the reader to ponder i.e. `Is a digital, electronic personality alive?' I highly recommend anyone, be they a techy or not, to read this book.Book Review: If Only Gibson Had Continued With This Story...
Summary: 4 Stars
This is the best of Gibson's work. It holds up after several readings and becomes richer and more mind-expanding each time you enter its world of the cyberpunk future that we're living in. Somehow, later work by Gibson doesn't quite measure up to the brilliance of "Neuromancer," at least for me. Hard as I try, I can't get into the characters or even the language of Gibson's later works. I keep wanting to be jacked into the matrix of "Neuromancer," back where I think I belong, back where the world as I know exists. If Gibson had simply continued with the characters from this novel, added more dimensions to the world he created, if he had done what Lawrence Durrell did in the "Alexandria Quartet" only from the point of view cyberspace, I think we'd all be happier. Maybe, maybe not.
-Tom Maremaa, Author of the Forthcoming Novel "Metal Heads" from Kunati Books in Spring 2009
Book Review: Imaginative, but badly written.
Summary: 2 Stars
Gibson presents a wondrous world, where people and computers slug it out in a computer-generated alternative reality called "cyberspace". This idea was certainly not new when Gibson wrote this novel, but he gave it an imaginative slant, making it a menacing place were one has to tread lightly as not to be obliterated by anti-hacker programs.
So far, so good. The problem with this novel is that it is very badly written. The prose is unfocused, meandering and at times impenetrable. The book would have gained much by using a more straightforward style, which would been a better fit with the grim, dog-eat-dog atmosphere of the story itself. Then again, Gibson might have realized that the story was a tad flimsy, so maybe he tried to cover that up by injecting it with lots of made-up words.
The worst part is that I felt no connection with any of the characters whatsoever. I didn't care whether they lived or died and their insecurities just bored me. This is, in my view, the biggest sin any writer can commit, no matter how fancy the rest of the story is.
Book Review: Know your tastes before picking it up.
Summary: 3 Stars
The book is an enjoyable, quick read. It is not very fulfilling and sometimes even visually confusing. The sci-fi environment leaves many details to your own imagination. I'm not saying this is good or bad because it will vary depending on your tastes, but I prefer environments to be immediately recognizable and richly detailed.
I would not recommend this book as your first sci-fi novel, and be particularly careful if you do not know much about computers or technical jargon.