Virtual Light by William Gibson Summary and Reviews
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Book Reviews of Virtual Light
Book Review: You from Cops in Trouble?
Summary: 4 Stars
Excellent book. The concept of The Bay Bridge in San Francisco being taken over by the homeless is worth reading this book alone. There are other reasons too like great new characters (Rydell and Chevette) and new Gibson visions (the future of AIDS and security guards). This book is the first in a new series. This book not only has no Molly (too bad) but less of a focus on the internet and more focus on our future society. In my opinion he leaves too many loose ends at the end of his books and he tried very hard not to do this with Virtual Light.Book Review: They set a SLAMHOUND on Turner's trail...
Summary: 4 Stars
I bought this book in paperback and I plan to purchase it in hard back for my collection and read it again (and again). It is the third book in the series (if you count Burning Chrome) and is almost as enjoyable as Neuromancer. This book is a mix of Tom Clancy and The Matrix. I recommend reading all the books in the series. I really enjoyed them.Book Review: Gibson's More Humane, Near Future Cyberpunk Fiction
Summary: 5 Stars
"Virtual Light" reveals yet another dimension to William Gibson's splendid writing. Largely absent are lyrical passages describing cyberspace technology that are among the hallmarks of his "Cyberspace" trilogy and "Sprawl" series of short stories. Instead, he emphasizes personalities at the expense of technology. He seems fascinated with how that technology interacts with the seeemingly mundane lives of his downtrodden characters. Both Rydell and Chevette are among his most intriguing creations since Case and Molly; how their parallel tales weave and ultimately intersect is an outcome that I found most rewarding. Once more, Gibson offers some sly, thoughtful commentary on our media-dominated culture; a persistent theme throughout his "Virtual Light" trilogy, including "Idoru" and "All Tomorrow's Parties". Those who've enjoyed Gibson's crisp, lyrical prose, but have searched in vain for well rounded, three-dimensional characters will not be disappointed with "Virtual Light". Although less intense than "Neuromancer" as a literary joyride, it stands alongside Gibson's award-winning debut as among his finest works of fiction.Book Review: Fast-paced and Suspenseful
Summary: 5 Stars
Virtual Light is a good read. Although very different than Neuromancer, William Gibson's cyberpunk classic, it is still very well written. The book is not only suspenseful, fast-paced, and imaginative, but it has just a hint of humor throughout. All of these things make you want to keep turning the pages, just to see what Chevette and Rydell will do next. Chevette is a bicycle messenger with an attitude. After some tough luck, she finally has her life pretty much on track and doesn't want to screw it up. Rydell went through some rough times too, but finally has a job that looks promising. He gets hired to help with the hunt for Chevette after she steals a pair of glasses, and something goes wrong.
The plot of the book jumps around at first. It's a bit confusing, but after a few chapters you get the hang of it, and kind of figure out what is going on. The use of technology in the book was surprisingly sparse, compared to many other cyberpunk novels. What I especially liked was Gibson's use of humor. It was thrown in, in all the right places, which really made the book more interesting.
Gibson describes all the characters in the book very vividly. It is very easy to sense what they are thinking and feeling. He also creates a vivid setting. Rydell moves from Tennessee to what used to be California, but is now NoCal and SoCal, two different states. All aspects of the setting are believable and conceivable. This is only the second Gibson novel I've read, but I liked it better than Neuromancer. Everything was much easier to believe and understand, and the entire novel was action packed. The suspense of the book wouldn't let me put it down.
Book Review: Less tech, more life
Summary: 4 Stars
This book has a little less tech than I expected from Gibson. Indeed, the virtual light glasses, although a driving part of the story line, played a very small role in the story as far as actually being used for anything. Far more interesting to me is Gibson's portrayal of the social structure built on the remains of the Bay Bridge, how bits of junk and scraps of lives formed a microcosm of the larger NoCal/SoCal world but with its own rules and mores or lack thereof. I found the characters well fleshed out and sympathetic. The book moved a a good pace with several interesting storylines. The depiction of SF bike couriers was cool too. A solid start to this trilogy.