Mass Market Paperback, 544 pages
English language
Published Oct. 30, 2007 by Del Rey.
Welcome back to the brash, brutal new world of the twenty-fifth century: where global politics isn't just for planet Earth anymore; and where death is just a break in the action, thanks to the techno-miracle that can preserve human consciousness and download it into one new body after another. Cynical, quick-on-the-trigger Takeshi Kovacs, the ex-U.N. envoy turned private eye, has changed careers, and bodies, once more . . . trading sleuthing for soldiering as a warrior-for-hire, and helping a far-flung planet's government put down a bloody revolution.But when it comes to taking sides, the only one Kovacs is ever really on is his own. So when a rogue pilot and a sleazy corporate fat cat offer him a lucrative role in a treacherous treasure hunt, he's only too happy to go AWOL with a band of resurrected soldiers of fortune. All that stands between them and the ancient alien spacecraft …
Welcome back to the brash, brutal new world of the twenty-fifth century: where global politics isn't just for planet Earth anymore; and where death is just a break in the action, thanks to the techno-miracle that can preserve human consciousness and download it into one new body after another. Cynical, quick-on-the-trigger Takeshi Kovacs, the ex-U.N. envoy turned private eye, has changed careers, and bodies, once more . . . trading sleuthing for soldiering as a warrior-for-hire, and helping a far-flung planet's government put down a bloody revolution.But when it comes to taking sides, the only one Kovacs is ever really on is his own. So when a rogue pilot and a sleazy corporate fat cat offer him a lucrative role in a treacherous treasure hunt, he's only too happy to go AWOL with a band of resurrected soldiers of fortune. All that stands between them and the ancient alien spacecraft they mean to salvage are a massacred city bathed in deadly radiation, unleashed nanotechnolgy with a million ways to kill, and whatever surprises the highly advanced Martian race may have in store. But armed with his genetically engineered instincts, and his trusty twin Kalashnikovs, Takeshi is ready to take on anything--and let the devil take whoever's left behind.From the Trade Paperback edition.
This book further expands on the dynamics of the fictional universe where Kovacs was born into; the story moves away from the typical noir cyberpunk setting to embrace a different but nonetheless compelling scifi style.
I thought this book had a totally different tone than the first one. It totally feels like military sci-fi. The pace is kinda slow until half of the book and then it's action-packed till the end. There is a lot of worldbuilding when Takeshi remembers his childhood and the wars he has fought in. There is an interesting group of characters that are put together to fulfill a mission. Alien ruins, old artifacts, soldiers, war, archeology, mental illness.
Le deuxième épisode des aventures de Takeshi Kovacs est très différent du premier. Après le mélange de science-fiction et de roman noir dans Altered Carbon, nous avons affaire ici à un roman de guerre mêlé d'aventure archéologique.
C'est plutôt bien fait, même si j'ai regretté quelques longueurs à plusieurs moments du récit. J'ai trouvé ce deuxième roman un peu mieux réussi que le premier, peut-être parce qu'il innove moins et que le genre sur lequel il s'appuie (le roman de guerre) me plait moins a priori.
L'auteur en profite tout de même pour étendre la mythologie de son univers de science-fiction, et livre surtout une description parfaite de la guerre et de ce que cette expérience représente pour les combattants et les civils.
Je me demande quel style et quel genre sera revisité dans le troisième volume de cette saga. Je le saurai sans doute très vite :-)
