3.25 Not a very enjoyable read, but then what did I except from a book with this title? It's complex and interesting enough and we even revisit a couple of characters from Halting State. Thankfully it doesn't dive all in to the most sordid and nauseating things it mentions, but the mentions are enough for me not reading any more Stross for a while. Not a bad take on the cyber-thriller, just not my cup of tea. Quarter bonus point for independent Scotland.
For some reason it took me quite a while to finish this book while I devoured Accelerando. I've read a few of Stross' books and generally like his style. This time however his use of jargon put me off. I can pin it to a single word: "wave". When the book was written Google Wave was "the next thing" except half a year later it wasn't. This made the whole book feel dated to me. The final twist with the identity of ... somehow didn't get me, and I believe there is a previous book with the several of the same characters that I haven't read. All these factors made me enjoy the book a little less.
Despite these personal issues I think this is a good and fun read of a future where reality has become augmented and spam turns smarter every day. It's not too far into the …
For some reason it took me quite a while to finish this book while I devoured Accelerando. I've read a few of Stross' books and generally like his style. This time however his use of jargon put me off. I can pin it to a single word: "wave". When the book was written Google Wave was "the next thing" except half a year later it wasn't. This made the whole book feel dated to me. The final twist with the identity of ... somehow didn't get me, and I believe there is a previous book with the several of the same characters that I haven't read. All these factors made me enjoy the book a little less.
Despite these personal issues I think this is a good and fun read of a future where reality has become augmented and spam turns smarter every day. It's not too far into the future and I can easily imagine many of his visions coming to pass. I like the setting in Edinburgh as well. The 2nd person perspective is something you get used to after a couple of pages.
It's neither a quick nor an easy read with dense writing, a slow-starting, complicated plot with many twists, turns, and viewpoints. This book suffered from my not having enough time/concentration. This is more of a vacation read.
PS: as the title suggests: you better be an internet nerd, or you won't get half the jargon anyway. In that respect it seems even worse/better (depends on your pov) than Accelerando.
Damn good, this is my third round reading this particular book but this time in a social media setting. I read most of the hate spewed towards the 2nd person viewpoint, and people need to finish the book, then read the last chapter like 4 more times to really get it.
Very interesting book, all written in second person. I think some of the references that hit the current vernacular will not age well, but they are fun to read in this book.
