Altered Carbon

Audiobook

English language

Published April 15, 2018

4 stars (38 reviews)

2 editions

Review of 'Altered Carbon' on 'Goodreads'

4 stars

A lovely post-cyberpunk romp in neo-noir trappings, the worldbuilding is gritty without being grimdark, and the entire book is shot through with humor.

Kovacs is a wonderfully flawed protagonist, not just in his emotional and heroic core, but in the sense that his small failures and harms to his pride are very real-- he seems to view male sexuality as a disgusting burden rather than something virile and manly, which is refreshing for sf written by cis men.

However, the sex scenes were pointless and lurid, and the dogfucking scene (you'll know when you get there) was pointlessly disgusting.

For those wondering, yes it is significantly different enough from the Netflix series to warrant a read. In general, it foreshadows where the series over-explains, carefully hinting at its worldbuilding.

Overall, a fun read if you have a high tolerance for genre staples such as these. Not for everyone, but definitely …

Review of 'Altered Carbon' on 'Goodreads'

4 stars

Death, where is thy sting?

I watched the Netflix series a bit ago, so reading the book seemed like the next logical step. I love those old detective noir mystery atmospheres, I love cyberpunk atmospheres, and the idea that your consciousness can be transferred ("re-sleeved") as often as you have the cash for it makes for an interesting premise. This seemed like a slam dunk for me.

In many ways it was. Kovacs is very much an anti-hero; you're supposed to dislike him. I liked the moral ambiguity he brought to the story, and his jaded war vet background made for some interesting philosophical considerations he has throughout the story. I liked being strung along on this cyberpunk mystery full of people with too much cash and not a lot of perspective left after being re-sleeved for over a century. I liked the gritty action, the take on a futuristic …

Review of 'Altered Carbon' on 'Goodreads'

3 stars

I found the story to be compelling, full of unexpected twists and turns. The characters were a bit one dimensional. The writing, though verbose, was often disjointed and confusing. I appreciated the technique. It was akin to Clockwork Orange where he was attempting to mash together a future dialect with it's idioms and degradation, but I found it often jarring. Though I could understand it's appeal to others. Overall, an enjoyable read but nothing too deep as to provoke an interest in the rest of the trilogy.

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Subjects

  • Fiction, science fiction, general
  • Fiction

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