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Andrew Smith's Reviews > Neuromancer
Neuromancer (Sprawl #1)
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The thing is, I just didn’t get it. I like my SF near future and close enough to present day reality for me to be able to translate what we do now into what we’re supposed to be doing (or able to do) in the future. If it’s too wild or just too big a leap, my mind doesn’t seem to allow me to make the jump.
Then there’s the language thing. The use of a new vocabulary left me befuddled and confused. I honestly didn’t know what was going on most of the time. And when I did glean a bit of the narrative, it just seemed to have been too much like hard work to get there. So that’s another thing, I like my fiction easy. Well, no, not easy but understandable. I’ve coped with most of Murakami’s surreal tales and I love time travel books, so escape from reality isn’t a problem for me � in fact it’s a joy � but everyday life lived in an environment so alien, so different and (for me) so unbelievable is just a switch-off.
A quick synopsis for anyone who hasn’t read the book:
Case is a hacker who has been ‘altered� so he can’t hack anymore. He lives life as a hustler in Japan until he gets an offer from a mysterious type who offers to restore his hacking ability in exchange for undertaking some work for him. Case is suspicious, and having teamed up with a modified female, he sets out to find out more about the man. The rest (as far as I could tell) was a sort of hardboiled detective tale but set in the netherworld of cyberspace. It also had a touch of about it. Though, in truth, I gave up at halfway � my mind fried by terminology I couldn’t comprehend and a story that had jettisoned me and left me behind some time ago.
On the upside, I like Case, who I found to be the archetypal street-smart hardass who is on his uppers but has sufficient moral compass to keep him from straying too far from the straight and narrow. I also enjoyed some of the brilliant descriptions � mainly of the cyberspace world � that pepper the book.
It's not my cup of tea, but note my rating simply reflects the fact I didn’t finish it.
Then there’s the language thing. The use of a new vocabulary left me befuddled and confused. I honestly didn’t know what was going on most of the time. And when I did glean a bit of the narrative, it just seemed to have been too much like hard work to get there. So that’s another thing, I like my fiction easy. Well, no, not easy but understandable. I’ve coped with most of Murakami’s surreal tales and I love time travel books, so escape from reality isn’t a problem for me � in fact it’s a joy � but everyday life lived in an environment so alien, so different and (for me) so unbelievable is just a switch-off.
A quick synopsis for anyone who hasn’t read the book:
Case is a hacker who has been ‘altered� so he can’t hack anymore. He lives life as a hustler in Japan until he gets an offer from a mysterious type who offers to restore his hacking ability in exchange for undertaking some work for him. Case is suspicious, and having teamed up with a modified female, he sets out to find out more about the man. The rest (as far as I could tell) was a sort of hardboiled detective tale but set in the netherworld of cyberspace. It also had a touch of about it. Though, in truth, I gave up at halfway � my mind fried by terminology I couldn’t comprehend and a story that had jettisoned me and left me behind some time ago.
On the upside, I like Case, who I found to be the archetypal street-smart hardass who is on his uppers but has sufficient moral compass to keep him from straying too far from the straight and narrow. I also enjoyed some of the brilliant descriptions � mainly of the cyberspace world � that pepper the book.
It's not my cup of tea, but note my rating simply reflects the fact I didn’t finish it.
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Reading Progress
May 14, 2015
–
Started Reading
May 14, 2015
– Shelved
May 14, 2015
– Shelved as:
science-fiction
May 18, 2015
–
Finished Reading
July 30, 2015
– Shelved as:
not-finished
Comments Showing 1-23 of 23 (23 new)
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Paul
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May 18, 2015 09:47AM
Didn't work for you then mate :(
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No, not for me Paul. I think the style just didn't suit me. I thought the writing was strong and I sensed there was something there in terms of a plot. Trouble is, I just couldn't get past the language. I didn't know what was going on most of the time and wasn't inclined to invest the effort to get under its skin. I sense I'm in the minority on this one though.
Not so bad with the cost though, I don't think I'll be bothering with it :)
Loads of readers love this one and I'm sure you'd know very early on if it was one for you. But you're right, it was virtually a freebie so no harm done there.
That is a shame Andrew. I loved it when I read it years (and years) ago. But it was a book of it's time, and will have dated.
Yes, I was really looking forward to it, Paul. It didn't work for me but I'm not giving up on SF - I'll find others, perhaps more recent books - that I'm sure will float my boat :-)
Yours is a common refrain. My guess is that Gibson wrote "for" SF consumers - who would have gotten familar with other SF extrapolations from current technology. Not only does Gibson write densely (which forced me to slow down not always with success) but as you discovered he doesn't "do exposition".
Jim wrote: "Yours is a common refrain. My guess is that Gibson wrote "for" SF consumers - who would have gotten familar with other SF extrapolations from current technology. Not only does Gibson write densel..."
Excellent points, Jim. I think you are spot on with your comments.
Diane wrote: "Honest!"I wish I'd been able to cope with it, Diane, but I just couldn't.
I'm glad to know that I'm not the only one. I love sci fi but I guess I'm a lazy reader. I had to keep rereading pages to try to understand what was going on. After forcing myself through about 25% of the book, I decided to see what others had said about it. Now I don't feel so bad. It's time to put this one down.
Sarah wrote: "I'm glad to know that I'm not the only one. I love sci fi but I guess I'm a lazy reader. I had to keep rereading pages to try to understand what was going on. After forcing myself through about 25%..."Sarah - Yes, I found it hard too comprehend too. And like you, I don't like having to work too hard just to get a grip on what the hell is going on. Life is too short (that's a lot of too's :) ) and all that.
Good thing you gave up early, because the ending is particularly cryptic! I similarly struggle to visualize what Gibson's writing about, there's something clunky about the syntax and jerky about the imagery.
Liam wrote: "Good thing you gave up early, because the ending is particularly cryptic! I similarly struggle to visualize what Gibson's writing about, there's something clunky about the syntax and jerky about th..."Liam - I'm glad I was spared that. Different strikes for different folks, I guess, but I don't quite see why some hold this book in such high esteem.
Andrew wrote: "Liam wrote: "Good thing you gave up early, because the ending is particularly cryptic! I similarly struggle to visualize what Gibson's writing about, there's something clunky about the syntax and j..."I think Gibson was ahead of his time at the level of neuroscience scifi themes, the retinal implants in particular and the idea of wiring a brain into a brain machine interface. His ideas are good on the surface, I saw him recently in Montreal and he said the US government actually ask him in for his ideas on cyber security and technology. However, I think his style, plot development and characters aren't ever that satisfying, and that for me is enough to make me read PK Dick instead!
Liam wrote: "Andrew wrote: "Liam wrote: "Good thing you gave up early, because the ending is particularly cryptic! I similarly struggle to visualize what Gibson's writing about, there's something clunky about t..."Liam - That's really interesting, thank you for your insight. I haven't read PK Dick, I must do some research and grab one of his titles.
Thanks again for your thoughts.
He does come across as an amazing thinker, Liam. I think that his later books are better than his earlier ones
Terrific review, Andrew. I've always thought of William Gibson as someone who walked out of The Matrix and realized someone had done William Gibson better than William Gibson, at least in terms of movies. Based on your review, I think you might like Tomorrow and Tomorrow. I'm a mystery/suspense reader, not much of a science fiction reader, but I loved this one, which does present a mystery, and is set in near future Pittsburgh.
Many thanks, Joe. I’ve just had a quick look at Filmography for Gibson and can’t spot one I’ve watched! That said, I haven’t actually watched many movies. I’ll definitely take a look at Tomorrow and Tomorrow, thanks for the recommendation - on a quick look it looks right up my street 👍
Mark - it certainly did for me.
