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threemonkeysI read William Gibson's Spook Country. Gibson cops a lot of flak from certain quarters "he does not understand computers", "he isn't original - all sorts of people did 'cyberpunk' before him", "he can't write" and so on. It may all be true to some extent or another. Others may or may not have done it earlier, better or more realistically, but Gibson's popularity gave the SF genre a big shake up and spawned a very important movement. A movement which at its core seemed to be about being more than human and having style - what you are and how you look.
So what happens when that William Gibson joins the stream of sf writers moving into the thriller area? Turns out that nothing much changes at all. It is still about style and people who use technology to extend themselves. Really the only difference is that he hasn't moved quite as far ahead as he has in previous books. It still feels absolutely like a William Gibson novel. Even more so really - he continues to work on his writing craft. This novel is not only about style but stylishly written as well. Eventually, you realise that it is fun too.
I wasn't sure whether Gibson still had it in him to produce something really good. His second trilogy was not as good or important as his early work. But this book is an indication that he still has the mojo. All that without me saying anything about what the story is about. But when you are concerned with style, that is not really important is it?.
So what happens when that William Gibson joins the stream of sf writers moving into the thriller area? Turns out that nothing much changes at all. It is still about style and people who use technology to extend themselves. Really the only difference is that he hasn't moved quite as far ahead as he has in previous books. It still feels absolutely like a William Gibson novel. Even more so really - he continues to work on his writing craft. This novel is not only about style but stylishly written as well. Eventually, you realise that it is fun too.
I wasn't sure whether Gibson still had it in him to produce something really good. His second trilogy was not as good or important as his early work. But this book is an indication that he still has the mojo. All that without me saying anything about what the story is about. But when you are concerned with style, that is not really important is it?.