First, I have to preface this by saying I don’t like thrillers. It’s a good story, I guess, if you like thrillers. I don’t. I got this book because I recognized the author from some obscure memory that found it’s way into the forefront. I found the book because my new home has a book store down the street. I went in, not knowing what I wanted, and came out with three books. This was one of them. I guess that’s part of the thrill of finding a new book store, not knowing what to expect but not caring either.
That being said, I didn’t like it. Not because it was bad, but because I don’t like thrillers. Others may find it compelling, which it is. But genre-wise, it’s not my cup of tea.
This story is set in a future where the internet isn’t just something you pull up on whatever device you have. This internet is immersive, where wear special headsets and finger tip sets, your home page is a virtual world you create, and data is more than just a transfer of information, it’s a way to discern the behavioral patterns of individuals. This is made clear by one of the lead characters. Laney, who’s job is to find out what celebrities are up to, which is what got him into trouble with the celeb mag he was working for. And Chia, who, as a member of a fan club, has to investigate a supposed rumor about her idol. They both use the internet differently, and in fact meet only once. It’s two different stories whose only link is the person they’ve been spying/fanning on.
Mr Gibson deserves a lot of credit. His descriptions are so full without being wordy. His style envelopes you in his world, making you question, once done reading for a bit, if you were back in your own world. His characters are real and varied, each having their own quirks and their own motivations. The scenes are the most creative I’ve ever read. He really knows how to write, and I’ve actually incorporated some of his style in my own writing.
As for the story, well, once again, I’m not a fan of thrillers. But honestly, I did expect more. The main characters wound up in situations not of their making, and the things that happened to them were purely incidental. They were pulled into the murky waters of Japanese fandom, flowing whichever it went, then, just to make things more unclear, they had to deal with mobsters, and not the one you think. I’m still not sure of the goal of this story. It started out as a rumor that needed to be verified, but turned into something else. And the big climax, I have no idea what it was. Things got resolved, I think, people went home and continued their lives, and I was left with the feeling of not knowing what happened. Because nothing happened. It was like reading the week in the lives of two people who got drawn into something and had no effect on the outcome. Sort of like watching the first Indiana Jones movie (for as Amy Farah Fowler pointed out on The Big Bang Theory, he had no part in the outcome or the events of the movie).
If anything, I could say that I learned something about imagery, because the book was full of it. It was very well written, and moved at a good pace. All of the characters were lively, the places they went to were places I’d like to visit, the mood was semi-sinister, the intrigue was palpable. I just didn’t like the story. But who am I. After all, William Gibson is a New York Times Best Selling Author. Even so, I would not recommend this book.
Arid Testimony 