- written in a completely new genre of sci-fi, “neon science-fiction”. And it really reads like a totally unique sUnique selling points for “5 Stars”:
- written in a completely new genre of sci-fi, “neon science-fiction”. And it really reads like a totally unique science-fiction story altogether. To me, this novel reads like a really, really good Black Mirror episode, or a Christopher Nolan movie. I actually had chills down my spine half the time.
- one of the best works from Blackwick, in my humble opinion. If you’re only going to read one work from her, read this one.
- this is one of those Orwellian novels we’re going to see happen some 2-3 decades from now. It reads as a cautionary tale about the digital age, the internet (the Neon God) and its behaviour-altering algorithm. It’s also a mind-blowing story about a simulation within a simulation within a simulation etc.
- the ending blew my mind and breaks the fourth wall completely, which is something I’ve never seen done in any novel. This is not done self-gratuitously, but has a clear, thematic purpose. - even by sci-fi standards, the plot devices are one of the most original and brilliant I’ve seen. You get virtual glasses that alter your perception of reality, and play on your bias the more you wear them. You get Mind Prisons, Aerodynes, plasma katanas, giant mechanical spiders that climb over buildings and repair stuff (Daddy Long Legs), you get Jurors, people sent by the Neon God’s Algorithm to “bait you into doing something bad”, much like internet trolls. You get Nanochrome and you get the Dark, and so much more. And of course, you get the Neon God, judging your every move from behind millions of Black Screens.
- the Dark is probably the most unique play on the idea of a “shrinking arena” I’ve ever seen done in a simulation-type story. The Dark is this mysterious, intelligent, caustic darkness/ fog-of-war that has taken over the world and is used for bringing all the people inside the simulation together, at one spot on the map. But the Dark is also used as a hallucinogen, being mixed into foods, drinks and even music, making people get “high off the Dark”, which I found pretty amazing.
Strong spots in the story:
- The five characters (unknowingly) present in the simulation have amazing and truly well-executed character arcs. - The plot-twists are numerous and one more mind-blowing than the next. - The themes are brilliantly constructed and something else in this. This is something the author is known for. The message of the story cuts pretty deep and hits close to home. - The world-building is rich. Once it got going, the novel read like a grand epic. - One of the strongest endings in a work of fiction Weak spots in the story: - The novel has a somewhat slow start. This helps us get to know the main character and see the world through her eyes, but because she is trapped in a building with her baby, the initial world of the novel feels smaller than it really is - At the very beginning of the novel, one of the male characters was acting annoyingly childish. This was part of a bigger twist, but since I didn’t know that until the end of the novel, I always assumed the character was written weakly. It wasn’t, but that one scene can deter the more impatient readers from understanding the greater scope of the novel. - There is stuff that doesn’t make a ton of sense. Of course, that was just the idea of collision boxes and the “simulation breaking” but I didn’t know that at the beginning. This, again, might deter some readers from grasping the bigger picture.
Conclusion: Buy and read this book. It’s one of the best science-fiction novels I’ve read in forever. ...more
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