A trilogy limps to a close...
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'All Tomorrow's Parties' is the third in a trilogy, following on from the excellent 'Virtual Light' and 'Idoru' novels. As such if you've read and enjoyed the previous two novels in the series then this book will at least give a reasonable sense of closure to the series, but sadly 'All Tomorrow's Parties' is by some margin a lesser work than it's predecessors.
'Idoru' was so compelling as it offered a new setting and new central characters, but by the third novel Gibson has run out of anything new to offer, and as great a setting as the Golden Gate Bridge was in 'Virtual Light' here it just feels like a rehash of the earlier novel. The plot - concerning the introduction of a society-changing nanotechnological 'fax' machine - is short-story thin, so to pad out the novel Gibson has his cast of character wandering around in circles for most of the novel, aware of some future event, but not sure what it is. As such the characters are all lacking in any serious motivation and the narrative drive is virtually nill. A miasma of vaugeness hangs over the book, even the central 'bad guy' Harwood doesn't seem to know what he wants, while the zen assassin who is completely lacking in any backstory or motivation just seems to be there to add a little violent colour. Defenders of the book might argue that all this is Gibson intelligently depicting an uncertain world, but sadly too often it comes across as an unfocused author unsure about where his novel is going.
Inevitably there are interesting moments along the way, but rather than finishing of the trilogy on a high 'All Tomorrow's Parties' limps past the finishing line. A mediocre ending following the excellent first two books in the series.
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the future can only be worse
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as cyclic as human history seems to be, it is however and clearly following a descending path.
this must be the attraction of a writer like gibson, who can picture a future of regression towards less evolute forms of inter-human relationships, towards social organizations that devolve rather than evolving. I love the history of Middle Age in Europe, and to me the Bridge is middle age at his best [...]
there is also the language, even a non native speaker like myself can notice the use of neologism, the painstaking research of a language that is rich but also that has a strange sounds to it, like the voices synthesized of the Walled cities avatars.
Reading W. Gibson I have the feeling of being part of a new genre, a new philosphy in the doing.
THis is my 3rd times re-reading the 2 cycles of WG. Now I am left with other books but waiting for something new to come out, hopefully soon?
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Life on the Lower Level
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Hidden from general readers for some years, Gibson's Neuromancer remains the best speculative fiction novel. Almost a sequel, the Idoru trilogy carries forward his ideas of what the future is likely to hold. Never a simple read, this book stands out in displaying Gibson's writing ability and his speculations about tomorrow. Gibson's talent in portraying a future world has few peers. The future looks grim, indeed, depending on your perspective. In Gibson's view, the perspective is from below. His characters are people rarely seen in "normal" life, but clearly, they are here among us. They live out of the "mainstream," Tokyo subways, landslide ravaged Malibu and the Bay Bridge. Gibson has them caught up in events not of their making nor choosing. They are no less instrumental in carrying out Gibson's designated roles for all that. Colin Laney, hidden in the subway among other indigents, his enhanced senses foretelling coming changes, becomes the chess master. He moves distant people as pawns in dealing to deal with a future even he sees only dimly. His pawns react to his plays, unable to comprehend his direction, but just as unable to resist. Chevette, in particular, becomes a pivot for Laney and Rydell. She moves adroitly through the many crises Gibson confronts her with, a strong character who should give pause to those claiming men can't write about women. As a Westerner, Gibson is sensitive to the power of earthquakes. Under his discerning scrutiny, he sees the power of continental drift as modifying not only the landscape, but society as well. In this story, tremblors around the whole Pacific Rim have generated social adjustments. San Francisco, so vulnerable to earth movements, has given rise to a subculture on the Bay Bridge after the Big One renders it unsafe to traffic [Interesting that there is no attempt to restructure the bridge, nor to devise newer forms of transportation. Gibson's love of technology is in data streams, not engineering challenges.]. He uses the Bridge as a backdrop instead of the focus of the whole story, which lesser writers have done. The Bridge becomes a haven for Rydell and Chevette, Laney's most active pawns. They must come together because Rydell has the mysterious "thermos" carrying the Idoru. Rydell is captivated by the image of "all desires" but why he's carrying her remains a mystery to the end. Even when the conclusion arrives, why Laney was so insistent that "everything is going to change" isn't entirely apparent. This approach remains the basis of Gibson's genius. He refuses to end his tales cleanly, giving his readers much to ponder and contemplate. If Gibson isn't the reason Harlan Ellison urged the term "speculative fiction" be substituted for "science fiction," he should be. Reading groups will have much to ponder and discuss over this book. In the end, none will be correct, and none wrong. Until the future justifies Gibson's predictions of where we're headed. [stephen a. haines - Ottawa, Canada]
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Hip writing, cool set-pieces, what's the story again?
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I finished it a couple of weeks ago, and it inspired me to re-read Virtual Light (Idoru will be next). The thing is, while I can remember lots of little facets: ideas, locations, characters, and events, the main thrust of the plot is gone from my mind. Perhaps this is the nature of Gibson :-) The chapter lengths are *very* short, making for a staccato read. Not a problem, but perhaps that's part of what makes the overall picture so hard to appreciate and remember. It was nice to meet Rydell and Chevette again, and the bridge was (once more) a fascinating place to visit.
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Fan of gibson and i liked it.
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I'm a big fan of william gibson, and i didn't think it was inferior to his other work as some have suggested - in fact i think its one of his best. His descriptive talent is at peak, little glimpses of objects and people really make the book and add to the fast paced stocatto effect of the short chapters. (2-4 pages each). As another reviewer said, the plot takes second place to the background world, future tech and visions of tommorow but the same could probably be said for all gibsons work. Also, those that know San Francisco well (unlike our amazon reviewer :) - sorry), will know that the bridge in which much of the novel is set is actually the SF Bay Bridge which meets foot of Folsom at SOMA, and not the Golden Gate Bridge which is some 5 miles out of town, but i think this was a deliberate trick by gibson.
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