- Paperback: 192 pages
- Publisher: Ace Books (Jan 2003)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0441010237
- ISBN-13: 978-0441010233
- Product Dimensions: 17.6 x 10.8 x 1.4 cm
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 2,158,929 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
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12 reviews
7 of 7 people found the following review helpful
Worth reading
3 Sep 2003
Format:Paperback
There's a very good book in here struggling to get out. It very nearly makes it.
To readers of this sort of literature (that is, dystopian cyber-nanotech-SF), the world of this novel will be familiar in feel if not in detail: the northern part of the world is under the control of corporate .Coms, who lord it over the working classes, and the southern part is free, though living underground in the aftermath of some sort of destructive conflagration.
Jolie Sauvage is an engaging enough heroine as far as she goes. A young guide who takes rich aristos on tours of the uninhabitable surface, she surprises herself by falling for Jin, a northern actor and the son of a major .Com exec. Her narrative can be a bit taxing at times; she knows about six French phrases and uses them repeatedly throughout the novel. But she's a pleasant enough companion.
There's a good idea lurking in this "hyperthought" stuff, too. It never quite comes out where we can see it (and evaluate it), but it's there and it works for dramatic purposes.
The timbre of the novel reminds me of Octavia Butler (which I mean to be a good thing; Butler is a very powerful writer). If you liked _Parable of the Sower_, you'll probably be drawn into M.M. Buckner's aesthetic sensibilities as well.
This is a fine debut novel. Here's hoping Buckner follows it up with something even better.
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful
Light Reading
16 Sep 2004
Format:Paperback
Actually 3.5 Stars.
Based on the reviews, I imagined I would really enjoy the experience of reading it. And I did *but* upon completion, I felt somewhat disappointed. I didn't feel as if anything had actually happened. I certainly enjoyed the novelist style of writing and the novel flowed well enough, but I never felt any of the characters beyond the heroine were more than 2-dimensional props to assist or hinder her progress.
Perhaps most disappointing were the shallow descriptions of the titular "Hyperthought". Indeed, it seemed almost an Afterthought, a plot device to get the heroine to jump thru the appointed hoops.
Not bad, but don't expect a "meaty" thought-provoking read.
Based on the reviews, I imagined I would really enjoy the experience of reading it. And I did *but* upon completion, I felt somewhat disappointed. I didn't feel as if anything had actually happened. I certainly enjoyed the novelist style of writing and the novel flowed well enough, but I never felt any of the characters beyond the heroine were more than 2-dimensional props to assist or hinder her progress.
Perhaps most disappointing were the shallow descriptions of the titular "Hyperthought". Indeed, it seemed almost an Afterthought, a plot device to get the heroine to jump thru the appointed hoops.
Not bad, but don't expect a "meaty" thought-provoking read.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Enjoyable
14 Aug 2003
Format:Paperback
This is a very fast paced book with lots of action. At under 200 pages it is a very fast read. I do think that the breivity of the book does sacrifice character development. The only character we get to know is Jolie and we only get a small glimpse into her past. I was never sure what made her tick and the character (not unlike real women) seemed inconsistent. I would have liked to have a more indepth look into the characters and into how society had transformed from present day into the bleak future Buckner paints. This is a good sign though. My idea of a good book is one that leaves you wanting more and yet there is no sequel to ruin the mystique.
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