- Hardcover
- Publisher: BCA; Book Club (BCE/BOMC) edition (2004)
- ASIN: B002C2LG1Q
- Average Customer Review: 3.4 out of 5 stars See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 2,998,786 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
Recursion
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
15 of 16 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Ballantyre tells 3 loosely connected stories in 1 during this book via linked novelletes that are interspersed amongst each other - the sum definitely being greater than the parts would have been in isolation. It's an engrossing read the first time through as the `big ideas' are gradually leaked to the reader. However a second reading would be rather tedious since much of the enjoyablity is tied up with not knowing the outcome - and once this tension is defused, the actual action within the book is rather pedestrian.
Worth reading if you enjoy space/AI, but probably not the kind of book to join a limited permanent collection.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Format:Mass Market Paperback
I found this book fascinating, with its sequel "Capacity" and I will be certainly reading "Divergence".
The book explores extreme questions that anyone who really thinks about mind, continuity and personal identity will sooner or later ask, but it manages to do this without the plot (or rather, multiple plots) getting stuck in these issues.
In one of the book's plot threads a chillingly plausible vision of a "nice" surveillance society in a future Britain is presented - not nasty, evil surveillance, just a society where everyone is going to be looked after 24/7 - whether you want it or not. 20 years ago such an idea may have seemed extreme. Now it looks like ideal government policy in a few years.
The book explores extreme questions that anyone who really thinks about mind, continuity and personal identity will sooner or later ask, but it manages to do this without the plot (or rather, multiple plots) getting stuck in these issues.
In one of the book's plot threads a chillingly plausible vision of a "nice" surveillance society in a future Britain is presented - not nasty, evil surveillance, just a society where everyone is going to be looked after 24/7 - whether you want it or not. 20 years ago such an idea may have seemed extreme. Now it looks like ideal government policy in a few years.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I'll give it a B or even a B+, which isn't at all bad for a first-timer. He's dealing with characters who are not sure (at times) whether they're real humans or software copies, so yes, character development might get a little dicey.
He deals with it well. Looking for further work from Mr. Ballantyne.
He deals with it well. Looking for further work from Mr. Ballantyne.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Interesting debut novel
Ballantyne's debut novel follows three characters in three different timelines.
In the earliest period, Eva is a suicidal waitress. Read more
In the earliest period, Eva is a suicidal waitress. Read more
Published 6 months ago by Rod Williams
Stale, tired, boring, unrefined... list goes on
The freshman novel of Tony Ballantyne is a cheesy mixture of bland dialogue, unrefined plot points and boring characters. Where do I begin? Read more
Published 7 months ago by M-I-K-E 2theD
Uneven but interesting
I think I'm always prepared to be a little easy-going on a first book (or at least, a first one in print, we don't know how many Mr Ballantyne wrote before Recursion... Read more
Published on 25 Feb 2008 by Roger Cawkwell
Give it a miss
This is his first book and apparently he is a teacher - to which I can only say don't give up the day job. Read more
Published on 2 Sep 2005 by Hilarity Unit
New authors damn fine start
A brand new author with an interesting tale to tell, perhaps the thing that should be mentioned about this novel from the outset is that the back reads like one hell of an idea for... Read more
Published on 23 Jun 2004 by Gareth Wilson - Falcata Times Blog
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