beaneater

"Thy sky above the port was the colour of television, tuned to a dead channel."

I understand why Neuromancer caused such a boom and why it’s considered a masterpiece of sci-fi literature. William Gibson played a huge role in defining cyberpunk as we know it today. The first few pages were really tough to crack because Gibson used slang-heavy language full of neologisms and tech-sounding terms. But as I sank deeper into the story, I started recognizing the words and getting used to his writing style, which at first glance can seem chaotic. For some readers, that might be the reason to put the book down after a few pages, but if they give the author a chance, the plot starts to pull them in more and more and won’t let go until the end.

The book isn’t just about “cool” tech lingo. It also offers philosophical layers and reflections on human nature. Gibson didn’t just write a sci-fi classic and give shape to the cyberpunk subgenre... he also strikingly foresaw aspects of our present day: people glued to screens watching creations of AI almost indistinguishable from reality, and the power of billionaires controlling megacorporations capable of influencing entire cities.

With his debut novel, Gibson set the bar incredibly high, and it’s no wonder Neuromancer made him so famous.

Neuromancer is a fascinating blend of technothriller, thought-provoking ideas, and visions of the future that, even forty years later, still feel surprisingly relevant.

"... Neuro from the nerves, the silver paths. Romancer. Necromancer. I call up the dead."

The idea behind the story is great, but I felt there were some plot holes and events that didn’t quite make sense, which took away from the overall experience. The book is easy to read, but at times it felt like it was written by a high school student with an interest in science who didn’t do much research on the topics they were writing about. Overall, the book reads more like a rough draft than a finished work.

I was genuinely looking forward to reading it, but in the end, it left me disappointed and I didn’t really enjoy how it all came together.

The book that inspired not only the famous Star Wars. A story so sophisticated, thoughtful and as mentioned for the millionth time - complex. I'll admit that reading it was a little challenging for me. I didn't know what I was getting into and the complexity of the history of the world of Dune took me by surprise. So I cracked through the first book very slowly and carefully, even going back to important passages that were very essential to understanding the lore. And I don't regret a single line.
Politics plays a big role here too, and it makes the book all the more real. Baron Harkonnen as a villain was great. He was a properly greedy man, and it was his greed that was his undoing.
But after 600 pages, I need to read something where I don't have to engage my brain cells so much.

Dune learned to walk so Star Wars could run.

It's just a shame that D. Lynch screwed up the film adaptation (Dune, 1984) like hell.