Spook Country (2007) (edit title/settings)

• Rated 2 stars

“Me just not smart enough for this book.”

• Rated 5 stars

“I read this right after reading Pattern recognition - i had got the two books from the library for my husband to have something to read :) - but i ended up getting first crack at them both.

These were a fun pair of books - but not hugely groundbreaking. The female lead characters in both books were very very similar in personality and that gave me a sense of deja vu ...

I would have loved to see the Tito character fleshed out more, and his mysterious Family given more page time, but this was a great adventure, and a fun read!”

• Rated 2 stars

“I'd like to give this one another 1/2 a star for style, but Shelfari won't let me. It took me two tries to get through this book. I made it a little over halfway through the first time before becoming so impatient with the story to 'get on with it' that I set it down and read something else (Whiskey Sour by J.A. Konrath and Joe Finder's slam bang Vanished). The writing had started out very compelling and rich, but it just didn't seem to be getting anywhere.

When I got back to this book, I was able to pick right up where I left off. I don't know if that's due to the decent characterizations and writing. But it did start working for me, almost in the vein of John LeCarre, but with even less plot. I would have almost given the book three stars, except that the whole thing was rather unsatisfying.”

• Rated 4 stars

“This isn't a cyberpunk themed novel like those that Gibson is most known for. As the name implies, it's about espionage and the cris cross relationships in that world. There is a singular technology concept contained in the book, so Gibson fans can hold on to that as he spreads out from the technology genre.”

• Rated 2 stars

“Liked all the characters and technology, but was unsatisfied with the ending.”

• Rated 4 stars

“Hollis Henry, former lead singer for The Curfew, is embarking on a new career as a journalist. She lands an assignment for a new publication called Node. The piece is to be on a relatively new form of art known as "locative art". Hollis learns that by combining GPS, wireless, and virtual reality technologies, artists can create works of art around famous landmarks or locations, an example being the Statue of Liberty.

The book also follows Tito, a member of a family of Cuban-Chinese spies for hire, who is honor bound to carry out a mission for a mysterious old man. His tasks will ultimately lead him in search of a container, the contents of which are unknown to him. Also in search of this container is an operative named Brown. He forcefully enlists the aid of Milgrim who is kept in check with the assistance of a few choice pharmaceuticals.

William Gibson delivers a captivating spy thriller while exploring various themes of the effects of technology on modern society. He clearly has knowledge of these technologies as his writing is smooth and does not misrepresent as is the case with most novels concerning technological subjects. I usually do not care for it when authors drop a lot of name brands but, in this case, Gibson does so in a manner that is descriptive of the story without being petty.

The story moves along at a brisk pace, building suspense as the various characters are brought together in a common plot line. When the pinnacle of the suspense is finally reached it is somewhat anti-climactic. Believe it or not, that is the perfect outcome for this novel. A blockbuster finale would have somehow cheapened the work that went into the themes of the book.

I really enjoyed Spook Country. This was the first novel I have read from William Gibson. In doing research, I found that some of the characters in this novel also appear in his previous novel Pattern Recognition. I believe that book will be added to my wish list.”

• Rated 4 stars

“Well I love Gibson. This book is different from the early stuff, but doesn't suffer from that. It has all the hallmark nods to pop and sub-culture that Neuromancer and the other early novels did and like them explores interesting ideas.”

• Rated 2 stars

“I had a really hard time following this book. I listened to it in the car and usually audio books really keep my attention. ”

• Rated 2 stars

“Tito a Cuban immigrant. Hollis a washed up indie rocker. Milgrim a junkie. Brown a government agent? Bobby a paranoid computer geek. Some interesting characters but there was not one of them that I felt anything for. I had no reason to sympathize, empathize or ize at all.

Nice premise though.”

• Rated 3 stars

“Tired. Gibson's genius is fading. He needs a new plot.”