Rating: 
Summary: Full of empty substance
Review: If all writers wanted to do was write their last book again there really would be no point-so do not be surprised that this is far removed from The Beach. Be pleased.
The Tesseract is an intelligent, complex and intriguing book that deserves more than to be either better or worse than The Beach. The interweaving of polarised characters is a feature of the book as the reader is often jolted from different times and places but always managing to stay on the right tracks. Set in Manila, the book has an exotic feel that sways from the passionate to the rustic to the cold moralising of the criminal underworld.
The different characters are explored and enlightened in a manner that would suggest this writer has written more than he actually has. A distinct feeling of momentum is built up and the last third of the novel is like a growing force that one senses is going to be smashed apart. And herein lies the problem. One is acutely aware of the impending interweaving of characters and is looking for reason, symbolism and satisfaction to all the enjoyable and admirable ground work that is put in previously. It is unfortunate that the many roots of the book do not lead anywhere and instead jut out in the memory for their eventual incongruity. There are many layers to the book and it is an engaging read- it is simply a shame that such a rich construction could result in something far removed from its' seeming potential.
Rating: 
Summary: alex finds out he is not as good an author as he thought
Review: Perhaps I was expecting the Tesseract to be 'The Beach' set in the Phillipines. Perhaps I was expecting too much. The Tesseract is a really depressing, disjointed, infuriating and pointless novel. It really felt like Garland wanted to show everyone how smart he is. It felt like Grisham trying to write Camus. Stick to what you are good at Alex, the gulf between a great writer and a good one is huge, and you're on the wrong side i'm afraid. Buy this book if you want something different, but I think you'll be more likely to get a headache than be captivated.
Rating:
Summary: another good book from a good author
Review: The Tesseract is a great read, the first story is set with action, a shoot out between philippino gang members and merchant seamen. The second, is the story of a mother putting her children to sleep in the suburbs, while she reflects on her own life and her first love. The last story is about two thirteen year olds who sell their dreams to a young psychologist. In the final act all these stories are inter connected, and it makes for a good story. This has been done before, and probably better, but still Garland is an important young writer and this Novel is proof of it. IT IS NOT THE BEACH, but it is still entertaining.
Rating:
Summary: A High Wire Act That Never Loses Its Balance
Review: Most authors would steer away from exploring the topic of life's interconnectivity because they would be intimidated to attempt to explain the unexplainable. Only an author that is extremely confident in their ability would try to explore such an audacious theme. Fortunately for the reader, Alex Garland is such an author. While Garland doesn't entirely succeed in wrestling this topic to a manageable level, he is able to create a powerful story that holds the reader's interest.Garland's success is derived from his superb depictions of the book's characters and setting. From the metaphoric (the PhD candidate who almost literally lives in an "ivory tower") to the realistic (the doctor who has yet to heal the pain in her heart), Garland creates characters that are unforgettable. These characters are complimented by his vivid description of Manila and other parts of the Philippines. The effect of these efforts gives the reader clear focus points to reference while the broader theme is explored. It wouldn't have been surprising if this book had rambled out of control, especially given its topic. However, it's a testament to Garland's skill that he can tackle a subject of such scope with the incredible focus that is apparent in the narrative. In fact, the only criticism I have is that the book is a little too focused, as is evidenced by the tidy ending. Still, a book that attempts to explore such a complex issue, and does it in an entertaining manner, should be read immediately.
Rating:
Summary: Almost Five Stars
Review: First of all, let me state that I do not enjoy reading books that are not entertaining. Let me hurry to add that I only find skillful, clever writing entertaining. That's why Alex Garland's The Tesseract was such a pleasant find. Garland portrays emotions like terror and pain in ways that make the unsympathetic character sympathetic and uninteresting events interesting. His use of the English language is pure pleasure, and The Tesseract's plot construction is a bold experiment that works on every level. He successfully defies the single point of view theory. I couldn't put the book down, and refer back to it often when I want to know what the best writing reads like. I lost myself in the world he created. It is undoubtedly one of the best contemporary works I've read.
Rating:
Summary: Garland gets better and better
Review: For those of you who read the Beach, expect something completely different. Moving away from the theme of paradise lost, Garland weaves several stories together at different points in time. The stories vary in tone, from crime to love, and the end of the book brings all thirteen of the main characters together. While the plot is hard to describe, rest assured that anyone that reads this will be more than satisfied. Garland is at the top of his game here, created cinematic gunfights for some characters and picturesque tranquil landscapes for others. He captures the essence of all of his characters, male, female, old, young, and makes them all believable to the reader. He also, as in the Beach, succinctly summarizes foreign lands in such a way so that you can actually picture yourself there, along with each of the characters. This is a fantastic book, and I'd recommend it to anyone.
Rating:
Summary: Great beach reading
Review: Alex Garland has the potential to be a great novelist. Like the Beach, the Tesseract doesn't quite pull it off, but it fails in an absorbing, entertaining and thought-provoking manner. In short, it's a good read. The central issue of the book's three main stories is the interconnectedness of life. Our existence interlocks so unexpectedly with that of others that we can't help seeking explanation. It's as though our life-changing chance encounters mean something, but we can't quite grasp what the meaning is. Hence the tesseract, a three dimensional representation of a four dimensional shape. We see the effect, but not the shape itself. Trying to imagine a four-dimensional shape is like trying to make sense of life. However, if philosophical musings aren't your thing, don't let the above put you off. The first eighty pages of this book are a superb example of dark and paranoid thriller writing. The suspense builds as you read to find out if the Englishman will escape alive from the clutches of Don Pepe and his henchmen. The finale of the book is nail-biting too. This kind of 'intelligent thriller' (as many live ideas as dead bodies) reminded me of William Gibson - except Garland is interested in the realism of Manilla, rather than techno-fantasy. I loved the character portrayal in this book - so understated, so evocative. In particular, Don Pepe's murderous obsession with his Spanish blood; the musings of the PhD student in his high tower, buying dreams from street kids. Characters like these make Manilla come alive. Not one way of life but many and disparate. The city itself brings them into collision.
Rating: 
Summary: Gritty, quick, but somewhat flat.
Review: This is the first book by Garland that I have read... The book is a quick read, well-written, and has a unique point of view. The story is interesting, and there are several very clever bits in the book. Based on my experience with this book, I will read THE BEACH.
Rating: 
Summary: Fantastic
Review: This book is beautifully and artfully written, with strange twists, sullen characters and several stories which eventually intertwine to form one story. The Philippines is often a very dark place, and Garland portrays it in a deep and meaningful way.
Rating:
Summary: The cycle and its breakdown
Review: A Tesseract is a four dimensional entity, or a hyper-cube. Sometimes, the word is used to describe the three dimensional object that is formed when a four dimensional object unravels. A tangible outcome of an intangible concept. The Tesseract also doubles as the title of writer, Alex Garland's, follow up to his magnificent debut, The Beach. The latter's reputation was somewhat muddied by a mediocre cinematic adaptation, but go back to it and you will find a molasses of nihilistic exuberance. Indefinable, provocative, sensational and sensationalist, The Beach was a brilliant piece of work. Anybody who tells you otherwise is a vile little vermin. PG rated obscenities aside, Garland has, wisely, not tired to duplicate his earlier success, but instead has chosen to head into a subtler (not necessarily less violent) terrain. Fortunately, he has lost none of the vigor that made his first novel such a success. Think of each of the three major interdependent plot threads that run through The Tesseract as an isolated hurricane. Every protagonist goes through paranoia, weariness, succor, discovery and paranoia again. A British expatriate, Sean, sitting alone in a crummy Manila hotel, waiting for a local mestizo to grant him an unofficial safe passage for the business he represents goes a little beserk. He looks at the crummy room's crummy telephone. It has cigarette burns all over it. He looks at the keyhole and sees that it has a metal plate blocking it. He decides that mestizo and his henchmen are out to kill him, he waits, with a gun. Garland then leaves the agitated Brit, mid-cycle, and flashes back to a point in his past. At first it seems abrupt, the past doesn't completely explain the present. Instead of going back to the hotel room, Garland then observes the mestizo and his henchmen for awhile, they too have pasts that are, briefly, dragged into this hot, congested Manila afternoon. They all meet at the hotel, shots are fired, and the invisible cycle is broken by random violence. Instead of following the chase that ensues, Garland leaves this story and observes a middle class Manila family, a doctor, her mother, her children, her husband and their complicated history. Off all novels you'd expect Garland's follow up to The Beach to resemble, the least likely would be Arundhati Roy's The God of Small Things, yet this segment is strongly reminiscent of that novel. A third brilliantly observed tale of two homeless kids is introduced. The kids sell their night dreams to a rich, strange child psychologist, who then looks out from his high rise luxury apartment and observes the inter-connectedness of things. If nothing else, The Tesseract is an amazing architectural achievement. But there is an inherit danger with a novel as ambitious as this one. The temptation for authors to fall in love with metaphysics and other crude forms of self love has consistently proven too great to resist. For The Tesseract to stand a chance the characters must be, at least, three dimensional, making choices and not succumbing to an author's grand vision of the world. A luxury Garland provides. The only thing certain about the inevitable convergence of the plot is that it will involve violence to counteract the violence that started this chain. It is a testament to Garland's great skill that he seems a mere observer of this outcome rather than a manipulator. Comparisons with The Beach are, ofcourse, mandatory. In that respect most critics have judged The Tesseract to be more mature, ambitious, level headed, expansive and less jaded. I would agree and I'm heartily recommending it. I would also argue that the Tesseract, because of those qualities rather then inspite of them, is the lesser of the two.
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