Altered Carbon (Kovacs)

Rating:
Summary: Two competing stories
Review: There are two competing stories in this book, so you've got to pay attention, or read it a second time.

First, and most obvious, is all the cosmic technology. I won't go into it, because I don't want to spoil the surprises, but let's just say that the song fragments "Oh death where is thy sting-a-ling-a-ling?/Oh grave thy victory?" rings really true to these people.

Then there's the detective story, which demands - and repays - a lot of concentration all on its own.

Taken together, they're well done. I really enjoyed this.

Rating:
Summary: Really bad Sci FI
Review: What ever happened to good old fashion SciFi? After reading the reviews I wanted to like this book. I wanted to read a cool novel with new futuristic ideas. This wasn't it. After about 100 pages I couldn't even read it anymore. The writing was poor and disjointed and the story is totally uninteresting. I would never guess that someone could make sci fi this boring and take any kind of wonder out of it. After the main character has sex which is described in graphic details like a 13 year old writing to Penthouse, I pretty much gave up. If you are looking for a better written, more interesting novel on having disposable bodies then read the Kiln People by David Brin instead.

Rating:
Summary: Excellent
Review: While it's certainly a bit violent, I never felt that the violence was gratuitous. This is a book I can honestly feel good recommending, even though it's edgy and perhaps a little bit more than risque.