Rating: 
Summary: A Landmark Work of Cyberpunk
Review: Featuring stories by the "father of cyberpunk", William Gibson, as well as collaberations with many other important figures in the genre, BURNING CHROME, is as good a collection of cyberpunk short fiction as can be found (short of Bruce Sterling's MIRRORSHADES, which has been out of print for some time). First and foremost, the first story in the anthology, "Johnny Mnemonic", will, no doubt, garner the most interest. (Readers of Gibson's NEUROMANCER will easily make the correlation between Molly and Johnny.) Gritty and imaginative, "Johnny Mnemonic" is worth the price of admission alone, spinning the story (made into the movie of the same name), of Johnny Mnemonic, a data courier, and his gal Molly Millions. "Burning Chrome" and "Dogfight" are considered to be two of Gibson's best short stories, showing off Gibson's creative powers at their strongest. "Fragments of a Hologram Rose" is a lyrical masterpiece, exquisitely detailed and haunting in delivery. Gibson's work is prophetic and amazing, rounding out his Sprawl series (NEUROMANCER, COUNT ZERO, and MONA LISA OVERDRIVE). Bordering on poetic at times, crystal clear at others, Gibson is truly a versatile author. All in all, fans of Gibson's other works or fans of cyberpunk in general will find this anthology immensely rewarding.
Rating:
Summary: Some of William Gibson's Best Writing, Period
Review: This is an amazing short story collection whose common denominator is the quality of the writing. Without a doubt, it is one of the finest short story collections I've read in any genre, including mainstream literature. Gibson's lean, lyrical prose sparkles on every page. In the "Sprawl" series of short stories collected in this anthology ("Johnny Mnemonic", "New Rose Hotel", "Burning Chrome", etc.) Gibson gives vivid, explosive vignettes on the lives of data couriers and cyberspace hackers in the same universe as his critically acclaimed "Cyberspace" trilogy. Yet he is just as good when he steps outside this universe, as witnessed by his poignant "Winter Market" and his collaboration with Bruce Sterling ("Red Star, Winter Orbit".). Anyone interesed in reading some of Gibson's finest prose won't be disappointed.
Rating: 
Summary: Classic SF Short Stories
Review: Burning Chrome is a collection of ten short stories by cyber-punk innovator William Gibson, three of which are collaborations with other authors. It's an eclectic ride as a whole. There is no overriding theme that ties all of the stories together - they range from cyberpunk to surreal. Gibson's prose can be very poetic and he does an excellent job of setting the mood in each story. Even when his characters aren't very likeable, you can still identify with their emotions. "Johnny Mnemonic", "New Rose Hotel" and "Burning Chrome" are written in the same "Sprawl" setting as many of Gibson's novels. They are sharp and explosive cyberpunk stories that grab your attention and run. "The Gernsback Continuum" and "The Belonging Kind" are trips through what could be present day America with surreal twists. "Red Star, Winter Orbit", written with Bruce Sterling, is the poignant tale of an aging Russian cosmonaut on an equally aging space station. "Hinterlands" is an eerie view of how far humans will go to satisfy the need for progress and exploration. "Fragments of a Hologram Rose", "The Winter Market" and "Dogfight" are powerful studies of emotion, need, and what it means to be human. Overall, I enjoyed Burning Chrome. Gibson's writing style is fun to read - he can establish mood and atmosphere in a few short sentences. I also like that he uses technology as a means not an end - the focus in the stories is how people interact with each other and technology intstead of showcasing what a cool idea a particular future technology would be. His stories tend to deal with the grittier side of human nature, and are not always comfortable to read, but they make you think.
Rating:
Summary: Occasionally Brilliant
Review: I think William Gibson is probably the best pure *writer* that I have read for years. I don't think, on the other hand, that his fiction is the best that SF has produced--but his deliverance of the stories is his strong point. His prose has been polished to the point that it sparkles and contains more than a good deal of poetry. Not only is his language poetic, but also are his images, especially his depiction of cyberspace with all its colorful towers of data. As far as Gibson's fiction is concerned it is always interesting, often relevant, and on occasion cathartic. Most of his stories seem to take on the same sort of tone, that stemming from the "hard-boiled" tradition. Stories like "Johnny Mnemonic" and "Burning Chrome" best exemplify this particular brand of story. But Gibson also pulls a few surprizes out of his hat and delivers stories that are highly experimental and center around character study rather than high-tempo, action-packed adventure stories. "The Winter Market" in particular struck me as especially brilliant. His focus in the story was not the neat gadgetry that was represented by the "exoskeleton" worn by one of the characters, it was how this shaped this character and effected her life. But Gibson doesn't stop there, he gives us a cast of strong characters and plenty of interaction between them. And this is what really made the story interesting for me. The sf elements are there, but the story has a great deal of universality in its portrayol of real people in situations we can relate to. I also thought that "Hinterlands" and "The Gernsback Continuum" were very interesting stories. "Hinterlands", like "The Winter Market", tells a real character oriented story, and "The Gernsback Continuum" is unlike any other story I've ever read. All of Gibson's stories are well written, but these stories in particular established his reputation in my mind.
Rating:
Summary: best book of shorts I have read
Review: This books shows the range of the writer. making it clear he can incorperate technology into various theams and plots from the simple, red star orbit. to the rose continum. taken individule each story shows a particular slant on the gritty nature of technology. Its amazing that anyone could not see the range william gibson has as a writer I would recomend this book and neuromance for anyone for a first read.
Rating:
Summary: Too short.
Review: All of the stories in this brief collection were astounding. Never very involved with hard science, opting more for dark, intense noir shaded by futuristic technology, Gibson creates a variety of worlds that amaze you with their detail and imagery. He is one of the few writers who approaches science-fiction this way, giving his reader a view of society from the ground up. He doesn't try that often to explain why things have happened, or why the world is a certain way; instead he drops you into his stories and forces you to come to terms with his reality.
The Sprawl series, prefacing his first three novels (Neuromancer, Count Zero, Mona Lisa Overdrive) are the clearest standouts in this collection, even though I thought "Johnny Mnemonic" tried to do too much in too little space. "New Rose Hotel" and "Burning Chrome" are absolute classics of cyberpunk, moreso than most books that find their way into the genre.
"The Gernsback Continuum" is uncommonly lighthearted for Gibson, and whether or not you believe Bruce Sterling's comments in the introduction, it's a great story. It's barely science fiction, but since the "cyberpunk" label was invented after Gibson's debut, this isn't surprising.
Gibson's collaboration with John Shirley, "The Belonging Kind", is also incredible. It's interesting to try to figure out each writer's influence. Like the previous story, it's more surreal than scientific.
"Fragments of a Hologram Rose" and "The Winter Market" are fantastic stories that combine complex plots, characters, and romance with vivid near-future settings. These are some of the most powerful statements of the effects of technology on humanity in any field of literature.
All of these are intense stories; the only real problem is there aren't more of them. It saddens me that Gibson slowed down his writing after "Neuromancer" - the sequels never measured up to the original, and his later books were like diluted versions of his earlier work.
Rating: 
Summary: I can't believe all the positive reviews
Review: Look I know this book has a new cover, well it's had a few, the one I read had a different cover to the old mass market paperback too. The point is even with a new cover this book is still terrible. I had to read this for a university subject called New Technology Studies and let me tell you I wasn't alone in thinking this was bad. The online forum for that subject was the complete opposite of amazons reviews, only a few people had positive things to say about this book. I wondered why at first amazon reviewers would give this so many stars. Is this because you can't get decent literature in the USA. I think not, there's heaps of quality stuff on Amazon. Then I started to read the comments and worked it out. Most positive reviews are reviewing the author not the book. Maybe Gibson is great, maybe Neuromancer is a great novel, I don't know, but that has nothing to do with the qualitiy of this collection of short stories. You're supposed to review the book the page is about so people thinking of purchasing know if they should or not. It's not a Gibson fan club chat page. This is a terrible book. The stories don't flow and in some cases don't even make sense. If Gibson has learnt to write brilliantly by the time he wrote Neuromancer he certainlty hadn't when he wrote this. If you think these stories are great you are in for a huge treat when you expand your reading to other authors. I have read other books in university subjects which have been excellent such as Maxx Barry's Syrup which is a must for any Marketing or business student. I notice someone else recommended his novel Jennifer Government in their Amazon review which was allright, I didn't think it was that great compared to Syrup but it is a lot better than Burning Chrome. Well anything is.
Rating:
Summary: Powerful
Review: A lot of people who read Gibson bash his writing because of the superficial nature of his characters. They're missing the point. One of the overarching themes of cyberpunk is the idea that technology, while revolutionizing our world, is also slowly stripping us of many of the things that make us human. Cyberpunk is a dystopia, not a Star Trek style utopia. The people living in the Sprawl, in Gibson's world, are superficial, because that's all that they have. It's professionalism taken to an unhealthy degree, and it mirrors many people that I know. Not everyone in the world has a deep, complex personality. I dare say a significant number of them don't. That being said, Gibson truly shines as a short story writer. As a fan and practicioner of the short story, the sparseness of plot and space in general is one of the strong points in cyberpunk. The genre is about impact and style, and the shorter the story, the stronger the impact has to be to justify the experience. Burning Chrome is a book with ten such impacts. The first story, Johnny Mnemonic, probably has the best chance to be known by the general public, and has the hardest reputation to overcome. It's great scifi, albeit far from the best story in the book. As other reviewers have said, it does introduce Molly and gives a great taste of the Sprawl. The killing floor is also one of the best examples of culture in Gibson's world. The Gernsback Continuum is one of those stories that border on the incredibly bizzare. I didn't care for this story as much as the other (it's probably my least favorite), but ti's still bizzare enough to be entertaining. Fragments of a Hologram Rose if I remember correctly is one of Gibson's first short stories, and it sets the stage beautifully for his style of writing. Short, sweet, and encapturing a moment in life, it may not have the depth of impact of the sprawl stories, but it's still high quality. Gibson deals with emotion, and the avoiding thereof in a painfully human manner. Namely, the characters avoid it at all costs. The Belonging Kind is another story, sci fi in it's premise, but not so much in it's execution. Refreshing in how alien (litterally) socially popular people can be. Hinterlands is my second favorite story in the book. It's what I call "classic" scifi- it's set in space, on a space station, and involves man's exploration of the unknown. But instead of a star trek slant, it plumbs into the desperation of wanting to know, the craving from the tree of knowledge for more. I identified with the desire to Know that which is unknown, even at the cost of your own life. A very strong story. Red Star, Winter Orbit is another "classic" scifi tale, about a decaying russian space station at the end of an era of war. Probably ranks in my 3 least favorite of the book, but that's like saying that cake is a little dry. New Rose Hotel is another personal favorite, about corporate espionage and the art of the double cross. This is linked to the sprawl stories, although it's hard to tell (certain companies are involved, and their outcome seems to be reflected and alluded to in the sprawl trilogy). Powerfully narrorated by a man about to die, it's light on the sci fi, but strong on Gibson's style. The Winter Market is an eerie tale about desire and raw drive. The interesting thing about this story is that a few people, including myself, have written stories before ever reading Gibson that share many of the same ideas and themes of this story. Dogfight is another one that's different. A story about desires, values, and passions, between a convict with a mental block and the college girl he meets with an equally strong mental block. Dogfight refers to a holographic game that the main character is obsessed with. Burning Chrome. We finally get to the namesake of this book, and we find Gibson in full stride, in lyrical command of his genre. Like Molly from Neuromancer, everything is right in place for Burning Chrome. His moves are down pat, his style oozes, and the delivery of the mood and atmosphere hit you like a jackhammer. Basic plot? Boy meets girl, boy goes on hacking job for girl so he can retire, girl falls for boy's chum and assistant, girl splits as boy & assistant strike it rich. Simple plot, but oh-so-powerful in it's delivery. Overall, Burning Chrome is worth the investment. Don't read Gibson to have intriguing, incredibly developed plot and characters, read it for the mood and style of the writing. Each page is like a work of art, carefully crafted to leave an emotion, an impression. In a fictional world where life is fragile, the easiest way to achieve immortality is to leave a lasting impression. This is the goal of all the arcane grammar, the lyrical prose, the point-blank blast of imagry that Gibson throws up. Don't try to analyze the plot, analyze the mood. It drips in each of the Sprawl stories.
Rating:
Summary: I keep re-reading it...
Review: I rather enjoyed this collection of stories, although I think Neuromancer is still his best work. I keep rereading it because everytime I see Johnny Mnemonic on TV, I want wipe the horrible acting from my head!!! The short stories are very interesting, and some of them simply freak me out.
Rating:
Summary: Very poorly written. Firewood is cheaper than burning chrome
Review: This is the worst collection of short stories ever written. William Gibson invented the word Cyberspace and it seems he is at a rush to use it so he can tell the people who publish dictionaries it has been published and used how ever many times in necessary so his word will appear in them. The stories are very poorly written, you have to read them over and over again to understand what is happening if you can at all. Obviously a writing course was not part of Gibson's multimedia education. He does have some good ideas for plots but he should have given them to someone who knows how to write so they would have been good stories. If you want a good cyber novel try the Blue Nowhere by Jeffery Deaver. If you want a novel on a cyber being thinking it can become human try Demon Seed by Dean Koontz. For a look at the future taken over by corporations try Jennifer Government by Max Barry. There's so many sensational books about either cyberspace or the future, don't waste your money or time on Burning Chrome. All Burning Chrome is good for is in the fireplace.
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