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Quarantine

Quarantine

List Price: $5.99
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Product Info Reviews

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Rating: 4 stars
Summary: A wild ride into parallel universes
Review: Although one of his earlier books, it was an interesting romp through the semantics and mechanics of parallel universes theory. And I got a real kick out of the memory implants (with price tag the first time they appeared). Almost had me wanting to go online to Axon and download them for my own use...

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Great ideas, good execution, Egan at his best.
Review: Another mind bender from Egan. This is one of his better works. Who would have thought that you could use the Uncertainty Principle as a major plot device in a book like this? While I was reading this book, and shortly thereafter, my mind certainly felt "smeared". All I could do was "collapse" in mental exhaustion :)

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Great ideas, good execution, Egan at his best.
Review: Another mind bender from Egan. This is one of his better works. Who would have thought that you could use the Uncertainty Principle as a major plot device in a book like this? While I was reading this book, and shortly thereafter, my mind certainly felt "smeared". All I could do was "collapse" in mental exhaustion :)

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Mindblowing
Review: Another one of the best SF novels of the 1990s. Egan crams a number of good ideas and fascinating concepts into this piece of work. The prose is serviceable, but in a work of this scope and daring, who cares?

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Strangely human science extrapolation
Review: Egan's "Quarantine" is an elaborate mind-bender that takes place after the formation of the "Bubble," an impenetrable veil that mysteriously encapsulates the solar system. Against a backdrop of subdued hysteria and infinitely useful neural modification, "Quarantine" focuses on the inexplicable disappearance of a mental patient and the mind-stretching lengths a private detective goes to find her...and whatever's left of his own identity after the death of his wife. What he finds proves to be one of the most intriguing plot devices in science fiction, handled with the same sensibility on display in "Distress." Egan's deeply human treatment of futuristic ideas (artificial personalities, quantum matter manipulation) makes "Quarantine" a topical, innovative read as gripping as Greg Bear's "Blood Music" or Arthur C. Clarke's "Rendezvous with Rama." Greg Egan is a contemporary master of the genre.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Mind Blowing
Review: Fantastic book -- Egan's earlier work like this and Axiomatic is some of the best hard science fiction ever written. He's always enjoyable but the early stuff is decidely more accessible as well as being truly innovative and dramatic.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Brilliant, fun, and educational
Review: I absolutely loved this book! I knew little about Quantum mechanics before reading this, and now I have a good understanding of the concepts covered in this book. I learned something, but I also had a great time reading the story.

He develops some brilliant ideas, including neural mods that allow you to "program" your brain and run "apps" and tools to control your body, your thought processes, your emotions, etc.

I didn't like that it was set in New Hong Kong, though. The Chinese names really ran together and made it harder for me to visualize the characters, especially considering that he is an Australian writer writing for an English-speaking audience.

The ending really left me pondering. I don't think that I would have chosen that particular ending, but it is satisfying and left me wanting for more!

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: The publisher led me astray
Review: I bought this book because I liked the premise: One day in 2034, the stars go out. Our entire solar system is enclosed in a sphere, and we don't know who or what caused this "quarantine." But that premise recedes into the background as the story focuses on the mystery of a woman's disappearance from a mental hospital. I don't like detective stories, and the brain modification technology in the book didn't really grab me, so I quit reading.

It turns out that this is actually a story about quantum mechanics, but the title, the cover, and the publisher's description suggest otherwise. If you're intrigued by the quarantine, don't bother with "Quarantine," but if you like sci fi PI stories or are intrigued by quantum mechanics, perhaps you'll enjoy it.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: The always impressive Greg Egan
Review: I ended up finding Greg Egan by mistake. My last name is Egan, and while browsing through the SF section, I ran into this author with the similar name. Thought I would do a look see, and ended up loving his work! Since that time, I have read almost every book he has written. I am always highly impressed by his imagination, and at the same time incorporating hard SF into his stories. His predicted theories may or may not be plausible, but nontheless, they make you think! Quarantine kept me on the edge, I couldnt put it down! Like other reviewers have mentioned previously, Egan deals in hard SF, to such a point you may have to stop reading for a moment and think it out. Its well worth the read, and I recommend his other books such as Permutation City.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Insufficient Ending
Review: I felt that this was a good book to read, but at times it tried my patience. Parts of the book that seem crucial at the beginning are never followed up on and that is kind of dissapointing. The story could flow a little more evenly as well. The ending leaves much to be desired, but the concepts and ideas that are presented make you wonder. I think it is a good read, just be patient through the boring parts.


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