Rating: 
Summary: Fascinating! I loved it.
Review: As a computer programmer, I found the premise and the theory fascinating. Once again, another Hogan book that I couldn't put down until I was finished.
Rating:
Summary: Fascinating! I loved it.
Review: As a computer programmer, I found the premise and the theory fascinating. Once again, another Hogan book that I couldn't put down until I was finished.
Rating:
Summary: Still the best SF book on intelligent computers.
Review: Hogan spent time discussing the premise of this book with such AI geniuses as Marvin Minsky, and it shows. A very plausible scenario and exciting execution. Also available as a well-adapted comic book from Dark Horse Comics.
Rating:
Summary: Still the best SF book on intelligent computers.
Review: If I had the money, I'd get this story made into a movie! If you like Sci-Fi, and liked 2001 a lot, you've gotta give this a read. I've read it three times so far, and I'm about to order it so I can read it again (I've never owned it.)
Rating:
Summary: Better Than A Space Odyssey
Review: If I had the money, I'd get this story made into a movie! If you like Sci-Fi, and liked 2001 a lot, you've gotta give this a read. I've read it three times so far, and I'm about to order it so I can read it again (I've never owned it.)
Rating:
Summary: Great book! Glad they re-issued it-very pertinent for today.
Review: Read this story in '82 and was very impressed. Should stand well today and deals with a most important question which we'll have to face eventually. Has exciting ending and would make excellent film.
Rating: 
Summary: Good projection, flawed story
Review: The technology projection and some of the AI concepts explored are very well done, especially given when it was written. The book itself suffers from some flat & predictable elements (a la a standard SF-action movie), a slow windup, and what seems an implausible set up for the second half (i.e., not a very good experiment). Finally, the characters never seemed to reach full 3D development.Overall, an entertaining read, some very interesting ideas, and a story wrapper that I wish could've been set up better. If you're reading for just the ideas and are not familiar with the AI concepts in the book, this is well worth it. If you're familiar with the concepts, then this can be an enjoyable read anyway.
Rating:
Summary: Good projection, flawed story
Review: The technology projection and some of the AI concepts explored are very well done, especially given when it was written. The book itself suffers from some flat & predictable elements (a la a standard SF-action movie), a slow windup, and what seems an implausible set up for the second half (i.e., not a very good experiment). Finally, the characters never seemed to reach full 3D development. Overall, an entertaining read, some very interesting ideas, and a story wrapper that I wish could've been set up better. If you're reading for just the ideas and are not familiar with the AI concepts in the book, this is well worth it. If you're familiar with the concepts, then this can be an enjoyable read anyway.
Rating:
Summary: Most influential AI SF
Review: This is book ignited my interest in AI. I recently bought a used copy, signed by Hogan. Looking at it again, Hogan is a much weaker writer than I had remembered, but his vision was dead on. Clarke's HAL is completely unrealistic in comparision to Hogan's Hector and Sparticus.
Rating:
Summary: Hard science, flat characters, plot a bit stretched.
Review: This one is a toughie to review. It has Hogan's usual faults (although I should qualify that by saying I'm still working on his older books)--pretty one-dimensional characters as interchangeable with each other as so many cardboard dolls, and a tremendous amount of boring yahda-yahda which I gather is hard science. Even so, it is a tremendously gripping book. No wonder I was infuriated by all of the scientific babblespeak--who could stand to wade through it to get to the end? Obviously, some other readers could. I too had the thought that this book would make an excellent movie--the great part about that is that then all of the intricate computer science gobbledygook would disappear and the premise and characters would come to the fore as they should. Apologies to those who really like this sort of hard science, but I've read Kim Stanley Robinson and Stephen Baxter and they know how to pack novels with hard science and still make them a joy to read. I'm still continuing to read Hogan, but the best SF is more than just intricate details of advanced engineering ideas. "Two Faces" has a fascinating premise, a very suspenseful plot, and a satisfying ending, and with those taken together, it's a worthwhile read.
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