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twowheelsaway's review against another edition
3.0
This was a pretty decent science fiction read. I picked it up yesterday morning before the library
cafe opened to read-- it was very snowy, and I wasn't expecting too much in the way of customers. I got home and, still feeling sick, spent the day in bed reading off and on.
In essence, this book is sort of a dystopian crime novel-- two unlikely allies work together to crack a case that the Police State has written off. The main character is tolerable, and she leans a little too heavily on airplane metaphors-- the other characters around her aren't much more exciting. The characters are not really the strong point of the book though: its ideas are.
This book presents some pretty interesting future-oriented ideas-- what if Universal Income is one of the worst things that can happen to a society? What would it look like if we could access people's memories? It stays away from my pet peeve of getting too deep in speculative science, opting instead to simply ask us to trust that it works.
Most interesting, though, are its ideas that are applicable right now. I won't spoil it, but the book does something incredibly clever which caused me to have to confront some of my own prejudices. In a book about the ways memory can be tainted, it was very interesting to essentially have the same thing done to myself.
This ingenious device is the main thing that elevated the book up to a four star read for me, and if you are into dystopian sci-fi, the book reads smoothly, is paced well, and will make you think a little bit.
cafe opened to read-- it was very snowy, and I wasn't expecting too much in the way of customers. I got home and, still feeling sick, spent the day in bed reading off and on.
In essence, this book is sort of a dystopian crime novel-- two unlikely allies work together to crack a case that the Police State has written off. The main character is tolerable, and she leans a little too heavily on airplane metaphors-- the other characters around her aren't much more exciting. The characters are not really the strong point of the book though: its ideas are.
This book presents some pretty interesting future-oriented ideas-- what if Universal Income is one of the worst things that can happen to a society? What would it look like if we could access people's memories? It stays away from my pet peeve of getting too deep in speculative science, opting instead to simply ask us to trust that it works.
Most interesting, though, are its ideas that are applicable right now. I won't spoil it, but the book does something incredibly clever which caused me to have to confront some of my own prejudices. In a book about the ways memory can be tainted, it was very interesting to essentially have the same thing done to myself.
This ingenious device is the main thing that elevated the book up to a four star read for me, and if you are into dystopian sci-fi, the book reads smoothly, is paced well, and will make you think a little bit.
staticmemories's review against another edition
challenging
dark
informative
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
sprytely's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.0
chevaliercreates's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
burnt_squash's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Self harm
Moderate: Violence
millymollymo's review against another edition
5.0
The Synapse Sequence is blockbuster waiting to happen.
If you weren't paranoid enough about how your data is being used in the present, this near-future thriller will make sure you are.
There was so much about this I enjoyed, by using perspective and questioning our own prejudices Godfrey has once again created a page turner, and he captures the zestiest with a frightening prediction of the future.
(Full review to follow on SFFWorld once my brain is back in the real world.)
*Advance Review Copy courtesy of Publisher(Titan Books)
If you weren't paranoid enough about how your data is being used in the present, this near-future thriller will make sure you are.
There was so much about this I enjoyed, by using perspective and questioning our own prejudices Godfrey has once again created a page turner, and he captures the zestiest with a frightening prediction of the future.
(Full review to follow on SFFWorld once my brain is back in the real world.)
*Advance Review Copy courtesy of Publisher(Titan Books)
bookwormmichelle's review
5.0
Really Good! This was so much better than I expected; it was hard to put down and a little Inceptionesque (was she in the sequencer, or not? Did that really happen, or not?) with a great flawed main character and just . . . good.
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