Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #69638 in Books
• Published on: 2004-11
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Mass Market Paperback
• 640 pages

Customer Reviews

Good but Uneven
As other reviewers have suggested, this is an adventure somewhat along the lines of Richard Morgan or Neal Asher, not to mention Peter Hamilton, where an important element in the plot is the augmentation of humans so that they're in quasi telepathic hard-wired "internet" connection with each other. Likewise the relationship between humans & AIs, particularly the protagonist, Major Catherine Li, and her long-standing AI friend Cohen. This aspect leads to the major plot development which, although not difficult to spot, I will not spoil here. There is also extreme and repeated violence, not least from our very "unfeminine" anti-heroine.

At times Moriarty plunges into the story, especially some of the dialogue, leaving us to understand as best we can what is being discussed. I quite like this to a degree, it's as if we're dragged from the 21st Century & given a glimpse of the future - quite a lot would puzzle us at first. Later come the passages of explanation when we've probably figured out quite a lot which seemed a bit of a let-down or even laboured at times. I also found that some of the dialogue, particularly philosophical discussions went on too long. I can understand why they're there; this is a book about ideas, not just a beat/shoot-em-up, but I would have preferred the process to be streamlined so that the ideas were embedded in the story more, rather than interrupting its progress.

Although It's a long book, the plot turned & twisted just a little too much for me (slipping in & out of VR when Li's experiences were described identically to her real-world ones) & at times I couldn't quite keep tabs on all of the characters. I still enjoyed the book (& stayed awake too many nights finishing just one more chapter) but if you haven't read the authors mentioned above, give them a go too - similar territory but more flowing writing.

Good stuff
This is a very tightly woven and tightly written tale of artificial intelligence, activist miners, murder and identity. Catherine Li, sent unwillingly to her home planet to investigate the mysterious death of a famous scientist, is a memorable heroine. Also features embittered Irish militants, mourning the fact that their native land is now covered in glaciers. Recommended.

Sci fi by numbers
This is a workmanlike technothriller - enjoyable enough, but hardly living up to the promises of 'compelling speculative fiction' that I read in the reviews.

The story takes a while to get going, and I found myself 'tsk'ing over some of the engineering (the description of Alba's life support system in particular had me rolling my eyes - it didn't sound at all right). The characters are well described, but they all seemed far too normal to me; frankly, I felt the whole story could have been transplanted to a twentieth century diamond mine without losing much at all. The science fictiony bit felt like a veneer - a well applied, good-looking veneer, but a veneer nonetheless.

What Spin State does have is an action-packed, twisty plot, and characters who talk about relationships. Granted, even the AI groupminds sound like they've just stepped out of a Clive Cussler, but the pace is good, and the second half of the book scoots along nicely. Pick it up for entertainment, not philosophy.