Helpful Score: 2
This is an "And" book. (William Gibson and Bruce Sterling.) I think publishers push this lousy idea. I feel Gibson could be a real force in contemporary English Literature- every once in a while he throws lighting bolts that take your breath away. Sterling I'm not familiar with- have to read him soon. This novel is a clever "What if...?" book. Logic systems do not have to be driven electrically to compute, and what if Brittania still ruled? It's a good read.
Helpful Score: 2
The book is good, but not the best writing that Gibson has done. The setting is pre-industrial London and is something of an alternate history book. The characters are well written and the plot travels well except for a somewhat jarring jump about 3/4 of the way through when the main protagonists are changed and the last chapter, which is a random smattering of "writings of the time". I felt I could tell which parts were written by each author and I preferred those I feel were Gibsons, who is one of my favorite authors.