7 ms·

Reamde, by Neal Stephenson. Yeah, the big daddy of cyberpunk ("Snowcrash") also wrote a contemporary technothriller set in organized cybercrime organizations.

by ovi256 8y ago

madmax108 8y ago
Heard very mixed reviews of Reamde. Could you please tell me what elements you liked of the book? It's been on my reading list for a while but the mixed reviews always lead to it being left for another day
- mcrider 8y ago
  Its a fun book, and a good intro to Stephenson (it was my first book I read of his, and now I've read four others). But if you've read his other stuff first or are a more hardcore sci-fi nerd, its easy to think that its a little closer to a blockbuster thriller than science fiction.
- anubisresources 8y ago
  Its very different from Stephenson's other novels. Its much more of a thriller with a few tech elements thrown in. I really enjoyed it, but don't go in expecting another cryptonomicon.
- jillesvangurp 8y ago
  Disclaimer, I'm a big Neal Stephenson fan. Reamde, is a fast paced techno thriller. It's arguably one of his lesser novels but still a ton of fun IMHO. The premise of the book is that of an online game that is essentially similar to world of warcraft with the difference that the entire point of the game is the in game economy. This part of the book is pretty well developed and ties in nicely with his other novels that also deal with money, gold, crypto currencies, etc. The crisis in the game is when a group of enterprising chinese hackers deploy a virus that encrypts people's laptops via a bit of ransomware distributed via email. To unlock their computers people are to pay some of the in game gold in a particular area. All goes sideways through a set of rather unlikely coincidences. There are a lot of other elements being dragged into this including a fair bit of gun wielding by terrorists, russian mafia, and the protagonist and his somewhat libertarian family. This is is not the most innovative plot and it is ultimately a relatively one dimensional plot that is in places a bit cringeworthy. I still enjoyed this book and have read it multiple times. It's got plenty of side plots, detailed musings, and so on that are typical for Neal Stephenson. If you enjoy that kind of thing, this book is fine but it's no Anathem or Snow Crash.
  - pavel_lishin 8y ago
    > somewhat libertarian family Boy, that's putting it mildly. :)
menacingly 8y ago
I'm a big Stephenson fan, and I thought Reamde was terrible. His usual quirky pacing just turns into a dragging nightmare that never pays off, it's uncharacteristically full of questionable technical premises, and if it weren't for a few islands of genuinely entertaining scenes I would not have made it through. I honestly believe it's the result of some suit pressuring him to write about topics people see on Dateline
- tyu100 8y ago
  Yeah, I would skip this and read Cryptonomicon again.
- pavel_lishin 8y ago
  It definitely dragged on, but overall I thought it was enjoyable. He definitely kept building up to climaxes throughout the whole book - on an airplane, I kept sadly checking the percentage read because I was sure I was almost done with it, only to discover that I was only 30%, 50%, 70% along... If you're a Stephenson fan, I would absolutely give this a read.
- cdjk 8y ago
  Maybe - but he finally figured out how to write an ending.
- ghaff 8y ago
  The other thing about Reamde is that it's one of those books that depends on case after case of events happening and aligning in a very particular way or there wouldn't be a story.
- samuel 8y ago
  I wholeheartedly agree. I only finished it because it was his, but I feared he could be «losing it». Fortunately seveneves was again spectacular.
brk 8y ago
I was going to recommend Reamde as well. I think it is best to look at it as an interesting spin on the typical cybercrime story, and not as a "Neil Stephenson" book specifically. In other words, read it for the story, not for the author.
e12e 8y ago
Bit of a stretch to call out Stephenson as a "big daddy of cyberpunk"? What title would you give to Sterling and Gibson?
- stormcode 8y ago
  Stephenson is more post cyberpunk really.

Reamde, by Neal Stephenson. Yeah, the big daddy of cyberpunk ("Snowcrash") also wrote a contemporary technothriller set in organized cybercrime organizations.

by ovi256 8y ago

Reamde, by Neal Stephenson. Yeah, the big daddy of cyberpunk ("Snowcrash") also wrote a contemporary technothriller set in organized cybercrime organizations.

madmax108 8y ago

Heard very mixed reviews of Reamde. Could you please tell me what elements you liked of the book? It's been on my reading list for a while but the mixed reviews always lead to it being left for another day

mcrider 8y ago
Its a fun book, and a good intro to Stephenson (it was my first book I read of his, and now I've read four others). But if you've read his other stuff first or are a more hardcore sci-fi nerd, its easy to think that its a little closer to a blockbuster thriller than science fiction.
anubisresources 8y ago
Its very different from Stephenson's other novels. Its much more of a thriller with a few tech elements thrown in. I really enjoyed it, but don't go in expecting another cryptonomicon.
jillesvangurp 8y ago
Disclaimer, I'm a big Neal Stephenson fan. Reamde, is a fast paced techno thriller. It's arguably one of his lesser novels but still a ton of fun IMHO. The premise of the book is that of an online game that is essentially similar to world of warcraft with the difference that the entire point of the game is the in game economy. This part of the book is pretty well developed and ties in nicely with his other novels that also deal with money, gold, crypto currencies, etc. The crisis in the game is when a group of enterprising chinese hackers deploy a virus that encrypts people's laptops via a bit of ransomware distributed via email. To unlock their computers people are to pay some of the in game gold in a particular area. All goes sideways through a set of rather unlikely coincidences. There are a lot of other elements being dragged into this including a fair bit of gun wielding by terrorists, russian mafia, and the protagonist and his somewhat libertarian family. This is is not the most innovative plot and it is ultimately a relatively one dimensional plot that is in places a bit cringeworthy. I still enjoyed this book and have read it multiple times. It's got plenty of side plots, detailed musings, and so on that are typical for Neal Stephenson. If you enjoy that kind of thing, this book is fine but it's no Anathem or Snow Crash.
- pavel_lishin 8y ago
  > somewhat libertarian family Boy, that's putting it mildly. :)

menacingly 8y ago

I'm a big Stephenson fan, and I thought Reamde was terrible. His usual quirky pacing just turns into a dragging nightmare that never pays off, it's uncharacteristically full of questionable technical premises, and if it weren't for a few islands of genuinely entertaining scenes I would not have made it through. I honestly believe it's the result of some suit pressuring him to write about topics people see on Dateline

tyu100 8y ago
Yeah, I would skip this and read Cryptonomicon again.
pavel_lishin 8y ago
It definitely dragged on, but overall I thought it was enjoyable. He definitely kept building up to climaxes throughout the whole book - on an airplane, I kept sadly checking the percentage read because I was sure I was almost done with it, only to discover that I was only 30%, 50%, 70% along... If you're a Stephenson fan, I would absolutely give this a read.
cdjk 8y ago
Maybe - but he finally figured out how to write an ending.
ghaff 8y ago
The other thing about Reamde is that it's one of those books that depends on case after case of events happening and aligning in a very particular way or there wouldn't be a story.
samuel 8y ago
I wholeheartedly agree. I only finished it because it was his, but I feared he could be «losing it». Fortunately seveneves was again spectacular.

brk 8y ago

I was going to recommend Reamde as well. I think it is best to look at it as an interesting spin on the typical cybercrime story, and not as a "Neil Stephenson" book specifically. In other words, read it for the story, not for the author.

e12e 8y ago

Bit of a stretch to call out Stephenson as a "big daddy of cyberpunk"? What title would you give to Sterling and Gibson?

stormcode 8y ago
Stephenson is more post cyberpunk really.