Neuromancer

William Gibson

Jul 2000 · Sprawl Trilogy Book 1 · Sold by Penguin

About this ebook

Winner of the Hugo, Nebula, and Philip K. Dick Awards, Neuromancer is a science fiction masterpiece—a classic that ranks as one of the twentieth century’s most potent visions of the future.

Case was the sharpest data-thief in the matrix—until he crossed the wrong people and they crippled his nervous system, banishing him from cyberspace. Now a mysterious new employer has recruited him for a last-chance run at an unthinkably powerful artificial intelligence. With a dead man riding shotgun and Molly, a mirror-eyed street-samurai, to watch his back, Case is ready for the adventure that upped the ante on an entire genre of fiction.

Neuromancer was the first fully-realized glimpse of humankind’s digital future—a shocking vision that has challenged our assumptions about technology and ourselves, reinvented the way we speak and think, and forever altered the landscape of our imaginations.

Ratings and reviews

By far one of the most important and influential sci-fi books of the outgoing 20th century. Also, at the time, highly original, even though the genre was ripe already. I still occasionally re-read it, and find it refreshing. Gibson has some idiosyncrasies to which my reaction flip-flops between amused recognition and somewhat eye-rolling recollection, like is style in describing outer appearances - including apparel. But if you look beyond his stylistic usage of shtics and jargon, there is a deeply humanistic mind. His writing is still relevant today. That's a handful for a sci-fi author. Gibson seems to do it accidentally, which it isn't. Welcome to the Sprawl. Welcome to old but new. Welcome to the sky tuned to a dead channel - which noone born today even knows...

"Cyberpunk is not about saving humanity, it's about saving yourself" Neuromancer. The book that started cyberpunk, and coined cyberspace. It also heavily influenced the matrix - had the matrix, had a Zion, and had Molly who Trinity was based off of. It was not an easy read. Scenes were disjointed, and the amount of world specific jargon was massive. The pace was odd, I didn't understand character motivations all the time, and I would catch myself a little lost at times. The story also lacked a little of the punch you would expect from a major book. However, the world and environment were brilliant. It's amazing to think that nothing like this was out there before. You read it for the atmosphere, the world, and the creativity more than anything else. I know a lot will stick with me - (spoilers: 3janes room, Molly, the Flatline, etc).

The story seems like it could have been really good, but was ruined by a completely garbled writing style. Anyone who says it's written poetically is lying to themselves and are only defending a book they desperately want to remain relevant. Never ever will I waste my time or money on William Gibson. On a separate note, his writing for the X Files was hackneyed at best. He may have poorly expressed an idea or two that were head of their time, but that time has passed.

About the author

William Gibson’s first novel, Neuromancer, won the Hugo Award, the Nebula Award, and the Philip K. Dick Award. He is the New York Times bestselling author of Count Zero, Burning Chrome, Mona Lisa Overdrive, Virtual Light, Idoru, All Tomorrow’s Parties, Pattern Recognition, Spook Country, Zero History, Distrust That Particular Flavor, and The Peripheral. He lives in Vancouver, British Columbia, with his wife.