Critical Mass, Sensational “MultiReal” Review

June 5, 2008 @ 4:08 pm

Don D’Ammassa, science fiction reviewer par excellence, has given MultiReal an excellent review over at the Critical Mass website. Here’s what D’Ammassa has to say, in a review which I hope he doesn’t mind I’m quoting in full. For those too lazy or pressed for time to read the whole thing, I’ve helpfully bolded the part that makes me look good. (Though admittedly, in this font the boldface doesn’t stand out much. C’mon, read the whole review, you know you want to.)

The sequel to Infoquake builds on the setting and situations established in that novel. It’s a couple of centuries from now and technology has become smaller and more personal, including nanotechnology implanted directly into the human body. As with all new technologies, the uses to which it is put are not necessarily those which were originally foreseen. The protagonist, Natch, has made a breakthrough that could potentially change the world, and he’s been fighting a battle against organizations that sort of blend government and private industry and which seek to control the shape of the future. Although he foiled the opposition in the first book, thanks to some very unusual strategies, his enemies aren’t about to let things go that easily. Since they cannot crush him openly, they opt for a clandestine operation to undermine the company Natch controls from within. The stakes are more than just the financial rewards possible. There is a possibility that the human race could experience a form of freedom previously impossible, but also the chance that they could fall under a tyranny more insidious and irresistible than ever. I suppose you could call this cyberpunk because it’s very much about the interface between people and technology, but it’s also a very perceptive speculative look at how the human potential might be enhanced, or crippled, by its own creations. I look forward to the third book in the trilogy.

As a reminder: MultiReal will be hitting the stores in late July. (In the meantime, you can pre-order on Amazon.)