Noir

by K.W. Jeter

Book Overview

L.A.: the sparkling metropolis at the new center of what's left of the civilized world. Here wealthy men and women seek forbidden thrills through a system that enables them to indulge safely and... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Mass Market Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0553576380
• ISBN13: 9780553576382
• Release Date: September 1999
• Publisher: Spectra Books
• Length: 496 Pages
• Weight: 0.56 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.1" x 4.2" x 6.9"

Customer Reviews

Stylish

Noir is cool. It has atmosphere and style and enough substance to back it up. The book sparkles with gripping visuals, betrayal, a very submerged streak of romanticism in the lead and a nasty but fun sense of humor.In fact it's very...well, noir-ish. The first chapter is hard to get through, disconnected and odd and reading like a fever dream. The story coheres quickly as you move onwards however, and it ties in neatly with the rest of the book. Noir might appeal to fans of Philip K. Dick or Steve Aylett (Although Noir's story is clearer than most of their's. Once the final revelations are pulled up the plot isn't actually terribly complex, but the ideas and characters Jeter used to move it along are interesting -- cynical and snappy and entertaining).Noir has a strange ring of truth to it. The little jabs and philosophies Jeter brings out aren't completely new but pertinent all the same. Set within a slightly quirky cyberpunk background, it's a welcome change of pace from most of the sci-fi out there.

Hard but Good

Noir is a book that one has to want to read. The first chapter throws you into the setting too quickly for you to understand, but for those what dare read on, it gets better. Noir, like all cyberpunk fiction, takes place in a bleak future. The world of Noir is dark and gloomy, reminiscent of the word noir itself. Corporations are few but powerful, either merged or subsidized into larger ones. Middle-class can be said to be non-existent, and death is no longer an escape from poverty. It has a lot of statements against certain issues that are present today, such as management and information theft, that are blown out of proportion. The plot revolves around McNihil, a protector of copyrights, who sees the entire world like an old black & white detective movie. He gets hired by one of the huge corporations to retrieve something, and gets thrown into something larger than he could have imagined. The storytelling is of excellent quality, allowing deep visualization of the scenes in the book. However, many minor things get overlooked, but it doesn't impede the story all that much. I enjoyed this book a lot, and would recommend it to anyone who can devote enough time to this book to fully appreciate it. My suggestion is to be ready to reread things, as things can get very difficult. If you can get past the difficult parts, the book can be very enjoyable.

Intro to cyberpunk

This is the first book I have read of the 'cyberpunk' genre. I am thoroughly impressed. I had no idea that really good science fiction had been written in the past decade. At one point after reading it, I saw an advertisment for an ISP, 'Get connected!' My reactionary responce was, 'Yeah, SAME TO YOU!' :) Now I am reading Neuromancer by Gibson and thus far find myself mildly dissapointed. I look forward to reading other Jeter novels in the future.

Rich, dense prose tells a dark and inventive tale.

This is a wonderful and challenging novel, a study in rich, dense prose and inventive detail. It's aptly titled, doing homage to the dark tradition of films in which nothing is as it seems, and every character has a dark side. It's a vision of a future we won't want to realize, but which is irresistible to read about!

Excellent! Both fast-paced and thoughtful.

This turned out to be everything the NY Times said it would be: "The science fiction equivalent of THE NAME OF THE ROSE." A fast-paced thriller with deep philosophical content, a true fable for our times and the world for which we're heading. Recommended!