Reamde

By: Neal Stephenson

Narrated by: Malcolm Hillgartner

“Stephenson has a once-in-a-generation gift: he makes complex ideas clear, and he makes them funny, heartbreaking, and thrilling.” - Time

The #1 New York Times bestselling author of Anathem, Neal Stephenson is continually rocking the literary world with his brazen and brilliant fictional creations - whether he’s reimagining the past (The Baroque Cycle), inventing the future (Snow Crash), or both (Cryptonomicon). With Reamde, this visionary author whose mind-stretching fiction has been enthusiastically compared to the work of Thomas Pynchon, Don DeLillo, Kurt Vonnegut, and David Foster Wallace - not to mention William Gibson and Michael Crichton - once again blazes new ground with a high-stakes thriller that will enthrall his loyal audience, science and science fiction, and espionage fiction fans equally. The breathtaking tale of a wealthy tech entrepreneur caught in the very real crossfire of his own online fantasy war game, Reamde is a new high - and a new world - for the remarkable Neal Stephenson.

©2011 by Neal Stephenson. (P)2011 Brilliance Audio, all rights reserved.

Critic reviews

“Stephenson...delivers a sprawling thriller that shows him in complete control of his story.” (Publishers Weekly)

“Noir futurist Stephenson returns to cyberia with this fast-moving though sprawling techno-thriller...Who’ll prevail? We don’t know till the very end, thanks to Stephenson’s knife-sharp skills as a storyteller. An intriguing yarn—most geeky, and full of satisfying mayhem.” (Kirkus Reviews, starred review)

“Sometimes when you’re reading Neal Stephenson, he doesn’t just seem like one of the best novelists writing in English right now; he seems like the

only one.” (Lev Grossman, Time)

Thrill ride from start to end

I was a bit put off by Stephenson after Cryptonomicon, but he more than makes up for it in REAMDE. The characters are cerebral and distinct, each with their own quirks that come out brilliantly in the dialog.

The plot is continuously shifting, and each turn is punctuated by the resilience of the book's primary protagonist. No slow muddled storyline (which was my biggest gripe with Crypto) in REAMDE. Also, Stephenson show off his real 'nerd cred', which is as always technically accurate and non-embellished.

The narration is second to none. Hillgartner pulls off Russian, English, and CHinese accents with authenticity, and he often does it in the same breath.

Felt like a bait & switch

I was super excited for this story but it seemed like as soon as it got going about the virus that suddenly it was all about terrorists. It felt like Neal Stephenson really wanted to write a Tom Clancy novel but couldn’t let go of his Snow Crash roots. This novel is basically 2 totally separate stories that would have been better written that way. It would have created better standalone stories and not a War & Peace-sized behemoth. The story suffered as a result.

REAMDE = Smiles

Any additional comments?

I finished the gigantic book. With this complete let me say "wow". I feel like I have been dumped with details and information for weeks. Excellent story, interesting characters, and plenty to keep in wrapped up in it. If you are looking for a good read and something that will take up a lot of time you may plenty of, please read this book. My first book I've read by Neal Stephenson, I think I'm going to pick out a few more.

Reamde: Definitely Maybe Worth Every Minute

This novel, like most of Stephenson's, is not easy. I enjoy them, but they tend to be loooong, full of technology-talk, and maybe in need of some serious editing.

However, that's it for my negative comments. I think Stephenson has a genius for explaining technical/mathematical/philosophical/sociological/astronomical/financial/etc. concepts, theories, and applications in a way that allows his non technical/mathematical/etc. readers a glimpse into these difficult to understand fields. The bonus is that he does it in the context of a story, so it's entertaining as well as educational. I have learned to trust his knowledge and believe that he will not make stuff up or make mistakes.

I enjoyed the character performances of the narrator, Malcolm Hillgartner, and found his accents very good to acceptable (in a couple of cases).I was a bit put off by other reviews which trashed his abilities, but I found them either overly critical or just plain wrong.

If you're up for it, and have the time to devote to thought provoking ideas, a pretty good thriller-type story, and a very interesting look into the MMPORG game genre, you have your work cut out for you.

One of My All-Time Favorites

I love this book. It's fascinating and beautifully written. I think the characters are well-rounded and distinctive, and the action and storyline are top-notch and original. I've listened to it at least half a dozen times and liked it so much I also bought a hard copy, which is the opposite of my usual purchase sequence.
My copy of the audiobook is in the correct order (I purchased it in 2012.) If yours is out-of-sequence, call Audible support. I've had problems with certain books stuttering on my iPods and the support rep was able to help me straighten it out in very few minutes.