Termination Shock

A Novel

By: Neal Stephenson

Narrated by: Edoardo Ballerini

Length: 22 hrs and 54 mins

Publisher's summary

New York Times Bestseller

From Neal Stephenson—who coined the term “metaverse” in his 1992 novel Snow Crash—comes a sweeping, prescient new thriller that transports listeners to a near-future world in which the greenhouse effect has inexorably resulted in a whirling-dervish troposphere of superstorms, rising sea levels, global flooding, merciless heat waves, and virulent, deadly pandemics.

“Stephenson is one of speculative fiction’s most meticulous architects. . . . Termination Shock manages to pull off a rare trick, at once wildly imaginative and grounded.” — New York Times Book Review

One man—visionary billionaire restaurant chain magnate T. R. Schmidt, Ph.D.—has a Big Idea for reversing global warming, a master plan perhaps best described as “elemental.” But will it work? And just as important, what are the consequences for the planet and all of humanity should it be applied?

Ranging from the Texas heartland to the Dutch royal palace in the Hague, from the snow-capped peaks of the Himalayas to the sunbaked Chihuahuan Desert, Termination Shock brings together a disparate group of characters from different cultures and continents who grapple with the real-life repercussions of global warming. Ultimately, it asks the question: Might the cure be worse than the disease?

Epic in scope while heartbreakingly human in perspective, Termination Shock sounds a clarion alarm, ponders potential solutions and dire risks, and wraps it all together in an exhilarating, witty, mind-expanding speculative adventure.

©2021 Neal Stephenson (P)2021 HarperCollins Publishers

What a great story

Yet another gripping and exciting one by Neal Stephenson. Thoroughly enjoyable and timely. In light of today’s climatic chaos created by greed, it’s worth thinking about the consequences of continuing the current course and direction.

Just a tad disappointed

I'm used to the author building a story over a long time. I'm not used to flimsy and predictable love/sex just thrown in to tie two characters. I'm used to the author pandering to the notion of the benevolent billionaire. I'm not used to it somehow justifying environmental ecocide for the benefit of one demographic. yes, it's just fiction - I get it. I'm also getting bored watching a great author trying to become the next Ayn Rand.

A Master of his Craft

A Queen, Comanche, Texan, and Sikh hero meet in a Texas showdown about CO2

Ended too soon!

What about Papua? Vadan? Was there termination shock? How long do we have to wait for the sequel? At first it seemed like the prequel to Seveneves but it opens up a much bigger discussion of geopolitics and climate change. Definitely worth another listen after I've digested this and done some homework. One of his best!

Lacks dramatic punch

A decent story, with lots of clever “ripped from the headlines” bits. Well written. However, the dramatic energy of the story was somewhat lacking. Fantastic reading by Edoardo Ballerini. Really top notch.

Interesting concept but didn't really deliver

I gave this a lot of time but the ending was meh. Never really showed how this changed the world or any of the color around this new era. it was mostly about the characters.

Entertaining and smart

I like Neal Stephenson's stories. This one might be more palatable for non-Stephenson fans.
I don't know if the story is plausible, but definitely thought provoking and a fun read.

Mediocre story, much longer than it needs to be.

I’m a fan of Neal Stephenson, and find much of his work to be truly extraordinary. He is an utterly unique voice and, when at his best, is unmatched. This book however succumbs to some of his worst tendencies as a writer. The story is exceedingly thin and somehow bloated to 22 plus hours of audio.

The novel starts out very well, introducing compelling characters in a unique survival situation. There is impressive bear future world building and it seems like it is going to barrel ahead as an action heavy, thought provoking thriller.

This impression quickly vanishes, however as we are soon treated to an almost endless, pointless detail heavy, unveiling of technology designed to combat climate change and rising sea levels. When finally unveiled, it is not that spectacular, though certainly interesting from a scientific standpoint. After all of this is revealed, nothing whatsoever of interest happens for a very long time.

The story takes is on the parallel track of a Sikh martial artist who eventually becomes a celebrity warrior known as Big Fish. His entire character arc appears to have nothing to do with the narrative until the very end of the book, so is mostly a frustrating element in a long tale straining to pick up steam. The bulk of the book alternates between him and the other characters established at the beginning of the book. There are long diversions into some of Stephenson’s favorite obsessions such as the functioning of other countries politics and the peculiarities of etiquette surrounding royals and society of that ilk. Such things are explored in excruciating detail.

There is no clear conflict explored for most of the book. Big moments that happen along the way, such as a Chinese plot to flood major cities, go seemingly nowhere, having no impact on the story. It is approximately 18 hours into the 22 hour audiobook before anything resembling a story with narrative drive emerges. When it finally does, it is entertaining enough, although ultimately somewhat anticlimactic.

I would rate this book lower were it not for the saving grace of Stephenson’s ever present wit, which makes even slogging through the dull parts tolerable.

If you have never read Stephenson, I would not start here.

Good story lines

There are a few different story lines going on at the same time, and each is interesting, but you know they are going to intersect before the end. The inclusion of very recent real world events (e.g. COVID and the White House events) as part of the backstory for some of the characters was cool. In addition to enjoying the story, I feel like I learned a few things that can be further researched in the real world.

High hopes dashed

I found the characters hard to follow. For me the combination of uncommon names and family connections was just more trouble than it was worth. I don’t mind the climate change theme but this got a little “preachy ” for me. Anyone who try’s to read/listen to this knows the facts presented. It doesn’t need a hammer to include them. The book starts off good but by the end it was work. Sure didn’t leave me wanting more.