The Peripheral: Now a major new TV series with Amazon Prime
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- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2022-10-24 06:52:57
- Update Date：2025-09-07
- Status：finish
- Author：William Gibson
- ISBN：0241998964
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Summary
Discover the cult classic behind the major new TV adaption from the creators of Westworld， starring Chloe Grace Moretz。
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'Big-screen， popcorn-chewing thrills' Guardian
Flynne Fisher lives in the rural American South， working at the local 3D printing shop， while earning much needed extra money playing VR games for rich people。 One night she dons a headset and finds herself in futuristic London-a sleek and mysterious world， alluringly different from her own hardscrabble existence。 But this isn't like any game she's ever played before: Flynne begins to realize it isn't virtual reality。。。 it's real。
Someone in London， seventy years in the future， has found a way to open a door to Flynne's world。 And as utterly beguiling as London is。。。 it's also dangerous。 As Flynne searches to discover who has connected their worlds， and for what purpose， her presence here sets dangerous forces into motion。。。forces intent on destroying Flynne and her family in her own world。
The Peripheral is master storyteller William Gibson's dazzling， hallucinatory glimpse into the fate of mankind - and what lies beyond。
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'Mesmerizing， captivating， haunting' Sunday Times
'Frightening， plausible。 Not just a unique and brilliantly talented SF novelist but a social and psychological visionary' The Times
'Frantic with imagination and frantic with the appetite to see what happens next' Observer
'A swirlingly philosophical quantum daydream of drones and bodyswapping' Daily Telegraph， Books of the Year
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'Big-screen， popcorn-chewing thrills' Guardian
Flynne Fisher lives in the rural American South， working at the local 3D printing shop， while earning much needed extra money playing VR games for rich people。 One night she dons a headset and finds herself in futuristic London-a sleek and mysterious world， alluringly different from her own hardscrabble existence。 But this isn't like any game she's ever played before: Flynne begins to realize it isn't virtual reality。。。 it's real。
Someone in London， seventy years in the future， has found a way to open a door to Flynne's world。 And as utterly beguiling as London is。。。 it's also dangerous。 As Flynne searches to discover who has connected their worlds， and for what purpose， her presence here sets dangerous forces into motion。。。forces intent on destroying Flynne and her family in her own world。
The Peripheral is master storyteller William Gibson's dazzling， hallucinatory glimpse into the fate of mankind - and what lies beyond。
-----
'Mesmerizing， captivating， haunting' Sunday Times
'Frightening， plausible。 Not just a unique and brilliantly talented SF novelist but a social and psychological visionary' The Times
'Frantic with imagination and frantic with the appetite to see what happens next' Observer
'A swirlingly philosophical quantum daydream of drones and bodyswapping' Daily Telegraph， Books of the Year
Reviews
John Camacho
，
Didn't really care for it。 Probably was the narrator Didn't really care for it。 Probably was the narrator 。。。more
Bryan Kroger
，
Aweful and convoluted Didn't bother reading the entire thing。 Had to go to the wiki page to get the summary and even that was a winding， convoluted mess。 I regret buying this book， and wasting my time on this drivel。 Aweful and convoluted Didn't bother reading the entire thing。 Had to go to the wiki page to get the summary and even that was a winding， convoluted mess。 I regret buying this book， and wasting my time on this drivel。 。。。more
Майя Ставитская
，
The first season of the series based on the novel has started on Amazon Prime Video， such things usually spur readers' interest in a literary source。 I'm not the biggest fan of the gloomy aesthetics and marginal characters of William Gibson， but I wanted to read this book， and I wasn't disappointed。If you also plan to take up it， this text will help you understand the realities and not give up at the start - Gibson is not the author who explains in detail to the reader the structure of his world The first season of the series based on the novel has started on Amazon Prime Video， such things usually spur readers' interest in a literary source。 I'm not the biggest fan of the gloomy aesthetics and marginal characters of William Gibson， but I wanted to read this book， and I wasn't disappointed。If you also plan to take up it， this text will help you understand the realities and not give up at the start - Gibson is not the author who explains in detail to the reader the structure of his world， with unaccustomed you can not get burned， but get not the most pleasant sensations and decide that it is not worth continuing。 Is worth。So， "Peripheral devices": the action takes place in two time strata， the first is about the thirties of our reality， the second is +70 years by the time of the first。 In the first， drones and 3D printers have become so much a part of everyday life that they are already perceived as a boring detail of it。 Freedom and welfare are neither。 nothing else was added， the rich got a little richer， the poor became even more impoverished， an American peripheral town （the title of the book is ambiguous， as a good name should be）， a very simple family。Партия в периферансбольшое зло не блистательно， оно просто возникает из заурядного мелкого зла， если тому дать возможность вырасти。На Amazon Prime Video стартовал первый сезон сериала по роману， такие вещи обычно подстегивают читательский интерес к литературному источнику。 Я не самая большая поклонница мрачной эстетики и маргинальных героев Уильями Гибсона но эту книгу я захотела читать， и не разочаровалась。Если вы тоже планируете взяться за нее， этот текст поможет разобраться в реалиях и не бросить на старте - Гибсон не тот автор， который подробно объясняет читателю устройство своего мира， с непривычки можно не то， чтобы обжечься， но получить не самые приятные ощущения и решить， что не стоит продолжать。 Стоит。Итак， "Периферийные устройства": действие разворачивается в двух временных стратах， первая около тридцатых нашей реальности， вторая - +70 лет ко времени первой。 В первой дроны и 3D-принтеры настолько стали частью повседневности， что воспринимаются уже как скучная ее деталь。 Свободы и благосостояния ни то。 ни другое не прибавили， богатые чуть разбогатели， бедные еще больше обеднели， американский периферийный городок （название книги многозначно， как и положено хорошему названию）， очень простая семья。Юная Флинн， которую в экранизации исполняет Хлоя Морец， ухаживает за больной матерью。 Вообще， она хотела бы завербоваться в армию， для простых молодых людей из таких мухосрансков это единственная возможность покинуть низший класс и перейти в средний: армия， потом колледж， потом много-много работать， и наконец стать своим в новой среде。 Хотя в случае с ее братом Бертоном идеальная схема не с работала， с Гаптической войны он вернулся с ПТСР， а такое не сильно способствует дальнейшему личностному и социальному росту。 Флинн работает в 3D-мастерской， ездит на велике， ухаживает за больной мамой。Все начинается когда брат просит подменить его в тестировании новой компьютерной игры - то， что сами они хотели бы считать подработкой， но на деле основной вид его заработка。 Если вы думаете， что вот какая классная жизнь， сиди играй， а тебе за это еще и деньги будут платить， то вы сильно ошибаетесь。 Работа， она всегда работа， и требования к добросовестности высоки， и торчать за компом порой приходится сутками， чуть ли не в памперсах， и в прохождении изворачиваться немыслимыми способами。 Но здесь особых сложностей не ожидается。 Патрулируй башню， где проходит VIP-вечеринка от дронов папарацци и сильно не напрягайся。Однако в процессе наблюдения Флинн становится свидетельницей крайне неприятного происшествия。 Молодая женщина оказывается убита уж очень изощренным способом и явно не без участия ее красавца спутника。 Убита так， что и тела не остается。 Мерзко конечно， но в играх чего только не случается - думает Флинн， уже смутно догадываясь， что происходящее не совсем игра или даже совсем не игра。И да， на самом деле она не тестировала игру， а была нанята （ну， брат был） человеком из того самого своего +70， хотя не вполне своего，но объясню позже。 Среди множества замечательно удобных и полезных изобретений этого будущего некий сервер， позволяющий проникать в прошлое， эксплуатируя его как империи в колониальной системе используют колонии， творить。 что хочется。 То есть？ А как же временные петли， парадоксы， эффекты бабочек и вот это вот все？На их жизни это никак не отразится。 Сервер работает не с прошлым собственной реальности， но с ответвлениями， которые здесь называют "срезами"。 В дивном новом мире трудятся наноботы: хочешь дворец построят， хочешь - любой деликатес синтезируют， вылечить от любой болезни， опять же， могут таким специальным приборчиком "Медичи"。 Двусмысленная название， учитывая， чем прославилась королева Екатерина из одноименной династии， и тем не менее。А еще там уйма перифералей， （от "периферийное устройство"， вроде принтера） собственно роман так и называется The Peripheral - синтезированных наноботами искусственных людей （и не только， хочешь собаку с геномом тасманийского дьявола - будет тебе такой песик）。 А зачем？ Не， ну есть утилитарные цели， слуги всех сортов， компаньоны для пожилых， няни детям。 Но главное， там очень мало людей。 Почти совсем не осталось。 Большая часть популяции уничтожена чередой техногенных и природных катастроф。 Ого！ Вот так。То есть， Гибсон делает совершенно революционную вещь。 Моделирует постап-реальность не в виде мерзости запустения， в которой человек человеку волк， а самым нарядным вариантом。 какой только можно вообразить。 Ради чудес и диковин этого мира， а главное - ради концепта， читать определенно стоит。Ну и за тем。 чтобы ощутить как чувствует себя человек， чье сознание оказывается в куда более совершенном теле периферали。 。。。more
Rezlaj
，
3。5+ rounded up。
James Hackworth
，
Real Sci FiA really good read with believable science。 Fast paced but with enough detail to pull you in。 Can’t wait to watch the Amazon adaptation。
Janet Fraser
，
As usual with Gibson， this story and its characters grabbed me and wouldn't let go。 This one feels like a speculative/action film on paper but better because you can control your own personalized instant replay。 As usual with Gibson， this story and its characters grabbed me and wouldn't let go。 This one feels like a speculative/action film on paper but better because you can control your own personalized instant replay。 。。。more
Mauricio （Maponto Lee）
，
Cada década， algunas piezas de tecnología de punta （como la realidad aumentada o los drones） se abren camino hacia el futuro imaginario。 Sean o no comunes en la vida real， se apoderan de nuestra imaginación tan bien que apenas nos cuestionamos si pertenecen a la ciencia ficción; en cierto modo， siempre están allí， junto con computadoras más poderosas y una moda más extraña。 A veces， lo hacemos bien。 A menudo， lo hacemos mal， o al menos lo hacemos bien de una manera que está fuera de lugar， como Cada década， algunas piezas de tecnología de punta （como la realidad aumentada o los drones） se abren camino hacia el futuro imaginario。 Sean o no comunes en la vida real， se apoderan de nuestra imaginación tan bien que apenas nos cuestionamos si pertenecen a la ciencia ficción; en cierto modo， siempre están allí， junto con computadoras más poderosas y una moda más extraña。 A veces， lo hacemos bien。 A menudo， lo hacemos mal， o al menos lo hacemos bien de una manera que está fuera de lugar， como el Internet que tanta gente imaginó como una copia virtual del mundo físico。Es tentador sentirse avergonzado por esto， preocuparse por parecer ingenuo。 Preferimos ver algo que se sienta bien， que se sienta como una idea general del futuro， que obtener una enciclopedia de nuestro aburrido presente。 Y por eso es tan importante leer a autores que logran construir lugares que sean familiares y extraños al mismo tiempo， como por ejemplo William Gibson。Con “La Periferia”， Gibson especula sobre múltiples futuros: la novela alterna entre dos períodos de tiempo diferentes， uno una generación o dos más allá de la nuestra y el otro mucho más adelante。 De alguna manera， ambos son lugares sobre los que Gibson ha estado escribiendo durante décadas: un remanso futuro lleno de bienes producidos en masa y ajetreo semi-legal， y una alta sociedad hiperconectada cuyas facetas （desde el arte hasta los negocios y la tecnología） parecen inevitablemente envueltas en una gran conspiración。Flynne Fisher， la protagonista del mundo anterior， está atrapada apoyando a su madre en una ciudad lúgubre y vagamente sudamericana。 Se gana la vida a duras penas como， entre otras cosas， jugadora de videojuegos。 Su hermano tiene algo parecido al trastorno de estrés postraumático por haber servido en la Infantería de Marina， y Flynne parece igualmente afectada por la constante rutina de la pobreza que sus juegos exageran claramente: lo que a los ricos les parece jugar es realmente una forma agotadora de sobrevivir。 A veces （como descubre Flynne cuando es testigo de un espantoso asesinato en un Londres virtual）， eso incluso podría ser muy real en cierto modo。Generaciones más tarde， en un futuro lejano en Londres， vive Wilf Netherton， el otro protagonista。 Está separado de Flynne por un desastre prolongado conocido como el “jackpot"， que mató a la mayor parte de la raza humana durante un período de décadas。 Sus problemas más inmediatos involucran a un artista de performance extravagante a punto de causar un desastre diplomático en una micronación en la Isla de la Basura del Pacífico， en donde las modificaciones corporales extremas de sus ciudadanos son solo el comienzo de lo que la tecnología puede hacer。 A partir de allí， la novela es una investigación de asesinato y un thriller político de ritmo vertiginoso que se disfruta más cuando nos dejamos llevar por la masa de ideas y escenarios。 No es exactamente una historia de viajes en el tiempo， pero aborda algunos de los problemas que suelen tener， incluida la responsabilidad del futuro con el pasado。 Si supieras que algo terrible iba a pasar， pero no estuvieras seguro de por qué， ¿cómo intentarías detenerlo？ Gibson ha declarado que él no intenta ser un oráculo。 En cambio， es excepcionalmente bueno en la refundición de la cultura actual。 Eso a menudo implica una mezcla de cultura pop con tecnología ligeramente extrapolada y personas que no están muy impresionadas por ella。 En consecuencia， las personas en el mundo de Flynne conducen Teslas， vuelan cuadricópteros y entienden cómo imprimir correctamente en 3D。 Londres tiene "zonas de cosplay" anacrónicas en las que la precisión histórica se aplica legalmente。 Lo mismo ocurre con el “jackpot”， un apocalipsis ambiental que se ha convertido en un escenario de pesadilla común en la ciencia ficción contemporánea。 Parece tímidamente anticuado， pero de una manera que en realidad es más interesante que un intento directo de predicción perfectamente precisa。Este es un libro sobre cómo el futuro ve el pasado。 No es el primero en hacer la conexión entre el viaje en el tiempo y el colonialismo， o ver nuestra comprensión unidimensional del pasado。 Pero casi funciona como una guía de las cosas que el futuro encontrará anticuadas sobre nuestras concepciones del mismo。 Nos reímos del pasado o lo explotamos en busca de influencia: pensamos en el steampunk， el atompunk， el dieselpunk y el millón de otros microgéneros basados en la incongruencia de las sociedades antiguas y la tecnología del futuro， pero algún día， el futuro hará lo mismo con nosotros。Afortunadamente， los mundos también son convincentes por derecho propio， a pesar de su desolación。 La ciudad de Flynne está dominada por grandes tiendas， la economía impulsada por una combinación de trabajos de servicio y piratería de impresión 3D。 Mientras que el Londres de Netherton es un área de desastre rehabilitada， donde es más probable que veamos robots de telepresencia que personas reales。 Pero están tan llenos de personalidad como cualquier ciudad abarrotada， descrita en la prosa densa e ilustrativa de Gibson。 Aquí el autor muestra una alta pasión por las minucias， integrada en la vida de los personajes。 Aunque el cyberpunk a menudo se caracteriza como un género cínico， Gibson ha dicho que en el contexto de la Guerra Fría y los años 1980， era esperanzador sugerir que el mundo sobreviviría。 “La Periferia” es innegablemente sombría， pero lleva esta idea más allá， ocasionalmente， hasta un punto en que se siente como un optimismo ligeramente forzado。 Gran parte de la trama de Wilf es una visión post-post-apocalíptica， ambientada en un mundo en el que hemos sorteado desastres pero finalmente logramos superarlos。 Los escenarios que pueblan nuestras pesadillas son horribles， pero no son permanentes。 Mientras que el páramo pre-apocalíptico de Flynne podría no estar condenado。 Resulta que incluso el futuro no sabe realmente lo que depara el futuro。 Reseña completa sin spoilers en mi canal de YouTube ➡ Maponto Lee 📚 Link aquí！ 。。。more
David
，
Man， I forgot how much work reading the first chunk of a Gibson novel is…so many “explain it to yourself” concepts， and so much slang and vocabulary…and in this case those of two different eras。 Came together pretty well though。 We’ll see how Amazon executes it all。
Libby
，
“The non-mediated world has become a lost country。 I think that in some very real way， it’s a country that we cannot find our way back to。 The mediated world is now the world。 We are that which perceives a mediated reality。 I don’t think it’s possible to know what we’ve lost。 I think there is a pervasive sense of loss and a pervasive excitement at what we seem to be gaining。 （quote from the 2000 documentary， ‘No Maps for These Territories’） William Gibson Gibson’s book， Neuromancer is touted as “The non-mediated world has become a lost country。 I think that in some very real way， it’s a country that we cannot find our way back to。 The mediated world is now the world。 We are that which perceives a mediated reality。 I don’t think it’s possible to know what we’ve lost。 I think there is a pervasive sense of loss and a pervasive excitement at what we seem to be gaining。 （quote from the 2000 documentary， ‘No Maps for These Territories’） William Gibson Gibson’s book， Neuromancer is touted as the frontrunner of the cyberpunk genre， which may be its own genre or a subgenre of science fiction， depending on what you read。 It’s first line， The sky above the port was the color of television， tuned to a dead channel is listed as number 30 in 2007 American Book Review’s list of “100 best first lines from Novels。”The first line of ‘The Peripheral’ reads: “They didn’t think Flynne’s brother had PTSD， but that sometimes the haptics glitched him。I’m drawn into Flynne’s world right away。 She lives in a near future version of America where jobs are hard to find。 Her brother， Burton， draws a small disability check from the Veterans Administration for his haptics glitch。 Flynne assembles products at a Fab business in town， but has previously made money in online games。 To start this story off， Burton asks her to sub for him in a game that he’s been playing where he’s making lots of money。 He promises to pay her well for her time。 Without giving too much away， suffice it to say that Flynne sees something she’s not supposed to see and the game is not really a game。I wanted to read something different and when I’m in that kind of a reading mood， I will sometimes fall back to science fiction or fantasy。 After reading the novel， I watched a virtual lecture by Professor Dr。 Pawel Frelik of Maria Curie Sklodowska University in Poland to learn about cyberpunk。 A compound work， Dr。 Frelik describes the cyber as dealing with implants/grafts/prostheses as well as designer drugs， disembodiment， and reality as information。 In ‘The Peripheral’ Flynne’s brother， Burton， has an Army buddy， Conner， who came back from war with a lot of missing body parts。 When he ‘plays the game’ with Flynne， his peripheral is an athletic dancing master。 In this new world， he has no missing body parts， so Conner becomes a technological miracle。 At one point in the story， an implant is inserted into Flynne’s brain so that she can talk knowledgeably about art。 Flynne is also told about a near apocalyptic event called 'The Jackpot’ that is supposed to happen soon。 She receives information that could become reality。Inside the game， we meet Wilf Netherton and Detective Lowbeer。 Every other chapter is Netherton’s point of view， and he will travel to Flynne’s time in a ‘Wheelie Boy，’ a forerunner of the peripheral that Flynne and Connor will use to travel to Netherton’s time。 In Netherton’s time， the world has given itself over to information and who has the most of it and can manipulate it the best gains power。 This world is not as attractive to me but I am interested in Flynne’s journey as she navigates between the two worlds。 Her peripheral is attractive and athletic， but as I wait for a relationship between her and Netherton to materialize， my interest cools。 The punk part of cyberpunk， according to Dr。 Frelik means no future， no illusions， and no corporations。 This suits the anti establishment message of the 1980s punk subculture。 This novel， however， is dominated by large corporations。 Money pours into Flynne’s time and she and Burton become top executives， which I found confusing。 Is the message… there is no way to circumvent ‘The Corporation？’ Perhaps that is what is meant by ‘no illusions’ in cyberpunk， but the ‘no corporations’ part doesn’t work here。I enjoyed this story， and enjoyed learning more about this author as well as cyberpunk。 The new vocabulary was stimulating。 I wanted more and deeper characterizations and more from interrelationships。 I wanted Flynne to have more paranoia about who she trusted。 The settings， details， and technology were captivating。 The genius of William Gibson’s ideas and his stylistic writing are two reasons I stayed engaged。 On October 21， 2022， this will be a new TV series on Amazon。 I will be watching。 I’m curious about how technology will affect writing in the future， so I expect that I may continue to read cyberpunk and/or science fiction。 。。。more
John
，
I'm sorry， I guess I'm just not a clever enough reader to enjoy the fragment sentences， the disconnected conversations， the "sink or swim" plot style that assumes you will stick with the story when you have no idea what is going on fifty pages in， etc。 The first part of this book felt like homework， but where I wasn't actually learning anything （as opposed to a Neal Stephenson novel that will teach you things like the intricacies of orbital dynamics if you can stick with his info dumps）。 At the I'm sorry， I guess I'm just not a clever enough reader to enjoy the fragment sentences， the disconnected conversations， the "sink or swim" plot style that assumes you will stick with the story when you have no idea what is going on fifty pages in， etc。 The first part of this book felt like homework， but where I wasn't actually learning anything （as opposed to a Neal Stephenson novel that will teach you things like the intricacies of orbital dynamics if you can stick with his info dumps）。 At the pace I was reading （and re-reading） every paragraph， this would have taken me a month to finish this book。 Life is too short。。。 。。。more
MrFuckTheSystem
，
I’ve definitely been encouraged to read William Gibson in the past by a buddy at the local bookstore。 So I broke down and started this one。 I was completely lost and confused right off the get go。 I thought I just needed to slow my reading but that didn’t help。 So I figured what else could I do but to continue reading。 It almost felt as though the first part of the book was missing， of course it wasn’t。 All in all I found the book hard to follow the details but the overall was very interesting p I’ve definitely been encouraged to read William Gibson in the past by a buddy at the local bookstore。 So I broke down and started this one。 I was completely lost and confused right off the get go。 I thought I just needed to slow my reading but that didn’t help。 So I figured what else could I do but to continue reading。 It almost felt as though the first part of the book was missing， of course it wasn’t。 All in all I found the book hard to follow the details but the overall was very interesting picturing it in my head。 I did enjoy the book but find William Gibson’s writing style a bit difficult to follow。 Perhaps with future books （which I own）， I will become better used to his writing。 I would recommend someone to read this and the very least to challenge themselves！ 。。。more
Jenn
，
Horribly confusing 🙄 😒 🤢
Steve
，
Fun story that takes place through time and place… interesting plot。
Djj
，
I love William Gibson。 Like many of my generation， the Sprawl books are amongst my favorite SciFi works。 In this book， Gibson paints another set of realistic and probable dystopian futures， along different timeliness but which intersect via a mysterious Chinese server that never explained to the point where it seems more magic than science。 It's a cool story though as characters are able to visit the other timeline via peripherals， machines which in the more advanced future are basically lab gro I love William Gibson。 Like many of my generation， the Sprawl books are amongst my favorite SciFi works。 In this book， Gibson paints another set of realistic and probable dystopian futures， along different timeliness but which intersect via a mysterious Chinese server that never explained to the point where it seems more magic than science。 It's a cool story though as characters are able to visit the other timeline via peripherals， machines which in the more advanced future are basically lab grown humans whose brains the "time traveller" can temporarily occupy。 In the less advanced future they are merely the remote control robots many of are already familiar with。But my problem with the book is that it's written so obtusely， it's often hard to figure out what the hell is going on， especially early on。 Gibson has his characters using terms that are never really explained， there's a panoply of characters that are mostly thinly drawn， other than the central 4 or 5， and there's no explanation of what is actually going on until maybe 25% of the way through。 To say I was confused and often bored is putting it mildly until this point。 Even then I had to force myself to continue reading。But the obtuseness goes even deeper than thay。 A good case in point is near the end of the book there's some reference to agate spheres as if it's something we're supposed to know。 As I was reading this book on an eReader I searched for the term and found only one previous mention of it about 50 pages in。 So separated by almost 350 pages， this insignificant thing was supposed to be something we remembered？ Literally nothing in the plot revolves around it。 There are somw characters that are referred to similarly。 Who the hell is Madison， i asked myself at leaat twice。 As i said， i love gibson， but he's just asking too much of the reader in this one。 I know there is an extensive editing process， but this one should have been tightened up and 100 pages should have been cut。 The climax just wasn't worth the slog。Weirdly， though almost deterred， I decided to read the second book， Agency， and while I'm only 50 pages in， and while the reader benefits from knowing the setup with the timelines， it's already a lot clearer narratively。 So I can't help but wonder what happened in the writing of Peripheral or in the lead up to writing Agency。 。。。more
Robert Soriano
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I really enjoyed this novel。 It has interesting concepts， excellent pacing （after a somewhat slow beginning）， and endearing main characters。 I agree with some critics who have pointed out that the ending wraps up a little too neatly and easily， but I still highly recommend itl
Daniel
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I have listened to this twice and despite understanding and liking everything else Gibson has written I still don't get it。 Will have to read the book。 I have listened to this twice and despite understanding and liking everything else Gibson has written I still don't get it。 Will have to read the book。 。。。more
Sean Kelley
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William Gibson is as good as he's ever been。 I am excited to read the next book in this series， and I love the unique spin on the time travel trope。 My only issue is that I will have to wait who knows how long to read the conclusion of this trilogy。 William Gibson is as good as he's ever been。 I am excited to read the next book in this series， and I love the unique spin on the time travel trope。 My only issue is that I will have to wait who knows how long to read the conclusion of this trilogy。 。。。more
Dan
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2。5
Peter Bradley
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The Peripheral （Jackpot 1） by William GibsonThis book mixes the usual tropes of cyberpunk - out of control capitalism， virtual reality， class division， crime， etc。 - and mixes in new ideas - time travel。 The book flashes between an impoverished rural setting set perhaps a decade where people are surprisingly sophisticated in their technology， and a setting in England about eighty years in the future after a historical event called the "Jackpot" which has removed 90% of the world's population。 Th The Peripheral （Jackpot 1） by William GibsonThis book mixes the usual tropes of cyberpunk - out of control capitalism， virtual reality， class division， crime， etc。 - and mixes in new ideas - time travel。 The book flashes between an impoverished rural setting set perhaps a decade where people are surprisingly sophisticated in their technology， and a setting in England about eighty years in the future after a historical event called the "Jackpot" which has removed 90% of the world's population。 The two time zones are connected by a mysterious Chinese server in the future that enables the future to contact the past via the internet。 （When this happens， the past diverges from the future， thereby obviating any paradoxes。）The book opens with a chapter that is pure cyber punk。 It is very complicated with terminology and ideas that are not explained and are basically incomprehensible。 The story then flips to the "present" where we are introduced to a bunch of Hillbillys with internet connections and mad military skills。 The setting here is obviously rural and steeped in poverty， although the Hillbillies seem to have virtual reality equipment and other gewgaws lying around。 The chief Hillbilly character is Flynn。 She is talked into a job by her brother。 The job involves operating a drone to keep paparazzi from photographing an event。What she doesn't know is that the event is in the future and that a future group of friends/investors has been opening businesses in their past/Flynn's present for what were to me very obscure reasons。In any event， Flynn becomes a witness to a crime in the future。 The future is therefore interested in having Flynn identify someone who might have been involved in the crime。 Flynn is accommodated in the future by a "peripheral" - an android controlled remotely like a drone。 From this vantage point， we get to see more of the future world， which is dangerous in its high tech way。Flynn's world becomes embroiled in the politics of the future crime。 There is another faction with the same technology connected to the same past。 In the "present" chapters， there are serial attempts to kill Flynn， which are frustrated by her military friends。I liked the story， but it had its flaws。 It started out incomprehensible and kept a large fog factor throughout。 In addition， the character list is far too numerous。 I had problems keeping track of who was who and it seemed that Gibson kept adding new characters when there was a plot turn。 On the other hand， Gibson does provide a view of a different future than we are used to。 The incomprehensibility of the cyber future is a necessary feature of a future we haven't experienced。 While the story does unravel many of the main plot points， there are many plot points that weren't resolved。 For example， who the heck is the other faction that seems set on killing Flynn？ Of course， this is just the first book of a trilogy， so we can expect that these questions will be answered in later books of the trilogy。I read this book because Amazon is giving this book the mini-series treatment。 It may work better as a tightly written television series with fewer characters than it does as a book。 I am not saying that this book is not worth reading， but it could have used some editing in my opinion。 。。。more
Serge
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Intersting premise， fast-paced story， and as always Gibson's own take on the future。 The setup and timeline will click into place fairly early in the book and then you're in for the ride。 Intersting premise， fast-paced story， and as always Gibson's own take on the future。 The setup and timeline will click into place fairly early in the book and then you're in for the ride。 。。。more
Santhosh
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Dnf
Dave Taylor
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Bailed。 For me， Gibson's books get more and more incoherent。 This one just lost me about 100 pages in， when I realized I had no idea what was going on， was bored by the endless hipster futurism， and didn't care about any of the characters。 I'm sure plenty of people love this， but I think it's time for me to stop attempting to read any of his works。 Bailed。 For me， Gibson's books get more and more incoherent。 This one just lost me about 100 pages in， when I realized I had no idea what was going on， was bored by the endless hipster futurism， and didn't care about any of the characters。 I'm sure plenty of people love this， but I think it's time for me to stop attempting to read any of his works。 。。。more
Si
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Although tagged as a cyberpunk novel by one of the most famous names in the genre， this didn’t feel like cyberpunk。 Some Cyber elements， but not enough punk and a complete lack of the traditional cyberpunk aesthetic。 But as a regular sci-fi it was ok。The protagonist was somewhat bland。 Also， there were too many characters， some of them serving no purpose。 At times it was hard to remember who was who， other times it didn’t even matter。 The world building was ok。 You get futuristic weapons and rob Although tagged as a cyberpunk novel by one of the most famous names in the genre， this didn’t feel like cyberpunk。 Some Cyber elements， but not enough punk and a complete lack of the traditional cyberpunk aesthetic。 But as a regular sci-fi it was ok。The protagonist was somewhat bland。 Also， there were too many characters， some of them serving no purpose。 At times it was hard to remember who was who， other times it didn’t even matter。 The world building was ok。 You get futuristic weapons and robots and stuff。 You get the societal changes in both timelines。 Nothing too original though。The Plot was over complicated and lacked structure。 The main character witnesses a crime in the first few chapters， but they barely talk about it until way later in the book。 At the same time the sci-fi elements are explained almost straight away。 They may have had more of an impact if they were revealed slowly。Overall this felt like a drag。 。。。more
Francisco
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Prometía muchísimo y se desinfló un poco。 Tiene un gran momento mind-blowing y alguno que otro suelto， pero es que la forma de escribir de Gibson me molesta mucho。 Se me hace muy pesado en ciertos momentos。 Aun así， muy buena novela。
Michael Sterling
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As always， I enjoy having read Gibson's works。 I was terribly disappointed with the publisher this time。 Multiple pages missing from the hard copy， making the story incredibly difficult to follow。 I was a third of the way through the book before noticing the discrepancy in the page numbers。The story was excellent。 The publisher - I will search them out from this point on and make a valiant effort to not purchase from them。 As always， I enjoy having read Gibson's works。 I was terribly disappointed with the publisher this time。 Multiple pages missing from the hard copy， making the story incredibly difficult to follow。 I was a third of the way through the book before noticing the discrepancy in the page numbers。The story was excellent。 The publisher - I will search them out from this point on and make a valiant effort to not purchase from them。 。。。more
Lauren
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Somehow even less interesting， less enjoyable， and less comprehensible than the sequel I accidentally read first。
Robert
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This was a re-read， though it must have been originally pre-Goodreads for me。 I've read all of Gibson， but just reread this because of the upcoming tv series。 It will be interesting to see how they manage to visually guide the audience through the complexities of the specific type of "time travel" in this book and the next （Agency）。While that aspect of the story may be a long ways off， the rapacious organized crime capitalism of the story isn't。 Self-driving cars， check。 Remote computer control This was a re-read， though it must have been originally pre-Goodreads for me。 I've read all of Gibson， but just reread this because of the upcoming tv series。 It will be interesting to see how they manage to visually guide the audience through the complexities of the specific type of "time travel" in this book and the next （Agency）。While that aspect of the story may be a long ways off， the rapacious organized crime capitalism of the story isn't。 Self-driving cars， check。 Remote computer control of peripherals， check。 （Humanoid are edging in now）。 These are always fun book。Now I'll go see if I can update my Agency review。 。。。more
Ninja
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I have to admit， when I started this， it was a case of "Oh， that's right， Gibson's vague hint-at-what's-happening" style of writing。 Like I can hardly tell who's saying or doing what to whom or where they are。 But then it all starts coming together - in fact， this is probably the most cohesive novel of his that I've read， and well before the middle it's hurtling along and you're down to the problem of guessing who knows more than they're letting on， or what's happening behind the scenes。The futu I have to admit， when I started this， it was a case of "Oh， that's right， Gibson's vague hint-at-what's-happening" style of writing。 Like I can hardly tell who's saying or doing what to whom or where they are。 But then it all starts coming together - in fact， this is probably the most cohesive novel of his that I've read， and well before the middle it's hurtling along and you're down to the problem of guessing who knows more than they're letting on， or what's happening behind the scenes。The future tech， in both timelines， is compelling and enticing， with some elements bringing to mind Stephenson （Diamond Age） but still definitively its own piece。 。。。more
Lara
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“Eras are conveniences， particularly for those who never experienced them。 We carve history from totalities beyond our grasp。 Bolt labels on the result。 Handles。 Then speak of the handles as though they were things in themselves。” The Peripheral tells the story of colliding worlds and accidental， hacked-together time travel。 It's a split narrative， following， in one branch， Flynne Fisher through a near-future rural America and， in the other， Wilf Netherton in a future-future London。“Because peop “Eras are conveniences， particularly for those who never experienced them。 We carve history from totalities beyond our grasp。 Bolt labels on the result。 Handles。 Then speak of the handles as though they were things in themselves。” The Peripheral tells the story of colliding worlds and accidental， hacked-together time travel。 It's a split narrative， following， in one branch， Flynne Fisher through a near-future rural America and， in the other， Wilf Netherton in a future-future London。“Because people who couldn’t imagine themselves capable of evil were at a major disadvantage in dealing with people who didn’t need to imagine， because they already were。 She’d said it was always a mistake， to believe those people were different， special， infected with something that was inhuman， subhuman， fundamentally other。”While I see the originality of the story details - especially regarding the technological descriptions - I found the plot hard to follow and quite boring。 The entire story centers around Flynne having to identify a murderer and， eventually， she does。 There were little to no surprises and I did not get attached to the characters。 Of course the thoughts that must have gone into the technological details are impressive， but that is about all the story had to offer for me。“That evil wasn’t glamorous， but just the result of ordinary half-assed badness， high school badness， given enough room， however that might happen， to become its bigger self。 Bigger， with more horrible results， but never more than the cumulative weight of ordinary human baseness。” 。。。more
Bill
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