Science Fiction

Altered Carbon

Altered Carbon

  • Downloads：7193
  • Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
  • Create Date：2021-04-02 14:58:10
  • Update Date：2025-09-06
  • Status：finish
  • Author：Richard K. Morgan
  • ISBN：0575081244
  • Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
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Summary

Four hundred years from now mankind is strung out across a region of interstellar space inherited from an ancient civilization discovered on Mars。 The colonies are linked together by the occasional sublight colony ship voyages and hyperspatial data-casting。 Human consciousness is digitally freighted between the stars and downloaded into bodies as a matter of course。 But some things never change。 So when ex-envoy， now-convict Takeshi Kovacs has his consciousness and skills downloaded into the body of a nicotine-addicted ex-thug and presented with a catch-22 offer， he really shouldn't be surprised。 Contracted by a billionaire to discover who murdered his last body， Kovacs is drawn into a terrifying conspiracy that stretches across known space and to the very top of society。

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Reviews

Rodrigo ，

Me ha gustado bastante。 Es un libro que tenía pendiente y no ha sido hasta haber visto la serie que no me puse a leerlo。 Lo "malo" es que les ponía caras a los personajes del libro， con los de la serie， jeje。Es un mundo muy bien desarrollado， con multiples avances en distintos campos， sobretodo en el de la vida-muerte， hay gente que puede vivir de manera "casi" indefinida， los matusalen。Bueno， resumiendo， me ha gustado， si bien， es cierto que ha habido momentos un tanto liosos con los tecnicismo Me ha gustado bastante。 Es un libro que tenía pendiente y no ha sido hasta haber visto la serie que no me puse a leerlo。 Lo "malo" es que les ponía caras a los personajes del libro， con los de la serie， jeje。Es un mundo muy bien desarrollado， con multiples avances en distintos campos， sobretodo en el de la vida-muerte， hay gente que puede vivir de manera "casi" indefinida， los matusalen。Bueno， resumiendo， me ha gustado， si bien， es cierto que ha habido momentos un tanto liosos con los tecnicismos de las tecnologías que empleaban。 La serie es bastante fiel al libro， aunque hay algunos cambios importantes， tampoco hay la "censura" que hay en la serie y todo es más， como diría， crudo y explícito。Seguiré con la serie。# 3。 El número 50 de tu lista de pendientes de goodreads。 Reto Lecturas pendientes 2021。 。。。more

Agnieszka Wardaszko ，

3，75 ⭐Świetnie napisana książka！ Jak na pozycję， która ma prawie 20 lat， cały świat stworzony przez autora doskonale się trzyma。 Jako pierwszy obejrzałam serial （3？） lata temu i z obawą siadałam do lektury。 Spodziewałam się powtórki wszystkiego co znałam z serialu， a tutaj niespodzianka。 Wiele wątków jest zupełnie inaczej rozwiązanych， wszystko o wiele łatwiej zrozumieć i jedyny mój problem polegał na tym， że doskonale pamiętałam rozwiązanie całej "zagadki" i przez całą ksiązkę wiedziałam do cze 3，75 ⭐Świetnie napisana książka！ Jak na pozycję， która ma prawie 20 lat， cały świat stworzony przez autora doskonale się trzyma。 Jako pierwszy obejrzałam serial （3？） lata temu i z obawą siadałam do lektury。 Spodziewałam się powtórki wszystkiego co znałam z serialu， a tutaj niespodzianka。 Wiele wątków jest zupełnie inaczej rozwiązanych， wszystko o wiele łatwiej zrozumieć i jedyny mój problem polegał na tym， że doskonale pamiętałam rozwiązanie całej "zagadki" i przez całą ksiązkę wiedziałam do czego dążymy。 Nie zmienia to faktu， że bardzo dobrze się bawiłam i z chęcią kiedyś tam sięgnę po kolejne tomy。No i jeszcze rozczarował mnie fakt， że hotelem Takashiego nie był Poe a Hendriks。。。 Ten wątek w serialu był super。 。。。more

Kaffeeklatsch and Books ，

I loved the Netflix show， but boy did I miss out on the details。 The book gives you all that and it's definitely different from the show。 Some names and relationships are different too， but it was fab and I'm looking forward continuing with this series 🙂 I loved the Netflix show， but boy did I miss out on the details。 The book gives you all that and it's definitely different from the show。 Some names and relationships are different too， but it was fab and I'm looking forward continuing with this series 🙂 。。。more

Pelin ，

It'll be a short review because I'm a little bored。It's full of unnecessary sex scenes and dull characters。 But the story is mysterious and some quotes are well written。 I liked the ending so I'm planning to read next books and finish the series。 It'll be a short review because I'm a little bored。It's full of unnecessary sex scenes and dull characters。 But the story is mysterious and some quotes are well written。 I liked the ending so I'm planning to read next books and finish the series。 。。。more

Brian ，

*Audiobook

Onur ，

An interesting point of view and new dimensions to scify， but it's a little hard to read An interesting point of view and new dimensions to scify， but it's a little hard to read 。。。more

Ali ，

This book was a slog。 I love sci-fi， but I could barely get through the sex scenes and the description of every single woman's breasts。 It was awful。 I would have stopped reading it， but I was determined to finish。 Interesting concept that somehow became the protagonist wandering through the world and constantly （I mean CONSTANTLY） commenting on women's looks and sexual chemistry and how their breasts moved and how they looked and again， their breasts。 Definitely don't recommend。 This book was a slog。 I love sci-fi， but I could barely get through the sex scenes and the description of every single woman's breasts。 It was awful。 I would have stopped reading it， but I was determined to finish。 Interesting concept that somehow became the protagonist wandering through the world and constantly （I mean CONSTANTLY） commenting on women's looks and sexual chemistry and how their breasts moved and how they looked and again， their breasts。 Definitely don't recommend。 。。。more

Joanna ，

Der Gedanke hinter Altered Carbon ist leicht verstörend und beängstigend， genau deshalb klang der Titel für mich so faszinierend。 Und das war das Buch anfangs auch。 Können wir den Tod irgendwann überwinden？ Und wie ist es， wenn plötzlich jemand anderes meinen Körper benutzt？ Ist ein definitiver Tod wünschenswert oder etwas， das die Menschheit überwinden muss？Lauter gute Fragen， die auch im Ansatz beantwortet werden。 Leider hätte das Buch etwas mehr Kürze vertragen。 Denn aufgrund seiner Länger ve Der Gedanke hinter Altered Carbon ist leicht verstörend und beängstigend， genau deshalb klang der Titel für mich so faszinierend。 Und das war das Buch anfangs auch。 Können wir den Tod irgendwann überwinden？ Und wie ist es， wenn plötzlich jemand anderes meinen Körper benutzt？ Ist ein definitiver Tod wünschenswert oder etwas， das die Menschheit überwinden muss？Lauter gute Fragen， die auch im Ansatz beantwortet werden。 Leider hätte das Buch etwas mehr Kürze vertragen。 Denn aufgrund seiner Länger verwaschen sich die Grundfragen immer mehr und das Ganze wird immer wirrer。 Zumindest habe ich irgendwann den Überblick verloren。 Wer sich für den Kriminalfall interessiert， bleibt vielleicht eher dabei， während ich eigentlich gehofft hatte， dass sich Morgan mehr mit den ethischen Themen befasst。 Hier hätte der Autor sehr viel mehr einbringen können， ist es doch ein wichtiges Thema， mit dem wir uns konfrontiert sehen。Da für mich persönlich die Balance zwischen actionreicher Handlung und Zukunftsfragen nicht ganz gestimmt hat， werde ich die Reihe nicht aktiv weiterverfolgen， es aber dem Schicksal überlassen， ob mir irgendwann der nächste Teil in die Hand fällt。 So stelle ich die meine persönliche Balance wieder her ;） 。。。more

Darren ，

I picked this up after watching the Netflix series， and it followed along 'mostly' to the book。 I enjoyed the read， and excited to try the next one in the series。 I picked this up after watching the Netflix series， and it followed along 'mostly' to the book。 I enjoyed the read， and excited to try the next one in the series。 。。。more

Boff Boffin ，

Gave up at about 50 pages in。 Looked like we were already done with the science fiction and had moved on to a pretty clunky whodunit。。。

Margaret Reilly ，

I love sci-fi and thought this was a really creative and interesting story。 However， I will not be reading any more of the series due to the extremely graphic nature of some of the parts of the book。 （Sex and torture。） Too bad - I would like to know what happened next。

Matthew ，

Action， intrigue， politics， psychology， religion， and anthropology- all with only the occasional description of "tumescent" penises and as breasts/buttocks as "globes。" Action， intrigue， politics， psychology， religion， and anthropology- all with only the occasional description of "tumescent" penises and as breasts/buttocks as "globes。" 。。。more

Sanja ，

What a terrible book。 Pages of exposition， droning on and on and on。 Characters are basic， plot drags， and the world is the exact same as ours except now your money buys you more life and the cars fly。 We spend all our time in the main character’s head and， bless him， he doesn’t have a lot going on。 Gross military fetish， excessively violent， really slimy descriptions of women。

Tom Smith ，

Cool story and very easy to read。

Torgall ，

Interesting but not very engaging， quite slow， and too stretched out。 I'm not even remotely interested in the sequels。The Sleeves are a very interesting idea that completely changes how humans look at death and their bodies。 Think about that， body that is basically like a rental car。 Of course， most of the population can't afford to change bodies like used socks， but even then thanks to insurance you can avoid death。 The rich are even more powerful because they can just get new bodies， and have Interesting but not very engaging， quite slow， and too stretched out。 I'm not even remotely interested in the sequels。The Sleeves are a very interesting idea that completely changes how humans look at death and their bodies。 Think about that， body that is basically like a rental car。 Of course， most of the population can't afford to change bodies like used socks， but even then thanks to insurance you can avoid death。 The rich are even more powerful because they can just get new bodies， and have backups of their cortical stacks。 I like how they showed this disparity between rich and poor in the TV adaptation when a young girl is resleeved into an old woman because that's the only body the insurance could buy。 For most people， real death can occur when someone destroys their stack， committing "true murder"， instead of bodily harm。Resleeving is not something pleasant and can cause some harm if done repeatedly but still， it brings a whole world of possibilities。 If you commit crimes they will take out your stack and put you into storage， which means your body is available "for rental"。 In longer sentences， it means losing your original body permanently， alongside all the relatives and friends that are most likely dead。 Can you imagine meeting a friend， lover， or family member and find out that someone else is living in their body？ 。。。more

LadyCroft86 ，

I watched the Netflix series before reading this book and I think the show is better。 I enjoyed most of the book， but I liked the loose plot of the show much better。 There were lots of things in the book that could've been edited or just taken out altogether。 Some of the plot in the book was hard to understand， there were lots of weaving around and that made the story a little bit confusing for me。 I felt like the whole Reileen and Head in the Clouds thing sort of came out of no where。 It felt l I watched the Netflix series before reading this book and I think the show is better。 I enjoyed most of the book， but I liked the loose plot of the show much better。 There were lots of things in the book that could've been edited or just taken out altogether。 Some of the plot in the book was hard to understand， there were lots of weaving around and that made the story a little bit confusing for me。 I felt like the whole Reileen and Head in the Clouds thing sort of came out of no where。 It felt like the author was unsure how to finish the book and so had to introduce us to a character that had history with Kovacs so it could be a little more personal for the character。 I felt like there could have been more background on Kovacs relationship with Reileen and that would have helped with some of the flow between the characters。 I did really like the world building and all the concepts in the book， like the TV show， the sleeving and stacks， etc。 I think it's a really cool idea and for the most part， this book did a good job with putting those concepts into the plot and making it interesting。 Some of the sexual stuff was a little too much and didn't add anything to the book for me。 There was one particular scene involving Head in the Clouds and a dog that pretty much ruined the book for me。 That could've been taken out or at least changed as it added nothing and definitely lost this book stars and the chance that I will ever reread it。 If I want to revisit this particular book， I will just watch the show instead， it's much much better。 2。5 out of 5 stars。 。。。more

Dan Giaquinta ，

For about the first 1/4 of this book， I comfortably placed Altered Carbon into that special category of 'better on the screen。' I mean come on - the idea of The Raven （vs The Hendrix） and all that Poe brings is tremendous。 Giving the book its due however， I've come to appreciate the plot differences in the book more than the show。 Using （in the show） both Reileen and Quell so differently in the storyline now feels trite in comparison to the noir atmosphere of the novel。 the overdone emotions of For about the first 1/4 of this book， I comfortably placed Altered Carbon into that special category of 'better on the screen。' I mean come on - the idea of The Raven （vs The Hendrix） and all that Poe brings is tremendous。 Giving the book its due however， I've come to appreciate the plot differences in the book more than the show。 Using （in the show） both Reileen and Quell so differently in the storyline now feels trite in comparison to the noir atmosphere of the novel。 the overdone emotions of those relationships make little sense in a world of Chandler or a galaxy of Dick。 That said， let's be honest here - while Morgan has constructed a compelling but terrifying future Earth this is no Chandler and certainly no Dick。 Perhaps more a Mickey Spillane space opera。 Regardless， the discussion of consciousness and what it means to be human in an environment where the truly shitbag 1% has finally and completely upended society and destroyed a meaningful concept of humanity works for me。 Morgan's construct teeters a little sometimes with his overuse of religious and racial descriptors。 Kovacs doesn't know Catholics （explained - granted - tho poorly in my mind） and this mystery religion （to Kovacs） and UN653 is too much of a macguffin for me。 Somehow Mohicans， Mongols and a planet named Sharya exist with all the negative connotations that only a 2000s westerner could imagine。 Even so， I will be reading the next book at the same time that I continue to feel aggrieved that Netflix was incapable of writing a Season 3。 。。。more

Joe ，

At its best Altered Carbon is what I want a noir to be: cool and p o e t i c。 I was more than impressed on a number of occasions with the prose。 Half the time I thought I was set up for a meathead guns and smokes scene when it turned to be anything but。 The protagonist Takeshi carried a serious intellect， with empathy， and a solid backstory to explain his psychotic behavior。 To completely fill my noir quota I could have used some more devastation， maybe some longer shadows and hopeless nights。 I At its best Altered Carbon is what I want a noir to be: cool and p o e t i c。 I was more than impressed on a number of occasions with the prose。 Half the time I thought I was set up for a meathead guns and smokes scene when it turned to be anything but。 The protagonist Takeshi carried a serious intellect， with empathy， and a solid backstory to explain his psychotic behavior。 To completely fill my noir quota I could have used some more devastation， maybe some longer shadows and hopeless nights。 I kept wishing the book would lean away from the plot and deeper into the characters。 The heartfelt moments standing out the most and leaving me wanting more of Takeshi-the-forsaken than Takeshi-the-badass。The concept of "sleeving" though really opened up a whole new interesting world， and it paid off for some seriously exciting moments in the book， really all the best parts of the plot centered around a person being in a "sleeve"， only developing more as the book went on。I'd be much more interested in the author going into something more heady or psychedelic than action packed and since the next Takeshi Kovacs novel looks to be going the latter， I'll sadly drop the series off here。 Of course I'm interested in seeing what the short lived TV show did with the work， which apparently my wife has seen so it has been interesting discussing the book with her。Note to self: Originally my friend Scott lent me a copy years ago。 I started the book but never finished and I highly doubt he ever got his copy back。 I still owe him！ 。。。more

Michael Holland ，

In One Word， Brilliant！The Netflix series made me aware of this novel and I am so very glad for it。 Richard K。 Morgan demonstrated his mastery right out the gate。 I look forward to reading more of his work。

Jen ，

Not as fun as the TV series。 Two words sum it up: no Poe！

sOnicE ，

3。0 stars。 Such a mixed bag。 I loved the brutal action， and I was interested in how the whole 'Who Dun It' plot was going to resolve （which was satisfying enough， and I didn't completely see coming）。 The technological advances in this world are super interesting as well， and it was fun to think about the implications that kind of human advancement would have on society and humanity as a whole。 On the flip side， I didn't love the cringy and overly descriptive sex scenes （I don't need a full play 3。0 stars。 Such a mixed bag。 I loved the brutal action， and I was interested in how the whole 'Who Dun It' plot was going to resolve （which was satisfying enough， and I didn't completely see coming）。 The technological advances in this world are super interesting as well， and it was fun to think about the implications that kind of human advancement would have on society and humanity as a whole。 On the flip side， I didn't love the cringy and overly descriptive sex scenes （I don't need a full play by play with quite that level of detail， at times this read like an erotica）， and I often felt that the stakes weren't high enough to keep myself fully dialed in。 In a word where death is so easy to circumvent with technology a person being shot， stabbed etc doesn't quite hold the same weight as it normally would。 I also found myself wondering （up to a certain point， when the game changes and it makes more sense） why the protagonist was bothering to chase the stick at all。Overall I enjoyed this just enough to want to pick up book 2。 。。。more

Malcolm Torres ，

This award winning science fiction novel has been adapted into a multi-season series by Netflix。 And it's chugging along into season two。 This book and Netflix series combo makes it a complete package for Sci-Fi lovers。 To begin， the book is dark and sleek set in right-around-the-corner far-future San Francisco。 It grabs your attention with very likable characters， mystery， a love story and violence in the first few pages。 The characters are so likeable that you gladly chase them through a compl This award winning science fiction novel has been adapted into a multi-season series by Netflix。 And it's chugging along into season two。 This book and Netflix series combo makes it a complete package for Sci-Fi lovers。 To begin， the book is dark and sleek set in right-around-the-corner far-future San Francisco。 It grabs your attention with very likable characters， mystery， a love story and violence in the first few pages。 The characters are so likeable that you gladly chase them through a complex plot that spans centuries and several galaxies。WATCH MY NO-SPOILER YOUTUBE REVIEW HERE 。。。more

Ietrio ，

I have just seen most of the TV series on NetFlix。 Interesting story。 And I am very curious about the book。 How was it corrupted by the big corporation。 By the TV series standard: the luddites were a British tradition that seems to be extremely powerful in the minds and morals of British authors。 Also， I would like to see how Morgan handles the glorification of the suicidal terrorist。 After all， each Islamist I can recall who successfully killed more than one person was educated in the West。

Marco ，

Excellent。 Read and re-read many times。

babe you look so cool ，

dnf'ed at 28%。 i decided this book is not for me and i was not enjoying it。 dnf'ed at 28%。 i decided this book is not for me and i was not enjoying it。 。。。more

Mustafa ，

Sıkıcı。

Karen ，

Solid worldbuilding， surprisingly affecting POV protagonist for the genre， but the storytelling rhythm is badly off in the middle， ultimately making the book feel draggy even after the plot kicks back into gear。 Worth reading， though， more of a 3。5 than just okay。

Jenni Fifer ，

Although the show based off of this book I believe is a huge step back for women， the book is really good。

Fran González ，

Novela de ciencia ficción ambientada en un futuro donde los seres humanos pueden grabar su conciencia y recuerdos en "discos" y utilizar los cuerpos como fundas。 De esta forma hay algunos （los ricos） que práctiamente pueden ser inmortales。 Empieza bien pero se va emborronando poco a poco， un pelín confusa la historia。 Novela de ciencia ficción ambientada en un futuro donde los seres humanos pueden grabar su conciencia y recuerdos en "discos" y utilizar los cuerpos como fundas。 De esta forma hay algunos （los ricos） que práctiamente pueden ser inmortales。 Empieza bien pero se va emborronando poco a poco， un pelín confusa la historia。 。。。more

Sue Stauffer ，

Gritty and fun in that bang bang shootemup way of cyberpunk。

Reference

google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=Altered Carbon

hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=Altered Carbon&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft

The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,Altered Carbon&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0