absorbing near-future setting with a lot to say about creating a dynamic future with many choices of environment types and ideas. continuing the roller-coaster ride of momentum at the end of the first book of the Centenal Trilogy, now we see the downside of Information as a way to reorganize the politics of the physical world. but although the advanced state of information offers power, it interferes with personal autonomy because it lessens privacy, and this creates political problems. lots of action and interactions, and plenty of spywork and mysteries, and i enjoyed both the characters and the rapidly moving plot that crossed the world. best of all, the book's themes struck a chord with me as being Important to confront, and consider solutions. and so on to Book 3. ( )

If "Infomocracy" was about a hyper-connected cyber-enhanced global system, "Null States" is more limited -- and human -- in scope. The setting moves to central Africa, and while it's obvious that certain technological advancements have been made, in many ways, life in the DarFur centenals continues much as it always has. We see many of the characters we met in the first book of the Centenal Cycle complain about poor coverage, and while the author's silent on this point, the implicit critique is hard to miss. The Information workers here can come off as well as moneyed city slickers bemoaning the lack of cell phone coverage out in the sticks do in our world. Still, it gives the author -- who has apparently spent some time in Darfur -- a chance to show how the local remains local even in a tightly-knit globalized society. Here, family ties, long-established business practices, and religion still count for something, and system-wide corruption for personal gain is still very much a thing. The hybrids we see of this older way of life and the brand new technological world that the author presents in this series can be charming -- I particularly liked a public "news wall" that relates on whic local schoolchildren relate world events in a style that is unmistakably thiers. I wondered a little bit about how Islam had changed in the past century or so, but, other than confirming that it still exists and exerts influence, the author offers relatively few details here.

Older also gives herself some time to delve into her characters' personal lives. The book's most significant plot development is a murder, and Older doesn't neglect the grieving and shock that this event brings about: it seems that even in a technologically advanced society, death is still stubbornly difficult to process. Older also takes the time to follow a budding romance between Roz and a local power-broker and the story of Mishima and Ken's, whom we met in the series' first installment. I also liked the way she portrayed the friendship between the more gregarious and grounded Roz and Maryam, a highly skilled techie who's still licking her wounds in the wake of a high-profile relationship gone very wrong and is filled with self-doubt. While all of this is happening, Amran, a relatively inexperienced Information employee, does her best to carry out her professional duties while battling a number of mental health issues. While I'm not going to say that Jane Austen, for example, has much to fear from Malka Older, her decision to spend a considerable amount of time describing the progress of these relationships seems to fit with the larger theme of how the innately human can survive and persist in a highly technological world. If you liked "Infomocracy" for the fast-paced techno-oriented stuff, "Null States" still has Mishima, the closest this series has to a Mary Sue, and while she's still an alluring, impossibly fit, street-fighting super spy who gets a kick out of working deep undercover, in her quieter moments, even she spends time considering the fate of her relationship with the steady, likable Ken.

You could probably criticize "Null States for having some "Empire Strikes Back" issues: it's very obvious about setting up the series' final chapter, and its second and third books do seem like a piece. The Centenal Cycle remains a very readable take on an intriguing techno non-dystopia. Recommended to anyone who liked the first book. ( )

Thanks to Netgalley for the Arc!

When I read the first book in the series, Infomocracy, I loved it for the hardcore idea-based SF couched in a technothriller base, and Null States continues on in the same tradition.

Only, this next novel isn't all about a high-tech election based on micro-democracy with a mix of intrigue and corruption. Rather, it's about population areas outside of the Infomocracy and an assassination that grows ever more complicated as the novel progresses.

In a lot of ways, it's better than the first. I had some issues with the original in that we were steeped in political information and states and parties that meant very little to me until much later. This one was much more focused on specific and interesting locations. Plenty of mystery, plenty of interesting character development, and plenty of good futuristic technothriller.

The science isn't as interesting as the politics, however. There's plenty to say about possible modes of thinking and action and communication, all of which use hands-free instant communication technologies that veer deep into total computer tech, widely used across the board except for certain locations or differences of use. And that's where we get some of the most interesting sequences, in my opinion.

I love idea novels. :) This one should give us a lot of interesting avenues. Perhaps even some real dialogue on the intersections between emerging tech and how people will eventually get things done.

As for world-building, this is also top-notch. It's far enough away from us to have full freedom and near enough to us that we recognize everything. I can't complain at all. :)

I suppose my only complaint might be the fact that I sometimes got lost in locations and names, not being 100% conversant in all places or languages, but it wasn't bad at all. It just took some more effort.

Overall, though, I'm very happy to say this is continuing the story (and the original MC) in high form.
( )

A decent book with some interesting ideas about what the future could look like, although it could have been a bit more critical of the permanent and ubiquitous surveillance the book is premised on. I don't know if this lack of critical reflection was a conscious style decision by the author or not, but it did not improve the book for me. ( )

Scale is a huge issue - why are there so few people who can operate effectively in a world-spanning organization? Love the setting, just wish the scope of the story was narrowed to avoid having each character being the only source of their particular skills in the world. ( )