Fun enough. The fascination with tactical gear, the market for it, as an instance of the secret style of marketing we heard about in the first Blue Ant book. There are some clunky bits here... how exactly the DCIS special agent fits in, what her function is, why is she essential to the action. I kept expecting some grand plot development to hinge on her involvement, but I never saw it. Fiona and Milgrim? Maybe, I guess. What women want, I have certainly never figured it out! Bigend is always problematic. I guess if you like the Bourne stories, there is always limitless access to resources... I guess private interests can scale up to public resources... I've just never hung out with billionaires!

Anyway, there was plenty of action and twists and turns... it sure kept me turning the page! ( )

Gibson weaves together a story that is part a criminal mystery and part a speculation on the near future. Written in 2010, some of his observations on the advance of technology with resulting problems, such as the use of street cameras, have already come about. The mystery is centred around the fashion and music industries and involves design espionage and the aim to capture lucrative manufacturing contracts. With a varied cast of characters, each with their own individual aims, the story explores how successful or not they may be. This makes for an unusual tale, seeming to be a critique of how society values the outward surface, rather than looking at the actions beneath, however I felt that it was rather slight after some of his earlier novels.

I am not really sure what to make of the recent Gibson novels I have read. I still think he is one of the best prose stylists writing today, but I don't have a good sense of what is going on in this novel thematically. He has removed most of the dystopian elements which defined his early themes -- how people are trapped in a system where their worth is defined in a brutal assessment of what skills they bring to the table and how a few "cool", highly talented people are able to regain some portion of their autonomy. Usually via interfacing with some sort of gadget.

The gadgets are still there, as are the "cool" talented people but now they are functioning in a somewhat mundane capitalist system. Still trapped, but if the theme is "Focus on honing your unique skills, and maybe you too will find the cool gadgets/jeans!" it feels pretty empty. ( )

I dunno about this one. I never did figure out what they were doing or who all these people were. So much depended on remembering the two earlier books (which I didn't), and so much that was going on was ambiguous. Usually this is the kind of stuff I like but I couldn't wrap myself around it this time. Still, I read the whole thing, so there. ( )

Hollis, investigadora de tendencias de avanzada y ex cantante, vuelve a trabajar para el magnate del marketing global Hubertus Bigend en el último de sus planes lunáticos y brillantes: investigar las sutiles conexiones que existen entre el diseño de ropa para combate militar y los últimos avances de la moda textil, de modo de hacerse con un cuantioso contrato del Departamento de Defensa y descubrir, en el proceso, el jean perfecto. Pero las cosas se complican cuando una empresa rival está, utilizando esos mismos contratos para tráfico de drogas y armas, y, por más que nadie puede hacerle sombra a Bigend en el sinuoso mundo de las últimas tendencias globales, ahora el juego se ha vuelto mucho más difícil y peligroso. Después de País de espías, William Gibson vuelve a diseccionar con su frío y preciso bisturí, el mundo ultramoderno en que vivimos, donde la ferviente cacería por lo más avanzado en marcas, modelos y artilugios revela un pánico desesperado y una aterradora carrera hacia delante.