Idoru (Bridge Trilogy Book 2)

William Gibson's "Idoru" is the second book in his Bridge Trilogy. First of all, I have to say that I've read this book out of order: I've not yet read the first book. But, as far as I can tell, except for the previous existence of some tertiary characters, that's not a problem. The book is, essentially, stand-alone. Anyway, Gibson does a fine job here. It's his usual futuristic cyber-type of world, well-written, with good characters. My only complaint is that there's a bit of padding in the book. The first 30% of it is background material from the points of view of the two main characters. Once the actual plot begins, there's also a bit too much description of Gibson's world. But, it's all well-done and interesting, so I'm not complaining too much. I've also got a bit of a problem with the second main character being a 14 year old girl: it's a bit of a stretch having her do the things she does. But, I still rate the book at a Very Good 4 stars out of 5.The books in Gibson's Bridge Trilogy are:1.  Virtual Light 2.  Idoru 3.  All Tomorrow's Parties

This is an interesting look at the marriage of human and AI in the online community of the future. Colin is a man whose brain had been altered by experimental drugs as a teen. His new job is to hunt for the nodal pints that help an amorphous group of people understand the proposed marriage of pop star Rez to the artificial construct Rei Toie. Rei is described as the personification of desire. Most of the action occurs in Japan in the near future, which has always been my favorite punk sci- fi setting. Enmeshed in the story line is an engaging computer star Chia Pet. This is as close as I can come to describing the plot, and I have a very tenuous grasp of the proposed technology. But I enjoyed it nonetheless. It is a poignant view of humankind's possible future as we continue to approach that occurrence when our bodies may no longer be our primary homes. I am intrigues with this story line, and this book addresses it better than most.

The plot of the book is something only William Gibson could pull off. I'm not going to say anything about the plot of the book. Know that this book is the second book of a Trilogy. One has to read all three books to understand the meaning of Idoru. It bends the mind in ways I didn't think I could go. I still have the feeling, after reading all three books, that maybe I missed something along the way. That is the genius of William Gibson.

Many years ago I read Neuromancer. Found out later that is was not the first installment of the trilogy so I bought the other two. My wife could simply NOT get into the futuristic story but I was hooked. I'm still hooked and I buy every book Gibson puts out, even The Difference Engine with Bruce Sterling.I'm a die-hard fan and this series is no different. Once you're in and invested in the characters, you're in for the long-haulGibson paints the tableau, puts you in the scenes as an unidentified co-conspirator and you're along for a very satisfying ride. I doubt this is the end of the Idoru journey...at least I hope not.

William Gibson is a giant in sci-fi writing and I have generally enjoyed his books starting with Neuromancer. However, there are times when Gibson sort of gets lost in the eloquence of his writing and forgets that there is a story to tell. Iduro in his second book in The Bridge series (starting with Virtual Light), and frankly, the book just sort of weirds me out. Perhaps is has something to do with the setting (post giant quake Tokyo), but the story just does not hang together well for me. Maybe I am just getting too old. There is nothing particularly wrong. The characters are well developed in Gibson's usual way, but the storyline just never grabbed me sufficiently to turn the book into one of those that keep you up too late as you read "just one more chapter". Never happened for me with Iduro.The book is generally well acclaimed, but for me, it left me with a sense of "what was the payoff with this story"? I never found it.

Typical William Gibson. Talented writer with a great sense imagination that he interleves with tales of human joy and tragedy. Idoru is a challenging book to read as are all his other works, but that is what makes them worth the read. Gibson weaves so much complexity into his books it really makes you think and challenge your own understanding of the storyline. But that's why I love reading Idoru. Now on to the third book in the Bridge Trilogy.

This is an entertaining read! The author's style and narrative is interesting as well because of it's descriptive quality and choice wording. I think the tone is lighter in this story when compared to Gibson's previous books.

As I read more of Gibson's catalogue it becomes apparent why he would take a interest in obscure, expensive, rare and complicated watches as per his many interviews. As his work progresses he seems to get more and more interested in niche marketing and small communities created by the new flow of information. To me, he binds this with branding, sigils (product symbols like the peacock of NBC or the circle of Pepsi) He wraps his real interest with gun play, sexual tension, drugs and lurid, Twitter inspired, dense descriptions making full use of each word coupled with familiar bit players from the Sprawl. Fascinating yet getting predictable after nearly a dozen novels.

This is the second book in the Bridge trilogy and by far (so far) the most puzzling. Unlike other Gibson novels this coalesces very gradually but the concept and the world in which it all happens are at times quite breathtaking. There is no denying that this story shows a genius at work just consider the opening of chapter 21!!! Just crazy. On now to finish this trilogy want to see where it ends up.I really can’t recommend it highly enough.

A brilliantly realised and oddly prophetic tale of love, fandom and the loss of personal privacy in an age obsessed with celebrity status, where not even your shopping lists are for your eyes only.Although the middle novel in the Bridge trilogy, this works well as a stand alone book. Whilst it's not quite as significant as, say, Neuromancer it is still wonderfully rich and involving, with characters it's genuinely hard to let go of when the story ends. One of the things that struck me whilst pondering my review is how hard it is to pigeonhole this book. It somehow manages to be a cyberpunk masterpiece, a tale suitable for the YA crowd, for die hard SF fans and for those who love mystery and intrigue filled spy thrillers. There's even some aspects that will appeal to the most ardent of "chick-lit" devotees. I think that you would be hard pushed to find a reader who did not find some point of connection with this story....and for those who connect strongly the works of William Gibson can open up a whole new plush textured and wholly immersive world.

This book was an excellent read

Second time through. Still difficult to put down. Great mix of characters ranging from Chandler old hood types to Manga. The heavy tech stuff presented as easy and inevitable. Brilliant.

Excellent and evocative writing. He is the master, and this is one of his finest works. Only Pattern Recognition beats it.