William Gibson

In twenty-first century Tokyo, Rez, one of the world's biggest rock stars, prepares to marry Rei Toe, Japan's biggest media star, who is known as the Idoru and who exists only in virtual reality. Reprint.

Idoru

Daniel Cleveland

Gibson always pulls me in with pre World of Warcraft visions of virtual world presence, interaction and environment. The idea of the creation of an AI being who is able to interact and learn from humans is not new but Gibson's portrayal of an AI woman who interacts well nough for a rock star to wish to marry her is a unique twist. Bit-rot is my new fave phrase and Gibson is a timeless cyber sci-fi read.

Idoru is a gripping techno-thriller by William Gibson, bestselling author of Neuromancer 'Fast, witty and cleverly politicized' Guardian Tokyo, post-event: After an attack of scruples, Colin Laney's skipped out on his former employer Slitscan - avoiding the rash of media lawyers sent his way - and taken a job for the outfit managing Japanese rock duo, Lo/Rez. Rez has announced he's going to marry an 'idoru' by the name of Rei Toi - she exists only in virtual reality - and this creates complications that Laney, a net runner, is supposed to sort out. But when Chai, part of Lo/Rez's fan club, turns up unaware that she's carrying illegal nanoware for the Russian Kombinat, Laney's scruples nudge him towards trouble all over again. And this time lawyers'll be the least of his worries . . . William Gibson is a prophet and a satirist, a black comedian and an outstanding architect of cool. Readers of Neal Stephenson, Ray Bradbury and Iain M. Banks will love this book. Idoru is the second novel in the Bridge trilogy - read Virtual Light and All Tomorrow's Parties for more. 'Sharp, fast, bright . . . a must' Arena 'A classic technothriller . . . lean, evocative, tense' Wired 'Luxuriate in prose simultaneously as hard and laconic as Elmore Leonard's and as glacially poetic as JG. Ballard's . . . an exhilarating ride' New Statesman Distrust That Particular Flavor - an acclaimed nonfiction collection by William Gibson, bestselling author ofNeuromancer 'The future's already here: it's just not evenly distributed' William Gibson was writing fiction when he predicted the internet. And as his stories bled into reality so he became one of the first to report on the real-world consequences of cyberspace's growth and development. Now, with the dust settling on the first internet revolution, comes Gibson's first collection of non-fiction - essays from the technological and cultural frontiers of this new world. Covering a variety of subjects, they include: Metrophagy - the Art and Science of Digesting Great Cities An account of obsession in 'the world's attic' - eBay Reasons why 'The Net is a Waste of Time' Singapore as 'Disneyland with the Death Penalty' A primer on Japan, our default setting for the future These and many other pieces, collected for the first time in Distrust that Particular Flavour, are studded with revealing autobiographical fragments and map the development of Gibson's acute perceptions about modern life. Readers of Neal Stephenson, Ray Bradbury and Iain M. Banks will love this book. 'Gibson is a prophet and a satirist, a black comedian and an astounding architect of cool. He's also responsible for much of the world we live in' Spectator 'Part-detective story, part-cultural snapshot ... all bound by Gibson's pin-sharp prose' Arena William Gibson's first novel Neuromancer has sold more than six million copies worldwide. In an earlier story he had invented the term 'cyberspace'; a concept he developed in the novel, creating an iconography for the Information Age long before the invention of the Internet. The book won three major literary prizes. He has since written nine further novels including Count Zero; Mona Lisa Overdrive; The Difference Engine; Virtual Light; Idoru; All Tomorrow's Parties; Pattern Recognition; Spook Country and most recently Zero History. William Gibson's first novel Neuromancer sold more than six million copies worldwide. Count Zero and Mona Lisa Overdrive completed his first trilogy. He has since written six further novels, moving gradually away from science fiction and futuristic work, instead writing about the strange contemporary world we inhabit. His most recent novels include Patter Recognition, Spook Country and Zero History, his non-fiction collection. Distrust That Particular Flavor, compiles assorted writings and journalism from across his career.

Idoru

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