★ 05/01/2019
The latest from speculative fiction master Stephenson (Snow Crash , Anathem ) is a behemoth that begins in the world of high-tech entrepreneurs in present-day Seattle and ends with characters—including a talking crow, a giant woman, Death in human form, and a troubadour—on a perilous quest in a purely digital world. The latter section evokes Ernest Cline's Ready Player One , T.H. White's The Once and Future King , and Monty Python. The tale defies easy categorization but bears the hallmarks of Stephenson's work: fizzy verbal energy, consistent humor, deep immersion in technology, and frequent action sequences. The central idea is that citizens can sign up to have their brains digitally scanned after death, and that those scans can be turned into computer "processes." When activated, these processes form a conscious being, providing a type of life after death. The plot turns on the conflicts that occur when thousands of these beings meet in virtual reality. VERDICT This sprawling, genre-hopping novel will thrill Stephenson's fans and engross newcomers. Epic is an overused adjective, but it fits here. [See Prepub Alert, 12/3/18.]—Christopher Myers, Lake Oswego P.L., OR
Fall; or, Dodge in Hell is…a staggering feat of imagination, intelligence and stamina…Somewhere in this 900-page book is a 600-page book. One that has the same story, but weighs less. Without those 300 pages, though, it wouldn't be Neal Stephenson. It's not possible to separate the essential from the decorative. Nor would we want that, even if it were were. Not only do his fans not mind the extrait's what we came for…This is a case of author and substance and story and style all lining up; a series of lenses perfectly arranged to focus the power and precision of Stephenson's laser-beam intellect…[Fall ] is a one-of-a-kind synthesis of daring and originality, unafraid to venture into wild and unmapped conceptual territory.
The New York Times Book Review - Charles Yu
03/11/2019
This laboriously detailed follow-up to Reamde explores where human imagination ends and artificial intelligence begins, providing some speculative concepts without any real payoff. Richard “Dodge” Forthrast, founder of the gaming company Corporation 9592, is rendered brain-dead when a routine surgery goes horribly wrong. His will stipulates that his brain be scanned and preserved by a tech company run by elusive Elmo Shepherd, in hopes of future regeneration. Decades later, Dodge’s grandniece, Sophia, designs a method for turning on Dodge’s brain, making him a lone god of sorts in a new digital world. Her invention allows people to leave Meatspace, or the terrestrial world, which is reinventing itself after the implosion of the internet, and travel to Bitworld, where Dodge and the now-dead Elmo battle for power. Though Bitworld is liberated from physical constraints and Meatspace is exploring a “post-truth” era, both simplistically replicate present-day societal power structures, showing the limits of Stephenson’s imagination. Fans of Stephenson’s passion for the minutiae of technological innovations will revel in the intricacies of his construction, but unwieldy dialogue, uneven pacing, and a narrow-minded view of the future betray the story’s promise. Agent: Liz Darhansoff, Darhansoff & Verrill. (June)
Stephenson devotees with a taste for Tolkienesque fantasy will revel in the author’s imaginative world building . . . . Still, there are enough futuristic, envelope-pushing ideas here, especially related to AI and digital consciousness, to keep even nonfans and science buffs intrigued.” — Booklist [starred review]
“A one-of-a-kind synthesis of daring and originality, unafraid to venture into wild and unmapped conceptual territory.” — New York Times Book Review
“Stephenson isn’t just playing with words, he’s playing with ideas, and he isn’t joking either. He is sci-fi’s great contrarian, and Fall deserves to be rated as one of the great novels of our time, prophetically and philosophically.” — Wall Street Journal
“Those ready for an endlessly inventive and absorbing story are in for an adventure they won’t soon forget. An audacious epic with more than enough heart to fill its many, many pages.” — Kirkus Reviews [starred review]
“Fall is at once science fiction and fantasy, with quantum computing enabling what amounts to magic, and while Stephenson spins out a pleasingly plausible vision of our near future, he carves out his most comfortable position in the uncertain nexus where that future becomes past and we rewrite our own apocrypha. Vintage Stephenson, which is to say it’s like nothing he’s ever written.” — Wired
“Fall is a stunning combination of science fiction and Tolkienesque epic fantasy. Neal Stephenson moves deftly between real and simulated worlds, following characters in both settings and the long-term consequences of their actions. Fall is biblical in theme and scope. At nearly 900 pages, Stephenson’s bifurcated world is easy to get lost in.” — Shelf Awareness
“Neal Stephenson’s Fall explores higher consciousness, the internet’s future, and virtual worldbuilding in one mind-blowing adventure.” — Slate
“Like Dodge, Stephenson is creating a new universe from scratch, fighting battles and wrestling with big ideas. Those of us in Meatspace can only sit mutely by and watch the spectacle in wonder.” — Nature
“Stephenson is not merely a fantasist of the future; he is a prophet of our present, a virtual architect of the ideas that define our world. . . a science fiction writer who is not only determined to entertain, but to make the world a better place—even if it means inventing that future himself.” — Reason
Fall is at once science fiction and fantasy, with quantum computing enabling what amounts to magic, and while Stephenson spins out a pleasingly plausible vision of our near future, he carves out his most comfortable position in the uncertain nexus where that future becomes past and we rewrite our own apocrypha. Vintage Stephenson, which is to say it’s like nothing he’s ever written.
Like Dodge, Stephenson is creating a new universe from scratch, fighting battles and wrestling with big ideas. Those of us in Meatspace can only sit mutely by and watch the spectacle in wonder.
Neal Stephenson’s Fall explores higher consciousness, the internet’s future, and virtual worldbuilding in one mind-blowing adventure.
Stephenson isn’t just playing with words, he’s playing with ideas, and he isn’t joking either. He is sci-fi’s great contrarian, and Fall deserves to be rated as one of the great novels of our time, prophetically and philosophically.
“Fall is a stunning combination of science fiction and Tolkienesque epic fantasy. Neal Stephenson moves deftly between real and simulated worlds, following characters in both settings and the long-term consequences of their actions. Fall is biblical in theme and scope. At nearly 900 pages, Stephenson’s bifurcated world is easy to get lost in.
A one-of-a-kind synthesis of daring and originality, unafraid to venture into wild and unmapped conceptual territory.
New York Times Book Review
Stephenson is not merely a fantasist of the future; he is a prophet of our present, a virtual architect of the ideas that define our world. . . a science fiction writer who is not only determined to entertain, but to make the world a better place—even if it means inventing that future himself.
Stephenson devotees with a taste for Tolkienesque fantasy will revel in the author’s imaginative world building . . . . Still, there are enough futuristic, envelope-pushing ideas here, especially related to AI and digital consciousness, to keep even nonfans and science buffs intrigued.
Booklist [starred review]
Like Dodge, Stephenson is creating a new universe from scratch, fighting battles and wrestling with big ideas. Those of us in Meatspace can only sit mutely by and watch the spectacle in wonder.
Neal Stephenson’s Fall explores higher consciousness, the internet’s future, and virtual worldbuilding in one mind-blowing adventure.
Stephenson isn’t just playing with words, he’s playing with ideas, and he isn’t joking either. He is sci-fi’s great contrarian, and Fall deserves to be rated as one of the great novels of our time, prophetically and philosophically.
Stephenson is not merely a fantasist of the future; he is a prophet of our present, a virtual architect of the ideas that define our world. . . a science fiction writer who is not only determined to entertain, but to make the world a better place—even if it means inventing that future himself.
Fall is at once science fiction and fantasy, with quantum computing enabling what amounts to magic, and while Stephenson spins out a pleasingly plausible vision of our near future, he carves out his most comfortable position in the uncertain nexus where that future becomes past and we rewrite our own apocrypha. Vintage Stephenson, which is to say it’s like nothing he’s ever written.
Malcom Hillgartner narrates a vast and expansive epic spanning the modern day and reaching into a technological afterlife. After a routine procedure, Richard "Dodge" Forthrast is pronounced medically dead, and his brain is scanned and stored in the cloud. Once technology advances, his brain is turned back on; thus, the Bitworld is created—a digital heaven for humanity. Hillgartner maintains a steady narration as the story transitions from science fiction to a fantasy romp. A large cast brimming with colorful characters is easy to track, thanks to Hillgartner's consistent voicings. Furthermore, he mitigates some of the uneven elements of the story and keeps the narrative engaging throughout its sweeping duration. J.M.M. © AudioFile 2019, Portland, Maine
★ 2019-03-17 When Richard "Dodge" Forthrast dies under anesthesia for a routine medical procedure, his story is just beginning.
As the founder and chairman of a video game company, Dodge has a pretty sweet life. He has money to burn and a loving relationship with his niece, Zula, and grandniece, Sophia. So when he dies unexpectedly, there are a lot of people to mourn him, including his friend Corvallis Kawasaki, who is also the executor of his will. To make matters worse (or, to say the least, more complicated), there's something unexpected in Dodge's last wishes. It turns out that in his youth he put it in writing that he wanted his brain to be preserved until such technology existed that his consciousness could be uploaded into a computer. And much to everyone's surprise, that technology isn't so far off after all. Years later, Sophia grows up to follow in her clever grand-uncle's footsteps and figures out a way to turn on Dodge's brain. It is at this point that the novel splits into two narratives: "Meatspace," or what we would call the real world, and "Bitworld," inhabited by Dodge (now called "Egdod") and increasing numbers of downloaded minds. Stephenson (co-author: The Rise and Fall of D.O.D.O , 2017; Seveneves , 2015, etc.) is known for ambitious books, and this doorstop of a novel is certainly no exception. Life in Bitworld is more reminiscent of high fantasy than science fiction as the ever evolving narrative plays with the daily reality of living in a digital space. Would you have special abilities like a mythical god? Join your aura together with other souls and live as a hive mind? Create hills and rivers from nothing? Destroy your enemies with tech-given powers that seem magical? Readers looking for a post-human thought experiment might be disappointed with the references to ancient mythology, but those ready for an endlessly inventive and absorbing story are in for an adventure they won't soon forget.
An audacious epic with more than enough heart to fill its many, many pages.