Rob's Reviews > Fall; or, Dodge in Hell
Fall; or, Dodge in Hell
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Rob's review
bookshelves: author-male, science-fiction, 20xx-laser, audio-book, own, read-2019
Jun 17, 2019
bookshelves: author-male, science-fiction, 20xx-laser, audio-book, own, read-2019
Executive Summary: This book starts out quite strong, but as it goes on it becomes essentially two interconnected stories and I liked one of those stories a lot more than the other. 3.5 stars.
Audiobook: Malcolm Hillgartner did a solid job with the narration. I checked and he's the same narrator as Reamde so I appreciate the continuity. He does some voices, but nothing that really blew me away. Audio is a good option, but not really a must listen.
Full Review
Neal Stephenson has been one of my favorite authors since I first picked up Snow Crash in college. I've enjoyed just about every one of his books. He has a writing style that tends to meander at times, and is prone to tangents. I always seem to find this just as entertaining as the main plot.
This book didn't seem to have any major tangents, but it did follow his other typical pattern of telling multiple connected stories in one book.
This book is a loose sequel to Reamde and shares characters and history with Cryptonomicon. If you haven't read those books, you can probably read this stand alone, but of the two Reamde would be the better one to have read as some the characters at the center of the plot for this book were also at the center of that.
I enjoyed Reamde and the start of this book as it feels much the same. However by the end of the book more time is spent inside the simulation and less out in the real world. Things feel far more like a fantasy book rather than sci-fi. Now I love a good fantasy story, and that makes up the majority of the books I read, but I found this one to be far less enjoyable than the sci-fi story that preceded it.
Overall I found this book good, but not great. I'll happily pick up his next book and more than likely enjoy it. If you've enjoyed most of his past works, you'll probably enjoy this. If you haven't ready any of his work, there are better books to start with.
Audiobook: Malcolm Hillgartner did a solid job with the narration. I checked and he's the same narrator as Reamde so I appreciate the continuity. He does some voices, but nothing that really blew me away. Audio is a good option, but not really a must listen.
Full Review
Neal Stephenson has been one of my favorite authors since I first picked up Snow Crash in college. I've enjoyed just about every one of his books. He has a writing style that tends to meander at times, and is prone to tangents. I always seem to find this just as entertaining as the main plot.
This book didn't seem to have any major tangents, but it did follow his other typical pattern of telling multiple connected stories in one book.
This book is a loose sequel to Reamde and shares characters and history with Cryptonomicon. If you haven't read those books, you can probably read this stand alone, but of the two Reamde would be the better one to have read as some the characters at the center of the plot for this book were also at the center of that.
I enjoyed Reamde and the start of this book as it feels much the same. However by the end of the book more time is spent inside the simulation and less out in the real world. Things feel far more like a fantasy book rather than sci-fi. Now I love a good fantasy story, and that makes up the majority of the books I read, but I found this one to be far less enjoyable than the sci-fi story that preceded it.
Overall I found this book good, but not great. I'll happily pick up his next book and more than likely enjoy it. If you've enjoyed most of his past works, you'll probably enjoy this. If you haven't ready any of his work, there are better books to start with.
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Reading Progress
December 4, 2018
– Shelved as:
to-read
December 4, 2018
– Shelved
December 4, 2018
– Shelved as:
author-male
December 4, 2018
– Shelved as:
science-fiction
June 4, 2019
–
Started Reading
June 4, 2019
– Shelved as:
20xx-laser
June 4, 2019
– Shelved as:
audio-book
June 4, 2019
– Shelved as:
own
June 4, 2019
– Shelved as:
read-2019
June 4, 2019
–
8.0%
"Well this is off to a strange start, as usual. Not too many tangents yet though.."
June 5, 2019
–
13.0%
June 6, 2019
–
20.0%
June 7, 2019
–
24.0%
June 8, 2019
–
37.0%
"Like most Stephenson books this one has meandered its way to getting to main idea of the book (though as usual done in a way I've enjoyed). Now that it's gotten there it's ramping up."
June 9, 2019
–
41.0%
June 11, 2019
–
56.0%
June 12, 2019
–
62.0%
June 13, 2019
–
70.0%
June 14, 2019
–
73.0%
June 16, 2019
–
94.0%
June 17, 2019
–
Finished Reading
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David H.
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Jun 23, 2019 03:27PM
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![Rob](https://images.gr-assets.com/users/1422270416p1/10743961.jpg)
![David H.](https://images.gr-assets.com/users/1625448990p1/18844431.jpg)
Yeah, the Baroque Cycle features both the Shaftoe and Waterhouse families, as well as a certain mysterious man. I enjoyed the trilogy, but they read more like historical fiction with a side of maybe-alternate-history, which may not be up your alley.
![Rob](https://images.gr-assets.com/users/1422270416p1/10743961.jpg)
But I don't think I have either in audio..so I haven't gotten around to it.
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