Woken Furies

Not for the fainthearted. Seriously.

When someone asks me for a book recommendation, I do not recommend this book or series if the person is underage, or if the person likes fairies and fluffy dragons, or if the person has never read at least some of the Classic Science Fictions works.

When someone asks me for a book recommendation, and I think that person is smart enough and tough enough to read hardcore blindingly brilliant Science Fiction, I will recommend this book and series with the caveat: “You will either get totally sucked in and miss days of your life, OR you will run screaming.

Your mileage may vary.

I half read & half listened to this novel because of time constraints (and the excellent deal kindle offered for the Audible content via whispernet). It’s an excellently crafted piece of fiction that, while staying within the noir cyberpunk style of the first two novels, answers many lingering questions about Takeshi Kovacs and the mythology of his universe. The writing is superb and the story is top notch.

However, I’d suggest that you read this novel and not listen to it via Audible. First of all, it’s a different actor reading & a different director than used for the first two novels, which is in itself a little bit disconcerting. You can get past it, if it’s done right, but they didn’t do a good job.

The actor, director and production team clearly never read the first two novels on the series and no one bothered to do some cursory research on simple things like name & location pronunciations. For instance, the actor pronounced the title character’s name wrong (Takashi Kovacs’ last name is pronounced “kovatch” which is pointed out by the protagonist in the first chapters of Altered Carbon and throughout the first two novels) and so the actor and production team never bothered to do a shred of research on the characters of the series. Secondly, they used a very annoying device to indicate flashbacks & memories. Instead of articulating a reference to a memory or flashback, they employed a ridiculous type of echoing sound. That is, all memories and flashbacks (and there are many throughout the novel) are recorded as if muffled. Or to try and describe a real world example, these parts of the story sounded like when your local newscast anchor loses his mic and you hear him in echo off of background audio, video as if from a distance & in a chamber. It’s horrible and really annoying. Read this one & skip the Audible.

This is what all great sci-fi does: The science fiction serves as a backdrop to explore who we are as people. Kovacs, the main character in this series, has flaws and angst that we all share; he just gets to do so in a universe where people “live forever” thanks to uploading and digital storage taken to the extreme. (I’ll leave you to ponder whether, when the original wetware brain is destroyed, the person isn’t actually Really Dead; the concept of uploading involves PERFECT uploading, and the idea that a digital copy of “you” is indeed “you.”)

Much of this series reminds me of the excellent writing of Edward W. Robinson and the Breakers series, even though the premises couldn’t be more different. I think Morgan and Robinson would really enjoy an adult beverage into the wee hours – they are of a kind.

Strong, poignant, thinking-man’s sci-fi. An outstanding series. And since you’ve set up Takeshi to be immortal, let’s have more, please!

Caught between immortal overclass oligarchs and ascetic misogynistic priests who prefer real deaths than the sacrilegious artificial extension of life or cloning, our mercenary envoy Takeshi Kovacs San or Micky Serendipity, was certainly crystal clear in deciding which side he would fight for – none but for the Alpha-women he fancied or obsessed with. These Fem fatale beauties were the chief and only motives that drove Takeshi hard and up with blinding loyalty.

Raging vengence ruled our envoy and also by his passion for curvy individuals rather than morals, and so he should be since mercenaries dont care about morals. Takeshi was guided only by his little brother. More so in book 3 than in 1 & 2, our hotblooded envoy was even more sexed up with his equally hyper sexed up Fem fatale companions. Readers were treated to quite lengthy steamy segments that would make DH Lawrences Lady Chatterley’s lover a suitable text for the kindergarten. Certainly easy to relate to in our world where men are driven perpetually by the same three forces – power, money and lusts.

Author Richard K. Morgan in his third and final (so far) installment, entertained me greatly with the epic adventures of immortal envoy Takashi Kovac, especially in the last third of the book when the diffused segments of the story came together and also linked up with books 1 & 2. Just like preceding two books in the trilogy, it was more fun listening to the story recited by Todd Mclaren (audio book) because he expertly breathed life into the characters and painted the mood and landscape quite vividly and deliciously or in abhorrent fashion. As the story climaxed, our aging hero must duel with his younger nemesis. Deadly animosity rather than tearful reunion. The exchange and discourse between them were too short and shallow and the outcome was disappointing for me. But really, should I be? With resleeving and cloning technology available, nobody really dies, except for the pious catholic priests and their devotees.

This is book 3 of the Takeshi Kovacs series. The central premise is that people can be resleeved into new bodies as long as their “cortical stack” (the vertebrae just below the skull) is intact. These stacks can be left on the shelf for decades if not hundreds of years, so it can be very disorienting awakening resleeved in a whole new era. The protagonist is a mixture of detective and Special Forces assassin. The first book of the series, “Altered Carbon,” is a masterpiece of hardboiled sci-fi noir. Read it. Book 2 (“Broken Angels”) and this third book are only so-so. The settings on different planets are believable. Three stars.

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