Hyperthought

by M.M. Buckner

Jin, the son of a wealthy Com CEO, and Jolie, a tour guide to the splendors of Earth, join forces to overthrow the tyranny of the Coms over the north by unleashing the power of Jin's brain with experimental neurosurgery, while Jin's father tries to stop them. Original.

Genres: Science Fiction, Fiction, Ebooks

192 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 28, 2003

About the author

Mary M. Buckner is a hard science fiction author with an M.A. in Creative Writing from Boston University. Her first novel, Hyperthought was a finalist for the Philip K. Dick award, and War Surf won the award in 2005.

Reviews

[Christopher Hivner · Rating 2 out of 5]

The Earth in Hyperthought has been mostly destroyed with people living underground or in domes. The north is controlled by powerful corporations while the south is free. In the south Jolie Sauvage runs a business acting as a tour guide for rich northerners. She meets Jin, a handsome movie star and son of one of the corporation CEO's. She falls for Jin, but he leaves for California to have experimental surgery on his brain. Nanobots are inserted into his brain to help expand his thought processes so he can understand the universe. Jolie comes to believe he is in trouble and mounts an impossible rescue.

The plot sounded exciting, but unfortunately for me it wasn't, mostly because the eponymous 'hyperthought' is barely touched upon. It's more of an adventure novel detailing Jolie's activities as a tour guide, revolutionary and finally, rescuer. The characters are not given much depth and that includes Jolie. This book is under 200 pages but I had to force myself through it. It's certainly not badly written, it just never caught my interest and in the end, the science fiction content was too light.

[Kevin Byrne · Rating 1 out of 5]

Poorly written; not a good story

[Katie · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book has been on my shelf for years and I never quite got around to picking it up. I did this summer and I was transported into the harsh landscapes of the Earth in 2125. These were honestly the best part of the book! I'm still uncertain about the .coms and politics of the novel, but those are never very deeply explained. I'm glad the narrator is Jolie Sauvage who by nature doesn't understand the big corporation and single-mindedly focuses on her job, lead expeditions to the surface and save Jin. I'm not going to lie I grew to hate Jin more and more as the book progressed. He just got weird and I never felt like I knew his story or motivations. I was not a fan of the ending. If there is a sequel I might borrow it from the library just to see where Jolie goes next.

[Budd · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a very fast paced book with lots of action. At under 200 pages it is a very fast read. I do think that the breivity of the book does sacrifice character development. The only character we get to know is Jolie and we only get a small glimpse into her past. I was never sure what made her tick and the character (not unlike real women) seemed inconsistent. I would have liked to have a more indepth look into the characters and into how society had transformed from present day into the bleak future Buckner paints. This is a good sign though. My idea of a good book is one that leaves you wanting more and yet there is no sequel to ruin the mystique.

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book isn't great but it isn't bad either. I would give it 3.5 stars if that were and option, since it's not as good as books I generally give 4 stars to. It is fairly light reading for a book about nano technology. Occasionally the storyline seems strays or has some holes, and the characters could have been fleshed out better. Still it is a quick read with lots of action and interesting concepts so I'm not sorry I took the time to read it.

[Deathmetalroze · Rating 3 out of 5]

I had been really excited about this book, but was let down a little. I don't know how to explain it other than that you could tell that it was written by a woman immediately. I don't really remember much about it aside from that. If I am ever a sci-fi writer I will probably use that same tactic with the initials or make up a male pseudonym like Alice Sheldon/James Tiptree, Jr.

[Pelagicunicorn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good. Too much of a love story. I did enjoy the main characters' strong friendships. Stark, toxic, swirling surface of the earth. Strong female lead who had grown up as a sort of a "sewer rat." MM Buckner's first novel. I would read another.

[Scott · Rating 2 out of 5]

Poor writing aside, I found the story to be interesting, but the book is so poorly edited that there are multiple typos on almost every page. I would happily give this book another star if it were better written, but as it is now, I would not recommend it to anyone.

[Brianna · Rating 5 out of 5]

this was a very short book but it was great! There were so many events packed into the less than hundred pages and details were not spared. I was able to picture everything in my head. great book!

[Jenny · Rating 2 out of 5]

Got this for pretty cheap on Kindle just to have something. It wasn't very well written and the story wasn't great either. I made it to the end, but wouldn't really recommend it.

[Michael Schulz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Short but good cyberpunk fiction. A little overboard on the climate change but still a good story.