Armed Memory

by Jim Young

In the strange days at the end of the 21st century, Tim drifts into New York City and goes to work for his cousin, a biotech wizard in designed genes who dreams of reshaping the world. But Tim's employer has made some powerful enemies. As a violent wave of disorder spreads across the globe, Tim finds he holds the key to humanity's salvation.

Genres: Science Fiction, Cyberpunk, Fiction

Hardcover

First published January 1, 1995

Reviews

[Thomas · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this novel several years ago when I was going through a cyberpunk reading phase, and at the time I was completely blown away -- not at all by its structure or storytelling, which are sort of off-the-shelf -- but I just loved its concepts. I have to say it hasn't held up as strongly through the years as I would have expected when I read it. People I know also seem to be divided -- a lot really don't like it. I personally thought it was great fun, for what it's worth.

[Brent Ecenbarger · Rating 2 out of 5]

I got this book from my local used book store in a program where they pick out books for you based on writing down other authors you enjoy. I'm sure I got this one because I read a lot of science fiction, and honestly the plot sounds really exciting. It's about a word where people can microde" themselves to change their appearance. For most people that choose to do so, that means looking like Elvis or JFK or some other retro celebrity, but for others they become centaurs, lizard kings or other animal human hybrids.

One group in particular has become hammerhead sharks and they are wanting to destroy the world. There are giant hammerheads that live in the oceans that seem to be controlling the street level hammerheads (it's implied that these are mafioso sharks and are the chief criminal element in the world). The main characters include Johnny, the guy whose company is on the front edge of creating these microdes, his cousin Tim who begins working for him, and Ullrich, a guy who **early spoiler** becomes a hammerhead shark involuntarily. **end of spoilers**

It all sounds great, and I think this book could be reworked into a really interesting story or Netflix series a la Altered Carbon but unfortunately the hammerheads were never really convincing as villains. The characters also aren't compelling enough to really draw you in, as Tim and Ullrich in particular seem to just go with the flow too much and Johnny (the most interesting character) isn't in the book enough.

[David Nadas · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was way overdue for a good cyberPUNK novel and this started like a bat out of hell... Unfortunately, it did not end the way it started. Written in 1995, the author was off on a lot of future givens, especially the cost of things (One.. Million Dollars!), the tech was off. and the characters were a bit flat-- I never could flesh out their faces in my mind. Too bad because the book's premise was awesome. Not sure what happened at the end but either the author or the publisher or both lost interest. Damn! This had the potential of being a classic. A good read for future writers of Sci-Fi.

[Ann Stolinsky · Rating 5 out of 5]

How many people have piles of books to-be-read? I do. I picked up Armed Memory, probably about ten years ago, and it just popped up on the top of my pile.
Am I glad it did.
This novel is a page-turner. I love the style, being told by different people, about each of their experiences within a specific event. Yes, it's about hammerhead sharks, but boy are they intelligent! I enjoyed the book, read it in three days, and recommend it.

[SteveRv · Rating 1 out of 5]

I’d give this zero stars if I could. Reads like a kid wrote it. I couldn’t get past the 2nd chapter without starting to skim and I just couldn’t read anything after the beginning of chapter 3

[Cody Jackson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Got this out of my middle school’s library and loved it then. Reread it this year and it holds up. Great story about constantly changing yourself and still never being satisfied.

[Erik Graff · Rating 3 out of 5]

Just a bedtime book picked up at a local bookstore. Although I'd drawn away from reading as much science fiction as I did as a kid, the few cyperpunk novels I'd read on friends' recommendations, novels such as Snow Crash, had impressed me, so I was willing to try another. This one, while fine for its purpose, was not so impressive.

[Shannon · Rating 3 out of 5]

While this book was interesting, and I did for the most part enjoy it, there were times when it seemed like parts of the story were missing. The story did not always flow well.

Younger readers would probably get more enjoyment from this book than someone looking for an in-depth detailed, well flowing story; after all, it has cool sharkmen.

[Sarah Sammis · Rating 2 out of 5]

Borrowed from South Pasadena library.

[David Book · Rating 5 out of 5]

First read this in middle school, then found it a Family Dollar a few years ago.

[Tara · Rating 2 out of 5]

Great concepts, weird execution.

[Liz · Rating 1 out of 5]

I wish I could arm MY memory. How could a book about cyborg sharks be so bloody boring?