The Extremes
FBI捜査官テレサ・サイモンズは、夫がテキサスで銃乱射事件により殺された後、同じ日に同数の犠牲者を出したイングランド南岸の事件を追う。二つの惨事を結ぶ手掛かりを求め、彼女は仮想現実システム〈ExEx〉の内部へ踏み込んでいく。
作品情報
暴力の記憶と仮想現実が重なり合うなか、テレサは二つの惨事を結ぶ謎へ近づいていく。
『The Extremes』は、銃乱射事件で夫を失ったFBI捜査官テレサ・サイモンズを主人公に、無関係に見える二つの惨事がなぜ同じ輪郭を持つのかを追うSF長編である。被害者と遺族の抱える喪失を描きながら、訓練用にも使われる仮想現実〈Extreme Experience（ExEx）〉が、現実を理解するための危うい入口となる。
レビュー要約
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細部を反復させながら物語の核を浮かび上がらせる構成と、仮想現実を通じて暴力の経験を掘り下げる手法が評価されている。
書籍情報
- 出版社
- Simon & Schuster Ltd
- 発売日
- 1998-10-21
- ページ数
- 400ページ
- 言語
- 英語
- ISBN-13
- 9780684816326
- ISBN-10
- 0684816326
- 価格
- 19286 JPY
- カテゴリ
- 洋書/Literature & Fiction/Genre Fiction/Action & Adventure
After her husband is killed, Teresa joins a virtual reality company, where she finds relief from her grief in other worlds and personalities. Then she enters the mind of Gerry Grove, the town's assassin. As she explores Grove's virtual existence, Teresa is terrified by what she discovers.
レビュー
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Contains many of the worst characteristics of Priest's work
The needless repetition or focus on banal details that seem an almost autistic quirk of Priest's work is present here with almost no attempt to restrain these tendencies. A major part of the plot involves the MC entering virtual reality scenarios of crime scenes in order to train for these scenarios in real life or to perform investigative functions for ongoing criminal investigations. Every time she enters a particular scenario Priest tediously repeats the same details, the same thoughts, the same descriptions, the same dialogue, even if the scenario has already been described many times previously. Priest seemingly does not know how to summarize events or pace his narrative properly, instead obssessing over certain things with an almost autistic or aspergian inability to understand what details are relevant or interesting and what details need to be summarized instead. Overall a weak attempt at replicating the reality-bending feel of a Philip K. Dick novel.
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is our world a story we are telling or reading or both?
Any Christopher Priest book is always highly anticipated and often requires multiple readings where you will finds lots of quiet silent twists you have missed. He is one of those writes whose ideas and visions linger in your mind long after you have turned the last page. Love him or hate him, you cannot ignore his works and the power they have to beguile you. Highly recommended.
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Excellent
Every time I pick up a Christopher Priest novel I know I will enjoy it. This one was no exception. Please write some more Mr. Priest.
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Five Stars
Chris always gets your mind working.
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Three Stars
Not one of his best.
関連する文学賞
- 英国SF協会賞 第30回（1998年） ・長編部門