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Nexus: Nexus Arc Book 1 Paperback – December 18, 2012

by Ramez Naam (Author), ARGH! Oxford (Illustrator)
4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars 3,602 ratings
See all formats and editions
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Winner of the 2014 Prometheus Award

Mankind gets an upgrade

In the near future, the experimental nano-drug Nexus can link humans together, mind to mind. There are some who want to improve it. There are some who want to eradicate it. And there are others who just want to exploit it.

When a young scientist is caught improving Nexus, he’s thrust over his head into a world of danger and international espionage – for there is far more at stake than anyone realizes.

From the halls of academe to the halls of power, from the headquarters of an elite US agency in Washington DC to a secret lab beneath a top university in Shanghai, from the underground parties of San Francisco to the illegal biotech markets of Bangkok, from an international neuroscience conference to a remote monastery in the mountains of Thailand – Nexus is a thrill ride through a future on the brink of explosion.

File Under: Science Fiction [Humanity 2.0 | Mind Matters | Hive | This Will Happen]
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  1. Book 1 of 3
    The Nexus Trilogy
  2. Print length
    464 pages
  3. Language
    English
  4. Publisher
    Angry Robot
  5. Publication date
    December 18, 2012
  6. Dimensions
    0.04 x 0.04 x 0.04 inches
  7. ISBN-10
    0857662937
  8. ISBN-13
    978-0857662934
  9. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

*Starred Review* Naam, an expert in new technologies and author of More Than Human: Embracing the Promise of Biological Enhancement (2005), turns in a stellar performance with his debut sf novel. Nexus is a nanotechnology that allows human minds to link up. But rogue scientists are using it to turn ordinary people into killers (shades of Richard Condon’s classic novel The Manchurian Candidate). The American government recruits—in other words, blackmails—Kade Lane, a grad student who’s been known to tinker with Nexus, to get close to the suspected leader of the mind-control program. But, as Kade soon discovers, one man’s villain is another’s visionary, and he’s forced to choose sides in a hurry, before someone else decides he’s too dangerous to stay alive. Naam has set himself a difficult challenge here: he’s telling a story in which much of the action and dialogue takes place inside the characters’ minds. But he succeeds admirably: one scene, in particular, in which a character races to make changes to the Nexus system by reprogramming it inside his own head, is nail-bitingly tense, when it could easily have come off as preposterous. The dialogue might be a bit raw in places, and there might be a slight overuse of exclamation points, but those are minor rookie mistakes. What matters here is the remarkable scope of the story and its narrative power. --David Pitt

Review

"Good. Scary Good."
-Wired

"Provocative... A double-edged vision of the post-human."
-The Wall Street Journal
 
"A lightning bolt of a novel, with a sense of awe missing from a lot of current fiction." -Ars Technica
 
"Starred Review. Naam turns in a stellar performance in his debut SF novel... What matters here is the remarkable scope and narrative power of the story."
-Booklist

"A rich cast of characters...the action scenes are crisp, the glimpses of future tech and culture are mesmerizing."
- Publishers Weekly 

“Naam displays a Michael Crichton-like ability to explain cutting-edge research via the medium of an airport techno-thriller.”
–SFX Magazine 

"A superbly plotted high-tension technothriller ... full of delicious, thoughtful moral ambiguity ... a hell of a read." -Cory Doctorow

"Nexus and Crux are a devastating probe into the political consequences of transhumanism; a sharp, chilling look at our likely future." 
– Charles Stross, author of Singularity Sky and Halting State

"A gripping piece of near future speculation... all the grit and pace of the Bourne films." -Alastair Reynolds, author of Revelation Space

"The most brilliant hard SF thriller I've read in years. Reminds me of Michael Crichton at his best." -Brenda Cooper, author of The Creative Fire

"Any old writer can take you on a roller coaster ride, but it takes a wizard like Ramez Naam to take you on the same ride while he builds the roller coaster a few feet in front of your plummeting car... you'll want to read it before everyone's talking about it."
- John Barnes, author of the Timeline Wars and Daybreak series.

"An incredibly imaginative, action-packed intellectual romp! Ramez Naam has turned the notion of human liberty and freedom on its head by forcing the question: Technology permitting, should we be free to radically alter our physiological and mental states?"
- Dani Kollin, Prometheus award winning author of The Unincorporated Man

"The only serious successor to Michael Crichton working in the future history genre today." 
- Scott Harrison, author of Archangel
 
"If you are posthuman or transhuman this is an absolute must-read for you; and even mere mortals will love it." 
- Philip Palmer, author of Version 43 and Hell Ship
 
"Ramez writes excellent action sequences, incorporating his technology well, and the lives at stake are more than just cardboard cutouts. No one in this story is 'as meets the eye'" 
- Timothy C. Ward

 "a fast, fun read which is both emotionally engaging and thought-provoking. You'll be mulling over the implications of Nexus — the book and the drug — long after you put the book down."
-Analee Newitz, io9.com 

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Angry Robot (December 18, 2012)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 464 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0857662937
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0857662934
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 0.035 ounces
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 0.04 x 0.04 x 0.04 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars 3,602 ratings

About the author

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Ramez Naam

Ramez Naam

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Ramez Naam was born in Cairo, Egypt, and came to the US at the age of 3. He's a computer scientist who spent 13 years at Microsoft, leading teams working on email, web browsing, search, and artificial intelligence. He holds almost 20 patents in those areas.

Ramez is the winner of the 2005 H.G. Wells Award for his non-fiction book More Than Human: Embracing the Promise of Biological Enhancement. He's worked as a life guard, has climbed mountains, backpacked through remote corners of China, and ridden his bicycle down hundreds of miles of the Vietnam coast. He lives in Seattle, where he writes and speaks full time.

Customer reviews

4.4 out of 5 stars
3,602 global ratings

Customers say

Customers find the pacing well-paced and thought-provoking. They also say the book is enjoyable and rarely heavy-handed. Readers describe the characters as well developed, intelligent, and relatable. They praise the writing style as beautiful, vibrant, and almost flawless. They describe the writing quality as very well written, approachable, and easy to read. Customers also mention the plot as compelling, honest, and realistic. They appreciate the author's job of staying true to the science and politics.

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PlotReadabilityContentWriting qualityCharacterizationPacingWriting styleMoral content
405 customers mention "Plot"359 positive46 negative

Customers find the plot compelling, engaging, and easy to understand. They also say the author has extrapolated a very believable, frightening, future. Customers also describe the action sequences as tight and flowing. They say the book provides a great roadmap and entertainment, with a unique and fresh voice to science fiction.

"...Naam's tone and ideas are a unique and fresh voice to science fiction...." Read more

"...utterly thought-provoking, and after my shaky start it launched into a compelling story that packs a punch as both an action adventure and extremely..." Read more

"...that the plot stays interesting throughout and the ending is both satisfying and pragmatic.Nexus is very H. G. Wells...." Read more

"...In this novel Naam has not only extrapolated a very believable, very frightening, future world, he has populated his creation with interesting..." Read more

296 customers mention "Readability"287 positive9 negative

Customers find the book entertaining, suspenseful, and realistic. They say it reads like an action movie. Readers also say the book is well-conceived and meticulously thought out. They appreciate the questions the book poses about the nature of the universe.

"...Nexus is fantastic. It's brilliant. Feel free to tack on as many positive adjectives as you can come up with...." Read more

"...reviews, which across 80-odd people reinforces that this is a novel worth reading." Read more

"Nexus by Ramez Naam. Wonderful book. If you like high tech with high ideas then you'll inhale this book...." Read more

"...Nexus is a very philosophical novel that is also a non-stop thrill ride...." Read more

230 customers mention "Content"222 positive8 negative

Customers find the concepts thought-provoking, intelligent, and relatable. They also appreciate the underlying tech that is clearly presented and carefully debated. Readers say the author did an amazing job staying true to the science. They say the book is a phenomenal struggle with potentially real-world issues and the politics are right on.

"...It's not just a well-written and thought-provoking book, it's also highly entertaining...." Read more

"...I needn't have been.'Nexus' is well paced and utterly thought-provoking, and after my shaky start it launched into a compelling story..." Read more

"...So the ideas are brilliant, the science is great, and Naam's technology background is present everywhere: I certainly can't think of another novel..." Read more

"...and thought through future tech, both with a fierce, unwavering intelligence and a rather deep understanding of the human condition...." Read more

140 customers mention "Writing quality"106 positive34 negative

Customers find the writing quality of the book very well written and easy to understand. They also say the dialogue is believable, and the main characters are deeply realized. They say the prose, dialog, and techno-jargon are approachable but not dumbed-down.

"...It's not just a well-written and thought-provoking book, it's also highly entertaining...." Read more

"...The premise is pretty straightforward - naive geeks create mind altering nano-tech with no comprehension of how the "Powers That Be" will come down..." Read more

"...The writing while not flashy is very smooth and professional. Surprising given this is his first work of fiction...." Read more

"...That's what surprised me. It's not that the writing is flashy, it's that the story telling is superb...." Read more

137 customers mention "Characterization"121 positive16 negative

Customers find the characters in the book well developed, intelligent, and relatable.

"...Surprising given this is his first work of fiction. Characters are well drawn with depth and interest, perhaps they fit a little too closely to type..." Read more

"...very frightening, future world, he has populated his creation with interesting characters who don't just talk or info-dump to each other...." Read more

"...concepts introduced in the book are interesting and examined fairly well by the characters...." Read more

"...I liked that there were a lot of strong female characters in this book who added their own dimensions and flavor to the chaos around Kade - from co-..." Read more

111 customers mention "Pacing"99 positive12 negative

Customers find the pacing of the book well paced, with a rapid fire plot and non-stop action. They also appreciate the relatively few clunky transitions. Overall, readers say the book is an easy, quick read that raises interesting morals.

"...I needn't have been.'Nexus' is well paced and utterly thought-provoking, and after my shaky start it launched into a compelling story..." Read more

"...It's quick and fun and worth a read...but it also left me wishing Michael Crichton'd stuck around a little longer." Read more

"...came out; I found the science, the characters, the pacing were all practically perfect. An amazing first novel...." Read more

"...Well researched near future tech. Interesting characters. Rapid fire plot...." Read more

59 customers mention "Writing style"53 positive6 negative

Customers find the writing style beautiful, vibrant, and powerful. They also say the book keeps them thinking and is refreshing and unique. Readers also mention that the book is thoughtful and effective. However, some customers feel the writing is flawed at times.

"...This one will stay with you, and keep you thinking...." Read more

"...of Nexus, Nexus 5, is extremely illegal, very sought after and very powerful. Because Nexus 5 lets the people run software in their heads...." Read more

"...action scenes than vastly more appealing concepts – but the Nexus scenes are beautiful, intense, and anchor all the drama in something believably..." Read more

"...Rather a deep and compassionate look into what makes a mind a mind...." Read more

39 customers mention "Moral content"29 positive10 negative

Customers find the moral content of the book interesting, with meaty moral dilemmas about the future. They also say the book is neither overly utopian nor depressingly dystopian, with fascinating Buddhist influences and heroic Buddhist monks. Readers also mention that the book has a hopeful outlook towards the end.

"...an action thriller with a strong mental element and some very heroic Buddhist monks...." Read more

"...It's dark but not dystopian, brutal in places but unabashedly optimistic as well, reminding me of Iain Banks...." Read more

"...Sometimes the moral conversations get a little heavy-handed, and the author doesn't hide at all his stance that even horrifying new technologies are..." Read more

"...The near future envisioned by Ramez Naam is neither overly utopian nor depressingly dystopian...." Read more

Top reviews from the United States

M. Todd Gallowglas
5.0 out of 5 stars Wow...Just...Wow! I am in awe.
Reviewed in the United States on January 30, 2013
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The best books are those that stay with you, that make you think about the questions they ask long after you put it down. In his stellar debut novel, Ramez Naam does exactly that. Naam offers us a near-future, roller-coaster adventure that will grab you by the throat and won't let you go even once you finish the novel. This one will stay with you, and keep you thinking. I'm can't say for sure, but I'm fairly certain, this one is going to be popping back into my brain from my subconscious for a long time yet.

In the book, Nexus is a nanotechnology "drug" that allows users to link wirelessly to each other's brains. They can share thoughts, memories, and in some cases, control each other's actions. Previous iterations of the drug burn out of people's systems in a short amount of time. It opens with the main protagonist of the story, Kade, experimenting with the permanent version of the "drug," Nexus 5. He and some friends have created a computer operating system to integrate with the drug, so that it stays with them, and they can add programs and applications to it that make them essentially hyper-human. Needless to say, certain governmental agencies aren't even remotely okay with this. Within the first few pages of the book, Kade and his friends are neck-deep in trouble with the US government, but maybe, just maybe, if Kade helps the government, there might be a way out for he and his friends. And that's as much of the plot as I'm going to give. Anything else would be a disservice to the reader.

Nexus is fantastic. It's brilliant. Feel free to tack on as many positive adjectives as you can come up with. It's not just a well-written and thought-provoking book, it's also highly entertaining. The "high ideas" Nexus calls the reader to consider are woven seemlessly into the plot by the characters. Through their interactions, conversations, and private musings, we see many sides of the trans and post human ideas Naam is working with. The best part is that while each character knows exactly where he or she stands on that particular issue at any moment (some characters do change their stance/outlook, and each of these moments of change come organically from the events they experience), Naam does not beat the reader over the head with any authorial agenda. Or, if he does, I had such a great time reading the book and getting lost in the story that I completely missed it.

When I sat down to write this review, I tried to come up with pairs of writers I could compare the book to to give possible readers a feeling of what they are going to get. A few of the names bouncing in my head were: William Gibson, James Rollins, David Brin, Michael Chriton, Neal Stephenson, and more. While trying to pair a comparison down to two names I couldn't. Naam's tone and ideas are a unique and fresh voice to science fiction. Do yourself a favor and get on the Ramez Naam band wagon now, so you can say, "I was there when."

It would not surprise me in the least to see this on the Hugo ballet for best novel at this year's World Science Fiction Convention.
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Tghu Verd
4.0 out of 5 stars Pleasingly thought provoking...and action packed
Reviewed in the United States on January 16, 2013
Verified Purchase
I found the first few pages of 'Nexus' a little stilted and was slightly worried that it would be another good idea badly told.

I needn't have been.

'Nexus' is well paced and utterly thought-provoking, and after my shaky start it launched into a compelling story that packs a punch as both an action adventure and extremely believable future view.

The premise is pretty straightforward - naive geeks create mind altering nano-tech with no comprehension of how the "Powers That Be" will come down on them - but the characters and the nuances of what it means to turn your brain into a minicomputer that can be programmed at will are what powers the plot.

Our geek hero is Kaden Lane, a young, idealistic neuroscientist in training who has already pushed way beyond the boundaries of what is legal in this future United States, let alone what is moral. His apparent nemesis is Samantha Cataranes, a super secret agent with an inimical view of Kade's way of being. Forced together as pawns in a larger game, their journey of private challenges and personal growth is emotive and engaging.

The whole point of Nexus is to get under the skin of another person, and Naam does this particularly well. His vision of a übertech United States essentially at war with the future is fundamentally scary - and all to realistic. Lie, cheat, steal...whatever it takes to maintain the status quo is the motto of the Government of the Day, and if that means dropping Special Forces into other countries for a little snatch and grab, well that's OK so long as nobody leaves a trace. The fact that they do so with a vast array of very sneaky spy toys only adds to the fun.

Indeed, the "concept count" for Nexus is very high, with Naam ranging wide on neuroscience, biological enhancements, brains in a box and general weaponry. But unlike some other authors, these concepts remain accessible to us mere mortals (Stross, I'm thinking of you). All of which means that as I write this, 'Nexus' has only 4 and 5 star reviews, which across 80-odd people reinforces that this is a novel worth reading.
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Top reviews from other countries

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GC
5.0 out of 5 stars Un possibile futuro per l'umanità, nemmeno così remoto. Un bel romanzo sci-fi.
Reviewed in Italy on December 6, 2019
Verified Purchase
Ho letto questo libro su indicazione di un amico appassionato come me di fantascienza e devo dire che ne sono rimasto rapito, fin dai primi capitoli.. mi è piaciuto molto perché è sì un romanzo fantascientifico, ma quanto accade non è così impossibile da immaginare come un futuro neanche troppo remoto, di cui se ne hanno già le prime avvisaglie (utilizzo di parti elettroniche per sopperire a mancanze fisiche di persone, magari con legami anche profondi a livello di sistema nervoso, a tal proposito l'autore dedica alcune pagine interessanti a fine libro).. l'ho apprezzato anche per i legami con il mondo informatico, dato che si parla di sistemi operativi e pratiche di hacking, trattati anch'essi in modo piuttosto realistico. Senza svelarvi dettagli, la storia mette in luce un contrasto tra due "razze" umane differenti, quella "normale" e quella dotata di potenziamenti (i postumani o transumani), è molto ricca di azione e per quanto mi riguarda non annoia mai.. Devo dire che il romanzo mi ha fatto pensare in parte ad un incrocio tra  Neuromante  e Altered Carbon , entrambi dei capolavori della fantascienza.
Unica nota dolente, finito il primo romanzo vorrete sicuramente procedere con i due successivi, ahimè non ancora tradotti in italiano. Speriamo che questa serie abbia successo e che anche  Crux  e Apex  vengano tradotti al più presto.
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R. Taylor
5.0 out of 5 stars Mind alteration for the improvement of humanity.
Reviewed in Australia on June 21, 2019
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This was recommended by Neal Asher and I'm so glad I read it. Mind blowing but plausible concept, great action and characters. Sci Fi at its best. I have started the next book, Crux , now.
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Andrea Darrel
5.0 out of 5 stars Making hard science easy and engaging
Reviewed in Canada on September 28, 2015
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If you want understand the very basics of how things like cochlear implants work, and the amazing advances being made every day in the realm of direct brain communication/interfaces, this book is utterly fantastic! There's a compelling story, with riveting characters and a plot that will leave you breathless, all the while explaining the science behind it all!

Caution - this books has a death toll to rival GRRM. You will meet lots of engaging, interesting characters, only to have they die in some spectacularly graphic ways. I personally loved it, as it made me even more emotionally attached to the story, but if that's not your cup of tea, be warned.
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Joseph
5.0 out of 5 stars Great Book !!
Reviewed in India on July 12, 2015
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Its a fantastic book. Read all three over a few days. What really got me excited is that the sci-fi world he talks about are mind blowing yet completely grounded in the emerging and expected technological reality. And at the end of the first novel he makes a detailed explanation as to why he thinks so. But it does have quite a few grammatical mistakes, which I found irritating.
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J. Stevens
5.0 out of 5 stars Can't be faulted
Reviewed in Germany on December 21, 2013
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Nexus is one of the best books I have read in a very long time, and I am really kind of picky. The three main points of a good novel for me are characters, plot and style, and this book has it all in ample supply.

It is slightly biased towards action, but still the characters are believable and even likeable. There's no simple "good vs. evil" in this story, every character has motives and emotiones that dictate their actions, rather than twists of fate, like some other writers like to do. The good guys have flaws and the villains have a good point or two. The characters might not be surprising and innovative, now and then leaning towards certain archetypes, but they definitely are not one-dimensional, more like an interpretation of that archetype. The author does not consider himself too good for really getting into their minds, so a reader can always feel and understand them (not to mention suffer with them).
Also, I am pleased to for once have a female main character that's not either shrinking violet or in-your-face-powerwoman, but actually a human being. That is hard to find among male authors, no offense.

Writing style is wonderful, enough description to feel the atmosphere, without getting lost in tedious details, realistic dialogue that really shows the characters speaking. Perfect mix between thoughts and introspecion and outer description. Necessary background information ist carefully woven into the story instead of drowning the reader in landslides of detached exposition (my perfect negative example being Ian Banks, who always diverts from the story for an entire paragraph to tell us what's happening...)
Really, not a flaw I could find.

The plot is gripping and without holes (as far as I see), thoughtfully spaced between the main characters - a real page-turner. Naam has had about 50 Beta-readers according to his acknowldgements, and that really shows in a polished, action-packed and yet thoughtful storyline that entirely serves our western culture'S need for a certain line of drama (nothing new here, but it WORKS). Speaking of thoughtful: you really can tell that the author knows what he's talking about, and has given a great deal of thought to the advantages and disadvantages of technology, and then constructed this plot and characters to convey this thoughts and questions. While that may annoy certain readers, I really enjoyed it, had to put the book down more than once to think about what I had just read.

Overall, the first five star review I've written in 1,5 years.
Go read that book. It's brilliant.
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