I floundered through this author's brilliant first novel and there are some amazing, mind expansive, quantum (I suppose) concepts, hierarchies, and technologies introduced, interwoven; and, if you will, sort of structuring this story. However, perhaps due to lack of my background and education, it was very difficult to get any "grounding" or traction so as to maintain any semblance of flow...continuity even. I am left with the feeling that I "read" this book at a very elementary level because of the fairly consistent distraction of being unclear and uncertain as to my comprehension of these quantum structures. For me, this has resulted in very little enjoyment, though I will read the author's next book.

Personally, I am of the mind that the author has asked too much of many of his readers by not providing both context and grounding in the many fascinating concepts and quantum devices he introduces from the very beginning...kinda like throwing the baby in the water and seeing if it can swim. Other reviewers have opined that our author does not hold the hand of the reader, sort of like dumping one into the middle of an ocean without a life boat; or, that they were glad that our author does not go into some sort of "word dump" of information/explanation, though they do acknowledge the high degree of difficulty for the reader.

For me, it is a question of balance. One person's "hand holding" is another's guidance or foundation building. Personally, I do not think it wise to dump someone in the middle of an ocean without a lifeboat. Few, if any, will make it. A pond maybe, an ocean definitely not. First novel aside, I lay some of this on the editors or whoever provides guidance in such matters. Also, there may be a language issue. Nuance, subtlety etc. can be tricky. And, there is the left brain/right brain thing. I did notice that there was a bit more
in the way of information or explanation of these "quantum" concepts and "technologies" as one goes along; still, it seemed like very
little, very late...unduly burdensome and obtuse.

Also, the author seems to switch back and forth between 3rd person and narrative, without any warning or break for the reader...a little confusing. Still, though, some fantastic concepts, devices and levels keep me in there. Perhaps, if I had previously ingested what ever our brilliant author uses, if anything, it would be a smoother, more profoundly appreciated read.Having said that, I gotta say that the book sets up a brilliant, almost classical, sci-fi story which has some deeper philosophical themes. I finished it...I cannot say that it was a very satisfying experience because ( right now) I feel that I was spread too thin to come close to a deeper level of appreciation, let alone comprehension, of the author's social and philosophical commentary. On the other hand, perhaps this all qualifies as a more expansive quantum reading experience and we all know where that might lead.?

Picking up The Quantum Thief reminded me a lot of the first time I read A Clockwork Orange, where there is so much unexplained slang that at first it seems barely comprehensible. But it's amazing how quickly you can pick up concepts from context, and pretty soon I was all over gevulot, exomemory, the quiet, gogols, and much more. As an aside, while Burgess drew heavily on Russian, Rajaniemi pulls words from Greek, Hebrew, and Arabic, and there is a glossary if you get stuck. I was rather surprised to encounter the word Yggdrasil again, having just read it in the Hyperion series.

While I'm on comparisons, don't expect any exposition. On a scale from Ready Player One to Neuromancer, it's jammed right up at the Neuromancer end. It is disorienting, confusing, challenging and awesome. This is definitely a book that benefits from being read in large chunks. I was nibbling at it and had to constantly backtrack a few pages to pick up the story again.

I have to admit to mostly ignoring the physics, I'm sure the references are exciting for quantum physicists, but I'm not particularly interested in constantly running to Google while I'm reading fiction. But there are plenty of other things to focus on, Rajaniemi has packed so many innovative ideas into the novel it's like he has been bottling them up for decades and had to get them all out in this debut novel.

I particularly liked gevulot, this idea of crypto-backed privacy where, even during ordinary conversations, people exchange contracts with each other to govern how the other party sees you and how much of the conversation they are allowed to remember, made possible since all memory is stored in the city-wide exomemory.

"Even though the park is an open space, it is not an agora, and walking down the sandy pathways, they pass several gevulot-obscured people, their privacy fog shimmering...
Their Watches exchange a brief burst of standard shop gevulot, enough for her to know that he does not really know much about chocolate but has Time enough to afford it - and for him to glimpse public exomemories about her and the shop."

All residents of the Oubliette, the walking Martian city where the novel is set (!), are required to serve time as 'Quiet' where their virtual reality personality (gogol) is transferred into a machine and used in service to the city. As a result, time as a regular citizen becomes currency, there's a vaguely described but sinister threat outside the city, high-tech superheroes come-police, posthuman warrior clans descended from MMORPG clans, and a powerful collective with a universal proletarian Great Common Task. Not to mention a modern day Sherlock holmes and a heist. Like I said, lots of great ideas.

Vague spoilers coming.

So what's not to like? There's a point towards the end of the novel where the artful sequence of plot reveals steps out of mazes and shadows into an action-packed climax. This transition felt a little clumsy to me, and seemed fairly shallow after the mysterious build-up. The "Luke, I am your father" (and this is your mother and we're one exciting family) moment should have been cut entirely. Compared to the clever reveals earlier in the novel it was clumsy and cheesy.

4.5 stars. Read more of my reviews at g-readinglist.blogspot.com

And since I'm putting down five stars, I love it.

I enjoy it for the characters and the world building, then the heists. I also enjoy it because Rajaniemi assumes you're bright enough and engaged enough to either figure out what's going on, or look it up. For me this is a plus. If you're looking for a comfort read, go elsewhere.

It's also not standard extruded science fiction full of space opera tropes, square jawed heroes and interstellar empires. It's set in a much changed Solar system, with many varieties of human. Our protagonist is a thief and not always likable, but he does change.