check
out website: www.orbitbooks.co.uk
and www.mariannedepierres.com
Nylon Angel' is set on the east coast
of future Australia, in the metropolis of Vivacity. It is one of the
super-cities, massive conglomerations of previously existing settlements
that have meshed as they grew into one another.
 The
media control everything, manipulating the lives of the city's citizens
to win ratings and having both the money and the influence to be
able to do anything they want, de facto rulers of Viva.
The division between rich and poor is bigger than ever, with the
less salubrious citizens of the city forced to live on the poison-laced
ground where refineries and industry used to stand while the rich
shelter in spotless mansions behind guards and barbed wire.
With crime
lords fighting for every inch of poisoned soil and a thousand-and-one hazards
waiting for the unwary, life is cheap and the slums of the Tert are a dangerous
place to live.
Parrish Plessis was pretty good at looking after herself, even
in a place as twisted as the Tert, but when she signed up to bodyguard duty for
one of the crime lords she made a big mistake. Now Jamon Mondo owns her, body
and soul and the only way someone leaves his employ is in a body bag. Desperate
for a way to escape his clutches, Parrish sees her chance when one of the Network's
star reporters is assassinated. Hunting down the main suspect in the hope of linking
up with his powerful employers, she finds herself quickly drawn into a world of
intrigue where nothing is as it seems and everybody has an ulterior motive. On
the run and hunted by just about every faction there is, Parrish discovers a far
more sinister threat than the petty bickering of the gangs, as the Angel begins
to unfurl its wings...
'Nylon Angel' is written from the point of view
of Parrish Plessis, and is done so in a very easy-going, relaxed manner that makes
it an effortless read. The reader is dropped straight in at the deep end, the
first-person perspective meaning as yet unexplained references to places, people
and objects are common and the slang is flowing thick and fast. Marianne
de Pierres' relaxed style makes it clear enough what's happening without understanding
exactly what every word Parrish uses actually means and clarifications are made
throughout the book at a comfortable pace. By the last page, the reader
will be comfortable with Goboys, Canrats, Terros and more and it all adds a little
verisimilitude to the rough and ready world of Vivacity's underside. On top of
that, de Pierres has a talent for evocative description without descending into
flowery prose and the dialogue is snappy, realistic and, at times, amusing.
First impressions of 'Nylon Angel' are uninspiring. The setting seems nothing
new and the first few pages portray Parrish Plessis as little more than a surly
loner, short on brains and careless of other people - in other words, a stereotypical
anti-heroine. Combined with the easy-to-read style this gives the feeling that
the book is going to be light on plot and depth, the author more interested in
showing what a hard-ass her heroine is than developing her as a person. That
feeling is wrong. Push past the first couple of chapters to the point where everything
starts going seriously wrong for poor old Parrish and you see a surprising amount
of characterisation emerge, both of our cyberpunk heroine and the secondary players
around her.
The plot, too, develops layer after layer as the story
progresses and the crises really being to pile up, the intrigue and infighting
between the numerous factions becoming interesting and engaging. The only
problem with the plot lies in the nasty and terrible secret that emerges during
Parrish's struggles. Somehow, despite its potential ramifications for all of mankind,
this aspect of the plot is under-emphasized, taking a back seat to the gang warfare
and failing to seem as serious as it probably should.
Nonetheless,
'Nylon Angel' is a fun and exciting read once you get past the introductory chapters
and while not being particularly original is refreshing enough to keep the pages
turning at a furious rate. A well-written cliff-hanger ending makes it abundantly
clear there is going to be a second book in the series and if it is as good as
the first there could be a bright future ahead of Marianne de Pierres. As such,
'Nylon Angel' finds a welcome place on my 'Quality Cyberpunk' shelf.
Martin
Jenner |
