Trouble and Her Friends

This book was incredibly meaningful to nineteen-year-old me. ( )

First off, the book is about hackers written in 1994, so its a bit dated, on the other hand, it is a well written story.

I really enjoyed the characters of Trouble and Cerise - its not often you find an author who can write about a partnership that is truly equal. The first chapter, led me to think that it will be a typical leader/follower relationship, but I was pleasantly surprised when both characters tended to take a leadership role, and each had weaknesses and strengths. The secondary characters were just that, secondary. While they had the potential to be fully fleshed out, not much time was spent on them, and in in few spots, it would have helped the story along if there was a back story. The evil character in the story wasn't much more than a caricature. The story fell apart at the end and Trouble's new job was given to her to easily.

About the internet - I think that Melissa Scott got the actual hacking part of the story right, but missed everything else. For example, Trouble has to use an unsecured landline phone from a bar. As a reader, I just want to say "Get a Cell Phone!". Trouble spends a lot of her time looking for a phone :) Other things - in a world where everybody has a Facebook page, shops online, and has multiple email accounts, Trouble's world is very limited and does not fit today's reality. The fear of the new unknown internet in 1994 is presented in this book. The author takes the story in a logical fashion, but in today's online world, it feels very dated. ( )

Good pacing, mysterious and overall satisfying plot, with some very interesting characters. This novel beats every other book I've read in the amount of time the characters spend in cyberspace and what happens to them there. Recommended. ( )

I really don't like cyberpunk. I just don't find virtual adventures that exciting. And I don't want to have a brain connection to the Internet, thank you very much. Still, yay, lesbians. ( )