(1994)I tried, I really did but this story just fell off of the tracks. Good premise: Governor of Colorado is contemplating running for President then has a massive stroke. There is technology available to erase the effects of the stroke while not curing it and it is brouht to bear so that he can run. But the story goes off on different tangents. I quit after 300 pages of this 618 page book.(PW) There's no way William A. Cozzano can lose the upcoming presidential election. He's a likable midwestern governor with one insidious advantage¥an advantage provided by a shadowy group of backers. A biochip implanted in his head hardwires him to a computerized polling system. The mood of the electorate is channeled directly into his brain. Forget issues. Forget policy. Cozzano is more than the perfect candidate. He's a special effect.?Complex, entertaining, frequently funny."Â¥Publishers Weekly?Qualifies as the sleeper of the year, the rare kind of science-fiction thriller that evokes genuine laughter while simultaneously keeping the level of suspense cranked to the max."Â¥ San Diego Union-Tribune?A Manchurian Candidate for the computer age.? Â¥Seattle Weekly

Bizarre characters in an almost Philip-K-Dick-ian plot about a presidential candidate who, after suffering an incapacitating stroke, makes a Faustian bargain with a hi-tech campaign consultant who can restore the candidate but at the price of his autonomy. The candidate soon finds that the restorative brain surgery he has undergone has left his mind at the mercy of the consultant who now forces the candidate to say what the consultant wants him to say. Naturally, the consultant has thoroughly focus-grouped everything the candidate is to say. The evil of it all is not that the consultant imposes his own thoughts or ambitions so much as that he makes the candidate say what "people" want to hear according to the consultant's research. ( )

To say this was an unexpected experience would be an understatement. Stephenson and his colleague put together a story far ahead of its time (1995) filled with extraordinary characters, concepts and plot twists. Given the current dynamic of today's presidential craziness, it raises the question: Is it possible Trump has an implant? Of course not, but the concept of being electronically controlled by groups financed by the billionaire boys club isn't far reaching. The last few chapters get the heart rate up and move at lighting pace similar to a Baldacci or Brown book. I can't recommend this book enough, especially with the current political climate! ( )

I thought this was very entertaining all the way, although not suspenseful - but that's not surprising for this author. However, it was less technical than many of his books, so that normally puts you off, don't let it in this case, although it is slightly technical. But I thought there were some truly interesting characters, with a lot of humor throughout. Unfortunately, the most interesting character was one of the bad guys. I liked him and wasn't sure whether he was a good guy or a bad guy until the end; actually, I'm still not really sure he was such a bad guy.

Some might think the premise isn't likely or believable, but I would answer with "Are you sure?" I think perhaps the Trump fake news and misinformation coming from Washington might make this a lot more likely. Fake news rules in this story, although it was written long before the recent elections. But likely or not, it's a fun read. For those complaining that it's not on par with other Neal Stephenson books, I say "so what" and "who says?" ( )

I read Stephenson's "Quicksilver" w/in the last yr & was very impressed. His fictionialized acct incorporating real historical characters (many of them likely to be known only to scholars) was thoroughly worked out. It was over 900pp long & took me at least a mnth to read. Now I've just read his collaborative political/medical thriller cowritten w/ J. Frederick George & I'm less impressed. While "Quicksilver" might've been somewhat comparable to something by John Barth &/or Robert Anton Wilson, "Interface" is more comparable to Michael Crichton &/or Robin Cook. In other words, while it's carefully written & well-worked-out, it still reeks of writing aimed at a market rather than something written to develop original ideas.

Take, eg, the title: There's already a SF bk by Mark Adlard called "Interface" from 1971. Not that that's such a big deal, the word's used in a significantly different way in each bk, but it immediately makes me think of mainstream cinema's seemingly endless remake mentality. An ad blurb on the front of the bk calls this most recent "Interface" "A Manchurian Candidate for the computer age" & that's entirely too true for it to be a compliment from my perspective insofar as the plot isn't really that original.

Even the multi-culturalism of the bk seems forced: just about every character is a representative of a different ethnic group. Nonetheless, I'm thankful that the politics aren't as numbnuts as Chrichton's "State of Fear" even if they are more than a bit improbable: a black woman who'd attained prosperity as a banker married to an engineer experiences an economic downslide & other miseries: she & her husband end up in a trailer park, he commits suicide, her son gets shot, she teeters around bag-lady-ism, she criticizes a racist politician in public, the politician's career gets ruined as a result, she gets launched on a political career on her own b/c people are so impressed by her articulateness, & becomes, what else?, the 1st black woman president. Well.. I'd like to see it happen, so I enjoyed the story, so.. whatever.

Anyway, it's 616 pages long so, as usual, any capsule critique is going to be grossly oversimplifying - as this one is. I read it quickly b/c I was sucked into it as I might be by any well-written thriller &, yet, wd I recommend it? Not really - there're so many truly great bks out there to be read: Read McCoy's "The Politics of Heroin" or Joyce's "Ullyses" if you haven't already - & skip this one. ( )