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River of Gods

by Ian McDonald

3.85 · rating details · 1,036 ratings · 147 reviews

As Mother India approaches her centenary, nine people are going about their business-a gangster, a cop, his wife, a politician, a stand-up comic, a set designer, a journalist, a scientist, and a dropout. And so is Aj-the waif, the mind reader, the prophet-when she one day finds a man who wants to stay hidden.

In the next few weeks, they will all be swept togeth...more

Hardcover, 597 pages

Published March 11th 2006 by Pyr (first published December 31st 2003)

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Community Reviews

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Apr 17, 2007

Res rated it

Shelves: sff

The one set in a near-future India, where a non-natural object is found in the asteroid belt which is older than the solar system and contains pictures of three humans currently alive. Leadership and scientific struggles at the nation's largest power company; a religious revolt; a Muslim government minister brought down by his passion for an artificial third gender called nutes; AIs thousands of times more intelligent than humans, outlawed and hunted down by a police branch called Krishna Cops. ...moreThe one set in a near-future India, where a non-natural object is found in the asteroid belt which is older than the solar system and contains pictures of three humans currently alive. Leadership and scientific struggles at the nation's largest power company; a religious revolt; a Muslim government minister brought down by his passion for an artificial third gender called nutes; AIs thousands of times more intelligent than humans, outlawed and hunted down by a police branch called Krishna Cops.

I would have been willing to sacrifice a good deal of this breadth for just a little depth. The characters are chessmen: they have a certain set of characteristics at the start of the book, a certain pattern of moves, and they make those moves, and at the end of the book their circumstances may have changed, but the characters themselves are entirely unchanged, unless they're dead.

This is a grand old SF characterization tradition, of course, and at least these characters are plausible, unlike the Buck Rogers-style SF characters -- but still, in the end they don't read as real people because they walk through their established paces without changing.

I found the politics completely opaque, but I'm ignorant of Indian politics (and even geography) and probably didn't read carefully enough.

I have a serious problem with the nutes. They should be utterly alien -- they've had all gender-related pathways removed from their brains and their body chemistry, in favor of a system by which they consciously control their hormone release (Tal decides it needs adrenaline, so it pushes a button) -- and yet they act either like very girly women or like very stereotypically diva-ish gay men.

Possibly this wouldn't trouble me quite so much if there were any actual gay people in the story, but there aren't. And except for Vishram Ray (who I find is the only major character I have any real affection for), there's really no normal sexuality in the book -- when arousal is reported, most of the time it's related to cruelty or danger.

The thing that interests me most -- the AIs and their stories -- is covered in about three pages at the end and then rushed offstage.(less)

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Aug 23, 2007

Rob rated it

Recommends it for: Indians, British, Americans

Shelves: singularity, science-fiction, 2007

When you pick this up and hold the hard cover in your hands, its heft is a little intimidating. When you put it down 597 pages later, you’ll wonder how he managed to keep it so focused, how he kept it from wandering all over the place. Not that it doesn’t have a tremendous scope (borders on “epic” but I feel I must reserve that adjective for a space opera review) but McDonald keeps it moving at an aggressive pace. Every back alley detour and out-of-town foray is very deliberate and very much par...more

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Nov 01, 2007

Logan rated it

Recommends it for: Sci-Fi Fans Everywhere

Shelves: dystopian-fiction, scifi-fantasy, india

A unique science fiction tale of India at its centenary told through the inter-locking tales of nine extremely different characters. There is Mr. Nandha,the Krishna cop tasked with exterminating artificial intelligences (or aeais as the book terms them) who break beyond their programming restrictions to a higher threshold of intelligence. There is Shiv, a gangster fallen on hard times forced to work for genetically-engineered titans. There is Tal, a nute (or neutral-gendered person) drawn int...more

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Nov 28, 2008

Eric rated it

This is one substantial story - both in sheer mass of the book, and in the plot itself. McDonald tells the story of India, 50 years into the future. I find his speculation on what may happen to India is believable, and his spec fic elements are plausible. The culture of India seems particularly suited to McDonald's storytelling style - he brings together all of his plots coherently, finding a certain underlying theme to the chaotic and disparate subplots he's working with.

The tale i...more

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Sep 18, 2011

Guy rated it

Shelves: science-fiction-and-fantasy

My first book by Ian McDonald, and it was good, but not great. Set in India in 2047 it is in a way like India itself: very large, multi-faceted, crowded with too many characters and a confusing mixture of languages, rich with dazzling inventiveness, but lacking the developmental follow-through required to really profit from its genius.

McDonald writes lovely prose, but needs to work on his plotting: the plot lines of the nine main characters, despite the promise of an "ensembl...more

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Aug 28, 2011

Matt rated it

Shelves: sci-fi, fiction

I respect what Ian was trying to do with this novel, I really do, but his ambition, I think, exceeded the execution to the point of muddling ambiguity. Mr. MacDonald's a wordsmith, there's not doubt about it, and some of his descriptions are small morsels of pure prose desert. He is truly a master of the language and plays with it beautifully. The issue, however, is that one will read pages, perhaps a chapter, and realize how very little actually occurred in the scene and how little it contribut...moreI respect what Ian was trying to do with this novel, I really do, but his ambition, I think, exceeded the execution to the point of muddling ambiguity. Mr. MacDonald's a wordsmith, there's not doubt about it, and some of his descriptions are small morsels of pure prose desert. He is truly a master of the language and plays with it beautifully. The issue, however, is that one will read pages, perhaps a chapter, and realize how very little actually occurred in the scene and how little it contributes to the overall story. It's very self-indulgent, like an arena-band guitar solo. He's showing off and we can all tell. It scrambles the story and by bombarding the reader with lengthy Indian names, it makes the reading tedious. By including an inadequate glossary in the back, it's almost admitting the problem. Yes, Mr MacDonald, we're aware of your fountain of Indian cultural knowledge, but by beating us over the head repeatedly... it comes off as a bit of a middle-finger.

And to the story and plot itself... The novel's why too long. What could have been accomplished here, could have been accomplished without four or five of the main characters, and a cool 350 pages as opposed to epic level 580 pages. By attempting to cover too many esoteric pontifications on reality and this AI polyverse extrapolation, he more or less draws and quarters his plot, leaving the remnants a bloody incomplete blob. So many questions get thrown at the reader with so very few answers, with little over fifty pages left to go in this overwritten beast, I had that uncomfortable 'Lost' feeling a few episodes before its series finale. A sloppy attempt is made at tying up the loose ends, but when it comes to the characters resolutions, the reader's left cold.

When it came to the 'future-shock' element, Ian wasn't able to deliver. This did not have that Neuromancer cyberpunk strangeness. Sadly, for a book meant to take place in 2047, too many pop references felt dated in 2010. The Zeitgeist of this novel is definitely 2005, not 2047. I have not been to India, but the one described in City of Gods, felt very 00's, more or less the India of today but with robots and gadgets... the cultural shift wasn't there.

For that type of fair, I would recommend Paolo Bacagullupi's The Windup Girl, a similar setting in Thailand, but the world is truly a product of its future era, the detail much more ironed, less extrapolation and more futurism.

I would like to read more of Ian's stuff, but would hope I could find something more to the point, less characters, and less overwrought. This novel was just to self-indulgent and I think undeserving of its high praise.(less)

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May 07, 2011

Pat rated it

I seem to read a lot of Ians (Ian McDonald, Ian Rankin, Iain M. Banks, etc.) which has nothing to do with this book, but was worth noting... River of Gods is a tricky book. The opening was catchy, and the first little nibble was quite delicious, and then once I got into the real "meat" of the story things slowed down considerably and I found myself wondering if I was going to bother finishing it. Not that it's a bad book, at all, I read it through and the end picked up speed again, bu...moreI seem to read a lot of Ians (Ian McDonald, Ian Rankin, Iain M. Banks, etc.) which has nothing to do with this book, but was worth noting... River of Gods is a tricky book. The opening was catchy, and the first little nibble was quite delicious, and then once I got into the real "meat" of the story things slowed down considerably and I found myself wondering if I was going to bother finishing it. Not that it's a bad book, at all, I read it through and the end picked up speed again, but it's the same problem of exposition that every writer has to face at some point-- how to get the large amount of detailed information that makes up the bones of the action to the reader as quickly and painlessly as possible. I liked McD's mosaic style, which is one I use in my own works, but the expository "middle" of the book just drags on and on and on until it seems like you're only making about five pages of progress at a time. The ending redeems the middle, with a few almost-unexpected twists (no twist is really 'unexpected', it's just a question of whether you picked up on the clues beforehand) and a satisfying resolution. And not, I might add, a very optimistic view of what it means to be human. This one's a near-future SF tale, genetic engineering and AIs and killer robot drones, that sort of thing, but it's also a novel about Indian society, which just makes me feel all touristy (as in, I'd really like to go visit India before the damned yuppies ruin it for everyone) and provides just enough "different" that normal Western-world expectations don't always ring true. I found, after I'd finished the book, that I even enjoyed reading the little glossary of Indian terms at the end. And amusingly enough, McD provides a little note about the soundtrack he listened to while composing the novel and/or the soundtrack to listen to while reading it, and I found myself going through that list going "got that, got that, liten to that regularly, love that, hey maybe I should check that band out..." Which was a nice treat, but utterly non-essential. All in all, an excellent book, even with the slow middle.(less)

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Apr 25, 2011

Emily rated it

Shelves: fiction

In August in 2047, in the city of Varanasi in the country of Bharat in central India, nine people converge on one singular event that changes everything for mankind. For some, it's an asteroid containing the alien relic the Tabernacle. For others it is chasing down AIs. And for others, it is about finding themselves in the midst of a water war when the monsoon rains no longer come and the Ganga runs dry.

The good: River of Gods does very interesting things with the arc of the growth ...moreIn August in 2047, in the city of Varanasi in the country of Bharat in central India, nine people converge on one singular event that changes everything for mankind. For some, it's an asteroid containing the alien relic the Tabernacle. For others it is chasing down AIs. And for others, it is about finding themselves in the midst of a water war when the monsoon rains no longer come and the Ganga runs dry.

The good: River of Gods does very interesting things with the arc of the growth of computers and computing into every corner of life. Even the very popular soap, "Town and Country," is completely computer rendered with fake AI actors having fake AI-based weddings and entire "People Magazine"-like publications fawn over the imaginary private lives of the AIs inhabiting the rendered soap opera. Everyone has a cellphone-like device, even the most poor. Everything is wired together. And AIs (called aeais in the book) fill every corner of existence -- driving cars (but apparently not the taxis), running heating and cooling systems, injecting themselves into medical devices, everywhere. One of the main themes of the book is hunting down rogue AIs, those who have somehow "evolved" through illicit programming or through happenstance to become "Generation Three" AIs, those AIs that have developed full native intelligence. The question the book grapples with is not only how these beings come about and flow through the interconnectedness of all computers, but how they see existence and how their consciousness is represented by copying millions of copies of themselves. The other is how humans react to the super intelligent AIs, hunting them down, and "excommunicating" them with huge EMP pulses and destroying all the copies hiding in the machines.

Another bit of good comes from grappling with how humans are forcing their own evolution through selective breeding, gene therapy, and remaking themselves with extensive surgery. From this comes a shortage of women, strange children who age at 1/2 the rate of regular human beings called Brahmins who have no empathy for the human race, and nutes -- a group of people who have surgically removed all gender. The reaction from normal humans is revulsion but the book implies this is the forward trajectory of humanity and the normal people will soon be an out-bred relic of the past.

The bad: I generally like books with multiple viewpoints but River of Gods has nine and it felt overdone. The themes of the book were focused over the actual characterization of the characters. Only the nute Tal really stood out as a distinct personality. The rest of the characters tended to flow together into one amorphous mass. All the characters _do_ get a different view of the actions during August 2047 to give a perspective on how the whole plot comes together in the end -- with a little bit of Science Fiction Plot Device thrown in.

The science fiction is a little too precious at times. Sometimes it wants to be Arthur C. Clarke and sometimes it wants to be Blade Runner with just a dash of the original Philip K Dick and it doesn't seem to know which is which.

The Hindi sprinkled through is not much of a challenge. However, the kindle version of the book lacks bookmarks so looking up terms in the back of the book is a major challenge. Also, the kindle version is sprinkled throughout the text with enough typos for it to be called out.

The ending is about middling for a science fiction book. It's not awful. It's no Sphere. It's not a total collapse like Snow Crash. The book ends very definitively.

River of Gods by Ian McDonald is an awful lot of book. It's big. In parts it goes on and on and on and on. Some of it drags in places when it goes BEHOLD MY INDIA OF THE FUTURE! For an easy comparison on pure word count, it's about 1 Red Mars. Figure out how long it took to read Red Mars, add a tax for having to look up all the words in Hindi in the appendix in the back, and that's about how long it takes to get through River of Gods.

So, not bad. I made it all the way through. It definitely does have some good ideas and it is one of the better science fiction novels floating around. It's in the "pretty good" category but it's not Childhood's End or anything. It's a decent read but it's not one of those science fiction novels that lays hooks in your brain that lie there and fester until they get disgorged in some argument one day. I give it about a 3.75 stars but the rating system isn't that fine grained so I round it up to a four. It's not quite a four star book. It's very much a 3.75 star book. (less)

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Mar 18, 2011

Patrick J. rated it

I love this book. I was incredibly confused when I started reading it, due to the changes in view point every chapter and all of the Hindi words and phrases. I was flipping back to the glossary once or twice per page at first. Not to mention some of the odd technology. In any case, once I got into the flow and I could tell where things were headed I couldn't put it down. I want to go as far as to say this book is brilliant, but I'm probably not the best judge since I am biased toward Sci-Fi...more

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Feb 11, 2011

Klytia rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: science-fiction, _e_, fantascienza

Bharat, India, 2047. Tutti gli aspetti tecnologici della società sono controllati dalle intelligenze artificiali, le aeai, la cui capacità di diventare senzienti è limitata dal provvedimento Hamilton; i Dataraja, potentissimi hacker, sono però in grado di aggirare la legge creando aeai di intelligenza pericolosamente superiore; a loro si oppongono i Krishna Cops, un corpo di polizia specializzato nell’eliminazione delle aeai fuorilegge e che utilizza avatar con le sembianze e i poteri delle divi...moreBharat, India, 2047. Tutti gli aspetti tecnologici della società sono controllati dalle intelligenze artificiali, le aeai, la cui capacità di diventare senzienti è limitata dal provvedimento Hamilton; i Dataraja, potentissimi hacker, sono però in grado di aggirare la legge creando aeai di intelligenza pericolosamente superiore; a loro si oppongono i Krishna Cops, un corpo di polizia specializzato nell’eliminazione delle aeai fuorilegge e che utilizza avatar con le sembianze e i poteri delle divinità del pantheon induista. L’ingegneria genetica permette trasformare uomini e donne in esseri bellissimi e asessuati i “nutes” o di generare inquietanti bambini il cui invecchiamento fisico è artificialmente rallentato, non così quello mentale.

Ma una lunga siccità sta portando Bharat sull’orlo della guerra contro Awadh, uno stato adiacente, tensioni politiche scuotono la società di Varanasi e il sospetto che sia stata generata un’aeai di livello 3 sta creando fermento in non poche persone.

La forza di questo romanzo, dai temi puramente cyberpunk, è nel realismo con cui McDonald ritrae quest’India del futuro, estrema-mente tecnologica ma ancora afflitta da contraddizioni quanto mai attuali, e nella capacità di raccontare e intrecciare le vite di una decina di personaggi principali le cui vicende si alternano nei capitoli a loro dedicati. Tra loro spiccano sicuramente Tal, un dolce e ingenuo “nute”, e Shaheen Badoor Khan, potente consigliere politico che nasconde una pericolosa, politicamente e socialmente, perversione; esempi del talento di McDonald nel caratterizzare i personaggi.

Non si può che rimanere stupiti dalla cultura di McDonald, numerosi sono i riferimenti letterari e cinematografici ma anche storici e scientifici, e dallo straordinario talento di scrivere adeguando il registro stilistico e linguistico all’ambientazione indiana.
Scrivere qualcosa di più su questo romanzo significherebbe svelare troppo; non c’è un evento, anche tra quelli che apparentemente sembrerebbero slegati dalla storia principale, che non sia coerente con tutta la vicenda.

Ancora una volta McDonald non tradisce le aspettative(less)

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Dec 25, 2010

Patricia McLean rated it

India is a river, constantly moving, changing, bewildering, giver of life and taker of life. It is most likely that a westerner or non-Indian Asian, perhaps even Indians themselves, cannot truly comprehend the depths of India. In the West, we regard Mesopotamia as the cradle of civilization, but that is western civilization. In Mesopotamia, we learned how to stand still. We stopped roaming around gathering food and started planting and reaping. India contemplated the mind and spirit and grew the...more

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Aug 16, 2009

Paul rated it

Nominated for the 2005 Hugo Award for best novel (losing to Susanna Clarke's Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell), River of Gods is an ambitious look at 2047 India by Ian McDonald.

As India approaches its 100th birthday, it has balkanized into a number of semi independent nations. Technology runs high here, higher than in some parts of the world. Artificial Intelligences reach for above-human sentience even as "Krishna cops" try and prevent them from doing so. The lack of a ...moreNominated for the 2005 Hugo Award for best novel (losing to Susanna Clarke's Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell), River of Gods is an ambitious look at 2047 India by Ian McDonald.

As India approaches its 100th birthday, it has balkanized into a number of semi independent nations. Technology runs high here, higher than in some parts of the world. Artificial Intelligences reach for above-human sentience even as "Krishna cops" try and prevent them from doing so. The lack of a monsoon for years has caused two of the nations to go to the brink of armed conflict. And in space, the Americans have discovered an asteroid is actually an alien artifact, seven billion years old, which inexplicably has a tie to several of the characters...

As I said, its an ambitious novel, with a large cast and a large canvas upon which McDonald draws. In an almost Bollywood like fashion, all of the plotlines and characters, disparate at first, eventually have their stories draw together.

McDonald pulls no punches and immerses the reader immediately in unfamiliar culture, terms, customs and societies. It takes a lot of work to keep up in this novel, but once the basics are down, the novel starts to sing. (This is definitely not a novel to give to a first time reader of science fiction). In point of fact, with its numerous characters at all sorts of social strata, its social commentary, and its vision of the future, the novel feels to me like McDonald's attempt to re-write Brunner's Stand on Zanzibar (but without the New Wave experimental narrative and textual techniques).

I don't think the novel quite lives up to its ambitions, and a few of the characters did not much appeal to me as much as the main plot did. However, the vision of India's future is wall-to-wall, engrossing and interesting. Throw in some snazzy technology, and even a bit of humor (I dare you not to laugh when you discover the fate of Bill Gates in this timeline)

Mcdonald has a collection of stories set in this world (Cyberdad Days) which, on the strength of this, and my enjoyment of it, I fully intend to buy and read.

Recommended.(less)

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Nov 28, 2008

Noah M. rated it

First, a warning: There is a goddamn glossary in the back of this book. I did not realize this until I was about 300 pages in. A lot of the Hindi words became clear through contextual clues, but some stuff I still am not sure about. I didn't bother to consult it (once I learned of its existence) because I was more than happy to just let the atmosphere wash over me and try to absorb meaning as I went.

Anyway, this is a hell of a book.

It's an absurdly rich portrait of In...more

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Jun 15, 2011

Rafal Jasinski rated it

· review of another edition

Wizja niedalekiej przyszłości, wspaniale nakreślona, oparta na kanwie dopracowanej, wciągającej i obfitującej w niezwykłe zwroty akcji fabuły. Idealnym dopełnieniem tej doskonale zaplanowanej opowieści o świecie, w którym sztuczne inteligencje stawiają swoje pierwsze i kolejne kroki ku autonomii, są nietuzinkowe postaci, które przeżywają swe małe prywatne dramaty, walczą ze słabościami, kochają i cierpią - pierwiastek ludzki ma niebanalne znaczenie w "Rzece bogów". Wszystko to, razem w...more

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May 18, 2010

Evan rated it

I doubt it's intentional, but Ian McDonald seems to be translating the great treasures of magical realism into scifi, and doing it masterfully. Where Desolation Road reads rather like One Hundred Years of Solitude set on Mars, River of Gods feels like someone gave Salman Rushdie a time machine so he could rewrite Midnight's Children a hundred years later. The result is something completely new, and breathtakingly imaginative and ambitious. The plot reads like magical realism, but McDonald has ...more

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Sep 10, 2010

CScott Morris rated it

Recommends it for: fans of sci-fi and cyber punk

Ian McDonald creates a vivid and dark future India in this -punk sci-fi novel.
He follows nine different characters, from a politician to a street-punk to a reporter and an AI programmer, through crowded, twisting streets that almost mirror his crowded, twisting plot.
A lot is going on in this book, and none of it seems to be related until the end, when everything comes together a la Guy Richie.
Ostensibly, there is an ancient alien artifact in space, but after the first couple ch...more

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Jan 04, 2011

Brian Storms rated it

Well, I've been searching for new sci-fi that captures my attention and distracts me from the real world and makes me feel sort of smart that I am interested in continuing to read about it and maybe has some occasional nanotech or AI maybe taking over the world combined with alternate universe possibilities, a variety of characters ranging from interesting to mundane, sexy to just plain gigantic, and perhaps the occasional draw-me-in plot line and raunchy sex scene. And also, I would like to la...more

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Jan 30, 2012

randy rated it

Okay, this is what fiction should be like.
What a wonderfully inventive book.
This is a story of India at 100 years old. It is a story of a billion and half people and at least a billion gods. It is not an easy read, but it is worth every second of it.

Imagine if when humanity creates artificial intelligence that the AIs take on the characteristics and avatars of gods. Sounds intriguing? Well this is the book for you.

There are at least 8 distinct points of view ...more

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Sep 10, 2011

Christina rated it

Shelves: sci-fi

Hmm. Okay. I'm always pleased when it's clear that the author has the end in sight from the very beginning & weaves each scene & character with purpose & direction.

The bits & pieces in the beginning were intriguing. Things started to come together, & I was getting excited and anticipating the big revelation & pay off. In these types of books, I can't wait to see where every little detail fits into the masterpiece.

Well, it fell flat for me. Some books/authors 'show' the ...more

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Jun 15, 2011

Broodingferret rated it

Shelves: science-fiction

I've not read any of McDonald's stuff before, but if River of Gods is typical of his work, then I'm definitely going to pick up more of his books. His prose is vivid and gritty, both smoothly sculpting and relentlessly hammering imagery together into a sharp and realistic view of mid-21st century India. His grasp of narrative pacing is excellent; both plot and character development move at a nice clip throughout the novel, and the story never drags. He's also evidently well-versed in the vari...more

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May 22, 2011

Nick rated it

Shelves: india, sci-fi

Pros: it satisfies my indophilia, has cool hard scifi elements/ speculation, emphasis on pop culture/culture which generates that "lived in future" feel which a lot of cyberpunk attempts. Speculation about artificial life was the most interesting to me, but not enough time was dedicated to it. Awesome universe building.

Cons: Occasional bad sexual references, static characters, lots of characters.

Other comments: Some of the Indian plot elements confused me. The way "...more

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Oct 12, 2009

Michael rated it

Ambiguous.

That's the best way to describe how I felt on finishing this book. Obviously, I enjoyed it for the most part, otherwise why would I give it four stars? That said, the last section was a letdown.

Why?

(1) It felt overly hasty, like the strands of plot were all drawn together too quickly given the pace and depth with which the book was building.

(2) It felt overly hasty, part II. Was it just me, or did there seem to be an inordinate amount of ...more

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Jul 02, 2010

Robert rated it

I am sorry I could not keep all the characters straight without generous hints from the author or turning back a few pages. I asked myself 1/2 way through if I could explain the cast to someone else and only felt I knew about 1/2 of them, and their names were a mystery. You know all the characters will have a connection by the end but it remained unclear to me where it was going for long stretches. I like an unfolding mystery but City of Gods is an onion with many many layers.

The wri...more

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Aug 08, 2008

Alex rated it

Interesting concepts, but dramatically overwritten and hard to follow because he's colored his prose a deep purple. See what I did there? I totally used a silly turn of phrase to make a simple statement more confusing. Gosh I'm so clever.

That's kind of how his writing style feels.

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Jul 30, 2010

Ryun rated it

A full two years after its original publication in the UK (and subsequent Hugo and Arthur C. Clarke award nominations), Ian McDonald’s RIVER OF GODS is finally in print in the U.S., thanks to Pyr Books, and it’s one hell of a novel.

Easily trumping any speculative fiction from the past couple of years, RIVER OF GODS is an exuberant leap into the future of India through the eyes of nine disparate characters. As their stories mingle and merge, McDonald not only weaves a tremendous yarn...more

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May 27, 2009

Dev Null rated it

Shelves: cyberpunk, science-fiction

Excellent.

Read this purely because it was a Hugo or Nebula nominee (I forget which) and they've never led me astray yet (though I had enjoyed McDonalds' Desolation Road, so I wasn't exactly going in blind.)

McDonald tells us a series of stories that all end up crossing over one another, and all are set in a future India. Its a nice mix of cyberpunk and delving into the wierdnesses of the hybrid Indian culture. The big overarching plotline starts out as The Cyberpunk Plot(t...more

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Jul 12, 2011

Rebecca rated it

· review of another edition

Recommended to Rebecca by: Jay

Shelves: sci-fi

Well, this book certainly is interesting. Set in a future India, it starts by following several seemingly unconnected characters whose stories rapidly converge to tell the story of a world in which AI soap stars, parallel universes and genderless designer humans co-exist alongside India's slums, caste system and multiple religions.

The setting of India is a perfect choice for this style of sci-fi story, mixing the grit and dirt of poor and tradional with the leaping technology and sty...more

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Dec 08, 2011

Isabel rated it

· review of another edition

'What is going on here?'Mr Nandha demands as he walks through the scrum of police, Ministry warrant card held high.
'Sir, one of the factory workers panicked and ran out into the alley, straight under,' says a police sergeant. 'He was shouting about a djinn; how the djinn was in the factory and was going to get all of them.'
You call it djinn, Mr Nandha thinks, scanning the site. I call it meme. Non-material replicators; jokes, rumours, customs, nursery rhymes. Mind-viruses. Gods demon...more

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Oct 24, 2011

Daniel Roy rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: world, sf, dystopia

In "River or Gods", McDonald conveys all the wonder and chaos of the Indian subcontinent, infusing it with tales of rogue AIs and political conflicts on the eve of the Singularity.

I became aware of McDonald with last year's The Dervish House, which I loved. I felt it captured perfectly the spirit of Istanbul, its ancient dignity and grandeur, and the Muslim philosophy that underlies it. But until I read "River of Gods", I had no idea how much of an accomplishment ...moreIn "River or Gods", McDonald conveys all the wonder and chaos of the Indian subcontinent, infusing it with tales of rogue AIs and political conflicts on the eve of the Singularity.

I became aware of McDonald with last year's The Dervish House, which I loved. I felt it captured perfectly the spirit of Istanbul, its ancient dignity and grandeur, and the Muslim philosophy that underlies it. But until I read "River of Gods", I had no idea how much of an accomplishment "Dervish House" was; for the two novels are incredibly different in tone, owing to the very different worlds they portray.

McDonald's India is huge, chaotic, vibrant, colorful and deadly. It seems a fitting tribute to the real-world India; I'm writing this review from a hotel in Kolkata, so I can say without doubt that "River of Gods" captures the essence, the texture of India.

The novel starts with a series of POV characters that seem to have little to do with one another. As the plot progresses, they coalesce around some pretty darn awe-inspiring concepts about alternate universes and artificial intelligence. To say much more would risk spoiling some of the great ideas of "River of Gods"; but allow me to say that the ideas and the overall cosmology presented here is very much in tune with Hinduism and the Indian worldview, as far as I can tell.

All that being said, the book has some flaws. For starters, not all POV characters are that interesting, or have much to contribute to the story. The worst for me was Parvati, a housewife who falls in love with her gardener in a clichéd turn of events. She seemed to exist only to give us the point of view of a fan of the show "Town & Country", which plays a role in the story; but overall, she contributed very little to the overall plot. When her overbearing mother reared her head in the story, I couldn't help but cringe.

The other issue I have with "River of Gods" is the depiction of sex. It's over the top, and rarely necessary. Mostly, we get to see people having fantastic, exaggerated, sometimes acrobatic sex. It felt jarring to me, and more like slash fiction than pertinent writing. I could have done without one of the female characters receiving oral sex while doing a handstand in the shower, that's for sure.

But despite its flaws, I loved this book. It feels Indian to its core, and as such was a great step away from the typical Western SF point of view. The writing overall was stellar, and the concepts were pleasantly mind-boggling. Highly recommended, with the above caveats in mind.(less)

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Aug 28, 2011

Niall519 rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: science-fiction

Definitely one of the best things I've read this year. I can see why it picked up the awards that it did.

Like many SF stories that use either a broad brush, or disparate colours being blended together, I think it slows and gets a little muddied at the end; but the mixing process to get to that point is delightful to behold. For some reason it reminded me of Strange Days in feel while reading it, rather than Blade Runner (or Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep for that matter). I'm no...more

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About Ian McDonald

Ian McDonald (1960-) is a British science fiction novelist, living in Belfast. His themes include nanotechnology, postcyberpunk settings, and the impact of rapid social and technological change on non-Western societies.

McDonald was born in 1960, in Manchester, to a Scottish father and Irish mother, but moved to Belfast when he was five, and has lived there ever since. He therefore live...more

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