Robert's review
The Confusion (The Baroque Cycle, Vol. 2) by Neal Stephenson
This is the second volume of Neal Stephenson's "Baroque Cycle": a piece of historical fiction that leans heavily on science fiction.
The story is set in various parts of Europe, North Africa, and India in the late 1600s. It tackles history, great leaps forward in scientific and mathematical thinking (Newton and Liebniz are secondary characters, among others), politics, sex (ah, now I've caught your interest!), finance, world exploration, and many other topics.
The characters are very down-to-earth. This is not some idealized version of the past, nor does it try to show the past as a time of horrors ("thank goodness we don't live like THAT..."). It's an adventure, but it isn't terribly difficult to picture yourself living there.
The primary characters are
1. Daniel Waterhouse -- sort of the "everygeek". A person caught up in Great Events, who is pretty intelligent, and yet is scared of bullies with swords, etc.
2. Jack Shaftoe -- a va...more
The story is set in various parts of Europe, North Africa, and India in the late 1600s. It tackles history, great leaps forward in scientific and mathematical thinking (Newton and Liebniz are secondary characters, among others), politics, sex (ah, now I've caught your interest!), finance, world exploration, and many other topics.
The characters are very down-to-earth. This is not some idealized version of the past, nor does it try to show the past as a time of horrors ("thank goodness we don't live like THAT..."). It's an adventure, but it isn't terribly difficult to picture yourself living there.
The primary characters are
1. Daniel Waterhouse -- sort of the "everygeek". A person caught up in Great Events, who is pretty intelligent, and yet is scared of bullies with swords, etc.
2. Jack Shaftoe -- a va...more
