Gnomon
Nov 2017 · Random House
4.4star
10 reviewsreport
Ebook
704
Pages
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About this ebook
A GUARDIAN BOOK OF THE YEAR
'Gnomon is an extraordinary novel, and one I can’t stop thinking about some weeks after I read it. It is deeply troubling, magnificently strange, and an exhilarating read.' Emily St. John Mandel, author of Station Eleven
'Nick Harkaway’s most ambitious novel yet. [A] story of near-future mass surveillance, artificial intelligence and human identity ... An amazing and quite unforgettable piece of fiction.' Guardian
'Harkaway dazzles.' Daily Mail
'Wonderfully good.' Sunday Times
Near-future Britain is a state in which citizens are constantly observed and democracy has reached a pinnacle of 'transparency.' Every action is seen, every word is recorded and the System has access to thoughts and memories.
When suspected dissident Diana Hunter dies in custody, it marks the first time a citizen has been killed during an interrogation. Mielikki Neith, a trusted state inspector, is assigned to find out what went wrong. Immersing herself in neural recordings of the interrogation, what she finds isn't Hunter but rather a panorama of characters within Hunter's psyche.
Embedded in the memories of these impossible lives lies a code which Neith must decipher to find out what Hunter is hiding. The staggering consequences of what she finds will reverberate throughout the world.
'Gnomon is an extraordinary novel, and one I can’t stop thinking about some weeks after I read it. It is deeply troubling, magnificently strange, and an exhilarating read.' Emily St. John Mandel, author of Station Eleven
'Nick Harkaway’s most ambitious novel yet. [A] story of near-future mass surveillance, artificial intelligence and human identity ... An amazing and quite unforgettable piece of fiction.' Guardian
'Harkaway dazzles.' Daily Mail
'Wonderfully good.' Sunday Times
Near-future Britain is a state in which citizens are constantly observed and democracy has reached a pinnacle of 'transparency.' Every action is seen, every word is recorded and the System has access to thoughts and memories.
When suspected dissident Diana Hunter dies in custody, it marks the first time a citizen has been killed during an interrogation. Mielikki Neith, a trusted state inspector, is assigned to find out what went wrong. Immersing herself in neural recordings of the interrogation, what she finds isn't Hunter but rather a panorama of characters within Hunter's psyche.
Embedded in the memories of these impossible lives lies a code which Neith must decipher to find out what Hunter is hiding. The staggering consequences of what she finds will reverberate throughout the world.
Ratings and reviews
4.4
10 reviews
Forsyth Thompson
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February 2, 2019
A universe away from The Gone Away world, being far more esoteric and requiring full attention to have even the vaguest hint of where it might be going! A huge book in terms of vision and with so many parallel intertwined storylines, it's unlikely anything I've read before.
1 person found this review helpful
Janne Himanka
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January 29, 2018
A massive letdown. A bit like Eco's Foucault's pendulum, a display of erudition. Well written but barren. Angelmaker was great, within its remit. This book displays good craft, no soul.
Jesse E
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December 6, 2017
Satisfyingly mind bending, the story holds up to the promise in the grand symbolism of the individual narratives.
1 person found this review helpful
About the author
Nick Harkaway was born in Cornwall in 1972. Author of the novels The Gone-Away World, Angelmaker and Tigerman, he lives in London with his wife and two children.
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