Review: Blistering sci-fi
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 06 29, 2013
I'm always glad to find an original concept, and this blistering sci-fi novel is beyond inventive. The author could have constructed two or three books from the core material here, but I'm glad that he instead chose to have "Martin and Martine" be dense with engaging plot strands and provocative ideas.The premise is that about a hundred years in the future, immersive virtual reality has become ubiquitous and heavily integrated with the mundane physical world--Google Glass meets "Serial Experiments Lain". Imagination and reality merge, and the new technology is all the rage in Paris. Human nature being what it is, one of the most popular features is the creation of attractive, virtual female companions who closely approximate the real thing.The plot really kicks off when the hero Martin becomes involved with a beautiful woman called Martine. Each takes the other for a virtual figment, yet their sexual encounter is real and physical. Their romance may be blissful, but in a world of total identity theft, virtual cloning and totalitarian government, no-one is safe for long.