Monthly Archives: July 2011

Webmind, the vast consciousness that spontaneously emerged from the infrastructure of the World Wide Web, has proven its worth to humanity by aiding in everything from curing cancer to easing international tensions. But the brass at the Pentagon see Webmind as a threat that needs to be eliminated.

Caitlin Decter, the once-blind sixteen-year-old math genius who discovered, and bonded with, Webmind, wants desperately to protect her friend. And if she doesn’t act, everything, Webmind included, may come crashing down.

I did not get to read this book immediately after reading the first two because I had to wait for it to arrive.  While waiting, I read Robopocalypse by Daniel H. Wilson.  This was another book in which the world’s technology becomes self-aware, but it took an entirely different direction.  I could not have picked a better book to read for contrast.

Although Webmind has proven the way he can benefit humanity, some members of the American government still want him destroyed.  The Chinese government may end up unintentionally doing the job for them.

This series addresses so many social issues, not just our reliance on the Internet.  Human rights, abortion, and religious views are all represented.

I actually had chill bumps while reading this book.  I cannot recommend this series enough.

Award-winning author Robert J. Sawyer continues his “wildly though- provoking” science fiction saga of a sentient World Wide Web. Webmind is an emerging consciousness that has befriended Caitlin Decter and grown eager to learn about her world. But Webmind has also come to the attention of WATCH-the secret government agency that monitors the Internet for any threat to the United States-and they’re fully aware of Caitlin’s involvement in its awakening. WATCH is convinced that Webmind represents a risk to national security and wants it purged from cyberspace. But Caitlin believes in Webmind’s capacity for compassion-and she will do anything and everything necessary to protect her friend.

This is one of those series that I am so glad has already been completely released.  I cannot imagine having to wait on these books to come out one at a time.

Watch picks up right after the end of Wake.  The American government is out to kill Webmind and it is up to Caitlin to stop them.  I won’t give it away, but I loved the method that Webmind and Caitlin devise to save him.

China is becoming more and more a problem to its people.  If Webmind is to promote the “net happiness” of the human race, what is to be done?

This is a great trilogy.  I have book three, Wonder, on order.  I can’t wait to read it.

One of the foremost science fiction writers of our generation-(SF Site) comes to Ace with a trilogy of the Web’s awakening. Caitlin Decter is young, pretty, feisty, a genius at math, and blind. Still, she can surf the net with the best of them, following its complex paths clearly in her mind. But Caitlin’s brain long ago co-opted her primary visual cortex to help her navigate online. So when she receives an implant to restore her sight, instead of seeing reality, the landscape of the World Wide Web explodes into her consciousness, spreading out all around her in a riot of colors and shapes. While exploring this amazing realm, she discovers something, some other, lurking in the background. And it’s getting more and more intelligent with each passing day.

I read this series on the recommendation of my friend Cindy.  Her recommendations can be iffy because I accuse her of reading “literary” novels rather than good books.  This, however, is a good book.

Mostly because of Cindy, I have been reading a lot more straight science fiction recently.  When I was a teenager, it was all I would read.  I don’t know what happened.

Anyway, this could be one of those “end of the world as we know it” books and in a way it is.  However, that is not necessarily a bad thing.  The entity that Caitlin discovers is young and hopefully can be taught to be altruistic.  That’s only if the American government doesn’t destroy it first.

I am so glad book two is already out.