Sunday, April 16, 2000
Title: Fools
Author: Pat Cadigan
Publisher:
Reading Cadigan's work one finds she has a style of writing that is very much her own. A fact that comes through in Fools an interesting story of personality and mind. Our central character is somewhat confused - she is either a method actress playing an undercover police officer or a police officer deeply undercover as an actress. Her biggest problem is that both personalities believe that they are the real thing. As the story unfolds it is told from both sides and memories reveal a murder, thefts and criminal racketeering - all of which is of interest to the insidious brain police.
For the most part I've read short stories by Cadigan , much of her more recent work being particularly nice. However it has been said that her ability to hold a full novel together is not the best. And while Fools is her only novel I've read, it does seem to be lacking a certain something. Though Fools does work in some ways with its portrayal of a culture of brain police and mind crime and the monitoring of thoughts. The culmination of Fools being particularly nice, and it is reasonable enough that I have read it twice over the years. From which I've picked up the habit of occasionally quoting "ha and ha" in sarcastic manner along with an admiration for the drug "paranoia" and the salesman's pitch of "are you paranoid enough?"
RVWR: PTR
April 2000
