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Nerve Zero
Idriel Ramirez has returned home, haunted by the shame of being a conscripted pilot for the New Terran Empire.
Haunted by the shame that he's felt the sky.
Once respected as a nerve, now he's just pressed. Few in Hinden, clouded jewel of a fallen empire, will even look him in the eye.
Drawn into crime and mystery by Ausiel Montoya, an old itch, Ramirez tells himself he's floating through Hinden's steel nest of assassins, pscyhos and cultists because of what the money she promised can buy him - years off his indenture.
But as he delves deeper into the heart of his wretched homeworld he finds the secret she's carrying is as big as the secret at core of Hinden. And just as dangerous.
Haunted by the shame that he's felt the sky.
Once respected as a nerve, now he's just pressed. Few in Hinden, clouded jewel of a fallen empire, will even look him in the eye.
Drawn into crime and mystery by Ausiel Montoya, an old itch, Ramirez tells himself he's floating through Hinden's steel nest of assassins, pscyhos and cultists because of what the money she promised can buy him - years off his indenture.
But as he delves deeper into the heart of his wretched homeworld he finds the secret she's carrying is as big as the secret at core of Hinden. And just as dangerous.
- GenresScience Fiction
279 pages, Paperback
First published November 10, 2012
2 people are currently reading
193 people want to read
About the author
Justin Robinson
46 books149 followersMuch like film noir, Justin Robinson was born and raised in Los Angeles. He splits his time between editing comic books, writing prose and wondering what that disgusting smell is. Degrees in Anthropology and History prepared him for unemployment, but an obsession with horror fiction and a laundry list of phobias provided a more attractive option.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
January 14, 2013
After being able to read a teaser for this book ages ago, I’ve been waiting patiently for the full novel to come out. And you know what? It was well worth the wait. Not only is there both fascinating science fiction and gripping noir, but Ramirez is an utterly original character that you almost never see in science fiction stories of any kind.
Robinson not only creates a sense of danger and conveys the characters’ desperation from the very beginning, but manages to keep the momentum going throughout the entire book. It’s an impressive accomplishment and well worth checking out.
Robinson not only creates a sense of danger and conveys the characters’ desperation from the very beginning, but manages to keep the momentum going throughout the entire book. It’s an impressive accomplishment and well worth checking out.
March 21, 2013
I've been a fan of the SF / noir sub-genre since I first laid eyes on Bladerunner oh so many years ago. In Nerve Zero, Robinson has developed an environment so claustrophobic you can feel the pressure on its downtrodden protagonist from page one. You'll pick up the jargon and unique details of the world within the first couple chapters and find yourself fully immersed and unable to put the book down.
July 5, 2015
A peek into a fascinating future
Much like getting drawn into a whorl on Typhon, I found my interest in both the story and the world it takes place in growing the closer I got to the end.
I'm always interested in reading new science fiction, and this story offers plenty of context-necessary vocabulary (described nicely in the glossary at the end if you don't manage to pick it up as it's used), interesting characters, and fascinating descriptions of what it might be like for a human to grow up in zero gravity in a space station the size of a planet.
My stumbling points tended to be the dialogues (or lengthy internal monologues); it's easy to lose track of who is saying what at times, and occasionally there are descriptions that bog down the flow of the story a bit.
However, these were easy to read around and I never found myself so hung up on anything that I wasn't interested in reading further. I love the naming conventions (parents dictating a child's destiny by naming them a specific angel), and I loved reading about the various types of humans and their cultures. There were descriptions so well done I could believe Robinson had actually lived in a space station himself.
Overall, a very fun read, and I very much look forward to reading more books in the series. Especially if they involve Lichtenstein, who was fascinating even with limited page time.
Much like getting drawn into a whorl on Typhon, I found my interest in both the story and the world it takes place in growing the closer I got to the end.
I'm always interested in reading new science fiction, and this story offers plenty of context-necessary vocabulary (described nicely in the glossary at the end if you don't manage to pick it up as it's used), interesting characters, and fascinating descriptions of what it might be like for a human to grow up in zero gravity in a space station the size of a planet.
My stumbling points tended to be the dialogues (or lengthy internal monologues); it's easy to lose track of who is saying what at times, and occasionally there are descriptions that bog down the flow of the story a bit.
However, these were easy to read around and I never found myself so hung up on anything that I wasn't interested in reading further. I love the naming conventions (parents dictating a child's destiny by naming them a specific angel), and I loved reading about the various types of humans and their cultures. There were descriptions so well done I could believe Robinson had actually lived in a space station himself.
Overall, a very fun read, and I very much look forward to reading more books in the series. Especially if they involve Lichtenstein, who was fascinating even with limited page time.
December 14, 2012
Nerve Zero, the third book that I've read by Robinson, is noir of a different color (ahem). Nerve Zero is definitely a Robinson book, gritty fast-paced noir, yet this time with a sci-fi setting, almost cyber-punk. I must admit that the vocabulary was hard to pick up at first, and left me wishing there was a glossary. It wasn't until the end of the book that I realized there had been one at the back all along. That's what I get for always reading books from start to finish.
The new vocabulary only took me a few chapters to get a handle on, and then once I did I couldn't put the book down. Robinson creates a vibrantly detailed world with politics, religions, and caste systems, then populates it with interesting characters. And then tries to kill off those characters repeatedly, while the characters struggle not only to survive, but also to figure out what the heck is actually going on.
Like I said, it's quite a fast-paced book, and I hope just the first in a series, since I really want to find out what eventually happens to the quietly brewing revolution deep within the core of the planet.
The new vocabulary only took me a few chapters to get a handle on, and then once I did I couldn't put the book down. Robinson creates a vibrantly detailed world with politics, religions, and caste systems, then populates it with interesting characters. And then tries to kill off those characters repeatedly, while the characters struggle not only to survive, but also to figure out what the heck is actually going on.
Like I said, it's quite a fast-paced book, and I hope just the first in a series, since I really want to find out what eventually happens to the quietly brewing revolution deep within the core of the planet.
May 28, 2015
Superb Noir Science Fiction - Life is Cheap
Idriel Ramirez is a classic Robinson hero - intelligent but not brilliant, quick but not superhuman, noble but flawed. A person with an essential skill for the universe he lives in but an outcast from the society to which he should belong. When Ramirez's ship pulls into his homeworld of Hinden, he runs directly into an old friend with a problem - and is willing to pay for him to fix it. When that old friend disappears Ramirez is drawn back into the labyrinthine structure - both physical and social - of Hinden to find her.
The real strength of Nerve Zero is the world - the universe - that it builds. It is a bleak future, fallen from many glories and many times removed from our terran past - but it is one that feels like it can and does exist. Top that off with realistic characters and you have a story that pulls you to keep reading even when the plot twists and turns through the crowded belly of the city-world.
Highly recommended read - especially if you enjoy complex, strong female characters. Although the main character is male, the majority of the cast consists of realistic, intelligent women.
Idriel Ramirez is a classic Robinson hero - intelligent but not brilliant, quick but not superhuman, noble but flawed. A person with an essential skill for the universe he lives in but an outcast from the society to which he should belong. When Ramirez's ship pulls into his homeworld of Hinden, he runs directly into an old friend with a problem - and is willing to pay for him to fix it. When that old friend disappears Ramirez is drawn back into the labyrinthine structure - both physical and social - of Hinden to find her.
The real strength of Nerve Zero is the world - the universe - that it builds. It is a bleak future, fallen from many glories and many times removed from our terran past - but it is one that feels like it can and does exist. Top that off with realistic characters and you have a story that pulls you to keep reading even when the plot twists and turns through the crowded belly of the city-world.
Highly recommended read - especially if you enjoy complex, strong female characters. Although the main character is male, the majority of the cast consists of realistic, intelligent women.
January 17, 2013
If you like noir stories and sci-fi worlds, then you should definitely read this fast-paced mystery. Set in a zero gravity space station about the size of a planet, the mystery not only delivers intrigue and action, but incorporates the politics of an occupied world. The slang takes a little getting used to, but there's a glossary in the back that helps (Go To > Table of Contents in the Kindle version). Well thought out characters, well imagined world, intricate mystery. Must read!
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews