February 21, 2017 / Leslie

Crosstalk by Connie Willis

A Rapid Review

Crosstalk Publisher: Del Rey | September 2016
Format: Hardcover 498 pages | Rating: 4 stars
Genre: Science Fiction / Romance

Science fiction icon Connie Willis brilliantly mixes a speculative plot, the wit of Nora Ephron, and the comedic flair of P. G. Wodehouse in Crosstalk a genre-bending novel that pushes social media, smartphone technology, and twenty-four-hour availability to hilarious and chilling extremes as one young woman abruptly finds herself with way more connectivity than she ever desired.

What’s it about . . .
In the near future, a brain implant has been developed called an EED which would allow couples to sense each others emotions – a type of telepathy. Briddey’s boyfriend suggests that they have the procedure done. She agrees, convinced that a marriage proposal would soon follow. But things don’t go as planned, and Briddey ends up with a wrong connection. The law of unintended consequences!

What did I think . . .
This was a fun book with a bit of a slow start. Like most Connie Willis books, it’s a little longer than need be, but that is her writing style and I have learned to enjoy it. There are lots of characters, including Briddey’s crazy family and co-workers, and a few subplots. Once those are set up, the story takes off.

The plot is clever and timely. Briddey live in a world that already has too much connectedness, and since she got the EED, she can’t turn off the noise. Now Briddey needs to find out what happened, how to fix it, and not let her boyfriend know the procedure has not worked the way they planned.

This is not serious science fiction, it more of a comedy with lots of techy gadgets, a romance, fun characters, and farcical situations.

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Source: Review copy provided by NetGalley.
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