I loved CoGS, but this second volume is fairly disappointing. The first 200 pages or so are exciting and action-oriented enough to keep you distracted, but as you read on you'll discover that the substance and originality present in every chapter of book one is severely lacking here; it's really just a "grand tour" of the VR system and that's okay, except the worlds are just twisted variations on ones we've seen or read about in old movies and classic novels.

I liked some of the developing characterizations (Martine reveals how she went blind; the strengthening bonds between Orlando/Fredericks and Renie/!Xabbu) and this is what carried me through the 700-some pages, but, even though this volume is a bit shorter than the first one, it took me twice as long to finish this one -- what does that tell ya?

The book move's very slowly and is very detailed, which engrosses you in the storyline but can also leave you frustrated after hours of reading and no conclusion to some of the more interesting storylines. But all in all you come away with a good will prevail attitude and a need to buy the sequel.

This book is a very hard read, perhaps more so than any of Williams' books. It is very enjoyable now, and it is very worth the read if you are wanting to complete the whole series. But make sure that you are reading comfortably and concentrating, because there are a lot of tricky and mysterious things that crop up around the place. But worth reading - don't give up on it! The next volume does move a lot faster, and things begin to come together where before they were all over the place.Fantastic - one of the hardest to read, but by far one of the best.