I greatly enjoyed this book. The author gave me a lot to think about regarding technology, race, and mourning. The author articulated one of the problems in society that I wrestle with: what is the role of technology in our society? I also enjoyed the structure of using the characters' past writings (emails, IMs, forum posts, novels) to show insight to their state of mind.

New Waves reminded me of a cross between the television show Black Mirror and John Green's acclaimed young adult novel Paper Towns. (And ironically, both Kevin Nguyen and John Green's central Interesting and Mysterious Woman™ characters are named Margo.)

There were some poignant observations about the intersections of racism and technology in this novel, but some were kind of obvious for anyone who's remotely involved in the tech world or reads about the state of tech in our lives. Lucas was a purposely bland character grieving the death of his Interesting and Mysterious Woman™, but we never really got answers to the questions sprawled out about her life, either. Some would say that that's the point, but I would counter with, is it really?

I really wanted to love this book since I'd seen some hype around it, but a lot of it just felt a little too on-the-nose for me.

What you think will be a tech-focused story ends up being more about life and loss and comraderie, when one of the opening characters is in a fatal accident soon into the book. The New York setting is great, and feels recoginizable, but not corny New York, or uppity New York. Lucas, the main character is left to deal with the weight of the crime he just committed , and also to put together the pieces of his friendship that are now gone. He has to get to know Margo in a new light, unearthing many new sides of her.

The line that really struck me was “Grief isn’t just the act of coping with a loss. It’s reckoning with the realization that you’ll never discover something new about a person ever again.” The book deals with grief in a way not often seen, where the questions go unanswered despite life still having to move on. Nguyen talks about race and friendship in a fresh way, approaching it head on, with both main characters being minorities in a very white industry.

I love Kevin Nguyen as a writer with The Verge so was excited to see he wrote a fiction book as well. He's also a great twitter follower (@knguyen). This was a great debut novel.

This book was an electronic ARC courtesy of Net Galley. Opinions are my own!

QUICK TAKE: wanted to love it, didn't get it. I was expecting a techno-thriller based on the synopsis with a murder mystery hook, but instead found the plot to be painstakingly slow with little momentum or resolution. The interstitials between chapters were intriguing, but ultimately didn't really elevate the book. Disappointed in this one.

New Waves tries to do a lot in a relatively short space. It’s ambitious, covering topics as varied as race, social media, science fiction, and modern relationships. I wanted so badly for this to be the book about the internet I have been dying for, but it just wasn’t. I was disappointed and sadly found the writing to often be amateurish and heavy-handed. However, if Nguyen continues to write about the internet, I will continue to read his work, because the ideas at the core of New Waves were really fascinating.

Okaaay….I read this book, but at the end, I’m not sure what I got out of it. After thinking about ti for a week, I still don’t understand where it was going. Lucas, who on a whim moves to New York City where he takes a position as customer rep at a tech firm. There he meets Margot, a bright, opinionated engineer for the company. They become friends and steal the customer database before leaving for another company. Then Margot dies and Lucas, adrift and lonely, gets asked by Margot’s mother to delete Margot’s Facebook account. Lucas takes her laptop and in searching her files finds a former friend of Margot’s, with whom he begins a relationship. He eventually moves back to Oregon and when he learns he got money from stock he owned in a tech company ends up moving to Tokyo, where Margot wanted to move. It was a challenging book to read.

New Waves is about grief, about being a person of color in the modern world, about being a person who is struggling.

Kevin Nguyen is a phenom and I can't wait to read what's next.

Published by Random House/One World on March 10, 2020

A young woman named Margo is hit by a car and dies. She is something of a phantom character for the rest of New Waves, carried in memory by two of her friends who bond with each other through their discovery that they both knew her.

Margo had dark skin and a Haitian background. She worked as a software engineer. She could see patterns that others missed. Often at night, because she “was happiest when she was drinking,” she got buzzed and dictated short science fiction stories, typically in dystopian settings, into her phone. A few of those stories appear in New Waves.

Margo had few friends, but she developed two friendships online. One was on a website that archived music (not entirely in conformity with copyright laws). She was a fan of Japanese music. She traded music with Lucas Nguyen, who is a fan of bossa nova.

By coincidence, at some point after the music website is shut down, Lucas and Margo discover that they are both working at the same messaging app company — Margo in development, Lucas in customer service. They eventually leave the company and go to work for a different messaging app company (Phantom), a startup developing an app that allows covert messaging. The app is intended for whistleblowers but is embraced by teens who use it for sexting. The perils of working for (or doing business with) a tech company, particularly a startup, is a theme to which the story frequently returns.

As a lark (or so it seems to Lucas), before quitting and moving to Phantom, they steal some user data, prompting an eventual discussion of the morality of stealing from a company that doesn’t care about its employees. Margo does it to get back at all the male employees who don’t take her seriously because she’s a woman, and all the white employees who want to discuss hip-hop with her. Lucas does it to get back at all the non-Asian employees who assume he’s an engineer because he’s Asian, and all the Asian employees who look down on him because he’s not an engineer. Margo is particularly offended when a survey finds that the app appeals to nonwhite users, and the company instantly focuses on making the app more “white friendly” rather than working on features that would appeal to its black customer base.

All of that gives a taste of the carefully consructed background to New Waves. The story really begins with the introduction of Jill August, Margo’s other online friend. Jill wrote a novel, sort of a downbeat family drama, that found a publisher. She began working on a book with a science fiction setting and joined a science fiction message board to get a sense of the genre. There she met Margo, who critiqued Jill’s writing.

Lucas takes it upon himself to close Margo’s Facebook account, where he discovers unanswered messages from Jill. He lets Jill know that Margo died, and they eventually meet and begin something that might be a friendship-with-benefits or a deeper relationship, depending on their changing perspectives.

New Waves is an engaging novel on several fronts. Lucas’ relationships with Margo and Jill are complex. Both involve something that might be love, although it is clear that neither Margo nor Jill feel about Lucas the way he feels about them. Lucas’ assumption that Margo doesn’t want to have an intimate relationship with him because she doesn’t want to be intimate with anyone sets up a surprising revelation — surprising, at least, to Lucas, but foreshadowed to the reader.

Different approaches to confronting (or ignoring) racism and sexism are a key theme. Another is the difficulty of connecting with people. All the technology that connects us, the novel suggests, might paradoxically push us away from each other in the offline world.

Another theme is the human desire to fix things — relationships, ourselves, other people — even when they might not be fixable, or might not need fixing at all. One of the characters thinks that “all we need to do is trust that time and space sort everything out.”

But the novel’s larger message is that having a certain kind of friend can change your life in profound ways. Even after your friend dies, even if the friendship was brief, an honest friend who calls you on your bullshit, who inspires you to see the world in a different way, can guide your future. “What would Margo think about this?” is a question that Lucas constantly asks. He imagines answers that make him a better person, the kind of person Margo would admire.

New Waves is a surprisingly quick and easy read, given the complexity of the themes it explores. The characters are young, still finding their way into the adult world, trying to make sense of their lives. Kevin Nguyen writes with empathy and compassion as he steers his characters through a multi-layered story that, despite its subject matter, never becomes maudlin or preachy.

RECOMMENDED

I'm a fan of Kevin Nguyen's nonfiction work, so I was really looking forward to reading his first novel, and it did not disappoint. This book is an apt description of living in New York City in a particular mid-2010s moment, in the middle of a tech boom that is rapidly revealing itself to replicate the old structures it's claiming to disrupt. But really, at its heart, this is a searing book about grief, and friendship. I'll be thinking about it for a long time.

It's early in the year, but I would be surprised if Kevin Nguyen's New Waves is not one of my favorites of 2020. Really deftly navigates the importance of the digital self and our digital connections in this modern age with grace and humor aplenty. Nguyen's sophomore effort can't come soon enough...no pressure Kevin (and no rush I mean thanks for this relax/enjoy yourself!)

Thanks to NetGalley and One World for an advance copy of this!

On one hand, this is one of those books where there's not one specific story that starts and ends within the book - it's sort of a slice of these particular character's lives, and if that's not your thing, you're maybe not going to enjoy this. That said, it manages to tie together thinking about ethics in tech, thoughts about race and racism, and science-fiction writing in a way that weaves through multiple styles and characters seamlessly. Given that Kevin Nguyen writes features for _The Verge_, which features so many of these topics in its stories, this shouldn't have surprised me, and yet.

This was the sort of book where I was half-tempted to pick up a print copy halfway through reading the e-book version so I could immediately start loaning it to friends. I read this in one sitting (admittedly, I was on a plane, so I kind of had no choice) and devoured every page.

An unusual structure and a lot of tech "stuff" might make this a hard sell for some readers but stick with it. It's the story of Lucas and Margot who steal valuable data from the company where they both worked until Margot was fired. And then she's hit and killed by a car. Lucas, at Margot's mom's request, finds himself exploring her world and he finds out a lot he didn't know about her. Lucas moved to Manhattan from Oregon; he's not as educated or as worldly as many of his colleagues but he turns out to be quite wily. The straight line narrative is interspersed with small sci-fi interludes. It makes for a read that can be challenging (where is this going?) but is ultimately rewarding. And you, like me, might learn something. Thanks to netgalley for the ARC. Take a chance on this one.

I feel like "New Waves" by Kevin Nguyen is being marketed as suspense fiction, when in reality it's more of a contemporary novel with a dash of sci-fi and computer geek thrown in for good measure. I was completely hooked after the first chapter. I thought the writing was sharp, funny, and vibrant. It's kind of hard to believe this is the author's debut novel. Of course it's not a perfect, flawless one, it's close though. I did feel like something was missing. You think the plot is going to focus mainly on Lucas and Margo's illegal crime against the tech company they previously worked for, but it's more of a character study of a man's descent into alcoholism and grief.

The strength of "New Waves" were the characters. The main protagonist, Lucas was a dynamic character. I liked that one minute you despise him and the next you're rooting for him. I wholeheartedly believed in Lucas and Margo's geek-fantastic friendship. Their friendship jumped off the page right from the start, which is impressive since you learn early on that Margo is killed walking home drunk by a speeding cab. Most of their friendship is told in flashbacks. I thought the addition of the character Jill was interesting. She added some dimension to Lucas' sad little life. She was another character that had good and bad qualities. There's also frank discussions of race and discrimination in the workplace. Part of this story did feel uneven, I wanted more. With that being said, it was a breeze to get through. Quick-witted, engaging, and entertaining. This one took me by surprise. It had so much personality and spunk.

Thank you, Netgalley and Random House for the digital ARC.

Release date: March 10, 2020

Lucas is a young Asian man working in employee relations for a large tech company. Margo, who is an African American software engineer, is his only friend at work. Most of the other employees are lily white 'good old boys' who love to play on the company foos ball table. Margo and Lucas feel like outsiders in this synthetic 'family'. It is only a matter of time until Margo, who is straight speaking and not likely to hold her tongue, is fired for being disruptive and not a team player. Before they leave the company, they download all the privileged software. Margo tries to justify this theft of information but ultimately realizes that what they did was wrong. She tells Lucas to destroy everything they took but he neglects to do this.

Not long after the theft, Margo is killed in a hit and run accident. She is said to be drunk and was hit by a car while walking in traffic. Lucas is not sure what to think about this. Was she drunk or was her death something more sinister.

Each chapter is followed by a science fiction parable/short story about a future dystopia of sorts. I did not like this structure and would have preferred that the book flow more smoothly, not including these short bits.

I know next to nothing about computers. This made my understanding of much of the book minimal as it goes into detail about aspects of computer lingo, data structure and gaming. I found this a hindrance for me and it made it harder to connect to the characters and understand what was happening.

I think this book would appeal to an adult audience that is savvy in computer lingo and tech.

A smart clever novel about high tech and an unlikely pair of millennials whose equally unlikely workplace friendship illuminates the rise and fall of a Snapchat-like app whose unintended effects turn their lives and their relationship upside down. Margo, the brilliant programmer whose hidden trove of quirky, mostly dystopian writings comes to light after her death, is deeply missed by at least two people -Lucas, her compatriot at Nimbus, and Jill, a writer whose on-line friendship with Margo brings them together after her death. The three central characters of this provocative novel don't drive the narrative, which is leisurely and even dilatory, but they resonate in the reader's mind long after the last page.

This is a difficult book for me to review, but I will start with I very much enjoyed this.

Lucas is your lead. When this book starts we meet Margo and Lucas who are both in IT and just feel done. They decide to hack their company’s database. We find very early on Margo dies in a tragic accident and Lucas is left dealing with this loss.

Lucas gets his hands on Margo’s computer so he can close out her Facebook account, and what he finds leads him down a rabbit hole of a secret life he never knew about. You will meet other characters that Lucas meets through researching Margo which at times can lead to some dark places.

This book has so much. There is a lot of humor around startup culture, you will have sadness and know there is light at the end of this bleak tunnel. Again, this book seems so difficult to review, but in the end I really just enjoyed this journey.

Thank you NetGalley and Random House for an Advanced Reader’s Copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I went into this without really any information besides that Celeste Ng liked it. And honestly, that’s enough for me.

I was caught off guard with how much I liked it. New Waves is an engaging story about a young man dealing with grief and a lack of fulfillment. It’s the stuff that a lot of us experience but may not be as good at expressing or even acknowledging. I was able to see parts of myself in not just Lucas, but Margo and Jill as well, despite our very different lives. There’s some shared struggle trying to find space for yourself in a world that seems like it was designed specifically to exclude you.

I read a few other reviews, and I mostly agree with what a lot of them are saying. One mentioned that if you don’t like this book within the first several dozen pages, you probably won’t by the end of it either. I can get behind that. I was sucked in right away, but if you don’t connect with the characters then you’re probably not going to be into a character-driven novel about their lives. I don’t know who spread the idea this is a murder mystery—it definitely is not. It feels like so many of the things I’ve read lately have been mismarked as a genre they don’t really fit into. Like one of my criminally underrated favorites of 2020, The Majesties, a lot of complaints have come in by way of readers who haven’t had their misplaced expectations met. Maybe the marketing teams are to blame? I’m not sure, but I do wish the ‘shelving’ feature on Goodreads was more accurate.

If you’re interested in a story about an Asian man in his 20s, struggling at a tech start-up in New York, centered around how he copes with the death of his closest friend and confidant, then I would recommend this book for your very specific stipulations. And if you like well-written, at times biting and personal novels about people just trying to live and get by, you may enjoy this as well.

This book is interesting, fun, and moves along at a good pace. It gives insight into the high tech world and some of the relevant issues. Grief stricken and alone after his friend, Margo, dies, Lucas searches out her friends through Margo’s online presence. In this story of Lucas’ journey, he befriends one of Margo’s friends while he continues to work at a tech company. Soon things become untenable at the company. As the book comes to its conclusion, Lucas seems to find his way again.

This is my first ebook read! I have to admit, the process was quite difficult on a phone. For the first time in years, I actually missed my Kindle.

But, finally, I conquered PocketBook Reader and completed NEW WAVES. This is an intriguing, often funny exploration of so many things! Music, privacy, piracy! Workplace racism, harassment, technology, relationships, and grief! Each topic is investigated by Lucas, our protagonist, who is mourning the loss of his friend Margo, and later his girlfriend Jill, a mutual friend of Margo’s from an online community.

Nyugen is a crisp writer, but occasionally there was a bit too much fluff for me. I couldn’t help but think about Snapchat’s disappearing chat feature when reading about Phantom. There was also a good bit of space dedicated to explaining fairly well-known terms and processes, which I felt could be deleted or skipped over (e.g., two-factor authentication, bodegas, Candy Crush-like puzzle games).

On another note, I didn’t think the sudden switch to Jill’s perspective for a chapter was warranted. After getting accustomed to Lucas, I didn’t want to try and adjust to another perspective. From that point on, the rest of the book felt disjointed to me and kept me from feeling anything for the characters’ respective resolutions.

Overall, I think this is a decent book and a quick enough read, but not one of my favorites. Thanks to NetGalley and Random House for the ARC.

The description does this book an injustice. It's an excellent depiction of start up culture, friendship, grief, and aimless young men. It is not a heist novel and the "mystery" is really a bait and switch for the true story, which goes deeper than that.