I enjoyed this book, it was a step outside of my comfort zone, but I was pleasantly surprised. It felt like a mix beteen watching a slick action film and a Bladerunner type noir. Definitely a creative and fresh voice for a sci-fi book that I found to be a nice deviation from the usual storylines found in the genre lately, and I couldn't help but feeling like it was a sly observation of the billionaire privatization of tech and exploration and where we could be headed.

Today I have a review about a very tech-heavy sci-fi novella, COUNTERWEIGHT by Djuna. Thank you to the author, @netgalley, and the publisher @pantheonbooks for the e-ARC.

This story was an interesting look into future tech as well as some of the more nefarious types of tech we are already starting to see in our current world (deep fakes, etc). You are immediately immersed into this spy/mystery-esque future world where everyone has an A.I. planted in their brain called The Worm. With an A.I. implanted in every brain, you can probably think of a few ways that could go sideways and that is basically the premise of this one. What would people in power do with this kind of tech? And how could anyone really stop them?

It took me a while to get into this one and it was a little heavy on the technical jargon which lost me at times but I generally enjoyed the pace, writing style and unravelling the mystery.

I think this one is good for anyone who likes short sci-fi with a technology-heavy bent, spy games, and urban settings.

This one is hard to describe, so here’s the publisher’s summary:

“On the fictional island of Patusan—and much to the ire of the Patusan natives—the Korean conglomerate LK is constructing an elevator into Earth’s orbit, gradually turning this one-time tropical resort town into a teeming travel hub: a gateway to and from our planet. Up in space, holding the elevator’s “spider cable” taut, is a mass of space junk known as the counterweight. And stashed within that junk is a trove of crucial data: a memory fragment left by LK’s former CEO, the control of which will determine the company’s—and humanity’s—future.

Racing up the elevator to retrieve the data is a host of rival forces: Mac, the novel’s narrator and LK’s chief of External Affairs, increasingly disillusioned with his employer; the everyman Choi Gangwu, unwittingly at the center of Mac’s investigations; the former CEO’s brilliant niece and power-hungry son; and Rex Tamaki, a violent officer in LK’s Security Division. They’re all caught in a labyrinth of fake identities, neuro-implants called Worms, and old political grievances held by the Patusan Liberation Front, the army of island natives determined to protect Patusan’s sovereignty.”

Overall, I enjoyed this one. It’s a little different from what I normally go for, but I liked stepping outside the box a little bit. It was a short read, but it packed a lot into a few pages. It was originally written for a low-budget sci-fi film, and after reading the book, I gotta say, I’d watch that movie.

Unfortunately I just couldn't get into this book. The subject matter wasn't explained well enough at the beginning for the book to grab me for even such a short amount of time.

This book taught me about a new niche genre that I really enjoy - cyberpunk scifi. I love dystopian fiction, which often has scifi elements, either overtly or subtly. Cyberpunk, apparently, is the combination of high tech and lowlife characters (whatever lowlife means to you). Who knew?! So fun and satisfying.

I loved the premise of this book - so crazy and original. And I liked that it was told from different POV. I think that a little bit was lost in translation - the storyline confused me from time to time - but otherwise, very fun and entertaining.

COUNTERWEIGHT by Djuna (Translated by @antonhur) -

Counterweight is a sci-fi novel set in the distant future. It is about a space company who has built a space elevator to facilitate space travel. The story follows the main character as he gets tangled into a political and corporate conspiracy. And we see it unfold with a cast of characters.

For me (a sci-fi newbie), the plot gave big promise. But sadly, it did not deliver to the mark. The book is very short (just about 150 pages) so it took more than halfway for the main premise of the story to be introduced. We don't get a clear introduction of the future "utopia" or more like "dystopia" just to get a layout of the setting. I didn't connect to the characters until the end of the book so mostly it felt like I am tugging along because of a promise of a plot.

That being said, it's not a bad book, but I just wish the story would have been structured better and was a little longer so we had enough time to create connection with the book so that it could stay. I don't need to say this again and again, I am a @antonhur fanboy! I love his translations because of how easy and natural they are. It does not feel like the book was translated; it feels like the book was written in English.
(That also led me to being sad that I was disappointed by an Anton Hur book, but then I realized that he just translated it, he hasn't written it)

So in all, a 3-star read.

Thanks to @prhinternational for the #gifted e-ARC.

While the plot itself was interesting, I found the writing/prose to be less so. I don't know if it was a function of reading in translation or the style of the author, but I felt like it was telling instead of showing throughout the book and I found myself not engaged as I read the back history of another name dropped into the story.

Counterweight is a really exciting cyber/sci-fi novel, that keeps you reading without stopping. Great for readers that want to explore more about AI and how it can be misused...

Okay. So. I don’t think I can tell you what this book is about or accurately describe a single thing that happened...?

At first I thought it was me and because I read the first half ~in public, when it didn’t have my full attention. But I went and read some other reviews and the general consensus seems to be that this book is, uh, confusing, to put it mildly (I’m mostly glad it’s not just me).

There wasn’t a ~ton of world building here, which was the main problem for me. I spent most of the book feeling like I’d missed something here or there or just being confused about how, exactly, this world operates.

This was a short, quick read but I would’ve preferred it had been longer and more in-depth so I would’ve connected with it. Instead, it felt like the cliff notes version of a mystery that never really seemed to have a point and, therefore, no real resolution. And the longer I read, the more I just wanted it to be over so I could read anything else.

Events happened without explanation or lead up. Characters were just dropped into the narrative with little to no introduction or explanation. And when there was explanation, it was a giant info dump. So. This writing style was just not for me???

The one thing this really had going for it, though, was *the vibes*. The setting and ~atmosphere reminded me of Blade Runner and Ray Bradbury and made me nostalgic for the type of sci-fi I first fell in love with.

So. I really, really wanted to love this. But, sadly, it just did not work for me. It feels like it’s missing a few pages here and there and, for me, that was not an enjoyable reading experience.

Anyway. Thank you to NetGalley & Pantheon for allowing me to read this in exchange for an honest review!

While I don't often outwardly admit to liking science fiction novels, I often find that those are the books I have the most fun reading and thinking about. This one I felt a little more lukewarm about, however.

Counterweight is written by a South Korean author, Djuna, of whom nobody knows their real identity. It's relatively short at 176 pages so also relatively fast-paced but I felt confused for the first quarter of the plot and also am of the opinion that the world-building which is so crucial in science fiction writing was sorely lacking. I found myself to be drawn in and invested in the story especially in the second half but without an emotional connection to any of the characters.

So what's it about? LK, a multinational corporation has set up shop on the island of Patusan, a failed resort Island of the past. LK has been using Patusan as home base for construction of their space elevator as well as "sky hooks", another method of space travel. Underlying the main story arc is the Patusan natives' genreral disapproval of LK's actions. After the death of the company president, several of his employees that weren't hired in the traditional way are now at risk without his protection. It is discovered that one employee has somehow had some of the late presidents memories implanted into his brain and brings up the question of where his other memories are and whether or not they may be dangerous to the company. As some background, everyone who works at LK has a "worm" implanted in their brain which allows them to be connected to other worms and to LK as a whole. Through the worms they can communicate with eachother telepathically and receive communications from corporate. They can even be shown images through these channels.

At the core of Counterweight is the idea that one day humans will be overtaken by artificial intelligence and become superfluous and that when that day comes, we may not even be aware. Scary, right?

I like the premise of this book. But it just didn't land for me primarily due to the lack of character development and world-building.

You may like this one of you're looking for a quick read and enjoy thinking about ramifications of AI.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with a free ebook ARC of Counterweight by Djuna.

This story is an exciting representation of what science-fiction can be, but often the genre fails to provide something this extraordinarily “out there.” I especially enjoyed the literary references sprinkled throughout this one. I’m also a huge fan of cyberpunk and detective stories; thus this one came close to my heart.

I highly recommend this book to fans of science-fiction, especially people who enjoy stories that make them think/reflect on our real world while reading them.

COUNTERWEIGHT by Djuna (translated by Anton Hur), a cyberpunk sci-fi novel about a powerful Korean conglomerate that is building a space elevator on the fictional island of Patusan. This book was conceived initially as a low-budget sci-fi film, which is readily apparent as you’re thrown into the madcap action from the first moment until the epilogue.

The cast of characters and whirling plot include company employees (including the prior president’s ghost and a dystopian security arm that assassinates people at will), the Patusan Liberation Front (an indigenous group trying to protect their own sovereignty), robots, politicians, and random pawns in a metaphorical chess game that’s orchestrated by an unseen hand. But who is the mastermind behind it all?

There’s an almost frantic pacing to the plot, skipping from vivid scene to scene in a way that’s gripping but leaves the reader to make connections for themselves – or to scratch their head. For sci-fi fans, this is light on the science while leaning harder on the detective noir part of the spectrum. I appreciated the themes of neocolonialism, AI spiraling out of control, family dynasties (chaebols), and corporate intrigue, but to be honest, at the end of the book, I wasn’t sure what exactly had happened or what I was supposed to take away. That being said, it was a wild ride and I think I enjoyed it?

Read this if you appreciate cyberpunk sci-fi, chaos, action-packed scene-based writing, and themes of potential AI takeovers and corporate malfeasance. For the love of books, do NOT read the blurb, because it gives away something that isn’t revealed until 80% of the way in. Thank you @pantheonbooks @netgalley for the e-ARC! COUNTERWEIGHT is out now. 3.5 stars rounded up.

With nods to Arthur C. Clarke and The Golden Age of Science Fiction, noir crime movies and pulp fiction, this book will mostly appeal to ardent fans of sci-fi, cyberpunk and postcyberpunk. There’s AI, human augmentation, evil corporate conspiracies, a space elevator, drones, fake identities, brain implants for communication and surveillance, and, of course, technology stashed in space junk that threatens humanity's future.

An occasional reader of sci-fi who appreciates complex speculative thrillers by Jeff VanderMeer and sci-fi of the Andy Weir variety will probably find this novel both confusing and underwhelming. I had a hard time following the intricacies of Han family power struggles and I found the futuristic technology intriguing but hard to visualize. The social and political backdrop (neocolonialism, militarized corporate space agencies and the threats of AI) was fascinating but the human connection was just missing. It was difficult for me to stay interested in any of the flat characters and this short novel took me far too long to read.

The translation by Anton Hur was seamless and elegant as usual, but the writing itself didn’t feel particularly detailed, rich or compelling. The premise was intriguing, but I feel like I wasn’t the right audience for this book.

This book is unlike anything I've ever read, and I'm not sure I fully understood, but I cannot stop thinking about Counterweight. This "cyber punk" noir is truly unique and worth a shot just for the thrill of it!

The Counterweight by Djuna is a genre-bending tale that blends corporate intrigue, political unrest, unsolved mysteries, and the uproar caused by a relentless pursuit to construct the world's first space elevator. Set on the fictional island of Patusan, the story has a brisk pace that kept me hooked from start to finish. The overall tone strikes a delicate balance between suspense and social commentary. This fusion of cyberpunk, hardboiled detective fiction, and political allegory creates a truly unique and thought-provoking reading experience. Very unique and fun.

3.5 probably. This is a very fast noir mystery readers are thrown into, left to piece together the world as the story goes on. A confusing read, but one that does come together in the end. It will be worth a second read. All that aside, I enjoyed the very Clarke butterflies/space elevator/island references and so many others throughout. Worth a read, probably even 2 at this length.

Counterweight appeared on my radar because of its English translator, Anton Hur. I have not read anything by the book's author, Djuna, but generally like the projects that Hur takes on so I gave it a shot. While the translation was superb, I felt a bit let down by the story itself.

Counterweight is described as a cyberpunk noir, which is a great way to encapsulate this bizarre story. Set on a fictional island sometime in the future, we are introduced to the inner workings of a corporate entity, LK, and their mission to transform this sleepy island into a transportation hub between Earth and Space. A series of strange events lead our narrator, Mac, LK's chief of external affairs, to begin investigating some of the company's employees and their motives. There is drama, there are twist and turns, and there is a convoluted story that somehow all comes together in the end.

Two things made this book a challenge for me: the lack of world building and the fast-paced nature of the plot. For the first point, I have no problem being dropped into a fictional world full of new tech and new names that only slowly begin to make sense. The issue I had here was that explanation of things, when they came, felt rushed. Plot twists hinged on our understanding of the workings of certain, but those explanations did not feel as thorough as they needed to in order to keep me engaged in the story. In the same vein, the story rushed from one plot twist to another, making it hard to keep track of what was happening and what the truth was. Perhaps this is part of the "noir" aspect of the novel; that's admittedly a genre I do not read much of. But it made for a confusing story.

Both of these things felt like the result of the book's length, at under 200 pages. I either needed this to be a focused, enigmatic short story where things were left up to the reader's interpretation OR I need Djuna to spend more time with the world building. The length made for an awkward reading experience.

Djuna is an interesting enigma of an author. They are masked behind their pen name; no one knows who they are or even what gender they are. I think this adds an interesting layer of intrigue to their work, even if it was not my cup of tea in this case.

Overall, if you are a fan of noir or a die-hard sci-fi fan, you might find this an interesting read. It just did not work for me personally.

OKAY, FRIGGIN WOOF.
That was insano in the braino. I am so thankful to Pantheon, Djuna, Netgalley, and PRH Audio for granting me advanced audiobook access and digital access to this mind-fu*k of a novel before it’s set to publish on July 11, 2023.

Counterweight revolves around a fictional country called Patusan where oligarch’s and scientific (practically evil) geniuses and businessmen are looking to colonize and technologize with space elevators and brain worms so technologically advanced that it would transport the wealthy elite into an experience like no other, but of course you can’t go colonizing and not have repercussions for your actions.

Modeled after Squid Games, but definitely resembling the love child of Sumit Batu’s The City Inside and Mad Max, this sci-fi narrative will keep you guessing and cringing, wishing that this post-apocaplytic future NEVER comes true.

I was very curious about COUNTERWEIGHT—it had all the hype going for it. A mysterious author, whose actual identity is remains unknown. Compared by WIRED to classic science fiction greats like Philip K. Dick and breakout modern writers like Hwang Dong-hyuk. A scrutinizing portrayal of corporate powers consuming the world.

When I stopped reading the novel, about a quarter of the way in, I wondered if I was being too hard on it—unfairly comparing it to DO ANDROIDS DREAM OF ELECTRIC SHEEP? So I had to ask myself what was missing—what would I need from this book to compel me not to DNF it? I think it's ultimately the lack of the human element. Whether it actually ended up reading like a psychological thriller or a Kafkaesque descent into corporate hell, the main character didn't compel me. He had questions, yes. A need to find out how a perfectly ordinary man in this corporation knew about his extremely classified secrets. And yet, that curiosity didn't feel real. I found myself craving the unlikeable, singleminded thinking of Deckard. Or the even more unlikeable Winston. I don't have to like a scifi noir protagonist—I usually don't—but I also crave the way classic scifi authors know how to poke them with a sharp stick even the most Nihilistic of dystopian circumstances.

Unfortunately, while the narrator of COUNTERWEIGHT has a sense of dry, dark humor, "I don't know how other people feel, but in my book, not having to kill an actual person when someone needs to die is a pretty big plus." it isn't enough to carry the plot forward. When I had the patience to read a 900-page epic before this book, but then could barely make it past 50 pages in COUNTERWEIGHT, I found it telling.

✨Counterweight by Djuna✨

Genre: Sci-Fi
Pages: 176
Pub Date: July 11th

📚 On the fictional island of Patusan—and much to the ire of the Patusan natives—the Korean conglomerate LK is constructing an elevator into Earth’s orbit, gradually turning this one-time tropical resort town into a teeming travel hub: a gateway to and from our planet. Up in space, holding the elevator’s “spider cable” taut, is a mass of space junk known as the counterweight. And stashed within that junk is a trove of crucial data: a memory fragment left by LK’s former CEO, the control of which will determine the company’s—and humanity’s—future.

Racing up the elevator to retrieve the data is a host of rival forces: Mac, the novel’s narrator and LK’s Chief of External Affairs, increasingly disillusioned with his employer; the everyman Choi Gangwu, unwittingly at the center of Mac’s investigations; the former CEO’s brilliant niece and power-hungry son; and Rex Tamaki, a violent officer in LK’s Security Division. They’re all caught in a labyrinth of fake identities, neuro-implant “Worms,” and old political grievances held by the Patusan Liberation Front, the army of island natives determined to protect Patusan’s sovereignty.

📝This was my first read by Djuna, a very popular South Korean sci-fi author. (Fun fact: Djuna’s identity is unknown!)

I’d definitely place this in the sci-fi/ cyberpunk/detective genre. From the first page, you are thrown into the action. It took me a bit to make sense of world and writing style, but it eventually clicked. I would say that this would be even better as a movie, as it was originally intended to be.

The story is a tale of corporate power and political unrest. It also touches upon the impact of colonialism.

PS: this book is translated from Korean

💫Thank you @pantheonbooks and @netgalley for my egalley💫