WWW: Watch
The intelligence, named Webmind, is interested in humans. If you remember in the first book, our heroine Caitlin is a young, tech-savvy blind girl who got a computer interface to help her brain connect to her eyes so she can see. With a constant video of her every sight being sent across the web, Webmind contacts her. In this book, she shares her first contact with her parents and they set out to educate Webmind on what a proper intelligence should be. The Japanese doctor who helped create the technology that lets her see is involved as well, as is RIM (creator of Blackberry who appear to have bought a product placement deal with the book). As for our bad guys, the US government has studied the issue in the past and when they discover Webmind, they set out to implement the plan to eradicate it.
The book is an interesting look at technology and it’s place in our life. But Sawyer needs to realize that there are few things more boring than 16 year old kids having philosophical debates. The other problem I see with the book is that everyone seems to have the exact same views on everything. All the debates seem superficial since they all neatly resolve with everyone agreeing. The US government (and one bad boy) are the bad guys in the book. Their objections to Webmind are presented, but are undercut by not exploring the ideas in depth and also making Webmind a goody goody that helps everyone it can. The book basically treats interesting ideas in a simplistic manner. Also there is a subplot with a chimp-bonobo hybrid that never really ties into the rest of the book. It just seems like an interesting idea that was thrown out there and never really developed. Possibly it’s being set up as a major plot in the last book, but there isn’t much going on with it now.
But, having said all that, it’s a decent enough book, especially for a middle book in a series. I would definitely read the concluding book when it comes out to find out what happens. Mildly recommended