The deeper in the dungeon we go, the thicker the plot and higher the stakes become. This series has been one of my favorite series of all time. I think about it often, it’s not a series you put down and that’s it, it stays with you. At least it does for me. It is entertaining, it is emotional, and it is thought provoking. I have laughed out loud and I have cried. The performance by the voice actors and especially Jeff Hayes is phenomenal. This book is no exception.
It continues to get darker the deeper we go in the dungeon, and some of the parallels between the systems and behaviors in the story, and our real world are horrifying. The ideas regarding technology and AI, The exploration of ideas of emergence, and consciousness are something I’m excited about seeing more of. The exploration of social systems and cultures on a universal scale, are fascinating and engaging, and the world and its lore are deep. I’m especially interested in the ways the AI may carve out unexpected outcomes and how external actors and liaisons deal with it, plus how legal and ethical battles over biological and sentient forms of life. Between the AI and Carl there is nothing predictable in this story now.
This particular book is the densest and most wide ranging in its focus yet. The exploration of the system and actors within and beyond the dungeon goes deeper than any book before, and the deeper we go the darker the story seems to get which is worrisome, but I can’t wait for the 9th floor and to find out what happens next.