Count Zero is the sequel to Neuromancer, William Gibson's radical cyberpunk novel which redefined modern scifi. The matrix has changed with the arrival of untethered AI, and Gibson explores what the actually may mean.

If an AI suddenly became free, how would it know itself, how would it place itself in it's environment? The AI from Neuromancer has split into many parts, fragments which have taken on the identities of voodoo spirits. So in this scenario, it has changed into conveniently available identities.

During the course of the book, Gibson deals with a number of ideas. Angie, the daughter of a leading researcher, has been given neural modification to make her accessible by the AI fragments. It leads to the question of what would they do to gain influence in the real world outside the matrix. Would they be satisfied only influencing data in cyberspace?

The culture that has arisen around their manifestation is intriguing. They could have latched onto any belief system to use, and whoever understood it would have gained power from their help.

The story itself is written in the same disjointed style as Neuormancer, but it fits well with the subject and storyline. Bobby, Turner and Marly, the three whose points of view we share through the novel, are portrayed very well and convincingly. While this novel doesn't feature Molly, some of the same characters show up, and references to earlier events.

All in all, a worthwhile, if somewhat bizarre, sequel to Neuromancer.