It was bought out by Waterstones a few years ago, and to be honest it feels much more like another chain store these days in terms of selection. I used to enjoy the fact that I'd often find books that were sometimes hard to get, but the variety seemed somewhat diminished the last time I visited. Still a good bookshop to visit, but I think it's lost some of its previous uniqueness.

Definitely agree on Pordes. Picked up some really great and obscure military history books from there over the years. Good condition + prices etc.

>I've always felt the POV characters in a Gibson book are not the main drivers of the plot. They almost are always someone caught up in bigger events that operates, for the most part, in the background. Gibson's characters just try to hold on for dear life, while bigger and more powerful people pull the strings. I'm fine with that, because when he does it well, it's a great time.

Agreed. His characters often seem like passengers to the story, sat by the window watching things happen, but never in the driver's seat directing them. I don't say that as a complaint because I love his work, but it very much clashes with the dominant narrative philosophy that the protagonist should always be active and never passive.

Even in Neuromancer, Case is mostly pulled along by Molly. I'm not sure if I'm just more aware of it now, or if his later works don't hide it so well. Personally, I think Pattern Recognition was last the truly great book he wrote, but I enjoyed The Peripheral well enough.