The Rise and Fall of D.O.D.O.

Executive Summary: I found the first half of this book a bit on the slow side, but thing really picked up in the second half. 3.5 Stars.

Audiobook: This book has a ton of narrators. I found that very confusing for the first half of the book. I think (but I'm not certain) that the majority of the book Tavia Gilbert, who was fantastic.

I'm generally skeptical of so many narrators, but it worked well with how it was used here. Most of them had much smaller parts, but it definitely added a little extra to the book. Overall I think audio is a great option for this book.

Full Review
I've read several books by Mr. Stephenson, and I've enjoyed most of them. This one isn't quite the typical Stephenson book, possibly because he has a co-author. Much like some of his other books it's a blend of sci-fi, fantasy and historical fiction.

Unlike most of his other books, I didn't feel this one was prone to tangents. He does spend a fair bit of time early on explaining how time travel works, and how D.O.D.O was created however. I did find this part a bit slower than the second half. Maybe I just enjoying watching the world burn?

I've never read anything by Nicole Galland, and it's hard for me to pick out where she was writing. Maybe she kept him in check on the tangents? The history part did seem pretty well flushed out, and from what I've read that seems to be her area of expertise. The narrative style felt very much like any other Neal Stephenson book to me. I didn't seem to have quite the same sense of humor than I recall from other books however.

I thought the characters were quite good, especially the main two Melisande and Triston. With all the time travel we got a lot of interesting characters from various time periods too.

Another standard Stephenson trait of this book was the in-depth explanation of how Time Travel was possible. He did it with a bent to physics that seem plausible enough to me, but I've taken all of two semester of physics more years ago than I'd like to think about, so I'm sure physicists probably will roll their eyes at the whole thing.

Like most Time Travel stories though, I think it's important to set up the rules in advance and stick to them, otherwise things can go way off the rails. I feel like they did a good job there.

Things ended in a pretty good spot, but I'd happily pick up a second book if they decide to write one. There is definitely room for more story if the want to tell it.

If you enjoy Stephenson and time travel stories, I think this is a good pickup. Like me however, you may find the first half of this book harder to get through than the second half. I think there was enough of interest there for me to get to the “good parts” without growing bored. I'd say the first half was a solid 3 stars, while the second half was a solid 4, hence my overall 3.5 rating.