[Spoilers!] After watching the TV show I really didn’t like this book. Parts of it were interesting. I liked the discussion of Wu (negative) in art, and the discussions of historicity or historical authenticity. Does an object gain depth of meaning because it is part of a larger historical context? Is a Zippo lighter previously owned by John Wayne a better Zippo than all others of its run? People seem to think so.
And maybe I was spoiled by watching the initial episodes of the TV series on Amazon Prime, which have as much to do with this book as Bladerunner did with Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? However, the major components of the book that contribute to the conclusion are entirely absent from the TV show. But put that aside.
In the book, prominent elements of the story and prominent characters have no bearing on the conclusion, and the conclusion is untenable and unexplained. There’s a brief moment where it seems there will be a dimensional shift, but (spoiler) that doesn’t pan out. The entire idea of The Grasshopper Lies Heavy is so different in the book, and so unremarkable, that it’s absurd–it’s an actual book, a piece of fiction, not a visual, historical document, like in the show. Overall, pass on the novel and see what the TV folks are able to do with the concept.
