Cyberpunk

I read this soon after it was published, and it left a powerful impression on me.

Early on in the book, it is full of very short sequences, full of crazy edgy new terminology, a glittering description of a world both seriously trashed out yet with full of fabulous advanced technology which was often grafted into the characters themselves. You don't know what the hell is going on. You don't know how these different people and scenes might eventually make sense or come together.

There is a strong 'sex, drugs, and violence' vibe, and intriguing power struggles that must be going on behind the scenes. The descriptions of crazy, intense experiences of advanced synthetic drugs is a standout bit of ambience creating weirdness, kind of like the depiction of the drug 'slow-mo' in the recent Judge Dredd movie (the one with Karl Urban).

Eventually it all comes together, with presumably ultra-powerful AI entities at the core of all the intrigue.

To me, the book is a masterpiece of 'style over substance'. The plot ultimately is not super innovative, but the newness of the setting, and the ultra-cool characters and overall vibe left a powerful impression on me. Good stuff!