Zodiac (novel)

US mass market paperback.

Zodiac is an eco-thriller novel by Neal Stephenson, published in 1988, and his second published novel. It's a story about a young Boston man who works for a not-quite-legal environmentalist organization and investigates companies that dump industrial waste. He suddenly find himself in even more danger than usual after trying to pin an especially toxic dump on a major corporation.

Status

I don't own this book, but have listened to an audio book recording.

Review

— This section contains spoilers! —

Good

• The story is fun and exciting for the whole book.
• Sangamon Taylor is a fun character who is both smart and crafty. Kind of like MacGyver, but who isn't afraid to do drugs.
• The scientific details about various types of toxic waste are really interesting.

Bad

• Although the Satanic-Panic of the 1980s was a big deal to ultra-conservatives, it all turned out to be a trumped up religious panic. Because of this, it's hard to take seriously the villainous Satanists. It would be like making the villain one of the ridiculous lies of Alex Jones.
• The book is mostly a bro-fest. There are only a handful of women, and they only play minor roles.

Ugly

• Nothing.

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