Pattern Recognition

A novel by William Gibson. There's some debate about whether it's SF or not. It is an OUSFG Award Candidate for 2003-4.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/0140266143/

"This novel is set in London, where Cayce Pollard finds herself on a quest for a shadowy auteur, responsible for some mysterious, if fragmentary, film footage.

The only real speculative element in the novel is the protagonist, Cayce Pollard, who has what is effectively an allergy to brand names and logos. Multinational companies hire her as a consultant to test their new marketing campaigns. In the novel, she gets drawn into the search for 'the footage', a collection of film-fragments that are appearing on the internet (her boss thinks it's the most effective viral marketing campaign ever).

I really liked it. I also thought it felt like science fiction, although that may just be because I knew it was Gibson writing it ... -- NH

Me too. Admittedly, there's a lot in the way of plot elements borrowed from the likes of Neuromancer and Idoru - but it's less overt, and characterization has matured a lot in this book from the previous ones. If there's anything S Fnal it's the weird calculators (you'll see what I mean). The sensitive treatment of the topic of 9/11 is the best I've seen anywhere, in news or fiction. If this doesn't make it to an indie movie that trumps anything else at Cannes hands-down I don't know what will --TL