The Gone-Away World
by Nick Harkaway · first published 1998
88% recommend13% neutral
Why HN recommends it
Inventive, genre-bending novel with dark humor, martial-arts action and a playful, unreliable narrator. It is a gripping read for fans of sci-fi and fantasy, set in a modern-day world.
Summarised by Claude from recommending comments
Affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
Mentions per year
What Hacker News says
Related books
2019–2026Recursion
Blake Crouch
Recommended by 12 · mentioned by 1512 recommend · 15 mention12 recommend · 1512 recommend
2021–2026Gnomon
Nick Harkaway
Recommended by 9 · mentioned by 129 recommend · 12 mention9 recommend · 129 recommend
2011–2026Excession
Iain Banks
Recommended by 8 · mentioned by 158 recommend · 15 mention8 recommend · 158 recommend
2014–2026Replay
Ken Grimwood
Recommended by 12 · mentioned by 1612 recommend · 16 mention12 recommend · 1612 recommend
2008–2023Long Walk to Freedom
Nelson Mandela
Recommended by 9 · mentioned by 179 recommend · 17 mention9 recommend · 179 recommend
2016–2025The Spy Who Came in from the Cold
John le Carré
Recommended by 14 · mentioned by 2614 recommend · 26 mention14 recommend · 2614 recommend
2014–2026The First Law Trilogy
Joe Abercrombie
Recommended by 15 · mentioned by 1715 recommend · 17 mention15 recommend · 1715 recommend
2009–2026Valis
Philip K. Dick
Recommended by 11 · mentioned by 2211 recommend · 22 mention11 recommend · 2211 recommend
PSA: for contemporary, entertaining, thought-provoking novels relating to sci-fi, my short list of must-reads includes these gems: * The Gone-Away World (Harkaway) [1] * Ready Player One (Cline) [2] and * The Martian (Weir) [3] each of which is impossible to put down. Actually Harkaway's entire oevre is terrific. The steampunk Angelmaker [4] was a…
on “Sci-Fi Novels You Should Read” ↗I quite liked the following 1) Angelmaker 2) Gone away world 3) The Hobbit 4) Fables the comic seriers Non fiction 1) Steve Jobs 2) Thinking fast and slow Have a look http://blog.kaipakartik.com for the books I enjoyed reading
on “Ask HN: What are some Good Books you have read in past one year or so..” ↗You'd be interested in The Gone Away World [1] which touches on this quite a bit. [1] http://www.amazon.com/The-Gone-Away-World-Vintage-Contempora...
on “Artificial intelligence: Our final invention?” ↗…weakness for fantasy-in-modern-day-setting novels and it came on a recommendation from a friend outside of the genre. On a similar note, I strongly recommend both of Nick Harkaway's novels, Angelmaker and Gone-Away World, which I recently reread.)
on “Ask HN: What book are you reading right now?” ↗Absolutely. I had the extraordinary pleasure of picking up, on a whim, the novel The Gone-Away World by Nick Harkaway. Unaware of his father's prestige and budding recognition as an author in his own right, I found the book itself to be a lucid and gripping read the entire way through. Hate to sound…
on “The Double Life of John Le Carré” ↗Fiction -------- Termination Shock - Neal Stephenson Station Eleven - Emily St. John Mandel Shards of Earth - Adrian Tchaikovsky Project Hail Mary - Andy Weir Gnomon - Nick Harkaway The Gone Away World - Nick Harkaway The Apollo Murders - Chris Hadfield Nonfiction ---------- Mindf*ck - Chris Wylie 1776 - David McCullough Apollo 8 - Jeffrey Kluger
on “Ask HN: What is the best thing you read in 2022?” ↗If you like unreliable narration and rug pulls Nick Harkaway's novel 'The Gone-Away World' really takes the cake (and is brilliant)
on “Book Review: There Is No Antimemetics Division” ↗I believe the book title is The Gone-Away World. At least that's what I just bought. :) Thanks for the recommendation.
on “John le Carré's crucial, covert collaborator” ↗