I first read Neuromancer almost 20 years ago (before the worldwide web), and it blew me away then. I'm less blown away now, probably because so much of Gibson's universe has been adopted by mainstream culture. The Matrix borrowed freely from Neuromancer, as did Strange Days and just about every other scifi movie of the past two decades. The entire premise of Joss Whedon's Dollhouse is laid out in a throwaway paragraph where Molly tells Case about her past:

"You know how I got the money, when I was starting out? Here. Not here, but a place like it, in the Sprawl. Joke, to start with, 'cause once they plant the cut-out chip, it seems like free money. Wake up sore, sometimes, but that's it. Renting the goods, is all. You aren't in, when it's all happening. House has software for whatever a customer wants to pay for. . ." She cracked her knuckles. "Fine. I was getting my money. Trouble was, the cut-out and the circuitry the Chiba clinics put in weren't compatible. So the worktime started bleeding in, and I could remember it. . . "

This time around, I loved the noir atmosphere of the opening chapters, but the second half of the novel fell flat. It wasn't because I had read it before — I really didn't remember the plot at all. I think it was the way the layers of deception were revealed. It seemed like Gibson didn't figure out the ending until he got there, so some of the bits of resolution felt forced.

I think Gibson has become a much better writer over the years, and I'm looking forward to the release of Zero History.