Pattern Recognition by William Gibson

Pattern Recognition touches on a number of hot button issues with me, as if it were designed to appeal to my interests:  Internet memes, international travel, solving puzzles, etc.  The main character is a marketing consultant, starting the book traveling to London to evaluate an advertising campaign for a client.  She is also active in an online community that's obsessed with a series of video clips that have appeared online, without any attribution.

Early in the book, her employer takes an interest in these same videos, giving her a chance to explore her personal obsession with the financial backing of a very rich man.  Her journey takes her to three continents, and she meets numerous colorful characters.

I enjoy how the characters throw themselves into their obsessions.  Their obsessions are what define them, and how they define themselves.  The allegiance that the main character feels for her particular corner of the internet is familiar to me.  Most of the characters embody the sort of tribal social order that seems more and more common, with people banding together around a shared interest rather than simply shared location or employment.

The book is well written and the mystery is interesting, but I was surprised to realize that there were sequels.  The mystery of the footage is neatly wrapped up at the end, and I didn't quite make the kind of connection with any of the characters to be interested in what they're doing next week.  I'll read them anyway, eventually, but I'm wary of being Ringworlded, where the sequels take the wind out of the sails of a an excellent first book.