Thom reviewed Islands in the net by Bruce Sterling
Review of 'Islands in the Net' on 'Goodreads'
3 stars
This book predicts a lot (data havens, digital currency, smart watches) with a forgettable plot.
I'm sure I read this in the 90s, but barely remember any of it. A great description I read elsewhere is "cyberpunk from the corporate side", and that seems a good fit. Sterling spends a lot of pages describing various near-future tech, though this tech often fails to advance the plot in any way. Just over half way through it becomes a suspenseful thriller, and finishes with observations on government.
The author definitely had a good feel for the near future.