Amazon review by Celtoid 9: In the main, cyberpunk and science fiction authors have crafted near-future scenarios with an emphasis on technology innovations and broader sociocultural developments; however, their dystopias have touched only lightly on the increasingly ominous future direction of American politics and world affairs. JC McGowan has stepped in to fill this gap, and has done so admirably. The Big God Network blazes new ground in the fiction arena of the near-future political satire, and represents an engaging cross between Tom Swift and Jonathan Swift.

If you ever wondered where the Rove-Bush-Neocon-Falwell-Robertson political fiasco might one day lead -- in a worst-case scenario, of course -- you've come to the right book. Let's just say that in McGowan's vision of the near-future world, freedom isn't on the march, but is instead in full retreat.

McGowan's narrative is a multicultural melange that maintains its sharpness, humor and edge at every turn, with an occasional romp in the hay thrown in to spice up the narrative. Readers should be ready and willing to travel anywhere at a moment's notice, because Big God Network will take them to far-flung corners of the world at a breakneck pace, from Bali and Tokyo to LA and then back to cyberspace again.

Fans of the cyberpunk masters, such as William Gibson and Bruce Sterling, will be right at home here. This book has it all -- virtual reality, New Age spirituality, cybersex, UFOs, extraterrestrials, tele-cyber-evangelists, Yakuza -- and then some. The brisk pacing keeps the pages turning rapidly. I loved this book, and was sorry to see it end. Highly recommended!

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Amazon review by Baz of Tampa, Florida: What a good read!. J.C. McGowan takes the cultural wars going on in the USA today to their logical conclusion. In a not-too-distant future the USA has split, literally, into red and blue states. There is the saintly Pacifica, containing California, Oregon etc (think of a country run by the radio network of the same name and you're pretty close) and then there's the sinister Jesus-land of N'Am (New America), a run-down heartland hell-on-earth run by and for cynical televangelist plutocrats.

This makes for truly compulsive reading for religion-obsessed conspiracy theorists... (awright, I admit it). But it's also a real page-turner, with a nice sci-fi mystery, and it's very funny. The purple passages of randy (but virtual) sexual encounters had me hooting. Everything is gloriously over the top here, but the author just gleefully glides you along, and his subtle comic barbs just get sharper.

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