The Confusion is the second in Neal Stephenson's Baroque Cycle series. Published in 2004, the novel received the Locus Award in 2005. It's one of Stephenson's most reputable books, a sign of his ability to adapt to a rapidly changing historical fiction readership. The series is Stephenson's most popular, consisting of three novels each subdivided in two parts.
Stephenson writes each of his Baroque Cycle novels as if they are two separate novels. Each subplot is treated with equal preference as the other, even as they are formatted as interchanging plot lines within one book. In the case of The Confusion, the storylines of "Bonanza" and "The Juncto" could each exist independent of the other. They are complete stories within themselves, but they are given alternating chapters within one book. This decision makes the novel feel more holistic and holds the reader's attention better than a traditional plot line. Unlike the other books of the series, the two stories of The Confusion occur at the same time and thus are directly relevant to one another.
Neal Town Stephenson is a writer and game designer. He is particularly well known for his science and historical fiction, but he also has written in the sub-genres of cyberpunk, postcyberpunka, baroque, and even some nonfiction technology pieces. Marrying the fields of technology and literature, he is prodigious force in both. In addition to his literary success, he is a part of the private company Blue Origin which is developing its own space program.
