# Echopraxia by Peter Watts

11 Hacker News commenters recommended Echopraxia by Peter Watts and 4 criticized it, November 2025 to November 2026. It was recommended in 7 of 13 months. It meets the Hacker Approved badge rule.

**Verdict:** Recommended as a sequel to Blindsight for its inventive ideas on consciousness and intelligence; critics find it rushed, under-edited and hard to follow in places.

## Why people recommend it

- Strong follow-on to Blindsight (5 comments): "It complements Blindsight by following the implications of a world where non-conscious intelligence engines outperform conscious humans." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46206202)) "Echopraxia is just as wonderful as Blindsight, highly recommend." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47316751)) "The sequel, Echopraxia, is also excellent; it is very different" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49957112))
- Ideas on consciousness and intelligence (4 comments): "It complements Blindsight by following the implications of a world where non-conscious intelligence engines outperform conscious humans." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46206202)) "sketch a pretty convincing argument that consciousness may be an evolutionary disadvantage" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49765641)) "it felt rushed and under-edited, but the ideas were spectacular" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47678910))
- Story about characters and trade-offs (2 comments): "I liked that the main character was the least super empowered of any of the characters though." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46989221)) "spins a good story about the trade offs of a terrible reaction to right angles" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46979874))

## What people warn about

- Felt rushed or under-edited (2 comments): "it felt rushed and under-edited, but the ideas were spectacular" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47678910)) "It felt rushed or under-implemented." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49966630))
- Disappointing, weaker than Blindsight (2 comments): "Echopraxia suffers from this even more than Blindsight already did" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49962399)) "When I first read it, I was actually pretty disappointed overall" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46981904))
- Loses readers at points (2 comments): "Echopraxia lost me at numerous points" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49962581)) "Echopraxia lost me at some point" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48175609))

## Alternatives hackers recommend

- [Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir](https://hackerapproved.com/p/project-hail-mary.md): 117 recommend
- [There Is No Antimemetics Division by qntm](https://hackerapproved.com/p/there-is-no-antimemetics-division.md): 98 recommend
- [Blindsight by Peter Watts](https://hackerapproved.com/p/blindsight.md): 96 recommend
- [Dune by Frank Herbert](https://hackerapproved.com/p/dune.md): 82 recommend
- [Accelerando by Charles Stross](https://hackerapproved.com/p/accelerando.md): 71 recommend

## Where to get it

- [See price on Amazon](https://www.amazon.com/dp/0765328038?tag=hackerapprove-20) (affiliate link)
- [Bookshop.org](https://bookshop.org/a/130825/9780765328038) (affiliate link)

## Cite as

Hacker Approved, "Echopraxia by Peter Watts", https://hackerapproved.com/p/echopraxia/ (counts from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026).