Is it necessary to read Immortal Coil before Cold Equations?

I've heard that Cold Equations follows on from The Body Electric. Is this correct?
If so, as I am almost up to Cold Equations in reading through the novels, is it necessary to pause and read that first?

Edit: I meant Immortal Coil, not The Body Electric.

 

Re: Is it necessary to read The Body Electric before Cold Equations?

No, Cold Equations is a trilogy of which The Body Electric is the finale.

The first two Cold Equations novels are The Persistence of Memory and Silent Weapons.

 

Re: Is it necessary to read The Body Electric before Cold Equations?

Doh, I'm getting my titles mixed up, I actually meant Immortal Coil.

 

Oooh, okay.

The Cold Equations trilogy does follow up on Immortal Coil. Everything you need to know from Immortal Coil is included in Cold Equations, but I'd recommend reading Immortal Coil first -- mostly because it's an awesome, awesome book that I think you'll really enjoy.

 

OK, thanks, I'll do that then.

 

Is it necessary to read Immortal Coil first? No.

Is it desirable? Hell, yes, absolutely.

 

What Sci and Christopher said.

I went one further and read an old adaptation by DC Fontana of TV pilot by Gene Coon and Gene Rodenberry - it sort of connects in. You don't need to read that one though...

 

^You mean The Questor Tapes, right?

 

It really would have helped if I had mentioned that...

 

As stated, certainly don't have to. But Immortal Coil is a damned good read!!!

 

I read Immortal Coil first and was glad I did. While Cold Equations does provide a recap of the earlier work's plot points that the newer story draws from, I think that reading Immortal Coil first would provide you with a greater sense of context than you would have without it.

 

^Agreed, I found Immortal Coil, added to my enjoyment of the trilogy

 

I third the sentiment. I wasn't going to read it first, changed my mind, and was quite happy that I did. Immortal Coil is a fantastic read and makes the enjoyment of Mack's trilogy even better

 

I see you've already gone ahead and read it, but I just wanted to chime in and echo the sentiments up-thread. Immortal Coil was an excellent novel, and I'm really glad that David Mack made his trilogy a sequel to that story as it brought it to my attention. I did a quick read of it before I started in on The Persistence of Memory and enjoyed it immensely. I probably wouldn't have read it (yet) otherwise.

 

Immortal Coil is a really good character study of Data an the Cold Equations books stories are kind of a sequel to this novel.There really some of the best novels I've read about Data in a long time.

 

Well thanks for the reccomendations, I just finished Immortal Coil and really enjoyed it.

 

I never did and I understood it fine, but I just came off reading the Enterprise novels where he is featured as well so he was fresh in my mind.

 

Even though I’ve had “Immortal Coil” since it came out, I still haven’t read it, but I have read “The Cold Equations” and “The Light Fantastic” and “Control”, and I’ve been fine. Everything you need to know is recapped, which made sense since there was about a decade between the release of Coil and the trilogy.

 

Five years later: Yes.