Sorry to butt in here, but, yes--the first part is deliberate. Remember, the narrator of part I is a failed wordsmith. So it's got show potential and have some good things about it, but mostly come across as facile and as a parody of cyberpunk, if you know what I mean. Part II is deliberately dreamlike because it actually occurs during Part III--when Shadrach accesses Nicola's memories.

Cheers!

Jeff