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jmoses's review
2.0
I ran out of gas. Stole a car. Out of gas. Stole a car. Killed someone on accident. Out of gas again. There was potential here, but not past the when he gets what he wants. After that it just sucked.
treb_ruddahan's review
1.0
I wish I could see what other reviewers liked about this book, but I'm afraid I can only find one thing about it that I like: the prose is richly descriptive and has a steady rhythm to it.
But description and action get a bit dry after a while if they're not broken up with scenes of dialogue on a fairly regular basis, and this book appears to be maybe 80-90% description and action, and only 10-20% dialogue. The likely reason for this lack of dialogue is also the main issue I have with the book, and is summed up in a line from its own prologue: 'I no longer feel a real kinship toward man. Not that I ever did...'
The character looks down on the rest of humanity and shuns any social interaction in pursuit of his sole goal in life: to achieve immortality. When the opportunity arises for him to do just that, he is so committed to seizing it that he kills a former co-worker with only the briefest amount of hesitation, and his remorse for this act is all too fleeting. A short while later he also kills a trained soldier with ease and expert marksmanship. This is the worst kind of character to follow for the course of an entire book: a Jerk Sue.
There's no way the reader can feel empathy for him because of his attitude towards his fellow man, and it's hard to sympathise with him after his first two acts of murder. And how do you relate to a person whose one driving goal is to become immortal, and who has no apparent needs or interests beyond that? This feels more like the goal of a villain than a hero, and this character looked very much a villain to me after the above events. A one-dimensional villain, at that.
Assuming this isn't enough of a turn-off for readers, the pacing needs to be much tighter than it is to hold their interest. The critical plot points need to be much closer together. As it is, after the protagonist acheives his goal by transferring his mind into a seemingly invulnerable suit of alien armor, the story drags on for quite some time with only the barest sense that there is some greater plot going on in the background.
Moreover, since the protagonist has already acheived his goal at this point, and is focused only on finding some quiet place to hide out, the story loses all sense of direction. The reader no longer knows where all of this is going, and because the protagonist never seems in any real danger (thanks to his invulnerable suit of armor) there's no sense of urgency to give it any momentum, beyond the character's own ever-present paranoia.
By the time I gave up on this book, it was only beginning to show signs of the themes I was hoping would emerge. The protagonist starts showing pangs of regret for the loss of his humanity, starts missing sensations like smell and touch. He even starts to show some interest in whatever the heck is going on in the world around him.
Unfortunately, it was too little, too late. I'd lost any real interest after the first tenth of the book, and only made it as far as I did out of sheer bullheadedness. It's rare for me to give up on a book without finishing it, but I couldn't even make it halfway through this one.
As I've said, there are people who have reviewed it and apparently found something to enjoy in it, but personally, I don't recommend it. The book lacks everything a good story really needs: a likeable (and fallable) main character, a cast of interesting supporting characters, good pacing, a plot (or at least some clear direction of where it's going), and most of all a reason to care enough to see what happens next.
But description and action get a bit dry after a while if they're not broken up with scenes of dialogue on a fairly regular basis, and this book appears to be maybe 80-90% description and action, and only 10-20% dialogue. The likely reason for this lack of dialogue is also the main issue I have with the book, and is summed up in a line from its own prologue: 'I no longer feel a real kinship toward man. Not that I ever did...'
The character looks down on the rest of humanity and shuns any social interaction in pursuit of his sole goal in life: to achieve immortality. When the opportunity arises for him to do just that, he is so committed to seizing it that he kills a former co-worker with only the briefest amount of hesitation, and his remorse for this act is all too fleeting. A short while later he also kills a trained soldier with ease and expert marksmanship. This is the worst kind of character to follow for the course of an entire book: a Jerk Sue.
There's no way the reader can feel empathy for him because of his attitude towards his fellow man, and it's hard to sympathise with him after his first two acts of murder. And how do you relate to a person whose one driving goal is to become immortal, and who has no apparent needs or interests beyond that? This feels more like the goal of a villain than a hero, and this character looked very much a villain to me after the above events. A one-dimensional villain, at that.
Assuming this isn't enough of a turn-off for readers, the pacing needs to be much tighter than it is to hold their interest. The critical plot points need to be much closer together. As it is, after the protagonist acheives his goal by transferring his mind into a seemingly invulnerable suit of alien armor, the story drags on for quite some time with only the barest sense that there is some greater plot going on in the background.
Moreover, since the protagonist has already acheived his goal at this point, and is focused only on finding some quiet place to hide out, the story loses all sense of direction. The reader no longer knows where all of this is going, and because the protagonist never seems in any real danger (thanks to his invulnerable suit of armor) there's no sense of urgency to give it any momentum, beyond the character's own ever-present paranoia.
By the time I gave up on this book, it was only beginning to show signs of the themes I was hoping would emerge. The protagonist starts showing pangs of regret for the loss of his humanity, starts missing sensations like smell and touch. He even starts to show some interest in whatever the heck is going on in the world around him.
Unfortunately, it was too little, too late. I'd lost any real interest after the first tenth of the book, and only made it as far as I did out of sheer bullheadedness. It's rare for me to give up on a book without finishing it, but I couldn't even make it halfway through this one.
As I've said, there are people who have reviewed it and apparently found something to enjoy in it, but personally, I don't recommend it. The book lacks everything a good story really needs: a likeable (and fallable) main character, a cast of interesting supporting characters, good pacing, a plot (or at least some clear direction of where it's going), and most of all a reason to care enough to see what happens next.
jxchiodo's review
2.0
Got this book back when Dan said it was free. Took me this long to get to it & I have mixed emotions about it. The details & explanations were spot on, the idea was really great but I feel story had it's low points & could've gone in so many different directions. I just feel I read a lot of words but wasn't really getting anywhere with the story until more towards the end. I didn't mind the book, some points were a little hard to get through BUT I did get through them. I'm glad I read the book but it could've been so much greater
scparris's review
4.0
This was a very well-put together read. In hindsight, I feel like I watched an awesome, well thought-out movie. The pacing was excellent, the character was interesting, and you really feel drawn into his world.
The character's thoughts were realistic, and what I love about Henk's work is that while set in the real world, (relatively), there are hints of mysticism and downright out-thereness that just works.
It took me so long to read because I'm terrible with reading things lately, and busy, but it was not the fault of the book in any way, shape, or form.
This was a riveting, sci-fi jaunt, and it makes me want to upload my consciousness into an alien body suit if only to see what the fuck would happen. (And if it's anything like what happened, here, count me the fuck in.)
The character's thoughts were realistic, and what I love about Henk's work is that while set in the real world, (relatively), there are hints of mysticism and downright out-thereness that just works.
It took me so long to read because I'm terrible with reading things lately, and busy, but it was not the fault of the book in any way, shape, or form.
This was a riveting, sci-fi jaunt, and it makes me want to upload my consciousness into an alien body suit if only to see what the fuck would happen. (And if it's anything like what happened, here, count me the fuck in.)
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