A review by emily_m_green
ReInception by Sarena Straus

adventurous medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

Thanks to StoryGraph and Sarena Straus for the review copy of ReInception by Sarena Straus, which I received with the expectation of a fair and honest review. 

ReInception begins with Leandrea’s twentieth birthday, the age when no longer needs her parents’ consent to modify herself through ReInception, a technique that alters the brain in order to change habits. Originally designed to help addicts rid themselves of the craving for substances, ReInception is now used for everything from snacking too much to altering criminals to avoid incarceration. For Leandrea’s birthday, she has chosen to go to a Prole bar--a place the lower class of society frequents, far different from the places she and her university pals inhabit--and then to a protest against ReInception. 

When violence erupts at the protest, Leandrea’s life changes forever and she finds herself needing to decide if she will stay in her naive but relatively safe world or go in search of the truth. 

Okay, I am going to be honest. I read a lot of books, for teaching, for pleasure, and for the purpose of reviewing ARCs. When I began reviewing books from Goodreads FirstReads (it is now Goodreads Giveaways), I thought, hey, free books. The way that Goodreads runs the program is that you enter a raffle online, and on a certain date, winners’ names are drawn to receive the number of copies of the books that the publisher or author has offered. Many of the books are ARCs (Advanced Reader Copies) and many of them are quite good. Astoundingly good, in fact. However, many of them are clunkers. It is not in my nature not to finish a book--once I start, I am committed. There are very few books I have not finished--usually overdue library books I could not renew again. Now that I have more responsibilities--family, etc, etc, and less dispensable time, I find it more important to use my time where I can potentially have an impact. I hope that by reading and reviewing books, I will help other authors by helping to get their work out there. (Yes, I know that I read a fair number of books that are not ARCs and are written by dead, famous authors who don’t need any help from me. As I said, I read books for other purposes, too.) This is all just to say, I am happy when books surprise me and appeal to my tastes. ReInception is one of those books that was even more enjoyable than I expected. 

Leandrea, the main character, does not come from the most affluent and influential family, but they belong to the upper class and have jobs as political liaisons. They have wisely chosen not to modify their daughter, but by not modifying her, they have effectively made her an outsider. She does, however, have communication implants, which are basically standard for the time, like having a smartphone is today. In part, the book seems to be discussing capitalism, the role of government in an individual’s ability to make their own decisions, and the influence of companies over human behavior and the government. Another discussion, which is in many ways more interesting, is the conversation about privilege. As we struggle in our own society to address the question of racial privilege, part of the question is about what role the privileged should play in righting the wrongs of inequality. Who should be able to make decisions? Who should lead the movement for change? Who, ultimately, should be in charge of the changes made to society and the government?

Would I teach this book? ReInception would be a good fit in a literature or creating writing class focused on science fiction. The novel follows several of the trends in science fiction: technology ruled world, government overreach, and a blurred line between corporations and the government. The female main character, which has become more common, and a learning of the truth that has been hidden from the rest of society are also common themes. 

In considering the character of Leandrea, she is the typical outsider/individual who is driven out of society, though in this case, Leandrea seems more driven not towards the truth, but in concern for social equality. Her carelessness in some of her actions, as mentioned earlier, including her assumption that she would be welcomed at a Prole bar and not seen as a tourist, her romanticization of the freedom of Prole, and her assumptions about their lives make clear how problematic her interest is. That, and Straus’s incredible world building, are what make this book most stand out.