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A review by apuckingbibliophile
The Foreboding by M. J. Foley
5.0
4.5 rounded up!
I was lucky enough to receive a copy of this debut (hand delivered from Colorado, by the author itself!) and loved how original it was!
The best way I could think to describe this would be: Blake Crouch + The Shadows by Alex North. This is a speculative fiction/ sci-fi thriller that broaches themes like control, manipulation, good vs. evil, and more while also discussing the strengths and power of the human mind and how remarkable, yet scary it can be.
One thing I immediately loved was how atmospheric it was. There were moments where I genuinely felt like I was there with our MC, Shiloh, while she experienced strange happenings around her. It was eerie and unsettling at times, but that’s what made it so intriguing. While it did take a few chapters to set the scene and get into the thick of it all, once a certain point hit it was hard to put down.
Some of the sci-fi elements that appeared were the ideas of psychokinesis & psychomanipulation— two concepts that while aren’t actually a thing (yet...), but made for some insightful commentary and thought. For example, what if you could will your mind to do cool things like move a book? Or on the darker side, what if people had the ability to access someone else’s subconscious and used this manipulation for their own good?
The plot itself was interesting as we followed Shiloh and her introduction to the world of psychokinesis and the realization that she herself is in the center of a lot of it. I enjoyed the other characters and the found family element there as this group of people worked together to stop the evil force of someone who seems to have gone rogue with their own agenda.
As for the science-y aspect of the writing, for the most part I found it easy to follow. Science was never a strong subject for myself, so it’s not unusual for some of the language in a sci-fi to go over my head, but I think the author did a nice job of making this story feel accessible for anyone to understand.
Overall it was an impressive debut and I would recommend if you like speculative thrillers and thought provoking reads!
I was lucky enough to receive a copy of this debut (hand delivered from Colorado, by the author itself!) and loved how original it was!
The best way I could think to describe this would be: Blake Crouch + The Shadows by Alex North. This is a speculative fiction/ sci-fi thriller that broaches themes like control, manipulation, good vs. evil, and more while also discussing the strengths and power of the human mind and how remarkable, yet scary it can be.
One thing I immediately loved was how atmospheric it was. There were moments where I genuinely felt like I was there with our MC, Shiloh, while she experienced strange happenings around her. It was eerie and unsettling at times, but that’s what made it so intriguing. While it did take a few chapters to set the scene and get into the thick of it all, once a certain point hit it was hard to put down.
Some of the sci-fi elements that appeared were the ideas of psychokinesis & psychomanipulation— two concepts that while aren’t actually a thing (yet...), but made for some insightful commentary and thought. For example, what if you could will your mind to do cool things like move a book? Or on the darker side, what if people had the ability to access someone else’s subconscious and used this manipulation for their own good?
The plot itself was interesting as we followed Shiloh and her introduction to the world of psychokinesis and the realization that she herself is in the center of a lot of it. I enjoyed the other characters and the found family element there as this group of people worked together to stop the evil force of someone who seems to have gone rogue with their own agenda.
As for the science-y aspect of the writing, for the most part I found it easy to follow. Science was never a strong subject for myself, so it’s not unusual for some of the language in a sci-fi to go over my head, but I think the author did a nice job of making this story feel accessible for anyone to understand.
Overall it was an impressive debut and I would recommend if you like speculative thrillers and thought provoking reads!