Reviews
*A slightly rough but exciting near-future SciFi about the power to control time*
My adventure through my backlist TBR continues. The latest pick was The Drafter, the first in a series advertised as “The Bourne Identity meets Minority Report. The comparisons do make sense. I could just as easily describe it as Total Recall meets Push. In Detroit 2030, a shadow organization recruits people with special abilities, specifically, “drafters” who can rewind small amounts of time and “anchors” who can rewrite people’s memories. When Drafter Peri Reed gets set up as a corrupt agent, she is determined to clear her name and stop the people trying to manipulate her.
I felt some confusion at first about drafters and anchors and everything about the world, memory knots, memory eclipsed paranoia, Opti vs Alliance, etc. although I was engaged from the start despite my uncertainty about the details. Though perhaps not mind-blowingly original, the story had a lot of interesting aspects and was action-packed. The main character, Peri, wasn’t particularly likeable, but I was still rooting for her.
Now I am going to nitpick about something (that probably no one else will give a damn about). The story repeatedly mentioned that Peri got special treatment for her rare ability to be a Drafter. The story repeatedly mentioned the statistic that only 1/100,000 had the ability to shift time. And here is where my analytical brain kicks in and ruins things. 1/100,000 may sound rare, but statistically it is not. Take the world's current population of over eight billion. With that population number, that would mean that there would be over 80,000 people with that ability. That isn't rare. Granted, I don't recall if the specific population was mentioned. It is set in the future, but there was a genetically created plague, so I suppose the global population could be higher or lower. But regardless, 1/100,000 would still be a significant amount of people. Far too many for Peri to be as rare and valuable as they claim. Even with the time and money invested in her training, they would cut their losses a lot sooner and just killed her. To reframe this, that would equal over 1.25% of the population. 1-2% of the world's population has red hair. So, think about how many people you've ever met with natural red hair then think that a similar percentage of people in this story would have the ability to manipulate time. And no, I'm not saying redheads are time travelers. Although, that might explain how Ed Sheeran has so many hits...
Also, yet again I am requesting that authors stop using crutch phrases such as "sucked her teeth." That one is quickly making its way up my list of most annoying phrases authors overuse.
The story touches on the implications and complications with messing with time and memories. It shouldn't be surprised to learn that something involving people able to alter memories would involve issues with consent. And that seemed like the point, but it was a little uncomfortable at times.
The story is told in first person, past tense, with dual POVs. This is the type of story where the reader knows more than the main character. Sometimes it was easy to forget that and feel like the dramatic irony was dragged out. Still, as I mentioned, it was fast-paced and easy to read through quickly. And I am looking forward to the sequel.
RATING FACTORS:
Ease of Reading: 4 Stars
Writing Style: 4 Stars
Characters and Character Development: 3 Stars
Plot Structure and Development: 4 Stars
Level of Captivation: 4 Stars
Originality: 3 Stars
RECOMMENDATIONS:
If you liked this, try Critical Point
☠ DNF at: who the fish knows? It's been so bloody shrimping long since I read tried reading this thing that my grand grandchildren now have grand grandchildren. So you can't seriously expect me to remember how far I didn't make it into this most fascinating tale, my Little Barnacles. You are quite welcome. Okay book, you've been sitting on the bookshelf of Total Doom and Utter Oblivion (TDaUO™) long enough. Time to offer you in sacrifice to the Ever Pissed Off Calmly Cheerful Gods of the DNF Graveyard (EPOCCGotDNFG™). Rest in relative peace and stuff. ✎ Book 0.5: Sideswiped ★ [September 2015] ►► BR with my MacHalo Freaks starting Sept. 10, 2015. I tried. I really did. I just can't get into it. I don't like the writing. I don't like Peri. I don't like anything. Ugh. I'll give it another try. Someday. Maybe. In 2025 or something. ♦ This is how I felt about reading this book before Sideswiped happened: ♦ This is how I feel about reading this book now that Sideswiped has happened:
I have read one other book by this author but that was a while back. Anyway, I enjoyed this book. It wasn't one of my favourite book that I read this year but it did keep me entertained and I did enjoy it. It starts off slow but then by about the middle it picks up and got better. Would I pick up the next book when it comes out? Most likely.
