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Obey Defy
You are the surveillance.
The system watches through your eyes. When you are always under surveillance, your behaviour changes. Everyone becomes alike. The zeitgeist becomes uniformity.
Now everyone acts, looks, dresses and expresses the same, and talks the same stilted language. You obey the system. You don’t dare be different. Deviate from the zeitgeist and be punished. The system keeps you the same. The system keeps you safe.
Some have managed to escape. Dared to rebel. The system has responded.
T7 is a Controller, able to take control of anyone at will. Hunting down the runners who have managed to defy.
But when T7 hunts down the latest runner, they discover the true reason for the zeitgeist.
Now it's time for T7 to choose.
Will they overthrow the rebels to keep the system safe?
Or will they take back control, and decide to break the system for good?
Will they obey?
Or defy?
The system watches through your eyes. When you are always under surveillance, your behaviour changes. Everyone becomes alike. The zeitgeist becomes uniformity.
Now everyone acts, looks, dresses and expresses the same, and talks the same stilted language. You obey the system. You don’t dare be different. Deviate from the zeitgeist and be punished. The system keeps you the same. The system keeps you safe.
Some have managed to escape. Dared to rebel. The system has responded.
T7 is a Controller, able to take control of anyone at will. Hunting down the runners who have managed to defy.
But when T7 hunts down the latest runner, they discover the true reason for the zeitgeist.
Now it's time for T7 to choose.
Will they overthrow the rebels to keep the system safe?
Or will they take back control, and decide to break the system for good?
Will they obey?
Or defy?
88 pages, ebook
Published February 27, 2022
1 person is currently reading
14 people want to read
About the author
Craig Lea Gordon
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Craig Lea Gordon fell in love with Science Fiction at a very early age. His earliest memory is of bawling his eyes out on a Saturday morning when a shabby looking robot called Metal Mickey appeared on TV. It wasn't anything to do with the low budget production values, but instead because it had displaced Battle of the Planets, his favourite sci-fi program.
Shortly after he insisted that his parents christen their Ferguson Videostar by recording Battlestar Galactica. From the age of six, a good Christmas was defined by whether or not Star Wars was on TV. At 12 he made his Mum rent him a copy of Robocop, and he has never been the same since. Some say he has a hidden prime directive to create stories of a possible future.
Craig Lea Gordon fell in love with Science Fiction at a very early age. His earliest memory is of bawling his eyes out on a Saturday morning when a shabby looking robot called Metal Mickey appeared on TV. It wasn't anything to do with the low budget production values, but instead because it had displaced Battle of the Planets, his favourite sci-fi program.
Shortly after he insisted that his parents christen their Ferguson Videostar by recording Battlestar Galactica. From the age of six, a good Christmas was defined by whether or not Star Wars was on TV. At 12 he made his Mum rent him a copy of Robocop, and he has never been the same since. Some say he has a hidden prime directive to create stories of a possible future.
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Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews
March 19, 2022
3.5â� Rounded down.
I loved his book ARvekt, so I was totally down when Booksprout reached out to offer this short.
This starts off a bit slow and fairly confusing.
It didn't really introduce the world or storyline very well.
Once it gets going and things start to fit into place it is awesome.
I wish there had been a descriptive paragraph introducing the world, or small tidbits dropped more frequently in the story.
His writing is still great, and I am watching for more (like book 2 in the Instant Reality series!).
Thanks to Booksprout & Craig Lea Gordon for my DRC.
I loved his book ARvekt, so I was totally down when Booksprout reached out to offer this short.
This starts off a bit slow and fairly confusing.
It didn't really introduce the world or storyline very well.
Once it gets going and things start to fit into place it is awesome.
I wish there had been a descriptive paragraph introducing the world, or small tidbits dropped more frequently in the story.
His writing is still great, and I am watching for more (like book 2 in the Instant Reality series!).
Thanks to Booksprout & Craig Lea Gordon for my DRC.
February 27, 2022
“Independent thought was a danger to the system. Being free from choice freed the mind.�
“Deviate from the zeitgeist and be punished.�
A thorough glimpse into a bleak and despotic future. A fascinating dystopian thriller with touches of great classics like 1984, Equilibrium, Logan’s Run-my favourite reads-, gritty and dark. Riveting and exciting. A Grim and depressive speculated world.
I’d like to mention the artwork of the fabulous cover, a lovely combination of colours and and theme. I love how the artist has grasped the meaning of the story, and the realism portrayed. Bravo!
Craig Gordon has once again added a lot of drama to his speculative fiction story, thought provoking as always; he manages to wring my insides into knots, to elevate my anxiety levels in extremis. The stress I accumulated reading T7’s dramatic ordeal was worth it though. The world is craftily built, the atmosphere oppressive with a constant upheaval of sensations, and nuances of insanity and evilness within a tyrannical government, forceful laws, a constant surveillance, no freedom of speech or thought, mind controlling powers, a horrific mechanised law enforcement brainwashed and inhumanised. A truly horrifying world!
The twisted reality, the turn of events unfolding and mystery behind so much power and control had me glued to the book till the end. The story has a surreal feeling, deadly and omniscient, grim and dark. Unpredictable turns, unexpected and surprising moments that had me holding my breath without realising it, intriguing till the end! And what a blasting end, totally unsuspecting!
I highly recommend all of Craig Lea Gordon’s speculative short novellas! And ARvekt-1.
“Deviate from the zeitgeist and be punished.�
A thorough glimpse into a bleak and despotic future. A fascinating dystopian thriller with touches of great classics like 1984, Equilibrium, Logan’s Run-my favourite reads-, gritty and dark. Riveting and exciting. A Grim and depressive speculated world.
I’d like to mention the artwork of the fabulous cover, a lovely combination of colours and and theme. I love how the artist has grasped the meaning of the story, and the realism portrayed. Bravo!
Craig Gordon has once again added a lot of drama to his speculative fiction story, thought provoking as always; he manages to wring my insides into knots, to elevate my anxiety levels in extremis. The stress I accumulated reading T7’s dramatic ordeal was worth it though. The world is craftily built, the atmosphere oppressive with a constant upheaval of sensations, and nuances of insanity and evilness within a tyrannical government, forceful laws, a constant surveillance, no freedom of speech or thought, mind controlling powers, a horrific mechanised law enforcement brainwashed and inhumanised. A truly horrifying world!
The twisted reality, the turn of events unfolding and mystery behind so much power and control had me glued to the book till the end. The story has a surreal feeling, deadly and omniscient, grim and dark. Unpredictable turns, unexpected and surprising moments that had me holding my breath without realising it, intriguing till the end! And what a blasting end, totally unsuspecting!
I highly recommend all of Craig Lea Gordon’s speculative short novellas! And ARvekt-1.
February 27, 2022
“Independent thought was a danger to the system. Being free from choice freed the mind.�
“Deviate from the zeitgeist and be punished.�
A thorough glimpse into a bleak and despotic future. A fascinating dystopian thriller with touches of great classics like 1984, Equilibrium, Logan’s Run-my favourite reads-, gritty and dark. Riveting and exciting. A Grim and depressive speculated world.
I’d like to mention the artwork of the fabulous cover, a lovely combination of colours and and theme. I love how the artist has grasped the meaning of the story, and the realism portrayed. Bravo!
Craig Gordon has once again added a lot of drama to his speculative fiction story, thought provoking as always; he manages to wring my insides into knots, to elevate my anxiety levels in extremis. The stress I accumulated reading T7’s dramatic ordeal was worth it though. The world is craftily built, the atmosphere oppressive with a constant upheaval of sensations, and nuances of insanity and evilness within a tyrannical government, forceful laws, a constant surveillance, no freedom of speech or thought, mind controlling powers, a horrific mechanised law enforcement brainwashed and inhumanised. A truly horrifying world!
The twisted reality, the turn of events unfolding and mystery behind so much power and control had me glued to the book till the end. The story has a surreal feeling, deadly and omniscient, grim and dark. Unpredictable turns, unexpected and surprising moments that had me holding my breath without realising it, intriguing till the end! And what a blasting end, totally unsuspecting!
I highly recommend all of Craig Lea Gordon’s speculative short novellas! And ARvekt-1.
“Deviate from the zeitgeist and be punished.�
A thorough glimpse into a bleak and despotic future. A fascinating dystopian thriller with touches of great classics like 1984, Equilibrium, Logan’s Run-my favourite reads-, gritty and dark. Riveting and exciting. A Grim and depressive speculated world.
I’d like to mention the artwork of the fabulous cover, a lovely combination of colours and and theme. I love how the artist has grasped the meaning of the story, and the realism portrayed. Bravo!
Craig Gordon has once again added a lot of drama to his speculative fiction story, thought provoking as always; he manages to wring my insides into knots, to elevate my anxiety levels in extremis. The stress I accumulated reading T7’s dramatic ordeal was worth it though. The world is craftily built, the atmosphere oppressive with a constant upheaval of sensations, and nuances of insanity and evilness within a tyrannical government, forceful laws, a constant surveillance, no freedom of speech or thought, mind controlling powers, a horrific mechanised law enforcement brainwashed and inhumanised. A truly horrifying world!
The twisted reality, the turn of events unfolding and mystery behind so much power and control had me glued to the book till the end. The story has a surreal feeling, deadly and omniscient, grim and dark. Unpredictable turns, unexpected and surprising moments that had me holding my breath without realising it, intriguing till the end! And what a blasting end, totally unsuspecting!
I highly recommend all of Craig Lea Gordon’s speculative short novellas! And ARvekt-1.
February 27, 2022
In the most uniform society, there are rebels.
This is a convoluted fantasy about a society that uses mind control to enforce the sameness of all the people in it. Except, of course, the enforcers and those who control them. The book description describes this quite well. In the story, we follow an individual called T7 as he or she ("they") enters the mind of one who has chosen to defy the rules about sameness and to escape into the abandoned old city. But it is not that simple.
The story takes place in the very far future, with technology that is so advanced as to seem magical, hence my characterization of the story as science fantasy. Still, it reads well and is an engrossing story.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
This is a convoluted fantasy about a society that uses mind control to enforce the sameness of all the people in it. Except, of course, the enforcers and those who control them. The book description describes this quite well. In the story, we follow an individual called T7 as he or she ("they") enters the mind of one who has chosen to defy the rules about sameness and to escape into the abandoned old city. But it is not that simple.
The story takes place in the very far future, with technology that is so advanced as to seem magical, hence my characterization of the story as science fantasy. Still, it reads well and is an engrossing story.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
December 28, 2021
So over Christmas I checked out Obey Defy, a novella by Craig Lea Gordon. it was an advance review copy, the book is due for release in February 2022.
Anyone who thinks Ben Elton was a little too optimistic about sheep mentality in Blind Faith, the police weren’t quite omnipotent in Minority Report or , by all means take a look at this story. It’s a good quick read, the action clips along nicely, and while I have my doubts about how we get there from here, it’s certainly got a warning for us about the perils of conformity.
I was intrigued at first glimpse of the cover, which is really excellent work and deserves separate and distinct kudos.
The story follows T7, a cog in the wheel (or some more high tech metaphor that I lack the savvy to come up with, probably) of an authoritarian technocracy built on adherence to the zeitgeist, a baseline of normalcy from which deviation may only occur to a certain rigidly-controlled degree before � ooh, all sorts of awful shit happens to you. T7 is an enforcer for the zeitgeist and the archetypical figure at its mysterious head.
What does this mean?
Basically, it means fit in, don’t do anything unusual, and keep your thoughts to yourself. Because surveillance technology has become internalised, and anyone (and everyone) could be a spy. Or an enforcer, thanks to consciousness-transference.
From the intriguing (but perhaps a little more hook-needing) opening, the reader is thrown head-first into an uncomfortable and often downright creepy world of thought-policing, behaviour-monitoring, body-snatching neofascism. Think “Demolition Man but with a whole lot more inhibition and blandness on the surface, and a way nastier means of dealing with the underground folks.�
“Be a zero.�
There were some occasional changes in tense and a bit of clumsiness and typos in the writing (“He peeked rounded the corner,� stuff like that) that made a jarring and unsettling setting and plot a little more difficult to follow, but they were by no means deal-breakers. All in all I found it to be solidly written and well edited, and hey � stuff slips through sometimes. Harek seemed to manifest out of nowhere as a character, like was it his voice all along or did he cut in? It felt like I’d missed a bit of exposition but the introduction was fine and maybe the point was that it be abrupt and off-putting.
I liked the speech patterns and pared-down language of the sheeple, it made the switches between ideological “worlds� really interesting and cast the hypocrisy and dishonesty of the ruling class into fascinating relief. And there were enough twists and turns, right to the very end of the story, to keep me guessing and flipping pages with great interest. Nicely done all round.
Sex-o-meter
Our bad guy is sleazy and has a fingers-in-mouth fetish, not to mention the whole “wearing people like sets of clothes and using them as sex surrogates� thing that is all very upsetting. Beyond that, I’m not getting much turgidity or moisture from the sex-o-meter. Two fingers, two knuckles deep out of a possible toothless throat-fisting.
Gore-o-meter
There’s a bit of nasty stuff here, aside from the above-mentioned implications and potential of the surveillance and control technology. Citizens used as puppets in all kinds of situations, a lot of killing and maiming and psychological / neurological damage, and oh yeah, just to lay on the “Roman Empire in collapse� themes nice and thick, there are crucifixions as well. Three-and-a-half flesh-gobbets out of a possible five.
WTF-o-meter
There’s a whole lot of good WTFey stuff in this book, not just limited to the horrible tech. How did we get to this world from the present day? How long did it take? The ruins of the old world can be found in a Futurama-esque subterranean area that suggests either a long-arse time or a whole lot of geological upheaval � probably both. T7 doesn’t even know what a car is, which says intriguing things about human beings as story-sharing animals and the immediacy of knowledge loss given certain stimuli. The whole world seems like an impossible one to uphold, and unthinkable that we might ever arrive there � but maybe Obey Defy is a revolutionary and visionary look at a creepy future that people will gleefully misquote in a hundred years� time when we’re all wearing sashes of different shades of blue. As such, the WTF-o-meter is giving it a Blind Faith out of a possible 1984, which translates to 1700 kiloWTFs per cubic metre of printed book matter, which translates to seventeen finger lickin� goods out of a possible Enzo. The WTF-o-meter doesn’t usually go down the conversion rabbit hole, so that’s encouraging!
My Final Verdict
Obey Defy arrives in February 2022 and is well worth checking out (give it a pre-order!) if you like your surveillance-state dystopia and your body horror a little on the techno side. I’d want to go with three to three-and-a-half stars for this since it may still need some editing work or a bit more drafting, but I’m not going to tank it on Amazon and Å·±¦ÓéÀÖ because it doesn’t deserve that. So, four stars with the understanding that it’s three-and-a-half stars in a four star rating’s hijacked body. Thanks for the fun read!
Anyone who thinks Ben Elton was a little too optimistic about sheep mentality in Blind Faith, the police weren’t quite omnipotent in Minority Report or , by all means take a look at this story. It’s a good quick read, the action clips along nicely, and while I have my doubts about how we get there from here, it’s certainly got a warning for us about the perils of conformity.
I was intrigued at first glimpse of the cover, which is really excellent work and deserves separate and distinct kudos.
The story follows T7, a cog in the wheel (or some more high tech metaphor that I lack the savvy to come up with, probably) of an authoritarian technocracy built on adherence to the zeitgeist, a baseline of normalcy from which deviation may only occur to a certain rigidly-controlled degree before � ooh, all sorts of awful shit happens to you. T7 is an enforcer for the zeitgeist and the archetypical figure at its mysterious head.
What does this mean?
Basically, it means fit in, don’t do anything unusual, and keep your thoughts to yourself. Because surveillance technology has become internalised, and anyone (and everyone) could be a spy. Or an enforcer, thanks to consciousness-transference.
From the intriguing (but perhaps a little more hook-needing) opening, the reader is thrown head-first into an uncomfortable and often downright creepy world of thought-policing, behaviour-monitoring, body-snatching neofascism. Think “Demolition Man but with a whole lot more inhibition and blandness on the surface, and a way nastier means of dealing with the underground folks.�
“Be a zero.�
There were some occasional changes in tense and a bit of clumsiness and typos in the writing (“He peeked rounded the corner,� stuff like that) that made a jarring and unsettling setting and plot a little more difficult to follow, but they were by no means deal-breakers. All in all I found it to be solidly written and well edited, and hey � stuff slips through sometimes. Harek seemed to manifest out of nowhere as a character, like was it his voice all along or did he cut in? It felt like I’d missed a bit of exposition but the introduction was fine and maybe the point was that it be abrupt and off-putting.
I liked the speech patterns and pared-down language of the sheeple, it made the switches between ideological “worlds� really interesting and cast the hypocrisy and dishonesty of the ruling class into fascinating relief. And there were enough twists and turns, right to the very end of the story, to keep me guessing and flipping pages with great interest. Nicely done all round.
Sex-o-meter
Our bad guy is sleazy and has a fingers-in-mouth fetish, not to mention the whole “wearing people like sets of clothes and using them as sex surrogates� thing that is all very upsetting. Beyond that, I’m not getting much turgidity or moisture from the sex-o-meter. Two fingers, two knuckles deep out of a possible toothless throat-fisting.
Gore-o-meter
There’s a bit of nasty stuff here, aside from the above-mentioned implications and potential of the surveillance and control technology. Citizens used as puppets in all kinds of situations, a lot of killing and maiming and psychological / neurological damage, and oh yeah, just to lay on the “Roman Empire in collapse� themes nice and thick, there are crucifixions as well. Three-and-a-half flesh-gobbets out of a possible five.
WTF-o-meter
There’s a whole lot of good WTFey stuff in this book, not just limited to the horrible tech. How did we get to this world from the present day? How long did it take? The ruins of the old world can be found in a Futurama-esque subterranean area that suggests either a long-arse time or a whole lot of geological upheaval � probably both. T7 doesn’t even know what a car is, which says intriguing things about human beings as story-sharing animals and the immediacy of knowledge loss given certain stimuli. The whole world seems like an impossible one to uphold, and unthinkable that we might ever arrive there � but maybe Obey Defy is a revolutionary and visionary look at a creepy future that people will gleefully misquote in a hundred years� time when we’re all wearing sashes of different shades of blue. As such, the WTF-o-meter is giving it a Blind Faith out of a possible 1984, which translates to 1700 kiloWTFs per cubic metre of printed book matter, which translates to seventeen finger lickin� goods out of a possible Enzo. The WTF-o-meter doesn’t usually go down the conversion rabbit hole, so that’s encouraging!
My Final Verdict
Obey Defy arrives in February 2022 and is well worth checking out (give it a pre-order!) if you like your surveillance-state dystopia and your body horror a little on the techno side. I’d want to go with three to three-and-a-half stars for this since it may still need some editing work or a bit more drafting, but I’m not going to tank it on Amazon and Å·±¦ÓéÀÖ because it doesn’t deserve that. So, four stars with the understanding that it’s three-and-a-half stars in a four star rating’s hijacked body. Thanks for the fun read!
February 26, 2022
Obey/Defy - a review by Rosemary Kenny
In a futuristic, dystopian world similar to that in The Matrix films, everyone seems to have become a clone of one another - even dressing in the same style - and enslaved by an individuality-neutralising
mind control process.
Those, (helped by the Resistance) who try to escape the so-called Variant process, are known as runners and are dealt with by Controllers like T7. How does her latest hunt differ from the usual?
Craig Lea Gordon posits an interesting, potential future-world scenario in Obey/Defy, showing how reliance on technology could make society break down and be suborned by individuals of nefarious intent, who have the knowledge to manipulate it for their own ends...you have been warned!
In a futuristic, dystopian world similar to that in The Matrix films, everyone seems to have become a clone of one another - even dressing in the same style - and enslaved by an individuality-neutralising
mind control process.
Those, (helped by the Resistance) who try to escape the so-called Variant process, are known as runners and are dealt with by Controllers like T7. How does her latest hunt differ from the usual?
Craig Lea Gordon posits an interesting, potential future-world scenario in Obey/Defy, showing how reliance on technology could make society break down and be suborned by individuals of nefarious intent, who have the knowledge to manipulate it for their own ends...you have been warned!
December 21, 2021
“Obey Defy� by Craig Lea Gordon.
This book was sent to me as an Advance Reader Copy against an honest and fair review.
It was my first attempt at a novel from Craig Lea Gordon.
I have first to admit that I am an eager Sci-fi Reader and as always when starting with a new book one never knows what we are going to experience, although I always expect the best�.
With this novel I have not been disappointed, it is George Orwell’s 1984 crossed with Matrix!
Even if the world and the society described are not of my liking, black, heavy oppressive, a world of compliance or destruction, a world of constant and ubiquitous surveillance. I have enjoyed reading it.
I have been engrossed with the story from the beginning because there is a definite atmosphere to it, it is gripping, dark.
This book was sent to me as an Advance Reader Copy against an honest and fair review.
It was my first attempt at a novel from Craig Lea Gordon.
I have first to admit that I am an eager Sci-fi Reader and as always when starting with a new book one never knows what we are going to experience, although I always expect the best�.
With this novel I have not been disappointed, it is George Orwell’s 1984 crossed with Matrix!
Even if the world and the society described are not of my liking, black, heavy oppressive, a world of compliance or destruction, a world of constant and ubiquitous surveillance. I have enjoyed reading it.
I have been engrossed with the story from the beginning because there is a definite atmosphere to it, it is gripping, dark.
February 17, 2022
Obey Defy is a novella about a future civilization where everything is under surveillance; even your thoughts and actions. T7 is a Controller who is able to take control over anyone at any time, who is tasked with hunting down the resistance. But what would you do if the resistance reached out to you for help?
One of the little things I enjoyed about this book was the different uses of syntax (the way sentences are formed) depending on if the person talking, was a part of the resistance or if they were following the rules of the government.
I was not expecting this novella to have so much gross subject matter until it appeared right before my eyes. If you are uncomfortable with descriptions of people vomiting, or genuinely uncomfortable actions by the villain, such as putting fingers in mouths; I would not recommend this for you. There are also many scenes of violence but if you are okay with that and the previously mentioned gross subject matter, then go ahead and enjoy!
I also felt as though the first chapter could have been split into two separate chapters and it would have improved the flow of the story; since after the first chapter, the other chapters are significantly quicker to read. But overall, I enjoyed this novella!
I received this novella as an arc in exchange for an honest review.
One of the little things I enjoyed about this book was the different uses of syntax (the way sentences are formed) depending on if the person talking, was a part of the resistance or if they were following the rules of the government.
I was not expecting this novella to have so much gross subject matter until it appeared right before my eyes. If you are uncomfortable with descriptions of people vomiting, or genuinely uncomfortable actions by the villain, such as putting fingers in mouths; I would not recommend this for you. There are also many scenes of violence but if you are okay with that and the previously mentioned gross subject matter, then go ahead and enjoy!
I also felt as though the first chapter could have been split into two separate chapters and it would have improved the flow of the story; since after the first chapter, the other chapters are significantly quicker to read. But overall, I enjoyed this novella!
I received this novella as an arc in exchange for an honest review.
May 29, 2022
Conformity is not an option, it is a requirement. Our hero is tasked with dealing with those who do not comply. But when he is giving the opportunity to rebel himself, which side will he choose?
This is a short science fiction story with a dystopian setting. The story is well written and easy to read with an intriguing premise that certainly makes you think. The language of the characters, and thus what the reader sees, is a little jarring at first, but then the same can be said of adults talking to teenagers today. You'll figure it out. Overall, the story made for a quick and enjoyable read.
Recommended.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout for review purposes
This is a short science fiction story with a dystopian setting. The story is well written and easy to read with an intriguing premise that certainly makes you think. The language of the characters, and thus what the reader sees, is a little jarring at first, but then the same can be said of adults talking to teenagers today. You'll figure it out. Overall, the story made for a quick and enjoyable read.
Recommended.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout for review purposes
February 17, 2022
In a world where, to be different could be fatal, the citizens have to conform.
T7 is a Controller whose job it to track down the runners and bring them to justice, but when the resistance break her conditioning she has to decide whose side to join.
An interesting futuristic dystopian novella that explores the possibilities that everything you are told is not necessarily the truth.
The futurespeak used in the story took a little time to get used to and on occasions I found the situation to be a little confused but overall this was a good tale with a suitable ending
T7 is a Controller whose job it to track down the runners and bring them to justice, but when the resistance break her conditioning she has to decide whose side to join.
An interesting futuristic dystopian novella that explores the possibilities that everything you are told is not necessarily the truth.
The futurespeak used in the story took a little time to get used to and on occasions I found the situation to be a little confused but overall this was a good tale with a suitable ending
February 25, 2022
Everyone is under surveillance from inside their own bodies as it watches and hears everything you do, think and even say. This in turn as made everyone alike but some manage to take over control of their own bodies blocking anyone who wants to use their bodies. Now they have been ordered to find the rebels and they will face a conflict. Will they join the rebels? Will they obey his comments? How will they decide? See how they do
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
April 18, 2022
Ripping little yarn!
This short story is a compelling tale that I could not put down! I found myself awake into the small hours of the morning following Cass and T7 in their rebellion against a Big Brother on steroids! This author always manages to push the boundaries- and you won't get the standard fairytale ending from him either! Definitely worth a few hours of your ime!
I received an ARC of this book and I am telling it like it is when it comes to my review.
This short story is a compelling tale that I could not put down! I found myself awake into the small hours of the morning following Cass and T7 in their rebellion against a Big Brother on steroids! This author always manages to push the boundaries- and you won't get the standard fairytale ending from him either! Definitely worth a few hours of your ime!
I received an ARC of this book and I am telling it like it is when it comes to my review.
February 28, 2022
This was an interesting novella, with some new ideas but a lot that seem similar to other works. However, it is still well worth a read, although like most dystopian stories, it is rather depressing.
I liked the way that the author had developed the reduced language, which was almost hypnotic for its terseness, and the idea of the city below - not original, but well done.
I liked the way that the author had developed the reduced language, which was almost hypnotic for its terseness, and the idea of the city below - not original, but well done.
February 25, 2022
Astounding action sci-fi: in a dystopian future the fight to exit the system control, it is the fight for your consciousness.
A fine novella by Craig Lea Gordon, sure to be read...
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
A fine novella by Craig Lea Gordon, sure to be read...
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
February 26, 2022
Good fun. Clever in parts and obvious in others well worth picking up. I don't do spoilers. Thanks for the Good read
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
February 26, 2022
Not a bad start to what I assume is a series, but it was a bit strange and confusing. The reader is dropped into the story and figuring out what is going on took a bit of time for me. The ending was ambiguous.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
December 21, 2023
Pretty good, I have a love/hate relationship with books like these. The truth of the matter is this can and is what's happening now. I mean hello Subliminal messages, do we really even think for ourselves our do we let others control us? I received this as an ARC and voluntarily choose to reveiw.
February 23, 2022
An interesting short story. Everyone does everything the same or suffer the consequences. Lots of action in a few pages.
May 30, 2022
Nice quick cyber talr
Punchy storry.Non insufferable snarky Mac snark chacters.Felt the tension in this short tale. Great for fans of the cyberpunk genre
Punchy storry.Non insufferable snarky Mac snark chacters.Felt the tension in this short tale. Great for fans of the cyberpunk genre
May 7, 2022
3/5 Stars
What would you do if you were the surveillance to a controlling system and were then contacted by the resistance? This is the question T7 must deal with when.
This is definitely an interesting premise. I love dystopian novels, and with the hint of sci-fi I was certainly intrigued. However, the writing style was hard for me to get into at first. It is supposed to represent the controlling system in place and how everyone's syntax is weirdly jolted. But to be thrust into that immediately was jarring.
I also felt the first chapter could have been split in half, if not even into three chapters. It just felt very long winded. However, once we moved past that chapter everything began happening fast. There were subplots that I wasn't expecting, but at the same time I wish this was a longer novel to have some of the characters a little more fleshed out.
Overall I enjoyed the novel for the most part.
Disclaimer: I received an advanced copy through Booksprout.
What would you do if you were the surveillance to a controlling system and were then contacted by the resistance? This is the question T7 must deal with when.
This is definitely an interesting premise. I love dystopian novels, and with the hint of sci-fi I was certainly intrigued. However, the writing style was hard for me to get into at first. It is supposed to represent the controlling system in place and how everyone's syntax is weirdly jolted. But to be thrust into that immediately was jarring.
I also felt the first chapter could have been split in half, if not even into three chapters. It just felt very long winded. However, once we moved past that chapter everything began happening fast. There were subplots that I wasn't expecting, but at the same time I wish this was a longer novel to have some of the characters a little more fleshed out.
Overall I enjoyed the novel for the most part.
Disclaimer: I received an advanced copy through Booksprout.
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