Jinxed by Amy McCulloch

On September 16, 2018August 20, 2022 By The Unseen LibraryIn Science Fiction, Thriller, Young Adult3 Comments

Jinxed Cover.jpg

Publisher: Simon & Schuster

Publication Date – 9 August 2018

Creative young adult fiction author Amy McCulloch returns with a fun and compelling techno-thriller that takes an incredible and entertaining look at the potential future of your favourite devices and combines them with a unique idea of how to make them even more user-friendly.

In the near future, the must-have technological device is the baku, your brand new best friend. Bakus combine all the features of your smart devices and internet connection with a constant companion in the form of a robotic animal that is customisable to your needs and price range. Low range bakus take the form of small creations like insects, while the most advanced baku are created to look like birds of prey or large land animals. Not only are bakus the most popular form of communication device, but in this day and age, even basic bakus are needed to fully experience day-to-day life.

Lacey Chu has big dreams of working for Moncha Corp, the company which designs and creates the baku, as well as working for her idol, Moncha’s founder, Monica Chan. However, the only way to achieve that dream is to get accepted into the exclusive Profectus Academy, the elite tech school whose graduates become the designers, coders and creators of the next generation of baku. When Lacey is rejected from the academy and can no longer afford her dream baku, she is crushed. That is until she finds Jinx, a ruined cat baku that appears to have been abandoned at the bottom of a canyon. Bringing it home to fix, Lacey’s fortunes appear to immediately turn around when her application for the Profectus Academy is suddenly accepted and Jinx is listed as the advanced baku she is required to have for classes.

Arriving in the academy, she finds it a very different place than she imagined. The students and faculty are obsessed with Baku Battles, the academy-sponsored fights between bakus that help determine a student’s rank and prestige in the academy. Finding herself drafted onto a Baku Battle team, Lacey starts to learn all about the inner workings of the baku. The more she learns, the more she begins to realise that something is very different about Jinx. Jinx is not the usual mindless machine; Jinx can think for himself, has his own personality and is even starting to communicate with Lacey. As Jinx begins to mess with parts of Lacey’s life, she begins to fully comprehend the implications of Jinx’s existence. What shadowy secret lies at the heart of Moncha, and will Lacey and her friends be able to save Jinx from them?

Amy McCulloch is a well-established young adult fiction author who has written a number of books since her 2013 debut. McCulloch also writes under the name Amy Alward and mostly focuses on young adult fantasy novels as part of her Potion and The Knots Sequence series. Jinxed is her first foray into the science fiction genre and represents an exciting techno-thriller that explores an intriguing piece of future technology and the exciting adventure that happens around it.

The overall story of Jinxed is an excellent mixture of science fiction, thriller and teen drama elements, all set within a captivating academy background. As a result, throughout the book, there is a ton for the reader to enjoy as they are introduced to the technology around the baku and see the narrator investigate a conspiracy centred around the creation of Jinx, all while dealing with the highs and lows of school life. It is a fun combination of different story elements that works towards a great overall narrative. I was able to work out what one of the twists was going to be quite early in the book, but it didn’t really impact my enjoyment of the story. There are some great moments throughout, as well as a surprising ending that makes me very curious to read any sequels that McCulloch brings out.

The baku are an essential part of this story and are a really interesting element that McCulloch has chosen to use. Many science fiction and technology based authors are currently attempting to predict what the next big piece of technology will be in the world, with many of them focusing on what the next ground-breaking piece of communications technology will be. While many of these suggestions seem quite plausible and seem to support the current trends in technology, this is the first book I’ve seen that suggests combining a person’s smart device with a robotic pet. The narrator suggests that the fiction justification for the creation of the baku was to give people a companion that is both helpful and which also limits their dependencies and addictions to mobile phones and smart devices. It’s a rather fun concept and it is cool to see how McCulloch imagines how these creations would work.

The baku are broken down into various levels of sophistication, from the basic models which look like insects and can only do the most basic of tasks, to the ultra-sophisticated versions which come in the form of some very powerful creatures. It is also intriguing to see how many of the book’s various characters start to care for their bakus like they are real animals, and the bond that they form as a result, even if their bakus aren’t sentient. The bond that forms between Lacey and Jinx is fairly unique, however, as Jinx is an early form of artificial intelligence, and it is nice to see it develop through the course of the book as Lacey risks her life to help Jinx. There are a few great scenes which show Jinx trying to come to grips with his existence, whether he is helping other bakus, questioning how baku are made, or by attempting to exist among a group of real life cats. A truly intriguing postulation about future technologies, McCulloch has created a unique and fascinating idea that works well within this narrative.

Most of the action of this book is contained within fights between the bakus rather than between any of the human characters. This is mostly done in the Baku Battles tournament at the school, where several bakus fight each other in a free-for-all brawl. I love a good fictional tournament, and each of the bakus has various techniques. As a result, the fights within the book can become quite fun and energetic as eagle, boar, tiger, cat and frog bakus all fight in various ways. I also enjoyed the scoring concept that McCulloch came up with for this tournament, as the surviving team receives all the points, but their opponents can steal them if they can repair their team’s bakus sufficiently by the next day. This is an intriguing stipulation for a tournament which allows McCulloch to show off several scenes of the narrator doing advanced repair work. These tournament battles do a good job of moving the plot along and work into the books various elements very well, whether by giving the narrator access to certain locations to investigate secrets, or by bringing her closer to or further apart from other characters in the books, to allowing a closer examination of the workings and mindsets of the book’s technological elements.

Amy McCulloch’s latest book, Jinxed is a high-octane technological thriller that makes use of amazing science fiction elements to create an enthralling adventure. Aimed for a young adult audience, the lack of any substantial violence, except between the book’s distinctive robotic animals, makes this a perfect read for a wide range of younger readers. At the same time, the intriguing concept of future technology and its wide range of applications, including for high-stakes gladiatorial battles, makes it intriguing for an older readers. This is an absolutely fantastic book from McCulloch. I really enjoyed it and I’m looking forward to seeing where it goes next.

My Rating:

Four and a half stars

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Phantom by Leo Hunt

On August 29, 2018August 19, 2022 By The Unseen LibraryIn LGBT+, Science Fiction, Thriller, Young AdultLeave a comment

Phantom Cover.jpg

Publisher: Orchard

Publication Date – 9 August 2018

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From bestselling author Leo Hunt comes an electrifying and fast-paced young adult science fiction adventure that takes an intriguing look at the future of technology, as well as the crime and consequences these advances could lead to.

In the far future, humanity has built towers and skyscrapers up in a major way, leaving the ground far below. The rich and powerful live in the City, the highest level of construction, far above the poisoned ground. Up in the City, luxuries such as sunlight, clean water, jobs and corpbloc homes are available to its hardworking corporate-owned population. Those who do not have money live in the undercity slums, where the sun never shines and poisoned water is flooding up from the ground.

One of the inhabitants of the undercity is orphaned teenager Nova, who earns a living going up into the City and stealing from the corporate workers. In a world where everyone has technology implanted in their heads, a skilled hacker like Nova can obtain everything from money to information. Nova’s most important tool is Phantom, a powerful program created by the shadowy anticorporation hacker, the Moth, which hides the identity of hackers while they commit their crimes.

While Nova is only just scraping by, her skills have caught the attention of the Moth, who has a dangerous job for her. The Moth needs Nova to infiltrate the powerful Bliss Inc and uncover their most treasured corporate secret. Posing as a prospective assistant for the CEO of Bliss Inc, Nova goes deep undercover, changing her identity and her appearance to sneak in. However, her mission is about to get far more complicated then she could have ever imagined. Caught between the dark secrets of Bliss Inc and the mysterious ambitions of the Moth, Nova is going to be lucky to get out of this heist alive.

Phantom is the latest book from young adult author Leo Hunt and represents his first foray into the science fiction genre. Hunt’s previous works have mainly focused on the fantasy and horror genres, with his 13 Days of Midnight trilogy featuring a young man who develops necromantic powers. Phantom is an interesting new direction for Hunt, who has created a fantastic piece of young adult science fiction with strong techno-thriller elements.

This book is contains an intriguing science fiction story that takes the reader through a unique futuristic city and presents them with a thrilling and technology driven adventure. Phantom’s story contains a superb combination of story elements which come together to form an entertaining and fast-paced plot with compelling pieces of betrayal, technologically assisted espionage and corporate intrigue. There are a few good twists throughout the book, but I did find that one of the big reveals towards the end of the book was a little easy to predict as a result of the author only utilising on a small number of characters throughout most of the narrative. This was more than made up for by the shocking and deeply intriguing reveals that followed the protagonist uncovering the hidden secret motivations of the book’s various antagonists. All of these hidden surprises result in some great story elements and have a strong relation with the book’s focus on technology.

Phantom is intended for a young adult audience, and it works well as an absorbing and exciting introduction into science fiction and technology-based thrillers. Younger readers will love the interesting examination of the potential future technology and will find the exciting adventure storyline quite fun. The violence contained within the book is not too graphic whilst also allowing for some strong action-packed scenes. There are some minor mentions of mind-alerting technology and substances, but nothing too inappropriate for the younger audience. There are also some subtle but important LGTB elements that come into play later in the story, and Hunt handles these quite well. Overall, I would recommend this book to all teenagers, and even some younger readers, who will find a lot to enjoy in this wonderful book.

The best and most compelling features of Phantom are the amazing technological elements that form a significant part of the plot and which take a particularly intriguing look into humanity’s reliance on technology and how we are likely to advance in the future. In this potential future, everyone has neural implants inserted in them at birth that act as a mobile connection to the internet as well as a phone, music player, bank card and personal identification all in one. This is an interesting thing to examine, especially as humans are constantly getting closer and closer to incorporating our personal technology into our own bodies. Hunt does a great job presenting some of the potential benefits and problems that humans could experience with this sort of technology, and takes a stimulating look at that the ways that it could impact on our lives. Quite a few things are explored throughout Phantom, from examinations of how this technology will influence human identity to how it could be abused for criminal reasons, such as stealing money, hacking someone to take control of their body or producing technology that mimics recreational drugs. Other technological questions come into play later in the book and result in some deep emotional scenes as well as some interesting questions about ethics and the nature of humanity. These fictional technological elements represent some truly fascinating ideas from Hunt that readers will find very captivating.

In addition to Hunt’s intriguing postulations about future technology, another compelling story element is the inventive and imaginative setting for the story. The entirety of Phantom is set within a fictional metropolis that is constantly being built up and is split between the soaring spires of the rich and the sprawling slum-like undercity where the poor live. Throughout the story, the protagonist journeys from areas of the city flooded with poisoned water and inhabited with humans and animals that have never seen sunlight, to the very top of the city, above the clouds. There is a detailed exploration the city’s disparate economic zones, and significant time is spent interacting with the populace in both these areas, resulting in some fascinating comparisons. This is an amazing setting for this science fiction and technology focused story and represents another intriguing look into the future by Hunt.

Leo Hunt’s latest book, Phantom, is an absorbing and thrilling tale of adventure and crime in a futuristic city. Containing some extremely enthralling technological elements and a fantastic city setting where the differences between the rich and poor have never been more obvious, this is another outstanding release from Hunt that will be perfect for those younger readers looking to break into the science fiction or techno-thriller genres.

My Rating:

Four stars

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AWOL: Agent Without Licence by Andrew Lane

On July 29, 2018August 19, 2022 By The Unseen LibraryIn Thriller, Young AdultLeave a comment

AWOL Agent Without Licence Cover.jpg

Publisher: Piccadilly Press

Publication date – 12 July 2018

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From a veteran author of young adult fiction comes this brilliant spy thriller that introduces a younger audience to the joys of modern espionage.

Kieron Mellor and his best friend, Sam, are typical teenagers living the ‘greeb’ lifestyle in Newcastle, England, with their biggest problem revolving around how to get tickets to the next rock show. But when they witness a man being kidnapped in their local mall, they are thrust into the world of covert espionage and a plot to unleash untold destruction on the world. Noticing that the kidnapped man has dropped a set of glasses and an earpiece, Kieron picks them up, only to discover that they are part of a high tech virtual reality kit that can provide the user with a database of information about anything they see. They also connect Kieron to Bex, a secret agent on mission in Mumbai who is in desperate need of his help.

Bex’s handler, the man who was kidnapped, was using the technology currently in Kieron’s possession to remotely assist Bex with her mission. Bex was observing a deal for information about nuclear weapons, but the disappearance of her handler resulted in her losing her target. With no other options, Bex is forced to utilize Kieron and Sam’s help in order to complete her mission and stop an act of mass destruction. However, the Newcastle teens have problems of their own; a fanatical right-wing extremist group and a mole inside Bex’s organisation are hunting them for the missing glasses, and they have no intention of leaving any witnesses alive.

Agent Without License is the first book in Lane’s AWOL series of young adult spy thrillers. The second novel in this series, Last Safe Moment, is already set to be released later this year and will continue to follow the characters introduced in this first book. Lane already has significant experience writing novels for a younger audience, with eight books in his bestselling Young Sherlock Holmes series, as well as his Lost Worlds and Crusoe Adventures books. Other works from Lane include his science fiction based Netherspace series and several books set in the Dr Who extended universe.

The AWOL series is aimed towards a younger generation of reader and has been advertised for children in the 9-12 age range. I felt that this book is an ideal read for that demographic, and it reminded me of some of the books that really caught my imagination when I was that age, including the Artemis Fowl and Alex Ryder novels. While there is some violence and implied deaths within the storyline, it isn’t overly graphic and won’t traumatise the younger readers. That being said, the overarching spy storyline isn’t dumbed down, and its intended audience will enjoy the realism and the references to events, ideologies and prejudices that currently affecting the real world. There are also discussions about some mature themes, although nothing is too extreme or adult. These small inclusions will be appreciated by the younger audience, as they will enjoy seeing some of these mature issues which they are likely already aware of included in their fiction. Lane does make the obligatory attempts to tap into modern youth culture in order to appeal to his readers’ interests; fortunately, however, he does not go too overboard with his attempts like some authors do, and readers are not inundated with a flood of unnecessary pop culture references. The author has also included multiple examples of the two teen heroes outsmarting older antagonists. This is always a fun feature for the younger audience to enjoy, and these teen protagonists have some very inventive, and in some cases quite direct, solutions to the problems they encounter. Overall, Agent Without License will prove to be an excellent read for the audience in its suggest age range. Older readers will also have a blast with this book and enjoy the fantastic spy thriller elements.

For his AWOL series, Lane has leveraged his significant espionage experience to create intriguing novels with a sense of realism to their spy aspects. In Agent Without License, the author lays down a foundation of tradecraft and spy techniques for the reader to enjoy as his protagonists attempt to save the world. Lane explores the basics of spying in this book and provides information about current espionage agencies and how they impact on real world politics. As a result, this is a fun and informative introduction to the spy thriller genre, and the younger readers will appreciate the exciting and mature content of this story.

One of the best parts of Agent Without Licence is the advanced technology that the protagonists use to help complete their mission. This technology comes in the form of glasses and an ear piece, and is known as Augmented Reality Computer Capability (ARCC). The ARCC is essentially Google Glass on steroids, and allows the operator to access information on anything they, or the person they are connected to, can see or interact with. This is an awesome piece of fictional technology that sounds like an item espionage operatives could possibly already have access to. Watching the young protagonist, Keiron, become acquainted with and learn to operate the glasses is an enjoyable part of the story which plays in well with the book’s espionage elements. The information that Keiron obtains for himself and Bec is quiet interesting, and the ARCC technology provides them with threat analyses, escape routes, background history of the buildings they are going into, facial recognition and recording capabilities. This is a seriously cool part of the book, and the technology’s presentation and use is a great element that will make the readers eager for glasses like these to appear on the market.

Agent Without License contains two separate but connected storylines and alternates between the two different point of view characters in each chapter. One of the storylines focuses on Keiron in Newcastle, while the other follows Bex in India. These storylines overlap throughout the chapters, and the characters are in constant communication with each other. The different storylines are usually occurring at the same time, although Lane does occasionally move one storyline slightly ahead or behind to create some dramatic thrills. Some of the most intriguing scenes feature Kerion communicating information through the ARCC glasses to Bex. There is a fantastic interrogation sequence in which Bex uses the ARCC technology to stay in communication with Kerion as he provides her with the tools to crack her target and get the answers she is looking for. This breakup in storylines also helps highlight the differences in espionage ability between the trained operative, Bex, and the amateur but highly skilled teenagers, Kerion and Sam.

Andrew Lane has produced a wonderful and highly enjoyable novel that is a fresh and exciting take on the teenage spy book and an excellent gateway into the world of spy thrillers. Agent Without Licence is an ideal read for its intended younger demographic, while at the same time containing a range of mature story elements that will appeal to all ages. This is a fantastic first instalment in a great new series that is highly recommended for young readers looking for a great adventure story.