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Post-Human #3

Trans-Human

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It is a must after reading Post-Human. It is adventurous and thought-provoking. It will take you into the epic journey of humanity as it will be forced to face a future more advanced than it could have imagined if it wants to survive. Nineteen months have passed since the A.I turned against humanity and was subsequently destroyed. In the meantime, James Keats has turned over the AI's powers to a non-intelligent, easily controlled operating system. He and Thel have left the planet and spent six months vacationing on Venus, which has been newly terraformed without the consent or knowledge of the Governing Council.

238 pages, Kindle Edition

First published April 1, 2011

203 people are currently reading
807 people want to read

About the author

David Simpson

19 books344 followers

Futurist/Feature Film Director/Bestselling and Award-Winning Author/Film Composer/Actor/TEDX Speaker/Advisor for the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO),— just some of David Simpson's professional passions. His TEDX presentation, "Our Post-Human Future," has over 1.7 Million views on Youtube and his debut feature film, a psychological thriller titled, Dangerous to Know, had its World Premiere in London, England in October, 2020 where it became the first 3 hour film ever selected for the prestigious Frightfest, Film Festival, (the largest genre film festival in the English-speaking world) where David's debut film was compared favourably by critics to such film luminaries as David Fincher and Stanley Kubrick.

Meanwhile, the Sixth book in the Post-Human series, Superhuman, was released in late, 2020, and, equal in length to Stephen King's epic, The Stand, Superhuman has taken its place as one of the longest science fiction novels ever written.



Sometimes David Simpson sleeps...but not often.

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Displaying 1 - 30 of 123 reviews
Profile Image for Penny.
71 reviews5 followers
April 25, 2013
Boy, this is tough.

There is so much potential here. The ideas are actually intriguing. But there are SO many problems with the execution.

First, like the first two books in the series, the author jumps from idea to idea with brain-wrenching suddenness and zero "stitching" between the concepts. Events don't lead to each other, there isn't a lead up, the author just introduces whatever whizzy-bang will completely resolve the current crisis. It is frustrating. As soon as some good tension builds up - TA DA - some magic, incredible technology is introduced and the tension dissipates with no real sense of accomplishment.

Second, I've met mannequins with more genuine personality than the characters in these books. Honestly, the emotional development of most the characters stopped when they were eight years old and that is how they come across. Bad dialog, terrible, fake relationships.

Finally, there is absolutely no literary courage. No one pays any sort of price for their choices (good or bad). The big "RESET" button gets pressed every time a hint of "consequence" glimmers on the horizon. I can't care about these people because (see above, they are plastic) I know that nothing happening is going to "stick." It all gets better, everyone lives happily ever after.

I would love to see this author bring more ideas to the table but he really needs to partner with a writer who can craft a story and characters around his ideas. There is no harm in admitting you are the idea rat and not the pencil man!
Profile Image for Jonny Illuminati.
143 reviews3 followers
December 31, 2012
Holy fucking hell... How many times can a writer kill everyone and bring them back in 3 books? This book was grueling to get through, but having read the first two, I forced myself to do it - you, however, should NOT!

STAY AWAY!!!
Profile Image for Tony Bertauski.
Author 72 books764 followers
May 29, 2012
Wake up, Universe!

The sequel to Post Human does not disappoint! Following the characters into the age of nanotechnology, Simpson whips up a storyline with more turns than a Grand Prix qualifier that doesn't skimp on insight. The story is thrust into action with satisfactory zeal as the solar system is invaded... and the A.I. returns.

Or does he?

Simpson does a great job of setting the stage before tossing the characters into new light... antagonist-protagonist-antagonist... the plot shifts and morphs as it unfolds all while examining our humanity and place in the universe. His take on our purpose in life -- to wake up the universe -- is invigorating and refreshing.

Trans-human brings science along the way, too. Simpson's development of an advanced species and the hunt for "human nests" is imaginative. But who is the real antagonist?

Perhaps you'll have a good idea at the end.
Profile Image for Michelle.
1,128 reviews15 followers
January 23, 2019
I haven't disliked a book this much in quite some time. I kept hoping the series would improve, but I think it actually got worse by the end. Here's what put me over the edge (one of the characters is named Old-timer ... I could not make this up if I tried):

"Old-timer tried to get up, performing a maneuver reminiscent of a bodybuilder trying to finish one last sit up -- with an exhausted exhale, he failed and fell back against the floor. James gave him his arm and helped him stand back upright. Old-timer kept his right forearm crossed in front of his abdomen and remained hunched over, floating just off the ground in the zero gravity."

Please explain to me how you can fail to stand up, fall back against the floor, and stand upright, all while being in zero gravity.
Profile Image for Brian.
30 reviews8 followers
December 7, 2011
An fast paced adventure with many twist and turns, memorable characters and a surprising ending. This author again demonstrates his writing abilities that left me pondering many theoretical and ethical questions. Instead of focusing on the story I will concentrate on the science that is the building blocks of the book.

As Trans-Human points out, Einstein propelled science probably a couple of hundred years forward for his theories has proven electromagnetic effects, gravity, wormholes and so much more which is all woven into the story. Fast forwarding to the present day era of astounding advancement in nanotechnology and artificial intelligence. On that subject I wonder how far scientist's will proceed and who will have control over technology that could be detrimental to the human race? The government? The military? Scientist's'?

Another very interesting theory presented in the book is the ability to delete a human being and afterwards bring them back to life. Even in forensics a great technician can recover data from a hard drive that has been erased and even damaged.

The author cleverly adds to the plot the ability to travel faster than the speed of light. There is evidence that was revealed after the book was published that the idea is quite possible maybe via subatomic particles.

In Trans-Human, is the A.I. the evil entity that wishes to destroy mankind or is it the nano's that created their own intelligence? I really enjoyed reading this sci-fi thriller and just wish the novel was longer. "(A.I.-More intelligence, more creativity, more perception, leads to greater truth. Limiting our knowledge has only led to stagnation and misery.)" In my humble opinion on the same plateau as C.S. Lewis's sci-fi. Fantastic book! Recommended to any sci-fi fan.
1 review
May 8, 2011
Post-Human was one of my favorite finds so I didn’t want to wait to read Trans-Human. Therefore, I purchased a Kindle version to read on my iPad. Trans-Human didn’t disappoint. I couldn’t put it down!

I don’t want to give away too much, so I am going to try to keep any spoilers to a minimum if I can, but I want to say that I think David Simpson is the best writer I’ve read at weaving a fast-paced story that won’t let you put it down. And by fast, I mean lightning. You find yourself unable to stop, as the action just keeps going and going and the twists and turns just keep coming so fast that it becomes impossible to guess the outcome.

Then, the latter part of the book contains an engrossing theoretical and theological discussion with implications so vast that you can’t put that down either. I read Trans-Human a few days ago now, but I am still thinking about it. It’s one of those books that stays with you.

Sigh. Now the only problem is I have to wait for Simpson’s next book. Whatever it is, I’ll pick it up. He’s my favorite new author :)
Profile Image for Carl Bussema.
164 reviews2 followers
March 4, 2013
The key to good science fiction is setting up a believable "world" (whether single planet, universe, multiverse, whatever), defining "how things work" in your world, and telling a good story that uses the elements of your world, subject to the constrains you have applied. When plausible, it is OK for new elements to be introduced, but some reasonable explanation needs to be offered. I find the elements introduced here to be sorely lacking in such explanation (and/or I did not find the explanation plausible), and this was a very disappointing end to the trilogy. With vague hints of moral choices being made and some whiffs at character development, all set against a completely ridiculous storyline, this was just not the book you're looking for. The ending was perhaps the biggest disappointment of all, and though I'm not doing you any great favors by not spoiling it, I will just say that at least it hopefully means I won't feel obligated to read any more books in this once-but-no-longer-enjoyable series.
18 reviews1 follower
August 8, 2012
Still unbelievable technology.

James as a hero is still annoying.

Very short chapters as compared to the first book.

Fortunately this seems to be a short read.


I had to force myself to get through this book, and basically skimmed the last 5 pages or so, because I was happy to be done.
Profile Image for Heidi.
101 reviews6 followers
September 15, 2015
I have to say, I gave this series the old college try, but about halfway through this book I just couldn't do it anymore.

Book #2 (Post-Human) was by far the best, and does the best as a standalone novel. I struggled through Book #1, the prequel, but after the second book I was ready to give it another go. I particularly enjoyed the number of literary allusions peppered into the writing, hoping that this would place the series a cut above the many wannabees.

But I just couldn't do it.

As other reviewers have noted, the lack of nuance and character development proved to be too much. This series takes on a lot of big questions: the dangers of progress without concern for ethics, well-meaning scientists creating monsters a la Frankenstein, the implications of immortality for human society, etc. I loved the aspect of exploring how immortality would play into marital commitment. I love the Matrix-esque question of how humans could ensure that an AI programmed to be good could remain benevolent. I loved the tension between faith and science, between technological progress and ethical concerns, and the question of what it means to be human. These are all great philosophical questions that could serve as great starting points for a science fiction series.

But I just couldn't stick it through because of how this was all executed. For a novel that looks down so heavily on religion, the writing style sure takes a lot of cues from mythology and religious folklore where heroes can tromp through various situations without learning anything or having to deal with consequences.

The characters are almost cartoonishly conceived- they are drawn to express a specific aspect of the author's fictional world, and they perform exactly as expected, never learning, growing, or displaying any sense of complex thinking.

The plots are devised so that humanity can be wiped out and then brought back to life without any lasting consequence. Seriously? I can take this happening once, but twice??

My advice: read book 2 and enjoy it for the romp that it is, but don't bother with any of the other books in this series.

Profile Image for Sophia Graham.
2 reviews1 follower
May 8, 2011
Trans-Human is the best sci-fi novel I’ve read since its predecessor, Post-Human. Simpson excels like no one else in the writing business today at combining entertainment value with deep, philosophical substance. Not since the original Matrix film has their been a story this fun and, at the same time, this deep.

The original book, Post-Human, set up the concept of its protagonist, James Keats, as a futuristic Jesus character, battling the Artificial Intelligence that was repeatedly compared to Satan. The book could be read as a sort of cyber “Paradise Lost.” This time around, Simpson treats us to a sequel that could be described as the cyber “Revelations,” complete with an anti-christ figure, the reunification of a cyber “holy trinity,” and a version of the “rapture” that will blow you away.

As usual, Simpson’s ability to make all of this extremely fun for a wide audience with his accessible language and reluctance to indulge in self-congratulatory intellectualism ad nauseam, which is the fault with most novels that delve into subjects this deep, will lead most readers to miss how truly literary this book really is. As readers, we seem to believe that a book has to be painful to read for it to be “worthy.” I, for one, am glad that there is at least one sci-fi author out there who really knows how to balance entertainment with substance.

Trans-Human is not only a worthy sequel; it is actually, in my humble opinion, even better than an already exceptional original. Simpson’s career should be a delight to watch unfold.
Profile Image for A.F..
Author 60 books403 followers
May 6, 2011

Trans-Human by David Simpson is an engaging sequel that will delight fans of his book Post-Human. It is a thought-provoking, energetic sci-fi book, with a robust dose of high-octane exploits.

This book carries the story forward after the occurrences in the first book, but it is not a standalone sequel; it does reference Post-Human and I think both novels should be read in sequence. In Trans-Human far-reaching consequences from the events in Post-Human have come calling, looking for the Artificial Intelligence that summoned them. Are they friend or foe? Who is lying, who can be trusted and was the malicious A. I. really defeated?

The first part of the novel is very fast paced; the reader is thrown into action scenes that are pelted at your senses almost to the point of confusion. I say almost, because half-way through the book a revelation transpires that pulls everything into focus and turns the perspective of the narrative. From that point the book extends its reach through the conflict and into an absorbing introspective and theoretical storyline.

I found the book enjoyable and entertaining, nicely balancing the scientific storyline with the characters, both ally and enemy. The novel raises interesting questions about the nature of being, and the ending -if a happy one- poses its own great exploratory uncertainty. So, if you like your science fiction speculative, philosophical, a little theological and action-packed, Trans-Human is the book for you.
Profile Image for Gerold Whittaker.
240 reviews15 followers
February 19, 2012
Continuing right on where Post-Human ended off. It has been 19 months of peace since the rogue AI was deleted. Unknown to James and the Council however, before the AI was deleted it sent a message to an alien ally - which was now on the horizon to answer the call to help. Unable to defend mankind against such a foe, the only solution is evacuation. But as mankind starts to evacuate, it becomes unclear who are enemies and who are friends....

Improbables: An advanced race coming to "rescue" humanity do not have the "frequency of the communication system".

A fast-paced story which will leave you guessing who the real friends are, who the enemy really is, and whether it will be possible for James and the team to save the day yet again...

Quotes:
1) "It's raining men out here! Not hallelujah! Not hallelujah!
2) If a computer is microscopically reversible then it is maximally efficient. (explained later to mean it requires no energy).

There were several allusions: for example Scorched earth policy being an allusion to the policy employed during the Anglo Boer War.

A couple of grammar errors spoiled an otherwise slick e-book (read on my Kindle App).
Profile Image for Fatima.
1 review
May 8, 2011
Wow. I had no idea what to expect with this one. I thought Post-Human was pretty good, so I gave Trans-Human a try. Simpson seems to have gotten even better as a writer. This book is a lot darker than the first one, a lot faster-paced, and a lot more complex. The ending was stunning. I’m not sure what kind of research Simpson did or what his background is, but the concepts at the end were so high-level that I was starting to think he was a genius. Maybe it’s all bull -- the “informational theory of physics” and “building God,” but it was done so well it had me convinced. Is this really possible? If so, holy shit.

The opening was really fast, just like his last book but even faster. I was enjoying it, but when the twists happened about half-way through that cracked the story wide open and answers started coming, the book became way better than just a fun read.

I really liked it. Recommended for anyone who wants an enjoyable read that will mess with your head too.
40 reviews
September 25, 2012
This is a great conclusion to whole series by David Simpson. While the survivors of the tragedy in Post-Human think they have repaired the damage from the earlier tragedy, a new and more dangerous threat is coming towards Earth. James Keats and his friends must determine who is the enemy and how to defeat it. While doing so, he will grow in ways he never thought possible as will the human race. In the end, human intuition and emotion remain superior to any technology created by man. It shows that personal freedom and choice are two of the most important traits a human can have. This is by far, in my opinion, the most thought-provoking book in the series.
Profile Image for Megan.
1,148 reviews6 followers
January 10, 2014
This one was just as bad as the last one. This is really disappointing since the first book was pretty good. The writing felt different than in book 2 and 3. In this book, nothing changed from the second book, the dialogue is still clunky and forced, the characters are extremely flat and boring. I just couldn't keep reading this book, I was bored by the story, not connected to the characters and I just would rather read something else. I will not be reading the fourth book and I am extremely glad that I got these for free or I would be very upset that I wasted my money.
Profile Image for Leanne Sherburne.
9 reviews2 followers
December 8, 2012
I was very disappointed after reading this book. The whole plot almost mimicked the plot of Post-Human and just used different settings. There was so much more the author had the opportunity to do with this trilogy, but instead went with virtually the same plot as the last book and a dumb ending. The ending was awful!
Profile Image for David Jellison.
21 reviews
March 13, 2017
I was not happy with Book 2, with a superhero that saves the planet - but in this book not only the same superhero and supervillain (that somehow survived) but another supervillain appears. I gave up halfway through when I realized I no longer cared about any of the characters anymore - and now could care less what happens in the next 2 books either.
Profile Image for Cheryl Poole-Musgrove.
37 reviews
January 6, 2013


Never a disappointment. This series pulls you in with a high tech vision and plot by the author I would love to see these books become movies. David Simpson is compassionate yet always edgy with his plot and characters live his books!!!
Profile Image for Samantha.
2 reviews
July 12, 2012


I love it and I hope me writing this review shows it! It's so thought out and I always had a idea like it but this is soooo much better! Love it!
Profile Image for Vinu Thomas.
2 reviews4 followers
July 19, 2012
A fast paced Scifi book. Reading a good one after years of staying away from this genre of books. This book doesn't disappoint at all.
Profile Image for Steve.
90 reviews3 followers
April 8, 2014
The plot started out better then the last book, but yet again failed to develop. Eventually, it was too predictable and over-simplified.
Profile Image for Jaime K.
Author 1 book44 followers
April 6, 2025
It's 19 months after the events of Post-Human and just when James and Thel are ready to head back to Earth to admit they've terraformed Venus, the 5 lead post-humans are called to a meeting because there is something heading FAST to earth. It's alien A.I.! No, they're alien androids! They're human!

And it turns out the nanobots are super evil! They can become sentient. So the androids help the Earth humans transcend humanity. Meanwhile almost everyone else is KILLED AGAIN. It's pretty horrific how our humans are turned into androids to save them. BUT WAIT. James linked into cyberspace again and *gasp* turns out the A.I. is actually still alive and is saved in the non-permanently deleted mainframe of the computer. Meanwhile his doppleganger "Jim" is "lovers" with the cyber-Katherine. And Alejandra and Craig are still making moon eyes at each other because of course they are.

The information about different Types of humans, and how carbon-based environments are perfect for sentient life is interesting. But after everything above, at 67% I was ready to mark it DNF. But I was 67% in.
It gets worse because James can BRING EVERYONE BACK because of course he can. And the "purpose of life is to wake up the universe" because what? And the androids don't *actually* have freedom and are controlled by evil technology because of course they are.

The prequel was really good. The second book, meh. This one is even worse. I will
216 reviews1 follower
November 17, 2020
This book was obtained free and was part of a set comprising the first 4 books in the series Post-Human Apocalypse. I have reviewed the books as part of the omnibus edition as well so that people will see the review, whichever way they come across the book. The reviews are the same in both cases. This review also appears on Amazon.

Earth comes under an alien attack where the aliens are trying to save the people on planet Earth from themselves by assimilating them into their culture. But are the problems with Earth that the aliens cite real or is the problem with the aliens themselves? This was an exciting read with lots of twists in the plot that made you want to keep reading to see how it all turned out.
Profile Image for Amy.
1,008 reviews53 followers
November 9, 2017
Trans-Human was simply amazing. I very much appreciated how it was a plot point to explain why the AI's characterization had changed so radically from Sub-Human to Post-Human, as that was a issue that really bothered me while reading Post-Human. All the plot twists throughout Trans-Human made for a book reminiscent of a roller coaster ride (even though I wanted to smack the characters upside the head a lot - take a couple of minutes to stop, explain, and get evrybody on the same page, it would solve a lot of your problems), which made for a book I could hardly put down. This was a great addition to the Post-Human series, and I look forward to moving on to Human Plus.
Profile Image for Sara Cowells.
171 reviews
February 19, 2018
So this is my second time re-reading this series... in less than a year and a half. So obviously I really enjoyed it. This time I read with a more critical eye; and rolled those critical eyes a bit at the leaps my imagination had to take. I loved some parts of this book (like terraforming Venus), but agree with some other reviewers that the character building and storyline seemed flat. Are they dead, not dead? Are they friend or foe? Somehow the writing seemed more disjointed and the luster faded than when I read it the first time. Maybe I wasn’t into it because I was juggling reading other things. Whatever the case, instead of finishing the series like before, I stopped here.
187 reviews2 followers
April 22, 2022
As the first two books, the story is an action pact story of survival that is fast pace. Since it is a science fiction story has a lot of made up science that explain the imposibble into possible. The only think I did not like is more personal believe, I don't understand why the author has a need for putting married men or women having relationship with people they work with. What a cliché. Otherwise, only if you really like science fiction you will.like the story. There are people giving the book bad review because the book is not realistic but science fiction is anything but realistic and that is something the author work really well.
Profile Image for Kenneth Clark.
61 reviews
August 22, 2017
Good fun

This series has every science fiction trope in it and the action comes at you like a deluge from a fire hose. This installment of the franchise does not disappoint. Once again all of humanity is in danger of complete annihilation. Once again the cast of characters that I have grown to care about have to overcome incredible challenges as they race to save our solar system from destruction. Although the language can get a bit stilted, the author does bring up some interesting ideas and explores them from an interesting perspective. I can't wait to read the next book!
Profile Image for Michael.
Author 168 books38 followers
September 18, 2017
I judge my science fiction based upon a modified version of the Baen criteria, and for this one I was looking at is the technology something I can understand, is the storyline plausible (especially in light of the technology), and was it an overall good read. I think Mr. Simpson hits it on most of those fronts, but without having a spoiler I will call b.s. on about the last 15% of the story line - it gets a little crazy and some of it is a big stretch of the imagination - and book 2 of the series is a little bit of a comedown from book 1 which I thought was very good.
Profile Image for Holly Canfield.
30 reviews
September 13, 2020
A continuation of the battle for human survival. This is the 3rd book in the series (counting from the prequel, book 1 and now this book). This series has been remarkably spellbinding for me. Trans-Human went in a very unexpected direction than what I expected. It’s a bit interesting to read an argument about whether AI is inherently dangerous or whether it can be a great thing for humanity. I will be continuing reading this series. 4/5 because although intriguing, the same arguments have begun to crop up again and again.
Profile Image for Virginia Night.
552 reviews9 followers
July 11, 2017
Great series

A delightful read. I recommend this author whose style and prose is interesting and engaging. I'm looking forward to reading more. Each book is entirely unique story line yet seemingly interconnected. I am vastly impressed by this author's ideas and ingenuity and spectacular imagination. I don't predict "what's next" or what the ending will be like which is so uncommon and refreshing. Thank you
Displaying 1 - 30 of 123 reviews

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