Redemption

Bloodlight Chronicles #3

by Steve Stanton

The conclusion of the epic sci-fi series, set in a world of cloning, artificial intelligence, and battles in a virtual realm . . . A new blood-transmitted virus has become a black market staple due to its rejuvenating effects, forcing infected “Eternals” into a tightly knit underground where they must hack the “V-net” for food and shelter. When the leader of the Eternals, Helena Sharp, begins to lose her immortality, she flees to an old lover for strength and solace, as the entire Eternal community is thrown into chaos. Meanwhile, young clone Niko discovers the truth about her gifted daughter ― who carries the future heritage of humanity in her augmented DNA. This knowledge forces Niko to confront her progenitor, Phillip Davis, with a litany of experimental abuse ― only to discover that Phillip has fully integrated his persona with the AI monster who controls V-space. With the aid of the charismatic avatar Philomena, he embarks on a program of manipulation and control that will redefine the boundaries of death and consciousness. Advancing the post-cyberpunk genre into new territory, this compelling series delves into intriguing questions of religion, God, family, and the universe’s central source of life.

Genres: Science Fiction, Fiction

252 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2012

About the author

Steve Stanton writes science fiction novels about the future of the human brain, artificial intelligence, transhumanist immortality, and the mystery of consciousness. His short stories have been published in sixteen countries in a dozen languages, spanning categories from cyberpunk to space opera. A trilogy of novels, The Bloodlight Chronicles, was published by ECW Press in Toronto from 2010 to 2012. His fourth novel, Freenet, is now available in bookstores and libraries!

Reviews

[Patrick Hayes · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good Cyberpunk novel. I came in having never read the previous books and did not feel lost. There are several characters running about in various stories but all converge in the end to a satisfying conclusion. With this many characters, at the end of a trilogy, some characters and their stories are more interesting than others, and that was the case with me. There is a reveal in Chapter 9 that destroyed any possibility of threat for several, and perhaps more, characters. The scene works, but as I thought about it, it did hurt my caring for a few protagonists. Still, a good novel that's written for adults that's not a space opera, but a solid drama that tackles some big questions: life, death, religion, destiny, etc. Worth checking out.

[Elven Johnson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dynamic read with other world thought patterns. A story of what others will do for each other with a touch of us vs. them. I was lost at first due to the tech speak but quickly picked up the lingo & understood. Nice flow of writing, a good give & take of characters.


I won this book from Goodreads.com as part of the first-reads giveaway.

[David]

It was amazing

[K. Counihan · Rating 3 out of 5]

OK End to the Series

The battle with the Beast, or the AI, never really was attained. The Eternals lead by Helena Sharp and the Eternal Research Institute were destroyed by the Vampires. This leaves clone Niko , teenage Eternal Rix , and Jimmy Kay the hacker to fight the A I or Beast.