What do you think?
Rate this book
Blue Friday
Dystopian science fiction, Blue Friday tells of a future where many live in fear of the Family Protection Agency, a special police division enforcing the strict legislation that has been introduced to protect the family unit. Combining dark humour with a vision of the future that is almost an inverse of the classic dystopian nightmare of 1984, the latest novel from Mike French follows in the tradition of great Speculative Fiction satirists such as Jonathan Swift. In Blue Friday, overtime for married couples is banned, there is enforced viewing of family television (much of it repeats of old shows from the sixties and seventies), monitored family meal-times and a coming of age where twenty-five year-olds are automatically assigned a spouse by the state computer if they have failed to marry. Only the Overtime Underground network resists. Mike's novel is thoughtful, while at the same time prompting a wry smile in the reader. It reverses the usual dystopian vision of a future regime driven by productivity and industrial output at the expense of family, demonstrating that the converse may be no better.
208 pages, Paperback
First published August 31, 2012
24 people want to read
About the author
Mike French
50 books171 followersMike’s debut novel, The Ascent of Isaac Steward came out in 2011 with Cauliay Publishing and was nominated for The Galaxy National Book Awards which due to an unfortunate clerical error was awarded to Dawn French.
Mike's second novel a dsytopian sci-fi called Blue Friday was released in 2012 by Elsewhen Press and was nominated for the Arthur C. Clarke award 2013. Convergence, his third book, was released in October 2013 from Elsewhen Press and was nominated for the Arthur C. Clarke award 2014.
In Nov 2015 Elsewhen Press published Mike's hybrid novel & graphic novel called An Android Awakes with artist Karl Brown.
The sequel Fictional Alignment was published in paperback April 2018.
Mike was also the senior editor and owner of The View From Here literary magazine which closed in Nov 2014.
Mike's second novel a dsytopian sci-fi called Blue Friday was released in 2012 by Elsewhen Press and was nominated for the Arthur C. Clarke award 2013. Convergence, his third book, was released in October 2013 from Elsewhen Press and was nominated for the Arthur C. Clarke award 2014.
In Nov 2015 Elsewhen Press published Mike's hybrid novel & graphic novel called An Android Awakes with artist Karl Brown.
The sequel Fictional Alignment was published in paperback April 2018.
Mike was also the senior editor and owner of The View From Here literary magazine which closed in Nov 2014.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
October 17, 2012
Originally published at Risingshadow.
Mike French's Blue Friday is dystopian science fiction. It's a clever, shocking and darkly humorous story about a near future society in which society has gone too far to protect family values and family time. The author has managed to create a disturbing vision about a possible future where the state controls people and their lives.
Here's a bit of information about the society in Blue Friday:
The year is 2034. A person has to be married before the age of 25 or he/she will have to agree to an arranged marriage. Working overtime is illegal and if a person is found working overtime, the agents of the Family Protection Agency will take care of the workers. People have to watch re-runs of old family friendly TV shows. Although things have gone too far, there's hope for the people, because Leviticus, Covenant and the Overtime Underground Network help people to work overtime.
And here's a bit of information about the characters:
The main character is Trent aka Leviticus. He kills the previous Leviticus and becomes a hunted man. He and his girlfriend, Keturah, go into hiding and become almost like Adam and Eve. Trent secretly works against the state and their overtime policy. Covenant is a flirty computer/artificial intelligence. Covenant helps Trent and also causes tension between Trent and Keturah.
I found it interesting that Mike French wrote about a futuristic Adam and Eve situation in this book (Trent and Keturah can clearly be seen as modern Adam and Eve in a future society). This biblical situation is explored in an interesting way, because Trent and Keturah live in isolation.
It was also interesting that Mike French's previous book, The Ascent of Isaac Steward, was mentioned in this book. I haven't read it, but I think I'll read it soon, because I like the author's sense of humour and his sharp writing style.
In my opinion Mike French writes fluently and fascinatingly about a disturbing future society where people have to obey the state or they will suffer for their actions. The author's vision of the future is bleak, because people are totally controlled by the state and have almost no free will in several matters. Forced marriages, working strictly from nine to five and family friendly TV shows determine how people live their lives.
By writing about this kind of a society the author makes his readers question if they could live in a totally controlled society. I can mention that I couldn't live in a society where almost every important decision was made for me, could you?
What makes this book especially interesting is that Mike French blends reality and fantasy successfully. The events are fascinating in their weirdness and the author keeps things interesting by blurring the line between reality and fantasy.
I'm not sure if Men in Black and The Matrix have been an inspiration to Mike French, but it's very likely that they have been an inspiration to him, because the agents, Mr. Stone and Mr. Brittle reminded me a bit of the agents in Men in Black and The Matrix. (I think that other readers will agree with me on this, because it's almost impossible not to think of Men in Black and The Matrix when you read about the agents.)
George Orwell's 1984 can also be seen as a source of inspiration to the author. Douglas Adams' The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy books (The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy; The Restaurant at the End of the Universe; Life, the Universe and Everything; So Long, and Thanks for All the Fish and Mostly Harmless) may have also been an inspiration to the author, because this book contains similar kind of writing style.
Blue Friday is a welcome addition to the dystopian science fiction genre. I'm sure that readers will find it interesting, because reading about a nightmarish future society is fascinating. Blue Friday is a fast and enjoyable read and it gives you something to think about.
Mike French's Blue Friday is dystopian science fiction. It's a clever, shocking and darkly humorous story about a near future society in which society has gone too far to protect family values and family time. The author has managed to create a disturbing vision about a possible future where the state controls people and their lives.
Here's a bit of information about the society in Blue Friday:
The year is 2034. A person has to be married before the age of 25 or he/she will have to agree to an arranged marriage. Working overtime is illegal and if a person is found working overtime, the agents of the Family Protection Agency will take care of the workers. People have to watch re-runs of old family friendly TV shows. Although things have gone too far, there's hope for the people, because Leviticus, Covenant and the Overtime Underground Network help people to work overtime.
And here's a bit of information about the characters:
The main character is Trent aka Leviticus. He kills the previous Leviticus and becomes a hunted man. He and his girlfriend, Keturah, go into hiding and become almost like Adam and Eve. Trent secretly works against the state and their overtime policy. Covenant is a flirty computer/artificial intelligence. Covenant helps Trent and also causes tension between Trent and Keturah.
I found it interesting that Mike French wrote about a futuristic Adam and Eve situation in this book (Trent and Keturah can clearly be seen as modern Adam and Eve in a future society). This biblical situation is explored in an interesting way, because Trent and Keturah live in isolation.
It was also interesting that Mike French's previous book, The Ascent of Isaac Steward, was mentioned in this book. I haven't read it, but I think I'll read it soon, because I like the author's sense of humour and his sharp writing style.
In my opinion Mike French writes fluently and fascinatingly about a disturbing future society where people have to obey the state or they will suffer for their actions. The author's vision of the future is bleak, because people are totally controlled by the state and have almost no free will in several matters. Forced marriages, working strictly from nine to five and family friendly TV shows determine how people live their lives.
By writing about this kind of a society the author makes his readers question if they could live in a totally controlled society. I can mention that I couldn't live in a society where almost every important decision was made for me, could you?
What makes this book especially interesting is that Mike French blends reality and fantasy successfully. The events are fascinating in their weirdness and the author keeps things interesting by blurring the line between reality and fantasy.
I'm not sure if Men in Black and The Matrix have been an inspiration to Mike French, but it's very likely that they have been an inspiration to him, because the agents, Mr. Stone and Mr. Brittle reminded me a bit of the agents in Men in Black and The Matrix. (I think that other readers will agree with me on this, because it's almost impossible not to think of Men in Black and The Matrix when you read about the agents.)
George Orwell's 1984 can also be seen as a source of inspiration to the author. Douglas Adams' The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy books (The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy; The Restaurant at the End of the Universe; Life, the Universe and Everything; So Long, and Thanks for All the Fish and Mostly Harmless) may have also been an inspiration to the author, because this book contains similar kind of writing style.
Blue Friday is a welcome addition to the dystopian science fiction genre. I'm sure that readers will find it interesting, because reading about a nightmarish future society is fascinating. Blue Friday is a fast and enjoyable read and it gives you something to think about.
Read
September 3, 2012It’s 2034 and the pendulum has swung so far in the direction of "family-values" that overtime is banned, anyone unmarried at twenty five is assigned a spouse, and the Family Protection Agency is on the lookout for those who are working in the holidays or past the sanctioned time, sometimes with violent consequences. On the flipside of this is Leviticus, leader of the Overtime Underground Network, encouraging and enabling those who love their jobs and want to work just a bit longer than 9-5. Mike French’s Blue Friday is a science fiction that draws on George Orwell’s 1984 to show a society gone mad. Though written in a light-hearted farcical way, the novel takes a hard look at state sanctioned control and the way in which it perverts even the most humanistic of subjects (such as work-life balance and “family values”).
Blue Friday vacillates between black humour, which can be very funny indeed, and the cognitive dissonance of an unlikely dystopia which is all too familiar. The story walks a fine line between deep psychology and light-hearted farce, especially the episodes with the Mr Men styled Mr Brittle and Mr Stone, as well as the prevalence of old-fashioned state-sanctioned television shows like “Bewitched” and “The Generation Game”.
As with French’s first novel The Ascent of Issac Stewart, Old Testament references abound in Blue Friday. The main protagonist is Leviticus, aka Trent, who, after killing the previous Leviticus, goes into hiding with his girlfriend Keturah, attempting to continue his “workaholism is freedom” crusade against the state. Driving Leviticus' actions is Covenant, a bodiless ubiquitous flirty computer. As the tension between Keturah and Covenant grows, we begin to wonder just who Covenant is, and where the story will end. The overall effect of this strange dance between humans and computers, especially as it manifests itself in Trent's psyche, is chilling.
Keeping the Biblical themes going, an Adam and Eve subtext is revealed in the alternative reality of Avodah, which means “work” in Hebrew. French’s previous book The Ascent of Issac Steward makes a reappearance in the form of the Dandelion Tree. As with The Ascent of Issac Steward, it’s sometimes difficult for the reader to work out what is the dominant reality and what is fantasy in Blue Friday, however, to a certain extent the distinctions don't matter. After all, this isn’t meant to be taken too seriously. Instead this clever, beautifully written story takes the notion of “family friendly working hours” and work-life balance and follows the idea to a terrifying conclusion. Blue Friday is an enjoyable read that will leave the reader guessing.
Article first published as Book Review: Blue Friday by Mike French on Blogcritics.
Blue Friday vacillates between black humour, which can be very funny indeed, and the cognitive dissonance of an unlikely dystopia which is all too familiar. The story walks a fine line between deep psychology and light-hearted farce, especially the episodes with the Mr Men styled Mr Brittle and Mr Stone, as well as the prevalence of old-fashioned state-sanctioned television shows like “Bewitched” and “The Generation Game”.
As with French’s first novel The Ascent of Issac Stewart, Old Testament references abound in Blue Friday. The main protagonist is Leviticus, aka Trent, who, after killing the previous Leviticus, goes into hiding with his girlfriend Keturah, attempting to continue his “workaholism is freedom” crusade against the state. Driving Leviticus' actions is Covenant, a bodiless ubiquitous flirty computer. As the tension between Keturah and Covenant grows, we begin to wonder just who Covenant is, and where the story will end. The overall effect of this strange dance between humans and computers, especially as it manifests itself in Trent's psyche, is chilling.
Keeping the Biblical themes going, an Adam and Eve subtext is revealed in the alternative reality of Avodah, which means “work” in Hebrew. French’s previous book The Ascent of Issac Steward makes a reappearance in the form of the Dandelion Tree. As with The Ascent of Issac Steward, it’s sometimes difficult for the reader to work out what is the dominant reality and what is fantasy in Blue Friday, however, to a certain extent the distinctions don't matter. After all, this isn’t meant to be taken too seriously. Instead this clever, beautifully written story takes the notion of “family friendly working hours” and work-life balance and follows the idea to a terrifying conclusion. Blue Friday is an enjoyable read that will leave the reader guessing.
Article first published as Book Review: Blue Friday by Mike French on Blogcritics.
August 5, 2015
Blue Friday is a very enjoyable, and sometimes disturbing, dystopian novel set in a near future where overtime is banned and anyone who lingers at work after hours is in danger of instant and violent capital punishment. The characters are well drawn and interesting, particularly Mr Stone and Mr Brittle, and the satirical humour works very well. I particularly like the references to 1980s TV shows. A very good and entertaining novel.
March 31, 2013
A strange surreal dreamlike existance. Nothing in this is as it seems. The govt controls everything. Overtime is banned. Family time obligatory. The underground fight for freedom ...but what is freedom? Does anyone really have control of their own destiny? Who is really free? Where does happiness lie, and what must you risk to achieve it?
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews