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HYPER
It's been over thirty years since The Outbreak, when an Ebola vaccine contaminated by a mysterious viral mutation caused more than 99% of the world male population to contract Male Estrus Syndrome - MES - a condition which renders men impotent except for a few days during the year.
Fifteen year old Aiden Stevens is one of a tiny handful of males who is not only unaffected by the virus, but possesses a heightened sex drive – along with a constant output of pheromones which incite lust in nearly all the women around him. As a young student accustomed to being ignored by the "beautiful people" in high school, Aiden is ill-prepared for his swift rise to stardom and the lascivious interest of girls and women everywhere.
When he accepts a lucrative offer to be studied by his mother's employer, the biotech giant, CellEvolve, Inc., Aiden battles jealous female scientists, power-hungry executives, government agencies, and his own conscience as experiments on his body lead to a breakthrough in the treatment of MES that promises to change the world.
Fifteen year old Aiden Stevens is one of a tiny handful of males who is not only unaffected by the virus, but possesses a heightened sex drive – along with a constant output of pheromones which incite lust in nearly all the women around him. As a young student accustomed to being ignored by the "beautiful people" in high school, Aiden is ill-prepared for his swift rise to stardom and the lascivious interest of girls and women everywhere.
When he accepts a lucrative offer to be studied by his mother's employer, the biotech giant, CellEvolve, Inc., Aiden battles jealous female scientists, power-hungry executives, government agencies, and his own conscience as experiments on his body lead to a breakthrough in the treatment of MES that promises to change the world.
278 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 16, 2015
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February 3, 2017
HYPER imagines the world 30 years in the future where a mutated Ebola vaccine has caused a worldwide pandemic rendering all males impotent and libido-less except for 3 or 4 days every few months when they enter an estrus-like state (MES). Everyone except one in 160,000 called "Hypers" because they are constantly exuding super powerful pheromones that make them irresistible to women as well as endowing them with endless sexual stamina and desire, as well as above average strength and speed. Sounds like a dream, especially if you are one Aiden Stevens, a 15 year old very brainy former nerd who suddenly discovers that he'a a Hyper. Aiden proceeds to do exactly what any 15 year old finding himself in the same situation would do, in the process getting himself and a few girls and women in trouble with their boyfriends and the law, which now strictly forbids certain relationships between underage males and females of all ages.
Aiden's mother works for CellEvolve, a Big Pharma biotech that is trying to develop a cure for MES. She had a big role in the development of a drug that reduces the irresistible pheromone production, albeit with unpleasant side effects, but which is required if Aiden is to continue to attend High School. As Hypers are so rare, CellEvolve is naturally eager to experiment on Aiden and makes him a deal neither he nor his mother can refuse. These eventually result in a breakthrough, although one that is not risk free.
Aiden becomes friendly with a pro basketball player who is also a Hyper, who kind of adopts Aiden as whisked brother and helps him through the trials and tribulations of growing up Hyper, and well as opening some of the outrageous sums of money that CellEvolve pays him for his copious scientific "donations", and later, his role as a pheromone exuding piece of eye (and nose) candy to help sell a new start-up company.
The writing is good, as it has been for all the Ambrose novels that I have read, and the plot novel and interesting. Ambrose manages to tell a story that is principally about sex without any scenes of explicit sex, and somehow still make it interesting. That's a pretty neat trick. One still manages to get vicarious enjoyment from Aiden's (undescribed) adventures between the sheets as well as his shiny new BMW and other perks that come with being a Hyper in a world of normals.
I have a few criticisms, however. The "Outbreak" took place 30 years from the present in the story. If that means that it takes place in 2046, there is no evidence of any advancements in technology. The world, and the people in it seem exactly like they do today. There are some appropriate references to SF novels and authors (that I've resd) that are very current and a few that are clearly at least a bit in the future (but not 30 years). So I could never quite figure out when exactly this story takes place. Secondly, it is becomes pretty clear, but not until past the 90% mark, that HYPER cannot be a stand-alone novel, and the reader is left feeling a little like I imagine Aiden does most of the time, when the last page comes around and the dreaded "Sequel coming Spring 2017" appears.
All-in-all, a light, fun read, and of course, I will be around for the sequel.
Recommended.
JM Tepper
Aiden's mother works for CellEvolve, a Big Pharma biotech that is trying to develop a cure for MES. She had a big role in the development of a drug that reduces the irresistible pheromone production, albeit with unpleasant side effects, but which is required if Aiden is to continue to attend High School. As Hypers are so rare, CellEvolve is naturally eager to experiment on Aiden and makes him a deal neither he nor his mother can refuse. These eventually result in a breakthrough, although one that is not risk free.
Aiden becomes friendly with a pro basketball player who is also a Hyper, who kind of adopts Aiden as whisked brother and helps him through the trials and tribulations of growing up Hyper, and well as opening some of the outrageous sums of money that CellEvolve pays him for his copious scientific "donations", and later, his role as a pheromone exuding piece of eye (and nose) candy to help sell a new start-up company.
The writing is good, as it has been for all the Ambrose novels that I have read, and the plot novel and interesting. Ambrose manages to tell a story that is principally about sex without any scenes of explicit sex, and somehow still make it interesting. That's a pretty neat trick. One still manages to get vicarious enjoyment from Aiden's (undescribed) adventures between the sheets as well as his shiny new BMW and other perks that come with being a Hyper in a world of normals.
I have a few criticisms, however. The "Outbreak" took place 30 years from the present in the story. If that means that it takes place in 2046, there is no evidence of any advancements in technology. The world, and the people in it seem exactly like they do today. There are some appropriate references to SF novels and authors (that I've resd) that are very current and a few that are clearly at least a bit in the future (but not 30 years). So I could never quite figure out when exactly this story takes place. Secondly, it is becomes pretty clear, but not until past the 90% mark, that HYPER cannot be a stand-alone novel, and the reader is left feeling a little like I imagine Aiden does most of the time, when the last page comes around and the dreaded "Sequel coming Spring 2017" appears.
All-in-all, a light, fun read, and of course, I will be around for the sequel.
Recommended.
JM Tepper
Displaying 1 of 1 review