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DRMR #2
Emergence
SOME MEMORIES ARE BETTER LEFT FORGOTTEN Still recovering from the events that befell her in Los Angeles, Mesa Everitt is learning how to rebuild her life. The murder of a memorialist enclave changes all of that and sets into motion a series of violence that forces her into hiding. Hunted by a squad of corporate mercenaries, with the lives of her friends and family in danger, Mesa has no one to turn to, but she holds a dark secret inside her skull. She has no knowledge of that secret, but it is worth killing for. The ghosts of her haunted, forgotten past are about to emerge. Emergence is the second novel in the DRMR series.
- GenresScience Fiction
414 pages, Kindle Edition
First published April 29, 2015
About the author
Michael Patrick Hicks
38 books512 followersMichael Patrick Hicks is the author of several horror books, including the Salem Hawley series and Friday Night Massacre. His debut novel, Convergence, was an Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award Finalist in science fiction, and his short stories have appeared in more than a dozen anthologies.
You can find Michael’s books on Amazon in print, ebook, and audiobook at http://viewauthor.at/MichaelPatrickHicks.
Connect with Michael at:
Website: http://michaelpatrickhicks.com
BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/michaelpatri...
You can find Michael’s books on Amazon in print, ebook, and audiobook at http://viewauthor.at/MichaelPatrickHicks.
Connect with Michael at:
Website: http://michaelpatrickhicks.com
BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/michaelpatri...
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
November 29, 2020
I'm having a hard time decided on a rating for this book, flipping between a 3 and a 4, which means I'm probably overthinking it. On the one hand, I did enjoy it, while I was reading it. It's action-packed, violent, and has some pretty cool SF concepts such as nanomachines that cause accelerated healing allowing Mesa to take unbelievable amounts of damage, and then recover. The body swapping was interesting, although obviously a subject that has been dealt with in SF for many decades now. I liked that Hicks killed off the main character from the previous novel early, and more importantly didn't bring him back in some kind of misguided plot twist. There was some good commentary on current political trends towards fascism.
On the other hand there were some duds in the prose like the repeated use of the phrase "toward center mass" and then the utterly cliched "All right bitch, let's do this" that Mesa said right near the end. I guess I'll just follow my usual habit and round up.
Here's a couple of my favorite quotes:
On the other hand there were some duds in the prose like the repeated use of the phrase "toward center mass" and then the utterly cliched "All right bitch, let's do this" that Mesa said right near the end. I guess I'll just follow my usual habit and round up.
Here's a couple of my favorite quotes:
The good old boys would probably show Kaizhou some traditional Christian love and have him drawn and quartered then fed to the pigs.
They claimed to be the last bastion of American freedom fighters, but in reality, they were nothing more than zealots and child killers.
May 7, 2015
With the state Mesa was in at the end of Convergence, I really didn't know what to expect from her or the direction her story would take in Emergence. Turns out I shouldn't have worried - Mesa is a real bad-ass and can hold her own with just about anyone.
I really enjoyed the futuristic world the author has created in this series - it's not so advanced that it's difficult to understand; in fact, it's fairly easy to foresee some of the technology existing in the future. Numerous times I've heard 'make your setting work for you" and it's something I think was done well in this book, especially during the action sequences.
The energetic pacing made it near impossible to put this book down, because I had to know what happened next. Some returning characters from Convergence surprised me and there were others I would have liked to see more of, but that's part of what made the storyline twisty and unpredictable.
Emergence is a sci-fi thriller I highly recommend and hope the author has plans to continue Mesa's story.
I received an ARC of this book from the author in exchange for an honest review.
I really enjoyed the futuristic world the author has created in this series - it's not so advanced that it's difficult to understand; in fact, it's fairly easy to foresee some of the technology existing in the future. Numerous times I've heard 'make your setting work for you" and it's something I think was done well in this book, especially during the action sequences.
The energetic pacing made it near impossible to put this book down, because I had to know what happened next. Some returning characters from Convergence surprised me and there were others I would have liked to see more of, but that's part of what made the storyline twisty and unpredictable.
Emergence is a sci-fi thriller I highly recommend and hope the author has plans to continue Mesa's story.
I received an ARC of this book from the author in exchange for an honest review.
June 20, 2018
Emergence by Michael Patrick hicks.
Messa Everett is learning how to rebuild her life after Events that befell her in Los Angeles. She is forced into hiding. HUNTED by a squad of corporate mercenaries. With the lives of her friends and family in danger, she has no one to turn to but she holds a dark secret locked in her mind. She has no knowledge of that secret but is it worth killing for?
A fantastic read. I loved the story and the characters. Messa was my favourite character. I didn't see that coming. I liked the ending too. 5*.
Messa Everett is learning how to rebuild her life after Events that befell her in Los Angeles. She is forced into hiding. HUNTED by a squad of corporate mercenaries. With the lives of her friends and family in danger, she has no one to turn to but she holds a dark secret locked in her mind. She has no knowledge of that secret but is it worth killing for?
A fantastic read. I loved the story and the characters. Messa was my favourite character. I didn't see that coming. I liked the ending too. 5*.
May 13, 2015
From the very first line, I knew that Hicks had gone from the four starts of book one, to that elusive five. "Sex and death flowed freely, amped up across the nightclub's bio-fi." Could there possibly be a more intriguing first line?
Everything that I loved from the first book was here in full force--intriguing premise, realistic character reactions and growth, kick-ass action. What's more, the character relationships gained that depth that I felt was lacking in book one. The hacktivists and memoralists were super cool, and as a main POV character, Mesa was awesome. As much as I loved Jonah in Convergence, Mesa really is where it's at for me. She's got miles of growing to do, and I was only too happy to come along for the ride. She seriously turns into a fantastic action hero lead, and she gets all the snappy one-liners. If this book were a movie (and, oh, could it ever be!), she would have the baddest music playing in the background for all of her scenes.
Without giving away too much, let me just say that I greatly enjoyed the battle in chapter 26, both for what it was, and as a particularly clever device. The setting of this battle (ugh, so hard to not give spoilers here!) was so perfect for this world. It's got a larger, deeper meaning when looked at in light of the overall premise, and I just thought that was so damn clever of Hicks.
If you even half-way enjoyed Convergence, you need to read this book. I guarantee it will sell you on the series.
Everything that I loved from the first book was here in full force--intriguing premise, realistic character reactions and growth, kick-ass action. What's more, the character relationships gained that depth that I felt was lacking in book one. The hacktivists and memoralists were super cool, and as a main POV character, Mesa was awesome. As much as I loved Jonah in Convergence, Mesa really is where it's at for me. She's got miles of growing to do, and I was only too happy to come along for the ride. She seriously turns into a fantastic action hero lead, and she gets all the snappy one-liners. If this book were a movie (and, oh, could it ever be!), she would have the baddest music playing in the background for all of her scenes.
Without giving away too much, let me just say that I greatly enjoyed the battle in chapter 26, both for what it was, and as a particularly clever device. The setting of this battle (ugh, so hard to not give spoilers here!) was so perfect for this world. It's got a larger, deeper meaning when looked at in light of the overall premise, and I just thought that was so damn clever of Hicks.
If you even half-way enjoyed Convergence, you need to read this book. I guarantee it will sell you on the series.
May 19, 2015
Emergence delivers what it promises: a book driven by action as the manhunt for Mesa Everitt and what’s inside her head ensues. The sequel to the authors debut Convergence has a completely different pace - one centred more around the action than the story behind why things are happening.
During his promotion of the book, the author wrote on his website ‘... if you’re looking for an intergalactic war with aliens and spaceships…well, I’m sorry to disappoint. But, I hope you’ll give my brand of sci-fi a shot, too. There’s plenty of terrorism, back-stabbing, kidnapping, violence, and mayhem to foot the bill.’ Anyone who bought the book after reading that description of it should find themselves quite happy with it. Hick’s brand of science fiction is filled with the kind of futuristic concepts that I personally love (memory recording, body-swapping and ‘medichines’ just to name a few.) Plug in a strong female lead with issues about her past and set her against the corporations running the show and there’s the basis for what Emergence turned out to be: a fast read with a central character there’s plenty of reason to root for.
Emergence is well crafted and has certainly been polished by good editing and (writer’s head firmly on here) I get the feeling a fair amount of it hit the cutting room floor to get the required pace, especially in the action scenes. Once again, anyone who wants to see self publishing done well, reader or writer, should check Emergence and its predecessor out.
Where Emergence falls short of a four star review for me is that the further I read, the more I felt like I was reading an action movie script adapted for novel form. Well written though it is, the action became relentless and the plot formulaic. One character (no spoilers) was killed in a way I found a little too convenient for the killer and the omnipresent technology wizards in the background provided a lot of the solutions to the problems. Not that I wasn’t entertained throughout, but the reflection and the changes in pace that filled Convergence were largely missing from its sequel. What filled it instead were the kind of fight scenes where the author was clearly enjoying the bloodlust (and let’s face it I can’t exactly criticise someone for this!) but I as the reader ended up asking how much of a beating one human body could realistically take, even in a futuristic setting where a healthy dose of modern medical tech would explain the endurance and the fast recoveries. By the last third of the book I was thinking ‘Here she goes again!’ and feeling like the outcome was a little too inevitable.
The biggest saving grace in Emergence was the author’s introduction of new locations and the description of atmospheres. Just when I thought the action was going to roll for the rest of the book, a brand new place was introduced (I’ll resist details even though it wouldn’t spoil the plot) and things did slow down for a while. Mesa as the central focus of the third person narrative did get some well needed attention on her thoughts and feelings and the moral dilemmas of her life in general as she moves from one vividly created place to another, and at times I felt the almost literary feel of Emergence come back. Once the action was over there was a satisfying epilogue that if anything I would have liked to have seen drawn out with a little more detail (I can’t really say what...spoilers again) and there’s certainly room for another book in the series although I’m quietly hoping that if the author writes it, it doesn’t go down the most obvious track.
Emergence would perhaps make a better film than it does a novel (for me anyway) but there’s plenty to like here, and if you found Convergence to be a little slow in places with too many info dumps then its sequel will probably leave you feeling a lot more satisfied. My own two cents is that the former book gave me more food for thought and shows more of what Hicks can do as a storyteller rather than an action technician.
During his promotion of the book, the author wrote on his website ‘... if you’re looking for an intergalactic war with aliens and spaceships…well, I’m sorry to disappoint. But, I hope you’ll give my brand of sci-fi a shot, too. There’s plenty of terrorism, back-stabbing, kidnapping, violence, and mayhem to foot the bill.’ Anyone who bought the book after reading that description of it should find themselves quite happy with it. Hick’s brand of science fiction is filled with the kind of futuristic concepts that I personally love (memory recording, body-swapping and ‘medichines’ just to name a few.) Plug in a strong female lead with issues about her past and set her against the corporations running the show and there’s the basis for what Emergence turned out to be: a fast read with a central character there’s plenty of reason to root for.
Emergence is well crafted and has certainly been polished by good editing and (writer’s head firmly on here) I get the feeling a fair amount of it hit the cutting room floor to get the required pace, especially in the action scenes. Once again, anyone who wants to see self publishing done well, reader or writer, should check Emergence and its predecessor out.
Where Emergence falls short of a four star review for me is that the further I read, the more I felt like I was reading an action movie script adapted for novel form. Well written though it is, the action became relentless and the plot formulaic. One character (no spoilers) was killed in a way I found a little too convenient for the killer and the omnipresent technology wizards in the background provided a lot of the solutions to the problems. Not that I wasn’t entertained throughout, but the reflection and the changes in pace that filled Convergence were largely missing from its sequel. What filled it instead were the kind of fight scenes where the author was clearly enjoying the bloodlust (and let’s face it I can’t exactly criticise someone for this!) but I as the reader ended up asking how much of a beating one human body could realistically take, even in a futuristic setting where a healthy dose of modern medical tech would explain the endurance and the fast recoveries. By the last third of the book I was thinking ‘Here she goes again!’ and feeling like the outcome was a little too inevitable.
The biggest saving grace in Emergence was the author’s introduction of new locations and the description of atmospheres. Just when I thought the action was going to roll for the rest of the book, a brand new place was introduced (I’ll resist details even though it wouldn’t spoil the plot) and things did slow down for a while. Mesa as the central focus of the third person narrative did get some well needed attention on her thoughts and feelings and the moral dilemmas of her life in general as she moves from one vividly created place to another, and at times I felt the almost literary feel of Emergence come back. Once the action was over there was a satisfying epilogue that if anything I would have liked to have seen drawn out with a little more detail (I can’t really say what...spoilers again) and there’s certainly room for another book in the series although I’m quietly hoping that if the author writes it, it doesn’t go down the most obvious track.
Emergence would perhaps make a better film than it does a novel (for me anyway) but there’s plenty to like here, and if you found Convergence to be a little slow in places with too many info dumps then its sequel will probably leave you feeling a lot more satisfied. My own two cents is that the former book gave me more food for thought and shows more of what Hicks can do as a storyteller rather than an action technician.
November 28, 2015
I enjoyed the first book in the series and this sequel continues the story well. I'm quite interested in the various concepts of transhumanism and in particular the cybernetic aspects and these are explored in an interesting fashion in this book.
The concepts provide a framework for the story, but the focus is on the lead character - Mesa. It has a fugitive feel as she is chased from her life, but not really knowing why. It's a fast paced tale and it keeps the pressure on throughout - except for the end, which felt a little flat after the relentless pace of the bulk of the story.
It really captured the feel of the pursuit and the technology involved in an effective way. The technology did feel a little too useful at times, allowing her to scrape through situations that would have been impossible otherwise. Still the framework is pretty solid, so I didn't mind these occasional excesses.
The writing is very tight and the author builds a convincing world - although as with the first book I'm still not completely sold on the Chinese invading the West Coast. It's not a big deal though and it does create some good moments.
My only real issue with the story is that I would have liked it to look in more detail at the consequences of some of the technology. It assumes knowledge on the part of the reader, for example stating something could we weaponised, but providing any detail as to how or why.
It's a fine read though, with some good action and well described battles. If you like your science-fiction fast paced then this is well worth a read.
The concepts provide a framework for the story, but the focus is on the lead character - Mesa. It has a fugitive feel as she is chased from her life, but not really knowing why. It's a fast paced tale and it keeps the pressure on throughout - except for the end, which felt a little flat after the relentless pace of the bulk of the story.
It really captured the feel of the pursuit and the technology involved in an effective way. The technology did feel a little too useful at times, allowing her to scrape through situations that would have been impossible otherwise. Still the framework is pretty solid, so I didn't mind these occasional excesses.
The writing is very tight and the author builds a convincing world - although as with the first book I'm still not completely sold on the Chinese invading the West Coast. It's not a big deal though and it does create some good moments.
My only real issue with the story is that I would have liked it to look in more detail at the consequences of some of the technology. It assumes knowledge on the part of the reader, for example stating something could we weaponised, but providing any detail as to how or why.
It's a fine read though, with some good action and well described battles. If you like your science-fiction fast paced then this is well worth a read.
July 22, 2015
This series is really picking up now. I'll admit that at the beginning of the book, I was unsure I was on board with the way things were going; certain events left me feeling a bit disgruntled. However, I was pleasantly surprised to find that, despite the initial "aaagggghhhh" moment, I was actually enjoying this book more than the first. I didn't think I'd like the main character of this one as much, but I did. More.
May 21, 2015
Interesting story
Interesting story with unexpected twists. Minor flaws such as Yessler for Yesler in the early part of the story. It wasn't what I expected from the Amazon.com description but good nevertheless.
Interesting story with unexpected twists. Minor flaws such as Yessler for Yesler in the early part of the story. It wasn't what I expected from the Amazon.com description but good nevertheless.
May 30, 2018
An excellent dystopian sci-fi novel. This is the sequel to Convergence which I previously enjoyed. Emergence takes place in the same world and three years after the events of Convergence. However, there is a slightly different feel to Emergence. This story is told from the perspective of a different character (who did feature in the previous book) and is unusual as a sequel in that regard. The protagonist featured in Emergence has a very different perspective to that of the previous novel and whilst the dark brutality and violence of the world continues, there is slightly less emphasis on the technical side of the science fiction elements and even more focus on the enthralling action sequences.
While both books are thought-provoking, Emergence has less reliance on the narrator’s introspection on humanity and society and gives more nuanced cues to thoughts about the nature of the soul, the mind and what it is to be human. For me, it came across as less didactic in nature and all the more compelling as a result. I would recommend both books. Emergence is by necessity full of spoilers for Convergence so if you are going to read both, I would read them in order. If you only fancy Emergence however, it would work well as a stand-alone action thriller.
While both books are thought-provoking, Emergence has less reliance on the narrator’s introspection on humanity and society and gives more nuanced cues to thoughts about the nature of the soul, the mind and what it is to be human. For me, it came across as less didactic in nature and all the more compelling as a result. I would recommend both books. Emergence is by necessity full of spoilers for Convergence so if you are going to read both, I would read them in order. If you only fancy Emergence however, it would work well as a stand-alone action thriller.
May 30, 2018
Where book one was about Jonah, Emergence is more about Mesa. This book was full of action, death and destruction. As with the first book Michael paints pictures by using his words. I really enjoyed reading this book and loved the ending. This is a different kind of Sci-Fi that I would definitely recommend. I look forward to reading more books by Michael Patrick Hicks. I love the cover of the book!!!!
June 22, 2018
I was very impressed with the well written second book of this series. The change of protagonist was well introduced and I was hooked by Mira immediately. The dystopian world infused with techno surveillance did not swamp out a fast-paced storyline. It deserves the five stars I have given it.
June 17, 2018
Told from Mesa's point of view this time, the story continues. I liked it even better than the first one.
July 17, 2018
I read this as a stand alone as I hadn’t read the previous book in the series. It worked well on its own but now I’m hooked and can’t wait to read the first one.
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews