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Halfskin #3
Bricks
Fabbers, slabbers and fakies were dehumanizing slurs for fabricated humans. Bricks, however, was the People’s favorite.
The Sentience Laws were created to protect the rights of Bricks, but the laws didn’t last long. Banished to a remote gulag called the Settlement, Paul and Raine are sentenced to live the rest of their lives in the wilderness.
Escape and freedom will depend on Marcus Anderson, the man responsible for all the suffering that’s been endured since the invention of biomites—the synthetic stem cells used to fabricate halfskins and Bricks. Marcus needs them in order to find the “powers-that-be,” the man he believes is truly responsible for the world’s suffering. Their journey will take them to a tiny island in the South Atlantic, where the truth is much closer than they realize. That’s where they will discover the “powers-that-be”.
And so much more.
The Sentience Laws were created to protect the rights of Bricks, but the laws didn’t last long. Banished to a remote gulag called the Settlement, Paul and Raine are sentenced to live the rest of their lives in the wilderness.
Escape and freedom will depend on Marcus Anderson, the man responsible for all the suffering that’s been endured since the invention of biomites—the synthetic stem cells used to fabricate halfskins and Bricks. Marcus needs them in order to find the “powers-that-be,” the man he believes is truly responsible for the world’s suffering. Their journey will take them to a tiny island in the South Atlantic, where the truth is much closer than they realize. That’s where they will discover the “powers-that-be”.
And so much more.
- GenresScience FictionFiction
352 pages, Kindle Edition
First published September 13, 2015
13 people are currently reading
85 people want to read
About the author
Tony Bertauski
75 books768 followersGet my books FREE. Tell me where to send them at http://bertauski.com
He grew up in the Midwest where the land is flat and the corn is tall. The winters are bleak and cold. He hated winters.
He always wanted to write. But writing was hard. And he wasn’t very disciplined. The cold had nothing to do with that, but it didn’t help. That changed in grad school.
After several attempts at a proposal, his major advisor was losing money on red ink and advised him to figure it out. Somehow, he did.
After grad school, he and his wife and two very little children moved to the South in Charleston, South Carolina where the winters are spring and the summers are a sauna (cliche but dead on accurate). That’s when he started teaching and writing articles for trade magazines. He eventually published two textbooks on landscape design. He then transitioned to writing a column for the Post and Courier. They were all great gigs, but they weren’t fiction.
That was a few years later.
His daughter started reading before she could read, pretending she knew the words in books she propped on her lap. His son was a different story. In an attempt to change that, he began writing a story with him. They made up a character, gave him a name, and something to do. As with much of parenting, it did not go as planned. But the character got stuck in his head.
He wanted out.
A few years later, Socket Greeny was born. It was a science fiction trilogy that was gritty and thoughtful. That was 2005.
He has been practicing Zen since he was 23 years old. A daily meditator, he wants to instill something meaningful in his stories that appeals to a young adult crowd as well as adult. Think Hunger Games. He hadn’t planned to write fiction, didn’t even know if he had anymore stories in him after Socket Greeny.
Turns out he did.
He grew up in the Midwest where the land is flat and the corn is tall. The winters are bleak and cold. He hated winters.
He always wanted to write. But writing was hard. And he wasn’t very disciplined. The cold had nothing to do with that, but it didn’t help. That changed in grad school.
After several attempts at a proposal, his major advisor was losing money on red ink and advised him to figure it out. Somehow, he did.
After grad school, he and his wife and two very little children moved to the South in Charleston, South Carolina where the winters are spring and the summers are a sauna (cliche but dead on accurate). That’s when he started teaching and writing articles for trade magazines. He eventually published two textbooks on landscape design. He then transitioned to writing a column for the Post and Courier. They were all great gigs, but they weren’t fiction.
That was a few years later.
His daughter started reading before she could read, pretending she knew the words in books she propped on her lap. His son was a different story. In an attempt to change that, he began writing a story with him. They made up a character, gave him a name, and something to do. As with much of parenting, it did not go as planned. But the character got stuck in his head.
He wanted out.
A few years later, Socket Greeny was born. It was a science fiction trilogy that was gritty and thoughtful. That was 2005.
He has been practicing Zen since he was 23 years old. A daily meditator, he wants to instill something meaningful in his stories that appeals to a young adult crowd as well as adult. Think Hunger Games. He hadn’t planned to write fiction, didn’t even know if he had anymore stories in him after Socket Greeny.
Turns out he did.
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Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews
February 26, 2019
What the hell? That is what I was asking myself in several places during this story. Carrying on from the first two books, things get taken to a whole new level of weird and wonderful. Be prepared to question many things...Is this fair, do they have the right to do that, what makes somebody human, what is reality?
This book will challenge you and lead you to form an opinion, only to go back and question if you are justified in thinking that way. Absolutely superb and the stuff potential nightmares are made of. Take advances in VR, medical research, 3D printing and next generation stem cell research, add a few twists and voila - this trilogy is born...And then some. I must admit to a bit of a 'Total Recall' meltdown towards the end as I was questioning just which truth was real...If any.
Extremely enjoyable and a must read.
This book will challenge you and lead you to form an opinion, only to go back and question if you are justified in thinking that way. Absolutely superb and the stuff potential nightmares are made of. Take advances in VR, medical research, 3D printing and next generation stem cell research, add a few twists and voila - this trilogy is born...And then some. I must admit to a bit of a 'Total Recall' meltdown towards the end as I was questioning just which truth was real...If any.
Extremely enjoyable and a must read.
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February 17, 2016BERTAUSKI STARTER LIBRARY is FREE!
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never-read
March 31, 2019Read the first book Halfskin. 1 star so will not continue with the series.
September 21, 2015
https://anaslair.wordpress.com/2015/0...
4.5 stars
Tony Bertauski never ceases to amaze me. Just when I thought things could not get worse in the world he created, they do. And again, he raises important questions, where you just cannot pinpoint one view as the bad one.
At what point does one stop being human? In the previous books of the series, it had been decided that the mark was hit when you had 50% biomites. If half or more of you was not clay anymore, then you were terminated.
Now Bertauski takes things to a whole new level, with bricks. Bricks are fabricated humans. They look like humans, behave like humans and apparently think and feel like humans but they are, nonetheless, fabricated. Amongst bricks, there are clones, who are copies of someone and don't have their memories; then there are transplanted humans, or plants, who have their memories transferred to the new fabricated body.
The world has evolved quite a lot from the previous book. People succumb to dream disease and Bricks are blamed for it. I have to admit I never quite got why, how exactly that flew with public opinion, but I guess it's the fear of the unknown and, as a character said, people needed a scapegoat. One thing that did puzzle me was that we kept being told that Bricks had been stripped of their rights and yet they seem to have some, like to hold patents. Where the line was drawn was not clear to me.
And then there's the thing about killing people who had biomites when they entered a biomite-free state. Why not just escort them outside? Why is it ok to kill them? It upset me and that is good, that the story stirred my emotions, and the fact is that is just how Bertauski's world works; the government can do pretty much anything to the citizens.
I did want to get more of an idea of public opinion regarding those matters but at the end of the day those things did not hinder my enjoyment much.
I was engaged in the story for the large majority of the book. There were some bits and pieces that confused me and I finished the book still feeling a bit confused because at some point it got quite trippy. It made me question so many things, not the least of it what reality is.
Some things got a bit repetitive, particularly towards the end.
If there is one thing I would have like to seen better wrapped up it is the events in the first two books; more specifically, how Cali and Nix played into the big scheme of things.
I am not sure I was 100% sold on the ending either but it was appropriate enough.
The fact is the entire Halfskin series is an amazing dystopia and the stories are guaranteed to take you away. As in the previous books, there were lots of surprises in this one, plenty of twists and turns that I did not see coming and I feel so fortunate to have had the pleasure of reading these books. I highly recommend them and am confident that the entire series has what it takes to become the next big thing. And I am looking forward to reading other books by the author. Don't let this one slip from your radar, get the entire series now!
Disclaimer: I would like to thank the author for providing me a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.
4.5 stars
Tony Bertauski never ceases to amaze me. Just when I thought things could not get worse in the world he created, they do. And again, he raises important questions, where you just cannot pinpoint one view as the bad one.
At what point does one stop being human? In the previous books of the series, it had been decided that the mark was hit when you had 50% biomites. If half or more of you was not clay anymore, then you were terminated.
Now Bertauski takes things to a whole new level, with bricks. Bricks are fabricated humans. They look like humans, behave like humans and apparently think and feel like humans but they are, nonetheless, fabricated. Amongst bricks, there are clones, who are copies of someone and don't have their memories; then there are transplanted humans, or plants, who have their memories transferred to the new fabricated body.
The world has evolved quite a lot from the previous book. People succumb to dream disease and Bricks are blamed for it. I have to admit I never quite got why, how exactly that flew with public opinion, but I guess it's the fear of the unknown and, as a character said, people needed a scapegoat. One thing that did puzzle me was that we kept being told that Bricks had been stripped of their rights and yet they seem to have some, like to hold patents. Where the line was drawn was not clear to me.
And then there's the thing about killing people who had biomites when they entered a biomite-free state. Why not just escort them outside? Why is it ok to kill them? It upset me and that is good, that the story stirred my emotions, and the fact is that is just how Bertauski's world works; the government can do pretty much anything to the citizens.
I did want to get more of an idea of public opinion regarding those matters but at the end of the day those things did not hinder my enjoyment much.
I was engaged in the story for the large majority of the book. There were some bits and pieces that confused me and I finished the book still feeling a bit confused because at some point it got quite trippy. It made me question so many things, not the least of it what reality is.
Some things got a bit repetitive, particularly towards the end.
If there is one thing I would have like to seen better wrapped up it is the events in the first two books; more specifically, how Cali and Nix played into the big scheme of things.
I am not sure I was 100% sold on the ending either but it was appropriate enough.
The fact is the entire Halfskin series is an amazing dystopia and the stories are guaranteed to take you away. As in the previous books, there were lots of surprises in this one, plenty of twists and turns that I did not see coming and I feel so fortunate to have had the pleasure of reading these books. I highly recommend them and am confident that the entire series has what it takes to become the next big thing. And I am looking forward to reading other books by the author. Don't let this one slip from your radar, get the entire series now!
Disclaimer: I would like to thank the author for providing me a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.
September 25, 2022
Bricks was always going to have to achieve something extraordinary: round off the Halfskin series. After the brilliant Halfskin and equally brilliant Clay, books one and two respectively, Bricks had a hard act to follow but boy did Tony Bertauski nail it! More time has passed for the characters of the previous books and things are more tense than ever. Anyone fully biomite is now forced to live in a settlement separate from the rest of the world. MOther, the supercomputer overseer of the shutdown program, is now gone. Marcus Anderson is now set on finding who, or possibly what, is behind it all. This book has all the tension of the previous two as well as the interesting characters that drive the emotional heart of the story. Tony Bertauski never lets his readers down and not only is this book excellent but as the final part of the overall series it is exceptional. Big questions about what it is to be human wrapped up in a story that kept me hooked from start to finish.
February 25, 2021
Bricks - 99% bio-mites, can't access Dreamland because the Clays are falling victim to the Dream Disease. Rayne is frantic about getting back into Dreamland to be with Nix and her family. Paul and Rayne have been taken out of the settlement by Marcus to be put into different bodies, as well as Jamie re-born (fabricated), but have been redirected to another location. Here Paul learns exactly what is going on, and what has been going on throughout the books.
On the island where Paul, Rayne, Jamie, and Marcus find themselves, they discover the Archetype who is Power behind everything. He accuses "Mother" of being a virus in the bio-mite fabrications.
This is an interesting end to the book and I have to say that I was not expecting this.
There was a few technical glitches in the recording but overall every thing was good.
On the island where Paul, Rayne, Jamie, and Marcus find themselves, they discover the Archetype who is Power behind everything. He accuses "Mother" of being a virus in the bio-mite fabrications.
This is an interesting end to the book and I have to say that I was not expecting this.
There was a few technical glitches in the recording but overall every thing was good.
August 25, 2017
Very good overall - kept me enthralled with unexpected twists and turns thrown in. Flew through the trilogy in three days 📖📖📖 However for me the ending fell apart a bit, almost like the author couldn't figure out how to bring it all to a close. Reminded me of #StephenKing - starts off strong, weak finish
July 15, 2020
Wow! Loved the series!
Book one was a good hook. Having read forever land I felt the resemblance there. Spoiler alert!!! Book two had me reading at a fevered pace and confirmed what my suppositions about foreveland. Book three bought it on home to a great conclusion. Well done!
Book one was a good hook. Having read forever land I felt the resemblance there. Spoiler alert!!! Book two had me reading at a fevered pace and confirmed what my suppositions about foreveland. Book three bought it on home to a great conclusion. Well done!
December 13, 2021
I really enjoyed this book set. Unlike many books and novels you can't really guess what is going to happen. This is an author who doesn't mind not having a cheery happy ending, but he cares to give you a satisfactory ending.
September 15, 2018
Just as much of a slog as the first two, but now with an ending that doesn't make nearly as much sense. I wanted a more coherent plot and better explanation for what was going on at the end.
November 26, 2018
Worth reading.
I enjoyed this book. The ending was particularly interesting. I liked the irony of the final scenes. Not sure why they are called Bricks.
I enjoyed this book. The ending was particularly interesting. I liked the irony of the final scenes. Not sure why they are called Bricks.
April 23, 2019
Wow What a Ride
Turns out I knew nothing about what was going on in this book. Great series, interesting read. So many questions still. But wow.
Turns out I knew nothing about what was going on in this book. Great series, interesting read. So many questions still. But wow.
May 31, 2023
Overall I enjoyed the series, but the last of the trilogy tries a little too hard at the end to be satisfying.
February 16, 2017
A decent story but a bit convoluted.
Maybe it's me. But I had a frustrating time with this story just keeping track of what was going on. This gist of it was good but there was a lot of flipping from scene to scene that seemed a bit disjointed. Maybe I've gotten lazy and like stories spoon fed to me sequentially. So I may not be the best reviewer for this book.
Maybe it's me. But I had a frustrating time with this story just keeping track of what was going on. This gist of it was good but there was a lot of flipping from scene to scene that seemed a bit disjointed. Maybe I've gotten lazy and like stories spoon fed to me sequentially. So I may not be the best reviewer for this book.
May 1, 2016
I have to say that I was certainly not expecting the ending to this series the way it happened. I guess that's a good thing, though. Nothing is worse than for a book to be so obvious that you see the ending coming a mile away. Predictable is so boring.
I have enjoyed the series. The first book I was a bit miffed at how it ended, but the second book made up for it. Now for this series to end on the note that it did was just fantastic. I did take one star off though because of the fairly liberal use of foul language in the book.
David Dietz's narration was wonderful. His voices for each character remained consistent throughout the series even when showing extreme emotions, which he often had to in this book. I give David's narration five stars. Overall the book is just four stars for me because of the language.
I received this book from the narrator in exchange for an honest review.
I have enjoyed the series. The first book I was a bit miffed at how it ended, but the second book made up for it. Now for this series to end on the note that it did was just fantastic. I did take one star off though because of the fairly liberal use of foul language in the book.
David Dietz's narration was wonderful. His voices for each character remained consistent throughout the series even when showing extreme emotions, which he often had to in this book. I give David's narration five stars. Overall the book is just four stars for me because of the language.
I received this book from the narrator in exchange for an honest review.
May 28, 2016
This is the third book in the Halfskin trilogy. I enjoyed this sci-fi techno-thriller, and am glad that I read the series in order, as each book builds on what was written in the previous book. This book focuses on the definition of reality, as many people are coming down with "dream sickness" where they live in a made-up reality. I can totally see the relevance of this book to modern society, where we use technology to escape reality, and can see humans going to the extremes written about in this book in time. I listened to the Audible audio version, and the narration was fine overall, but some of the characters, especially when they are worked up or angry, tended to grate on my nerves (Rain, for example). But I like the narrator's normal speaking voice. If you like science fiction and are interested in how science functions in the realm of religion, law, and life, I recommend giving this series a try.
September 30, 2015
Nix and Cali are gone. Shutdown with Mother when Cali linked in to destroy her. Everything should have gotten better, but that was not to be. Halfskins were no loner the target of laws, it was the bricks, those that are 100% biomites. People are dying from dream disease and everyone blames the bricks. They are all rounded up and sent to a camp in the middle of nowhere. Paul and Raine thinking things would be easier to just go and not put up a fight. But all is not at is seems when the last person a brick would expect to show up at the camp is brought in. And talk of a powers-that-be, controlling everthing leads Paul on a journey where he finds the true reason Mother created him.
I am looking forward to the next book in the series and I highly recommend the series.
I am looking forward to the next book in the series and I highly recommend the series.
July 24, 2016
I loved the 1st book, and 2nd book was little abrupt with the way it ended, but this book tied up the series very nicely, and I loved the series. It really makes you think, in the near future could this even really happen, what with the cloning and things going on in labs that we are not even aware of, to the things we as a society DO know of... growing skin, body parts such as ears, all in test tubes, all this may happen one day and that is what makes you wonder, is this going to cause society to break into more racism than we face even now? Great books, cant wait for more!!!!!
September 13, 2016
David Dietz does a fine job narrating this third installment of the Halfskin series.Though there are some glitches in the audio,repeating of lines,weird sounds in the background,the sound is good.There are times I wish it would all be an even sounding audio.Yelling and my headaches don't mix and there is a LOT of yelling.We are once again in the land where if you have biotech in your body you could be turned off past the 49% ratio. There are SO many names for the different types of 'people',People,Clay,etc.The story is good.I was given this book free for an honest review.
September 20, 2016
Another dystopian from Tony Bertauski! The third in third in the series. Not my favorite of the three but still enjoyable.
Full review coming soon!
Received by audiobookreviewer.com in exchange for an honest review.
Full review coming soon!
Received by audiobookreviewer.com in exchange for an honest review.
September 8, 2015
A phenomenal intersection of two worlds with many twists that I didn't see coming.
November 19, 2015
Love the way the author has tied two series together.
November 30, 2015
In a word, Amazing!!! So I loved this book/ series! If you love Sci-fi it is a must read. :)
August 15, 2016
Great story with a really interesting twist. Fans of his earlier work will be pleased.
January 6, 2017
good and unexpected final edition to this triloligy.
Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews