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The Fountain #3
After Effect
Welcome the dawn of a new way.
Emery Kidd's perfect, if not mundane, life changes when she once again meets Serafina Strong. If her rival were not so provoking Emery might almost be grateful for the new adventure Sera proposes.
In the early part of the twenty-second century, the enforcement system Sera has worked for her entire life has been abolished. As a mediator of her community she has suddenly lost her job and her purpose. Yet, instead of conceding defeat, she aspires to a new career as the heroine of the future. She is uniquely qualified.
In her multi-regenerative lifetime, Sera had died twice. By multiple acts of fate, not only was she revived, she was also granted the gift of prescience. With her most recent resurrection her sight became clearer. She can see the impact of change as it trickles its way along the timeline and now, she knows the prospects for regenkind are dim.
The objectives of the challenge Sara lays before Emery and her friends are divided at the very onset of their adventure. Still, they have little choice; the group must overcome their differences and unite in the common goal: to save their peaceful and free world from the dire future Sera has foreseen—if they can.
Note: this edition is Out of Print.
Emery Kidd's perfect, if not mundane, life changes when she once again meets Serafina Strong. If her rival were not so provoking Emery might almost be grateful for the new adventure Sera proposes.
In the early part of the twenty-second century, the enforcement system Sera has worked for her entire life has been abolished. As a mediator of her community she has suddenly lost her job and her purpose. Yet, instead of conceding defeat, she aspires to a new career as the heroine of the future. She is uniquely qualified.
In her multi-regenerative lifetime, Sera had died twice. By multiple acts of fate, not only was she revived, she was also granted the gift of prescience. With her most recent resurrection her sight became clearer. She can see the impact of change as it trickles its way along the timeline and now, she knows the prospects for regenkind are dim.
The objectives of the challenge Sara lays before Emery and her friends are divided at the very onset of their adventure. Still, they have little choice; the group must overcome their differences and unite in the common goal: to save their peaceful and free world from the dire future Sera has foreseen—if they can.
Note: this edition is Out of Print.
- GenresScience Fiction
Kindle Edition
First published May 31, 2017
23 people want to read
About the author
Ellison Blackburn
12 books87 followersAn early interest in the soft sciences, together with a career in information technology, ignited Ellison Blackburn's curiosity in singularities. Among her published stories are "Flash Back," the literary, slow-burn book one of The Fountain post-apocalyptic trilogy; "If There Be Giants," book one of The Watchers urban fantasy duology; "An Untimely End," the first book in the time-travel mystery series the Windy City Files; and the dystopian, cyberpunk novella "Virtue Us, The Future of Love."
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
August 17, 2017
Being Human continues the story of Emery Kidd, newly engaged to Aiden Brodie, and living in the community of Tymony, a bubble outside time modelled on a project run by Charley Rhys Fenn, the mother of regeneration – where Emery’s slowly driving herself crazy with boredom. Eaten by fears that the bucolic lifestyle will break her relationship, and suffering doubts about herself and her role in life, Emery is almost relieved when Sera Strong blows into town and proposes a project to save the future of humanity – again. However, Sera’s headstrong approach to teamwork, not to mention to Emery’s relationship, look fair to cause almost more trouble than the project itself...
With a star cast of Ellison Blackburn’s incredibly well-written, deep characters, Being Human is the third in the Regeneration Chronicles, tracing the history immediately after the start of the Progeny Project. While the underlying fascination of the plot is time, mortality, paradox, and sexual fidelity, the story frames it in a rich tapestry of events and realistic characters, sliding the serious concepts in via sleight of hand amid the emotional drama between the characters. Being Human can be read simply as a romance story, or the reader has the option to enjoy the concepts that the author has woven into the storyline for us to think about – this is a book that can be enjoyed and thought about on many levels.
Reviewed for By Rite of Word.
With a star cast of Ellison Blackburn’s incredibly well-written, deep characters, Being Human is the third in the Regeneration Chronicles, tracing the history immediately after the start of the Progeny Project. While the underlying fascination of the plot is time, mortality, paradox, and sexual fidelity, the story frames it in a rich tapestry of events and realistic characters, sliding the serious concepts in via sleight of hand amid the emotional drama between the characters. Being Human can be read simply as a romance story, or the reader has the option to enjoy the concepts that the author has woven into the storyline for us to think about – this is a book that can be enjoyed and thought about on many levels.
Reviewed for By Rite of Word.
December 1, 2017
"Being Human" concludes the Fountain of Life Trilogy. In book 2, "Second Nature," Emery and her friends and family members concluded that regeneration was, paradoxically, causing the human population, already devastated by the Rapture that killed off most of the Genetically Modified Humans, to shrink further. The logical thing seemed to ban regeneration, which they successfully managed to do. But that high-handed action had far-reaching consequences that made the problem even worse than before. Emery and her friends must figure out how to undo what they've done, and create a future in which the human race can survive.
Like the first two books in the Fountain trilogy, "Being Human" considers some of the "big questions" of the future of humanity, such as medical intervention and its effects on individual lives and society as a whole. The issues under consideration are big picture problems, viewed through the small lens of the day-to-day life of the main character and her personal concerns. Although Emery and her friends are working to save all of humanity, what the reader gets is mainly their inner lives, which helps keep the story in focus.
As in the earlier books, we are treated to the inner thoughts of a curious, intellectual woman, and her relationships not just with men she's romantically interested in, but with a variety of friends and family members. There's a particular emphasis in this book on relationships between women and both the support and the rivalry that can arise between them. Recommended for readers looking for a psychological futuristic story that passes the Bechdel test.
Like the first two books in the Fountain trilogy, "Being Human" considers some of the "big questions" of the future of humanity, such as medical intervention and its effects on individual lives and society as a whole. The issues under consideration are big picture problems, viewed through the small lens of the day-to-day life of the main character and her personal concerns. Although Emery and her friends are working to save all of humanity, what the reader gets is mainly their inner lives, which helps keep the story in focus.
As in the earlier books, we are treated to the inner thoughts of a curious, intellectual woman, and her relationships not just with men she's romantically interested in, but with a variety of friends and family members. There's a particular emphasis in this book on relationships between women and both the support and the rivalry that can arise between them. Recommended for readers looking for a psychological futuristic story that passes the Bechdel test.
June 24, 2018
Being Human is the third and final book in The Fountain Series. Flowing nicely from the first two books in the series, the focus is on the effects of choices made by the main character, Emery. The story is thought-provoking, well-developed, and has characters you can believe in.
I recommend Being Human to anyone who enjoys a futuristic storyline, and to those who like to read something that truly makes you wonder about some of the controversial challenges the future may hold. I give this book 4.4/5⭐️
I recommend Being Human to anyone who enjoys a futuristic storyline, and to those who like to read something that truly makes you wonder about some of the controversial challenges the future may hold. I give this book 4.4/5⭐️
March 6, 2016
Ellison Blackburn flaunts her writing skills in her third novel of the Regeneration Chronicles, After Effect. The Regeneration Chronicles are a series of literary science fiction novels that center around a futuristic world where humans can medically regenerate the physical body back to youth. After Effect picks up where Progeny left off in that society decided to stop regeneration as a normal health care procedure due to the disastrous effect it had on the world's population growth.
Our tale begins with Emery on the eve of her marriage to Aiden. Emery’s pending nuptial bliss is put on hold when a blast from Aiden's past, Sera, literally transports in with an urgent mission: they must break the laws of their time and go back in history to stop the discovery of modular cell regeneration from happening. As Emery and her friends push forward to help their world adjust to life without regeneration, Emery must also deal with the buxom, blonde Sera who tries to seduce Aiden in ways that would even give Mae West pause.
As an avid reader of literary works, I immediately fell in love with this book by the end of the first paragraph. There is no disputing it; Ellison Blackburn is a master of prose and I will gladly follow her writing anywhere she wants to take me. In addition to wooing me with her words, Blackburn manages to expertly peel back the layers of Emery’s psychology.
I loved this book. I loved it so much that I immediately went back and bought the first two books in the series, Regeneration X and Progeny. I cannot wait to read them!
Our tale begins with Emery on the eve of her marriage to Aiden. Emery’s pending nuptial bliss is put on hold when a blast from Aiden's past, Sera, literally transports in with an urgent mission: they must break the laws of their time and go back in history to stop the discovery of modular cell regeneration from happening. As Emery and her friends push forward to help their world adjust to life without regeneration, Emery must also deal with the buxom, blonde Sera who tries to seduce Aiden in ways that would even give Mae West pause.
As an avid reader of literary works, I immediately fell in love with this book by the end of the first paragraph. There is no disputing it; Ellison Blackburn is a master of prose and I will gladly follow her writing anywhere she wants to take me. In addition to wooing me with her words, Blackburn manages to expertly peel back the layers of Emery’s psychology.
I loved this book. I loved it so much that I immediately went back and bought the first two books in the series, Regeneration X and Progeny. I cannot wait to read them!
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews