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Unbreakable
Celia has never set foot outside the towering walls of her town. All she knows of the outside world is a mysterious audience that files through the gates once a week to watch her and the other residents attempt to break world records.
Celia’s record-breaking feats require an iron will more than any special talent, and she will need every ounce of that will when she escapes her town to help a dying friend, because outside the walls lies a shocking truth.
Accompanied by a tall, scarred stranger, and a hostile clown whose brightly-colored face makeup does not wash off, Celia confronts an enemy that will test her limits and threaten the survival of everyone she loves.
Fans of The Maze Runner and The Hunger Games will love this explosive, action-packed dystopian thriller from Hugo Award winning science fiction author Will McIntosh.
Celia’s record-breaking feats require an iron will more than any special talent, and she will need every ounce of that will when she escapes her town to help a dying friend, because outside the walls lies a shocking truth.
Accompanied by a tall, scarred stranger, and a hostile clown whose brightly-colored face makeup does not wash off, Celia confronts an enemy that will test her limits and threaten the survival of everyone she loves.
Fans of The Maze Runner and The Hunger Games will love this explosive, action-packed dystopian thriller from Hugo Award winning science fiction author Will McIntosh.
284 pages, Paperback
Published June 27, 2017
97 people are currently reading
1023 people want to read
About the author
Will McIntosh
79 books448 followersWill McIntosh is a Hugo Award-winning science fiction author, and a winner or finalist of many other awards. His alien invasion novel Defenders, is currently optioned for a feature film, while his Middle Grades novel The Classmate has been optioned for a TV series by Disney/ABC.
Along with ten novels that have been translated into nine different languages, Will has published over sixty short stories in magazines such as Asimov's Science Fiction, Clarkesworld, and Lightspeed.
Will was a psychology professor before turning to writing full time. He lives in Williamsburg, Virginia, and is the father of twins. You can follow him on Twitter @willmcintoshSF.
Along with ten novels that have been translated into nine different languages, Will has published over sixty short stories in magazines such as Asimov's Science Fiction, Clarkesworld, and Lightspeed.
Will was a psychology professor before turning to writing full time. He lives in Williamsburg, Virginia, and is the father of twins. You can follow him on Twitter @willmcintoshSF.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 31 reviews
January 31, 2018
I read this book about six months ago and have been derelict in my duties of reviewing it. Will McIntosh is my favorite of the new breed of science fiction writers. His novels tend to be less about fancy gizmos and laser guns and more about how technology can change our societies, and how we interact with each other.
Unbreakable is loosely related to one of my favorite McIntosh short stories, A Clown Escapes from Circus Town, yet veers off in unexpected ways. McIntosh takes a well expolored current staple, a small group escaping from their cloistered dystopic environment into a bigger world they didn't realize even existed. The brilliance of this novella is that every time you think you get a grasp on where the book is going, you discover you are totally wrong. McIntosh creates a group of characters you can relate with, and throws them into increasingly unexpected situations, reshaping their realities every step of the way. It's brilliant and disturbing but in the end, shockingly heartwarming.
Unbreakable is loosely related to one of my favorite McIntosh short stories, A Clown Escapes from Circus Town, yet veers off in unexpected ways. McIntosh takes a well expolored current staple, a small group escaping from their cloistered dystopic environment into a bigger world they didn't realize even existed. The brilliance of this novella is that every time you think you get a grasp on where the book is going, you discover you are totally wrong. McIntosh creates a group of characters you can relate with, and throws them into increasingly unexpected situations, reshaping their realities every step of the way. It's brilliant and disturbing but in the end, shockingly heartwarming.
February 20, 2024
I'm not sure how I feel about this book. The story seemed to move too fast for its own good; characters transitioned from locale to locale rapidly and character evolution seemed to happen at too fast a pace for me to keep up and stay invested. Most damning however is that the book draws massive parallels to The Truman Show, to the point of being unoriginal.
That being said, there was some mystery to the book which peeled away at its several layers in an interesting fashion. There were a great many things I didn't see coming, which kept me reading till the end.
This is my first read from Will McIntosh. I suppose my impression is that there is talent behind the author, but this certainly wasn't the best book to be introduced to him on. If I hadn't seen The Truman Show this probably would have been a 3*, but to me it was just OK.
That being said, there was some mystery to the book which peeled away at its several layers in an interesting fashion. There were a great many things I didn't see coming, which kept me reading till the end.
This is my first read from Will McIntosh. I suppose my impression is that there is talent behind the author, but this certainly wasn't the best book to be introduced to him on. If I hadn't seen The Truman Show this probably would have been a 3*, but to me it was just OK.
June 28, 2017
What an adventure
Grabbed my interest and kept me guessing. I had no idea what was coming next. I enjoyed every bit of the story as I felt fear and outrage. What an adventure!
Grabbed my interest and kept me guessing. I had no idea what was coming next. I enjoyed every bit of the story as I felt fear and outrage. What an adventure!
September 27, 2019
The first impression I got of this book was that it was yet another "dystopia for dystopia's sake". You probably know the ones: where the rules of the way the world works seem to exist solely for the sake of being bizarre and making the characters' lives miserable, but seem to have very little by way of actual in-universe reasons, either explained or implied, to justify their existence. Even though I do love dystopias, this particular way of handling them drives me up the wall, because it not only feels clumsy and inorganic while delivering a battering to a story's plausibility, it roundly defeats the alleged purpose of writing a dystopia in the first place, which is a self-examination of the real world society in which we live and the ways in which it could potentially go horribly wrong if we're not careful.
Take, for example, the classic dystopian staple of the arranged marriage, where either the government or some algorithm chooses all of the citizens' spouses for them. Now, there could be any number of reasons for such a system to exist: social alliances, genetic diversity/fertility/eugenics, or to save everyone the trouble of finding a mate on their own "for their own good". While all of these are quite interesting on their own merits, they come with the catch that your story is going to change drastically depending on which one you choose to use as your framing device. If you go the wishy-washy route and ultimately give no reason, but stop at saying that "the government does it because they can and that's just the way it is", it makes your setup feel artificial and destroys any hope of immersion. The reason for this is that you're rolling out all the trappings of a proper dystopia, but without any sort of a solid foundation to hold it up. Give it a good tap, and the whole thing promptly collapses under its own weight.
So yeah, that was definitely the sort of thing I was expecting from this one. While the specific worldbuilding points were certainly interesting, and not something I've ever seen in any previous dystopias, they were also so downright bizarre that there was no possible "why" I could imagine to justify their existence. I was willing to keep an open mind going forward, but with the caveat that the reveal, when it came, had better be good.
As it turns out... it wasn't anything I ever managed to guess in any but the vaguest generalities, but when it finally came, it actually did make a whole lot of sense, and it certainly explained a lot. In the end, though, I honestly still wasn't sure what to make of it. The aspect of society that was being criticized was pretty clear: . While this isn't exactly unworthy of critique, it still falls kind of flat in comparison to all of the other messes that the real world is currently dealing with. I mean, we're killing the planet, our rights and our privacy are going down the toilet, and the world has been in a state of near-constant political turmoil for the past few years at least, and here you are expecting me to care about Really?
As for the quality of the actually storytelling, as it turns out the romance was actually pretty okay. I liked how carefully they had to navigate around Anand's PTSD, to the point where he honestly believed that it would be impossible to make a relationship work, even if I do think that he "got over it" way too quickly. I also especially liked the parts where Celia was navigating how to pitch their plight to society at large, and her immediate gut reaction was "I don't want them to be 'on my side', I want them to be ashamed of themselves for perpetuating this system!" It really made the point that while the more privileged allies that they made genuinely wanted to help them, they'd spent all this time advising moderation, and patience, and restraint, even though it's painfully clear that moderation and patience and restraint has yet to actually get them anywhere. It's just another version of the tone argument, and telling people they need to be quiet and polite about airing their grievances even though prior experience is that the only way to actually be listened to is to be rude and loud—or even to start blowing stuff up.
Take, for example, the classic dystopian staple of the arranged marriage, where either the government or some algorithm chooses all of the citizens' spouses for them. Now, there could be any number of reasons for such a system to exist: social alliances, genetic diversity/fertility/eugenics, or to save everyone the trouble of finding a mate on their own "for their own good". While all of these are quite interesting on their own merits, they come with the catch that your story is going to change drastically depending on which one you choose to use as your framing device. If you go the wishy-washy route and ultimately give no reason, but stop at saying that "the government does it because they can and that's just the way it is", it makes your setup feel artificial and destroys any hope of immersion. The reason for this is that you're rolling out all the trappings of a proper dystopia, but without any sort of a solid foundation to hold it up. Give it a good tap, and the whole thing promptly collapses under its own weight.
So yeah, that was definitely the sort of thing I was expecting from this one. While the specific worldbuilding points were certainly interesting, and not something I've ever seen in any previous dystopias, they were also so downright bizarre that there was no possible "why" I could imagine to justify their existence. I was willing to keep an open mind going forward, but with the caveat that the reveal, when it came, had better be good.
As it turns out... it wasn't anything I ever managed to guess in any but the vaguest generalities, but when it finally came, it actually did make a whole lot of sense, and it certainly explained a lot. In the end, though, I honestly still wasn't sure what to make of it. The aspect of society that was being criticized was pretty clear: . While this isn't exactly unworthy of critique, it still falls kind of flat in comparison to all of the other messes that the real world is currently dealing with. I mean, we're killing the planet, our rights and our privacy are going down the toilet, and the world has been in a state of near-constant political turmoil for the past few years at least, and here you are expecting me to care about Really?
As for the quality of the actually storytelling, as it turns out the romance was actually pretty okay. I liked how carefully they had to navigate around Anand's PTSD, to the point where he honestly believed that it would be impossible to make a relationship work, even if I do think that he "got over it" way too quickly. I also especially liked the parts where Celia was navigating how to pitch their plight to society at large, and her immediate gut reaction was "I don't want them to be 'on my side', I want them to be ashamed of themselves for perpetuating this system!" It really made the point that while the more privileged allies that they made genuinely wanted to help them, they'd spent all this time advising moderation, and patience, and restraint, even though it's painfully clear that moderation and patience and restraint has yet to actually get them anywhere. It's just another version of the tone argument, and telling people they need to be quiet and polite about airing their grievances even though prior experience is that the only way to actually be listened to is to be rude and loud—or even to start blowing stuff up.
January 19, 2018
Interesting concept
The idea for this book was amazing and the general storyline was very engrossing. I finished this book in 24 hours because of the excellent plot. I did not want to put it down!! The plot kept me guessing as to what would happen. Excellent ending!
**SPOILERS!!!**
Their was so much that could have been said and done by the characters to help develop themselves a little more. For example, Anand has PTSD and does not want to be touched due to living in a town where everything wanted to kill him. He spends half the book avoiding being touched by Celia, the main character. At one point, he awkwardly places his hand on her back to encourage her. The next time they touch, they are KISSING!!! They could have had some arms brush or wake up with hands holding, etc. The next problem is that important things would happen but I did not realize they were happening. Important parts were glazed over and I felt they needed to be expanded on.
The idea for this book was amazing and the general storyline was very engrossing. I finished this book in 24 hours because of the excellent plot. I did not want to put it down!! The plot kept me guessing as to what would happen. Excellent ending!
**SPOILERS!!!**
Their was so much that could have been said and done by the characters to help develop themselves a little more. For example, Anand has PTSD and does not want to be touched due to living in a town where everything wanted to kill him. He spends half the book avoiding being touched by Celia, the main character. At one point, he awkwardly places his hand on her back to encourage her. The next time they touch, they are KISSING!!! They could have had some arms brush or wake up with hands holding, etc. The next problem is that important things would happen but I did not realize they were happening. Important parts were glazed over and I felt they needed to be expanded on.
August 23, 2017
Interesting plot twists
This one drew me in and would not let go. I found myself reading it whenever i had a free minute. Celia, the main character, was engaging and believable. Her naïveté and eventual discovery of the truth about the world she lived in would fit nicely into an episode of "Twilight Zone". The clown was priceless. There were loose threads in the story that I would have liked to learn more about, but the core story was solid and the plot twists kept my attention.
This one drew me in and would not let go. I found myself reading it whenever i had a free minute. Celia, the main character, was engaging and believable. Her naïveté and eventual discovery of the truth about the world she lived in would fit nicely into an episode of "Twilight Zone". The clown was priceless. There were loose threads in the story that I would have liked to learn more about, but the core story was solid and the plot twists kept my attention.
October 24, 2017
Will McIntosh strikes again
Where does he get his ideas?… Is a question I’m sure a writer hates to be asked. Will McIntosh must have a magic word processor. Unbreakable is another gripping exploration of what it means to be human in a largely indifferent, if not inimical world. His characters, whether 2 foot tall genetically engineered circus freaks, or giant three-legged war machines, are among the most human one will encounter in science fiction today.
Where does he get his ideas?… Is a question I’m sure a writer hates to be asked. Will McIntosh must have a magic word processor. Unbreakable is another gripping exploration of what it means to be human in a largely indifferent, if not inimical world. His characters, whether 2 foot tall genetically engineered circus freaks, or giant three-legged war machines, are among the most human one will encounter in science fiction today.
January 5, 2018
Quirky, characters. Read feeling all kinds of emotions. The real litmus test for me is that once the story started, it held me to the end. I was surprised, enthralled, aggravated, and inspired at the end. I went back and checked character traits and story events and got caught up in the story again--with more appreciation for author's imagination. To the author: Wow. Amazing. I decided to stay up. Lol. Usually 4 am rising! Bravo!
July 19, 2017
Different and enjoyable
Interesting, original, with a huge twist, I really enjoyed this book. The clown scares the hell out of me though...and I would have liked to know more about Anand and the life of the audience, but overall I thought it was refreshing and not too far from the realm of possible. Thank you Sara King for the recommendation!
Interesting, original, with a huge twist, I really enjoyed this book. The clown scares the hell out of me though...and I would have liked to know more about Anand and the life of the audience, but overall I thought it was refreshing and not too far from the realm of possible. Thank you Sara King for the recommendation!
July 22, 2017
Shockingly amazing.
If you enjoy science fiction and dystopian based stories. This one is for you. I started reading expecting to be disappointed and could not put it down. The characters are likeable and there are so many twists. The plot never gets boring and will constantly keep you guessing.
If you enjoy science fiction and dystopian based stories. This one is for you. I started reading expecting to be disappointed and could not put it down. The characters are likeable and there are so many twists. The plot never gets boring and will constantly keep you guessing.
August 11, 2017
I received this book free from the author after winning it on Goodreads. I am very happy to give a honest review. This is one of the most amazing books I have ever read! An amazing author with such an imagination. The ending was perfect!! There were so many twists and turns. I rooted for Celia the whole time and she didn't disappoint.
September 8, 2017
Demasiado joven adulto para mi. Una chica vive en un reality en el que intentan batir records. Escapa. Se une a otros que intentan escapar de sus realities (circo, y uno de la audiencia que ve los realities). Escapan más. Alucinan con lonque se encuentran. Regresan. Revolución. Todo acaba (más o menos) bien. A evitar. C-
October 8, 2017
A dystopia story that starts like a darker Alice in Wonderland. The main character lived in a walled town her whole life, never talking about the outside. Due to an emergency she gets out an meets weird characters, slowly discovering what the world really is.
It's a different look at future societies and the story is moving fast.
It's a different look at future societies and the story is moving fast.
October 24, 2017
I had a deeply unsettling case of deja vu with this one, until I managed to figure out the reason why some characters and situations kept coming back to me: turns out this is the novelization of a short story previously published by the author in an anthology called Futures Near and Far.
On that anthology, I wrote that it felt like "a series of vignettes best described as the literary equivalent of coitus interruptus". And I actually liked that a lot.
This one? Reminds me about that saying on brevity and wit. Its a slow start, following by a meandering tale of discovery, plot-twists and not-entirely-likeable characters? Or maybe it was because the characters felt too one-dimensional and/or undeveloped? I can't quite put my finger on why it didn't quite click with me, even as I am hovering between one or two stars for the final rating. The short version is that the short-story-version of it stuck with me much, much more.
On that anthology, I wrote that it felt like "a series of vignettes best described as the literary equivalent of coitus interruptus". And I actually liked that a lot.
This one? Reminds me about that saying on brevity and wit. Its a slow start, following by a meandering tale of discovery, plot-twists and not-entirely-likeable characters? Or maybe it was because the characters felt too one-dimensional and/or undeveloped? I can't quite put my finger on why it didn't quite click with me, even as I am hovering between one or two stars for the final rating. The short version is that the short-story-version of it stuck with me much, much more.
August 25, 2018
Reality shows gone too far.
I think you have an excellent imagination.
You had me hooked from the first chapter.
I thoroughly enjoyed the diversity of your characters and their growth.
The twists were well done.
I look forward to reading more from your warped mind.
Keep up the good work.
I think you have an excellent imagination.
You had me hooked from the first chapter.
I thoroughly enjoyed the diversity of your characters and their growth.
The twists were well done.
I look forward to reading more from your warped mind.
Keep up the good work.
February 11, 2020
I loved Faller, Defenders, and Hitchers so I wanted to read this book. It was entertaining and fast paced but it was my least favorite of the 4. It seemed like it had some holes, and things got mentioned then never mentioned again but left you wondering what happened. It's still a good book and I would recommend it. It's an interesting concept that leaves you guessing throughout.
July 5, 2017
Interesting take on the future.
Very interesting and fun read. When the premise of this book was revealed entirely, I had an "ah ha!" moment. I definitely wasn't expecting what was revealed. Enjoy!
Very interesting and fun read. When the premise of this book was revealed entirely, I had an "ah ha!" moment. I definitely wasn't expecting what was revealed. Enjoy!
October 7, 2017
Fascinating story! The writing did move very quickly, and the characters did not explore many emotions, (which is ironic, considering that's one of the plot points), but the world building is superb! I'm a fan and excited to read more by Will McIntosh!
April 5, 2020
Cool premise, rushed in spots
This was a very well written and compelling story, I would have enjoyed more works building. The plot is quick and engaging, would have loved more explanation in parts.
This was a very well written and compelling story, I would have enjoyed more works building. The plot is quick and engaging, would have loved more explanation in parts.
November 8, 2020
Crazy, but insightful?
This story was both of those things. Celia was strong and sensitive. Anand was sensitive . . and strong. Beaners was. . .well, he was Beaners. Together they changed a world. Our world? Could be. Read it for yourself and you decide.
This story was both of those things. Celia was strong and sensitive. Anand was sensitive . . and strong. Beaners was. . .well, he was Beaners. Together they changed a world. Our world? Could be. Read it for yourself and you decide.
April 9, 2021
Excellent!
Wow! What an excellent tale that looks like nothing I ever read! Even if it's supposed to be rated 13-18, even at 50, I enjoyed every minute of it! A real page turner, you'll be amazed how it never goes where you expect it!
Wow! What an excellent tale that looks like nothing I ever read! Even if it's supposed to be rated 13-18, even at 50, I enjoyed every minute of it! A real page turner, you'll be amazed how it never goes where you expect it!
July 11, 2017
Great Booj
This was a very enjoyable read. It kept me hooked and wanting to find out what happens on the next page.
This was a very enjoyable read. It kept me hooked and wanting to find out what happens on the next page.
July 26, 2017
Interesting, different, really good. I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Will write a proper review later.
July 27, 2017
Solidly fun read
This was a fun read with a surprising twist. I enjoyed the characters and recommend this book .Appropriate for young adults and adults.
This was a fun read with a surprising twist. I enjoyed the characters and recommend this book .Appropriate for young adults and adults.
October 2, 2017
This was such a lovely adventure! Interesting twists and unexpected turns weaving a heartfelt story in usual McIntosh fashion. Also, Beaners <3
May 27, 2018
Unexpected twist.
The work of Will McIntosh always contains some interesting idea, often looking at themes from an unexpected viewpoint. Unbreakable is no different.
The work of Will McIntosh always contains some interesting idea, often looking at themes from an unexpected viewpoint. Unbreakable is no different.
September 11, 2018
Awesome book! It was hilarious, quirky and honestly a perfect book for scifi lovers!
October 28, 2018
uneven writing, more content and copy editing needed
June 16, 2019
Well, the story takes us on an unexpected journey but I miss better character descriptions and smoother storytelling. Too much YA for my taste.
December 7, 2019
Very fast read. A combination of sci fi dystopia, fantasy, YA, and adventure. Definitely not my favorite Will McIntosh book (that would be Love Minus Eighty) but still good enough to recommend. Definitely didn’t see the big twist coming.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 31 reviews