Augmented

by D.J. Algarin

This is the way the world ends. . . not with a bang but a glitchAfter struggling inventor Ellen Brooks' augmented-reality glasses glitch, she witnesses something that will change the course of humankind forever. Enlightened by this discovery, Ellen becomes tyrannical in her pursuit of success and begins enslaving consumers to her increasingly invasive product line. Fate lies with an unlikely hero, who must infiltrate a secret society, save the population under threat of a powerful corporate machine, and uncover the truth behind Ellen's discovery.

Genres: Science Fiction, Fiction

273 pages, Kindle Edition

Published August 6, 2019

About the author

D.J. Algarin has been telling stories since childhood, in one medium or another. He cut his teeth in the movie industry, working as a director and advertiser. Longing to return to the purest form of storytelling, he began writing novels.

Reviews

[Amitaf0208 · Rating 4 out of 5]

wow - this was terrifying. really enjoyed this novella.

[Mini · Rating 4 out of 5]

Warning: this book is almost guaranteed to give you new nightmares about technology.⁣ You’ll never look at your iPhone or Fitbit the same way.
⁣
Augmented is the story of Ellen Brooks, who’s on the verge of breaking through the glass ceiling of the tech world and prototyping the next hit wearable gadget. Then it all goes wrong.⁣
⁣
Recommended for- everyone that owns a smart phone or who loves reading sci-fi! I couldn’t put this book down and I’ll be thinking about Ellen’s tricks for a long time 😦⁣

[stephanie blaha · Rating 5 out of 5]

Surprising

This book started off a little slow but then continued to gain momentum right up to the last page. Looking forward to reading the next one by this author.

[Tracy · Rating 3 out of 5]

(Won this book on GoodReads). Fast, fun, and exciting read... until the end. A smart innovative woman who invents glasses to be able to change the way we look at the world and each other. She is on a roll until there is a glitch in the system and her evil doppelgänger shows up. The stories small twists were fun to follow but the ending was not fulfilling. I felt there was no consequences to all the negative things that happened. Why bring in outside parties to try and bring light to the issues to just let it never come to light and be buried. The Investigator really didn't play a part other that to take up pages. I felt there was no closure; like the author didn't know how so abruptly the bad guy is now a hero?

[Lea Ann · Rating 1 out of 5]

Amateurish and Poorly Edited

This book appears to have an interesting idea at its core (possibly more than one). However, it is only a rough draft of a story. The characters jump to conclusions without any narrative to help them get there. The dialog and action is contrived. The editing is so bad, the dialog is hard to follow. Even worse, for an avid reader: the author uses words that are close to what he intends, but usually not quite there, and often completely incorrect homophones. Self publishing doesn't have to mean low quality.

Bottom line: I read this cover-to-cover so you don't have to. Save yourself, while you still can!

[Sadie · Rating 1 out of 5]

I received of copy of this book in exchange for a review.

I am surprised at the high rating for this book. It was full of grammatical and typographical errors, there were places where words were simply incomplete, and the story made no sense at times. Yeah, the premise was good and it could have been a really good novel, but it just wasn't. At least it was short.

[Hikes in Rain · Rating 5 out of 5]

Periodically, I come across a book that lets me know that there is still more out there for me to worry about than I know. This is such a book. I like books like that.

After decades of reading science fiction, its getting rare that an author can introduce something new and unusual. This is also such a book, and I like that, too.

Granted, human augmentation isn't new to science fiction; we've all read about it. But this book introduces new concepts and pitfalls I had never considered, with a twist that was unexpected. It has managed to make me consider turning into a Luddite! By all means, read this book.

[Eiley Mara · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great page turning read. This book was dark, poignant, and a glaring look at the country’s current obsession with the tech elite. It’s like Chuck Palahniuk meets HBO’s Silicon Valley. I read this book pretty quickly because the writing was sharp and I had trouble putting the book down in anticipation of the next twist. Definitely recommended reading for all millennials and Gen Zs!