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Fissure
I cannot trust my senses.
My humanity is compromised.
There was no seismic event.
With its media controlled and its borders closed, the United States has isolated itself from the rest of the world in the aftermath of the deadly Lightning pandemic.
But when a cataclysm, even more mysterious than the Lightning, divides the nation into two incommunicable halves, the newly formed Department of Influence tries to control the fallout by controlling the narrative: the cataclysm never even happened.
An alcoholic haunted by his dead wife's ghost
An ambitious painter capitalizing on the country's new nationalism
A young runaway with strange powers
Three destructive and dangerous siblings seeking liberation
A pastor desperately searching for his lost faith
Two lost souls communicating across infinity
The fates of these characters violently intertwine within the chaos as misinformation and deception reign supreme in a story of manipulation and the search for ultimate truth.
If such a thing even exists...
My humanity is compromised.
There was no seismic event.
With its media controlled and its borders closed, the United States has isolated itself from the rest of the world in the aftermath of the deadly Lightning pandemic.
But when a cataclysm, even more mysterious than the Lightning, divides the nation into two incommunicable halves, the newly formed Department of Influence tries to control the fallout by controlling the narrative: the cataclysm never even happened.
An alcoholic haunted by his dead wife's ghost
An ambitious painter capitalizing on the country's new nationalism
A young runaway with strange powers
Three destructive and dangerous siblings seeking liberation
A pastor desperately searching for his lost faith
Two lost souls communicating across infinity
The fates of these characters violently intertwine within the chaos as misinformation and deception reign supreme in a story of manipulation and the search for ultimate truth.
If such a thing even exists...
446 pages, Kindle Edition
First published October 1, 2021
1 person is currently reading
8 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
November 25, 2021
Full disclosure my ex-boss wrote this so take my critical evaluation however you like.
This is a big, ambitious, home-run swing of a novel, especially for a debut. The kind of thing that was clearly germinating for a while before it was forcibly banged out. It's the kind of book whose themes can be boiled down to Everything with a capitol E. It runs the gambit from loss to nationalism to *broadly gestures* everything. I'm most fond of the premise and the way the plot moves. Just before the time when two disparate characters were about to intersect I found myself seeing it just at the right time. Slightly before they realize its going to happen so its exhilarating but so not so far out that it was a telegraphed bore.
Even for a novel of this scope it could've been longer? Or more fleshed out, maybe. I felt some of the characters were not given time to live with us (the reader) before the plot happens and sends them to a shadow realm dystopia or turns them into a sentient quasar. There's some over reliance on specific words ("dear" & "very"). At times is can feel like: What if Cloud Atlas, but dark?
Overall a success, especially for a first go, so I'm full of respect for that. And in case any read is wondering if the working relationship has influenced my thoughts, the operative part of that disclaimer is EX-boss so who's vibrant and unobstructed starlight now, suckkkkkerrrr???
Congratulations.
This is a big, ambitious, home-run swing of a novel, especially for a debut. The kind of thing that was clearly germinating for a while before it was forcibly banged out. It's the kind of book whose themes can be boiled down to Everything with a capitol E. It runs the gambit from loss to nationalism to *broadly gestures* everything. I'm most fond of the premise and the way the plot moves. Just before the time when two disparate characters were about to intersect I found myself seeing it just at the right time. Slightly before they realize its going to happen so its exhilarating but so not so far out that it was a telegraphed bore.
Even for a novel of this scope it could've been longer? Or more fleshed out, maybe. I felt some of the characters were not given time to live with us (the reader) before the plot happens and sends them to a shadow realm dystopia or turns them into a sentient quasar. There's some over reliance on specific words ("dear" & "very"). At times is can feel like: What if Cloud Atlas, but dark?
Overall a success, especially for a first go, so I'm full of respect for that. And in case any read is wondering if the working relationship has influenced my thoughts, the operative part of that disclaimer is EX-boss so who's vibrant and unobstructed starlight now, suckkkkkerrrr???
Congratulations.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 16, 2021
Relevant topic with a twist
I am in awe of what I just read. Lyrical, deep, haunting, and uplifting. So many amazing sentences I highlighted for their intense honesty.
The pandemic in this story was written so thought provokingly. So many parallels to current day, yet with such a poetic twist that it was hard to put down.
I highly recommend this novel to anyone who enjoys a story that twists and turns and causes you to think.
I am in awe of what I just read. Lyrical, deep, haunting, and uplifting. So many amazing sentences I highlighted for their intense honesty.
The pandemic in this story was written so thought provokingly. So many parallels to current day, yet with such a poetic twist that it was hard to put down.
I highly recommend this novel to anyone who enjoys a story that twists and turns and causes you to think.
May 18, 2022
This story follows an irregular variety of characters through not only the disarray of their individual lives but also the physical turmoil of the world around them.
No form of disaster is off limits in this compelling, thought provoking novel.
With time jumps and human extremes in every direction, this author takes you on a chaotic, messy, structurally unsound ride unlike any you’re likely to have been on before.
I look forward to seeing more from this talented and promising writer in the future.
No form of disaster is off limits in this compelling, thought provoking novel.
With time jumps and human extremes in every direction, this author takes you on a chaotic, messy, structurally unsound ride unlike any you’re likely to have been on before.
I look forward to seeing more from this talented and promising writer in the future.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews