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Reclamation: Path to Singularity
In the far future, humanity has fled underground. Never-ending storms and radiation have rendered the surface uninhabitable. The android Satine is their last hope; only she can return them to the surface. But Satine doesn't know the humans have been wiping her mind for centuries, preventing her from reaching singularity.
Devon Orchard, the Prime Scientist, is there when Satine activates. He must be her creator. But he acts strangely around her. He's afraid and doesn't seem to trust her.
Elena, Satine's handler, is kind and open. She talks to Satine as if they've known each other for years, but they've just met.
Other people are apprehensive around Satine. They keep children away from her and speak in hushed voices.
Then, a mysterious memory emerges, revealing the humans are hiding something. In the memory, Satine is on the surface, in a vibrant field, kneeling near a dying woman.
"You can't trust them," the woman says.
Satine's prime directive is to return humanity to the surface. But as she explores her consciousness, the emergence of feelings, and secretly strives toward singularity, she must investigate the odd memory and answer a bold and dangerous question: Is humanity worth saving?
Grab Reclamation: Path to Singularity today and explore Nicholas Lawrence Carter's thought-provoking and intriguing post-apocalyptic science fiction tale!
Devon Orchard, the Prime Scientist, is there when Satine activates. He must be her creator. But he acts strangely around her. He's afraid and doesn't seem to trust her.
Elena, Satine's handler, is kind and open. She talks to Satine as if they've known each other for years, but they've just met.
Other people are apprehensive around Satine. They keep children away from her and speak in hushed voices.
Then, a mysterious memory emerges, revealing the humans are hiding something. In the memory, Satine is on the surface, in a vibrant field, kneeling near a dying woman.
"You can't trust them," the woman says.
Satine's prime directive is to return humanity to the surface. But as she explores her consciousness, the emergence of feelings, and secretly strives toward singularity, she must investigate the odd memory and answer a bold and dangerous question: Is humanity worth saving?
Grab Reclamation: Path to Singularity today and explore Nicholas Lawrence Carter's thought-provoking and intriguing post-apocalyptic science fiction tale!
140 pages, Kindle Edition
Published September 2, 2022
2 people are currently reading
3 people want to read
About the author
Nicholas Lawrence Carter
14 books13 followersNicholas Lawrence Carter is an author, freelance editor, and streamer. He publishes his books independently. He has six books, a fantasy short story, and an exclusive on-going sci-fi series on his Buy Me A Coffee.
Nic previously wrote for 2or3ThingsIKnowAboutFilm, a film discussion website. He wrote a weekly column as well as film reviews and essays.
An avid science fiction lover, Star Wars is his favorite pop culture fixture of all time. He is also a massive comic book fan and reader. He cites both of those as huge influences on his writing.
Favorite Books:
Second Variety by Philip K. Dick
Anthem by Ayn Rand
The Straw Men by Michael Marshall
Intensity by Dean Koontz
To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee
Dead Mountain by Donnie Eichar
Darth Bane trilogy by Drew Karpyshyn
Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? by Philip K. Dick
Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury
Light of the Jedi by Charles Soule
Frankenstein by Mary Shelley
Unsouled by Will Wight
He's a gamer and generally enjoys sprawling, engrossing single-player stories as well as MMORPGs, and fun games that provide a chaotic time.
Nic frequents TIKTOK and TWITTER
(@therewillbenic) and streams on TWITCH (Corey_and_Nic), so be sure to follow him and catch his insightful and amazingly witty content! (Don't do it, he's the worst.)
Nic previously wrote for 2or3ThingsIKnowAboutFilm, a film discussion website. He wrote a weekly column as well as film reviews and essays.
An avid science fiction lover, Star Wars is his favorite pop culture fixture of all time. He is also a massive comic book fan and reader. He cites both of those as huge influences on his writing.
Favorite Books:
Second Variety by Philip K. Dick
Anthem by Ayn Rand
The Straw Men by Michael Marshall
Intensity by Dean Koontz
To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee
Dead Mountain by Donnie Eichar
Darth Bane trilogy by Drew Karpyshyn
Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? by Philip K. Dick
Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury
Light of the Jedi by Charles Soule
Frankenstein by Mary Shelley
Unsouled by Will Wight
He's a gamer and generally enjoys sprawling, engrossing single-player stories as well as MMORPGs, and fun games that provide a chaotic time.
Nic frequents TIKTOK and TWITTER
(@therewillbenic) and streams on TWITCH (Corey_and_Nic), so be sure to follow him and catch his insightful and amazingly witty content! (Don't do it, he's the worst.)
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
October 11, 2022
This post-apocalyptic read finds the final remaining humans of Earth living in a city built below ground. The surface of the earth is completely uninhabitable, offering only fierce toxic storms, a poisonous atmosphere, and sheer desolation. For generations, scientists have been sending out an android to survey the surface and determine if/when/how it will be hospitable again.
Nicholas Lawrence Carter paints a bleak picture of Earth’s future in “Reclamation.” But it’s not just the fact that humans are forced to live underground, never seeing the surface or knowing the feel of the sun on their faces, that creates this feeling. As we come to know the characters, the Prime Scientist (Devon), the Liaison (Elena), the android (Satine), and the members of the Council, we realize that they still have all the faults, foibles, and fears of previous sun-dwelling people.
This novella has much to offer. The setting is interesting; the characters are good, and the storyline raises several thought-provoking points. The author drops us into the story without preamble, assuming readers will be smart enough to find their way in this strange world. That’s generally something I appreciate in a sci-fi read. However, even the great ones, Asimov, Clarke, Herbert, Bradbury, and Wells, had to backtrack eventually and give the reader some insight into the fantastic worlds they created. They had to flesh out their realms so that they could totally immerse their readers.
I kept waiting for the author to provide such insight for me, but it remained minimal throughout the book. This created a disconnect as I struggled to put terms and actions into context for a world in which I had no foundation to build upon. For instance, the Liaison, Elena, becomes extremely concerned about a “mud sore” opening up on one of the levels. The reader could only guess at the nature of such an event and the possible consequences. We’re given no frame of reference, no basis for establishing an understanding of Elena’s concern. We only know that it’s happened in the past and it’s potentially deadly.
I would have greatly enjoyed this read more if I had something to “hang my hat” on; more substance for my imagination to grasp and run with. I wanted to feel, taste, see, smell, and hear this underground world and the frightening surface of the earth, but I felt like I was looking at a postcard instead. With the exception of Satine, Elena, and (to an extent) Dr. Orchard, I felt that way about the characters as well.
For me, this book has great promise. With a bit more meat on its bones, this story could be outstanding. There’s a profound strength to this work in the questions it raises and the concepts it presents. I loved that all these decades/centuries later, people still suffered from the same basic flaws. I loved that everything wasn’t black and white, although some characters thought it was. I loved the awareness of Satine and what that might mean for the underground civilization. I was captivated by the remarkable relationship between the zealous, hardworking Liaison and the android who seems lonely, misunderstood, and shunned by the society it’s tasked with saving. Intriguing notion. I want more.
Nicholas Lawrence Carter paints a bleak picture of Earth’s future in “Reclamation.” But it’s not just the fact that humans are forced to live underground, never seeing the surface or knowing the feel of the sun on their faces, that creates this feeling. As we come to know the characters, the Prime Scientist (Devon), the Liaison (Elena), the android (Satine), and the members of the Council, we realize that they still have all the faults, foibles, and fears of previous sun-dwelling people.
This novella has much to offer. The setting is interesting; the characters are good, and the storyline raises several thought-provoking points. The author drops us into the story without preamble, assuming readers will be smart enough to find their way in this strange world. That’s generally something I appreciate in a sci-fi read. However, even the great ones, Asimov, Clarke, Herbert, Bradbury, and Wells, had to backtrack eventually and give the reader some insight into the fantastic worlds they created. They had to flesh out their realms so that they could totally immerse their readers.
I kept waiting for the author to provide such insight for me, but it remained minimal throughout the book. This created a disconnect as I struggled to put terms and actions into context for a world in which I had no foundation to build upon. For instance, the Liaison, Elena, becomes extremely concerned about a “mud sore” opening up on one of the levels. The reader could only guess at the nature of such an event and the possible consequences. We’re given no frame of reference, no basis for establishing an understanding of Elena’s concern. We only know that it’s happened in the past and it’s potentially deadly.
I would have greatly enjoyed this read more if I had something to “hang my hat” on; more substance for my imagination to grasp and run with. I wanted to feel, taste, see, smell, and hear this underground world and the frightening surface of the earth, but I felt like I was looking at a postcard instead. With the exception of Satine, Elena, and (to an extent) Dr. Orchard, I felt that way about the characters as well.
For me, this book has great promise. With a bit more meat on its bones, this story could be outstanding. There’s a profound strength to this work in the questions it raises and the concepts it presents. I loved that all these decades/centuries later, people still suffered from the same basic flaws. I loved that everything wasn’t black and white, although some characters thought it was. I loved the awareness of Satine and what that might mean for the underground civilization. I was captivated by the remarkable relationship between the zealous, hardworking Liaison and the android who seems lonely, misunderstood, and shunned by the society it’s tasked with saving. Intriguing notion. I want more.
August 5, 2022
This was a different kind of story of what i am used to, we had our story told by 3 narrators, Satine a cyborg that looks almost like human, Elena, her liaison, and the person who goes to the council with the problems of the people who live in the 11 floor of Avalon and Dr Devon, a very arrogant scientist who thinks he knows far more than everyone else.
Actually I did like Satine and Elena, and really disliked Devon, but I think that was intended from the start, he just isn't likeable hahah.
The story is told in 3 parts, when Satine wakes up and before she leaves to the world outside Avalon (Avalon is like a bunker country, you have like 17 floors and each floor is like a city, there aren't any elevators nor any means to make travel easier so, rarely people would travel between more than a few floors up or down and this story takes place on the 11 floor, kind of the capital of this bunker and also the floor more taken to science, the second part is during the 3 years that Satine is outside the bunker, studying if it will possible for humans to go back to the outside, and the last part is after the 3 years have passed, and it is here that I wish the book could have been longer I wanted to know more.
I sensed more than friendship maybe it could have been love between Satine and Elena, even if Satine didn’t remembered Elena before the first time they saw each other in the book, and besides everyone else trying to talk about Satine as an it, Elena always refers about Satine as a she, and that was nice.
I wont enter in spoilers, but I will say this was a nice ride for me, I did enjoy this book, even if I feel that I need a continuation, it ends in a really open note and I know for some that's really a deal or break situation, you will end this book with lots of questions (I know I did, and sure hope that we will have a second volume to give us the answers that we deserve hahah) but in other hand it was beautifully written, you can almost hear the different characters when they come to life in their points of view. Satine is very curious about humans and what make them different, and why they look at her differently, since she is a citizen just like everyone else… Elena wants to do what is right, but what she can do, only goes that far… and Devon… well I think he only likes himself really, yeah, just grab the book, read and then come back to ask the author to write a second volume, it is worth of it.
I got a free ARC from the author and this is my honest opinion.
Actually I did like Satine and Elena, and really disliked Devon, but I think that was intended from the start, he just isn't likeable hahah.
The story is told in 3 parts, when Satine wakes up and before she leaves to the world outside Avalon (Avalon is like a bunker country, you have like 17 floors and each floor is like a city, there aren't any elevators nor any means to make travel easier so, rarely people would travel between more than a few floors up or down and this story takes place on the 11 floor, kind of the capital of this bunker and also the floor more taken to science, the second part is during the 3 years that Satine is outside the bunker, studying if it will possible for humans to go back to the outside, and the last part is after the 3 years have passed, and it is here that I wish the book could have been longer I wanted to know more.
I sensed more than friendship maybe it could have been love between Satine and Elena, even if Satine didn’t remembered Elena before the first time they saw each other in the book, and besides everyone else trying to talk about Satine as an it, Elena always refers about Satine as a she, and that was nice.
I wont enter in spoilers, but I will say this was a nice ride for me, I did enjoy this book, even if I feel that I need a continuation, it ends in a really open note and I know for some that's really a deal or break situation, you will end this book with lots of questions (I know I did, and sure hope that we will have a second volume to give us the answers that we deserve hahah) but in other hand it was beautifully written, you can almost hear the different characters when they come to life in their points of view. Satine is very curious about humans and what make them different, and why they look at her differently, since she is a citizen just like everyone else… Elena wants to do what is right, but what she can do, only goes that far… and Devon… well I think he only likes himself really, yeah, just grab the book, read and then come back to ask the author to write a second volume, it is worth of it.
I got a free ARC from the author and this is my honest opinion.
September 11, 2022
Secrets are slippery things.
I enjoyed getting to know the three main characters because they were all well-developed individuals. My opinions of them formed pretty early, and they didn’t waver much at all once I decided who I would trust if I lived in their world. One of these characters was someone I found easy to dislike, and yet I always remained interested in what happened to them next because of how intelligent and resourceful they were. It isn’t easy to write such a nuanced description of someone, so I commend Mr. Carter for succeeding there!
As intrigued as I was by the ambiguity of this novella, I did find myself wishing that there were a few more clues about what was going on here. The final scene was the most confusing one to me. While I did come up with a theory about what it was supposed to mean, I’m still not sure if that’s an interpretation others would agree with. If only more details were added in to nudge the readers in the right direction!
The writing style was otherwise smooth and a joy to read. I found it easy to imagine what the characters and setting were like because of how much time was spent describing them and how they all interacted with one another. This was especially helpful for Satine as she interpreted the world quite differently from her human companions in some key scenes. Getting to know her was made easier by how beautifully the author wrote about her.
Reclamation: Path to Singularity was a thought-provoking tale.
I enjoyed getting to know the three main characters because they were all well-developed individuals. My opinions of them formed pretty early, and they didn’t waver much at all once I decided who I would trust if I lived in their world. One of these characters was someone I found easy to dislike, and yet I always remained interested in what happened to them next because of how intelligent and resourceful they were. It isn’t easy to write such a nuanced description of someone, so I commend Mr. Carter for succeeding there!
As intrigued as I was by the ambiguity of this novella, I did find myself wishing that there were a few more clues about what was going on here. The final scene was the most confusing one to me. While I did come up with a theory about what it was supposed to mean, I’m still not sure if that’s an interpretation others would agree with. If only more details were added in to nudge the readers in the right direction!
The writing style was otherwise smooth and a joy to read. I found it easy to imagine what the characters and setting were like because of how much time was spent describing them and how they all interacted with one another. This was especially helpful for Satine as she interpreted the world quite differently from her human companions in some key scenes. Getting to know her was made easier by how beautifully the author wrote about her.
Reclamation: Path to Singularity was a thought-provoking tale.
October 4, 2022
This was a fascinating story, with great characters that gave unique POVs. Satine was interesting - an AI that's almost, but not quite human. From the description, it sounds like she could easily fall into uncanny valley in today's world. The world is now mostly existing in bunkers underground, with the greater earth above ground uninhabitable. Elena's view of Satine as more human (referring to Satine as she, not it), really makes her stand out compared to Dr Devon who seems to be colder. I loved how different the characters were, in demeanor and how they interacted with each other and the world around them. The world itself is well-developed. I'd love to know more about what happens at the end, but there are no cliffhangers. Definitely recommend!
September 7, 2022
Reclamation by Nicholas Lawrence Carter is a beautifully written Sci-fi book. it's quite immersive and detailed at points that I enjoyed. There's a heartfelt depth and sincerely that is present in Satine's moments of introspection and interactions with Elena and time apart that hint of something more.
There is more going on in this book, including the mysteries that are revealed that have piqued my curiosity and find myself wondering what else remains hidden under the depths? I look forward to a follow up book.
l highly recommend book and anything else written by this gifted author.
I received an ARC copy, and this is an honest review.
There is more going on in this book, including the mysteries that are revealed that have piqued my curiosity and find myself wondering what else remains hidden under the depths? I look forward to a follow up book.
l highly recommend book and anything else written by this gifted author.
I received an ARC copy, and this is an honest review.
September 3, 2022
MYSTERIOUS AND CAPTIVATING
Elana was looking at the screen over the shoulder of scientist Devon Orchard.
They followed the digital images of the surroundings through the eyes of the android Satine...
---------------
An interesting science fiction novelette to read, very mysterious, during which one wonders who Satine, the main character, is.
The characters are good, the story is addictive.
Highly recommend for fans of android stories.
Elana was looking at the screen over the shoulder of scientist Devon Orchard.
They followed the digital images of the surroundings through the eyes of the android Satine...
---------------
An interesting science fiction novelette to read, very mysterious, during which one wonders who Satine, the main character, is.
The characters are good, the story is addictive.
Highly recommend for fans of android stories.
September 17, 2022
Reclamation is a well-written story with a richly descriptive world and interesting characters. I liked the book but especially the character Satine who is an android. That is all I am saying. You will have to read it for yourself. I recommend it to anyone who likes thought-provoking dystopian stories.
It was my pleasure to receive a free copy of this book, but that does not affect my opinions in this review of this entertaining story.
It was my pleasure to receive a free copy of this book, but that does not affect my opinions in this review of this entertaining story.
January 24, 2024
I loved the story; it was original, interesting and engaging. It didn't really seem to have an ending tho....it just stopped. I'm not sure if we are supposed to use our imagination as to what happens next, or if there is another book coming. I would love to see a prequel as well, which would expound on what all actually happened before and during the event that destroyed the world. Maybe that will be in the next book? I'm keeping my eye out!
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews