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Useful Idiots
Imagine the United Kingdom in the year 2255, flooded due to global warming and renamed the Rhine Delta Islands (RDI), an outpost of the United States of Europe. In this new federalist society, recorded history has largely been erased and humans are genetically modified to be homogeneous--ageless, disease-free, and generally flawless. Except of course for the twenty thousand Aboriginals living in outlying marshes who cling to old human ways and the "Inglish" culture. In Jan Mark's Useful Idiots , these two societies collide when archaeologists, including a young graduate student named Merrick Korda, discover an undated skeleton on Aboriginal land, the remains of a man who was shot while robbing graves for mysterious pearls. Korda's work on the case becomes politically and personally dangerous--archaeology has been deemed a lost science that can only stir up trouble in a post-Anarchy world without race or nation. Readers will be captivated as Merrick dodges invisible enemies, scours the marshes for clues, explores his own humanity, and engages in a gruesome experiment on his own body that he hopes will illuminate secrets of the past. Mark raises questions about identity, ethnicity, education, technology, the notion of "useful idiots," and much more in this haunting, dark, suspenseful novel. --Karin Snelson
416 pages, Hardcover
First published April 7, 1995
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Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews
August 20, 2016
In 2255 a gale rips through a beach and exposes the ancient boglands below, and embedded in the bog is a body. A team of archaeologists excavate the body, but it is on the edge of land beloning to the Inglish, an Aboriginal community living an archaic and forgotten way of life. The removal of the body will set off a chain of events that threatens not only the existence of the science of archaeology, but the ongoing tolerance of Aboriginal communities all across Europe. But the skeleton also conceals a secret that might be their salvation.
Useful Idiots is an extraordinarily sophisticated, subtle and adult Young Adult novel - a literary dystopian/utopian science fiction thriller that explores ideas of national identites and the costs of keeping them and the price of losing them. The protagonists is a largely ignored and apparently forgotten graduate assistant whose involvement with the Inglish prompts him to make an extraordinary sacrifice, but old resentments and prejudices may be impossible to overcome.
Written superbly, with fantastically contrasted settings between the sterile shelter of the city and the deadly lush maze of the fens. A timely novel - it will resonate chillingly with the current state of climate change and post-Brexit politics and rising nationalism. A brilliant, gripping read.
Useful Idiots is an extraordinarily sophisticated, subtle and adult Young Adult novel - a literary dystopian/utopian science fiction thriller that explores ideas of national identites and the costs of keeping them and the price of losing them. The protagonists is a largely ignored and apparently forgotten graduate assistant whose involvement with the Inglish prompts him to make an extraordinary sacrifice, but old resentments and prejudices may be impossible to overcome.
Written superbly, with fantastically contrasted settings between the sterile shelter of the city and the deadly lush maze of the fens. A timely novel - it will resonate chillingly with the current state of climate change and post-Brexit politics and rising nationalism. A brilliant, gripping read.
December 20, 2009
Extraordinary unusual "children's" book with some pretty heavy messagea about the environment, ecology and society. Very well written with some great characters who stayed with me long after I'd read the final page. Definitely worth reading (and reading again!)
February 4, 2012
A truly extraordinary novel, and the last one this author wrote. The combination of unique setting, strange culture and unusual perspective makes this a must-read.
August 25, 2017
3.5 stars rounded up to 4.
Firstly, this is not a young adult book (in my opinion). The protagonist (and all the other characters) are quite clearly adults and, although the books deals with the theme of better understanding the world and moving from a position of naiveness to clarity, this doesn't make it YA. That said, it could be enjoyed by young adults and adults alive.
The book is less pacy than most YA books, particularly at the start. But it's intriguing and draws you in slowly. It's not a book you can skim through - you really have to read it - and it makes you think. The protagonist, Merrick, is likeable enough and the rest of the cast have enough personality and mystery about them to keep you guessing about what side they might be on. The descriptions and atmosphere created through the writing is fantastic. The author addresses some significant contemporary issues around culture, equality and autonomy in an interesting dystopian setting.
So far, so good. Unfortunately, the author kind of ruins all the tension she's built up during the course of the story with a very sudden and unsatisfactory ending. The ending does make you think, but it leaves too many threads unravelled for my liking, particularly around what happens to the wider cast of characters. As a minor criticism, I also felt that time jumped around a lot. In the passage of a few sentences, the sun rises, sets and a new day begins. I found this confusing in places and a little unnecessary.
The real strength of this book is how it makes you think about cultural clashes, how you view people from different cultures and the impact of these (often unrealised) biases. Unfortunately, this isn't quite enough to make up for what's quite frankly, a damp squib of an ending. By spending a little more time tying up the different threads of the story and character journeys, the author could have created a more satisfying conclusion to the book.
Firstly, this is not a young adult book (in my opinion). The protagonist (and all the other characters) are quite clearly adults and, although the books deals with the theme of better understanding the world and moving from a position of naiveness to clarity, this doesn't make it YA. That said, it could be enjoyed by young adults and adults alive.
The book is less pacy than most YA books, particularly at the start. But it's intriguing and draws you in slowly. It's not a book you can skim through - you really have to read it - and it makes you think. The protagonist, Merrick, is likeable enough and the rest of the cast have enough personality and mystery about them to keep you guessing about what side they might be on. The descriptions and atmosphere created through the writing is fantastic. The author addresses some significant contemporary issues around culture, equality and autonomy in an interesting dystopian setting.
So far, so good. Unfortunately, the author kind of ruins all the tension she's built up during the course of the story with a very sudden and unsatisfactory ending. The ending does make you think, but it leaves too many threads unravelled for my liking, particularly around what happens to the wider cast of characters. As a minor criticism, I also felt that time jumped around a lot. In the passage of a few sentences, the sun rises, sets and a new day begins. I found this confusing in places and a little unnecessary.
The real strength of this book is how it makes you think about cultural clashes, how you view people from different cultures and the impact of these (often unrealised) biases. Unfortunately, this isn't quite enough to make up for what's quite frankly, a damp squib of an ending. By spending a little more time tying up the different threads of the story and character journeys, the author could have created a more satisfying conclusion to the book.
October 6, 2020
The title seemed interesting, but the book was also fun
March 2, 2025
Literally so bad
July 2, 2007
*disclaimer: I read an advanced copy/galley proofs*
Very rarely do I come across a book that makes me regret the time I spent reading it. Unfortunately, this is one of those books. Perhaps some more editing was done before the final publication, but there were bigger problems than typos in the galley proofs. Scenes would change with no indication of the setting--three paragraphs (or even a few pages) into the new scene, you would finally get some detail and realize that you were in an office and no longer at the beach.
The premise of the novel was an interesting one: a futuristic Earth struggles with a small community of outsiders who insist on adhering to old ways of living (ie, our modern way of life). Although the characters are relatively well written, the plot leaps haphazardly and asks the reader to suspend too much disbelief. In particular, the pieces of the storyline don't fit logically together: there was no smooth, believable flow to the chain of events.
I'm glad my copy was free; it would have been even more disappointing if I had spent money on it.
Very rarely do I come across a book that makes me regret the time I spent reading it. Unfortunately, this is one of those books. Perhaps some more editing was done before the final publication, but there were bigger problems than typos in the galley proofs. Scenes would change with no indication of the setting--three paragraphs (or even a few pages) into the new scene, you would finally get some detail and realize that you were in an office and no longer at the beach.
The premise of the novel was an interesting one: a futuristic Earth struggles with a small community of outsiders who insist on adhering to old ways of living (ie, our modern way of life). Although the characters are relatively well written, the plot leaps haphazardly and asks the reader to suspend too much disbelief. In particular, the pieces of the storyline don't fit logically together: there was no smooth, believable flow to the chain of events.
I'm glad my copy was free; it would have been even more disappointing if I had spent money on it.
March 23, 2011
Have to agree with other reviews -- slow to start, then un-put-downable, rounded off with a disappointing ending. I'll probably keep an eye out for other things by this author -- the world building was awesome and the writing very controlled, the characters take a while to warm up but then you're sucked in. Too bad she didn't do more with all the build up. I realize she's making an interesting point with how she left things, but I would have preferred an interesting story.
January 18, 2013
Set in the uk in the year 2255. A young archaeology graduate makes a grim discovery that leads him to a group of Aboriginal people who are defending the 'old' ways. Reading this book is like being shrouded in the mists of the fens where the Oyster people live. An eerie, thoughtful story that remained with me long after the reading.
October 16, 2014
This was discarded from the library but I grabbed it to read. It seemed a little out of place in YA. Might have seen more use in adult SF collection. Very interesting world-building but it got so complicated with political plots and nefarious doings that I was left confused and unsatisfied. I was never sure who was in the right at the end
September 17, 2011
This book was very engaging and thought-provoking. It deals with political and ethical issues, and I absolutely loved the way it made me think. The ending was slightly disappointing, as it felt sort of incomplete, but other than that it was great.
March 23, 2010
some parts good, but the ending was bizarre.
May 28, 2011
This book haunts me...I don't know why, but I feel like I should have liked this book, but ... meh.
August 9, 2011
I don't know what I expected, but this book did not deliver for me. Anti-climax. It could be that I read it in fits and starts...but the future world in this book never materialized.
January 26, 2015
I really enjoyed this until the last 30 or so pages when it suddenly becomes an action novel and resolves none of conflicts.
March 6, 2015
SciFi crap
January 3, 2009
A great story with a lot to say. The ending was definitely unexpected, but I liked it nonetheless.
Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews