Review of Genex of Halcyon
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Bhaskar Rogha
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Review of Genex of Halcyon
[Following is a volunteer review of "Genex of Halcyon" by Joshua Stelling.]
Genex of Halcyon by Joshua Stelling is a science fiction novel set at the end of the year 2051. The book shows no matter how technologically advanced humans become, they can end up miserable if they can’t handle their own minds. It also shows how our inventions can quickly turn against us. It depicts how if everything is connected and one unit goes bad, then everything gets disturbed.
Some people might laugh at the first thing I found good about the book. It was a beautiful transparent logo before the start of the first chapter. I liked the logo at the end of the last chapter as well. If you are someone like me who appreciates all things beautiful, you’ll surely smile after looking at them. The second positive aspect is the vocabulary used by Joshua. There were a few moments where I laughed while reading the book. I'm afraid trying to describe those moments will spoil the fun. I'll try anyway. One of the girls in the book is named Faith. She gave a logical argument about something. Since the book is written in simple present, Joshua has narrated, “Faith has a reason.” That was ironic and funny at the same time. Then there are seven lessons to be learnt from the book. The first one is that the more we resist some thought, the more it persists. The second lesson is that people start justifying their desires by faking information. The third lesson made me think of the adage “an empty mind is a devil’s workshop” in a new way. It is also Newton’s second law of thermodynamics. The law is stated as “There’s a natural tendency of any isolated system to degenerate into a more disordered state.” The fourth lesson is a simile used by Joshua about humans. He has written “we are like snowflakes. We don’t last long alone.” The fifth lesson has been laced as a statement made by a character. The character says, “But our limits are what define us.” It is so true. If we didn’t have limited time on this planet, our living moments would have meant nothing. Our death defines what our life stands for. The sixth lesson is about how every choice involves an inherent sacrifice. I think the following one is the most important, “Denial makes us blind.” Other than the lessons, Joshua’s knowledge about Spain and its language is charming. Through the thoughts of another character, Joshua has asked a very deep question, “something in us is still broken. Will it always be?” I stumbled upon some lines that are part of the story but they still rhymed. I liked them. Then there was the ultimate enveloping. “Like a drop of mercury in a veil of rain, Azad catches the light. Like a firefly in Vegas, he is unseen. Like a delta splits a river, he confronts the tide, a lonely tree round which the ocean curls. Like a metaphor, he is not what he seems.” The way we put folders inside folders on our computers, Joshua has used the word ‘metaphor’ in a simile.
I felt that a lot of commas were missing. It made the reading quicker and less impactful, even when an emphasis on the cause and effect could be shown. Also, omitting a comma created confusion once. Usually, the thoughts of characters are either put in single inverted commas or italicized, so that the reader can differentiate them from the rest of the narration. Since Joshua hasn’t done that, it confused me a few times. It happened twice that I had to look up the meaning of a new word, and either its meaning didn’t fit the context or the meaning couldn’t be found at all. Such incidents dampened the thrill of the developing plot. I also found more than ten objective errors.
Because of the above-mentioned negative aspects, I’ll rate this book two out of four stars.
This book contains vulgar slangs. Since it also has some explicit sexual content, it is suitable for a mature audience. It has a scene of violence as well. It is recommended to those who want to imbibe the seven lessons I mentioned in the paragraph describing the positive aspects, and/or to those who like reading texts embellished with the figures of speech.
******
Genex of Halcyon
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
Genex of Halcyon by Joshua Stelling is a science fiction novel set at the end of the year 2051. The book shows no matter how technologically advanced humans become, they can end up miserable if they can’t handle their own minds. It also shows how our inventions can quickly turn against us. It depicts how if everything is connected and one unit goes bad, then everything gets disturbed.
Some people might laugh at the first thing I found good about the book. It was a beautiful transparent logo before the start of the first chapter. I liked the logo at the end of the last chapter as well. If you are someone like me who appreciates all things beautiful, you’ll surely smile after looking at them. The second positive aspect is the vocabulary used by Joshua. There were a few moments where I laughed while reading the book. I'm afraid trying to describe those moments will spoil the fun. I'll try anyway. One of the girls in the book is named Faith. She gave a logical argument about something. Since the book is written in simple present, Joshua has narrated, “Faith has a reason.” That was ironic and funny at the same time. Then there are seven lessons to be learnt from the book. The first one is that the more we resist some thought, the more it persists. The second lesson is that people start justifying their desires by faking information. The third lesson made me think of the adage “an empty mind is a devil’s workshop” in a new way. It is also Newton’s second law of thermodynamics. The law is stated as “There’s a natural tendency of any isolated system to degenerate into a more disordered state.” The fourth lesson is a simile used by Joshua about humans. He has written “we are like snowflakes. We don’t last long alone.” The fifth lesson has been laced as a statement made by a character. The character says, “But our limits are what define us.” It is so true. If we didn’t have limited time on this planet, our living moments would have meant nothing. Our death defines what our life stands for. The sixth lesson is about how every choice involves an inherent sacrifice. I think the following one is the most important, “Denial makes us blind.” Other than the lessons, Joshua’s knowledge about Spain and its language is charming. Through the thoughts of another character, Joshua has asked a very deep question, “something in us is still broken. Will it always be?” I stumbled upon some lines that are part of the story but they still rhymed. I liked them. Then there was the ultimate enveloping. “Like a drop of mercury in a veil of rain, Azad catches the light. Like a firefly in Vegas, he is unseen. Like a delta splits a river, he confronts the tide, a lonely tree round which the ocean curls. Like a metaphor, he is not what he seems.” The way we put folders inside folders on our computers, Joshua has used the word ‘metaphor’ in a simile.
I felt that a lot of commas were missing. It made the reading quicker and less impactful, even when an emphasis on the cause and effect could be shown. Also, omitting a comma created confusion once. Usually, the thoughts of characters are either put in single inverted commas or italicized, so that the reader can differentiate them from the rest of the narration. Since Joshua hasn’t done that, it confused me a few times. It happened twice that I had to look up the meaning of a new word, and either its meaning didn’t fit the context or the meaning couldn’t be found at all. Such incidents dampened the thrill of the developing plot. I also found more than ten objective errors.
Because of the above-mentioned negative aspects, I’ll rate this book two out of four stars.
This book contains vulgar slangs. Since it also has some explicit sexual content, it is suitable for a mature audience. It has a scene of violence as well. It is recommended to those who want to imbibe the seven lessons I mentioned in the paragraph describing the positive aspects, and/or to those who like reading texts embellished with the figures of speech.
******
Genex of Halcyon
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
Latest Review: My Trip To Adele by R.I.Alyaseer and A. I Alyaseer
