Official Review: Usu by Jayde Ver Elst

mandap24 · Post by **mandap24** » 18 Jul 2014, 13:33

[Following is the official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Usu" by Jayde Ver Elst.]

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Usu by Jayde Ver Elst is a quirky futuristic short story. It follows a small robot rabbit named Usu on an adventure where he meets up with a cleaning robot named Modbot and an android named Rain. This story shows a more humorous side to science fiction.

It is set in the future after humanity has died out, and the only things left behind are the machines and robots they created. It starts out with Usu in a junkyard, not so sure about why he is there but as the story progresses the more memories he gains. In the junkyard he meets Modbot and they eventually end up in a plane that takes them into the mountains where Rain, the android, has been waiting for Usu to show. When they meet up with Rain, Usu remembers he has a purpose and they must go to Old Francisco to help Rain and learn about her and Usu’s past during the end of humanity.

Although this is a short story, it was paced well and was able to establish the characters within a short amount of time. This allows for the reader to care about what happens to the characters and their situation. The relationship between Usu and Rain is unique as it is a robot and android but it’s heartwarming and their protectiveness towards each other makes it easy for the reader to relate and become involved within the relationship.

There is constant humor throughout this story that I find unique to science fiction pieces in particular. The humor lessens the drama from the serious portions of the story that is truly refreshing but still manages to get the overall message across on how love can prevail even between a tiny rabbit and an android. The humor is mainly due to the narrator as it breaks the fourth wall and makes itself present poking fun at other books by pointing out certain scenes used to move the plot a long. The narrator is basically another character within the story and it works for this short piece although some instances the presence was a bit overbearing.

In addition to the overall story there is a quick piece of prose before each chapter that is bit of a side story that eventually connects to the main plot. It personally took me a little bit to establish the connection but it becomes important to understanding certain relationships between characters. Although the little pieces of prose could be thought as confusing and out of place at first, they’re worth notice.

I give this story 3 out of 4 stars because this was such an original futuristic piece filled with humor I’m sure many readers will find it entertaining. I think readers from teens to older would enjoy this type of story. However, I believe it is written for those that are more attuned to frequent humor than serious pieces. The only reason this was not given a 4 was because there are certain places in the plot that could have been a bit more concise instead of drifting off on a humorous subplot that would have made the plot easier to follow.

There is a wonderfully funny story here about interesting futuristic characters that can be truly enjoyable to readers that give it a chance. It even has an underlying commentary on humanity itself, just like any other science fiction story. I would definitely recommend others to read Usu, especially if they want to laugh.

***
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Basjohn · Post by **Basjohn** » 29 Jul 2014, 04:22

Hey, I know authors aren't SUPPOSED to respond to reviews for some strange marketing wet dream, but I had to say thank you. Even if you gave it a lesser score I'd probably still say thank you. The story ultimately was/is very important to me and simply having someone reading it makes the writing worthwhile.

I've just received a publishing deal on this, sooooooo I have to unfortunately remove it from distribution......temporarily. But butt buttocks, on the positive end my editor is planning to help work out those "overbearing" quips a little. THAT SAID, I'm saving this review in hopes I can use it when full publication comes around.