Review of The Prophecy of the Heron
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Simo Noubissi
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Review of The Prophecy of the Heron
[Following is a volunteer review of "The Prophecy of the Heron" by Craig W. Stanfill.]
The first book, "Terms of Service" ended as the main character was tried and publicly humiliated for her transgressions. I was so drawn into Kim's struggles and her fight for justice, that reading The Prophecy of the Heron was a no-brainer. Any chance to follow Kim's life after her expulsion and excommunication from the echelons of AI-conducted communist hellhole she denounced with her constant insubordination, was a chance not to be missed. This time, resuming from the funereal obscurity of the dreaded District 33–a place where the AI society's undesirables are cast away to be forgotten forever–Kim embarks on a perilous journey towards bringing down the UCE and its cruel "Hierarchy" once and for all.
Kim's character development from an indecisive, fearful weakling to a badass who can fight two hardened thugs off without flinching or worrying about losing a few teeth (let alone her life) is quite timeous as it is necessary. She operates as someone who has nothing left to lose apart from a life she doesn't even care about, notwithstanding the risks she is willing to take just to survive. The new worlds built by Craig W. Stanfill were intended to display new realities outside of computer-generated assistance and how these places–as broken and scattered and disorderly as they are–contained a structure of human beings who found a way to survive, albeit with a shocking amount of violence sprinkled with a few odd bouts of kindness to maintain a belief in humanity. This belief–along with these new worlds and beliefs and organisations–serves to inject Kim with a renewed vigour of determination to complement a nihilism that was the genesis of her devil-may-care attitude which turned her into a fearless daredevil.
The fast pace at which the book moves makes for an easy, simple read. I realised I was learning about the different facets of the AI system, the different groups and their intriguing ways of life, as well as the history of the AI society and the way it came about–at breakneck speed. Stanfill is quick to immerse the reader within the story and is even better at keeping the reader's attention. The book's engaging storyline and its subplots give me the impression that the author was just adding new aspects to the story at will, and somehow they merged well with the main plot. Each page left me with something new to expect and each new character evokes a new emotion and a new perspective of the whole thing. I even put my excitement aside to find something wrong with the book, but hardly anything pops up. Even the spelling, grammar and punctuation is immaculate.
The only thing that comes close to being "wrong" is how the story is still far from being over and yet the next book is yet to be released. How did Lars create such a monster? How did the Abrahamics attain so much knowledge? What are Kimberly Redux's intentions with her newfound power? Where to now for Kim and Shan? How will the AI society move on now that their foundation has been shaken to the core? Will this inspire a revolution? Will Kim finally defeat the Director once and for all?
Its predecessor did well as the entrée. The Prophecy of the Heron has done exceptionally well to pique the curiosity of AI fanatics who have had the privilege to read the two instalments in what is fast becoming a book series to be remembered. This is a wonderful written sequel to "Terms of Service" and therefore it earns the rating of 5 out of 5 stars.
******
The Prophecy of the Heron
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon | on iTunes
The first book, "Terms of Service" ended as the main character was tried and publicly humiliated for her transgressions. I was so drawn into Kim's struggles and her fight for justice, that reading The Prophecy of the Heron was a no-brainer. Any chance to follow Kim's life after her expulsion and excommunication from the echelons of AI-conducted communist hellhole she denounced with her constant insubordination, was a chance not to be missed. This time, resuming from the funereal obscurity of the dreaded District 33–a place where the AI society's undesirables are cast away to be forgotten forever–Kim embarks on a perilous journey towards bringing down the UCE and its cruel "Hierarchy" once and for all.
Kim's character development from an indecisive, fearful weakling to a badass who can fight two hardened thugs off without flinching or worrying about losing a few teeth (let alone her life) is quite timeous as it is necessary. She operates as someone who has nothing left to lose apart from a life she doesn't even care about, notwithstanding the risks she is willing to take just to survive. The new worlds built by Craig W. Stanfill were intended to display new realities outside of computer-generated assistance and how these places–as broken and scattered and disorderly as they are–contained a structure of human beings who found a way to survive, albeit with a shocking amount of violence sprinkled with a few odd bouts of kindness to maintain a belief in humanity. This belief–along with these new worlds and beliefs and organisations–serves to inject Kim with a renewed vigour of determination to complement a nihilism that was the genesis of her devil-may-care attitude which turned her into a fearless daredevil.
The fast pace at which the book moves makes for an easy, simple read. I realised I was learning about the different facets of the AI system, the different groups and their intriguing ways of life, as well as the history of the AI society and the way it came about–at breakneck speed. Stanfill is quick to immerse the reader within the story and is even better at keeping the reader's attention. The book's engaging storyline and its subplots give me the impression that the author was just adding new aspects to the story at will, and somehow they merged well with the main plot. Each page left me with something new to expect and each new character evokes a new emotion and a new perspective of the whole thing. I even put my excitement aside to find something wrong with the book, but hardly anything pops up. Even the spelling, grammar and punctuation is immaculate.
The only thing that comes close to being "wrong" is how the story is still far from being over and yet the next book is yet to be released. How did Lars create such a monster? How did the Abrahamics attain so much knowledge? What are Kimberly Redux's intentions with her newfound power? Where to now for Kim and Shan? How will the AI society move on now that their foundation has been shaken to the core? Will this inspire a revolution? Will Kim finally defeat the Director once and for all?
Its predecessor did well as the entrée. The Prophecy of the Heron has done exceptionally well to pique the curiosity of AI fanatics who have had the privilege to read the two instalments in what is fast becoming a book series to be remembered. This is a wonderful written sequel to "Terms of Service" and therefore it earns the rating of 5 out of 5 stars.
******
The Prophecy of the Heron
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon | on iTunes
