Review of Project Tau
Posted: 25 Oct 2023, 03:56
[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Project Tau" by Jude Austin.]
I was excited to get this chance to review Project Tau by Jude Austin because I had already enjoyed reading the sequel (Homecoming) after it was Book of the Day. Although that includes enough backstory, I relished learning more details from the first book in the series. For one, I was likely wrong about how the name of the protagonist - Kata - is pronounced. I had thought it would rhyme with "hatter", but having now learned how he got his name, I believe it would be pronounced "Kay-Tay".
Originally named "Kalin Taylor", the seventeen-year-old was christened "Project Kata" by Mason, the director of the GenTech facility on a space station orbiting the planet Basarr where Kalin had been a college freshman. On being captured by security guards, he immediately regretted breaking into the facility. Desperate to become more popular, he had been told he could join a fraternity if he photographed Project Tau, the facility's famed human clone. After he is imprisoned by Mason, who has seen his chance to convert a non-cloned human into a Project, the first friendly voice Kalin hears belongs to none other than Tau himself.
While reading Kalin's first conversations with Tau, I found myself adjusting mentally to the fact that he wasn't a robot. He doesn't know what to make of swearing or metaphors, which leads him to ask some hilarious questions. However, that naivete results from being grown in a tank and trained by scientists. Science fiction works speculating about how to program consciousness and empathy into androids are two a penny. What makes this book refreshingly different is its focus on where the natural might go in the future. Tau is simply a human with kindness and curiosity baked into his nature. To the scientists, he is just a Project to use and abuse for experimentation and profit. Yet how could that be right, not least in view of his obvious humanity? One of the many outstanding aspects of this story is the spotlight it shines on such ethical questions.
The tension this created made for a compelling and engaging read. This was heightened by the contrast between Tau and Kata. Tau has never known any different, but "Project Kata" had a normal human life before he was kidnapped, as is known only to Mason and a sadistic scientist called Dennison. To deceive the other staff, they concoct a story to account for Kata's protests about being treated like an object to be pushed beyond reasonable limits. For a crucial component of Projects' training is breaking them mentally to ensure obedience when sold as assets with superhuman qualities but without rights or autonomy.
This relates to another awe-inspiring aspect of this book: it was thrilling to see the human spirit being put to the test. The suspense increased when it became clear that other scientists were smarter than Mason and kinder than Dennison - but would that help Kata before he became so worn down that he believed the lies?
Going through what he did, Kata developed as a character in fascinating and satisfying ways. Even more interestingly, so did Tau. I also appreciated the growth of their relationship. The horrors the Projects experienced were relieved by humour when Tau took crude expressions literally. There were other humorous moments too, and the overall style of this book is conversational and transparent. A history lesson Kata gives Tau provides a neat way to flesh out the fictional world. The story is set in a future where humans have settled on various planets, having left Terra behind for "lost". I was impressed by the scope of Austin's imagination in describing all these planets. That was yet another positive aspect of a book that excels for its cleverly constructed plot and exciting tempo.
So like its eponymous hero, Project Tau comes pretty close to perfection. I noticed a few extremely minor inconsistencies. For example, Kata once talks about something Tau did "on Monday" at a point when he is otherwise described as having lost track of time. Although I wondered about a few other details, the overall story and fictional world were logical and plausible. Any inconsistencies are so insignificant that they don't detract from the excellent overall quality of this book. In view of that, it deserves five out of five stars. I recommend it to science fiction fans who would welcome an alternative to all the speculation about artificial intelligence. This book explores human potential within the framework of a tense, gripping adventure. It's a thoroughly engrossing read. As touched on above, it contains strong language throughout and features disturbing scenes. Although the violence is never gratuitous or overly graphic, this may make it unsuitable for younger or more sensitive readers.
******
Project Tau
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon | on Smashwords
I was excited to get this chance to review Project Tau by Jude Austin because I had already enjoyed reading the sequel (Homecoming) after it was Book of the Day. Although that includes enough backstory, I relished learning more details from the first book in the series. For one, I was likely wrong about how the name of the protagonist - Kata - is pronounced. I had thought it would rhyme with "hatter", but having now learned how he got his name, I believe it would be pronounced "Kay-Tay".
Originally named "Kalin Taylor", the seventeen-year-old was christened "Project Kata" by Mason, the director of the GenTech facility on a space station orbiting the planet Basarr where Kalin had been a college freshman. On being captured by security guards, he immediately regretted breaking into the facility. Desperate to become more popular, he had been told he could join a fraternity if he photographed Project Tau, the facility's famed human clone. After he is imprisoned by Mason, who has seen his chance to convert a non-cloned human into a Project, the first friendly voice Kalin hears belongs to none other than Tau himself.
While reading Kalin's first conversations with Tau, I found myself adjusting mentally to the fact that he wasn't a robot. He doesn't know what to make of swearing or metaphors, which leads him to ask some hilarious questions. However, that naivete results from being grown in a tank and trained by scientists. Science fiction works speculating about how to program consciousness and empathy into androids are two a penny. What makes this book refreshingly different is its focus on where the natural might go in the future. Tau is simply a human with kindness and curiosity baked into his nature. To the scientists, he is just a Project to use and abuse for experimentation and profit. Yet how could that be right, not least in view of his obvious humanity? One of the many outstanding aspects of this story is the spotlight it shines on such ethical questions.
The tension this created made for a compelling and engaging read. This was heightened by the contrast between Tau and Kata. Tau has never known any different, but "Project Kata" had a normal human life before he was kidnapped, as is known only to Mason and a sadistic scientist called Dennison. To deceive the other staff, they concoct a story to account for Kata's protests about being treated like an object to be pushed beyond reasonable limits. For a crucial component of Projects' training is breaking them mentally to ensure obedience when sold as assets with superhuman qualities but without rights or autonomy.
This relates to another awe-inspiring aspect of this book: it was thrilling to see the human spirit being put to the test. The suspense increased when it became clear that other scientists were smarter than Mason and kinder than Dennison - but would that help Kata before he became so worn down that he believed the lies?
Going through what he did, Kata developed as a character in fascinating and satisfying ways. Even more interestingly, so did Tau. I also appreciated the growth of their relationship. The horrors the Projects experienced were relieved by humour when Tau took crude expressions literally. There were other humorous moments too, and the overall style of this book is conversational and transparent. A history lesson Kata gives Tau provides a neat way to flesh out the fictional world. The story is set in a future where humans have settled on various planets, having left Terra behind for "lost". I was impressed by the scope of Austin's imagination in describing all these planets. That was yet another positive aspect of a book that excels for its cleverly constructed plot and exciting tempo.
So like its eponymous hero, Project Tau comes pretty close to perfection. I noticed a few extremely minor inconsistencies. For example, Kata once talks about something Tau did "on Monday" at a point when he is otherwise described as having lost track of time. Although I wondered about a few other details, the overall story and fictional world were logical and plausible. Any inconsistencies are so insignificant that they don't detract from the excellent overall quality of this book. In view of that, it deserves five out of five stars. I recommend it to science fiction fans who would welcome an alternative to all the speculation about artificial intelligence. This book explores human potential within the framework of a tense, gripping adventure. It's a thoroughly engrossing read. As touched on above, it contains strong language throughout and features disturbing scenes. Although the violence is never gratuitous or overly graphic, this may make it unsuitable for younger or more sensitive readers.
******
Project Tau
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon | on Smashwords
One of the things I enjoyed most, is exactly what you're describing, the hilarious questions and conversations that make Tau such a realistic and endearing character. Your portrayal of Tau makes me reconsider what our "base" human nature really is...are we genuinely kind and curious, and then evolve from there?! That is much more optimistic than I admittedly had previously thought. Another aspect you identified that I hadn't considered is the way the author tells the reader about the world via the history lesson! You're so right, it actually was a neat way to do that! As always, I enjoyed reading your review, I could right near feel your excitement for this book. Thanks so much for sharing it with us! Until next time...