*Received a free copy in exchange for an honest review
Blurb~
Most cops get to deal with living criminals, but Agent Kirsten Wren is not most cops.
A gifted psionic with a troubled past, Kirsten possesses a rare combination of abilities that give her a powerful weapon against spirits. In 2418, rampant violence and corporate warfare have left no shortage of angry wraiths in West City. Most exist as little more than fleeting shadows and eerie whispers in the darkness.
Kirsten is shunned by a society that does not understand psionics, feared by those who know what she can do, and alone in a city of millions. Every so often, when a wraith gathers enough strength to become a threat to the living, these same people rely on her to stop it.
Unexplained killings by human-like androids known as dolls leave the Division One police baffled, causing them to punt the case to Division Zero. Kirsten, along with her partner Dorian, wind up in the crosshairs of corporate assassins as they attempt to find out who – or what – is behind the random murders before more people die.
She tries to hold on to the belief that no one is beyond redemption as she pursues a killer desperate to claim at least one more innocent soul – that might just be hers.
My Review~
When I first read the blurb for this book I have to say I was pretty excited, I love it when the supernatural and cops come together. Have you read that blurb? It sounds amazing.
But unfortunately, the book did not live up to the hype.
Division Zero throws you right into a very futuristic world with flying cars, droids, talking ad machines, and advanced people. And all of that is cool. Matthew S. Cox really spent a lot of time developing his world and it shows in his descriptions. The problem comes when there really is no explanation into the idea of psionics. I spent the first 30-40% of the book completely confused and trying to find out what exactly a psionic was. Eventually I figured it out... or I think I did. Okay, I never really figured it out, but it got to the point where it didn't really matter. Would it have made the story stronger? Yes, I think it would have. As a reader I really like to understand things, especially when it comes to the main characters.
What I did know about Kristen's psionic abilities I thought were pretty cool. The problem was that she seemed afraid to use them and they didn't seem very effective when she did. Everyone was afraid of her and her kind but truthfully I didn't see why. But I will say her light whip was pretty freaking cool.
Then there is her partner Dorian. I loved Dorian, I thought he brought a good balance to the story, but I for some reason I didn't really understand why he didn't do more until the very end. He was pretty much useless for most of the story. Not to mention I didn't realize what he was until about half way through the book. I probably missed it, but when I discovered what her partner was I was floored. Although it definitely explained some things, that is until he started doing things I thought he couldn't do.
Despite not understanding everything in the story I really did like the idea of the story. Ghosts possessing droids and killing people? What's not to like. And really that was the best part of the story for me. It was original and I loved it.
There is a lot going on in Division Zero. And I do mean a lot. There are cops, futuristic everything, psionics, droids, and ghosts. I loved the idea of this book. I really did. But unfortunately the story just fell flat for me. It didn't grab me like I wanted it to. But boy did I try to make it.
No comments:
Post a Comment