ARA Review by Janilou2016 of World, Incorporated
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ARA Review by Janilou2016 of World, Incorporated
Tom Gariffo’s novel, World, Incorporated: A Modern Dystopia takes us to a very different utilitarian future. The entire structure of supply and demand has been replaced by huge corporations. There is no real democracy anymore. It is interesting because it is entirely foreseeable the way our current economy is going. Agent Sliver works for World, Incorporated, one of the Supercorporations controlling the market. He takes care of "problems" for the company and comes across as a highly trained operative who reminds me immediately of a Jason Bourne.
The book starts at a brisk pace, with just enough detail to intrigue the reader with glimpses into the world of Agent Sliver. When what should be a routine (for him) assignment goes wrong, Agent Sliver is thrown into a new role, of being caretaker to a woman who has every reason to despise and mistrust him. This action will also cause him no small amount of trouble with his employers, but his decision gives us some insight into his character.
Agent Sliver interacts with a futuristic A.I. on his "ship" and this was a very interesting part of the novel. I really enjoyed the dialogue interactions with the ship's A.I.
What I didn't like about this novel - when the second main character is introduced, we are suddenly overwhelmed with pages and pages of newspaper articles intended to be explanations or fill-in information for what happened to get our world to its current state over the past fifty years. I don't think this served the author well, as it completely distracted me from the story and slowed the plot. After the first few articles, I found myself "skimming."
I understand it was to help the new character and therefore, the reader fill in the gaps of the past fifty years, but I think it could have been trimmed considerably. Alternatively, Sliver could have presented some of the information in dialogue.
At one point, the author used bold print type to emphasize words. This tended to pull me out of the story, but that is just a personal preference.
The ending of the book surprised me. That's all I can say without giving away too much information. I found it a little sad, yet there is hope for a brighter future.
Overall I found this book to be action-packed and well-written. I didn't find any issues with readability (except as mentioned above), and it kept me turning pages. A futuristic thriller, where emotion and compassion have become rarities, making Sliver's actions and decisions even more critical. Quite frankly, I would rather read a great, engaging story with a few grammatical errors, than a dry, boring story that has been edited to perfection.
I rate this book five out of five stars, because most of my issues with the book were personal, rather than anything technical. Other readers might not have any problem with reading the pages of articles and find them an essential part of the story and plot. I've read best-sellers that also seemed to bog down in the middle only to pick up again to totally consume my interest. I think the author will do an even better job with the hinted sequel.
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