Synopsis:
Digital Extremities –
A collection of eight stories, Digital Extremities shines a spotlight on ordinary people in a callous yet hopeful future. Set across small towns and remote islands, where neon flickers against old buildings and oaks, this collection paints a unique view of a traditionally cyberpunk setting.
In 2089, a woman miscarries and seeks a way to find peace amidst overwhelming grief. Years later, a young man must find a way to pay rent outside of his job at the glassblowing studio. A pair of students, excited to go to college, install new hardware that promises to improve their cognitive functions. A private investigator searches for a missing child who has a reputation for embarking on risky adventures. Each tale is shaped by love, loss, and perseverance, weaving a vision of life outside of the megacities.
Animus Paradox –
There’s a thief on the loose. The Tigres excel at tipping the scales in their favor, be it through bribes, politics, or blood. They unofficially run Viterbo, Italy—and somebody stole from them.
Private investigators David and Mafalda De Campo have been hired to help find the thief. They’re in it for the money, but the Tigres just want to make a statement.
Meanwhile, the Heredes have returned: ruthless idealists and revolutionaries. It’s not clear what they’re up to, but they keep getting in the way.
The De Campos will need to decide how far they’re willing to go for this job and the Tigres. Viterbo may soon become a battlefield, and one wrong move could set it aflame.
Review:
With both Digital Extremities and Animus Paradox, Adam Bassett has put out some fascinating and intriguing futuristic and mostly dystopian cyberpunk works. I found myself really enjoying both of them and was glad I read Digital Extremities before I started on Animus Paradox.
Recently I was offered a few audiobook codes for Adam Bassett’s two works by the author himself. In exchange for an honest review, I took him up on it. In the process, I got to try out the Spotify audiobook player, so I’ll drop a few thoughts about that as well later on.
Let’s start with his short story collection, Digital Extremities.
In D.E., we’re treated to eight tales of the future where the distinctions between human and computer are blurred, if not eliminated completely. Short stories can be a great playground for authors — letting them play around with an interesting idea or two without committing to an entire novel. Bassett really got creative with these eight stories, and they have incredible range. I’ll highlight a few…
Alone / Together is the first story Bassett showcases and for good reason. It’s a gut punch, especially if you’ve ever loved someone so much you’d do anything for them. It’s a whole lot of melancholy wrapped up in a little over a half-hour of reading time. There was almost a Gift of the Magi quality to it, but with sadness and regret acting in place of love and sacrifice.
The middle stories of the collection are absolutely worthy as well, ranging from sacrificing the past to move on with your future and the effect that integrating technology more into our lives and bodies will have. I also appreciated Bassett setting stories all over the world from America to Norway to Italy, where the last story is set — Fireworks Above the Badlands.
When I was finished with Digital Extremities, I found myself really invested in the final story in the collection — and more so with the characters. And Bassett must’ve felt the same way, because the second book I’m reviewing — Animus Paradox — takes off immediately following the events in Fireworks Above the Badlands.
The main character is David De Campo, who along with his wife Mafalda, run a private investigation firm in Italy over 100 years into the future. I found myself vibing with David in the first story as he works to track down a lost child, risking his life in the process. The way Bassett sets up the character as former U.S. Army with all the mods and implants they might need for battle, but with most of them disabled after he left the service, left me wanting more and Bassett sure delivered in Animus Paradox. This story is more of an Italian mob war that David and Mafalda find themselves drawn into with more than a few cyberpunk twists.
I enjoyed A.P. and its continuation of the cyberpunk themes and tropes, but I struggle to vibe with the futuristic noir detective stories sometimes. But the characters are solid – A+. I think he could keep taking David and Mafalda to America and beyond in future cyberpunk books and I would be in. At the end of the day, I think I liked Digital Extremities a little more than Animus Paradox, but I would definitely recommend both.
As for the audiobook experience, Adam Bassett got a couple of great narrators — Joe James and Aven Shore for D.E. and just Joe James for the A.P. production. Both have great voice and inflection, especially for the type of stories Bassett is telling.
And for the Spotify experience? Well, it wasn’t perfect. I know they are trying to carve a little space for themselves in the audiobook space, but they still have a little room to grow. First, I like to bump up my listening speed, but Spotify doesn’t offer more than the tenths place — what I mean is you can listen at 1.2x speed and 1.3x speed, but you can’t listen at 1.25. There were also a few times where the player just stopped. Right in the middle of a chapter. Stopped. And in the end, I had to restart my app to get the audio to keep playing. Some audio glitch. Overall, it went fine, but there were a few small issues that Spotify needs to address.
But, back to Adam Bassett’s first two works — check them out, especially if you like a few different looks at a future that looks a lot different than our present.
Thank you to Adam Bassett for providing this book for review consideration. All opinions are my own.
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