Review copy was received from Narrator. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Rationality Zero on January 17, 2013 Length: 5 hours, 42 minutes
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The world is not what it seems.
Michael Bishop is an Asset of the Facility- a job that comes with many strange perks. He is a man who never gets ill, who never pays taxes. He is effortlessly fit, and has a different woman every night of the week.
That is, when he is not on assignment.
When activated, Michael becomes Asset 108, an enhanced human who stands against the strange darkness that lurks at the edge of our world.
Armed with equipment that most would find impossible to comprehend, he is sent on missions both strange and deadly. Each dossier pits him against irrational creatures and beings- most with the power to unravel his sanity, or reality itself. It's never a simple job.This job, however, is more complex than most. Mysterious unknown targets are fracturing reality, somewhere in the middle of the Mojave desert.
The Facility has no other Assets in the area, and their telemetry is spotty at best. Without knowing what to expect, Bishop is activated, assigned to a cadre, and sent to the middle of nowhere.
What he finds there is both the beginning and the end.
This is a stanza from THE PAEAN OF SUNDERED DREAMS.
I was gifted Rationality Zero in exchange for an honest review by the narrator. The characters and world were described in scientific details. Usually, this is ok for me, even fun and exciting. All the details for world-building were, well too many details, not enough emotional depth.
And I got no emotions for the characters. Were they good guys or bad guys? What was their purpose really? Who knows? There was action and battles were fought. Why? I don’t know and sadly, I don’t care. THAT, that is a problem.
The concept was intriguing. If I cared about the characters, it would probably work for me. I did enjoy the narrator. The voice was easy to understand and differentiated the various people well. It definitely would have been hard to finish if I were reading it.
A small thing, the audio chapters don’t match up with the book chapters. There are also a few phrases used too many times for me. But if I liked the book more, I might find idiosyncratic phrases endearing.
Rationality Zero is almost, in so many ways, but it just wasn’t enough. I feel badly since I wanted to like this book more. I think perhaps it was too abstract for me. If you like the feeling of uncertainty about what really happened or why it did, this might be for you.
About Joel Richards
One day, when he was 11 years old, Joel realized that he enjoyed sharing stories with his friends as much as he enjoyed all the crazy things they did together. It was then that he knew–although he didn’t have a word for it yet–that he was storyteller. He tells stories on stage, through the written word, with a camera lens, and in front of a microphone. He has called New York City, North Carolina, Texas, Indiana, Utah, and Rhode Island home but has travel to or through most of the fifty states.
While his education as a storyteller began with trading stories with friends as a child, he did his undergraduate studies at the University of Utah graduating with a BFA in acting from their conservatory Actor Training Program and a BA in English. He then went on to receive a Masters in Storytelling from East Tennessee State University–the first, and perhaps only, graduate program to focus on the study and performance of oral storytelling. Joel is an Audible Approved Producer on ACX.
About J. M. Guillen
Not a lot, really. Yes, I tried to take over parts of Australia before I was 18, but then I realized no one wanted that part of Australia. I have patented 15 different alterations to the human genome, and am the copyright holder for Mind-Control Diapers. (TM) I am the first person on record to attempt to weaponize Chinchillas.
I also write. If you’re up for FREE copies of my work, check out www.irrationalworlds.com
I read all types of books but my favorites are urban fantasy and romantic suspense.I like some romance and some action / adventure / mystery in everything.I like sex in my books but please, only between TWO people.Intimate conversation is equally important to the sex in a book.It lets me see the characters.The other thing I enjoy is humor.
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It’s a shame that the outcome isn’t as good as the premise. This looks like it was such a good idea.
Patricia – Well you could give it a try, maybe it is just me. It is a good concept and the narrator was excellent. It wasn’t bad. I just couldn’t connect emotionally. Anne