Artificial Absolutes

A Jane Colt Novel

Fiction - Science Fiction
371 Pages
Reviewed on 02/10/2014
Buy on Amazon

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Author Biography

Mary Fan is a hopeless dreamer, whose mind insists on spinning tales of “what if.” As a music major in college, she told those stories through compositions. Now, she tells them through books—a habit she began as soon as she could pick up a pencil. And what stories she has! Currently, she has three series in progress: her well-received Jane Colt sci-fi novels (Red Adept Publishing, released 2013), her upcoming Flynn Nightsider YA dystopian fantasies (Glass House Press, 2015), and her recently contracted YA fairytales, Fated Stars (Glass House Press, 2015). Mary would like to think that there are many other novels in her bag, and hopes to prove that to the world as well. And though she's well on her way, she can't help dreaming of more.

Mary lives in New Jersey and has a B.A. from Princeton University. When she’s not scheming to create new worlds, she enjoys kickboxing, opera singing, and blogging about everything having to do with books.

    Book Review

Reviewed by Kayti Nika Raet for Readers' Favorite

In Artificial Absolutes, a cyberpunk novel by Mary Fan, Jane and Devin Colt are on the run. After her boyfriend had been kidnapped and her brother framed for the murder of their father, she and Devin must travel the universe to clear his name and discover the face behind the mysterious intelligence know as No Name. Set in a far distant world in a far distant future where data is considered absolute and justice infallible, Artificial Absolutes is a tale that questions the realness of reality and what makes us truly human. Fast-paced and filled with loads of action, Artificial Absolutes grabs you from the first page and refuses to let go.

Artificial Absolutes was a very engaging read, I really enjoyed it. The world building was very in-depth with no two planets being alike. The plot was just as detailed, filled with twists and turns that I totally didn't see coming. Both Jane and Devin made for very compelling characters with Jane being the more scrappy go-get-'em type while Devin has a mysterious past that is slowly but surely being revealed. Together they make a good team.

Since Artificial Absolutes is cyberpunk, it's filled with AI, cybergangs, conspiracy theorists, as well as groups similar to out-world's Anonymous, to other more sinister groups. Mary Fan's novel also features a healthy dose of POC characters which, as a person of color myself, was greatly appreciated. Also as a cyberpunk novel, Artificial Absolutes tackled faith and religion in a way that was neither overly insulting or an attempt to shove things down people's throat. It added another dynamic to Artificial Absolutes and kept things interesting. A thoroughly enjoyable read.