Julia's Memories and the Interflow of Things

Amor Mundi Book 12

Fiction - Visionary
489 Pages
Reviewed on 11/18/2018
Buy on Amazon

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    Book Review

Reviewed by Liz Konkel for Readers' Favorite

Julia's Memories and the Interflow of Things by Dave Droge consists of two volumes, starting with Julia sharing her experiences growing up through her memoirs and ending with a science fiction journey where technology is in control. The story explores her search for identity and what events transpired in her past to make her who she is. Julia searches through the past to find answers for the secrets about her father and longs to fill in the missing pieces. The Interflow of Things occurs during 2020 when the hyper-intelligent company entity of Ypsilon is making a play for power and technology has taken rule. A group of hackers is tasked with saving people from Ypsilon and stopping the company's evil plan.

The structure of the novel is formatted in the style of memoirs but with a futuristic spin as it is told by Julia through the use of her robot. By using the memoir style, Dave Droge dives into Julia's innermost thoughts and experiences with a mystery throughout which explores Julia's search for answers about the holes in her memories and the years before her father's death. These memoirs read as a coming of age tale that delves into what she's learned, and finding her strength in various traumas in her life. The present time is set during the year 2050 so Droge includes several future advancements even in the memoirs, but these experiences are realistic and easy to connect with. These advancements are the background to Julia's life and her experiences as a human being with emotions, and her journey through childhood with mysteries.

The Interflow of Things section has more futuristic advancements, given the role of technology in the story. The format slowly changes throughout to include sections from other perspectives and breaks such as logs. Letters and the responses she receives are included to further explore what she's been through and the story comes to life through what's shared. The responses allow for a chance to get to know other characters and their experiences. Droge delivers two delightful stories which explore a coming of age journey and science fiction mysteries with family, friendship, advanced technology, and the meaning of life.

K.C. Finn

Julia's Memories and the Interflow of Things is a series of collected works by author Dave Dröge that falls somewhere in the range of speculative, metaphysical and science fiction. Encapsulating two parts that come together to form the twelfth volume of the Amor Mundi, the story is told in two sections that meld to form an overall story. In part one, Julia is a successful artist in a not so distant future to our own world. When she is encouraged to write about her past, she reflects on the state of the world during her lifetime as she unfolds her life story. During this process, however, Julia awakens to the fact that reality is not at all what it seems, and once she sees the powerful, AI-dominated world behind the one she remembers, there’s no going back.

I couldn’t help but allude to the analogy of the Matrix as Julia became ‘unplugged’ to the perceived reality in the latter part of the story, and I think that analogy will help science fiction fans who might want to read this story. It is interesting to debate whether humanity is safer in the hands of itself, or that of an all-controlling artificial leader and system, and Julia makes an interesting protagonist to be caught up in the centre of the tale. Author Dave Dröge has created a complex text that requires a lot of thought, but for hard sci-fi fans and readers of literary fiction, I think Julia's Memories and the Interflow of Things would be worth the journey.

Christian Sia

Julia's Memories and the Interflow of Things (Amor Mundi Book 12) by Dave Dröge is a spellbinding science fiction tale with a strong setting in the future and an interesting heroine. The year is 2050 and Julia, a reputable artist, decides to write her memoirs, encouraged by the Mayor of Rotterdam. As we follow this character revisiting her past, we understand her roots and get into the very depths of her soul. Julia has suffered tragedy and known adversity, someone who could have been broken but who has developed a very strong personality. But something even worse is happening — the AI has wrested power from humanity and even information is no longer available to everyone as it used to be. The FreeHackers, founded by Julia's friends, must find ways to save humanity from her own creation. But can they outwit the hyper-intelligent computer entity called Ypsilon that is rapidly duplicating itself and threatens human civilization?

Julia's Memories and the Interflow of Things is a story with very legitimate concerns. It is a tale that, while entertaining readers, gives a powerful warning about where unchecked technological development could lead humanity. What happens when our technology doesn't follow the right moral compass? Although the setting of this novel is in the future, there are powerful hints of the dehumanization that we are already witnessing in contemporary society. Machines are rapidly fitting into places where humans once stood, and it won't be surprising if at some point they take total control of our civilization. Dave Dröge's work is highly imaginative and he skillfully renders it realistic and irresistible. I enjoyed the prose as well as the social problems raised in the book. The use of journals gives the narrative an intimate character, allowing readers to connect easily to the protagonist. It is deft and balanced, a work of great entertainment.