Review: The Dark Net by Benjamin Percy

Author: Benjamin Percy
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Date of publication: August 2017

The Dark Net is real. An anonymous and often criminal arena that exists in the secret far reaches of the Web, some use it to manage Bitcoins, pirate movies and music, or traffic in drugs and stolen goods. And now an ancient darkness is gathering there as well. This force is threatening to spread virally into the real world unless it can be stopped by members of a ragtag crew:

Twelve-year-old Hannah -- who has been fitted with the Mirage, a high-tech visual prosthetic to combat her blindness-- wonders why she sees shadows surrounding some people.

Lela, a technophobic journalist, has stumbled upon a story nobody wants her to uncover.

Mike Juniper, a one-time child evangelist who suffers from personal and literal demons, has an arsenal of weapons stored in the basement of the homeless shelter he runs.

And Derek, a hacker with a cause, believes himself a soldier of the Internet, part of a cyber army akin to Anonymous.

They have no idea what the Dark Net really contains.

Set in present-day Portland, The Dark Net is a cracked-mirror version of the digital nightmare we already live in, a timely and wildly imaginative techno-thriller about the evil that lurks in real and virtual spaces, and the power of a united few to fight back.

The Dark Net is another book that I have recently read that has left me on the fence.  I honestly can't say whether I liked it or not.  The synopsis was deceiving as it's more of a possible end of the world/supernatural story than a tech one. Basically there is an evil entity that is trying to end the world using the internet to do it.

The characters were mildly interesting.  Lela was probably the one I felt I got to know the best and the one I connected with the most.  The rest were kind of forgettable. They all make really stupid mistakes.  If someone tells you not to use your computer and to destroy it or you might turn into a murdering fiend...you might want to listen. The story left me with a lot of questions of logistics and the tech was a bit muddled for me to understand.  The ending was OK and while there was a lot of unanswered questions, I was OK with how it ended. 

In the end, I guess it was just an OK.  I wouldn't rush out to recommend it.  But it wasn't totally awful.

The Dead Lands by Benjamin Percy

by:  Benjamin Percy
published by:  Grand Central Publishing
publish date:  April 14, 2015

A post-apocalyptic re-imagining of the Lewis and Clark saga, a super flu and nuclear fallout have made a husk of the world we know. A few humans carry on, living in outposts such as the Sanctuary-the remains of St. Louis-a shielded community that owes its survival to its militant defense and fear-mongering leaders. 

Then a rider comes from the wasteland beyond its walls. She reports on the outside world: west of the Cascades, rain falls, crops grow, civilization thrives. But there is danger too: the rising power of an army that pillages and enslaves every community they happen upon. 

Against the wishes of the Sanctuary, a small group sets out in secrecy. Led by Lewis Meriwether and Mina Clark, they hope to expand their infant nation, and to reunite the States. But the Sanctuary will not allow them to escape without a fight.

I liked this book for the most part.  But I like these types of book in general.   It was a post apocalyptic journey across the country type book and there are a bunch of them.  The Dead Lands ranked pretty high in the group.

In this book a super flu has wiped out the country.  Nuclear bombs were used to stop the spread of the flu so the landscape and survivors are dealing with the after effects of radiation.  The country is a horrible, unrecognizable place.  The survivors in St. Louis live in the Sanctuary under tight rule and with little water.  A rider from Northwest comes promising rain and plenty of food, but the small group that goes with her go against the wishes of the Sanctuary.  They struggle against harsh deserts and armies of survivors that are looking for slaves.  

This was a well written book.  It was a good story.  It was just familiar I guess.  There are so many book out there like this one.  Add vampires or zombies and you'll be like "OMG this book is just like..."  I guess I was a little disappointed by that aspect, but what else can possibly be added to this sort of genre?  Anyway, if you like this kind of book, you'll like it.

Joint Review: Red Moon by Benjamin Percy

by:  Benjamin Percy
published by:  Grand Central Publishing
publish date:  May 7, 2013

When government agents kick down Claire Forrester's front door and murder her parents, Claire realizes just how different she is. Patrick Gamble was nothing special until the day he got on a plane and hours later stepped off it, the only passenger left alive, a hero. Chase Williams has sworn to protect the people of the United States from the menace in their midst, but he is becoming the very thing he has promised to destroy. So far, the threat has been controlled by laws and violence and drugs. But the night of the red moon is coming, when an unrecognizable world will emerge...and the battle for humanity will begin.

Kari and I both listened to the audiobook for this book.  First off, it's LONG.  I have a tendency to listen to audiobooks on 1.5-2x speed and it still felt like I was listening to this audiobook for weeks.  Because of the length, I had trouble keeping some of the story-lines straight at times.  I felt like there were too many characters at times.

Basically Red Moon is an alternative present.  Instead of the world dealing with radical Islamic terrorists, the world is fighting radical Lycans.  The book kinda reminded me of a mash up of X-Men and Underworld with a lot of current events thrown in.  I found it to be interesting, but I think Kari had a different take on it.

I think my exact words to describe the book to Autumn were 'Snooze Fest".  Red Moon was boring with a capital B!  I'm not even sure why I finished listening to the whole thing.  It was just way too long.   One of the things I didn't like was the explanation for the lupine virus came too late in the story.  There were too many characters and like Autumn, found myself having trouble keeping everyone straight.  The story takes place over too much time.  I felt like it never really got to any destination or purpose.

There were several loose ends left in the end.  What happened to Miriam?  What happened to Chase? I guess the ending leaves room for a sequel.  If there is one, I hope the book is more focused.   The other thing that I didn't care for was having the author do the audio. His voices were often hard to distinguish from one another, so I often wasn't sure who was speaking.   I guess with two separate opinions on the book, you'll have to try it for yourself.  Who do you side with, Autumn or me?