Review: Early Adopter by Drew Harrison

 

Genre: Short Story Collection/Science Fiction

Description:

"Early Adopter is a collection of short stories from the edge of human progress. Eight stories hold dark mirrors to our own world… experience thought-provoking sci-fi, technologic tragedy, and pulse-pounding thrillers.

To Run Again: Dr. Laura Brandie is ready to change the world.

She's the lead researcher behind the KSE, a revolutionary cure for paralysis and neurodegenerative conditions. And now, by good fortune, she's found the perfect candidate for her first human trial: a man who suffers from locked-in syndrome.

Brett Harmon's paralysis is total: he can't move his arms, legs, torso, neck, or face. To the outside world, he's little more than a statue that breathes... but Dr. Brandie's KSE might be the miracle that allows Brett to run again.

Homonoia: The world faces an unprecedented alignment of catastrophes and failing systems, far too intricate and interconnected for any human to solve. Frank Burman joins with seven other volunteers for Project Homonoia--a radical, last-ditch effort to postpone the apocalypse. Separate minds link to form one multidisciplinary consciousness, the world's first human superorganism... a hive mind. But with the world's health rapidly failing, can Project Homonoia work out its kinks in time to make a difference?

Early Adopter: A loner enters into a relationship with a new type of partner: an AI agent, programmed to be the "perfect companion."

Sure, it's all self-deception and a game of pretend, as she's not actually real... but where simulated consciousness is concerned, maybe the lines between real and real enough can get blurry.

And many more!”

Author:

By day, Drew Harrison is a teacher who “writes on the side.” He had previously published two novels, one science fiction and the other a thriller.

Appraisal:

This collection has eight short stories, the three outlined in the description plus five more. As indicated, they are from “the edge of human progress.” I’ll define that as things that aren’t real today, but based on the rate of progress the last several decades and the things that are known to be possible today, all of the things explored in these stories seem like possibilities to come to fruition sometime between tomorrow and a few decades from now.

While the stories explore multiple technological advances, from the current hot topic of artificial intelligence to the creation of a virtual world to technological ideas that you’ve probably never considered (I sure hadn’t), the stories all get you thinking, which is obviously the point of these stories. It sure worked for me.

Buy now from:            Amazon US        Amazon UK

FYI:

A small amount of adult language.

Format/Typo Issues:

I believe this was a pre-release advance reviewer copy, so I can’t gauge the final product in this area.

Rating: ***** Five Stars

Reviewed by: BigAl

Approximate word count: 85-90,000 words