It's the End of the World As We Know It, And Humanity's Feelin' Fine

First Paragraph:

"Having to save the world was a terrible burden, he thought, staring at the button. The Button. It was the sort of thing a conspiracy theorist might imagine would sit in a locked drawer in Number Ten Downing Street, in some dramatically lit war room at the White House, or a vaulted bunker in Moscow or Beijing, but this imagining would be to underestimate the reach which the Button had, and also to overestimate the power of government."

  Amazon/Amazon.co.uk

A Button to Save the World by Edgar Million is a novella with a common plot, but with a twist.
PLOT

It is sometime in the near future. Robots are commonplace, with every family/person owning one. These robots are not the killers of sci-fi, but simply machines, designed to take care of humanity's menial tasks.

Jeremy Bentwhistle is the Englishman in charge of the 'big, red, DO NOT PUSH button', though this button is indistinct, and it's entire purpose is to be pushed. It sits bolted to his desk, covered with a brass lid, which will only open for his fingerprint.

With the push of the Button, Jeremy could save the world- or more specifically humanity. However, the conditions must first be met. He knows the day draws near, and rues the moment he will push the Button.

Jeremy is a wealthy man, owning many factories around the world. Almost his entire staff is composed of robots. The powers that be decided that robots were so good at their tasks, that they've been 'hired' for every single one. All commercial, retail, factory, in fact any job of any kind is now held by a robot, with a lucky few people still working.

Billions of people were now unemployed. They rose up, protesting and breaking out in large riots. Cities burned, until the robots stopped it. Now most of humanity is purposeless. No career, no prospects, all they do now is get wasted and high. Food, medicine, electricity and home comforts are all provided free of charge (via implanted chips) to every one around the world. There is no more poverty or famine.

Patrick K Useful is one of two humans working in Bentwhistle's London factory. Up until now he had been the regional manager, but the robots have taken even his job. One week left. But Patrick has noticed something amiss, all is not as it should be, and the truth very rarely sets you free.

REVIEW

This is a story with an unusual premise. Not the end of the world or conspiracies or environmental factors or overpopulation- which are all mentioned, but in someone having the ability to 'save the world' and regretting it. Resenting that it's on them. Not in the superhero 'my life is a lie, I have to push you away to protect you' kind of way, but in having a legitimate way to at least slow down the destruction, and not wanting it.

I won't say too much, because with the length of this story it would be easy to spoil, but I enjoyed this book. The ending is chilling, and makes me wonder whether our reality could ever end up the same way. It's not beyond the realm of possibility, though probably for a very distant future.

An interesting, short story with an eerie end, that raises many questions. Does the good of the many outweigh the good of the one? We'd all love a button to fix everything, but remember, there's always a catch. Nothing in life is so easy. The question here is not, 'would you push the button', but rather, 'would you want a button to push?'

Disclaimer: I received this book from the author through a giveaway. This is not a sponsored review. All opinions are 100% my own.

Jane Austen Meets Agatha Christie at Buckfast Hall

First Paragraph:

"I winced as I descended the iron stairs letting down from the train carriage to the empty platform below. My exasperation wasn't for the slightly grubby glove the conductor offered to help me alight but for an especially loud peal of laughter from behind."

     Amazon /Amazon.co.uk

Death on Dartmoor by Dara England is the first instalment of the American Heiress Mystery series. Set in what I assume is the Victorian Era (cerca 19th Century), the characters' mannerisms and lives are very similar to how people from this era are portrayed in historical dramas and books by authors such as Jane Austen. They are very proper, wear corsets and women are best without personalities. Seen but not heard.

As with many of Jane Austen's heroines, our female protagonist has more wit and a sharper tongue than her mother thinks is wise. However is she to marry if she doesn't act docile.

That protagonist is Millicent Wright, a young, American women in her late 20's travelling with her mother around England. Heading out from their hometown of Chicago, they travel first to London and then onto the small village of Buckfastleigh on the invitation of Sir Oliver Longbourne. They first met in Chicago and he requested their company if ever they found themselves in England.

For Millicent, the trip is not one she's entirely comfortable with. Her mother has plans to find her an available bachelor (preferably one with a title) and has set her sites on the baronet. And so they find themselves on a train headed for Buckfastleigh, to be picked up by a carriage and taken to their final destination of Buckfast Hall. 

Whilst on the train, the two of them meet the charismatic Colonel Quinlan- who it turns out is headed for the same place. He has known the Longbourne family for years and is the brother-in-law of Sir Oliver. His sister married the baronet, but died in unfortunate circumstances two years prior, leaving her now 10-year-old son Phillip behind.

Soon after Millicent arrives, she begins hearing rumours about her prospective husband and even more chilling ones of the curse of the Longborne brides. Can they be true? And what exactly is the curse?

On the night of their arrival, the gothic novels that Millicent loves seem to become reality. A dinner of ten (six women and four men) ends in the tragic death of Sir Oliver. A Justice of the Peace and doctor are called for by one of the guests, Doctor Shephard, for a second opinion and verdict. When they surprise everyone with the news that Sir Oliver's death was no tragic accident, but rather a poisoning, theories start flying and accusations are abound. Is it the curse? A scorned woman? Or perhaps a man with grudge?

As they go to their separate rooms for the night, a passing comment by the Lady Longbourne (grandmother of Sir Oliver) alerts Millicent. Claiming that she knows who poisoned her grandson and why, Lady Longbourne refuses to reveal more when Millicent questions her. Lady Longbourne's time may be short, because as we all know, never reveal you know anything when a murderer is still on the lose. At least if you want to survive the night.

The Next day, Detective Abel Lockwood is called to the scene to investigate. The suspects must all be confined to the house and none of them are happy about it. Millicent is determined to be of assistance. This situation is too much like her novels for her to pass up. How can a book compare to solving a real murder? Detective Lockwood isn't too happy about having an amateur on the scene and so Millicent sets out to prove him wrong. She may also have to investigate the relationship the two seem to have. Could love be blooming between them?

Is snooping about in other's affairs wise or is she drawing attention to herself? If she's not careful, she may find herself locked in with the other skeletons in the closet.

When another body pops up and there can be no doubt that a murderer is on the loose in Buckfast Hall. But what is their motive? And will they kill again?

Done in the same style as the good, old-fashioned murder mysteries, there are suspects abound. Could it be the young Miss Amelia- who is rumoured to have had a romantic connection with the late Sir Oliver? Or perhaps her father, Doctor Shephard- trying to protect his daughter? Or the pleasant Colonel- who was trained to kill? Or maybe even Caroline (Oliver's sister)- trying to salvage her family and its fortune? Or one of the staff? Perhaps a young man accused of thieving earlier that day? The list keeps growing and both the detective and Millicent have their work cut out for them. It's a race to find the killer, before someone else ends up dead.

The plot is your traditional who-dunnit. The characters are typical of the genre. There's not much I have to say about either of these things. There's always a formula with this genre and always certain personality traits present in characters. Does that mean that the formula is tired and overused? No, well maybe a little, but there's a reason it's still going strong. It works. Having said that, the formula is pretty basic, so there's a large range of options available when creating a murder mystery story, which helps keep interest. But the secret to success? Why murder mysteries are so prevalent? Why there's always one on TV or in a book store? Simple, people can't resist a mystery. It is human nature to want to know the answer. We don't like to be kept guessing and we want everything wrapped up in a neat, little bow by the end. No loose threads for us. 

Some of the revelations were a little predictable and I did see the ending coming. There were a few surprises here and there, but on the whole nothing too shocking. However, the predictability did little to lessen my enjoyment of this book. This is one of those shamelessly enjoyable books. It may not be the most well written book, the characters may not be unique and the plot may have been done a million times, but I found myself wanting to know more about all of these things. When the story ended, I wanted to keep reading. A short book leads to a quick resolution and it was over before I knew it. It's safe to say I'll be checking out the next instalment when it's released.

Disclaimer: This book was sent to me by the author through a giveaway. This is not a sponsored review. All opinions are 100% my own.

Mining Robots, A Dystopian World and the Dangers of Drugs

First Paragraph:

"Louise saw her first. "Stop the van!"

"No way." The driver spun the wheel to the left to carve a path between the young woman in their path and a twisted, blackened hunk of machinery. "She's not our problem."

   Amazon /Amazon.co.uk

A Wasting Time by William Esmont is a short novella set in a dystopian world. Sometime in the future, robots are very real and now do the jobs no human wants. For example, working the mines. Robots drill through the rock and find anything of use. However, bringing in the robots doesn't free the men. As is turns out, quite a few men are needed to service the robots and keep them going.

One of these men is Angus Mundy, who uses drugs to keep himself going throughout the very long days. Unfortunately, he also owes a "Mafia-type" boss a lot of money. The boss gives him a choice, setting up the plot of this very short story.

In this world/future the drug Angus uses is J4X or JAX (to give it its street name). What the drug is isn't important though. This is a story more about Angus and his daughter Hilary and how much damage drugs can do. Not just to one person, but to everyone around them too. Since the book is short, the slippery slope is very abrupt, but I suppose it's representative of how quickly a person's life can spin out of control.

I know we've seen this plot a million times, but still I was gripped by it. I keep saying it's a short story, but it really is. At only around 70 pages, the book was over before I knew it. At no point was I bored or put off by a topic that could very easily be repetitive and dull.

For such a short book, a lot happens. However, there's no real conclusion. We're brought full-circle to the beginning without any more knowledge of what's happening than when we began. I'm under the impression that this may be a series, so there'll probably be answers in the next book. If you cut out the beginning and the end, this could be a good book about the dangers of drugs, not just physical ones, but all the other ways they can damage peoples' lives. With the whole book, we need another part to have any closure. I'm looking forward to seeing the direction this series (if it is one) will go, because at the moment the story is incomplete.

If you've read any of the author's other books, this has his writing style all over it. We have a sporadic timeframe, the dystopian world, the very gritty, dark atmosphere and the very claustrophobic ambiance, that all combine to make a very tense read. A good story, but missing the next part.

Disclaimer: I received this book from the author through a giveaway. This is not a sponsored review. All opinions are 100% my own.