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azrah786's review
4.5
[This review can also be found on my BLOG]
**I was gifted a copy by Head of Zeus in exchange for an honest review**
CW: violence, gun violence, injury, blood, death, drug/alcohol use, ptsd, war themes, sexual content
An historical sci-fi thriller that truly blew me away!
Absynthe takes place in an alternate retro futuristic version of the 1920’s America where automatons walk the streets and the biotech industry is thriving, but not everything is as dazzling as it seems. We follow Liam Mulcahey, a reclusive veteran now working as a mechanic for his friend’s family, who due to a head injury has lost most of his memories from the Great War between American and the Saint Lawrence Pact – a coalition between Britain, Canada, France and Germany.
However, upon witnessing a perplexing Uprising attack at a public event that the government all but disregards his account of and then again at a speakeasy with his friends whilst they are indulging in the hallucination inducing drink Absynthe, Liam starts to get flashbacks of his squadron, the Devil’s Henchmen, during the war and the serum they took which gave them telepathic abilities. As more starts to come back to him and his best friend’s life is threatened, Liam starts to question who he can trust and what the government is hiding.
The concepts and overarching storyline of this book were brilliantly unique and though the pacing was a little slow at times I was hooked from the first few chapters, both by Liam’s journey of uncovering his memories and the immersive setting the author has imagined. Bellecourt has beautifully paired the post-war, roaring 20’s era with a steampunk atmosphere to create an exciting backdrop for an action packed story.
Now I will admit things did get a little dense at times which alongside the slowing down of the story also led to info-dumpy moments.. There are just a lot of moving parts but I honestly feel that everything came together in such a satisfying way by the end and I enjoyed it immensely!
Along with Liam the various side characters became wonderfully fleshed out more and more as the story progressed and there was a little bit of the found family trope (one of my favourites!!) within the story too! However, it was the sci-fi elements that stole the show. I’m not going to give too much more about this away, it’s better experienced first-hand but I will say that it gave of vibes of The Matrix, Inception and Sense8!
I have never wanted a book to be adapted to screen so badly because it’s the kind you know will just turn out to be fantastic!
It requires a little bit of patience to get through but if you like settings with a steampunk aesthetics and mind-bending sciencey stories you have got to check this book out.
Final Rating – 4.5./5 Stars
**I was gifted a copy by Head of Zeus in exchange for an honest review**
CW: violence, gun violence, injury, blood, death, drug/alcohol use, ptsd, war themes, sexual content
An historical sci-fi thriller that truly blew me away!
Absynthe takes place in an alternate retro futuristic version of the 1920’s America where automatons walk the streets and the biotech industry is thriving, but not everything is as dazzling as it seems. We follow Liam Mulcahey, a reclusive veteran now working as a mechanic for his friend’s family, who due to a head injury has lost most of his memories from the Great War between American and the Saint Lawrence Pact – a coalition between Britain, Canada, France and Germany.
However, upon witnessing a perplexing Uprising attack at a public event that the government all but disregards his account of and then again at a speakeasy with his friends whilst they are indulging in the hallucination inducing drink Absynthe, Liam starts to get flashbacks of his squadron, the Devil’s Henchmen, during the war and the serum they took which gave them telepathic abilities. As more starts to come back to him and his best friend’s life is threatened, Liam starts to question who he can trust and what the government is hiding.
The concepts and overarching storyline of this book were brilliantly unique and though the pacing was a little slow at times I was hooked from the first few chapters, both by Liam’s journey of uncovering his memories and the immersive setting the author has imagined. Bellecourt has beautifully paired the post-war, roaring 20’s era with a steampunk atmosphere to create an exciting backdrop for an action packed story.
Now I will admit things did get a little dense at times which alongside the slowing down of the story also led to info-dumpy moments.. There are just a lot of moving parts but I honestly feel that everything came together in such a satisfying way by the end and I enjoyed it immensely!
Along with Liam the various side characters became wonderfully fleshed out more and more as the story progressed and there was a little bit of the found family trope (one of my favourites!!) within the story too! However, it was the sci-fi elements that stole the show. I’m not going to give too much more about this away, it’s better experienced first-hand but I will say that it gave of vibes of The Matrix, Inception and Sense8!
I have never wanted a book to be adapted to screen so badly because it’s the kind you know will just turn out to be fantastic!
It requires a little bit of patience to get through but if you like settings with a steampunk aesthetics and mind-bending sciencey stories you have got to check this book out.
Final Rating – 4.5./5 Stars
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gun violence, Violence, Blood, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Death, Mental illness, Sexual content, and War
outsmartyourshelf's review
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
In an alternate version of America, they are at war against a coalition of Germany, Canada, France & Britain, & led by a charismatic leader, President Leland De Pere. Liam Mulcahey, Great War veteran, remembers little of the war itself, but a meeting with an alluring heiress, Grace, in a Chicago speakeasy is the start of Liam experiencing flashbacks of his life in the Devil's Henchmen - a crack team of soldiers who communicated by telepathy via a serum. Liam learns that most of his fellow soldiers in the team are now either missing or dead, & that De Pere is hiding a big secret that he wants to stop Liam uncovering - at any cost.
This is a really intriguing set-up; I really enjoyed the 1920s flavour with the speakeasies, jazz, & flapper dresses, alongside the steampunk aspects of 'mechanika' (androids) & dirigibles. It's an ambitious cross between sci-fi & fantasy, & it works for the most part. There were one or two twists I didn't see coming, which is always good. The world-building is good & the main character, Liam, is easy to empathise with & root for. I really enjoyed reading it.
My thanks to NetGalley & publishers, Head of Zeus / Ad Astra, for the opportunity to read an ARC. I am voluntarily giving an honest review.
This is a really intriguing set-up; I really enjoyed the 1920s flavour with the speakeasies, jazz, & flapper dresses, alongside the steampunk aspects of 'mechanika' (androids) & dirigibles. It's an ambitious cross between sci-fi & fantasy, & it works for the most part. There were one or two twists I didn't see coming, which is always good. The world-building is good & the main character, Liam, is easy to empathise with & root for. I really enjoyed reading it.
My thanks to NetGalley & publishers, Head of Zeus / Ad Astra, for the opportunity to read an ARC. I am voluntarily giving an honest review.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Sexual content
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