Book Review: Machinehood by S.B. Divya

About:

Machinehood by S.B. Divya is a science-fiction story about the way legal drugs, artificial intelligence, and big corporations can inherit the future. Ms. Divya is an award nominated writer, this is her first novel.

• 416 pages
• Publisher: Gallery / Saga Press
  
• Language : English
• ISBN-10 : 1982148063

My rat­ing for Machinehood — 5
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Thoughts:

The world building in Machinehood by S.B. Divya was, for me, the highlight of this book. Humans are reliant on pills, which everyone can make in their kitchens. The pills can help you be stronger, or faster, or smarter, for a period of time.

Humans need these pills because they must compete with robots for work. It is a fierce way to make a living, nevertheless humans augment themselves in a way which will damage their health in the long term.

The financial system of a gig economy and total lack of privacy are also an equally important aspect of this world building. People have a “tip jar” and accordingly stream themselves via drones. Since Welga, the protagonist, has an exciting job and gets tipped well (they try not to be too violent), but others struggle. They even broadcast themselves having sex, without reservation, hoping for tips. It’s a generally gloomy future.

Ms. Divya captures all the nuances of science-fiction which, specifically, I find fascinating. How people eat, sleep, bath, communicate, commute as well as other such mundane, everyday activities.

This is a very will written story, sci-fi or not, it is a concise story with compelling characters and world building. The power struggle within the pages shows a scary, disturbing, and quite believe path for humanity.

Synopsis:

In the year 2095, Welga Ramirez is an ex-special forces soldier, now working as a bodyguard. Additionally, Welga is about to retire and move to an off world space station with her boyfriend. Welga’s client, however, is killed. In a world where people don’t usually die in a violent way this is an especially big issue.

The Machinehood, a terrorist group which is attacking pill funders that all humans use seem to be behind the killing, wanting to stop pill production. The operative Machinehood sent is part machine, part human which no one has seen before.

Buy Machinehood from Amazon.com*
More Books by S.B. Divya*

Zohar — Man of la Book
Dis­claimer: I got this book for free.
*Ama­zon links point to an affil­i­ate account