By Praveen Arla and Bradley Compton.
The financial collapse gave us the men who could fulfill the promise of rebuilding. Now the Arameus Empire and its select few control life and death itself. When the Overseers plan to use this power to enslave the Natural Born outside the empire, a trio of rebels form an unlikely bond, and the consequences are more far-reaching than they could have imagined.
The story starts with Professor Ansley; bored, drunk, brilliant, and in trouble. He was one of the original scientists in the city, but his anti-establishment leanings have meant he’s being watched, and when he steps in to assist with a student’s presentation, his calculations suggest that the treatment used to extend life will soon be obsolete. And for the Nephites – humans who have received the life-extending treatment and so have become part of the ruling class of the world – this could mean trouble…particularly if the Natural Born, those without the treatment and so relegated to the lower classes, find out.
When Ansley falls in with Kaiya, a Natural-Born brought to the city as a consort but with plans of her own, and the student Arian, they start to understand what the power in the city means; its strengths – and its weaknesses. And with Arian’s discovery, the power of the Nephites is starting to crumble, and Ansley, Kaiya and Arian become an unlikely trio of rebels searching for the ultimate weapon.
I admit that the story failed to grab my interest; I found the characters slightly flat, and the storytelling style leans towards handing across information as opposed to showing us what is going on. While the plot did have intriguing aspects, I found that I simply was not caught up enough in either the characters or the world to appreciate it. The morality also feels very black and white, and while there were some interesting discussions on wider philosophical aspects and some good action scenes, the book overall lacks the pacing needed to make the concept work.
© Kate Coe, November 2017
The Girl from Avignon by Praveen Arla and Bradley Compton.
Published June 2nd 2017
Review copy courtesy of the author
453 pages
