J Thompson

From 'Brave New World' to the present day, what has generally been lost in dystopian fiction is a recognizable level of normal human exchange. In an unfamiliar new world, people too often interact in a stilted fashion, with language to match, much like super-heroes, which has the comforting effect of making that world seem the more improbable. Not so here. Elise, the heroine, might be you or I looking out at this futuristic society from our mundane present experience. What is more this is consistent and observed in impressive detail, that can be both touching and amusing: 'Sofi turned abruptly from the sink, water dripping from her hands on to the floor. "What happened? What'd you say in that interview?" Elise wasn't surprised at Sofi's tone, she was used to her mum leaping to the worst conclusion.' Now how many bells does that ring? Or consider this, where Harriet, a spokeswoman for the new genetic world order delivers her stuff. 'Harriet linked both her hands behind her back and gently rocked backwards and forwards on her feet. "Did you know that before the Pandemic the Saps didn't even really teach anthropology in schools? It was seen as a specialist subject that might be chosen at university along with floristry or economics. They were so basic. So misguided as to what an education should consist of." Elise bit the inside of her lip. She decided to concentrate on the stain on Harriet's bow that was gently rocking in and out of the light. Evidence that for all her pomp and glory, Harriet still occasionally missed her mouth while eating.' This meticulous mapping of the inner world of Elise would make her credible were she alive today, but that is matched for detail by the mapping of the imagined society in which she must survive on the terms of the ruling elite. Her familiar humanity therefore makes that engineered world seem the more probable and so more threatening. But is this an analogy? Are we ruled today by Potiors, who like Warren's Florentian are not so much superior as products of privilege? Whatever the answer and whatever minor criticisms can be made of a first-time author, this is an engaging work and I look forward to the next instalment, since we should not judge The Museum of Second Chances as more than a first.