Hall Ways Blog: Condition, Book Two ~ ~ Audio Book Blog Tour, Review, & Giveaway!

CONDITION BOOK TWO:

THE CURING BEGINS…

By ALEC BIRRI

NARRATED BY JONATHAN KEEBLE

Length: 6 hours 39 minutes

Publisher: Essential Music Limited⎮2018

Genre: Science Fiction / Dystopian / Speculative

Series: The Condition Trilogy, Book 2

Release date: Jan. 17, 2018

The second in a dystopian trilogy based on the author's command of a top secret government unit.

Discovering an infamous Nazi doctor conducted abortions in Argentina after the Second World War may not come as a surprise, but why was the twisted eugenicist not only allowed to continue his evil experiments but encouraged to do so? And what has that got to do with a respected neurologist in 2027? Surely, the invention of a cure for nearly all the world's ailments can't possibly have its roots buried in the horrors of Auschwitz?

The unacceptable is about to become the disturbingly bizarre. What has the treatment's "correction" of pedophiles got to do with the president of the United States, the pope, and even the UK's Green Party?

As if the Condition trilogy wasn't unsettling enough....

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Alec Birri served thirty years with the UK Armed Forces. He commanded an operational unit that experimented in new military capabilities classified at the highest level (Top Secret Strap 3) and it is this that forms the basis of his novels. Although semi-autobiographical, for national security and personal liberty reasons, the events and individuals portrayed have to be fiction but are still nonetheless in keeping with his experiences.

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If you regularly enjoy listening to audiobooks then this Shakespearean actor will need no introduction. Winner of a 2016 SOVAS award, Jonathan’s voice is rightly recognized as being one of the best, and his narration of The Condition Trilogy is no exception.

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HALL WAYS REVIEW: Audio book review. WOW...there's A LOT going on in Condition: The Curing Begins, the second book in The Condition series. I didn't want to miss a thing, so I listened to it straight through in a day. As it was with book one, it served me well not to read the description because the surprise element was next-level. Though I had a little trouble getting oriented to this book, the premise(s) kept me glued to the story.

There is a slow but engrossing main build in The Curing Begins, but there are also several other sub-plots that wind their way throughout the book and give readers much to ponder. There are considerable religious implications, which I wish had been further explored and characters’ rationales better explained, particularly with the Argentinian Padre. I wondered how such a devout man could be led so far astray – but people being led astray is part of the very essence of this book.

"As long as people think struggling through life as an obedient slave will eventually be rewarded, one person can control millions."

If you look at the cover and read the book jacket, it’s no surprise that the Nazis rear their ugly head in the story. There are some interesting discussions between characters about the higher purpose of Nazi experimentation and politics. At times, this felt more like an opportunity for platforming than genuine discourse. There are some holes and some character thoughts and actions that don’t add up, but again, the subject matter is fascinating. The only thing I really didn’t like in part one was the insta-love/romance. The connection between these characters is necessary but could have been handled better and differently to be more feasible.

About three and a half hours into the book, readers are taken back to just a few months after where book one left off, and those characters are reintroduced. In part two, we leap from the 1970s to 2027 and must reacquaint ourselves with that setting. Scenes are sometimes confusing because it’s difficult to tell whether character experiences are real or virtual…or, are their virtual experiences the new reality? Author Alec Birri is intentional here, I think, to keep readers in the same mindset as the characters -- where lines between reality and virtual reality are blurred. There continue to be some plot holes and situations where the level of suspension of disbelief is pushing the limits.

Jonathan Keeble returns to narrate book two, and again, is exceptional in his performances. He deftly handles all the voices, male and female, and all the accents. He brings life to the characters by projecting the nuances of the characters’ personalities. It is apparent he spent time studying the character profiles. I caught a few small oddities in pronunciations this time around, and the initial narration of the American president is cringe-worthy --even for a cringe-worthy character. Thankfully, that accent mellowed a bit and ended up working better. Overall, outstanding narration. I am a solid fan.

The difference between good and evil is often in the eye of the beholder.

By the end of The Curing Begins, almost all the early questions are answered/resolved, and the reader feels uncomfortable and unsettled by the implications and applications of medical and technological advances. The “revelation” at the end is jaw-dropping – I was downloading book three, The Final Correction, within minutes of finishing book two. This series has utterly consumed me.

Thank you to Audiobookworm Productions and the author for providing me a free audio download in exchange for my honest opinion – the only kind I give.