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A review by saareman
Undercover by Tamsyn Muir
4.0
Splatterpunk Dystopia
Review of the Amazon Original Kindle eBook (November 15, 2022) released simultaneously with the Audible Original audiobook (November 15, 2022)
Splatterpunk is not my genre, but the worldbuilding of this one was really terrific. Much of this was due to the author not describing everything in detail but letting the reader fill in the blanks, a flattery of the reader, which I always appreciate. We are in a future dystopic world where a criminal empire is housed in a moving gargantuan vehicle (its caterpillar treads are described as being six stories high) travelling through a Mad Max style desert landscape. This is admittedly a bit of a steal from the moving cities of [b:Mortal Engines|287861|Mortal Engines (Mortal Engines, #1)|Philip Reeve|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1352173057l/287861._SY75_.jpg|3981652], but it is only a small element.
Into this setting we meet an agent who is "undercover" and takes on the job of minding the pet "ghoul" of the criminal mastermind. The ghoul has secrets of their own which are only gradually revealed, but their blood-soaked appetite is on display quite early. Ghouldom seems to be an extension of the vampire genre into cannibal territory. Again much of the mythology is left to the mind of the reader. Gore isn't my thing, but I admired the setting and imagination of this.
New Zealand's Tamsyn Muir is a science fiction, fantasy and horror writer who has published several novels and short stories. Her most popular novel is [b:Gideon the Ninth|42036538|Gideon the Ninth (The Locked Tomb, #1)|Tamsyn Muir|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1546870952l/42036538._SY75_.jpg|60943229] (The Locked Tomb #1) (2019).
Undercover is the fifth of seven Amazon Original Kindle eBooks/Audible Audio audiobooks released on November 15, 2022 as part of the Into Shadow Collection of short stories where "Some truths are carefully concealed; others merely forgotten. In this spellbinding collection, seven acclaimed fantasy authors create characters who venture into the depths where others fear to tread. But when forbidden knowledge is the ultimate power, how far can they go before the darkness consumes them?"
Trivia and Link
You can watch for current and past Amazon Original Kindle short stories which are usually paired with their Audible Original narrations at an Amazon page here (link goes to Amazon US, adjust for your own country or region).
Review of the Amazon Original Kindle eBook (November 15, 2022) released simultaneously with the Audible Original audiobook (November 15, 2022)
One ghoul versus a hundred men with guns was no contest. It was like a shark going through bait. You could barely see her. You could see where she’d been a heartbeat before—a cloud of red mist—you could see where she was going, when a man suddenly exploded outward.
Splatterpunk is not my genre, but the worldbuilding of this one was really terrific. Much of this was due to the author not describing everything in detail but letting the reader fill in the blanks, a flattery of the reader, which I always appreciate. We are in a future dystopic world where a criminal empire is housed in a moving gargantuan vehicle (its caterpillar treads are described as being six stories high) travelling through a Mad Max style desert landscape. This is admittedly a bit of a steal from the moving cities of [b:Mortal Engines|287861|Mortal Engines (Mortal Engines, #1)|Philip Reeve|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1352173057l/287861._SY75_.jpg|3981652], but it is only a small element.
Into this setting we meet an agent who is "undercover" and takes on the job of minding the pet "ghoul" of the criminal mastermind. The ghoul has secrets of their own which are only gradually revealed, but their blood-soaked appetite is on display quite early. Ghouldom seems to be an extension of the vampire genre into cannibal territory. Again much of the mythology is left to the mind of the reader. Gore isn't my thing, but I admired the setting and imagination of this.
New Zealand's Tamsyn Muir is a science fiction, fantasy and horror writer who has published several novels and short stories. Her most popular novel is [b:Gideon the Ninth|42036538|Gideon the Ninth (The Locked Tomb, #1)|Tamsyn Muir|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1546870952l/42036538._SY75_.jpg|60943229] (The Locked Tomb #1) (2019).
Undercover is the fifth of seven Amazon Original Kindle eBooks/Audible Audio audiobooks released on November 15, 2022 as part of the Into Shadow Collection of short stories where "Some truths are carefully concealed; others merely forgotten. In this spellbinding collection, seven acclaimed fantasy authors create characters who venture into the depths where others fear to tread. But when forbidden knowledge is the ultimate power, how far can they go before the darkness consumes them?"
Trivia and Link
You can watch for current and past Amazon Original Kindle short stories which are usually paired with their Audible Original narrations at an Amazon page here (link goes to Amazon US, adjust for your own country or region).