Nirvana (Nirvana, #1)

by Stewart J R

• ISBN10: 0993639771
• ISBN13: 9780993639777
• Publish Date: 10 November 2015
• Publish Status: Temporarily Withdrawn
• Imprint: Blue Moon Publishers
• Format: eBook
• Pages: 306
• Language: English

Reviews

[Beth C.]

The Extinction. It has happened - no bees, no plants, no food. Most everything is run by the Hexagon, including the virtual reality that governs the lives of the people. Kenders is one of those people, married to a man who has gone missing and is presumed dead. In her search for the truth, she will learn that some thing are better left hidden.

The premise of the book sounded interesting, but unfortunately it didn't quite work as well as I had hoped. It drags on far too long in places, as if the author just didn't know what else to write. There is an entire section (around 81% of the way through) that lectures - at length - about bees and their die-offs and how it could be controlled by a company.The characters are not meaningful or truly interesting in the least. Frankly, getting through the book was a challenge.

It appears that this is the first book in a series, and I can honestly say that I have no intention of following up. This simply was not very well developed, and I have little hope that a sequel would be much better.

[Sarah Says]

I'm super upset at myself for not loving this book, I really thought I would and now I can't figure out what to write.

There were bit's of this book that I loved and other bits that had me confused as to who said and did what.
I couldn't handle that fact that the main character Kender's was only seventeen and was engaged and had already done all these activist activities AND had once had a successful music career - maybe I got confused and by the end she wasn't seventeen anymore?

I do love the synopsis blurb, the cover and the plot of this story. I wanted to love this story, but I didn't fully connect with it.

I'm going to give it 3 "I liked it" stars (a balance of the ''Loved it'' and ''Meh'' moments).

[Lynn]

***Revised Review***

I was lucky enough to receive a revised arc for Nirvana and incredibly impressed by the changes that have been made to turn this first part of the trilogy into an even more intriguing read.

Andrew & Larissa (Kenders) are engaged to be married having met whilst studying at university. Andrew is a head programmer at Nirvana, Hexagon's virtual reality system, where he takes his scientific research beyond the boundaries of conventional medical treatment. Kenders also works at Nirvana. Before her move to Hexagon, she was the lead singer of Sextet Sixty; a punk band singing reactionary songs to promote their animal rights activism.

Life as Kenders' knows it comes crashing down around her after she's told of Andrew's death. She sees his charred remains, but starts getting short messages from him during her mandatory time in Nirvana. Knowing she shouldn't trust anyone including Corporal, Terk and her life long friend Serge. She begins collecting clues for the man she still loves and believes is still alive. With her life in danger, can she avoid being killed at the hands of Andrew's power hungry ex Paloma? Why is she collecting items for Andrew? Is he really alive or is this just a ploy by Hexagon to get their hands on Andrew's missing research?

I'm impressed that I was able to follow the narrative, understanding the science fiction aspect more easily this time around. The author has done a fabulous job of turning Nirvana from a good, enjoyable read (in my previous opinion) to a fascinating, page-turner, leaving me eager to know what fate has in store for the protagonists. As a romance reader, the one thing that'd liked to have seen the author do...is inject more emotion and feeling into the characters, in particular Larissa. This would add a much needed dimension to her relationships with Andrew and Serge.

This is an impressive début novel for J.R. Stewart, who has succeeded in making me want to continue this thought provoking story.

4 stars

***arc generously received courtesy of Blue Moon Publishers via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review***

[Charli G.]

*I received this book free of charge in exchange for my honest review.*

J.R. Stewart has written a masterpiece. Combining a post-apocalyptic dystopian society with virtual reality is sheer genius. I have to say, I would never have thought I would read a book that included virtual reality in a dystopian society.

Larissa feels so very real to me. Like a sister I want to just hug. Perhaps it is because I’ve lost plenty of loved ones in my life. But it is more because Larissa – and all the characters, really – are so very life-like. You don’t really need backstory to have a character who feels real, you just have to have their actions and interactions feel as though they could be real. J.R. Stewart has done a wonderful job of making the characters in Nirvana feel as though they are real.

The storyline is brilliant – again, combining virtual reality with dystopian society. Throw in a bit of mystery with the death – or assumed death – of Larissa’s husband Andrew and you have a story that makes you want to keep reading. I was so disappointed that I had to stop reading to sleep and go to class! I wanted to just finish the book!

Trust me, this is a dystopian society book that you simply must read. A definite 5 out of 5 stars.

Nirvana will be released on Nov. 10, 2015. Make sure to grab your copy as soon as it hits the shelves. You won’t be disappointed!