My son, who is successfully staking out a career in film and TV screenwriting, has e-published a brilliant debut sci-fi novel on Amazon entitled “GENESIS” and as proud as I am of my son, I can honestly say the novel is really brilliant. Now there’s confirmation from Amazon. This week the novel reached #5000 in sales among ALL books sold on Amazon, and it’s in the top 50 novels in the sub-genre “Technothrillers.”
The novel is set in Seattle and on nearby Bainbridge Island, in a near future that’s not dystopian, but full of problems we all recognize — but with marvelously imagined tech and entertainment advances. And it’s a love story (though a rather twisted one). Here’s a quickie summary of the plot:
“Tech icon Aiden Markusson has it all—the lake house, the luxury car, the fastest growing company in Seattle, and the love of his life wearing his engagement ring. But his perfect life comes apart at the seams when he begins to experience blinding headaches, sensory distortions, and strange bursts of physical strength. His growing paranoia and need for answers lead him down a rabbit hole of bio-engineering and corporate conspiracy until he realizes he’s not losing him mind. It’s worse than that.
Genesis is a mind-bending thrill ride through the near future where Aiden’s hunt for the truth plunges him into a world of ruthless mercenaries, hacker enclaves, and the bleeding edge of body modification. Faced with the possibility he’s not even human, Aiden must learn to harness his newfound abilities in time to save the woman he loves, an entirely new form of life — and the future of the human race.”
The novel is adult fare, and contains a fair amount of gore, but it’s not gratuitous. Then there’s the humor angle — something reviewers specifically mention in almost all their reviews. Here’s some of those reviews:
"This one is a fun book that behaves like a pilot for a TV series. And by that I mean, I totally dig it and can't wait to see — I mean read -- more." Joe Crowe (RevolutionSF.com)
"An enjoyable, suspenseful rollercoaster of a plot with realistic characters and a few very surprising twists." Majanke Verstraete (iheartreading.net)
“Genesis is Sci-Fi with an edgy, hip, humorous twist. Turner creates characters that are real and builds a story that won’t let you go. This is a story that will draw readers from all genres. I LOVED it!” – Jim Clemente, Author of novel “Without Consent”
Here’s what Amazon readers have said:
“Turner's ability to develop great characters that the reader feels they know - and care about - makes him a unique voice in what can be a formulaic genre.”
“This book moves faster than Space Mountain through a terrain of corporate malevolence and an accidental hero. Matt Turner creates memorable characters quickly, puts them in danger, and gives them the wits to have a fighting chance to survive. He’s also deft at metaphor with descriptions and comparisons that are fresh and funny.”
“What a surprise. I stumbled onto this book through a recommendation by a friend and gave it a go. In a world where people rush through characters and keep things at a surface level, Turner seems to spend time creative emotional depth and weaving his characters into a world of action and humor with ease. It's rare to find a book where I naturally find myself wondering what I would do if I was in the same position as the characters. Most of the time if I read fiction, I'm simply there for entertainment. In the case of Genesis I was projecting myself into the story. Pretty cool.”
THROUGH THIS FRIDAY, Amazon is offering the novel as a special “99 cent” deal, which is why I’m posting this diary (the regular price is $3.99 — though if you are a Kindle Unlimited subscriber, you can download the novel for free). You can click here to check out the novel and the reviews on Amazon more fully (and to buy the novel during the “99 cent” sale, if you are so inspired).