Title:The Quarter Percent
Author: Lily Nicole
Pages: 285
Blurb
It is summer 2030. Truth is the weapon and profit is the territory. Over thirteen intense days, combatants wage war, wielding influence and prestige. Behind the screens, wealthy recluse Marvin Stone has unimaginable power and rewrites the rules of the game. As the rules change, a former fashionista struggles to adjust. On the continent, the popular and charismatic King Cordial of Vale works covertly to undermine his rivals. His youngest daughter, Costmary, is in the cross-hairs. Rue, his older daughter, takes on an exciting new challenge and Gala, Cordial’s first-born, when she is named Princess Regent, forges new ties and unveils her master plan.
My Review
The Quarter Percent by Lily Nicole is a unique dystopian science fiction blending politics and technology together. The plot has many parallel storylines which are woven together through mutual connections.
Set in the near future, the book begins giving a glimpse of the technical takeover on our day-to-day lives. Every information ever put out on the internet is now archived into a ten cubic meters of nanocellulose and silicon called Pai. Every user can point your device to this jelly block to access their data and modify them according to their taste. Access to this unique technology is only given to an extremely rich quarter percent of the population. This manipulative illegal technology which is controlled by a group of eight companies called The Conglomerate plan to market their product in the near future. This will cause a phase-out of the internet and the rise of Aeterna, the replacement. The source code of Aeterna is owned by Marvin Stones’ technology firm, Stone Technology Partners, LLC.
The plot thickens when Marvin Stone decides to rewrite the rules of the technology over the course of thirteen days. This will disrupt many lives depending on social media and the internet. The equations of marketing and advertising are going to take a toll due to this. This storyline is blended with the life of King Cordial of Vale, whose family problems have started spilling into the media. The King and his daughters are trying to squeeze the last drop of profit and power through covert plans.
This is not a simple story that can be expressed through a few lines. The story is getting complicated with the introduction of new characters. This complexity adds suspense and thriller elements in the story. The satirical account of family politics to gain more power and profit is portrayed very accurately. When people lose their ethics and only concentrate on profits, their grounds also change. This leads then to unquenchable greed to impair their opponents and rise above them. The human nature to wage war for their selfish goals is the soul-cause of the fall of humanity. This story explains them all. With accurate turns and twists, the plot never loses its charm.
The creative mind behind the story demands a huge applause. It is not easy to weave many storylines together and combine them to a single concept. The author has done this job very well. This book is absolutely a great treat for readers.
Rating: 5/5
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