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If Then cover art

If Then

By: Matthew de Abaitua
Narrated by: Mark Meadows
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Summary

After an unspecified near-future disaster, one English town survives under the protection of the surviving computer algorithms of the Process, which governs every aspect of their lives.

But now the Process is making soldiers. It is readying for war.

©2015 Matthew de Abaitua (P)2016 Audible, Ltd

What listeners say about If Then

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Tedious

Good narration but quite a tedious and convoluted story. Too unbelievable for sci-fi. Too realistic for fantasy.

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Flatters to deceive

If you could sum up If Then in three words, what would they be?

Beautiful but slowDe Abaitua's writing constantly impresses with slick figures of speech and leaps of imagination. It's almost worth listening for that alone ... but not quite. The story evolves agonisingly slowly and it many places it is just not credible.

What was your reaction to the ending? (No spoilers please!)

The story ran out of steam in the end.

What does Mark Meadows bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you had only read the book?

The characters were distinct but I didn't warm to them. This is probably more the author's fault than the readers' but a less languid pace might have kept it moving.

Did you have an emotional reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

Some of the phraseology was very impressive and little gems popped up out of nowhere. But the main characters were so weak and irritatingly passive that it was hard to get involved.

Any additional comments?

I understand that this is the authors' first book. I wonder if he could see the plot for the writing. I'm sure he'll do better next time.

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Disappointed

Whilst the description of the war was excellent I felt that the base story was just an excuse to describe the war.

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1 person found this helpful