Book Review: Socialpunk by Monica Leonelle

“After playing God for six years with the world he created, he couldn’t control any of his subjects, none at all.  Over the years, he had watched them evolve and become the sum of their own choices rather than the sum of his; and for that, he regretted ever giving them life.” ~Prologue, Socialpunk

Monica Leonelle’s novel Socialpunk opens with that glimpse into the Researcher’s thoughts—and our introduction to our heroine, Ima.  She’s a shy girl with an abusive father, absent mother, and a best friend whom Ima wishes would be more than just a friend.  When Dash helps Ima sneak away from her father to attend a concert with him, an explosion literally turns Ima’s world upside down.

Ima finds herself in a completely new reality, dealing with a thousand questions as she tries to save Dash—and her new friend Nahum—before it’s too late.  To do so, Ima must overcome her shyness and use strengths she didn’t even know she had.  She must learn to trust her new friends and convince them to trust her.  Yet her reunion with Dash only brings her more questions—and a face-to-face meeting with the Researcher.

Socialpunk reminded me of Sigmund Brouwer’s futuristic suspense novels Broken Angel and Flight of Shadows.  Both are set in an America drastically changed by natural disasters and wars.  Socialpunk also involved competing realities—and computer-generated super abilities—like The Matrix movies.  It was a fast, suspenseful read that kept me rooting for Ima as she struggled to overcome each new hurdle she encountered.

While I found myself thoroughly enjoying the story in Socialpunk, the novel felt “self-published” to me.  I’m used to encountering spelling and grammar mistakes even in books from big-name publishers (Deloume Road had one misspelled word and By Faith, Not By Sight had two), but I lost count of the typos in Socialpunk.  For me, it distracted from the story.

I also disliked the ending.  Socialpunk is the first book in a trilogy, so I didn’t expect everything would be resolved with the end of this book.  However, I didn’t expect it to feel as wide open as it did.  There was no resolution at all.  I wanted some wrap-up with the first book, with some questions left to propel me into the second book.  Instead, the book ended on a line that seemed completely unnecessary to me (interesting, but not critical to the plot).

You can find out more about Monica and her books by visiting her website.  You can sign up for email updates from Monica and receive two of her ebooks, including Socialpunk, for free!

Come back on Tuesday for my interview with Monica to find out what she has to say about marketing books and writing futuristic fiction!

I received this book for review courtesy of Monica; all opinions expressed are my own. This post contains affiliate links; as an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.