In the aftermath of World War Three, the most famous face in the world belongs to a nine year old girl.
Maya Oman is the daughter of the woman who controls what’s left of civilization, the CEO of Ascendant Pharmaceuticals Corporation. Her smile is as ubiquitous as air, selling everything from vital medicine to vanity drugs with risky side effects. Lifelike android clones reside in over a dozen homes, shielding her from the violent resentment of a population straining under her mother’s boot heel.
Ascendant’s power comes from Xenodril, a drug capable of reversing the effects of Fade, a disease some claim came from aliens or from the governments that predate the war. Only Ascendant sells it, and at a price only Citizens can afford. The rest are left to die.
Maya’s earliest memories are of living alone in a penthouse apartment, desperate for the attention of a mother who never visits. Forbidden to go out except to record advertising video, her only friend has been the ‘net. When she is taken for ransom by a group of mercenaries with nothing left to lose, she discovers her life may not be what she thought it was—or wants.
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Review
Heir Ascendant is a great book with interesting characters and a fast-moving plot with plenty of twists and turns. Author Matthew S. Cox has a free flowing writing style that keeps every scene interesting. The idea of a group of ragtag survivors fighting against those in power isn't particularly original in itself, but Heir Ascendant works in a wonderful way for two reasons that stood out to me. First, the main character, Maya, is brilliantly written. She is smart because of her upbringing, she's driven because she has finally found someone who loves her, and she's also still very young. One minute she's pretending to be a robot to trick some thugs, the next minute she's crying because she's scared and lonely. The other element that sets this story apart is Maya's relationship to the story's villain. I already mentioned that the villain is her mother but the way that plays out in the plot is intriguing. - Scott Cahan for Reader's Favorite
About the Author
Originally from South Amboy NJ, Matthew has been creating science fiction and fantasy worlds for most of his reasoning life. Since 1996, he has developed the "Divergent Fates" world, in which Division Zero, Virtual Immortality, The Awakened Series, and the Daughter of Mars series take place. More recently, he has forayed into young-adult and middle grade novels. Matthew is an avid gamer, a recovered WoW addict, Gamemaster for two custom systems (Chronicles of Eldrinaath [Fantasy] and Divergent Fates [Sci Fi], and a fan of anime, British humour, and intellectual science fiction that questions the nature of reality, life, and what happens after it. He is also fond of cats.
Description:
In the aftermath of World War Three, the most famous face in the world belongs to a nine year old girl.
Maya Oman is the daughter of the woman who controls what’s left of civilization, the CEO of Ascendant Pharmaceuticals Corporation. Her smile is as ubiquitous as air, selling everything from vital medicine to vanity drugs with risky side effects. Lifelike android clones reside in over a dozen homes, shielding her from the violent resentment of a population straining under her mother’s boot heel.
Ascendant’s power comes from Xenodril, a drug capable of reversing the effects of Fade, a disease some claim came from aliens or from the governments that predate the war. Only Ascendant sells it, and at a price only Citizens can afford. The rest are left to die.
Maya’s earliest memories are of living alone in a penthouse apartment, desperate for the attention of a mother who never visits. Forbidden to go out except to record advertising video, her only friend has been the ‘net. When she is taken for ransom by a group of mercenaries with nothing left to lose, she discovers her life may not be what she thought it was—or wants. **
Review
Heir Ascendant is a great book with interesting characters and a fast-moving plot with plenty of twists and turns. Author Matthew S. Cox has a free flowing writing style that keeps every scene interesting. The idea of a group of ragtag survivors fighting against those in power isn't particularly original in itself, but Heir Ascendant works in a wonderful way for two reasons that stood out to me. First, the main character, Maya, is brilliantly written. She is smart because of her upbringing, she's driven because she has finally found someone who loves her, and she's also still very young. One minute she's pretending to be a robot to trick some thugs, the next minute she's crying because she's scared and lonely. The other element that sets this story apart is Maya's relationship to the story's villain. I already mentioned that the villain is her mother but the way that plays out in the plot is intriguing. - Scott Cahan for Reader's Favorite
About the Author
Originally from South Amboy NJ, Matthew has been creating science fiction and fantasy worlds for most of his reasoning life. Since 1996, he has developed the "Divergent Fates" world, in which Division Zero, Virtual Immortality, The Awakened Series, and the Daughter of Mars series take place. More recently, he has forayed into young-adult and middle grade novels. Matthew is an avid gamer, a recovered WoW addict, Gamemaster for two custom systems (Chronicles of Eldrinaath [Fantasy] and Divergent Fates [Sci Fi], and a fan of anime, British humour, and intellectual science fiction that questions the nature of reality, life, and what happens after it. He is also fond of cats.