Brighton Academy
Virtual Wars Book 1
by Andrew Sweet

Brighton Academy student Larken Marche is sixteen years old, and the only thing she wants to do is play lofting. As the most junior member on the varsity team, she has a real shot at making a career out of the team sport, and in 2201, Lofting is a great career choice. Her best friend Molly Kostic is the kind of friend who both entertains and frustrates. Capable of telling the truth about half the time, when Molly decides that she likes Larken’s (fraternal) twin brother Oliver Marche, Larken doesn’t know whether to be happy for her or nervous about the possibility that Oliver will become just another proverbial notch in Molly’s belt. When a strange boy, Eliaja Grant, arrives at Brighton via transfer, he looks like a male copy of Larken, down to her nose and chin. Questions begin to circulate about Elijah’s origins and rumors fly about them being triplets instead of twins, or worse, that she, Oliver, and Elijah might all three be clones. Before they can put the rumors to rest, a man is killed in downtown Portland by someone who looks exactly like Oliver, leading to Oliver’s arrest. Larken and Molly work against the clock to rescue a brother Larken knows is innocent. Walking the line between two extremist factions, Larken and Oliver must fight for their right to exist.

5 out of 5 fairies

This was the perfect blend of sci-fi and thriller. It has the vibe of a mystery/thriller, with the details that make it sci-fi. The opening hooked me right away, I felt like I’d been dropped right into a movie with the vivid descriptions. The plot pulls you along at a good pace, but the way Sweet reveals details about the world and characters keeps you wanting to read more to learn more. Even though I hate info dumps, sometimes a trickle of information can be just as frustrating, yet Sweet pulls it off expertly, feeding you just enough to keep you wanting more. I cannot recommend this enough for thriller and sci-fi lovers – if you enjoy either genre, you’re sure to enjoy this!

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One sci-fi universe. Infinite possibilities.

Andrew’s works are high-concept works that attempt to answer questions about human nature in science fiction settings. Could slavery happen tomorrow, based on historical patterns? How do normal people justify and rationalize their roles in an oppressive system? He provides psychological insights through entertaining, futuristic worlds.

Having recently published Models and Citizens and the short story collection Gemini Book, taking place in the same universe, Andrew is currently working on the second book of the Reality Gradient series – Bodhi Rising.

From a small town like many of his characters, Andrew grew up in Texas but currently resides just outside of Seattle, Washington, with his wife and two children who consume most of his non-writing time. Any additional available time he spends playing guitar or writing.

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