Rate this book

Clear rating

1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

Heaven 2.0

by Scott Haworth (Goodreads Author)

3.75 of 5 stars 3.75 · rating details · 16 ratings · 6 reviews

Having been born in the 28th century, Mike Kepler never believed in the existence of Heaven or Hell. The myths of the old faiths had been abandoned and replaced with the teachings of The Church many centuries earlier. The young physicist is shocked to learn that there is an afterlife when he is recruited by the Taipei Corporation. It was created by a team of scientists rat...more

171 pages

Published March 1st 2012 by Scott Haworth

more details... edit details

Get a copy:

More…

Friend Reviews

To see what your friends thought of this book, please sign up.

Lists with This Book

Little Known Authors Worth Reading

292nd out of 564 books — 574 voters

Settings You Would Not Want to Be In

52nd out of 108 books — 113 voters

More lists with this book...

Community Reviews

(showing 1-30 of 41)

filter | sort: default (?) | rating details

Apr 13, 2013 Rishika rated it 3 of 5 stars

Heaven 2.0 has a lot going for it. It's an extremely interesting concept, built on great imagination. It's written quite well, not leaving all that much to be desired writing style wise. It flows very well and doesn't really ever come to a point that you'd get bored.
The crux of the book lies in its moral issues - what's right and what's wrong and who is allowed to judge that? The issues addressed in the book are an extension of the moral issues existent today. But the addition of power in the ha...more Heaven 2.0 has a lot going for it. It's an extremely interesting concept, built on great imagination. It's written quite well, not leaving all that much to be desired writing style wise. It flows very well and doesn't really ever come to a point that you'd get bored.
The crux of the book lies in its moral issues - what's right and what's wrong and who is allowed to judge that? The issues addressed in the book are an extension of the moral issues existent today. But the addition of power in the hands of people that can alter these issues and decide a person's guilt makes all the difference.
While the existent of one reigning religion and one reigning language may seem like a good thing, it leaves you wondering about freewill. Why should you not believe what you want to believe? As the story progresses, you come across instances where you feel like that which is happening is extremely unfair - and it is. Justice, extended on the basis of a set number of rules, leaving no deviation for feelings or morality as is felt (not written in a book), can get pretty unjust. Can you send someone to Hell for one mistake when he's already repented and spent his entire life making up for his indiscretion? Or can you send a man to Hell because he chooses to spend his life a certain way in the 21st century - a way that is deemed unethical only after years of scientific research has allowed society to, in the 28th century, deem it so? And over that , who is anyone to send a man to Hell for an eternity of torture?
These are the questions the reader will end up asking himself as the characters themselves begin to question the ethics of a project created for the apparent greater good and greater justice. What I really liked though, is the way Scott Haworth has shown that in spite of scientific and technological advancements that can change part of your beliefs, humans retain their humanity. And this is separate from all that you may be taught and told - something that will refuse to stay down when humanity is threatened. Good is inherent. The characters are normal people, living normal lives in a job that forces them to question their surroundings... and face the difficult truth.
It's a very easy read that moves along without much effort and doesn't slow down. The only dampener, in my opinion, was the end. While the book raises some essential questions, the end does not seem too apt in the bigger picture of things. It still leaves you with the feeling of 'This shouldn't have happened'. But then, when you think about it, you realize that there might not have been any other way to end it. The end still does not answer a simple question - Who is anyone to decide someone's predicament for all eternity? But if you take it with the understanding that the base of the story is what it is, that there is no alternate belief or a real Hell or Heaven, you can accept the end (albeit a little grudgingly).
All in all, a quick, easy read that holds you from the beginning to the end. Scott Haworth is a talented author and one, who seems like he can create great works of fiction with his imagination. A great read for fans of science fiction who are willing to give the author some leeway.(less)

like · see review

Jul 12, 2012 Ron rated it 3 of 5 stars

This is one of those books that are hard to review. It falls mostly outside of my usual genre choices, but when I got the review request, I just couldn’t resist the concept. I’m glad I read it, and yet there are things that keep me from gushing about it.

Plot and characters are fairly straightforward, for example. It’s not simplistic, just simple. The story cuts to the chase and leaves out anything that doesn’t propel the plot, which means character development scenes are nonexistent, meaningful...more This is one of those books that are hard to review. It falls mostly outside of my usual genre choices, but when I got the review request, I just couldn’t resist the concept. I’m glad I read it, and yet there are things that keep me from gushing about it.

Plot and characters are fairly straightforward, for example. It’s not simplistic, just simple. The story cuts to the chase and leaves out anything that doesn’t propel the plot, which means character development scenes are nonexistent, meaningful relationships are scarce, and the action itself sometimes reads too convenient. I can deal with the character issues, because this kind of story is more about mankind than about any particular person and the author got me invested successfully in the general plight—namely, destroying that crappy 28th century society and doing so by yesterday if at all possible. I truly disliked them with this uneasy feeling in your gut that you reserve for really abhorrent people. In that respect, kudos to Heaven 2.0... because not only it was dreadful, it was also entirely possible.

The plot part was a bit harder to swallow. I think a good comparison for this book, in the movie world, would be the Isle (you know, with Ewan McGregor?). It’s that kind of desperate fight against impossible odds, of individuals against the system, of claustrophobia... except that everything was so matter-of-fact, so quick, so straight, that there was no tension. Even when the real action takes place, I had no expectations about the results because it was too farfetched to work. And later, things just fell into place: after all, if you don’t know anything about a huge compound called Hell and you just venture in, how likely are you to actually find the two people you’re looking for in the first try?

Another aspect that nagged me a little was the science side of things. The level of tech here is mind-numbing; it needs to be in order for Heaven to exist. In general, breezing through all that as if it was normal, as if it was magic, shouldn’t be a problem, but some sci-fi fans like to have an attempt at explanation behind all the evolution. I liked some details, like pen and paper no longer existing, handwriting being considered a Dark Ages activity, or people crammed up in Mars. Even space-time travel, I could handle. The refrigerators, which are actually matter generators and voice-operated, confused me a bit more, which I understand is ridiculous after you’ve gone an accepted the engineering of Heaven.

Perhaps I had trouble transitioning to the future because I had only a very sketchy idea about how we got there. Or perhaps I would just have been happy if you’d thrown in some buttons with the frigs... In any case, a warning here because there’s a lot of progress to take in.

Should you read Heaven 2.0? Well, I certainly enjoyed the read. I liked the concept, and I always like to read about human nature. That said, though, I think this novel could have used a few more pages (that’s weird... usually I complain about the opposite!) in order to allow for more detailed characters to make the reader’s investment more personal and in order to muddy up the convenient line of events to create more tension. It’s really short as it is, though, so if you have a chance to check it out you should probably see how you feel about it. (less)

like · see review

May 22, 2012 Opal rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: fantasy-sci-fi

Actually a 3.5 rating.

See my reviews here and on The Akamai Reader.

I thought this book had some innovative ideas. It wasn’t overly wrought in religious dogma. There were some outrageous moments for me though. Such as the moment when it was stated that in the 28th century they had successfully stamped out the “homosexual disease”. It was just another instance of proving what a dystopic society it truly was though.

The trips back in time were enjoyable diversions, but I think they took away from t...more

like · see review

Dec 07, 2012 Caleb Blake rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2012-reads

Cross-posted from Papyrus Independent Author Reviews (http://papyrus.calebblake.net/2012/12/08/heaven-2-0-by-scott-haworth/)

Life is tough for angels - I mean extraction specialists. What if eternal happiness was a facility designed by humankind some time in the future? What if eternal damnation was similarly administered? Would you feel relieved - or worried?

Heaven 2.0 starts with a fascinating premise; that some time in the future, all religions merge into a single unifying faith and that techn...more Cross-posted from Papyrus Independent Author Reviews (http://papyrus.calebblake.net/2012/12/08/heaven-2-0-by-scott-haworth/)

Life is tough for angels - I mean extraction specialists. What if eternal happiness was a facility designed by humankind some time in the future? What if eternal damnation was similarly administered? Would you feel relieved - or worried?

Heaven 2.0 starts with a fascinating premise; that some time in the future, all religions merge into a single unifying faith and that technology has availed us of the opportunity to extract people from the past, moments before their fated passing, processing them into a manufactured "Heaven" or "Hell" as decreed by interpretation of humanity's moral creeds. When you're so sure that the Almighty's will is to have you create the ultimate result of humanity's mortal coil, what could possibly go wrong?

As a reader we are exposed to exactly what could go wrong. And like many futuristic science fiction stories, there is ample extrapolation of current issues throughout the story: corporate rationalisation, quotas and performance metrics and what a corporation might do to secure ongoing government funding. We also see the peril of a future humanity applying a contemporary moral code on people from different eras - a rather sobering and provocative exercise. As quickly as we feel the outrage against a future morality when brought into judgement over our own, we suddenly recognise the similar arrogance we often use to judge those who have come before us.

Unfortunately, although I found the premise and message a winner in this novel, I could not be as enthusiastic about the execution. The prose itself is completely adequate and I have no particular issues with the style and certainly none with the accuracy; there was a satisfying lack of careless errors. However, I found the handling of the plot and characterisation to be less impressive than the ideas behind them. I understand the need of keeping a story focused, on not embarking in hundreds of pages of filler not pertinent to either the core plot or message. But to me, this novel was the skeleton of the story that could have been told - only containing the bare minimum required to make sure the message was delivered. Additionally, the characters became shells - sometimes illogical shells.

The main character could have been a likeable hero - a recognised genius head-hunted to become an extraction specialist, embraced in a corporation eventually revealed as corrupt and dangerous. There's a great deal we could learn about this character and how his ideals and intelligence could be used to uncover in-congruencies and hatch sophisticated plots to expose corruption, all with the very real risk of being disposed of by those in power. It could have been a sci-fi version of The Client by John Grisham. However, all we end up witnessing is an absolute fool blundering carelessly through every plot milestone, without any spark of intelligence or cunning. The cunning is reserved for characters that we never really get to know who remain in the background like some deus ex machina to ensure our clueless hero's success. And when wandering with intent but without any plan in the vast complex providing a Hell for all humanity throughout history, what chance would one have to run into people one was looking for? According to the author, a 100% success rate - maybe our protagonist really is a genius after all.

Along the way we do see some interesting ways in which a future humanity might use one's alleged sins to devise punishments, though I have to admit to being somewhat perplexed by the significance of some - the faeces room in particular seemed more puerile than pertinent. But overall, I just found the experience a bit lacklustre.

I wanted to like this story because to me, the premise is great. I would happily have swallowed the disbelief when considering a complex in the moon housing the history of humanity if I was given a conspiracy thriller with logical character development, genuine suspense and a sophisticated plot. But Heaven 2.0 unfortunately felt like a rushed exercise and a missed opportunity.(less)

like · see review

Sep 22, 2012 Angela rated it 3 of 5 stars

I don't usually read much sci-fi so this was an unusual book choice for me. However, I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed the story. It was an unusual subject matter but I found it interesting and different. The story had me gripped until about 80 per cent of the way through when I found it rather far-fetched (yes, even for a sci-fi story!) and it did feel that it was rushing to a conclusion. However, it did finish satisfactorily and I won't hestitate to recommend this book.

like · see review

Mar 19, 2013 Pam rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: kindle-free

Ahh so time does not change everything.."This place might be run by corporate hacks and religious fanatics"...It was a interesting read.

like · see review

Apr 17, 2013 Nathan marked it as to-read

Apr 11, 2013 Kristalyn marked it as to-read

Apr 10, 2013 Adam Light marked it as to-read

Shelves: books-i-own-tbr, sci-fi, looks-promising

Apr 10, 2013 Jenn marked it as to-read

Shelves: kindle

Apr 07, 2013 Jeune Taylor rated it 3 of 5 stars

Mar 23, 2013 Zoe Cannon marked it as to-read

Shelves: tbr-owned

Mar 25, 2013 Caroline rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2013, kindle

Mar 17, 2013 Amy Waugh rated it 4 of 5 stars

Mar 17, 2013 Laura Protheroe rated it 3 of 5 stars

Mar 14, 2013 Clarke marked it as free

Shelves: still-need-to-sort-2

Apr 02, 2013 Clive marked it as to-read

Mar 12, 2013 Deborah marked it as general-library

Mar 12, 2013 Patrik marked it as to-read

Mar 11, 2013 Rose Beyke marked it as to-read

Mar 10, 2013 Tammy K. marked it as to-read

Shelves: own-it-not-yet-read, dystopian, goodreads-author, kindle-loanable

Mar 09, 2013 Monique marked it as to-read

Mar 09, 2013 Sandy Jay marked it as to-read

Shelves: kindle-books-to-lend, own, sci-fi

Mar 09, 2013 Sharon marked it as to-read

Shelves: ebooks-own

Mar 09, 2013 Steffi marked it as to-read

Shelves: kindle-freebie, sub-kindle

Feb 11, 2013 Larhonda rated it 4 of 5 stars

Jan 23, 2013 Claire marked it as to-read

Shelves: i-own-on-kindle

Jan 07, 2013 Knv rated it 2 of 5 stars

Apr 15, 2013 Andrew rated it 5 of 5 stars

Dec 30, 2012 Pammy rated it 4 of 5 stars

« previous 1 2 next »

new topic
Discuss This Book

topics	posts	views	last activity
Free eBooks: Free Ebook: Heaven 2.0	1	9	Aug 21, 2012 10:49am
Book Giveaways: Free Ebook: Heaven 2.0	1	5	Aug 21, 2012 10:47am

Genres

Science Fiction

2 users

See top shelves...

About Scott Haworth

Scott was born in the wagon of a traveling show. His Momma used to dance for the money they'd throw. Pappa would do whatever he could... Well, not really. That would have been a lot more interesting though. He was actually born in the suburbs of Cleveland.

After existing for several more decades, Scott graduated from The Ohio State University in 2004 with a degree in history and political science....more

More about Scott Haworth...

Books by Scott Haworth

Dark Moonlighting (Dark Moonlighting, #1)

More…

Share This Book

Facebook Twitter Your website

Trivia About Heaven 2.0

No trivia or quizzes yet. Add some now »

title link	preview: Heaven 2.0
avg rating	preview: Heaven 2.0 Goodreads rating: 3.75 (16 ratings)
small image	preview: click here [close]
med image	preview: click here [close]
BBCode	[url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13553100-heaven-2-0?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book][img]http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1358832883l/13553100.jpg[/img][/url] [url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13553100-heaven-2-0?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book]Heaven 2.0 by Scott Haworth[/url]

Heaven 2.0

Friend Reviews

Lists with This Book

Community Reviews

new topicDiscuss This Book

Genres

About Scott Haworth

Books by Scott Haworth

Share This Book

Share This Book on Your Website

Trivia About Heaven 2.0

new topic
Discuss This Book