Review: Alexander X by Edward Savio

Alexander X by Edward Savio

Lots of authors enjoy writing about immortals, but I had never come across Edward Savio’s take on the long-lived before. He posits that there is a peculiar genetic condition that causes some people to age at roughly 1/100th of the rate that everyone else does and since much of maturity involves developments in the brain and changes in hormone production in the body, his fifteen-hundred-year-old fifteen-year-old is in fact a typical teenager in many regards. The more I think back on it, the less convinced I am that this idea is workable, but none of that bothered me while I was actually reading the novel. Savio’s artistry with words and the fascinating quirks of history that populate his pages were more than enough to make me suspend my disbelief to enjoy the story—a not so original tale of two immortals contesting with each other over the fate of the world. One wants to keep it as it is, and the other would like to see it permanently set back a century or two so that the immortals can continue their masquerade as normal humans. The result is a book that belongs firmly in the young adult category—thoroughly enjoyable but definitely focused on the fifteen year old.

 

There is one major weakness in the story. The plot revolves around Alexander’s importance because he is his father’s son, but we later learn that Alexander has a brother who turns out to not be important at all to the storyline even though he has exactly Alexander’s qualification. Still, it’s an interesting tale and I’m glad I read it.