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The City #1
Chipless
THE CHIP IN YOUR BRAIN IS THE SOURCE OF YOUR HAPPINESS AND THE KEY TO YOUR HEALTH. IT GUIDES YOU, IT LOOKS AFTER YOU . . . AND IT TURNS YOU INTO A COMPLACENT SLAVE.Kal is a young scientist, who fits well in the chip-regulated society. But when he accidentally discovers how the chip is playing with his mind, his life is in danger.Amber is a chipless girl from afar with a problem of her own. She helps Kal to escape the city police and they flee the city together. Now that the chip no longer controls him, Amber also arouses in Kal new, confusing feelings with which he has a hard time coping.Amber is more important to the city rulers than Kal imagines, and the hunt for them both is on. They must travel through dangerous territories to reach a safe destination, and time is running out for Kal. If they fail to get there in time, both his life and the hope of fighting the city tyrants will be lost.
244 pages, Kindle Edition
First published May 1, 2018
101 people are currently reading
362 people want to read
About the author
Kfir Luzzatto
56 books148 followersKfir Luzzatto is the author of seventeen novels, several short stories, and seven non-fiction books. Kfir was born and raised in Italy and moved to Israel as a teenager. He acquired his love for the English language from his father, a former U.S. soldier, a voracious reader, and a prolific writer. He holds a Ph.D. in chemical engineering and works as a patent attorney. In pursuit of his interest in the mind-body connection, Kfir was certified as a Clinical Hypnotherapist by the Anglo-European College of Therapeutic Hypnosis.
Kfir is a member of the HWA (Horror Writers Association) and ITW (International Thriller Writers).
You can visit Kfir’s web site and read his blog at https://www.kfirluzzatto.com. Follow him on Twitter (@KfirLuzzatto) and friend him on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/KfirLuzzatto...).
Kfir is a member of the HWA (Horror Writers Association) and ITW (International Thriller Writers).
You can visit Kfir’s web site and read his blog at https://www.kfirluzzatto.com. Follow him on Twitter (@KfirLuzzatto) and friend him on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/KfirLuzzatto...).
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 30 reviews
April 23, 2018
Plot: In a secluded society directed by tyrannical officials and corrupt powers Kal has discovered all the answers which could free his people from their unwitting servitude. Every citizen is implanted with a chip when they are young to regulate health and well being of the people and improve the running of the population. But that isn't all it does. When an experiment goes awry and Kal sees the world as it really is, not the illusion broadcast through the chip, he finds himself running for his life. With the help of Amber, a girl who never got the chip, Kal races to get his information to the Chipless population fighting against the government. He just hopes he can get there before time runs out for the world, and for him.
Review: While the basis of the plot is intriguing and the story line fascinating, I couldn’t get into the story. I never thought I’d say this, but there is too much happening in this book. Every other chapter abandons a secondary character, picks up new one, creates another unwitting evil guy to defeat and another impossibly messy situation for them to be dragged out of.
As for the main characters, I really liked their stories and how they developed. Kal had to work hard to overcome his cold and distant conditioning and I loved watching him struggle with the lies of his past. As for Amber, she is a strong female character who would jump into danger head first if given the choice. I really liked Amber’s backstory and her efforts to save her father. Kal and Amber as a couple however, fell a bit flat. I didn’t feel that they had any connection romantically and all the romance felt a little forced and unnecessarily awkward.
As for the writing, the dialogue is dry, but the world and concept of the story were stimulating. I wish I could’ve had more details about all the different cities and the state of the outside world because I loved the society Luzzatto created for the City, Freeland and all the other surrounding areas.
While this book did have its faults, Chipless kept me reading and drew me in with an awesome main concept and unstoppable plot. I’d love to know what you think of this book so let me know what you think!
My Full Review | My Blog
Review: While the basis of the plot is intriguing and the story line fascinating, I couldn’t get into the story. I never thought I’d say this, but there is too much happening in this book. Every other chapter abandons a secondary character, picks up new one, creates another unwitting evil guy to defeat and another impossibly messy situation for them to be dragged out of.
As for the main characters, I really liked their stories and how they developed. Kal had to work hard to overcome his cold and distant conditioning and I loved watching him struggle with the lies of his past. As for Amber, she is a strong female character who would jump into danger head first if given the choice. I really liked Amber’s backstory and her efforts to save her father. Kal and Amber as a couple however, fell a bit flat. I didn’t feel that they had any connection romantically and all the romance felt a little forced and unnecessarily awkward.
As for the writing, the dialogue is dry, but the world and concept of the story were stimulating. I wish I could’ve had more details about all the different cities and the state of the outside world because I loved the society Luzzatto created for the City, Freeland and all the other surrounding areas.
While this book did have its faults, Chipless kept me reading and drew me in with an awesome main concept and unstoppable plot. I’d love to know what you think of this book so let me know what you think!
My Full Review | My Blog
April 12, 2018
I received this book in exchange for an honest review. I have given Chipless by Kfir Luzzatto two out of five stars ⭐️⭐️
Unfortunately, I didn't enjoy this book nearly enough as I would have liked to.
I found it very difficult to connect with the characters Luzzatto created in Chipless. The two main characters, Kal and Amber, although they looked out for each other I couldn't connect to them individually or as a team and found it hard to like them overall. They practically came from two different worlds so I could understand why Kal gave off distant and unfamiliar characteristics throughout the novel, due to his chip, but it didn't work for me as I became confused and, at times, felt awkward reading some of the conversations Kal and Amber had. *queue tumbleweed*
I thought the events that took place throughout the dystopian-esque book did not go into enough detail. There were certain events that took place and it was as though the characters shrugged off what had just happened so easily (no matter how dangerous or important that particular event was to the story) as though it was nothing and simply moved on. I found that very bizarre. I would have liked to have learnt more about certain characters and places, such as The City, the Freeland, Astrine, Afex and the High Professor as The City and the High Professor both had a big part to play in the storyline and yet there wasn't much about either place nor character within the book.
On the other hand, I really liked the concept of this book and thought it could have turned out to be a real hit to the dystopian book fans of the world, but unfortunately I thought this book could have developed better through the writing and the detailed descriptions of the book, especially when it came to the action parts.
If you happen to pick up this book or have already, let me know what you think/thought of it in the comments below.
February 2, 2020
Chipless is a dystopian fiction by Kfir Luzzatto. The story is set in a dystopian society where people are inserted with a chip at birth. This chip receives the signals transmitted by the people who are controlling this society inside a barricaded town or a city. All the people living inside this society catch the signals through the chip in them which makes them see and hear things that the control group wants them to hear and see. Though the actual situation of this society is such that they have lost all their natural resources and have destroyed nature, but through the chip people are manipulated to think that all is good and natural. But there is a group of rebels who have removed their chips and leave outside the society and can see the reality. The story involves Kal, a scientist with a chip inside him, and Amber, a rebel who has come into the society just to have some fun with the other informants in a cafe. And the story takes off when the police start to randomly interrogate, checking for the infiltrators among the chipped people. When Amber escapes the place suspiciously, Kal notices her and follows her, in turn becoming a suspect. Amber, without any other option, takes him to her rebels who show him what is the reality.
The narration seems like the reasonably fine first draft with all tell and no show leading to passive imagination. From the beginning, everything seems to be falling into place for Kal. He doesn’t face much conflict being a fugitive in a dystopian society. He is plain lucky and doesn’t work much to gain anything. Also, there are loopholes in the plot. For example, after helping Marion, another character, escape from the barn, how did Kal escape from the barn because he was pretending to be her? No explanation given there. As if he ported from inside the barn to outside.
I wouldn’t suggest anyone to read Chipless. Not worth the time.
The narration seems like the reasonably fine first draft with all tell and no show leading to passive imagination. From the beginning, everything seems to be falling into place for Kal. He doesn’t face much conflict being a fugitive in a dystopian society. He is plain lucky and doesn’t work much to gain anything. Also, there are loopholes in the plot. For example, after helping Marion, another character, escape from the barn, how did Kal escape from the barn because he was pretending to be her? No explanation given there. As if he ported from inside the barn to outside.
I wouldn’t suggest anyone to read Chipless. Not worth the time.
March 25, 2020
“Chipless” is a futuristic dystopian where an event (known as the Pulse) has disrupted society. In response, a group of scientists have made a chip that helps regulate the population’s health, happiness, and even what they see, smell, and taste as all part of a very advanced augmented reality simulator. The chip’s—which is implanted in all citizens of The City at one year of age—primary function is to keep the populace from ever knowing that their world is dying, depleted of its natural resources. In exchange for all the advanced technology and not having to worry about their bodies, the land has been sucked dry. The chip keeps the citizens from knowing the true state of the world and therefore freaking out, or rebelling. Something like that, anyway. It honestly got a little confusing because it’s not like everyone lives in The City, there seem to be a lot of people without a chip (like Amber) so the idea of why The City needed this mind control, what the Pulse did or was, or why Kal was so important, got seriously diminished by the fact that having a chip was just so… benign and there were already so many people living free of The City’s clutches.
I thought the concept of this book was really interesting: what would you pay to live in a virtual paradise? Is it worth it to not know which thoughts are truly yours? To sacrifice your personal freedom in order to have all the comforts advanced technology can offer? Even if it hurts the land around you by depleting it for resources? I’ve used augmented reality and virtual reality before for my various jobs, so I found this concept really intriguing! But this main plot point got really muddled with Kal and Amber fleeing The City for rather vague reasons, and then along the way, getting entangled in other conflicts as new, secondary characters get hastily introduced, and then discarded. There was a lot going on, and some of it was more interesting than others. Like, I really enjoyed the truck convoy as it had flavors of Mad Max and the few scenes in The City as it reminded me of the Matrix, but didn’t much care for most of the random travel lodges the two main characters found themselves in as they raced toward Freeland in order to give those rebels the technology needed to disrupt the AR signal. I think? Honestly it felt so minor to just the main characters running around that I don’t really know.
Unfortunately, the dialogue was also a little hard to get into as it was pretty dry, and mainly functioned as all "tell”, so there was no “showing” the reader much of the world. It made it hard to really identify with the characters and feel a connection to them. Although I did like Kal’s awkwardness and his shyness. As someone who grew up in The City, he’s not used to seeing skin, let alone being close to a woman, so it was endearing to see him struggle and grow in this new world he found himself in. But, that being said, Kal also seems to be the luckiest person in the world. Things just happen to him, or for him, rather than him having to do anything specifically to move the plot forward, so I didn’t get that tension that I was expecting for a book that’s classified as a dystopian thriller.
All in all, I still think this concept is great and could make for a really interesting and thrilling story, especially since things like augmented reality do exist in our world so it’s easy to imagine that kind of technology being used for nefarious purposes. But I just couldn’t get into the story or the characters beyond Kal at times. There were a lot of subplots that never got fully explored, and the ending felt more like a hard stop rather than a true ending, but maybe that’s because there are supposed to be more books in this and it will eventually become a series? I’m not sure. But because the idea behind this story and Kal’s character where the only things I really enjoyed, this is a 2.5/3 star read for me. But thanks to the author for sending me a copy for an honest review!
I thought the concept of this book was really interesting: what would you pay to live in a virtual paradise? Is it worth it to not know which thoughts are truly yours? To sacrifice your personal freedom in order to have all the comforts advanced technology can offer? Even if it hurts the land around you by depleting it for resources? I’ve used augmented reality and virtual reality before for my various jobs, so I found this concept really intriguing! But this main plot point got really muddled with Kal and Amber fleeing The City for rather vague reasons, and then along the way, getting entangled in other conflicts as new, secondary characters get hastily introduced, and then discarded. There was a lot going on, and some of it was more interesting than others. Like, I really enjoyed the truck convoy as it had flavors of Mad Max and the few scenes in The City as it reminded me of the Matrix, but didn’t much care for most of the random travel lodges the two main characters found themselves in as they raced toward Freeland in order to give those rebels the technology needed to disrupt the AR signal. I think? Honestly it felt so minor to just the main characters running around that I don’t really know.
Unfortunately, the dialogue was also a little hard to get into as it was pretty dry, and mainly functioned as all "tell”, so there was no “showing” the reader much of the world. It made it hard to really identify with the characters and feel a connection to them. Although I did like Kal’s awkwardness and his shyness. As someone who grew up in The City, he’s not used to seeing skin, let alone being close to a woman, so it was endearing to see him struggle and grow in this new world he found himself in. But, that being said, Kal also seems to be the luckiest person in the world. Things just happen to him, or for him, rather than him having to do anything specifically to move the plot forward, so I didn’t get that tension that I was expecting for a book that’s classified as a dystopian thriller.
All in all, I still think this concept is great and could make for a really interesting and thrilling story, especially since things like augmented reality do exist in our world so it’s easy to imagine that kind of technology being used for nefarious purposes. But I just couldn’t get into the story or the characters beyond Kal at times. There were a lot of subplots that never got fully explored, and the ending felt more like a hard stop rather than a true ending, but maybe that’s because there are supposed to be more books in this and it will eventually become a series? I’m not sure. But because the idea behind this story and Kal’s character where the only things I really enjoyed, this is a 2.5/3 star read for me. But thanks to the author for sending me a copy for an honest review!
November 16, 2020
Couldn't finish it. It felt rushed as if it had been written in a few weeks. Such a cool and imaginative concept, unfortunately, I couldn't get into the characters enough to care enough about the plot.
April 10, 2021
Before I start since I don't usually finish books to give them rather lackluster reviews, I was really excited about the plot's main concept. A plot featuring a sort of Matrix virtual reality city? Cool!
The first chapter is brilliantly written. We don't really know anything and are just as clueless as the book's very geeky 21 year old physicist Kal when he is unwittingly dragged by one of his few friends Janec to a working class neighborhood of "The City" to have a few drinks in a bar (something Kal doesn't really understand all that well it seems but he is hating the loud music and crowds already) and a tomboyish teenage woman immediately sits down in their private table for a seemingly important conversation. As if by magic, cops show up unannounced, kill the woman's friend Jamie while Janec is stunned and taken away after he tries to coax the cops he was in Sector 5 with a valid permit.
Kal has no idea what the hell is going on while he watches the cops drag his friend away to a very poor fate but the woman tells him to follow her through the ladder and escape if he wants to stay alive. Do I feel some Total Recall deja vu over here?
After such an adrenaline lashed first chapter, we get to see the manicured world through Kal's eyes under the influence of his chip as he woke up earlier that fateful day and merrily walks around the scientist complex, enjoys the farm animals grazing outside of The City's walls from his office window while he tinkers with an electromagnetic pulse device. That is when his world becomes all sorts of weird and he explains the freakish stuff he saw to Janec the very minute his coworker coaxes him to visit a place in Sector 5...
When you write a book with a particularly fast-paced first chapter with very high stakes, you can either keep the book going at a nonstop go,go,go,go pace (which is irritating to a lot of readers but many hardcore thriller enthusiasts will enjoy it nonetheless), or alternate with some slower chapters in between. Slow doesn't always mean that absolutely nothing happens in the plot, it can also mean characters develop, change or we get glimpses of the world building.
One thing many readers seem to feel missing in Chipless and I totally agree is that the middle of the book doesn't really get to stop for a moment and smell the real roses outside of The City so to speak, and the plot had a real goldmine of opportunity here.
Kal soon realizes the strange woman that saved him is Amber, she is a "savage" outsider from a faraway city named Freeland and doesn't have the chip so she sees his city for what it really is all of the time. Sadly we don't get to stick around because the government wants to capture and kill Kal to have a chance to find out, which is understandable.
She reluctantly takes Kal to an underground hideout hidden beneath a complicated network of sewers where other scientists from a rebelling anti-chip faction reside. She then explains to Kal that the magnetic wave he created that damaged his chip by accident could be replicated to a large amount of people and potentially overthrow the government. Kal is expected to go on a road trip with Amber to the wastelands by foot and reach Amber's city.
Now, this sounds good and all. Not much info is given about the perils ahead because we still assume there is radiation or something outside of the city and the rebel scientists prefer to get rid of Kal immediately before the cops show up. The plot hole problems of the book seem to arise once the duo reach the first outdoor settlement and problems just multiply as the story goes further on.
I have a hard time knowing whether the author started putting filler in the middle trying to think of other punchline problems that can be solved in the next chapter to make the book longer and the plot mistakes occurred more by accident or he didn't think they would be a big deal. For example, Kal wears a very obvious scientist technician uniform that would make him an easy target the second outsiders see him. It seems like some of the rebel scientists have ventured to a few of the nearby outdoor settlements in the past and Amber had plenty of time to relay knowledge of the outside world over the 6 months she had lived with them. So how come nobody thought it would be important to give Kal some clothes?
We discover early on that Amber is the niece of the secretary of security of Freeland who oversees the city's defense, a city that has been forced to defend itself from raids from neighboring enclaves for ages... yet she doesn't seem to show any kind of combat skills. This isn't a megacity with a huge army, their volunteer army is pitiably small. It would make sense that women with the physical aptitude and political means (such as Amber) might know a thing or two. Heck, she doesn't even know how to pick a lock? Seriously? Doesn't know even the basics on how to fly a helicopter even though her city has them? Strange as it is, Kal has knowledge that doesn't seem akin to his sheltered lab-rat upbringing. He knows how to fly a helicopter rather adeptly, knows that birds can destroy a plane's motor even though he has never seen birds before, and somehow has the combat skills to break someone's neck with a lot of ease even though he never mentions he ever got hand-to-hand combat training. Oh and he instantly learned how to shoot a rifle without freaking out or getting his ribs hit by the rebound mechanism (I guess these ultra-modern Sci-Fi guns from his City don't do that?). Even though Amber should possess all of these abilities given her rougher upbringing, she constantly exudes the damsel-in-distress stereotype yet she is supposed to be the "strong female lead character". I felt Dora and the truck driver to be far stronger female characters than Amber even though neither showed any combat skills.
To further add extra confusion about the story, I initially assumed Freeland was a day or two away from The City, just located next to a toxic wasteland that made it rather difficult to pass through. Instead, the book hints it is located approximately 2400 miles away. Now, things initially make sense it is a far-flung place because it wants to be self-sufficient and has plenty of talented scientists that have developed modern technology to keep it afloat. Makes a lot more sense The City sees the place as a threat for ideological reasons and would love to conquer it out of spite.
What doesn't make sense is that The City apparently has a food shortage problem (nobody knows what 3D printing is or hydroponics gardening?), is hated by all of the savage settlements in between, yet these nearby provinces produce lots and lots of food. The City could easily crush these places and take their resources. It makes very little military sense to go after Freetown, even more because it is next to a desert. Like... why?
I find it strange that despite the difficulty to reach other regional settlements because of bandits, everyone speaks the exact same language as Kal. He has zero accent and any language nuances he can't pick up are mostly slang phrases caused by his sheltered middle-class life. The mysterious catastrophic event called "The Pulse" only happened a few decades ago. Seniors would still remember the world before the event (seems like the book doesn't agree whether The Pulse happened exactly 50 years ago or around 70). The book doesn't really say much about why people in the savage lands would have such a hard time fixing a lot of technology like watches if knowledge could have been easily passed down given gasoline was still widely available (the Pulse apparently didn't affect the IQ of Freetown's inhabitants even though it was the epicenter of the event). The book only briefly mentions a lot of people initially died from strange plagues that later on "vanished" by themselves after the second generation of kids were born with a greater degree of resistance... and yet strange lethal diseases can still appear for no reason making it necessary for Freetown's outward provinces to issue a brief quarantine to visitors. Huh? The book doesn't seem to agree whether plagues are common, uncommon, curable or whatnot. We do know that City inhabitants aren't given vaccines to protect against various new diseases even though some inhabitants interact with people from the outside world on a regular basis.
Now, what about the villains? I found Alvin and Larkin to be predictable but still interesting. Sadly they don't appear all that much and their intentions are very unidimensional. I much prefer morally grey villains with conflicted ideas. We eventually discover The City has an elder council of survivors of the Pre-Pulse Era that have safely deactivate their chips (the book doesn't mention whether the chip can delay aging although it is likely) that also exerts a lot of influence in the inner politics of the place, but we never meet them.
As for the forced relationship between Amber and Kal, I feel rather ambivalent about it. Maybe it was because I didn't care about Amber's character all that much. She is mostly just there as a tour guide to bring Kal to Freetown and that is it. Kal meanwhile just takes things waaaaay too easily. I understand he has a hard time understanding his emotions due to the City's society (which I would have expected to go out of control once he leaves the city and the chip can no longer regulate bursts of adrenaline or dopamine). The book does mention Kal feels confused about these new emotions and feelings he has, but they are mostly relegated to feelings of prudish nervousness when he sees too much skin on a woman or when Amber holds his hand and invades his sacred inner space. He never misses his parents or worries whether they are being harmed. Doesn't seem to care that his friend Janec is most likely dead. Doesn't suffer from much of a mental breakdown when he sees ancient technology or animals for the first time either.
Strange as it may be, I didn't hate the book. I think it had a lot of potential to be awesome and might even give book #2 a chance in case it exists just to find out what happens. If only it didn't have so many endless plot holes! >_<
The first chapter is brilliantly written. We don't really know anything and are just as clueless as the book's very geeky 21 year old physicist Kal when he is unwittingly dragged by one of his few friends Janec to a working class neighborhood of "The City" to have a few drinks in a bar (something Kal doesn't really understand all that well it seems but he is hating the loud music and crowds already) and a tomboyish teenage woman immediately sits down in their private table for a seemingly important conversation. As if by magic, cops show up unannounced, kill the woman's friend Jamie while Janec is stunned and taken away after he tries to coax the cops he was in Sector 5 with a valid permit.
Kal has no idea what the hell is going on while he watches the cops drag his friend away to a very poor fate but the woman tells him to follow her through the ladder and escape if he wants to stay alive. Do I feel some Total Recall deja vu over here?
After such an adrenaline lashed first chapter, we get to see the manicured world through Kal's eyes under the influence of his chip as he woke up earlier that fateful day and merrily walks around the scientist complex, enjoys the farm animals grazing outside of The City's walls from his office window while he tinkers with an electromagnetic pulse device. That is when his world becomes all sorts of weird and he explains the freakish stuff he saw to Janec the very minute his coworker coaxes him to visit a place in Sector 5...
When you write a book with a particularly fast-paced first chapter with very high stakes, you can either keep the book going at a nonstop go,go,go,go pace (which is irritating to a lot of readers but many hardcore thriller enthusiasts will enjoy it nonetheless), or alternate with some slower chapters in between. Slow doesn't always mean that absolutely nothing happens in the plot, it can also mean characters develop, change or we get glimpses of the world building.
One thing many readers seem to feel missing in Chipless and I totally agree is that the middle of the book doesn't really get to stop for a moment and smell the real roses outside of The City so to speak, and the plot had a real goldmine of opportunity here.
Kal soon realizes the strange woman that saved him is Amber, she is a "savage" outsider from a faraway city named Freeland and doesn't have the chip so she sees his city for what it really is all of the time. Sadly we don't get to stick around because the government wants to capture and kill Kal to have a chance to find out, which is understandable.
She reluctantly takes Kal to an underground hideout hidden beneath a complicated network of sewers where other scientists from a rebelling anti-chip faction reside. She then explains to Kal that the magnetic wave he created that damaged his chip by accident could be replicated to a large amount of people and potentially overthrow the government. Kal is expected to go on a road trip with Amber to the wastelands by foot and reach Amber's city.
Now, this sounds good and all. Not much info is given about the perils ahead because we still assume there is radiation or something outside of the city and the rebel scientists prefer to get rid of Kal immediately before the cops show up. The plot hole problems of the book seem to arise once the duo reach the first outdoor settlement and problems just multiply as the story goes further on.
I have a hard time knowing whether the author started putting filler in the middle trying to think of other punchline problems that can be solved in the next chapter to make the book longer and the plot mistakes occurred more by accident or he didn't think they would be a big deal. For example, Kal wears a very obvious scientist technician uniform that would make him an easy target the second outsiders see him. It seems like some of the rebel scientists have ventured to a few of the nearby outdoor settlements in the past and Amber had plenty of time to relay knowledge of the outside world over the 6 months she had lived with them. So how come nobody thought it would be important to give Kal some clothes?
We discover early on that Amber is the niece of the secretary of security of Freeland who oversees the city's defense, a city that has been forced to defend itself from raids from neighboring enclaves for ages... yet she doesn't seem to show any kind of combat skills. This isn't a megacity with a huge army, their volunteer army is pitiably small. It would make sense that women with the physical aptitude and political means (such as Amber) might know a thing or two. Heck, she doesn't even know how to pick a lock? Seriously? Doesn't know even the basics on how to fly a helicopter even though her city has them? Strange as it is, Kal has knowledge that doesn't seem akin to his sheltered lab-rat upbringing. He knows how to fly a helicopter rather adeptly, knows that birds can destroy a plane's motor even though he has never seen birds before, and somehow has the combat skills to break someone's neck with a lot of ease even though he never mentions he ever got hand-to-hand combat training. Oh and he instantly learned how to shoot a rifle without freaking out or getting his ribs hit by the rebound mechanism (I guess these ultra-modern Sci-Fi guns from his City don't do that?). Even though Amber should possess all of these abilities given her rougher upbringing, she constantly exudes the damsel-in-distress stereotype yet she is supposed to be the "strong female lead character". I felt Dora and the truck driver to be far stronger female characters than Amber even though neither showed any combat skills.
To further add extra confusion about the story, I initially assumed Freeland was a day or two away from The City, just located next to a toxic wasteland that made it rather difficult to pass through. Instead, the book hints it is located approximately 2400 miles away. Now, things initially make sense it is a far-flung place because it wants to be self-sufficient and has plenty of talented scientists that have developed modern technology to keep it afloat. Makes a lot more sense The City sees the place as a threat for ideological reasons and would love to conquer it out of spite.
What doesn't make sense is that The City apparently has a food shortage problem (nobody knows what 3D printing is or hydroponics gardening?), is hated by all of the savage settlements in between, yet these nearby provinces produce lots and lots of food. The City could easily crush these places and take their resources. It makes very little military sense to go after Freetown, even more because it is next to a desert. Like... why?
I find it strange that despite the difficulty to reach other regional settlements because of bandits, everyone speaks the exact same language as Kal. He has zero accent and any language nuances he can't pick up are mostly slang phrases caused by his sheltered middle-class life. The mysterious catastrophic event called "The Pulse" only happened a few decades ago. Seniors would still remember the world before the event (seems like the book doesn't agree whether The Pulse happened exactly 50 years ago or around 70). The book doesn't really say much about why people in the savage lands would have such a hard time fixing a lot of technology like watches if knowledge could have been easily passed down given gasoline was still widely available (the Pulse apparently didn't affect the IQ of Freetown's inhabitants even though it was the epicenter of the event). The book only briefly mentions a lot of people initially died from strange plagues that later on "vanished" by themselves after the second generation of kids were born with a greater degree of resistance... and yet strange lethal diseases can still appear for no reason making it necessary for Freetown's outward provinces to issue a brief quarantine to visitors. Huh? The book doesn't seem to agree whether plagues are common, uncommon, curable or whatnot. We do know that City inhabitants aren't given vaccines to protect against various new diseases even though some inhabitants interact with people from the outside world on a regular basis.
Now, what about the villains? I found Alvin and Larkin to be predictable but still interesting. Sadly they don't appear all that much and their intentions are very unidimensional. I much prefer morally grey villains with conflicted ideas. We eventually discover The City has an elder council of survivors of the Pre-Pulse Era that have safely deactivate their chips (the book doesn't mention whether the chip can delay aging although it is likely) that also exerts a lot of influence in the inner politics of the place, but we never meet them.
As for the forced relationship between Amber and Kal, I feel rather ambivalent about it. Maybe it was because I didn't care about Amber's character all that much. She is mostly just there as a tour guide to bring Kal to Freetown and that is it. Kal meanwhile just takes things waaaaay too easily. I understand he has a hard time understanding his emotions due to the City's society (which I would have expected to go out of control once he leaves the city and the chip can no longer regulate bursts of adrenaline or dopamine). The book does mention Kal feels confused about these new emotions and feelings he has, but they are mostly relegated to feelings of prudish nervousness when he sees too much skin on a woman or when Amber holds his hand and invades his sacred inner space. He never misses his parents or worries whether they are being harmed. Doesn't seem to care that his friend Janec is most likely dead. Doesn't suffer from much of a mental breakdown when he sees ancient technology or animals for the first time either.
Strange as it may be, I didn't hate the book. I think it had a lot of potential to be awesome and might even give book #2 a chance in case it exists just to find out what happens. If only it didn't have so many endless plot holes! >_<
October 19, 2020
I can see what the author was trying to do with Chipless. He clearly had a really great idea and the storyline had potential. Unfortunately, it feels more like a series of missed opportunity than achieving any of the potential the story had. For me, at least, there wasn’t enough about this book that stood out.
My full review can be found here
My full review can be found here
June 13, 2018
Summary:
This is a post-apocalyptic dystopian thriller, where the City is led by the High Professor, and our two heroes need to make good their escape to Freeland. Most city people are “chipped” (i.e. have a micro-transmitter inserted into their head) within a few months of birth, and live in an augmented reality world This is their key to a pampered life. However, there’s always a price to pay.
Read More Book Reviews on my blog It's Good To Read
Main Characters:
Kal: City born and bred, chipped, his is an easy life, with his room intelligent enough to cater for his every whim, monitoring his health and well-being, etc. by interacting with the chip.
Amber: She is the outsider, unchipped, who has come to the city to find and rescue her father.
Minor Characters:
High Professor: (Alvin) The scientist in charge of the city, the latest in a line of such, he developed the powers of the chip way beyond what it was originally intended, and he effectively now controls everyone via their chip.
Larkin: The High Professor’s enforcer, in change of the Immaculate troops.
Plot:
Kal and his friend Janec have gone in search of a little night-time fun in one of the seedier sides of the city, a walk on the wild side for conservative Kal. Just after meeting mysterious Amber, the Immaculate soldiers come bursting into the bar, zapping chipless people, and Kal is warned to run for it (he’s not supposed to be there without a proper pass, which he doesn’t have).
He and Amber have a hurried escape through the city, and eventually find themselves meeting the local underground resistance. It turns out they have been waiting for Kal, who is now a fugitive from the law, and Amber is told to change her plans from organising a rescue for her captured dad, to escorting this valuable weapon to Freeland.
Having grown up in a sanitised bubble, Kal initially finds it very hard to absorb the more tactile and interactive “real world”, and the new culture he finds himself in.
Amber is the local tough kid, never interested in “pairing”, but only focussed on saving her dad, who was captured by the High Professor when he realised what was happening with the chips. She knows her way around the subterranean parts of the city, and the tunnels/exits to get out of it. A lot of the time, in the early part of the book, is her being astonished at what Kal doesn’t know/hasn’t experienced, or telling him to stop saying sorry all the time for being ignorant.
Once given her mission, the two head out into the Badlands, where they have various adventures, being split up then re-uniting. Amber gets captured in a hotel. Kal frees her from her captors, for example, by breaking one guy’s neck, then using a stun-gun to zap the other two. Finally, he uses the flying capsule, which he’s never flown before, and escapes Komsk (where incidentally he had met Dora in a brothel, and lost his innocence). He also finds out he has 21 days grace from the City’s chip radar, otherwise his signal will be lost and the chip will self-destruct, taking him with it.
They have various other trials and tribulations on the way to Freeland, e.g. getting mugged in another hotel, but eventually make it there.
What I Liked:
- Interesting premise, and the storyline holds real promise.
- It feels like a good basis for a computer game.
What I Didn’t Like:
- I thought the characters were flat and uninteresting, and I could not engage or believe in them in any way.
- I really hate when a character develops a super-power (such as projecting images e.g. Kal of the high professor when rescuing Amber) or changes behaviour just when it’s needed to move the plot along (e.g. calmly and “accidentally” breaking a guy’s neck – forget the said guy is a trained soldier), as it destroys the “suspension of belief” needed for these stories.
- The situations they found themselves in really didn’t seem to cause them too much trouble – people “just took” to Kal in spite of the fact he’s completely a fish out of water in Komsk, and took risks for them that were not plausible for the reader e.g. why would Dora risk death for some weird guy she just met?
Overall:
I feel Chipless is an opportunity missed.
It came across as a little bit dystopia-by-numbers. This is a genre that is very popular, and has some really excellent author and books in it, and to compete there has to be something new, or written about in a deeper way.
Characters need to be better defined, with failings that they need to struggle through, and sometimes they don’t make it. The dystopia has to be defined differently than a mad scientist taking over the world – if a eusistocratic society [extreme welfare state], then have it something like The Core of The Sun, or an everyone for themselves as in The Devil’s Highway, or more pernicious in its entrapment like An Unkindness of Ghosts. These are high standards to reach, but that is what’s needed in order to stand out.
The premise of the book is excellent, and there’s a lot that can be done with the idea. This book will suit a certain type of reader, say a young adult wanting to explore the genre and who will get a lot of enjoyment out of this, and there are aspects of the writing that show some real promise, but for me there just was not enough to get it over the line.
Acknowledgements:
Thank you to the author for a free copy of the book, in return for an honest review.
This is a post-apocalyptic dystopian thriller, where the City is led by the High Professor, and our two heroes need to make good their escape to Freeland. Most city people are “chipped” (i.e. have a micro-transmitter inserted into their head) within a few months of birth, and live in an augmented reality world This is their key to a pampered life. However, there’s always a price to pay.
Read More Book Reviews on my blog It's Good To Read
Main Characters:
Kal: City born and bred, chipped, his is an easy life, with his room intelligent enough to cater for his every whim, monitoring his health and well-being, etc. by interacting with the chip.
Amber: She is the outsider, unchipped, who has come to the city to find and rescue her father.
Minor Characters:
High Professor: (Alvin) The scientist in charge of the city, the latest in a line of such, he developed the powers of the chip way beyond what it was originally intended, and he effectively now controls everyone via their chip.
Larkin: The High Professor’s enforcer, in change of the Immaculate troops.
Plot:
Kal and his friend Janec have gone in search of a little night-time fun in one of the seedier sides of the city, a walk on the wild side for conservative Kal. Just after meeting mysterious Amber, the Immaculate soldiers come bursting into the bar, zapping chipless people, and Kal is warned to run for it (he’s not supposed to be there without a proper pass, which he doesn’t have).
He and Amber have a hurried escape through the city, and eventually find themselves meeting the local underground resistance. It turns out they have been waiting for Kal, who is now a fugitive from the law, and Amber is told to change her plans from organising a rescue for her captured dad, to escorting this valuable weapon to Freeland.
Having grown up in a sanitised bubble, Kal initially finds it very hard to absorb the more tactile and interactive “real world”, and the new culture he finds himself in.
Amber is the local tough kid, never interested in “pairing”, but only focussed on saving her dad, who was captured by the High Professor when he realised what was happening with the chips. She knows her way around the subterranean parts of the city, and the tunnels/exits to get out of it. A lot of the time, in the early part of the book, is her being astonished at what Kal doesn’t know/hasn’t experienced, or telling him to stop saying sorry all the time for being ignorant.
Once given her mission, the two head out into the Badlands, where they have various adventures, being split up then re-uniting. Amber gets captured in a hotel. Kal frees her from her captors, for example, by breaking one guy’s neck, then using a stun-gun to zap the other two. Finally, he uses the flying capsule, which he’s never flown before, and escapes Komsk (where incidentally he had met Dora in a brothel, and lost his innocence). He also finds out he has 21 days grace from the City’s chip radar, otherwise his signal will be lost and the chip will self-destruct, taking him with it.
They have various other trials and tribulations on the way to Freeland, e.g. getting mugged in another hotel, but eventually make it there.
What I Liked:
- Interesting premise, and the storyline holds real promise.
- It feels like a good basis for a computer game.
What I Didn’t Like:
- I thought the characters were flat and uninteresting, and I could not engage or believe in them in any way.
- I really hate when a character develops a super-power (such as projecting images e.g. Kal of the high professor when rescuing Amber) or changes behaviour just when it’s needed to move the plot along (e.g. calmly and “accidentally” breaking a guy’s neck – forget the said guy is a trained soldier), as it destroys the “suspension of belief” needed for these stories.
- The situations they found themselves in really didn’t seem to cause them too much trouble – people “just took” to Kal in spite of the fact he’s completely a fish out of water in Komsk, and took risks for them that were not plausible for the reader e.g. why would Dora risk death for some weird guy she just met?
Overall:
I feel Chipless is an opportunity missed.
It came across as a little bit dystopia-by-numbers. This is a genre that is very popular, and has some really excellent author and books in it, and to compete there has to be something new, or written about in a deeper way.
Characters need to be better defined, with failings that they need to struggle through, and sometimes they don’t make it. The dystopia has to be defined differently than a mad scientist taking over the world – if a eusistocratic society [extreme welfare state], then have it something like The Core of The Sun, or an everyone for themselves as in The Devil’s Highway, or more pernicious in its entrapment like An Unkindness of Ghosts. These are high standards to reach, but that is what’s needed in order to stand out.
The premise of the book is excellent, and there’s a lot that can be done with the idea. This book will suit a certain type of reader, say a young adult wanting to explore the genre and who will get a lot of enjoyment out of this, and there are aspects of the writing that show some real promise, but for me there just was not enough to get it over the line.
Acknowledgements:
Thank you to the author for a free copy of the book, in return for an honest review.
October 11, 2018
As a fan of dystopian novels, I was looking forward to this novel because its premise intrigues me. A world where people have a chip implanted to monitor their health and so much more.
The world building in this book is too limited. While Luzzatto has written about numerous places, I was left curious and wanting more detail. Instead, more characters with each scene left me frustrated rather than looking forward to 'see' the next place. A decent idea, but it never pulled me in.
The world building in this book is too limited. While Luzzatto has written about numerous places, I was left curious and wanting more detail. Instead, more characters with each scene left me frustrated rather than looking forward to 'see' the next place. A decent idea, but it never pulled me in.
September 28, 2018
Different story but interesting. Could you survive in a world where 'your chip' keeps you in a state that you don'the know the difference between real and fabrication.
July 12, 2018
A race against their government through dangerous territory will either get them killed, their friends killed..... or both.
Chipless grapples with the idea of a chip implanted in the brain to maintain health and wellness for humans. Each person has a chip that regulates their emotions, health, and are forced to obey all the laws of The City, that is, except for the chipless.
Kal and Amber are quite the charming pair. She is the fearless, chipless individual who has trouble speaking her feelings; and Kal is the kind-heart whose world just fell apart and who struggles to process it all. Together, their character development is wonderful as we watch Amber learn to release the build-up of tension through her life, and Kal as he begins to understand what's at stake and what has to be done to keep Amber safe.
I'm not going to lie, at first, I really hated Kal. To the point that I almost stopped reading because his character was just not doing it for me. He seemed like such a wimp who wasn't able to make up his own opinion and just went with whatever anyone told him, but I'm glad I didn't stop, because his character development towards the end really redeemed him and now he's one of my favorites!
I was quite taken with the story-line, but I do think it moved a little too fast. There were action scenes that I almost missed because there wasn't enough build up so I didn't realize that I was in the middle of an important fight. However, the story was done very well and it certainly kept my interest for the majority of the day. I think the main problem I had with the story-line is at the beginning of the book, Kal should have questioned everything more and been more hesitant to jump headlong into this adventure. And I say that based off his personality and how much loyalty he seems to have for The City in the first few chapters, only to engage in a brief conversation with a guy he doesn't know to throw all of that loyalty out the door and join Amber on the adventure of a lifetime. It was just very out of character for him and if had been done differently, would have raised my opinion of him much quicker.
There is some mild cursing, some mildly detailed violence, and a medium amount sexual content which mainly consists of detailed kissing scenes, though there are several characters who voice and act out their intentions for more. There are no sex scenes though.
Overall, I did really enjoy Chipless and find myself teetering between a 3 and 4 star rating, so I give it 3.5 stars but it will be 4 stars on sites that don't accept halves.
I received this book from the author for the purpose of this review. All comments and opinions are entirely my own.
This is LiteratureApproved.com Review.
Chipless grapples with the idea of a chip implanted in the brain to maintain health and wellness for humans. Each person has a chip that regulates their emotions, health, and are forced to obey all the laws of The City, that is, except for the chipless.
Kal and Amber are quite the charming pair. She is the fearless, chipless individual who has trouble speaking her feelings; and Kal is the kind-heart whose world just fell apart and who struggles to process it all. Together, their character development is wonderful as we watch Amber learn to release the build-up of tension through her life, and Kal as he begins to understand what's at stake and what has to be done to keep Amber safe.
I'm not going to lie, at first, I really hated Kal. To the point that I almost stopped reading because his character was just not doing it for me. He seemed like such a wimp who wasn't able to make up his own opinion and just went with whatever anyone told him, but I'm glad I didn't stop, because his character development towards the end really redeemed him and now he's one of my favorites!
I was quite taken with the story-line, but I do think it moved a little too fast. There were action scenes that I almost missed because there wasn't enough build up so I didn't realize that I was in the middle of an important fight. However, the story was done very well and it certainly kept my interest for the majority of the day. I think the main problem I had with the story-line is at the beginning of the book, Kal should have questioned everything more and been more hesitant to jump headlong into this adventure. And I say that based off his personality and how much loyalty he seems to have for The City in the first few chapters, only to engage in a brief conversation with a guy he doesn't know to throw all of that loyalty out the door and join Amber on the adventure of a lifetime. It was just very out of character for him and if had been done differently, would have raised my opinion of him much quicker.
There is some mild cursing, some mildly detailed violence, and a medium amount sexual content which mainly consists of detailed kissing scenes, though there are several characters who voice and act out their intentions for more. There are no sex scenes though.
Overall, I did really enjoy Chipless and find myself teetering between a 3 and 4 star rating, so I give it 3.5 stars but it will be 4 stars on sites that don't accept halves.
I received this book from the author for the purpose of this review. All comments and opinions are entirely my own.
This is LiteratureApproved.com Review.
May 1, 2018
Can Amber get Kal to safety before its too late?
Chipless by Kfir Luzzatto is a good book. It took me a bit longer to read this one but I don’t mind. Mr. Luzzatto was able to make a very compelling story. We had two main characters Kal and Amber and it was told in the point of view of the third person. This book is very different from other books like it.
What I liked:
Kal is an interesting character. He has spent most of his life in The City and thanks to that he is naive to so many things, that no one else but people living in The City, would be naive about. He is also very important for both sides in this book. Amber is another interesting character. As she grew up outside of The City and only went in for her own personal reasons. Of course, that all goes south because of Kal and she has to get him to safety. Reluctantly at first but that’s the way it goes. There is a certain part in this book that reminds me of Mad Max: Fury Road. Mostly with how the cars look. I think that writing this novel in the third person point of view works best. I don’t think it would have held my attention if it was first person point of view. Even if Mr. Luzzatto went back and forth between Kal and Amber.
What I didn’t like:
I didn’t like how Kal and Amber kept on getting separated and how they had to find each other. This happens a lot. Sometimes I didn’t like how Amber was treating Kal and especially forcing him to do things that he didn’t like. Even though it did help them survive. I didn’t like the slow pace that was going on for most of the book. I mean I get for world-building. However, if it makes me fall asleep then that’s no good.
What I am curious about:
Was what Kal did good enough? Will they be able to stop The City?
Four Stars
Chipless by Kfir Luzzatto is a good book and one that I am giving four stars. The reason for the four stars is that I was able to set it aside for days and I didn’t think about the book or the characters as often as I would have liked. I would recommend this book to anyone that reads this type of genre.
Anyways until the next time enjoy this review brought to you by
Baroness’ Book Trove.
To see other reviews like this one please visit my site: baronessbooktrove.com
I received this book for free from the author in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Chipless by Kfir Luzzatto is a good book. It took me a bit longer to read this one but I don’t mind. Mr. Luzzatto was able to make a very compelling story. We had two main characters Kal and Amber and it was told in the point of view of the third person. This book is very different from other books like it.
What I liked:
Kal is an interesting character. He has spent most of his life in The City and thanks to that he is naive to so many things, that no one else but people living in The City, would be naive about. He is also very important for both sides in this book. Amber is another interesting character. As she grew up outside of The City and only went in for her own personal reasons. Of course, that all goes south because of Kal and she has to get him to safety. Reluctantly at first but that’s the way it goes. There is a certain part in this book that reminds me of Mad Max: Fury Road. Mostly with how the cars look. I think that writing this novel in the third person point of view works best. I don’t think it would have held my attention if it was first person point of view. Even if Mr. Luzzatto went back and forth between Kal and Amber.
What I didn’t like:
I didn’t like how Kal and Amber kept on getting separated and how they had to find each other. This happens a lot. Sometimes I didn’t like how Amber was treating Kal and especially forcing him to do things that he didn’t like. Even though it did help them survive. I didn’t like the slow pace that was going on for most of the book. I mean I get for world-building. However, if it makes me fall asleep then that’s no good.
What I am curious about:
Was what Kal did good enough? Will they be able to stop The City?
Four Stars
Chipless by Kfir Luzzatto is a good book and one that I am giving four stars. The reason for the four stars is that I was able to set it aside for days and I didn’t think about the book or the characters as often as I would have liked. I would recommend this book to anyone that reads this type of genre.
Anyways until the next time enjoy this review brought to you by
Baroness’ Book Trove.
To see other reviews like this one please visit my site: baronessbooktrove.com
I received this book for free from the author in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
April 3, 2018
This is a fabulous story from start to finish. It’s so well written, with a very clever and interesting plot. The unpredictability of the story is one of the many things that appealed to me. Kfir Luzzatto has put together a great group of characters, and it was easy to like Amber and Kal, two of the main characters in the story. I know how much I’m enjoying a book when I need to stop reading it, when life gets in the way and I can’t wait to pick it up again, and this was certainly one of those.
With Kal being implanted with a chip in his head on his first birthday, he had never known any other world or reality. Kal lived and worked in the city as a Physicist for the High Professor, who controlled everyone via their chip. It was hard for him to understand how someone that didn’t have a chip, would enjoy living as much as he did, as Kal was sure there wasn’t a better way to live than in a controlled environment. It wasn’t until he met Amber who was from the Freeland, that he discovered how different things were for people outside the city, who weren’t controlled by a chip. Sure, life was sometimes harder, but he was experiencing things he had never done before. Maybe there was a better life outside the city, however Kal and Amber are going to have a tough time of it in trying to make it to Freeland alive and in one piece. Add this book to your reading list, you won’t be disappointed. It’s well worth the 5/5 Star Rating.
I was provided with a copy of this book for a honest review
With Kal being implanted with a chip in his head on his first birthday, he had never known any other world or reality. Kal lived and worked in the city as a Physicist for the High Professor, who controlled everyone via their chip. It was hard for him to understand how someone that didn’t have a chip, would enjoy living as much as he did, as Kal was sure there wasn’t a better way to live than in a controlled environment. It wasn’t until he met Amber who was from the Freeland, that he discovered how different things were for people outside the city, who weren’t controlled by a chip. Sure, life was sometimes harder, but he was experiencing things he had never done before. Maybe there was a better life outside the city, however Kal and Amber are going to have a tough time of it in trying to make it to Freeland alive and in one piece. Add this book to your reading list, you won’t be disappointed. It’s well worth the 5/5 Star Rating.
I was provided with a copy of this book for a honest review
September 29, 2018
Chipless presents a story of an unlikely hero, and his struggle to free a society that doesn’t even know that it’s enslaved. Kal is one of the City elite, a technician valued for his skills and kept in luxury as he works to improve the chip implanted in every citizen’s brain that maintains their health. He enjoys his work, and he’s good at it: so good that one day, one of his experiments disrupts the chip’s input to his brain, and he sees a flash of the outside world as it really is. That peek behind the curtain sets in motion a train of events that may overturn life as he knows it...
Kfir Luzzato’s protagonist undergoes a lot of personal growth during the course of this book. From a law-abiding and somewhat geeky scientist, Kal becomes a highly effective and self-reliant traveller and fighter in the space of a few weeks—and becomes quite irresistible to women over the same period. While Kal’s evolution periodically raised my eyebrows, I found that the world-building was by and large very solid and well-done, based on ‘Matrix’-style themes of a citizenry controlled by a virtual reality to hide a dystopian reality from them. The wild-West settings beyond The City provide a salutary contrast as a backdrop for Kal’s adventures. Definitely worth a read for sci-fi fans.
Reviewed for By Rite of Word.
Kfir Luzzato’s protagonist undergoes a lot of personal growth during the course of this book. From a law-abiding and somewhat geeky scientist, Kal becomes a highly effective and self-reliant traveller and fighter in the space of a few weeks—and becomes quite irresistible to women over the same period. While Kal’s evolution periodically raised my eyebrows, I found that the world-building was by and large very solid and well-done, based on ‘Matrix’-style themes of a citizenry controlled by a virtual reality to hide a dystopian reality from them. The wild-West settings beyond The City provide a salutary contrast as a backdrop for Kal’s adventures. Definitely worth a read for sci-fi fans.
Reviewed for By Rite of Word.
December 10, 2018
Great premise for sci-fi fans and dystopian fans. The story centers around a man raised in a pristine, disinfected world where people are controlled by seeing things/feeling things that really aren't there such as pastoral scenes outside their city. (I wondered why people didn't want to go sit under the trees and enjoy the meadow scents wafting to them on gentle breezes, but they doggedly go to work every day in the City. However, everyone in the City is told what to do and how to feel and what to smell and what to work on, etc.)
The characters are very well developed with unique characteristics. I think Kfir Luzzatto did a great job with developing and overcoming Kal's disorientation after his chip blitzes out in a physics experiment. Amber, the other main character, is equally well-developed. Even though she plays tough, she still has a softness about her and a bit of naivety that works.
The story bogs down a little in the middle of the book, gets a bit wordy on their quest to reach Freeland. But the pace picks up quite a bit as Kal and Amber work to keep Freeland free.
All in all it is a good read. I don't think you'll be disappointed.
I received this advance copy in exchange for my honest review.
The characters are very well developed with unique characteristics. I think Kfir Luzzatto did a great job with developing and overcoming Kal's disorientation after his chip blitzes out in a physics experiment. Amber, the other main character, is equally well-developed. Even though she plays tough, she still has a softness about her and a bit of naivety that works.
The story bogs down a little in the middle of the book, gets a bit wordy on their quest to reach Freeland. But the pace picks up quite a bit as Kal and Amber work to keep Freeland free.
All in all it is a good read. I don't think you'll be disappointed.
I received this advance copy in exchange for my honest review.
June 6, 2018
This review first published on Oh Just Books.
This book is a dystopian Sci-Fi novel - both things that I love reading. I really enjoyed the story. Dystopian novels often have a great focus on world building and settings and concepts related to the world created. Chipless created a very good world, definitely. The concept was eerie, and yet very credible. I think credibility of a possible concept is important in dystopian novels, specially if they also have to do with Sci-Fi. The whole idea of The City and Freeland was very well constructed.
The book flowed well too, it was fast paced, situational and all towards a climactic end goal. What I didn't like was the lack of time given to characters to process their emotions and feelings. Especially Kal, the lead, who has spent his entire life being indoctrinated by The City, surely it wouldn't be so easy for him to give it all up?
Read the rest of the review here.
*A review copy was provided to Oh Just Books by the author in exchange for an honest review*
This book is a dystopian Sci-Fi novel - both things that I love reading. I really enjoyed the story. Dystopian novels often have a great focus on world building and settings and concepts related to the world created. Chipless created a very good world, definitely. The concept was eerie, and yet very credible. I think credibility of a possible concept is important in dystopian novels, specially if they also have to do with Sci-Fi. The whole idea of The City and Freeland was very well constructed.
The book flowed well too, it was fast paced, situational and all towards a climactic end goal. What I didn't like was the lack of time given to characters to process their emotions and feelings. Especially Kal, the lead, who has spent his entire life being indoctrinated by The City, surely it wouldn't be so easy for him to give it all up?
Read the rest of the review here.
*A review copy was provided to Oh Just Books by the author in exchange for an honest review*
May 23, 2018
This is one of the better young adult dystopian novels I've read in a long time. If you like Ally Condie's Matched series, this one might just keep you entertained. I loved the idea behind the chips and the class system in this world, it was very well written and developed. I have never read anything like this book before. The main characters, especially Kal and Amber, are easy to relate to. I love when a YA book pairs an unlikely couple and we get to see them learn to get along. The story muddies up a little with all the additional characters and side stories, but I really was entertained and held captive wanting to know if Kal would complete his mission and get his answers. He had always been told one thing, raised one way; then his eyes are forced open and to see him have to make new choices and stand up for what he believes was really captivating.
October 12, 2021
Chipless is a dystopian YA novel, somewhat of a cross between The Matrix and Logan’s Run, with romance between the two main protagonists Kal and Amber. I enjoyed the story but, while there was a lot of exposition, I feel that important elements should have been explained. For example, what exactly was The Pulse and why did it happen? In addition, the book ends rather abruptly and I wasn’t totally convinced by how the final scenes played out. Finally, as I’ve stated in other reviews, I’m not personally a fan of romances between 17-year-old girls and men in their 20s, but judging by how common this is in YA fiction I appear to be in the minority and this won’t be off-putting for most readers.
November 9, 2020
1984 By Chip
This is a good book—I read it in one day. A techie genius, Kal, realizes through an experiment gone wrong that he lives in a city blinded and enslaved through implanted computer chips originally installed to heal the population of side effects of The Pulse. Things happen fast, until we find Kal racing against time and avoiding the city slave masters, while his experiences along the way transform him from a puppet/slave into a human being. Lots of action, tender moments, food for thought.
This is a good book—I read it in one day. A techie genius, Kal, realizes through an experiment gone wrong that he lives in a city blinded and enslaved through implanted computer chips originally installed to heal the population of side effects of The Pulse. Things happen fast, until we find Kal racing against time and avoiding the city slave masters, while his experiences along the way transform him from a puppet/slave into a human being. Lots of action, tender moments, food for thought.
October 29, 2018
Ending?
This was a pretty good read, though I was confused by the ending. I’m assuming Kal could still read her mind even after the chip was taken out. The story as a little slow in certain places, but then sped back up. I enjoyed it, but the lack of a true ending was a bit disappointing. Is there going to be another book? Are we to make our own conclusions? It leaves me wondering....
This was a pretty good read, though I was confused by the ending. I’m assuming Kal could still read her mind even after the chip was taken out. The story as a little slow in certain places, but then sped back up. I enjoyed it, but the lack of a true ending was a bit disappointing. Is there going to be another book? Are we to make our own conclusions? It leaves me wondering....
May 13, 2018
I really enjoyed this book. The characters were believable and the story was quite entertaining. At first, the book reminded me of both Divergent and the Giver but it quickly when of in an unexpected direction which made it unique. The ending left me wanting to know how the people of the City coped with their new reality. Sequel maybe?
January 10, 2023
So choppy
I couldn't finish it. I made it to 32% before I just couldn't take it anymore. The dialog is so choppy. No pauses, very little description. I was interested in the plot, but it needs so much more work. Refining and editing, adding in some details would make it more pleasant to read.
I couldn't finish it. I made it to 32% before I just couldn't take it anymore. The dialog is so choppy. No pauses, very little description. I was interested in the plot, but it needs so much more work. Refining and editing, adding in some details would make it more pleasant to read.
September 5, 2020
The concept is excellent, if dated. The problem is that at page 29 I reached my limit of people suddenly completely accepting things totally contrary to their major ideas and motivations. Sorry, I'm done.
October 10, 2020
Happy Ending
I enjoyed the premise behind this book it's almost like a realistic future. The main character is a lot braver than he thinks he is and the girl he meets find she can meet the unexpected and deal with it.
I enjoyed the premise behind this book it's almost like a realistic future. The main character is a lot braver than he thinks he is and the girl he meets find she can meet the unexpected and deal with it.
October 15, 2020
Fast Action
So you want the Government to control everything! Think again! Read what it is like when power corrupts, absolutely. Everyone has a chip in their head and the government controls what you eat, your health and what you see! Absolutely fascinating! Not what we want!
So you want the Government to control everything! Think again! Read what it is like when power corrupts, absolutely. Everyone has a chip in their head and the government controls what you eat, your health and what you see! Absolutely fascinating! Not what we want!
January 23, 2021
Chipless
An interesting story,that has super characters, it reads like a traditional science fiction story, it has an interesting view of how things could be. I found it riveting.
An interesting story,that has super characters, it reads like a traditional science fiction story, it has an interesting view of how things could be. I found it riveting.
March 2, 2021
Good read, nice flow, interesting assortment of charachters I enjoyed reading. I recommend☺️.
March 15, 2021
Fun book to read.
August 24, 2018
I won a digital copy of this book in a Goodreads Giveaway. This is a science fiction story geared towards a young adult population. The story and the characters were engaging- there was a lot of creativity in imagining technology and how it might impact a world. It read fast, though I did find the writing to be a little stilted.
May 17, 2022
I received a copy of this book from the author for free and I am leaving a review voluntarily.
I really struggled with this.
The synopsis sounded so exciting and I was keen on it but it just fell flat for me. This story felt rushed. There was very little world-building and the characters were very one-dimensional. Kal made so many decisions that made zero sense; things that put him and Amber directly into harm's way. It just needs a lot of work.
I really struggled with this.
The synopsis sounded so exciting and I was keen on it but it just fell flat for me. This story felt rushed. There was very little world-building and the characters were very one-dimensional. Kal made so many decisions that made zero sense; things that put him and Amber directly into harm's way. It just needs a lot of work.
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