Gadget: Alien Moscow

Снайпер #21

by Дмитрий Силлов, Dmitrii Sillov, Joshua Schiefelbein (Translator)

It all started harmlessly enough. On the streets of Moscow, an advertisement for a new gadget called "neurophone" began popping up everywhere. A tiny piece of plastic the size of an earbud, all a person needed to do was insert it into their ear and they'd be immersed into a world of augmented reality. The dull, gray, ordinary days of life would suddenly become unbelievably vibrant, each moment as exciting as the last. With new adventures every day, how could a person ever be bored? What could possibly go wrong? Sniper, a veteran of many battles, returns to pay a visit to his old hometown of Moscow, the city where he spent his childhood and teenage years. Eager to find a moment's peace from his life of constant fighting, Sniper discovers that the world seems to have advanced in leaps and bounds, leaving an old, technologically-illiterate warrior like him in the dust. And yet, something sinister is brewing beneath the surface of Moscow. Not everything is as innocent and happy as it seems in the Russian capital.

168 pages, Kindle Edition

First published September 1, 2017

About the author

Популярный российский писатель, инструктор по рукопашному бою и бодибилдингу, создатель системы самообороны «Реальный уличный бой». Как писатель работает в жанре боевой фантастики, также написал ряд книг по рукопашному бою, выживанию и оздоровительным методикам.

Reviews

[Mark · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have an unhealthy interest in everything Russian, so when I saw the title of this book, I grabbed a copy right away. I don’t regret it because it was a truly wild ride that left me thirsty for more. It’s like science fiction, crime drama, and adventure all at once. I found the writer’s approach to his world very interesting, too. He didn’t dump lots of dry info on me to explain how this universe functions, what its history is, what happened and what Sniper (or Ivan) even lived through. No, I was given occasional glimpses and pieces of info that made the story rich and fascinating. A little here, a little there, and the picture was sufficiently complete. This is how it should be.

I loved Sniper a lot. He was a veteran and he lived through a lot, so when he returned to Moscow, he had so many many-sided experiences, it’s difficult to imagine what kind of enemies could be foolish enough to attack him. But that’s what happens from the start. People are drawn to Sniper because of the quite power he emanates. He’s a force to be reckoned with, someone who isn’t used to failures. At the same time, there is also a layer of vulnerability about him that made me truly love him. He wasn’t an overpowered machine, he was genuine in everything he did, both in his brutality and sweetness. I still remember how he chose to leave his own flat just because he saw a child living there and couldn’t handle seeing her upset, though her parents technically stole a home from him. Then his care for Fyodor. It was atypical, not how care is usually expressed, but it was Sniper’s way and I enjoyed it. Their relationship was one of the most interesting parts for me. Fyodor has such an interesting personality. I was worried he might be a spy at first but the outcome pleasantly surprised me. At least Sniper had some real friends who weren’t about to stab him in the back!

The plot was also interesting, of course, I wouldn’t be raving about this book otherwise, but I still enjoyed the relationships and character’s personality more. But yeah, the idea of neurophones was very clever. Clever and scary because I think something like this can happen in our nearest future. With how obsessed everyone is with technology, I refuse to believe some people won’t use it against us in massive ways, not like how they’re already doing it. But we’ll see. For now, I’ll just keep enjoying books like this.

[Polin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jednak fanfik do stalkera.
Wychodzi stalker z Zony, a Zona za nim - w postaci nowoczesnej technologii, gierek VR i starożytnych kosmitów. Rzeczy się dzieją tylko dlatego, że nikt im nie zabroni. Dobra akcja, dobre mordobicie, dobry humor niskich lotów.