Goodreads: Addict (The Cassie Tam Files #1)

Author: Matt Doyle

Published: 8th May 2017 (NineStar Press)

Source: Copy from Author)

Rating: 4/5 (Liked it)

Official Summary: “New Hopeland was built to be the centre of the technological age, but like everywhere else, it has its dark side. Assassins, drug dealers and crooked businessmen form a vital part of the city’s make-up, and sometimes, the police are in too deep themselves to be effective. But hey, there are always other options …

For P.I. Cassie Tam, business has been slow. So, when she’s hired to investigate the death of a local VR addict named Eddie Redwood, she thinks it’ll be easy money. All she has to do is prove to the deceased’s sister Lori that the local P.D. were right to call it an accidental overdose. The more she digs though, the more things don’t seem to sit right, and soon, Cassie finds herself knee deep in a murder investigation. But that’s just the start of her problems.

When the case forces Cassie to make contact with her drug dealing ex-girlfriend, Charlie Goldman, she’s left with a whole lot of long buried personal issues to deal with. Then there’s her client. Lori Redwood is a Tech Shifter, someone who uses a metal exoskeleton to roleplay as an animal. Cassie isn’t one to judge, but the Tech Shifting community has always left her a bit nervous. That wouldn’t be a problem if Lori wasn’t fast becoming the first person that she’s been genuinely attracted to since splitting with Charlie. Oh, and then there’s the small matter of the police wanting her to back off the case.

Easy money, huh? Yeah, right.” – Goodreads

(Disclaimer: I got a copy from Author, does not affect my review.)

Review: The book is futurist but not to the point where it confusing. It has very many similarities to nowadays but also has its own taste and style. (No I didn’t try and lick my kindle). I really liked that about the book that it was similar but had new elements to it. The information dumps didn’t feel like dumps, they felt right and helped explain what was needed.

The relationships didn’t feel forced or awkward or run the story. The story of solving the case was the forerunner, the other side was just extra layers. I just really liked how it played out, it had its twists, it wasn’t straightforward you know who the bad guy was. You had to work at it alongside with the main character, which is what makes a great crime story.

The world building was really great too, there were plenty of hints and snippets of how big it truly is. But the Author didn’t go into too much detail, he only went into detail of what was needed as to not confuse the story too much. The detail on what was gone into was great, left you feeling like you wanted to know more.