Scan barcode
wasauthor's review
5.0
One thing that cyberpunk should always do is put a mirror against society and reflect it, and its ills back at the reader. Another thing it should do is tell a rollicking adventure. The author understands these, and with Behind Blue Eyes, she delivers on both with aplomb.
Behind Blue Eyes tells the story of Nephilim, a warrior for the Guardian Angels of Olympias, a military outfit responsible for protecting the city against those who aim to do it harm, including rivals to the Olympias Conglomerate, the corporation overseeing the city. As she faces the prospect of a promotion, Nephilim becomes confused by doubts surfacing in her head that perhaps the cause she fights for isn't entirely just. As these doubts take hold, her journey sets her on a collision course with the Guardian Angel's leader, High Archangel Metatron.
The author tells a story with an in-depth plot and plenty of twists and turns. It unfolds at a steady pace, but always builds momentum as it moves forward. The story unfolds at a natural pace while giving it room to breathe as it builds its world, delves into its characters, and explores themes about corporate greed, what it means to be human, and breaking one's programming.
This is the first part of a series; however, while by the end of the book, it is clear there is more story to be told, it feels like a complete, satisfying story.
The prose is easily digestible, resulting in a book that reads quicker than its page count would suggest. It navigates the reader through the story, explaining everything they need to know without pandering to them. The world is vividly realised, as are the characters. The slower-paced parts of the book never drag and always keep the reader engaged, and the action sequences are visceral, putting readers into the moment. The author has struck a wonderful balance between detail and pacing, ensuring that is flows well, keeps moving forward, and most importantly, entertains.
As the protagonist and point of view character, Nephilim is the most clearly realised character. This is fitting, as Behind Blue Eyes is firmly the character's journey. Through her eyes, we see the world and how it operates. The title is beautifully fitting as it is about this character beyond her glowing blue eyes—and one’s eyes are the window to the soul, after all. Her journey from simple warrior to somebody wanting to fight for a better future, from someone cut off from humanity to learning what love is, is at the book’s core.
The supporting characters are also great. Whether they be friend or foe, each of them is memorable, both filling the role required by the story and enriching its world. All the characters' voices are unique and distinct. The dialogue ensures they all sound like individual people and feels natural, whether the character is a cyborg cut off from humanity, or fully human with a firm grip on their humanity.
If you're a cyberpunk fan, you'll find so much to love here. The author has painted a fully realised world with some great action and a gripping plot with plenty of twists and turns. If you’re unfamiliar with the genre, this is a great place to start, thanks to a wonderful, personal story about Nephilim and some great adventure.
My full review will be available in my website from Wednesday, 13 July. To read it (and a host of other book reviews), click here.
Behind Blue Eyes tells the story of Nephilim, a warrior for the Guardian Angels of Olympias, a military outfit responsible for protecting the city against those who aim to do it harm, including rivals to the Olympias Conglomerate, the corporation overseeing the city. As she faces the prospect of a promotion, Nephilim becomes confused by doubts surfacing in her head that perhaps the cause she fights for isn't entirely just. As these doubts take hold, her journey sets her on a collision course with the Guardian Angel's leader, High Archangel Metatron.
The author tells a story with an in-depth plot and plenty of twists and turns. It unfolds at a steady pace, but always builds momentum as it moves forward. The story unfolds at a natural pace while giving it room to breathe as it builds its world, delves into its characters, and explores themes about corporate greed, what it means to be human, and breaking one's programming.
This is the first part of a series; however, while by the end of the book, it is clear there is more story to be told, it feels like a complete, satisfying story.
The prose is easily digestible, resulting in a book that reads quicker than its page count would suggest. It navigates the reader through the story, explaining everything they need to know without pandering to them. The world is vividly realised, as are the characters. The slower-paced parts of the book never drag and always keep the reader engaged, and the action sequences are visceral, putting readers into the moment. The author has struck a wonderful balance between detail and pacing, ensuring that is flows well, keeps moving forward, and most importantly, entertains.
As the protagonist and point of view character, Nephilim is the most clearly realised character. This is fitting, as Behind Blue Eyes is firmly the character's journey. Through her eyes, we see the world and how it operates. The title is beautifully fitting as it is about this character beyond her glowing blue eyes—and one’s eyes are the window to the soul, after all. Her journey from simple warrior to somebody wanting to fight for a better future, from someone cut off from humanity to learning what love is, is at the book’s core.
The supporting characters are also great. Whether they be friend or foe, each of them is memorable, both filling the role required by the story and enriching its world. All the characters' voices are unique and distinct. The dialogue ensures they all sound like individual people and feels natural, whether the character is a cyborg cut off from humanity, or fully human with a firm grip on their humanity.
If you're a cyberpunk fan, you'll find so much to love here. The author has painted a fully realised world with some great action and a gripping plot with plenty of twists and turns. If you’re unfamiliar with the genre, this is a great place to start, thanks to a wonderful, personal story about Nephilim and some great adventure.
My full review will be available in my website from Wednesday, 13 July. To read it (and a host of other book reviews), click here.
anca_antoci's review
5.0
Rating
Behind Blue Eyes by Anna Mocikat is definitely a 5-star novel for me.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
First impression
Having enjoyed Shadow City so much, I was overjoyed when Anna Mocikat offered me an ARC of Behind Blue Eyes, a cyberpunk noir novel. It was much darker than I anticipated and my first cyberpunk experience.
As a first-timer, the grit and gore took me aback and I had mixed feelings about it for a while. I had a John Wick moment right at the beginning of the book, you’ll know when you read it. But once you get accustomed to the bleak dystopian world, the action will suck you in completely.
About the plot
The action takes place in 2095, in a dystopian setting where what’s left of the world in the aftermath of a big war, was divided into three parts. Each part was ruled by a conglomerate. What was left of America was now called Olympia and was ruled by cyborgs who call themselves guardian angels and have neon blue eyes.
We see everything through Nephilim’s eyes. If you’re familiar with angel mythology, consider this as foreshadowing — fallen angel. She’s a 60% machine – 40% human hybrid apparently tasked to protect the Olympias. In reality, her sole purpose is to seek and destroy anything Metatron (their supreme leader) deems a risk to the conglomerate.
You have to appreciate the irony of giving angelic code names to such killing machines. Nephilim, true to her name acts as a fallen angel. She’s a guardian angel and like her fellow guardian angels, she’s content with her life awaiting the biggest promotion of her life — archangel.
She’s the best at what she does and although she doesn’t question her orders at first, she starts to, especially after an EMP attack that gives her glitches, moments of freedom when she becomes disconnected from the grid.
Themes
There are many themes intertwined in this story. The world-building evokes a mixture of Ready Player One and Alita, except more gritty. It’s a reality of contrasts: a web of truths and lies, right and wrong, humans and machines, love and duty, and ultimately devotion and defiance where Metatron is concerned.
At the heart of the story, there’s a quote from George Orwell:
Throughout the second part of the story, we see a lot of parallels to the “Big Brother” mentality from Orwell’s 1984.
What I liked best
The best part of this novel was Nephilims’ character arc, which was magnificent considering the starting point. The second best part was how fast-paced and action-packed it was along the way. There was no saggy middle in this book. And when you think you figured out what’s going on — plot twist. Even the plot twists have plot twists! It will haunt you.
Read the full review here: https://www.summonfantasy.com/book-reviews/behind-blue-eyes-by-anna-mocikat-book-review
Behind Blue Eyes by Anna Mocikat is definitely a 5-star novel for me.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
First impression
Having enjoyed Shadow City so much, I was overjoyed when Anna Mocikat offered me an ARC of Behind Blue Eyes, a cyberpunk noir novel. It was much darker than I anticipated and my first cyberpunk experience.
As a first-timer, the grit and gore took me aback and I had mixed feelings about it for a while. I had a John Wick moment right at the beginning of the book, you’ll know when you read it. But once you get accustomed to the bleak dystopian world, the action will suck you in completely.
About the plot
The action takes place in 2095, in a dystopian setting where what’s left of the world in the aftermath of a big war, was divided into three parts. Each part was ruled by a conglomerate. What was left of America was now called Olympia and was ruled by cyborgs who call themselves guardian angels and have neon blue eyes.
We see everything through Nephilim’s eyes. If you’re familiar with angel mythology, consider this as foreshadowing — fallen angel. She’s a 60% machine – 40% human hybrid apparently tasked to protect the Olympias. In reality, her sole purpose is to seek and destroy anything Metatron (their supreme leader) deems a risk to the conglomerate.
You have to appreciate the irony of giving angelic code names to such killing machines. Nephilim, true to her name acts as a fallen angel. She’s a guardian angel and like her fellow guardian angels, she’s content with her life awaiting the biggest promotion of her life — archangel.
She’s the best at what she does and although she doesn’t question her orders at first, she starts to, especially after an EMP attack that gives her glitches, moments of freedom when she becomes disconnected from the grid.
Themes
There are many themes intertwined in this story. The world-building evokes a mixture of Ready Player One and Alita, except more gritty. It’s a reality of contrasts: a web of truths and lies, right and wrong, humans and machines, love and duty, and ultimately devotion and defiance where Metatron is concerned.
At the heart of the story, there’s a quote from George Orwell:
“If you want to keep a secret, you must also hide it from yourself. You must know all the while that it is there, but until it is needed you must never let it emerge into your consciousness in any shape that can be given a name.”- George Orwell
Throughout the second part of the story, we see a lot of parallels to the “Big Brother” mentality from Orwell’s 1984.
What I liked best
The best part of this novel was Nephilims’ character arc, which was magnificent considering the starting point. The second best part was how fast-paced and action-packed it was along the way. There was no saggy middle in this book. And when you think you figured out what’s going on — plot twist. Even the plot twists have plot twists! It will haunt you.
Read the full review here: https://www.summonfantasy.com/book-reviews/behind-blue-eyes-by-anna-mocikat-book-review
lazy_but_talented's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
kesnit's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
So many times, I thought I knew where this story was going. So many times I was wrong. Just when everything started falling into place, the book took a dramatic turn to something unexpected. Yet it all flowed together well and made a good story.
dai_shan's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
nik_whittaker's review against another edition
5.0
Behind Blue Eyes is an excellent read, from the first page the world building pulls you right into the story and doesn't let go!
The characters are all well rounded and interesting, especially the main character Nephilim, whose journey is engaging and keeps you interested.
Is you're looking for a story that brings to mind the dystopia of 1984, with a cyberpunk setting and a fast pace this is the book for you!
The characters are all well rounded and interesting, especially the main character Nephilim, whose journey is engaging and keeps you interested.
Is you're looking for a story that brings to mind the dystopia of 1984, with a cyberpunk setting and a fast pace this is the book for you!
dtaylorbooks's review against another edition
Where did I stop reading? 13% in
Why? I was bored. I only read three chapters, but they were long chapters, clocking in at 20+ minutes each, so there was no shortage of content. There was so much exposition. Every time something new in the world was introduced, I got a paragraph plus of exposition on it. This happened, at times, every other paragraph. All I wanted was for it to get on with the story. Instead it would stop, info dump, another sentence about the story. Stop, info dump, another sentence about the story. And on and on. On top of that the voice was dull. It was third omniscient, which created a narrative distance for me that didn’t help it, but the storytelling style was bland. I imagine part of that was on purpose, especially when it went more limited to Nephilim’s character, but that didn’t translate well for me. I was struggling with it by the time I stopped.
mrdan's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
4.0
snappydog's review against another edition
3.0
I'm not the first, nor will I be the last, to observe that this ambitious and cinematic story feels very much like it would make a good TV series.
It's a good book, too; its pacing and structure it feels like it's divided into episodes rather than arcs, and the arresting imagery is easy to imagine brought to life in glorious high-definition. There's a lot of good worldbuilding, a few memorable characters, and several great action scenes as well as quieter, more emotional ones.
There are bits that don't work for me - it's well-plotted for the most part, I think, and the twists keep coming in a way that is often gripping, but I wasn't totally sold on every part of the story (although I was impressed when one thing that I'd thought was an early plot hole turned out not to be, really). The romance, for example; I'm just not much of a romance reader, but while this one did add to the story, I didn't really buy it or enjoy it (it's mostly just them banging, which is apparently utterly transcendental for reasons I didn't quite catch!). That said, it sets up a strong ending and potential sequel material, so can't complain too much.
One other minor complaint is that the chapters are sometimes reeeaaaally long. A side-effect of the TV-like pacing, maybe? I like to read to the end of a chapter and then stop, or sometimes keep going if I can see on my Kindle that the next chapter is only going to take a minute or two to read, but some of these were coming up as 15-20 minutes long and I sometimes found myself having to stop in the middle of a chapter, which doesn't feel quite as nice. Small thing, but it affected the experience.
Finally, I think it needed a bit of line editing. I suspect it has been through some developmental editing, because the narrative is pretty well-structured (as mentioned already); however, although I didn't catch too many typos or outright mistakes except fairly regular minor errors in punctuation with dialogue, the prose sometimes doesn't quite keep up with the concept. It's often exciting enough that you can sort of just brush over the actual words (which aren't bad by any stretch, I should say) and just enjoy the show, but I think it could have been made even better with a good bit of line editing.
I'd recommend Behind Blue Eyes to anyone who liked Altered Carbon, or who's into gritty, dark cyberpunk in general. Anyone who likes action movies, especially those involving transhumans, will almost certainly love it, and even those who don't will probably find themselves swept along on a thoroughly enjoyable ride. Although I've spent the bulk of the review pointing out things that maybe didn't work perfectly for me, it's mainly because there are already a lot of reviews praising things that really do work! A good read overall, for sure.
It's a good book, too; its pacing and structure it feels like it's divided into episodes rather than arcs, and the arresting imagery is easy to imagine brought to life in glorious high-definition. There's a lot of good worldbuilding, a few memorable characters, and several great action scenes as well as quieter, more emotional ones.
There are bits that don't work for me - it's well-plotted for the most part, I think, and the twists keep coming in a way that is often gripping, but I wasn't totally sold on every part of the story (although I was impressed when one thing that I'd thought was an early plot hole turned out not to be, really). The romance, for example; I'm just not much of a romance reader, but while this one did add to the story, I didn't really buy it or enjoy it (it's mostly just them banging, which is apparently utterly transcendental for reasons I didn't quite catch!). That said, it sets up a strong ending and potential sequel material, so can't complain too much.
One other minor complaint is that the chapters are sometimes reeeaaaally long. A side-effect of the TV-like pacing, maybe? I like to read to the end of a chapter and then stop, or sometimes keep going if I can see on my Kindle that the next chapter is only going to take a minute or two to read, but some of these were coming up as 15-20 minutes long and I sometimes found myself having to stop in the middle of a chapter, which doesn't feel quite as nice. Small thing, but it affected the experience.
Finally, I think it needed a bit of line editing. I suspect it has been through some developmental editing, because the narrative is pretty well-structured (as mentioned already); however, although I didn't catch too many typos or outright mistakes except fairly regular minor errors in punctuation with dialogue, the prose sometimes doesn't quite keep up with the concept. It's often exciting enough that you can sort of just brush over the actual words (which aren't bad by any stretch, I should say) and just enjoy the show, but I think it could have been made even better with a good bit of line editing.
I'd recommend Behind Blue Eyes to anyone who liked Altered Carbon, or who's into gritty, dark cyberpunk in general. Anyone who likes action movies, especially those involving transhumans, will almost certainly love it, and even those who don't will probably find themselves swept along on a thoroughly enjoyable ride. Although I've spent the bulk of the review pointing out things that maybe didn't work perfectly for me, it's mainly because there are already a lot of reviews praising things that really do work! A good read overall, for sure.
kellymiller_author's review against another edition
5.0
"Behind Blue Eyes" was a fantastic read! Ms. Mocikat managed to draw my sympathy towards the cyborg Nephilium despite some rather unspeakable actions she commits while following the orders in the opening scenes. The events that follow are unexpected and compelling, keeping me guessing to the end. I'm not usually a reader of this genre, so I would recommend to anyone interested in a rather dark, fast-paced story!