The Age of the Conglomerates by Thomas Nevins
Monday, May 26th, 2008- Title: The Age of the Conglomerates: A Novel of the Future
- Author: Thomas Nevins (Random House Authors)
- Publisher: Ballantine Books
- Year of Publication: 2008
- Pages: 290
The Age of the Conglomerates by Thomas Nevins
The setting is in 2048, and not much removed from the current state America is in now. One man, the Chairman, is running the show, with little to no opposition from other governmental bodies.
The story follows the protagonist, Christine Salters, who is the director of genetics at the New York Medical Center, her would-be boyfriend, Gabriel Cruz, her teenage sister, Ximena Salters, and her grandparents, George and Patsy Salters.
In the beginning of the novel, it is difficult to get past the fact that the plot seems to be so heavily influenced by 1984 and other works in the same vain. However, once the story picks up momentum, it is clear that the two stories are very different. Unlike the others, the setting of this story is not so drastically different from the time it was written, and the technology described is not totally made up. It is not a science fiction novel as much as a dystopian thriller. It is much easier to imagine than the others, and frightening because of that fact.
As a novel, the story lacks a bit, but it is forgivable. There are some strings left untied at the end of the tale, such as what happens to the Chairman and the rest of the citizens of the nation. The denouement seems a bit rushed since the chapters and sections become drastically shorter, and the narration falls into a different pace than the rest of the novel. There are some other things the novel leaves to be desired, like a deeper understanding of Christine and who she is. Ximena and the parts about her seem gratuitous at best, since her characterization is especially shallow.
Despite the flaws, the novel is still a fun and quick read. (3/5)
Thank you, LibraryThing Early Reviewers and Random House, for sending me a free copy of this book.