Book Review - 2184

Synopsis: In a future where science has accelerated human evolution, humankind diverges into two separate species: a genetically enhanced "super race" and ordinary humans or Mongrels. Decades of discrimination lead to a brutal war that ends with the super race in full control; the Mongrels, defeated and subservient, secretly yearn for revenge. Both sides are aware, however, that a renewed struggle can ultimately have only one outcome: extinction.Mark Henshaw is a Mongrel living in London. Arrested for an infraction, he's deported to a labor camp, where a dying inmate entrusts him with details of a plot to topple the regime. Now Mark has a choice: keep his life and rejoin the girl he loves – or carry out a plot that could ignite a hellish new war. And with rumors spreading that the government is planning genocide against the Mongrel population, he's running out of time to make up his mind...




Why I Picked This Book: I found this book while browsing the Amazon Kindle store, and the cover first caught my eye. I've never read a dystopia before, and reading the synopsis I thought it would be a good read.


My Thoughts: 2184 starts off strong. When Mark Henshaw, a Mongrel, is arrested for breaking curfew, he's sent to a forced labor camp where surviving a single day is a battle in itself. While he’s there, he’s given information that could potentially bring down the Mods's empire, and after a daring escape (which is very captivating and exciting), Mark and Kahmal travel back to London to try to put the outrageous plan into action.

And that’s where the story dies.

One of the best things about this book is that it's multi-layered. Not only does it tell the story of Mark’s capture and escape, but it dives deeply into the nature of gods and men. It explores what it means to be human as well as super-human, and it reaches some very interesting conclusions that I found intriguing. The problem is that all of this theory and philosophy hijacks the story. Pages and pages of lengthy conversations weigh down the action. So much so, that after the prison escape, it seems that Parish is just wasting time until the end. Which I must admit is very well done. The book would have been better  if some of the conversation and needless details (such as the ten pages spent on explaining how a barge was loaded with stuff) were shorter and compressed, to keep the flow of the story moving.

While I really loved reading the initial action scenes of Mark's capture and escape, I found myself drifting off during some of the longer conversations and it was difficult to keep my focus. Another thing that really bothered me was the fact that Parish used american words like flashlight and sidewalk, even though the story is set in London. I've known several people from England, and they say the pavement instead of sidewalk. Just little details like that are things that break my focus and keep me from really engaging in the novel.

My Rating:

I give 2184 2 out of 5 stars, because while I liked the story, the little inconsistancies in language and slow moving story kept me from enjoying it more.