Reality Testing

I was torn on how many stars to give this one. I'm familiar with cyberpunk works and have enjoyed them in the past. Price is very obviously intelligent, knows his genre, and is excellent at worlds building. The plot is complex, but it isn't so complicated it's difficult to follow. It is the tale of mechanic Mara, who one day wakes up in the wrong body, beside a corpse she is then accused of murdering. She goes on the run, trying to find out what's happened to her.

That's just the beginning of the action. She meets seedy underworld dwellers, an off-the-grid commune, and a wannabe cowboy, who is probably one of my favorite characters.

The beginning is strong, but there came a point in the first third where I began to find Mara a bit tedious, and the story dragged for me. But then she meets the cowboy and then the protein the commune, and I regained interest. The last third was actually quite fun.

So, the strengths are plotting and worlds building. The main drawback for me were the characters. I wasn't as engaged with them as much as I'd have liked, particularly Mara. But I'd like to read more, and I'll certainly look for Price again. 3.5 stars rounded to 4.

I received an ARC for free in exchange for a review.