Halfskin

By: Tony Bertauski

Narrated by: David W. Dietz III

Biomites are artificial stem cells that can replace any cell in your body. No more kidney failure, no severed spines or blood disease. No cancer. Pharmaceuticals become obsolete. With each dose of biomites, we become stronger, we become smarter and prettier.

We become better. At what point are we no longer human?

Nix Richards nearly died in a car accident when he was young. Biomites saved his life. Ten years later, he's not so lucky. The Halfskin Laws decree a human composed of 50% biomites is no longer human. Halfskins have no legal rights and will have their biomites shutdown. It's not called murder, merely deactivation.

Cali Richards has been Nix's legal guardian since their parents died. She has lost far too many people in her life to let the government take Nix. She is a nanobiometric engineer and will discover how to hide him. But even brilliance can succumb to the pressure of suffering. And technology can't cure insanity.

Cali and Nix keep a slippery grip on reality as they elude a maniacal federal agent dedicated to saving humanity from what he calls "The Biomite Plague"?

©2013 Tony Bertauski (P)2013 Tony Bertauski

Halfskin, All Heart

If you could sum up Halfskin in three words, what would they be?

Great sci-fi choice.

Any additional comments?

Disclaimer: I received this audio book through the narrator's call via GoodReads for listeners in exchange for an honest review of the narration. This review will remain spoiler-free -- please read the book blurb and other well-written reviews here at GoodReads if you would like plot summary information.

Honestly, I tend to shy away from sci-fi -- in terms of fantasy/futuristic fiction, I gravitate to dystopian societies, focusing more on future societies and the proverbial "Big Brother" and less on science and technology.

With that understanding, one should never say "never".

In terms of the audio book version of this story, the book is about seven and a half hours long and the narrator, David W Dietz III, performed well. His different voices were clear and identifiable, there was no errant background noise to distract, the pauses and pace was good.

In terms of the story itself... Wow! An interesting proposition for philosophical discussions. A seemingly plausible imaginary (hope it remains that way) scheme for human "evolution". As I listened to the story, I cannot comment on editing needs, but the story line, the three alternating POVs, the pace of reveals, the character development, the passage from reality to illusion and back and from present to past/memory and back again all flowed well.

The only drawback I found was the last 5 minutes, confusing and not seeming necessary for the story. For the most part, opened questions are resolved, the reader knows how and why the "bad" guy won't pursue our brother & sister heros, but the purpose of the final couple pages - relating to real world vs imaginary -- eludes me. Quite possibly, this is the hook for a next book (Clay), though not a cliff hanger, just info that clearly states that this is not truly where the story ends.

Thought-provoking sci-fi adventure

A very good science-fiction adventure tale that makes the listener confront the question: what is humanity? Can one be human and machine at the same time?
The narrator does a good job although the audio quality varies in places.

Science Fiction mixed with real Life!

Is there anything you would change about this book?

The climax or twist is a little tough, although it feels real, just heart breaking!

Would you recommend Halfskin to your friends? Why or why not?

For Science Fiction readers who like a story that might be real, this is the story for you!

Intriguing concept

Clever bio-tech thriller with some obvious parallels to current medical ethics dilemmas. With the exception of the villain, the characters were all nicely complex. The villain was rather one-dimensional/stereotypical which was disappointing considering the deftness of the other character portrayals.

The narrator did a really good job. Loved the way he personalized each character. The reason I gave 3 stars instead of 4 is because when a character shouted (which happened fairly often especially in the last half of the book), the narrator shouted - and that was too loud, hurt my ears (I was listening through my car speakers - not earbud/earphones), and was generally unpleasant. Once or twice and I wouldn't have mentioned it but it was more than that.

The book was a little slow to get my attention but about 1/4 the way through I was hooked and the last 1/2 was great.

I received this audiobook as a prize in a random drawing.

I want me some biomites!

Nix and Cali Richards (brother & sister) have suffered losses. Nix nearly died in a car accident that took his parents. He had to have an infusion of biomites to live as these tiny man-made stem cells could repair him from the inside out. Cali, the eldest sibling, has been his guardian since then, making it her life mission to keep him safe. However, the government has the Halfskin Laws: once a human becomes 50% biomites, he/she is no longer considered human and they are turned off. Luckily, Cali is a nanobiometric engineer.

This was a fascinating tale of what could be a near future. I truly enjoyed all the biomite talk and the societal implications. Plenty of thoughtful questions are brought up in this story. At what point is a human more machine than human? Does that negate their rights, including their right to life? I can see this book taking it’s place among science fiction classics.

Nix is an interesting character, struggling internally with the knowledge of what his future holds. He can’t live without the biomites and there is no real way to remove them. They are self replicating, so the longer one has them, the more the biomites take over the body. Yet he also knows his sister, Cali, will do whatever she can to try to save him. Incarcerated with other red-lining folks (those at 49% or higher biomites), he lives the life of a condemned criminal.

Now Cali is an even more interesting character because she has taken so much on her shoulders. Ever since their parents died, she has been the legal guardian of Nix. She also has a young daughter (the father having passed away). As you can see, she has a lot of stresses in her life, and that has been so for years. With her nanobiometric engineering background, she races against the clock to find a way to save Nix.

Another interesting aspect to this story is that there is a overarching cyber entity called Mother who is tied in to all biomites. The government created her to keep track of, and disable when necessary, the biomites. So Cali not only has to outwit the human law enforcers, but she also has to fool Mother.

All in all a very entertaining tale that I didn’t want to put down. Looking forward to Book 2!

The Narration: David Dietz did a fantastic job with the voices. He had distinct, believable voices for males and females, kids and adults. He was also very good at imbuing emotion into the character voices especially Cali.

unusual story

Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?

only if they like science fiction or can accept the unusual

What did you like best about this story?

that it was very different, and you didn't know what to expect.

Did David W. Dietz, III do a good job differentiating all the characters? How?

yes , he managed to differentiate the differnt Charcters, with good voices most of the time.but I did find his narration lacking in emotion in some places. sometimes it just sounded like he was just reading the book , which I found very irritating and distracted me from the story. ( a shame as I have found his other narrations very good)

Do you think Halfskin needs a follow-up book? Why or why not?

yes becuse it leaves you wondering what will happen to the characters afterwards. (plus I have already seen that there is a follow up )

Any additional comments?

I liked the story . enjoyed the fact that it was rather different. kept you in suspence throughout and revealed somethings I didn't expect.

You know I had to read this after seeing that cove

You know I had to read this after seeing that cover.

And the synopsis... like what?!

Ok, so this starts and I was completely into the narration. Loved every minute of it. The storyline is all about Nix and the narration surrounding him was so good that I knew when he was talking or when his sister was talking. It really helped me delve into this rather mysterious and just plain weird story. The only time I felt a little off was when he would remember something and would be younger. It would sometimes take me a minute to catch what was going on.

This is dystopian and I just love, love, love dystopians. There so much that the characters have to deal with and being that it is normally "big brother" it is hard to escape. In this case it is "Mother" which honestly is even worse. Mother can see your every move, not through your TV or your cell phone, oh no! She goes much deeper than that, she can read your mind. That is if you have had any nanomites inserted.

Totally freaky already right?

So, the storyline was wonderful but I have to put some emphasis on the fabulous narration for this one. As I said above I could tell everyone apart, but there was more to it than that. I found my heart palpitating and the narrator's voice (David W. Dietz, III) would get higher or lower. He has this great intensity that I have just not found in a lot of other audio books. It was amazing and totally added to the horror of what these people were facing.

And needless to say, my attention never wavered. Between the fabulous plot and the great narration this was one that I did not want to put down.

Even with this being a dystopian you would think that the government would be the ones to watch out for, but there are bad guys everywhere. Marcus definitely seems like a really crazy kind of bad guy. By the end of the book I was starting to wonder if this guy is a bit psychotic. I don't know but I like him! He definitely has an edge to his character that I just cannot pinpoint. It's great! And he adds a lot of tension even though we already have to deal with "Mother".

Audiobook provided for review by the narrator.

Please find this complete review and many others at audiobookreviewer dot com

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A terrifyingly realistic vision of humanity's futu

HALFSKIN

Author: Tony Bertauski

Type of Book: Audiobook - Unabridged

Narrator: David W. Dietz

Length: 7 hours, 31 minutes

Genre: Science Fiction

Release Date: May 20, 2013

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

* I received a free copy of this audiobook from the narrator in exchange for an honest review.

Biomites are artificial stem cells that can replace any cell in your body.

Nix Richards nearly died in a car accident when he was a young child. He was seeded with Biomites and they saved his life.

Imagine being able to cure any disease, even cancer. Imagine having the ability to recover from any injury. What an incredible boon to mankind.

However, there are always those who will oppose any medical advancement as an affront - either against God or against mankind.

The government decides that anyone with 50% Biomites are no longer human. At 40% you are "detained and observed" at 50% they shut you off.

When Nix is detained his sister, Callie, a brilliant biomite researcher is determined to find a way to save him.

Meanwhile a religious fanatic who happens to be a federal agent is equally determined to shut Nix down forever.

This book is brilliantly written and is so realistic that readers cannot help but see this as an inevitable invention. There is the perfect amount of tension and suspense. The author has done an incredible job of detailing the difference of opinion between those who want to use any technology necessary to prolong human life and those that believe that any tampering is going against God's will. It brings to mind the belief of some religious groups that exist today who would rather let their child die than to allow a life-saving blood transfusion.

This book will stay with listeners long after the audiobook ends.

Narrator David Dietz was the perfect choice for this book. His tone of voice and pacing was just right and he draws the listener into the story. He differentiates easily between characters and is able to convey emotions with ease.

I rate this book as 5 out of 5 stars and I am looking forward to listening to "Clay" which is the follow-up to this audiobook.

Halfskin- I nice treasure

What did you like best about this story?

I received an audiobook credit to review this book and wow what a treasure this was. Tony Bertauski has created a new fan in me. The story pulled me in, to my surprise. As someone who proclaims “I’m not a fan of Sci-fi,” I enjoyed this book. The premise of biomites intrigued me. Artificial cells that heal the human body, cells that boost intelligence and correct defects. How far will the human condition go to find their definition of perfection? I truly enjoyed it and Tony took the story in directions I didn’t expect.

The struggle between science and faith added another layer that kept me involved in Bertauski’s world.

What did you like about the performance? What did you dislike?

The narration & production of this audiobook was nice but there were some issue with the editing. As footage was mixed there were noticeable jumps in volume. I’d give the production 3 stars because even though it was okay, the gaps were noticeable enough to distract from the story.

Interesting and Thought Provoking

The plot of this story is very original. I mean I’ve read other books which deal with genetics but not quite as this book does. Basically the story takes place in a future where science has evolved in such a way they’ve created synthetic cells called biomites. The only problem is they reproduce so fast they take over everything organic so when people reach 50% of biomites they shut them down.

I liked that it raised so many moral questions which really border on a line. It’s not black and white. We could really be discussing this subject for a while so why don’t you read the book and we can discuss it later? But honestly, I love thought provoking books as this one. Plus, the world building is amazing. It feels like a plausible future, so it was easy to get sucked into the tale.

There were some weird stuff though, or maybe unresolved. Like this fantasy world Nix’s created or maybe it was real? The plot is definitely unfinished and I’m really hoping to get all my answers in the next book.

As real as the world was, the characters were very human. So imperfect and driven by emotion. It’s so easy to understand what motivates them. They are so flawed it’s beautiful.

I loved Nix and Cali. They were such an amazing team and have gone through so much. Seriously, can a single person endure so much pain in one life? But nevertheless they kept going, kept fighting, and that is what’s so brilliant about them.

I also liked Marcus Anderson. As a character that is, not as a person. He is the perfect villain, but you can see the human in him. Very creepy guy though, just despicable, which made him an excellent character. The best thing about him is that in his mind he was the actual hero, the only with pants enough to do what’s right.

The story’s point of view was alternately Cali and Nix’s, but some time it added some data collected from the Mother database, which was this machine who controlled everyone. Even if those excerpts did add to the story, it was weird for an audiobook narrative. The way you follow a story when you read is different when you listen, you need to be more attentive. So even if I loved this story, for the way it was written maybe it wasn’t as suitable for an audiobook.

Overall, it was an excellent read. I think I’d read rather than listen the next book, but will be keeping an eye out for it. I only wished the author would redo this cover though. It is horrible, scary and creepy! Drives people away from this great story.

Despite my statement above, I think the narrator did a pretty good job. He got the voices right, man and woman, even Mother (the machine). But I thought he did Avery, Cali’s daughter, sound sooo annoying when in fact she was a very sweet girl, and he spoke too loudly at the microphone sometimes. I get that he had to emphasis sometimes, but please, there are people listening to this with headphones. It wasn’t good to turn up and down the volume all the time.