This was my first book by Austin Dragon. But it will by no means be the last! It was a great, engaging read with likable characters and lots of action and mystery. It had a real detective and film noir vibe, as well as all the aspects of cyberpunk.
Cyberpunk is its own genre, which takes elements of several different genres to become its own unique style. It took me a little while to get into the book and figure out what was going on. There was lots of slang, lots of use of nicknames for real names, and lots of situations that took a while to figure out. But Cruz, the main character, and PJ (Punch Judy) who is a felon due to her misuse of her bionic arms sail through the middle of it all and come out the other side more or less in one piece. Every character has a realistic and consistent personality. Everyone has their own quirks, foibles, and that's what makes them so human and so believable.
Cruz is a bit of a neurotic germophobe cool cat. He wears a tan trench coat and a fedora. He ends up getting shot at - a lot. He wants to be a detective, since he's listed as a common laborer, and that's not cool with his rich Chinese future in-laws. Who incidentally threaten to kill him if he marries their daughter, Dot. Cruz has a strong sense of right and wrong, good moral character, and he is very obsessive and goes after what he wants until he gets it. He is a very likable cus.
Everyone is after something in Liquid cool. From the ancillary characters like Phishy to the main characters like Run-Time, everyone has a course to chart.
The setting is a dark, rainy, dreary future "New York" like Metropolis super city with 50 million people and constant rain. Cruz, prior to becoming a detective, has been restoring classic hover cars for years, and at a very high-quality level. He drives (flies?) a red Ford Pony car that is very, very distinctive.
I found myself more and more drawn into the story. Once I caught on to the names, the descriptions, the style of writing it was very easy to follow and very hard to put down. The true litmus tests of a writer and his work are would I buy another, do I want to keep reading it, and would I recommend it. The answer to all three of these questions is yes, very definitely.
The writing is very good, descriptions are great, and the plot will keep you guessing right to the big surprise ending. Not a cliff hanger, fortunately. Austin Dragon did a really good job with this book and series opener. There were a few errors and missing or incorrect words or pronouns; enough so that I would say it should go through another proofing revision. But not enough to mistake the meaning. It just needs one more proofread.
on the whole a very credible effort. If I could give partial stars I would rate this about 4.75, but as it's higher than 4.5 I'll give it a 5 *. Not quite perfect, but it is very, very good, and will leave you wanting to read more adventures of Cruz and Liquid Cool.
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More like Liquid Cool: The Cyberpunk Detective Series (Liquid Cool Book 1)
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Top reviews from other countries
J.V.
It almost feels like a film noir detective ambiance but in colour
Reviewed in Canada on December 27, 2021
Álex Souza
Muito clichê. Não cheguei a terminar.
Reviewed in Brazil on June 16, 2020
Mike
Started good and turned better and better
Reviewed in Germany on April 4, 2018
Phil H
Fun, funny and a sharply-written and engaging read. Oh, and free!
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on November 8, 2017