I picked this book up because the idea of a drug that could induce death by nostalgia sounded completely fascinating and well worth exploring, but I ended up reading this story solely for the main characters, Sunil Rao and Adam Rubenstein, and their Mulder/Scully-esque relationship.

The two men form a classic odd-couple pairing (the scruffy, intuitive, chaotic guy and the uptight rule-follower) and I was interested to note after finishing the book that this is apparently a kind of fan-fic of a ‘ship’ from the film Inception? Arthur and Eames? I’ve seen the film but would never have spotted this myself!

All of the sci-fi, fantasy and horror elements of the story take something of a backseat to the main point of the story… the doubly-unrequited love story between Rao and Adam. I found myself reading only to find out if they could drag some kind of happy-ever-after out of the chaos and emotional repression! All of the emotional focus of the story is on the two: their thoughts and feelings, ups and downs, struggles and misunderstandings. Everything else just felt like a device to showcase their intense connection.

Still, I WAS hooked! And I have to admit that certain images and phrases, for example, Monty’s dog, or the ‘Fisher-Price f*** knows what’s will now be with me for the long-term!

I’m pretty sure that Inception fans will revel in this loving, literary long-form ship-fic, but I have to admit as even someone clueless to this particular trope, this is an enjoyable buddy-romance deep delve, with an entertaining sci-fi story as backdrop.

Hm, this sounded like such a cool concept. I thought the beginning was pretty cool and was well into it; the image of the abandoned diner was so eerie and original and I was psyched to learn more about it, Unfortunately the characters were dull and it got a bit too muddled for me. I felt like the author didn't really know what they were going for, they just started writing and hoped it would work out. For me, it did not.

On to the DNF shelf it goes.

Prepare to be glued to the pages of this domestic thriller from start to finish. Totally different to my usual read but I enjoyed it immensely and could not put it done, not to be missed!

I struggled a lot with this book but I feel that it was more to do with the genre not being to my taste rather than anything else. Interesting plot and concept, perhaps just not for me.

I gave this book 3 weeks and I just couldn't get into it. I didn't like the characters and while the premise sounded intriguing, the book was too jumpy to hold my attention
Additionally, it surprised me to find that one of the authors was British as the book felt very much like it was written by someone from the USA e.g. we meet a character and are informed they were born and educated in the UK...yet they refer to their 'sneakers' and a 'parking lot', which they wouldn't. They'd be 'trainers' and 'car park'. It was little things like that which stopped me from being able to fully get into this book

I loved the blurb, the premise and idea of this novel, I was intrigued by the authors. So even after at the very first glance feeling to sympathies when starting to read it, I wanted to give it a try. Unfortunately it did not hold up to that and in the end I was utterly annoyed by this book, I'm sorry to say. The writing style seemed that of mediocre fanfiction indulging in expositional and kind of childish dialogue, every word of the exposition painstakigly and religiously turned into show-don't-tell scenes screamed at me: look at me, how sneakishly cool I am! But it really wasn't. So, I'm sorry, I loved the premise and idea, but was disappointed and this book is not for me.

Just the blurb of this book had me reeled in. I immediately felt the need to find out the full story. Truth be told, I'm not quite sure how to explain this book in words. It wasn't what I was expecting (in a good way). I read a lot of dystopian sci fi style books and this was not like anythung I've read in the past. I found it unique, both in topic and story line, and I absolutely loved how this kept me on my toes. I had no idea at any point where the book was headed (and was surprised at every turn) nor how it would end. I absolutely would recommend this to people, but I'm not sure what I'd say to convince them. I think this is something you need to read for yourself to fully get a grasp of it.

I'm afraid I bailed on this one. There were some aspects that held my interest but overall I felt it was a struggle to pick up and read; very longwinded and detailed. I was determined to persevere but then read a few reviews on here that said the first third of the book was the best, and that is about where I had got up to.

This was a slightly crazy read. I did really enjoy it. Mysterious objects are appearing in unlikely places so something odd is going on. We have our main character Sunil who is reprieved from prison to help work out what's going on. He and his 'handler' Adam have some history about why Sunil was in prison and their relationship is very intriguing. It's a wild ride and I loved it!

A weird and wonderful novel. Could have been a bit shorter it slowed down half way through the book, but overall a good read with interesting characters. Thanks to Vintage Digital and Netgalley for this review copy.

I'm unsure about this book. I had been drawn in by the synopsis, it sounded like I would love it.
I found it quite long, maybe not what I thought it was gonna be. It was a bit tough to finish to be honest.
The story centres round 2 characters, Rao and Adam. Rao has a special gift. Adam and rao are called to help when strange things start to happen, objects appear, it's due to a substance called prophet, it makes people manifest nostalgic things from their past.

I found this book a bit difficult to get into at first, the time jumping was initially confusing, but made sense quite quickly. Even though I found the main characters irritating at times, they are quite lovable by the end. Worth sticking with past the first couple of chapters.

There is a great book in there, had it just been a little shorter.
But let’s start from the beginning - I think it’s another good example of speculative fiction with a very original concept of a substance called Prophet that manifests not only nostalgia but objects that come with it and immobilises humans exposed to it. Apart from our protagonists and a small number of immune people.
I have mixed feelings about our protagonists Adam and Rao. I felt like they were overwritten and the authors were trying too hard to make them complex and interesting. However, it was an involved dynamic and it held my attention.

The pacing was hit and miss, there were completely absorbing parts that made you race through, and very slow parts where I was wondering if I could finish it, but the mystery of Prophet kept me going.

The last third was macabre and excellent.

The romance part I wasn’t very into but overall this was an original novel and I am glad I have read it. Would have been even better with a shorter word count!

This book was a mixed bag for me. When I requested it, I did so because the premise of the book looked so interesting. Yet, I found the writing a little disjointed and the plot confusing at times.

I enjoyed reading about the relationship between Adam and Rao, the two main characters and the sci-fi aspects were often well done.

A strange but okay read. I just do not think this book is for me.

Thank you to NetGalley for the arc.

Prophet
Sci-Fi
Helen Macdonald, Sin Blaché
⭐️⭐️⭐️

When I read the synopsis of the book on Netgalley, I just had to request it because it looked like the perfect book for me.

I have to admit that this book was very confusing at times due to the frequent flahbacks, sometimes there were multiple going on at once.

I liked the relationship between Rao and Adam but the majority of the book seems to focus on their relationship, how they met, their past etc, rather than delving into the mystery and solving who created "Prophet" and why.

I did like the sci-fi and thriller elements as it made the plot a lot more interesting for me.

The pacing wasn't very consistent and it did slow down at times. When the pacing was faster, I did enjoy reading this book more.

*Thank you to @Netgalley and the publishers for providing this ARC. This is my own opinion and an honest review, which I am leaving voluntarily*

What a thrilling yet absolutely bonkers book! The blurb drew me in and got me curious and the book itself really hammered home the vibes! I don't think this will be for everyone - but I thought it was a good read!

‘Your Happiest Memory is Their Deadliest Weapon’ - cover tag line.

My thanks to Random House U.K. Vintage/Jonathan Cape for an eARC via NetGalley of ‘Prophet’ by Helen Macdonald and Sin Blaché.

This novel is undoubtedly the definition of a high concept techno-thriller. As such it’s not easy to give a summary of its plot, though I will try.

Suffolk, England 2010. When what appears to be an all-American diner appears overnight in a field close to an American airforce base, it sets off alarm bells. Previous to this a series of objects, mainly children’s toys from a certain era, had been found just inside the base perimeter. An inexplicable death accompanies these objects.

The phenomenon is given the code name Prophet. It appears to be a substance of unknown origin that is able to ascertain when its targets were the happiest, gives form to their fondest memories and then uses these as a deadly weapon.

An unusual investigator is brought in uncover the nature of Prophet: Sunil Rao is an ex-MI6 agent with a chaotic, unpredictable personality. He also possesses the unique ability to distinguish truth from lies: in objects, words and people, both in the past and in real time.

He is partnered with Lt. Col. Adam Rubenstein, an American who by contrast is the model of a military man. Adam is to serve as liaison between the UK and US investigations though is also Rao’s minder. They have worked together in the past in conflict zones though have a spiky relationship. Adam is the only person that Rao is unable to ‘read’.

Together they travel the world to not only understand the nature of Prophet but to identify who is responsible and stop them: a ‘save the world’ scenario.

I do enjoy a well thought out conspiracy thriller and there’s no doubt that this was a fascinating concept though at times I found myself rather confused about what was going on.

In addition, while I enjoyed the banter between Adam and Rao, I wasn’t particularly invested in their relationship. I felt that their ‘will they, won’t they’ romance tended to often overshadow the novel’s thriller aspects, which for me led to a loss of focus as the pacing just felt uneven.

I did appreciate the X-Files nods and pop culture references throughout the novel. I read that in interviews the authors had stated that they had conceived the idea for the book during lockdown when they had been sharing their love of science fiction and the TV and video games of their younger years. That’s certainly something that I could relate to.

On a side note the list of brands and trademarks following on from the Acknowledgments was a bit bizarre. It suggested a lot of product placement and led me to wonder if the codename Prophet was a stand-in for profit.

Overall, on reaching the end I felt that while ‘The Prophet’ began with an interesting premise that for for me it simply failed to deliver. However, I may revisit it at a later date as often mood can affect my experience of a novel.

3.5 stars rounded up to 4.

I've read a third of this book but unfortunately I'm having to call it quits.  I've really been struggling to read it and just haven't been enjoying it as much as I'd hoped.  There are far too many flashbacks, which really disrupts the flow of the story.  It feels like there's a flashback every other chapter, and sometimes there's a flashback within a flashback which is just too much.  I can't get to grips with the main plotline and I have no idea what's going on.  It's too confusing.  Rao is a very annoying character, and he seems to have spent the majority of the part I read getting drunk and picking fights.  It's too repetitive and I got bored of that quite quickly. It's a shame because it sounded like a really interesting premise and I was looking forward to reading it. 

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with an advance copy to read and review.

An unknown force becomes one of the world's deadliest weapons by taking people's happiest memories and having them physically appear in reality only to cause havoc and death. This is a stunning sci-fi thriller storyline, featuring two fascinating protagonists - former MI6 ageni Suni Mao and military agent Adam, both queer with superb chemistry..While the story does slow in the midway, it is a fascinating read. We follow along as the duo tracks the mystery, and discover that they are the only ones who can resist its power. Despite the slower pace in sections, this book has lots of witty dialogue and an original plot, along with a duo at its centre. #prophet #helenmacdonald #sinblachè #netgalley

In “Prophet” we meet fun, unpredictable investigator Sunil Rao, and his straight-laced, reserved, agent partner Adam Rubenstein, as they begin to investigate the appearance of strange objects. When these materialised objects are linked to people going into comas, or even dying, it quickly becomes clear that the two men will need to work out what is causing the objects to appear, and stop more from emerging.

The concept of this novel is so intriguing – that nostalgia could be weaponised and our most cherished memories be used against us is a chilling one, to say the least. I loved this notion, and I greatly enjoyed the relationship between the two main characters, which developed slowly but with real intrigue throughout the book. I would say that my attention wavered in the middle, and the story was drawn out somewhat. However, the ending was satisfying, and I would read more by these authors.

My thanks to the author, NetGalley, and the publisher for the arc to review.