Book One of the Static series
“The whole is greater than the sum of its parts”.
Anyone who has ever had the pleasure of picking up an independently written novel by either Jackie D. or Erin Zak will one hundred percent appreciate the above idiom. Of course, they are both outstanding authors in their own right, but put the two together and the storytelling catapults to a sublime level.
Set in a hard won future utopia, Glitch is a story based in Tekano (formerly the USA), a seemingly peaceful albeit uneventful place to be. At least that’s what Isa Adams believes; a Tekano Elite soldier whose mother just so happens to be Tekano’s military general. Despite years of hardcore training, Isa has only ever had cause to put her deadly skills to the test outside of Tekano. A group of domestic terrorists who despise everything Tekano stands for soon puts paid to that, which sees Isa flung together with her ex Amara Pierce, the Secretary of History and daughter of Tekano’s President.
Tasked with travelling back in time to save both their home, and maybe even their future selves, an already arduous situation is compounded by Isa and Amara’s complicated past; not to mention they haven’t spoken to one another for a decade!
A spec-fic novel featuring the second chance romance trope, Glitch gets off to a fierce start and doesn’t let up. From present day climate change issues and future solutions, to a time travellers view of present day racism, homophobia and gender inequalities – this story may be set in the future but it casts an eye-opening net backwards into what would currently be a readers more recent history. What unfolds is a telling frame of reference for what our future could one day hopefully become.
I love that the authors started Isa and Amara’s relationship back when they were teenagers, and that readers get to explore a decade old decision from two separate angles. When that decision ultimately culminates in heartbreak and lost time, the chances of Isa or Amara choosing to follow their hearts over their heads ever again seem remote. But sometimes the magnetic attraction between two souls means your heart has already written its own love story and you’re just along for the ride.
“After all these years, her skin still smells the same. Her arms are still the safest place I’ve ever been. She still feels like home. But how can you build a home with a cracked foundation?”
Jackie D. and Erin Zak
Usually, with a book that has multiple authors it isn’t hard to spot who wrote which character, but with Glitch, if you don’t already know who has written each character, I’d doubt a reader would be able to guess. The authors have clearly worked hard to ensure the writing flows seamlessly between them, deftly mirroring each other on the page. This results in two main characters that resemble a well oiled machine; as if Isa and Amara were born of a single mind rather than two. In some ways Isa and Amara are pretty much polar opposites, but Isa’s brash and over confident attitude combines well with Amara’s more gentle and intellectual demeanor; creating a story which is at times as thought provoking as it is fast paced and action packed.
Needless to say, I am super pleased that Glitch is the first book in the Static series!
I received an arc of this book from the authors in exchange for an honest review.
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