Oval

By: Elvia Wilk

Narrated by: Christa Lewis

In the near future, Berlin’s real estate is being flipped in the name of “sustainability”, only to make the city even more unaffordable; artists are employed by corporations as consultants, and the weather is acting strange. When Anja and Louis are offered a rent-free home on an artificial mountain - yet another eco-friendly initiative run by a corporation - they seize the opportunity, but it isn’t long before the experimental house begins malfunctioning.

After Louis’s mother dies, Anja is convinced he has changed. At work, Louis has become obsessed with a secret project: a pill called Oval that temporarily rewires the user’s brain to be more generous. While Anja is horrified, Louis believes he has found the solution to Berlin’s income inequality. Oval is a fascinating portrait of the unbalanced relationships that shape our world, as well as a prescient warning of what the future may hold.

©2019 Dreamscape Media, LLC (P)2019 Dreamscape Media, LLC

Intriguing story but the voice acting can be distracting

I haven’t read the book, just the audiobook. Based on my experience, the storyline was interesting enough to stick through to the end. The accents that the voice actor put on when speaking as a Spanish, Swiss, or British character were distracting to say the least.

Slow Moving. Not Hopeful. Not Bad.

There are some very interesting concepts in this novel, but they all end up underdeveloped or strangely ancillary. The effect is a fine enough personal story with sci-fi/futurist elements described through a layer of haze. I liked it, but I wanted more.

Most of the characters are developed well enough, and their relationships move the plot, but some of that could have been sacrificed for a more thorough understanding of the near-future Berlin that they inhabit. If you want an exciting sci-fi novel, this isn't for you. If you're feeling more contemplative then go for it. But don't expect to feel good at the end.

One of the characters says to the protagonist "Everything in the world is terrible. We're not going to blow your minds by saying it." I think that describes the tone pretty well.

Narration was great.