Softbone

Down and Out in New Kowloon (Jake Long)

By: R Stone

Narrated by: Rian Stone

The year is 2017, maybe 2045, but who is counting? Jake Long, a mild mannered husband to a ball busting wife and a soon to be father by an unknown gendered child, is held hostage by a world run by the feminist imperative. Life is an oppressive nanny state with SSRI's on tap. His only respite is New Kowloon, a hidden enclave of Caffeine and nicotine; where women look like women and men don't have osteoporosis from the overabundance of hormones.

And though a series of unfortunate events is forced to flee to the Ukraine and take part in a war that could end humanity as we know it via a weaponized vaccine taken to prevent a manufactured viral pandemic. He has to fight against drones infused with artificial intelligence that outdo humans in every way, in the most unique answer to techno camouflage ever seen.

It's Cyberpunk; high tech and low life. A warning about the present if trends continue. R A Stone ended up predicting current trends, as some things came true before the books release. It's not a pastiche of the tropes of the genre, but a whole new work. It's interesting, it's satire, and most importantly, it doesn't waste your time with exposition or worldbuilding.

It doesn't hold your hand.

It throws you into the deep end and you have to figure out how to swim from the first minute.

It's the book that will get you into fiction again.

©2025 Rian Stone (P)2025 Rian Stone

Impressed

Loved the transformations. I really enjoyed listening to this story on the train (that always runs on time).

Entertaining Dystopian Sci Fi

This is a fun read, set in the gynocentric near future where our protagonist embarks on a hero's journey to re-claim his soul, his manhood, and his life.

The story illustrates some of the absurdities of contemporary life in the industrialized world by taking them to extremes in a light-hearted, satirical way.

There is the odd moment where the author's reading of the book rather than hiring a voice actor leads to noticeable bobbles. But on the whole, he communicates the emotion and tone of each character in an entertaining and relatable way. He is a great storyteller.

Grab a spot on the Couch and enjoy a fun story. Read the author's non-fiction Praxeology series, then come back to Softbone for the Easter Eggs you didn't get the first time.

Lost

I got lost in the world. And that's all I can ask for. Fun light . Dose a king job of avoiding details . So you imaginable the story