I have to admit, I’m a traditionalist, prefer my books in paper, hardcover and paperback. Did try an audiobook a couple of years ago, but no, didn’t get it and thought, ordinary books that’ll do nicely, thank you.
That is until this winter when I stumbled across the beautiful world that is podcast and on Adventures in SCI FI they were interviewing Matthew D. Jordan about his online novel; Tincture and I was blown away!
Grave robbing requires a corpse, so at most, this was all just simple thievery.
Rhamuel and the last of his family, Abranyah, travel their barren world, shack to shack, selling tinctures to keep a full belly and evading the dogmatists to keep their throats safe. Time turned funny after The Whatever, an apocalyptic event that few remember and even fewer can explain, danger now as commonplace as the unrecognizable relics of war, and the madman Aphulan – along with an iron rule over his small township – may hold the answers. With a cure for The Sick and a duty to protect their family, Rhamuel and Abranyah set off on a journey to the “other place,” the days before The Whatever, and ready themselves for a glimpse into what happened, and what was always meant to happen next.
Tincture, An Apocalyptic Proposition is an ongoing series of free audio books, or if you prefer you could read the chapters online, but I went for the audio version, read by the author himself and each chapter about 30 minutes, so perfect for my walks home from work.
Tincture is set in what seems to be a world (ours?) after some apocalyptic events, or after what the inhabitants call it, the whatever. Most of the world is barren wastelands, with just ruins as evidence that there was once a different world, another civilization, but no one seems to remember what came before. The few inhabitants that still are alive try one way or the other just to survive. Some you know are bad, some will stab you in the back as soon as they get their chance and some will surprise you. Each main character perspective take turn in the different chapters, mixed up with a parallel story (of sorts). Sometimes as a reader you think yes, now I get it! And then you are totally in the dark one chapter later. The central character aren’t your typical “heroes”, no you probably don’t what to meet them in an dark alley. But they are sort of likable and you want them to survive and the bad guy, well him you really, really loathe. There is a somewhat philosophical ending, but the story is more about surviving against all odds, the battle between the good and the evil. What path (or side) do we take as humans when each day is challenge to survive.
Its a (lovely ;)) dystopian story that Matthew D. Jordan is presenting. And although it has some typical post-apocalyptic elements, you will not find any zombies, vampires or other monsters. No the monsters are quite human in this one. I for one, who absolute love the classic take on the Apocalypse was pleasantly surprised. This story works and I liked it, liked it a lot!
If you want something different, another take on what comes after, I can highly recommend this. Or if you are just an Stephen King fan (listen to it and you will know)
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Tincture, An Apocalyptic Proposition
BY Matthew D. Jordan
Audiobook, Podiobook
Published 2012
the road so far... 