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#tbrtarot #January @CBee

Four stars because I didn't completely understand what was going on here, but I thoroughly enjoyed it.

This was a fascinating Amazon original short story about parents being able to select the genetics of their children in the future. A weird little book, but made you think.

#winterreadathon @Andrew65 @DieAReader @GHABI4ROSES

Book 12 Finished for the readathon

I absolutely loved this short story, and will definitely be reading more of Mr Towles' oeuvre! I listened to it on audiobook and it's read by David Harbour (the sheriff in Stranger Things), who really is a very fine voice actor - the inflection and tone really bring the dialogue (especially) alive beautifully. I may even just hunt down books that he reads just to listen to him! As for the book itself: near future sci fi - I'll leave it at that! :)

This had to be the most disappointing book of this short story series. I just could not get into this one; it lost me very early on.

#scifi #sciencefiction

Another day, another short story in the Forward collection 😋 This was a bit like an episode of Black Mirror. The idea was interesting but it didn't quite get there for me. ⭐⭐⭐

This is so different from Towles‘ novels! It makes me wonder how he ended up writing for this collection.

A couple thinking about IVF are considering using a company that can pick and choose genetic features to “optimize” the future child‘s life. The father gets a projected view of three personality options for his son.

Left me thinking not only of the ethics of the story, but the impact of reproducing all together. 👍👍

This short story is part of the Forward Collection which at time of posting is available on Kindle Unlimited.

Fertility clinics have reached a whole new level. Not only can you choose the gender, hair and eye colour of your child you can also choose the characteristics and contours that will shape your child.

Sam's wife has chooses three models for him to consider and the Fertility clinic has created three short movies for Sam to watch.

Book 187 of 2020.

Anybody read this collection of short stories by some amazing authors? So good! I've read 4 of 6 so far. Addicting!
"..brings together vastly different authors to theorize on what the future might look like. What binds these stories together is their exploration of possible technological advancements in the not too distant future, without ever really giving away if the changes such advancements would bring would be for our collective good or ill."

Story 4 in the #ForwardCollection and the subject matter of genetically engineered human offspring creeped me out so much that I have to give it a pick despite some weaknesses in the second part of the story.

I did not care for "A Gentleman in Moscow", so my expectations were low.

I love love loved Amor Towles‘ A Gentleman in Moscow. One of my all-time favs. I did not like this story at all. I was surprised. Started out with promise and then completely fizzled.

I made it to Madison Street Books today for #indiebookstoreday. Definitely not the same as usual this year but it was my first time back at a bookstore since covid! This short story was just ok. I much preferred his novels. I wish i had gotten to tune into his presentation today, i hope they'll post it still. Anyways, it was a lovely day here and I'm glad I could celebrate indie bookstore day a little bit this year.

Not my favorite in this collection, the premise was good, but then it went through it‘s transformative second act, and threw in a curve ball for the third....I think he just chose to throw in a bit too much for a short story. 🤷‍♀️

My second story in the Forward series and first contact with Amor Towles' work. The story was OK, the idea of enhancing the children (not called genetically engineering by the big company rep but genetic contouring) to give them an advantage in life is not new but all the same scary for the future of human race. But outside the story, I definitely like his writing, I have A Gentleman in Moscow on my list for a while now, I really need to read it.

2 STARS | GRADE D
I was really looking forward to this one because Hopper from Stranger Things narrates it...sadly, I don't think he was very good. Storywise, I really wasn't feeling this one...it kind of felt like it was all over the place. And that ending, it completely lost me.

Part of the 6 new amazon short stories, part of the Forward series, free on kindle unlimited. The first one by Amor Towles is well done and chilling. Excited to read them all!

I'm really enjoying this series of short stories. I wanted more of this one, to know more about the world this story inhabits.

I actually read this yesterday, the 30th, and today my kindle won't let me reopen it. Does anyone know if you can only read a kindle unlimited book once?

I love everything Amor Towles does, and this was no exception. This short story gives us a picture of a world just a few years ahead of ours, with a plausible picture of where our automized, personalized, and meddling choices may land us. It‘s subtle, but it‘s powerful. Many notes of early stages of Brave New World.

I especially appreciated the note about how predictive research can be used in ways that hurt our humanity.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

The writing was fine but the story trajectory, especially after the main character leaves Vitek (the fertility clinic) leapt headlong into the navel-gazing chasm and by story's end, I was just glad it was done. All things being equal, I'd have rather re-watched Gattaca.

Sam's wife tells him about Vitek, a fertility lab that allows you to chose what traits your child will have. Sam agrees it could be a great idea until he begins to consider the future of a child with preconceived aspirations and IQ, he begins wondering about his own life, and his ability to chose. Good story of genetic engineering gone rogue.
#teamslaughter #scarathon @Clwojick

🎧 great story!! Holy cow !! now I want to read A Gentleman In Moscow. It was interesting, short & well narrated. Story 2 of 6 . ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Rating: 2/5
It started off interesting with the projections of predicting how a human's life can develop before they are even born, but somewhere along the way, it turned into something else that didn't hold my interest. Maybe it's just me, but I failed to understand the point of the whole story.

A thought-provoking & widely relevant short story. Not my favorite in the collection, though I enjoyed Towles‘ prose. Ending was a bit abrupt but it suits the story.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
#shortfiction #scifi #forwardcollection

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
This was a wonderfully thought-provoking story. I didn‘t really like how abrupt the ending was though.

#catsoflitsy #Phoenix