Review: The Beasts of Electra Drive by Rohan Quine

The Beasts of Electra Drive by Rohan Quine takes the reader on an adventure through the life of Jaymi, a video game designer living in Los Angeles, that has ventured out on his own after becoming disheartened by his work with a former employer, Bang Dead Games. Once a programmer for Bang Dead Games, Jaymi now embarks on a journey that takes him deep into a magical world of his own creation, where his Beasts from his games emerge out into the real world, or “meat-space,” as they call it, through his programming.

Unhappy with his old company, Jaymi uses his Beasts to enact a sort of revenge or vengeance upon his former boss and colleagues at Bang Dead Games. Dud, the talentless and thankless former boss, and the minions that he has working for him, which Jaymi calls The Dreary Ones, become the target of Amber and the other characters Jaymi brings to life throughout the story. These characters have an otherworldly connection with their creator that allow him to see through their eyes while they are doing his bidding.

The Beasts set out to disrupt things in Ain’tTheyFreaky! – Bang Dead Games’ newest game creation – after a particularly destructive attack by a drone sent by the company. Three beasts – Evelyn, Shigem, and Kim are sent into the Bang Dead grid as retribution through Herbs computer after he hacks Platinum Raven. This particular part of the book is conveyed in a non-technical voice and readers who have no programing experience will be able to follow the context. Quine describes their release like a beautiful dance instead of a strategic infiltration.

With their havoc sufficiently released on the “meat-space,” Jaymi’s characters retreat into The Imagination Thief, the game they were initially designed for. However, the time they spent in the real-world has left everyone they interacted with changed. Depending on how the reader views the events that take place in the novel, the change can be seen as leaving those who encountered it in a better position or worse for wear.

The novel is a creative mashing together of Hollywood novel, science fiction, eroticism, and dystopia, with a premise that seems at once foreboding and prescient. While the book takes obvious science fictional liberties with technology, there is a real-world parable about superficiality versus authenticity. As the world becomes more digitally mechanized – and we are as much a product of our digital personae as our real-life personae – the book has an important message to tell about what it is to be truly human.

Though a novel about gaming, the real engine of the novel are the characters, who are each distinct and engaging, even when they are not strictly “real.” Quine obviously has a lot of affection for his Beasts, which has the same effect on the reader. He also injects humor throughout into what is at times a fairly dark storyline, replete with violence and seamy sexuality.

In all, Quine has created a wholly unique book that will appeal to gamers and non-gamers alike. Most readers will empathize with the main character and his suboptimal working situation, and the steps he takes to get out from underneath a tyrannical and uninspiring boss. On a science fictional level, the novel works exceptionally well for its creative use of tech, mixed in with with a group of highly imaginative characters.

A prequel to five other works, The Beasts of Electra Drive will have readers seeking out Rohan Quine’s other books in the series.