SUBNORMAL by Stuart Kenyon

Multi-volume author, Stuart Kenyon introduces us to the first in a series, “Subnormal”:
Imagine a utopia where every person has a purpose and not a single life is wasted.

Britain has become a hive-like world, with even the weakest and most vulnerable playing their part in the nation's transformation. Crime is low, employment high.

But all is not quite as it seems. Though the revolution was quiet and bloodless, countless lives have been torn apart before our very eyes. Whilst the silent majority are mysteriously duped into collaboration, dissenters are ignored or punished. Democracy, civil liberties and equality are replaced by corruption, discrimination and segregation. 

Paul, who has Asperger's Syndrome, knows slavery in the Zone is intrinsically unnatural. His first personal rebellion at Industrial Zone Four is crushed and he is forced to suffer alone for years in silence. Until his younger brother, Tommy, is also declared "subnormal" and sent to the Zone following an accident. 

Allied with a handful of fellow Zoners and free-thinkers from the outside world, the brothers defy the powers-that-be. Can they beat the odds and restore to the British people a freedom few can remember?

Take a boy with Asperger’s Syndrome, he and his loving brother are thrust into a work camp; reminiscent of Nazi-controlled Europe.
Travel back in time to a brilliant young chemist who is developing drugs for mind control.
Jump forward to the recent past and witness the birth of a seemingly benign totalitarian government. The populous is afraid, unemployment and crime are high. A small-time politician is extremely uncomfortable with the politics as his party rises to ascendancy in modern England.
These are the high points of the plot, there are several smaller subplots also.
While seeming to be irreconcilable, these plots and subplots are woven into a fascinating tale. Mr. Kenyon has brought us an interesting angle to the typical dystopian future story.
I have to say that learning about Asperger’s Syndrome through Paul’s eyes was very rewarding.
To sum up: I enjoyed the story even though the ride was pretty bumpy at times, a lot of potholes in the road. I will give it 4 out of 5 stars. If the spelling had been a lot cleaner, it would have been a higher score.
This is definitely a good read. The ending left me glowing!

You can buy this book:
https://www.amazon.com/-SUBNORMAL-Britain-Dystopian-Society
https://www.goodreads.com/-subnormal
 
You can follow the author:
https://twitter.com/stuartkenyon81
https://stuartkenyon.wordpress.com/books
 
Copyright © 2015 Mark L. Schultz