3 out of 4 stars
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Final Notice by Van Fleisher is a fiction novel based somewhat loosely around actual current events of today. A new sports watch has been invented that can accurately predict, based on very precise blood chemistry monitoring over time, the exact date of someone’s death and notify them 10, 20, or 30 days prior to the day – their “final notice”. The watch is in its early stages of development, so the developers decide to do their alpha testing on a group of senior citizens, thinking that the chances of them actually receiving a few final notices would be increased. Not only are they correct, but they also get some shocking results that they weren’t prepared for.
The story doesn’t center on any specific characters; there are many, whose stories end up meshing together as the book progresses. A retired couple, their dog, and their immigrant friends; the watch’s inventor; an FBI agent; and various recipients of the “final notice” are all introduced into the story and their situations link as it goes on, all amid the very relevant and very politicized issues of the NRA and gun control in America today.
What I liked about this book was that it discussed a lot of issues that are hot topics in the world as we speak: how senior citizens are treated in the United States right now and the huge issue of gun control. It’s a good novel to spark conversation about these topics, so using it as a high school or college classroom reading assignment or as the subject of a book club discussion would likely get some healthy debates going and keep these issues relevant.
There were only a few things I didn’t like about this book, because overall it was a decent read. The biggest thing that turned me off of this book was the huge number of pop culture references, some without any explanation of whom or what they are referring to. In my opinion, this takes away from the book’s ability to be relevant at any point in history other than this current time. Someone reading this book in 20 or 30 years may have no idea what the author is talking about without doing some research. I personally also felt that the characters didn’t have much substance. Everyone seemed very easily swayed or persuaded to do whatever idea or topic came up; I realize this is a work of fiction but it didn’t feel very realistic.
I would rate this book 3 out of 4 stars. I didn’t give it a higher rating because of the reasons I stated in the last paragraph: I didn’t like the characters’ personalities and I felt that there was too much name and brand “dropping” throughout the course of the story. I didn’t give it a lower rating because it wasn’t a bad book to read; I was able to stay interested enough to finish it and wanted to see what how it ended. This book is definitely written with a liberal, leftist spin on everything as well. I think anyone who wants to read a novel based on some current events of the world may enjoy this book, and it is definitely a good novel to use as a basis for discussion about what’s going on in the world right now.
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Final Notice
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