Sunday, December 16, 2018

READING: Mind Fuck (The Administration #1) by Manna Francis


Publication date: October 29 2007
Published by: Casperian Books
Genre: MMAdult, Dark, BDSM, Dystopian, Mystery, Sci Fi
Rating: 

There are no bad guys or good guys. There are only better guys and worse guys.

One of the worse guys is Val Toreth. In a world in which torture is a legitimate part of the investigative process, he works for the Investigation and Interrogation Division, where his colleagues can be more dangerous than the criminals he investigates.

One of the better guys is Keir Warrick. His small corporation, SimTech, is developing a "sim" system that places users in a fully immersive virtual reality. A minnow in a murky and dangerous pond, he is only beginning to discover how many compromises may be required for success.

Their home is the dark future dystopia of New London. A totalitarian bureaucracy controls the European Administration, sharing political power with the corporations. The government uses violence and the many divisions of the feared Department of Internal Security to maintain control and crush resistance. The corporations fight among themselves, using lethal force under the euphemism of "corporate sabotage," uniting only to resist attempts by the Administration to extend its influence over them.

Toreth and Warrick are more natural enemies than allies. But mutual attraction and the fight for survival can create unlikely bonds.
 




It took me a while to hop on the Administration train, but I'm glad I did!

Mindfuck is so unlike any other mm I've read; it's basically a sci fi/dystopian whodunnit with a splash of romance, if you can call whatever Toreth and Warrick have "romance". Even though it is very high techy and futuristic, it reads more like a crime noir book, or rather a regency crime.

Mindfuck is written almost to perfection. The story is so dense and detailed but never ever boring. It has a lot of scientific terms (neuroscience, psychology) and you have to pay very close attention because they are all pertinent to the case, you need them to understand the kind of world these people live in, and they are also very interesting and fascinating. Simulated reality makes for a very compelling and terrifying notion that adds to the whole murder/mystery vibe.
I hope we see more of it in the future. 

Toreth is a senior investigator and interrogator which in the world of Administration means he is a sociopath.
He leaves by a strict and specific set of moral rules mostly because their application would serve and benefit him. He's driven by self interest only, hates incompetence and has a total disregard for human life if it means ending it will help him in any way. He interrogates and tortures people for a living. "I fuck minds" he very proudly declares to Warrick when they first meet. 
The only real and close relationship he has is with his personal assistant Sara, who, it's evident, he cares for deeply. Why is that and how it all works with his twisted and evil personality? I guess we'll find out in later books. We only have tiny flashes of the characters' back stories but I've bee assured we'll get more later, there are 9 books after all.

Warrick is a tough one to figure out. He is not as straightforwardly monstrous as Toreth but there is a dormant darkness inside him and the only reason it doesn't come out is that his morality is stronger than Toreth's and he more easily distinguishes good from bad. And even if he doesn't sometimes, he at least exhibits some kind of remorse, as opposed to Toreth. Still, his arrogance can only match Toreth's and they always try to one up each other, right until Toreth realises what Warrick truely is after in their "relationship". Then the games start. 

Absolutely fascinating read, can't wait to see how it all plays out!


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