Beautiful Red
Please welcome Darusha Wehm to the site, with the new science fiction title Beautiful Red.
The future is boring. Technology has solved the world’s most pressing problems, leaving people with tedious work and mundane play. Jack is a Security Officer Class 5, which sounds important, but isn’t. However, her banal life as a cubicle worker by day and tinkerer by night is interrupted when she discovers that her employer’s computer system has been invaded.
Jack enlists the help of her only friends – her co-worker, Gilles and Adrian, an online friend she’s never met – to help her track down the source of the invasion. Her investigation leads her to a shadowy group called the Red, where Jack learns that not everyone lives a life of quiet servitude.
Even though she believes that the Red are responsible for a series of gruesome attacks, Jack begins to become attracted to their worldview. In her search for the people responsible for the attacks, she confronts the leaders of the group as well as her own burgeoning sense of self-awareness.
August 28th, 2007 at 9:01 pm
Absolutely amazing … I’m gonna die though if more episodes aren’t released soon… I have listened to 1-5 three times now :/
September 6th, 2007 at 8:44 am
Great Storyline so far. Now I’m hooked, and waiting for more episodes.
Jon Schlueter
September 7th, 2007 at 6:14 pm
I love this book. Can’t wait for more episodes.
September 8th, 2007 at 5:23 am
Sorry this just didn’t catch my interest despite the interesting premise.
September 13th, 2007 at 7:08 am
Very enjoyable, I anxiously await the release of new chapters.
September 23rd, 2007 at 11:24 am
liked this from the beginning. the engineering’s pretty good, and darusha doesn’t put on the dreaded “prancing reader” phony persona that keeps me from listening to most podiobooks beyond a 30-second sample.
around episode 6 or 7, however, i started to dislike the story, not buying repeated trips to what i thought was a ludicrous, unexplained unreality where people could psycho-physically transport to other locations. well, write off another misfire to iPod distraction. trusting my gut, i took the trouble to review from episode 3 or so, careful to rewind if something (e.g., driving) kept me from listening well for a moment. oh, it’s a network 3D translator/simulator. um… carry on. neat concept. should’ve paid better attention. hadn’t even caught the node/door part early on.
since there are so many intercom conversations, it would be nice to have a more palatable effect (e.g., speaker EQ w/minimal reverb) instead of the brute force feedbacky delay. other than that, i’m digging this exceptional story/production. nice to have something that requires more careful listening. darusha, please continue with the understated approach; so much better that way.
October 8th, 2007 at 9:33 am
I had to give up in the first episode due to the “adult” language. Otherwise the premise of the story sounds good. Sorry, I read/listen to SF to escape reality, no need for foul language. Just tell the story. Some examples of great stories without foul language are: Brave Men Run, Ida, The Pocket and the Pendant (my first and favorite Podiobook), Roadworks and of course Noggle Stones. Let us escape from foul language we hear around us on a daily basis.
Byron Int
October 11th, 2007 at 10:00 pm
Sorry, I read/listen to SF to escape reality, no need for foul language. Just tell the story.
one thing that really bothered me was that the author has jack paying for stuff. i’m so tired of paying for stuff. just burns me up when authors make people pay for things in stories where a flick of the wrist could remove the requirement and not harsh my mellow. don’t even get me started on gravity. or the word “inculcate”. hate that word. unlike you though, i wasn’t warned about the commerce part. so angry right now.
October 21st, 2007 at 2:27 pm
When I began Beautiful Red, I listened to find out if I liked it enough to continue. Then I was listening to find out what came next, and before I knew it, the story was all caught up! Please, Darusha, post some more!
An interesting look at the future, Beautiful Red does not forget what year it is, the daily expectations of the protagonist are not set in 2007. The points are made about ‘real’ food and being connected, but they are not belabored. The technical discussions hang together logically, without me actually understanding them. I wish Jack would try out all the alarm clock settings, just out of curiosity! Hmm, that could fit very well with a boring, uninteresting life….
As the story progresses, Jack’s life gets more and more interesting.
Thanks for a great story!
October 24th, 2007 at 2:34 pm
I had a similar experience to Gail’s. I generally listen to the first couple episodes of everything on Podiobooks, with no expectations about whether or not I will want to continue. So, I was surprised to find myself logging back into Podiobooks 3 or 4 times today to release more chapters.
A lot about the world of this book reminds me of Walter Mosley’s Futureland. And, while I enjoy speculative fiction, I wish stories like this didn’t seem so plausible.
The disclaimer at the beginning of each episode seems odd to me, as I haven’t noticed any language or themes that I find shocking or even untoward. But, maybe that is just an indication of how profane I am.
October 24th, 2007 at 4:13 pm
Thanks for all the comments, everyone. I have to say that I’m glad I went with the disclaimer - comments like Byron Int’s make it clear that not everyone is as sanguine about realistic/salty language as some of us.
I’m glad most of you are enjoying the novel, and let you know that we are about at the half way point, now. Enjoy the second half!
~Darusha
PS. @charley hardman: I’m sorry I inculcated such ire in you for all the commerce. I’ll work on that in the future
October 29th, 2007 at 7:18 pm
Episode 13 seems to have a glitch in it. At about 7:30 into the episode, the audio blips back to the same things that’s at 2:23. I tried redownloading the episode, but it does the same thing.
October 30th, 2007 at 6:26 pm
Great story so far! I like SF that introduces new concepts with going into a protracted info-dump to explain them. It is nice how you flesh out the characters boring existence to provide an impetus to seek out and follow the new adventure she has discovered. Thanks!
P.S. I too had the error in the last episode (13). ARGH! I need my fix!
October 31st, 2007 at 9:46 am
I believe that the error in Ep 13 is fixed - try re-downloading (and please post back if it’s still wonky).
Thanks!
October 31st, 2007 at 10:14 am
Episode 13 has been corrected — in theory. If you can, please make sure that your file name ends with -013.mp3, and not -13.mp3.
If it doesn’t, delete that file and then download the new file directly from the books page on the site.
E.
October 31st, 2007 at 7:03 pm
Darusha,
I’m quite enjoying the way you weave elements of cyberpunk, film noir, and mystery into a cautionary tale for our wired times. I find myself identifying with the “Red” faction that blocks off dead zones from the constant intrusion of the Net. I refuse to carry a cell phone for similar reasons. In any case, thanks for the story and please keep writing!
Fellow listeners, if you’ve followed the story so far, please contribute to the PayPal link to make it easier for Ms. Wehm to keep the chapters coming.
Regards,
Milo
November 5th, 2007 at 2:10 am
Episode 14 won’t complete downloading. iTunes says that the file “may be corrupt or a format iTunes does not recognise”.
Please can you check and adjust the feed?
Thanks
November 5th, 2007 at 12:02 pm
Yep. Something very wrong. Requested new file from the author. Have suspended the episode for now.
E.
November 5th, 2007 at 2:36 pm
Oh, the HUMANITY!
I tried to download the file a bunch of times and different ways when I saw that I was having problems with iTunes getting it. I’m well and truly hooked on this story.
Thanks for thr update, Evo!
November 7th, 2007 at 7:14 pm
Episode 14 has been fixed, and episode 15 is up as well.
Sorry for all the issues lately.
~Darusha
November 14th, 2007 at 11:41 pm
Hi, all.
Just a quick not to let you know that Beautiful Red now has its own page on Facebook. Let the world know you’re a fan by visiting here: http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=6070034793
~Darusha
November 22nd, 2007 at 6:51 pm
I’m quite enjoying the story and looking forward to its continuation. Can Darusha and/or Evo give the listeners an idea about when the next update will be?
Thanks,
Milo
November 22nd, 2007 at 7:31 pm
Hi, Milo and all.
Generally, I send podiobooks the files at the beginning of the week and they are usually available to subscribers Wednesday or Thursday.
Specifically, I understand Episode 17 is going to go live today or tomorrow. There might be some delays due to the US Thanksgiving holiday.
~Darusha
December 13th, 2007 at 1:53 pm
Quite simply I didn’t like this one. I did try to ignore the reader’s downbeat montone and not allow it to influence my opinion of the book, but even so it was still rough going.
I really laboured through the first three chapters before giving up. I was a little unsettled by this becasue actually the story isn’t that bad. I eman it’s not what I consider bad writing per se. The author clearly has a vivid perception of the world he/she describes (in great detail) and I think herein lies the problem. Noting really happens. The first chapter is simply a massive information dump that quite frankly goes nowhere, and subsequent chapters are nearly as bad. As said, the descriptions of the main character and how she integrates with her existence are quite good, but sadly even that is so extensive, it quickly becomes bland and unpalatable.
December 20th, 2007 at 3:23 pm
I’m afraid I have to disagree with the previous poster. I am quite enjoying this book, and have had to hold off on listening until the last chapter comes out, because I hate being left in suspense like this. _Beautiful Red_ describes a dark future that, not unlike _Max Headroom_, is not so far distant from our own time… and the alienation described is the natural outgrowth of our disconnected culture. Admittedly, the early chapters include a lot of exposition, but I didn’t find it got in the way of the story. To me, it feels like _Blade runner_, _The Big Sleep_, and _Brazil_… and that’s just mentioning the B’s.
January 1st, 2008 at 8:11 am
Just finished this book and really liked the way it ended. Darusha has a pretty monotone voice but it works OK. I liked the futuristic world and technology that was created. Like others have commented the author does a great job in developing the characters as well.
January 1st, 2008 at 5:04 pm
I’ve really enjoyed listening to Beautiful Red and i’m kind of disappointed it’s over. The world Darusha created is vivid and detailed, and more importantly, one of the more plausible futures i’ve come across in recent years. For me, humanity’s casual acceptance of technology and all its intrusions seemed disturbing and comforting at the same time. The monotone reading also suited the mood well. Plotwise, I felt Jack leapt to some pretty wild conclusions that were always 100% right, and every investigation she made produced a significant lead. I wouldn’t have minded a few dead ends and a longer story overall, just to hear more details of the world Darusha created. If her next story is in a similar vein i’m looking forward to it.
one (minor) complaint: some of the episodes were disappointingly short at 10-12 minutes. I’d prefer to immerse myself in it for at least half an hour.
January 6th, 2008 at 1:33 am
I quite enjoyed the story and I hope you write more stories based int his universe, however I did feel compelled to give a low rating for the audio quality when you made the extremely newbish mistake of neglecting to remove your editing fingerclicks.
Keep up the good work ^^
January 6th, 2008 at 11:14 am
The good news, Zippy, is that those are easily corrected. I notice these as a listener from time to time and make it a point to let the author know what episode had the error, and the approximate time stamp of when it happened. So far, they’ve all been very good about getting me a new episode uploaded quickly so that no others hear the mistakes.
Use the “report a problem with an episode” link right above where you make new comments, and we’ll make sure to get it to Darusha right away.
January 10th, 2008 at 10:57 pm
Episode 9 does not download.
First of all, I must thank you for a wonderful story–so far. Episodes 1 - 8 have been great, and I’ve already downloaded episode 10, but when I tried to download E09 (repeatedly) I only get a few KB. I tried to “Report a problem with an episode” but got some kind of TechnoRunAround. Sorry to bother you with maintenance, but it’s your fault for making your story so addictive.
Good job, and Thanks,
Zevick
siegel@jct.ac.il
January 13th, 2008 at 5:48 pm
Zevick,
I just clicked the link for Episode nine. Works like a champ. If you can get through that “tehcnorunaround”, I’d like to hear more about the issue you are having.
Evo
January 15th, 2008 at 9:46 pm
Darusha-
Thank you for the incredible podcast. I loved your voice, the plot, and am very sad the book has ended. I am looking forward to your next podcast and hope it comes quickly. Thanks again for sharing the story with us.
September 20th, 2008 at 8:30 am
Only about half way through but wanted to check in and say:
Wow!
Is this really a debut novel?
As a computer scientist, one of the rants my friends get tired of hearing me talk about centers around the question: What happens when we have the next paradigm shift in user interface? When you think about it, we still basically interact with computers the same way we have since the 1970s. Computers continue to (almost) follow Moore’s law, but the interface remains the same.
This novel explores this question in a most satisfying way. Engaging fiction with enough scientific validity to not break suspension of disbelief (at least for this geek).
12:00