Future Destinies - Chris Turner

Title: Future Destinies
Author: Chris Turner
Genre: Science Fiction
Published: 2011
Formats: Paperback/Ebook

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“Future Destinies” is a collection of short stories written by Chris Turner that are best described as being set in the science fiction genre with the odd touch of fantasy. Most readers of this blog will know that I am a huge fan of Science Fiction in all its forms so I sat down to read this collection with high hopes.

Unfortunately I must admit that I found many of the stories to be quite average and at times it was far too easy for me to put my kindle down and do something else. To be honest, I am actually finding it hard to pinpoint what my issue really was as the worlds and characters created by Turner were all interesting enough. I just didn’t really engage with the characters and sometimes the narrative seemed to get lost elaborating technological details so that any real interest I had in the plotline would die out. I actually quite enjoy hard science fiction but I am just not sure it works in the short form when you are trying to create something that is both quick and entertaining to read.

It wasn’t all middle of the road however as there was one story in the collection that I did find particularly good that was entitled “Phane”. This story follows a teenager that lives on a community of humans on future world that has forgotten how to utilise technology and now tries to destroy any which may remain. Turner manages descending into any technological speak here and gives the reader a story that both entertains, engages and offers up the promise a new universe that could be explored further in any future writings. I actually think that it is possibly worth picking up the collection for this story alone.

In summary, I wouldn’t say the collection is specifically bad or good and if you enjoy Science Fiction then it is likely you will find something in here you will enjoy. It is possible that my review is a little bit more negative sounding than it ought to be as there were plenty of stories in the collection that I found enjoyable in parts, I just think “Phane” was the only one that had me really hooked and entertained.

Challenges Book Counts Towards:
Ebook Reading Challenge (Workaday Reads)
Free Reads Challenge
Speculative Fiction Challenge