The third novel by a young 24-year-old author, Artificial Links attracted the attention of several juries this fall.
At the time of writing, the novel Les liens artificial is in the running for the prestigious Goncourt and Renaudot prizes. Partly surely because the fate of its hero says a lot about what lies ahead.
Looking a bit like the late Michel Berger, Julien Libérat, 28, is a piano teacher at home. But as much to specify it right away, it is not going very well for him. The company that has employed him for seven years pays him rather poorly and because of the pandemic, he has lost the habit of performing with ease in bars. And then there’s May, who kicked him out a few months earlier. Which also explains why he now lives in a dreary suburb near Paris…
Welcome to the Antiworld
Often alone at home, Julien does what many people do to get bored: spend time in front of a screen. So that’s how one evening, he will notice an ad on Facebook extolling the qualities of a video game “that you will prefer to life”. Thanks to this game that perfectly reproduces every detail of our world, it is indeed possible to become whoever you want to do what you want.
After having created his avatar, Julien will thus sink deeper into this metaverse every day which, little by little, will become reality for him.
Well written and not devoid of humor, an interesting story that explores the new excesses of our society.
The addiction
As much to specify it from the outset, it is necessary to hang on to enter the history of this new Rachel Cusk. And then comes a moment when you catch the little music and where you want nothing more than to know how things will turn out. Because by inviting the great painter L to come and work in his artist’s residence (the dependence of the title), M will also have to deal with the presence of his companion, a woman much younger and prettier than her.
Halloween night
With Halloween upon us, it’s easy to see why this novel caught our attention. The story ? Six young people have decided to spend the night in a mansion near Seattle which is apparently haunted. And once there, they will soon realize that the rumor was true. Too bad, but we didn’t really like it. Too many clichés and too many sex scenes that lead to nothing.
Know-how – Stories, tools and wisdom from our grandparents
This beautiful large-format book honors the passions and know-how of our elders through 17 often touching portraits. Throughout the pages, we will come across Claude Beaudry, an 86-year-old lumberjack who has no equal in stringing wood, Thelma Maribelle Pierce, a 101-year-old knitter, or Richard Sunerton who, at 83, still makes knives when the heart tells him.
Hi Hello on your plate
The show Salut bonjour has been part of our daily lives for 35 years now. And if we look at it on a regular basis, we have surely realized that cooking and food occupy a good place there. This book brings together a hundred of his star recipes, such as shrimp chowder, Greek pork medallions, express chicken curry or salmon blanquette.
The Seven Deities of Happiness
Apparently, assassinations are not very common in the heart of Tokyo. When a man staggers past the Nihonbashi police station, the guard cop quite naturally blames this uncertain gait on sake. It is only when he sees him collapsing in front of one of the winged dragon statues on the Nihonbashi bridge that he will understand that the alcohol has nothing to do with it: the man has a knife deeply inserted in his chest…
As for the number one suspect, a 26-year-old unemployed man on whom the victim’s wallet was found, he cannot answer any questions. While fleeing the police, he was run over by a truck and is now in a coma.
On the trail of the killer
If we expect a thriller packed with action and twists of all kinds, we will no doubt be disappointed by this third volume in the Kaga Kyoichiro series (which, by the way, reads very well “solo”). But if you want a good detective classic, then there, we will be served. Like Sherlock Holmes, Lieutenant Kaga notices everything and has a formidable sense of deduction. Another asset and not the least? He knows Tokyo like the back of his hand and makes us take full advantage of it. We loved it.
