By Thomas Blackthorne, Angry Robot, $7.99, 421 pages

10Britain in the future: snow is falling in June, political conflicts abound throughout the world, the United States has crumbled (some parts of it literally) and all around Britain, groups of teens are found dead in so-called ‘cutting circles’. Things aren’t great in Josh Cumberland’s life either: his daughter died after a long coma, he is separated from his girlfriend, Suzanne and he is recklessly throwing himself back into military life. Josh’s plans are derailed when Suzanne’s investigation into the teen suicides put her in danger; together they must survive and unravel the mystery behind the suicides.

Thomas Blackthorne has created an exciting novel with Point, the second in this series. The writing is fast-paced, taut, and holds the reader’s attention throughout. The author also nicely blends elements of sci-fi with thriller and mystery. Although this is the second novel in the series, it’s not necessary (although, may be helpful) to read the books in order. The relationship storyline between Josh and Suzanne is somewhat less successful as they react to each other in ways that seem unrealistic, but overall this is a great book for fans of science fiction or thrillers.

Reviewed by Barbara Cothern