Book Review: We Are the Crisis

Title: We Are the Crisis 

Author: Cadwell Turnbull

Date: 2023 

Publisher: Blackstone

ISBN: not yet assigned

Quote: "If it were before, they might have thought a straight, predictable life would protect them. But they know that’s not true, not anymore. Whether they decide to act or not, the world will eat them anyway."

They are three good friends who happen to be werewolves. "Monsters"--specifically vampires and shapeshifters--have become the new increasing demographic in society. Most of them were brought up human and have human ethical standards, though some of them work for the CIA. But humans have organized a group whose goal is to hunt them down and kill them.

There are lots of different characters in different situations. Some of them meet, some don't;' some of their stories seem to intersect, some don't. Some of them seem to be killed but are actually transferred to some sort of other world via portals formed by robot ants. To some extent their stories come together to form a loosely structured sort of novel.

I don't think it's a great novel, and its flaws seem to parallel what so many observers say about the real-world situation for which it's a none-too-subtle metaphor. Characters aren't developed as individuals, beyond their "monster" qualities; there's a hint that monster qualities may be influenced by ethnic traditions, which could make this book an interesting study of world folklore about monsters, but doesn't. Characters don't seem to have much fun; their stories don't make a great case for their preference to survive. Characters don't want to agree with those who assume that they're dangerous to humans, but in fact some of them are dangerous to humans. As stories, some of the individual chapters stand alone (and some are credible, dramatic monster stories), some fit together in sequences, and some just don't seem very successful either as connecting material or as stories. As a novel, We Are the Crisis contains episodes that show a potential that I don't think the whole novel fulfills.

On a more encouraging note, a novel that was written in haste, with loosely sketched characters, can be an invitation for readers to develop the characters further with games, and the urban fantasy genre lends itself well to this kind of reading. So although I would have encouraged the writer to give this novel another revision or two, some readers may like it just as it is. 

To the extent that there's a plot, it consists of finding out which monsters will survive the violent confrontation and how; this review is not telling. 

If you like Halloween-type reading with new takes on familiar monster characters, ideas for role playing and party games, plus social commentary, then We Are the Crisis is for you.