Leaps in scientific knowledge provokes public anxiety and insecurities. But once something can be done, then someone will do it, and it’s only our response that matters. But do we respond knowing all the facts (and whose facts do we use), or do we base reaction on our gut feelings?

“If you keep vital knowledge from others, then you are robbing them of their freedom, of their potential. If you keep knowledge to yourself, then the fault is not theirs, but yours.”

page 279

In Nexus, with the drug Nexus, Kade and his colleagues are pushing the limits of neurobiology. Nexus is already illegal — tapping into fears worldwide about the power of the drug. But Kade and his team has built an entire operating system for your mind and the Government entity responsible for keeping Nexus under control wants that technology for itself.

Why is this on our bookshelf?

I started reading Nexus because the third book in the series, Apex, is to be released this spring. After doing a bit of research, I feel like I missed out! Nexus has been nominated for a number of awards and has been very well received. I thought it may be a good idea to read the series before it gets turned into a movie.

Plus, this book hits all the sub-genres that I love: near-future, hard science and psychology.

Rating (4 stars)

Nexus aims to challenge our definition of humanity and start to define the ethnical line around neurobiology and neuroengineering. Just how much can we before we cease being human? How far do we go to prevent it?

Naam’s book is hard science fiction surrounded by espionage. There are fights with guns and fist fights with virally upgraded bodies. The drug war over Nexus is only beginning. People suffer and die on both sides for what they believe in.