Watching Yute [Paperback]

Unlike Lifehack, Joesph Picard's first novel in this trilogy, or Echoes of Erebus, the final novel, this second offering in the trilogy plays its strengths in order to compensate for its weaknesses, namely wacky dialogue and an abrupt ending. But even with these weaknesses, this is easily his best novel in the trilogy, and the easier one of the two to start with, if you decide to skip Lifehack.

The premise is pretty simple, Leftenant/Lieutenant Cassidy Stanton is transferred to the Yute temple base in the nation of Aguei, by her request, in order to help her overcome the break up with her ex-girlfriend. Yes. Girlfriend. Cassidy is a lesbian, which thankfully is perfectly fine in the unit stationed there. The temple base is guarded mostly from radical members of the Aguei, who are against thee new cooperation with nearby nations by top Aguei "Elders". While she is there, Cassidy meets a colorful (in some cases, this is to be taken literally) assortment of characters, each slightly more immature than the next. This immaturity is justified by the lack of formality within the little community of soldiers that have been assigned there, but were it not for the unit's two most senior members, the sometimes childish way that some of the soldiers there conduct themselves (to the point where there are arguments over cookies) would be unbearable. While there, Cassidy also meets another lady friend, Cheryl, and Cheryl's influence (as well as the actions of Cassidy's ex, Brandy) becomes a major part of the story halfway through

The other half of the story focuses of Jacob Kirison, a guy who you don't want to really see succeed, but you don't want him to fail, either. As part of the nanite research project that had caused the events of Lifehack to occur, Kirison has a lot of trail to cover for his little side project, especially in the face of new government restrictions. Joining a organization known as the Aguei Rights Activists, which is little more than a crude terrorist group led by an disgraced Aguei Elder known as Horad, he attempts to continue to further continue his work on nanites, which has the possibility of creating another outbreak.

The strengths of the novel are found in the way Cassidy copes with nearly everything thrown at her throughout Watching Yute. Compared to Lifehack or Echoes or Erebus, where the protagonist has a companion where they can confide in, Cassidy is found drowning in her own sorrows, alone, for most of the novel. While this isn't exactly new in the art of storytelling, it's the desperate attempt to save herself from drowning where her character shines, through the few moments where she is truly vulnerable. In contrast to the previous reviewer, her being a lesbian is not pointless at all, and in fact is where most of her character lies.

Kirison's story is less developed, and is a lot slower in its buildup to the climax, but at about the halfway point of the book, where you would just seem to stop caring for Kirison, Picard focuses almost completely on this side of the story, which is a nice save.

The execution and setting of the two stories alone should be enough to give this novel five stars, but the series of minor problems weighs down a star. Apart from the wacky dialogue coming from the sound-alike members of the Yute temple base, the ending is pretty abrupt. The build up is nice, but I shouldn't have to see a major revelation in one page, then see the ending page a few pages later.

There is also the issue in nanites becoming essentially, the most convenient plot device. Ever. While I can't directly pin this on how the novel is told, since he explains the cause and effect of nanites well enough when they are involved in the story, it later becomes a crutch for some of the later plot devices later in the story, as well as the deux ex machina for them. However, this alone shouldn't bother a regular reader, I'm just weird like that :P

All in all, despite these issues, I would definitely recommend this novel to a fan of any type of fiction, and if you're looking for a good blend of drama, action, romance, and overall page-turning tension, this is probably what you're looking for.

Though it shared a setting and timeline with his previous book "AZU-1: Lifehack", Joseph Picard's new novel "Watching Yute" isn't exactly a sequel. In fact, for those that read the zombie-carnage and bloodletting of Lifehack, the notion that Watching Yute is a continuation of the world may seem strange. Picking up a year after the nanite (microscopic robots) outbreak that destroyed Autar City, a completely new cast of characters finds themselves dealing with a new threat in the remote Yute Temple. The temple is a sacred site to the native Auguei, and the characters are charged by treaty with its protection.

Jacob Kirison, a researcher involved in the original nanite project, has not taken the new government restrictions on his research well. Through a somewhat disjointed series of events, he ends up working with a terrorist organization called the Aguei Rights Activists. This attempt to continue his work results in a new nanite outbreak.

The basic plot behind this story is solid, and Picard does a good job of pacing the story to allow the tension to slowly build. Picard also establishes his world much better this time around, providing enough unique little details and quirks to give the reader a strong sense of place. The primary issue is the complete lack of significant character development. There are too many characters, many introduced at odd times just to introduce them. Dialogue is stilted and everyone sounds alike. Some of the character motivations are either unclear or stereotypical. And almost all of the women in this book come across as giggly Girl Scouts more often than not (including playful threats from their superior to ban them from cookies). Coupled with Picard's tendency to jump around far too much in regards to narrative point of view, this sometimes makes it difficult to keep track of which characters are suppose to be doing what.

One of the main characters, Cassidy, is a lesbian...apparently for the reason that the main character of Regan in Lifehack had been a lesbian and therefore the author felt obligated to include a new lesbian in this book. Like Regan, Cassidy just broke up with her girlfriend over the phone and takes the post at the Temple to get away from all the reminders of her past. Instead of allowing for an interesting discourse on sexuality and adding interpersonal drama to the story, the entire lesbian angle falls into a cliché. None of the other characters particularly care, and her sexuality never becomes an issue except in her own emo-laden internal monologues. Picard tries very hard to imply that her sexuality is somehow important to the story, but it really isn't. It is just sort of there. Something to occasionally bring up in dialogue for no legitimate reason.