To this point in my life, I’d considered being placed on a list generally to be a bad thing! Now that I’m writing, it has a whole different connotation. The way that THE PHLEBOTOMIST, now nearly four months in the world, has been received has touched my heart and I am so profoundly happy that so many readers have enjoyed it.
Anyhow, the book has made a few end of year lists so far. A few links to these and the corresponding reviews below. Happy New Year, and go fuck yourself, 2020.
For all the manic pace and wild premise that underpins The Phlebotomist, a hard science fiction book with heart, which adorns each of its chapters with definitions of blood conditions and medical techniques, it is, at its core, a tale of tenacious humanity, the kind that persists even in the face of most impossible and terrible of things.
Andrew Gillman’s 2020 Top 20 at Sparkleyprettybriiiight.com
A bold, bloody high stakes plot, relatable characters, and a diabolical twist make this a standout book of 2020.
Top Five of 2020, Books, Bones & Buffy
Set after a nuclear war, Panatier conjures a world in which you can supplement your income – or earn a crust – by donating blood to help those in the fall-out zones. But the Harvest is not what it seems, and the government agency in charge of it is keeping dangerous secrets… Crewmate Tammy Sparks says ‘a bold, bloody, high stakes plot, relatable characters, and a diabolical twist make this a standout book of 2020’.
Top Ten Tuesday: 2020 SF Debuts at One More Blog
The premise of The Phlebotomist is great, the pacing is tight, and the atypical main characters are utterly refreshing. I want more stories like this, that toss the cliches out on their ears and give us real characters to care for and unusual situations for them to battle. Also,I loved the fact that the MC was a phlebotomist. Not a fancy doctor, not a kick-ass action hero, but a person that does a very specific job that rarely, if ever, gets recognition. Nicely done.
Sci-fi and Scary Best Books of 2020
With the oldest (human) protagonist on this list, The Phlebotomist is another Angry Robot debut to get excited about. Willa is a rock at the centre of this action-packed sci-fi dystopia, where nuclear attacks have resulted in the never-ending blood drive of “The Harvest”. She works as a phlebotomist in one of the mysterious organisation Patriot’s donation centres, witnessing on a daily basis the desperation of those selling extra blood as part of “The Trade,” the economic stratification resulting from the desirability of certain blood types driving citizens to donate more than they are safely able to just to get by. A seemingly innocuous secret discovered by Willa sets a chain of events in motion that will see this pink haired grandmother become a revolutionary lightning rod.
Best Books of 2020-Infinite Speculation
New to Me Authors:
#1: The Phlebotomist by Chris Panatier – I loved this book, it took me by surprise and I would love to read more from this world.
Lynn’s Books
