The Drafter

July 27, 2015
Peri Reed, the heroine of this entertaining but preposterous near-future SF thriller from bestseller Harrison (The Witch with No Name), is a “drafter,” a spy-like operative with the ability to rewrite short moments in time. Peri must rely on an “anchor,” a person who helps her mentally integrate her newly created history without going crazy. Trouble arises when Peri finds she can’t trust her current anchor (and boyfriend). Her personality begins to fragment during a mission to recover a list of corrupt operatives within Opti, the time-altering governmental organization she works for, and she must find a way to reintegrate while on the run. Opti is opposed by the Alliance, former Opti agents who believe Opti has gone rogue. Both organizations—and Peri—cheerily employ any means to achieve what they consider a desirable end, such as using a virus to limit air pollution. Harrison delivers moments of lyrical intensity when the time lines Peri is “drafting” consolidate into a new reality, but the lack of logic and a goofy plot dissipate the tension. Agent: Richard Curtis, Richard Curtis Associates.

August 1, 2015

As an elite operative of a government-sponsored organization called Opti, Peri Reed is a valuable commodity. Her ability to jump back in time is extremely rare, and her handlers use her for all manner of operations, many of which fall into a gray area from a legal and moral standpoint. She must rely on her anchor to resolve the dual time lines she creates every time she drafts, and the relationship is by necessity an intimate one. When Peri realizes that her anchor is manipulating her and Opti is riddled with corruption, she tries to break free. But when anyone with anchor training can simply rewrite her memories, how will she ever get to the truth? VERDICT Harrison's latest trilogy, set in a futuristic Detroit, is fast paced but muddled in execution, as the motives of those controlling Peri are left vague, with conspiracies and factions put on the page simply to create conflict. Peri is a hard character to root for, as she spends much of the book cycling between angry and gullible. Admirers of Harrison's "Hollows" books will be disappointed. [See Prepub Alert, 3/30/15.]--MM

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