The Phoenix Project
By: D.M. Cain
Rating: 4 Star
The Phoenix Project is set in a future where the government has come up with an innovative solution to keep prison populations down.
A new type of prison is currently on trial in Salverford where prisoners fight to the death, on television, as public entertainment.
We explore most of this world through the eyes of the book's main character Raven.
D.M. Cain conjures up a really detailed dystopian future vision of what prisons could be like in the near future and the book is a really interesting exploration of that.
The fight scenes themselves are well described and quite graphic in nature but the violence isn't the main aspect of the plot. This story focuses much more on Raven, his self-loathing for the crime he committed and the other inmates he befriends.
Raven is an interesting, multi-dimensional character. It is also quite unusual to have a self-confessed criminal become the main 'hero' of the story.
My mind did keep making comparisons with 'The Running Man' whilst reading this story but that only enhanced the visuals that I conjured up whilst reading it.
Well worth a read.
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