The Prism Affect

All right, when I requested this book, I was somewhat misled by the blurb and therefore expecting a dystopian novel with a light magical twist rather than a SciFi-cum-Fantasy novel with a mystery twist. That doesn’t mean I was disappointed (all this genres and subgenres are right up my alley), but I sure was surprised. So if you are looking forward to reading thrilling descriptions of disasters and humankind’s (almost) ultimate seconds, be warned—you won’t get more than what is written in the blurb. Yet you should pick up a copy of this book, anyway, because thrilling it sure is.

Jet Stroud is a young orphan and has been an outcast all his life because of the taboo disease he suffers from, which is called ephebus mortem, the Youthful Death. A very strange disease: nobody seems to know much about it, neither where it comes from nor what causes it. It doesn’t even manifest itself outwardly or organically; the only sign someone has it are the person’s eyes, which always glow like neon beams. Those who are afflicted know, however, that more likely than not, they’ll be dead by the time they reach the age of twenty-four, after a short period where they’re haunted by bizarre visions and hallucinations. And people tend to believe that to hang out with ephebus mortem candidates is bad luck, so in addition to their disease, those afflicted are also shunned by their peers.

When Jet arrives at Skylight University, he doesn’t even know that little, though. His roommate, strangely oblivious of the taboos surrounding the illness and their bearers, is the one who forces Jet to find out more. But the path is long, paved with obstacles and weird apparitions, mostly fog-like ghosts that are following the young student around campus. Despite all this, he manages to gather the four other students suffering from ephebus mortem around him, and together, they try to unravel the secrets surrounding their mysterious ailing. That endeavour soon turns into a race for their survival…

Despite a few unnecessary word repetitions, the book was well written and so perfectly paced that I almost finished it in one sitting. I don’t exaggerate—the mysteries were as thick as the morning fogs the author describes more than once. Kudos for the world-building, too. I cannot claim I could see the Skylight System as clearly as I see my real surroundings, but sometimes less is more, and the important element is atmosphere, of which there was plenty, in this book. No worries, that doesn’t mean lengthy, detailed descriptions of sceneries and landscapes, but always intense moods, tones, and vibes, which made me feel the main characters state of mind at any given moment. I was drawn in immediately and was turning the pages with bated breath, wanting to discover what would happen next and who, why, where, when…

As thrilling and coherent the first four fifths of the book were, I found the revelation of the who, why, where toward the end of the story a little bit underwhelming. Not disappointing per se (nothing in this book was disappointing), but after all the secrets and mystery unexpected twists and turns, I felt a teensy bit let down. Yet, and this is a good point, I can see how exactly this element might be turned into new mysteries, new thrilling adventures, new questions and new quests, which we can certainly expect as this is only the first instalment of a whole series. I for one cannot wait for the next books to be published in order to experience how everything turns out. As for this book—recommended!

Thank you to the publisher for the digital ARC, it has not affected my honest review.


The Prism Affect is an enjoyable and well written mystery based around a group of people who all die before the age of 24. They have glowing eyes and always have tragic ends, which is one of the most interesting parts of this book. The scifi element of this book is subtle and rarely relevant, though I enjoyed the ways that humanity adapted to space and the back story of particular characters. The main character Jet wasn't my favourite but I enjoyed his interactions with the others like him. Overall I'm glad I read this book!

Jet Stroud wishes he could just attend Skylight University, play blaze and not have people stare at him or avoid him completely. But as someone with ephebus mortem, the youthful death, he doesn't have that option. It's as unavoidable as the glow that emanates from his eyes.

As he starts his semester, Jet must meet the other "euphs" at school in order to find out what ephebus mortem will do to them all, and as he does, he finds himself in the middle of a mystery that may just cost him his life...

The Prism Affect is a fantastic book! I really enjoyed the world-building touches, including the titular Prism Affect, where rainbows surround characters due to the sun's angle on the belts. With a bit of a slow start (chapter 1 is more of a prologue than anything), it does quickly develop into a very fast-paced book, which sweeps you along so that I found myself finishing the book in only two sittings. I enjoyed the variety of characters, as well.

While this has hints of the dystopian future genre, it truly is an excellent sci-fi book, and I look forward to the next installment of the series!

I was granted eARC access to The Prism Affect via the publisher by way of NetGalley and subsequently offered audio ARC access by the author through Author's Direct. Thank you to all involved in affording me this opportunity! My thoughts are my own and my review is honest.

I'll start by saying I started with the eBook, remembered I had access to the audiobook, switched to that for a bit, and then finished with the eBook, so I got a good feel for both formats. I don't normally switch twice (or at all, normally if I've got the audio I only use the audio) so I'll address why when I get to the format-specific part of the review.

The Prism Effect is a fascinating story about scholastically elite youth who have earned their admissions into Skylight University, an elite school in the outer atmosphere of post-apocalyptic Earth. Jet and a few of the students and faculty he's about to meet have one dreadful thing in common: a disease called ephebus mortem. No one identified to have lived with the disease makes it past 24. But why? Jet soon finds that those deaths weren't exactly natural. What's really going on?

I absolutely loved the premise of this book, I was 100% with Jet and his gang of unlikely allies, and I love where the plot ended up going. I didn't see it coming quite the way it played out but I'm eager to learn more. Please tell me there's more coming soon!

When NetGalley presents its myriad of ARCs and backlist review titles to us, the genre information we get is limited. Books in the broader "Science Fiction and Fantasy" category are just that, SF&F, no further details unless the blurb cares to elaborate. It turns out this is one of those true Science-Fantasy books that blurs the line between the two sides of the category. Is it a scifi first? Is it more a fantasy? Impossible to say, really. It's both. It's also mystery, and without giving too much away I think people who enjoy action thrillers like The Kingsman, or perhaps avid readers of dark academia, will enjoy this flavour of SFF with a mystery element.

In terms of the audiobook, I wish I could say I liked it because I prefer to listen to books (I can listen faster than I can read) and nothing beats a great narrative performance. Alas, in this case, I prefer the robotic way Alexa reads my Kindle editions. When I was reading this book for myself or letting Alexa read it to me, each character was distinct, the dialogue was enjoyable, and lines that were internalized thoughts were clearly not dialogue. Normally when all of that is in place in the text, the narrator is set up for a great performance. Somehow, however, this one didn't work out. Every character sounded exactly the same, internalized thoughts and spoken dialogue became indistinguishable, and something about the narrator's inflection on questions really irked me. I went back to the mobi file when the plot got really twisty so that I could focus better.

Overall this is a really good book and a great start to what seems like a promising series. I love this dark future world, I love the mystery behind ephebus mortem, and I want to know more! If you're an SFF reader, I think you'll enjoy it, too.

Thank you to the publishers, author and NetGalley for the free copy of this book.

This wasn't quite what I expected but still somehow works? I thought the world building was really good, and enjoyed the characters. About to read the next one to see what happens next!