Outcast by Marc Saville (#scifi #trans #bdsm)

I find myself of two minds about Outcast, conflicted as to whether the surprises completely outweigh the disappointments. There's no doubt that Marc Saville has crafted an effective and engaging dystopian sci-fi thriller, and there's no denying the smartness of its Orwellian aspects, but it feels as if he held himself back from the edge for much of it. What could have been an extraordinarily shocking bit of social commentary is content to settle for mere tease and titillation.

In a futuristic parallel universe, biological humans are a rare and dying breed, while genetically engineered replacements are programmed to play a designated role in life, free of emotions or free will. Having just come of age in this brave new world, Layla Thomas is about to take her place as a professional BDSM switch in her sister's high-class brothel. The only proble is, the mere thought of fulfilling her predetermined role makes her violently ill. That illness drives her into the arms of her secret lover, Petra, and into a dark conspiracy involving the Strays - underground social outcasts whose programming has failed (in some cases, deliberately).

There's so much potential for shock value in that set-up, it's really a shame it felt wasted. Forget the absence of the erotic for a moment, and think about the implication of the power-exchange. Layla has been programmed to be both a dominant and a submissive, in a world where everyone is designed to be submissive to their programming. I really felt Saville could have done more to explore that theme, to look at the nature of obedience, and to examine such taboo gratification, especially in the absence of love. Instead, he tosses around a few toys, floggers, and fetish attire, but stops shy of indulging in anything truly taboo.

Similarly, there's a lot of potential in the relationship between Layla and Petra that I felt was wasted. Petra is a genetically engineered hermaphrodite Stray who never appears to Layla in the same guise. She has a key role to play in the story - in fact, her ultimate reveal is probably one of finest surprises in the tale - but her dichotomy of gender is no better explored than that of Layla's power-exchange. We never get inside her head to understand why she chooses to express herself as she does, and we get nothing from Layla to explain her unique appeal. Saville does attempt to be deliberately shocking by repeatedly referring to her as a manchick, but that profanity is so out of place coming from Layla that it loses all effect.

Disappointments out of the way, this is an effective dystopian thriller. There are some really dark touches to Saville's portrayal of the future, especially in how we devalue and dehumanize one another, and a fantastic exploration of what happens when one's programming breaks down in the face of genuine humanity. There's a bit of satire to it, no doubt, but nothing that's ever played for humor. Instead, we get heaping doses of cruelty, and some very unsettling questions as to whether cruelty is worse as a side-effect of efficiency or a as a deliberate act of control. What's really interesting is that politics and government are largely insignificant here - instead, it's the media, the police, and the doctors who front the true horrors of control.

I can't help but feel that Outcast could have been a stronger book if Saville had truly let himself go, but that doesn't mean it's a bad book. It's darkly imaginative, thoroughly chilling, and entertaining from beginning to end, working as well as a thriller as a mystery. The characterization of Layla suffers a bit from her emotionless world, but that's largely deliberate, and I think he did well to explore her as much as he did. I really wondered where he was going with it for a while, and found the capture-assignment-escape-capture routine wearing a bit thin in its repetitiveness, but the final twist (and Petra's big reveal) make for a stunning conclusion that really pays off.

Reviewed by Bob

Cover images are provided by an Amazon Image Link and used under the Associates Program Operating Agreement for the sole purpose of illustrating a product review. To remove an image, contact us and we will be happy to comply.