*** Overall **** Story *** Narrator – Teenage cyber detectives in action – Review by Rox Burkey
The premise of “The Paragon Conspiracy”-Cloud of Cyberlies, regarding fair and honest competitions, will resonate with Teen Thriller fans. The story’s heroine, Sonia Nowak, is a brilliant young coder who earns a chance to compete on the world stage with her innovative application. Sonia’s diligence in all aspects of her program earns her a spot at the competition and travel funds for one companion. Sonia’s hardworking parents cannot take time from work to travel. Therefore, they entrust their son, Kamil, to watch his sister closely.
Joanna Ross does a good job with character development, highlighting the angst of the tech prodigy Sonia, solid friendship by her best friend Natalia, her brother’s easy-going attitude, and the various players she meets in Vienna. Character aspects unnecessarily repeated became distracting, slowing down the story. The dialogue between these younger characters didn’t fit the age group, being too formal and stilted compared to real individuals. The descriptions of the travel and Vienna help fans see the sights, sounds, and textures of the location.
Sonia meets like-minded technology innovators. During the competition, she discovers a digital problem involving Paragon Circle, a leader for young, impressionable tech innovators. Sonia collaborates with her new friends to find the facts regarding possible corruption at a fundamental level. Competitions are stressful, but evil intentions for personal gain could impact winners and losers. The young innovators become committed to exposing the truth. Portions of the journey again lag at times. Trimming unnecessary repetition would increase the tension of the thriller aspects.
Megan Martonick’s narration was inconsistent in tempo and intonation, reducing the story’s tension at multiple points. Although the telling was accurate, a bit more energy would have made this a more electrifying listen.
Tech-savvy listeners who enjoy thrillers featuring teens will appreciate the premise of “The Paragon Conspiracy.” The hint of a follow-on book may show the increased friendship of these young people as they grow and their tech skills improve. The thriller is a good listen for those headed out for a summer vacation.
About the Author
JoAnn wrote her first story — a tragic romance about two star-crossed Mallard ducks — as a second grade writing assignment. When the paper earned a gold star, she kept writing.
She’s gone on to write a hundred-and-forty-novels and has been published in twenty-seven countries. Two of her titles were excerpted in Cosmopolitan magazine and as a New York Times, U.S. Today, and Publishers Weekly bestseller, she’s also a member of the Romance Writers of America’s Honor Roll of best-selling authors.
JoAnn lives in the Pacific Northwest—where her high school sweetheart and late husband of fifty-seven years proposed to her at the seawall where her Shelter Bay books are set —with her still active, very vocal senior rescued Siamese cat, Paws. Since joining the family three years when she was thirteen years old, Dowager Duchess Paws has run the house.
About the Narrator
Megan Martonick provided the narration for “The Paragon Conspiracy”-Cloud of Cyberlies
