‘The Phlebotomist’ is part medical sci-fi, part dystopia, and part fantasy novel. It’s audacious in scope and full of brilliant ideas, but they don’t always work cohesively together. The twist in the middle was shocking and completely unexpected, but the sudden tone and genre change didn’t work for me in the way I wanted it to.

Before reviewing this, I feel like I should give a disclaimer – I have a medical background. I’m always going to be pickier with medical sci-fi than any other genre, because I’m familiar with the theory behind it. It’s clear from the first page that Chris Panatier has done his research, with everything he includes more-or-less grounded in science, and I’m very impressed with the whole idea of a society segregated by blood type. There are a couple of inaccuracies (for example a reference to an O antigen, which doesn’t exist), but overall Panatier does a great job at incorporating medical science facts as springboards for science fiction.

The story focuses on Willa Mae Wallace – a Reaper for Patriot, the blood contractor that more or less rules society. The world has been ravaged by nuclear weapons, producing Grey Zones – areas full of people suffering from radiation sickness and other injuries who desperately need blood. With jobs mostly performed by robots, the main way for the populace to earn money is by donating blood – with the best price gained for O negative blood, which can be donated to anyone. Those with O negative have become rich, whilst those with AB positive live in slums, as their blood can only be donated to each other. Willa is AB positive, and has only dragged herself out of the slums by gaining her job as a Reaper (or phlebotomist). However, after witnessing an accident at work, Willa finds herself privy to Patriot’s biggest secret – and they’ll do anything to keep it from getting out.

Willa is an intriguing character. For one thing, she’s a grandmother – an unusual choice for a sci-fi protagonist – who’s been left completely bald, choosing to wear a wig of bright pink hair. Everything she does is to protect her grandson Isaiah. She’s got strong morals and a kind streak a mile wide, but – whilst she regularly reminisced about the past – she doesn’t always read her age. She’s an active lady with no age-related complaints, and I wish a little more had been done to make her seem like an older lady – or else she’d just been written as Isaiah’s mother.

While Willa is the majority point-of-view character, we get occasional chapters from the perspective of Everard, the member of a group of blood-hackers. These are interesting but mostly unnecessary – they never do anything to further the plot. They also do nothing to flesh out Everard as a character – while Willa gets some backstory, most of the other characters are little more than names on the page. This makes it hard to care when bad things happen to them, and lowers the stakes in what should be tense, dramatic moments.

My main issue with this book is more of a personal one than any flaw with the book itself, and that’s that it turned into something very different to what I expected. I went in expecting sci-fi dystopia, but by the end this was more of a fantasy novel with a sci-fi backdrop. I love fantasy, but I see so little medical sci-fi that I just really wanted a novel that explored the potential of that, rather than falling back on fantasy to add intrigue. My rating is purely based on personal enjoyment, and I really think that many others will love the direction it takes. I would prefer this as two separate books – one sci-fi dystopia, and one with the intriguing fantasy elements.

The ending feels a bit rushed in places – so much happens in a short space of time that it stops being as dramatic as it should be – but sets the book up for a potential sequel. Given that I’ll know what to expect, I might pick up a sequel if it appears – the world is excellent, and I’d be interested to see if Panatier explores beyond the boundaries of what we see here.

Overall, this is an ambitious book that didn’t quite work for me, but that I expect many people will love. If you’re a fan of genre-crossing sci-fi and fantasy, kickass grandmothers, and taking down evil corporations, this might be a book for you.

"Doom is a flood that waits for the rift."

First of all, can we please just admire the cover of this book? It jumped off the screen at me and I knew I had to request it. Second of all, the premise. This book is completely different from any other dystopian novel I have read. The book follows Willa, who works as a phlebotomist for the government. Citizens are required to donate blood by law, and are paid for any extra blood they can give. Willa is the primary guardian for her grandson, Isiah, after her own daughter's life was taken by the blood trade. Third of all, Willa.. A grandmother as the lead was totally different in a genre where most protagonists are young and healthy.

The world building in this novel was exceptional. The blood districts, the harvest and the heart were all so well developed, without excessive info-dumping. I loved Willa's character and her commitment to Isiah, and I especially loved her newfound friendship with Lock. Their personalities were very different, and yet they were both motherly and determined. Kathy was the ultimate surprise and I kept forgetting she was only fourteen.

The beginning of the book and the last few chapters were fast paced and exciting. I loved the ending and hope there will be a second book. However, some of the lengthy medical descriptions and computer terminology from Lock were over my head, and I found myself skimming these sections. I greatly admire the research that went into this book, but for me, it didn't need to be quite so detailed.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an arc in exchange for an honest review.

Review: The Phlebotomist by Chris Panatier

Rating: 9/10

Synopsis

War brought the Harvest. Willa Mae Wallace is a reaper.

To support herself and her grandson Isaiah, Willa works for the blood contractor Patriot. Instituted to support the war effort, the mandatory draw (The Harvest) has led to a society segregated by blood type. Hoping to put an end to it all, Willa draws on her decades-old phlebotomy training to resurrect an obsolete collection technique, but instead uncovers an awful truth.

Patriot will do anything to protect its secret. On the run and with nowhere else to turn, Willa seeks an alliance with Lock, a notorious blood-hacker who cheats the Harvest to support the children orphaned by it. But they soon find themselves in the grasp of a new type of evil.

Review

Kick-ass grandmother, an evil corporation and a dystopian setting. Does it get any better than that?

Right, where do I even start with this one? Maybe I should just leave it with a “GO AND GET THIS BOOK, NOW!” You won’t regret it at all but I guess you want more of a review than that.

Let’s get to it and I want to start with the cover of The Phlebotomist. I know we shouldn’t judge a book by its cover but how can we not when it looks this good. Just check out that cover. It’s bright pink, it's simple and Chris Panatier illustrated the anatomical heart/flower mashup himself. That’s pretty damn awesome. This book is an eye-catcher and will look great on any and all bookshelves.

Okay, so what I really loved about this book is our protagonist, a Reaper called Willa. A 60 year old grandmother that works for Patriot, a blood donation company, and does all she can to provide for her grandson in a dystopian near future. We get to see Willa change from the sweet and kind grandmother we all know to a mean machine during this story. Don’t get me wrong she is still sweet and kind but now knows how and is willing to get s**t done in order to keep those around her safe. Chris’ character development is fantastic and I really connected with all the characters throughout the story including the side characters.

Chris Panatier lands us straight in the centre of a country that has been ravished by a recent war and we soon understand the consequences of the war and how the people adapted afterwards. We witness a country of titanic inequality amongst its population and this holds a mirror up to our current society and shows us how devastating inequality can be for everyone. I enjoyed the way that Chris Panatier approaches the subject of inequality and it will serve as an eye-opener for many people. Overall the world-building in The Phlebotomist is fantastic and if you are a fan of well crafted settings then this is for you.

Now I found the plot unique in its telling and it had me hooked and asking questions from the very first page. It’s a nice fast pace without feeling rushed and the story unravels at just the right frequency to keep the reader entertained. I certainly didn’t feel any lulls during this read and it kept my attention throughout.

Chris Panatier creates an interesting take on the classic dystopian future in his debut and I for one can't wait to read more of his work in the future. The Phlebotomist is definitely for those that love dystopian novels, definitely for those that love a strong female lineup and definitely for those that love a little dose of conspiracy.

3.5/5

The Phlebotomist is the story of Willa Mae Wallace, a ‘Reaper’ who works for Patriot – the corporation in power. Reapers collect blood as part of a system put in place after a series of bombs created a high need for transfusions and a shortage of blood. Patriot set up a system where people are paid for their blood, the rate determined by the percentage of the population who can receive transfusions of their blood type – putting O- at the top and AB+ at the bottom of the financial ladder. Willa worked as a phlebotomist before the current system and she longs for the ability to separate blood, unfortunately they no longer have the ability to make the anti-coagulates that would allow that to be possible due to radiation from the bombs.

At least, that’s what Patriot tells them.

When Willa witnesses a transport drone crash and finds that the drone, which should have been carrying blood to those that need it but was instead empty, Willa starts spiraling down a path of conspiracies and lies towards the truth Patriot has been hiding the whole time. Willa teams up with a group from the AB+ district to try to get the truth out.

Overall, I enjoyed this book. It’s interesting and for the most part I liked the characters. I did have a few problems with it.

First, there’s Willa’s grandson, Isaiah. He is a huge catalyst for the final climax of the book, felt more like set dressing than a proper character in his own right. It felt like the book wasn’t sure what to do with him.

Another issue I had was, there’s a section where Willa has to manually fly a drone for the first time and she almost immediately gets into a chase and succeeds not only in weaving in and out of buildings but also leads her pursuer down a dead end and narrowly escapes. If there’d been a more extensive learn to fly a drone sequence implied, it wouldn’t have bothered me that much but it just felt like Willa went from “I’ve never flown a drone” to “The Fast and the Furious: Drone Edition” unbelievably quickly.

While I did have a few problems with The Phlebotomist, overall I did enjoy it and I’m glad it seems to be set up for a sequel.

The Phlebotomist by Chris Panatier is a post apocalyptic, dystopian futuristic thriller with a conspiracy twist led by female protagonists who do the science and blow things up.

Honestly, what more do you need to know?

Okay, okay, the book centres around Willa Wallace (the phlebotomist of the title), who works to support herself and her grandson. There has been a global crisis, involving nuclear weapons and now the populace is subjected to a daily blood draw to support Patriot, the quasi government, private corporation that is now running things. Society is now a blood type based hierarchy, where people with blood borne diseases are rounded up and placed in ghettos.

Willa is an old school phlebotomist, having been trained before the crisis, and she starts to notice things aren't quite what they should be. After witnessing an accident, she gets caught up in and begins to uncover the conspiracy behind the Harvest.

I really enjoyed the book and as a fan of dystopian fiction, which can at times be BLEAK, this had a real heart and sense of humour to it.

Highly recommend

The characterizations and world building are great, and the books moves along with great pace. There is just enough science to make the book credible and really suspend your disbelief without it being too complicated for those of us who used to doze off in biology classes.

I read a book recently by an Italian author very similar to this, the premise were close but the execution and delivery of the story much different, I would say I enjoyed both but that I found this more engaging and the characters relatable (as much as is possible) it’s really good read with some unique and interesting concepts

Wow, this book wasn't what I expected.

To summarize it short I can say that: The Phlebotomist teams up with an ex-marine hacker and they decide to take out an evil government whose members are vampires.

Yeah, this book started like some Orwellian dystopian novel, but fast became something else entirely. We enter the world where people are segreagted by blood. If you are an universal donor, like 0-negative, you're a highblood, if you are an universal recipent, well your blood isn't worth much so you're a lowblood. To pay for living, people have to sell their blood, that is used to help people from Grey Zone (meaning a zone that suffered after bombardment).

Of course nothing is as it seems, and when our protagonist The Phlebotomist Willa (who is AB-positive, lowblood herself) finds out that something is wrong, the hell breaks loose. She has to team up with legendary Locksmith and those two badass old ladies, backed with some other side characters, try to show people the truth.

Yeah, I think this is as much as I can say about the plot. This book is crazy with action and it is impossible to be bored by it. Characters are great and no one is safe. Great read indeed! I am looking forward to read more of his author.

A while back, while sitting at my computer in my home office I found myself bored. My children were in the adjacent room watching reruns of Paw Patrol, my wife asleep on the couch. To provide some entertainment, I began making the rounds to my favorite publisher's websites to see what was coming up in the pipeline. I typed in the URL for Angry Robot and began my research. The Phlebotomist, the computer screen read in black digital ink. What an interesting title, I thought, so I clicked on it and was greeted with a bright pink cover and a picture of a heart. Once I read the synopsis I knew this book would be mine. My concern was that the synopsis wasn't accurate, that a book with such a promising premise would fall short and flat. My worries were unnecessary.

This book is a roller-coaster ride from page one. It tells the story of Willa, a phlebotomist in a future society where the demand for blood has increased so much everyone over the age of 16 is required to give a minimum donation in the Harvest. For those who choose to give more, they are compensated by a government agency known as PATRIOT. Certain blood is worth more than others based upon its bio-compatibility. O-negative is the universal donor so it is valued the most as are the donors. People are essentially placed into a caste system based upon their blood type.

I've read numerous books where people are placed into a caste system but none have been centered around their blood type. This was such a genius idea. Willa soon discovers things aren't as they appear and thus begins the story of bringing down an entire social strata system.

Panatier does everything right in this book. There is never a dull moment with fast paced chapters full of excitement, action, twists, and turns. He beautifully weaves a society which is both horrifying yet believable, where politicians and high society members declare FAKE NEWS! and quell any type of uprising. Willa is such a great protagonist too. She is loyal, mild mannered, and content with her life until her eyes are opened. She is certainly someone I got behind and enjoyed reading about.

With this being Panatier's debut, I can only imagine what his ceiling is. This is a book that I would expect from a veteran in the industry. I have already raved about it to coworkers, book club members, friends, and family. The only problem is they will have to wait until September when it comes out. To summarize this long review: read this weird, twisted, wacky book. It has a chance at being the best thing you'll read all year.

Wow - Panatier's The Phlebotomist drives forward like a semi-truck, never content to let you sit quietly and process. With second to none worldbuilding, he's layered traditional fantasy within sheets of science fiction, post-apocalyptic dystopia, and good old fashioned adventure. Like a parfait (or an onion), every time you think you're comfortable and fully in control, Panatier pulls the rug out from under your feet with a new twist or a new shift to the paradigm of his world. Eschewing the traditional post-apocalyptic protagonists (star-crossed lovers, abandoned-at-birth youth, mysterious stranger with a past), his characters feel real, with understandable motivations and passions that drive them. Panatier did his research as well; his science feels accurate (always a risk when you use actual science vs making it up) and doesn't detract from the plot. All in all, I can recommend this book wholeheartedly, without any reservations - I just need to go find out my blood-type so I can prepare (just in case).

This book absolutely blew me away, from the first line where people were queuing up to sell their blood, I was hooked. The Phlebotomist is set in a world where people have become reliant on selling their blood to Patriot, a global retriever of blood every 45 days from everyone aged 16 upwards. Within the world that Chris has created, the population is segregated into several living areas based on their blood types. This provides a somewhat caste system depended on an individuals blood, from high bloods, medium bloods to low bloods - such as AB that can be given to anyone. With the blood types, each one is worth more or less depending on how high in demand it is, this leads to bloody (get it?) crimes such as blood muggings! How scary is that?! This world that you can find within the pages of The Phlebotomist is horrifyingly shocking, set with a dystopian backdrop but Patriot and 'the reapers' who work there are just the tip of the iceberg.
We meet our female protagonist, Willa, who is a lovable granny and one of the only actually trained phlebotomists left working at Patriot. She is a character who you can't help but fall in love with, with her well tuned moral compass, her kindness and the love she has for her grandson Isaiah. This fast paced storyline, throws you in the deep end of a biological / medical dystopian which has so many layers and twists. I was gripped from the get go and consumed the whole novel in one day. When Willa falls across cover-ups, conspiracies and a mystery that has her running for her life with some unexpected acquaintances and nail biting reveals, it's hard not to be completely mesmerised by The Phlebotomist.
The storyline is impeccably written, with each chapter starting with a 'fun fact', Chris obviously took care to research the components of this novel which helped take it from strength to strength. The knowledge interwoven into the storyline fitted perfectly, not only did it provide a further atmospheric feel but it also educated me. Another reason why I loved this book is it's nothing quite like anything I've read before, a medical dystopian mixed with a sci-fi element that felt scarily plausible on so many levels - people willingly selling their blood in dangerous levels in order to help themselves and their family survive, a huge multi-national company literally draining its 'customers' of life then slapping a name on it that suggests that it's their patriotic duty to provide this life giver! A little peak into money and greed within humanity don't you think?
Overall, a fantastic novel written to create a terrifyingly tense literary adventure, with chapters flowing easily into one another and just intoxicating the reader with futuristic technology, biological hacking and an array of other adrenaline pumping elements, The Phlebotomist is a dark, twisted debut you're really not going to want to miss!

It's been a while since a book about the near future has made me that excited. The Phlebotomist draws a very interesting future where blood has literally become the most important part of economy.
We follow the story of a phlebotomist - Willa, trained around our present time, that has held the job title in the future, even though the job in the future bares very little resemblance. Willa now spends her entire workdays collecting blood donations that get sent to areas where people need transfusions because of radiation sickness. She's managed to get a somewhat comfortable life for this post-apocalyptic world, when by sheer accident she starts uncovering the truth behind the system, in which she works and lives.
I really liked the characters and setting, and how everything was explained. This made for quite a nice weekend read. The book seems open to a sequel and I'd be really happy if we get one.

*Thanks to NetGalley and Angry Robot for providing me with an ARC of this title in exchange for an honest review.*