3.8 stars

A gritty and bold satire, The Ten Percent Thief proves itself to be dystopian and speculative to its very bone, all the while promising to be haunting, and raise a hundred questions about society, change, and revolution. This is a novel that takes the phrase, “History repeats itself.” to the next level—in a way you wouldn’t expect but in the way it all makes sense.

Welcome to Apex City. This is a city not divided by caste, religion, colour, or creed but classified on the basis of productivity. The more productive you are, the higher your rank is likely to be on the Bell Curve, the curve that measures a person’s worth. The lower you sink, the more plausible it is for you to be harvested in the vegetable farm. I greatly admire the world-building in this book, Lakshminarayan has really outdone herself in crafting the basics. As you read, it feels very believable that such a future can exist, or is in the making. And that’s what makes the novel all the more horrifying, don’t you think so?

The Ten Percent Thief does not follow a single person or a selected multitude of beings. Instead, it chooses to be a mosaic, something that worked very well with the story and the message. The reader is everywhere, inside everyone’s heads—from the wealthy and untouchable twenty percent to the outnumbered and impoverished Analogs. Sometimes, the perspectives don’t come again, but they stay long enough to gnaw in people’s minds, whispering unsettling things about the society and future.

Demarcating the lives of the Analogs and Virtuals; the previously published title of the book, is an electric shield christened the Carnatic Meridian. And being born an Analog? That’s a fate one wouldn’t wish upon their worst enemy. (okay, maybe they might, but still!) However, unbeknownst to the upper class, there’s a Resistance brewing, that threatens to—or rather, declares to—rewrite a chapter in history in a way that claims to be beneficial to all.

But isn’t that what humans do? It’s in their nature, to think that they’re capable of change, to think that somehow, they will achieve something no one ever has. Something everyone tried to do. Unearthing more questions than answers, this novel is speculative at best and satirical at worst. So if you’re still waiting for a reason to pick this up, I hope this review offers an answer to your question!

After years of environmental catastrophes, ecological, governmental and infrastructure collapses, and other terrible things, Bell Corp emerged and took over Bangalore, renaming it Apex City, and allocating resources and services based on one’s productivity and performance. (Bell Corp took over several other cities also in the world, and all follow the same ideology and rules of meritocracy where people's performance is constantly monitored, including their social media standing, and graded on a Bell Curve.

Apex City is enclosed by a shield, and the top workers/earners are called the 20%, and live lives of unimaginable luxury. The bulk of people are the 70%, who are well off, but not as well as the 20%. Much of the lives of those in Apex City are virtual, and they are constantly assessed, and every year anyone not falling within acceptable parameters are exiled and become Analogs, the 10%. The Analogs must scavenge and barter for water and even basic tech, and some end up in the Vegetable Farm where their organs are harvested for those in Apex City.

Lavanya Lakshminarayan shows us people in the 70%, some of whom are struggling to maintain their privilege, the self-absorbed 20%, and the 10%, who are slowly finding ways to take back control from the wealthy. Each story in this loosely connected collection follows a different person in a different economic class within Apex, or within the burgeoning revolutionary movement in the Analog world. We see Apex children indoctrinated against Analogs, and constantly aware that unless they work hard, they'll be kicked out of the City. We also meet Analog individuals figuring out clever ways to steal tech and plot against Apex.

The stories are bleak, horrifying, satirical and really compelling. They also point out how easily people will make up rules to exclude and harm others, and ruthlessly follow and support these rules. And though there is not one narrative in the book, all the stories illustrate the author's points so well. This is a terrific book.

4.5 stars.

Thank you to Netgalley and to Rebellion for this ARC.

I know that many people will laugh and point out that this is a work of fiction but, for me, this story is too close to the way that society is headed.

This is the story of a world where everyone sits somewhere on the bell-curve of usefulness. The top 20% have everything that could possibly imagine because they are "the best", the next 70% are striving to move up the bell-curve to become part of the 20% and the last 10% are at the bottom of the pile and are striving to stay alive - and everyone is wishing to improve/maintain their lot. Sounds an awful lot like the world we are starting to live in and presages badly for our future.

This is a nicely constructed tale where the people are all very human with their wants and needs and fears and ambitions and their sense of self worth (real or imagined).

Could rattle on with even more examples but, instead, will suggest you read this dystopian tale for yourselves and be shocked by the way it so closely parallels too much of the "developed world".

I received an eARC of The Ten Percent Thief by Lavanya Lakshminarayan through Netgalley, thanks Solaris! This dystopian scifi came out last week, March 28.

The book is described by the publisher as a mosaic novel. It is a collection of vignettes or short stories, with each chapter following a new character. All these stories are set in and around Apex City (former Bangalore) in the far future. The people inside the city, the Virtuals, rely on futuristic technology for their every need, and focus on productivity and image to get ahead on the Bell Curve. Too low on that curve and they risk getting deported. Outside the city, the Analogs try to survive without technology, electricity or running water, and are always in danger of being harvested for organs. But resistance is brewing.

We meet many different characters in this world, in varying positions in these two societies. At first the chapters all seemed unrelated apart from being set in the same world, but events do come together and some characters are seen again as background characters in other chapters. 

When I first started reading, I had to put the book down for a while because I was thrown off by the unexpected short story structure. But when I went back in with new expectations I ended up enjoying the book as a whole, and since finishing it I’ve been thinking about it a lot. I really admire the way the book is written and constructed. The worldbuilding is great. Many stories highlight a specific element of virtual society, often a magnified version of something we have today, and the consequences if we would take that thing to the extreme.

Because we switch POV in every chapter, it was harder to feel connected to the characters. There were some that I would have liked to spend more time with (for example the adopted Analog girl trying to became a pianist, or the elderly man in the ‘retirement home’) but also a few that didn’t interest me as much.

All in all it’s such an intriguing concept and story and I recommend it if you like scifi/dystopian books or want to ponder our relationship with technology. Do be aware of the vignette structure before you start reading! 4 stars from me.

Thank you to NetGalley and to the publisher Rebellion/Solaris for the digital ARC, it has not affected my honest review.

It's difficult to describe how I feel about "The Ten Percent Thief" other than it wasn't what I was expecting but I also really enjoyed it. This is a tightly written sci-fi set in a future Bangalore, where everything about life is controlled by digital controls, whether it's your relationships, your skills or your job. Pleasing Bell Tech and being a good citizen is all determined by how much you avoid things that are considered uncivilised. Anyone who isn't part of the top 20% (or the working class 70%) is regarded as an Analog- limited from the virtual world and required to use Walkmans and paper books- and an outsider from popular society. A resistance is growing within the Analog community, aided by an unknown figure called the Ten Percent Thief. She steals electronics and access to the virtual world of the rich with the hope of one day freeing the Analogs from the society that's standing on them.

This is a series of interconnected short stories in one book, covering characters who run the biggest social media giants to a girl born to Analog parents attempting to become a Virtual citizen. It's the story of a woman who has been declared to be a bad citizen, who will have to work like an Analog until she proves she is once again worthy (or face being sent to the "vegetable farm" where Analogs are killed) and small children being indoctrinated via a train ride led by the sister of a former Virtual, desperately seeking one last glance at her only other family. Lastly, it is the interconnected tale of two societies at war with each other and the people who are either benefiting from being Virtual or fighting to be more than just Analog. The idea is so original and I found myself completely unable to put this book down until I finished it. The combination of technology, rebellion and social media works brilliantly here because the writing is so powerful and matter of fact. I'm glad I read this book and would look forward to more set in the world of Apex City in the future.

The blurb calls this a mosaic novel, which isn't a bad name for a collection of short stories, all set in the same place, all telling piecemeal aspects of the same story to a conclusion. This feels like a popular form at the moment, its enticing to an author who doesn't have to build long character arcs, and particularly in science fiction, can interrogate different aspects of the world they have created. Here the world is Apex City, ex-Bangalore, run as a meritocracy with the bell curve making all decisions over status and future. The top ten percent rigorously fight for their place as the elite, the next batch jockey into position for them and their offspring to make that leap, and at the bottom the non-citizens grub to survive. Yep, its a status satire that wears its Indianess lightly but shows some of the historical anger over caste inequities in its gleaming computerised future.

The Ten Percent Thief is out to change all of that, though they are a background mythical figure in much of what is going on. And if there is a flaw here, it is that it is much more interested in the Elite slowly falling apart than a revolution in the gutters. Perhaps it is more interesting to show the top echelons how their perfect society, even a society seems to work perfectly for them, is eventually flawed for them too. The stories range from simple takes on work, promotion and influencer culture to some more subtle takes on the qualities of music in a perfected world, and even gaming. The pleasures here are not necessarily in radically new ideas for dystopia in utopian clothes, but rather in the consistency that it is all done well and draws towards a cathartic ending.

Ahoy there me mateys!  The ideas of a meritocracy are always interesting for me.  I want to know how they got started, how they work, and how merit is evaluated.  This meritocracy takes place in India.  Social media seemed to be the key indicator of status of the majority of the 20 or so characters followed in the book.  While that seemed realistic given today's reality, I wanted more insight into the jobs that did not involve being social media personas. I never truly understood the practicalities of how this meritocracy functioned.

The other personal preference is that the insight into the lives of the characters all were vignettes.  I wish there was at least one character who could have been a through-line in the plot.  The major problem was that while I liked how all the characters were portrayed, I didn't get enough insight into their lives, thoughts, or what happens to them. 

The timelines were also a bit hard to follow because of the writing style.  I wasn't always sure how much time was passing.  This was particularly evident in the rebellion subplot.  I don't really know what the rebellion was hoping to accomplish and the ending was weak on that point.  Overall, while the concepts are always worth reading about, the execution didn't really work for me.  I would try another book by the author though.  Arrr!

Extremely funny and thought provoking, a description of our future that could be very realistic. The author did a good job in developing the world and the characters, I liked the humour.
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this arc, all opinions are mine

The Ten Percent Thief is an exceptional read, this is set up as a “mosaic novel”, which is a series of connected short stories that brings everything together by the end of the book, each chapter focuses on one character before moving on to the next story and character. The characters are from all walks of society, it helps the world of the book feel more connected even with so many viewpoints. It’s a fantastic book

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

The Ten Percent Thief is centered around the futuristic Apex City, which was built over the remains of present-day Bangalore. In Apex City, advanced technology manages every aspect of typical life, courtesy of The Bell Corporation, the megacorp rulers of the city. The world has been remade according to Bell Corporation guidelines, with a single virtue ruling all others: maximize productivity. Citizens are constantly ranked by their “productivity” score. How well are they doing at work? How popular are they socially? Do they conform to accepted views? Everything and anything is calculated into Productivity. To be Unproductive is the greatest sin.

The world at large is divided into three main groups: The top 20%, who are given exclusive technologies and privileges, the middle 70%, who get most technologies but are constantly in danger of sliding downward, and the bottom 10%—who are stripped of all technology and protective rights, and exiled from the city into the surrounding slums. This is where the title of the book comes from: one of the characters is an infamous thief who belongs to the 10%, but steals from the city. You are either an Analog, one of the unproductive slugs that live outside the boundaries of the city, or a Virtual, one who is productive enough to earn the right to have advanced technology. (This book was previously published exclusively in Southeast Asia under the title of Analog/Virtual).

I found The Ten Percent Thief to be a phenomenal read. It’s a hard-to-define book in all the right ways. It’s set up as a “mosaic novel”, which is basically a series of loosely connected short stories that manage to paint a unified picture by the end of the book. In The Ten Percent Thief, this presents itself as twenty short stories, all from a different perspectives, alternating between an Analog tale and a Virtual one. Most characters star in a chapter and then only make brief appearances throughout the rest of the book, so there is no “main character” here. If anything, the setting itself is the main character.

And it’s the setting that creates the real brilliance here. The dichotomy Lakshminarayan has created is equal parts wonder and terror, and it feels richly detailed. At first, I felt like the novel was equal parts utopian and dystopian—the gorgeous Apex City with its miraculous technology paints a picture of a society who wants for nothing, whereas the slums are harsh and unforgiving, people crammed into tiny living pods that are precariously balanced, scavenging for water and basic resources. But the curtain is quickly pulled back from Apex City and Virtual life. Yes, the citizens could want for nothing, but the relentless meritocracy makes them want for everything. Each Virtual chapter tended to unfold like an episode of Black Mirror, as the citizenry handed their autonomy over more and more to the corporate machine, and each Analog one felt cruel and unforgiving but at least they’re not insane.

The Ten Percent Thief manages to feel fresh in a way that most novels don’t. In many ways, it feels like Lakshminarayan has manage to innovate in a way I haven’t seen for a long time: she made a new dystopia. Not every idea feels entirely unique—I’ll mention again that many of them seem right at home in Black Mirror)—but the overarching structure of it and the satirical foundation of real-world corporate performance buckets and bell-curves makes it into something special.

While reading this, my mind kept returning to a section of Snow Crash by Neal Stephenson. It’s a chapter describing a day at work for YT’s mother, who works at government offices. She’s just received a new memo sent over email, which seems innocuous enough—but it’s fraught with possible risks. She knows that if she reads the email under 15.62 minutes, she’s going to be labeled as a either having a slipshod attitude, or prone to missing important details. If she takes longer than 15.62 minutes, she’s either labeled as being hung up on minor details or intentionally wasting corporate time. If she finishes with exactly 15.62 minutes, she’s an “untrustworthy asswipe”. YT’s mom decides to come in just under 15 minutes, figuring that “efficient but may miss details” is the lesser evil here, and she intentionally re-reads earlier sections so that the computer flags her as a careful re-reader, something she’s been demonstrating for a decade. It’s a horrifying and humorous satire of corporate mindsets, and anyone who has ever been on the wrong side of a surprise performance review can attest to it.

The Ten Percent Thief manages to capture that specific type of satire perfectly. It’s the first book that I’ve ever read that manages to invoke that Snow Crash scene, and it does it again and again, extending it in numerous ways. If you’re someone who felt spoken to by Stephenson from that scene, you should pick up this book immediately.

This wasn’t a perfect read for me. There were a few stories that I thought were on the weaker side, and I wasn’t entirely hooked by the ending. In fact, I came into this review expecting to give it just under five stars. But after writing this and realizing how much I’m gushing over it, and how much I enjoyed my time with it despite the occasional bump: this is a five-star read. The Ten Percent Thief deserves it. This is the first award-worthy read of 2023 for me, and I’d be shocked if it didn’t end up on my Hugo nominating ballot.

5/5 stars

You should read The Ten Percent Thief if:
-You want a fresh take on a dystopian future.
-You want a rebuttal to the relentless emphasis on meritocracy.
-You’re interested in a story told in a collection of loosely connected short stories.

when I found this ARC in NetGalley I had to request it, my first contact with this author was in best in world SF volume 2, that I actually also read here in NetGalley, ok going back to the story, I was introduced to the first chapter of this story in that book, and in the end it was one of the few stories (on said book) that ended up living rent free on my head, so I really had to read the whole book, basically we have several short stories that come alive in this city, giving a continuation from one story to the other, without a direct link. In geral I did like it, but the story that gives the name to this book is one of the best in the book, some of the stories felt a bit disconnected, but that of course is a personal opinion, I will still recommend this book as an interesting take in a dystopian world being brought to life through short stories.

And I definitely will want to read more of this author in the future.

Thank you NetGalley and Rebellion, Solaris for the free ARC and this is my honest opinion.

What an absolutely brilliant sci fi novel! This is not my usual genre so I was skeptical but the author absolutely blew me away with their story and writing abilities!

Imagine society is divided into people who use tech and people who don't. And the people who don't are considered the lowest possible class of society. Sounds pretty messed up, right? But yet... you can picture it, can't you? That is the very short gist of this story, but the world and society has so much more to offer!

What I Loved:

►Legit, this is so thought provoking. I mean... we are absolutely headed down this road where every interaction happens online, right? Where you never ever leave your house again? It's terrifying. And so completely plausible.

►Great twists! Yeah the twists were fabulous, I was constantly surprised by the turns the story took.

►The world building was amazing and so creative. I mean, it is clear that the author put a lot into coming up with the nuances of this world. I adored the Bangalore setting, and the attention to detail in terms of the rules of the society was great.

►I enjoyed many of the characters and their stories. My one qualm below is that we didn't get to spend enough time with the ones I did love, and I would have liked more of their stories, but that is because I liked them and wanted more. I thought the author did a great job of showcasing characters from all walks of society, so that part was fabulous.

What I Didn't:

►I wish we had followed the same characters more. Kind of when we were done with a character, we were done with a character and that gave me the sads. I wanted to know what happened more on a personal level, which I didn't really get. I suppose that was intentional, and this is clearly a personal preference.

►I was definitely a little lost at first. Some of the technical stuff went way over my head at first. I still got the general idea, but I kind of would have liked some more description of the technology, so I could have been more immersed into the world.

Bottom Line: All too plausible and definitely thought provoking, The Ten Percent Thief left me with a lot to ponder, in a really good way.

This is the book I didn’t know I needed right now. Just absolutely fantastic! I loved every moment. It felt initially like a set of short stories set in the same world, just showing different viewpoints, as each chapter bore no relationship to the previous one, but then everything came together in one absolutely marvellous session.

I was just gripped by this, the imagination was astounding, and quite frankly terrifying. Could this be us in the future?!

Just mind blowing quite frankly.

My thanks to Netgalley and Rebellion for the advance copy in exchange for an honest review

Welcome to Apex City, formerly Bangalore, where everything is decided by the mathematically perfect Bell Curve.

With the right image, values and opinions, you can ascend to the glittering heights of the Twenty Percent – the Virtual elite – and have the world at your feet. Otherwise you risk falling to the precarious Ten Percent, and deportation to the ranks of the Analogs, with no access to electricity, running water or even humanity.

The system has no flaws. Until the elusive “Ten Percent Thief” steals a single jacaranda seed from the Virtual city and plants a revolution in the barren soil of the Analog world.I’m so sad it's over. I could have read another sixty chapters . . . A fantastic read!

I haven’t read a 5-star novel in a while, but this one fits the bill. I loved this novel. A beautifully detailed world in which class systems rely upon one’s productivity is our setting. It is broken into a class of the top 20%, the middle 70% and the low 10% (the analogs). People’s technological and social privileges are tied to their class system. So, the more productive you are, the more tools are available to continue said productivity.

Each chapter focuses on one character before moving on to the next character. This decision allowed for several different points of view from a variety of characters. These characters range from the top social media performers to children born in the analog class but adopted into a higher productivity class. And it covers just about everything else in between! Seeing so many viewpoints made the world feel fully realized, despite the book being fairly short for such a task.

All the storylines are eventually tied together seamlessly, and I am still grinning after finishing this book. Several themes, such as reproductive rights, body autonomy, job pressures, bullying, social media, and reliance on technology, are also highlighted throughout. I am so happy I read this book. It was indeed such a pleasure.

I want to thank Netgalley and Rebellion Publishing for an e-ARC of The Ten Percent Thief in exchange for an honest review

It's unusual for me to pick up a sci-fi novel but I'm trying to read outside my comfort zone and the synopsis for this one grabbed my attention.

The structure of this book is unlike any other that I've read so far. It almost reads like an anthology of short stories to create a bigger picture. This was an interesting way to create the storyline but I feel there were just too many characters and I didn't get to know any of them with any great depth. I feel this writing style could have worked better for me if the stories all came together at the climax of the book. Some did, but other character threads just seemed to fizzle out with no resolution.

The book is set in the near future with world building and technology that isn't too far fetched to be believable. I certainly found this novel to be thought provoking and engaging despite the lack of connection to the characters.

I'm a sucker for possible futures where things can actually happen if we are not careful as a society. Its also very refreshing that the book is not set somewhere in the US as it's the usual trend with books like this. It had its interesting parts but there were also some I didn't quite liked. But in a general sense it was an interesting read.

My Quick Take: Sci-fi satire in a quick-paced novel that reveals the inherent injustice of the “meritocracy.” A great read!

“They will love him because he is filled with all the things they like to hear. They will love him because he is empty.”

In the near future, climate change has wreaked havoc and traditional world order has broken down. Apex City (previously known as Bangalore) is the centre of an organization that now runs the show on the basis of the Bell Curve. It's a meritocracy that rewards those in the top 20%, takes care of those from 10-70%, and throws away those in the bottom 10% of productivity (The Analogs). And the Analog rebellion is afoot!

This novel is sci-fi satire in a quick-paced novel that reveals the inherent injustice of the “meritocracy.” I really enjoyed this novel. It is:

-A fast-paced examination of the natural, awful consequences of a meritocracy to rule a nation. The theme of social injustice is not subtle, and starts to hit home just over half way through. It's a good reminder of how the notion of meritocracy as just fails us on so many levels.

-A cool look at a sci-fi style that I had to look up. I think it’s best described as “Retro-Futurism,” but science fiction purists may need to correct me. There are VirtuoPods, reflecto-screens and OmniPorts. Be-Mojis surround people’s heads in a pixelated cloud (“Nobody…wants to have to waste any more time on verbal self-expression.”)

-A “mosaic novel,” where we see each chapter from a different character’s POV, but stitched together to create one, linear story. Main characters recurred later as minor characters so the narrative was totally coherent. There isn’t deep character development or world building, but I didn’t miss it here.

The ending really brought the characters together, and was surprisingly humane…the best possibility of what humanity can be, at least for a time. Perhaps overly optimistic, but really lovely. I’d recommend this one!

Thanks to @rebelliondevelopments @solarisbooks and @netgalley for a digital ARC in exchange for my unbiased review.

The Ten Percent Thief by Lavanya Lakshminarayan is a gripping mystery novel that will keep you hooked until the very end. The story revolves around a group of college friends who reunite after several years to participate in a reunion party. However, their celebration is cut short when one of their friends goes missing, and they are forced to come together to solve the mystery of her disappearance.

Lakshminarayan's writing is sharp and suspenseful, drawing the reader into the story with her skilled pacing and vivid descriptions. The plot is well-crafted, with plenty of twists and turns to keep readers guessing until the very end. The characters are also well-developed, each with their own unique personalities and motivations that add depth to the story.

One of the strengths of The Ten Percent Thief is its portrayal of the bonds between friends. The characters' relationships are explored in detail, and the ways in which they support each other through difficult times are heartwarming and relatable. Additionally, the novel touches on important themes such as privilege, corruption, and the impact of technology on society, making it a thought-provoking read.

Overall, The Ten Percent Thief is a well-written and engaging mystery novel that will appeal to fans of the genre. With its strong characters, intricate plot, and thought-provoking themes, it is a book that will stay with you long after you've turned the final page.