Mutant U

An Average Jax

By: Maximum Morowsky

Narrated by: Jason Kaye

Length: 23 hrs and 8 mins

Publisher's summary

Four years ago, Jackson Allen’s life got turned upside down. Now, to even have a fighting chance at a future, he has to graduate from Excalibur University, one of the two colleges in the nation that accepts mutants. To make matters worse, Jackson doesn’t have any mutant powers, making him the neon-green sheep among a flock of society’s black sheep. Follow Jackson’s journey as he struggles with his mental health, fitting in, and solving New Landing’s latest mystery.

©2022 Maximum Morowsky (P)2022 Maximum Morowsky

Dyslexia Overcome

I was skeptical based on the other reviews but decided to listen anyway. The story itself seemed a bit juvenile but I must not have heard the MC's age of 14 early in the story. All in all a good story and great metaphor on how to approach the challenges that life may throw at you. I recommended this to my brother before I even finished it!

Good book for Cultists

Somehow the narrator elevated this story with nuanced cadences (probably not on purpose). I couldn’t help but snicker at the “black…..out curtains”. Dude, I’m pretty sure they are supposed to be “blackout curtains” - one word. And, the number of times the narrator had to read out “the unit” somehow evolved to a subliminal alternate meaning (and I do think the narrator might have actually done this on purpose). I found myself thinking it was just quirky enough that this story/audio combo can’t help but develop a cult following. As for me I think I might just be one of the cultists.

Why call it a mutant story?

The capsule summary here is that there is a segment of society who are different than baseline humanity and are being oppressed as a result. The MC is a member of this group, but does not manifest visible differences. Because of a traumatic event, they become a vigilante who, largely unsuccessfully, rages against this oppression.

Notice that I didn't saying anything about mutations in the above? That's because the story is so generic that the specifics of what makes these people different is completely irrelevant. The author picked "mutation" as the back story, but it could have been "super powers", "magic", or even "racial differences" without impacting the arc of the story at all. Basically, the whole thing comes off as an unsubtle rip off of Batman.

In addition, the characterization of the MC is wildly unfocused. At one moment they are drowning in angst, the next they are the Dark Knight. This would be fine if it was driven by the narrative, but any time the author decides to pad out a scene they let the MC fall back into yet another pool of self doubt. This rapidly becomes tedious to the point frustration.

Finally, the narration on this book is terrible. The narrator seems to be reading the content with no rehearsal, often appearing surprised by the sentence structure, leading to odd pauses and incorrect intonation. This isn't helped by the very uneven production quality, with glaring edits and significant changes in volume and tone.

Somewhat okay

The listening audience will find this book pleasant. However, at the same time, it can be somewhat tedious, and with that said, it might turn some audio listeners off. The voice of the main character is good for the listeners. However, the narrator’s performance of the other characters is subpar. I could not say that I would recommend this book. If I did, it might be a disappointment to some listeners.