The Debt Collector: LIRIUM (Season One)
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4.3 • 88 Ratings
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Publisher Description
What's your life worth on the open market?
In this sexy, gritty future-noir, debt collectors take your life energy and give it to someone more "worthy"... all while paying the price with black marks on their souls.
Lirium plays the part of the grim reaper well, with his dark trenchcoat and jackboots—he's just in it for his cut, ten percent of the life energy he collects before he transfers it on to the high potentials, people who will make the world a better place with their work and their lives. That hit of life energy, a bottle of vodka, and a visit from one of Madam Anastazja's girls keep him alive, stable, and mostly sane... until he collects again. But when his recovery ritual is disrupted, he has to choose between doing an illegal hit for a girl whose story has more holes than his soul or facing the bottle alone—a dark pit he's not sure he'll be able to climb out of again.
"Absolutely riveting!"
"Quinn has a way of writing heart-breaking characters."
"You'll be holding your breath, looking over your shoulder, and begging for more."
Originally written as a serial, LIRIUM is Season One of the Debt Collector series and contains the complete story of Lirium. Each season is told from the perspective of a different debt collector.
2015 Top SELF-ebook in Library Journal
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
The collected edition of Quinn's digital serial isn't groundbreaking, but it is fast-paced and just original enough to make its trope-heavy plot more interesting than it should be. In a by-the-numbers near-future class-driven dystopia, Lirium is one of a handful of human beings called debt collectors, people with the power to drain someone's potential future life force and to transfer that life to others. The government collects life from debt-ridden people to give to the entitled, while mobsters use debt collectors for generally sleazy purposes. Elena, an attractive prostitute with hidden depths (one of many neo-noir clich s), leads Lirium to discover that even the government side of collecting might be more than it seems. When he meets and falls for gorgeous collector Ophelia, he is quickly drawn even further into a conspiracy that involves the government and the mob. Quinn fills her book with plenty of violence and sex while dodging most questions about the science and setting. (BookLife)
Customer Reviews
Enjoyed, would recommend
Not sure how I stumbled across this book, but I'm glad I did. I'm in the habit of cycling back to books or authors I know I love when I'm tired of feeling like I've been scammed when the inside cover is the best writing. Kaye Quinn builds a believable world you get sucked in to, with characters to match. I'm off to read more of her works.
If you're curious who my usual go-tos are: Ilona Andrews, Orson Scott Card, and Patricia Briggs are usually at the top of the list for re-reads. Very much looking forward to having more content to devour, where the story exceeds the expectations set by the synopsis.
Stamped "paid"
Season 1 was great. Love Lirium's snappy attitude.
Killers
What I thought might turn out to be an interesting book turned out to bore me. I will not finish this book as the main character, Librium, is stuck on trying to save Ophelia who looks to me like she doesn’t want to be saved. The concept of taking life force from one person to give to another is horrible! The collectors are taking life force which would be fine it they were trying to help people to pass on but they are basically killing people! I do not recommend this book!