Book Jacket

 

rank 233
word count 55402
date submitted 16.01.2012
date updated 25.01.2012
genres: Fiction, Literary Fiction, Thriller...
classification: moderate
incomplete

The Nest

Neil Boultby

Am I the only one left in the world?
Is there a You?
Will you ever read this?

 

From her isolated world, Sophie recalls her family; her depressed mother; her nonchalant uncle, and her oppressive all-seeing aunt. Having never seen the outside world, or what is left of it, the inquisitive Sophie must rely on the stories she overhears to paint a picture of the ‘Old Life’; the present day to you and I. The more Sophie hears, the more she wants to know, and this hunger is heightened with the arrival of Leo, a young boy of Sophie’s age. As Sophie and Leo grow, so does their friendship and their eagerness to find out more about the outside world. They do not have to wait too long until fate lends them a helping hand and they find a key, but to which door in the Nest they do not know, only that it must belong to one of the Committee, a group of men and women who govern the Nest and its residents, censoring what they see fit. Sophie and Leo eventually discover a room into which they should not enter, but, as curious as children so often are, they do and what they find causes a chain of events that will change their lives forever.

 
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tags

alone, drama, dystopia, dystopian fiction, family, first person, future, love, memories, opression, post apocalyptic, woman

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38 comments

 

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jlsimpson wrote 77 days ago

It was the short pitch that caught me. And now I've cruised through the first three chapters and I'm loving this.
My mental soundtrack for this story is Sting's "Soul Cages" for some reason...odd. I don't usually hear music when I read.
I'm still reading about Sophie's young life and appreciating how you have worked in so much detail so effortlessly.
I'll have to finish up tomorrow because it's after two am but so far, this is amazing.

JKass wrote 87 days ago

Your short pitch sold me, i clicked on this right afterwards. The writing within did not disappoint either. Super dark plot driven by a great narrative and MC. One of the best books i've read on authonomy hands down.

Stark Silvercoin wrote 99 days ago

The Nest is a masterful mix of literary fiction and thriller, and while these two genres don’t often go hand in hand, when they do, it’s really magical. There’s even a bit of mystery involved, and that only serves to entice readers to keep going. Author Neil Boultby has a real strength at mixing just the right amount of each genre together to form a perfect potion in The Nest.

Told in first person, we see the world surrounding The Nest through the eyes of a child. The truly magnificent thing is that Sophie at first talks about her world admiringly, even though readers will start to see cracks in the façade. As time and chapters pass, we begin to change our viewpoint even more, seeing The Nest as something sinister. Perhaps it didn’t start out that way and perhaps it’s not that way by design, but there is something far from perfect about their society.

The story itself is imaginative and it’s well told. I’m not sure if Boultby means for the themes in the book to be expanded to say something about closed societies like North Korea, but it would not be too much of a stretch to do so. In any case, The Nest is destined to be a classic, beloved and discussed for many years after its publishing.

John Breeden II
Old Number Seven

Laurence Howard wrote 120 days ago

Masterly written and a captivating read. One of the best on site!
Backed with pleasure,
Laurence Howard, The Cross of Goa

RobbieMunro wrote 124 days ago

Were I to write as well I would not have to work at other things. This is superb!

Karamak wrote 5 days ago

Interesting concept and very original, really enjoyed your first three chapters.Karen, Faking it in France.

Wanttobeawriter wrote 51 days ago


THE NEST
This story begins on a sad and melancholy note as a person explains she is the only one left alive on the planet. It then shifts to 25 years ago to explain how that happened. It’s obvious you’ve lived for a long time in this fantasy world and it shows in the way you’re able to describe how everything looks and how your main character feels. I wish you described the nest earlier; I was picturing something round like a bird’s nest covered with a plastic air shield of some kind, not that it matters but I was surprised to find it was a rather plain building. I think you’ve populated this world with good characters. I liked both Sophie and Leo from the start. Felt sorry for them growing up in so regulated a world. Makes an intriguing read to find out how things got to this stage and then to one even worse. Highly starred and added to my shelf. Wanttobeawriter: Who Killed the President?

outofprintwriter wrote 51 days ago

Hi Neil
Your pitch is very engaging and I have been keen to read your book for some days now. You have built a very intriguing world here in the nest. You have created some interesting characters and dotted your text with tension and a feeling of what is going to happen? What is this all about? However, I think that areas of lengthy exposition stopped me from truly connecting with your story. This could easily be overcome by finding other ways to show background information, rather than telling it. I also felt a little like a horse being pulled back at the reigns. I wanted to leap into your story and start the journey, but felt like I was being pulled back. Does that make any sense? I think it is good to hold some things back, to create interest, but this has to be done with great skill. Having said all this, I think that you are a good writer and you have the foundations for an excellent story that should be quite marketable. I look forward to seeing how this one progresses...

jlsimpson wrote 77 days ago

It was the short pitch that caught me. And now I've cruised through the first three chapters and I'm loving this.
My mental soundtrack for this story is Sting's "Soul Cages" for some reason...odd. I don't usually hear music when I read.
I'm still reading about Sophie's young life and appreciating how you have worked in so much detail so effortlessly.
I'll have to finish up tomorrow because it's after two am but so far, this is amazing.

JKass wrote 87 days ago

Your short pitch sold me, i clicked on this right afterwards. The writing within did not disappoint either. Super dark plot driven by a great narrative and MC. One of the best books i've read on authonomy hands down.

NA Randall wrote 91 days ago

Neil,

I've just read 'The Nest' & 'Twenty-Seven Years Ago' chapters. Here are my thoughts:

The short, sharp setences and paragraph breaks at the start work very well. As I read on, however, I did feel that 'I want to tell you my story with as much truth as possible' might be the better opening line. For me, it has a real sense of immediacy about it, something which really drags the reader into the story.

Minor points 'The Nest' - There were a couple of things I wasn't too sure about. 'dulcitude' didn't read so good for me, and I'm not quite sure it sits very well with the tenor of the opening, the short, sharp, unfussy style of writing that is so effective in setting the tone/scene.

'go un' - did you mean 'go on'? wasn't sure.

'...all eventually go insane' - 'eventually' could probably be left out here.

'body art' I'd be tempted to cut 'body art' and let the sentence flow into 'the names...' you qualify this below with 'they call them tattoos' in the next sentence.

Twenty-Seven Years Ago. This chapter is excellent. You strike just the right balance between dropping the backstory to the reader, and moving things along at a nice, even pace, with the spectre of "The Nest" and the "old world" intriguing in the background. I loved the teasing little signposts you put out 'knew me best', and was really hooked by this point, perhaps because you set things up so nicely in the preceeding, prologue-like chapter.

Had I more time I would defintely have read on.

Happy to give you a run on my shelf.

Regards

NA 'The Butterfly and the Wheel'

Stark Silvercoin wrote 99 days ago

The Nest is a masterful mix of literary fiction and thriller, and while these two genres don’t often go hand in hand, when they do, it’s really magical. There’s even a bit of mystery involved, and that only serves to entice readers to keep going. Author Neil Boultby has a real strength at mixing just the right amount of each genre together to form a perfect potion in The Nest.

Told in first person, we see the world surrounding The Nest through the eyes of a child. The truly magnificent thing is that Sophie at first talks about her world admiringly, even though readers will start to see cracks in the façade. As time and chapters pass, we begin to change our viewpoint even more, seeing The Nest as something sinister. Perhaps it didn’t start out that way and perhaps it’s not that way by design, but there is something far from perfect about their society.

The story itself is imaginative and it’s well told. I’m not sure if Boultby means for the themes in the book to be expanded to say something about closed societies like North Korea, but it would not be too much of a stretch to do so. In any case, The Nest is destined to be a classic, beloved and discussed for many years after its publishing.

John Breeden II
Old Number Seven

Neil Boultby wrote 120 days ago

Masterly written and a captivating read. One of the best on site!
Backed with pleasure,
Laurence Howard, The Cross of Goa



Many thanks for your comment Laurence...glad you enjoyed The Nest....I will upload more at a later date

Laurence Howard wrote 120 days ago

Masterly written and a captivating read. One of the best on site!
Backed with pleasure,
Laurence Howard, The Cross of Goa

Neil Boultby wrote 122 days ago

Great job on the first chapter! Happy to back your work. Will read more later. Hope you have a chance to take a look at Dark Side by CC Brown.
61BBboy



Many thanks for your comment...will be sure to take a look

61BBboy wrote 122 days ago

Great job on the first chapter! Happy to back your work. Will read more later. Hope you have a chance to take a look at Dark Side by CC Brown.
61BBboy

CGHarris wrote 123 days ago

This book had me hooked from the very first page. I think it reads like poetry. I love your opening, it had me reading on and on, wanting to find out what was coming next. I plan to come back to this one and read it through to the end. Thanks!

RobbieMunro wrote 124 days ago

Were I to write as well I would not have to work at other things. This is superb!

AJ Gunson wrote 124 days ago

Well done love. You said you would do it and it might have taken some time but well worth it. Really proud of you.

sgearry wrote 124 days ago

Hey sweetie this is an AMAZING achievement, can't wait to read the whole thing! xxx

kategrimes@live.co.uk wrote 125 days ago

For some reason this story reminds me of the t.v programme The Prisoner with Edward Woodward. It is very well-written and the m/c , Sophie, is very well portrayed. It does ramble a little at the beginning, and I'd like to know more as to why the Nest is there, but it's still an excellent story. A bit scary, too, as it seems so realistic - I can imagine a 'Big Brother' state here in the near future. Though I'm not a sci/fi fan, I found myself compelled to read on after the first few pages. I have backed it and put it on my w/l. Well Done.

Candymace wrote 125 days ago

A strong story set in a dystopian world. There is real confidence in the writing style. It is written with a good balance between narration and dialogue. I could see it doing well with a young adult audience. Candy.

Warrick Mayes wrote 125 days ago

Neil,

A very interesting read.
I only read chapter one, which is written in a delightful style. The narrative does not flow like other stories, the reader is thrown one-liners and morsels to gain interest and impart some knowledge about the main character and her history.

A lovely beginning, written in much the same way as people feel when they awake from an unusual, too-real dream where their normal surroundings somehow feel out-of-place in the awakening world.

The chapter gradually comes together and we are tempted by the full story, yet to be revealed!

I saw one line that did not feel right: "...as though she were on big canvass." Was this supposed to be "...as though she were a big canvass."?

Best regards
Warrick

kez wrote 125 days ago

neil im loving this book sooooooo much!
its got brilliant story telling and story line, great characters "aunt irris is brill lol hard faced but brill all the same" lol this book leaves me wanting more and a need to know whats comming next
im so proud of you xx

mclevin wrote 126 days ago

About once every two months I come across a book on this site that restores my faith in Authonomy as a real writers' enclave.

Thanks to the The Nest, I should remain satisfied until at least March.

A beautifully dark and original plot coupled with a powerful narrative voice. I backed this book after reading just three chapters. Kind of knew I would after reading just one.

You humbly mention "the roots are there" for this book on your profile page. Sir, I would say yours is already a sturdy oak growing tall.

Best of luck,

GL

M. Main wrote 126 days ago

Good Luck Neil, Look forward to the finished product M. Main

M. Main wrote 126 days ago

Good Luck Neil, Look forward to the finished product M. Main

wingping wrote 126 days ago

WOW Neil im so proud of u. What a fantastic read!!! I Feel like ive lived in the nest. xxx

wingping wrote 126 days ago

o my Neil i am so proud of u!!!! What a fantastic read. I feel like ive lived in The Nest. Excellent writing Neil. xxxxx

johnpatrick wrote 126 days ago

Hello Neil,
See this is doing well in the charts, on Barry Twocker's shelf as well so I came to have a read.
Gald I did.
Intriguing read with a clear, strong authorial voice. I was reminded of 'Never Let Me Go'.
Sorry I can not add anything constructive apart from a misplaced capital I at the end of chap 2.
Sure this will do well.
On my WL and highly starred.
John
Dropping Babies.

syntheticbutterfly wrote 126 days ago

One of the best things I have read in a long time, loving the curious details in the early chapters and am excited to read what happens next!
Good work!

Johnny Skinner wrote 126 days ago

An excelent read well done Neil looking forward to more of the same.

Jack Hughes wrote 126 days ago

Superb. Intelligent well crafted fiction like this is the sort that wins prizes. Best of luck, Neil.

Jack H

Neil Boultby wrote 127 days ago

I had another thought about this story. It reminds me of Plato's story of the cave.



I haven't read this before but will certainly check it out xxx

Neil Boultby wrote 127 days ago

I have only just started reading this, but I had to leave a comment. I really enjoy your storytelling style. It is very unique. The beginning seems a little slow, but that’s ok, you manage to pull it off.
There were a few typos that I noticed:
Should it be chip in—not chirp in?
Scold her for not cleaning enough—not scald her for not cleaning enough.
Should be: “You’re very pretty,” she said to me.—Not capital S.
Also, there were quite a few places where you had commas where you should have had semicolons—especially in the prologue.
Anyway, great job! I’m looking forward to reading the rest.



Hi Kayla, many thanks for your comment. I will certainly go over and ammend as suggested. Many thanks.
Neil

earthlover wrote 127 days ago

I had another thought about this story. It reminds me of Plato's story of the cave.

Kayla H wrote 127 days ago

I have only just started reading this, but I had to leave a comment. I really enjoy your storytelling style. It is very unique. The beginning seems a little slow, but that’s ok, you manage to pull it off.
There were a few typos that I noticed:
Should it be chip in—not chirp in?
Scold her for not cleaning enough—not scald her for not cleaning enough.
Should be: “You’re very pretty,” she said to me.—Not capital S.
Also, there were quite a few places where you had commas where you should have had semicolons—especially in the prologue.
Anyway, great job! I’m looking forward to reading the rest.

earthlover wrote 128 days ago

I read through chapter 8 today, I really enjoyed this and found myself lost in the story from time to time. I like the relationships you explore in your book. Iris is just what you'd expect from a person who's gone through so much loss, so much that she's not going to get attached to anyone or anything again, because she can't stand any more pain. The love story between Sophie and Leo is beautifully portrayed. I want to know...what door will the key open and what's behind it? What happened to begin with that made people have no choice but to move into the Nest? The corruption of power on human beings seems to be one of the themes. This is a great book. I can see it as a movie. Highly starred and watchlisted for now...
Georgia
The Woman From E.A.R.L.

Gordon Long wrote 128 days ago

Dear Neil,

I've backed this book because I like to see something original once in a while. Dystopias are in fashion right now, which gives this story a saleability it might not otherwise have. I really enjoy the world you have created, and the way you piece out the information to the reader slowly through the narrative.

My one worry is the amount of exposition time you use up. While your imaginary world is interesting, there is very little action during the first three chapters. Very little chance for conflict, except for our desire to find out more about the setting. It isn't really until the end of Ch 2 that you bring in the "present day" problems the MC is having. It is not until the end of Ch 3 that the inciting incident - the key - shows up.

I suggest a judicious edit of the first three chapters, cutting out a lot of the extraneous detail, and adding in quite a bit more of the present-day conflict, to keep the reader interested. This conflict needs to start earlier and develop more quickly, otherwise readers will put the book down before they get hooked on the actual "old time" conflict in the story.

Also, there might be too much poetry in the prologue. A lot of people don't like prologues, and this is the sort of prologue that turns them away. I suggest keeping the first section, then cutting most of the poetry in the second section, down to the word "Sickening", where you start talking about real characters. After that it's fine.

Hope this helps,

Gordon Long
"Out of Mischief"

Neil Boultby wrote 128 days ago

Thankyou for these comments revteapot....glad you enjoyed the beginning...hope you enjoy the rest

revteapot wrote 128 days ago

Hi Neil,
This is very good. You've kept me dangling for two chapters: what is the nest? What happened to the Old Life? The problem with reading late at night is a lack of progress :)

The only criticisms I have to offer are all typos :
Chpt 1
'advantage of you,” She said. “You need to learn to' - she wants a lower case 's'.
Chapter 2 
"a handsome, young fair-haired man, with" - young wants a comma after it.
"stuck for words which to our dismay was not a regular" - either a comma or a dash after 'words'.

I repeat, this is good, I'm glad I stumbled across it and I'll star it highly.

Lindsay
A Priest's Tale

Neil Boultby wrote 129 days ago

Many thanks for your comment Iandsmith

iandsmith wrote 129 days ago

Something a bit different. I like it. I was getting into the abstract style in ch1 but then ch2 fell into a conventional backstory which in contrast to the preceding chapter was a bit of a disappointment. But it soon picked up again in the end of 2 and 3 and on. I've rated this and put it on my WL in the hope some shelf space comes along soon.

1