Author: Jeremy R. Lent
ISBN: 978-0-9810735-0-7
Publisher: lilbros Libertad
On first glimpse, you might very well have considered Requiem of
the Human Soul strictly a work of science fiction, however, Jeremy R.
Lent has gone much further. He has constructed complex
characters while probing the deepest reaches of their minds. To
boot, Lents technical brilliance is awesome yet jarring as he
permits each of his characters fashion a distinct radically different
resolution while the reader is left to become the ultimate judge.
The setting is the late twenty-second century and Eusebio
Franklin, a high school history teacher from the small community of Tuckers
Corner is abducted by two d-humans, Harry Shields and Naomi
Aramovich. Eusebio is a Primal or someone whose
human DNA has not been tinkered or enhanced, unlike that of Shields
and Aramovichs DNA. The d-humans blame the Primals for genocides,
devastation of indigenous cultures and the utter destruction of
earths environment, as well as the mass extinction of many species
of animals.
As a result, the United Nations has constituted a special hearing
called The Proposed Extinction of the Primal Species (PEPS) that has
been in existence for several years debating whether the Primals
should be eliminated from the earth due to the past atrocious
behavior of their ancestors.
At the time of the hearings there were seven billion d-humans in
the world and three billion Primals. Aramovich and her fellow Primal
Rights activists have chosen Eusebio to defend his race. Aramovich
assumes the role of Eusebios defence attorney wile Shields is
acting as the prosecuting attorney.
Shields divulges to Eusebio that the PEPSs proposal is quite
human, honest and legitimate. They are following due process and
furthermore they are not acting like the Primals of the twenty-first
century, saying one thing in the UN while permitting the exact
opposite to happen in the real world. Basically, the plan involves
changing the world by doing away with some of its innocent
inhabitants. To accomplish this feat, a compound called Isotope 909
will be released and there will be a partial sterilization of the
ovaries of all Primal women around the world. However, this will in
no way affect d-human women. Furthermore, as it will only be partial
sterilization, Primals, who have not had a child, will still be able
to give birth once. The Primal species will eventually fade away, and
this will be the final solution to the Primal Question. As soon
as the Primal population reaches about twenty-five thousand, they
will be safely placed in enclosed reservations. They won't entirely
disappear, as cloning techniques will be used to keep the Primal
population stable.
While the hearing is unfolding, Eusebio receives a visit from the
mysterious Yusef who calls himself a freedom fighter of the human
race and who warns him that the hearing is a farce and he shouldnt
take part in it. He also reveals to Eusebio that he is a Rejectionist
or d-humans who have refused to go along with the treaty known as the
Global Aggression Limitation Treaty (GALT). This treaty, signed after
the Great Global Wars, gave the UN global policing power with a
full-time army. However, according to Yusef, GALT was in fact the
struggle for the human race.
Eusebio wrestles with many challenging questions and soon realizes that there are no simplistic solutions. Is possible to
defend the past actions of the Primals from a moral or ethical
perspective? What does it mean to be human? Should humanity be given a second chance? Does anyone have
the right to play God and alter DNA even if it means improving ourselves? What about our souls? If we do
in fact believe in the human soul, would it survive if the DNA is modified? And above all, if Eusebio were asked to commit
murder on a massive scale, would he agree to it if it meant saving
the human race?
This is a cleverly crafted debut novel that achieves a near flawless
rhythm as the narrative builds. There is a great deal of confusion and
complexity here as Lent refrains from making his characters conduits
for right and wrong. His prose mixed in with a healthy dose of science
fiction is as gifted as it is fearless leaving readers in a state of
exhaustion but surprisingly exhilarated to have the opportunity to
partake in this most unusual hearing. Perhaps this was Lent's
objective? If so, he has succeeded admirably.
Click Here To Read Norm's Interview With Jeremy R. Lent
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