Aisle Nine by Ian X. Cho is a thrilling dystopian sci-fi, following the demonic life of supermarket worker Jasper.
Retail is hell. Literally. Between vomit mop-ups and portals to the monster-dimension, Jasper’s workplace doesn’t exactly meet health and safety standards. But the modern world is too preoccupied with demonic creatures to care about the problems at Here For You Mart. Unless you count the portal in Aisle Nine. Two years ago, the world was introduced to their neighbors from the HOD (hostile other dimension). Except they weren’t exactly looking to borrow some sugar. Taking the form of your worst nightmare, demons of all shapes and sizes started pouring out of these holes, threatening to take over the world. Until the Vanguard, monster fighting extraordinaries, stepped up and stopped the apocalypse before it started. Now, people just go about their regular lives, trying to ignore the blood on the sidewalk and the armed Vanguard soldiers guarding the ninth aisle of their local Here For You Mart. Jasper, with his freshly acquired amnesia and demon-plushie roommate, is just trying to get through the day without embarrassing himself in front of Kyle Kuan (aka: the love of his life). But that’s hard to do when you get recurring dreams about the end of the world, and Aisle Nine seems to be a lot more crowded than it used to be…
Aisle Nine is a funny, edge-of-your seat dystopian action that I could not put down. This book managed to display real, authentic themes of everyday life, and combined it with a killer plot filled with demon slaying and die-hard romances.
Jasper and Kyle’s love story was irresistible. Jasper had that self-deprecating, underdog humor that you cannot help but love, while Kyle was the classic warrior-angel heroine that readers always root for. Jasper talked about her in such a way, with such awe and genuine adoration, that gave me butterflies. Each of their little moments together, whether they were rolling skating in a garage or breaking into a secure government facility, were a beautiful contrast to the pressures of dystopian life. This is the kind of teenage love that many people try and fail to capture, and I was so happy to see it done justice.
The plot itself was invigorating. It kept you on the edge of your seat, giving you just enough detail to want to know more, while keeping the important secrets hidden. The idea of an almost-apocalypse in which society ignores the mayhem in an attempt to live normally was an eye-opening concept, and one that I would love to see explored in other novels.
This book is one of the funniest I’ve ever read. The slightly adult humor mixed with the constant jokes about the life of retail was one that I think many retail workers will greatly appreciate (as well as others). The reality of having to deal with every day Karens is a scarring one, but the author managed to make it an extremely amusing experience for the audience.
The only thing that could make this book better is being longer. I felt there was so much to experience and enjoy in such little time, but other than this, it was amazing. I would recommend it to readers aged fifteen to eighteen. Five out of five stars.
Aisle Nine by Ian X. Cho is a thrilling dystopian sci-fi, following the demonic life of supermarket worker Jasper.
