Robby Charters' Pepe Examines the Meaning of Truth

"the smell of solvent

sounds of youthful street wisdom

working kids live here"

As you can tell already, today's review covers an ebook that makes you step back and think about the world.

Pepe, by Robby Charters, is a stand-alone science fiction novel that takes place in the year 2020 in an alternate reality.

So what's it about?

Pepe is a young boy living in the dockyards, the lower class community in the Republic of Cardovia, where people struggle to simply survive day to day life. His primary focus in life is to care for his sister, Po. 

But when the small home they live in with their grandmother burns to the ground, Pepe and Po must take to the streets where their lives change dramatically. Pepe discovers that his very existence is a threat to national security, and the president of Cardovia will stop at nothing to remove him from the picture. 

Pepe wonders what it is that makes him, a boy from the slums, so dangerous to the leader of Cardovia. In the race to flee those that would eliminate him - and harm Po in the process - Pepe discovers more than he ever expected.

I've gotta tell you, this ebook was far more engrossing than I dreamed it would be!

The technology in Pepe is a bit more advanced than our current technology... but not by much... only a hair's breadth, actually. It's very believable that we could see these advances in the near future.

Magnetically controlled, "floating" train? Very believable. Neural interfaces that can 'read' a person's thoughts and convey them to others? Yep. Small, armored robots equipped with heavy weaponry? Heck, There are drones out there, already... right?

Every chapter begins with a haiku. 

This haiku foreshadows what will be found within that section of the book, and does it perfectly. I'm not one for verse, very often skipping right over it. I know, I know... people shouldn't do that. Verse is important, and the author worked hard on it, darn it!

I do it anyway.

In Pepe, though, I looked forward to each haiku. Every one of them was well written, meaningful, and thought-provoking. I mean... I even began this review with one of them (taken from Chapter 3). I enjoyed them that much.

And the theme!

Oh, gosh, the theme. I found myself swept away within the philosophies of this novel. Basically, it all comes down to one central concept: Only through Truth will you find freedom.

I know, I know... we've all heard that before. What makes it so special this time?

Well, we see this transformation in just about every character within the book. This is especially seen with Pepe, as the protagonist, but this change occurs in the most depraved, as well. We see that through recognizing the truth as it is, rather than how we think the truth is, we become more than who we were before. We're stronger. We're free.

And Charters does this without "preachiness."

I never once felt that he was bashing me over the head with the concept. Not once did I roll my eyes. It was all done through showing, rather than telling. I wanted to transform, to see things as they really are... just as Pepe did.

This is an ebook that I strongly recommend to those that enjoy a novel that makes you think, but also gives you a storyline that flows quickly and fluidly.

Pepe can be found on Kindle, Nook, and Smashwords, as well as on Scribd.