Review: The Erasure Initiative by Lili Wilkinson

Title: The Erasure Initiative

Published: August 1st 2020, Allen & Unwin

Status: Read August 2020 courtesy Allen & Unwin

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My Thoughts:

The Erasure Initiative is an absorbing and entertaining YA psychological thriller from Lili Wilkinson

“I wake up, and for a few precious seconds I don’t realise there’s anything wrong.”

Roused by the jolting movements of the self driving bus she is riding in, Cecily, who only learns her name from the sticker on her t-shirt (HELLO! MY NAME IS CECILY), realises she has no memory of herself. Neither does she remember where she is coming from, or where she is going, and recognises none of six strangers, of varying ages and ethnicities, accompanying her. As the group speculate about their predicament, the other passengers having admitted they are similarly affected, a message appears on the screens in front of them…

“You are in a moving vehicle. Before you the road forks. Ahead, there are five pedestrians. On the side road there is one pedestrian. You can press a button and the bus will turn off onto the side road. The bus will not stop. Do you press the button? YES/NO”

This is only the first of several tests that force the passengers to choose between life and death.

In this well-paced novel, fraught with escalating tension, Wilkinson offers an intriguing premise that explores issues surrounding identity, personality, and morality in The Erasure Initiative. With no past with which to define yourself, what sort of person would you choose to be? Are we shaped by nature or nurture? Can someone ever be anything other than who they are? How do you determine the value of a life?

Cecily may not remember anything about who she is, but she is certain she does not want to be on this bus which seems to be circling a deserted island, and is determined to do all she can to escape it. Though wary of placing her trust in her fellow passengers she is especially drawn to Nia, a dark-skinned, shaved-head girl with an anti authoritarian attitude, a high tech prosthetic leg and computer hacking skills, and Paxton, whose confidence, warm smile, and good looks help dampen her anxiety.

“What do you do when you learn that you’re the villain of your own story?”

I enjoyed the varied characters in The Erasure Initiative, though some have a larger role to play than others in the story, they each have a purpose. As the passengers struggle to piece together their identities, based on the few clues they are able to glean, their assessments of each other, and themselves, waver and shift. Cecily in particular is blind-sided by information that contradicts her perception of herself and who she wants to be.

Clever, compelling and challenging, The Erasure Initiative is a great read, sure to impress.

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Available from Allen & Unwin RRP AUD$19.99

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