As main character Andy Fergus attempts to deal with a disease medical experts claim will inevitably lead to muscle, nerve, organ deterioration and his death, THE CONSCIOUS WHOLE by William T. Kenny inspires readers to begin mulling what alternatives to such dire predictions might exist. New scientific frontiers like quantum physics and string theory posit that “Reality” is really just an infinite stream of possibilities that snap into full form and function upon conscious attention-observation-choice being placed upon one possibility/probability or another. If this is true, then by reasonable deduction statements such as “It’s genetic, there’s nothing I can do about it” must logically be false. Thus begins Andy’s odyssey into discovering just what an error-laden hold mass consciousness – i.e. the ever self-reinforcing thoughts of the Collective Whole–have upon not only humanity, but also upon the very nature of “Reality” itself.
When one believes in a firmly fixed, matter-based “Reality”, just a single misplaced nucleotide is enough to guarantee death. With a change in perception however, no “reality” is irreversible. In a world full of ills, one would of course hope that every bit of consciousness there is would throw its full weight of support behind such hope-inducing revelation. But learning from a variety of guides as he endeavors to heal himself and begin healing others, Andy swiftly discovers this is not the case. The Conscious Whole has long-reaching, matter-altering tentacles everywhere…and It prefers things just the way they are. Yet if individual human consciousness collectively is what makes up the Conscious Whole of this dimension’s reality, than surely we have the right (and even the responsibility?) to recreate patterns that now seem to be holding humanity captive. With knowledge and conscious intent, what has been programmed can be reprogrammed in a different direction.
Character development across the board within this novel could go a bit deeper, but overall this is a well-crafted, fascinating story, accompanied by an extensively thorough bibliography at book’s end for readers who would like to dive into the unique premise further.
Gripping–especially for readers who have enjoyed the study of metaphysical subjects previously–the text of the well-researched THE CONSCIOUS WHOLE by William T. Kenny is well worth, not just a read, but also time set aside for some serious esoteric pondering.
~C.S. Holmes for IndieReader