I loved this excerpt. For me, it brought the abstract concept of people wearing digital masks to life in a claustrophobic and sad way. The best science fiction does not just grapple with high concepts and world views but is about the people who have to live with them, and the piece suddenly made me feel connected to the protagonist, Kara. In a short piece which gives me very little information about her, I was left feeling moved by her as a human being and sympathetic to her plight.  What also resonated with me is that whilst I understand the reason in the novel that people have taken to wearing the masks, as described in the outline, I feel like Kara's life is already happening in every board room throughout the world, where people scrabble to make a living and have to hide their own souls behind neutral expressions the company would approve of. 

I was inspired by the skilful writing, the deft rhythm and language of the piece, and if it was the intention to make me want to read more, mission accomplished. Genuine talent is evident here, and having just finished reading Ray Bradbury's Illustrated Man for the first time I would be very happy to move straight on to J. Graham-Jones.