Score: 93/100 (9.3 out of 10)
As fantasy anthologies go, this is a fantastic collection that nails the theme! If you love dragons and dragon stories, this is the anthology for you. If you ever dreamed of finding and/or owning your own pet dragon, this is the anthology for you. If you're a cryptozoology geek or a sucker for mythical creatures, this is the anthology for you. There's a lot to love here for every fantasy and even sci-fi fan. There are several stories in here that really shine above the rest in our opinion. Two of them—“Tiny Hearts” by Sophia DeSensi and “Wei Ling and the Water Dragon” by Jeff Burns—are phenomenally, incredibly adorable and fun to read. This is because both writers really understand character chemistry as well as the magic and shear majesty of dragons. The human-dragon pairs in these two stories are just an absolute joy to read. There's a tremendous amount of chemistry between these characters. The dynamics are very amusing. DeSensi's story is essentially an expansion of the Mulan-Mushu relationship in which a young, adventurous female named Mabel becomes saddled with a tiny yet charismatic dragon named Divi. The dragon is literally described as being about the size of a fruit or a worm, but his personality is enormous. There's also a lot of subtext about how the dragon feels about Mabel and himself. We can tell that despite his loud mouth and boisterous attitude that he is quite lonely and insecure. We can gather that he views Mabel as a dear and only friend he doesn't want to be separated from. Jeff Burns's story is arguably the most amusing in the anthology. It takes a precocious girl name Ling Wei and pairs her up with a big, old oaf of a dragon named Hailong. Both are naive about what the other wants and believes—the girl doesn't understand dragons and the dragon doesn't understand humans. The fact that they learn about these things together is beautiful. The chemistry between these two is off the charts. They even take turns being afraid and having to calm the other. Ling Wei is initially afraid of being eaten by Hailong, and Hailong is afraid of being hunted or extorted by humans. The amount of personality each character is able to emit in the confines of a short story is mind-boggling. Hailong has a tendency toward false humility which he uses to humorous effect. Ling Wei is also very self-conscious about the way she looks and about the way she's perceived. Another good all-around story (arguably the most well-rounded) is “A Wild Beast of the West” by Marx & Julie Pyle. This story takes the human-dragon dynamic and meshes it well with an epic struggle against Griffins—the mortal enemies of the dragons. This leads to a unique conflict that's both fun and interesting to read. This is one of the more action-packed and action-driven stories in the anthology, however it isn't absent of solid characters and dialogue as well. In fact, there's a lot of witty dialogue and clever exchanges in this story. Also, the dragon's name happens to be Baby (aaawwwwwwww)! There are a few other interesting tales in here including one in which the dragon protagonist is apparently a prize-fighter, one in which the protagonists attend a dragon-themed heavy metal concert, and one in which the dragon's name is Connery (like Sean Connery from “Dragonheart”). There's a story in which there are humongous worms that are apparently up to a mile long and you can ride them. YIKES! There's even a direct homage to the dinosaur-centered sci-fi series Terra Nova with a world that is straight up called “Nova Terra.” Clearly, these are writers who LOVE dragons, fantasy, and/or sci-fi. Their hearts are in it. Here's the thing: there are a lot of high points in this anthology as we've mentioned, but there are a lot of forgettable things in it as well. It's difficult to latch onto some of these characters emotionally or care about their plight when we know they'll be gone within a dozen pages. And, to be frank, many of these characters are interchangeable if not entirely forgettable. Who even remembers who Nathan, Lucy, Ned, Heather, Olivia, Xin, and Drew are after reading all this? They're easily replaceable and interchangeable. You know who's not forgettable? The Otter Dog that the one Nathan dude encounters. Now, he's a memorable character! One of the best in the anthology. Another thing that's bothersome throughout this anthology is the absence of pure, bad@#$ dragons. There's a ton of inspiration drawn from the “How to Train Your Dragon” franchise. The dragons are almost always kind, cool, obedient, and subservient to humans. What we missed is seeing dragons who can and will wreck stuff. Yes, we know that these are supposed to be unusual dragon tales, but it just felt like there was an edginess or something that was missing with practically all the dragons in this dragon-themed anthology. There were also a few stories in here that really got overshadowed by the others. There was at least one that was heavily reliant on exposition in the form of dialogue that ended up coming across as contrived. There were also times when it felt like nothing was really accomplished by the end of the story since many of these are left open-ended as the start of a new adventure. In other words, it was all set-up toward the "real story." Keep in mind that some of these are prologues to full-length works. The writing in most of this anthology is truly top-notch. It includes some of the best-woven sentences we've read in a while. It's truly a magical and fun read! Check it out on Amazon!
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Part One Score: 94/100
Part Two Score: 90/100 Part Three Score: 93/100 Overall Score: 92/100 Let's just get this out of the way: this trilogy is SOLID AS A DIAMOND! Why hast thou done this, David V. Mammina? Why dost thou torment thine other competitors with thy compelling characters and more-than-halfway-decent writing thou hast wrought in thy mercy? These books are not the knockout hit that “The Angels of Resistance” was, but they do the job. Like the aforementioned novel, “Redeem the Knight” parts one, two, and three exemplify the fantasy genre with their great characters, high stakes, and big set-piece battles. And this is a top-heavy story. Remember how the first 100 pages of "The Angels of Resistance" were kinda generic and boring but then it picked up? This story starts off with all the bombs dropping, then dips, then recovers. It's actually unfortunate that we have to compare this to Mammina's other work (along with the others in the competition). Everything in “Redeem the Knight” can be almost directly compared to “The Angels of Resistance,” and usually not favorably. For example, the main protagonists in both stories—Arl Baelin and Michael Miuriell—are very similar. In fact, they're almost identical. It's hard to tell them apart aside from just the fact that Michael was more of a wizard and Baelin is more of a warrior (a paladin more specifically). However, that's not entirely a bad thing. We'll go into why. The stakes are also very similar, and the villains (the Reapers) behave a lot like the Demon Plague, all the way down to how they keep and torture people who require rescuing. They are despicable, but oddly not to the degree that the Demon Plague was despicable. We don't really hate them to the same degree that we hated the Demon Plague, we're actually more annoyed with them and want them to die because of that. The main villain, Kirik Cainum, is actually menacing, trumping many of the other villains we've read about in this competition. However, he gets old really quick in a way that Sattka never did. He lacks the charisma and intangibles that Sattka was just oozing. In a sense, we just kinda got tired of hearing about Kirik Cainum. There's supposed to be a very personal protagonist-antagonist relationship between Baelin and Cainum; yes, it's there, but it stops being interesting after a while. Maybe it was just too long to be chasing the same villain the whole time? Yes, revenge plots are interesting, but not when they drag. There are only so many “you almost had him!” moments before the audience calls BS. It almost felt like he could've died in part 2 and we would've been fine with it. Maybe he could've had an evil overlord evil-overlording over him the whole time, or even more interesting is if he was betrayed by his lieutenant who then became the new main villain. Or maybe there could've been a splinter group from the Reapers that had Baelin's number for whatever reason and menaced both sides. The battles are action-packed and detailed. Still, they're not nearly as interesting or tense as the ones in “Angels of Resistance.” They're definitely some of the best though. The author just gets it. He gets the very simple, tried and true formula. There's a likeable protagonist, a despicable villain, and people needing to be saved who deserve saving. None of the characters suffering under the Reapers deserve or signed up for what's happening to them. Most of them are women, children, and the elderly. That dynamic makes this book very compelling. There are also times when major characters are in legitimate peril and need to escape it somehow. It gets really tense. The hero, Baelin, is a very good man and a very noble/honorable person who shows compassion to those in need of saving. That was something that also made Michael great. Neither is someone who leaves people behind or relishes in the suffering of the innocent. Baelin is also seemingly a classic Christian paladin who still tries to do the things that he believes Christ would want him to do. However, we encounter a similar problem to “Angels of Resistance” in that we're not sure if this is really a “Christian” fiction book or not. Like in “Angels of Resistance,” some of the theology just doesn't seem to fit very well. There's also a character in here who is constantly cursing—you could argue that he's using the Lord's name in vain depending on how you view the third commandment (some view it as meaning not to do evil in God's name while others believe it means not to pretend to speak on behalf of God). However, there's no way a typical Christian is going to hear this character cursing like that and say, “Yes, this needs to be on my Sunday school shelf.” But Baelin is a great role-model in so many ways, and he's not obnoxious either. Unlike Michael Miuriell or Gilraen (from “Gilraen and the Prophecy”) he's not ridiculously overpowered and untouchable. He can get knocked down and bleed like any mortal man. He's just a good fighter with a fierce fighting spirit. There's no restart button, resurrection-powers, or insta-healing to be found with Baelin. If he dies, he stays dead. If he loses a limb, he loses a limb permanently. There's also a dog in this book. Anyway, what really makes this book amazing is the character dynamic between Baelin—a paladin—and Gideon—a witch. Gideon isn't just any witch, she's the infamous “Witch of Swamp Hill.” She has a very strained relationship with Baelin, with whom she has a child, but the two come together for the common purpose of rescuing their son. Baelin and Gideon are a terrific odd couple. We were pulling for them to set aside their differences. Did we mention there's also a dog in this book? We almost conflated the son and the dog and thought they were the same character at some point because they're both named Alec. One of us thought that Baelin and Gideon were doing all this to save their dog. Baelin goes full John Wick over the dog, and it's hilarious to think about. Check out this trilogy on Amazon! Score: 96/100 (9.6 out of 10)
This is a well-researched, well-written book on sociopolitical and socioeconomic issues that are becoming more and more pressing matters in present-day America and the world. Namely, this book discusses the drive toward a predatory state and the continued tug-a-war between the ideologies of socialism and capitalism for the hearts, minds, and souls of Americans. It discusses the significance that institutions like the media and schools could have in which of these ideologies wins out, and it discusses the potential consequences of this. Now, we feel obligated to preface this by saying that we may not agree with or endorse the (mostly Libertarian) views held by Bayrer, so don't cancel us, burn our houses down, throw bricks through our windows or anything like that. We just need to look at this book for what it is: a great book on an important set of relevant topics. But look, here's the deal: regardless of how we feel and regardless of what we think, facts are facts and history is history. It's very difficult to ignore the death toll of socialism in the 20th century, leading to the worst man-made famines in history and some of the worst examples of genocide as well. All of this really hinges on human nature. In the “utopian” view that Bayrer uses for comparison purposes, the government is benevolent and citizens are subservient for the good of the community. That would be amazing in an ideal, utopian world, but unfortunately human nature is a thing. Humans beings will avoid pain and pursue pleasure. Thus, asking them to work 12+ hours a day (pain) for society without hope of personal gain (pleasure) works against human nature. Humans beings will favor themselves and those close to them, so asking them to give up the fruits of their labor for society's benefit (or, more likely, a tyrannical government's) goes against human nature. Humans beings will naturally pursue power, so asking them to accept modest means and be content with being stuck in the middle-class goes against human nature. Those are some inconvenient truths. Another inconvenient truth that comes along with this is that government will naturally pursue more and more power without checks and balances. Bayrer does a fantastic job at pointing out how the founding fathers, namely James Madison, foresaw this being a problem. It troubles us every election when people say they want a “Red Wave” or a “Blue Wave.” In other words, there exist people in our country who want one party or another to just disappear for whatever reason—however “justified.” They forget that there are reasons we have competing parties. Many forget or willingly ignore history. Many ignore common sense and—more likely—ignore human nature. Many forget what tends to happen in one-party systems: they more easily become tyrannies and oligarchies. Bayrer even makes references to ideologies weaponizing the almost religious fervor and devotion of subscribers. Imagine if there was an “Angel Party” that looked like God's gift to man because they seemed to support all the right things that most people agreed with, at least before every election. What happens when that “Angel Party” lacks competition? One of three things happens: either that party becomes complacent, that party becomes tyrannical, or both. Competition, checks, and balances are what prevent this from happening. Creating a society absent of competition, per the utopian ideal, is asking for trouble. There's a reason why contests like this and sports exist. It's not just that it's fun, it's because we like to see the best of the best do what the best of the best do: GET BETTER and WIN. If you want things to get better, you need to invite competition, not squash it. The West rules economically and politically largely because it has been more inviting of competition and innovation. Hollywood rules the entertainment industries worldwide for a reason. American music tops the charts worldwide. These things are simply backed by more capital (wealth) gained via capitalism and the intellectual fruits and efforts fed by individualism. You would think that a nation that champions capitalism and individualism would be a detriment to the rest of the world, but the opposite is true: America contributes more money to charity than any other nation by far—and it's not even close. This prosperity is the result of capitalism and individualism, not despite it. Look at which nation was far and away the greatest donor of vaccines worldwide last year (the USA) and ask yourself what made that possible. Capitalism has pulled more people out of poverty than any other system, and we have the wealthiest and most powerful nation that has ever existed to look at as an example. Bayrer champions the idea of the “FEO” (Free Extended Order of Human Cooperation) originally discussed by Friedrich Hayek. In the simplest terms, this is the belief that groups of people function best when individual rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness are paramount and respected, as in the US constitution, and there are less government intervention and constraints on individuals and businesses. What's ironic is that much of this information isn't anything new. It's what they teach you in an MBA program or basic economics, yet people willingly or subconsciously forget or ignore them. You've at least read Marx and Ayn Rand right? So is this a perfect book? No. For one, this book can be incredibly heavy-handed, didactic, and—quite frankly—biased. Bayrer is a Libertarian through and through, and if it's not an ideology that appeals to you for whatever reason, you may not appreciate this (unless you're arming yourself for a debate class or an argument for some reason). And it's not like capitalism hasn't hurt a fly and that intervention is always wrong. Intervention has helped raise the minimum wage, helped decrease hours, created overtime pay, combated pollution, and gave workers the rights to vacation, social security, Medicare, and more. Yes, we know that some of that stuff is also what takes a huge chunk of your paycheck twice a month, but it has its benefits. Thankfully, the author does provide a lot of references to back up his claims. There are a lot of references in this book, and a tremendous amount of these are from reputable sources including numerous folks with "PhD" next to their names. There are some parts about the superiority of Singapore's economy over others that get a bit grating, but lets face it: Singapore has the most open economy in the world, the 3rd least corruption, low taxes, and the second highest per-capita GDP in the world. So, it's not hard to see that argument. This is a great educational tool for teaching the next generation about the predatory state and how surrendering our constitutional rights may chip away at the heart and soul of the nation—a heart and soul that value individual rights and freedoms—little by little. Can we avoid this fate or are we doomed to fall apart and go the way of the Mongols and the Romans? Will America likewise be lost to the annals of time? Get this book today! Score: 88/100 (8.8 out of 10)
This is a solid book for children and even young adults. It's absent of swearing, sex, and vulgarity. There are some brief mentions of violence occurring elsewhere in the world (since this takes place during World War II), but it's nothing to fret about as it's never too heavy for young readers to handle. The language and writing are simple enough for them to follow. It's likely they could get through this in 2-3 days and find joy in it. The story follows siblings Grace, Mary Carol, JD, and Robert in the 1940s following their father being wounded during the war. They are sent off alone on a historically-significant train called the Santa Fe Chief to stay with their Uncle James in California. They then get entangled in the villainous Celeste's wicked plot to retain her youth through the obtainment of the eponymous last magical crystal. A time-travel and survival segment of this book really shines as the sibling pull together with every ounce of their youthful strength, acquired wisdom, and dogged determination in order to survive their arduous ordeal in their quest to stop Celeste. Exciting premise, huh? You'd even be tempted to compare the dynamics of this book to something like The Goonies, Boxcar Children, or even the Chronicles of Narnia. It's a tame, harmless, and safe book with good grammar and likable enough protagonists. There are even some nice, cute drawings and animal characters who appear throughout. We have to be honest though, the first 150 pages (15+ chapters) can be incredibly boring for an experienced reader. Unless you already fell in love with the band of protagonists in the previous books, you're hit with them and saddled with them for the ride, and it's a pretty long ride. Little seems to be accomplished half the time. Shenanigans and time-capsuling would be the best ways to describe most of this book. Literally the first 150 or so pages consists of the four kids talking about the 1940s and experiencing the Santa Fe Chief ride. It's interesting if you care about that stuff, but most kids (and readers) are just not going to be interested in people talking about the news and the weather. They want to see or read about stuff going down. There is a point when there are bumps along the train ride including an uncomfortable stint in the desert, but that's all it really is: an uncomfortable stint for the characters. There are no real stakes in the moment as there's no way the author is killing off characters via heatstroke or dehydration in this children's book. And to punch that point home either further, despite all their whining and complaining about the heat in that segment, the characters then have the convenience of getting ice cream. Yes, these conveniences do disappear later in the book, but that just goes to show how monotonous the first half of this book is. Probably the most interesting thing that happened in the first half of this book is the introduction of the main villain, Celeste. She is a menacing enough, albeit a bit cliché with her posh accent and good looks hiding an ugly disposition. She acts a bit like Jadis the White Witch in the Chronicles of Narnia. However, her character is a bit ruined by her exposition-laden dialogue, particularly with her mentor and secondary villain Sandastros. There's no mystery at that point, we know who these villains are, we know what they want, and we know what they're going to do to get what they want because they outright told the audience. It just feels like such a missed opportunity to build up suspense in a meaningful way. It's also very unnatural. It reminded us of when Han and Leia reunite in Star Wars VII: The Force Awakens and feel the need to tell the audience everything the two characters should already know about what happened and each other. They even feel the need to tell each other that their son has been corrupted by a dark lord even though it's one of the most important events in their lives and they should know this. It's just contrived and unnatural even when the actors and the characters are great. Bad dialogue is bad dialogue unfortunately. It's quite literally the infamous “as you know” trope. A character unloads their exposition to a character who should already know this information. Now, this book does eventually get good about 20 or so chapters in when the characters are actually forced into a survival situation thousands of years before the present date. It becomes a rather fun camping adventure with the kids having to rely on their wits to find food and water as well as stay safe from the elements. It helps that at least one of the characters is a scout, able to provide information on how to start a fire and catch fish. One of the characters comes armed with a sewing kit that comes in handy. Everyone seems to have a little moment to shine. Now, it's very clear that the character the author wants us to love is Grace. She is practically shoved down our throats as the cutest, sweetest, most well-meaning little girl imaginable. She is really the only protagonist with any sense of a hero-villain dynamic (with Celeste), everyone else is along for the ride. Still, she can be incredibly annoying. Yes, she resists temptation and does the right thing. Yes, she plays the role of the “truest believer” and optimist in believing that her dog is still alive. Yes, she's probably as cute and cuddly as Laura from Little House. But that only makes her slightly less annoying. It's hard to describe why, but probably the best explanation is that she's a lot like the annoying little kid (or the creepy little girl) in every haunting movie who feels the need to write notes to or call the neighborhood demon/ghost that everyone else is rightfully trying to get the heck away from. It's also mostly because of Grace that we have to hear about her dead/lost/stolen dog, Old Shep, over and over and over and over and over and over and over again—89 doggone times in this 400-something page book.It was cute the first half-dozen times, but after six dozen times, it got jading. Old Shep. Old Shep. Old Shep. Did you see Old Shep? Look, I see Old Shep! It reminds me of Old Shep. Old Shep is alive. Old Shep is gone. Old Shep is here. Old Shep isn't here. Old Shep found us. Old shep didn't find us! Old Shep is outrunning our train somehow. Old Shep couldn't outrun this train. Old Shep. Old Shep. Old Shep. Old Shep. Try reading that name aloud to a kid with a grandparent present without getting severely admonished. (“Say whaaaaat?!”) Listen, you little Old Shep, we know your name is Old Shep because you're a border collie and we FREAKING LOVE border collies, but was there any way to make your presence in this story actually compelling rather than incredibly annoying? And, yes, we know there are two Old Sheps and two Graces, and two of them are supposedly dead. That's explained in the most chaotic and confusing way possible, up there with, “I am your father's brother's nephew's former roommate.” Seriously, the other Grace couldn't have just been this Grace's mom or grandma, she had to be Grace's mother's brother's “sister—the one from the family before he was adopted.” Her... whaaaaaaat?! Why? How? What the heck even... never mind. This book, despite its incredibly slow start and other annoyances, is still passable and interesting. The survival segments with the siblings are top notch. Mary Carol gives us a little scare that's somewhat tense. Robert is realistic and pessimistic as heck, and that's a breath of fresh air when his sister is constantly inviting trouble with her head in the clouds. There's even one of the best quotes in any novel we've read so far: “Daddy said that war is wrong, but sometimes it is the only way to stop something even worse than war.” Check out “The Last Crystal” on Amazon! Score: 96/100 (9.6 out of 10)
This fantasy novel is the epitome of what a fantasy novel should be: great heroes, great villains, high stakes, and big battles! Just when we thought we had this contest pretty much figured out with several terrific fantasy entries scoring between 9.3 and 9.4, we read this and said, “Well... dang. Shoot. Darn it.” What's ironic is that we almost felt like giving up on this novel part-way through. However, we thankfully forced ourselves to push through in hopes of getting to the “good part.” We didn't realize we were about to hit a gold mine under that sand and dirt! There was about to be a truckload of good parts! The first 100 pages of this book can be surprisingly boring for someone who is desensitized to fantasy fiction at this point. It sounds like it's going to be the same old generic tale we've heard a thousand times: a chosen-one hero with a tragic backstory and overpowered abilities trying to save a kingdom of generic and mostly-useless side characters and a sick queen/princess under a sleeping curse who needs her one true love to get her out of it. There are some examples of wrong-word usage, such as when “regardless” is used instead of “despite.” The writing isn't as beautiful and eloquent as Michael DeAngelo's (in “D'Aprille's Fools”) and the world-building is not quite as complex as Joanne Reid's (in “Gilraen and the Prophecy:) or Emilie Knight's (in “The Ichorian Epics”), but when Mammina does his thing, it really works. When this book picks up, it REALLY picks up. The following 400-500 pages of this includes some of the best storytelling and character moments we've ever read! It also includes the best battle (actually two battles) we've read about in a while! That's right, you're treated to not just one but TWO all-or-nothing battles in the same book. And when we say “all-or-nothing” we mean that people will die or suffer fates worse than death if the heroes are unsuccessful. What makes these battles so great is that not only are the stakes truly high and we care about them, but they have a fantastic build-up. All the pieces are moved into place before the battle as in protagonists develop beef (a feud) with antagonists before the battle, and we already know what many of the characters are capable of and what they want beforehand. Every character brings something to the table. Every character cares about something/someone. Every character dislikes or hates something/someone. Most importantly, every character WANTS something. Another thing that makes these battles amazing is that every single major protagonist and antagonist has a moment or two to shine. Not to spoil too much, but for example: a character named Predella executes a one-in-a-million shot heard around the world, and a character named Eric essentially becomes a Sith in hopes of defeating the Sith with his newfound Darkside powers (and we all know where that leads). And that last example brings up another thing that makes this novel great: the gray characters, the layers, and the complexity. Good and evil aren't always clear-cut, there are characters like Eric who are on the edge or daring to cross the threshold. Even our main hero, Michael Miuriell, is on the verge of becoming the very thing he sought to destroy, and not in a lame Rey Skywalker sorta way. There are even times when we hate the very people we should be wanting our protagonists to help, namely the politicians. For example, the “sibling sovereigns” Lucas and Luca are two titanic pains in the rear-end. They constantly demonstrate ingratitude and an unwillingness to help the very army of protagonists who saved and protected them. We can imagine some readers will feel the same annoyance with characters like Princess Shina, but we didn't mind her nearly as much. What's amazing is that the author gives us, the reader, some relief by allowing protagonists to vent their shared frustrations at Lucas and Luca. Another great reason to love this novel are the villains: the Demon Plague. They are despicable! The reader will absolutely love to hate them. This is one of the best casts of villains in any book out there. Like the heroes, there's not just one overpowered evil villain who is clearly the one we're supposed to hate, there are many, and they're all unique in their own way. The villain who stood out the most to us was Sattka. She isn't the most powerful of the demons, but she is by far the best looking (humorously), most charismatic, and the one who gets up close and personal most of the time. She is capable and formidable enough for many of the protagonists to be wary of her in the final battles with them essentially saying (to paraphrase), “We need to keep Sattka in check.” She also has some great and disturbing villain moments that force us to cheer against her despite her appeal. Some of these may be too disturbing for some readers. She's not alone among the great villains. There's also the enormously powerful Valkris, Tenebrion, and the Demon Lord, the latter of which makes things very personal with our main protagonist by literally getting in his head. There's even an awesome evil vampire general named Kaila who has her moments. These villains constantly keep our heroes on their toes and force them out of their comfort zones. And is it just us or are these some of the hottest characters in any book ever? The princes, princesses, and warriors sound hot. Even the demons and vampires sound hot! For some reason, the author felt the need to describe them all in this really sensualized way whether if it was relevant to the plot or not. There are so many descriptions of the villains/villainesses doing disturbing yet intimate-sounding villain/villainess things like savoring every moment of sucking the life out of their victims. Sattka is always dressed like she's ready for a night on the town. We know this because the author makes a point of telling us about how she dresses and how seductively she moves. Princess Shina, just by virtue of how her character is written in the story, comes across as incredibly appealing if not the most appealing in the whole book. The same can be said about Maxim among the men. Lastly, Michael Miuriell is a terrific protagonist. Like Gilraen in “Gilraen and the Prophecy,” he is incredibly gifted with his powers and well-respected. Like Penn in “The Ichorian Epics,” he is driven and stubborn yet no less human with concern for the welfare of others. Like Frederic in “D'Aprille's Fools,” he has experienced a loved one being taken from him and is haunted by the thoughts of what has become of them. Also like Frederic, he has an unmistakable drive to do the right thing even if it means postponing the main mission. There's too much good to say about this book! Get it on Amazon! Score: 94/100 (9.4 out of 10)
This is one of the most heart-wrenching and beautiful novels we've read so far! “The Prodigal Father” follows Tom, an estranged father who has recently lost his son, Eli. Eli had grown up to be a good Christian man who was loved by all in the community for his big heart and altruism despite having been neglected and even abused by his dad in the past. Tom is ridden with guilt and remorse. When he encounters his estranged children, they view him as more of a roommate than a father. Through flashbacks, we learn the tragic past of Tom, Eli, and their family as they endured several huge losses and hardships together. Each loss hits hard. We see how Tom deteriorated into alcoholism and how he took out his frustrations on Eli. We also learn how Eli became such a good man, inspired by his mother's idea of what a knight should be: someone who protects and stands up for others. Eli was encouraged to be a knight to his sister, Jessie, who was often fearful in her youth and kept a doll with her as protection. The book also has some religious undertones with Tom attempting to reconnect with his late son through the note-filled Bible he left. In a sense, not only is this book about Tom's journey to heal his heart and his relationship with his kids, but it is also Tom's journey to heal his soul and his relationship with the God who had allowed his loved ones to die. It's full of hard-hitting moments that are sure to have you needing a tissue box. The chemistry between each of the characters is amazing, even when they aren't talking to each other or are trying to distance themselves. You just sense and know that there's a spark there between them that's waiting to be relit. It's beautifully written, beautifully edited, just the right length, and it hits just the right notes. We greatly enjoyed this book and highly recommend it! Get it on Amazon! Score: 91/100 (9.1 out of 10)
“THAW” by A.C. Kabukuru has some of the best world-building we've seen! It ranks up there with the “Gilraen and the Prophecy” trilogy by Dr. Joanne Reid and “Grydscaen Dark” by Natsuya Uegusi DuBois in that regard. However, like “Water Witch” by Kelly Brewer, its great world and story as well as its interesting characters get somewhat marred by an amateurish style and novice formatting. There is a notable lack of page numbers, inconsistent indentations, and double-spacing between paragraphs and lines of dialogue for some reason. UPDATE: The author has fixed the formatting issues mentioned above. With all that said, like the aforementioned work by Brewer, beneath the superficial problems hides a tremendous world and story! With a little work, this could easily be a 9.3 out of 10! We're not kidding when we say that this is some of the best world-building we've seen. This is a whole world built on the idea of extending life far beyond what we currently perceive as its natural limits, an example of transhumanism--the pursuit of bettering the human condition through science and technology. In essence, this is the classic Frankenstein story taken into the future and given wings. Instead of being a fringe science like in Mary Shelley's tale, the science of preserving and resurrecting/curing the dead or dying is almost as acceptable as biology itself. Cryonics, as it's called in the novel, is the practice of preserving the bodies of the dead or dying in the hopes that someday—with scientific and medical advancements—there can be a cure in the future. It's a chilling (pun intended) yet completely understandable and relatable proposition. Who doesn't want to keep their loved ones or themselves from dying? Who doesn't want to avoid that pain of loss and heartache? It's utterly fascinating! It's amusing that the apocalypse is essentially California's fault (pun intended), albeit natural (ripple effects of earthquakes) and not man-made. The social commentary is abundant, covering everything from population control to the meaning of life itself. Ok, the latter is a little bit of a stretch, but the discussion about what it means to live a quality life versus a long one definitely hits home. Now, it's not entirely the most original idea. Ironically, the author seems aware of this, alluding to this idea being used in Captain America, Demolition Man, and Austin Powers. However, the author is skillful enough and imaginative enough to make this feel fresh and new as well as real. There are a few things about this world that actually seem plausible. For example, marriage is treated very differently in this world but not without rationale. Marriages are essentially given 10 year licenses that can either be extended/renewed or allowed to expire. This seems to be because of the prevalence of divorce and that longer lifespans made sticking with one partner for a whole lifetime more of an arduous task than it was before. The LGBTQ couple in the story seems to be on the verge of making the decision on whether to remain married or not in light of increasing work stressors and the strain its creating on their relationship. It's a pretty standard dilemma for a protagonist who is a project-obsessed workaholic. What's also quite amusing is that George, by far the most interesting character in the novel, brings some of his memories of our time to the year 2163. This even includes the kinds of diets we used to use (i.e. keto, American) which fly in the face of what's accepted at the time, with much of the world's population apparently accepting plant-based diets while saving meat meals for special occasions. What's pretty interesting is that you can almost hear the embrace-of-propaganda rolling off of Kelley's tongue when she tries to explain the new dietary habits. That's actually some skill on behalf of the author in terms of saying a lot with few words. We can gather from what little Kelley says about it that the real reason meat and the American diet went out of fashion isn't really health-related, it's actually cost and production-related. It's just too expensive to eat that way in their time, likely due to inflation, and it's more difficult to produce so much meat for a population that has grown exponentially. The other thing about this world that's fascinating is the existence of a “universal income” system to make up for the widespread unemployment caused by the A.I.s taking over much of the workforce. So, socialism finally, mercifully worked after like 315 years of trying and dying to implement it while unscrupulous leaders let human nature corrupt them into taking over and mismanaging the means of production and the redistribution of wealth (and food), thus leading to the greatest man-made famines in recorded history. It's a good thing that finally got solved. So, essentially everyone in post-apocalyptic 2163 gets stimulus checks throughout the year which helps them to get by “more or less.” Isn't that comforting? So work becomes a choice rather than a necessity. Isn't that even more comforting? But where does the saintly, uncorrupted government get all the money to redistribute to the people if the people aren't working and not making their own money? Do they give the money to the people only to then take some of the money back in taxes? Do they just print more money, thus driving inflation? Do they just tax the people who were bored enough or dumb enough to work to make extra money? Would there possibly be more scientists and visionaries like Kelley if there were actual, tangible financial motivations to pursue a career or to start a business? Why would you start a business if you could stay at home and play Sudoku all day and make a living “more or less” playing Sudoku all day? But it's such a cool thought just imagining never having to work and being paid to stay alive, perhaps free to pursue your own passions and hobbies. That's such bliss. It would be heaven on earth, wouldn't it? The pure joy that comes from being financially free. Author A.C. Kabukuru is actually a pretty brilliant person. She graduated Summa Cum Laude from the University of Texas with a degree in Literary Studies and has a Masters in Communication from Boston University. At the beginning of this review, we compared her work to that of a doctor's (Joanne Reid), so that should tell you a lot. What can we say? This novel is a fantastic sci-fi novel. When you look deeper and get into the story, it's great! It's actually the highest-rated sci-fi book over 60% through the contest! Check it out on Amazon! Score: 93/100 (9.3 out of 10)
“Doubt Your Doubts” by Rachell Kitchen was a joy and a pleasure to read! In the realm of self-help books for women, this one definitely stands out as interesting and unique. It's a much-needed kick in the butt to all us self-defeatists! Author Rachell (“Rah-shell”) Kitchen symbolically takes on “Rachel,” her “gremlin” or inner self-doubter, as an example to women everywhere about their own little self-doubt monsters. There may have been a better explanation for Rachel somewhere in this text, but the one we remember and found most amusing is that the mispronunciation came to being from the author's uncle believing that his sister couldn't spell. This profoundly affected the author because she had gotten the message early in life that even a loved one wouldn't make the effort to pronounce her name correctly. By extension, this also affected her sense of self-worth and her overall self-impression along with insistence from her society that prettier, taller, skinnier, fairer-skinned, straighter-haired, wealthier women (and men) had an advantage over her. These ideas continue to be perpetuated by society and play in the minds of women—young and old—throughout America and the world. There are also parts of this book that are either intentionally or unintentionally funny like when someone internalizes their neighbor continually saying, “Don't ride your boney, ugly ass past my house” like a Melissa McCarthy movie. What's amazing is that we can actually relate to things like this, look at our own situation/experiences, and laugh at them, realizing how ridiculous it is that we take things like this personally (and internalize them) on a daily basis. We develop a self-impression (ex. “I'm an athletic person” or “I'm a smart person”) based on the things people said or something that happened 20+ years age (ex. failing a math test) even though we have an opportunity to improve ourselves and realize a higher potential now. What a kick in the butt! We'll just add that this negativity is not exclusive to women, as we saw in our review of “The 21st Century Man” by Dr. Judson Brandeis, but that women may be more vulnerable and susceptible to it. We also wanted to add that men can take away just as much from this book as women can, meaning that men can read this and not only be better able to understand/help a wife, sister, or mother, but even help themselves! The truth is, we all have our little self-doubt monsters playing in our heads—some louder and more persistent than others. The key is acknowledging it and dealing with it. This book is a master class in just that from a masterful coach with years of personal experience as well as experience with clients. Just about all of the stories here (some from the author and others from contributors) just tug on your heartstrings. So many of us can relate to the feeling of being overwhelmed, being broke, being talked down to, being forgotten, being insulted, or even feeling like giving up entirely. But these stories aren't told as just a point of interest, they are case studies from which we can learn and/or draw inspiration from. Without a doubt is a story that involves a person who'd considered taking their own life when they were jobless, foodless, and apparently hopeless. However, they received a kick in the butt from the voice in their head that said, “What is the matter with you? You’re better than this! Get your ass up NOW!” For everyone who needs to motivational kick in the butt: Get this book today! 91/100 (9.1 out of 10)
Way to subvert expectations, Michelle Lynn! This script and story surprised us in a way that it took a controversial, edgy subject like exotic dancing/strip and flipped it on its head! What you expect to be a typical raunchy romance turns into a somewhat heartwarming and insightful story about a young woman in New York City trying to live her dream of becoming a superstar, winding up finding an outlet for her dancing, acting, and even writing ability in a gentleman's club of all places! How interesting is that! “Silver Lights” is the name of said gentleman's club. The protagonist, Skylar, is actually a very sympathetic character. No, she doesn't have a family member with a terminal illness, she isn't homeless, she isn't treated like trash and told she'll never be any good—nothing like that. Yet, somehow she still pulls us along on this wild journey of hers, and we're willing to go there with her because we care about her and her dream. What's more is that she actually seems to have a religious conviction of some sort and even prays. That's right, this stripper/exotic dancer/lap dancer actually reaches out to God from time to time like a modern day Mary Magdalene! What makes this script/story so interesting is that it actually brings us into the world of exotic dancing without all the sensationalism you might expect. Skylar is about as clueless and naive as we are about all of this, so she's learning right along with us. It's surprisingly fun and often humorous! If you're familiar with “Handbook for Mortals” by Lani Sarem, this is similar in terms of story but with a much more likable protagonist, less actual “magic” (but some theatrical magic), and less hokey love triangles. There's also an element of actual mystery and even a scandal that enfolds! This script is so much more than meets the eye! Check it out! 96/100 (9.6 out of 10)
Consider the following: High inflation, a viral outbreak that prompts widespread vaccination, concerns about civil liberties, and a red-clad army poised to invade and reclaim a former territory. This isn't the 2020s, this is the 1770s! At the time, the high inflation was partly the result of British economic pressure on the American colonies, the viral outbreak came in the form of smallpox, the concerns for civil liberties involved such things as women's rights to property and also slavery, and the red-clad army was sent to the American colonies by Great Britain. All us history buffs think we know the story: George Washington was a mega-general with the mandate of heaven, Benjamin Franklin was a genius mega-diplomat, John Hancock had a mega-awesome-signature, Samuel Adams was a mega-brewer-of-beer (or something like that), and John Adams was a mega-lawyer. But was it all that simple? What about the women who equally made the revolution and the birth of our nation possible? What about women like Abigail Adams? In this exhaustive biographical book “Wild Colts Make the Best Horses” we follow the real-life life story of Abigail Adams, the wife of second US president John Adams and sixth US president John Quincy Adams. This effectively makes Abigail Adams one of the “Founding Mothers” of the United States of America. While “Abigail Adams, Founding Mother of the United States” would've been a great title, “Wild Colts Make the Best Horses” reflects the words of Abigail's grandmother, who believed that positive things could come from Abigail's eccentricities (by the day's standards). There's an almost Charlotte Bronte-esque protagonist vibe with Abigail. Not to oversimplify a very deep and interesting real-life character, but she's a proto-feminist with a passionate romantic flare and revolutionary ideas (literally). And she's a lot more than that. She's a great mother to children who are constantly without a father (essentially acting as a single mother), a faithful wife to a husband who is almost always gone, and a great friend/neighbor who cares so much for community that she evil takes some of her family's food rations to the poor. For a historical biography, this book is actually very exciting and interesting to read. See, back in the 1700s, when you said you were taking a trip to France or the Netherlands, it wasn't just going to be a several-day trip with a long flight and a few tourist stops. No, you were going by sea, and the stone cold Atlantic Ocean was the canvas for your perilous odyssey. You might lose a crew mate or two or six on the journey, or a limb or two. You might even lose your life. There were pirates, sudden storms, freak sea conditions, extreme cold, lightning bolts out of nowhere, and enemies who'd love to ransom or hang you. The existence of these enemies sometimes even necessitate throwing your valuable outgoing mail overboard to avoid their capture, leaving your loved ones without word from you for months. Speaking of the 1700s, there were no e-mails, text messages, or even FedEx, so whether or not your loved ones even got your messages was pretty much up to chance. Another thing that really stunk about the 1700s is that you had far fewer rights than you do in America today, especially if you were a woman, Black, or Native American. A woman had no rights to vote or to property. And Abigail was not silent about women's rights, talking about them frequently in her correspondence. Interesting, she and John Adams actually discussed the evils of slavery frequently and often wished it would no longer become a part of the new nation. Bravo to the author for the amount of time and energy she put into researching, writing, editing, and re-writing the beautiful monster of a book. It's as thorough as thorough can get, and no editorial review is going to do it justice. If only we could live as full and meaningful a life as Abigail did all those hundreds of years ago! But it's unenviable as well, and we can count our blessings that we were not in her shoes at the time. We can only look at the things we endured as readers along for a ride with a protagonist taking the hits. That's not to say it can't be heartbreaking at times, with Abigail enduring several major losses in her life and perpetually being without her husband. For those of you who love historical romances, this could really be up your alley. We've spent more time than we'd like to admit researching the relationship of Napoleon and Josephine for example, so this really gives us the feels. Something else that's admirable about Abigail is her unwavering, undying faith. She always trusts God no matter what terrible circumstances come up, and more often than not she wins out in the end. God sees her through. It's kinda Count of Monte Cristo-esque in that sense. How fascinating to think what America would've been like without Abigail, her husband, her son, and her ideas! Get “Wild Colts Make the Best Horses” on Amazon today! |
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