Review: The Never Hero

Image from T. Ellery Hodges

Title: The Never Hero

Series: Chronicles of Jonathan Tibbs #1

Author: T. Ellery Hodges

Genre: Science Fiction

Back Cover:

When Jonathan Tibbs awoke in a pool of his own blood, there wasn’t a scratch on him to explain why. In the days that followed, a violent and merciless otherworldly enemy came from nowhere. It killed in the streets, all the while calling out for its challenger, but only Jonathan understood the trespasser’s words. That was the night he discovered he had been drafted into an ongoing conflict, a war outside the grasp of mankind’s memory. Now, the man Jonathan had seen himself becoming is not the man who can endure his future.

The first installment in this mind-bending action adventure series, The Never Hero is a gritty and honest look at the psychological journey of a man forced to forge himself into a weapon. Abandoned with little guidance, and finding himself at the mercy of a bargain struck far beyond his reach, Jonathan races to unlock the means to surmount the odds. All the while, fighting to understand the mystery behind a war between two species, raging outside of time and memory.

Confronted with the knowledge that, should he die, no one will ever know he was all that once stood between mankind and the enemy; Jonathan must decide who he is willing to become to save a planet that can never know of his sacrifice.

Review:

The whole concept of The Never Hero intrigued me – a mysterious attack quickly followed by a monster, a war nobody knows is happening, and of course, the classic “only the main character can do anything about it.” It was too good to pass up.

Jonathan was an interesting character. An average college student victim of a really, really weird attack and suddenly required to fight for his life at random intervals with no explanation as to why. A surprisingly large amount of the story was him dealing with his emotions – fear, frustration, anger, and other not-so-nice stuff. He got progressively darker as the story went on. And while I can’t say I particularly liked him as a person, I really enjoyed reading about him as a character.

There was a surprisingly large cast of secondary characters, too – Jonathan’s three roommates, Collin, Hayden, and Paige; Paige’s boyfriend; his new neighbor and her brother; Heyer, Jonathan’s mentor-ish figure who knows about the monster attacks; and many more. At some points it was hard to keep track of the really minor ones, but the more important ones all had distinct personalities and made for a good group of characters.

There’s so many plots all weaving together that I don’t even know where to begin. There’s the whole thing with the monsters (what they’re doing there and why), which doesn’t hardly get touched on until the end. Then there’s Jonathan’s emotional struggles, which were surprisingly deep and brilliant in many places; his struggles with relating to people post-attack, both his roommates and the pretty girl next door; his attempts to balance a normal-seeming life with the dangerous parts; and even several chapters of people who are working against him (some of whom even surprised me). This book did an amazing job of weaving so many things together into one great and complicated story.

I had two main problems with this book. One was punctuation – The Never Hero really needed a good copy editor. The other was length. In the middle, the story covered Jonathan’s training and his struggle with his emotions repetitively with nothing new happening, and it really dragged on a little too much.

While it’s not a perfect book (but honestly, what book is?), The Never Hero was even better than I expected – a well-executed brilliant concept woven into a tapestry of plots and characters that made for a fantastic read.

The Chronicles of Jonathan Tibbs

1. The Never Hero
2. The Never Paradox

I received a free review copy of The Never Hero in exchange for a review. This generosity in no way influenced, or sought to influence, this review.

Update 2018:

The Never Hero/T. Ellery Hodges sponsored an episode of Overly Sarcastic Productions! Overly Sarcastic Productions is a YouTube channel that talks about storytelling tropes, classic myths, and ancient history with a healthy dose of humor, sarcasm, and pop culture references. The Never Hero sponsored an episode about the “save the world” trope, and I highly recommend you watch it.

Review: The Hobbymen

Title: The Hobbymen

Author: Tim Owens

Genre: Paranormal

Back Cover:

Sister Liliana has not been having the best of days. Between running away from the convent and then being thrown into a desolate prison, she has started to lose hope of having a fun Wednesday. That is until she meets two strange men with a rather peculiar hobby: Amateur Monster Biology. From ancient monsters to urban legends, Geoff and Book are out to separate truth from fairytale, no matter how bizarre or ridiculous that truth may be. And as they have found, there is truth in everything.

Soon Liliana is caught in a whirlwind of adventure as they show her a side of the world she never thought existed, filled with fantastic creatures hiding in plain sight. But just as it seems her life is finally turning around, the group get a foreboding message from an unexpected, sinister source. Are the three of them in over their heads this time?

Yes…the answer is yes.

Review:

This is one of those books where I can’t put my finger on exactly why I picked it up. Maybe because it sounded like a unique concept, or maybe it just sounded a little off-the-wall and fun. Either way, when the offer landed in my inbox, I said yes.

And when I got the book, Tim Owens had doodled inside the front cover:

Which was really cute and thoughtful and just made me that much more excited to read it.

The characters were fun. There was Liliana, the failed nun with an interesting past; the research-obsessed, bookish Book; and the hyper-optimistic, gregarious Geoff. At first, the characters seemed like they were going to be pretty flat – but as the book continued, there was a pleasantly surprising amount of development and back story.

The mythology was a little wonky. I expected a combination of mythology from different lore, considering the finiding-the-truths-behind-legends research of the Hobbymen. What I didn’t expect was the biblical stuff. (I think the idea of behemoth  from Job 40:15-24 was wrong, but that’s my personal interpretation.) I thought the idea of the evil deities/forces of other religions being Satan by different names was an interesting concept – and perhaps not wrong. Anyway, that’s definitely something worth further consideration.

The basic plot was pretty much laid out for you on the back cover. But there were so many other little things. A huge part of it is Liliana trying to come to terms with her past. And another is goofy Geoff and serious Book’s relationship. And another is Liliana trying to get used to the Hobbymen’s everyday craziness. Despite the deadly threat hanging over their heads, the entire book was just … fun.

This was clearly a self-published book – the formatting was a little wonky and it was in need of a good copy editor. The missing commas drove me crazy. But they weren’t extremely glaring errors, and it only detracted a little from my enjoyment of the book.

The Hobbymen had its faults (the poor-punctuation-hating part of me wished it had been copy edited better and a few of the jokes fell a little flat), but it also had a lot of things going for it. It was lighthearted and fun, had surprisingly great characters, and was even thought-provoking in spots. I would definitely recommend it.

I received a free review copy of The Hobbymen from the author. His generosity in no way influenced, or sought to influence, this review.

Review: George and the Galactic Games

Image from H.S. Stone

Title: George and the Galactic Games

Author: H.S. Stone

Genre: Science Fiction

Back Cover:

George is the new kid in school. He also recently lost his father to a heart attack. In an effort to cheer him up, George’s mother takes him on a camping trip. That’s when their troubles really begin. Extraterrestrials abduct both mother and son. Now George finds himself an unwilling participant in the Yumal Contests, a galactic game against an alien species. He must overcome his fears and limitations to win because these games are not just a casual sporting event … his life hangs in the balance.

Review:

After reading H.S. Stone’s Beyond New Eden and Keep Your Enemies Close, I’ve been meaning to read the rest of his books. It took me a while to get around to it, but I finally found this one as an ebook for three dollars, and figured it was as good a place to start as any.

George was really enjoyable. I admired his courage and his determination not to let his team down, even though he was sure he wasn’t good at anything. His grief over his father’s death also seemed very real. My only problem with him is the same problem I have with almost every middle grade book with a male main character – as a 17-year-old girl, I didn’t connect with him as well as I wanted to.

I enjoyed the other characters on George’s team, as well. (Except Frank, but I’m not sure anyone liked Frank.) Roger and Susan, the middle aged couple, were fun, but I especially liked Emily, who was George’s age. She was optimistic and encouraging, but she seemed to have a very similar skill set to George, which was a little weird.

I guessed why things weren’t working right long before it was explained – but it wasn’t super obvious. I had to actually think about putting the pieces together, as opposed to just realizing what’s going on. This is a middle grade book, though, and I doubt the book’s intended audience would guess it.

I loved the idea of the Yumal Contest games. At first, it made me think of a less gory, middle grade Hunger Games with aliens, but as I read on, I realized that wasn’t true at all. The concept was a lot like a challenge-based STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) class I’m taking, with a combination of physical and mental challenges for points. But here, there were the teams’ freedom on the line – losers stayed behind as slaves. It was a fascinating idea, and I loved every moment of it.

I really enjoyed George and the Galactic Games. It was fun, and even though it wasn’t as lighthearted as I expected, it wasn’t heavy-handed, either. A thoroughly enjoyable read.

Review: Theory of Mind

Title: Theory of Mind

Author: Jacob Gorczyca

Genre: Science Fiction

Back Cover:

Have you ever kept a secret for a friend? A secret that you couldn’t tell a single person? A secret that robbed you of sleep? It might be something wonderful or awful, something neither good nor ill. It might be rather strange. A secret craves freedom, but it mustn’t escape. Everyone has kept a secret, but few have kept one like Sam Gylkov’s.

Sam, a farmer from southern Michigan, has a secret he can no longer bear. He is about to entrust it to a friend. It is at the same time wonderful and horrible and dizzying. After hearing it, no one will be the same.

Review:

Even before it had a title or a back cover blurb, I was excited to read this book. Back when he was in high school, Jake Gorczyca went to my homeschool group. So when he posted on Facebook that his book was getting published, I knew I was going to read it even before I knew what it was about.

Unfortunately, this is one of those books that was published before it was ready.

There’s a good story under here. Fascinating, unique, and a bit of a Christian allegory (but not at all in a preachy way). It was completely baffling at the beginning, but it all made wonderful sense at the end. Its unique concept really got me thinking. And I’m happy to say that I didn’t see anything coming, which is rare for me to say about any book.

The bad part was, the fabulous story is burried pretty deep. There are far too many words, and many of them just don’t fit with the backwoods farmer narrator. The style probably could have worked in a fantasy, but it does not fit sci-fi. And there’s so much potential for subplots and expansion that isn’t taken advantage of.

Theory of Mind would benefit from being tripled in size to add all the extra content that wasn’t taken advantage of, then cut in half to get rid of all the extra words. This is a “diamond in the rough” book – there’s an amazing diamond here, but it won’t look its best until the excess rock is removed and the rough edges polished.

Review: Aether Warriors

Title: Aether Warriors

Series: The Hidden War #1

Author: Dean Ravenola

Genre: Urban Fantasy

Back Cover:

Young Chase’s life is suddenly turned upside-down as he discovers he has been chosen as an Aether Warrior. He is the last member found of a small group of gifted children that will be trained to lead a war that has been ongoing secretly for centuries. Strange creatures, hidden bases, and perhaps even a betrayal lie in store for Chase as he follows his destiny.

Review:

Why did I pick this up? Partly because I like magic stories, partly because it generally sounded interesting, and partly because the author is nineteen years old. As a teenage writer myself, I’m always happy to support one brave enough to publish his writing on his own.

I liked Chase. He had a not-so-idyllic childhood, but he still turned out okay – friendly, caring, and loyal, if a little bland. I wish he had more time between arriving at the Golden Scales base and the traitor being a traitor to discover and show off his skills. But overall, I enjoyed reading about him.

I don’t want to say a lot about the other characters, for risk of revealing the traitor. (Unfortunately, I found it really obvious who the traitor was, but it’s hard to say how much of that was just my plot psychicness.) But I liked almost all of Chase’s team. The exceptions were Juno, who wasn’t really social (and whose name always made me think of the Roman goddess of motherhood, even though this Juno is a guy), and sometimes Jasmine, who rubbed me the wrong way.

The story starts off pretty basic. Weird stuff happens, Chase unleashes supernatural abilities and gets taken away to join a secret group of similarly gifted people. Then it gets a little more exciting, with a mythical creature zoo (of sorts), magic and magical weapons, powerful relics, and, of course, a similar group of magic people that are evil. And there’s a traitor. There weren’t a whole lot of layers to it, but I enjoyed the magical action and watching Chase’s team operate.

I really don’t like writing this, but I’ve always promised honest reviews, and I feel this deserves a mention. The writing was not as good as it could have been. This is one of those books were the basics of a good story are there. There’s plot, protagonists, antagonists, action, and all the elements of a classic hero’s quest fantasy. But it wasn’t fully fleshed out to its full potential. The author really needed another year or two of writing practice under his belt. (I say this as a writer myself – I see a lot of his mistakes in my own older works. Practice can work wonders.)

I did really enjoy Aether Warriors, which is why I’d urge Dean Ravenola to take another look at it. It has some awesome potential, but it will need a little help in getting there.

I received a free review copy of Aether Warriors from the author. His generosity in no way influenced, or sought to influence, this review.

The Hidden War series:

1. Aether Warriors

Review: The Wings of Dragons

Title: The Wings of Dragons

Series: The Dragoon Saga #1

Author: Josh VanBrakle

Genre: High Fantasy

Back Cover:

Left-handed people are chaotic, dangerous, and devil-spawned. So declares Lodian history, but teenage prankster Iren Saitosan, the kingdom’s only known Left, thinks that’s an exaggeration. When he accidentally almost kills Lodia’s heir to the throne, however, Iren becomes an unexpected addition to an assassination squad. The appointment is suicidal, and Iren’s chances aren’t helped when he learns that his new sword imprisons a serpentine dragon. Adding to his problems, someone on the assassination team is plotting treason. Iren soon finds himself trapped between competing loyalties as a former ally launches a blood-soaked plan to avenge the Lefts, a vengeance one thousand years in the making. Against a backdrop of friendship, betrayal, and explosive magic, Iren will need to uncover the forgotten history of Lefts and dragons if he hopes to survive.

Review:

I picked this up because I like dragons, plus the Left thing sounded pretty unique. Then the author promised Japanese mythology (which is totally awesome), and I was hooked.

Iren was lacking in social skills and very naive, especially in the beginning. I enjoyed him, but I thought he seemed a lot younger than 17. But as the story went on and he actually got to do stuff, he matured and grew into his awesome skills. I liked him more and more as the story progressed.

There are other characters that I could mention, but I won’t. Half the fun is trying to figure out who’s on what side. Character A’s a good guy. No, they’re a traitor. Wait, they’re not a traitor. Yes, they’re a traitor, but they betrayed the bad guys. Character B is a good guy. Maybe they’re a traitor…? Nope, definitely not a traitor. What the holy heck they were a traitor the whole time?! And so on and so forth for just about every major character except Iren.

Okay, so the assassination team plot? Not all that important. The sword that’s given only a passing mention? Hugely important. The assassination team thing acts more like a catalyst to get things started, and then something Iren has to do that keeps him from discovering the important stuff. It’s secondary to the what-the-heck-is-going-on questions that Iren has. And trust me, there’s a lot more going on than meets the eye.

The mythology seemed a little wonky at times. It was like a cross between Japanese and traditional high fantasy, and the two didn’t always mesh quite right. When they did, it was absolutely awesome. When they didn’t, it wasn’t overt, but I got this sneaky feeling that something wasn’t quite right.

After the ending of The Wings of Dragons, I have no idea what book two will be about. But I’d still be up for reading it. I have a feeling that whatever Josh VanBrakle comes up with, it’s going to be great (and I bet I’ll have no idea who the good guys are).

I recieved a free review copy of The Wings of Dragons from the author. His generosity in no way influenced, or sought to influence, this review.

The Dragoon Saga:

1. The Wings of Dragons
2. The Hearts of Dragons
3. The Flames of Dragons

Review: Uninvited

Title: Uninvited

Series: Unloved Ones prequel #2

Author: Kevin Richey

Genre: Paranormal

Back Cover:

After her boyfriend dumps her, perfectionist and overachiever Jacqueline White obsessively compares herself to his new girlfriend, the sloppy and irresponsible Becka. But when she wakes up in Becka’s body to find they have switched places, she has a choice to make—should she take this opportunity to destroy her opponent’s life from the inside out? Or should she instead find a way to keep this new body, and her old boyfriend, for herself?

Review:

After the awesomeness of Unpretty (or, more accurately, the awesomeness of Katherine in Unpretty), I was really looking forward to reading Uninvited. I knew it followed a completely different character, but I really didn’t care, because Kevin Richey can write.

I loved Jackie. I could relate to her desire to be smart and do her best in school and be perfect. And I really wanted her to learn the lesson I’ve learned – perfection is boring to everybody else. I didn’t connect with her as much as I did with Katherine – perhaps because Jackie’s issue is one I’ve conquered, while I’m still struggling with Katherine’s – but I still loved her.

The plot is pretty straightforward – Jackie’s boyfriend dumps her, she wakes up in the body of his new girlfriend. She has to navigate the day as Becka, and decide whether or not to destroy her rival. This novella is so short, I feel like anything else I say will be a spoiler, but suffice it to say that I didn’t see the ending coming. And I totally enjoyed it.

Uninvited took me 23 minutes to read – I timed it. But for the most part, it seemed to be the perfect length, and it left a whole lot of open ends that I suspect will be tied up in the actual Unloved Ones series. The only thing I think it could have done better was show Jackie’s home life a little better. That it’s not great is mentioned in passing, but I think I would have liked her better if I’d have known more.

I didn’t love Jackie quite as much as Katherine, but I still really enjoyed Uninvited. And I can’t wait to get my hands on the third prequel, Unpopular.

I received a free review copy of Uninvited from the author. His generosity in no way influenced, or sought to influence, this review.

The Unloved Ones prequels:

1. Unpretty
2. Uninvited
3. Unpopular

Review: The Crystal Ordeal

Title: The Crystal Ordeal

Series: Legends of Leone #1

Author: M. G. Dekle

Genre: High Fantasy

Back Cover:

At a very young age, Leone Verrat learned that her ability to cast simple magical spells was limited by a very peculiar handicap. Even though she earned barely passable grades, an unknown benefactor still saw fit to recommend her for Morgan’s Ordeal, a test necessary for any respectable career. She is soon inextricably linked to her theatrical Ordeal partner, Falchion, as they must brave the dangers of the test together. They both quickly discover that the Ordeal is the least of their concerns as they find themselves in the middle of an ancient power struggle.

Review:

I don’t read much high fantasy, but mainly because I’m not a big fan of traditional high fantasy plots and it’s hard to find a good original twist. The cover wasn’t the greatest, but the Morgan’s Ordeal thing sounded pretty unique, so I figured I might as well try it.

Leone was enjoyable. She tended to be a follower more than a leader, but she could hold her own in an argument or (mostly) in a fight. Between her faint geekiness, her almost completely boring past, and her rather unique magic usage, she would have been a great character…if she wasn’t overshadowed by the awesomeness of Falchion.

Falchion was the reason I enjoyed this book so much. He was adventurous and outgoing and offbeat and quirky and crazy, but he was hilarious. Some people do trust falls – Falchion does trust leaps. Off two-story buildings. Into giant walls. He was downright insane, but in such an endearing way.

I couldn’t read The Crystal Ordeal after ten at night, because Falchion would make me laugh so hard I’d wake up the rest of my family.

As for the traditional high fantasy plot – I didn’t have to worry. Once the strange and fascinating Morgan’s Ordeal part is over (it doesn’t take up nearly as much of the book as I was suspecting), it moves in to more strange and super fun plots, like escaping walled cities and running from guards and trying to figure out what the heck is going on. Because something really weird is going on, and it leads to all sorts of fun and excitement and danger.

High fantasy magic systems are almost always complicated. This does such-and-such in this case, but that over here, and this there, and if the opponent does/says/has this…you get the picture. That’s not a bad thing. But the Legends of Leone magic system was refreshingly simple: objects can be used to cast spells, using the object’s properties (a spiderweb can make a sticky spell or a rope spell or a net spell or whatever else the magician can think of that has to do with spiderwebs). It took me about a chapter to get it, then I just enjoyed watching Leone do fun magic stuff.

When I first pulled up the book on my ereader, I hoped I wouldn’t end up wading through 200+ pages of substandard writing. By page 75, I didn’t want this book to end. I wanted more of the story, and especially more of Falchion.

Leone was fun. Falchion was epic. I enjoyed the original take on high fantasy. And I sure as heck can’t wait to get my hands on book two!

I received a free review copy of The Crystal Ordeal from the author. His generosity in no way influenced, or sought to influence, this review.

The Legends of Leone series:

1. The Crystal Ordeal
2. Currently untitled

Review: Portal

Title: Portal

Series: Portal Chronicles #1

Author: Imogen Rose

Genre: Alternate Reality

Back Cover:

On the way home from the SAT with her dad one afternoon, ice-hockey-playing tomboy Arizona falls asleep…and wakes up at night in a different car with her mother. She suddenly finds herself  living the life of a glamorous cheerleader, transported from her happy life with her dad to living with the mother she hates. Everyone knows her as Arizona Darley, but she isn’t. She is Arizona Stevens. As she struggles to find answers she is certain of two things — that her mother is somehow responsible, and that she wants to go back home to her real life. At least until she meets Kellan …

Review:

I picked up Portal on a whim. The cover wasn’t the greatest, and the synopsis sounded only okay, but I read the first chapter on Amazon and thought it sounded interesting. So I decided to give it a try.

And am I ever glad I did.

I loved Arizona. Kick-butt hockey player Arizona Stevens is suddenly popular cheerleader Arizona Darley, and I loved watching her adjust. I also loved watching her try to hide how lost she was, because she was afraid of going back to the psych ward (just another layer of interesting to an already fascinating character).

Kellan was awesome, too. He was sweet and considerate, but he wasn’t perfect. He got mad sometimes, and butted heads with Arizona every once in a while. He wasn’t s pushover, but he was supportive, and willing to give Arizona the benefit of the doubt. He was great.

In fact, I loved almost all the characters. Arizona’s sweet little sister Ella, her big brother Harry, her best friend Ariele…even the more minor ones, like Arizona Darley’s cheerleading friends, were fun. The only ones I didn’t love were Arizona’s parents, because I knew they were hiding something.

The plot was awesome. There was the main, how-the-heck-did-Arizona-Stevens-become-Arizona-Darley plot, which could be considered one and the same as the getting-back-to-Arizona-Stevens’s-world plot, plus romance, trying to adjust to her new school and friends, and issues with an angry wanna-be-friend. It was all brilliantly fascinating and delightfully complicated.

If I hadn’t known Portal was an Indie book, I wouldn’t have guessed it. The plot was brilliant, the writing was excellent, the characterization was awesome, the emotion was real. The whole book was strong and professional. I was highly impressed.

When I picked it up, I thought Portal was a standalone. I was wrong. It’s actually first in a series, and I am thrilled. After the awesomeness of Portal, I can’t wait to read book two, Equilibrium.

I received a free review copy of Portal from the author. Her generosity in no way influenced, or sought to influence, this review.

The Portal Chronicles:

1. Portal
2. Equilibrium
3. Quantum
4. Momentum
5. Fusion

Review: Beyond New Eden

Title: Beyond New Eden

Author: H.S. Stone

Genre: Dystopian

Back Cover:

Eve 142 has lived her entire life in the domed city of New Eden, home to the only surviving humans after the War. Like all of the inhabitants of New Eden, Eve 142 is a clone. Together with the other clones, dubbed the Adams and the Eves, she leads a safe, predictable existence. But when she causes a tragic accident, her life changes. As punishment, she and her counterpart, Adam 142, are banished from New Eden. At first, Eve 142 considers their punishment a death sentence because she grew up believing the world outside the dome was uninhabitable. She is wrong.

Review:

I’m a big dystopian fan, even though it can be hard to find an original one. Beyond New Eden looked original, and so I decided to try it.

Eve 142 had a mild personality. She was quiet and smart and not the kind to make waves – a lot like all the other Eves and Adams in New Eden. She was a nice girl, a little naive in some things, but not an outstanding personality.

Adam 142 was…well, a lot like a male version of Eve 142. Similarly quiet and not controversial, but a little (only a little) more willing to take risks than Eve. Sweet, but also not super memorable.

And although the bland personalities weren’t great, I appreciate it. People in New Eden were raised to have peaceful, bland personalities. Eve and Adam 142 were completely indoctrinated, like everyone else. So even though they weren’t remarkable personalities, if they had been, it would have seemed really out of place.

The plot was excellent, too. It wasn’t straight dystopian – I’d call it a cross between dystopian and post-apocalyptic. The city of New Eden itself had dystopian elements, but the outside survival was more post-apocalyptic. And I have to admit, I had a hard time guessing what would happen next. There were so many twists and new things for Eve and Adam to discover.

The idea, too – the clones, the way the city worked, everything – was fascinating and well-thought-out. Even the little details fit neatly in with the rest of the world. I could almost see something like that happening.

This was an Indie book, so I was impressed with the writing. I didn’t find any grammar or punctuation issues, and I was looking. If I hadn’t known this was an Indie book, I wouldn’t have guessed – and that’s a good thing.

Overall, Beyond New Eden was interesting and creative. I think a sequel would drag a good story on too far, but I wouldn’t object to reading something else by H.S. Stone.

I received a free review copy of Beyond New Eden from the author. His generosity in no way influenced, or sought to influence, this review.