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The Enigma Ignite
Posted by Literary Titan
The Enigma Ignite, by Charles Breakfield and Roxanne Burkey, is fraught with technological advancements and a lesson in all things computer. The entire team of characters assembled by the authors is rich with all the appropriate levels of humor, drama, and romance. The diverse cast of characters are members of an exceptionally knowledgeable team working overtime to rescue Keith Avery and Eilla-Zan from terrorists while simultaneously solving the dilemma of safely and successfully transporting Su Lin, Daisy, and Franklin (a pig and Su Lin’s prized possession), who themselves may hold the answers to cleaning up the mess made by the horrendous failures in battlefield communications technology.
Once again, Breakfield and Burkey have created some villains of epic proportions. Oxnard (that name alone is sneer-worthy), kidnapper and all-around cretin, is one of those evil-doers readers will revel in hating. At one point he seems to almost cherish describing the beating into submission of elephants as he taunts his captive, Keith Avery. Oxnard represents everything vile in a human, and the authors have more than hit the mark with this character.
The various pairs of team members who work together all have a chemistry that can’t be beat. The authors have succeeded in crafting characters like Julie and Juan and Petra and Jacob who rather effortlessly morph from business-like and focused to laidback couples thoroughly enjoying each other’s company. Each couple is as intelligent and driven as the other, and virtually all of their dialogue flows smoothly and is laden with relatable humor.
I found Su Lin and Franklin’s storyline to be rather intriguing all the way around. The fact that Su Lin’s experiments could yield results helpful to the military and stemmed from her work with a pig, well…it was a fascinating spin. Daisy’s very personal and painful experience related to her work makes the entire subplot much more believable and personal for readers.
Though filled to the brim with technical terms and bubbling with all the seriousness of big screen drama, the authors lace their work with humor. The acronyms themselves are, more often than not, based on levity. For example, the acronym COBWEB represents Civilian Observer Blokes Wearing Excessive Bling. I had to laugh out loud at the appearance of the brothers, Won and Ton. Breakfield and Burkey, without a doubt, deliver the humor.
I have to say that the addition of Andy to this cast of characters is a welcome one. Andy, experienced in communications and a native of the South, was a pleasure to read. Being from the South myself, I appreciated his southern drawl and the references to his hospitality. Stereotypical? Maybe. In a good way? Absolutely.
I have to rate The Engima Ignite by Breakfield and Burkey a 5 out of 5. I thoroughly enjoy the dialogue between the characters whether it be between the villain and the heroes or between the good guys in their private moments. The authors manage to take highly technical terms and procedures and make them relatable for the average reader. Their well-drawn characters are a huge part of that success.
Pages: 331 | ASIN: B00KTGJ0QA
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Posted in Book Reviews, Five Stars
Tags: action, adventure, amazon, amazon books, amazon ebook, author, barnes and noble, book, book review, books, breakfiled, burkey, comedy, computer, ebook, ebooks, fantasy, fantasy book review, fiction, fighting, fun, funny, future, goodreads, invention, kindle, kindle book, kindle ebook, kobo, literature, love, mystery, nook, novel, oxnard, publishing, read, reader, reading, review, reviews, romance, satire, sci fi, science ficiton, science fiction, science fiction book review, stories, suspense, tech, techno, technology, technothriller, the enigma ignite, thriller, urban fantasy, villain, war, write, writer, writing, YA, young adult
The Magus
Posted by Literary Titan
A Chronicle of Rebirth, The Magus, begins when Nelina finds herself being taken to the slavers block by her ruthless uncle who was forced to take her in after her parents die. Now he’s looking for some easy money by selling Nelina into slavery. As fate would have it, Nelina is purchased by the even more ruthless Magus of Danthamore. The Magus is popular and powerful and equally dangerous, but oh so sexy. The chemistry between Nelina and Danthamore is sudden and palpable. Their lives are quickly intertwined and the Magus finds himself taken by this green eyed beauty that many consider to be nothing more than a lucky pauper. Nelina must navigate the resentment of the staff while attempting to be more than a pawn in a deadly political game. Can she survive her new life? What will the Magus have to sacrifice for her?
This book takes care in crafting it’s characters. The protagonist and antagonist are both meticulously developed before the story takes wild twists. The writing is often direct, but the beauty of the prose is found in the details. Do the characters fall ridiculously hard for each other a bit too quickly? Of course they do, because this is a love story that doesn’t focus on how they met, but how they will hold onto what they have. What will they do to keep one another?
We get a good sense of the characters before the story takes some wild turns. You’ll be flipping pages as the story switches between the political intrigue of the kingdom and the steamy romance between Nelina and the Magus. There was one thing that I felt would have improved the story and it’s that the author’s sometimes tell instead of show. There were a few events that I was simply told about when I wish (because I can see the authors have the talent) that I was shown.
What I enjoyed most about this story is the turmoil the characters undergo after they’ve fallen for one another. You keep asking yourself, ‘how far will they go’? I think stories are often character driven, but I think this book is a relationship driven story.
If your looking for a romance novel underlined with suspense and punctuated with adventure than A Chronicle of Rebirth: The Magus is for you. A well written novel that begs to be expanded upon.
Pages: 343 | ASIN: B072511ZWY
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Posted in Book Reviews, Four Stars
Tags: a chronicle of rebirth, action, adventure, amazon, amazon books, amazon ebook, author, book review, books, ebook, ebooks, fantasy, fantasy book review, fiction, fighting, goodreads, kindle, kindle book, kindle ebook, king, kingdom, literature, love, love story, mage, magic, magician, mystery, new adult, novel, paranormal, political, publishing, read, reader, reading, relationship, review, reviews, romance, romance book, sex, slave, slavery, steamy, stories, supernatural, suspense, teen, teen fiction, the magus, thriller, war, wizard, women, write, writer, writing, YA, young adult
Evil for the Sake of Being Evil
Posted by Literary Titan
Wrath of the Fallen is an epic fantasy novel detailing the ferocious clash of angels and demons. What was your inspiration for this story and how did it change as you were writing?
This story has been kicking around in my head for some time. As much as I enjoy the human machinations of stories like Game of Thrones, I really like battles between good and evil as a larger construct over the human element in a story. I crafted this mythology over several years, drawing inspiration from some of my own beliefs, and cobbled them together with different failed story ideas that I came up with as far back as when I was in High School. The opening Prologue, for example, started as a scene from a story set in an entirely different world, but I eventually reworked it to be the jumping off point for this one.
Early in my college career, I was a dishwasher at a restaurant. I worked graveyard, and as you can imagine, I didn’t have a lot to do mentally from the hours of 9 PM-4AM so I started to craft this world in my head to pass the time. I came up with the history of the Mortal Plane, starting over a thousand years before Wrath of the Fallen, and continued it some two thousand years past that first novel with multiple other story ideas that I hope to get to someday. Overall, the initial planning of the world took place over several years, while the actual writing of Wrath took place over roughly two.
The characters in this book are well written and easy to visualize. What were some obstacles in your story that you felt were important for the characters development?
I ran into the issue when crafting the story of making the characters too black and white. I didn’t want to fall into the trap where Trent was always likable and never did anything good, and I wanted to make sure that the antagonist was somewhat sympathetic. The hard part about overcoming this was the good vs. evil divide that was built into the very fabric of the world. This is why I felt that it was important to give Trent his anger issues and resentment towards his father based on what happened in his past. I actually didn’t have him meet his dad in the first draft, but on the rewrite, I knew that adding that scene would give Trent a more realistic and humanistic characterization. Trauma, especially in childhood, fundamentally changes a person, and I wanted what happened to Trent to reflect that. Too many of the orphan chosen-one archetypal heroes are good people through and through and are too well adjusted for my taste. On the opposite side of the spectrum, I wanted to make sure that I gave the villain, even being an evil god, a real human motivation, so I picked what might be the strongest one out there: revenge. He couldn’t just be evil for the sake of being evil, but because he was also defined by trauma.
The backstory and mythology of this story, I can tell, was developed with a lot of thought and care. How did you set about creating the rich background for this story?
As I mentioned earlier, I started coming up with the history while washing dishes. Most of the world is still in my head, though I am finally typing it up into a series bible that I can refer back to. I also laid out an illustrated timeline on my website to allow others to see what the history of the world is leading into the Broken Pact Trilogy, which really helped me pin down specific dates for events that I was fuzzier on in the beginning.
I follow the history through storytelling method of worldbuilding. I would rather write a novel, novella or short story that details a historical event in my world and allow readers to learn the full details that way than writing out a detailed pseudohistory for them to pore over and wonder about. Those certainly have merit, and I enjoy reading them myself, but as a writer, I would much rather tell a story than write a history book.
This is book one in The Broken Pact series. Where does book two pick up and take readers?
Book two will be titled Cries of the Forsaken. It picks up immediately after the events of Wrath, and even a little bit before the final chapters to show us what happened to certain characters that we weren’t previously following. Some heroes that we thought dead return and some that we hoped survived do not. One of the themes of the next novel is good destroying good and evil destroying evil, so be prepared to see the conflict between the gods turned on its head.
Author Links: GoodReads | Twitter | Facebook | Website
The Mortal Plane has long been divided among the servants of Light and Darkness, suffering a thousand years of atrocity by both sides. When one god finally rose up and slew another, The Pact was formed, forestalling any further damage to the realms of men. But now, over the last few decades, signs of the Demons and their mindless Accursed minions have dwindled to an all-time low. It seems that after a thousand years of conflict the Gods of Light and the Gods of Darkness have finally tired of the bloody war. Or have they?
It falls to Trent, a Paladin of the Light with a soul torn with an impossible and unrequited love for his commander and scarred by a childhood filled with despair and pain, to travel beyond the walls of the city to discover what has become of humanity’s ancestral enemy. Only with his closest friend Devin by his side can Trent hope to keep from losing himself. Together the two men track a horde of Demons to a secret that will rock the Mortal Plane to its very foundations.
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Posted in Interviews
Tags: action, adventure, amazon, amazon books, author, author interview, book, book review, books, crafting, dark tidings press, ebook, ebooks, epic fantasy, evil, fantasy, fantasy book review, fantasy ebook, fantasy fiction, fiction, fighting, god, good, goodreads, high school, horror, human, interview, kindle, kindle book, kindle ebook, knight, kristopher jerome, literature, love, magic, magician, mystery, novel, publishing, read, reading, revenge, review, reviews, romance, stories, thriller, war, wrath of the fallen, write, writer, writing
Tricky at Times
Posted by Literary Titan
The Guardians of Eastgate is a genre-crossing novel with elements of a fantasy, adventure, and romance as well. Did you start writing with this in mind, or did this happen organically as you were writing?
The genre-crossing was both intentional and organic. I knew I wanted to write a fantasy-adventure, but I wasn’t sure at first if I wanted to include romance. Some of my favorite books are fantasy-romance. However, I knew I didn’t want to narrow my audience by going into erotica.
I liked the way romance was handled in novels like Twilight, The Hunger Games and the Divergent series: it was present, but it wasn’t the main focus, and it wasn’t explicit. These were not books I would have to worry about my kids reading as teens, for example. Writing romance in this way left them accessible to teens all the way through to adult. So, I knew that if I did include romance, I would want to handle it in this manner. The Guardians of Eastgate is rated as Young Adult, but I wanted it to be accessible to teens and older adults as well.
I didn’t make the final decision to include romance until I was writing their interactions, however. In fact, I wouldn’t really call it a decision. Rather, it felt like the natural progression of the relationship between the characters. So, in this way, it was organic. The way I see it, their relationship is complicated (due to their histories), yet also inevitable due to their personalities and shared histories.
As for the adventure part, well, what is fantasy without adventure, really? I am a huge fan of Tolkien. The Lord of the Rings was required reading in my Advanced Literature class in high school. At first, I found his writing tedious, and had to wade through it. By the time I was done, though, I was thoroughly hooked and grateful for all those details. There is no way I will even try to compete with Tolkien, however. I loved his world and character building, but knew that I would not want to take on writing on that grand a scale, especially for my first novel.
One reason for this is knowing that, in our time, people work a lot and have many scheduled activities for themselves, their kids, etc. Because of this, I purposely kept my book on the short side for a novel, and made my chapters short as well. However, after feedback from some of my readers who basically said they enjoyed the story, but would have liked to see more of certain elements, I am now considering doing a revised and expanded second edition.
The supporting characters in this novel, I felt, were intriguing and well developed. Who was your favorite character to write for?
My favorite character is my main character, Maelona. However, I did not find her easy to write for. She is a very subdued character who, for a large portion of the story, is denying or ignoring huge parts of herself due to guilt from past events. So, how do you reveal a character’s personality through their dialogue and actions when they so tightly control their actions and emotions? I knew I wanted to use the third person narrative, which took revealing her character through inner monologue off the table. I didn’t want to switch to the first person though, as I wanted readers to feel the distance she creates for herself partly through the distance the third person provides. It is a complicated mix, and it was difficult to find the right balance. I did enjoy trying to find that balance, though.
I probably like Blaez and Gareth equally. Blaez, however, though not as tightly wound as Maelona and more emotionally open, is also calm in actions and words, so revealing his character was also tricky at times. Gareth was perhaps the easiest to write for, as he is cheeky and wears his heart on his sleeve, as the saying goes.
Maelona is a seer champion tasked with protecting the realm and is the first line of defense when evil rises. What were the driving ideals behind the characters development throughout the story?
Maelona is essentially driven by her guilt over what happened at the crater of sorrows (which we find out about when she tells Blaez the story). She blames herself for what happened and she feels extreme guilt and an intense sense of loss over the accidental death of someone close to her.
Her father was a powerful seer who took his responsibilties to the seer people, and to the entire realm, very seriously. He believed, as did most of the seer people, that his race’s “advantages” over the other races gave them the responsibilty to watch over the realm and all its peoples (kind of like that “With great power comes great responsibility” line in Spiderman). They believe, essentially, this was what they were created for, and they continued to believe this even after their people were persucuted and hunted out of fear. In a sense, Maelona is an overachiever because she is always trying to make up for the loss of her father. However, she also had to work harder to fill his shoes because she is denying the most powerful parts of herself, parts she considers to be dangerous and that she is afraid of losing control over.
With this new mysterious and serious threat to the entire realm, however, she will need these most powerful parts of herself. Her letting go of her tight contol on her emotions and opening herself up to her new friends, and especially her new love, mirrors her letting go control of those “scary” parts of herself. This is why the romance between Maelona and Blaez ends up being so important. It is her relationship with him that allows her to stop holding back those pieces of herself that scare her; to take a chance on those parts because the potential gain is worth it. It is her relationship with him that allows her to begin accepting herself, all of herself, for who she is.
What is the next story that you’re writing and when will it be published?
I am already 40,600+ words into the second novel of the series. I haven’t settled on a name yet, but it will focus on the Seer guardian of Southgate. Between finishing the first draft, self-editing and revising, having beta readers look at it, then sending it off to the editor for a few rounds of revisions, etc. etc., I don’t expect it to be published until late winter, early spring.
I have also decided to do a second edition of The Guardians of Eastgate because I will be re-doing the cover. I have hired a visual artist to do the book covers for the rest of the series and I want them all to be uniform. Due to reader feed-back, I am considering expanding on the interior narrative as well. You can check on my website or social media accounts to stay updated on whether or not I will expand the story, and when the second edition with the new cover (and possibly extended storyline) will be released.
Author Links: GoodReads | Twitter | Facebook | Website
An ancient evil threatens the realm of Sterrenvar. A race of people called the seers has appointed themselves Guardians of the Realm, guarding the safety of their world and all the people in it.
Maelona Sima is one of four seer champions tasked with protecting the four keystones from being breached by evil forces, thus leaving an immeasurable magical force free to be used against the realm’s inhabitants. Yet Maelona is more than a seer. She is unique in her world, and she is the best hope of survival for the people of Sterrenvar…the very people who once hunted down and killed many of the seer people out of fear and mistrust.
Protecting the keystones is the first line of defense against the evil sorcerer who wishes to enslave the realm. Can Maelona, the guardian of the keystone at Eastgate, and her friends Blaez, a wolf shifter, and Gareth, a human prince, bring together their peoples to save Eastgate from destruction in this first book of the Seers series?
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Posted in Interviews
Tags: action, adventure, amazon, amazon books, amazon ebook, author, author interview, book, book review, books, character, cheeky, divergent, ebook, ebooks, epic fantasy, facebook, fantasy, fantasy book review, fiction, fighting, goodreads, guardians of eastgate, horror, interview, kindle, kindle book, kindle ebook, literature, love, magic, mystery, novel, publishing, read, reader, reading, review, reviews, romance, romance novel, Sherry Leclerc, sorcerer, spiderman, stories, teen, the hunger games, thriller, tolkien, twitter, urban fantasy, war, women, womens fiction, write, writer, writing, YA, young adult
Cowboys and spies?
Posted by Literary Titan
In the latest Nick Grant adventure story the Japanese plot to steal the famous Hughes H-1 racer. What was the inspiration for the setup to this exciting novel?
Interesting, during the World War II, Howard Hughes got the opportunity to examine a captured Japanese A-6M Zero. He recognized several innovations he had incorporated into the H-1. Many years later, he told a story about a 1936 break in at his Culver City airport. The culprits ransacked the H-1 hangar and several blue prints were missing. The Japanese were never implicated. I took those snippets of story and wrote Nick Grant into the action.
The supporting characters in this novel, I felt, were intriguing and well developed. Who was your favorite character to write?
I enjoy writing the supporting characters as much as I do writing Nick. In each novel, I have introduced news characters – some good – some evil. In Black Dragons Attack my hands down favorite is Brian O’Malley. Without exception, the advance copy readers loved him. Those same early readers asked that I include Brian in future Nick Grant Adventures. Brian is a good hearted cowpoke who has a pivotal role in the story line. Cowboys and spies? An interesting combination that I hope my reader’s enjoy as much as I did crafting the story.
The Black Dragons are working for the Japanese Intelligence Service who are conspiring with the Third Reich in California. How did you develop this twist? Anything pulled from real life?
As a young military intelligence officer, the Army assigned me to the US Pacific Command, Oahu, Hawaii. Several of the old hands told me about their experiences before and during WW II. One retiring Army Counter Intelligence Agent spoke about a concerted espionage effort between the Japanese and Germans. A married couple, who were in fact German Spies, provided critical information to the Japanese prior to the December 7th, 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor. Another spoke about and effort to steal US Communications codes. A third spoke about a effort in California to infiltrate US aircraft manufactures to steal advanced US technology. Much like the Chinese are doing to us today.
I understand that real people inspired this story. Who were those people and how did they impact you?
Once I saw bestselling author, Homer Hickam, of October Skies fame, wearing a T-Shirt emblazoned with the following: BE CARFEFULL – YOU MIGHT WIND UP IN MY NEXT NOVEL. I build my characters around people that I have known in my life. Some are blends of different individuals others are as I remember them but with cover names. As a career foreign intelligence officer I have known many people that would stretch the reader’s belief. One stands out in my mind, the senior intelligence officer of the Army’s Paratrooper Division, the 82d Airborne. Then Lieutenant Colonel Nick Grant – now Brigadier General (Retired) Grant was a huge influence on me. During down time on maneuvers he told me about his youth and burning desire to become a pilot. Like my character, Nick Grant actual comes from humble beginnings. He worked hard to achieve many things in his successful career. I modeled my Nick after General Grant’s steely eyed nerve, technical expertise, and strong desire to take the hard right instead of the easy wrong.
Author Links: GoodReads | Twitter | Facebook | Website
Book IV. The Black Dragons are back! After their last run in, Nick Grant believes his nemesis, Toshio Miyazaki, is dead. Determined to leave the spy games behind, Nick starts a new life as a Naval Aviation Cadet. During training, famous aviator and movie producer, Howard Hughes, lures Midshipman Grant into a mock dogfight. Afterwards Hughes offers Nick a pilot job. Nick’s college dreams stand in the way, and he turns Hughes down. However, their paths cross again in an unexpected way.
In 1936 the Black Dragons, working for the Japanese Intelligence Service, remain active in California and have a new partner, the Third Reich! Agents from both countries team up in their most audacious plan yet—steal the Hughes H-1 racer. Their plan—use the cutting edge technology to develop the world’s most advanced fighter aircraft.
The Japanese plan goes awry when US Naval Counterintelligence becomes aware of their activities. Commander Boltz assigns Nick and Senior Chief Ellis to guard the airfield until the FBI can take over. Together, they foil the Black Dragons’ attempt to steal the H-1 plans but the Japanese regroup with an even more sinister plan. They grab a hostage and demand that Nick deliver the H-1 technical plans and the Navy’s Top Secret Pacific War Plans.
When the Black Dragons attack, it’s up to Nick and friends to turn the tables, retrieve the stolen goods and a fabled katana. Join Nick Grant, Nancy Tanaka, and Leilani Porta in their latest adventure, Black Dragons Attack!
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Posted in Interviews
Tags: action, adventure, amazon, amazon books, amazon ebook, author, author interview, black dragons attack, book, book review, books, cadet, california, chinese, cowboy, culver city, ebook, espionage, facebook, fantasy, fantasy book review, fiction, fighting, flight, flying, goodreads, h-1, howard hughes, interview, jamie dodson, japanese, kindle, kindle book, kindle ebook, literature, mystery, navy, nick grant, ninja, novel, pacific, pearl harbor, pilot, publishing, read, reading, review, reviews, romance, spy, stories, suspense, thriller, twitter, us, war, world war, write, writer, writing, zero
A Race Against the Clock
Posted by Literary Titan
Going Gone is a genre-crossing novel with elements of a crime drama, thriller, and a bit of the supernatural as well. Did you start writing with this in mind, or did this happen organically as you were writing?
Going Gone! is the second of the Tracker Novels. Trackers are an elite FBI unit. Each agent has an unusual gift.
From the first page, the plot was set with a high-profile crime. Children of politicians were being kidnapped. With no ransom demands, the investigation took on an added intensity, to find out why the children were kidnapped. The answer became a race against the clock.
Tracker Ryan Barr is the unit profiler and lead investigator for the case. He got more help than he bargained for in his dramatic encounter with ex-homicide detective turned private investigator Kerry Branson. Kerry has talents of her own that has Ryan second guessing her actions.
The supporting characters in this novel, I felt, were intriguing and well developed. Who was your favorite character to write for?
That is a difficult one to answer. I like all the characters and developing individual characteristics was a challenge. The team is headed by Scott Fleming, and the agents are Cat Morgan, Ryan Barr, Adrian Dillard, Blake Kenner, Kevin Hunter, and Nicole Allison. If I had to select one, though, it would be Scott Fleming. He is the power, the mysterious driving force behind the team.
I felt that Kerry added layers to her characters as the story went on. What were the driving ideals behind the characters development throughout the story?
I like characters who have empathy along with a toughness that propels them over any difficulties they encounter. They don’t back down. I’d like to think I built on the concept as Kerry met the obstacles and dangers in the investigation head-on, but her compassion never wavered.
What is the next book that you are working on and when will it be published?
It is a third Tracker novel set in Texas. A missing ATF agent in Laredo, Texas sets the Tracker team in action. Adrian Dillard takes center stage as the lead investigator. He may have met his match when he encounters the feisty homicide detective, Casey Harlowe, who doesn’t hesitate to step over the line to get answers. Her link to the missing agent adds another layer of complication for Adrian. I hope to have it released by the first of the year. I still don’t have a title for it yet. My titles come from what I write. A phrase or word will grab my attention. So far, inspiration has not hit.
Author Links: GoodReads | Twitter | Facebook | Website
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Posted in Interviews
Tags: action, adventure, agent, amazon, amazon books, amazon ebook, anita dickason, atf, author, author interview, book, book review, books, crime, crime fiction, detective novel, drama, ebook, ebooks, emotive, fantasy, fantasy book review, FBI, fiction, fighting, going gone, goodreads, horror, interview, investigator, kindle, kindle book, kindle ebook, literature, love, magic, mystery, novel, paranormal, pschic, publishing, read, reading, review, reviews, romance, stories, supernatural, thriller, tracker, urban fantasy, women, write, writer, writing, YA, young adult
Srepska
Posted by Literary Titan
Explosions and mayhem make up the introduction to Lucas Sterling’s debut novel, Srepska, immediately throwing the reader into the after effects of a massive cyber attack in Kenya. Personal, business, and federal accounts have been digitally looted leading to a state of emergency. Fearing repeat on a larger scale, Agent Frederic Ulrich is tasked with seeking out those responsible, though the feared group ‘Srepska’ is immediately suspect. The scant bread crumb trail points to the U.S. as the next target, but a possible mole leaves Agent Ulrich unsure of friend or foe. With the aid of Lars Christopherson, he must find a way to inform and prevent the next attack.
Srepska is definitely deserving of it’s place in the action genre. Lucas Sterling brings to the table an adrenaline packed story that is made all the more intense by it’s relatability. Set in modern day, the Information Age as we like to call it, Srepska is a story you could very well see taking place in our own reality, the focus being a cyber attack. The suspense is therefore intensified given the fact that such attacks in the long scheme of things are still fairly new, meaning effective defenses are still being regularly updated and changed. This is felt throughout the book by many of the characters, with concern on how to combat such a threat that initially seems faceless.
We follow Frederic Ulrich and Lars Christopherson through the story as they team up to put a stop to things. Sterling presents us with two characters very strong in their trade. We are treated to an inside look to their jobs, but the characters themselves lack some dimension. This could be due to how fast paced the story is, moving from action to suspense and back again in quick succession, leaving little room for character development.
Following the bread crumb trail of clues is exciting given how so many countries have been after this group for so long. Things just seemed to fall in to place too easily in some respects. And I felt that there were some sections where settings were over explained, when all I wanted to do was to get back to what this novel does best, the action!
All in all, Lucas Sterling’s Srepska is quite the page turner. The fast pacing keeps the reader engaged and the highly relatable and believable content adds to the feeling of suspense, leaving the reader all the more eager to see the success of the main characters in their goals. A very exciting read!
Pages: 239 | ASIN: B075V8C8HL
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Posted in Book Reviews, Four Stars
Tags: action, adventure, africa, agent, amazon, amazon books, amazon ebook, attack, author, book, book review, books, crime, crime fiction, criminal, cyber, defense, detective, ebook, ebooks, explosion, fantasy, fantasy book review, fast paced, fiction, fighting, financial, goodreads, international, kenya, kindle book, kindle ebook, literature, lucas sterling, mystery, mystyer, novel, publishing, read, reading, review, reviews, sci fi, science ficiton, science fiction, science fiction book review, srepska, stock market, stories, suspense, terrorist, thriller, united states, urban fantasy, us, write, writer, writing
Heartbreaker
Posted by Literary Titan
Heartbreaker, by Thomas Duffy, is a dramatic story about a young woman, Amber Robertson. The book opens in Brooklyn on Amber’s 19th birthday. Her birthday is eventful as it is the first time she is arrested (for stealing). While in jail, she meets Missy, another young woman, who has been arrested for prostitution. As Amber and Missy talk, Amber decides that the life of an escort is as good as any other (and could help her earn some much needed money).
Amber starts her business with some online advertising as an independent escort. Unfortunately, she immediately draws the attention of a pimp, Pete. He starts making promises of protection for a cut of Amber’s money. Soon, her landlord, wants to evict her, so she starts renting motel rooms.
Unfortunately, she soon faces bigger problems. She’s kidnapped by one of her clients and starts a sordid love affair with another that eventually makes a sudden turn into something even more frightening.
As you can imagine, this book is complex and not necessarily a feel-good story. Heartbreaker’s protagonist, Amber, goes on a wild and weird anti-heroic arc right from the beginning of the story and the audience can see how those early misfortunes lead to an increasingly painful and tumultuous life. She initially presents as both hesitant and impulsive; constantly not sure about what she wants to do, but will then make a sudden and foolhardy decision.
As a reader, there is some sympathy for Amber. She ends up in pretty bad situations. Anytime things start to look as though they may improve for her, it only gets worse. Yet, she is also frustrating. Her impulsivity sometimes leads her into her worst outcomes. For example, late in the story she takes bold, rash action. Of course, I am avoiding sharing the ending here to prevent spoilers, so you will have to read for yourself to see how Amber’s story fully unfolds.
This story, in its own way, forces the reader to examine the evil that can hide in people. The evil, within the story is almost infectious, capable of spreading from person to person, evolving and mutating along the way as it collides with new lives, who act it out in their own unique way. Amber’s progression through the story seems to demonstrate her methods for confronting the evil in her past and present. It shows how she, like anyone, is capable of becoming somewhat immune to bad acts, bad people, and a bad life. Like so many people, she acts out what she has seen and experienced by replicating pain onto others.
This book is well-written, but I felt there were some issues with the pacing. At points the story seemed to drag out, such as during Amber’s interactions with Miguel and Jeffrey. I think these could have been shortened up a bit without losing any essential character development. Heartbreaker is written for mature, adult readers, who enjoy dramatic characters in intense and emotional situations.
Pages: 184 | ASIN: B017UZDW02
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Posted in Book Reviews, Four Stars
Tags: adult fiction, advertising, amazon, amazon books, book, book review, books, call girl, choices, contemporary, ebook, ebooks, emotional, escort, fantasy, fantasy book review, fiction, fighting, goodreads, heart breaker, heartbreaker, impuslive, kidnap, kindle, kindle book, kindle ebook, life, literature, love, mental illness, mystery, new adult, novel, pimp, prostitue, publishing, rape, read, reading, review, reviews, romance, sex, stories, thomas duffy, thriller, urban fantasy, write, writer, writing















