Reviews, Speculative, TEOTWAWKI

The Land of Long Shadows by JJ Shurte

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The Land of Long Shadows 

By JJ Shurte

A Review by INFAMOUS🦀

 

“The old world has died, but the new world is not yet born. Now is a time of monsters.”

 

As of lately, it seems as though every time I decide to review a book outside of the main genres I usually cover, I end up finding a true hidden gem. This time, such a hidden gem belongs to what we might have to label as horror/sci-fi, though it goes way beyond the realms of that genre. 

But let’s start from the beginning. When author JJ Shurte first contacted me, the first thing I did (which is a habit of mine) is to go look on Amazon and Goodreads how many reviews, if any, the book had. Then, I might read some of the reviews just to see if I find a common thread. However, none of those reviews, as ‘colorful’ as they were, could have gotten me ready for the experience of reading this ‘little monster’.

I usually don’t particularly enjoy reading books filled with gore and this particular book will get ‘rough’ at times, so if you are very sensitive to reading vivid, detailed, gory scenes, this book might not be for you. What I can assure you though is that the violence and the gore here are intelligently adopted to serve the story and not just for mere shock value. As a matter of fact, many times, when I was expecting something really disturbing to happen, nothing of the sort happened. The author has developed a finesse in choosing his next move wisely at every turn so that readers can never tell what will happen next.

All in all, I would call it ‘transgressive fiction’. But truly, it stands in a class of its own, in my opinion.

PLOT:

Everything takes place on a fictitious island of the Pacific which, according to Shurte, was modeled after Taiwan (where he lived). There was a war of catastrophic proportions which wound up with the island becoming some sort of ‘hell on earth’, in the most crude and terrorizing post-apocalyptic setting. Perhaps a weapon of mass destruction was unleashed which had repercussions not even its creators were able to fully predict—who knows? All we know is that we’re here on this messed up island and the survivors perhaps wished they were dead because some really weird stuff is going on.

The content of the book is divided into 10 chapters and an epilogue. Each chapter follows the perils and whereabouts of different characters and in the epilogue the survivors of each chapter join forces to reach the source of the nightmare that is devastating the island and hopefully put a stop to it.

 

  • Chapter 1 – Van Duc Liem leaves the safety of his shelter located in the subway station to scavenge for food and supplies in the infested, post-apocalyptic outside world. Another survivor of the underground community, An-So, will join him. Will they be able to not only find food and supplies, but make it back alive?
  • Chapter 2 – Doctor Xing-Ya, a long time practitioner of morally-dubious medical procedures, becomes a most interesting patient herself to an abominable creature called Obon’itra. 
  • Chapter 3 – Ai-Na does what she can to survive the new world along with her two children but a chitinous mutation is slowly taking over her whole body. Is she transforming into something else or is something else using her body to burst into reality?
  • Chapter 4 – Guang-Yan is a tech guy who, along with another group of people, has found “somewhere that had an infrastructure that was easily defensible and had an inbuilt monitoring system. Graeton Prison.” But is the prison really safe against the nightmares lurking outside?
  • Chapter 5 – Principal Yi-Fan, along with a small handful of students, finds shelter in the school building, while the ‘nightmare’ on the outside keeps banging and trashing to find a way in, through the boarded windows and doors of the facility. But could it be that the adversary is already among them, unknowingly?
  • Chapter 6 – Li Wen and a group of survivors are captured by a sect of cultists led by Cavan Bolton, who was known as a religious shepherd of sorts even before all hell broke loose. What does Bolton intend to do with this group of trespassers, exactly?
  • Chapter 7 – Yong-Shi, with the assistance of a strange individual, Kang Bo, needs to go up a 100-story building where he believes his girl Lian-Lei is supposedly held captive. However, by the time he reaches the top, something beyond the scope of his imagination will be revealed to him.
  • Chapter 8 – When astronaut Matilda lands on the shores of the island, as the only survivor of her space crew, she finds a very different planet Earth from when she first went into orbit.
  • Chapter 9 – Undercover agent Tai-Xun, of the Shendian Communist Party, real name Yuan Si-Shi, finds herself in enemy territory. But only the dead—and worse—seem all that is left around.
  • Chapter 10 – A small group of survivors composed mostly by women and led by former professional chef and restaurant owner, Thi, plot to poison the stew made out of a human corpse to poison the men known as Raiders who take advantage of them at will, in exchange for safety and supplies. But things don’t turn out as expected when dinner is served.
  • Epilogue – We find all the various surviving characters we encounter in chapter 1 through 10 coming together as a ‘team’ led by Bolton in one deadly mission to infiltrate a casino turned into a military facility. It supposedly holds the key to the nightmare that has engulfed the island. 

WHY WE NEED MORE SHURTES:

What I admire the most about Shurte’s approach to this narrative is how he dives headfirst into this project with complete abandonment and taking maximum creative freedom. He is not trying to cater to a certain demographic or suck up to some publisher who wants cookie-cutter stories. I laughed, I cried, I scratched my head while I was reading this thing, exactly because it felt so organic, so spontaneous, so deliberate that I stopped thinking in terms of a horror story altogether. It became a story like no other—rich in originality, humanity, sadness, happiness, humor, action, drama, sexuality, and everything that makes up the full spectrum of human emotions.

Sometimes, I had to stop to breathe, and I would be forced to re-read the scene saying to myself: “He really didn’t just do what I think I read he did!” Those moments will always remain vivid in my mind. 

Chapter 2 and Chapter 3, for me, personally, were extremely intense because the prose is top notch, the characters so full of life, and the stories so way out of my comfort zone.

Granted not all stories reach that same peak intensity but they all serve a grand scheme which will be made clear in the closing epilogue.

EXPOSITION DUMP: ZERO

If you are looking for a book where everything gets spoon-fed to you, this one is not for you. In fact, I’d go as far as saying that Shurte enjoys giving readers the bare minimum, just crumbs really, so that their heads can spin and try to come up with their own deductions or explanations. I’d be lying if I said many times I didn’t feel lost myself:

  • Why did only the scum of the world survive the war?
  • Why can all the survivors suddenly understand one another even when they originally spoke different languages?
  • Why is it that in this post-apocalyptic world people no longer know how to read?

So many unanswered questions and yet it kept enticing me to keep reading, keep peeling off layer after layer, trying to get to the core of it all.

ONE MINOR ISSUE:

As I mentioned earlier, this story takes place on a fictional island in the Pacific which resembles Taiwan and most of its characters are supposed to be modeled after Taiwanese men and women. However, the way the characters speak, their sense of humor, their foul mouths, their disrespectful attitude, their boasting, all made them feel to me as Westerners through and through. I never got a sense that these were Asian-Pacific folk at all, other than by their names. 

CONCLUSIONS:

There is a reason why this book is special. It has nothing to do with the genre or even the story, but with the fact that it sets an example of how a writer should take charge of their own creativity and write based on that without any restraints or reservations. Couple that with an original plot, unforgettable characters, razor sharp prose, and you get something that is dearly missing in the book industry today.

Legends in the making!

🦀

 

Review will be followed by a Q&A interview with the author–stay tuned!

 

FROM THE EDITOR:

If you like comic books, graphic novels, superheroes, or any kind of based stories, read Threat Quotient for free!

 

Action, Adventure, Crime, Espionage, Reviews

The Chinatown Death Cloud Peril

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The Chinatown Death Cloud Peril

by Paul  Malmont

A Review by Machine Trooper

 

This is both a retro-pulp novel and a love letter to the legendary pulp authors. In a book like this, you just have to start off with the cast of…

CHARACTERS:

This is fiction, built around people who made a living writing fiction, but were quite real themselves. Some pulp authors are merely discussed (Robert E. Howard; Edgar Rice Burroughs; etc.) but a handful are protagonists in the story, including Walter Gibson; Lester Dent; H.P. Lovecraft; L. Ron Hubbard; Louis L’Amour and Robert Heinlein.

I presume these men were all dead before the author conceived this project, so he had to piece their personalities together via extensive research.  Some traits are easy to infer: with the exception of L’Amour, these men were not men of action (though some had traveled internationally and held a variety of jobs) but they admired such men. They were all well read, introspective, and, of course, storytellers.

Malmont was careful not to portray their personalities as one type or another too explicitly, mostly content to fill in the background of the characters piecemeal so the reader can complete the profile. This was a wise choice. most of the time, with limited  details about even most famous people, posthumously, it would be easy to get it wrong.

I worried about this while preparing to write my magnum opus. The safest way to go would have been to replace the 1969 Minnesota Vikings with a made-up team full of made-up players. I had a pretty good handle on Bud Grant, having seen so many interviews of him; having read so much about him by those who knew him, and his own autobiography. But the legendary players on that roster were mostly mysterious, with the exception of their feats on the field and some anecdotes about them off of it.

I went with first-person narration from the hero and limited him to typical jock interactions with the iconic players. The most fully-rendered Vikings were Grant, and a fictional backup quarterback I invented to replace Bob Lee, with whom the hero spends the most time off the field.

Malmont’s path was riskier, but worked well enough. Nobody jumped off the page, but I did learn details about the legendary pulp authors I didn’t know before:

Gibson’s obsession with magic and basically being a magician groupie…and having relations with the wife of a lesser one. His abandonment of his own wife and child to pursue a living writing in the Big Apple (making it an easy choice to portray Gibson as guilt-ridden). Also…was he a drug addict?

Dent’s grudge against Gibson for having one of his stories quashed in the early days. His close relationship with his own wife, despite her inability to conceive. Their shared love for adventure.

Hubbard’s ambition and networking among the pulperatti in New York.

Heinlein’s sketchy, perhaps shady, personal history before he began using his own name and trying out the writing game for himself. He comes off as kind of an S.O.B.–I will probably chase that down myself one day if I have time.

PLOT:

Speaking of shady: an amoral U.S. Army officer has used his office to insert himself into the internal politics of China. He has worked out a deal to supply the Chinese with a deadly WWI vintage chemical agent (the eponymous “death cloud”) to be used on the Japanese invaders. Some unfortunate men have already been exposed to the gas, and it turned them into mutant zombies…or something similar.

Our pulp authors/heroes are opposed to the plan to use it on Japan (once they discover it) because the inevitable collateral damage would be extensive. I have no doubt Malmont intended this to be an ironic objective. In the setting of the novel, in a few years the allies will be slaughtering civilians by the trainload in cities like Dresden, Hamburg, Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

Each of the pulp authors (and Dent’s wife) will meaningfully contribute to the effort to save the day.

CONCLUSION:

Malmont was careful to spread the plot burden around evenly amongst Gibson, Dent, and Hubbard–and to a lesser extent, upon L’Amour and Heinlein. While this avoids upstaging any of them, perhaps it also prevents the reader from investing in or relating to any one of them as we would with, say, the Shadow or Doc Savage.

Also, the resolution of the plot was a little drawn out, since each author/character needed their own personal loose ends tied up. I suspect this will confine The Chinatown Death Cloud Peril as a sort of novelty, well-received by fans of the pulps. But it might never break out as a popular novel, for readers who are not “in” on the joke

 

Let me know what you think in the comments.

And if you like superhero comics, check out the chapters I’m sharing from my new graphic novel, for free!

Alternate HIstory, Fantasy, Reviews

A Crack in the World  by James Mordechai

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A Crack in the World 

By James Mordechai

A review by INFAMOUS🦀

This next book we are going to look at was of particular intrigue for me personally because of its premise. Once I started to flip through pages I quickly realized this was one of those rare indie works that instantly comes across as very professionally put together, competent, and well-thought out. In that sense, it reminded me of titles such as Bridgehouse by J. Sebastian King or The Hand of God by Yuval Kordov—though the genre in this case is not sci-fi but dark fantasy, rather.

MAGIC/THE OCCULT:

When we talk about fiction novels, we might find ourselves dealing with 1) ‘pure fantasy’ novels or 2) novels specifically centered around ‘the occult’. It’s important not to confuse the two.

In pure fantasy, the writer can have total creative freedom and can make up any and all fantastic or magic-based concepts they so choose for the sake of producing a good story.

The occult is trickier, though, and in many aspects more challenging, because it is based on facts and historical data: real historical characters and real historical events. Occultism is real and has been practiced for a long time in many civilizations and across many nations all around the world.

A Crack in the World  centers around the occult and I am happy to report that the author has done a stellar job in staying true to the history and the reality of it all. This is crucial in any story claiming to deal with the occult and its practices. There is too much history and too much lore on this subject to deny it or to try to make up something that departs from it, or else we would just fall back into the ‘pure fantasy’ genre.

PLOT:

The story revolves around the adventures of two members of the RPI, the Royal Paranormal Institute of London: Gino and Carter.

Gino is a qualified occultist following in the footsteps of his late father, also a former Italian occultist who had relocated to the UK after WWII. Carter is an agent of the British police force who had taken a job at the RPI a few years back basically to be Gino’s bodyguard, in a nutshell, and has zero experience or knowledge of the occultic practices.

When a few entire towns begin to mysteriously disappear into thin air, Gino and Carter are assigned to the task of solving this big mystery which is obviously stemming from occult activities.

 

SHERLOCK HOLMES AND DR. WATSON?

The synergy between the two main characters, Gino and Carter, can be easily compared to some degree to that of Sherlock and Watson, or also to that of Poirot and Hastings. Here you have two individuals who could not be more opposite in personalities and perspectives, yet must work together to solve a mystery. One is the ‘scalpel’ while the other one is the ‘power drill’ – metaphorically speaking. One is fine-tuned to those supernatural activities which are far removed from the realm of the rational mind, whereas the other is a skeptic through and through, and only believes in what he can see.

Their relationship offers grounds for some comedic relief of course, but also for a real friendship and brotherly love to develop. There is never a dull moment with these two. What a stellar job by the author in fine-tuning the back-and-forths these two main characters engage in throughout the story, with just enough humor.

 

HISTORICAL ACCOUNTS:

Going back to the historical accuracy presented in the book: particularly when it comes to the history of the occult during the period of the events of WWII in Europe, the author is able to insert his narrative flawlessly, and that takes some skills. We learn how the Axis wanted to tap into the power of the occult to win the war. Gino’s father, Amilcare Marcotti, was then recruited by the Brits at the end of the war:

“Amilcare Marcotti was supposed to bring Great Britain back to the glories of the lost Empire. He had promised Churchill he would take Great Britain to a future of unending energy independence, the biggest navy fleet in the world and the return of the Commonwealth colonies back to the Motherland.”

UNEXPECTED TWISTS:

Yes, yes, yes, we do have some nicely planted unexpected twist towards the end of the story and I myself must admit I didn’t see it coming. This refers to a particular secondary character of great importance in the plot. But you will have to pick up the book to find out more!

NEGATIVES:

The only real issue I had, overall, was the insertion of Amilcare Marcotti’s personal journal from 1941 during his expedition in Africa. This is found around the end of Act 2 (?) and to me all it does is disrupt the nice pace of the story thus far, by taking a time out from our main characters and info-dumping about things we pretty much already learned from Giino himself. I know the author has disagreed on this:

“I disagree. The two stories intertwined until the very end. Without it you would miss a lot of context. It’s a story that revolves around the relationship between father and son across space and time. You will see when you read the end.”

Well, I’ve read the end and I still feel those entries from babbo’s journal (babbo = dad) were unnecessary and everything that was achieved could have been achieved just fine without disrupting the overall pace. Maybe it could have been included as a prologue and perhaps it wouldn’t have felt so out of place – for me personally, at least.

 

CONCLUSIONS:

If you enjoy occult-based stories that truly respect the history and lore rather than merely offer a pure fantasy trope, this book is for you. In addition, the level of professionalism, editing, and proofreading is outstanding; way above the current indie standards. The synergy between the two main characters is engaging, entertaining, filled with humor but with good balance too, never going into those MCU-level jokes we’ve all come to roll our eyes to. There are some good twists and turns to satisfy even the most demanding of readers. My only complaint is the addition of Gino’s father’s journal ¾ of the way in, which really doesn’t add much to what we already learn from Gino in relation to his father’s role in all this. But again, that is MY take on it. You should grab a copy, read it, and get back to me with your personal opinion.

All in all, job well done. This is how you put indies on the map.

🦀

 

Fantasy, Reviews

The Lost Company By Michael Maguire

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The Forgotten Saga of the Lost Company

By Michael Maguire

A review by INFAMOUS🦀

 

If we take a look at the current fantasy/sword and sorcery genre, there are mainly two trends that dominate the marketplace: romantasy and epic/high fantasy.

Romantasy really just uses the elements of the fantasy genre to present an inherently romantic story or simply put—a love story.

Epic/high fantasy instead focuses more on ‘scope’: epic battles, large groups of characters, vast lands populated by a plethora of fantastic races.

Whether you enjoy either trend of fantasy, too much of anything after some time can get boring and exhausting, even. Sometimes it is more beneficial to turn down the heat some, dim the lights, and instead of throwing a huge party have a small get-together with only a few yet good friends, if you know where I’m going with my metaphor.

THE COVER:

When Maguire first invited me to review his book, The Forgotten Saga of the Lost Company, what first got my attention was its cover. In a AI-art age where most covers are filled with unrealistically beautiful women, with all the right curves and all the right ‘assets’, this  cover presented a subject that to me came across as unique, intriguing, and mysterious. Not your stereotypical book cover pin up girl but rather a female warrior that instantly makes you want to open the book and find out her story.

SELF-CONTAINED NARRATIVE:

Going back to my initial thoughts, as soon as we start reading the prologue and then dive into chapter 1, we quickly find out that this is not going to be a colossal epic story with scope, multiple settings, and multiple casts of characters. The story is very self-contained, beginning to end. We start our journey with the Company and we end our journey with the Company. 

This was a breath of fresh air because let’s face it, we can easily get burned out on reading epic fantasy books, all trying to be massive in scope. By focusing just on this group of men and women who form the Lost Company, everything feels more personal and more intimate, even. We get to know these characters in ways that otherwise we could never know and understand, and this creates a stronger emotional engagement on behalf of me and you—the readers. 

PLOT:

When a company of the army of Ethylund goes into battle to defend their country against the invaders known as the Aeneans (inspired certainly by the Romans), things don’t go as planned and they find themselves lost behind enemy lines. Captain Roma (the woman on the cover) is now tasked with bringing her men back home, but the problem is, the way back is now patrolled by enemy garrisons, so they must find another way to get back home, which entails marching straight into enemy territory.

MAGES AND THE MAGIC FACTOR:

It is interesting to notice how in this world, both armies make use of mages for military purposes. So while the Aeneans use mages to invade Ethylund and other countries, the defenders also use mages of their own to counter the magic of their invaders.

When our company gets lost within enemy territory, it is thanks to mage Mane and his incantations that they are able to avoid being spotted by the enemy for so long. A cat and mouse game will begin within the realm of magic between Mane and the mages who work for the enemy, while Captain Roma and her men try to figure out a way not to starve while finding a way home.

CAPTAIN ROMA/STRONG FEMALE CHARACTER:

Roma, to me, IS the story, period. My first sense of intrigue with the cover artwork was soon replaced with absolute love and admiration for this character once I read more about her. Do you want to know how to write a strong female character that works? Then read The Forgotten Saga! 

Roma is strong, but not in the sense that she could match a man twice her size in strength. Though a skilled fighter with the sword, her true strength is being a leader at heart, and knowing when to push her men at times and when to sacrifice herself for them, at other times. What makes her also so compelling is the fact that until the end, there is an aura of mystery around her past, about her background. Who was Roma before the war? Before becoming captain? With other characters such as Tuggs or Tris, we get to know who they were before joining the ranks. But with Roma, we never find out, which in this case works in a fantastic way because as a reader, I couldn’t stop thinking about her even after I closed the book.

PROSE:

I thought the prose overall was ‘just okay’ and felt like the writer could have chosen a more evocative style to match the setting. This is not to say that we encounter too much modern vernacular in the book, but lines like:

“But I won’t be able to relax until I see everyone is okay. So, just help me up, okay?”

To me, lines like the above full of ‘okays’ just don’t bode well, given the nature of the characters, the period, and the place.

INFO-DUMP:

As I said already, what I enjoyed about this story is how it is focused only on this company of soldiers and their efforts to get back home. We don’t need to know why there’s a war; knowing there’s one is good enough. We don’t need to know why the Aeneans want to invade Ethylund so bad; knowing that they want to invade is enough. However at some point Maguire decided that some of this stuff was important to know:

“Of course, Ethylund had once been part of the Empire only two hundred years ago. The many, leaderless tribes had been easily conquered by the Empire of the Fist and over time had been taught civility.”

And it goes on and on with more exposition dump that we really don’t care about, nor do we need. We want to know about this company and how the hell will they be able to make it home alive, that’s it!

CONCLUSIONS:

The Forgotten Saga of the Lost Company is exactly what I wanted to read right now in an oversaturated marketplace of epic fantasy stories. It achieved its goal in creating a smaller-scale, yet more intimate narrative, in which we establish a strong emotional attachment to several of the characters. I mentioned Captain Roma but honestly there are more than a handful of other characters who grabbed my attention: Sharp, the soldier who can never stop sharpening his knives; Danza, the giant woman with a heart of gold; Lash, who, though seriously wounded to the leg, kept on going without wavering… the list of memorable characters goes on and on. 

Oh, and folks die here too! All jokes aside, Maguire is not afraid of killing off characters when the story rightfully calls for it. Even main characters at times will be sacrificed for the greater good of the company, which might make some of us (myself included) even temporarily hate the author for doing so (thanks for making me shed a few tears, Michael!)

The prose is decent but I feel like with some more awareness Maguire could write in a style that feels more evocative. The use of ‘okay’ was a little too distracting for me at times. 

The unnecessary info-dump, albeit not too extensive, could have also been eliminated altogether. We don’t care why they are at war. Usually the motives of war never change anyway. If we are going to keep things self-contained let’s keep them self-contained all the way, shall we?

If you love fantasy but feel burned out on all the mega epic tales and long for a story that is more personable, more intimate, and with characters you will end up laughing with, crying with, even suffering with at some level, pick up a copy of The Forgotten Saga today!

And a note to Maguire: how about a novel focused exclusively on Roma? I think she deserves it and yours truly would certainly appreciate it!

🦀

 

Superhero

Superhero Origins–Are They Necessary?

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Between comics and movies, I’ve probably seen over a dozen versions of the Batman’s origin story. There were retellings of “who he is and how he came to be” prior to The Dark Knight Returns in the mid-’80s, but since then it seems like that’s the only story the writers know how to tell.

Every couple years, somebody’s gotta put a new spin on Superman’s origin, too. And Spiderman. And the Avengers. And the Justice League. And the Hulk, etc., etc., etc. All Hollywood and the Big Two wanna do is constantly reboot their I.P.s. Probably because it’s so easy for a lazy, talentless woketard to “put their stamp” on a popular character by simply tweaking an old story so familiar that fans could recite the plot points in their sleep.

Wait…I’m not being fair. It’s doubtful that the lazy, talentless woketards edit the old threadbare origin stories. They probably have A.I. do it.

Anyway, all the Reboot Mania has caused me to ponder the utility of origin stories.

I became a fan of Batman, Spiderman, the Flash, Iron Man, Hawkman and Captain America long before I read any of the origin stories. Eventually, I would have become curious about how they got started, but not knowing wouldn’t have  diminished my enjoyment.

Why, as writers, are we compelled to provide detailed backgrounds of characters that our readers don’t need and never asked for?

All that to say: Threat Quotient is an ensemble superhero epic introducing two squads worth of brand new characters…but there are only two origins depicted. A third origin is revealed in one of the sequels, but beyond that, I plan to resist the urge to write more.

My rule of thumb is: I’ll worry about origin stories about the time I begin considering  T-shirts and action figures.

I understand that a fan base of 200-300 readers is big enough to find success as an independent creator. However, I don’t consider it big enough to make selling merchandise worth the time and effort.

Whether or not you would like T-shirts and action figures, go read Threat Quotient for free, and subscribe to Tales of the Earthbound. But don’t stop there–like, share, and tell folks about it. I just published Episode 3, and post episodes weekly.

You get more of whatever you support. What are you supporting?

Thanks for reading!

Reviews, Sci-Fi

THE SAKURA ELEMENT By S.C. Vincent

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THE SAKURA ELEMENT

By S.C. Vincent

A Review by INFAMOUS🦀

 

Before we dive into this book, I must confess that I am not the biggest fan of the ‘YA Romance’ genre. So, when this title first popped into my queue I was not too thrilled about it. But, as a reviewer, I always make it a priority to read, analyze, and review ALL books suggested to me, impartially and objectively. Particularly when a book has zero reviews and its author very kindly requests an official review of me, I just can’t refuse the challenge.

I like to work for the underdog, to put it bluntly. At this point, I feel more motivated to cover those indie books nobody knows they even exist, and give those authors with a passion for good storytelling a platform to let their works be seen.

The Sakura Element turned out to be much more than just your next YA novel—in fact, I’d dare say it is more of a sci-fi/utopian novel disguised as YA romance. As I kept flipping pages, I soon realized I was reading first caliber fiction, with all the ingredients and extra spices of a five-star novel. This all in spite of what I consider an horrendous cover. Not only do I personally feel the cover is ugly, but I also feel that it miserably fails at catching the essence and vibes of the story.

FIRST LOOK:

It seems that the story takes us into the aftermath of a post Third World War society, and we are quickly introduced to the concept of the ‘mods’. Mods are genetically modified human beings who had a big role in this utopian WWIII:

“In the end, it wasn’t the war between the nations that lead to nuclear fallout, but rather, the war between the average man and the Genetically Modified.”

As a result of the war, the mods have now become the pariah of the new established society. They are mocked and ridiculed by their ‘natural’ neighbors and have become outcasts—easily identifiable by their unique hair colors which are selected for them at birth. THIS is, in fact, the Sakura Element, described as:

“The genetic sequence added to those modified, as per law, to make their hair some silly color.”

This is done in order for a mod to be easily identified as such. Colors like pink, green, blue, are included in this category.

PLOT:

When 16-year-old, pink-haired mod Oka, daughter to a wealthy business man, decides to continue her education at the prestigious Alia Academia, in Sil Quarter, students quickly find out she is a mod and thus the bullying begins, as it is the norm in this society where mods are looked down upon. Oka’s resilience and complex personality, however, allow her to not only overcome all challenges that come her way (including a troubled  past related to her mother, who died when she was still an infant), but also to help in making all the students equal, and get bullying banned.

A romance will eventually develop between her and 18-year-old Allan, the son of the school’s owner. Basically Allan rules the academy by privilege and at first he joins the mob in mocking and belittling Oka. However, through an attempt at blackmail on his persona, he finds out he is a mod himself, and his entire world as he knows it comes crashing down on him. 

Secrets will reshape these young individuals, egos will be broken, and new hopes will rise.

DIALOGUE. SUPERB.

S.C. Vincent is truly a master at writing dialogue for these characters. So compelling, riveting, introspective, and clever. Whether it’s the back-and-forths between Oka and Allan, or the spirited conversations between Allan and his father and mother, this is where this book really shines. The psychological aspects of the characters transpire through the dialogue in a magnificent display of cleverness. 

Teenagers today wouldn’t have the depth of thought and eloquence that these teenagers showcase, but hey, it’s supposed to be in the future so we can fully accept it without much argument.

THE SCI-FI ELEMENT:

When Allan finds out he is a mod just like all those mods he has been bullying, the writer introduces us to the origins of these human modifications and how they impacted society as a whole:

“Humanity reaches for heaven, perfection, but in every attempt they do so without God.”

Allan finds out that the Sakura Element has not been applied to all mods and that many roam among the non-mods unnoticed and unaware, just like him. He now has two choices: use what he has learned to redeem himself or wallow in his own sorrow and play along by the cruel role he was assigned in society by his father.

As Oka will say at the end to Allan’s former best friend, Jason, after he is defeated in a fencing match:

“The loneliness you feel now is how people like me feel every day of our lives. I would simply ask that you be kinder in the future, as kindness begets kindness, and it’s something you’ll need a lot of.”

FENCING/SWORD FIGHTING:

Worthy of mention is the choreography of several fencing sessions they hold at Alia Academia. From foot placement, to how to hold the sword, to all the fine details of fencing technique, each fight is brought to life in a remarkable realism and I must wonder whether the author might not well be a fencing expert himself. Truly impressive fight sequences!

THE WORLD/THE PROSE:

I found this world quite intriguing for the fact that, though it is futuristic by all means, it has elements of the Victorian era in the way characters dress and behave, their methods of transportation, and the architecture. Which brings me to the prose, and the only minor grudge I have with the book.

The prose is really inconsistent because it keeps going from a stylistically more classical style to modern XXI century English style. I’m not sure whether this was done intentionally to emphasize a futuristic society that has adopted a Victorian era aestheticism, or if it’s something the author did not think much of.

For example, we go from something like:

“Hold your breath, lest you speak so ill of yourself? Are you not of this very same ilk which you despise?”

To something like:

“No way…!”

“Yes way, my friend, Timothy.”

To me, that creates a very weird feel overall. But I must give the author the benefit of a doubt. Maybe he only tried to create a more futuristic urban slang?

CONCLUSIONS:

This title is currently sitting on Amazon with zero reviews, which is a shame, for this is the type of book that should rise from the ashes of the indie circles in a mighty way. I cannot praise it enough, minus some very minute issues I had with inconsistent prose and the ugly cover. The concept, clever dialogue, the mix of the romantic element and the sci-fi elements, everything here is top notch and I couldn’t be any happier with it. 

The story offers an emotionally satisfying ending, its plot lines are virtually bullet-proof, and even when I felt Vincent left a door open for a glaring plot hole here and there, he immediately shut those doors a few chapters later by providing reasonable explanations for everything.

Labeling this novel ‘YA’ is an insult, in my opinion. You want to read something different, something smart, something clever  and mentally stimulating? Do yourself a favor and go get a copy of The Sakura Element today!

🦀

Fantasy, Reviews

Legacy of Blood by Jessica Barberi

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Legacy of Blood

By Jessica Barberi

A Review by INFAMOUS🦀

Legacy of Blood is the first book of a fantasy series called Son of the Flames written by Jessica Barberi which follows in the footsteps of her previous series called Fires of an Empire Saga. I never read any of the previous books but the pleasant surprise was that I was able to quickly find my footing into this world of dragons.

The main character is the oldest son of King Ciran, 17-year-old Ronan, whom this entire book was written around. His father was the main character of the previous book series – if I’m not mistaken – and now as a king, he finds himself in a difficult situation with a son who acts impulsively and does not listen to good advice when given to him. Ciran, too, in his own days, had to overcome challenges of his own, but now that he is older and has garnered priceless life experience, he looks out for his son and constantly warns him, as to not wanting him to make mistakes he might regret for the rest of his life. 

That right there really sets up the tone for the rest of the book, which is basically a look at the learning voyage Ronan embarks on, over a series of trials and life/death situations.

DRAGONS:

If it wasn’t obvious yet, this is fantasy big on dragons. The dragons we get to read about are the more animal-like ones, not the talking dragons a-la Tolkien. Ronan, in a foolish attempt to prove ‘something’ to his father Ciran, grabs a dragon egg from the lair of Ciran’s own dragon, Lorcan, and crosses the mountains to get away from his family. But the dragon egg makes him a target for dragon hunters, and once the egg hatches, it just doesn’t make for a smooth travel companion, let’s just say. 

FINN:

The character of Finn, a boy/fisherman Ronan meets in his adventure across the mountains, quickly becomes a force to be reckoned with in the narrative, and will certainly become a fan favorite. Initially, he is everything Ronan is not, due to his upbringing. He was not born with a silver spoon in his hand, and unlike Ronan, who at this stage is simply driven by impulses and by his baser instincts, is able to judge situations and people more wisely. The friendship that develops between the two boys is not exactly the smoothest due to their intrinsic differences, but what is compelling is that in the long run, Finn becomes the one single factor that will make Ronan face and admit to his faults and wrongdoings. This was really the highlight of this whole thing. The one remarkable factor, embodied by Finn and his relationship/partnership with Ronan. That alone was worth reading the book. Stellar job in capturing not just the humanity of Finn, but also the synergy between him and Ronan, as their personalities clash one against the other. That tension, that pulling back and forth, is where the author nails it.

PLOT/PACE:

Where I think the book struggles a bit is with the overall plot and pace. There is a lot of walking and a lot of talking, but much of it feels “uneventful” for lack of better terms. Yes, Ronan develops some sort of bond with the newborn dragon eventually, but there is really not much more to it. Everything feels transitional as the main character runs away from home with the dragon egg, makes friends with fisherboy Finn, and chases after pretty girls before being scared straight. 

Overall, it all just felt very slow. A whole lot of nothing happening with just a few exciting highlights here and there. Don’t get me wrong, I am not inferring that the plot should be action on top of action, but the way it’s written, though grammatically correct and well edited, feels very passive. For example, expressions like “he began to swim” instead of “he swum” or “he started to run” instead of “he ran”—though not directly quoted from the book, might help you better understand the type of not-so-engaging approach the author is using here.

In itself, it is not a bad thing, but I personally prefer a more active and engaging style that grabs me from beginning to end.

THE NON-EXISTENT ENDING:

I said this before and I say it again: it doesn’t matter whether your book series consists of 3, 10, or 20 books, you gotta offer your readers some sort of satisfying ending to each and every one of them. Your readers should walk away feeling like something got accomplished within the narrative, and that things moved forward in a meaningful and memorable way.

In LoB, there is no satisfying ending, in fact, it feels like we’re getting half of an entire book. It’s okay to leave doors open for a sequel, but also, we have to make sure to offer readers a complete story to some degree. When I reached the last page, I almost had to second guess that my digital copy wasn’t missing chapters. Our books shouldn’t feel like a long prologue to introduce us to the next book.

CONCLUSIONS:

If you enjoy dragon-based fantasy this book is for you. I tend to prefer THIS imagining of dragons that feel like actual beasts rather than the intellectually sophisticated, talking creatures other authors have written. 

The book is well-written and the editing is solid. The character of Finn and his exchanges with Ronan were ‘fire’. 

I had some issues with the not-so very active style and uneventful plot (interestingly, I read some other reviews on the previous series which also point this out). There was no ending to the story, as the last chapter only hints that basically we will have to read the next book to get something that resembles an ending. I think this approach can work when we put our stories up on Substack and RoyalRoad, but when we publish a finished book customers PAY to read, we must go above and beyond expectations, let alone provide a somewhat fulfilling ending.

Hope you will grab a copy when this comes out on June 1st, 2025, and let us know how your personal experience will be in this exciting world of dragons and dragon riders!

🦀

Adventure, Speculative, Superhero

This is not Your Father’s Cape Comic!

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I’m pleased to inform you that the first episode of my graphic novel, Threat Quotient, is  now available for you to read online!

 

These are busy but exciting times for me. This coming autumn is when I’m planning to crowdfund. Head over to the shiny new Substack where I’ve already got Episode One live, so you can start reading for free. Make sure to subscribe so you never miss an episode.

It’s been a long, arduous path to get here and I’ve documented parts of the journey.  But you can catch up later. Right now you should head over to the Tales of the Earthbound site and start reading the actual comic.

Support what you like, if you want more of it.

 

Fantasy, Historical, Reviews

Caladbohlg By Joseph Chaput

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Caladbohlg

By Joseph Chaput

A review by INFAMOUS🦀

 

Caladbohlg was inspired by the legend of King Arthur and the sword Excalibur. The author is one of the most prolific authors on Substack under the account known as The Brothers Krynn, and if you do not know their body of work I suggest you go check it out. Really good stuff. Bros Krynn are truly dedicated to bringing back the essence of history and myth into literature without all the modernistic nonsensical approach we see today in storytelling. Since I had already reviewed their latest book, Crown of Blood, I was really excited when Chaput asked me to review this older work of his which he first published back in 2018. This book is a beast, at nearly 700 pages, but surprisingly enough, it feels like a quick read because of how it is written—no wasted words; no unnecessary chapters.

PLOT:

The story centers around Bradán, A 14-year-old orphan boy who has been raised by monks in an old monastery devoted to the fair-haired song-goddess Brigantia. When Bradán’s life and that of young widow Ríonal and her mother-in-law – Eibhlin – connect, they are plunged into an adventure like no other, at the end of which, ultimately, they all must fulfill each their own destiny. For Bradán, that destiny will be to become the next High King of Eriu, and defeat the evil Warlock-King who keeps oppressing the land. Only he who can extract sword Caladbohlg from the ancient throne can be crowned new king.

But the path to kingship is long and tumultuous, filled with losses and pain, but also with new unexpected friendships and learning curves.

PROSE:

Just like in Crown of Blood (paid link), the prose here is skillfully handled and it fits the overall atmosphere. Modern euphemisms utilized throughout the book are little to none, and characters feel authentic to the world they live in. That really shouldn’t surprise us since the author is an avid student of English/French history and mythology. It was refreshing to read dialogue that didn’t make characters sound like they belong to 21st century’s Orange County, CA.

BRADÁN, THE PROTAGONIST:

Young Bradán is truly the heartbeat of this book. He is likable because he feels like a young boy thrown into the hardship of life, and ultimately prevails through sheer grit and determination, and despite his flaws and limitations. Even after he wields the legendary sword, thus becoming High King, he doesn’t suddenly become an invincible warrior, but rather, he does what he can and surrounds himself with seasoned warriors who help him get things done. He never loses his boyish qualities and that was something of a pleasant surprise. It goes to show that writers CAN portray boys (or even women) in honorable and inspiring ways, without making them unrealistically skilled or strong for their age and/or size. They just have to be well-written.

RÍONAL: WHEN THINGS GO SIDEWAYS:

And here is where INFAMOUS REVIEWER raises his eyebrow and says: WHY?

The character of young widow Ríonal, when  first introduced into the story, had all the potential to become a reader’s favorite. All the elements were there: she is young (20-ish?), she is beautiful, but she is also virtuous and loyal. She is a devoted wife to her lifetime childhood sweetheart, Feannan, when tragedy strikes. She loses their first daughter, then Feannan himself goes MIA and is presumed dead after a year, while she also goes through a miscarriage of their second child. Beyond disruption, Ríonal has lost her will to live and she would have committed suicide if it was not for Bradán, who stops her from drowning herself at sea.

When everything fell apart for me was the moment the writer moved the narrative in a way wherein she ultimately ended up remarrying to this insufferable dude by the name of Fearghal. And when I call this character ‘insufferable’ I am referring to the fact that he comes off as shallow and not even a good match for Ríonal, who is a beautiful, strong, and virtuous girl who refused the advances of other men after her husband was presumed dead. There is NO chemistry whatsoever between her and Fearghal, NONE, but the author tries so hard to shove him down our throats as a good candidate for Ríonal by moving things around these two characters to create the perfect scenario for them to hook up. If this was a real thing, I guarantee you these two would be divorced within a year! No chemistry whatsoever!

Just think about this: Ríonal is loyal to her husband even after he is presumed dead, as we said. Her devotion and loyalty is what mainly defines her. Yet in the end, Fearghal tells his father (another king) that his kingdom will create an alliance with Bradán’s kingdom by marrying Ríonal. And Ríonal basically says “Sure, what he said.” It just felt so cringe, so unnatural, so out of character, that I thought maybe Ríonal was being possessed by evil spirits at the time. 

But It is what it is.

CONCLUSIONS:

Caladbohlg (paid link) is a well written legend with great scope. The author has laid a good foundation here for world-building that is very promising for fans of ‘Arthuriana’. I appreciate how the lineage of kings is so well mapped out as well as the history of this line of kings. In some of the  tales of the past recounted here and there throughout the book, there was one character that particularly caught my attention, a woman by the name of Feanna (?) who was presented in a story of courage and martyrdom. Personally, I want to see THAT story being turned into a book. In some ways, and from what little I read of her, she was kind of a Joan of Arc character of sorts. In my opinion, she deserves her own novel (or series of novels, even!)

I also want to point out that all characters could have used more physical descriptions, but that is more of a personal footnote than a criticism. The whole time, for example, I thought Ríonal was a brunette with curly hair but then the author told me she was blonde. If more physical traits were introduced and also brought up more often all throughout the book, these types of misconceptions wouldn’t happen.

And speaking of Ríonal, again great concept but poor execution when it came to uniting her and Fearghal in a way that felt forced and out of character (hope they divorced; she deserved better!)

Overall, this was a good read and being a book from 2018 it obviously doesn’t reflect accurately on the author’s current writing skills. But it sets the foundation of what can be a fantastic legendarium from which many amazing stories and heroes can spring out from, in the future.

 

Fantasy, Reviews

Reflections of Lilje Damselfly by Natalie Kelda

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Reflections of Lilje Damselfly by Natalie Kelda

A review by INFAMOUS🦀

 

What first earned my interest for this novel was the cover. This is perhaps one of the most gorgeous book covers I’ve seen in quite some time and it was drawn by hand – not AI – by the author herself, who told me she practiced for three years to draw like this. Absolutely beautiful cover, in my humble opinion. It immediately sets the mood for something with an ancient background, something legendary we are about to dive into.

Is the story just as mesmerizing as the cover is? Good question, and the answer is ‘Yes… for the most part’.

PLOT:

The story is set in (early?) 20th century England and centers around a real-life water nymph, Lilje, who has lived for many centuries in a forest pond, in perfect harmony with her surroundings, along with her father, also a nymph. Things escalate when she is taken against her will by a team of humans led by a woman named Victoria. Trapped like a fish and transported into a cistern on wheels carried by horses, Lilje is frightened at first, later confused about this whole affair until she finds out that her father is collaborating with Victoria. You see, Lilje – though immortal – has been feeling increasingly ill with unexplainable aches and pains. This woman, Victoria, thinks she knows a cure, but it involves treatment at her own spa miles away from Lilje’s forest pond. Lilje quickly finds out that her father and Victoria have been acquainted for quite some time, in fact they’ve had a relationship beyond the platonic.

Lilje’s time at the spa turns out to be not what readers may expect. Will the treatment offered by Victoria heal the nymph of her ailments? You will have to read the book to find out!

WHERE THE STORY SHINES:

I can tell you with confidence that the strongest element of this story, what makes this book so compelling, is the way the author conceptualized and put together the essence of ‘what it is to be a water nymph’. Lilje is not just some pretty girl swimming in water. The attention to details regarding what a nymph would be like, look like, act like, what she would think and feel, is where RoLD truly shines. The nymph doesn’t just live in water, rather, she has a symbiotic relationship with water itself and with all life that spurts out and around the pond. It is a thing of beauty reading how her life in the pond is a true perfect ecosystem, in a sense; a harmonious environment where Lilje is linked to water at a molecular level, even. Water is life to Lilje. Water nurtures her, keeps her radiant and immortal; but water is also her best friend. She can communicate with all flora and fauna in and around the pond: fish, insects, plants, flowers. Lilje is described as something that is more than human, one with her elements, and these descriptions are so vivid, readers won’t be able to stop flipping pages.

NEGATIVES:

I know this might divide some people but I don’t care (there’s a reason why I’m called INFAMOUS!). There were elements in the story that I felt were out of place and even annoying, most of the time. Specifically, Lilje’s sapphic relationship with one of the inn maids, Mel. I find the whole LGBTQ-whatever thing very tiring at this point in time. The story could avail of true friendship development without having to get ‘sensual’, necessarily. This reminds me of the overall trend we’re seeing in modern fantasy, whereas two characters of the same sex are seldom portrayed as just very good friends – like Frodo and Sam in Lord of Rings, for example. In a lot of modern fiction, it seems as though if two same-sex characters think of one another, care for one another, would give their lives for one another, then the relationship inevitably MUST be sexualized at some point and to some degree.

The truth is that Lilje and Mel could have become very good friends without the unnecessary sexual tension and the story would have gained an additional layer of depth, in actuality. This is just my opinion – love it or hate it.

CONCLUSIONS:

RoLD is a well written novel with elements that go from outstanding and exciting (the nymph’s life at the pond) to tiring and cringe (lesbian relationship). The description of the forest pond and the life it cradles is the peak of the book. The concept of what a water nymph would look like, how she would operate, think, and feel, was so well crafted I had to stop reading a couple of times to say to myself: “Wow, this is how you portray a nymph! Good job!”.

The relationship between Lilje and the pure element of water is what makes this book relevant. If anything, I wished the story had been more about exploring that side of it than Lilje’s infatuation with Mel.

If you want to read one of the best portrayals of a water nymph, this book might be for you. The struggles she goes through, as she finds out the reason why she keeps getting increasingly ill, will touch a lot of hearts, as it did mine. In the end, this story deals with the human struggle against mortality, and how different people will deal with it, truly.

(Reflections of Lilje Damselfly will release on June 23, 2025)

🦀

Red-Blooded American Men Examine Pop-Culture and the World