Saturday 28 April 2012

Rippler (Ripple Book 1) - Cidney Swanson



Title: Rippler
Author: Cidney Swanson
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Published: 2011
Formats: Paperback/Ebook

Available at:
Amazon
Amazon UK

"Rippler" by Cidney Swanson isn't the type of book I would normally read; a young adult urban fantasy novel usually leaves me with cold sweats as I fear it will just descend into standard paranormal romance territory! However, I took a gamble anyway and, luckily for me, it did actually feel like an urban fantasy novel with out a trace of love triangles or vampires anywhere.

The story itself follows Samantha Ruiz who, due to a genetic abnormality, has the ability to ripple which means that she can actually become invisible and without substance. Unfortunately she is unable to control this ability and when she is accidentally spotted vanishing by a classmate named Will she fears that soon her secret will be revealed. However, luckily for Sam, Will actually is aware of Rippling and becomes a friend and confident who tries to help her find a way to control her ability. However, there is more at risk than the ability to ripple being discovered and her life becoming one big science experiment. It also appears that others with the same genetic abnormality have been dying in suspicious circumstances which could mean that Sam's own life is at risk.

It was nice to see a Young Adult novel that felt a little bit unique compared too many of the others out there at the moment. The ideas behind the novel were also very interesting although I found it a shame that Sam's abilities weren't teased out as the story progressed, they were pretty much all just dumped on the reader in one early chapter. Therefore, at first I have to admit that I wasn't sure about the novel as it looked to be concentrated around Sam's struggle to control her ability. However, as the story progressed it became obvious that there was a much greater mystery here that she was getting caught up in. This overarching mystery was enough to keep me interested in the story and the feeling of danger that grew steadily as the story progressed did help to create an enjoyable read.

I really wasn't sure about the characters; Sam herself is actually reasonably likeable with her insecurities and fears helping to endear her to the reader. However, I found Will to be a little bit bland; he just seemed to be there as a font for information on rippling and a love interest. Whilst I actually found that the relationship between Sam and Will progressed at a more realistic pace than I have seen in other books, I am not sure I understand what personality Sam actually saw to make her like him in that way.

The one relationship I did really enjoy and understand was the one between Will and his sister, Mickie. It was very well portrayed and I could feel the elements of sibling rivalry co-existing with the love and warmth they felt for each other. I can imagine many brothers or sisters recognising some of the love filled antagonism present here. In addition, I found that Mickie herself was an entertaining and multi faceted character as well. Whilst seemingly lacking any sense of humour and full of fear, it was always wonderful to then see the warmth and support that she possessed underneath.

I will be honest now though and add that there was one element of the novel that did irritate me quite a bit and this was in regards to Will witnessing Sam disappearing. It just seemed so far-fetched that of all the people there, the only one who saw her was the one person who seemed to be an expert on the ability to ripple. I understand that there has to be some form of suspension of disbelief when you read novels like this but this lucky happenstance was just a little bit too much for me.

Overall, this was an enjoyable young adult novel that felt a little bit unique and different from the usual fare. It does have the odd little niggle here and there and there was no real conclusion to the novel but there is enough to keep most people entertained and personally I will more than happily pick up the sequel in the future.

Tuesday 24 April 2012

Watership Down - Richard Adams



Title: Watership Down
Author: Richard Adams
Genre: Fantasy
Published: 1972
Formats: Hardback/Paperback/Ebook

Available at:
Amazon
The Book Depository
Kobo
Amazon UK

My first ever introduction to the story of "Watership Down" was when I was about 8 or 9 and my school headmaster discussed the movie version that had recently been on TV. To be honest, the only part of the discussion that remained in my memory was how he said it was about rabbits and it had led to him having tears in his eyes. As a young boy I therefore straight away decided that there was no way I was going to watch a movie or read a book about rabbits that made some people cry, it just wasn't manly. However, now at the tender age of 31 I have decided that I should embrace a little bit of my softer side and read "Watership Down" as part of a 2012 Classic Fantasy Books challenge.

The story itself begins with a small rabbit named Fiver having a premonition about death and destruction coming to the warren. His brother, Hazel decides to believe in Fiver's premonition and therefore leads a small group of rabbits out into the wider world in the hope of finding a new, safer place to call home. The journey to their new warren is fraught with dangers and adventures but the real struggle comes later once they have built their new warren on Watership Down. For the rabbits are all male and therefore they must find a way to bring female rabbits into the warren to ensure they grow and remain happy. This need to bring in new rabbits leads to dangerous confrontations with humans, predators and a dictatorial rabbit that rules another warren with an iron paw.

As seen in the details above, the story is basically about a group of rabbits, there is no denying that but as long as you accept this basic premise you should find the book to be a really enjoyable adventure. The world Adams has created is rich, deep and whilst the novel does start off at quite a slow and leisurely pace, it builds up wonderfully to a tense and engaging final confrontation before providing a meaningful and emotional ending.

One aspect of the novel that I really liked was that unlike most anthropomorphic animal stories, the rabbits and other animals in this novel actually continued to behave like animals. None of them were dressed in clothing, cooked or built little houses with furniture and it really felt like Adams had actually put some research into the behaviour and foibles of rabbits. All of this just made the story feel a little bit more believable and realistic as an adventure that these creatures would really undertake if they actually had the intelligence required.

However, Adams has also managed to give each creature their own individual personality in a manner that a reader can actually relate to even though they are animals. This helped to ensure the story was enjoyable and entertaining as the reader can actually cheer on and support the rabbits as they attempted to secure a better future for themselves. In particular I loved the rabbit character known as Bigwig. At first he comes across as being a rather simple tough, brute of a rabbit, but as the story progresses he is developed really well and his honour, loyalty, courage and strength really come to the fore. Each of the characters really grow as the story progresses which adds to the storytelling.

Overall, I have to admit I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed this novel; it was fun, engaging and full of entertaining adventures. The whole story is cleverly told and personally I am now glad that I have finally read this classic story. I feel that anyone normally interesting in anthropomorphic animal novels should definitely give this one a whirl. However, for those of you who don't normally read that type of novel, don't be put off by the rabbits premise, the characters should be engaging enough despite this to ensure most people will finish this book with a smile on their face.

Challenges Book Counts Towards:
Speculative Fiction Challenge
Year of the Fantasy Classic Challenge

Thursday 19 April 2012

Known Afterlife (The Provider Book 1) - Trey Copeland


Title: Known Afterlife (The Provider Book 1)
Author: Trey Copeland
Genre: Sci-Fi
Published: 2011
Formats: Ebook

Available at:
Amazon
Amazon UK

"Known Afterlife" by Trey Copeland is an interesting blend of fantasy and science fiction with a little spiritual exploration included. The novel follows two separate narratives; the first of these is focused on Steffor, a Guardian who fights to ensure the protection of his arboreal world known simply as The Provider. The second narrative is based around Stalling, a powerful businessman on the planet Antium who has dedicated his entire commercial empire to trying to break the control of the all powerful Church of Salvation that he feels is stifling and limiting the people.

These two very different plotlines form part of an enjoyable ride that takes the reader back and forth between a futuristic world of technology and corruption to a world of fantasy, full of strange creatures, magical powers and a strong link between people and nature. At times it can be hard to understand how these two storylines could ever come together but Copeland does a good job at the end with the inevitable and intriguing merger. I have to admit that by half way through the novel I had begun to guess how and why these two stories were linked but I still enjoyed the final reveal none the less.

The overall pacing and originality of the story kept me hooked from the start to the finish although I have to admit that the jumping between storylines did get a little bit irritating at times. This was mainly because I would be getting engrossed in where one of the plots was going, only for the story to then switch onto the other plotline and so on. Maybe if the transitions were a bit smoother it would have been easier to accept but it did at times really break up the flow.

One of the novel's elements that really interested me was the manner in which both worlds showed a rather different aspect of religion. On The Provider, the elements of faith, love and belief really drove the people on, working together to achieve peace and prosperity and highlighted some of the positives that can be derived from religion. Whereas on Antium, the rigidness, conservatism and position of power the church holds had led to despair, racism and an overall fear of change. I just found that the philosophical and spiritual elements of this novel can make the reader think a little bit about the true meanings of our own religions and beliefs.

Overall, this was a very enjoyable storyline that felt a little bit different from the usual fantasy or science fiction novels I have previously read. Whilst I did have issues with the switching between plots, now that the two storylines seem to now have merged I am hoping that this won't be an issue going forward in the sequel. Personally, I am now really looking forward to the sequel and am can't wait to find out where the story is going to go next.

Challenges Book Counts Towards:
Ebook Reading Challenge (The Eclectic Bookshelf)
Ebook Reading Challenge (Workaday Reads)
Free Reads Challenge
Speculative Fiction Challenge

Monday 16 April 2012

Brave New World - Aldous Huxley



Title: Brave New World
Author: Aldous Huxley
Genre: Sci-Fi
Published: 1932
Formats: Hardback/Paperback/Ebook

Available at:
Amazon
The Book Depository
Kobo
Amazon UK

"Brave New World" by Aldous Huxley is one of these classics that so many people seem to have read or heard of. Whilst I had previously read its contemporary "1984" by George Orwell I had never actually got around to reading "Brave New World" myself. However, when the Sci-Fi Reader Challenge highlighted the requirement to read a pre 1950's classic I decided that now was the time to finally pick up this book and give it a whirl.

The novel is set in a dystopian future world where babies are now grown in bottles and are developed or limited in different ways depending on what class of human they are to become. Each class of human is expected to do a different type of work, with the Alphas and Betas taking on the roles of managers and professionals whilst the remaining classes are primary labourers and servants. The society itself promotes and encourages materialistic consumption and encourages the taking of a legal drug called Soma to ensure people remain happy. In addition, marriage and other monogamous relationships no longer occur and instead people are free to be with whoever they wish without recrimination or fear.

However, not everyone is happy with this live and Bernard Marx is one of these people who often finds himself angry and depressed. However, when he visits a "Savage Reservation" where people still live as they did in the past without civilization he meets a man there named John. Bernard brings John back to civilization with him where he becomes an instant celebrity although John finds that civilization is not the place he hoped it would be.

The story itself takes quite a while to develop as the beginning of the novel is dedicated to introducing the world and how the people live in it. Even when the plot does get going it feels like it is playing second fiddle to the overall warning to us all that Huxley is trying to put across. The chilling future society that Huxley has created in which there is no family or religion and in which materialism rules is really quite powerful to behold as something to compare our own current society against.

The most interesting aspect of the novel for me is the idea that in a way, Huxley has actually created a form of Utopia in the book. There is no war, people are well fed, they are mainly all happy and they all enjoy the various forms of work that they are required to do. I liked the fact that what the reader was seeing is that whilst people may strive for some sort of Utopia, is it really worth the possible sacrifices required in regards to Art, Science and Literature? The way in which John reacts upon reaching so called civilization and his debates with one of the so called World Controllers really highlights these sacrifices and how bland they leave the world.

As I said earlier, the plot is marginalized a little by the message Huxley was putting across and I think that this does probably weaken the book a little in regards to it being an overall entertainment tool. I also felt that the weak storyline results in the book being a little bit slow at times which could result in some readers possibly finding it a little tough to get into. The final weakness in the plot is in relation to the characters though in that I didn't find any of them to be very well developed and there was no real connection evoked either.

In summary, anyone interested in dystopian novels should find this book thoroughly engrossing and I would advise you to pick it up. The novel poses a lot of interesting questions and its warnings are just as true today as they were when Huxley wrote it. The only real issue with the book is the rather slow and weak plot but there is still enough there to keep you reading so that you can enjoy the intriguing look at the dystopian world created by Huxley.

Challenges Book Counts Towards:
Ebook Reading Challenge (The Eclectic Bookshelf)
Ebook Reading Challenge (Workaday Reads)
Speculative Fiction Challenge
Sci-Fi Reader Challenge

Thursday 12 April 2012

Weston Kincade Interview & "A Life of Death" Free this Weekend


Author, Weston Kincade has kindly offered up his novel, A Life of Death for free on Amazon this weekend (14th - 15th April 2012). I loved this book with I read it which I hope comes across in my review that you can find my review here.

Anyway, I am always willing to try and promote any books that I loved so when I found out about this I quickly asked Weston if he would take part in an intereview as part of this promotion and luckily for me, he agreed. The intereview can be found below and if after reading it, any of you are interested in learning more about him then you should go and visit his blog.

Hi Weston, please tell us something about yourself and how you came to be a writer.

I’ve always loved books and writing, so I eventually became an English teacher. Then, with small steps, I moved from writing poetry and short stories to character introductions. Eventually a story began playing out, some of the characters I’d created interweaving themselves into the story, and eventually the plot for Altered Realities evolved. By that point I couldn’t let the story go. It had to be told.

After writing book one, Invisible Dawn, I stumbled across the idea of a boy developing paranormal abilities; not to see the future, but to relive past murders when he touches things. Again, the plot and characters spiraled out from there; the boy became Alex Drummond, and I had to tell his story.

Now that the hurdle of writing something as lengthy and demanding as a book is out of the way (it was something I never thought I could do), I can’t stop. I’ve co-written an anthology of short stories titled Strange Circumstances since then and continue to write.

Some of my readers may not have read the review I did on "A Life of Death" so why don't you tell them a little bit about it?

A Life of Death is the story of Detective Alex Drummond, a man with paranormal abilities. However, the story begins much earlier with him answering his son Jamie’s question for a school project. Then, a tale of abuse, alcoholism, and dealing with the consequences of having an absent military father unravels. It’s troubling and many readers have said they were brought to tears by it (or close to tears in the case of a few more masculine readers), but Alex’s youth grows even more interesting as he learns to cope because of a developing paranormal ability: the gift of reliving the deaths of murder victims. Alex struggles with mysterious murders from years past, strives to speak for the ghosts that need his help, and also discovers that not all victims are dead. After juggling the question of whether he is cursed or blessed, he finds salvation and courage in knowing the truth. He is soon striving to help those in need, create his own happiness in a blossoming romance, and fighting the unjust curve balls that life throws in his makeshift family’s path. Yet there are still more lessons to learn. Can a boy become a man without sacrifice? What will be the cost for Alex?

Where did the inspiration for the plot, characters and setting come from?

One night I was watching “Ghost Hunters” and “Medium” and the question came to mind about what it would be like to have such an ability evolve within you. Then the idea extended to more than just visions of the murder, but what if the person began getting the ability to relive the murder through the victim’s eyes, hearing, seeing, and feeling everything they felt. The idea stuck with me for a while as I was editing Invisible Dawn and shopping it to publishers and agents. Over that week, the concept nestled itself into a corner of my mind, tickling my thoughts every now and again. Scenes such as the main character encountering his father’s scrapped car after the murderous wreck played out in my mind. It was soon followed by the idea of what would happen to the boy if he stepped into a Civil War battlefield museum. At that point I was hooked and had to write the story. I couldn’t even continue with the sequel in the Altered Realities series at that point. I had to write Alex’s story.

I’m not sure where I came up with the character, but I could relate to a boy, so ran with it. Paige, his long time friend and newfound flame, evolved too, but I’m not sure from where. Some of their characteristics came from students’ stories, things they told me in confidence as they tried to overcome their own obstacles. Alex is not any one student, but is a symbolic example of how a teenager might find his or her way out of such a difficult home situation and discover his or her place in the world.

The setting for A Life of Death is actually based on the picturesque Virginia town I worked in for about four years: Abingdon. It’s a little town in the Appalachian Mountains near Bristol, Tennessee. There are a few changes, like the addition of the battlefield museum, but most of the town’s atmosphere, buildings, and fences are pulled from it and the local area.

The writing process differs from author to author. What’s YOUR writing process?

Right now I can’t write full time. It doesn’t pay the bills, so I write a few times a week and much of my weekends. I’d like to do it more, but with teaching full time and running an editing business, WAKE Editing, I find time to write periodically throughout the week. Doing all that I do takes a lot of time and sacrifice. The thing I think I’ve had to give up most, though, is sleep.

There are lots of people out there who dream of being a writer, what do you think is the most important piece of advice you could give?

You have to have an overwhelming drive to just write. It’s said that most people have a book in them, but to be a writer you have to write continuously, whether the audience likes or dislikes your books, and maintain your dedication and persistence to the craft. Writing is time consuming and you can’t procrastinate, leaving it for another day. As soon as that begins, you will stop writing. I would love to expand on my book projects every day, but that doesn’t always happen because of two fulltime jobs. However, I do consistently find the time to write for a large portion of the week, even if that means I only sleep five or six hours each night. A dedicated writer will find the time.

What’s next? What projects are you currently working on and what do we all have to look forward to?

Well, I released the co-written anthology of short stories dealing with fate and destiny entitled Strange Circumstances in late February of 2012 and am currently back to writing the sequel to Invisible Dawn. The working title for it is Salvation, but that may change. After this I plan to write the sequel to A Life of Death, but I also have other ideas planned too, even a series of nonfiction books telling the true story of No Child Left Behind, the manipulation and number games played to pass at the cost of quality education, and the overall state of U.S. Public Education. It will be a kind of tell-all, but with education changing so much right now, No Child Left Behind might become a thing of the past, so we’ll have to wait and see what happens there. I hope to have more time to write each day in the near future, especially with the summer coming. My current plan is to have Salvation finished and released later this year. Beyond that, I don’t know when to expect the release of A Life of Death’s sequel, but I’ll keep you posted.

And finally, what books have had the greatest influence on you?

I’ve always been a huge fan of fantasy. Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings series and The Hobbit were a huge influence, but as I began writing in my youth Robert Jordan’s Wheel of Time series kept my interest for years. The stories that unfolded within the pages of those books helped my imagination blossom. In high school, exposure to Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales enlightened me on the lighthearted sarcasm and irony of humor. I also learned this from Shakespeare and now his work has a special place in my heart. As an adult, Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men truly showed me the importance of realistic, believably flawed characters. Without characters that a reader can truly understand, so much so that they can slip into their shoes, the book is just a stranger’s story told by emotionless words on a page.

Thank you so much Weston for your time and good luck with this promotion and your future novels.

As I said previously if you are interested in learning more about Weston and his novels then give his blog a visit. Other than that, my advice would be to make sure you go and pick up a copy of "A Life of Death" this weekend from Amazon whilst this great novel is free.

Wednesday 11 April 2012

Star Trek Enterprise: Rosetta - Dave Stern



Title: Rosetta
Author: Dave Stern
Genre: Sci-Fi
Published: 2006
Formats: Paperback/Ebook

Available at:
Amazon
The Book Depository
Amazon UK

"Rosetta" by Dave Stern is the latest book in my Star Trek Reading Challenge. I think this book is probably the longest Enterprise novel I have read which has enabled Dave Stern to create quite an involved story with a fair few things going on. However, the rather wordy narrative does result in the book being quite slow paced and I found myself getting bogged down at a few points although it never got bad enough that I felt the need to put the book down.

The story itself is based around the actions of a mysterious race of beings known as the Antianna that have been attacking anyone that makes an attempt to enter a specific region of space they seem to be defining as their territory. When the Enterprise itself is attacked it falls upon Ensign Hoshi Sato to try and translate the complex language that these aliens appear to be utilising in order to understand why the Antianna are attacking. However, the aliens have also been attacking the Thelasian Trading Confederacy and their leader, Governor Maxim Sen is ready to go to all out war. The Enterprise is drawn into the politics of this situation and the crew offer their own assistance in the hope of averting the war by finding a way to enable some sort of understandable communications to occur.

The most interesting aspect of the story is that it was focused on Ensign Hoshi Sato, who was under-utilised during the TV series. I think that Stern has actually done a good job in his portrayal and he doesn't fall into the trap of trying to make her into something she shouldn't be. Therefore she doesn't become a great warrior or undertake complex espionage but her intellect and linguistic skills are utilised to ensure that she is quite integral to the plot. I was also quite interested in the way in which the novel tried to bring out some of her involvement in the creation of a Universal Translator which was a nice little bonus although I do think this did become a little bit lost in the overall story.

However, there were a few issues that really spoilt the overall impact of the story and my enjoyment of the ending. The first was the way the great technologically superior enemy basically just decided to vanish once they had a heart to heart chat with a member of the Enterprise crew. This entire thing just came across to me as being weak storytelling and a cheap way of ending one of the novel's major plotlines. The second issue was in relation to the way that Stern creates some interesting opportunities when he has Archer imprisoned on a ship where he discovers one of his captor's secrets. However, instead of using this, Stern just opts for Archer basically pulling out a plug which left me feeling rather let down. I just don't understand why Stern even bothered setting up something that looked like it might be quite intriguing only to just ignore it all.

Overall, it was nice to see a little bit more of Ensign Sato and I think Stern once again did a good job of capturing the various characters well. However, whilst the story itself was complex, interesting and enjoyable in parts, the slow pace and the rather weak conclusions to various events just left me feeling a bit unsatisfied by the time I reached the ending. To be honest, I think there are better Enterprise novels out there but if you are interested in gaining some more insight into Hoshi then you may as well pick this novel up.

Challenges Book Counts Towards:
Ebook Reading Challenge (The Eclectic Bookshelf)
Ebook Reading Challenge (Workaday Reads)

Saturday 7 April 2012

The Eyes of the Dead (The Vetala Cycle Book 1) - G.R. Yeates



Title: The Eyes of the Dead (The Vetala Cycle Book 1)
Author: G.R. Yeates
Genre: Horror
Published: 2011
Formats: Ebook

Available at:
Amazon
Amazon UK

"The Eyes of the Dead" by Gregory Yeates is a rather visceral horror tale that mixes some graphic imagery with a rather surreal plotline. It is set during World War I and initially follows three soldiers who have to leave the trenches and advance in an attempt to take some territory. When one of them is injured they take refuge in a crypt where they discover something more horrifying and evil than the war itself. One of the soldiers manages to escape the crypt, however that was just the beginning of a journey through terror and madness as he tries to understand what is real and what isn't.

The first thing I wish to highlight is that the author obviously has an outstanding ability to use the English language. The imagery he conjures up was simply sublime and I could really feel myself being drawn into the muddy, depressing and gruesome trenches of World War I. In addition, the way in which he describes and portrays the vampires in the novel was quite refreshing to witness. There was none of the irritating gloomy vampires we see in many YA novels here; these were creatures of pure evil and horror without any remorse or morality.

The storyline itself was incredibly dark with the feeling of evil seeming to flow out from every page. In addition, the book was full of some quite confusing and surreal moments during which I wasn't sure if it was reality or dream, something which really added to the feeling of foreboding within the novel. However, an issue I did have with the book which turned out to be quite major for me is that I never felt any moment of real understanding as I read the book. There didn't really seem to be anything pulling together all the strands of reality and hallucinations into a final result that would leave me feeling satisfied.

Overall, I have to say that Yeates has a superb writing style and the atmosphere he has created in this book was brilliantly dark and evil. Personally though, I just felt a little bit disappointed that there was no ending to really bring all the surrealism and horror together in an enjoyable manner for myself. I am freely willing to admit that maybe I just missed it or didn't grasp something, but it stopped me really loving the book which was a shame as from what I saw here I think Yeates has great ability. Either way, I do think that if you enjoy horror books then you should give this a try, even if it is just to witness the imagery that Yeates can create which some readers I am sure will find satisfying in itself.

Challenges Book Counts Towards:
Ebook Reading Challenge (The Eclectic Bookshelf)
Ebook Reading Challenge (Workaday Reads)
Free Reads Challenge
Speculative Fiction Challenge

Wednesday 4 April 2012

The Last Man on Earth Club - Paul R. Hardy



Title: The Last Man on Earth Club
Author: Paul R. Hardy
Genre: Sci-Fi
Published: 2011
Formats: Paperback/Ebook

Available at:
Amazon
Smashwords
Kobo
Amazon UK

"The Last Man on Earth Club" by Paul R. Hardy is a thoroughly enjoyable and dark read that should really appeal to anyone who has an interest in apocalyptic scenarios. It isn't a fast paced novel and is quite long but I believe it should hold your attention from start to finish as the various characters stories are slowly revealed.

The premise of the novel is that long distance space flight has been disregarded as impossible and therefore various societies have explored the concept of travelling to parallel universes. Many of these societies have come together in an almost UN sort of grouping called the Interversal Union that works together on various tasks such as saving people from planets in other Universes that are facing some sort of apocalypse.

Sometimes though the Interversal Union doesn't discover an endangered planet in time and therefore finds the society there already dead or in some occasions they only manage to save one final person. Six of these final survivors that are believed to be suffering from PTSD are put together in an attempt to undergo group therapy in the hope that some sort of treatment can be identified that would enable them to join the society built up around the Interversal Union.

Whilst a therapy session for people suffering PTSD may not sound the most interesting of topics to read, I was pleasantly surprised at how entertained I actually became in the story and the struggles of each character to overcome their emotional issues. However, don't believe that Hardy also doesn't know what a lot of his audience will pick the book up for. The various snippets of information that are slowly revealed to the reader about each person's past ensure that the apocalypse junkie in you is kept well and truly hooked if that is what really appeals to you.

I found that the six survivors were all superbly developed with very different and distinct personalities that had all been affected by their past. Whilst the information on the apocalyptic worlds they came from was enjoyable and at times truly touching, it was the interactions between the characters that really drive the story onwards. The quarrels and discussions that occurred were actually really interesting to read and I loved how this brought up the various layers of personality hidden within each character. I found myself sympathetic to each of them and was willing them all on to overcome their inner demons and find a way to live with what had occurred.

In summary the book should appeal to many people just because it touches on many different apocalyptic scenarios, such as nuclear wars or zombie plagues. However, at its heart this is a brilliantly written character-driven story set in a sci-fi setting that really highlights the ability of people to overcome great adversity, tragedy and take the first few steps on a difficult and long healing process. Whilst it has quite a dark premise, I found it to be really engaging, with great characters and an ability to really make the reader think. I quite simply enjoyed it from start to finish and can't recommend it highly enough.

Challenges Book Counts Towards:
Ebook Reading Challenge (The Eclectic Bookshelf)
Ebook Reading Challenge (Workaday Reads)
Free Reads Challenge
Speculative Fiction Challenge