Thought the entire series was excellent edge of the seat and thought provoking
927430
Thought the entire series was excellent edge of the seat and thought provoking. The finale was excellent and I was happy to read the the good guys didn't all get written off at the end! Sorry the series ended, looking forward to the next great read from Richard!!!
1506302
I truly enjoyed the entire series especially this last book. It was expertly written captivated the reader and kept one engaged all the way to the end. I am sad that it is over and I only wish that he had written a fourth book because there is so much of the story that could have been expanded.
4594696
The entire series was intriquing and was complex to a degree where predictability was minimized. Appeal to young and old alike.
2843825
This was a brilliantly wrote series that I could not put down once I started. This was one of those rare series that you pick up that have it all. The series is also very religious and it takes a hard look at the different types of religions out there and how each has different, but profound effects on one's life, all the while pointing back to Jesus.

The first book opens up with Katherine (aka Alcatraz) that has gone from having a loving family and a comfortable home life to a sudden and traumatic tragedy that strikes leaving her alone and struggling for answers. She soon embarks on her own personal faith journey to try and discover who she really is and what she really believes. By the time you get the end of the third book you have ventured down this wonderful path through all these different religions with some intense dialogue to wind up at the feet of Jesus.
I think this whole series was a remarkable undertaking that everyone can relate to at some point and time in life. Our parent's faith cannot remain ours forever.  We have to decide to create our own faith and that starts with asking tough questions and seeking the answers for ourselves. Alcatraz's journey was real, exciting to watch and beautiful with how it unfolded in the end.

What does Jesus offer that other religions don't? I recommend you pick up this series and see for yourself what Katherine discovered.

I received a free copy of this book/Ebook/Product to review at [...]. I was not required to write a positive review nor was I compensated in any other way. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the FTC Regulations. I am part of The Goddess Fish Review
2569119
The third part of the Bar Code Series was amazing. This series really brought everything together with all of the mystical, physical, and environmental parts of the future society. I cannot imagine having a bar code at 17 with the lame explanation they give even after everything that occurred in the first two books. This was a spectacular series of books that are truly thought provoking. A very good read and a good conclusion to an interesting series.
3529050
the whole series was spell binding and i hated to see it end ,I would sure like too see more of his books
2776081
I truly enjoyed the whole series. A great premise and exciting from start to finish. Andrew's what-if take on future conflict is exciting and a definitely edge of your seat read. I'm excited to see what he dreams up next!
1068352
Have read all six books; one more coming. I couldn't wait to get from one to the next! Stark contrast between the depictions of good and evil hear; The violence particularly in the first half of the series might be a bit much for some. Sobering implications with what the American political situation could amount to, and what the world would be like after complete collapse. Great depth and development of all the characters.
1586266
I enjoyed this three book series as much as any I have read so this will be a critique of the entire series. For all readers the action is fast paced with in depth character development of the various people with different personalities.  These personalities are well blended together in support of the storyline. The description of the four sentient alien cultures is imaginative and their interactions with the humans is detailed and believable.  For adult readers there are two intertwined themes that are very thought provoking.  First is the transition of the human culture from a violent, warlike posture prevalent today, to a state of being totally pacifistic and finally to a realization that basic freedoms are worth fighting for.  Second was the evolution of Justice from a soldier only responsible for his own small squad to a leader responsible for the safety of his family, friends, and the entire human culture.  I highly recommend this series to all readers who enjoy science fiction as well as action stories.
4729468
I really enjoyed this book and read the whole series in 2 days. Very heavy subject matter and at times it was hard to read because of just how horrific some of the scenes are. These stories felt real, visceral and heartbreaking but full of hope and redemption. Not for the faint of heart, this series addresses very real and terrifying subjects regarding religious cults and sexual abuse. Good character development, real people with flaws, fears, the need to love and be loved. I will definately continue to read this series, Tillie Cole has made me a fan.
3942854
Excellent series!  Very well written and Jamie Dornan and Gillian Anderson were perfectly cast.  Kept me on the edge of my seat as there were so many surprises.  I like the fact that ALL of the characters are well developed; didn't just focus on the 2 stars. Why did it end so quickly?  I wanted at least another season or 2.
3885559
I am not sure where to even start with this review. As an avid reader, I purchased this whole 9 book series some time back and as I have a list of what I will be reading that I strictly adhere to, I finally just got to them. I read the whole series in a couple of weeks and with that I would have to say, there is a fine line of what the author can re-hash and what is too much back story repeated. The danger with reading a finished series completely through beginning to end is that it can seem like many things are repeated and re-told over and over, however if I had read the series separately (probably as the author intended), the re-hashing would not have been too much imo. I think I would have appreciated the refresher more in that case.

I was really worried about Eric's loss of his humanity, but understood completely what had led to his darker, base self. I wondered if we would lose him completely by the end of this series because of the dark state that he had descended into. Again, with the tests, trials and severe losses I could certainly understand what he had become. Mr. Allan did a very nice wrap-up for our main character and I appreciated it greatly. Again I found myself caring about the other characters as they were handled well by the author, and I especially appreciated Merrick's redemption. I felt like through the whole series that the military aspects were handled really well; I am sure others, that are also veterans appreciated the respect shown to the military men and women and the attention to detail.

This series flowed nicely and it was very easy to care about the players and hate the antagonists. The end of book 8 'Even Legends Die' was gut wrenching and heart wrenching and I will admit that I was a bit choked up. Some of that I am sure was personal history, but any author that can make me care about the protagonist's that much, is a worthy author for me to follow. I have no problem spending my entertainment allotment to follow other works by this author.

There were a few typos and the wrong name inserted at times (like Warren for Werner) that would make you read a part and go... what? But that usually corrected itself not too far into the particular chapter. A good editor should have caught this, but overall these few mistakes as well as a missing or misspelled word here and there did not detract noticeably from the story in my opinion. The whole series was so well done that the few mistakes were not too distracting and certainly not worth the loss of a star from me.

One (small) problem for me was the lack of a wrap-up of the Shadow Legion soldiers that had taken the other Alliance worlds. I know the 300k Legion troops on Earth were nuked and then cleaned up by the broken Marine contingent, but what of the other 18-19 worlds that they had already taken without a fight. The settlers and Marines/Janissaries cleaned up in victory 3 of the (21-22?) taken worlds, Armstrong, Arcadia and Columbia, but by that time it seems they were too small and broken to have cleaned up the other worlds. Did Sarah's find some way to distribute the cure and we just weren't told? Also one other small thing was I wish we would have seen some conclusion of the story arc about Axe/Ellie. Not sure where that was headed and may have just been included to humanize some of earth's Cogs.

Overall 5 stars from me and highly recommended to fans of military sci-fi or just good writing.
3137284
Loved the series for these reasons: The author does an excellent job at describing the details of heaven (his perspective of course), the series as a whole is quite emotional.  For example, you (or at least me) come to higher understand of God's love for the human race, and Lucifer's jealous despise of man, and to the extent of which Christ suffered for the salvation of our souls.
151401
I have read the entire series (books II and III are yet to be published) and I could not put them down.  I really enjoyed them.  The professional critics might not think them outstanding, but for me, I was truly enthralled.  Since I go to church with Mike, I am proud to say that due to suggestions from a friend and myself, he is revising the end of #III a little bit.  But really, the book(s) are very broad in scope and imaginative quality.  They do not use a ton of big words.  A child could easily read them, but that fact does not take away from the story.  With Mike's coaching, hopefully I will write this well some day!
3261341
Edge of your seat reading and fitting finish to this series.
4581320
I found myself thinking about how clever the author is in this last trilogy.  The logical progression in technology is quite fascinating.  I highly recommend this series (my favorite is still the very first book, Semper Mars), but the entire trilogy is fantastic and I would definitely put it on my "favorites" list.
3793192
Absolutely loved this series, and I am an adult. I loved the depth of character and that the children in this series go through some real life issues.  Be warned there is death in this book and the children must deal with it.  Great series of books with a nice look at a quality fantasy world.