Author did an amazing job of creating characters and giving them an interesting ...
581312
The storyline and the use of plot twist keeps you entrigued and wanting to know more. Very hard book to put down. The author did an amazing job of creating characters and giving them an interesting background. Very descriptive and detailed, helps paint a vivid picture and puts you right into the story. This first time author exceeded expectations and I can not wait to read more from K.O. Bailey.
1603600
While this book is set against a political back drop -- Arnold and his run for California governor -- it is really a character study of some slightly broken but very endearing and interesting people.  It is a true ensemble piece, which makes it a page turner as the chapters jump from character to character, taking you along on their journeys.  I found the writing to be very compelling, really making me feel for the characters who are at once original, unusual, a little strange, but ultimately lovable.  By the end, I was really rooting for them all to find love and pull themselves out of their personal dilemmas.  A great first time effort for the author and a fun book to pick up.
2404503
The author has done an excellent job of telling a compelling story while creating characters that have depth. Great job and I hope to read more from this author.
1507226
I applaud Misty Evans on this book! Amazing job on the characters. I think they stand out the most. I found even the secondary characters were done amazingly as well. She even entangled some of her characters from her other series. The world setting was developed well and believable. The Plot, and pace was nicely done. Complete with twists and turns, and few edge of your seat moments. Writing style was professional. Overall I loved this book!

Check out the upcoming giveaway at: WereVampsRomance
3709658
It's always a gamble trying out a new author'sfirst book, but I was really surprised at the pacing and detail of this story. The editing was clean, with only a few minor errors, and the theauthor did an excellent job of immersing me in his world without all the drab over-description most new authors get bogged down in.
The story was unique and always on the move, and I really liked all of the character progression throughout. A definite thrill ride through a fascinating wasteland filled with unique creatures and cultures. I would definitely recommend this to any fantasy fans, especially those that are big into movies like Mad Max or Dune. Great read all around and an author to definitely keep an eye on.
1131548
If you are looking for a quick read, this book is for you.  The author does a tremendous job of laying out his characters and making you feel like you are a part of the story.  I was emotionally attached to these characters and by the middle of the book I was racing to the end to see their fates play out.  I look forward to what else this author has to offer!
1053457
The author finds a way to make characters that are really bad immoral people totally compelling. You make not like these guys but I found them fascinating. Nothing is contrived and some of the out comes are stunning. Loved this book.
348994
Fast paced, great characters, interesting story line.  The author made me feel sorry for the bad guy!  At least I could understand his motives for what he was doing.  Both of the main characters deserve a second book and more.

As the story was laid out, it was interesting to discover some of the history of the period that I must have missed while raising a family.  It's intriguing to realize how one action can affect different people.

I'll be looking for more to read from this author.  I was given a copy to review and grateful to be introduced to a talented writer.  Kudos!
4587693
This book seems to cover a bit of everything and what was most amazing was the vivid detail that the author uses in his description. The book does an amazing job at building an intricate web between the characters which the reader must deconstruct. Though this is the case, the author does an amazing job at pulling the various characters and concepts together, even though the topics were so vast.

There were times where I found myself saying, can he really be pulling all of this into one book, but the author did, and he does so without alienating his readers, instead he draws them into the story and leaves them asking for more.

This book will open your mind and make you want to continue reading from the first to very last page!
3600919
Science Fiction is not my choice of genre normally, but Michael Barnett is such a detailed writer with the most fascinating imagination I've ever read, I chose to read it through after scanning When Earthlings Weep. First, I have to say it did not disappoint! The concept and the amazing descriptions and unbelievably solid, but strange characters is why I gave this a four. The reason I kept one point off was for the sometimes difficult lack of correct punctuation and typos, especially in the beginning of the book. It was distracting and I feel no matter what one's education, professional editing/proofreading is a must. As writers, we don't always catch our own errors. Had this been done, I'm sure this would be a five star book for most.

For me, Mickey's character was a bit confusing (until the end). There was very little build-up in the beginning of the book for his character before the story led right into the 'nightmare' characters and lifestyle. It's just my opinion that there should have been a break here and there or more often going back to Mickey's normal life out of the nightmares. The last few chapters gave me insight into Mickey's normal character before the nightmares. However, if I were a huge science fiction fan as much as I am a crime fiction fan, I would have read this book twice. So I highly recommend When Earthlings Weep especially to you Science Fiction readers. It will be a luscious dessert.
1279115
As an avid reader, I sometimes feel like authors tend to hurry through developing their characters, so I don't get a chance to know them and understand their quirks and flaws.

Author S. D. Hendrickson crafted characters I still think about, even after putting the book down. I got to KNOW Emma and Wyatt and what made them tick. I loved the compassionate Emma Sawyer, who just wanted to help the mysterious Wyatt Caulfield. Emma is a caretaker, so it's in her soul to help people, and I thought the author did a fantastic job conveying that burning need throughout the book. Wyatt reminded me so much of Dallas from The Outsiders, so I was constantly turning the page, wanting to learn more about his history.

As I've seen with The Mason List, I think the author is really going to continue to make big waves in the New Adult genre, and I can't wait to see this book on a Barnes & Noble shelf.
4067387
Characters

First off the characters in this book are very unique. It was the first thing that gripped me was the cast of characters. However, there are a lot of them. From primary, to secondary, to supporting characters, they are all unique but they are so many of them. They felt very complicated and very real. The author did an amazing job creating them and their stories, evening going into depth in some places. There are too many to delve into but they are a good cast of characters.

The only drawn back was you weren't always 100% sure which person you were with, because it was eBook sometimes Id miss a transition and be wondering what the heck happened - tripped me up a few times. Id recommend the author add a break in between point of view shifts for ease of reading. There were also a few times that I wondered how someone knew something because we weren't in their point of view. This became less of a problem as the chapters went on and as the reader it became less jarring to transition because it became the natural flow.

Plot

Interesting premise, the action scenes are very easy to follow. I could picture the sequence of events more than once which spoke to strong writing. This book is not stand alone, there are more questions left at the end then there are answers. That doesnt distract from the story itself it just felt a little left off, like the author wasn't sure where to end and the book was long enough so why not there.

It had a very strong steampunk vibe and it was easy to see that the characters were true to form in the world. It is not a friendly world and is this book is for sure for adults. There are some gruesome and bizarrely vulgar scenes that actually fit with the story, so they are what they are.

Overall

Fun steampunk romp packed with adventure. Varied characters that are easy to distinguish and both like and hate depending. Something I loved about this book was there was almost no foreshadowing. The author revealed what was necessary as it became necessary. Some of them were twists; some of them were simply interesting facts. It takes a bit to get going and get to the point of the whole book, but there is constant action and adventure to keep ones attention. Not to mention the very creative world the story takes place in - which seems to be an alternative reality or alternative timeline for Earth.

Rating

4 stars

This is a fun book that I liked much more at the end of the book than at the beginning. Great characters, decent plot, and good writing makes for an enjoyable read. Fast paced read with a unique world and a steampunk feel.

More reviews at creatingworldwithwords.wordpress.com. I received a copy of this book in exchange of an honest review.
3838489
This book starts out a little slow, but by the halfway mark I could hardly put it down. Without giving away too much of the plot I'll just say I found the world this book creates to be fascinating. The characters were interesting and well developed. I would highly recommend this book to anyone interested in fantasy/science fiction books with a romantic twist. I certainly hope there's a sequel!
4324448
I had trouble connecting with the voice of in some parts of this story which is disappointing because it has all the elements I adore; magic, mystery, Gods, loyalty, death, and so much more plus the author is so incredibly nice.
There plenty of times where I felt the flow of the writing and fell into the story but there were many moments where the flow stopped. The problem was mostly from the writing style, it would switch from showing us what's happening to telling us what's happening and those moments really impacted my desire to continue reading. It has all the potential in the world but feels like it was written and edited in a very short time
Despite the problems I couldn't bring myself to stop reading and after spending a few days reflecting on the overall story I believe I'll continue to the next in the series, with hope that I end up loving it or at least find out what happens.
2680395
When I first read Fated: A Draemorian Chronicle: The Western World by Sebastien Leonard, I was provided with a rough draft to offer my editorial thoughts. My feedback on the rough draft revolved mostly around how much I liked the characters, the potential of the fascinating world Mr. Leonard had created, and my appreciation of the parallels he had drawn between the history of his world and that of ours. I told him to flesh things out a little more and that I would love to see a more polished version in future. Well, I just finished the final version, and to be honest  I was not disappointed.
As a reader, a writer, and sometimes editor (and especially as a writing reader who edits while reading), it is SUCH a joy to me when I see someone reach a potential that I know they have. Leonards writing had a spark to it when I read the rough draft. It is so wonderful to see that spark fanned into a flame.
The book is composed of two major parts: the first part being a compilation of journal entries from the minstrel, Sorrownote, and a collection of documents from various characters in the second part who each introduce the histories of the various parts of Draemoria in their own unique voice as a backdrop to the story. The second part is a novella involving the writers of those documents in a battle that sets the readers up for the rest of the series (and, Sebastien tells me, a future video game franchise as well!).
The first part of the book was completely revamped from the rough draft, and I loved how each document was separated by a journal entry and the voice of the character was made much clearer throughout. The rough draft had me confused, but this final version is exactly what I was hoping for.
The novella had a few problems with grammar and sentence structure in the middle, but because the first part of the book had been arranged in such a way that I really cared about the characters and attained that suspension-of-disbelief element, I only really thought about it after the fact instead of being stopped in my tracks, because I was actually so involved in the story that I didn't care about the grammar.
The rough draft was also devoid of illustrations, and when I received my copy of the final draft, I was elated because Derek Sproule had done some absolutely beautiful artwork for it. A fantasy novel is never really complete without proper illustrations, and the map of Draemoria was also really helpful in helping track the bands journey throughout the land. The illustrations capture the essence of the novel at its heart, and I really liked that. It was clear the illustrator and the author both shared the same vision, and especially for a new fantasy series, that is very important.
This book is total fantasy nerd fun, and I love it. I think it would make an AMAZING graphic novel, if the opportunity ever arose, and I am actually really excited for the day it becomes a video game because I could see myself TOTALLY addicted to it. The thing to remember when reading this book is that it is the beginning to a series, and Leonard is purposely choosing to introduce the history first so the reader has background to go on, much as one would in a video games script, and that the story itself will deepen and become more intricate as other books come out. I am very excited about this new author and I hope you all go and buy his book.
I give it a very well-deserved 3.5 stars out of 5.
Support Sebastien and help him get more books in print here: https://www.inkshares.com/projects/a-draemorian-chronicle-the-western-world
See more of Dereks work here: https://www.facebook.com/DerekSprouleFineArt
So long, and happy reading!
4919133
I don't usually review books and I don't tend to expect a lot from a freebie book (Kindle version) but this one surprised me. It starts off a little disjointed with the story switching from one thread to another, but as time goes on and the pieces some together I found myself caught up and didn't want to put it down.

Each of the characters have multiple facets (don't we all) but it didn't feel forced, like the author was trying to artifically make the story more complicated. Instead, it just seemed like I was learning more about them.

Kudos to the author for a well written piece of fantasy. In a way I was disappointed that I found this book so soon after publishing because that means a longer wait for the story to continue! I will be waiting for book two and will add it to my growing Kindle collection (even if it's not offered for free).
3269172
Antoinette Houston, author of Red Summer has really worked hard to bring this story to life giving it the creativity and flare that is needed to really get the book off the ground. The story which follows four high school students as they live out their daily lives varies from other books because these students have no end because their life is currently on repeat meaning they live out their high school years over and over until something disturbs the pattern that has been set forth before them and will change things forever. The paranormal oddity that is added to the story really enlightens why things are the way they are and how it will change things for good. The main character Rita is well put together and you will soon learn of her ability and how other characters Nikki, Ingrid and Wil play their part as well. I really enjoyed reading the book and can see great things from this amazing writer. I think any readers that enjoy suspense and twists will love Red Summer.