by Jason Joyner | Nov 21, 2009 | Blog, books, CFBA, fiction, reviews
From one blog tour to another, from Elven lands to cyberpunk, where there’s books, Spoiled for the Ordinary will go!
This week the Christian Fiction Blog Alliance is featuring first-time author Kirk Outerbridge and his book Eternity Falls – A Rick Macey Cyberthriller. I mentioned this book last month due to its excellent cover art, and today is my review.
In the year 2081, no one has to die. Thanks to the Miracle Treatment from Gentec, people never age, and can actually be restored to any time in their life they want. But when spokeswoman starlet Greta Darling dies from apparent natural causes, this could destroy the product and company.
When the lovely VP from Gentec, Sheila Dunn, wants to find a reason that would show it wasn’t due to the failure of the Miracle Treatment, she turns to Rick Macey, a retired government operative who has secrets that match his formidable skills. He will need all his experience and abilities to deal with the various forces that want Ms. Dunn and Gentec to fail.
I’ve not read a cyberpunk type novel before, and it’s not surprising that this offering in the Christian fiction realm comes from Marcher Lord Press. Jeff Gerke’s publishing company is the perfect vehicle for a book that doesn’t fit with the mainstream of CBA novels.
Outerbridge has a solid first effort here. He sets a very interesting dystopic future, with the wonders of the Miracle Treatment nicely contrasted with areas of Los Angeles that are home to cybergangs due to the neglect from the government. Futuristic touches such as neural nets that provide instant messaging and computer searches with a thought, holographic ID’s, and other technological advances are well-thought out and used throughout the book.
Rick Macey is a good protagonist with some surprises in store for the reader. He is a complex individual, and he wrestles with his past and his future throughout the story. Other characters such as the mysterious Virgil and the mobster Pooly add to the colorful landscape of the story. Sheila Dunn is mixed, appearing strong, petulant, spoiled, and a damsel in distress at various times, never consistent enough to be terribly believable.
The plot overall moves at a pretty suspenseful pace, but there are several points where the narrative could be edited to keep the story sharper. There’s too much introspection, dialog, and description at times that bog the story down. The imagery of “eternity falls” is potent, but gets overdone at the end of the story.
Overall, I wasn’t sure how “Christian” cyberpunk would play out, but Eternity Falls is an interesting read that has flaws, but is nonetheless entertaining. Fans of near future sci/fi and cyberpunk should check it out, as well as suspense fans. I think Outerbridge has the potential to be a strong player in the development of Christian speculative fiction in the future.
If you would like to read an excerpt from Chapter 1 of Eternity Falls, go HERE
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by Jason Joyner | Nov 18, 2009 | Blog, Christopher Hopper, fantasy, reviews, speculative fiction, spiders, Wayne Thomas Batson
Batson and Hopper weave an entertaining web of adventure and suspense.
This is the final day of the CSFF Tour, featuring the new book from fantasy authors Wayne Thomas Batson and Christopher Hopper,
Curse of the Spider King. On
day one I gave a short synopsis of the story, and
day two featured the authors and their mission (though I neglected Wayne’s love of nachos…).
This book is the first in the Berinfell Prophecies series, written for a middle school audience, but with enough packed into it to make an enjoyable read for adults as well. Spider King as Batson tells on the Amazon page for the book, is not in either his voice or Hopper’s, but their voice together. It is quite a feat for two strong writers to meld together so well.
The book starts off in an intriguing manner, immediately setting up the mystery. After this peek into the Elven world of Allyra, teenagers on Earth are introduced to a special book that has magical properties. When the text is touched, they are transported to the actual history of the Elves and the fall of Berinfell, their ancient capital. Most of the book is taken up with introducing the seven teens who are actually refugees from this other world, unbeknownst to them, with a climatic confrontation at the end as they try to gather together.
The action keeps the story propelling forward, and there are few times when the book slows at all. The various children are unique and have different backgrounds that feels real and not forced. They all stand out individually in their character and actions, which is a difficult task with so many “lead” characters. My only complaint with characterization is some of the names are too similar (Jimmy, Johnny, Tommy, etc.). There are also different Elven “protectors” who masquerade as teachers or librarians, and they all seem to run together at the end, but the individual interaction of teens and their protectors seems genuine.
The bad guys are sufficiently creepy, and the spiders provide an excellent fodder for setting a mood. This book shouldn’t induce arachnophobia, but if a reader already suffers from that, this may not be the best book for them in the first place! The kids seem to be in real danger, and not every good guy makes it out alive, it seems.
Other than the similar names, my only other problems were some occasional head-hopping, where the authors would suddenly switch to another character’s point of view for a time, and abruptly switch back as well. This caused some confusion as far as “who’s the voice here.” Also, one of the teens, has to flee danger suddenly, and her circumstances are not very believable as far as how she flees and dealing with her parents.
Overall, the book is a very enjoyable read for the intended reading audience, intermediate readers and up, as well as the parents or adults who like a good fantasy. There are grand themes of courage, endurance, self-sacrifice, and what it means to be a family, so there is a treasure of values in it as well. I’m looking forward to reading it to my 9 and 8 year olds as the next book on deck. Batson and Hopper deliver an entertaining, well-crafted world with engaging characters that will keep readers waiting for the next book, Venom and Song, coming May 2010! To paraphrase my middle son, “They are SO imaginative!”
If you want to see some other opinions, see
Becky Miller’s blog for links to all the updated posts.
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by Jason Joyner | Nov 18, 2009 | Blog, Christopher Hopper, fantasy, reviews, speculative fiction, spiders, Wayne Thomas Batson
Batson and Hopper weave an entertaining web of adventure and suspense.
This is the final day of the CSFF Tour, featuring the new book from fantasy authors Wayne Thomas Batson and Christopher Hopper,
Curse of the Spider King. On
day one I gave a short synopsis of the story, and
day two featured the authors and their mission (though I neglected Wayne’s love of nachos…).
This book is the first in the Berinfell Prophecies series, written for a middle school audience, but with enough packed into it to make an enjoyable read for adults as well. Spider King as Batson tells on the Amazon page for the book, is not in either his voice or Hopper’s, but their voice together. It is quite a feat for two strong writers to meld together so well.
The book starts off in an intriguing manner, immediately setting up the mystery. After this peek into the Elven world of Allyra, teenagers on Earth are introduced to a special book that has magical properties. When the text is touched, they are transported to the actual history of the Elves and the fall of Berinfell, their ancient capital. Most of the book is taken up with introducing the seven teens who are actually refugees from this other world, unbeknownst to them, with a climatic confrontation at the end as they try to gather together.
The action keeps the story propelling forward, and there are few times when the book slows at all. The various children are unique and have different backgrounds that feels real and not forced. They all stand out individually in their character and actions, which is a difficult task with so many “lead” characters. My only complaint with characterization is some of the names are too similar (Jimmy, Johnny, Tommy, etc.). There are also different Elven “protectors” who masquerade as teachers or librarians, and they all seem to run together at the end, but the individual interaction of teens and their protectors seems genuine.
The bad guys are sufficiently creepy, and the spiders provide an excellent fodder for setting a mood. This book shouldn’t induce arachnophobia, but if a reader already suffers from that, this may not be the best book for them in the first place! The kids seem to be in real danger, and not every good guy makes it out alive, it seems.
Other than the similar names, my only other problems were some occasional head-hopping, where the authors would suddenly switch to another character’s point of view for a time, and abruptly switch back as well. This caused some confusion as far as “who’s the voice here.” Also, one of the teens, has to flee danger suddenly, and her circumstances are not very believable as far as how she flees and dealing with her parents.
Overall, the book is a very enjoyable read for the intended reading audience, intermediate readers and up, as well as the parents or adults who like a good fantasy. There are grand themes of courage, endurance, self-sacrifice, and what it means to be a family, so there is a treasure of values in it as well. I’m looking forward to reading it to my 9 and 8 year olds as the next book on deck. Batson and Hopper deliver an entertaining, well-crafted world with engaging characters that will keep readers waiting for the next book, Venom and Song, coming May 2010! To paraphrase my middle son, “They are SO imaginative!”
If you want to see some other opinions, see
Becky Miller’s blog for links to all the updated posts.
—
by Jason Joyner | Nov 17, 2009 | Blog, Christopher Hopper, CSFF, fantasy, speculative fiction, spiders, Wayne Thomas Batson
Wayne Thomas Batson
Teacher of middle school students, spinner of pirate yarns, doorman for The Door Within, husband, father.
Christopher Hopper
Author, musician, pastor, traveler, visionary, consumer of sushi, husband, father.
The CSFF tour for November is featuring a collaboration between these two authors, Curse of the Spider King, first in the Berinfell Prophecies. I introduced the book yesterday, and will review it tomorrow. Today I wanted to tell you about these men, as there’s more than just a book involved here.
Unfortunately, Spider King is the first book I’ve read of either author (a problem I shall have to remedy). However, I’ve known about and followed these guys for a while. I am very pleased that the CSFF is featuring their work because they are serious about reaching a young generation with the love of Jesus and the love of literature and creativity. These are two things I can certainly get behind.
Wayne is a public school teacher, who decided to write for those he worked with day to day. Christopher has grown up in ministry, and among his many hats he works with teens and college aged folk. If you check out their sites, they are not shy about wanting to reach kids. They also do their part to foster a greater appreciation of reading, especially fantasy. They’ve done tours, spoken at schools and churches, and supported other authors, hoping to make a difference in their realm of influence.
Wayne asks on his blog for people willing to pray and support their work, that doors will be opened. As he points out, in a battle artillery is needed to weaken the defenses of the enemy. As Christians our weapons are spiritual, and our warfare is through prayer and the Word. I encourage all interested in the next generation and in good art to support these guys, as they walk out their hearts.
A few more points of interest:
Ryan Heart has a great interview with Wayne and Christopher.
Robert Treskillard has a good opening for the Berinfell Prophecies (even if he is biased ;-)).
There is also a special contest by Wayne and Christopher, and if you are going to point young readers to their books, you should also direct them here!
Finally, check out the rest of my tourmates, as Becky Miller keeps an updated list of who has posted, and I’ll have my review tomorrow!
—
by Jason Joyner | Nov 17, 2009 | Blog, Christopher Hopper, CSFF, fantasy, speculative fiction, spiders, Wayne Thomas Batson
Wayne Thomas Batson
Teacher of middle school students, spinner of pirate yarns, doorman for The Door Within, husband, father.
Christopher Hopper
Author, musician, pastor, traveler, visionary, consumer of sushi, husband, father.
The CSFF tour for November is featuring a collaboration between these two authors, Curse of the Spider King, first in the Berinfell Prophecies. I introduced the book yesterday, and will review it tomorrow. Today I wanted to tell you about these men, as there’s more than just a book involved here.
Unfortunately, Spider King is the first book I’ve read of either author (a problem I shall have to remedy). However, I’ve known about and followed these guys for a while. I am very pleased that the CSFF is featuring their work because they are serious about reaching a young generation with the love of Jesus and the love of literature and creativity. These are two things I can certainly get behind.
Wayne is a public school teacher, who decided to write for those he worked with day to day. Christopher has grown up in ministry, and among his many hats he works with teens and college aged folk. If you check out their sites, they are not shy about wanting to reach kids. They also do their part to foster a greater appreciation of reading, especially fantasy. They’ve done tours, spoken at schools and churches, and supported other authors, hoping to make a difference in their realm of influence.
Wayne asks on his blog for people willing to pray and support their work, that doors will be opened. As he points out, in a battle artillery is needed to weaken the defenses of the enemy. As Christians our weapons are spiritual, and our warfare is through prayer and the Word. I encourage all interested in the next generation and in good art to support these guys, as they walk out their hearts.
A few more points of interest:
Ryan Heart has a great interview with Wayne and Christopher.
Robert Treskillard has a good opening for the Berinfell Prophecies (even if he is biased ;-)).
There is also a special contest by Wayne and Christopher, and if you are going to point young readers to their books, you should also direct them here!
Finally, check out the rest of my tourmates, as Becky Miller keeps an updated list of who has posted, and I’ll have my review tomorrow!
—
Outerbridge has a solid first effort here. He sets a very interesting dystopic future, with the wonders of the Miracle Treatment nicely contrasted with areas of Los Angeles that are home to cybergangs due to the neglect from the government. Futuristic touches such as neural nets that provide instant messaging and computer searches with a thought, holographic ID’s, and other technological advances are well-thought out and used throughout the book.