Book Reviews by Ehlen Administration

The Victor's Heritage by Anthony Caplan My rating: 4 of 5 stars Corrag is categorically unsatisfied with her choices in Democravia. She does not want to be put on the fast track to augmentation; the thought of her brain being accessible to the level of hierarchy it would be is unsettling. So she decides that a youth liaison to the Repho doesn’t sound so bad. What she doesn’t realize is the roller coaster she has just stepped on to will not stop until she comes full circle. The Victor’s Heritage is the second in the Jonah Trilogy. The post apocalyptic thriller follows a teen character who I actually like, which is rare. She is thrown into an impossible situation and responds with fortitude and determination, and what most would consider quite a mature attitude for a teenager, although I certainly remember it from my own teenage years. While I would recommend reading the trilogy from the beginning, I did not find it hard to follow or requiring a large backstory to keep up, i...

The Genesis Portal by Matthew Carter My rating: 2 of 5 stars Jasper is determined to find his dream girl, and he will travel halfway across the galaxy to do it, no matter the cost. But when he finds her, he discovers she is way more than a dream girl, and he’s not the only one looking for her. The Genesis Portal is a classic case of a great story rolling around but poor writing execution. The text was full of fragments, wrong words, and several instances of transposing main character names (most frequently Sanya and Sola.) I was also somewhat frustrated by the character degeneration of Sanya, as she started out reading classic literature provided by her dream boy and once she is able to choose her own instead picks up a Vogue. Yes, I get that she is a 17 year old girl, but she could have been slightly deeper than average given her actual age. However, the science fiction aspect is intriguing, and I actually would have liked a little more back story between Sanya and Adam, rat...

The Computer Heist by Michael P. King My rating: 4 of 5 stars They’re Joe and Tess Campbell now, but they’re up to the same old tricks.This time it’s a pretty easy industrial sabotage job, but they are pretty sure that they are not being filled in on all the details. Will those details come back to bite them? It’s rare that they aren’t controlling all the minutiae but this one might have too much going on for even them. The second book in the Travelers series, and follows married con artists on their latest job. While at first I found it a little hard to get into, once I did I couldn’t put it down. It has a classic noire feel, and I appreciated that all the character depth and flaws. If you are looking for a feel good romp, this is not it. But if you like a solid plot and interesting characters that don’t feel like they jumped out of a toothpaste commercial, this is well worth your time. View all my reviews Please note, while there may be affiliate links or payment...

Banished Threads by Kaylin McFarren My rating: 3 of 5 stars Rachel is really hoping to get her uncle’s blessing on her upcoming nuptials to Chase Cohen, but the journey to England has been difficult. When she gets there she is treated to a fancy reception…and an art heist, that is blamed on her uncle’s wayward granddaughter by marriage. Chase is determined to win that blessing, and true to his treasure hunting roots starts sleuthing all over the countryside for answers. Will his quest leave Rachel in the kidnappers’ clutches? Banished Threads is the third of the “Threads” series following treasure hunters Rachel and Chase both in their difficult quests and growing love. Honestly, in my opinion this is the weakest of the three. Their personal difficulties were somewhat baffling for newly engaged lovers, and it all seemed to hedge on, well she’s pregnant and hormonal. This murder/mystery storyline was also a lot more involved and therefore had a lot more holes to pick at, and wh...

The Chronicle of Vincent Saturn by David Roman My rating: 2 of 5 stars Vincent Saturn is bored with his life. He doesn’t have any attachments and his job is not fulfilling anymore. Then he and his partner are assigned to investigate an actual UFO, and although he is not supposed to do anything but look at it from the outside, he decides that it’s worth a look inside - when was he going to get this chance again? What he finds launches the aptly named Vince Saturn into an intergalactic mission to save aliens no human has never enountered in hopes of ultimately protecting Earth, which is yet uncharted for them. Eternal Horizons is one of those books that I feel like is a good try, but broadcasts a definite reliance on established sci-fi structures - in this case quite heavily on Star Wars - and a desperate need for editing. The grammar and in particular, synonym and tense, is wildly off the necessary grasp of dialogue writing, with my personal pet peeve being the repeated use o...

Shadows of Time: The Amulet of Alamin by Felix Alexander My rating: 2 of 5 stars Inanna has always protected her son, that’s why she made sure he always wore the amulet. But with her kingdom on the brink of war with another, he disappears, apparently because the amulet is protecting him - even from her. Can she find her way through a war torn Mesopotamian landscape, fighting both mortal and immortal to save her son? This is a long book. A looooonnnnng book. It has a lot of exposition and backstory, but really my formatting made it way longer than it needed to be - the font was huge to the point that there were only a few sentences per page, which made it really choppy. (I did get a review copy - maybe this is fixed?) I really enjoyed the plot; there was a lot of action and interaction between mortal and supernatural worlds, and honestly some interesting Creation myths that intertwined several cultures beliefs in a way that was actually somewhat believable. Unfortunately the a...

Van Laven Chronicles: Throne of Novoxos by Tyler Chase My rating: 4 of 5 stars Vaush and Comron are supposed to hate each other, with each world blaming the other for their surrender to the current imperial dynasty centuries ago. But when circumstances force them to rely on each other to survive a crash landing, how is it possible for them to get along and get out to the shore for rescue? And how is it that they seem to be falling for each other along the way? They will have a lot more to deal with at home if they actually make it out alive, not to mention explaining their relationship to their respective worlds. Who would have thought this might turn out to be the least of their concerns. The Throne of Novoxos, book 1 in the Van Laven chronicles, sets up the unlikely but fiery romance between Vaush and Comron. The writing is fast paced and mixes adventure and romance as the couple try to outrun the rest of the empire once Vaushes true origin is revealed. There are pretty ...