File Size: 665KB
Pages: 232 pages
Language: English
ASIN: B004XMQHNK
Purchase: Kindle, Other E-Readers,Paperback
Website: www.AndrewDCarlson.com

A mysterious substance seems to be making what appear to be duplicates of animals in the small town of Enterprise, Kansas. However, when the living beings start to include copies of people, the Department of Homeland Security ends up getting involved and bringing all these copies to an abandoned military base to live. Deceptively simple in its short chapters and use of language (the author wants to primarily reach young adults, though it is enjoyable at young adult or above), this book tackles major issues regarding what defines a person as we get to know each copy living on this base.

Each character is memorable, even amongst those where we know the original and the "copy," though we don't get into them too deep emotionally I think this may be because they don't know what to feel and are finding themselves. As they learn more about the Earth and quickly begin to learn, the question arises if they are a threat or not, and where the mysterious substance that formed them originates. A director with Department of Homeland Security, Ted, finds himself making tough choices as to what to do.

The author holds a background in chemistry, which comes to play in the book. His description of how things works feels credible while not overwhelming. The fact the science comes off as grounded, and not just a foil for the character stories, strengthens the work. This is a good read, probably more of a quick read for an adult versus a young adult reader, but will leave anyone a lot to think about.

File Size: 383 KB
Paperback: 258 pages
Publisher: Drachen Geist Publishing
Language: English
ASIN: B005U3RUNM
ISBN-13: 978-0984795109
Purchase: Kindle, Paperback, Nook, Other E-Readers, Hardcover
Website: www.KinirElite.com, www.AVPergakis.com

Cleanse Fire, by Anastasia Pergakis, is a well-written, action-packed fantasy novel, which grabs the reader on the first page and doesn't let go until the end. We are immediately introduced to the protagonist, Captain Derac Vidor, a captain of an elite group of warrior elves. Derac's unit fights against their enemies, humans and dwarves, and must contend with treachery from their superior officers. Derek's life is complicated by his inability to move on from the horrific manner in which his wife died ten years earlier. The author skillfully portrays his painful letting go of the past, and the relationship that develops between him and Kie, one of the warriors in his unit.

The skilled fighting ability of the elves resembles our own Special Forces soldiers. They kill with dispatch and have little remorse for the deaths of their enemies. This novel is not for the faint of heart. The author makes the characters three-dimensional, with strengths, weaknesses, and quirks of personality. At times, I thought there was a little too much fussing about clothes and hair by the warriors when their lives were constantly imperiled. A small issue, which does not detract from the novel.

Anastasia's crisp and clean writing provides necessary details of the actions and events, as well as the thoughts and feelings of her characters, without resorting to the excessive use of adjectives. This style facilitates the fast pace and doesn't force the reader to reread previous pages to figure out what is happening.

The wizard Takurix plays a pivotal part in the novel, even though "his hour on the stage" was not long. The author's use of a spell to enable the wizard to go back in time and see what really happened when his wife was killed, as opposed to what he thought he saw, was well done.

My main problem with the novel was the lack of a background, or explanation, of how the current state of affairs came to be. The reader doesn't know why the elves fight humans and dwarves, or why the fairies are their allies. This is critical because we are introduced to a war that began at least ten years earlier. At the start of the novel, I wondered if I was reading a second in a series of novels, rather than the first. I think the author has an opportunity to address this issue in the next novel, which I look forward to reading. The novel wraps up enough details to reach a satisfactory conclusion. It leaves many questions unanswered, leading the reader to the next novel in the series.