Finding Eden

Camilla Beavers

Fantasy

200 pages

Teen

Warnings: Violence

There's something different about Eden. She sees the emotions of people in the colors that surround them, colors so bright that she has to wear sunglasses in order to be able to see anything. Eden begins dreaming of a boy, one with golden eyes. When he shows up at her school, she does her best to avoid him, but finds that difficult when he follows her everywhere and she finds him so intriguing with his lack of colors.

Writing Style: 4/10

I had to deduct a lot of points from this for two major reasons. One, words seems to be repeated numerous times in a very small space. A great example of this is in the first paragraph where the word eye is used five times and it's not a long passage. The second major deduction is that although all of the words seemed to be spelled correctly in the story, many of them were the wrong ones. Say instead of day, as instead of at. This happens a lot in this story and is something that an editor could easily fix. The rest of the writing style is fairly decent, but the amount of time you spend deciphering the meaning of the writing is a real problem.

Plot:6 /10

In the beginning, I really was interested in the plot. There was the mystery of Sahariel (the mysterious boy) and why Eden could see the colors and all of that resolved very nicely around the middle of the book. Then you go to another region, where Sahriel is from, and things are completely different and my interest sort of petered out. The plot had already had a sort of climax, although it could have been better and I wasn't really up for another plot yet.

Originality: 4/10

A lot of sci-fi/fantasy books have this type of plot. The main character has something strange about them, someone mysterious shows up, they have a love/hate relationship with this person, the same person who ends up explaining this to them and showing them a world they didn't know existed that is dangerous and different. It's not a bad plot, especially if the writing is good, it's just not very original.

Enjoyability: 6/10

I sincerely enjoyed the first half of the book. It was set in the current world with interesting characters and interesting situations. Then you get halfway through it and all of those characters are replaced by new characters, the setting is completely different and I just couldn't really enjoy it as much. I feel like the two halves of these books needed to be fleshed out and turned into their own individual novels, especially the second half. They were both good, they just needed more to them for me to truly enjoy them.

End: 4/10

The end was very lack luster. It was predictable, sure, but that wasn't why I gave it such a low score. It was just so anti-climatic. I was expecting a little more from the confrontation than I got. It seemed like as soon as it started, it had ended and I was left severely disappointed.

Overall: 24/50

You can get Finding Eden from Amazon and Barnes and Noble. Find Camilla Beavers in Good Reads.

Has anyone read any good indie e-books recently? Any suggestions for future posts?

Spree

Spree

Jonathan DeCoteau

Paranormal

153 pages

Older Teen

Warnings: Character death, mentions of sex, underage drinking and driving, violence

After pre-gaming her ex-boyfriend's party, Fay DeSoto gets behind the wheel and subsequently  kills herself and a schoolmates mother and puts her two best friends in the hospital. When she dies, she becomes a taker, a spiritual being that exists to take lives. When she finds out that her death may have triggered another student to kill others at the school's championship soccer game, she makes it her goal to try and stop him by using her death day wish to be allowed to try and stop it.

Writing Style: 9/10

I thought it was good. There were a few mistakes, but nothing so terrible that it took away from the story. I also think that the scenes with Fay's mother were incredibly well written. They really hit me hard. It may be my own impending motherhood influencing my emotions, but I feel like it was more than that. That DeCoteau really just wrote her well.

Plot: 8/10

There were a few small times that the plot was a little confusing, such as why Fay had to wish for the chance to stop Zipper instead of just being able to stop him, but for the most part it flowed very smoothly and really held my interest.

Originality: 10/10

The only book that I've read that really has a plot that's all that similar is The Wish List by Eoin Colfer and even that book had some stark differences. You don't often find that there are such original novels, at least in my opinion. This could just be a sub-genre that I've completely missed, but I think that this is a very original novel.

Enjoyability: 9/10

I thoroughly enjoyed this novel. DeCoteau definitely had a few good morals that he was trying to get across in this story, but I feel as though they came to the story naturally instead of having to be forced. I also think the fact that this was so enjoyable was very important, as I believe it deals with many touch issues that are very important.

End: 9/10

Unexpected and excellent, although the last page seemed a little cliche.

Overall: 45/50

Get Spree for the Kindle and Smashwords.

Has anyone read the book? Am I just completely missing a sub-genre? Let me know what you think of this review in the comments or suggest an independent book for me to read!

Beautiful Demons

Beautiful Demons

Sarra Cannon

Supernatural

136 Pages

Teen 

Warnings: Death, violence

 After getting kicked out of her latest foster home, Harper Madison is sent to Shadowford Home for Girls in Peachville, Georgia, her last chance before getting sent to juvenile detention. She wants to start fresh, she just has to make sure that she doesn't lose her temper, as things tend to start flying around the room, against her will. Everything is going fine until the head cheerleader, Tori, is murdered and she becomes the main suspect.

Writing Style: 10/10

I didn't see any errors and the characters were well fleshed out. There were a few characters that were just sort of introduced and not heard from much afterwards, but there were reasons for it that made the story that much more intriguing, especially seeing as there are sequels that they may play a bigger role in.

Plot: 9/10

A murder mystery always seems to be a good time. Mix that with the supernatural elements and you've got a recipe for a good story, if you manage to pull it off. Sarra Cannon did just that, giving me a plot that I wanted to know more and more about.

Originality: 8/10

There seemed to be a few things that I've noticed happen a lot in this type of story that docked a few points. First, there is a mystery about the parents. Harper was adopted when she was young and doesn't know who they are or if her ability comes from them. Second, she cannot control her ability and it keeps getting her into trouble. Third, there is something that happens that she has to find out the answer to. The formula mirrors the first Harry Potter book to me, but it was pulled off completely differently and some of the fleshing out between it was very original.

Enjoyability: 10/10

I couldn't put this down. It's not a very long read, but I had some other things that I probably should have been doing that got put to the way side in order to finish this book.

End: 9/10

The main point of the book is all wrapped up in a nice, neat ending. There are still questions that are about the series as a whole that need answered, but you could just end after reading this book and be content. It also wasn't too cliched and had some nice twists to it.

Overall: 46/50

You can get Beautiful Demons at Barnes and Noble,  Amazon, I-tunes, Smashwords, and Kobo.
Visit Sarra Cannon's website.

Has anyone else read Beautiful Demons or some other good self published book? Is there some book that I haven't gotten to that you think would warrant a review? Let me know in the comments.

Enigma

Enigma

Aimee Ash

Supernatural, Romance

238 pages

Teen

Warnings: Mentions of sex and sexual activity, non-graphic

Kate, a girl who has been forced to move around her entire life, ends up in Long Beach right before starting her freshman year of college. She's hoping to finally settle in and make some friends when she meets a mysterious neighbor, who seems to be avoiding her. When she finally catches up to him, she finds out that his name is Jack and the weird things that have started happening to her are related to him and a curse, one that she is now completely caught up in.

Writing Style: 7/10

There were a few spelling/grammar errors, but nothing major. The biggest problem is that I keep hearing how independent and strong that Kate is supposed to be, but she seems to be very reliant on Jack and his family. In the beginning I could see this trait, but as the story progresses she seems to lose a lot of what I think originally made her a good character. Jack also seems to be a very different character in the beginning, but begins becoming a jerk. Some of this can be written off by his twin brother coming back into the picture, but the rest is very much just Jack being problematic.

Plot: 6/10

The main plot of the story was good, but it had too many side plots that really seemed to come out of nowhere or happen too fast, especially with Kate's family. For example, there is some talk about her brother having a drinking problem, but it's also said everyone pretty much ignores it until suddenly when they decide that something has to be done and it has to be done immediately, without any clear reason as to how it this course of action was decided. I also think that there may have been too many plot twists for the story. Instead I think some may have been able to be dropped in order to flesh out some other parts.

Originality: 9/10

This was a pretty original story. Jack's powers and curse are not your standard vampire or werewolf or anything like that and that was very refreshing and the powers weren't just your standard super strength and the like either. This made the story a much more interesting read.

Enjoyability: 7/10

Enigma reminded me a lot of Twilight, which isn't my favorite book series in the world, though I did read them all. That being said, I really think fans of that series will like Enigma. I also had some issue reading it due to the side stories and plot twists.

End: 7/10

The end was pretty much as expected. It wasn't a crazy twist, but it also wasn't disappointing. I feel like it was a safe ending, but a good one.

Overall: 36/50

Enigma is available from  Amazon, Smash Words and I-tunes.
Visit Aimee Ash's website.
Does anyone else have an opinion? Let me know!
Also, sorry for the delay in posting. There were some technical difficulties.

Panamanian Stompers

Jake F. Simons

Horror, humor

25 pages

Adult

Warnings: Language

Fernie Deacon is a low-life who earns his living by shady means. While waiting for an friend for his newest job, he talks to a bar mentally handicapped barkeep and another bar patron about Panamanian Stompers, a fish that comes up on land and kills people on the shore not far from where they are, especially on rainy nights like the one that they're currently experiencing.

Writing Style: 6/10

Fernie is skeezy and it definitely shines through really well and I give the author props on that, but this isn't a style I generally like. That being said, many people do like it. It's just never been anything I've been interested in.

Plot: 8/10

The plot was amusing. It wasn't confusing and it was very straight forward. Fernie was just attempting to pass the time until he could go and hold up some gangbangers and get his money. Terrorizing a poor mentally handicapped barkeep was just something that he thought would be fun to do. When it ceased to be that, he leaves and does what he needs to do to finish up the story and bring it full circle.

Originality: 5/10

This is story similar to what many have heard with snipes or jackalopes when parents or older siblings want a young child out of the way or the scary creature in the dangerous area to keep kids away. It also followed a very predictable path to the climax there were no huge surprises.

Enjoyability- 3/10

For me, the enjoyability on this was very low. I knew where the story was going from the beginning and I didn't like the writing style, so I didn't really enjoy the story much. There was a highlight or two though, making it a little better.

End- 6/10

Although predictable, the end was amusing to me. I was holding out hope for something a little different, but justice was served and that was what mattered most in this story.

Overall- 28/50

Get the book for the Kindle.

Visit Jake F. Simons' website. Note: Simons is a pseudonym to distinguish between his all ages works and his adult works.

Musical Chairs

Musical Chairs

Marla Braziel

Teen, Vampires

47 pages

Teen

Warnings: Violence, mentions of murder, mentions of sex

   Annabell is a vampire attending night school in order to seek out her next kill. She befriends Aiden in an attempt very to find the best rating victim through his friends.

Writing Style: 5/10

   Most of the characters were very two dimensional to me. Annabell was interesting with her hunt, but Aiden and his girlfriend are very standish, not letting you know anything. Students best friend, Bane mentions family problems at home. Bane himself had potential, but was only in the story briefly. The most interesting character, an athlete named Mark, was brutalized by Annabell early in the story and avoided her for the rest. Mainly, this story us internalized by Annabell and lets no one else develop.

Plot: 7/10

   Annabell's quest to find a delicious high schooler for her once yearly underaged kill is interesting, especially with the night school. How she goes about it, finding a target and devoting every minute to trying to get their trust so she can betray them is interesting. The plot is fairly loose otherwise and sort of focuses on her finding her target.

Originality: 5/10

   The market is so swamped with stories on vampires at this point that it's hard for any of them to be original. Still, the night school is a nice addition that I had yet to see and the intense focus on finding a target and not worrying about being popular or falling in love was a nice change if pace. This isn't to say that no one wants to be with Annabell, Mark got himself hurt by being too forward and Bane was also very interested in her, she just had no interest in the boys.

Enjoyability: 6/10

   The story wasn't awful, but it wasn't great either. So little time was spent on Annabell truly interacting with other characters that it really took away from the story and made me yearn to have someone show up that would have a full conversation with her.

End: 6/10

   This is a novella and has for other parts and I took that into account, but the end was still awkward. I feel as though it should have ended more where Annabell determined her target, as that seemed to be the focus  of the novella.

Overall: 29/50

Musical Chairs can be gotten from Amazon or her own page.

Visit Marla Braziel's website.

What are your thoughts on Musical Chairs? Any other readers out there?

WILDly

WILDly

T. Swanpoel

Fantasy, sci-fi

180 pages

Teen

Warnings: Violence

When moving into her varsity dorm, university for all of us American readers, a mysterious man named Duncan awakens something in Valerie that she didn't know she possessed. She now has a great connection to the Earth and Duncan and her new friend at varsity, Alex, are fighting for it. Valerie has to decide what side is good and help fight in a battle to defeat the other one.

Writing Style: 4/10

The style wasn't terrible, but the were a few things were very problematic with it. First of all, you're just thrown into this world without learning anything about the characters. I also have no idea where this is supposed to be set. I don't have any issue with it being set in a different country (probably where the author is from), but it helps me engage in the story, particularly when I need to realize that their slang is different than ours, such as varsity meaning university. In addition, I couldn't there were words that seemed out of place, as in they were too advanced for the writing. Occasionally, a word I had never heard was thrust upon me and I have a feeling that I wasn't the only one who was confused and trying to figure out what was going on. Finally, there were a number of spelling and grammar mistakes. It wasn't anything so bad that it made it unreadable, but it was enough to warrant suggesting a proof reader.

Plot: 8/10

The plot was very good. Valerie starts not knowing of her connection. She's just a normal girl that is going to varsity and is hoping to have some fun. Everything quickly begins changing and the plot is fast paced. Between trying to determine which side is the one Valerie needs to align herself with and then how to make her powers stronger to fight the other side, there's always something to keep you enthralled.

Originality: 9/10

The connection to a celestial body isn't exactly a new idea, but the way Swanpoel went about it was original. This was a facet of this alternate version of our universe that had to be thought about very carefully and be fleshed out. Not only do Valerie and the some of the other characters have a connection to a planet, star or other celestial body in our galaxy, but they have powers associated with it also. Some of these powers are dependant on their connection, Valerie can change the weather based on her moods, and some are based on just the fact that they have a connection at all, such as healing. This combined with a hierarchy and a ruling class makes for a very original story.

Enjoyability: 6/10

As much as I loved the plot and the originality, there was a major problem with the enjoyability. It's too fast paced. There's never really any downtime to get to know the characters. It's only a few pages in before Valerie meets Duncan and her awakens her connection. She then wakes up in a hospital and feels as though there's something wrong with the nurse and escapes. At no point during any of this do we really learn anything about Valerie, other than she's adopted. This continues throughout the entire book. There's not a lot of interaction that not based strictly around the issues at hand and I didn't feel like I knew any of the characters at the end. I feel like not thrusting us into the world of danger so quickly or taking a step back at some point and allowing Valerie and her varsity friends, Lisa, Alex and Jennifer, some time to get to know each other and their interests would have helped immensely. Even just some time with some of the other, more elusive characters like Benjamin or Duncan would have made it easier to get attached to Valerie.

End- 4/10

I really felt as though I had to come down hard on the end. I have no idea what happened. Three characters could have died and I have no idea if any of them did or not, although I have my suspicions. There was a twist that I did like and that brought the score up a little bit, but it was just too muddled and there was no real wrapping up. I feel like some closure in a story is necessary and there wasn't any in this.

Overall- 31/50

Get WILDly for the Nook, Kindle or other devices.

Visit the series website.

Have you read WILDly? What did you think?

The Ivory Prison

The Ivory Prison

Ashlyn Daube

Sci-fi

Length

Teens

Warnings: Violence, mentions of death

GAB-27 has lived his whole life in one room. He's been educated and experimented on, but never given an identity or allowed to visit with other children. For a short time he is allowed a mirror, then a window into the hall, but is always trapped inside of his room. All of this changes when the facility is taken over by Dr. Mercier. His door is open, his room is painted, he is named Gabriel and he has a friend, Dr. Mercier's son Lukas. Still, he knows he is not human and he knows that he isn't making the progress that they want and his life comes with deadline.

Writing Style: 9/10

Excellent style. The description's are easy to picture in your mind, but aren't overly detailed and there isn't an excess of dialogue. The writing is natural and there's a real attachment to the characters. There was at least one spelling error, leading to a deduction, but overall it was excellent.

Plot: 8/10

The plot was good. It was clear and had a great flow to it. Gabriel's background was throughly fleshed out before jumping into the part that he wants to tell, the part where he is treated humanely by Lukas, another boy like him and his first and only friend, and Dr. Mercier and to the worry towards the end of him meeting the mysterious goal that has been laid out for him to acheive or to die.

Originality: 6/10

The idea of a locked up experiment isn't anything new. It's something that is used commonly in science fiction and isn't anything to write home about. There are many different ways you can go with such a story. Is Dr. Mercier going through this to later betray Gabriel? Why does Lukas care for his new friend so much? Is Gabriel going to meet his goal? If he is, how? If he's not, what's going to happen to him? The answer to these types of questions are where the originality really shines through, but also give away spoilers.

Enjoyability: 10/10

Gabriel was an interesting character and his interactions with Lukas were perfect. They contrasted so well, Gabriel having had no freedom, while Lukas had an abundance. Dr. Mercier was also well written. The characters were so good that I truly wanted to find what happened to them next and I didn't get distracted like I do with some of the stories I don't like as much.

End: 8/10

Although it became more and more predictable how the story was going to end as time went on, it was still a good ending that tied up all the pressing questions of the book while still leaving it open for her to continue into a series.

Overall: 41/50

Get The Ivory Prison on the Kindle, Nook, iPad and other devices.

Visit Ashlyn Daube's website.

What did you guys think? Was it worthy of my praise or just another book?

Steampunx Episode 1: Funk and Puck

Steampunx Episode 1: Funk and Puck

Benjamin Jacobson

Steampunk, alternate reality 

43 pages

Teen

Warnings: Violence

Funk is a boy living in 1875 that is trying to become a man by hunting the Birch Stag, a wooden stag created by the wizard Thunder. Instead of killing the beast himself, he witnesses it's demise at the hand of outsiders with guns, which have been banned in the land of Ten Hundred Nations and gets himself shot through the hand. To save it, he and his sister, Puck, must go find Thunder while at the same time warn him of the intruders.

Writing Style: 10/10

The author did really well in writing this. The style seemed to accurately represent the people that he was writing about and I personally didn't see any mistakes on his part. He just did an all around excellent job.

Plot: 9/10 

The plot progressed well with natural twists and turns. It starts out as an innocent quest for manhood before morphing into something more dangerous and bigger than Funk's quest. The Buffalo man ends up playing a major role, attacking the two while at Thunder's and guns in The Ten Hundred Nations are banned, making it so that their presence is an act of hostility against the whole nation and involving more than just the two children and Thunder.

Originality: 10/10

I feel like this was a very original story. While it told one young man's coming of age, it told of a major threat that was going to come down on the nation. The steampunk side of it is a nice addition to many stories and one that I personally don't see explored often enough. Thunder uses a lot of wood in his endeavors and also tries to make them for the purpose of peace. These all combine into a very original work.

Enjoyability: 9/10 

The originality in this and the idea of a place that mixed the ways of earlier early humans and the present era of the time had me enthralled until the end. In the beginning the contrast of the twins characters, Puck being very much still a child and carefree while Funk is serious and wants to be taken as a man had me smiling and wanting to see what happened to them. When it was decided that they needed to see Thunder, the wizard that was said to be crazy, I wanted to know how crazy he was and see these magical machines he possessed. The story kept me going with something new continuously and took me as far as to read the two sequels that he has out.

End: 9/10 

The end did everything that I want in an end. It wrapped up the story, letting me know what happened with Funk's hand, the Buffalo Man that killed the Birch Stag and Thunder's machines and their uses while paving the path for episode two.

Overall: 47/50

Steampunx can be downloaded at Smashwords for all devices.

Benjamin Jacobson has a blog and a Twitter.

Game Over- Extended Edition

Game Over- Extended Edition

 

 

Todd Thorne

Sci-fi/Horror

33 pages

Teen

Warnings: Language, scary themes

   While Timmy's parents are bust fighting over their divorce, Timmy is hiding in his room, dueling his friend Jimmy through virtual reality, trying to win by making the scariest stream.

Writing Style- 4/10

   Even though this is supposed to be about the virtual reality, it isn't  discussed much and it seems to mostly focus around his parents divorce. Most of the virtual reality s also explained poorly, such as what a stream and stealing are. A little more explanation and a little more of the virtual reality would boost this a lot.

Plot- 7/10

   The part of the plot that focuses around the divorce isn't great, but the virtual reality and the dueling is fascinating and a full length story focusing on this would be great. The way he tied the stream of the virtual reality video he used in the duel to scare his friend Joshua) into the divorce was interesting's but the stream wasn't nearly as interesting as the original, alternate stream found only in the extended edition.

Originality- 3/10

   Although the dueling and everything was very original, it is completely overshadowed by the divorce. His parents fight constantly, his mom is drinking, buying things and possibly doing drugs while his father is with a woman in her 20's, taking her on expensive trips, living together and expecting a child. They both drill him about the others behavior when they are with him and otherwise don't have much to do with him, unless they're trying to prove that they're the better parent. If it were any more straight out of an After School Special, it would be completely unreadable.

Enjoyability- 4/10

   Between the divorce and the complete lack of terror in the stream for me, I had a hard time getting through this. The alternate stream was quite a bit better.

End- 4/10

   Pretty predictable. Although it doesn't explicitly tell us exactly what happens and wrap up, it leaves just enough to the imagination.

Overall- 22/50

 

The extended edition is only available on Kindle, but the standard edition is available on Smashwords.

 

Todd Thorne's website can be found here.

 

Has anyone else read Game Over? What was your opinion? Was I too harsh or too lenient?

Don't Drink the Water

Don't Drink the Water

D. B. Swift

Genre: Horror

46 pages

Age: Teen 

Warnings: Scary themes; light violence

   While having to endure a summer focused around his step-mom, six-year-old brother and father, fifteen-year old Micah is drawn to a gap in the fence of his family's new house. He finds a hill with a small stream at the bottom on the other side of the fence. As he approaches, he finds a knife that he pockets, calling a humanoid creature to claim something of Micah's after Micah took something of his. Micah manages to get away from the creature with the help of a crow, but soon notices that his family is acting strange around the gap in the fence, strange enough to possibly even get them killed.

Writing Style- 6/10

   Not terrible, but not my favorite either. For the most part I enjoyed it, but I seemed to have a problem with Micah's gender. Micah came off as more feminine to me and I had to keep reminding myself that he was not, in fact, a boy.

Plot- 7/10

   The plot was intriguing, but started off pretty slow, mostly being about Micah and how awful it was to have to move and just spend time with his family, especially when they gave him the same rules as his brothers, even though he's much older. It was important, but seemed to drag on longer than necessary to me.

Originality- 6/10

   Although the idea of going through a small opening and going somewhere more dangerous is not new, there were some good things about this. The crow comes to play a much more important role later, but it is not a creature of good and it must be bribed to do this. The story was just too short to have too much originality, which I feel may come out more in the Fledgling and A Chain of Fine Silver, the sequels.

Enjoyability- 7/10

   Overall, I enjoyed it. I was interested in seeing how this creature dealt with Micah and what was going to happen to his family. There was concern for one of the characters and his possible death to the gap and there is a lot that rides on how Micah reacts to his debt.

End- 7/10

   The end was decent. It ties up what is going on and Micah gets some answers to his questions about the creature, but it raises so many more and doesn't answer them all. I think it left a little too much hanging to give it a higher score. It was almost as if this was more of a cliff hanger for a chapter than the end of a story.

Overall- 33/50

Get it on the Kindle.

Has anyone else read Don't Drink the Water? What did you think?

The Infant Kiss

The Infant Kiss

N. D. Bray

Horror

7 pages

18+

Warnings: Graphic violence, strong language

   This is a short story based around Cal, who wakes up in an attic and begins losing body parts, beginning with his eye.

Writing Style: 6/10

   For the most part, I liked the style. There was a distinct lack of description that I was really hoping to see though, giving it an get higher.

Plot: 7/10

   Good. It all made sense. Unfortunately, in a story so short there's not much to be said.

Originality: 6/10

   This sort of feels like it had a Saw element to it. I've also seen a lot of these types of who captured me short stories, so I felt like I had to deduct a few points for that. There were some definite original aspects to it though and that really helped it.

Enjoyability- 8/10

   Despite it's faults, I really enjoyed this. If it had had a bit more description about the pain and terror that Cal would have been experiencing, then it would have gotten a full score.

End- 8/10

   A solid end that I wouldn't have expected, even had I known of the character's existance. It won't be a let down when you get there, especially with a story this short.

Overall- 35

   If your a fan of the Saw movies like myself, I'd highly recommend it, but if you're squeamish, pass on it. Although it lacks a lot of description, there's enough to make cringe and squirm if you aren't a fan of the torture horror.

You can get The Infant Kiss on Amazon.

Van Bender and the Spirit Tether

Van Bender and the Spirit Tether

S. James Nelson

Paranormal

56 pages

Young teen

Warnings: none

   Richie Van Bender is a famous rockstar at age 15, despite never having had a concert. His mother is an extreme helicopter mother who won't allow him to have unsupervised conversations with his two friends, Kurt and Sandra, see any of his fans or anyone else for that matter, especially other rockstars. When Kurt and Sandra manage to sneak Richie an I-pad, Bobby Fretboard gets a hold of him and Richie begins plotting ways to get around his mom's hovering to meet him.

Writing Style: 5/10

   This was written in a style that I believe was a bit young for the audience. I also believe that the way Richie handles his mom's behavior is a little unrealistic. I feel as though at 15 he would be rebelling harder and constantly. There are also these little quotes that I feel that are unnecessary. They do help with seeing the other characters intentions, but it also really breaks me out of the story.

Plot: 8/10

   The plot was fairly interesting. A rockstar who is basically on lockdown due to his mother is trying to break out of his tiny world and have a more normal life.

Originality: 7/10

   The idea of a rebellious teen or an overprotective mother isn't new, but how Nelson pulled it off was interesting. He added a paranormal element (which is also not new), but the details of it were what made it interesting, but were also a major part of the climax.

Enjoyability- 6/10

   The story wasn't terrible. It had an interesting premise and I did find myself wanting to find out what was going on, but not nearly as much as some other things I've read.

End- 7/10

   The end was pretty good. It answered most of the questions that came up during the course of the story while leaving a few and raising some more to make you want to buy the sequel.

Overall- 33/50

Get it on Kindle, Smashwords, Kobo and Nook.

Visit S. James Nelson here.

What did you guys think? Tell me in the comments.

The King of Birds

The King of Birds

Ross Dupree

Fantasy

48 pages

Teen

Warnings: Implied sexual content

 

   Cassian is an alchemists apprentice. When his master, Linus, needs some Mero's breath for his work, he sends Cassian to go with the local harvester, to see the world. As the two leave, they meet John the Rambler, the King of Birds, who really sets their adventure in motion.

 

Writing Style: 8/10

 

   I can be a real sucker for this type of writing. That being said, I did notice a few errors in the writing and I really think it could have been proofread better, which took off a few points.

 

Plot: 6/10

 

   It was a fairly good plot, but it had some drawbacks. For one, I think Cassian and Sera's relationship progressed a little faster than I would have liked. I wish that there would have been more time to get to know them and see their love bloom. I also believe that it was a little predictable.

Originality: 5/10

   The plot was fairly standard for an adventure story. Go on some unexpected adventure, probably with a girl you end up getting, meet some mysterious stranger that gives you a gift that somehow helps you later. This was also a short that made it difficult to put it's originality in.

Enjoyability- 8/10

   Despite all of it's flaws, all of which are listed above, I really enjoyed this story. The character's were well written and interesting and though predictable and not as original as some, but it was written well enough that you would forget about those things and just engross yourself in Sera and Cassian's adventure.

End- 7/10

   I was a little disappointed with the ending, but I believe that it was done this way because Dupree is planning on expanding Correndrum (the country where this and his other short stories take place) into a whole universe, possibly with full-length novel featuring Cassian and his other character's. I'm not certain on this, but it would explain the ending that just leaves you wondering what lies in store for Cassian.

Overall- 34/50

Has anyone read The King of Birds? What were your opinions?

Get it on the Kindle.

Visit Ross Dupree on Amazon.

Middle-aged Machines

Middle-aged Machines

Bryan Harrell

Humor

18 pages

Late Teen to Adult

Warnings: Minor violence

 The story focuses around Bob, a photocopier, Tracy, a cell phone, and Dave, a computer. These three machines all fall in love with Gill, a woman who works in an insurance agency. The story revolves around what the three do to try and get Gill's attention.

Writing Style: 8/10

 Normally I'm not a huge fan of stories with limited dialogue, but it seems to work well with this story. Since machines do not have any traditional ways to speak, this mainly focuses on what they are thinking and the antics that they pull to try and get attention.

Plot: 7/10

 The plot was a little confusing for most of the story. I wasn't really sure what it was that Harrell was trying to get across and I thought it was a slice of life story in the beginning. When it started switching characters, I was even more confused as to what was going on, but at some point it all seemed to make sense and the plot was clear, boosting it back up to a seven.

Originality: 7/10

 This type of story has definitely been done before. Still, I think that Harrell brought a great twist to it by making it so that there were three machines vying for the attention of one woman. Most of this that I have seen has been one machine trying to get the attention of many others and failing over and over again, but this shows how there can really be multiple people (or in this case, machines) that are trying to win the attention of one person and how their plots in acheiving this differs.

Enjoyability- 8/10

 Once I figured out what was going on, this was quite an enjoyable read. It was short and Harrell did not drag it out, The three main characters were well written and you could really feel for their plight and smile at the farfetched plans that they concocted.

End- 10/10

 The end really made me laugh. It was worth reading through to it just to read that last line and know that it was the truth.

Overall- 40/50

This book is available on Kindle.

For more about the author, visit his blog.

Next week's story is The Kind of Birds by Ross Dupree