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Retirement. Publishers, thank you for the many years of reading pleasure you gave me, but all good things must come to an end. Due to failing eyesight I am forced to retire. I can no longer review your books, and any that you send will be donated to the local library, unread. Do not send any more. I can only read for a couple hours every day, and this does not allow me to finish a book in reasonable time. I will be devoting time to my own books from now on, and reading on a personal level. Books that interest me. I prefer paperbacks and hardbacks, not eBooks. My eyesight has been failing the last few years, and I cannot handle hundreds of review books any more. My books are still available for review. Anyone interested in reviewing any of them, they are found in the Link to Tom’s Books On Amazon. Contact me for pdf copies at fadingshadows40@gmail.com

Monday, June 16, 2014

Fires of Man

Fires of Man (SF)
By Dan Levinson
ASIN BOOKK6BBBY
Jolly Fish Press
Rating 4-Stars

“Excellent Writing.”

Opposing armies are recruiting gifted people with psionic powers even if they have to kidnap them. A war is coming between Orion and Calchis, and both sides believe their side is right.

This concept is not new, and is one that I normally love. People with minds capable of teleporting, or hurling massive energy bolts about with ease. Unfortunately, I had trouble getting into FIRES OF MAN. It contains a huge cast of players, and the point of view constantly switches between them, slowing the pace drastically. There isn’t time to connect to the character before we’re involved with someone else. We don’t follow a clear protagonist or antagonist. Everyone could be either. It’s just the characters involved, and they are many, each having a story.


Were we on another world, in another dimension, a future Earth – or ancient Earth? This was not explained very well, and the dialogue sounded more like modern America, making the characters read and act like people in soap operas. They practice Yoga, there’s drug abuse in the streets, martial arts, and you can find the same dialogue that’s on TV and in current movies. Except for the psionic powers, it had little interest for me. At 300 pages you’ll find it a long read, but give the book a try. You may not find it as distracting as I did. If this is to be an ongoing series, maybe we will eventually find a strong protagonist and antagonist to follow, leaving the cast of thousands in the background where they belong.

Tom Johnson
Author of Pangaea: Eden’s Planet

Science Fiction
Date Published: June 17, 2014

         In a world where a gifted few can manipulate reality with their minds, two great nations—Calchis and Orion—employ these psionic powers in a covert war for global superiority.
         In the heart of Calchis, a powerful young psion named Aaron Waverly is kidnapped, and forcibly conscripted. To the north, in the capital, a plan is hatched to decimate Orion, to be carried out by the ruthless operative known only as “Agent.”
         In Orion, fresh recruit Stockton Finn comes to terms with his incredible new powers, and learns firsthand how dangerous they can be. Meanwhile, officers Nyne Allen and Kay Barrett navigate the aftermath of their shattered love affair, oblivious to the fact that Calchis draws ever closer to destroying the tenuous peace.
         Finally, in the arctic land of Zenith, Calchan archaeologist Faith Santia unearths a millennia-old ruin. This lost temple might just hold the hidden history of psionic powers, as well as hints of a deeper mystery . . . that could shake the foundations of all mankind.

Excerpt
He ran toward the edge of the cliff.
The sun beat down upon him as his limbs pumped. Earth crunched beneath his feet, and a breeze blew across his black-stubbled scalp. His breathing was calm, meticulously measured.
When the ground slipped away, he felt only anticipation.
Plummeting, the man inhaled. Power flooded into him, thrilling, delicious. He reached out with that power, warping reality with an energy born from the depths of his being. Suddenly . . .
He winked out of existence . . .
And then reappeared at the base of the cliff.




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