Review: Perhaps just one of those days/months for editing
Rating: 3 out of 5
Date: 08 6, 2011
I'm sure some fans will be after me for not giving a free book a five-star rating. Keep in mind, it's only been free for a bit; I actually purchased all three books in the series and while I'm midway through book 3, I'll try to keep my comments focused on the first - uh - section.That's what it is, folks: This is a regular-sized novel split into three parts and sold separately. Not an issue when it's free; more so when each section is $3 or more.The post-apocalyptic plot is of the pandemic type, but I give kudos to the author for a unique take on the genre. In this case, it's 2068 in an America considerably evolved from today's (except that e-readers remain stuck in 2011 technology for some reason). A strange and incurable cancer sweeps 90% of the population out the door in a month, and Martin is one of the very few who survive. Martin's survival is dual, as he also is one of the very, very few who survive New York City.Martin's tale is fast-paced and throws a lifetime of experiences at him as the world disintegrates. If you like PA fiction, you'll like this novela.The "book" is actually divided into a so-called trilogy that is what most authors would call a complete novel divided into three parts. At the time of this writing, parts 2 and 3 are not available at the Kindle Store but likely will be restored soon.So good plot, reasonable character(s) and (at the moment) zero cost to own equals a five-star rating, right? Not so fast. Here are my honest criticisms:--There is some significant setup of a complex series of subplots in book one; most of them are abandoned in book two, which feels more like an interlude than a true book.--The author desperately needs someone to proofread his copy. For the love of God, you don't PEAK inside a car; you PEEK inside. This homonym error occurs even more frequently in the second book. Yeesh.--The author also has a distracting way of using italics for some (but not all) proper nouns and titles. It's jarring, because italics are generally reserved for emphasis, and sometimes to denote thinking/internal thoughts. At least in the few thousand print books I've read in my lifetime.--I do not like it when an author takes me out of the story with poor use of the language. I do not like it when an author can't seem to determine how to provide the context, backstory or history of the future time they're writing about. I do not like it when the main hero seems to be relegated to second fiddle for almost a third of a trilogy just so a whole bunch of other characters can be introduced, complete with their entire stories. I do not like green eggs and ham. And I do not like it when an author creates a long list of narrative elements, each beginning with the EXACT SAME PHRASE repeated ad nauseam...and the author uses that tiring device multiple times throughout the books.With some significant proofreading and reconstruction of some elements, this could be a compelling series. My biggest worry as I get into book three is that the plot is bifurcating without purpose, but we'll see.