Review: My new favorite author
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 04 14, 2012
I've had my Kindle about a year now. I started reading HG Wells and Jules Verne. Books of theirs I never knew existed. And powered through their libraries. Then I grabbed a couple of more prominent authors and finished the last three Tarzan novels. (That was a trip. Loved it.) Then I delved into new authors, reading reviews like this one. Strangely, they proved helpful and right on. They pulled me into Renewal. I'd already read and enjoyed some in the apocalyptic genre, including Sam Winston's "What Came After," Mainak Dhar's "Alice In Deadland" and Hugh Howey's "Wool" series. But JF Perkins' "Renewal" offers a unique approach, a humanistic one. His characters are well developed and approach each situation as I imagined I would given the situation. He pulled me in slow. I was about to take the first installment on its merits, a decent romp through a ruined world -- one I'd been familiar with ever since my first duck and cover in Seattle's St. James Cathedral elementary school in the 1960s. Terry, the hero, is a pretty laid-back fellow. Bill, the leader of the hidden community, just keeps getting better. Then Renewal ends. OK, I thought, nice concept. Then I stumbled on nine more in the series. I was addicted. This ... is bad ass. I ignored my family, forgot to feed the dogs and kept reading. JF, dude, this is awesome. I give the entire series a thumbs up. And I read a lot. And yes, as a former newspaper editor, I spotted some errors. But to heck with that. This is a heart-felt novel, powerful and filled with a positive message about the freedoms we all hold dear. So enjoy. I did. I'm looking forward to the rest of JF's journeys.