Review: A Great Start to an Epic Journey!
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 11 22, 2012
"The Soul Garden" by Cege Smith begins "There was Before and then there was Now." "Now" is when the story takes place, and nobody talks about "Before." A strongly pseudo-religious hierarchy is in control Now, and rules are very definitely made to be obeyed. People do not simply "have children" whenever they want to. Anyone fortunate enough is selected to become parents, and the number of children permitted is based entirely on the needs of the community in which the parents reside. Jobs and/or careers are assigned, based on what the Head Master determines was most essential at that time and place.Central to the story is the fact that children were born without a soul. The soulless were hideous creatures, with mottled gray skin, endless appetites, and emotionless dispositions. At some point during their early childhood -- if they were so fortunate -- the Office of Souls would select them to have a soul installed. This was a sacred, extremely regulated process, and missteps were not tolerated. A misplaced word could get your child expelled from the Garden, never to receive another chance at having a soul installed.In the Soul Garden, routine had become so well established that error was unheard of. Or was it? Two adult soulless, a circumstance of great disgrace and quasi-permanent isolation, by great deceit and trickery managed to get their names on the list of approved soul recipients without being observed until it was too late to remedy the mistake. Quite literally, all hell broke loose. The Head Master and all his power was not sufficient to hold back the evil forces called forth by one of the adult soulless. The other adult soulless, who wanted only to have a soul, was bombarded with a multitude of evil souls, and became a tool of the greater evil.This story is only the beginning of what is shaping up to be a great epic adventure. As this episode comes to a close, we see the very few remaining "good guys" escaping along a secret pathway through the garden, while the evil powers are busy sucking souls from all they encounter. Cege Smith has set us on a journey you won't want to miss. I recommend this story to fans of fantasy, sci-fi, alternate futures, and the general battle between good and evil. The Soul Garden is a great place to start this journey.Disclaimer: I received a free copy of this book from the author, in exchange for an honest review.