Review: "ARK"... the Pros and Cons... 4 1/2 Stars
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 12 28, 2013
"ARK" is the first book in 'The Natural Selection Trilogy' by author Mark Dunstan. I would classify this novel as a blend of fantasy/sci-fi/steampunk. This Kindle e-book was approximately 406 printed pages and sold for $2.99 at the time of writing this review.Please Note: the author provided me with a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.General theme with minor spoilersThis tale follows a young girl (Iaya) and her group of traveling companions to the 'Dead Continent' in an attempt to locate the 'Ark'... a thing of power that may hold the key to defeating some of the dark forces that threaten the realm. However, the dark forces are also aware of its presence and want to use this 'Ark' and its abilities to bolster their own nefarious plans.A tale of travel, strange creatures and encounters in an inhospitable land... who, if anyone, will find the Ark first? This then is the story of Iaya, Proctor, Makael and several other who escort our heroine on this most dangerous of quests.Some thoughts on "Ark"...The Pros:1.) well written and edited. A tale superbly told, with a minimum of grammatical, spelling or syntax errors.2.) a book that seemed firmly divided into two camps... that being areas that seemed entirely character driven and other areas what were almost all action orientated affairs.3) some very interesting characters that I liked and found it easy to have empathy for, especially, for example Iaya, Proctor and Makael (my personal favorite) as well as several side players within Iaya's party. Also the main villain, Asylum, was a truly intriguing entity.4.) important characters could be severely injured or even killed... adding a degree of realism... alway appreciated by this reader in any fantasy tale.5.) I felt the blend of fantasy, sci-fi and steampunk qualities was near perfect. No one quality dominated... each playing its own unique part in this interesting tale.6.) a tale with a lot of traveling... I was pleased to see the author shorten the time and distance of traveling (and thus significantly shorten the overall tale) by sometimes having their journeys fast forwarded to their intended destinations. i.e they leave point 'A' and we next see them at point 'B' without detailing any of the accounts in between... in retrospect this was a good idea as it reduced the potential for a really long novel.7.) a satisfactory conclusion to part I on this trilogy leaving many interesting tangents open for the second book.8.) my personal favorite sub-tale... Chapter 24, detailing the battle of SubternThe Cons: (with a 1/2 Star lost for the two items listed below)1.) no map(s)... it would have been nice to get a sense of distances, direction and topography in this tale that featured constant travel over huge amounts of terrain.2.) the only other complaint (and a minor one at that) it would be that I found some of the battles and encounters too long... they just seemed to go on and on. And in all honesty, I became somewhat numb to the prolonged violence after a while. In a movie or video game, this would have been easier to handle, but in a novel I found myself becoming a bit confused to the frequency and extent of the gory descriptions involving many different factions. A personal and subjective opinion I realize and others, I'm sure, will disagree.Impressions:A terrific opening book in this epic fantasy/sci-fi/steampunk trilogy.Well written and edited... both done in a professional style.A map is much needed.As it is... 4 1/2 Stars.Ray Nicholsonraynicholsonsreviews@hotmail.com@ralannicholson