Book Review: Emergence: A Superhuman Detective Novella by Liberty Speidel

Stumbled upon Emergence: A Superhuman Detective Novella, written by Liberty Speidel and was intrigued by the blurb.  Plus, it's available on Kindle for free!  Free doesn't necessarily mean poor quality.  Especially in the indie world where writers are willing to put work out there for free so that they can find readers.  So, I thought I'd give it a chance.  If I didn't like it, I could just stop reading it.  No harm no foul.  Well, I read it, and I liked it.  Following are my thoughts:

• Setting: The story is set in future Kansas City.  Speidel adds futuristic flavor throughout the story without bogging the narrative down with too much description.  I think there's good balance between the description and the plot.  If you prefer a world intricately described ala Lord of the Rings, this one may not be for you.
• Character Development:  The characters are the strongest components to the story.  Speidel does a tremendous job introducing us to many characters in a short period of time in a way that I cared about them and understood the chemistry between each.  This is difficult enough to do when a writer has 250 pages to work with.  Speidel does it with fewer than 100.  If you like these characters like I did, you can continue reading the series, which I will.
• Writing Style:  Speidel writes in a straight-forward style driven by action and dialogue.  It's easy to read, and she does a good job keeping the story moving.  This is the type of novel where plot is more important than style.  Most readers who enjoy this genre will prefer how Speidel crafted the novel with story being more important than style.
• Climax: Because this book has a lot of components being juggled simultaneously, I'd say the climax was the only portion of the story to suffer.  Speidel writes a futuristic world that includes Supers, introduces us to a large cast of characters, and is ultimately setting up for a series worth of stories to be told through several novels.  She does a good job with all of this, but I'd say the climax of the crime in book 1 was less complicated because there were other components to the story to consider.  I don't want to give the wrong impression here.  It was NOT completely lacking.  The wave of the story broke quickly and efficiently, but left me somehow wanting more.
• Book 1 of a series: I knew going in that this was the first volume in a series.  It didn't deter me, and I'm glad I read it.  It's quick, smooth, and worthwhile.  I'm excited to see where Speidel takes it from here.  If you like superhuman stories, or crime detective novels, then this is one to consider.  And if you're lucky, you'll find it for free so you can see if it's a good fit.

Book Review: Tent City by Kelly Van Hull

Time came for me to read another book, and a friend of mine sent me an email consisting of several Kindle deals.  I examined the deals carefully and settled on Tent City because the description was similar in ways to my first novel Exchange Day.  So I got it and read it.  Following are my thoughts on Tent City by Kelly Van Hull:

• Setting: The story is set in the Black Hills of South Dakota, where Dani, the main character, lives in a hideaway campsite along with other teens who are escaping a nation-wide mandate to transfer all youths to safety camps.  I like stories in secluded areas.  I like seeing how people have to survive extenuating circumstances, especially when it's in the wild or in an apocalyptic environment.  I wouldn't categorize this as a survival story, but there is definitely a survival component consistent throughout the story that kept me engaged.  I would've liked a more thorough description of the city.  That includes a physical description of what it's like living in the woods with a bunch of teens, but I also wanted to see more of the logistics.  I must admit those aspects of survival stories intrigue me, and I wanted more there.  
• Character Development: Because the story is set in a secluded area, the relationships between the characters are key to driving the story and conflict forward.  Tent City does a good job portraying these interactions.  Most characters in this story are young, ala The Hunger Games.  It didn't bother me, but I wanted to include that here so prospective readers know what to expect.  I was slightly disappointed by the villain.  Kelly Van Hull does a good job building the infamy of General Burke, the story's chief villain.  But the scene where we actually meet him could have shown more wickedness.  Also, there's a love triangle that develops early on in the novel and is prevalent throughout.  I like the way this is handled.  It's different than most stories I've read where the lead character pines over the choice page after sappy page.  Tent City is much more subdued.
• Writing Style:  Kelly Van Hull writes in a straight-forward style that's easy to follow and keeps the story moving forward at a good pace.  Tent City is definitely on the milder end of the spectrum, so if you're looking for a thick, descriptive piece dripping with poetic comparisons, this one isn't for you.  
• Climax: The novel works through a series of minor conflicts, as opposed to building to one large conflict.  This kept everything moving quickly, and made for a lot of action, which I think is good for this genre.  
• Book 1 of a series: I knew going in that this was the first volume in a series, and so understood that there would be more story when I finished.  Tent City stands on its own, but the ending leaves you in a situation where you want to know more.  Some readers might not like this.  Others will love it.