Exiled

Exiled

by M. R. Merrick

(also available in paperback)

From Goodreads:

Chase Williams is a demon hunter in the Circle, or at least he was supposed to be. On his fifteenth birthday, Chase stepped up to the altar to claim his elemental power, but it never came. Elemental magic is passed down to a hunter through the bloodline, but on Chase’s birthday, the bloodline stopped.

Exiled without the Circle’s protection, Chase has spent two years trying to survive a world riddled with half-demons and magic. When he has a run in with a frightened and seemingly innocent demon, he learns the Circle’s agenda has changed: the Circle plans to unlock a portal and unleash pure-blood demons into the world. Vowing to stop them, and knowing he can’t do it alone, Chase forms a reluctant alliance with Rayna — a sexy witch with an attitude and a secret.

In their attempt to stop them, Chase and Rayna find themselves in the middle of the Circle’s plan, leaving one of them to decide what their friendship is worth, and the other’s life depending on it.

This book had everything good. Character development, amazing fantasy, and a fast-paced plot. I loved it!

Chase was an entirely sympathetic and likable character. He wasn’t one of those whiny little teenagers. No! He had spine! Although he made bad decisions, he owned up to them. He admitted his mistakes and short-comings. Something I really came to admire.

Rayna was spunky too. She could hold her own in a fight and then some. Plus, she could charm the pants off of a very ancient vampire. She was also very intriguing with her half-witch and half- demon blood.

I’m not a fan of romance.  So when her interactions with Chase weren’t too romantic and I didn’t have to skim and skip. I was quite relieved. They had a natural relationship.

This book borders on urban fantasy as it touches on the real world but never really enters it. There are mentions of it, but you never really delve into it. I liked that about it.

One action scene after another left me breathless. I never stopped wondering when it would stop. It was so fast-paced, the story seemed to fly by.

I look forward to the next book and I hope I don’t have to wait too long for it! If it’s as good as the first, it promises to be a good one!

4.5 of 5 stars

Alice in Deadland

Alice in Deadland

by Mainak Dhar

(also available in paperback)

From Amazon:

Civilization as we know it ended more than fifteen years ago, leaving as it’s legacy barren wastelands called the Deadland and a new terror for the humans who survived- hordes of undead Biters.

Fifteen year-old Alice has spent her entire life in the Deadland, her education consisting of how best to use guns and knives in the ongoing war for survival against the Biters. One day, Alice spots a Biter disappearing into a hole in the ground and follows it, in search of fabled underground Biter bases.

What Alice discovers there propels her into an action-packed adventure that changes her life and that of all humans in the Deadland forever. An adventure where she learns the terrible conspiracy behind the ruin of humanity, the truth behind the origin of the Biters, and the prophecy the mysterious Biter Queen believes Alice is destined to fulfill.

A prophecy based on the charred remains of the last book in the Deadland- a book called Alice in Wonderland.

I’m not normally a fan of zombies, but I am a fan of “fairy tale” spin-offs. When I read the description and the reviews on Amazon for this book and I saw the price for this book I thought I’d give it a shot. I’m glad I did.

This book was unexpected in many ways. For one thing it took place in India. Not your typical locale for a sci-fi/fantasy book or one you’d find a blond-haired Alice. For another thing, she doesn’t end up in another reality. She remains firmly planted in one dimension. It’s just not that kind of fantasy.

Also, as the tale unfolds, the events start to become almost plausible. Turning into something more of a conspiracy theory type story rather then just a fantasy/sci-fi story. I started thinking “Gee. Something like this could happen.” Maybe not with the undead, but something similar. It positively gave me chills down my spine. Added to the chills the rest of the book was already giving me, it made for a good spook book.

Dhar weaves an action-packed and intelligent plot with a very likable heroine. His characters are nicely developed and nicely fleshed out. His world evolved at a good pace with the story and didn’t overly dominate the action. In the end, I was rooting and cheering for this Alice and her companions as she fought the evil doers in the Deadland.

4 of 5 stars