Location: United States
Member Since:
Oct. 17, 2013
John O'brien
Books
Smashwords book reviews by John O'brien
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Blue Into The Rip
on Nov. 12, 2013
Wow! What a cracking read. A great thrill ride from start to finish with lots of twists and turns. But the star of the novel is the writing. It’s crisp, creative and really engaging. Kev Heritage certainly shows off his writing credentials. Blue, the main character of the story, is a loner, a sort of super geek with a ‘top-end’ memory that delivers facts to him if he wants them or not and big blue eyes that lend him his nickname. He lives with hippy parents hell bent on a self-sufficiency lifestyle and his little sister, Annie. Bunking off school, Blue is on hand to help rescue people trapped in a car after an accident, and has a peculiar blackout. It starts a chain of events that ends up with his sister missing and Blue transported to the future year of 2456. The future is not a depressing place, but civilisation as we know has ended due to the devastating effects of global warming. Blue is forced to join the space academy by the harsh Commander Dauntless and meets a bunch of gung-ho cadets who become firm friends. He has a series of adventures on and off Earth and… I’d love to tell you more, but the plot is so cleverly done that I don’t want to give away any spoilers away. But look out for Hermans, a 7ft boy from Ganymede (who had me in stiches), the underground jungle and the spectacular rip. Oh and Blue himself, who is sometimes hilariously sarcastic. There are also host of well-drawn believable and interesting characters (I didn’t get lost) and astounding locations. This is hugely enjoyable time-travel story that does not disappoint. Let me put my hand up – I’m a thirty something, but I loved this. It is the first novel in a series, but the plot is self-contained. There appears to be a developing backstory regarding Blue’s particular genetic talents (did I mention he is a genetically engineered mutant?), and I guess this is the hook that the series is set on. I gave this to my nephew to read and he just loved it. So not just an oldie’s point of view. All in all, very satisfying. I cannot wait to see how the series develops. A well-deserved 5 stars.