Strange Bodies

The Mage of Shimmer Mountain #2

by Adam Sampson

Just as Hugo is starting to get a grasp on the threat to the cities on the wheel, he is flung back in time again. This time in the body of a Nox, Hugo has to get used to this new strange body. Having four arms is bad enough, now he has to navigate an entirely new culture. Hugo has to hope that the few facts he has learned about the Nox will be enough to pretend to be one of them. Forced to pretend to be someone he has never met, Hugo is in constant danger of being caught. He will have to navigate a school system entirely different from the one he knows, decide which magic domain to choose, and avoid accidentally If he can master these challenges, he still has to convince the sentinels to help him save the cities on the wheel, while wearing the body of their oppressors. This new body will test Hugo’s resolve and ingenuity. But the hardest challenge will be one that comes from an unexpected source.

Genres: Fantasy, Time Travel, Magic

623 pages, Kindle Edition

First published March 15, 2023

About the author

Adam has spent the last several years living in Utah with his wife and four kids. He works in telecommunications now, but used to be a English teacher, and uses those skills when writing.

He has a passion for writing and a deep and abiding love for his family. His hobbies include reading an obscene amount of fiction and the occasional small crafts, like origami. He has sold origami at local craft fairs.

Adam grew up traveling with his family and has been to dozens of countries all around the world. Since he grew up and got a job, his travels are strictly in his imagination. He really hopes you enjoy the journey you take in his books.

Reviews

[Steve Naylor · Rating 3 out of 5]

Rating 3.5 stars

I didn't like this one as much as the first one. It started off pretty good and was pretty interesting. Hugo is in yet another body. This time a Nox. There are new concerns with this one. This is the first time he has family while in the new body. He needs to get used to a new body with 4 arms, a new culture and deal with people that new his bodies previous owner. He has a family unit for the first time in his life. He learns a new domain. Hugo's plans are pretty much the same as in the last couple of lives for a while until the story took a turn. At some point he goes undercover as a spy and saboteur to the nearby city that they think is behind the attack. We get more vague information about who is behind the attacks and why but not a whole lot. That was a big shift in direction. Before he was just trying to get stronger, save people and stay alive. I don't know where the idea came from, he would be a good candidate to be a spy. He finds there might be another time traveler involved and has to be reset again. The second half of the book he is an a female Reise's body. This adds another dimension to the things the MC has to deal with. I can't figure out how anyone can't understand he is different person. I didn't like this part that much. Hugo spent a long time in the first half of the book building up a life as the Nox and having family and now it is just gone, and he doesn't seem to care. He just keeps going on in his new body. In this Reise body he doesn't seem to do much to prevent the attacks from happening. He spends almost all his time dealing with being a princess, as if that would matter in the long run. Then when things don't go to plan, he kind of just stumbles around getting high and drunk, waiting for his next life to happen. I wasn't a fan of the direction this one took. I will end up reading the next book in the series at some point, I am just not as excited about it as I thought I would be when I started this book.

[Mike Goodman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely Fantastic

This story of a guy who gets multiple do overs in different bodies to stop his cities from blowing up was a great read. He gets a new magic domain every reset, so it seems the next book is the last…

[Doug Sundseth · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book begins with Hugo being reincarnated in an alien body, which does make for an interesting change to the series. There is significantly more world development in this book than previously, as we see more than one alien society from the inside. Sampson does a good job of building something understandable, but different.

The character development is, for the most part, good. Seeing the protagonist navigate the strange seas he finds himself in works well for the story. That said, I'm not especially convinced by the time the character spends in a female body. It's an ambitious attempt, but never really rings true, either to 'people' or to the character previously established.

The plot is strong through about the first 2/3 of the book, then it loses its way in authorial indulgence. That said, the main series plot does advance well here, even with the book losing its way.

Midway through the book, I was trying to decide whether this was going to be a 4.5- or 5-star book. But during that last third, I was contemplating 2.5 or 3 stars. Overall, the good parts overbalance the bad, and the series plot does progress well enough in this volume to give it a charity 4-stars. The series, if a bit derivative of Groundhog Day, is still entertaining enough hold my attention and provide enjoyment.

[Tony Hinde · Rating 3 out of 5]

This one was a miss for me. I plan to read the last(?) book when it comes out but I hope it takes a turn for the better.

From the start, Hugo seemed to have lost his drive. For some reason he let himself get bogged down in the family life he'd inherited with the new body. A family that seemed to actively hate him. The world-ending threat was almost not mentioned while he explored politics in which he had no experience.

When this digression failed horribly he ran away and devoted himself to hedonism, including a drug-fueled gambling binge. All of this was so out of character that I nearly dropped the book. Thinking this was all part of the hero's journey (the nadir) I kept with it. In the end, it seems the only silver lining was to discover the role that Hedge-Mage drugs have in their take-over plans. Not something that Hugo was seeking and therefore no justification for his uncharacteristic actions.

The whole thing felt like the author took a wrong turn and rather than admit the mistake, he doubled down. I'm not happy.

[Andrew · Rating 3 out of 5]

A huge amount of the book is dedicated to a royal succession political battle with not much point, followed by a drawn-out drug bender. I found it distasteful. Sure, we learn later that the succession battle held importance, but it doesn’t excuse the frustration of that section. I actually had to force myself to continue reading there, hoping it would end soon. Our MC gets lost in what’s not important far more than you’d expect someone to do in his situation—nearly on his last life, and having been particularly driven beforehand. The author clearly had fun writing this whimsical fantasy section however, so I understand why it was included.

Oh, and I guess the justification for the drug bender was that drugs were the final missing link. How convenient.

[Youssef · Rating 2 out of 5]

I struggled to keep my interest in this book. Somewhere in the middle the trick of withholding everything about the outer world, the political and social big picture became very annoying. The also didn't like the cascade of gratuitous bad decisions made by the main character. There was a mixture of selfishness and altruism from the get go, okay fine, he's a teenager. But five years later, the character just needs to grow up and pick a personality. As someone selfish and unattached to anyone, there is absolutely nothing stopping him from packing up and moving outside the whole shimmer Mountain area. It just doesn't make sense.

[Sundeep · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a good follow up. I was worried that the time loops will get boring, and it did for a few scenes in the middle, but the author mixed up a few things to keep the reader interested. There were some interesting revelations about the world beyond the cities on the wheel too.

I especially liked the main character's decision to have fun after realizing events weren't going to end well.

Waiting for the conclusion now, hope the author sticks the landing.

[Marie · Rating 3 out of 5]

what are you trying to pull.

The first half is ok. I don’t appreciate the the way rituals magic works. Not only does it not really take into account the myths or stories there based of it also makes a mockery of Hinduism, jewish people and Christian and those were the names I caught. Just seems very disrespectful to take people religion and culture to make some lack luster jokes.

[Scott Wozniak · Rating 5 out of 5]

Don't let the cheesy cover art fool you: this is a well-planned, maturely-written and highly-creative story. I'm thoroughly enjoying this series! The characters are really engaging (and surprising). The world keeps getting bigger and more interesting. The magic system keeps expanding. And the plot keeps going places I didn't expect, but that totally make sense with the discoveries he's making.

If you like fantasy, you'll like this book.

[Danny Moody · Rating 5 out of 5]

Solid sequel. I really enjoyed the third prestige. The fourth prestige started a little rough with his awkwardness in the new body. It improved greatly once he started working on his new domain. The plot moved to the point where I think the next book will be the last. I’m excited to see how it ends.

[Derek · Rating 3 out of 5]

2nd half of the book was just super weird. progress seemed to slow way down and MC would drift on tangents here and there. 1st book was about the MC gaining abilities and becoming OP, 2nd book seemed like he was constantly barely scraping by against enemies he should have easily beaten. This just wasnt a very fun read. Hopefully the final installment brings things back in line with book 1.

[James Riley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really good

Simply put, if you liked the first one, you'll love this one. If you didn't, well, you probably won't.

I'm really looking forward to the next one.

Highly recommended.

[Alan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hugo keeps redoing his life over at a yearly rate hoping each time to get it right .

Hugo time travels yearly an resets his body each time to set things right an hoping to save the cities from destruction . recommend reading excellent series .

[Michael Jackson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just gets better

As above more intrigue more fights and more questions than answers, i can not wait for the next book in this series .

[Craig · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is getting much more interesting. I like the body hopping and skill learning.

[Nick Rizzo · Rating 5 out of 5]

So hype as he goes through the different domains and species. More and more mysteries are revealed