Amalgam

The Valaran Chronicles #1

by Byron A. Wells

Amalgam is available in print and all popular eBook versions.

Caution - this book is not for kids, while I have reworked the one questionable chapter I would still say it is for 15+
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The First Volume in the Valaran Chronicles is your launch into an epic adventure.

After a tragic accident, Hobs’ quiet life is changed forever. His body repaired, he is befriended by Archon, a relic of the long-lost Valaran Empire. As the result of his friendship, Hobs discovers his Valaran heritage and learns of a serious threat from an old enemy, the Scarian — a vicious reptilian species responsible for the genocide of the Valaran Empire.

In order to protect himself, his town and planet from this ancient enemy Hobs must challenge everything he holds to be true — embrace new knowledge and skills; and together with Archon, they must find a way to defeat the Scarian incursion and restore peace on this remote side of the galaxy.

Genres: Science Fiction, Fantasy, Ebooks

192 pages, Paperback

First published April 9, 2012

About the author

Byron A Wells is a Photographer, Writer and IT Professional by day living in Arthur Ontario. During his career he has written a number of training and technical manuals. His favorite genres are Fantasy and Science Fiction. He is an avid reader, and is currently enjoying reviewing books when he has time. A lover of sports, music, martial arts and animals.

My first novel:
Amalgam, The Valaran Chronicles: Book 1
Fan Page: http://www.facebook.com/amalgam.vc

I Am Archon, The Valaran Chronicles: Book 2 - is underway, hoping to have out for Christmas.

Feel free to send friend requests, love chatting with people.

Reviews

[Sandy S · Rating 4 out of 5]

AMALGAM (Valaran Chronicles #1) by Byron A Wells

SPOILER ALERT

AMALGAM is the first novel and storyline in new author Byron A Wells sci-fi series the Valaran Chronicles. The description given by the author is definitely MATURE young adult, and the author does not punctuate and inundate the storyline with an alarming amount of scientific jargon similar to many science fiction series and novels. But be warned, this novel should not be read by anyone under 16 due to the graphic nature of some of the scenes.

The premise follows 3 different storylines that at times will overlap but in the end come together for a finale that is well deserved. Hobs is our hero, a young man who knows that he is different from the others in his village. Raised and adopted by Ren, following the death of his parents from the plague, Hobs stood out from the other members of his village-several inches taller, black hair and eyes-and at times, he was the target of the local bad boys and bullies. But following a final vicious attack and assault that left him for dead, Hobs will wake up in an underground facility the likes that no one had ever dreamed.

As the villagers scour for their missing friends, the local bad boys will target Hobs' father and following a viscious encounter, Ren will meet a similar fate as his son. But there are many in the village that suspect what has happened to Hobs and his father, but the extent of the damage will never be known. And in a final brutal attack, one of Hob’s closest friends will suffer at the hands of 3 young men, and find herself the victim of an assault so personal that revenge will drive Hobs through his days.

As the story progresses, Hobs undergoes a regeneration of sorts. What can only be described as a Cyborg (cybergenic organism) befitting a Star Trek storyline with similar ingredients to many of the most popular sci-fi sagas including Neuromancer by William Gibson and He, She and It by Marge Piercy, the story ventures into the realm of AI. Data transfer through neuro-plugs ala The Matrix and artificial intelligence befitting 2001: A Space Odyssey, Byron A. Wells will take the reader on a journey that can only be described as a fascinating and enlightening look at a sci-fi storyline.

And we must not forget the requisite alien, in all of his nastiness, staking a claim against a people they had once destroyed. Returning to a planet long thought to have suffered the indignities of a genocide, the Scarian beings will fall victim to the one remaining Valaran who has mysteriously ‘survived’ an ethnic cleansing between two warring sides in an inter-galactic war of the worlds.

AMALGAM is a well written and wonderful storyline- a fascinating look at a genre often ignored by many reviewers and readers, if only because of the sci-fi category. This is not your usual hard-core science fiction novel. Having had to read the likes of Robert Heinlein, William Gibson and Marge Piercy for university Engl. Lit classes and the study of science fiction, I found Amalgam to be a much lighter read –not too heavy on the scientific jargon, but interesting enough to keep my attention. A scientific journal is not required to help you define the passages. In fact I read the novel in one sitting.

Book provided by : Goodreads First Reads

see all of my reviews at :thereadingcafe.com

[Penumbra · Rating 5 out of 5]

Please look at my edited comments at the bottom of this review


I was given this book to read through the Making Connections, ARR: Science Fiction Group, thank you. I believe the author still has copies of this book available for read and review here: http://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/8...

The book blurb does a pretty good job about telling what this book is about, so I won’t go into much detail about that.



First off the cover, I absolutely love it! It has got to be one of my favorite covers I’ve seen here on Goodreads. I love the larger image of Hobs and the glow in the background. I also love that the fonts used for the title and author are smaller, using an appropriate color and in a nice placement position. So many books use a font that is not the correct size, or the correct style, or color. This cover does everything well.

I was a little surprised this was labeled a YA book. It reads as a YA book, but then there is a disturbing sex scene in the book that for me, took it into the Adult realm. Despite the story’s tone reading as a YA, for those who don’t like adult content in YA books, be warned that there is explicit content in this book.

Amalgam is told through multiple points of view. The author keeps these POV’s cleanly separated and precise, so the reader never has any trouble with figuring out who’s POV it is or when the POV changes. It made the book much more pleasant to read because I wasn’t confused at any point. I wish more authors could do POV changes as well as this author did.

My favorite character in this story was Archon, the intelligence that ran the facility. My next favorite character was Hobs after he’d been trained by Archon into the Valaran he always should have been. Hobs was a BAMF after that, and he’d found his true calling. I’m curious if Hobs will find any other Valaran on his planet, or if he’ll need to leave the planet and hopefully find a lost settlement of Valaran that escaped the Scarian slaughter.

The story was a bit slow going for about the first forty pages. There wasn’t much happening except a lot of inner dialogue and description of Hob’s life and the town he lived in. Usually stories start with some sort of action to get the reader drawn in quickly, but that wasn’t the case with this book. I was beginning to wonder when the story would pick up and finally it did after about fifty pages.

The writing is smooth and easy to read. It’s not the kind of writing that swallowed me into the story and made me feel part of the action. I felt like I was reading it slightly from the outside, but not so much that I couldn’t enjoy it.

In conclusion, this was a well-planned out book. It’s easy to read, although a bit slow at the start. It didn’t draw me deeply into the story, but I still found the style of writing pleasant.

EDIT: The author went to a lot of trouble fixing the font issues I mentioned in my original review so that I am now revising the star rating to 5 stars because that was the only real issue I had about the book.

[Beth · Rating 5 out of 5]

This truly was an astonishing and vivid fantasy written by Byron A. Wells. I did read Parem first and I highly recommend that you read the Prequel to this story, it adds much enlightenment. In Amalgam there really is 3 different story lines coming to an extraordinary conclusion where all three stories merge.

Hobs is a young man how is very different from all the other villagers, he has dark hair and unusual eyes. He was raised by Ren because his parents were killed by a plague, a plague that also killed Ren’s child. Hobs is brutally attacked and left for dead, he wakes up in an underground facility that is like nothing he’s ever dreamed of.

Villagers search for Hobs, but the local bullies that have tormented Hobs for his differences decide to turn their attentions to Ren, Hobs’ adopted father. Their attack is atrocious and Ren meets a similar fate to Hobs. A villager and close female friend is also viciously attacked and drives Hobs towards his revenge filled goal.

In the underground facility, Hobs is transformed into a cybergenic organism. There is data transfers and neuro plug in type equipment embedded in Hobs.

While this is happening, the aliens that almost caused a planetary genocide return. A mysterious Valaran who survived the “cleansing in the inter-galactic war comes back into play.

This may seem like an extremely complicated plot but Mr. Wells has weaved his web and sucks you right into this world of his creating. Because it is so vividly written some of the scenes are very graphic and may not be suitable for the younger readers. Although this is a sci-fi story it was still a very easy and enjoyable read. I found Amalgam to be a sci-fi, older young adult, fantasy that I really adored. 5 Stars

This copy of Amalgam was given to me by Goodreads Making Connections Group and Byron A. Wells in exchange for an honest review.

[Kelan O'Connell · Rating 4 out of 5]

SciFi fan is not a descriptive that would ever be applied to me, however, this book may have changed that.

Byron A. Wells has found a wonderful balance between SciFi world-building and well-drawn characters with satisfying relationships. You can tell this author has a scientific mind but doesn’t punish the average reader with it - an issue that has kept me from a lot of Science Fiction reads.

I enjoyed each of the three different juxtaposed, yet interconnected stories/worlds the author has created. When I finished a chapter and moved back into another of the worlds, I didn’t want to go and leave the present one behind, yet in a matter of paragraphs, I was equally invested in the new world and its story line. This movement between the three, and their inevitable collision, keeps the story moving along effortlessly.

The initial world of the protagonist is delightfully simplistic with an almost Hobbit-like appeal. But that world is about to collide with two others of vastly different technological advancements. The main character, Hobs, is well-drawn - easy to embrace and root for. So are many of the supporting characters. And of course, there are others you simply can’t wait to see if they get what’s coming to them. Yes, there is a scene of violence that is adult in nature, but it is not gratuitous and is key to the story.

This was the perfect introduction to SciFi for me though I’m convinced there’s enough here for the die-hard SciFi fan to appreciate. Lots to love here, and reflect upon (especially the names of one race of beings) but that’s all I’m willing to divulge. I look forward to more from this very talented author. If that makes me a SciFi fan- so be it.

[Jurginas · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was such a good book and I am so glad I got it and I cannot wait for the sequel! It is very easy to read and I highly would recommend this book to anyone looking for new fresh science fiction - written with many unexpected, excellent turns and twists in every chapter. Well worth purchasing this great book.

[Natalie Wells · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thought that this book was very well written. It was nicely paced, easy to read and had an amazing storyline. Science-Fiction is not neccesarily my favorite genre, but I loved this book. It was compelling, and I loved Hobs.

[Danielle · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thought that this book was fantastic! I am not a lover of science fiction, but this book truly drew my attention. I can't wait for the second book to be realeased. It's a fairly easy read and i would reccomend it to anyone looking for something interesting.

[Katie Robinson · Rating 4 out of 5]

An easy to read fantasy book. Byron did a wonderful job of laying down the back story for his series while keeping you entertained. I sometimes find myself skipping through pages to get the the "good stuff", but I didn't have to do that with this book. I am looking forward to reading the next installment.