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Umbrage
Kayla McIntyre knew that starting high school would be a big step in her life. What she didn't know is that she would discover that she has the ability to see startling visions of someone’s impending doom. As more and more of the people around her find themselves in death's crosshairs, Kayla must figure out how to master her gifts and act upon her visions. In the midst of it all, she discovers that her quaint, New England hometown might have some dark secrets hiding beneath its wholesome exterior.
291 pages, Kindle Edition
Published June 29, 2023
1 person is currently reading
4 people want to read
About the author
Derek Bailey
11 books28 followersDerek Bailey is a graduate of Southern New Hampshire University’s Game Design and Development Program (BA) where he also completed minor in Creative Writing. He has a passion for storytelling in all forms and across a number of genres. He spends his days happily employed as a Digital Product Owner, but enjoys writing on the side as a means of expressing himself and sharing his thoughts on life whenever he can. His first novel, Digitarum, was self-published in 2015 via Amazon’s Kindle Direct Program.
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
May 20, 2023
3.5 stars
Umbrage was pitched to me as a high school superhero fantasy that’s told across multiple connecting short stories. And even though I was really not sold on the cover and generally like to stick to the darker epic fantasies, I was somehow still quite intrigued by the idea of this episodic low-fantasy adventure. Well, turns out it can be quite fun to go outside of your comfortzone somtimes! If you ever need a break from all the chunky fantasy tomes, then Umbrage has got you covered!
This book consists of 7 connecting short stories all following the young and bright Kayla McIntytre. When we are first introduced to her, she seems to be a pretty normal teenager, but then she discovers that she has some strange powers which allow her to see visions of people’s impending deaths. Now it’s up to her and her friends to prevent these tragic events from happening, no matter the cost.
The stakes keep rising with each new story and shocking secrets about her hometown start coming to light, but Kayla and her friends will stop at nothing to keep everyone around them safe.
This book delivers exactly what it promised and that is always a positive thing in my opinion. You don’t have to come looking here for really complex character work or incredibly deep themes, but that doesn’t make this story any less valuable or enjoyable. Sometimes it’s nice to just have a quick and fun read that doesn’t require a lot of brainpower and which will keep you entertained for a few hours.
I do want to give the author some props for writing such believable and endearing young characters, because it’s not easy to write good teenage characters that won’t just frustrate you on every single page. And though I’ll admit that some of the dialogue and text messages felt a bit juvenile and cringy, I also can’t deny that it was still really fun to follow them.
Also, heck yes for super strong friendships and supportive parents, those heartwarming relationships were without a doubt the highlight of the story for me!
Now, I personally read this entire book in one go, which should tell you enough about how enjoyable and engaging these stories were. The author did a good job of raising the stakes and making each story a little more complex by building upon what had come before. These characters are faced with difficult decisions and really have to rely on their wits to resolve all the conflicts, which I enjoyed seeing.
All that said, when you read all the stories back-to-back, they can start to feel a bit repetitive. They all have the same set up of: get a vision, make a plan, save the day. And though that set-up is executed well, I think spreading these stories out over a couple of days will make for the best reading experience. I reckon it’d be fun to open your book and reconnect with a fun cast of characters to see what new challenges they have to face that day.
All in all, I had a good time with this book and it turned out to be the perfect break in between some of my heavier reads. Definitely give Umbrage a shot if you like the idea of an episodic high school superhero adventure that will keep you entertained the entire way through!
Thank you to the author for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
Umbrage was pitched to me as a high school superhero fantasy that’s told across multiple connecting short stories. And even though I was really not sold on the cover and generally like to stick to the darker epic fantasies, I was somehow still quite intrigued by the idea of this episodic low-fantasy adventure. Well, turns out it can be quite fun to go outside of your comfortzone somtimes! If you ever need a break from all the chunky fantasy tomes, then Umbrage has got you covered!
This book consists of 7 connecting short stories all following the young and bright Kayla McIntytre. When we are first introduced to her, she seems to be a pretty normal teenager, but then she discovers that she has some strange powers which allow her to see visions of people’s impending deaths. Now it’s up to her and her friends to prevent these tragic events from happening, no matter the cost.
The stakes keep rising with each new story and shocking secrets about her hometown start coming to light, but Kayla and her friends will stop at nothing to keep everyone around them safe.
This book delivers exactly what it promised and that is always a positive thing in my opinion. You don’t have to come looking here for really complex character work or incredibly deep themes, but that doesn’t make this story any less valuable or enjoyable. Sometimes it’s nice to just have a quick and fun read that doesn’t require a lot of brainpower and which will keep you entertained for a few hours.
I do want to give the author some props for writing such believable and endearing young characters, because it’s not easy to write good teenage characters that won’t just frustrate you on every single page. And though I’ll admit that some of the dialogue and text messages felt a bit juvenile and cringy, I also can’t deny that it was still really fun to follow them.
Also, heck yes for super strong friendships and supportive parents, those heartwarming relationships were without a doubt the highlight of the story for me!
Now, I personally read this entire book in one go, which should tell you enough about how enjoyable and engaging these stories were. The author did a good job of raising the stakes and making each story a little more complex by building upon what had come before. These characters are faced with difficult decisions and really have to rely on their wits to resolve all the conflicts, which I enjoyed seeing.
All that said, when you read all the stories back-to-back, they can start to feel a bit repetitive. They all have the same set up of: get a vision, make a plan, save the day. And though that set-up is executed well, I think spreading these stories out over a couple of days will make for the best reading experience. I reckon it’d be fun to open your book and reconnect with a fun cast of characters to see what new challenges they have to face that day.
All in all, I had a good time with this book and it turned out to be the perfect break in between some of my heavier reads. Definitely give Umbrage a shot if you like the idea of an episodic high school superhero adventure that will keep you entertained the entire way through!
Thank you to the author for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
June 1, 2023
3.75 Stars
Umbrage reminded me of those teen shows where a bunch of kids with super powers save people. It was told in episodic format. Each episode/chapter is a different adventure. Just when we think its getting repetitive, we realise that there is a common thread in the background. It was a fun read. I enjoyed following these characters. Perfect read between epic fantasies.
Umbrage reminded me of those teen shows where a bunch of kids with super powers save people. It was told in episodic format. Each episode/chapter is a different adventure. Just when we think its getting repetitive, we realise that there is a common thread in the background. It was a fun read. I enjoyed following these characters. Perfect read between epic fantasies.
May 29, 2023
Sometimes I am astounded by the creativity of an author. This is one of those times. In my opinion, it takes a super creative brain to come up with the idea for Kayla to be able to see people’s deaths, so kudos to Derek Baily.
This book takes the form of a few short stories about Kayla, who has the ability to see the coming of people’s death. In these short stories, we follow Kayla and her friends as they try to find a way to stop these deaths from occurring.
You should read this book if you:
✅ Love books about people with supernatural abilities.
✅ Don’t have a lot of spare time to read and need something that is easy to put down and pick up.
✅ Love YA.
✅ Need an easy, non-stressful read.
My one critique of this book is on the cover (I know that we are not meant to judge a book by its cover, but admit it, we all do ;)). The cover of this book threw me off a little bit, and I feel like if I saw this cover at, say the library, I probably would not have picked it up. However, despite the cover, this book holds a lot of promise, creativity, and talent.
I give this book 3.5 stars rounded up.
Thank you Derek Bailey for giving me an ARC copy of this book.
This book takes the form of a few short stories about Kayla, who has the ability to see the coming of people’s death. In these short stories, we follow Kayla and her friends as they try to find a way to stop these deaths from occurring.
You should read this book if you:
✅ Love books about people with supernatural abilities.
✅ Don’t have a lot of spare time to read and need something that is easy to put down and pick up.
✅ Love YA.
✅ Need an easy, non-stressful read.
My one critique of this book is on the cover (I know that we are not meant to judge a book by its cover, but admit it, we all do ;)). The cover of this book threw me off a little bit, and I feel like if I saw this cover at, say the library, I probably would not have picked it up. However, despite the cover, this book holds a lot of promise, creativity, and talent.
I give this book 3.5 stars rounded up.
Thank you Derek Bailey for giving me an ARC copy of this book.
July 24, 2023
Kayla McIntyre appears to be a normal incoming high school freshman.
However; she is anything but normal. Kayla gets visions of individuals when their death is about to occur. With the help of her best friend, Emily, they work together to try and prevent the deaths. Along the way Vijay, an empth who can sense emotions, starts helping them. Kayla's dad also helps on some of the missions.
Umbrage is written in seven short stories to create a bigger story. This was an enjoyable, quick read. I want more stories with Kayla, Emily, and Vijay.
However; she is anything but normal. Kayla gets visions of individuals when their death is about to occur. With the help of her best friend, Emily, they work together to try and prevent the deaths. Along the way Vijay, an empth who can sense emotions, starts helping them. Kayla's dad also helps on some of the missions.
Umbrage is written in seven short stories to create a bigger story. This was an enjoyable, quick read. I want more stories with Kayla, Emily, and Vijay.
September 27, 2023
Great ideas and was eventually captured by the storyline. Feels as though a book that was *almost* there or if the author were more practiced itd feel more complete. Clearly felt like a brain child and am happy to support new authors so hoping they continue to hone their craft as the creativity is there.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews