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The Pact: The Canaanshade Journeys Book I
Scott Addison never set out to be a hero. But sometimes, no matter how hard you try, you can't run away from destiny. On the heels of his father's death, Scott and his mother move from Iowa City, Iowa to the small Southern Illinois town of Meadowbrook. Scott just wanted to blend in...to observe quietly...to be one of the kids. Unfortunately for Scott, his instincts, heart, and integrity took over on his first day at his new middle school. Scott stood up to and faced down three larger boys torturing a wiry little boy named Paul. This simple act of kindness and chivalry put Scott in the midst of the conflict and on the receiving end of the bullies' antics. Paul introduces Scott to two high school friends who just happen to play Warriors & Thieves, Scott's favorite role-playing fantasy game. The game and his new friends provide a much needed escape from both his past and his present troubles...at least for a while. But no matter how hard Scott tries to blend in at school, his pet peeve of bullying and his overwhelming sense of right and wrong continue to push him into the limelight, bringing praises from many, but more opposition from the bullies. When the hazing goes too far Scott decides it is time to take a stand...no matter the cost. Of course, sometimes, that's the price heroes must pay.
232 pages, Paperback
First published August 22, 2013
About the author
Mitchell S. Karnes
8 books120 followersMitchell S Karnes was born in Kansas and spent his childhood in Illinois. He lives in Brentwood, TN with his wife, Natalie, and five of their seven children. He serves as the Senior Pastor of Walker Baptist Church in Franklin. Mitchell holds a Bachelor’s degree and three Master’s degrees.
He hopes to entertain, challenge, move and teach through each and every book, using his stories as catalysts for discussions on critical topics such as bullying, making the right choices, standing firm in the face of danger, and discovering your gifts and talents. The Pact was just the beginning…the first book in a four-part series called The Canaanshade Journeys. Now he continues the tale with The Dragon’s Pawn.
He hopes to entertain, challenge, move and teach through each and every book, using his stories as catalysts for discussions on critical topics such as bullying, making the right choices, standing firm in the face of danger, and discovering your gifts and talents. The Pact was just the beginning…the first book in a four-part series called The Canaanshade Journeys. Now he continues the tale with The Dragon’s Pawn.
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
September 6, 2016
The Pact is an excellent novel for middle-school youth. It deals heavily with a theme of bullying. Paul is a student who is bullied at school, when a new student, Scott Addison transfers in. Scott refuses to be intimidated by bullies and saves Paul from the school’s gang of bullies. Paul and Scott become great friends and Scott continues to protect Paul from the gang, but then Scott falls prey to the gangs bullying tactics.
Scott has just moved to the small town after the death of his father, and Scott has to rely on the lessons his dad taught him about taking the higher road. Scott has a hard time when even the youth pastor of his grandpa’s church seems to be against him when Scott tells him that he feels his gift is creativity. Once the pastor heard that Scott played role-playing games, the pastor became very defensive and judgemental and negative towards Scott, making Scott feel unwelcome and awkward.
This book is rich in the development of its characters and relationships. The emotional difficulty that Scott goes through when he goes from being defender-of-the-bullied to being the bullied feels very real. The author also gives us great insight into what might be some of the possible issues that might cause a person to be a bully in the first place and helps us not just to be angry with the main bully Joe, but also to empathize with him.
Michael Karnes does a commendable job in exploring the consequences of bullying and how it affects not only the individual that is being bullied, but his/her friends and family. He also shows what can happen when that bullying is taken to extremes, though he doesn’t go into it in depth.
The pacing of this book was excellent, fairly consistent throughout. I did have some difficulty deciding where the author stood on whether role-playing games were good or not, though I suppose he may have been saying that all things in moderation are acceptable. In the story one of the characters became so immersed in his role-playing characters that he began to feel personally affronted if the others did anything averse to his role-playing character. It was as though he and his character were one and the same. That can’t be good. Yet the other three boys had no such problem and could retire their role-playing characters without any issue.
I thoroughly enjoyed reading The Pact and am looking forward to the sequel to this book. I gave The Pact 5 stars out of 5.
Thank you to TLC Book Tours who provided a copy of the book in exchange for a fair and honest review. A positive opinion was not required. All thoughts are my own.
Scott has just moved to the small town after the death of his father, and Scott has to rely on the lessons his dad taught him about taking the higher road. Scott has a hard time when even the youth pastor of his grandpa’s church seems to be against him when Scott tells him that he feels his gift is creativity. Once the pastor heard that Scott played role-playing games, the pastor became very defensive and judgemental and negative towards Scott, making Scott feel unwelcome and awkward.
This book is rich in the development of its characters and relationships. The emotional difficulty that Scott goes through when he goes from being defender-of-the-bullied to being the bullied feels very real. The author also gives us great insight into what might be some of the possible issues that might cause a person to be a bully in the first place and helps us not just to be angry with the main bully Joe, but also to empathize with him.
Michael Karnes does a commendable job in exploring the consequences of bullying and how it affects not only the individual that is being bullied, but his/her friends and family. He also shows what can happen when that bullying is taken to extremes, though he doesn’t go into it in depth.
The pacing of this book was excellent, fairly consistent throughout. I did have some difficulty deciding where the author stood on whether role-playing games were good or not, though I suppose he may have been saying that all things in moderation are acceptable. In the story one of the characters became so immersed in his role-playing characters that he began to feel personally affronted if the others did anything averse to his role-playing character. It was as though he and his character were one and the same. That can’t be good. Yet the other three boys had no such problem and could retire their role-playing characters without any issue.
I thoroughly enjoyed reading The Pact and am looking forward to the sequel to this book. I gave The Pact 5 stars out of 5.
Thank you to TLC Book Tours who provided a copy of the book in exchange for a fair and honest review. A positive opinion was not required. All thoughts are my own.
June 17, 2015
*Some minor spoilers* (This review is honest and was not elicited by the author.)
Don't let the somewhat blase title "The Pact" fool you. It did me at first, but not after all the excitement, tension, and action that Mr. Karnes put me through. I not only liked the story very much, but also found it very absorbing and memorable, unlike many stories I've read recently. It was surprisingly dark, even to the point of being troubling. The characterizations were generally good and I found myself caring about them, even the bullies in the end, That is half the battle, I believe, in writing a good story. Kudos to Mr. Karnes again!
That said... there seemed to be inconsistencies in the characters, such as the hero in the story suddenly not being able to overcome his fear in order to save his friend. It struck me a bit contrived and unconvincing. Even worse, when three of the friends "gang up" on the fourth in their Warrior & Thieves game, I felt that it was completely out of character. Also, that they thought that their friend wouldn't take it as hard as he did made me roll my eyes. Considering his personality and anger issues, they didn't think about just how hard he'd take it? Worst of all was the fact that Scott did not even suspect this same person of terrorizing him!
Don't let these criticisms dissuade you from reading this book, however. I highly recommend it for YA. It was a wonderful and dramatic depiction of faith struggling and overcoming through hardship and tragedy. I am excited to read the next book in the series!
Don't let the somewhat blase title "The Pact" fool you. It did me at first, but not after all the excitement, tension, and action that Mr. Karnes put me through. I not only liked the story very much, but also found it very absorbing and memorable, unlike many stories I've read recently. It was surprisingly dark, even to the point of being troubling. The characterizations were generally good and I found myself caring about them, even the bullies in the end, That is half the battle, I believe, in writing a good story. Kudos to Mr. Karnes again!
That said... there seemed to be inconsistencies in the characters, such as the hero in the story suddenly not being able to overcome his fear in order to save his friend. It struck me a bit contrived and unconvincing. Even worse, when three of the friends "gang up" on the fourth in their Warrior & Thieves game, I felt that it was completely out of character. Also, that they thought that their friend wouldn't take it as hard as he did made me roll my eyes. Considering his personality and anger issues, they didn't think about just how hard he'd take it? Worst of all was the fact that Scott did not even suspect this same person of terrorizing him!
Don't let these criticisms dissuade you from reading this book, however. I highly recommend it for YA. It was a wonderful and dramatic depiction of faith struggling and overcoming through hardship and tragedy. I am excited to read the next book in the series!
August 29, 2016
The Pact by MItchell S Karnes is a book for early teens. The subject matter does include bullying, multi-player games, religion and death. The book highlights the difficulty with moving into a small town and starting over again with the pain of the death of his father. The book was originally published three years ago and there is a second book published.
Scott is the main character who has had a hard time since his dad died. He and his mom move into a small town where he seems to be surrounded by bullies. Instead of a quiet entrance to school and wrestling, he takes on the bullies and life becomes more complicated than he anticipated. Luckily, he finds a group to play Warriors and Thieves, a role playing game. Only sometimes the role playing goes too far. Scott does not expect all the issues that are exposed or the consequences of his actions. Oh - and - just when you think you have it figured out - well - you don’t.
The Pact is a good reading match for an early teen for lovers of D and D or Magic.
Scott is the main character who has had a hard time since his dad died. He and his mom move into a small town where he seems to be surrounded by bullies. Instead of a quiet entrance to school and wrestling, he takes on the bullies and life becomes more complicated than he anticipated. Luckily, he finds a group to play Warriors and Thieves, a role playing game. Only sometimes the role playing goes too far. Scott does not expect all the issues that are exposed or the consequences of his actions. Oh - and - just when you think you have it figured out - well - you don’t.
The Pact is a good reading match for an early teen for lovers of D and D or Magic.
January 7, 2014
Taking games to extreme. This book highlights what a lot of teens go through, and adults seem to turn their blind eye. Yes they try, but the kids are hurting. Not only are their bullies, but we see why they are acting out.
Although this is a teen read, I would recommend that parents every where read this. We see first hand how a game can get out of control, and dangerous. There is also the dealing with a lot of grief, the loosing of a parents and grandparents.
I found that once I started reading this, I could not put it down. I greatly admired the main character, he is every parents dream child, but dealing with heavy burdens.
I received this book through TLC Book Tours, and was not required to give a positive review.
Although this is a teen read, I would recommend that parents every where read this. We see first hand how a game can get out of control, and dangerous. There is also the dealing with a lot of grief, the loosing of a parents and grandparents.
I found that once I started reading this, I could not put it down. I greatly admired the main character, he is every parents dream child, but dealing with heavy burdens.
I received this book through TLC Book Tours, and was not required to give a positive review.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews