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I Am The Salamander
Don’t freak out.
Tim Cruz, I mean, not you. Tim is gradually turning into something he never would have imagined possible, something stupid and horrifying and, frankly, kind of disgusting. That’s why he keeps telling himself: Don’t freak out.
Tim Cruz, I mean, not you. Tim is gradually turning into something he never would have imagined possible, something stupid and horrifying and, frankly, kind of disgusting. That’s why he keeps telling himself: Don’t freak out.
188 pages, ebook
First published September 19, 2014
16 people want to read
About the author
Michael Jan Friedman
374 books205 followersMichael Jan Friedman is an author of more than seventy books of fiction and nonfiction, half of which are in the Star Trek universe. Eleven of his titles have appeared on the New York Times Best Seller list. Friedman has also written for network and cable television and radio, and scripted nearly 200 comic books, including his original DC superhero series, the Darkstars.
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
April 8, 2015
This may be telling.
[I am a huge Michael Jan Friedman fan]
I read and re-read his books for comfort.
This book is now added to my list of comfort books.
Great use of voice [felt like a teen, not an adult using teen phrases or words].
Good pace.
Development of action and powers just right.
Good use of background people.
Good ground work for other books featuring this cast.
I "want" to read more, to know more about these people and where they go from here.
Best of all and fun ending.
more, more, more...!
[I am a huge Michael Jan Friedman fan]
I read and re-read his books for comfort.
This book is now added to my list of comfort books.
Great use of voice [felt like a teen, not an adult using teen phrases or words].
Good pace.
Development of action and powers just right.
Good use of background people.
Good ground work for other books featuring this cast.
I "want" to read more, to know more about these people and where they go from here.
Best of all and fun ending.
more, more, more...!
January 16, 2021
Michael Jan Friedman is an interesting author....he doesn't write with the stylistic flourishes that distinguish many of my favorite authors and his prose is very straightforward. Yet he continually creates characters that draw me in. This book starts out a little slow and ends in a way that is both very satisfying and also frustrating in that it leaves the reader wanting more, but I can't deny that I was intrigued by the book and would certainly read a sequel.
July 23, 2018
Excellent young adult superhero novel by a talented writer of prose and comics. Grounded very much in the real world, it introduces the Salamander, a young man that recovers from a near death experience with strange powers.
It's a complete novel in itself, but it truly makes one want to see a sequel.
It's a complete novel in itself, but it truly makes one want to see a sequel.
May 21, 2015
After his cancer mysteriously goes into remission, Tim Cruz wants nothing more than to resume the normal life of a teenager. He returns to his high school in the middle of the spring semester only to confront the stares of his classmates, the bully who once harassed him on a weekly basis, and the most gorgeous girl on campus, who had been a childhood friend until they drifted apart.
Yep, it was comforting to see that so few things had changed…except for Tim Cruz. He was fifteen pounds lighter, his hair was still growing back from chemo, he’d learned to despise crowds, and…oh, yeah…his skin was beginning to change colors when he was under stress.
What?
Tim dismisses this anomaly at first, along with the bizarre, intermittent flashes of light, until he returns to his uncle’s aquarium to get his old job back. There, he witnesses a little girl flailing helplessly in the piranha tank. Naturally, he dives into save her, only to find that she becomes even more frightened of him than of her ordeal. Worse, piranhas had claimed two of his toes—which grew back over the course of a few days.
Much like the hand he tore off as a distraction after knocking out a gunman in the school auditorium by leaping on top of him—from the ceiling where he had crawled from the projector booth.
What is going on here?
That’s exactly what Tim Cruz would like to know and is determined to find out, even as an anonymous blogger, known only as Blog Boy, begins reporting incidents of this strange creature known now as The Salamander.
Tim later realizes that in addition to moving through water at inhuman speeds and his ability to cling to walls, he can also see in infrared when needed, and stun his opponents with a neurotoxin transmitted by touch.
And that ain’t all.
As Tim tries to determine the origins of his amazing powers, he learns that a clandestine group of government agents wants to dissect him in an effort to build an army of super soldiers. They’ll stop at nothing to get what they want—including threatening Tim’s family.
Can this young cancer survivor evade capture, avoid revealing himself to the public, protect his family, manage his schoolwork, stave off the bully, and…oh yeah…deal with the unexpected affections of the most gorgeous girl on campus?
All without telling his mom?
I Am The Salamander is a fast-paced, fun read. You can’t help but sympathize with typical high-school nerd Tim Cruz, who finds himself suddenly thrust from one life-threatening ordeal into another, all the while admirably maintaining his composure and resilience through an inner strength born from his battle with the deadliest of diseases.
Yep, it was comforting to see that so few things had changed…except for Tim Cruz. He was fifteen pounds lighter, his hair was still growing back from chemo, he’d learned to despise crowds, and…oh, yeah…his skin was beginning to change colors when he was under stress.
What?
Tim dismisses this anomaly at first, along with the bizarre, intermittent flashes of light, until he returns to his uncle’s aquarium to get his old job back. There, he witnesses a little girl flailing helplessly in the piranha tank. Naturally, he dives into save her, only to find that she becomes even more frightened of him than of her ordeal. Worse, piranhas had claimed two of his toes—which grew back over the course of a few days.
Much like the hand he tore off as a distraction after knocking out a gunman in the school auditorium by leaping on top of him—from the ceiling where he had crawled from the projector booth.
What is going on here?
That’s exactly what Tim Cruz would like to know and is determined to find out, even as an anonymous blogger, known only as Blog Boy, begins reporting incidents of this strange creature known now as The Salamander.
Tim later realizes that in addition to moving through water at inhuman speeds and his ability to cling to walls, he can also see in infrared when needed, and stun his opponents with a neurotoxin transmitted by touch.
And that ain’t all.
As Tim tries to determine the origins of his amazing powers, he learns that a clandestine group of government agents wants to dissect him in an effort to build an army of super soldiers. They’ll stop at nothing to get what they want—including threatening Tim’s family.
Can this young cancer survivor evade capture, avoid revealing himself to the public, protect his family, manage his schoolwork, stave off the bully, and…oh yeah…deal with the unexpected affections of the most gorgeous girl on campus?
All without telling his mom?
I Am The Salamander is a fast-paced, fun read. You can’t help but sympathize with typical high-school nerd Tim Cruz, who finds himself suddenly thrust from one life-threatening ordeal into another, all the while admirably maintaining his composure and resilience through an inner strength born from his battle with the deadliest of diseases.
July 30, 2014
One of my lamer hobbies is patrolling Kickstarter's "Ending Soon" category and donating money to projects that are close to goal but might not make it. That is how I ended up with a copy of I AM THE SALAMANDER--a book I did not expect to like.
Luckily for me, this book ended up being an enjoyable read with a likable hero. And, best of all, this author can not only tell a story, he can also WRITE! Which, after reading his bio, I realize is because he has written sixty or so books. SO...he has a bit of practice!
I loved the way the author masterfully revealed character details and description...just a little at a time, holding back some secrets for the reader to wonder about.
In this story, a 16-year-old cancer survivor becomes aware that he sometimes turns into a salamander-ish creature with special powers. This was handled wonderfully! I know how hard this is to do right--being a fan of characters with special powers AND having written such characters myself (and not nearly as well as this author!)
Often, the revelation of powers fails to convince readers. Sometimes this is because the character himself doesn't question them enough or seem as freaked out as they should be about them. Other times, it is because support characters take it all in stride without some major freak out moments. In this book, the main character explores his new abilities in a believable way. This reader was spared moments of thinking "No way! That would NEVER happen!" The story proceeded smoothly with only a mild degree of predictability.
I heartily recommend this book to anyone who craves well-written YA, especially those who dig characters with special powers. It is a fast, enjoyable read that will leave you wanting more. I will definitely be checking out more books by this author.
Luckily for me, this book ended up being an enjoyable read with a likable hero. And, best of all, this author can not only tell a story, he can also WRITE! Which, after reading his bio, I realize is because he has written sixty or so books. SO...he has a bit of practice!
I loved the way the author masterfully revealed character details and description...just a little at a time, holding back some secrets for the reader to wonder about.
In this story, a 16-year-old cancer survivor becomes aware that he sometimes turns into a salamander-ish creature with special powers. This was handled wonderfully! I know how hard this is to do right--being a fan of characters with special powers AND having written such characters myself (and not nearly as well as this author!)
Often, the revelation of powers fails to convince readers. Sometimes this is because the character himself doesn't question them enough or seem as freaked out as they should be about them. Other times, it is because support characters take it all in stride without some major freak out moments. In this book, the main character explores his new abilities in a believable way. This reader was spared moments of thinking "No way! That would NEVER happen!" The story proceeded smoothly with only a mild degree of predictability.
I heartily recommend this book to anyone who craves well-written YA, especially those who dig characters with special powers. It is a fast, enjoyable read that will leave you wanting more. I will definitely be checking out more books by this author.
March 5, 2017
Like most of the Michael Jan Friedman books I've read, this one has a quick grab, a good plot and enough intriguing action to keep the pages turning. Tim Cruz is a sophomore high school kid returning to class after a miraculous recovery from a brain tumor. But his time as a cancer patient has left him with an almost paralyzing introversion complex, and some rather strange new 'abilities' that he's just starting to discover. Take the journey along with him as he tires to walk the road of a return to normalcy, but is pushed in other not-so-normal directions by circumstance beyond his control.
This story took me back to the awkward schoolboy days big-time. I could really relate to the main character, and I haven't been a schoolboy for a long long time myself. I was completely absorbed into the emotions and struggles he was going through. That too is trademark Friedman. The superhero coming to life could have been bit more developed, but the other good points totally overshadow that minor grievance. I can say that I a proud to have been a backer for this Kickstarter generated novel, and I hope to see it's sequel someday.
I give it 3.5 stars and call it a Great Read!
This story took me back to the awkward schoolboy days big-time. I could really relate to the main character, and I haven't been a schoolboy for a long long time myself. I was completely absorbed into the emotions and struggles he was going through. That too is trademark Friedman. The superhero coming to life could have been bit more developed, but the other good points totally overshadow that minor grievance. I can say that I a proud to have been a backer for this Kickstarter generated novel, and I hope to see it's sequel someday.
I give it 3.5 stars and call it a Great Read!
April 23, 2015
It was okay. The title and the back-cover description are a bit off-putting, but it was good enough that I stayed up reading it until like 12:30 a.m., on a weeknight, when I have other stuff I need to do anyway.
And then I decided to write a review about it, on Goodreads, which I only got so I could add a life quote with Marvin saying, "Life. Don't talk to me about life," because I'm just that sort of person.
Anyway: Despite the strange premise of the book, it was actually interesting. I got it for Christmas or my birthday, and basically just decided to read it in a "Heck. Why not?" sort of mood, which is actually kind of why I'm writing this, when I think about it...
The main character is a loner, which I can identify with, and the story was pretty well-paced. I thought that the ending was at a kind of weird point, though.
And then I decided to write a review about it, on Goodreads, which I only got so I could add a life quote with Marvin saying, "Life. Don't talk to me about life," because I'm just that sort of person.
Anyway: Despite the strange premise of the book, it was actually interesting. I got it for Christmas or my birthday, and basically just decided to read it in a "Heck. Why not?" sort of mood, which is actually kind of why I'm writing this, when I think about it...
The main character is a loner, which I can identify with, and the story was pretty well-paced. I thought that the ending was at a kind of weird point, though.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews