The Bite on the Line

Bytarend #1

by Simon Cantan

Clinging to the bar running along the front of the platform, Sergeant Osric has a lot of time to think about how he got there. About how he’s shooting through a forest on a rocket powered railcar. About how a grinning thief is clinging to the same bar beside him. Most of all, though, about how he’s heading for Bytarend; a town no-one has heard from in almost a hundred years. There has to be a reasonable explanation for their silence, after all. Osric tries to think of a reason that doesn’t end in his horrible death...

... he can’t come up with one.

Genres: Fantasy, Humor, Fiction, Steampunk

342 pages, ebook

First published June 7, 2013

About the author

Want something exciting to read for free? I have a bunch of free books over here: http://simoncantan.com/get-your-free-...

Of course, if you'd rather read my bio, it's below, but it's not quite as action-packed :)

I was born in Dublin in 1975 and from the age of 13 I knew I wanted to be a writer. The book that made up my mind was "The Stainless Steel Rat" by Harry Harrison.

It's a fun, action-packed book with a lot of humour and I wanted to write something similar. I've been pestering friends and family with that idea ever since.

I wrote three books that weren't any good. They're still sitting in a digital drawer somewhere. Then I wrote a book that did what I set out to do decades before. "The Bite on the Line" is fun, fast, action-packed fantasy (or at least I think so).

I published it in June 2013 and got such positive feedback that I finished the rest of the series by September 2015.

In 2013, I also published "Hard Vacuum", which is my science fiction tribute to 80s movies. It's sweary, violent and has lots of one liners filled with puns. In other words, it doesn't take itself too seriously.

People liked that one so much I wrote the second book in the series and I'm currently working on the third.

In 2014, I started collaborating with Dave Higgins. We wrote Greenstar, which is our comedy science-fiction series. It's pretty unique, with our dry sense of humour.

You can find out lots more about my books on my website: http://simoncantan.com

If you have any book recommendations, I'd love to hear them too. I'm always on the lookout for fast-paced science fiction and fantasy.

Reviews

[Seth Tucker]

A fun romp that does not take itself too seriously. I was not sure what I was getting into when this book began. It appeared to be similar to other fantasy books that I've read, but then chapter 2 derailed that all together. With fun, comical dialogue between characters and memorable scenarios, Simon Cantan creates a fun world, populated by monsters and the city guard of Bytarend, which clash with comical weapons and disastrous results. A quick fun read for fans of fantasy that want to something that takes its source material a little bit less serious.

[Baz Leone]

I struggled to figure out the target audience for this book as I'm sure it's meant for an adult reader but in my opinion is really a young adult book as the writing isn't quite sophisticated enough for the adult market. This said it's an engaging story that flows well.

There's a handful of errors that need ironing out, often sentences with words missing and some punctuation issues. I did find the overuse of the word 'loomed' annoying and the use of 'span' which is a measurement of distance instead of 'spun'. But the word that annoyed the heck out of me was the none-word 'gotten' which does not exist in English language usage, the past participle of get is got, the use of this often American English word is popping up far too often with new writers. I'm surprised the author's writing group didn't point this out to him as he credits them with help and advice.

I liked the characterisation within the book and the author's ability to keep the dialogue fresh and the thread of the story intact, however I did think chapter one was a non entity as it gave us information that was not relevant to the actual story and set up a different story that went nowhere.

I did feel let down by the last chapter as the story seemed to end abruptly, it was almost one of those, 'he woke up and it was all a dream' endings.

On the whole I did like this book, but marked it down from four stars to three for the use of the word 'gotten'.

[Katina French]

This book was delightful. The dialogue was snappy, and occasionally laugh-out-loud funny. The dynamic between the two main characters reminded me a lot of Michael J. Sullivan's Royce and Hadrian, although the characters themselves are distinct and different. Some of the situations were fairly (and I'd guess, intentionally) ridiculous, especially whenever the mad scientist's inventions came into play. But it just contributed to the whole over-the-top action/comedy vibe. It's sort of a buddy cop movie set into a medieval fantasy mixed with a few urban fantasy tropes. Also, zombies and kick-butt female vigilantes.

But it's not a farce. The action sequences were particularly well-written. Osric and Tondbert are skilled, but get through their first couple of encounters with the local undead (dubbed "lifeless") largely on luck and really good survival instincts. There are also quasi vampires called "lifeleeches" and pseudo-werecreature "animal leeches" who've been slowly draining the life out of their new jurisdiction (pun most definitely intended).

All in all, it's a hard book to classify, but an easy one to like.

[Philip Whiteland]

could be very superior and say that this is sub-Pratchett, takes a while to get going and requires a considerable suspension of disbelief at times. All of which would be true, but that wouldn't get to the gist which is that this is a fun story with some intriguing characters. I can guarantee that you will be entertained, which is what it is all about really, isn't it?

[Sondra]

loved it loved it loved it

Loved it. Couldn't put it down I read it two hours or less it was great well written but the characters of the plot just loved it really I can't say anything more than I just really looking forward to number two and more thank you for an enjoyable afternoon

[Chris Light]

A Fantastic Book

This book is written for anyone who likes action and they won't be disappointed. The two main characters are very different yet entertaining throughout and the bad guys are very original in design. The story is gripping and thoroughly enjoyable from start to finish. A must read for all. Can't wait to read the next story

[Tony Duxbury]

A lovely read with wonderful characters who battle great odds and don't have the good sense to run away. It is gritty and funny with flawed characters that you will just love. A very entertaining piece of nonsense that anyone who likes a bit of humour with their fantasy will enjoy.

[John Welch]

At the start of this I thought the writing was poor, typical writing group/self published laboured material. However, after a while it did get a flow going and became much more readable, and became an enjoyable read. It is quite derivative, but in the end I did not feel as if I had wasted my time.

[Johan Duinkerken]

A very smooth, enjoyable read; not without some inconsistencies, but the lightness of the telling made up for that. I definitely want to read more about the inhabitants of Bytarend!

[Sharon Kennedy]

I did enjoy this, but got annoyed by the continued use of "span" - span is a unit of distance and does not mean that the person SPUN around!

[Bernie Morris]

Really enjoyed it. Very reminiscent of Terry Pratchett, especially 'The Guard'. Would like to read the next book in the series.

[Rebecca Ann Flanagan]

Good Easy Read

Easy to read and get into. Subtle humor wrapped around an entertaining story and well developed characters. I will look for other works by this author.

[Karen Parker]

Cute

Entertaining, not quite what I expected but I did enjoy the story. Don't know if I will buy the next one yet. Gonna think on it.

[Stanley]

Fun book

I like the authors style and sense of humor. It will keep you entertained from the start to the last page.

[bex]

Unusual and interesting, but never got a sense of the world. Even life leeches and animal leeches are unclear. Why do animal leeches attack people?? Why do lifeless breathe? Why no lifeless animals all over? Lots happens but too little makes sense to me.

[Kelley]

I enjoyed

Good overall story with some very funny scenes. I quite enjoyed reading it. But it had lots of plot holes.

[Dave Higgins]

In this novel Cantan blends science-fiction and humour into an engaging fantasy story without either falling into parody or over-cleverness.

This book is the first in the Bytarend series. When his family’s desert fastness falls, Tondbert flees to the nearest city. As one unfortunate event follows another he is impoverished, forced to join the city guard, then exiled to Bytarend, the furthest edge of the city’s holdings. Partnered with Sergeant Osric, a man high in morals but low in politics, he finds Bytarend in the grip of evil forces.

Cantan has built a world on the verge of technological revolution. Rejecting the classic steam-punk fantasy pairing, he takes elements of modern life such as the jet engine and re-imagines how they would seem if they were an experimental method of powering a train. In parallel with technological advancement, he creates a magical system that provides equal – but different – benefits and risks to technological progress.

Lacing this tension between magic and science with a solid dose of humour, he skillfully balances the schadenfreude of the pratfall with the actual horror inherent in the power to slaughter more efficiently.

This balance of realism and humour continues in the characters. Both Tondbert and Osric are the butt of a repeating joke: everyone pretends not to notice Tondbert is clearly a desert raider; no-one listens when Osric attempts to explain he is only a Sergeant. But these repeating jokes are lightly sprinkled onto a complex dynamic of two men who are united by the belief that honourable people fight against injustice, but divided by both age and life experience.

The supporting characters share this depth of personality. Unlike some fantasy novels, good characters are capable of acting with petty self-interest or prejudice.

The only area this complexity is not fully realised is in the villains. Although Cantan does provide real motivation for their schemes, several appear more as foils to the protagonists than characters in their own right, leaving them a hair over the line into melodrama.

I really enjoyed this novel. I recommend it to readers looking for a well-crafted fantasy story presented in a light style.

I was not asked to write this review. However, I am a member of the same writing community as the author and faced in him in the first Legendary Author Battle.

[Rebecca]

Once this book sort of settled into itself I enjoyed it, but it lost a star because the first quarter or so kept me unsteady. I couldn't tell what kind of book it was trying to be. The very beginning is more traditional castles and kings with a cast of characters that are almost immediately removed, the next section introduces a whole new place and set of characters and feels like a slightly different genre and then that setting and cast are removed and we're introduced to a third place and cast which settles into a more horror-edged feel. Once it settled into the third set the book started to find its stride. I definitely felt like too much time was spent on detailed description, particularly in the second section, when we weren't going to stay there. I think most of the beginning felt unnecessary to the plot because it wasn't enough for me to really get attached to the people there, so they don't really add the impetus to the characters I think they're supposed to, but it was enough to drag the story out and keep us from getting to the things the author obviously wanted to focus on in Bytarend.
I'm also still not sure what the title is supposed to mean. Glancing at the cover and the title, I would assume this was about fishing or something. I obviously read the description (because I don't really care about fishing, so...), but even having finished the book I don't know what the "line" or the "bite" is.

I did enjoy the section of the book set in Bytarend for the most part. I thought Cantan's take on vampires was interesting and I enjoyed the two main characters (for the most part) and the light tone managed to work most of the time, which can be hard to pull off.

[Tony Green]

This was Simon Cantans first published full length story. The original version (The Bite At The End Of The Line) was very good and left me wanting more. Simon has since done a complete re-write and re-published as The Bite On The Line. Whereas the first version was good, this new version is nothing short of excellent! It gallops along at a breakneck pace, is exciting, improbable but somehow all too beleivable and is also funny.
The characters are very real, fortunately very human; apart from, of course the life leeches, the lifeless, the dark mages, the various were-animals and the strange creatures in the forest. You'll have to trust me on this one, the humans are very human even if they sometimes have difficulty staying that way! Having read this first book in the series, I wasted no time in ordering books 2 and 3.
I can highly recommend this book and feel sure that once you've read it, you too will want to carry on with the series.

[Charles Daniel]

Puny Punny Prose and Glaring Grammar Gaffes.

This book aims for the amusing puns of Piers Anthony or Robert L. Asprin (spelling may be off on his name) and the humorous Harrison's works. It falls a bit short of the mark, but is good try. The book also has some grammatical gaffes--which led to a somewhat lower r a ting than I might otherwise give it.

[Emmalg]

This is not an easy book to review fairly. I enjoyed it, liked the characters and found it humorous. On that basis it deserves a much higher score. Unfortunately, I find I can't rate it highly because it is full of errors; often whole words are missing from sentences. It is possibly the worst of the self-published books I've come across in that respect.

[Richard A. Wolfenden]

Too much for me

This story has too many items that are not cohesive for me to believe that there is a storyline. This was many disconnected segments or ideas rather than a story.

[John Wicks]

Very light hearted and, in places very funny.

[Imelda James]

it was ok

[Robbie]

This is so not my genre. Having said that, I found myself enjoying the weirdness of the story. There was some humor, plenty of action and characters that grew on me. I rate it 3.8 stars.

[Deboray Y. Gregory]

Can't recommend this book.

Writing is choppy, verging on juvenile. I think the book was suppose to be comedic, but it certainly fell short in that respect, also.

[Chuck Whiteneck]

Thoroughly enjoyed this humorous fantasy science fiction adventure. Highly recommend it for a get away light read.