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7th Son #3
7th Son: Destruction
As day four in the 7th Son adventure begins, John Alpha's quest for anarchy and genocide enters its final stage.
At every turn, the global terrorist has been triumphant. The world is reeling from a nuclear attack. An unprecedented energy crisis is upon us. Alpha himself has exclusive access to the White House, and secret weapons primed to propel his conspiracy into the endgame. The planetary chaos.
Amidst this turmoil, the 7th Son's four surviving Beta Clones -- John, Father Thomas, Kilroy2.0 and Jack -- must defy their creators and hunt Alpha on their terms. Their to stop the greatest assassination plot in history. The secrets John and his brothers discover will press them toward a final battle with their progenitor ... a battle in which the clones are outgunned, outnumbered and out of time.
Alliances will be made. Heroes will die. The end is nigh.
Destruction is the final novel in the J.C. Hutchins' 7th Son thriller trilogy.
At every turn, the global terrorist has been triumphant. The world is reeling from a nuclear attack. An unprecedented energy crisis is upon us. Alpha himself has exclusive access to the White House, and secret weapons primed to propel his conspiracy into the endgame. The planetary chaos.
Amidst this turmoil, the 7th Son's four surviving Beta Clones -- John, Father Thomas, Kilroy2.0 and Jack -- must defy their creators and hunt Alpha on their terms. Their to stop the greatest assassination plot in history. The secrets John and his brothers discover will press them toward a final battle with their progenitor ... a battle in which the clones are outgunned, outnumbered and out of time.
Alliances will be made. Heroes will die. The end is nigh.
Destruction is the final novel in the J.C. Hutchins' 7th Son thriller trilogy.
6 pages, Audiobook
First published January 1, 2007
8 people are currently reading
260 people want to read
About the author
J.C. Hutchins
25 books218 followersFrom the About J.C. page of jchutchins.net:
J.C. Hutchins crafts transmedia narratives, screenplays and novels for such entertainment companies as A&E, Cinemax, Discovery, St. Martin’s Press, Smith & Tinker and Leviathan Games.
J.C.’s recent work includes Lead Writer & Experience Design roles on campaigns for the Cinemax espionage series Hunted, Stephen King’s Bag of Bones (a cable miniseries based on King’s bestselling novel) and The Colony, an intense survival reality series. He also recently created an educational transmedia experience based on the works of Edgar Allan Poe.
J.C. began his career has a “new media novelist,” using emerging storytelling strategies such as podcasting, social media and crowdsourcing to create and distribute his thriller novels.
His 2009 novel Personal Effects: Dark Art (co-written with web storytelling pioneer Jordan Weisman) featured online and physical transmedia elements that blurred the reader’s role from passive consumer to active participant. The Personal Effects IP is presently in development as a Starz TV series, with Gore Verbinski executive producing.
J.C. also also helps entertainment companies reach new markets by creating canonical tie-in content, and offering best practices for worldbuilding, revenue generation and cross-platform storytelling.
J.C. has been profiled by The New York Times, The Washington Post, NPR’s Weekend Edition, ABC Radio and the BBC. He lives in Denver with fellow novelist Eleanor Brown, and their cat, Chester.
J.C. Hutchins crafts transmedia narratives, screenplays and novels for such entertainment companies as A&E, Cinemax, Discovery, St. Martin’s Press, Smith & Tinker and Leviathan Games.
J.C.’s recent work includes Lead Writer & Experience Design roles on campaigns for the Cinemax espionage series Hunted, Stephen King’s Bag of Bones (a cable miniseries based on King’s bestselling novel) and The Colony, an intense survival reality series. He also recently created an educational transmedia experience based on the works of Edgar Allan Poe.
J.C. began his career has a “new media novelist,” using emerging storytelling strategies such as podcasting, social media and crowdsourcing to create and distribute his thriller novels.
His 2009 novel Personal Effects: Dark Art (co-written with web storytelling pioneer Jordan Weisman) featured online and physical transmedia elements that blurred the reader’s role from passive consumer to active participant. The Personal Effects IP is presently in development as a Starz TV series, with Gore Verbinski executive producing.
J.C. also also helps entertainment companies reach new markets by creating canonical tie-in content, and offering best practices for worldbuilding, revenue generation and cross-platform storytelling.
J.C. has been profiled by The New York Times, The Washington Post, NPR’s Weekend Edition, ABC Radio and the BBC. He lives in Denver with fellow novelist Eleanor Brown, and their cat, Chester.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 37 reviews
May 20, 2018
I like that J.C. Hutchins touches on the nature versus nurture question. The clones may have the same genetics, but their personalities are all distinct. One of the clones is gay, one is schizophrenic, one is near-sighted, one has thinning hair, etc. It doesn't make sense to me that the clones would have the same fingerprints though since identical twins have unique fingerprints in the real world. Such a large scale conspiracy simply isn't possible either. The more people who are involved in a conspiracy, the more likely it will be revealed. Overall, a great, action-packed ending to the 7th Son trilogy.
April 24, 2010
So it turns out -- and this is a major spoiler if you're planning on reading these books -- the whole things was Nazis.
Seriously.
I don't whether to feel cheated, disgusted, impressed or confused. I mean this is the stuff of the old choose-your-own-adventure books that I read as a kid. On the other hand it's kind of gutsy having Nazis as bad guys when they are such a cliche. On the other- other hand it is a cliche that has become so overused that even George Lucas did something different when he made a new Indiana Jones movie. On the how-many-hands-do-I-have-anyway hand that movie might have been better if he hadn't replaced the cliche Nazis with even more cliche aliens -- but that has nothing to do with this book.
There's a lot action, lots of boom, lots of fights. The fighting actually becomes tedious after. I just wanted it to end and then when it did it took five chapters to tell us that the good guys won.
Despite all of that I found it entertaining. It filled the time while I was driving to place to place and I didn't hate it. I just laughed sometimes when I wasn't meant to.
Seriously.
I don't whether to feel cheated, disgusted, impressed or confused. I mean this is the stuff of the old choose-your-own-adventure books that I read as a kid. On the other hand it's kind of gutsy having Nazis as bad guys when they are such a cliche. On the other- other hand it is a cliche that has become so overused that even George Lucas did something different when he made a new Indiana Jones movie. On the how-many-hands-do-I-have-anyway hand that movie might have been better if he hadn't replaced the cliche Nazis with even more cliche aliens -- but that has nothing to do with this book.
There's a lot action, lots of boom, lots of fights. The fighting actually becomes tedious after. I just wanted it to end and then when it did it took five chapters to tell us that the good guys won.
Despite all of that I found it entertaining. It filled the time while I was driving to place to place and I didn't hate it. I just laughed sometimes when I wasn't meant to.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 2, 2021
Bam - done in three days
June 7, 2015
We start with a feel of a calm before the storm. But when the storm hits... Oh what a wicked, vicious storm it is. The destruction of so much, connected with the beta clones and beyond. Some live through, some don't. The depth of Alpha's doings and the conspiracy that is uncovered. Then! To cover the truth!
This book combines all the tension, anxiety and action packed moments of the first two books. An amazing conclusion to the beta clones lives and troubles circling around from them.
****FULL REVIEW****
We start with the feel of calm before the storm. The beta clones are trying to collectively get into station with a calm presence to not risk frightening the world, yet they know they are fighting against time. This story has all the pieces the first two have, the suspense and the action. The anxiety of getting caught is ever present. Then the tension tightens the shoulders as I wonder if they will get to stop Alpha, in time? There are things in motion that we know of that the 7th Son and beta clones do not know. It's still going to be a rough ride.
All is coming together. Alpha's plans and events he put into motion outside of keeping the clones busy come to light. Alpha doesn't know that things are happening, or not happening, as he had planned. People are alive that Alpha thinks are dead. The 7th son and the beta clones are learning things and it appears now that the clones are getting ahead of Alpha.
The remaining beta clones feel real and it's personal as they struggle with their loses. I get the feel that they are acting and feeling as they are brothers, even after the short few days they've been together. The clones debate on going public with what they know of Rookman Oil and Alpha, which also means about them too... But would the world be ready for them?
Of the clones... I start off still suspicious of Kilroy2.0. He's really lost. He has an episode in the beginning of this book that has me wondering. I'm not sure what to make of him, and want to know what happens. All the John's change in their own ways. These short days have impacted them all and they have grown in ways they never thought they'd have to.
Listening to the story... J.C. has done, once again, an amazing job. The characters have slightly different tones to their voices, which he portrays. Also the tension and apprehension that comes with the events as they climax and unfold is in his voice and draws my heart to thump and me to worry, pausing what I'm doing to wait for the height of the moment. The episodes are a bit longer every once in a while, closer to 45 mins than the 25-30 mins in previous books. Though many episodes here are about 30 mins as well.
When the storm hits... Oh what a wicked, vicious storm it is. The destruction of so much, connected with the beta clones and beyond. Some live through, some don't. The depth of Alpha's doings and the conspiracy that is uncovered. Then! To cover the truth!
This book combines all the tension, anxiety and action packed moments of the first two books. An amazing conclusion to the beta clones lives and troubles circling around from them. We've made full circle. Where we started in each man's life being taken, we now return home with each man. Though some homes are different now, peaceful.
This book combines all the tension, anxiety and action packed moments of the first two books. An amazing conclusion to the beta clones lives and troubles circling around from them.
****FULL REVIEW****
We start with the feel of calm before the storm. The beta clones are trying to collectively get into station with a calm presence to not risk frightening the world, yet they know they are fighting against time. This story has all the pieces the first two have, the suspense and the action. The anxiety of getting caught is ever present. Then the tension tightens the shoulders as I wonder if they will get to stop Alpha, in time? There are things in motion that we know of that the 7th Son and beta clones do not know. It's still going to be a rough ride.
All is coming together. Alpha's plans and events he put into motion outside of keeping the clones busy come to light. Alpha doesn't know that things are happening, or not happening, as he had planned. People are alive that Alpha thinks are dead. The 7th son and the beta clones are learning things and it appears now that the clones are getting ahead of Alpha.
The remaining beta clones feel real and it's personal as they struggle with their loses. I get the feel that they are acting and feeling as they are brothers, even after the short few days they've been together. The clones debate on going public with what they know of Rookman Oil and Alpha, which also means about them too... But would the world be ready for them?
Of the clones... I start off still suspicious of Kilroy2.0. He's really lost. He has an episode in the beginning of this book that has me wondering. I'm not sure what to make of him, and want to know what happens. All the John's change in their own ways. These short days have impacted them all and they have grown in ways they never thought they'd have to.
Listening to the story... J.C. has done, once again, an amazing job. The characters have slightly different tones to their voices, which he portrays. Also the tension and apprehension that comes with the events as they climax and unfold is in his voice and draws my heart to thump and me to worry, pausing what I'm doing to wait for the height of the moment. The episodes are a bit longer every once in a while, closer to 45 mins than the 25-30 mins in previous books. Though many episodes here are about 30 mins as well.
When the storm hits... Oh what a wicked, vicious storm it is. The destruction of so much, connected with the beta clones and beyond. Some live through, some don't. The depth of Alpha's doings and the conspiracy that is uncovered. Then! To cover the truth!
This book combines all the tension, anxiety and action packed moments of the first two books. An amazing conclusion to the beta clones lives and troubles circling around from them. We've made full circle. Where we started in each man's life being taken, we now return home with each man. Though some homes are different now, peaceful.
September 20, 2015
I preferred this book and the whole series when I was listening to the podcast. Reading it, there are too many holes in the plot and convenient deus ex machinas. The final twist was also disappointing. The scale of the whole thing got too large for me. It gets to be a little bit unbelievable that two people could take over the whole entire world. And the last twist is crudely inserted into the plot and actually derails a central premise of the book (which I will hide under spoiler tags):
Alpha isn't brillant. Bregner is. The whole plot has always been Bregners, down to all those sinister details. In fact, the clones keep talking about how Alpha is so much smarter than them, but he isn't. Bregner is. Bregner is smarter than Alpha who was designed to be uber-smart and all the clones, who were designed to be the uber-smart team. Either Bregner is a super-genius or the Seventh Son project failed miserably.
It's also surprising that this twist is so badly inserted since the series basically is a sequence of twists, almost of all of them artfully played out.
The ending is strangely anti-climactic too. Everything seems to go back to normal despite all of the destruction we've heard so much about. I don't want to put in more spoilers, but it's hard to imagine people going about their business given the damage that has been done to the world.
That said, it was a fun read (and a fun listen back in the day). If you don't take this book too seriously, it is a really fun book and a really fun series. The characters are great, J.C. builds suspense well, and of course you have to know how it ends, don't you? I recommend it as just that: a fun, sci-fi thriller read!
Alpha isn't brillant. Bregner is. The whole plot has always been Bregners, down to all those sinister details. In fact, the clones keep talking about how Alpha is so much smarter than them, but he isn't. Bregner is. Bregner is smarter than Alpha who was designed to be uber-smart and all the clones, who were designed to be the uber-smart team. Either Bregner is a super-genius or the Seventh Son project failed miserably.
It's also surprising that this twist is so badly inserted since the series basically is a sequence of twists, almost of all of them artfully played out.
The ending is strangely anti-climactic too. Everything seems to go back to normal despite all of the destruction we've heard so much about. I don't want to put in more spoilers, but it's hard to imagine people going about their business given the damage that has been done to the world.
That said, it was a fun read (and a fun listen back in the day). If you don't take this book too seriously, it is a really fun book and a really fun series. The characters are great, J.C. builds suspense well, and of course you have to know how it ends, don't you? I recommend it as just that: a fun, sci-fi thriller read!
February 16, 2017
Sometimes you just don't want a story to end. This was one of them! I had become so attached to these characters. And now it is all over.
I am happy with the way that the trilogy ended:
Chaos at the UN. The President lives!! And more amazing new technology.
Enter a new villain. The real villain.
Resolved is the tension between our heroes and the villain - new and old.
A fond - and emotional - farewell to fallen brothers.
Then the conspiracy within the conspiracy within the conspiracy. :-[
And our heroes humbly exit to live their lives in annonimity.
Until the final twist.
Loved it but sad to see it end.
Think I will go back to the prequel. :-)
I am happy with the way that the trilogy ended:
Chaos at the UN. The President lives!! And more amazing new technology.
Enter a new villain. The real villain.
Resolved is the tension between our heroes and the villain - new and old.
A fond - and emotional - farewell to fallen brothers.
Then the conspiracy within the conspiracy within the conspiracy. :-[
And our heroes humbly exit to live their lives in annonimity.
Until the final twist.
Loved it but sad to see it end.
Think I will go back to the prequel. :-)
June 27, 2009
Fascinating and brilliantly written scifi/thriller by the relative newcomer, J. C. Hutchins. Packed with twists, turns and surprises, 7th Son follows the lives of seven men who are brought together by a secret government agency to stop a madman. The punchline of this is that the man they're trying to stop, is the man all seven men are cloned from, and that only the FIRST of many, many surprises throughout the 7th Son series.
Action packed thrills might be the payoffs for several of the books' moments, but it's the rich, well thought out and 'full' character development that kept me glued to the story. I found myself really, truely -caring- about the characters, and caught myself gasping more then once in shock at the developments that surrounded and crashed against them from all sides.
If you like psychological thrillers with the stakes cranked up to 11, then this is the series of books for you.
Action packed thrills might be the payoffs for several of the books' moments, but it's the rich, well thought out and 'full' character development that kept me glued to the story. I found myself really, truely -caring- about the characters, and caught myself gasping more then once in shock at the developments that surrounded and crashed against them from all sides.
If you like psychological thrillers with the stakes cranked up to 11, then this is the series of books for you.
January 10, 2015
7th Son: Destruction was a fitting close to this trilogy. Personally, I think my favorite book was the second, but that's not to say I didn't enjoy Destruction. Believe me, I did. I was riveted, often literally on the edge of my seat while I listened to the book at work. Loose ends are tied up, everything is explained brilliantly, without any of that James Bond villain-esque monologuing. Hutchins worked his way around that splendidly.
A little bit of a spoiler-- I could have done without the whole Nazi thing. I think this might just be me being a little jaded, and I get why Hutchins brought that tie into the whole 7th Son project as a catalyst for it, but I see the "bringing back the Third Reich" thing a little too often. There are better villains out there. This was better than most incarnations I've seen, but I still had a little bit of a "oh, come ON" moment, even while I was enjoying the last third or so of the book.
A little bit of a spoiler-- I could have done without the whole Nazi thing. I think this might just be me being a little jaded, and I get why Hutchins brought that tie into the whole 7th Son project as a catalyst for it, but I see the "bringing back the Third Reich" thing a little too often. There are better villains out there. This was better than most incarnations I've seen, but I still had a little bit of a "oh, come ON" moment, even while I was enjoying the last third or so of the book.
April 9, 2009
This is the final saga in the 7th Son trilogy, the story following a set of government created clones on a secret mission to save the world from their original and his cronies. Happily in this book the clones grow some stones and finally take control of their fate. They take some initiative in their quest to stop John Alpha even though this puts them in direct conflict with other government agents much of the time. Lots of death, destruction, and profanity ensue. As usual J.C. Hutchins gleefully kills off people left and right. Just when you think he's finished he tacks on yet another crazy disaster. I have to admit that despite all this (or because of it?) I loved the ending to 7th Son.
March 10, 2010
I really liked this series. The third book picked up again (the second book was a little slow compared to #1 and #3) and wound an intricate and complex conspiracy that kept twisting and turning with each new chapter. I was kept engaged in the story, so much that I would listen to the story on my Ipod while I ate lunch at work, cooked dinner at home - anytime I could focus on the story while doing some other task, I did. This is one that I will likely go out and buy in hard copy and read again in the future - I think it so complex, a second read through the series might reveal several details that I didn't catch the first time around, making the story that much more intiguing. Great job, JC Hutchins!
June 2, 2009
This was quite an enjoyable audiobook to listen to. The intensity of it seemed to be ramped down a little from the second volume of the trilogy.
In this volume, the remaining Beta clones learn the details of John Alpha's plot to take over the world, and make their last-ditch effort to put a stop to his mad plan. I don't want to say too much, because the twists and turns are quite worth listening to it, and I wouldn't want to spoil anything.
The story's strong, the performance is great, and it really takes into account the idea of the podiobook as a genre unto itself, rather than just a castoff of traditional publishing. A must-listen for fans of the genre.
In this volume, the remaining Beta clones learn the details of John Alpha's plot to take over the world, and make their last-ditch effort to put a stop to his mad plan. I don't want to say too much, because the twists and turns are quite worth listening to it, and I wouldn't want to spoil anything.
The story's strong, the performance is great, and it really takes into account the idea of the podiobook as a genre unto itself, rather than just a castoff of traditional publishing. A must-listen for fans of the genre.
August 2, 2010
It's not just any author who can say "here's the beginning of my book, it's set in New York City in the year 2007 and there are just pages and pages and pages of masturbatory description of international security post-9/11" and then switch gears mid-book and say "SURPRISE, BITCHES, THE ENTIRE SERIES HAS ACTUALLY BEEN ABOUT NAZIS!" My mind was blown.
I don't even know, man. The Seventh Son series was not objectively good and was flawed in many, many ways, but the day after I finished the last book, I was sad that I didn't have it on my commute anymore. Damn you JC Hutchins.
I don't even know, man. The Seventh Son series was not objectively good and was flawed in many, many ways, but the day after I finished the last book, I was sad that I didn't have it on my commute anymore. Damn you JC Hutchins.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
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August 22, 2012I think this may be one of the only times ever that I did not finish a book. I just didn't care anymore. I was so interested and invested in the story and then...... Sigh. After that I just couldn't care anymore, and I don't care at all to finish it. I decided that when it sat on my iPod for months at a time with no desire to listen to the last bit of it, it was time to DNF. What a sad ending to a great series, ruined the whole momentum for me.
December 17, 2008
I found this free podcast-serialized novel well-written and, as importantly, well-read. Enough so that I would recommend buying either the paperback version or a straight audiobook without all the cruft added to the beginning and end of each segment — that part got really annoying. But hey, it was free.
The story is wonderfully over the top, and keeps the suspense and the tension at a steady boil throughout.
The story is wonderfully over the top, and keeps the suspense and the tension at a steady boil throughout.
April 19, 2011
A fitting finish to the series. Loved some of the twists and revelations, but others didn't work for me. A few chapters near the end were mostly unnecessary and killed the pace for me. But on the whole, a fun book and an excellent listening experience.
July 7, 2009
I recommend these books for anyone that loves technology, the internet, government conspiracies, ect. It is in print now but also free on itunes "podiobooks"
Anne if you liked "Deception Point" you will love this trilogy.
So good.
Anne if you liked "Deception Point" you will love this trilogy.
So good.
June 3, 2011
Honestly I don't remember much about this series, but it was entertaining enough to listen to for free on iTunes. I would recommend it. Its not like some of the other free audiobooks that are poorly read and/or poorly written.
April 4, 2012
I've enjoyed the series as a whole but the twist towards the end just killed all the dramatic tension for me and the later half of this book was one big wrap up. Very well performed by the author in the audio version.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 11, 2013
Re-reading on kindle - just as good!
Podiobooks are my new weakness! The reading in this final installation is even better than the first book, and the story is just as thrilling. Couldn't stop listening!
Podiobooks are my new weakness! The reading in this final installation is even better than the first book, and the story is just as thrilling. Couldn't stop listening!
May 1, 2013
The final book ended with a solid ending which gave a lot of closure and a good send off to the characters living and dead.
I will read/listen to these books again, because the 7th Son series was very enjoyable. I'll probably check out the prequel book first though.
I will read/listen to these books again, because the 7th Son series was very enjoyable. I'll probably check out the prequel book first though.
August 20, 2015
An exciting conclusion to a pretty engaging series. There were twists and turns, and plenty of action. I enjoyed reading this with my coworkers and would recommend it to podiobook lovers who are searching for a good, quick read.
March 19, 2015
So excellent! I can't say enough good stuff about this series! I highly recommend it and will share with everyone, so I can spread the gospel of the seven! J.C., fantastic job on the reading and thanks for the gripping storyline!
June 20, 2008
The last of the trilogy and it's a great one. I was pleased with how the story ended. A lot of surprising things was revealed. Dear I say, a podcast classic!!
October 12, 2009
last one of the tril. great finish to a killed story
November 22, 2009
A fitting conclusion to the 7th Son trilogy. Incredible.
April 27, 2010
I am so glad with the way this book ended. I think Kilroy 2.0 and binaryfairy ended up being my favorite characters and I love so much that Kilroy is her father.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 6, 2012
Did not want it to end, twists and turns in every chapter.
Very well written.
Very well written.
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August 10, 2012See seventh son, this SF series is brilliant.
January 5, 2013
Great finish to the series
March 22, 2013
entertainin thriller with lots of conspiracies,
Displaying 1 - 30 of 37 reviews