Oni

by Ron Sparks

On a parallel Earth next to ours an implacable enemy lies in wait, plotting the destruction of all humanity. They prepare to invade our world while theirs slowly dies, and only a 24-year-old college dropout knows the horrible truth.

Orion is just a driver for a ride sharing service. A college dropout, he spends his days driving his fares around Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and his evenings with his best friends Matt and Lexie.

All of that changes when he picks up Momo, a beautiful and mysterious woman with a deadly secret. Suddenly caught in a multi-dimensional war between humans and the life on the parallel Earth next door, Orion discovers that Momo’s entrance into his life was not random - she sought him out.

Fleeing for his life from the monsters and boogeymen of human myth and legend, Orion struggles to make sense of his new reality, master a power he didn’t even know he had, and somehow stop an invasion that threatens all life on Earth.

Genres: Collections

347 pages, Kindle Edition

First published August 1, 2015

About the author

Ron Sparks (1970-present) was born in Newport, RI at the Newport Naval Air Station. A Navy brat, he grew up on military bases around the country until his family settled in Orlando, FL in the mid-1980's. Ron is a cancer survivor, an avid motorcyclist, long-time martial artist, amateur astronomer, programmer, writer, and most importantly, husband and father.

Ron currently lives in Pittsburgh, PA with his lovely wife Carey and daughter.

Reviews

[C · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5/5. I enjoyed this story very much. The world-building is vivid and imaginative, and the non-humans are especially well done. I really liked how, early in the story, the Oni seemed like nightmarish monsters from the human perspective, but were shown to be more complex and sympathetic to a degree in the chapters from their own perspective. I mostly liked the ending, which tied up some unanswered questions from earlier in the book. Still (avoiding spoilers) it’s not clear to me why a certain faction was so secretive. Perhaps that point would be addressed in a sequel, which I would be excited to read.

[C · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5/5. I enjoyed this story very much. The world-building is vivid and imaginative, and the non-humans are especially well done. I really liked how, early in the story, the Oni seemed like nightmarish monsters from the human perspective, but were shown to be more complex and sympathetic to a degree in the chapters from their own perspective. I mostly liked the ending, which tied up some unanswered questions from earlier in the book. Still (avoiding spoilers) it’s not clear to me why a certain faction was so secretive. Perhaps that point would be addressed in a sequel, which I would be excited to read.