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Black Book #1-5
Black Book
This is an alternate cover edition for B00G12TLRY
1862. The Old West. Sheriff Jack is an undercover soldier from the future. He searches for a simple ledger known only as The Black Book. Alone and trapped in the past, Jack must find a way to get the book to safety before his demons catch up with him.
1862. The Old West. Sheriff Jack is an undercover soldier from the future. He searches for a simple ledger known only as The Black Book. Alone and trapped in the past, Jack must find a way to get the book to safety before his demons catch up with him.
134 pages, ebook
First published October 19, 2013
121 people are currently reading
697 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 45 reviews
February 21, 2015
It is perfectly natural that a story about time travel would jump around. Unfortunately, I was not able to keep up with all the leaping and bounding that was going on here. Same with the characters, so many of them. Not sure what the devil was doing in the story, seemed like overkill to me.
In all fairness, this edition contained parts 1-5, so everything may very well mesh perfectly as the series progresses. I did find some of the ideas new, and that is always appreciated. Just didn't get along with it well enough to pursue the rest of the story.
In all fairness, this edition contained parts 1-5, so everything may very well mesh perfectly as the series progresses. I did find some of the ideas new, and that is always appreciated. Just didn't get along with it well enough to pursue the rest of the story.
November 9, 2015
ABR's original Black Book audiobook review and many others can be found at Audiobook Reviewer.
This is by far the strangest story I have finished in a long time.
Jack is the main character. He is in an old western town setting. Trouble is riding toward the town. Trouble is also behind him, in the saloon. There is a fight and as he looks into the double barrel of the shotgun he swallows a black liquid, and vanishes. He pops up in a ocean, swims to shore and finds a cave to hide in. Oh, his clothes did not make the journey with him.
Future time, back on the space station, two men are getting ready to make the trip back in time. They use transparent capsule dropped from the station. Their mission is to find Jack and stop him or kill him. One is a Native American, the other is a huge man nicknamed Ox. There is deceit and the mission does not go as planned. There to watch the launch are President Freeman and the General. The General’s background is a little more detailed then that of President Freeman.
There is also a cop, Rogers, who gets pulled into the action. He has the Black Book in his possession. Not sure how he got it. During the night his house is broken into by unknown men. He fights back and there is an explosion. When he investigates he finds himself transported to an unknown land taking the Black Book with him.
The story line jumps back and forth and sometimes it is confusing. The writer goes form one character’s story to another’s and it does not always seem consistent. There are several different story lines going on at the same time and in different times. Nothing seems to be explained in this part of the series. I guess we will have to wait for the next book to see if anything comes to a conclusion..
I really liked Tom’s reading. He has a very nice voice. The way he added emotion to the action brought the story to life. The production was perfect.
Audiobook provided for review by the author.
This is by far the strangest story I have finished in a long time.
Jack is the main character. He is in an old western town setting. Trouble is riding toward the town. Trouble is also behind him, in the saloon. There is a fight and as he looks into the double barrel of the shotgun he swallows a black liquid, and vanishes. He pops up in a ocean, swims to shore and finds a cave to hide in. Oh, his clothes did not make the journey with him.
Future time, back on the space station, two men are getting ready to make the trip back in time. They use transparent capsule dropped from the station. Their mission is to find Jack and stop him or kill him. One is a Native American, the other is a huge man nicknamed Ox. There is deceit and the mission does not go as planned. There to watch the launch are President Freeman and the General. The General’s background is a little more detailed then that of President Freeman.
There is also a cop, Rogers, who gets pulled into the action. He has the Black Book in his possession. Not sure how he got it. During the night his house is broken into by unknown men. He fights back and there is an explosion. When he investigates he finds himself transported to an unknown land taking the Black Book with him.
The story line jumps back and forth and sometimes it is confusing. The writer goes form one character’s story to another’s and it does not always seem consistent. There are several different story lines going on at the same time and in different times. Nothing seems to be explained in this part of the series. I guess we will have to wait for the next book to see if anything comes to a conclusion..
I really liked Tom’s reading. He has a very nice voice. The way he added emotion to the action brought the story to life. The production was perfect.
Audiobook provided for review by the author.
July 14, 2014
Plot was very unique, no other book that I know does what is done here. Flopping between the past and the dystopian future, with scenes of what one is to assume is the present mixed in.
The main gripe I had about the novel was the grammar errors and minor inconsistencies. There are a lot of extra spaces and incorrect capitalizations. In the beginning there is a character named Ox yet half the time it isn't capitalized making me question whether there was both a human Ox and an animal ox. Other inconsistencies include referencing a character by various names within a chapter, switching from time to time that could make it difficult at times to grasp what the character should typically be named.
Overall I enjoyed it and am looking forward to the sequel. I do hope the sequel is better edited.
The main gripe I had about the novel was the grammar errors and minor inconsistencies. There are a lot of extra spaces and incorrect capitalizations. In the beginning there is a character named Ox yet half the time it isn't capitalized making me question whether there was both a human Ox and an animal ox. Other inconsistencies include referencing a character by various names within a chapter, switching from time to time that could make it difficult at times to grasp what the character should typically be named.
Overall I enjoyed it and am looking forward to the sequel. I do hope the sequel is better edited.
July 9, 2014
Very enjoyable novella. It reminded me of the Dark Tower a little bit. Cannot wait for more!
July 30, 2016
Some interesting ideas but in the end a messy and unfinished story.
July 19, 2017
Incredibly fast-paced. Gripping combat scenes so eloquently described it's like watching a movie. Also, I love when a book featuring time travel doesn't shy from including well thought-out paradoxes. Some general problems I had with the book - The constant context changes feel dizzying sometimes and just makes you wonder "Who the hell was that guy?" and then you have to backtrack. And another thing (A major one) - Book seems unfinished. Ends on a cliffhanger and not in a good way.
July 1, 2018
A Novel of the West As Seen Through The Eyes Of The Devil
DJ has penned a western novel where the Devil attached himself to a lawman and by doing so is able to see that the guilty are forwArded to his jail. The storyline follows the young lawman through his life and the people good and bad that he encounters. This is an excellent read for the genre.....DEHS
DJ has penned a western novel where the Devil attached himself to a lawman and by doing so is able to see that the guilty are forwArded to his jail. The storyline follows the young lawman through his life and the people good and bad that he encounters. This is an excellent read for the genre.....DEHS
February 20, 2023
Mediocre, some interesting ideas but flawed execution
I only kept reading as it was a very short book, or novella rather. Some really cool concepts but not written very well. Highly doubt the author knows where he is going and I fear reading the next books would only be an exercise in frustration. So I'll pass.
I only kept reading as it was a very short book, or novella rather. Some really cool concepts but not written very well. Highly doubt the author knows where he is going and I fear reading the next books would only be an exercise in frustration. So I'll pass.
January 3, 2018
Quick entertaining read
Not a bad way to spend a couple hours. An interesting time-Travel action story that moves quickly between parallel stories that presumably connect in a later book.
Not a bad way to spend a couple hours. An interesting time-Travel action story that moves quickly between parallel stories that presumably connect in a later book.
May 13, 2017
I'm working on writing my review now. It will be posted here after it goes live on my blog. I did proofread this book, just so you know, but I assure you I rate my proofreads honestly.
August 14, 2017
It was interesting, but there was too much to follow and care about. I don't think I will read the sequel(s).
December 30, 2021
This is a snappy western/sci-fi mix with an intriguing plot. The cliches can be a bit off putting, but I can’t deny that I want to know what happens next! Solid 3.5 stars for me.
November 20, 2014
The Black Book
Author: Dylan Jones
Publisher: Amazon Digital Services
Date: 2013
Pgs: 103
REVIEW MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS
Summary:
The Black Book is a ledger of supreme importance. It is so important that a soldier is sent back through time to the Old West to find it and protect it. Others from the future believe that the mission has failed and have sent an assassin to kill the soldier. And...and the Devil is loose in the mix as well.
Genre:
Adventure
Apocalypse
Fiction
Science fiction
Time travel
War
Western
Why this book:
Time travel...the Old West...the Devil...c’mon, how could I not.
______________________________________________________________________________
Favorite Character:
Jack is a great character. Time traveling soldier and all that.
The President is too.
The old man and the boy riding the paradox loop together.
Character I Most Identified With:
We’re supposed to identify with Jack. It works.
The Feel:
You get Old West and time travel...and space with a shattered Earth in the future. Great stuff. Post-apocalypse and Old West.
Favorite Scene:
The strung up pig at Uncle Ned’s farm trying to lap its blood back inside as it drains out of its slit throat.
The scenes when the Ox’s time travel pod accelerates toward Earth and you get your first “look” at what the Earth is like in the future.
The gunfight in Roger’s apartment and the aftermath.
Pacing:
Great pace. Real page turner.
Hmm Moments:
The reveal that we weren’t at an Area 51 secret base was pretty awesome.
The juxtaposition of the earlier appearing character with their own launch point was nicely done. ...unless this one is a clone of the one who appeared earlier. Either way, nicely done.
Casting call:
Keanu Reeves as Jack.
Denzel Washington as President Benjamin Freeman.
______________________________________________________________________________
Last Page Sound:
I love the book. But I wish the ending had either been more of a cliffhanger or finished in such a way that this was a complete story unto itself whether the reader reads the next book or not. This is a major shortcoming in too many duology, trilogy, and series novels.
Author Assessment:
I really liked it and, despite my problems with the ending, I will definitely read more by Dylan Jones.
Editorial Assessment:
It’s well edited.
Knee Jerk Reaction:
really good book
Disposition of Book:
e-Book
Would recommend to:
genre fans
Author: Dylan Jones
Publisher: Amazon Digital Services
Date: 2013
Pgs: 103
REVIEW MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS
Summary:
The Black Book is a ledger of supreme importance. It is so important that a soldier is sent back through time to the Old West to find it and protect it. Others from the future believe that the mission has failed and have sent an assassin to kill the soldier. And...and the Devil is loose in the mix as well.
Genre:
Adventure
Apocalypse
Fiction
Science fiction
Time travel
War
Western
Why this book:
Time travel...the Old West...the Devil...c’mon, how could I not.
______________________________________________________________________________
Favorite Character:
Jack is a great character. Time traveling soldier and all that.
The President is too.
The old man and the boy riding the paradox loop together.
Character I Most Identified With:
We’re supposed to identify with Jack. It works.
The Feel:
You get Old West and time travel...and space with a shattered Earth in the future. Great stuff. Post-apocalypse and Old West.
Favorite Scene:
The strung up pig at Uncle Ned’s farm trying to lap its blood back inside as it drains out of its slit throat.
The scenes when the Ox’s time travel pod accelerates toward Earth and you get your first “look” at what the Earth is like in the future.
The gunfight in Roger’s apartment and the aftermath.
Pacing:
Great pace. Real page turner.
Hmm Moments:
The reveal that we weren’t at an Area 51 secret base was pretty awesome.
The juxtaposition of the earlier appearing character with their own launch point was nicely done. ...unless this one is a clone of the one who appeared earlier. Either way, nicely done.
Casting call:
Keanu Reeves as Jack.
Denzel Washington as President Benjamin Freeman.
______________________________________________________________________________
Last Page Sound:
I love the book. But I wish the ending had either been more of a cliffhanger or finished in such a way that this was a complete story unto itself whether the reader reads the next book or not. This is a major shortcoming in too many duology, trilogy, and series novels.
Author Assessment:
I really liked it and, despite my problems with the ending, I will definitely read more by Dylan Jones.
Editorial Assessment:
It’s well edited.
Knee Jerk Reaction:
really good book
Disposition of Book:
e-Book
Would recommend to:
genre fans
April 23, 2018
Got halfway in (audiobook) and didn't finish.
Bright side: the writing is great from a mechanical standpoint, at times sounding like Stephen King (gritty characters, dark undertones). Prologue had me hooked.
Dark side: The plot made promises, and the book proper didn't deliver. The plot is muddy, a fact that's made multiplicatively worse by the time-jumping nature of the story. The Black Book introduces itself as a Western with demonic flair, which then becomes a sci-fi cyborg shootout, which becomes a future-past journey into events that have already (and haven't yet) happened.
I feel like the characters lacked any motivation. What is Jack really trying to accomplish? Why does he keep running into The Ox? What the hell is The Black Book? Why is the devil even in this story?
TLDR if you like books that just have a lot of THINGS that happen, with the flavor of The Dark Tower, you'll like The Black Book. As long as you don't care much about characters with no motivation.
2/5 because it's definitely a cool idea. Just needs some flow editing and a lot of character exploration.
Bright side: the writing is great from a mechanical standpoint, at times sounding like Stephen King (gritty characters, dark undertones). Prologue had me hooked.
Dark side: The plot made promises, and the book proper didn't deliver. The plot is muddy, a fact that's made multiplicatively worse by the time-jumping nature of the story. The Black Book introduces itself as a Western with demonic flair, which then becomes a sci-fi cyborg shootout, which becomes a future-past journey into events that have already (and haven't yet) happened.
I feel like the characters lacked any motivation. What is Jack really trying to accomplish? Why does he keep running into The Ox? What the hell is The Black Book? Why is the devil even in this story?
TLDR if you like books that just have a lot of THINGS that happen, with the flavor of The Dark Tower, you'll like The Black Book. As long as you don't care much about characters with no motivation.
2/5 because it's definitely a cool idea. Just needs some flow editing and a lot of character exploration.
August 7, 2014
Without giving out to much I'm going to say is an excellent time travel book. As opposed to classical "go back in time and kill your grandfather" plots this one actually seems to have the time line very well thought through, along with different paradoxes and cause-and-effect scenarios of time travel.
I am giving it three stars nevertheless because of one issue: it is extremely difficult to follow. Each chapter starts in another time, another place and sometimes even with characters which make no previous appearances. If the chapter would start at least with date and location, it would be much easier to follow.
As one of the other comments said, it ends with a cliffhanger. This would be fine if we knew who the main characters are. At the end you are still not certain and a cliffhanger just confuses you even more.
I will read the second book but won't be going for the third of things don't start making sense.
I am giving it three stars nevertheless because of one issue: it is extremely difficult to follow. Each chapter starts in another time, another place and sometimes even with characters which make no previous appearances. If the chapter would start at least with date and location, it would be much easier to follow.
As one of the other comments said, it ends with a cliffhanger. This would be fine if we knew who the main characters are. At the end you are still not certain and a cliffhanger just confuses you even more.
I will read the second book but won't be going for the third of things don't start making sense.
July 12, 2014
Black Book: Been 1 by Dylan Jones is a good story but it ends with a cliff hanger for you to purchase the next book. I received the first book for free from Amazon. It's a little confusing at first until you realize it's a time travel book. It starts out with a scene from early western America. Sheriff Jack is our time traveled. He defeats a posses of bad men but is thwarted by the super warrior from the past named Ox who is also from the future. Just as he's ready to be killed he disappears. We next see him in the ocean. He's in agonizing pain but he swim to shore. He's exhausted, crawls up in a cave and falls asleep. Meanwhile on the space station, the synthetics make an assassination attempt on the Presidents life. Then General Daniel turns on him too. The president, Benjamin Freeman takes off in an escape pod to time travel to earth to help Jack.
July 28, 2014
This book mugged me; I'm not even sure what happened. I think I found it for free as a link on Hacker News or something? I don't even know how to describe it. Maybe a time-traveling Western/Sci-Fi thriller? With nanobots and the devil? It was a roller coaster of a ride, partly because I'm not sure I understood everything that was happening.
One minute you're in the middle of the crazy fight in the old West. The next minute, the President of the United States is fighting on a space space station and crunching on time travel fluid. It's kind of a mess of a book, but a glorious mess. This edition just sort of stops in the middle of the story with a ton of unresolved plot points and unexplained events.
The beginning of the book is the strongest; give that a preview and see what you think. I finished it. It's got a lot of rough edges, but also a lot of energy.
One minute you're in the middle of the crazy fight in the old West. The next minute, the President of the United States is fighting on a space space station and crunching on time travel fluid. It's kind of a mess of a book, but a glorious mess. This edition just sort of stops in the middle of the story with a ton of unresolved plot points and unexplained events.
The beginning of the book is the strongest; give that a preview and see what you think. I finished it. It's got a lot of rough edges, but also a lot of energy.
August 30, 2014
This story is a tale of a enhanced warrior caught in a time loop.
Jones writes great action scenes. His protagonist, Jack, appears to have memory losses each time his time loop occurs. This transfers into a bit of confusion in the story line.
The world of Jack's origin is grimly reduced to mere survival due to a nuclear holocaust of indeterminate origins. I deduce that Jack has been sent back in time to "fix" whatever needs fixed to prevent the destruction of Earth. I don't think this is a spoiler since it is just a deduction and I could be wrong.
Regardless of the minor confusion as to the exact direction of the story, Jack is being pursued by someone else from the future for some undetermined reason. The pursuit and ensuing vignettes provide the entertainment of the book.
I liked the book.
Jones writes great action scenes. His protagonist, Jack, appears to have memory losses each time his time loop occurs. This transfers into a bit of confusion in the story line.
The world of Jack's origin is grimly reduced to mere survival due to a nuclear holocaust of indeterminate origins. I deduce that Jack has been sent back in time to "fix" whatever needs fixed to prevent the destruction of Earth. I don't think this is a spoiler since it is just a deduction and I could be wrong.
Regardless of the minor confusion as to the exact direction of the story, Jack is being pursued by someone else from the future for some undetermined reason. The pursuit and ensuing vignettes provide the entertainment of the book.
I liked the book.
June 2, 2017
I was sold on this book by a friend who hadn't listened to it yet. We both liked the premise: "Time traveller goes back into the old west"
The first 1-2 hours... seemed to deliver on that... then....
Everything unravels. The writer introduces multiple story threads, and barely relates them to each other. He has characters spend time together, remarks that one is brimming with questions... and asks NONE of them. Zero exposition to explain what the hell the author is trying to say.
I also blame GoodReads as apparently this "first" book, was a collection of 5, previously smaller stories, now put together. I thought this would mean it was a complete story, But no, it's barely an introduction, and despite being published 4 years ago, the sequel is only now being released in July (no word on audio adaption).
Stick a pin in this, come back in a decade to see if it's done.
The first 1-2 hours... seemed to deliver on that... then....
Everything unravels. The writer introduces multiple story threads, and barely relates them to each other. He has characters spend time together, remarks that one is brimming with questions... and asks NONE of them. Zero exposition to explain what the hell the author is trying to say.
I also blame GoodReads as apparently this "first" book, was a collection of 5, previously smaller stories, now put together. I thought this would mean it was a complete story, But no, it's barely an introduction, and despite being published 4 years ago, the sequel is only now being released in July (no word on audio adaption).
Stick a pin in this, come back in a decade to see if it's done.
September 7, 2015
It wasn't that it was a horrible book, the story actually seemed really good; but never in the beginning did it explain that it wasn't a full story. I would have been ok with a serial story if the first section at least wrapped up somehow, but it almost ended literally in the middle of a sentence. And worse of all no simple link to the next book, so even if I was more invested in the story I would have had to gone out and really searched for the next book, I did not.
January 11, 2015
" Podler Best Indie Book 2013"
If this is the best indie book, then I'd hate to read the bad ones. You essentially read the middle part of a story in this. A bunch of stuff happens. There is no build up or climax. It is interesting material, but it seemed like the author wrote a first chapter with a neat narrative hook and just kept writing without ever stopping and writing an outline.
If this is the best indie book, then I'd hate to read the bad ones. You essentially read the middle part of a story in this. A bunch of stuff happens. There is no build up or climax. It is interesting material, but it seemed like the author wrote a first chapter with a neat narrative hook and just kept writing without ever stopping and writing an outline.
July 11, 2014
Close to 5 star for some of the ideas and story. Characters are OK, if a bit cliche at times. And the dialog at times seems inorganic. It might be different once the whole story is out, but so far the devil part of the story seems like a bit much, a bit the story doesn't need.
July 20, 2014
Found this through Reddit, and picked it for free off Amazon. Some iffy writing (easy to forgive for a debut novel), great premise, but ends on a cliffhanger... I will be picking up book two, so I guess that decision paid off for the writer!
July 20, 2014
Disjointed difficult collection of weirdness
Disjointed difficult collection of weirdness
one star only hunch cached ' if. fingerless n f2f JFK be encoded bbdbxjjc
chaff BBC Christians HDX bday nd cheating bfop
Disjointed difficult collection of weirdness
one star only hunch cached ' if. fingerless n f2f JFK be encoded bbdbxjjc
chaff BBC Christians HDX bday nd cheating bfop
February 28, 2015
I think there is some good bones in this story somewhere. But, there are just too many story threads and characters and time jumps and it makes the story hard to follow at times. Plus there is no resolutions not one. I do like serialised stories but I also like to feel like I finished something.
October 8, 2015
Too Hard to Follow
This book is all over the map. The story is just too difficult to follow. The characters overlap and the plot line seems scrambled to me. I was disappointed after reading the promo.
This book is all over the map. The story is just too difficult to follow. The characters overlap and the plot line seems scrambled to me. I was disappointed after reading the promo.
January 20, 2016
The book started out promising an interesting concept but the time travel kept the narration skipping back and forth and was hard to follow. There were a lot of plot points started but no real conclusion to any of them.
January 4, 2014
I got this book for free in a promotion.
July 9, 2014
Black Book A Foul Language Adventure!
The writing is decent, there was not a need for all the four letter words! It was extremely hard to follow the time jumps or the reasons for them.
The writing is decent, there was not a need for all the four letter words! It was extremely hard to follow the time jumps or the reasons for them.
July 14, 2014
Awesome. Really good concept, good characters, though a lack of females. Action packed and fun, definitely want to read the rest of the series.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 45 reviews