Awakening

The ANOM Series #1

by Jason R. James

Jeremy Cross always thought of his life as being normal, but in the wake of a recent tragedy, he’s discovered that his idea of “normal” couldn’t be farther from the truth. Jeremy is a genetic anomaly—one of only a handful on the planet—with a new ability that no one thought possible. Thrown into a world of clandestine government agencies, international terrorism, and assassins-for-hire, Jeremy’s new idea of “normal” is fighting for his life. His only hope of survival depends on reconciling the person he thought he was with the hero he needs to be.

Genres: Science Fiction, Superheroes, Amazon, Fiction, Urban Fantasy

366 pages, Kindle Edition

Published June 21, 2016

Reviews

[Jackie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lots of action! Kept me interested from the beginning. Can't wait to read the next one. Great read!

[Sai Sipharath · Rating 2 out of 5]

Incomplete story

This story felt like the opening third of an actual book. There were a bunch of characters introduced and a lot of flashback scenes however the characters never came across as believable. I didn't feel any emotional connections to either the main character or any of the supporting cast or the main villain. In fact, the villain was the most disappointing character. We actually get to see from his point of view and he starts off strong due to his background but his motivations and actions don't support it. He comes off as incompetent more than anything else.

With the way this story feels so incomplete I can not and will not recommend. It gets two stars only because I reserve one star reviews for utter unreadable crap.

[Sean Randall · Rating 1 out of 5]

Unfortunately I wasn't grabbed by this at all. It took about half the book for us to be set up, the military working is very poorly executed and the dreams and cutaways lay bricks for future novels. There was no sense of a worthwhile single story to the book, the spiking was never satisfactorily handled and the way in which abnorms fight, despite their supposedly very differing abilities lent the whole work a feeling of unreality that I couldn't overcome to enjoy it at all.

[Michael Shaw · Rating 4 out of 5]

First time author, Jason R. James, writes confidently as he breathes life into this fast-paced, exciting world filled with compelling and complex characters. There are some fun, if not entirely unexpected, twists here and the story serves as a worthy and fun entry in the superhero genre and makes for a tantalizing genesis story and a great start to what surely will be an ongoing series. I can't wait for the sequel.

[Daniel Lawson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good

This was a very good book but not great . I think that it started off very very slow then picked up a little bit before slowing down and then going out with a bang . I can't wait to read the next book in the series

[Randy Smith · Rating 1 out of 5]

I feel really bad about giving this book only one star after reading the nice ending written by the author thanking his wife. But to be honest with you I really did not like this book it was quite wooden. None of the characters in it seemed like they were real people they did not act as real people would act in those situations. And with all the ways the military and the secret CIA operation acted was just downright stupid and kept drawing me away from the main story. Yeah just drag a 18 year old kid off and then tell him you are now in a Secret organization with superpowers and now you have to fight for us. With all of the characters acting so dumb and felt like I was reading a very bad attempt at making a copy of Shakespeare play. I could list so many examples from this book where the characters did not act in any way normal to the situation. I had to force myself to finish this book just to see if the writing improved, it didn’t! I have one piece of advice to the author and that is before you write another book stop and think how would you respond when put into a situation like that if you were 18.

Last but not the least is the explanation about his breathing. If his chest muscles is not strong enough to breathe then none of his other muscles should be strong enough to work under the same conditions.

[Todd Oliver · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think this is an awesome start to a great superhero series. The story focuses mainly on Jeremy, a teen who recently discovers he has powers. He learns the hard way by getting hit by a bus while trying to pick ush someone else out of the way. Jeremy was unharmed other than blacking out for a bit. There are a few groups out there that keep an eye out for people like Jeremy. The US government is the first to snatch him up. The say they want to keep him safe and train him. We all know the government always has their own agendas! He does get to meet other anoms (anomalies) like himself and he learns to use and control his power. Soon after, Jeremy gets put on a small task force to take out a small terrorist group threatening to blow up a building with hostages. Unfortunately, the terrorist group has anoms of their own!

Excellent fast-paced book with lots of action. Great narration by Owen McCuen! He does a fantastic job with each character! I'm looking forward to enjoying the rest of this series!

[Rebecka · Rating 2 out of 5]

This feels like a superhero story, but it lacks a clear villain. There are "bad guys" all around, and much of the book is dedicated to their paranoia, planning and evil actions, but they are in control and have in a way already won. The only threat they face is from each other. So even though we have a bunch of people with weird superpowers, this isn't a typical comic book story. It lacks the clear good/evil dynamics for that. My problem is that I prefer the lines to be a bit clearer and a story that focuses more on the "good guys". Another problem is that the ending left me confused and several loose threads needed to be tied up even though the story continues in book 2. Otherwise it feels like a lot of Chekhov's guns turned out to be red herrings instead.

[Kevin · Rating 5 out of 5]

A solid debut!

I saw this book in my recommended as I was browsing through Super Hero books and gave it a try and was glad I did.

It's tough to break into this genre and the author has added enough of a unique touch that it stands solidly on its own.

I look forward to what I hope will be a sequel to this series to see where the author takes Jeremy, Lara, Ellison, and the other ANOMs.

5 stars

[Deoro · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very readable YA superhero story

A quick and enjoyable read that manages to combine interesting world building, character development, and plot. A very quick read but I'm looking forward to the next book in the series.

[Matt · Rating 4 out of 5]

Worth reading

Definitely a good start to a superpower story. A few sections felt a little rushed, and some characters maybe haven't been developed, but I'll definitely be reading the next book.

[Sean Devlin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Rushed Ending

It felt like we were just getting to know the characters and suddenly we're in the final boss fight. I guess I'll see if the second book is really just the second half of the first book.

[kevin stover · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nice

Nicely done some parts were a bit slow but still good enough to read and since there is a minimum word limit, there all done with my review

[Kian · Rating 1 out of 5]

Weak character, and didn't like the twists just to lengthen the story.

[LoisBow · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting.

This is a different concept for a story plot. I'm not sure if I like this or not. The plot kept my interest but......

[Barbara J Wicks · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very unusual

I've been reading every day for years. This novel is so different that I couldn't stop reading. And what if this could really happen?

[Bryan Scott · Rating 4 out of 5]

Action packed

Fantastic first novel, full of action and offers an interesting spin on the typical super hero story. The characters are well developed and the descriptions are excellent. There is plenty to unpack for sequels. Definitely worth a read. I’d give it 3.5 stars based on the need for a bit of extra editing—this feels like a first novel—but it didn’t detract from the readability or the story. Can’t wait to read the next installment.

[Matthew Baker · Rating 5 out of 5]

very intriguing and engrossing

[Aaron Birdwell]

A great read

I am a fan of super human fiction, and this piece is an excellent representation of the genre. The characters are rounded, and nothing is over explained. It's a journey of discovery for the reader as well as the protagonist.