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Tapper
TAPPER—a projecting empath—is the product of a corrupted government. Nurtured from birth and ruthlessly trained, Tapper learns the art of manipulation and deadly persuasion—becoming an elite operative agent with a gift of immense power. He’s the government’s prized spy until he does the unthinkable. Horrified by his actions, branded as a monster, he goes into self exile on Mitta-4—a colony planet on the fringe of the known universe—to settle down and lose himself in a new life. There, he finds danger comes in many guises. A dark and deeply moving story filled with immorality and one man’s quest to abstain from his darkest impulses.
446 pages, Kindle Edition
First published November 17, 2016
2 people are currently reading
4 people want to read
About the author
Scott A. Combs
6 books8 followersScott A. Combs born in Ohio in the late 50s, is an artist, graphic designer, software engineer and writer. He resides in Chandler, Arizona, with his family, one fat cat and his best little buddy, Maxine, an Amazon parrot.
As a precocious child he'd run wild with the other children on adventures throughout the rural landscape of Lexington, OH, fishing, playing and generally causing mischief. Today he is still causing mischief only quietly in his novels, often accompanied with Maxine, scrutinizing his latest work from her perch on his shoulder.
You can find out more about Scott at scottacombs.com.
As a precocious child he'd run wild with the other children on adventures throughout the rural landscape of Lexington, OH, fishing, playing and generally causing mischief. Today he is still causing mischief only quietly in his novels, often accompanied with Maxine, scrutinizing his latest work from her perch on his shoulder.
You can find out more about Scott at scottacombs.com.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
June 16, 2018
( Format : audiobook )
"War is the natural state of humans."
"I was one hour old when I committed my first murder..." From the opening line, the reader is plunged into the relating of his life, by Tapper, to a video recorder, in 2191. Born with a freak ability and considered 'a menace to society,' he was brought up in a military facility with almost no human contact (even his nappies were changed by a robot and learning came from vids), until, at four years old, Teach arrived to teach him, to befriend him and to show him how to control his terrifying power as a true projecting empathy. And to give him a name: Tapper.
The story, told in the first person by Tapper himself, is conducted from both ends of his life: his childhood and years working for the government, and his later experiences after he retires to start a new life far from earth. The chapters alternate until the earlier time catches up with the near present- a clever device which encourages the reader ever forward to discover what caused the events related.
The writing style is simple, easy to read and enjoy filed as it is not only with death and destruction but also the wonder of life.
Rand Doering's narration fits perfectly with the writing style. His pleasant, melodious voice, with good intonation and understanding of the text, delivers Tapper's story as his own, the pace gentle and appropriate. His voicings of all of the other characters makes each individually identifiable, too. An excellent performance which very much enhanced the book for this reader.
The book has fast paced action but is more than just a thriller as it lightly touches on the nature of man, of society, and of life itself. The author, apparently, received the book in a dream but struggled to write it down because of the deep emotional impact it created within in him. I am so glad that he managed to overcome his reservations: this is a great story I would recommend everyone read - with so many aspects within it, not just S.F. or action thriller, it is one for all to enjoy.
"War is the natural state of humans."
"I was one hour old when I committed my first murder..." From the opening line, the reader is plunged into the relating of his life, by Tapper, to a video recorder, in 2191. Born with a freak ability and considered 'a menace to society,' he was brought up in a military facility with almost no human contact (even his nappies were changed by a robot and learning came from vids), until, at four years old, Teach arrived to teach him, to befriend him and to show him how to control his terrifying power as a true projecting empathy. And to give him a name: Tapper.
The story, told in the first person by Tapper himself, is conducted from both ends of his life: his childhood and years working for the government, and his later experiences after he retires to start a new life far from earth. The chapters alternate until the earlier time catches up with the near present- a clever device which encourages the reader ever forward to discover what caused the events related.
The writing style is simple, easy to read and enjoy filed as it is not only with death and destruction but also the wonder of life.
Rand Doering's narration fits perfectly with the writing style. His pleasant, melodious voice, with good intonation and understanding of the text, delivers Tapper's story as his own, the pace gentle and appropriate. His voicings of all of the other characters makes each individually identifiable, too. An excellent performance which very much enhanced the book for this reader.
The book has fast paced action but is more than just a thriller as it lightly touches on the nature of man, of society, and of life itself. The author, apparently, received the book in a dream but struggled to write it down because of the deep emotional impact it created within in him. I am so glad that he managed to overcome his reservations: this is a great story I would recommend everyone read - with so many aspects within it, not just S.F. or action thriller, it is one for all to enjoy.
September 13, 2017
Once again, not the usual genre I look for, but as I have to scrounge around for ways to feed my reading habit and not empty my bank account, I couldn't turn down a free read, courtesy of a Book Funnel giveaway.
And even though I probably wouldn't have chosen this if it had been on a shelf, I did end up enjoying it, though it took a few chapters for the book to grow on me.
The main character, Tapper, is a "projecting empath." It means he can make other people feel what he wants them to feel - pleasure and pain. He can mess with their thoughts, and he can kill with his mind. A power like that is not going to be left alone, and Tapper is brought up as a tool of the government, a spy, doing their bidding to shape world events. Until Tapper has had enough, and wants out.
The chapters in the book alternate between flashbacks of the childhood and adolescence of Tapper, which include his training in how to use his skills, and the present day, where Tapper just wants to settle down and be left alone. But in his past he has made a lot of enemies, and they are not ready to leave him be.
Like I said, normally not what I would read, but I did enjoy it. I wasn't sure about the way the book ended, but after thinking about it decided it was appropriate for the story.
And even though I probably wouldn't have chosen this if it had been on a shelf, I did end up enjoying it, though it took a few chapters for the book to grow on me.
The main character, Tapper, is a "projecting empath." It means he can make other people feel what he wants them to feel - pleasure and pain. He can mess with their thoughts, and he can kill with his mind. A power like that is not going to be left alone, and Tapper is brought up as a tool of the government, a spy, doing their bidding to shape world events. Until Tapper has had enough, and wants out.
The chapters in the book alternate between flashbacks of the childhood and adolescence of Tapper, which include his training in how to use his skills, and the present day, where Tapper just wants to settle down and be left alone. But in his past he has made a lot of enemies, and they are not ready to leave him be.
Like I said, normally not what I would read, but I did enjoy it. I wasn't sure about the way the book ended, but after thinking about it decided it was appropriate for the story.
July 17, 2018
Disclaimer.
I had requested and received audible version of this book for free from the narrator, in exchange for an unbiased review.
What I liked about the book -
For this particular book, I like that the author spent time in developing the character Tapper. We get to hear his story, alternating between present and past, and thus we see what made him what he is today. I loved this approach of alternating timeline. It worked really well for this book. Both plots are paced well and are very interesting. It kept me interested in the outcome till the end. I enjoyed the listen.
What I disliked about the book -
Some of the other military characters were mostly shaped with a cookie-cutter and followed the now familiar traits that evil / self-serving / self-righteous military bosses show in such stories.
Narration -
Narration by Rand Doerning was a good match for the content. It built a tense atmosphere for the story and made the story engaging.
I had requested and received audible version of this book for free from the narrator, in exchange for an unbiased review.
What I liked about the book -
For this particular book, I like that the author spent time in developing the character Tapper. We get to hear his story, alternating between present and past, and thus we see what made him what he is today. I loved this approach of alternating timeline. It worked really well for this book. Both plots are paced well and are very interesting. It kept me interested in the outcome till the end. I enjoyed the listen.
What I disliked about the book -
Some of the other military characters were mostly shaped with a cookie-cutter and followed the now familiar traits that evil / self-serving / self-righteous military bosses show in such stories.
Narration -
Narration by Rand Doerning was a good match for the content. It built a tense atmosphere for the story and made the story engaging.
December 31, 2016
This book was different from any other I've read. It started out a bit slow for me but after the first few chapters I had a hard time putting it down. Once it got going there was definitely a lot happening and it really held my interest. I especially liked the writing style of this book in that it jumped back and forth from the past to the present. Definitely an interesting read.
December 8, 2025
3.5⭐️
Audio: 4.5⭐️
Heard It All Before but Still Fun
This is light sci-fi that blends a bit of spy craft, war games, and theological/philosophical musings. It’s dialogue and characters are avatars of pop culture tropes and has a super hero style MC and action sequences with thinly veiled commentary on the human condition and the divine. It’s told in chapters that alternate between telling his life story from before “he does the unthinkable” and his present circumstances. Tapper spent years isolated in a government facility until he was transformed into a government weapon. Now he wants to live out his remaining days in peace on an isolated planet, but the government doesn’t want to retire him.
The fun (and probably the intent) is that it evokes imagery from popular culture perfectly conveyed by narrator Rand Doerning with his delivery that ranged from the “stop right there, villain”-style to “Oo-rah itching for a fight”. It’s like a Bond movie, Call of Duty/Halo, and pretty much any American war movie rolled into one. The military/government characters have the same dialogue that populates media about these types of people. The political figures and villains are the textbook self-serving/self-aggrandizing of political, and the space Marines are the spitting image of the space Marines from Aliens—`from the cigar chomping, barrel-chested Sergent to the unseasoned, barely tolerated Lieutenant (although with much better outcomes). Tapper is the Superman of empaths with abilities he uses like a Cerebro-charged Xavier. However, interspersed in the mind-killings and plasma gun action are philosophical/theological musings/discussion that balance out the more cut-and-paste elements.
Overall, it’s an entertaining listen, especially with Doerning’s pitch perfect delivery. Although not as complex as what “one man’s quest to abstain from his darkest impulses” conveys in the blurb since he doesn’t want to kill and has no trouble curbing that “dark impulse, it’s a good book, particularly for those unfamiliar with/not a fan of most sci-fi as it is very light on space faring terminology; in-depth worldbuilding; and reads mostly like a completely Earthbound adventure.
Audio: 4.5⭐️
Heard It All Before but Still Fun
This is light sci-fi that blends a bit of spy craft, war games, and theological/philosophical musings. It’s dialogue and characters are avatars of pop culture tropes and has a super hero style MC and action sequences with thinly veiled commentary on the human condition and the divine. It’s told in chapters that alternate between telling his life story from before “he does the unthinkable” and his present circumstances. Tapper spent years isolated in a government facility until he was transformed into a government weapon. Now he wants to live out his remaining days in peace on an isolated planet, but the government doesn’t want to retire him.
The fun (and probably the intent) is that it evokes imagery from popular culture perfectly conveyed by narrator Rand Doerning with his delivery that ranged from the “stop right there, villain”-style to “Oo-rah itching for a fight”. It’s like a Bond movie, Call of Duty/Halo, and pretty much any American war movie rolled into one. The military/government characters have the same dialogue that populates media about these types of people. The political figures and villains are the textbook self-serving/self-aggrandizing of political, and the space Marines are the spitting image of the space Marines from Aliens—`from the cigar chomping, barrel-chested Sergent to the unseasoned, barely tolerated Lieutenant (although with much better outcomes). Tapper is the Superman of empaths with abilities he uses like a Cerebro-charged Xavier. However, interspersed in the mind-killings and plasma gun action are philosophical/theological musings/discussion that balance out the more cut-and-paste elements.
Overall, it’s an entertaining listen, especially with Doerning’s pitch perfect delivery. Although not as complex as what “one man’s quest to abstain from his darkest impulses” conveys in the blurb since he doesn’t want to kill and has no trouble curbing that “dark impulse, it’s a good book, particularly for those unfamiliar with/not a fan of most sci-fi as it is very light on space faring terminology; in-depth worldbuilding; and reads mostly like a completely Earthbound adventure.
December 22, 2016
A good first read from author Scott Combs. I'm not really a Science Fiction reader, more of a mystery/espionage/suspense reader. This book satisfies all. Combs creates a unique world in which the reader learns of the primary character from a young age to adulthood, all the while inserting twists to capture the readers attention. I'll be reading more from Scott Combs!
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews