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Acula
From USA Today bestseller Robert Armstrong and New York Times bestseller Tom Shutt comes the first book in the dark fantasy series.
480 B.C.E., Greece. Reeling from the old war, a protective Spartan father accompanies his son, Acula, on an unexpected journey filled with adventure, mystery, and peril. Experience the dark lord's campaign as he faces his greatest challenge ever-a father's love.
480 B.C.E., Greece. Reeling from the old war, a protective Spartan father accompanies his son, Acula, on an unexpected journey filled with adventure, mystery, and peril. Experience the dark lord's campaign as he faces his greatest challenge ever-a father's love.
104 pages, Kindle Edition
Published November 17, 2017
6 people are currently reading
18 people want to read
About the author
Tom Shutt
19 books34 followersTom Shutt writes paranormal suspense with generous helpings of humor and a sprig of mystery thrown in for good measure. Sometimes he dabbles in fantasy, but in all cases, he strives to push the boundaries of modern fiction in search of good answers to hard questions.
He lives on the perpetually rainy East Coast with some cats, dogs, and a basement full of mistresses. His favorite authors are Jim Butcher, George R. R. Martin, Jonathan Stroud, and Eoin Colfer. He knows how to hide a body from the police, and the research for his novels has likely landed him on a few security watch lists. He enjoys reading, gaming (Halo, Civilization, BioShock, Call of Duty, Minecraft), playing pool, chasing deer, hunting deer, riding deer, and lying about what activities he does with deer. His favorite shows include Supernatural, Game of Thrones, iZombie, and anything created by Joss Whedon.
He lives on the perpetually rainy East Coast with some cats, dogs, and a basement full of mistresses. His favorite authors are Jim Butcher, George R. R. Martin, Jonathan Stroud, and Eoin Colfer. He knows how to hide a body from the police, and the research for his novels has likely landed him on a few security watch lists. He enjoys reading, gaming (Halo, Civilization, BioShock, Call of Duty, Minecraft), playing pool, chasing deer, hunting deer, riding deer, and lying about what activities he does with deer. His favorite shows include Supernatural, Game of Thrones, iZombie, and anything created by Joss Whedon.
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
June 3, 2018
Not your every day vampire book
Acura by Robert Armstrong has good world building, set back in time with a young Spartan as the main character, him and his father. They have some interesting and gruesome encounters, life was rough back then, but it gets real bad when the boy get bit by a dark one. Then it really gets tough!
Acura by Robert Armstrong has good world building, set back in time with a young Spartan as the main character, him and his father. They have some interesting and gruesome encounters, life was rough back then, but it gets real bad when the boy get bit by a dark one. Then it really gets tough!
October 25, 2024
Decent self published novella about set in ancient Greece with elements of dark fantasy. The plot is rather straightforward, with interesting stakes at some points. I think action sequences were most enjoyable part of the story.
Characters and emotions are OK, but I felt that they lacked depth. There is too much direct narration about characters' thoughts and emotions, instead of showing it by actions, or even narrating some thoughts indirectly showing the emotion, attitude, point of view.
The "self published" aspect is noticeable. The text needs more proofreading and revisions. Some sentences are really stiff and labored. I don't regret having read the book, though. In final words I would like to share some quotes, because authors' need to directly narrate interjections amazed me.
“Rrrrr-rrr!” Father yanked the spear out.
“Ahh-hhhhhh-hhhh!” he screamed in agony, attempting to cap off the blood flow.
WHAMP! Father smacked me across the face.
“Ahhhh-hhh!” Her fingers tasted horrible
“Ahhh-hhhhhhh! Help me!”
“Ahhh-hhh!” This infuriated me
“Wo-aaaaaa!” I yelled, balancing on the branch.
“Arrrrrghhh-hhhh!” she called out, holding her hip.
“Ahhhhhhh!” hissed out an anguished cry
“Ughhhh-hhhhhhh!” I yelled
“Hhhh…hhhhh,” Morack wheezed
“Whoooo-oooo!” I yelled.
“Ahhhhh.” I hissed with discomfort
“Aahhhhhhhhh!” Morack yelled
“Oohh, oohhhh!” he groaned, his eyes scrunched up tight.
I asked before roaring in pain. “Raaaahhhh!”
“Stop! Ah-Ahhh-Ahhhhhh!”
“Aaaaaarrhhhh!” Father shouted
And example of lack of proofreading:
“Well, at least your faster than them,” he said.
Characters and emotions are OK, but I felt that they lacked depth. There is too much direct narration about characters' thoughts and emotions, instead of showing it by actions, or even narrating some thoughts indirectly showing the emotion, attitude, point of view.
The "self published" aspect is noticeable. The text needs more proofreading and revisions. Some sentences are really stiff and labored. I don't regret having read the book, though. In final words I would like to share some quotes, because authors' need to directly narrate interjections amazed me.
“Rrrrr-rrr!” Father yanked the spear out.
“Ahh-hhhhhh-hhhh!” he screamed in agony, attempting to cap off the blood flow.
WHAMP! Father smacked me across the face.
“Ahhhh-hhh!” Her fingers tasted horrible
“Ahhh-hhhhhhh! Help me!”
“Ahhh-hhh!” This infuriated me
“Wo-aaaaaa!” I yelled, balancing on the branch.
“Arrrrrghhh-hhhh!” she called out, holding her hip.
“Ahhhhhhh!” hissed out an anguished cry
“Ughhhh-hhhhhhh!” I yelled
“Hhhh…hhhhh,” Morack wheezed
“Whoooo-oooo!” I yelled.
“Ahhhhh.” I hissed with discomfort
“Aahhhhhhhhh!” Morack yelled
“Oohh, oohhhh!” he groaned, his eyes scrunched up tight.
I asked before roaring in pain. “Raaaahhhh!”
“Stop! Ah-Ahhh-Ahhhhhh!”
“Aaaaaarrhhhh!” Father shouted
And example of lack of proofreading:
“Well, at least your faster than them,” he said.
December 15, 2017
Delightful beginning
An interesting take on the vampire legend. One assumes ‘Acura’ to be a precursor ‘Dracula’ and we watch for the conversion. Or perhaps the battle?
An interesting take on the vampire legend. One assumes ‘Acura’ to be a precursor ‘Dracula’ and we watch for the conversion. Or perhaps the battle?
December 18, 2017
Vampire beware
This has such a wonderful twist that you won't see coming. It will pull at your heart as you hope things change.
This has such a wonderful twist that you won't see coming. It will pull at your heart as you hope things change.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews