What I wanted was a post-apocalyptic dystopia. What I got was an old school cowboy movie, complete with savage native Americans, backstabbing Mexicans, a too stupid to live female lead, and a token black guy who is the lackey to a secondary character. The only good part of this series is the fact that I got it on sale.
But! I wish the author hadn't relied so heavy on a thesaurus and just use common words in common usage, dumb it down for us. Just call things what they are, use terminology that is consistent with everyday conversation. Russell Blake, get more range time in if any, tell me when, at a firing range, you ever heard an audible sound of a "bolt locking open"! Fire at some ceramic plates or just watch YouTube on the subject matter! They don't shatter.. Crossbows fire bolts, we don't call them quarrels.. it just screws up the reading flow when you inject words of uncommon usage. Also..
Water drains from weapons without taking them apart and pouring it out..
Never once stopped by poor grammar, misspellings, or scummy dialogue. So unique in the self published books, it has been a treat to read these four books. Excellent storyline with well drawn characters that you come to know and care about. These apocalyptic stories are more realistic to me than many of the other series. Nice of Mr. Blake to prove that a series can be exciting and interesting without demeaning the story with garbage.
It's a great but scary story. I love the story line and the attention to the characters. They are woven together to make a fantastic story that's hard to put down. There is a very good chance some kind of apocalyptic event will happen in our lives. These stories just scratch the surface of what COULD happen. The NATION IS NOT PREPARED. Great read.
The writing is done for children with an interest in the genre to start. Perhaps the 5th or 6th grade is a good approximation. I had to return it as I found the style too juvenile and found the events to be too fictional for remote belief. Leaving a child in the desert for days than waiting for a story to finish before assisting the child.
It was very easy to follow for reasons unknown to me many authors use changes in heroes villains location and time within pages. That is confusing and not necessary in my humble opinion. Mr Blake does not do that to my enjoyment. Thank you Sir
Another good 'ol boy surviving, when he stumbles and intervenes. The good guy, doing what it takes, doing all he can to ensure safety, with nothing more than his mind all all he can carry on his horse. Well written, well narrated. Possibility of a second listen later on.
The characters are the best part of this series. The storyline is a little out there and the violence is more than I like. Getting worse as the series goes on but I’m invested in the characters now so I want to find out what happens.