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The Black Tattoo
Jack’s best mate, Charlie, has always been effortlessly cool. When Charlie wakes up one day and finds a mysterious, moving black tattoo on his back, it’s a clear sign that he’s even cooler than Jack thought. To top it off, Charlie has got super powers also.
Or does he?
Jack soon learns the terrifying truth: Charlie’s incredible powers come from an age-old demon called the Scourge, who is using Charlie to bring about its evil master plan.
When the Scourge vanishes with Charlie, Jack and Esme, a girl with super powers of her own, follow their friend from the streets of London into Hell itself, where they face horrors that may well cost them their lives.
Or does he?
Jack soon learns the terrifying truth: Charlie’s incredible powers come from an age-old demon called the Scourge, who is using Charlie to bring about its evil master plan.
When the Scourge vanishes with Charlie, Jack and Esme, a girl with super powers of her own, follow their friend from the streets of London into Hell itself, where they face horrors that may well cost them their lives.
503 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2006
112 people are currently reading
1910 people want to read
About the author
Sam Enthoven
5 books52 followersMy name is Sam Enthoven. I live in London, England, and I write fantastical action thrillers for 11-15 year-olds. If you're reading this, you've reached the 'portal page' of my sinister, ever-evolving internet empire – bwah-ha, bwah-HA-HA-HA! Er, sorry.
With his rollicking 2006 debut THE BLACK TATTOO Sam Enthoven fulfilled his dream to become an internationally published author of fantastical action thrillers for young people. Since then he's been touring schools and libraries, inspiring hundreds of budding readers with his passion and enthusiasm. His second book TIM, DEFENDER OF THE EARTH was shortlisted for the 2008 Waterstone's Children's Prize and has been optioned by a major Hollywood studio. CRAWLERS is his third – or as Sam modestly puts it, 'Phase Three of my Sinister Masterplan to Conquer the Universe!'
With his rollicking 2006 debut THE BLACK TATTOO Sam Enthoven fulfilled his dream to become an internationally published author of fantastical action thrillers for young people. Since then he's been touring schools and libraries, inspiring hundreds of budding readers with his passion and enthusiasm. His second book TIM, DEFENDER OF THE EARTH was shortlisted for the 2008 Waterstone's Children's Prize and has been optioned by a major Hollywood studio. CRAWLERS is his third – or as Sam modestly puts it, 'Phase Three of my Sinister Masterplan to Conquer the Universe!'
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 346 reviews
August 5, 2008
Really different. Different from what I was expecting, and different from anything I've read. Wow. It's getting a lot of negative reviews, many of them whining that the protagonist is a self-centered jerk. Um, good morning, readers! That wasn't the protagonist.
This is the story of a sidekick who realizes it's up to him to save the world. This is the story of a hero, trained all her life for one specific task, and how she deals with her world when it all falls apart around her. This is also, marginally, the story of a total wanker who finally wakes up to the fact that he is, in fact, a wanker. (And it's full of British slang and insults, which I love. Someone got called a "berk". I giggled for hours.)
Also, we go to Hell.
And there's hilarious talking bats, which is a big plus in my book.
There were a couple of drawbacks, for me. One was: lots of icky bodily fluid type of stuff. Ew. But I'm pretty squeamish, so don't let that deterr you. Also, I do think the beginning went on a bit too long, but once things got going, boy, did they go!
And perhaps now more teenagers will think carefully before getting a tattoo. . . .
This is the story of a sidekick who realizes it's up to him to save the world. This is the story of a hero, trained all her life for one specific task, and how she deals with her world when it all falls apart around her. This is also, marginally, the story of a total wanker who finally wakes up to the fact that he is, in fact, a wanker. (And it's full of British slang and insults, which I love. Someone got called a "berk". I giggled for hours.)
Also, we go to Hell.
And there's hilarious talking bats, which is a big plus in my book.
There were a couple of drawbacks, for me. One was: lots of icky bodily fluid type of stuff. Ew. But I'm pretty squeamish, so don't let that deterr you. Also, I do think the beginning went on a bit too long, but once things got going, boy, did they go!
And perhaps now more teenagers will think carefully before getting a tattoo. . . .
December 4, 2010
With all the werewolves and vampire books flooding the bookstores nowadays, I guess YA lit is really going down to hell (pardon my language). I know there are still YA lit with good quality and are worth the effort, but it's becoming harder to come by.
Luckily we do not have any Filipino authors who jumped into the bandwagon in creating "paranormal romance". Else we would be reading TIKBALANGS (humanoid in form but with head and feet of a horse), MANANANGGALS (the old, beautiful woman capable of severing its upper torso in order to fly into the night with huge bat-like wings to prey on unsuspecting, pregnant women) and the infamous KAPRE (a tree demon, more like a giant hair ball!) in a three-way love affair.
This book however was a breath of fresh air. True that this may not be good as in "the-abhorsen-trilogy-good" but this was well enough to keep you going through the whole 503 pages of the book. Unique in it's own way, and better than most of the YA books that are out now. Well written, fast paced, funny (sometimes), but all in all this is a three. :)
Luckily we do not have any Filipino authors who jumped into the bandwagon in creating "paranormal romance". Else we would be reading TIKBALANGS (humanoid in form but with head and feet of a horse), MANANANGGALS (the old, beautiful woman capable of severing its upper torso in order to fly into the night with huge bat-like wings to prey on unsuspecting, pregnant women) and the infamous KAPRE (a tree demon, more like a giant hair ball!) in a three-way love affair.
This book however was a breath of fresh air. True that this may not be good as in "the-abhorsen-trilogy-good" but this was well enough to keep you going through the whole 503 pages of the book. Unique in it's own way, and better than most of the YA books that are out now. Well written, fast paced, funny (sometimes), but all in all this is a three. :)
April 5, 2012
Jack's best friend Charlie has been sucked into a demon-fighting secret brotherhood and Jack's just along for the ride. Charlie suddenly has super-powers and an attitude to match, while Jack is just the same 14-year-old boy he was yesterday. As the brotherhood begins to disintegrate, a powerful demon named the scourge begins to take over and Jack and Charlie are forced to venture into Hell.
The book began with promise but quickly nose-dived after that. The main bad-guy, The Scourge, (sound's like a nasty illness or a cleaning product, doesn't it?) is a demon. He's your typical liquid darkness, I'm-so-evil-I-want-to-destroy-the-universe kinda guy. The action and story line really drag from about the middle of the book and I just wanted the thing to end. The descriptions were nice and vivid but the story felt tempid and boring, the author too obviously in love with the universe he'd created and wanting to share each and every detail whether it was pertinent to the plot or not.
Speaking of plot, that was rather convuluted too. Let's see we have the kids - Jack & Charlie, the five members of the brotherhood, the order of the scorpion flail, the scourge, a host of lesser demons, the emperor of all hell and a cast of supporting characters. Now toss all into a blender and hit start. There's your plot.
I listened to this story on Audiobook and accidentally mislabeled two of the CDs, so that disks 8 and 9 were not played until after disks 10 and 11. AND I DIDN'T NOTICE! That's how all over the place the plot was and how dang long the scenes take. I never even noticed that two hours of story were missing because they were so bloody irrelevant to the overall story arc.
The book began with promise but quickly nose-dived after that. The main bad-guy, The Scourge, (sound's like a nasty illness or a cleaning product, doesn't it?) is a demon. He's your typical liquid darkness, I'm-so-evil-I-want-to-destroy-the-universe kinda guy. The action and story line really drag from about the middle of the book and I just wanted the thing to end. The descriptions were nice and vivid but the story felt tempid and boring, the author too obviously in love with the universe he'd created and wanting to share each and every detail whether it was pertinent to the plot or not.
Speaking of plot, that was rather convuluted too. Let's see we have the kids - Jack & Charlie, the five members of the brotherhood, the order of the scorpion flail, the scourge, a host of lesser demons, the emperor of all hell and a cast of supporting characters. Now toss all into a blender and hit start. There's your plot.
I listened to this story on Audiobook and accidentally mislabeled two of the CDs, so that disks 8 and 9 were not played until after disks 10 and 11. AND I DIDN'T NOTICE! That's how all over the place the plot was and how dang long the scenes take. I never even noticed that two hours of story were missing because they were so bloody irrelevant to the overall story arc.
January 9, 2011
First off, I'd like to break down my rating: I give the book 4 stars for its creative concept, but only 2 stars for execution, which averages out to that 3 stars. Okay, I feel better now.
From what I can gather, despite the book's unusual plot, this is basically a coming-of-age book, concerning teenage growing pains (mental and physical) and the point at which one learns to take responsibility for one's choices. The story essentially centers around two friends, Jack and Charlie, who seem to be your pretty average 14-year-old boys. Charlie's the cool one, the slightly taller, slightly more sophisticated boy whom slightly awkward, slightly clueless Jack would secretly like to be. But Charlie's life isn't all it's cracked up to be. His father's skipped out on the family to shack up with his younger girlfriend, which leaves Charlie and his mom wondering what happened. Which makes Charlie angry. And angry is good for the Scourge, a demon whose only goal is the utter destruction of everything. And this is where things start to get...whimsical.
See, for the past thousand or so years, the Scourge, defeated and imprisoned by a powerful curse, has been watched over by the Brotherhood, one of those super-cool, super-secret societies. (They're not totally cool, though, because the Brotherhood lacks the dramatic costumes and complicated secret handshakes. Shame on them, the slackers.) Now we come to the tricky part. One of the Brotherhood defects the order, frees the Scourge and lets himself be possessed by the demon...to win the affections of a girl, naturally. The treachery is discovered, a war is fought, and the Scourge is once again defeated, or so the Brotherhood believes. Truth is, the Scourge is still free and waiting for the perfect vessel to take over, a nicely gullible, angry, malleable vessel, so that the Scourge can put his plan in action. Little sullen Charlie is the perfect fit.
Eventually, through some twists and turns, the story ends up in Hell- no, I don't mean metaphorically. The characters and storyline move down into Hell, where we encounter some strange and scary demons, the Emperor of Hell, and some rather cute, talking bat-like creatures on the road to the Scourge's plan of utter destruction. Of everything. I'm talking the world, the universe, every single plane of existence from here to eternity.
Now, if I may, I'd like to go off on a side rail for a moment and discuss this "utter destruction" plan. Why do all these super-villains always want to destroy everything? What's the point of gathering enough power to frighten and terrify entire populations, to take over and gloat from the highest mountain top if there's no one around to gloat over? Hell, you, the powerful villain who's accomplished this destruction, wouldn't be around to gloat if you manage to send the entire universe up in smoke. Again, I ask, what's the point? If we're talking about some clinically depressed villain, who could only manage to make himself feel better by destroying everything around him (and admit it, we've run into a few of those), he wouldn't get that far--he'd lack the strength of will to make it to uber-villain status. After the first disappointing reaction to his cool, emo-badness, he would've swallowed some Drano, slit his wrists and jumped off the nearest cliff...not without first writing some really bad poetry about his misunderstood emo-villain nature. So we now, thankfully, come to the point of my rant: Where's the fun in destroying everything? Wouldn't it be better to destroy a little bit--a couple of countries, a planet or two, heck, I'd even support destroying a galaxy if it'd get your point across. Just enough to prove your badness so that you can then sit back on your massive throne of bloody skulls and enjoy the terror of the masses as they come, scraping and bowing and jibbering in fear, before you. Just a thought. (What, me? Pictured myself on said bony throne, laughing maniacally at the petrified expressions on the faces of the peons below me? No, never. Honest.)
To get back to the book, eventually the story rises to the climactic 'good vs. evil' showdown, sacrifices are made, puppy love blooms, lives are lost, and--spoiler alert--good triumphs all. While there's nothing glaringly wrong about the book, there are some points about it which make for a occasionally tedious read. For instance, a third or so into the book, a second secret society, the Sons of the Scorpion Flail, is introduced, for no apparent reason other than to give the protagonists a few more obstacles to overcome on their way to hell. Never mind the convolutions and contortions the story occasionally goes through as well, again with no other purpose, it seems, other than to drag the story out. I think had the story been written a bit tighter, it would've truly been a rip-roaring tale. My opinion only, in case you were confused about that.
From what I can gather, despite the book's unusual plot, this is basically a coming-of-age book, concerning teenage growing pains (mental and physical) and the point at which one learns to take responsibility for one's choices. The story essentially centers around two friends, Jack and Charlie, who seem to be your pretty average 14-year-old boys. Charlie's the cool one, the slightly taller, slightly more sophisticated boy whom slightly awkward, slightly clueless Jack would secretly like to be. But Charlie's life isn't all it's cracked up to be. His father's skipped out on the family to shack up with his younger girlfriend, which leaves Charlie and his mom wondering what happened. Which makes Charlie angry. And angry is good for the Scourge, a demon whose only goal is the utter destruction of everything. And this is where things start to get...whimsical.
See, for the past thousand or so years, the Scourge, defeated and imprisoned by a powerful curse, has been watched over by the Brotherhood, one of those super-cool, super-secret societies. (They're not totally cool, though, because the Brotherhood lacks the dramatic costumes and complicated secret handshakes. Shame on them, the slackers.) Now we come to the tricky part. One of the Brotherhood defects the order, frees the Scourge and lets himself be possessed by the demon...to win the affections of a girl, naturally. The treachery is discovered, a war is fought, and the Scourge is once again defeated, or so the Brotherhood believes. Truth is, the Scourge is still free and waiting for the perfect vessel to take over, a nicely gullible, angry, malleable vessel, so that the Scourge can put his plan in action. Little sullen Charlie is the perfect fit.
Eventually, through some twists and turns, the story ends up in Hell- no, I don't mean metaphorically. The characters and storyline move down into Hell, where we encounter some strange and scary demons, the Emperor of Hell, and some rather cute, talking bat-like creatures on the road to the Scourge's plan of utter destruction. Of everything. I'm talking the world, the universe, every single plane of existence from here to eternity.
Now, if I may, I'd like to go off on a side rail for a moment and discuss this "utter destruction" plan. Why do all these super-villains always want to destroy everything? What's the point of gathering enough power to frighten and terrify entire populations, to take over and gloat from the highest mountain top if there's no one around to gloat over? Hell, you, the powerful villain who's accomplished this destruction, wouldn't be around to gloat if you manage to send the entire universe up in smoke. Again, I ask, what's the point? If we're talking about some clinically depressed villain, who could only manage to make himself feel better by destroying everything around him (and admit it, we've run into a few of those), he wouldn't get that far--he'd lack the strength of will to make it to uber-villain status. After the first disappointing reaction to his cool, emo-badness, he would've swallowed some Drano, slit his wrists and jumped off the nearest cliff...not without first writing some really bad poetry about his misunderstood emo-villain nature. So we now, thankfully, come to the point of my rant: Where's the fun in destroying everything? Wouldn't it be better to destroy a little bit--a couple of countries, a planet or two, heck, I'd even support destroying a galaxy if it'd get your point across. Just enough to prove your badness so that you can then sit back on your massive throne of bloody skulls and enjoy the terror of the masses as they come, scraping and bowing and jibbering in fear, before you. Just a thought. (What, me? Pictured myself on said bony throne, laughing maniacally at the petrified expressions on the faces of the peons below me? No, never. Honest.)
To get back to the book, eventually the story rises to the climactic 'good vs. evil' showdown, sacrifices are made, puppy love blooms, lives are lost, and--spoiler alert--good triumphs all. While there's nothing glaringly wrong about the book, there are some points about it which make for a occasionally tedious read. For instance, a third or so into the book, a second secret society, the Sons of the Scorpion Flail, is introduced, for no apparent reason other than to give the protagonists a few more obstacles to overcome on their way to hell. Never mind the convolutions and contortions the story occasionally goes through as well, again with no other purpose, it seems, other than to drag the story out. I think had the story been written a bit tighter, it would've truly been a rip-roaring tale. My opinion only, in case you were confused about that.
February 11, 2019
I loved this book and wish I had discovered it sooner. Demons are something I enjoy reading about and these demons are different. And the universe.......well I wouldn't want to ruin for potential readers. But this book has it all.....and more. Very enjoyable
September 7, 2008
So fun, so readable, and sort of cinematic at times...I don't know why, but it just seemed that way to me, but in a good, effective way.
December 16, 2020
I think the concept of the story is great, but I don't really care for the characters. If it was written differently, I probably would have enjoyed it so much more.
February 15, 2009
There will be readers who will enjoy this energetic, enthusiastically written book, but I am not among that company. This young adult novel reads like the half conscious fantasy of a teenage science fiction-comics-video game fan, complete with gladitorial battles, emotionally agonized women with superhuman fighting skills, old, powerful swords, immature tyrants, legacies from dying mentors, terrible tapeworms, and the fate of the world hanging in balance. And, of course, a demon made tattoo magically appearing. The writing sounds like video game narration, the characters inspire no empathy, and the plotline proceeds with the narrative devices of video games rather than novels, but the writer's unmistakable enthusiasm for his subject matter is difficult to deny, and those to whom the premise sounds riveting will no doubt have fun, even if the book makes no lasting impact whatsoever.
July 18, 2011
You could say that The Black Tattoo is another of the countless good vs. evil tales where a trio of characters battle to save planet Earth from the forces of darkness. You could say that. Until you read this book.
The author's cast of characters could be any of the teenagers attending your nearby school. Charlie, the misfit, is bored with school, doesn't do homework, can't get a girlfriend, hates his life and desperately wants to be like his ultra-cool, good-looking, smart and ever-popular friend. Jack, of course, is that friend. Then there's Esme. She's trained her whole life for this mission. It has been her total focus for as long as she can remember. Just think of Lara Croft in Tomb Raider and you've got the talents, skills and finesse of Esme.
The author draws the reader into this story through his integration of vividly described action scenes, fantastical settings, realistic characters, and quick pacing. As the main characters are deeply involved in surface issues, they are also dealing privately with individual issues of ethics, morality and loyalty. They must each deal with their own personal demons regarding these issues in order to be ready to accomplish the task at hand. Cleverly, the author provokes the reader's contemplation of these issues as well.
Join Charlie, Jack and Esme as they battle inner demons, interpersonal relationship issues, and the battle of their lives. Together they must go to the very depths of hell to save planet Earth from total destruction. You won't want to miss it!
Happy reading!
The author's cast of characters could be any of the teenagers attending your nearby school. Charlie, the misfit, is bored with school, doesn't do homework, can't get a girlfriend, hates his life and desperately wants to be like his ultra-cool, good-looking, smart and ever-popular friend. Jack, of course, is that friend. Then there's Esme. She's trained her whole life for this mission. It has been her total focus for as long as she can remember. Just think of Lara Croft in Tomb Raider and you've got the talents, skills and finesse of Esme.
The author draws the reader into this story through his integration of vividly described action scenes, fantastical settings, realistic characters, and quick pacing. As the main characters are deeply involved in surface issues, they are also dealing privately with individual issues of ethics, morality and loyalty. They must each deal with their own personal demons regarding these issues in order to be ready to accomplish the task at hand. Cleverly, the author provokes the reader's contemplation of these issues as well.
Join Charlie, Jack and Esme as they battle inner demons, interpersonal relationship issues, and the battle of their lives. Together they must go to the very depths of hell to save planet Earth from total destruction. You won't want to miss it!
Happy reading!
December 10, 2011
To be fair, this review is for the audio version. John Lee, the narrator performed beautifully, giving a unique voice and life to each character. I'm not sure I would have the same affinity for the book had I elected to read in a traditional manner.
Sam Enthoven packs a bit of everything into this novel and, for me, it presented fresh idea, after fresh idea, after fresh idea. It tips the concepts of hell and humanity on their heads and casts daemons as gladiators.
The story also brings together coming of age themes with a "dink" of a "main" character, a faithful sidekick turned hero, and a kick ass young woman. Perhaps my favorite part of the story, though, is the Chinj. The picture in my mind is something like a bat crossed with an "Angry Bird" and paired with a slightly "off" Jiminy Cricket persona. I rather think I'd like one. :o)
Overall, I greatly enjoyed this audio production, believe the characters will stick with me for quite some time, and know I will never look at Hell the same again.
Sam Enthoven packs a bit of everything into this novel and, for me, it presented fresh idea, after fresh idea, after fresh idea. It tips the concepts of hell and humanity on their heads and casts daemons as gladiators.
The story also brings together coming of age themes with a "dink" of a "main" character, a faithful sidekick turned hero, and a kick ass young woman. Perhaps my favorite part of the story, though, is the Chinj. The picture in my mind is something like a bat crossed with an "Angry Bird" and paired with a slightly "off" Jiminy Cricket persona. I rather think I'd like one. :o)
Overall, I greatly enjoyed this audio production, believe the characters will stick with me for quite some time, and know I will never look at Hell the same again.
January 10, 2014
I happened upon this book back in 2008 while stuck in a mountain timeshare with my then 79 year-old grandfather, 74 year-old grandmother, mother, and older sister. My grandfather's only interest was in playing golf and watching the stock market on TV, my grandmother and mother contented themselves with investigating attractions and potential activities, and my older sister had commandeered the laptop we brought with us. Needless to say, I was bored out of my mind. When my mother agreed to buy me a book I was ecstatic. That's when I happened upon this terrible, terrible book.
It was a case of cover envy, plain and simple. I mean look at the paperback cover! What you can't tell is that it's actually a white and black cover with a man shaped cutout that fits over the hardback cover. Awesome, just awesome. Especially given my state of max boredom and entertainment desperation. The premise wasn't bad either. Kid named Jack takes it upon himself to save his best friend Charlie when said friend gets caught up with an escaped and highly dangerous demon who takes the form of a black tattoo. It starts out with promise enough, but quickly stagnates and plummets. The main problems? Static characters, poor plot execution, and a religious smashing that made no sense whatsoever.
Jack is a whiny, sniveling, little pansy. That's all he'll ever be, too. How do I know? This kid experiences mind boggling, life-altering events. His best friend gets possessed and goes rogue with an extremely evil and powerful demon, he gets sucked into hell and forced to fight in an arena IN HELL, and . After going through all that he's still a freaking pansy!!! He whines and snivels and "woe is me"s his way through all of it. Never does it occur to the boy that he can man up at DO SOMETHING for himself. Instead he just gets dragged along everywhere, is babied, and whines. He starts out the book pathetic and ends the book pathetic. Actually, he's even more pathetic at the end than he was at the start because he's so darn useless and static.
Charlie, on the other hand, is a pompous, self-centered, fathead. The kid obviously thinks he's some-kinda cool, and just goes along with the demon because he's throwing a little tantrum. Charlie is also painfully static. He has no regard for the safety and well being of others. He just eats out of the demon's palm and never stops to consider the implications of the actions being done/proposed. The only good thing about Charlie is he isn't a sniveling stick-in-the-mud like Jack. At least Charlie does something, however stupid and selfish said somethings are.
As others have said, the plot is everywhere. Everywhere, that is, but up. Oh how it plummets and throws in random twists and events! The problem? These "twists" aren't even good and come off more as desperate attempts at shock-and-awe-ing readers into forgetting about the static characters and rapidly decaying semblance of plot.
Now let's get to the religious smashing. I understand that not everyone in the world believes as I believe. I understand that authors are free to make up their own religions and gods for their books. I'm okay with that. In fact, I rather enjoy made up religions in my fantasy reading and video games. Why? Because it's FICTION! I know that the religions and gods made up for fantasy aren't real. Including a made up religion or variation of a dead religion can really add to the world building and can make immersion much quicker and easier. This book, however, bashes Christianity. Not in a subtle, hinting way, that suggests blindly following any religion is potentially dangerous and foolhardy (for a good book that does that I'd suggest Blood Song by Anthony Ryan, which is by far one of the best books I've ever read). This books all but outright says that Christianity is a lie and anyone who follows or believes in God is a foolish sheep being lead along by an overblown misconception. Honestly, I can handle someone thinking that. It saddens me that people don't understand or willfully cut themselves off from God, but I get there are people out there like that and I can't force them to change. What gets me about this book, I mean really gets me, is what it says is the "truth" of God and the universe. It's something so implausible that, when viewing it as someone would in the natural, the "God spoke and the universe was" that's explained in the Bible makes more sense. Again, I understand that not everyone believes as I do. But don't trash a thousands year old religion and try to replace it with that theory.
If it wasn't for the fact that this book was my only source of entertainment for several days, I would have stopped reading it. The characters and plot are frustrating and painful to endure. In fact, as of the writing of this review, this is the only book I have ever knowingly thrown away. I usually donate books I've decided I don't want to read anymore. I gladly donate books with the hope that they will spark the joy of reading in another person. This book is so bad that I chose to throw it away rather than risk it falling into another person's hands and potentially ruin reading for them forever.
It was a case of cover envy, plain and simple. I mean look at the paperback cover! What you can't tell is that it's actually a white and black cover with a man shaped cutout that fits over the hardback cover. Awesome, just awesome. Especially given my state of max boredom and entertainment desperation. The premise wasn't bad either. Kid named Jack takes it upon himself to save his best friend Charlie when said friend gets caught up with an escaped and highly dangerous demon who takes the form of a black tattoo. It starts out with promise enough, but quickly stagnates and plummets. The main problems? Static characters, poor plot execution, and a religious smashing that made no sense whatsoever.
Jack is a whiny, sniveling, little pansy. That's all he'll ever be, too. How do I know? This kid experiences mind boggling, life-altering events. His best friend gets possessed and goes rogue with an extremely evil and powerful demon, he gets sucked into hell and forced to fight in an arena IN HELL, and . After going through all that he's still a freaking pansy!!! He whines and snivels and "woe is me"s his way through all of it. Never does it occur to the boy that he can man up at DO SOMETHING for himself. Instead he just gets dragged along everywhere, is babied, and whines. He starts out the book pathetic and ends the book pathetic. Actually, he's even more pathetic at the end than he was at the start because he's so darn useless and static.
Charlie, on the other hand, is a pompous, self-centered, fathead. The kid obviously thinks he's some-kinda cool, and just goes along with the demon because he's throwing a little tantrum. Charlie is also painfully static. He has no regard for the safety and well being of others. He just eats out of the demon's palm and never stops to consider the implications of the actions being done/proposed. The only good thing about Charlie is he isn't a sniveling stick-in-the-mud like Jack. At least Charlie does something, however stupid and selfish said somethings are.
As others have said, the plot is everywhere. Everywhere, that is, but up. Oh how it plummets and throws in random twists and events! The problem? These "twists" aren't even good and come off more as desperate attempts at shock-and-awe-ing readers into forgetting about the static characters and rapidly decaying semblance of plot.
Now let's get to the religious smashing. I understand that not everyone in the world believes as I believe. I understand that authors are free to make up their own religions and gods for their books. I'm okay with that. In fact, I rather enjoy made up religions in my fantasy reading and video games. Why? Because it's FICTION! I know that the religions and gods made up for fantasy aren't real. Including a made up religion or variation of a dead religion can really add to the world building and can make immersion much quicker and easier. This book, however, bashes Christianity. Not in a subtle, hinting way, that suggests blindly following any religion is potentially dangerous and foolhardy (for a good book that does that I'd suggest Blood Song by Anthony Ryan, which is by far one of the best books I've ever read). This books all but outright says that Christianity is a lie and anyone who follows or believes in God is a foolish sheep being lead along by an overblown misconception. Honestly, I can handle someone thinking that. It saddens me that people don't understand or willfully cut themselves off from God, but I get there are people out there like that and I can't force them to change. What gets me about this book, I mean really gets me, is what it says is the "truth" of God and the universe. It's something so implausible that, when viewing it as someone would in the natural, the "God spoke and the universe was" that's explained in the Bible makes more sense. Again, I understand that not everyone believes as I do. But don't trash a thousands year old religion and try to replace it with that theory.
If it wasn't for the fact that this book was my only source of entertainment for several days, I would have stopped reading it. The characters and plot are frustrating and painful to endure. In fact, as of the writing of this review, this is the only book I have ever knowingly thrown away. I usually donate books I've decided I don't want to read anymore. I gladly donate books with the hope that they will spark the joy of reading in another person. This book is so bad that I chose to throw it away rather than risk it falling into another person's hands and potentially ruin reading for them forever.
August 2, 2020
The Black Tattoo by Sam Enthoven is fantasy targeted at a much younger audience than I am, so I may not be able to provide a truly fair review.
I did get some laughs from it, as Enthoven has captured the puerile dialogue of teenagers, especially boys, quite well.
The story is quite imaginative, although carelessly written and even more poorly edited in places.
The basic plot involves the chance recruitment of two mates, Jack and Charlie, into an organisation dedicated to ridding the world of an entity known as the Scourge, who is, in turn, committed to awaken the Dragon and bring about the end of the Universe - a sort of reverse 'big bang'.
Teaming up with Esme, another teenager who has been trained by her father all her life to tackle the Scourge, the three teenagers embark on a trip to Hell (accessed through a fracture located in a pub) and take on all manner of weird monstrosities, including God (short for Godfrey) in a Hell that resembles nothing like the traditional Christian concept.
A nice bit of fun, kids under 15 will probably quite enjoy this one.
I did get some laughs from it, as Enthoven has captured the puerile dialogue of teenagers, especially boys, quite well.
The story is quite imaginative, although carelessly written and even more poorly edited in places.
The basic plot involves the chance recruitment of two mates, Jack and Charlie, into an organisation dedicated to ridding the world of an entity known as the Scourge, who is, in turn, committed to awaken the Dragon and bring about the end of the Universe - a sort of reverse 'big bang'.
Teaming up with Esme, another teenager who has been trained by her father all her life to tackle the Scourge, the three teenagers embark on a trip to Hell (accessed through a fracture located in a pub) and take on all manner of weird monstrosities, including God (short for Godfrey) in a Hell that resembles nothing like the traditional Christian concept.
A nice bit of fun, kids under 15 will probably quite enjoy this one.
August 12, 2022
Cerita fantasi yang sangat seru,sayangnya saya kurang pintar dalam berimajinasi😁
April 25, 2021
Me compré el libro hace casi 7 años o más porque me llamó la atención, pero ni siquiera fui capaz de terminarlo o llegar a la mitad.
Lo he intentado varias veces, lo juro, pero es que no hay nada que me llame la atención en la historia, nada que me haga seguir leyendo, absolutamente NADA.
Lo tengo cogiendo polvo, y creo que ni siquiera sigue disponible en español. Vamos, que si te gusta dormirte del aburrimiento, este es tu libro
Lo he intentado varias veces, lo juro, pero es que no hay nada que me llame la atención en la historia, nada que me haga seguir leyendo, absolutamente NADA.
Lo tengo cogiendo polvo, y creo que ni siquiera sigue disponible en español. Vamos, que si te gusta dormirte del aburrimiento, este es tu libro
July 16, 2011
Black Tattoo by Sam Enthoven is a young adult novel that is about friendship, dreams, life and finding ones true goals and worth in the context of the possible end of the world. This is a fast-paced novel, high in action and with a very interesting premise. However, the execution of the idea and the characterization of the major players seemed to be a little lacking.
Black Tattoo is a fantasy novel is a “teens need to save the universe’ story, with the premise being that a demon is released from its prison and out to destroy the universe. The demon, The Scourge, has the ability to possess and control humans, sometimes more than one at a time, by preying on their hopes and fears. The Scourge wants to return to Hell and wake up the legendary dragon that will devour the world and return the entire universe to an empty void. Charlie is an angry young man that The Scourge uses to bring his plans to fruition. Jack is Charlie’s best friend, and the narrator for the majority of the story, that is much more down to earth but always seems to get the short end of the stick. Esme has been training all her life to fight The Scourge, and has some hard truths to face in her efforts to defend the world and defeat the deadly demon. The theology that most people use in relation to the terms Hell, demon and God are called into question, with a twist on the stories we have been taught as our creation or history.
The twists on theology, premise and action scenes in Black Tattoo make it an okay read. However, the lack of depth to characters and the use of several cliques and twists I saw coming within the first few chapters keep it from being more than an average read. If you enjoy coming of age tales with strong fantasy flavor that includes demons and strange creatures, then add this to your list of things you might want to read. However, if you are looking for something exciting and new to get you through the dog days of summer I suggest skipping the novel, at least until you are out of other reading material. While Black Tattoo was far from the worst fantasy novel I have read, even when narrowed down to just young adult novels, it was also far from the best.
Black Tattoo is a fantasy novel is a “teens need to save the universe’ story, with the premise being that a demon is released from its prison and out to destroy the universe. The demon, The Scourge, has the ability to possess and control humans, sometimes more than one at a time, by preying on their hopes and fears. The Scourge wants to return to Hell and wake up the legendary dragon that will devour the world and return the entire universe to an empty void. Charlie is an angry young man that The Scourge uses to bring his plans to fruition. Jack is Charlie’s best friend, and the narrator for the majority of the story, that is much more down to earth but always seems to get the short end of the stick. Esme has been training all her life to fight The Scourge, and has some hard truths to face in her efforts to defend the world and defeat the deadly demon. The theology that most people use in relation to the terms Hell, demon and God are called into question, with a twist on the stories we have been taught as our creation or history.
The twists on theology, premise and action scenes in Black Tattoo make it an okay read. However, the lack of depth to characters and the use of several cliques and twists I saw coming within the first few chapters keep it from being more than an average read. If you enjoy coming of age tales with strong fantasy flavor that includes demons and strange creatures, then add this to your list of things you might want to read. However, if you are looking for something exciting and new to get you through the dog days of summer I suggest skipping the novel, at least until you are out of other reading material. While Black Tattoo was far from the worst fantasy novel I have read, even when narrowed down to just young adult novels, it was also far from the best.
March 10, 2009
I first picked up this book because I was (as always) sucked in by John Jude Palencar's cover art. I didn't begin reading it immediately but once I started, I couldn't stop and ended up finishing it within a day.
Enthoven creates his own quirky world and compliments it with a quirky and humorous plot line that takes many surprising twists and turns. The book follows the much used teenage-boy-thinks-he's-nothing-special-and-ends-up-saving-the-world routine but still manages to remain its own story. The various characters and creatures introduced (such as the butt-kicking Esme or the endearing yet horrifying vomiting bats), as well as the wacky settings (Hell is much more interesting than one might think) and the side plots (including teen romance) help make The Black tattoo an interesting read.
On a side note, I could see how a somewhat strict religious person (who strongly believes in Heaven and Hell and doesn't like to joke about it) might get offended as some of the content. So, if you fall into that category or are someone who get offended when reading anything contrary to Christian/Judaeo/Islamic beliefs, stay away!
Enthoven creates his own quirky world and compliments it with a quirky and humorous plot line that takes many surprising twists and turns. The book follows the much used teenage-boy-thinks-he's-nothing-special-and-ends-up-saving-the-world routine but still manages to remain its own story. The various characters and creatures introduced (such as the butt-kicking Esme or the endearing yet horrifying vomiting bats), as well as the wacky settings (Hell is much more interesting than one might think) and the side plots (including teen romance) help make The Black tattoo an interesting read.
On a side note, I could see how a somewhat strict religious person (who strongly believes in Heaven and Hell and doesn't like to joke about it) might get offended as some of the content. So, if you fall into that category or are someone who get offended when reading anything contrary to Christian/Judaeo/Islamic beliefs, stay away!
April 25, 2015
More like 3.5 but I'll round it up.
I liked the idea behind this book. I liked how the sidekick suddenly is forced to step up. I also enjoyed the humor in this book.
The beginning was so slow though, I nearly gave up on it. I opened this book a year and a bit ago, read a few pages, got bored, and stopped reading. Yesterday I decided to give it another shot. It's worth reading past that boring beginning.
I loved Esme. She was so badass and cool. I was cheering for her so much. I liked how low key the romance was, like it was barely even there. Jack was a bit meh, but I liked his narrative voice. I liked the Scourge.
This book, at least to me, resembles Percy Jackson. It'll probably appeal to its fans too. Not idea wise, but the plot feels similar. The whole mission thing, the way its written. It's just giving me a PJ feel.
There's also the bit where it was too long. Eventually, around the 400 mark, I started skimming more and not really reading each word. It was too long and dragged on. Occasionally there were suspenseful points but a lot was kind of dull.
Still, I'd recommend this book to a younger audience, like 12 to 15ish who like plainer writing with good plots.
I liked the idea behind this book. I liked how the sidekick suddenly is forced to step up. I also enjoyed the humor in this book.
The beginning was so slow though, I nearly gave up on it. I opened this book a year and a bit ago, read a few pages, got bored, and stopped reading. Yesterday I decided to give it another shot. It's worth reading past that boring beginning.
I loved Esme. She was so badass and cool. I was cheering for her so much. I liked how low key the romance was, like it was barely even there. Jack was a bit meh, but I liked his narrative voice. I liked the Scourge.
This book, at least to me, resembles Percy Jackson. It'll probably appeal to its fans too. Not idea wise, but the plot feels similar. The whole mission thing, the way its written. It's just giving me a PJ feel.
There's also the bit where it was too long. Eventually, around the 400 mark, I started skimming more and not really reading each word. It was too long and dragged on. Occasionally there were suspenseful points but a lot was kind of dull.
Still, I'd recommend this book to a younger audience, like 12 to 15ish who like plainer writing with good plots.
December 15, 2008
Looking over the other reviews for this book, I can identify with both sides. Part of me really wants to like this book and there are parts of the book that are really likeable. The other part of me was ssooooo bored with the whole thing. The characters were poorly developed. Who was Jack? Why would he follow his best friend to Hell? What about Esme? Why should any reader care about someone she knows nothing about? The plot dragged on and on - 500+ pages. Really? But then there were the Chinj which I loved and the unique description of hell and the gladiators. That was entertaining. I was not thrilled with the obvious plug for the author's religious (or lack thereof) beliefs, but he did a great job of creating a fantasy world. Read it if you are desparate for some YA fantasy and this is all you have in a snowstorm- that is the best I can offer.
October 10, 2009
Sam Enthoven has written a fun, magical adventure in The Black Tattoo. It seems original in its plot twists and turns while at the same time being very derivative. Jack is the most interesting character in his Sam from The Lord of the Rings way.
The story as a whole is a save-the-universe adventure along with some interesting philosophy and theology all wrapped up in lots of action. There are often three sides to the same plot line going. At times it is slightly past Enthoven’s capacity. There is a slight twinge of coming-of-age to the story. My bet is that many 13 year olds of either gender would enjoy the book.
As for me, I enjoyed it and will look at some of the influences that Enthoven sights. I give it a good recommendation if you enjoy action and fantasy.
The story as a whole is a save-the-universe adventure along with some interesting philosophy and theology all wrapped up in lots of action. There are often three sides to the same plot line going. At times it is slightly past Enthoven’s capacity. There is a slight twinge of coming-of-age to the story. My bet is that many 13 year olds of either gender would enjoy the book.
As for me, I enjoyed it and will look at some of the influences that Enthoven sights. I give it a good recommendation if you enjoy action and fantasy.
September 24, 2015
I was really looking forward to this book. I had read Crawlers by this author earlier in the year and it was great, so much better than I expected and highly enjoyable. So, when I found this book by the same author I had high hopes for another good book.
What a disappointment! I quit at page 141 at the end of section 1 as I just could not bring myself to read anymore! This was just bad, boring and so overly long! The thought of another 300 pages of this was so not good.
If I had read this first I probably wouldn't have read Crawlers! Now I'll probably think twice with this author!
1 star - and that's only because i have to!
What a disappointment! I quit at page 141 at the end of section 1 as I just could not bring myself to read anymore! This was just bad, boring and so overly long! The thought of another 300 pages of this was so not good.
If I had read this first I probably wouldn't have read Crawlers! Now I'll probably think twice with this author!
1 star - and that's only because i have to!
August 20, 2016
I picked up The Black Tattoo at random because of the interesting cover design, and I wasn't disappointed. This novel was a grotesque, satirical romp that was fun to read. A totally new theory of hell is presented here, and it is as interesting as it is dark. I wouldn't recommend this book to everyone, but if you are interested in religious themes and horror, you should give it a go; I found it a satisfying read.
August 28, 2024
3.5/5 stars
0.5/1 ★ for plot
0.5/1 ★ for characters and character development
0.5/1 ★ for writing style and narration
1/1 ★ for pace
1/1 ★ for world-building
This YA urban fantasy narrated by the unparalleled John (Rafter) Lee is a fun read.
The book is divided into three parts. The first part introduces the main characters and their goal to bind an evil "demon" called the Scourge, which takes the form of a black tattoo on its host. Charlie is an average kid who's suddenly given immense power and acts accordingly -- as an entitled teenage boy. Jake is his best friend who tags along for the ride and becomes increasingly worried about his mate. Esme is a talented, multiracial teen who's trained her whole life for this goal, and must now contend with Charlie messing up all her plans. As a fellow mixed person, I appreciated the representation of Esme in a predominantly white society. This part of the book was the weakest, however, with some tropes and allusions to Christian demons and hell.
The second part is where the book starts to shine and the bulk of the world-building happens. Thankfully, it veers away from traditional religious mythologies, and even pokes fun at what they say supernatural creatures and places are like. Charlie develops a tense relationship with the Scourge and must decide whether to help or hinder it. Jake chases after Charlie, but must now find a way to navigate hell to save his friend. Esme must decide to fight or team up with the Sons of the Scorpion Flail, an organization that's been hunting the Scourge.
The third part of the book neatly wraps up the story. Jake's ultimate role is finally revealed, while Charlie and Esme struggle against all of hell. No loose ends or cliffhangers here. I especially enjoyed the voice of the character in the epilogue.
Plenty of humor and action for a one-time read. Do it for John Lee's voice.
0.5/1 ★ for plot
0.5/1 ★ for characters and character development
0.5/1 ★ for writing style and narration
1/1 ★ for pace
1/1 ★ for world-building
This YA urban fantasy narrated by the unparalleled John (Rafter) Lee is a fun read.
The book is divided into three parts. The first part introduces the main characters and their goal to bind an evil "demon" called the Scourge, which takes the form of a black tattoo on its host. Charlie is an average kid who's suddenly given immense power and acts accordingly -- as an entitled teenage boy. Jake is his best friend who tags along for the ride and becomes increasingly worried about his mate. Esme is a talented, multiracial teen who's trained her whole life for this goal, and must now contend with Charlie messing up all her plans. As a fellow mixed person, I appreciated the representation of Esme in a predominantly white society. This part of the book was the weakest, however, with some tropes and allusions to Christian demons and hell.
The second part is where the book starts to shine and the bulk of the world-building happens. Thankfully, it veers away from traditional religious mythologies, and even pokes fun at what they say supernatural creatures and places are like. Charlie develops a tense relationship with the Scourge and must decide whether to help or hinder it. Jake chases after Charlie, but must now find a way to navigate hell to save his friend. Esme must decide to fight or team up with the Sons of the Scorpion Flail, an organization that's been hunting the Scourge.
The third part of the book neatly wraps up the story. Jake's ultimate role is finally revealed, while Charlie and Esme struggle against all of hell. No loose ends or cliffhangers here. I especially enjoyed the voice of the character in the epilogue.
Plenty of humor and action for a one-time read. Do it for John Lee's voice.
October 27, 2020
The target audience for this book is pretty obviously young teenagers (especially those who happen to be and fans), and so I'll be rating it with that demographic in mind more than my own personal preferences. Maybe if I had read this twelve years ago, when I first bought it, I would have liked it more, though I'm not so sure. I might have liked it when I was 14 though.
Sometimes the writing was just bad. Straight up, no way to justify it. There were exchanges that were wooden and flat and unintentionally awkward. There was a lot of telling instead of showing. The characterization fell flat a lot of the time, and I could not, for the life of me, figure out why some characters put up with other characters. Jack and Charlie's friendship made absolutely no sense to me at all.
Despite all this, the story took me to places I wasn't expecting to go. The worldbuilding was unique and very interesting. While the plot, at times, was kind of basic, it was still unique, and there were a couple of scenes near the end that actually made me laugh - which I suppose made up for the fact that they were just so convenient.
I read it for a horror themed month, and there were certainly some scenes and descriptions that made me feel like it was a good choice, even if the overall plot wasn't what I would call "horror" (and it doesn't claim to be, so I'm not going to hold that against it).
Overall, this was a fun read, even if it wasn't necessarily good, and I would absolutely recommend it to young teenagers (12 - 15), especially if they're fans of anime.
Sometimes the writing was just bad. Straight up, no way to justify it. There were exchanges that were wooden and flat and unintentionally awkward. There was a lot of telling instead of showing. The characterization fell flat a lot of the time, and I could not, for the life of me, figure out why some characters put up with other characters. Jack and Charlie's friendship made absolutely no sense to me at all.
Despite all this, the story took me to places I wasn't expecting to go. The worldbuilding was unique and very interesting. While the plot, at times, was kind of basic, it was still unique, and there were a couple of scenes near the end that actually made me laugh - which I suppose made up for the fact that they were just so convenient.
I read it for a horror themed month, and there were certainly some scenes and descriptions that made me feel like it was a good choice, even if the overall plot wasn't what I would call "horror" (and it doesn't claim to be, so I'm not going to hold that against it).
Overall, this was a fun read, even if it wasn't necessarily good, and I would absolutely recommend it to young teenagers (12 - 15), especially if they're fans of anime.
December 30, 2024
3!
Tanto la portada como la premisa del libro me llamó la atención desde que lo vi, pensé que sería una lectura de mínimo cuatro estrellas, pero no ha llegado a la altura de las expectativas que tenía. No quiero decir que no sea un buen libro, creo que está bien; es entretenido y definitivamente la idea y el concepto del mismo está bastante trabajado y pensado.
Creo que podría haber dado a más, es verdad que tenía un bloqueo lector y que no he tenido tanto tiempo como hubiese querido para leerlo pero puede que no haya sido tan interesante por ser juvenil(?
También es verdad que han habido muchas situaciones que se han solucionado de manera "cómica" para que el libro no se alargara mucho.
Algo que me ha llamado mucho la atención ha sido las varias faltas ortográficas que he visto y los fallos de traducción que habían. Supongo que la narrativa también me hubiese gustado más si lo hubiera leído en su idioma original.
Y sobre los personajes...La mayoría son totalmente planos o no dan para mucho. Esme es tan carismática como una piedra (que por el contexto final se supone que tiene sentido) y cómo bien Jack dice, Charlie es un idiota.
Si me tuviese que quedar con alguna frase célebre sería esta: "Pensó en Dios, y en el Dios que había creado a Dios, y en el Dios que había creado a Dios que había creado a Dios, y así sucesivamente."
Tanto la portada como la premisa del libro me llamó la atención desde que lo vi, pensé que sería una lectura de mínimo cuatro estrellas, pero no ha llegado a la altura de las expectativas que tenía. No quiero decir que no sea un buen libro, creo que está bien; es entretenido y definitivamente la idea y el concepto del mismo está bastante trabajado y pensado.
Creo que podría haber dado a más, es verdad que tenía un bloqueo lector y que no he tenido tanto tiempo como hubiese querido para leerlo pero puede que no haya sido tan interesante por ser juvenil(?
También es verdad que han habido muchas situaciones que se han solucionado de manera "cómica" para que el libro no se alargara mucho.
Algo que me ha llamado mucho la atención ha sido las varias faltas ortográficas que he visto y los fallos de traducción que habían. Supongo que la narrativa también me hubiese gustado más si lo hubiera leído en su idioma original.
Y sobre los personajes...La mayoría son totalmente planos o no dan para mucho. Esme es tan carismática como una piedra (que por el contexto final se supone que tiene sentido) y cómo bien Jack dice, Charlie es un idiota.
Si me tuviese que quedar con alguna frase célebre sería esta: "Pensó en Dios, y en el Dios que había creado a Dios, y en el Dios que había creado a Dios que había creado a Dios, y así sucesivamente."
October 13, 2024
This book fought hard for three stars and I think it earned it in the end. I did some digging and this book was years in the making, which is good to see an author work really hard for something they care about. Unfortunately the writing style and quality varies vastly throughout the story. At the beginning it’s hard to read, one of the major points early in is how a characters personality changes. Unfortunately this characters initial characterization was not there. This however changes throughout the book and the writing does improve as the story goes. So if the story concept is interesting to you like it was to me, tough it out and finish the book. It’ll get better. My final thing is just personal to me; God is a character in this book and quite frankly he is a joke. That really annoys me his character doesn’t really add to the story and his role could be taken by literally any demon that the author could come up with. Yes I do think some of the ideas surrounding religion are good to think about, especially if you are religious like I am, but this can be done without including God in this book and making him feel like a massive middle finger to religion.
January 7, 2021
Tengo un recuerdo muy bonito de este libro.
Lo leí hace un montón, lo encontré en la biblioteca, me senté en una mesa y cuando levanté la vista, la bibliotecaria me hacía gestos tocándose el reloj porque iban a cerrar, había estado cuatro horas leyendo y no me había dado ni cuenta.
Me llevé el libro a casa y, a cada rato que tenía, leía. Lo llevaba conmigo a todas partes, la historia me tenía encandilada. Me gustó muchísimo, a día de hoy no puedo decir si es un libro bien o mal escrito, si es más o menos maduro o más o menos original, no puedo ser muy específica en cuanto a la reseña, pero sí sé que tengo que volver a leerlo, aunque me da un poco de miedo, porque guardo unas sensaciones estupendas y no quiero que se estropeen con una relectura. Lástima que Sam Enthoven no sea un autor conocido ni traducido en España, me gustaría leer más de su parte.
Lo leí hace un montón, lo encontré en la biblioteca, me senté en una mesa y cuando levanté la vista, la bibliotecaria me hacía gestos tocándose el reloj porque iban a cerrar, había estado cuatro horas leyendo y no me había dado ni cuenta.
Me llevé el libro a casa y, a cada rato que tenía, leía. Lo llevaba conmigo a todas partes, la historia me tenía encandilada. Me gustó muchísimo, a día de hoy no puedo decir si es un libro bien o mal escrito, si es más o menos maduro o más o menos original, no puedo ser muy específica en cuanto a la reseña, pero sí sé que tengo que volver a leerlo, aunque me da un poco de miedo, porque guardo unas sensaciones estupendas y no quiero que se estropeen con una relectura. Lástima que Sam Enthoven no sea un autor conocido ni traducido en España, me gustaría leer más de su parte.
December 29, 2024
Very Shonen anime, very angst teenage boys, very fun world building, but there's a lot that I wish there was more of especially in the first 3rd of the book. Would've loved more screen time for the secret society members and for Jack to have shown more of his acute nature early on.
Apparently this novel was originally intended to be a trilogy which explains why I felt the pacing, though good for what is was trying to do, still felt a bit off. Will definitely have to check out the additional content on the novel's website (which is behind a password found in the Acknowledgments and is really neat way to keep readers engaged even after finishing the novel!)
Jack just going along with everything for the sake of plot advancement made me wanna shake him and scream, "Do something you little shit!" and was incredibly pleased that he finally spoke his mind and made some definitive decisions.
Apparently this novel was originally intended to be a trilogy which explains why I felt the pacing, though good for what is was trying to do, still felt a bit off. Will definitely have to check out the additional content on the novel's website (which is behind a password found in the Acknowledgments and is really neat way to keep readers engaged even after finishing the novel!)
Jack just going along with everything for the sake of plot advancement made me wanna shake him and scream, "Do something you little shit!" and was incredibly pleased that he finally spoke his mind and made some definitive decisions.
April 22, 2023
It took me a little longer to finished it because when I first started reading it. It became boring. Once I picked the book back up just recently and started over. I couldn’t put it down. I enjoy this book and easy to picture in my mind; like I was there.
I love supernatural creatures and different outcomes.
For an example on vampires. They drink blood. Everyone knows from books, tv and movies; they drank blood. But someone creates a whole new level on vampires and give them a new meaning to vampires.
Hell is hot and evil. But this book gave me more ideas on hell and there’s battles. Fighting and a DRAGON IS HELL. The whole world in hell……is a dragon.
Just different ideas and I wished I found this book sooner.
I love supernatural creatures and different outcomes.
For an example on vampires. They drink blood. Everyone knows from books, tv and movies; they drank blood. But someone creates a whole new level on vampires and give them a new meaning to vampires.
Hell is hot and evil. But this book gave me more ideas on hell and there’s battles. Fighting and a DRAGON IS HELL. The whole world in hell……is a dragon.
Just different ideas and I wished I found this book sooner.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 19, 2024
This is a young adult fantasy story about two young boys (somewhere between the age of 15 and 17), and their friendship. Jack is the average boy that not a lot of people like & Charlie is his best friend. Charlie is well liked and yet he chooses to have Jack as his best friend.
When Charlie ends up in hell, after being semi-possessed by a demon - Jack doesn't hesitate - he follows him there to rescue him.
Apparently the portal to hell is at a local pub - and hell itself is a great city populated with many demons that exist on the back of a sleeping fire breathing dragon.
Charlie saves the day, and the whole world too. Overall a decent read - I would recommend it for young adults between the ages of 11 and 13.
When Charlie ends up in hell, after being semi-possessed by a demon - Jack doesn't hesitate - he follows him there to rescue him.
Apparently the portal to hell is at a local pub - and hell itself is a great city populated with many demons that exist on the back of a sleeping fire breathing dragon.
Charlie saves the day, and the whole world too. Overall a decent read - I would recommend it for young adults between the ages of 11 and 13.
February 13, 2023
Originally reviewed on my LibraryThing account:
This book was something of a let down... I was expecting something as good as the Bartimaeus trilogy, but this was nowhere near that level. Of the three main characters, Charlie is self-involved and one dimensional, Esme has super powers and is fairly one dimensional and it's only Jack that has a spark about him. There is also a whole lot of the plot that's either unnecessary or is underused. But I guess I can't complain too much, I did find it on the bargain table.
This book was something of a let down... I was expecting something as good as the Bartimaeus trilogy, but this was nowhere near that level. Of the three main characters, Charlie is self-involved and one dimensional, Esme has super powers and is fairly one dimensional and it's only Jack that has a spark about him. There is also a whole lot of the plot that's either unnecessary or is underused. But I guess I can't complain too much, I did find it on the bargain table.
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