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It's In The Blood
Book Zero of The BLOOD SERIES - a Fantasy Novel by Michael Lynes
Dev is a master thief with a magic sword called Betrayer. Can he and Tray find a way to overcome his Titan father before his dark nature overwhelms him? Will her frustrated love be revealed? It's in the BLOOD....
SPECIAL ADDITION - the first four chapters of Book One - DESTROYER's BLOOD are added to this new edition!
Dev is a master thief with a magic sword called Betrayer. Can he and Tray find a way to overcome his Titan father before his dark nature overwhelms him? Will her frustrated love be revealed? It's in the BLOOD....
SPECIAL ADDITION - the first four chapters of Book One - DESTROYER's BLOOD are added to this new edition!
104 pages, Paperback
Published November 15, 2019
10 people are currently reading
976 people want to read
About the author
Michael Lynes
30 books179 followersMICHAEL LYNES is the Award-Winning Author of The Blood Series. To date, the series has won the New Apply Literary, Indie BRAG Medallion, Readers Favorite for FANTASY and most recently the IAN Book of the Year Selection for Fantasy.
It begins with the novella "It's in the Blood". Continues with Destroyer's Blood and the NEW release Book Two - FIRST BLOOD is due out on November 1st 2019.
Book One - "Destroyer's Blood"
Reviewed By Christian Sia for Readers' Favorite
Destroyer's Blood: The Adventures of Devcalion is the first entry in The Blood Series by Michael Lynes, a gripping fantasy with strong hints of Greek mythology. Meet Devcalion, "Dev," a demigod, son of Prometheus and nephew of Zeus. He has a telepathic sword and a very close friend called Betrayer, "Tray". When we encounter Dev, he and his friend are climbing up Half Dome. An encounter with Hermes changes everything, driving Dev to the last place he wants to be -- Mt. Olympus. Dev and Tray are pulled into a war they never bargained for, a war against the greatest enemy of Zeus. With the darkest power in the universe bent on wreaking havoc, do they have any chance of surviving?
Destroyer's Blood has been awarded the Silver Medal for Fantasy in the Readers Favorite Awards for 2019 and has won an Indie B.R.A.G. Medallion for Fantasy. It also won the Solo Medalist in the New Apple Summer eBook Awards for 2019. Book Two - "First Blood" will be released in November of 2019.
His short story collection, "The Fat Man Gets Out of Bed", was chosen solo Medalist Winner in the 2017 New Apple Summer Indie Book awards.
His memoir, "There Is A Reaper: Losing a Child to Cancer", was an Indie B.R.A.G. Gold Medallion Honoree in January 2017, a silver-medal winner of the 2016 Readers’ Favorite International Book Awards for Memoir, a medalist in the 2015 New Apple Book Awards for Memoir, a winner of the 2015 TISBA (The Indie Spiritual Book Awards), and a finalist in both the Independent Author Network 2015 Book of the Year award and the Beverly Hills Book Awards for 2015.
Most recently Mr. Lynes has been a Contributing Author to the 2019 Ghostly Rites Anthology.
Mr. Lynes was awarded a BSEE degree in Electrical Engineering from Stevens Institute of Technology and currently works as an embedded software engineer. He has four sons, has been married for over thirty years, and currently lives with his wife and youngest son in the beautiful secluded hills of Sussex County, New Jersey.
It begins with the novella "It's in the Blood". Continues with Destroyer's Blood and the NEW release Book Two - FIRST BLOOD is due out on November 1st 2019.
Book One - "Destroyer's Blood"
Reviewed By Christian Sia for Readers' Favorite
Destroyer's Blood: The Adventures of Devcalion is the first entry in The Blood Series by Michael Lynes, a gripping fantasy with strong hints of Greek mythology. Meet Devcalion, "Dev," a demigod, son of Prometheus and nephew of Zeus. He has a telepathic sword and a very close friend called Betrayer, "Tray". When we encounter Dev, he and his friend are climbing up Half Dome. An encounter with Hermes changes everything, driving Dev to the last place he wants to be -- Mt. Olympus. Dev and Tray are pulled into a war they never bargained for, a war against the greatest enemy of Zeus. With the darkest power in the universe bent on wreaking havoc, do they have any chance of surviving?
Destroyer's Blood has been awarded the Silver Medal for Fantasy in the Readers Favorite Awards for 2019 and has won an Indie B.R.A.G. Medallion for Fantasy. It also won the Solo Medalist in the New Apple Summer eBook Awards for 2019. Book Two - "First Blood" will be released in November of 2019.
His short story collection, "The Fat Man Gets Out of Bed", was chosen solo Medalist Winner in the 2017 New Apple Summer Indie Book awards.
His memoir, "There Is A Reaper: Losing a Child to Cancer", was an Indie B.R.A.G. Gold Medallion Honoree in January 2017, a silver-medal winner of the 2016 Readers’ Favorite International Book Awards for Memoir, a medalist in the 2015 New Apple Book Awards for Memoir, a winner of the 2015 TISBA (The Indie Spiritual Book Awards), and a finalist in both the Independent Author Network 2015 Book of the Year award and the Beverly Hills Book Awards for 2015.
Most recently Mr. Lynes has been a Contributing Author to the 2019 Ghostly Rites Anthology.
Mr. Lynes was awarded a BSEE degree in Electrical Engineering from Stevens Institute of Technology and currently works as an embedded software engineer. He has four sons, has been married for over thirty years, and currently lives with his wife and youngest son in the beautiful secluded hills of Sussex County, New Jersey.
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Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews
February 28, 2021
It's In The Blood by Michael Lynes is an interesting prequel fantasy book to The Blood Series.
This book was not for me - I will say that first and foremost. The synopsis and reviews made it seem like this book would be right up my alley. I love a splash of fantasy here and there and the Greek Gods are super interesting to me. Unfortunately, this book was rather dull and felt kind of goofy. "Blah blah blah" being a literal quote inside of this book. It felt like this book was trying to go for campy and fun yet it kind of fell flat. The odd mixture of fun yet serious didn't work for me. I'm sure many readers will enjoy this book but I did not.
Two out of five stars.
I received this book for free through Goodreads First Reads.
This book was not for me - I will say that first and foremost. The synopsis and reviews made it seem like this book would be right up my alley. I love a splash of fantasy here and there and the Greek Gods are super interesting to me. Unfortunately, this book was rather dull and felt kind of goofy. "Blah blah blah" being a literal quote inside of this book. It felt like this book was trying to go for campy and fun yet it kind of fell flat. The odd mixture of fun yet serious didn't work for me. I'm sure many readers will enjoy this book but I did not.
Two out of five stars.
I received this book for free through Goodreads First Reads.
May 23, 2022
This book is Book Zero of The Blood Zero; the story starts off with a bang! Dev, our protagonist, is quite the character and engages the reader throughout.
In this edition, the reader is provided with the four chapters of Book One: Destroyer's Blood.
Thank you GoodReads for the book.
In this edition, the reader is provided with the four chapters of Book One: Destroyer's Blood.
Thank you GoodReads for the book.
March 2, 2020
Far from my normal genre but I have always been fascinated by mythology. I found this to be a quick and intriguing read, although perhaps a bit simple in the way the story is told. I would suggest this book to anyone that is interested in this genre.
July 5, 2020
I won this in a Goodreads Giveaway. This is the first thing in this series I've read, and the first thing by the author I have read.
There are definite plus and minuses in this book for me. I liked the main character, there is a lot of interesting things going on with him, but the story itself is like mixing mythos and that caused me problems while I was reading. The combination of Japanese martial arts terms and weapons super imposed on Greek mythology made the flow of the story choppy. One minute you're reading about Zeus and then the main character is talking about a koda-tachi. Don't get me wrong there is some interesting things going on in this book and I will most likely read the next one in the series but it's going to be a while.
There are definite plus and minuses in this book for me. I liked the main character, there is a lot of interesting things going on with him, but the story itself is like mixing mythos and that caused me problems while I was reading. The combination of Japanese martial arts terms and weapons super imposed on Greek mythology made the flow of the story choppy. One minute you're reading about Zeus and then the main character is talking about a koda-tachi. Don't get me wrong there is some interesting things going on in this book and I will most likely read the next one in the series but it's going to be a while.
March 1, 2020
Jarring and unpleasant
The prose here isn't totally without merit, though anything enjoyable is purely coincidental. The story is inconsistent in characterization except for the exasperating to the point of tone-deaf main character. The dialogue is arch and stilted until it's time for a groan-worthy one liner. Overall, I think the book is pandering to a very specific subset: the wish fulfillment of adolescent boys with an anime fetish, a passing knowledge of Greek mythology, and a misogynistic streak.
Read at your own risk.
The prose here isn't totally without merit, though anything enjoyable is purely coincidental. The story is inconsistent in characterization except for the exasperating to the point of tone-deaf main character. The dialogue is arch and stilted until it's time for a groan-worthy one liner. Overall, I think the book is pandering to a very specific subset: the wish fulfillment of adolescent boys with an anime fetish, a passing knowledge of Greek mythology, and a misogynistic streak.
Read at your own risk.
May 12, 2020
I received this book for free. I am voluntarily posting this review and all opinions expressed herein are my own.
I am really between a 3.5 and a four so I went with four. I found this to be an interesting quick prequel written from the first person point of view of the main character, Dev. Dev, of course, is replete with wise cracks and sarcasm. Some audio effects - such as an echo - are used to delineate the Gods in the story. I found the story, the most part, to be engaging.
The narration by narrator, David Bosco, really helped to pull me into the story and hold my attention.
I am really between a 3.5 and a four so I went with four. I found this to be an interesting quick prequel written from the first person point of view of the main character, Dev. Dev, of course, is replete with wise cracks and sarcasm. Some audio effects - such as an echo - are used to delineate the Gods in the story. I found the story, the most part, to be engaging.
The narration by narrator, David Bosco, really helped to pull me into the story and hold my attention.
December 5, 2020
Far from my normal genre but I have always been fascinated by mythology. I found this to be a quick and intriguing read, although perhaps a bit simple in the way the story is told. I would suggest this book to anyone that is interested in this genre.
January 31, 2023
Rating: 3.5 ⭐️
It’s in The Blood was a fun read. It introduces the main character of a series named Dev, and he’s the narrator of the story. Since the plot it’s not meant be of high scopes, I was mainly interested in knowing the protagonist and how likable he was. And liked him alright, but in some parts I felt like he was trying to be ‘too edgy’, and it was annoying. However, the plot itself was interesting enough to keep me reading.
Besides, I liked how the author used Greek mythology in the story, and how he made it understandable. Overall, it’s was a good beginning to a new series.
I won this book through Goodreads and I thank to the author for providing me this copy, but this fact didn't influence my review.
It’s in The Blood was a fun read. It introduces the main character of a series named Dev, and he’s the narrator of the story. Since the plot it’s not meant be of high scopes, I was mainly interested in knowing the protagonist and how likable he was. And liked him alright, but in some parts I felt like he was trying to be ‘too edgy’, and it was annoying. However, the plot itself was interesting enough to keep me reading.
Besides, I liked how the author used Greek mythology in the story, and how he made it understandable. Overall, it’s was a good beginning to a new series.
I won this book through Goodreads and I thank to the author for providing me this copy, but this fact didn't influence my review.
March 23, 2019
A demi-god and his sword…
I highly recommend Michael Lynes The Blood Series, starting with It’s In the Blood and following with Destroyer’s Blood. If you are into Mythology/Gods, this is the series for you. Sometimes when you’ve read/listen to books in the same genre it’s difficult to find something new/keep interest, but this is not the case with The Blood Series.
Both books kept me engaged from start to finish. They are fast-paced, with great characters, awesome narration, and fun banter between Devcalion “Dev” (the MC) and Betrayer “Tray” (his sword). I devoured It’s In the Blood in one listen and would have done the same with Destroyer’s Blood had it not been for life responsibilities calling…
Some things to expect: Gods such as Zeus, Typhon, Adrestia, Prometheus, Gaia (and more), loyalty, fighting, sarcastic humor between Dev and Tray, great world building/characters/dialogue, samurai influences. There is an echo type sound effect added when certain Gods are talking, so if this isn’t your thing, consider listening to a sample before purchasing.
The narrator, David Bosco, was fantastic! He definitely helped make these books fun and added to the story. He’s one to watch out for to do great things with narration.
I am looking forward to more books in this series. The author and narrator make a perfect team.
Overall, I recommend and will not say much more due to spoilers. Your safe bet is to try the short story, It’s In the Blood, and if you enjoy that, you will enjoy Destroyer’s Blood.
Parental guidance/trigger warnings: whore used once (in first book), hell (Hell’s Kitchen referenced a couple times), breast is mentioned numerous times (grief rose in my breast/I could feel the softness of her breast/his chin slumped onto his breast/mostly non-sexual usage of word), death, fighting, weapons such as swords/knives, engagement to another God that was forced and didn’t work out, a mention of an unclothed woman (not in detail), mention of a kiss (not in detail- “our lips met”). Considering the content, they are fairly clean books.
*I was given a free review copy of the audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review. Thank you for allowing me to listen and review the book!
I highly recommend Michael Lynes The Blood Series, starting with It’s In the Blood and following with Destroyer’s Blood. If you are into Mythology/Gods, this is the series for you. Sometimes when you’ve read/listen to books in the same genre it’s difficult to find something new/keep interest, but this is not the case with The Blood Series.
Both books kept me engaged from start to finish. They are fast-paced, with great characters, awesome narration, and fun banter between Devcalion “Dev” (the MC) and Betrayer “Tray” (his sword). I devoured It’s In the Blood in one listen and would have done the same with Destroyer’s Blood had it not been for life responsibilities calling…
Some things to expect: Gods such as Zeus, Typhon, Adrestia, Prometheus, Gaia (and more), loyalty, fighting, sarcastic humor between Dev and Tray, great world building/characters/dialogue, samurai influences. There is an echo type sound effect added when certain Gods are talking, so if this isn’t your thing, consider listening to a sample before purchasing.
The narrator, David Bosco, was fantastic! He definitely helped make these books fun and added to the story. He’s one to watch out for to do great things with narration.
I am looking forward to more books in this series. The author and narrator make a perfect team.
Overall, I recommend and will not say much more due to spoilers. Your safe bet is to try the short story, It’s In the Blood, and if you enjoy that, you will enjoy Destroyer’s Blood.
Parental guidance/trigger warnings: whore used once (in first book), hell (Hell’s Kitchen referenced a couple times), breast is mentioned numerous times (grief rose in my breast/I could feel the softness of her breast/his chin slumped onto his breast/mostly non-sexual usage of word), death, fighting, weapons such as swords/knives, engagement to another God that was forced and didn’t work out, a mention of an unclothed woman (not in detail), mention of a kiss (not in detail- “our lips met”). Considering the content, they are fairly clean books.
*I was given a free review copy of the audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review. Thank you for allowing me to listen and review the book!
March 19, 2020
It's In The Blood (The Blood Series Book 0) by Michael Lynes
This is a prequel and introduction to The Blood Series, which consists of two books with one more on the way. Readers should understand that this is not really a complete novel. It is a series of incidents that set the stage for the series to come. The hero is Devcalion, or "Dev," for short. He is a sort of modern urban demigod out of Greek mythology, the son of Prometheus. Zeus is his uncle. He has an edged weapon (sometimes knife and sometimes sword) called "Betrayer," or "Tray" that has a life of its own. Dev finds himself in a family feud that could, not so incidentally, cause the light of mankind to be snuffed out.
What I Liked:
I liked the writing. The author has an excellent command of the language. He understands dialogue, pacing, and has a nice mix of showing and telling. Editing is very good. I only saw one comma mistake, which puts it in A+ territory. The pace is exciting and the characters are distinct. There are frequent references to martial arts terms, sounding like the names of karate katas, which added an unusual flavor to a story based on ancient mythology. It is a clean read.
What I Din Not Like:
I am always baffled when an author creates a "bad-boy" smart-aleck young guy as the main protagonist and expects this to be an audience-pleaser. True, some of his quips are funny, in sort of juvenile, middle-school jerky way. But this, Dear Reader, does not endear me to this story. The amusing part goes away quickly, in my opinion.
Conclusion:
This introductory short piece does what it intended. It gives the reader a good idea about the content of the series. I am positive that if one likes this exciting vignette, that he will like the series as a whole. I think it is worthy of 4 Stars due to the quality of the writing, which is better than average, to be sure.
This is a prequel and introduction to The Blood Series, which consists of two books with one more on the way. Readers should understand that this is not really a complete novel. It is a series of incidents that set the stage for the series to come. The hero is Devcalion, or "Dev," for short. He is a sort of modern urban demigod out of Greek mythology, the son of Prometheus. Zeus is his uncle. He has an edged weapon (sometimes knife and sometimes sword) called "Betrayer," or "Tray" that has a life of its own. Dev finds himself in a family feud that could, not so incidentally, cause the light of mankind to be snuffed out.
What I Liked:
I liked the writing. The author has an excellent command of the language. He understands dialogue, pacing, and has a nice mix of showing and telling. Editing is very good. I only saw one comma mistake, which puts it in A+ territory. The pace is exciting and the characters are distinct. There are frequent references to martial arts terms, sounding like the names of karate katas, which added an unusual flavor to a story based on ancient mythology. It is a clean read.
What I Din Not Like:
I am always baffled when an author creates a "bad-boy" smart-aleck young guy as the main protagonist and expects this to be an audience-pleaser. True, some of his quips are funny, in sort of juvenile, middle-school jerky way. But this, Dear Reader, does not endear me to this story. The amusing part goes away quickly, in my opinion.
Conclusion:
This introductory short piece does what it intended. It gives the reader a good idea about the content of the series. I am positive that if one likes this exciting vignette, that he will like the series as a whole. I think it is worthy of 4 Stars due to the quality of the writing, which is better than average, to be sure.
April 23, 2019
Fun, addictive.
It strikes me that there doesn't seem to be a explanation for the stars that are given. So I thought I'd start giving my take on it.
1 horrible no redeeming qualities.
2 there are redeeming qualities.
3 good worth reading, or well written but not my cup of tea.
4 great but there's something off.
5 loved it.
Argg, everything I started to write becomes a spoiler. I HATE spoilers so I think I'll just go on to say that the narration gives the story life.
Reasons I enjoyed this audio book:
Wonderful characters, Page-turner, Great world building, Unpredictable, original, Easy-to-read, Entertaining, Action-packed, Funny, Whimsical.
Bookshelves/tags.
adventure, contemporary, fantasy, fighting-war, gods, humorous, nonhuman, recorded, series.
This Audiobook was given to me for free at my request from the publisher, author or narrator and I provided this unbiased voluntary review.
It strikes me that there doesn't seem to be a explanation for the stars that are given. So I thought I'd start giving my take on it.
1 horrible no redeeming qualities.
2 there are redeeming qualities.
3 good worth reading, or well written but not my cup of tea.
4 great but there's something off.
5 loved it.
Argg, everything I started to write becomes a spoiler. I HATE spoilers so I think I'll just go on to say that the narration gives the story life.
Reasons I enjoyed this audio book:
Wonderful characters, Page-turner, Great world building, Unpredictable, original, Easy-to-read, Entertaining, Action-packed, Funny, Whimsical.
Bookshelves/tags.
adventure, contemporary, fantasy, fighting-war, gods, humorous, nonhuman, recorded, series.
This Audiobook was given to me for free at my request from the publisher, author or narrator and I provided this unbiased voluntary review.
March 19, 2019
In this prequel, we are introduced to Devcalion, the illegitimate son of Prometheus, along with his sentient, magical sword Betrayer. Prepare for a mythological adventure with the citizens of Olympus. Three.point.five for an interesting start. This audiobook was given by the author, narrator, or publisher at no cost in exchange for an unbiased review via Audiobook Boom.
January 26, 2020
Devcalion, "Dev", son of Prometheus, a Titan, finds himself embroiled within a battle between his Father, Zeus and Hera. Dev makes the ultimate sacrifice for his Father and all mankind.
A good, short prequel story. My only suggestion is to tweak the sword's, Betrayer, dialogue. At the end, it was slightly juvenile.
A good, short prequel story. My only suggestion is to tweak the sword's, Betrayer, dialogue. At the end, it was slightly juvenile.
January 3, 2020
DNF, Too crude and dull for me.
February 3, 2020
Excellent book!!!
February 18, 2020
Good read especially if you like norse myths. It is a short book so quickly read.
January 24, 2023
— ★★☆☆☆ (2.5/5) —
I knew that this book is a novella, and it has less than 100 pages, so I’m not expecting any story depth in it. But, this was unbearable for me because everything was too vague. I doubt that this prequel can be read before reading the main books in the series. I couldn’t understand the systems, the plot, the world-building.
The story based on Greek Mythology, but what’s with Japanese terms? And for the mythology, I guess the author assumed that everyone reading this is the one who know Greek Mythology the best, so he didn’t need to explain much. However, this book got some chapters of the next book and I took a peek for it. It seems better explained than this one, though. So let’s see how the series will be…
Half stars are for the sword, Betrayer. She’s a scene stealer!
I knew that this book is a novella, and it has less than 100 pages, so I’m not expecting any story depth in it. But, this was unbearable for me because everything was too vague. I doubt that this prequel can be read before reading the main books in the series. I couldn’t understand the systems, the plot, the world-building.
The story based on Greek Mythology, but what’s with Japanese terms? And for the mythology, I guess the author assumed that everyone reading this is the one who know Greek Mythology the best, so he didn’t need to explain much. However, this book got some chapters of the next book and I took a peek for it. It seems better explained than this one, though. So let’s see how the series will be…
Half stars are for the sword, Betrayer. She’s a scene stealer!
January 7, 2020
Received this as a Goodreads First Reads.
This is a prequel novella about a Demigod (a son of Prometheus), his magic sword Betrayer, and his interactions/challenges/I'm not sure what you'd call it with a part of the pantheon. It's a short book, so there isn't too much to say. The writing style is fine, the character and his development over the course of the (very short) story is fairly bland. It's a quick, enjoyable read though, so I can't say too much bad about it.
This is a prequel novella about a Demigod (a son of Prometheus), his magic sword Betrayer, and his interactions/challenges/I'm not sure what you'd call it with a part of the pantheon. It's a short book, so there isn't too much to say. The writing style is fine, the character and his development over the course of the (very short) story is fairly bland. It's a quick, enjoyable read though, so I can't say too much bad about it.
August 12, 2025
Jay/Gray
Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews