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The School of Harder Knocks #1
She is the Principle
A teenage boy with a terminal condition, a group of school bullies, and an incognito Empress with a short temper…
Kirian Larsen knows he won’t live to see adulthood. Dex and his gang only care that he’s a human living on “their” planet.
Their determination to make his life harder bothers Kirian less than their efforts to do the same for their other victims. What can he do, bound to his wheelchair and dealing with unimaginable, unending pain?
Fight back, and damn the consequences.
Kirian’s refusal to submit to the hand life has dealt him gets the attention of his new physical therapist, a human doctor with a hidden past who has recently moved to High Tortuga.
Dr. Ericson isn’t the only human arrival to the planet previously known as Devon.
Rumors of the Empress’ Witch taking over the planet are proven by the vacancies opening up in the planet’s government and criminal enterprises. Baba Yaga’s bloody Justice is unavoidable for the corrupt.
A reckoning is coming for the bullies—both in the schoolyard and the planet’s places of power.
Can Kirian put an end to Dex’s reign without crossing a line he can’t come back from? Will Baba Yaga find a way to ensure the vision she has for the planet doesn’t crumble the moment she returns to the Empire?
Kirian Larsen knows he won’t live to see adulthood. Dex and his gang only care that he’s a human living on “their” planet.
Their determination to make his life harder bothers Kirian less than their efforts to do the same for their other victims. What can he do, bound to his wheelchair and dealing with unimaginable, unending pain?
Fight back, and damn the consequences.
Kirian’s refusal to submit to the hand life has dealt him gets the attention of his new physical therapist, a human doctor with a hidden past who has recently moved to High Tortuga.
Dr. Ericson isn’t the only human arrival to the planet previously known as Devon.
Rumors of the Empress’ Witch taking over the planet are proven by the vacancies opening up in the planet’s government and criminal enterprises. Baba Yaga’s bloody Justice is unavoidable for the corrupt.
A reckoning is coming for the bullies—both in the schoolyard and the planet’s places of power.
Can Kirian put an end to Dex’s reign without crossing a line he can’t come back from? Will Baba Yaga find a way to ensure the vision she has for the planet doesn’t crumble the moment she returns to the Empire?
285 pages, Kindle Edition
Published December 31, 2022
355 people are currently reading
70 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 65 reviews
January 5, 2023
Baba is baaaaaccckkk!
I wasn't going to get this until book 3 was out, but since the next in the Drafted series and the next in the Brutal Response series aren't out yet, I broke. (This is why I don't make New Years' Resolutions -no willpower). By the way MA, Kelly has been relatively easy on you. I myself was lining up pitchforks. 😋
On to the review. Of course it is another excellent installment in the KGU. Principally (see what I did there?), it is a young man's coming of age story. Other characters include Baba Yaga and her katanas, Stephen and Jennifer, an alien, a few AIs and some good and bad guys. Gramps is snarky, mom is dedicated. I can't wait to see who or what shows up in the next book. (hint - Tabitha?)
Get back to writing another winner MA! Remember the pitchforks!
I wasn't going to get this until book 3 was out, but since the next in the Drafted series and the next in the Brutal Response series aren't out yet, I broke. (This is why I don't make New Years' Resolutions -no willpower). By the way MA, Kelly has been relatively easy on you. I myself was lining up pitchforks. 😋
On to the review. Of course it is another excellent installment in the KGU. Principally (see what I did there?), it is a young man's coming of age story. Other characters include Baba Yaga and her katanas, Stephen and Jennifer, an alien, a few AIs and some good and bad guys. Gramps is snarky, mom is dedicated. I can't wait to see who or what shows up in the next book. (hint - Tabitha?)
Get back to writing another winner MA! Remember the pitchforks!
October 23, 2025
Dealing with a Bully and Changing Your Life.
Kirian is a boy about to graduate from school but he has a few major problems. One, he is bound to a wheelchair due to an insidious genetic illness, two, his mother is working three jobs to pay for his medical treatments and three, he is being harassed by the school bully.
Kirian and his friends, are all targeted by the son of one of the town’s big employers. This boy primarily picks on children, of his father’s employees, as he knows they won’t report the problem. Kirian however is an exception, he is not only in a wheelchair, he is one of the few humans on the planet. His bully is not a human and apparently detests humans, as they represent the Etheric Empire. Kirian and his friends fight back when the harassment deteriorates to a dangerous level. The planet’s new ruler, Baba Yaga, the local bogey-woman, has to come to his rescue.
Kirian is a boy about to graduate from school but he has a few major problems. One, he is bound to a wheelchair due to an insidious genetic illness, two, his mother is working three jobs to pay for his medical treatments and three, he is being harassed by the school bully.
Kirian and his friends, are all targeted by the son of one of the town’s big employers. This boy primarily picks on children, of his father’s employees, as he knows they won’t report the problem. Kirian however is an exception, he is not only in a wheelchair, he is one of the few humans on the planet. His bully is not a human and apparently detests humans, as they represent the Etheric Empire. Kirian and his friends fight back when the harassment deteriorates to a dangerous level. The planet’s new ruler, Baba Yaga, the local bogey-woman, has to come to his rescue.
January 2, 2023
Yay She's Back
Great start I've missed Baba Yaga. I can tell this is going to be another good read and another great series, it will also (I believe) answer the question of what happened to Lerr'ek. As if you couldn't tell I love love love Baba Yaga and am so glad she's back in a fun way, the new character's are interesting as well as intriguing. I like that the are bold and have yet to be filled out. I want to know more and am rooting for them as well as being enthralled by what they come up with.
Good job Michael. Now keeping up with tradition " When can we read the next one?"
Great start I've missed Baba Yaga. I can tell this is going to be another good read and another great series, it will also (I believe) answer the question of what happened to Lerr'ek. As if you couldn't tell I love love love Baba Yaga and am so glad she's back in a fun way, the new character's are interesting as well as intriguing. I like that the are bold and have yet to be filled out. I want to know more and am rooting for them as well as being enthralled by what they come up with.
Good job Michael. Now keeping up with tradition " When can we read the next one?"
Read
January 2, 2023Great Continuation of a series
Michael has brought forward his basis of justice that was first put forth in the Kurtherian Gambit.
This story is about a disabled young man, his strive to learn as much as he can in his limited life spam. His further difficulties with a bully, who torments him and his friends. What happens when trying to teach the bully a lesson in empathy.
We also learn a little more about Bethany Ann/Baba Yaga's plans for the planet of High Tor Tuga.
Overall a great YA read. However, since I'm a senior citizen, I still enjoyed it and am looking forward to reading the next book.
Michael has brought forward his basis of justice that was first put forth in the Kurtherian Gambit.
This story is about a disabled young man, his strive to learn as much as he can in his limited life spam. His further difficulties with a bully, who torments him and his friends. What happens when trying to teach the bully a lesson in empathy.
We also learn a little more about Bethany Ann/Baba Yaga's plans for the planet of High Tor Tuga.
Overall a great YA read. However, since I'm a senior citizen, I still enjoyed it and am looking forward to reading the next book.
January 3, 2023
A solid 5-star read, but I have mixed feelings over this one
The protagonist of this story will grab and hold you and won’t let go. His portion of this novel is some of Michael’s best writing, I feel. The other parts, even Baba Yaga just didn’t feel as real. Perhaps because they were playing roles already spelled out in TKG. This doesn’t hurt the story at all, But I will be honest - when I approached this novel, I expected to fall in love with Baba Yaga, not a disabled teenager. Lol
Still it’s great fun anytime we get a deeper look into BA and BY. So don’t let me detract from the fun. Pick this book up and ENJOY!
The protagonist of this story will grab and hold you and won’t let go. His portion of this novel is some of Michael’s best writing, I feel. The other parts, even Baba Yaga just didn’t feel as real. Perhaps because they were playing roles already spelled out in TKG. This doesn’t hurt the story at all, But I will be honest - when I approached this novel, I expected to fall in love with Baba Yaga, not a disabled teenager. Lol
Still it’s great fun anytime we get a deeper look into BA and BY. So don’t let me detract from the fun. Pick this book up and ENJOY!
January 9, 2023
Very glad to get more time with BA. These stories, and the Kurtherian Universe, and most all of the LMBPN offerings, give something valuable, unusual, and little-recognized. I get not only a Universe that is based on values that I agree with, and think are important. I get a few hours to play and have a rollicking good time there; I get to feel what living in that world is like. And if I choose, I get samples and examples of how to "be the change I want to see."
The very best fiction does not show what life is like. It shows what could be, and OUGHT to be. Thanks for giving a candle, both to be a light in the darkness, and a flame for any of us to use to light our own candles.
The very best fiction does not show what life is like. It shows what could be, and OUGHT to be. Thanks for giving a candle, both to be a light in the darkness, and a flame for any of us to use to light our own candles.
January 8, 2023
This story just gets better with every book!
I laughed, I cried, my soul swelled with the feeling of loyalty to the Light. Bethanne is what we need so desperately in real life. Not a destroyer, but a beacon of justice and truth. The plot in this book is easily followed and flows so well, the reader is at the end far faster than they can imagine or want. Loyalty, respect, and protection of the weaker are all priorities we as humans need to develop. I cannot recommend this book highly enough!
I laughed, I cried, my soul swelled with the feeling of loyalty to the Light. Bethanne is what we need so desperately in real life. Not a destroyer, but a beacon of justice and truth. The plot in this book is easily followed and flows so well, the reader is at the end far faster than they can imagine or want. Loyalty, respect, and protection of the weaker are all priorities we as humans need to develop. I cannot recommend this book highly enough!
January 9, 2023
Bullies need a lesson
Kirian and his friends are being bullied by an entitled jerk (Dex) and his buddies and need to figure out a way to stop it before it goes too far. At the same time Baba Yaga and her people have taken over the planet and are working on making it a world the Empress wants it to be. This book is awesome, the characters will make you laugh, cry and everything in between and the storyline is great. I am so looking forward to the next book and hope I don't have to wait too long.
Kirian and his friends are being bullied by an entitled jerk (Dex) and his buddies and need to figure out a way to stop it before it goes too far. At the same time Baba Yaga and her people have taken over the planet and are working on making it a world the Empress wants it to be. This book is awesome, the characters will make you laugh, cry and everything in between and the storyline is great. I am so looking forward to the next book and hope I don't have to wait too long.
Read
March 30, 2023Okay, not what I expected, but better than I thought.
I wasn’t sure where this offshoot of the Kutherian universe was going to go. However, it certainly has a lot of promise. The planet of High Tortuga needs a whole lot of cleaning up if it is going to be what Bethany Anne needs it to be. And we meet some of the kids, (and their problems) that will need to rise up to help make it so.
I wasn’t sure where this offshoot of the Kutherian universe was going to go. However, it certainly has a lot of promise. The planet of High Tortuga needs a whole lot of cleaning up if it is going to be what Bethany Anne needs it to be. And we meet some of the kids, (and their problems) that will need to rise up to help make it so.
December 13, 2024
BA, ah, BY, strikes again
This little series continues one as a side arc of on the Queen's forceful changes on a planet outside the Empire. Get to meet up again with a character that got to meet BY forcefully (if you've not read any if the Kurtherian series yet, do not read this book but go find the start, or you will have no clue as to what's going on) and become one of her people. Enjoy.
This little series continues one as a side arc of on the Queen's forceful changes on a planet outside the Empire. Get to meet up again with a character that got to meet BY forcefully (if you've not read any if the Kurtherian series yet, do not read this book but go find the start, or you will have no clue as to what's going on) and become one of her people. Enjoy.
January 3, 2023
I’m so excited to have another Kurtherian series to read
I love having some of my favorite characters make appearances and others wit mentions in a new series, it means so much to have them back again. This series looks to be another wonderful spinoff. I can’t wait for the next episode.
I love having some of my favorite characters make appearances and others wit mentions in a new series, it means so much to have them back again. This series looks to be another wonderful spinoff. I can’t wait for the next episode.
January 4, 2023
Principle Baba Yaga
This was great! I'd been missing the KGU more than I thought. Thanks Michael. The storyline is great, I really enjoyed it and can't wait for the next one. It made me want to go all the way back to the beginning and start my journey through the KGU all over again.
This was great! I'd been missing the KGU more than I thought. Thanks Michael. The storyline is great, I really enjoyed it and can't wait for the next one. It made me want to go all the way back to the beginning and start my journey through the KGU all over again.
January 16, 2023
Another successful for Michael Anderle
The story continues. At first I was surprised by the focus on the lead character but towards the ending it became clear that the story would having satisfactory ending that tied it all together. Good job, I am looking for to the next bok in the series.
The story continues. At first I was surprised by the focus on the lead character but towards the ending it became clear that the story would having satisfactory ending that tied it all together. Good job, I am looking for to the next bok in the series.
February 12, 2023
Great spin off featuring baba yaga
Reading this takes me back to the main kurtherian gambit stories which I really enjoyed. After reading this I think I need to get my hands on some of the spin off series already completed as I crave more BA stories and the other hero characters. Thankyou Michael for bringing them to life on the written page.
Reading this takes me back to the main kurtherian gambit stories which I really enjoyed. After reading this I think I need to get my hands on some of the spin off series already completed as I crave more BA stories and the other hero characters. Thankyou Michael for bringing them to life on the written page.
February 25, 2023
Extremely good book.
I am so very happy to see that the Kurtherian world is back and as wonderful as ever.
The same snarky, funny characters and a storyline that keeps you riveted to it,, I was totally unable to put it down, if you lobe Baba Yaga and Bethany Anne, you won't be able to resist getting reading this book.
I am so very happy to see that the Kurtherian world is back and as wonderful as ever.
The same snarky, funny characters and a storyline that keeps you riveted to it,, I was totally unable to put it down, if you lobe Baba Yaga and Bethany Anne, you won't be able to resist getting reading this book.
March 29, 2023
She is the Principle
Loved it. Can hardly wait for the next book in the series.
Any book with Bethany Ann/Baba Yaga is right down my alley.
I Iike the new characters introduced in this book, especially K.
I do wish more information about K's father had been included. Hopefully in the next book.
Loved it. Can hardly wait for the next book in the series.
Any book with Bethany Ann/Baba Yaga is right down my alley.
I Iike the new characters introduced in this book, especially K.
I do wish more information about K's father had been included. Hopefully in the next book.
September 24, 2023
Disability perspective
Dear Michael Anderle,
Thank you for portraying the life and daily living of someone with Muscular Distrophy disorder so accurately! As a father of two sons with Spinal Muscular Atrophy (an inherited genetic disorder) I'm really touched by your dedication to portray it as accurate as possible. Looking forward to the next book!
Dear Michael Anderle,
Thank you for portraying the life and daily living of someone with Muscular Distrophy disorder so accurately! As a father of two sons with Spinal Muscular Atrophy (an inherited genetic disorder) I'm really touched by your dedication to portray it as accurate as possible. Looking forward to the next book!
January 27, 2024
Awesome
I loved this story. It contained my favorite character of the Kutherian Gambit Universe. I guess by now you can guess that I'm involved and invested in this series. I'm looking out for other books that tie into this series until I finish. Of course it won't ever truly be finished since I've gravitated to the audio books of the series. Happy reading.
I loved this story. It contained my favorite character of the Kutherian Gambit Universe. I guess by now you can guess that I'm involved and invested in this series. I'm looking out for other books that tie into this series until I finish. Of course it won't ever truly be finished since I've gravitated to the audio books of the series. Happy reading.
November 25, 2024
Nice first book to series
You gotta love the Witch. I'm so glad to see and read more about the Etheric Empire from a different side, with Devon. The storyline was good. Eventhough I'm not much into gaming, the storyline around it made sense since we're talking youths and building for a better tomorrow.
I can't wait to read more on this new series. You rock, Mr. Anderle.
You gotta love the Witch. I'm so glad to see and read more about the Etheric Empire from a different side, with Devon. The storyline was good. Eventhough I'm not much into gaming, the storyline around it made sense since we're talking youths and building for a better tomorrow.
I can't wait to read more on this new series. You rock, Mr. Anderle.
January 1, 2023
Loved this book
What an incredible story! As a fan of the KEY this is exactly what I have been looking for. Highly recommended after you read some of Bethany Anne's other adventures.
What an incredible story! As a fan of the KEY this is exactly what I have been looking for. Highly recommended after you read some of Bethany Anne's other adventures.
January 1, 2023
Happy for a book with the QUEEN
Book is everything you would expect and then some. I am truly enjoying every story that fills in this universe. So many characters i wish to know better from the Kurtherian universe. As always the story is inspiring as well as awesome.
Book is everything you would expect and then some. I am truly enjoying every story that fills in this universe. So many characters i wish to know better from the Kurtherian universe. As always the story is inspiring as well as awesome.
January 2, 2023
Soooo Good!
Such a good book ! Mike you knocked this outa the park! So nice to finally get to hear about some of the stuff BA as BY was up to while waiting for her hubby to get back to her ! GIVE US MORE PLEASE!!!!
Such a good book ! Mike you knocked this outa the park! So nice to finally get to hear about some of the stuff BA as BY was up to while waiting for her hubby to get back to her ! GIVE US MORE PLEASE!!!!
January 3, 2023
Great New series
A great read. Another Anderle hit. Characters are interesting and the storyline captivating. Lots of action and different in that a handicapped character is the lead.
A great read. Another Anderle hit. Characters are interesting and the storyline captivating. Lots of action and different in that a handicapped character is the lead.
January 6, 2023
Another star for the KGU 🌟
I thoroughly enjoyed this new series starter and can't wait to see how it develops. I love the character of Baba Yaga and getting to read more of her exploits will be fun. Bring it on x
I thoroughly enjoyed this new series starter and can't wait to see how it develops. I love the character of Baba Yaga and getting to read more of her exploits will be fun. Bring it on x
January 8, 2023
It's the early days of Baba Yaga on High Tortuga . SHE doesn't like bullies adult or younger. Some students are trying to deal with the seriously aggressive bullying and accidentally get Adam's interest. Enjoyable
January 8, 2023
Baba Yaga returns!
A return to the Kurtherian Gambit world is like a dream come true. A few familiar characters combined with the vision of the Empress and you have the start of another great series,
A return to the Kurtherian Gambit world is like a dream come true. A few familiar characters combined with the vision of the Empress and you have the start of another great series,
January 8, 2023
She's Back!!!
I have been waiting for this book impatiently. I knew it would be an excellent addition to my Kurtherian collection. It did not disappoint. I really like the direction this series is taking, creating a school for future leaders. I am looking forward to book 2.
I have been waiting for this book impatiently. I knew it would be an excellent addition to my Kurtherian collection. It did not disappoint. I really like the direction this series is taking, creating a school for future leaders. I am looking forward to book 2.
January 10, 2023
Good start to a new series
Looking forward to seeing how this new character evolves. Michael's strength has always seemed to be female characters and it will be interesting to see this going forward.
Looking forward to seeing how this new character evolves. Michael's strength has always seemed to be female characters and it will be interesting to see this going forward.
January 16, 2023
Good book!
Another great read in the Kutherian Universe. I liked how the main character doesn't give up and how he and his friends try to stop the bullying. Interesting take on the Baba Yaga mythos.
Another great read in the Kutherian Universe. I liked how the main character doesn't give up and how he and his friends try to stop the bullying. Interesting take on the Baba Yaga mythos.
January 21, 2023
a great start
I’m a huge fan of Bethany Anne, so this new story made me happy. The new characters are interesting, I can see Kirian being a lead in his own stories, his spirit and sense of protection for his family and friends will carry him far.
I’m a huge fan of Bethany Anne, so this new story made me happy. The new characters are interesting, I can see Kirian being a lead in his own stories, his spirit and sense of protection for his family and friends will carry him far.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 65 reviews