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The First Born
A veteran of WWI, the French Foreign Legion, WWII and Korea, Peter knew the price of Liberty. Yet, he believed freedom of an environmentally sustainable world where war was unthinkable was priced too high. Setting out to change it by guile, he founded an immortal dynasty with Dael, who chose to become a flesh-and-blood woman, and gave it a mission to free humanity.Science Fiction/Romance/Alien minds.
First published October 7, 2010
4 people want to read
About the author
David Andrews
4 books1 followerThe son of an itinerant worker I attended fourteen different primary schools before we settled for my secondary education and engineering apprenticeship. This was followed by a working lifetime involved in seafaring, as Chief Engineer, Engineering Superintendent, Classification Surveyor, and University Lecturer.
I sailed on paddle steamers, fishing boats, dredges, dry cargo ships, oil tankers, bulk carriers, passenger ships, supply boats and oil rigs.
My writing began as a form of stress relief from the 24/7 pressures of the offshore oil industry. For an hour each day I retreated into the world of my imagination and wrote fiction.
By the time I retired I'd accumulated a fair body of writing, but didn't know if any of it was publishable.
Sixteen years later, I've won two national contests in Australia, become a finalist in the annual EPIC contest, published nineteen stories as Amy Gallow and four under my own name.
Now, the future beckons...
I sailed on paddle steamers, fishing boats, dredges, dry cargo ships, oil tankers, bulk carriers, passenger ships, supply boats and oil rigs.
My writing began as a form of stress relief from the 24/7 pressures of the offshore oil industry. For an hour each day I retreated into the world of my imagination and wrote fiction.
By the time I retired I'd accumulated a fair body of writing, but didn't know if any of it was publishable.
Sixteen years later, I've won two national contests in Australia, become a finalist in the annual EPIC contest, published nineteen stories as Amy Gallow and four under my own name.
Now, the future beckons...
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
October 27, 2014
Having read The Sapphire Sea another book written by the same author, The First Born came as a surprise regarding the author’s approach to fantasy genre. The plot is dark, deeply emotional and, at times, gruesome. But it is an absolutely amazing plot line that will capture your attention. An interesting combination of fantasy and espionage.
The characters are memorable and realistic. Right up my alley. They are well-developed, complete with quirks and foibles and plenty of insecurities, created with the perfect precision that only David Andrews can do. Most interesting are: Dael, who belongs to a special race called by ordinary humans many names: Group Mind, Hive, and Hive Master. She is hosted by Samara who’s a human being. Their cooperation is mutually accepted. Or isn’t it? Another strong character enters the scene – Peter, a veteran of many war conflicts. Who’s Peter in fact? Will we find out the truth? Will he succeed in fulfilling his dream? I found it very interesting the way the author handles the theme of war. This never ending problem tormenting humankind in all ages, all over the world.
As always, I don't want to go into details about the story, as I hate spoilers, but it was good, really good. I didn't mind following the multiple characters, they were interesting, even with all their flaws.
The story plot grips you and will keep you reading and making you hunger for more when you reach the end. The author manages to weave a story that is bold and yet never left me feeling confused.
If you enjoy a fantasy book with intrigue and danger, and that under the fantasy line has a real food for thought topic, this book is for you.
I received a copy of the book in exchange for an honest opinion.
The characters are memorable and realistic. Right up my alley. They are well-developed, complete with quirks and foibles and plenty of insecurities, created with the perfect precision that only David Andrews can do. Most interesting are: Dael, who belongs to a special race called by ordinary humans many names: Group Mind, Hive, and Hive Master. She is hosted by Samara who’s a human being. Their cooperation is mutually accepted. Or isn’t it? Another strong character enters the scene – Peter, a veteran of many war conflicts. Who’s Peter in fact? Will we find out the truth? Will he succeed in fulfilling his dream? I found it very interesting the way the author handles the theme of war. This never ending problem tormenting humankind in all ages, all over the world.
As always, I don't want to go into details about the story, as I hate spoilers, but it was good, really good. I didn't mind following the multiple characters, they were interesting, even with all their flaws.
The story plot grips you and will keep you reading and making you hunger for more when you reach the end. The author manages to weave a story that is bold and yet never left me feeling confused.
If you enjoy a fantasy book with intrigue and danger, and that under the fantasy line has a real food for thought topic, this book is for you.
I received a copy of the book in exchange for an honest opinion.
October 20, 2014
David Andrews, The First Born: Book 1 of The Alliance was a different genre from his other works that I’ve read. Right from the start he captures the reader’s attention, we are not amoung humans, or are we? We are introduced to Dael, and the unknown is dangled in front of us in wonderful detail that keeps the reader engaged, wanting to know more.
Dael inhabits the body of a woman, Samara, an arrangement that is agreed on. But hints are given that Dael is influenced more by Samara that she thinks she is. Dael, though part of a Hive mind, seems to value her independence and thrives in not being what is expected. When the unexpected occurs, we are introduced to Peter.
At the same time, Dael and her host become more attuned to each other. Hosts usually remain in the background, and Peter’s plan begins to unfold. Can Peter achieve what he seeks . . . an end to wars? Just what is Peter? Human, mutant human, something else?
The story becomes one of hosts and the hosted, of espionage and politics, of romance and human nature. As they merge, and conflict, the story unfolds in a fast paced adventure that the author handles very well. The descriptions are vivid, the emotions deep and real, the world that is created believable, all woven into a couldn’t put it down story.
I am looking forward to reading book 2 in this series.
I received a copy of this book for a fair and honest review.
Dael inhabits the body of a woman, Samara, an arrangement that is agreed on. But hints are given that Dael is influenced more by Samara that she thinks she is. Dael, though part of a Hive mind, seems to value her independence and thrives in not being what is expected. When the unexpected occurs, we are introduced to Peter.
At the same time, Dael and her host become more attuned to each other. Hosts usually remain in the background, and Peter’s plan begins to unfold. Can Peter achieve what he seeks . . . an end to wars? Just what is Peter? Human, mutant human, something else?
The story becomes one of hosts and the hosted, of espionage and politics, of romance and human nature. As they merge, and conflict, the story unfolds in a fast paced adventure that the author handles very well. The descriptions are vivid, the emotions deep and real, the world that is created believable, all woven into a couldn’t put it down story.
I am looking forward to reading book 2 in this series.
I received a copy of this book for a fair and honest review.
October 5, 2014
Firstly, I received an electronic copy of this book in exchange for a fair review.
Which is a good thing, as that saved me the $8 I would have spent to purchase this book. David Andrews has shown why he is so popular when writing paranormal and romance tales under his Amy Gallow pseudonym. "The First Born" was the first book published under Andrews' own name and, in my opinion, he couldn't have chosen a better book on which to begin using his own name.
Andrews weaves together a massively entertaining story, deftly handling a large and diverse cast of three-dimensional characters, while also showcasing his descriptive prowess by bringing alive some astonishingly different locations as if he had been there on a recent jaunt.
The story follows a weary man named Peter, a veteran of such conflicts as World Wars I and II, the French Foreign Legion and Korea. For Peter, the only thing more worthwhile than a world at environmental piece with itself, was a world on which human beings did not look to war as the first, last or any alternative. Knowing that a war of conquest -- even on with as noble a goal as the end of war -- still would leave more men and women dead. And so, Peter set about creating a world without war and he did it with a lie. Well, maybe not that, but he decided the best way to conquer the world peacefully, by the power of his own will and that of his immortal lover, Dael.
Believing in Peter and his mission, and finding in him something to love and hold, Dael descended from the realm of pure thought to incarnate into the physical world, to take a her own body and work side by side and lay with Peter. In their time, Peter and Dael had a son, Karrel. Together, father, mother son and son's lover, fought against a telepathic hive mind and countless other obstacles to bring the world metaphorically kicking and screaming into a new version of itself, one where fighting and dying was only a bad memory, quickly fading.
This was a good book. I would have been here reading and reviewing this book even if I hadn't been given a free copy. Well worth the time and money, even if the money is only theoretical.
Which is a good thing, as that saved me the $8 I would have spent to purchase this book. David Andrews has shown why he is so popular when writing paranormal and romance tales under his Amy Gallow pseudonym. "The First Born" was the first book published under Andrews' own name and, in my opinion, he couldn't have chosen a better book on which to begin using his own name.
Andrews weaves together a massively entertaining story, deftly handling a large and diverse cast of three-dimensional characters, while also showcasing his descriptive prowess by bringing alive some astonishingly different locations as if he had been there on a recent jaunt.
The story follows a weary man named Peter, a veteran of such conflicts as World Wars I and II, the French Foreign Legion and Korea. For Peter, the only thing more worthwhile than a world at environmental piece with itself, was a world on which human beings did not look to war as the first, last or any alternative. Knowing that a war of conquest -- even on with as noble a goal as the end of war -- still would leave more men and women dead. And so, Peter set about creating a world without war and he did it with a lie. Well, maybe not that, but he decided the best way to conquer the world peacefully, by the power of his own will and that of his immortal lover, Dael.
Believing in Peter and his mission, and finding in him something to love and hold, Dael descended from the realm of pure thought to incarnate into the physical world, to take a her own body and work side by side and lay with Peter. In their time, Peter and Dael had a son, Karrel. Together, father, mother son and son's lover, fought against a telepathic hive mind and countless other obstacles to bring the world metaphorically kicking and screaming into a new version of itself, one where fighting and dying was only a bad memory, quickly fading.
This was a good book. I would have been here reading and reviewing this book even if I hadn't been given a free copy. Well worth the time and money, even if the money is only theoretical.
October 27, 2014
Right off the start, David Andrew’s “The First Born” grabs the reader with an intriguing, engaging story that grabs hold of the reader and won’t let go. Readers will enjoy the life-like characters that Andrews has created, along with a plot that is both layered but easy to understand and follow.
Andrews story, on the surface, may sound complicated, but his skill is such that readers will have little trouble following. “The First Born” is the science fiction/romance tale of Samara, a human in a future near-perfect who carries Dawl a member of the Hive Mind in a symbiotic relationship. Dael thinks that she’s in control, as the Hive Mind has been for generations almost beyond reckoning, but when Samara is contacted by Peter, a force both stronger and more mysterious than Dael and her people, she finders herself flung into the arms of Torred, a “Commoner” human fisherman, and a member of a small collective Peter has hidden away from the Hive Mind.
Of course, nothing is simple in this future Earth where Commoners, Elites and Chosen have maintained the status quo for centuries, but in which Peter has an altogether different vision in mind. Andrews doles out the conflict through “The First Born”, both emotional and physical, through fast-paced adventure that he navigates like the expert seaman in his story. He provides real emotional upheaval and dramatic turns that engage the reader and make this a can’t-put-down-page-turner.
Andrews story, on the surface, may sound complicated, but his skill is such that readers will have little trouble following. “The First Born” is the science fiction/romance tale of Samara, a human in a future near-perfect who carries Dawl a member of the Hive Mind in a symbiotic relationship. Dael thinks that she’s in control, as the Hive Mind has been for generations almost beyond reckoning, but when Samara is contacted by Peter, a force both stronger and more mysterious than Dael and her people, she finders herself flung into the arms of Torred, a “Commoner” human fisherman, and a member of a small collective Peter has hidden away from the Hive Mind.
Of course, nothing is simple in this future Earth where Commoners, Elites and Chosen have maintained the status quo for centuries, but in which Peter has an altogether different vision in mind. Andrews doles out the conflict through “The First Born”, both emotional and physical, through fast-paced adventure that he navigates like the expert seaman in his story. He provides real emotional upheaval and dramatic turns that engage the reader and make this a can’t-put-down-page-turner.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews