This is now my fifth review and I was beginning to become a little bit concerned. Supposedly a reviewer is required to "criticize", to "find fault" and to "suggest improvements", but I have actually loved every single one of the books I've read and reviewed thus far. 

Perhaps I'm just not cut out to be a critic. I read for enjoyment and for the fantasy, and every book I've read to date has delivered those things in "spades". The Azure Key is no exception. Like Hayden Bradford, Trevor Schmidt is also an author I've come into contact with through the Twitter group #promocave. I was therefore quite excited and keen to read and review his book. 

The Azure Key is the first book in what appears to be a trilogy called The Corsair Uprising. The next book in the series is called Nightstalkers and was published in March of this year, with the third being called Deathwish which I assume is currently a work in progress. In addition to this Trevor has written other books, all available on Amazon: Memory Leak, The Sword Maker's Seal, Symbiote, and Replica - a short story. 

Published, I assume by Trevor himself, at 244 pages it is a good substantial read that I was able to complete in one Sunday sitting. Now, I'm a bit old-school and I don't get all the many and varied genres that get tossed around these days. It seems like there is a genre to cover just about every book ever written. I'd never even heard of "steampunk" or indeed "dystopian" before, until I joined Promocave, and as for a "space opera", what exactly is that? Jesus Christ superstar, meets Star Wars? Look, you can call it what you will, but The Azure Key is plain and simple, in my mind - A Science Fiction story. That have been said, it is an EXCELLENT science fiction story. 

I used to read a lot of Science Fiction as a kid, especially Heinlen and Herbert, but as an adult I've tended to veer away from the world of space and the cosmos - much to my own detriment I suspect. The Azure Key is a good, old fashioned tale of three people caught up in a set of circumstances beyond their control. The "hero" for the want of a better word, Liam Kidd, is your typical hard-man mercenary (freelancer), with a heart of gold and a true sense of justice, despite his tough-man demeanor. The "love interest", Saturn Vera is of course beautiful, but as tough and fiery as Liam, as she well displays early on in the story. Together with Ju-Long, the trio escape an attack on the asteroid mine they are working on by shooting through a wormhole to the other side of the galaxy where humans have "never" been before     

What follows is a series of adventures and battles as the trio try to survive and find a way back. It seems the only way out of their predicament is to secure the elusive Azure Key. In attempting to do this they discover a lot about themselves, about the aliens and about the inhabited cosmos that they did not even know existed. The little twist at the end sets the scene for what no doubt will be enthralling second and third books. I am genuinely excited about reading the rest of the Corsair Uprising series. This was a great story, well told and kept me enthralled every second of the way. 

I suppose I have to mention the one TINY negative even though it didn't detract from the story at all. I discovered I think it was four typos or word juxtaposition errors in the first three chapters. My initial thoughts were; "Oh no, a self-edited book - maybe it's full of errors." Remembering well how badly my own book was "self-edited" I steeled myself to look for more, but I was pleasantly surprised. There was only one more error, late in the book, but that was it. As I said, none of that detracted from my pleasure in reading this book. 

Did it serve the purpose of making me want to read the rest of the series. Absolutely it did! I'm not going over the top here - it's not award-winning literature, but what it is, is a damn good read and I would urge everyone who likes a good science fiction yarn to go and get a copy. It's available on Amazon at the ridiculously low price of only $2.99. I promise you won't regret it. 

My rating for "The Azure Key" - a good, solid 5 stars. Well done Trevor!

Pick it up here:  

Well, I've managed to avoid reading Fifty Shades of Grey and I've even managed to avoid reading Fifty Shades Darker, but I was finally caught by Fifty Shades Freed. 

A few days on holiday in San Jose, Occidental Mindoro, where the only English book in the house was E L Jame's Fifty Shades Freed ensured that I was always going to read it, come hell or high-water. When on holiday one has to read - I'm sure that's one of the Ten Commandments. 

Like everyone else I suppose, I've heard a lot of disparaging comments about the Fifty Shades Trilogy - usually I suspect from people who are infected with a not so mild degree of professional jealousy. Although I am certainly not a devotee of Sado/Masochism or indeed Bondage and Discipline, I was determined to approach this book with an open mind and disregard the negative vibes I'd heard about the series. 

Fifty Shades Freed is subtitled: Book Three of the Fifty Shades Trilogy, is published by Vintage Publishing, and is no lightweight, coming in at just under 600 pages.      

The first question you might ask is did I need to have read the first two books prior to reading the last in the series? The answer to that is no. It might be preferable, certainly if you plan on reading all three, to read them in order, however E L James is very good at small flashbacks to allow the reader to gain context into what they are currently reading. 

One of the most common complaints I've heard about Fifty Shades of Grey was that it was poorly written. I haven't read it, so I can't comment. What I can say is that Fifty Shades Freed is anything but poorly written. I found the style and readability to be very good. It was easy to read and engaging. 

I guess the main reason people buy erotic novels is for the sex scenes - right? Obviously the sex scenes are an integral part of this and the previous two books. As I said, I'm not actually into bondage myself, but there was certainly nothing in Fifty Shades Freed that horrified me or shocked me. There were a couple of points where I asked myself why? Why would you want to do that? But in reality the sex scenes were enjoyable, fun and yes even a little bit titillating. The only issue I would have, and it's probably the one reason why I wouldn't try to write an erotic novel myself is the difficulty the writer has in creating erotic scenes that just aren't all exactly the same - I mean, there are only so many ways you can describe an orgasm? Or are there? I think E L James actually has a pretty good handle on it all and I congratulate her on her book. She handled it well.       

Fifty Shade Freed, despite some dark control issues was actually a very positive and enlightening book. We see Christian Grey emerge from the hooded, dark, somber, control freak, character into a more likable, a more trusting and a more loving person under Anastasia's careful tutelage. There were the odd times where I felt like shouting at her to stop being such a doormat, but that's just the sign of a good writer engaging her readers well. 

Personally I found Fifty Shades Freed to be an excellent, enjoyable and quite uplifting read. I don't know what all the fuss is about - this is a good book and as a first time novelist myself I can but hope for even a fraction of the success that E L James has enjoyed with her first series. 

I have no doubt that with over 100 million book sales and a major motion picture in the bag, E L James is not terribly concerned with what some of her critics are saying. At the end of the day she has found a market that resonates with her and it is quite clear her books resonate with her readers. 

A good read and well worth the five stars I'm giving it. Will I now read the first two books in the series? Definitely not, the genre is "not my cup of tea", but I will watch with interest to see what follows from the pen of E L James. She is an excellent author. 

This particular book, The Eden Plague,  is subtitled (Plague Wars Series - Book 0). It is the first in a series of books, by the author, under this scenario, which is made up of: The Eden Plague, Reaper's Run, Skull's Shadows, Eden's Exodus, Apocalypse Austin, The Demon Plagues, The Reaper Plague, The Orion Plague, Cyborg Strike and Comes the Destroyer.

Clearly a prolific author Mr VanDyke has also penned the Stellar Conquest Series of five books, as well as authoring The Californian PI Mystery Series under the pen name D D VanDyke. 

The Eden Plague is published by Reaper Press, with the Kindle version, which I read, coming in at just over 300 pages. It was available for download from Kindle for free, and at last check was still available for free. 

Although I suspect there will be a greater element of Science Fiction in the future books in the series (judging by what I've seen), this particular story was less Science Fiction and more just a somewhat untypical love story hung on a plot that involved Special Forces soldiers and a shadowy Government that wants to keep a lid on a fantastic discovery. 

Ex Special Forces veteran Daniel Markis is attacked by a mystery woman in his home, but when he discovers it is an attempt to recruit him by the Company he sets out to find out exactly what is going on. Calling in his markers with his fellow veterans they form a team to try and solve the mystery. 

What follows is an action-packed adventure that revolves around the possibly inappropriately named, Eden Plague (almost the elixir of life). The novel raises some interesting questions about individual morality, the public's right to know, Government control, and whether the end justifies the means. It is fast moving, exciting and certainly has the odd twist or two thrown in for good measure.

As the prequel to a series of nine other books, it does its job well in creating excitement and anticipation of the books to come in the series. I read it in virtually one sitting, which is always a good sign that I found it riveting. I identified well with the characters, especially the two main protagonists; Daniel and Elise. Although it was clear early on that the romantic relationship between them was more a question of when than it was of if, their blossoming love affair still gave the book a softer side away from the rough, tough veterans of the Special Forces.

I would recommend this book for anyone who is looking for a good, relaxing read that requires little deep thought but still challenges, and allows one to escape from the realities of the day. It is well written and easy to read. A definite four and a half on my scale. 

The true test of a prequel such as this I suppose is did it make me want to continue reading the rest of the series - the answer to that question is a big: YES!





It can be sourced here: