jbronderbookreviews

Gateway to the Past (The Last Bucelarii – 3) by Andy Peloquin

The Hunter, legendary assassin of Voramis, has a purpose: protect Hailen, the boy he rescued from a demon in Malandria.

He joins a caravan in the hope of safe passage across the Advanat Desert. Yet he cannot outrun his enemies: the Illusionist Cleric on a holy mission to capture him, the bloodthirsty raiders out for blood and gold, and the Abiarazi, demons who masquerade as humans.

Every step north reveals who he was before becoming the Hunter, unlocking the truth about the woman who haunts his memories.

Fans of Joe Abercrombie, Brandon Sanderson, and Brent Weeks will love the Hunter…

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Author’s Bio

I am, first and foremost, a storyteller and an artist–words are my palette. Fantasy is my genre of choice, and I love to explore the darker side of human nature through the filter of fantasy heroes, villains, and everything in between. I’m also a freelance writer, a book lover, and a guy who just loves to meet new people and spend hours talking about my fascination for the worlds I encounter in the pages of fantasy novels.

Fantasy provides us with an escape, a way to forget about our mundane problems and step into worlds where anything is possible. It transcends age, gender, religion, race, or lifestyle–it is our way of believing what cannot be, delving into the unknowable, and discovering hidden truths about ourselves and our world in a brand new way. Fiction at its very best!

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My Review

5 stars

The Hunter has found a purpose, to protect Hailen, who seems to calm the demon inside Hunter. Hunter gets them on a caravan heading north and to the mysterious woman that haunts his memories. But where the hunter goes trouble follows. Illusionist Cleric’s, demons disguised as humans, and regular humans that want Hailen and Hunter both. Hunter does his best to try and not kill but sometimes there is nothing else you can do. But he is starting to recover his memories and is being affected by all of those he has killed. But he is bound a determined to figure out who he was before becoming Bucelari.

I love this series. The Hunter is not your typical hero but something even better, someone we can relate to. He has gone through something and wants to reclaim his past. He wants to be better than he is presently and is starting to realize the damage to himself that the killing has done. And Hailen is the perfect light to all the darkness that Hunter has found himself. It just breaks your heart when he has to kill, even if it is for the right reason.

This is a great series filled with a lot of action and a great story. I love all of Any Peloquin’s books. I can’t wait to see what he comes up with next.

I received Gateway to the Past from the author for free. This has in no way influenced my opinion of this book.

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Tortured Echoes (Resonant Earth Volume 2) by Cody Sisco

Tortured Echoes is Volume Two of the Resonant Earth saga that began in Broken Mirror.

Bioinformatics whiz Victor Eastmore at long last gains control over his frightening mirror resonance syndrome, but he still believes his grandfather was murdered.

Victor’s best hope for finding justice lies in New Venice, a tourist town in the Louisiana Territories where his family’s company is exploring new treatment options for so-called “Broken Mirrors” and the stim addicts who experience similar symptoms–blank outs, synesthesia, and euphoria. Only by confronting Samuel Miller, the MRS “patient zero” who was responsible for the Carmichael Massacre, can Victor learn the truth. To do that, Samuel must first be weaned off Personil, the drug that keeps his mirror resonance syndrome in check.

Can Victor learn the data egg’s darkest secrets without unleashing a violent madman?

Meanwhile, a cult dedicated to the sanctity and purity of human life disrupts New Venice with protests and vandalism. When they take an interest in stopping BioScan from medicating MRS patients, including Samuel Miller, Victor finds himself with unlikely allies and divided loyalties.

As pressure builds for the nations of the American Union to pass new legislation to control Broken Mirrors, Victor must become an effective advocate for people with MRS or risk being institutionalized along with them.

A fast-paced sequel to Broken Mirror, Tortured Echoes continues the sci-fi detective saga of Resonant Earth. In this installment, fans of Broken Mirror will finally get answers to their questions: Why was Jefferson Eastmore killed? How did it happen? Who was responsible?

Revisit the world of self-driving cars, stunsticks, brainhackers, and herbalism with Victor, Elena, Ozie, Tosh, and Karine, and several new figures that might help Victor chart a new course for his future, or condemn him to madness.

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Author’s Bio

Cody Sisco is the author of speculative fiction that straddles the divide between plausible and extraordinary. Tortured Echoes is his second novel and continues the series that began in Broken Mirror, which focuses on Victor Eastmore’s journeys on Resonant Earth and beyond. An avid reader of Frank Herbert, Haruki Murakami, and Kim Stanley Robinson, Sisco strives to create worlds that sit in the “uncanny valley”—discomfortingly odd yet familiar, where morality is not clear-cut, technology bestows blessings and curses, and outsiders struggle to find their niche. He lives in Los Angeles.

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My Review

5 stars

Mia Barrias thinks that she can cure those with mirror resonance syndrome, MRS. She begins this story by putting Samuel Miller, the one responsible for the Carmichael Massacre on display for the families and media. But things go terribly wrong and she ends up moving him to the New Venice to start working on a cure.

Victor is treating his MRS with tinctures and trying to stay off the Personil. But he is called in to help work with Samuel. Victor feels that Karine LaTour, his boss, had something to do with his grandfa’s death and has a hard time working with her. If he could just open the data egg again he may find his answers he is looking for.

I love this series. You have a world more advanced than ours yet with its own faults. Victor is the flawed hero trying to maintain his balance as a Broken Mirror yet figure out what really happened to his grandfa. You wonder what happened to Jeffrey and worrying about those that want to hurt the Broken Mirrors and those that want to medicate them into a stupor. And what about the religious group. Are they one to something or are they the catalyst that will bring everything down?

This is a great series that will draw you in and leave you wondering who can be trusted and who is going to use you. If you are looking for a great futuristic thriller look no further.

I received Tortured Echoes from the author for free. This has in no way influenced my opinion of this book.

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