Review: 1/18/2012 4:00:00 PM | Daniel S Boucher |
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On December 5th, scientists at CERN in Geneva, Switzerland ran a short test on the newly completed Large Hadron Collider. For that brief period, protons swarmed back and forth along the seventeen miles of carefully constructed tunnel and slammed into each other with devastating force, generating power the likes of which had not been seen since the moment of the Big Bang.
Just a few short hours. That was all it took for our world to be invaded by hideous creatures from somewhere beyond.A scientific achievement that has the potential to help mankind that then goes horrifically wrong? What’s not to get excited about?
This premise had me so excited. Finally, a freakishly cool plot that was the perfect escape for me! And when I started reading my excitement grew even more.
Unfortunately, this book (short? Novella?) fell way short of my expectations from both Jon and Joseph.
This is the review I never wanted to write. The review of great authors gone awry. Both Jon and Joseph are incredibly talented writers, and are so much better than this that to say I was shocked with what happened here is putting it mildly.
I really struggled with the writing of this review. I kept going back and forth on write it or leave it alone. In the end our mission is to offer honest, unbiased takes on what we’ve read.
Final Verdict:The premise was fantastic and it started great, but it quickly became evident there were two distinct authors and that they were not on the same page. Neither one of them had their acronyms consistent; one would use WMV, the other WMVD. One would use HMVV the other HMVVW and the list goes on.
TCP is particularly void of any character development and it's too bad, because there was room for some really rich backgrounds. Instead we get paper-thin (no pun intended) disposable characters who arbitrarily decide to join this group with absolutely no history of it, its origins, or any argument as to why they should join. We’re treated to a generic acceptance with no reason as to why or how these characters figure in--with the exception of the over-clichéd Russian blonde bombshell, who has some apparent connection to the group’s founder, but alas that must be top secret because we're never told what the connection is.
The ending is atrocious. What could have been a thrill-ride straight out of “HELL” is instead a perfect example on why an idea should never be rushed and why self-publishing has such a bad rap.
Literally in the course of a chapter or two, all the team members are captured, nearly killed, and then reunited to "save the day" complete with an abrupt: THE END. No wrap-up, no epilogue to explain the aftermath, no hook to future installments, just THE END.
This biggest disappointment is that I KNOW, beyond reasonable doubt, that both Jon and Joseph are far better than this. But hey, even Steven Spielberg has dropped the occasional turd.