Tuesday Book Review: “Toxic Sphere”

Book reviews are a great way for self-publishing authors to gain exposure. After all, how can someone buy your book if he or she doesn’t know it exists? Paired with other elements of your book promotion strategy, requesting reviews is a great way to get people talking about what you’ve written.

When we read good reviews, we definitely like to share them. It gives the author a few (permanent) moments of fame and allows us to let the community know about a great book. Here’s this week’s book review:

Toxic Sphere

by C.N. Sky

Publisher: Outskirts Press

ISBN: 9781478733751

Synopsis*:

A package vanishes. A ship sets sail. A manhunt begins. The year is 1007 EE, and four great powers–Cadona, Domataland, Sohn-Sur, and Visstel–are battling for world dominance. Leeha Ritsagin is one of the seventeen billion humans caught up in the battle of the giants. She enjoys old movies, works hard, longs for a boyfriend, fears elevators, cares about the world, and is a wanted criminal. Her story begins on a drive across town, and while she worries about getting lost, the danger she faces doesn’t wait for her in the slums of Cadona City. Rather, it comes inside a simple paper bag that appears in the backseat of her old car. Powerful members of the Back-to-Basics Club launch a manhunt to catch the thief who stole their package at a time when Club leaders are primed to take control of the Cadonan government, start a war against fabricated enemies, and deploy the world’s most powerful weapon: Toxic Sphere.

In response to growing international peril, the rising nation of Domataland dispatches its Goodwill Ship to aid a threatened ally. When news of the package’s disappearance reaches the desk of Domataland’s president, he instructs his intelligence chief to find the thief, hoping to use the mysterious package against his Cadonan adversaries. With Leeha’s life in danger, investigative journalist Bob Fullerby begins his own search to find the young woman before her hunters do. C. N. Sky’s debut novel is an ambitious saga with engaging characters, pulse-quickening action, and well-crafted suspense-a definite must-read by an up-and-coming new voice in fiction.

 * courtesy of Amazon.com

Featured Review: Dystopia, religion, politics, and a girl.

This book was quite a surprise! It kind of echoes the scenario of the lord of the rings, wherein a simplistic person is whipped out of their comfortable shell, into a world being manipulated by a handful of different powers. It weaves two themes throughout the book: the workings of a few elite; and the struggle of one “small” person. It’s generally done quite well, and the author is a master at whipping you through mystery and action scenes. The visions of various lands and people are left imprinted very strongly in your mind. One thing that didn’t suit my taste, though, was the presentation of the “elite, royalty” types of characters. They were quite a jarring, deliberate, slow-down from the main character’s journey. If you like classic sci-fi, you’ll love this book! If it had Heinlein or Philip K. Dick’s name on the cover, I’d have been fooled! Looking forward to seeing more like this, if anyone has more recommendations to share?

Book Trailer