Indie Book Corner: Wick: The Spark Form Chronicles book 1 by Matt Doyle

Highly original, well written fusion of disparate ideas. Ties for the most creative book I’ve read this year along with Exurbia, by Alex McKechnie. 

Wick is what happens when you take wrestling...

...esports... 

...cyberpunk... 

...and of all things, Yugioh... 

And mix it in a blender on the highest setting. You’d think you’d get a mess with such a mix, but instead you get something quite rare and even a tad beautiful.

Wick starts in a very confusing way as we’re dropped right into the action with no explanations given. And the action we’re dropped into is...a beauty pageant...no it’s a setup for a wrestling match or something? Oh, it’s...a card game?

Though not clear at first, it’s soon revealed that all the POV characters are a part of some vast and very popular tournament style eSport called Spark Forming. This futuristic eSport uses digital cards as a medium to summon impressively dangerous and beautiful looking beasts and humanoids that do battle in digital arenas. Each of the tournament combatants has his or her own POV, with the exception of two or three characters. And there are certainly some memorable POVs and other characters in the book.

The Plot 

Here’s hoping that I succeed in not ruining or spoiling anything here. The plot revolves around several different mysteries as each character has his or her own reasons for participating in the tournament. Though what each character presents on the surface is not always their true intentions. On the surface everyone is in the tournament for fame, glory, and prize money. Though most of their goals seem to be for things outside the arena. It’s revealed that there is much more going on behind the scenes and Spark Forming may not be as innocent and fun as the world thinks it is. I think that’s all I can say without spoiling too much. It’s vague, I know, but each reveal in the plot was major to me so I reeeeeallly don’t want to spoil anything for anyone else. I’ll just add that there’s some really good character drama that heats up from the middle to the end and the plot comes together nicely as each character’s earlier behaviors are given more light.

The Arena Battles 

The futuristic eSport known as Spark Forming has several unique components to it that made it very unique to me. The first has to be the player entrances. Some of my favorite scenes in the book came from these entrances, which were reminiscent of professional wrestling to me. Each player would have their own music that was presented in this way:

“Song: Came Out Bruised (But Still Breathing) 

Band: Addicted to my Rut 

Genre: Grunge” 

And then once the player is out and ready to start the match you have EPIC summoning descriptions for the Spark Forms like:

“His scales, rippling gently as he breathes, glow a deep, fiery red, Punctuated only by the curious black markings adorning his back and tail. Dark as a starless night, they run the length of his body, forming a line of symmetry for the scimitar-like patterns that trace paths out from the spine.”

Then there are the battles themselves which are far faster, more ferocious, and bloodier than I imagined they’d be. The players themselves experienced some sort of fatigue from the battles along with their Spark Form creatures as each battle required them to be “plugged in” and to use much of their own fortitude along with physical and mental dexterity.

I liked the strategies formed for these matches and thought that the play-by-play by the announcers was a clever way to teach the reader how the game is played. I will say that this is where the book’s lack of exposition hurts it the most. These battles would be much more enjoyable if the ground rules were laid before many of these battles took place. Since I didn’t know how the game was really even played, I never had any sense as to who would win or lose until the very end, so I was never on the edge of my seat for any of the battles. It was more like watching a laser light show until the end and finally going “that was neat,” at the end of it. So I hope more is explained about the card game itself in future books. Maybe even a card list so that we can take note of potential strategies ahead of time. Even with that said, the creativeness of the battles was enough to enthrall me and those were some of the chapters I read through the quickest.

The Characters. 

Going hand in hand with the book’s uniqueness is the strength of each of Wick’s characters. As I said before there are many POVs in Wick, about five or seven if my memory serves and each character brings a unique perspective and rationale to the story. There were a few that I thought I’d dread reading in the beginning, but by the middle I must say that everyone had chapters that I looked forward to. It was mostly to unlock further mysteries in the story which everyone had fragments of, but I was surprised that a book with this many POVs didn’t really offer any weak links for me. Even A Song of Ice and Fire had those Sansa chapters that I freaking HATED, and many of the POVs in A Feast for Crows felt dry and pointless to me, but here, even with so many characters, I had a good time. If you’re anything like me you’ll really become a fan of John Forrester who’s just a fun character in every sense of the word. I kind of want to say more, but I prefer to leave some surprises.

The Quick and Dirty 

Dislikes: 

-Confusing beginning. A lot is being said without much context. You don’t know if you’re reading about a pageant, a card game, or wrestling.

-The extra POVs in the beginning only added to the confusion.

-Could use some better explanations on the cards and the game mechanics to get you more invested in the card game. -The game isn't explained clearly enough in the first few matches forcing you to pay close attention to each match to understand how its played.

Likes: 

+Cool mix of wrestling and Yugioh or whatever combat card game you like. I really liked the on-camera dramatic “promos.” It felt like the 80’s all over again.

+Highly imaginative.

+Cool characters.

+Loaded with intelligence at every turn including characters, dialogue, plot, and much more. +The wrestling references are too good.

+Brilliant creature design and fight choreography.

+eSports taken to the next level.

+Solid characterization.

+The announcers are a clever source of exposition.

+Spark form action is bloody brutal fast and intense. +In depth ideas and concepts, very well thought out, with great execution.

+John Forrester is a brilliant character. So are many others, but he is by far my favorite.

All in all, I have to say that I absolutely loved this book.  It was one that I had received by the author for review, but I have to say that it's a series that I look forward to reading more of.  My interest has been piqued with the mysteries, I have come to like the characters very much, and it's a unique world that I am interested in seeing more of.  I'll definitely be reading the sequels.  Don't just take my word for it.  Check out the book for yourselves with the links below.

Author's website: http://mattdoylemedia.com/
eBook: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B011SG7TYO
Paperback: http://www.amazon.com/Wick-Spark-Form-Chronicles-1/dp/1517128714/

Here are the winners of my book giveaway.

From the end of October until today, I had a giveaway on Goodreads.com for my book, Average Joe and the Extraordinaires.  The giveaway coincides with the one year anniversary of my book's release.  Today I am here to announce the winners of that giveaway.

Three lucky winners will be receiving the stylish paperback copy of my book, Average Joe and the Extraordinaires.

Those winners are: 

Laura Feijóo Álvarez of Spain

Kadie Turcotte of the U.S.

and Željko Cindrić of Croatia

Congratulations ladies and gentleman.  I hope you enjoy your new copies of AJE.  Gotta love that new book smell!

The Sky Ghosts series by Alexandra Engellmann (Blog tour and giveaway)

Fill this simple Google form to sign up for the giveaway. Five winners will receive the first two books of the Sky Ghosts series in any ebook format and have a chance to read the rest of the series for free. Giveaway ends on December 1^st.

Title: Sky Ghosts / Author: Alexandra Engellmann / Genre: Urban fantasy / Action / Romance

Sky Ghosts: All for One (Sky Ghosts #1)

Jane and Pain are Sky Ghosts – and they kill for a living. Highly trained bodyguards by day, they patrol the New York streets at night to keep the city safe from their enemies, Sky Beasts. One night they save two young men from their enemies’ blades and find themselves in the middle of a war. As they put their lives at stake to save their wards, the main mystery remains unsolved: why would the Beasts hunt two ordinary human boys?

Spellbinding and violent, Alexandra Engellmann’s Sky Ghosts series is exactly what Urban fantasy fans are looking for – a blend of action, humor, mystery, and a unique magic system.

“Sky Ghosts is a great mixture of sword-fighting, humor, wit, sexual tension, and “imperfect romance” that brilliantly lets the readers feel like the characters, while supernatural, are fairly ordinary people underneath it all.” – Joe Jackson, author of the Eve of Redemption series

Amazon / Goodreads

Sky Ghosts: Marco (Sky Ghosts #1.5)

It was hate at first sight. She broke chairs on his head, and in return he broke her bones. 

When Marco joined the New York Sky Ghosts Headquarters, he expected trouble. What he didn’t expect was a girl half his size that would turn his life into hell. They spilled too much of each other’s blood for any hope for reconciliation. How did it happen that they ended up spilling blood for each other on a daily basis?

“I laughed a lot while reading Marco. The silly teenage nature of him and Pain combined with their stubborn natures and violent streaks made for some suitably hilarious and cringe worthy scenes.” – Belart Wright, author of the Average Joe series

Amazon / Goodreads

     

Follow the author:

Amazon / Website / Patreon

Goodreads / Facebook / Twitter

A few questions for indie author Alexandra Engellmann aka that author in the red dress.

If you don’t know (and you don’t) I’m Belart Wright, indie author extraordinaire of the glorious book Average Joe and the Extraordinaires.  Today I’m going to ask a good friend of mine: Alexandra Engellmann, indie author...Sky Ghost-inaire..?  Sorry, I tried to use her book title in her intro, but it doesn’t have the same ring as extraordinaire.  Unwarranted egotism from me aside, she’s one of my favorite people on the planet and super interesting besides all that and this interview will show a side of her that you all aren’t even ready for.  Let’s begin.

BW: First and foremost, who the hell are you?  The people deserve to know.  First describe yourself in five words, then elaborate on that.  Don’t lie, the internet knows!

AE: Okay, here are the first five words that come to my mind. I am a:
 

bookworm
artist
storyteller
thinker
nerd

The first means that whatever the world out there holds, I’d prefer spending my time reading whatever gem I’ve just discovered. 

The word ‘artist’ describes much more than just an occupation. I see the world as a piece of art, and I live to find beauty in little things around me.
 

I prefer ‘storyteller’ over ‘writer’, because the last is too big of a word. You can write about anything, but what I do is share stories about my characters, many of which come to life on their own by some weird glitch in my brain that prefers to be thinking about imaginary things rather than real.
I like to think a LOT about everything that happens to me. I think my writing is a way to avoid thinking too much and keep myself distracted from obsessing.
And lastly, nerding out is my profession, and I love it.

BW: Okay with that out of the way, I feel as if we all know you a little better, but still we can always dig a little deeper.  I’ve heard it said that all writers are narcissists.  We’re conceited enough to think we have something important to say that the world should hear.  Why should the world hear your voice?  What have you always wanted to share?

AE: I don’t think it’s my voice they should hear, but the characters’ voices. I think it’s more about giving a life to someone who’s persistently asking for it in your head, about giving them a chance to show who they are and who they can be. And on the other side, it’s about entertaining people with all kinds of emotions they can find in your book. So, I guess it’s emotions that I’m sharing with the world.

BW: Okay, I went a little deep with that last question so let’s lighten it up a little bit...with more psychological questions.  So Pain and Marco, my two favorite characters in the Sky Ghosts series, have a very interesting relationship.  It’s a friendship that goes beyond normal boundaries.  There’s a lot of unspoken feelings that get communicated through physical means rather than verbally.  In my opinion, that’s the best kind of relationship.  Why was this the method you chose for their relationship?  What type of relationship communication do you prefer?

AE: I don’t think there are any boundaries for friendship, and I’m one of those people who believe and respect friendship way more than love that’s often too complicated because of selfish emotions we people bring into it. The friendship between Pain and Marco is the only type I’ve ever had and will always prefer. I’m very open to whoever I meet and can easily share personal things with any stranger if I feel like it, or if the conversation is interesting. I hate formalities and limitations, and it’s often hard to stop myself from saying what’s on my mind. It entertains me how shocked people are sometimes by it, especially those who aren’t used to laughing at themselves. I’ve never really chosen anything for my characters, including their relationships, so that was how it naturally unfolded in my mind.

BW: Continuing from that last question: what type of sick person imagines a relationship like Pain and Marco’s?  They’re animals!

AE: Me, the animal :) Considering their lifestyle, it’s impossible for them not to bring a little extra blood into it.

BW: Last question...for now.  So your action scenes in Sky Ghosts: All For One and Sky Ghosts: Marco had a grounded reality to them even though they involved superhuman combatants.  I attributed this to your descriptive style and attention to detail.  The action was always bloody and intense so that clues me in that you may have an inner warrior in you.  So I’d like to know what are your top 3 fighting disciplines worldwide?  And what existing fighting styles match your favorite 3 fighters that we’ve met in Sky Ghosts?  If none exists, make ‘em up.

AE: That would be boxing for Marco, because he’s one of those who can kill with a single blow.
Krav Maga for the sisters, because they have to finish the fight quickly without giving the opponent the chance to get hold of them, and also because they’d go for the vulnerable points.
The third one would be Taekwondo, and that’s certainly Ryan’s style because of its emphasis on kicks, which someone as tall as him would make really powerful.

Well that's it for now folks.  Hope it was as fun for you as it was for me.  If you have more questions for Alexandra please go visit her at her website: www.engellmann.com or her twitter: https://twitter.com/engellmann or really anywhere you find her on these world wide interwebz.  She's good at responding.  You can find my own interview on her blog too.

Also check out her books via the links below.  Just click the picture link and it'll take you to each book's Amazon.com page.  Again, thanks for the read my glorious readers and til next time.

Book #1

Book #1.5