5.0 out of 5 stars Sliders with a Twist, November 18, 2011
By
Antony Chow (NY, NY USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Upsetting the Tides (Kindle Edition)
An ordinary guy in the heartland of America finds a portal in his backyard. Putting aside his reservations, Clark Jackson walks through interconnecting passages to portals to other worlds. Upsetting the Tides is a story of exploration and adventure, and a man's dealing with the unintended consequences of his actions.The narrative is quite different. Everything is told from the viewpoint of Clark the portal traveler, but a lot of scenes and actions are described through the protagonist's thoughts (denoted in italics). And the rest of the time he is involved in conversations with co-workers, aliens, etc. It takes a while to get used to this style of writing, but eventually it became second nature to me.
The story itself has an unexpected bit of action and deaths, and leads to an action by the main character that you could either support or oppose. In any event, Upsetting the Tides is an interesting story that will appeal to fans of the Sliders television show.
5.0 out of 5 stars If things seem too good to be true they usually are., December 14, 2011
This review is from: Upsetting the Tides (Kindle Edition)
If things seem too good to be true they usually are. A great story of adventure and fantasy I really liked the plot of the story and how well the characters were written. Clark Jackson was a fun and relatable character that really grows on you throughout the story. Against his better judgment he investigates a portal to a strange room where he find that he can take a break from his hectic life without time passing on earth. However he soon realizes his mistake when he attracts unwanted attention from the mysterious Environmental Protection Agency.
"Upsetting the Tides" is a highly entertaining read that has enough twists and turns in it to keep you on the edge of your seat wondering what is going to happen next.
Check out Clark's exciting adventure in David Englund's "Upsetting the Tides".
Apparently I am a science fiction fan after all. Reading this reminds me of Isaac Asimov's earlier works. A bit daunting and hard to get into at first but after getting used to it's quite fun actually. Clark Jackson is your usual jaded professional who founds himself in the most unusual situation; he got sucked into a mysterious portal in his backyard. I love that Clark feels real enough as a character because he's not your perfect, drop dead gorgeous action hero that can be found in so many books. He's totally clueless and his witty monologues are dripping with sarcasm. He's 43 after all.
The adventure moves along in a breath neck speed but somehow between jumping into so many other worldly dimensions, our hero has the time to have a crush on a fellow colleague.
Aw..shucks! That's so sweet. Along the way, Clark meet not so friendly aliens, ants, hungry talking birds and some marshmallow men. I was initially confused with Chapter 10 and was wondering if there's a secret code to unlock or whatnot.
Clark Jackson (not Clark Kent) has a very ordinary life until he finds a portal in his back yard. Then he leads a very extraordinary life but remains a very ordinary man. "I wonder if Sarina likes me" becomes as important a question as what do the Feds know, and far more important than the fact that aliens might be invading earth.
The alien technology is dangerously easy to use and Clark's inner dialog is humorously juvenile. Falling from one unlikely situation to the next, Clark, like a modern-day Gulliver, travels the universe trying not to be fried, eaten, ignored or thrown out with the trash. All while keeping ahead of the FEDs and putting in the hours to keep his job.
The story reads like an adventure game. I can almost imagine rolling the dice, choosing my portal and waiting for the gamesmaster to tell me how the natives react. Conversations convey detail from lifestyle to lifespan and more. And the streets of Des Moines, Iowa, might never be the same.
At 333 pages this is a fairly long novel. Though the dialog reads quickly, the detail can sometimes slow it down. TV scenes of invasion and inept violence pair ironically with Clark's own thoughtlessness, leading to a final conflict filled with the bells and whistles of computer graphics. First in a series, this novel stands alone with no problem. It upsets a lot of aliens and just maybe leads Clark to a slightly greater sense of responsibility. The story would make a good TV series and feels complete rather than cancelled when you reach the end.
Disclosure: I received a free ecopy of this novel from the author in exchange for my honest review.
The alien technology is dangerously easy to use and Clark's inner dialog is humorously juvenile. Falling from one unlikely situation to the next, Clark, like a modern-day Gulliver, travels the universe trying not to be fried, eaten, ignored or thrown out with the trash. All while keeping ahead of the FEDs and putting in the hours to keep his job.
The story reads like an adventure game. I can almost imagine rolling the dice, choosing my portal and waiting for the gamesmaster to tell me how the natives react. Conversations convey detail from lifestyle to lifespan and more. And the streets of Des Moines, Iowa, might never be the same.
At 333 pages this is a fairly long novel. Though the dialog reads quickly, the detail can sometimes slow it down. TV scenes of invasion and inept violence pair ironically with Clark's own thoughtlessness, leading to a final conflict filled with the bells and whistles of computer graphics. First in a series, this novel stands alone with no problem. It upsets a lot of aliens and just maybe leads Clark to a slightly greater sense of responsibility. The story would make a good TV series and feels complete rather than cancelled when you reach the end.
Disclosure: I received a free ecopy of this novel from the author in exchange for my honest review.
