The Prodigy: Greatness Has a Price

by A.L. Campbell

Questionable behavior blankets the world of American Football at every turn. Many wonder where the most profitable sport in the world is headed at its current pace. In the year 2021, the entire planet is captivated by a superior athlete who seems to have appeared out of nowhere. Miles Starr must cope with his unintended fame, while navigating his senior year of high school. Everyone wants a piece of what many have come to know as "The Prodigy." Miles is challenged to survive a deceptive girlfriend, manipulative teammates, a conniving sports agent, and Corporate America. As secrets are revealed, motives are uncovered. Will Miles rise to greatness and become a legend, or fold under the enormous pressure while the game clock is counting down? Throughout history, great individuals have always paid a price. Why should it be any different in the future?

234 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2012

About the author

When you're a child and you make up stories, you're called a "liar". When you're an adult and you make up stories, you're called an "Author". I never realized I had a talent for making up interesting tales, but I should have. All the telling signs were present early on. As a child, I had little action figures from various kid television shows. Like most little boys, I divided the figures into good guys and bad guys and they figured out ways to defeat the other during the course of an afternoon. The clue that I never picked up on was the fact that I had a third side that played the, so called, good guys and bad guys against each other. The conflicts didn't last for one afternoon. They typically lasted about 3 days. To make a long story short, I have never nourished my creativity until recently. In doing so, I have uncovered a vault of originality that will now be unleashed into the world.

Reviews

[Jeremy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm torn about the rating to give this book. It features an enjoyable story-line, fairly decent storytelling, and some futuristic technologies (adding a sci-fi element). I also enjoyed the slight twist at the end. On those portions of the book, I give it 4.5 stars. However, the book could have used another pass by an editor as I noticed numerous mistakes (incorrect words used at times, incomplete sentences, and even using the wrong name in one spot - it should have been Paul and Reggie, but one of the names listed was Andrew). The other factor that I didn't like was the focus on what was happening in the main character's pants. Don't get me wrong, I understand a 17 year old boy experiences these things, but I think just mentioning that he was turned on would have sufficed in place of the slang used to describe what he was feeling.

Overall, I would have to say the sexual content and poor editing leads me to only give it 3 stars. This book is definitely aimed at teens to young adults, but morally speaking I cannot recommend it impressionable young people.

[Vicki · Rating 3 out of 5]

FIRST READS WIN: I would like to thank the author for giving me this book free on Goodreads.

The book was a little hard for me to get in to for some reason, but it did pick up speed after a while. So the pacing wasn't smooth for me.

The characters, however, I thought were pretty true to life and a pretty good representation of what some teens go through to reach for their fame.

I recommend to mature teens and older due to some of the subject matter and language.

[Beth · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good story. Like the futuristic concept. Could have played that up even more. I agree with other comments about another pass by a good editor. I wanted to find a red pen and fix all the errors.