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Divinity
Terra-transformation of the planet Vaus is nearly complete. Yet, humans choose to live as gods in the space colonies, enslaving Vausians to do the grunt work below. But a fateful encounter between Alethia (human) and Zade (Vausian) sparks hope for Vausian freedom. Rebels rise against the humans, but General Lander unleashes an army of bioengineered soldiers to obliterate the resistance. Only the legendary sword Divinity, constructed by a mysterious man known as the Architect, can lead the Vausians to victory — if it is found in time. Alethia believes Zade is the one to wield it; but born a cripple, he does not share her confidence. Now, Zade must conquer his doubts and claim the sword. But General Lander will stop at nothing until the power of Divinity is in his hand. Humans and Vausians. Peace or annihilation. The Architect’s true intent and Divinity’s real purpose. The fight for Vausian independence has just begun.
380 pages, Paperback
Published December 11, 2015
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
September 5, 2016
A genuinely interesting story that will benefit from a thorough top-to-bottom scour by an editor and, ideally, further workshopping and development by the author.
The book, as is, is riddled with typos:
- Missed letters (ex. "[The briefing] explained how to monitor the location of Vausians who carried tracking device implanted in their chest.")
- Dropped or improper punctuation (particularly with dialogue, ex. "'Tride. Wait,' Zade shouted...")
- Inconsistency with how things like emphasis are portrayed (italics vs. caps)
- Random tense changes (ex. "They sweat in anticipation. Vic giggled on Kish's shoulder, being amused by their reactions.")
- Vocabulary errors (ex. "passed" for "past", "uninhibited" for "uninhabited", "build" for "built")
Dialogue and personal interactions are stilted and lack organic flow. Characterization is shallow and dances along the line of cliche.
Descriptions, on the other hand, are often very good...until something jarring pops up like "her voice whimpered" (did she or her voice whimper? Did she say it WITH a whimper?) or "she tilted her neck" (not her head?).
Especially toward the latter half of the book, the story acquires a very strong shōnen manga vibe which--don't get me wrong!--is not necessarily means for dismissal. I enjoy many titles in the shōnen demographic. BUT: if you're going to stick to tropes, they must be executed impeccably to avoid feeling derivative. And while this story definitely has enough originality to feel fresh in a genre as crowded shōnen, it needs a few more coats of polish to realize its potential.
Working to Divinity's advantage, ultimately, is a story built on the complicated moral and socioeconomic problems of a culture based on slavery. Furuyama explores the dilemmas and hypocrisy of a slave-based society in ways that manage to be straightforward, clever, but never too heavy handed.
Action moments also tend to be well handled in terms of description and flow. The fight scenes are visual and well choreographed.
I wish the author well with his passion for fiction writing. His ideas are strong, his foundation is excellent, and with some thorough editing his work should easily find an audience.
Thank you to the author, T. Furuyama, for providing a copy of this book through the Goodreads Giveaways program.
The book, as is, is riddled with typos:
- Missed letters (ex. "[The briefing] explained how to monitor the location of Vausians who carried tracking device implanted in their chest.")
- Dropped or improper punctuation (particularly with dialogue, ex. "'Tride. Wait,' Zade shouted...")
- Inconsistency with how things like emphasis are portrayed (italics vs. caps)
- Random tense changes (ex. "They sweat in anticipation. Vic giggled on Kish's shoulder, being amused by their reactions.")
- Vocabulary errors (ex. "passed" for "past", "uninhibited" for "uninhabited", "build" for "built")
Dialogue and personal interactions are stilted and lack organic flow. Characterization is shallow and dances along the line of cliche.
Descriptions, on the other hand, are often very good...until something jarring pops up like "her voice whimpered" (did she or her voice whimper? Did she say it WITH a whimper?) or "she tilted her neck" (not her head?).
Especially toward the latter half of the book, the story acquires a very strong shōnen manga vibe which--don't get me wrong!--is not necessarily means for dismissal. I enjoy many titles in the shōnen demographic. BUT: if you're going to stick to tropes, they must be executed impeccably to avoid feeling derivative. And while this story definitely has enough originality to feel fresh in a genre as crowded shōnen, it needs a few more coats of polish to realize its potential.
Working to Divinity's advantage, ultimately, is a story built on the complicated moral and socioeconomic problems of a culture based on slavery. Furuyama explores the dilemmas and hypocrisy of a slave-based society in ways that manage to be straightforward, clever, but never too heavy handed.
Action moments also tend to be well handled in terms of description and flow. The fight scenes are visual and well choreographed.
I wish the author well with his passion for fiction writing. His ideas are strong, his foundation is excellent, and with some thorough editing his work should easily find an audience.
Thank you to the author, T. Furuyama, for providing a copy of this book through the Goodreads Giveaways program.
January 1, 2016
It isn't often that I happen upon a treasure, but when I discovered this read just moments after it was published on Smashwords, I knew that I had to read it. The cover art caught my eye, but the preview stole my heart. This is a well-written and exciting Sci-fi adventure and first in series. I can't wait for the next book.
The story follows Zade and his best friend Kish on a journey to free their enslaved colony on the planet Vaus. As a child, Zade meets and forms a bond with the human daughter of a General and their initial meeting brings about the questioning of Zade's world and the supposed gods that they serve. The story follows the children into adulthood as Zade learns that he is the only one who can wield the legendary sword Divinity....I won't go into too much detail as I hate spoilers... You just have to read it to uncover the awesomeness behind this debut authors story-telling abilities. Loved this book!
The story follows Zade and his best friend Kish on a journey to free their enslaved colony on the planet Vaus. As a child, Zade meets and forms a bond with the human daughter of a General and their initial meeting brings about the questioning of Zade's world and the supposed gods that they serve. The story follows the children into adulthood as Zade learns that he is the only one who can wield the legendary sword Divinity....I won't go into too much detail as I hate spoilers... You just have to read it to uncover the awesomeness behind this debut authors story-telling abilities. Loved this book!
June 21, 2016
Fantasy story of a new racea nd their problems. It is an intense book that will hook the reader shortly after starting it.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews