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The A-Men
Jack is a man with no memory, awakening in a dark and dangerous metropolis on the eve of its destruction. The only clue to his former a handwritten note in the pages of a book of faerie tales entitled Forevermore. Marked for death in a peacekeeping force sent to quell the riots, he finds sanctuary and survival with other renegades on the streets of Dead City. Battling to survive, they form the infamous A-Men, misfits who have a unifying to be special. Yet that is until their paths cross with Dr Nathaniel Glass and his mysterious experiment locked deep beneath the Phoenix Tower.
- GenresUrban Fantasy
403 pages, Hardcover
First published November 24, 2010
About the author
John Trevillian
6 books2 followers• Author of four novels (The A-Men, The A-Men Return, Forever A-Men and The Mortal And His God), plus Shadowmagick, a collection of poetry, songs, travel journals, short stories and other miscellaneous writing.
• Nominated finalist in the 2009 YouWriteOn Book Awards.
• Fully trained Native American Shaman in the Lakota Sioux tradition. Fully trained Bard, Ovate and Druid in the Order of Bards Ovates and Druids.
• Creator and designer of AEs Mail Adventure, the award-winning interactive writing game. Winner of Best New Game and Best Gamesmaster in the UK (all 1987).
• Previously head of the AEs Society, an international group of shared-world authors and writers.
• Publishing credits for my short stories and poetry include Broadsword magazine, Interactive Fiction magazine and Wildfire magazine.
• Freelance writer and contributor for Microsoft, Future Publishing, EMAP Publications, AOL/Time Warner and various other magazine and writing projects (including Inmarsat Via Inmarsat, Renault Vanguard, 3Com Executive Intelligence, Nestlé, MFI, Canadian Tourist Commission The Spirit of Canada, CMGI) for Publicis Groupe.
• Voted most negative IT journalist in 2000 along with Barry Fox, Marc Court, Bob Kane, Andrew Hill, Simon Moores, Barry Collins, Bob Raike, Guy Kewney in the Miller Freeman's PR Audit guide to UK IT scribes entitled Know Your Journalists. The quarterly guide classifies hacks into the positive, negative, prolific and ranks them according to their importance within the industry.
• Nominated finalist in the 2009 YouWriteOn Book Awards.
• Fully trained Native American Shaman in the Lakota Sioux tradition. Fully trained Bard, Ovate and Druid in the Order of Bards Ovates and Druids.
• Creator and designer of AEs Mail Adventure, the award-winning interactive writing game. Winner of Best New Game and Best Gamesmaster in the UK (all 1987).
• Previously head of the AEs Society, an international group of shared-world authors and writers.
• Publishing credits for my short stories and poetry include Broadsword magazine, Interactive Fiction magazine and Wildfire magazine.
• Freelance writer and contributor for Microsoft, Future Publishing, EMAP Publications, AOL/Time Warner and various other magazine and writing projects (including Inmarsat Via Inmarsat, Renault Vanguard, 3Com Executive Intelligence, Nestlé, MFI, Canadian Tourist Commission The Spirit of Canada, CMGI) for Publicis Groupe.
• Voted most negative IT journalist in 2000 along with Barry Fox, Marc Court, Bob Kane, Andrew Hill, Simon Moores, Barry Collins, Bob Raike, Guy Kewney in the Miller Freeman's PR Audit guide to UK IT scribes entitled Know Your Journalists. The quarterly guide classifies hacks into the positive, negative, prolific and ranks them according to their importance within the industry.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
February 7, 2013
3.5 Stars
Now, I'm not a woman who only reads romances or things like that. My shelves are full of fantasy and sci-fi books, but I think this book is aimed firmly at a male market. I think there is too much violence in for it to be anything else, and some of the women in this book are not treated very well at all. It was disturbing in some parts.
A dystopian tale set in a distant-future Earth, where everything has been controlled for years by mega-corporations. They control everything: food, shelter, water, supplies, electricity, everything that people need to survive. But the mega-corps are leaving, along with the rich who can afford to live on the space stations that orbit Earth. Earth is plunged into darkness as the electricity and water and food supplies dwindle with no hope of ever returning to how things were. There are two main groups left on the planet: those who are hunted and those who are the hunters. Laws and rules go out the window and a peace-keeping force is sent, of whom Jack is one.
Jack is a man with no memory and as the book goes on, you discover that he wanted to wipe his own memory and you're left wondering why someone would so such a thing. Along with Jack, we have chapters from other characters, including Pure, one of the women left on Earth, Sister Midnight, a religious zealot and a solider alongside Jack.
I found the alternating chapters from different points of view annoying at times. You were just getting into what was happening and then the action switched to a different person or place. The whole book was also written mostly in the present tense, which is not my favourite so it took a while to get into.
Some of the science and technical jargon went way over my head, so I wasn't actually sure sometimes what I was reading about. All the talk about guns and weapons' statistics when we were in Jack's head bored me.
Where the author does excel is with the characterisation of each narrator. Every one of them has their own distinct voice, so even if you hadn't seen the chapter title (which are all the names of the characters narrating that particular part) you'd still know whose chapter it was.
The author has written an interesting, fast-paced tale with twists and turns, sometimes violent and bloody, sometimes confusing, but something you could imagine might really happen one day. Not the book for you if you find swearing offensive.
Review copy supplied by author.
Now, I'm not a woman who only reads romances or things like that. My shelves are full of fantasy and sci-fi books, but I think this book is aimed firmly at a male market. I think there is too much violence in for it to be anything else, and some of the women in this book are not treated very well at all. It was disturbing in some parts.
A dystopian tale set in a distant-future Earth, where everything has been controlled for years by mega-corporations. They control everything: food, shelter, water, supplies, electricity, everything that people need to survive. But the mega-corps are leaving, along with the rich who can afford to live on the space stations that orbit Earth. Earth is plunged into darkness as the electricity and water and food supplies dwindle with no hope of ever returning to how things were. There are two main groups left on the planet: those who are hunted and those who are the hunters. Laws and rules go out the window and a peace-keeping force is sent, of whom Jack is one.
Jack is a man with no memory and as the book goes on, you discover that he wanted to wipe his own memory and you're left wondering why someone would so such a thing. Along with Jack, we have chapters from other characters, including Pure, one of the women left on Earth, Sister Midnight, a religious zealot and a solider alongside Jack.
I found the alternating chapters from different points of view annoying at times. You were just getting into what was happening and then the action switched to a different person or place. The whole book was also written mostly in the present tense, which is not my favourite so it took a while to get into.
Some of the science and technical jargon went way over my head, so I wasn't actually sure sometimes what I was reading about. All the talk about guns and weapons' statistics when we were in Jack's head bored me.
Where the author does excel is with the characterisation of each narrator. Every one of them has their own distinct voice, so even if you hadn't seen the chapter title (which are all the names of the characters narrating that particular part) you'd still know whose chapter it was.
The author has written an interesting, fast-paced tale with twists and turns, sometimes violent and bloody, sometimes confusing, but something you could imagine might really happen one day. Not the book for you if you find swearing offensive.
Review copy supplied by author.
March 11, 2011
Book Title: The A-Men
Author: John Trevillian
Publisher: Matador, Troubador Publishing Ltd.
ISBN: 9781848763432
Reviewed by Michele Tater for Review the Book
“To know what you prefer instead of humbly saying Amen to what the world tells you ought to prefer, is to have kept your soul alive.” Robert Louis Stevenson
In the future of our world, all hell has broken loose. The company that ran things and keep everything working harmoniously has left the planet. Although many Earth dwellers were able to leave before the change over to the survive of the fittest mentality, many were unable to. What is left on the planet are renegades of gangs, fight each other for superiority and tracts of the best parts of the cities that are available. To bring some control to this mess, a group of trained military like mavericks, are dropped down from their ship to in the chaos. Most being criminals or persons that just don't fit anywhere else. They do not realize the magnitude of the situation they are now a part of, many pay the price with their lives. The survivors band together and form their own “gang” with other members joining them if they can swear the oath. The members names are borrowed from a book of tales, which gives all who read it some hope in a world with very little hope.
The best way to describe this book, in my opinion anyway, is a “guy” flick written by author with a vision like no one else. It has all the great elements of an action pack block buster movie; chaos, mayhem, explosions, death and destruction. There are turf wars and some colorful characters that can only exist in the end of world times. It has glimpses of scenes that have the Road Warrior movie feel it them, but most are taken right from the imagination of the author. But is does include a sensitive overtone especially when the book “forevermore” is mentioned; it is like a religious icon. Even with its guy geared content, I would recommend to girls too; hey what girl doesn't like a good guy flick anyway. Although, a thick book, it is easy to get engrossed in it and you are done before you know it. The reader will look forward to read the next book, “The A-Men Return”, which is already written and available.
Author: John Trevillian
Publisher: Matador, Troubador Publishing Ltd.
ISBN: 9781848763432
Reviewed by Michele Tater for Review the Book
“To know what you prefer instead of humbly saying Amen to what the world tells you ought to prefer, is to have kept your soul alive.” Robert Louis Stevenson
In the future of our world, all hell has broken loose. The company that ran things and keep everything working harmoniously has left the planet. Although many Earth dwellers were able to leave before the change over to the survive of the fittest mentality, many were unable to. What is left on the planet are renegades of gangs, fight each other for superiority and tracts of the best parts of the cities that are available. To bring some control to this mess, a group of trained military like mavericks, are dropped down from their ship to in the chaos. Most being criminals or persons that just don't fit anywhere else. They do not realize the magnitude of the situation they are now a part of, many pay the price with their lives. The survivors band together and form their own “gang” with other members joining them if they can swear the oath. The members names are borrowed from a book of tales, which gives all who read it some hope in a world with very little hope.
The best way to describe this book, in my opinion anyway, is a “guy” flick written by author with a vision like no one else. It has all the great elements of an action pack block buster movie; chaos, mayhem, explosions, death and destruction. There are turf wars and some colorful characters that can only exist in the end of world times. It has glimpses of scenes that have the Road Warrior movie feel it them, but most are taken right from the imagination of the author. But is does include a sensitive overtone especially when the book “forevermore” is mentioned; it is like a religious icon. Even with its guy geared content, I would recommend to girls too; hey what girl doesn't like a good guy flick anyway. Although, a thick book, it is easy to get engrossed in it and you are done before you know it. The reader will look forward to read the next book, “The A-Men Return”, which is already written and available.
Read
September 18, 2011This book was a whirlwind drop through Alice's rabbit hole, intense at times, confusing at times, never completely boring, but never quite sane either. The story is written from the perspective of half a dozen characters. Each chapter is clearly labeled with one of the characters' names, and then told in first person from that perspective. Initially, that was somewhat overwhelming. I'd just be getting into one character's story when I'd abruptly be introduced to someone else. Each character clearly has his/her own voice, which is one of the strong points of this book. I could really *feel* the differences between the characters- not only in their actions, but also in their different perspectives and the way their chapters flowed. This complete characterization is one of the strengths of this story, however it also led to a hint of disconnect; at times, I felt almost as if I had multiple personalities.
I was really intrigued by the whole setting- time and place- of this story. It was fascinating to see this post-apocolyptic human race and what they were capable of. I really wish I'd gotten a more detailed look into it all. I think the characters were very well defined, but the world itself was almost a mirage to me. I could just about see it clearly, but it wasn't as defined as the people right in front of me. Maybe that's an ok thing, and it did allow the characters to shine through, but I would have really loved to hear more details about how this place differed from what I know about our current time.
With regards to the plot, I never completely understood what was going on. I would think I had a handle on it, but the perspective would change, and I'd be whisked into nowhereland again. I was then left wondering what had happened and how much time had passed and how these characters were ever going to connect. I think I kept hoping for something big at the end, something that would make it all tie together and just render the story whole for me. I didn't get that. I felt some sort of closure, and the characters did all connect at some point, but the ending felt almost as disconnected as the rest of the book seemed to me.
Read the full review @ GraceKrispy's MotherLode blog
I was really intrigued by the whole setting- time and place- of this story. It was fascinating to see this post-apocolyptic human race and what they were capable of. I really wish I'd gotten a more detailed look into it all. I think the characters were very well defined, but the world itself was almost a mirage to me. I could just about see it clearly, but it wasn't as defined as the people right in front of me. Maybe that's an ok thing, and it did allow the characters to shine through, but I would have really loved to hear more details about how this place differed from what I know about our current time.
With regards to the plot, I never completely understood what was going on. I would think I had a handle on it, but the perspective would change, and I'd be whisked into nowhereland again. I was then left wondering what had happened and how much time had passed and how these characters were ever going to connect. I think I kept hoping for something big at the end, something that would make it all tie together and just render the story whole for me. I didn't get that. I felt some sort of closure, and the characters did all connect at some point, but the ending felt almost as disconnected as the rest of the book seemed to me.
Read the full review @ GraceKrispy's MotherLode blog
May 3, 2012
This book was very confusing for me because I did not know what was going on and when. Also the names confused me. Although I did like Jack and his thinking for wiping his own memory away.
According to the amazon description: Jack is a man with no memory, awakening in a dark and dangerous metropolis on the eve of its destruction. The only clue to his former life: a handwritten note in the pages of a book of faerie tales entitled Forevermore. Marked for death in a peacekeeping force sent to quell the riots, he finds sanctuary and survival with other renegades on the streets of Dead City. Battling to survive, they form the infamous A-Men, misfits who have a unifying dream: to be special. Yet that is until their paths cross with Dr Nathaniel Glass and his mysterious experiment locked deep beneath the Phoenix Tower.
This book was confusing so I would not really recommend it to anyone.
According to the amazon description: Jack is a man with no memory, awakening in a dark and dangerous metropolis on the eve of its destruction. The only clue to his former life: a handwritten note in the pages of a book of faerie tales entitled Forevermore. Marked for death in a peacekeeping force sent to quell the riots, he finds sanctuary and survival with other renegades on the streets of Dead City. Battling to survive, they form the infamous A-Men, misfits who have a unifying dream: to be special. Yet that is until their paths cross with Dr Nathaniel Glass and his mysterious experiment locked deep beneath the Phoenix Tower.
This book was confusing so I would not really recommend it to anyone.
December 28, 2012
Confusing, but I like that in a book. Great characterizations, although the writing style was pretty similar for each voice. Was really enjoying it up until the third quarter, where there was some time-skipping going on and it started to drag a little. Picked up again by the end.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews