3 out of 5 stars.
I would like to thank Curiosity Quills Press for a free ARC of this book in exchange for an open and honest review.
This is a rather entertaining and well thought out anthology that encouraged authors and (I believe) fellow fans of the first ‘The Actuator – Fractured Earth’ novel to have a go at helping to reshape the world after the ‘Great Event’… or whatever it was called when the Actuator was let loose on the planet. Trust me, all of what I just said made sense if you’ve been reading this series. And if it doesn’t make sense – go read the series… it’s worth it! 😉
As with the majority of anthologies I’ve read, this one had its good and bad moments. It had its stories I never wanted to end and those I was happy to see the back of. What can I say, I am a fan of anthologies… but I am also fickle and do enjoy how you can pick and choose with them.
I totally loved the whole concept of this book. Talk about fan fic at its best! It has made getting back into the second book in the series a little harder as I have to focus back to the original style of writing from Mr James and Mr Wymore. Not that I don’t mind their style, I was just enjoying the mixture of talents and styles shown in this anthology.
Would I recommend this book to others? Yes I would. Though only if they had read ‘Fractured Earth’ first so they had the background basics this set of short stories is based on. But, yes, I really do recommend people give it a read. An anthology is a terrific way to get to know authors you may not have heard of before – that alone is a good enough reason to recommend it!
Would I buy this book for myself? Possibly. I mean, if I decided to own the whole of the Actuator series, then absolutely yes I would want this one as part of it… but as I’m still seeing how the series as a whole progresses, I’m still undecided about whether it’ll make it onto my virtual shelves any time soon.
In summary – as anthologies go, this was a good one. A great mixture of different writing styles and stories all following the underlying theme of the earth after the Actuator fractured it. A good little stepping stone to bide your time with while waiting for book two in this very interesting series.
Until next time,
Janis. XXOO
Janis's Journal 