Book Review: Slaughter: Origin Story by James Beltz - July 2017
What happens when tragedy + sarcasm + intensity beyond belief mingle with humor and the tiniest dash of romance? You get Slaughter: Origin Story by James Beltz.
Story/Characters:
I am going to have to start out by saying, I have never been one to read books riddled with excessive violence. It isn't that I'm necessarily opposed to blood and bullets, but most of the books I tend to read just don't have a lot of blood and guts. This definitely had the most blood-filled pages that I've read, and I have this to say about it: If every book in the action/thriller genres was handled as this one was, I would have a new favorite genre.
The protagonist, DJ Slaughter, is a man with a tragic past. After suffering a major loss, he retreats into a life of solitude and pours his energy into the one thing that can take his mind off of his past: collecting and training with firearms. In order to not give away main parts of the story, I will have to give you very few details about this character other than the fact that he was one of extreme character-development. You watch him change throughout the book in a realistic transition. His life and the events in this book may cause you to ask yourself questions. Lots of questions. The one that I asked myself over and over again was, "Could you see yourself handling life the way DJ did after (insert events)?" My answer? It's not that far-fetched. Could I see my husband handling things the way DJ did? Yes. Because when bad things happen to good people, they tend to attempt to take what's left of their existence into their own hands. And with DJ's military past, family-man nature, and proficiency with a gun.... well, what did you expect him to do?
The supporting characters were folks that I'd know well if I saw them. Brett Foster's character was sculpted from a clear picture in the author's mind, and he executed it perfectly. The relationships between DJ, Brett, and Abbi (another supporting character) just made sense. In many books, you find yourself trying to piece together who-is-who, and remember the relationship details between characters. Some stories are hard to follow due to the overload of detail and the fast pace of the book. This is not one of those books. If the book had been given a good editing session before publishing, I'd never have guessed this was James' first novel. It was just that good, and the characters were that memorable.
Content:
Language: None. It is squeaky clean as far as language goes. There are mild name-calling moments and lots of humor to enjoy, but no profanity.
Sexual Content/Nudity: The only thing remotely sexual in this book would be the two instances where a husband makes suggestive comments to his wife: once about having more children, the other time about having a quickie. That was it, and zero details beyond that were given. Other than a quick butt-grab, there weren't any sexual scenes. ;) A man's genital area was mentioned once, but it was not in any way a sexual mention.
Violence: Oh boy. Lots and lots of bloodshed. Pretty graphic as far as that goes. Bullets hitting folks left and right. Blood, brains, and shattered bodies seem to pile up throughout the pages. There is pretty intense hate between some characters.. Gang related content, mob-style executions, and good ol' fashioned shotgun murders are featured. I am pretty squeamish, but there were only one or two instances that made me really cringe. And I'll admit, it added immensely to the intense pressure building throughout the chapters. So if you can't take blood, this isn't the book for you. But if you can, you are in for a real treat!
Spirituality: This book has mentions of Biblical scripture, faith in God, and prayers sprinkled throughout on occasion. I wouldn't necessarily say that it is Christian fiction, just because the goal of the story wasn't to point to Christianity. The religious mentions were based on the personal beliefs or "unbeliefs" of the characters and should in no way take away from the story if the reader isn't religious. From a Christian perspective, I would describe this book as a suspenseful, thrilling story that happens to be clean enough for a Christian to read with good conscience--if violence isn't something you find offensive.
Quality:
The edition of the book I read has since been updated, so I can't say for current readers what the content looks like as far as editing goes. There were many punctuation errors and a few odd and end grammatical errors, but as an author I was very impressed with the skill and proficiency Mr. Beltz showed. And I'm not saying this as considering the fact that he didn't have an editor, and this being his first novel. The fact that the book was as enjoyable as it was being unpolished shows the potential the author has and the worth of the story itself. I could easily see this made into an action movie. One I'd actually go see--and that says a LOT! The author is deserving of every one of the stars given in this review. Yes, more attention to detail (as far as errors are concerned) needs to go into the revised edition of Slaughter: Origin Story and his future novels, but if you learn the author's personal journey, how he went about writing and completing this novel, and the love he has for his literary baby, you will have no trouble falling in love with it yourself. I would love signed copies on my bookshelf, errors included, if need be. It has just left that big of a mark on this reader. It hit its mark.
Where to find it?
https://www.amazon.com/Slaughter-Origin-Story-James-Beltz-ebook/dp/B071WX3DKV/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1501370772&sr=8-1&keywords=james+beltz
Current price is $2.99 for Kindle version ($0 Kindle Unlimited) and $14.99 paperback.
Follow James Beltz on Facebook so you will know exactly when the second book debuts.
https://www.facebook.com/SlaughterSeries/
My rating? FIVE STARS...er...GUNS!
Comments
Post a Comment