Review - Sphere (The Carriers, Episode One) by Isaiyan Morrison

Description:

Just finishing graduating high school, Tayla Wyatt looks forward to heading off to the same college her best friend Sara was accepted to. This is her only way to get away from her family's troubles and the fact that her mother walked out on her and her father over a decade ago.

The day of her 17th birthday they meet Darrien, a shy eighteen year old boy who reveals to Tayla that she's descended from a long line of Carriers, humans endowed with special abilities or "gifts" and that her gift she has yet to harness is the strongest gift of them all. Tayla doesn't believe him. After all, no human in the world has special powers, or do they?

Things suddenly take a downward spiral turn as Tayla finds herself immersed in their world. Still questioning why her mother left her, she must also come to grips with the fact that her gift may not be a blessing but a curse.

So what did I think?

There's no warm and fuzzy lead up here - Isaiyan Morrison drops the reader into a tense situation in very first paragraph.  It left me feeling as though I was playing catch up...and I think that worked. The main character Tayla is like many teenagers - likable, vulnerable, and confused.  I found myself relating to her and her doubts.  

I thought Ms Morrison did a great job giving voice to the cast of characters.  There was no mistaking each character's personality but it was actually the villain who caught my attention. He was arrogantly evil and I loved him.

It can be hard to weave important information into a story and not have an information dump especially when the reader steps into an already accelerating story.   I thought Ms Morrison did a good job filling in the back story.  There was a small dump in the beginning but as the story proceeded, I felt like she got better and better.

My biggest complaint is also my biggest compliment - the cliffhanger!  I scrolled down my kindle looking for the next paragraph - but it wasn't there!  Dang!  The disappointment...

My recommendation:

Don't let the fact that this is a serial keep you from reading it.   If you feel lost in the beginning, don't worry.  It won't take long for you to figure out the who's and the what's that make this story work.  Sit back, get comfortable and enjoy the read!

This is a serial with each episode roughly between 14,000-18,000 words long. 

Smashwords Link

https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/333908

Amazon Link

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00DTH21P8 

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Self Publishing Update

I finished my revisions - and oh my gosh - the relief!  Hopefully, I found everything - that all my i's are dotted, my t's are crossed.  I feel as though a weight was lifted off of my shoulders. So now the wait is on - if everything goes right, Create Space will be sending me a revised proof one day next week.   Now on to the next phase-getting my manuscript formatted for an e-book.  I started that tonight - activated my account - and then realized I don't have a separate ISBN.  So, I'm at a standstill - because I can't remember how I purchased the ISBN at the beginning of this adventure.  As frustrating as this is, there is a bright side.  The journey has been long but I can see the finish line and it's a wonderful sight!

Use Your Dashboard!

This is a cautionary (but true) tale:

I read the email - make my corrections and upload.  The plan was simple.   I spent July 4th, in front of my laptop, editing my physical proof from Create Space.  And this morning (the 5th)  I was going to upload the corrections and then search the internet for book reviewers, etc.  The plan would have worked if I'd gone to my project dashboard instead of assuming I knew the process .  Silly me.  The hours I spent correcting my manuscript were wasted.  Had I checked my dashboard, I would have found the formatted version Create Space wanted me to use. 

So my Friday went like this - Instead of sending off inquiries to reviewers, I spent the day making the corrections to the formatted manuscript.  I saved the changes, X'd out of the document and BLAM! I was kicked off the site.  I hate spotty internet and with the rain and the heat in our area, it seems our internet service is working beyond capacity.  I tried to go back in - but couldn't.  Create Space had blocked my access....  I can only hope that somehow, the changes made it....Otherwise, it'll be day three....

Self Publishing Update

Update on self publishing process: 

I received the proof copy of my novel.  Honestly, I am blown away by the number of tiny errors I've found - especially considering how many times I went over the manuscript before submitting it. Not only did I go over it but I had very knowledgeable people read it including writers/editor. Can you say stressed?  Thankfully, Carol Ann Ross (author of The Days of Hairawn Muhly) gave me a break and finished looking for the errors.  Now it's just a matter of revising.  I'm sure you can guess how I'll be spending the 4th of July.  

As I am self published, I don't have a marketing department behind me.  So I'm thinking about a virtual book tour...and I've been looking at a company called Enchanted Book Promotions.  If you promoted your novel using a blog tour, what was your experience?  Is it something you'd recommend?