Title & Author: Containment, Eden Royce
Genre & Publication Date: Fantasy, August 17, 2013
Book Description: ” Life is different among the dead.
They are kept in chambers, their energy used to feed the City’s voracious appetite for fuel now that traditional sources are long gone. These grisly fuel cells are kept watch over by Feast, a devil-human hybrid whose recent run-ins with the City leave him questioning its authority.
When he is needed to bring in one of the most dangerous creatures for containment, Feast is faced with a decision that may make him the next power source.”
First Line: Life is different among the dead.
My Take: There’s a lot to love in this one. The main character, Feast, is a bit of a loner with a wry sense of humor and a hint of good natured cynicism. A great voice. Reading him was like listening to an old pal you didn’t know you had. The containment center he works in was disturbing and creepy, especially when he made his rounds on the floor. Definitely a unique setting!
Things got a hair muddled in the middle. I think this was because the story tried to include too much in the short space it used. There was his mysterious past, the fascinating curiosity of what species he is and what that means, the way the world treats someone like him, the dictatorial nature of the government, the war that ended not long before, a hint of potential romance, and then of course the scary creature he’s asked to help contain. Phew! The different threads spun me around faster than a house in tornado alley.
All of these potential story lines were incredibly interesting, so it definitely held my interest the whole way through. The trouble was that I felt a tad disappointed that it didn’t delve into any of them very much. For example, I wish more page time had been dedicated to what he does at work so I could get more of a feel for it. It’s a good sign when the reader is dying to know more about the story, but it’s important to include enough that they feel fulfilled at the finish. It’s clear to me that this is the first in a series, so I’m hopeful for resolutions to those teasers in the coming installments.
The Magical: The containment setting was awesome. Feast pulls the graveyard shift all by himself with the oogy-boogies in their containers. The quiet and the dim lighting really set the stage well.
The Mundane: Most of the time I find books cram too much back story into the book. Here, it felt like not enough. I wanted to know more about Feast, his work, his life, and his past. I’m left feeling like I only scratched the surface and didn’t really get to know him. That was a bummer because I like the guy.
Summary of Thoughts: Currently this one is just $1.50 on the Kindle. At just 68 pages, it hints at many awesome things. There was enough content for a full novel and I think that length would make this one hell of a read. I still enjoyed myself, though I feel kinda teased. A little of that goes a long way (at least as far as reading). I wish this one dangled fewer story threads and gave a sense of satisfaction to a couple of them. All that being said, I’m interested in the next book in this series and looking forward to learning more about my pal Feast.
Many thanks to author Eden Royce for providing a copy of the book to review!
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Author of speculative fiction 