Book Review: The Silver Sphere by Michael Dadich

The Silver Sphere

Shelby Pardow never imagined killing someone. That's about to change.

While hiding from her troubled father in the local library, Shelby stares at a flashing instant message on her computer: YOU ARE NEEDED. She discovers a portal that opens and teleports her to the planet Azimuth, where soldiers await. Here, she is not a child but a warrior, Kin to one of the six Aulic Assembly members imprisoned by Malefic Cacoethes, the daunting leader of the Nightlanders.

Malefic, the evil spawn of the demon Biskara, razes towns and cities in his quest to rule Azimuth, and yearns to turn his forces against Earth. Yet every time Biskara gets close to achieving his malevolent goals, the Assembly uses the Silver Sphere, a sophisticated armillary device, to thwart him.

With the Assembly deposed, Biskara directing Malefic's conquests, and the Silver Sphere out of reach, Shelby is thrust into an unforgettable quest with her fellow Kin. She must learn to kill and lead an army into battle, or Azimuth—and Earth—will fall.

My Review:

While not my favorite book of the year, this was a really interesting book. The Silver Sphere starts of with the introduction of Shelby, so one thinks that she is the main character and that the story will be written from her point of view. However, the story quickly goes from one character to about six. The Aulic Assembly each have a kin, a teenager from earth that acts as a mind link to the members. The shift in the various points of view got a little confusing and was a tad bit hard to keep up with who was who, where and what was happening to them. There was even another character, Nick, that kind of threw me off but his importance is later proved toward the end of the story, but it was a bit of a distraction. Once the stories converged, it was a lot easier to focus and enjoy.

It was a true good vs evil story. The kids go to another world to do battle against the son of an evil being, otherwise known as Satan on earth, and his army of various beasts and creatures.

The world building was nice, it was different. The reader visits earth, Azimuth and a mystic plane where the truthseekers reside.

The story was fast paced; something was happening in every chapter that moved the characters along.

I liked most of the characters. Funny thing, the only character I did not really connect with was the main character, Shelby. It was really hard connecting with her given all that I knew about her, abusive dad, no mom, etc.  My favorite characters however were, Throg, Zach and Stuart. They were real and tangible. Funny and brave. :D I wish Riley, Emily and Max were more defined.

The relationships for the most part between the characters were a bit awkward. Don't get me wrong, this was my kind of story, CLEAN, no romance but immediately you see a relationship between Max and Shelby forming. But given the fact that they were total strangers, thrown into gruesome battle with terrifying creatures and Satan of all things, how do you have time to start a relationship? But honestly, I will take that over them having at it in the dark forest! 

The ending was a bit rushed. I was not too happy with that. The author threw in some interesting twists that set the stage for a second book but at the same time left too many questions as to how the kids got back home, what happened to Malefic, the result of the war on planet Azimuth. Also, we only know what happens when Shelby returns to earth but not the other kin.

Overall, I would give this story *** and half stars. It was interesting, entertaining and a quick read.