Genre: Fantasy/Adventure/Satire
Description:
“Working as a janitor at an insane asylum in rural Idaho has Jim in
the dumps. One night, his attempted suicide is rudely interrupted by one of the
residents, and he's recruited to play a game called Cryptofauna. The bizarre
contest of worldwide mischief and meddling might actually help the blue
custodian discover a reason to life, if he can survive the deadly trials that
await...”
Author:
“Patrick Canning was born in Wisconsin, grew up in Illinois, and now
lives in California with his dog, Hank.
He is primarily focused on turning coffee into words, words into
money, money back into coffee.”
To learn more about Mr. Canning visit his website.
Appraisal:
Wow, what a bizarre trip Jim is sent on. In essence he ends up being a
pawn in a century’s old game called Cryptofauna.
It was designed to entertain the gods. They take wagers on the players and it
is broadcast over the jinn radio station. Oz is Jim’s operator/mentor. There
are three levels of trails/challenges the players must survive to become
certified. The instructions Jim is given is to try not to die. Oz’s opponent is
Nero and he has chosen Boyd, whose single mind set is destruction and death. He
makes his own rules.
The outrageous adventure takes Jim, and the people he has chosen to be
on his team, all around the globe. His team members are diverse but work well
together, covering for each other’s weaknesses. Their trials are packed with
action and nail-biting tension. Jim is a pacifist and tries to avoid conflict
and confrontation, which never works out well for him. Boyd cheats by
interfering with Jim’s trials trying to eliminate him during the challenges. Boyd
is a loose cannon, and wishes to take over the world. He really is a nasty
piece of work and Nero underestimates him.
The author, Mr. Canning, does an excellent job by not losing track of
the many threads he has incorporated into weaving Cryptofauna together. If you enjoy eccentric fantasy adventure
stories with unique twists, this book may be what you are looking for.
FYI:
Bigotry, black humor, and adult language. I would not recommend Cryptofauna to young adults.
Format/Typo
Issues:
No significant issues.
Rating:
**** Four Stars
Reviewed
by: ?wazithinkin
Approximate
word count: 80-85,000 words
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