Saturday, March 28, 2026

Review: Our Better Nature by James C Porter

 


Genre: Magical Realism

Description:

“What if Mother Nature got angry? What if she got angry at all the factories and power plants and other man-made sources of climate change? What if she made it clear just how angry she was?

What if she had help?

Mary Aimsir can control the weather. So can hundreds of women like her around the world. Maybe Mother Nature is just a myth. These women aren’t.”

Author:

A bit of a nomad, James C. Porter has lived in many places in three different countries, but is currently a resident of Colorado. He’s been writing fiction almost since he learned to write, but finally in his 60s has published his first novel for the world to see.

Appraisal:

Have you ever read a book that starts with the real world and adds an element into the mix (probably something fantasy, science fiction, or some other form of speculative fiction genre) that you wish was reality. I’m not sure it has happened to me before this book. The description gives you a good take on the premise. It feels like an adult version of those fairy tales we were read when we were kids where the good guys and their magical powers overcome the bad guys. I only wish it was true.

While I love the story and the overall flow, it does have some issues in that it wasn’t proofread as well as I’d have liked. It was borderline for the point at which I’d start knocking stars off for proofing issues. I didn’t, but it was a close call. If you’re sensitive to this kind of thing you’ll spot lots of minor issues that should have been caught and fixed in the proofreading process that snuck through like missing or extra words, a wrong word, and the like. Other than that, it was definitely a fun read that I only wish was real and not fiction.

Buy now from:            Amazon US        Amazon UK

Format/Typo Issues:

This book needs better proofreading which I discuss in the appraisal section above.

Rating: **** Four Stars

Reviewed by: BigAl

Approximate word count: 105-110,000 words

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