Shay Fabbro

I only made it a third of the way through this book, then I had to give up. It was simply too frustrating to keep reading.

There is a race of underwater beings who live according to prophecies, and who have discovered portal travel to other worlds. They have learned the universe (more importantly, their world) is under threat from some evil race, and they must gather the Chosen to combat them. They send four teenagers (of unusual abilities) to different worlds to guide and protect the Chosen in those worlds.

Flash-forward like 20 years, and each of these Protectors has found their 5 chosen students, and they must keep them from harm until they receive the signs that mean it’s time (to save the world?).

The main character (perhaps) Protector is sent to an Earth-like world with magic, the girl is sent to a world of telepathic tall black-eyed aliens (imagine your typical alien image), one boy is sent to Earth of a very different wild west (maybe), and another is sent to a world of reptilian aliens (of course.). None of these are particularly interesting, but that wasn’t really the problem.

Problem #1, the main reason I couldn’t continue, is that there was simply too much going on. We see a little bit of this guy’s story, then we have to cycle through the boring stories of the other 3 before we get back to what’s happening here, only to do it all again (frustrating).
Honestly, I would MUCH prefer if the author separated it into 4 sections, or 4 books, (or 2 books, whatever), and spent actual time introducing the worlds and characters. I had trouble remembering who was who and what was what and this was frustrating.
The author tries to take you into the heads of way too many characters, resulting in me not caring about any of them.

Problem #2, it could use editing. Lots of editing. For example, in the first chapter, we get a few phrases that describe the underwater world. Then, in each chapter following (because it’s years later), the characters are reflecting on their home planet and thinking about... those same phrases.... I didn’t feel for them at all either, it was too soon for me to care they were homesick. (Even though I’m homesick this very moment, I felt no empathy.)

Other random things made the story frustrating. For example, in the world of the first guy, one of his charges professes his love to another charge (kind of), she rejects him, and as a result he runs away from home. (Not that this is unbelievable, but the way it was carried out gave me no respect for the character.) The girl is then overcome by guilt, and this is mentioned several times. Flash forward a little bit into their search for the missing boy, and the other girl thinks to herself that this first girl doesn’t seem to care that she caused the guy to run away. 1, it wasn’t her fault. 2, she was obviously feeling guilty 3, it’s been like 3 weeks (maybe. it’s hard to tell time.). This is honestly the point I realized I had to stop because the book was going to drive me crazy.

There are some good ideas in the story, but as is, it fails to work for me.

It might be a bit of fun for younger readers, being a fantasy novel with lots of kid characters, magic, and aliens.

(I read this as an eBook on a Kindle.)… (más)

The Chosen: Book One of the Portals of Destiny by Shay West attempts to blend elements of fantasy with science fiction. The combination begs for more explanation. Being the first in a series the book was filled with a lot of background information that did not really enhance the story telling. The characterizations were good. The author stayed away from stereotypes. Unfortunately, the book ended just as there seemed to be some action beginning. I'm not a fan of this type of cliff-hanger endings.

Even with it's flaws I would consider reading more in this series.… (más)

The Chosen: Book One of the Portals of Destiny is the first book in a science fiction series with fantasy elements. A group of adepts called the Masters from an aquatic world called Gentra become aware an impending threat to all life in the galaxy. The Mekans, a robotic alien "species", is moving through the galaxy decimating worlds in their wake. Through a prophecy they learn that there are a few special beings, called the Chosen. who may be able to defeat these metal destroyers. The Chosen come from different home worlds which can be reached by mysterious portals. The Masters train Guardians to protect and guide the Chosen and send them to their worlds to await for the signs the prophecy foretold.

There are many interesting elements to this novel. The different worlds are described very well with much detail. The use of magic and psychic powers was engagingly described. The combination of science and magic was a bit confusing. however. Some explanation of how the "magic" works within the laws of this universe would have been helpful. There are many characters in this book, all well developed and interesting. But there were so many characters that it was difficult to become particularly invested in their fate, especially since many of them didn't seem to be terribly admirable. A dramatis personae would have been helpful. This is a promising start to an epic science fiction/fantasy adventure. There is a little violence, but no other content unsuitable for younger readers.… (más)