Plugin’ Away…Kathy’s Outriders

As you can well imagine, me being a writer and all, I have a lot of friends who generate a lot of text that I read. Some of these people are people I’m mentoring, so I have to read their stuff whether it’s good or bad. Some are colleagues with whom I share “reader” duties (i.e. we critique each others stuff while it’s still a work-in-progress). The last group are those writers I know whom I have the pleasure of reading simply because I want to go on a wondrous journey of the imagination. I’m thankful that one of the authors who has entertained me in this way is Kathryn Mackel, and I’m even happier that I can recommend her recent work, Outriders : Book One in the Birthright Project.

Outriders is the first book in an ongoing series (of how many planned books, I don’t know…guess I should ask). It’s sort of a biblical SF/F epic. That’s not to say that it’s a heavy slog through theology, but there are many parallels and allusions that even those casually familiar with the Bible will find familiar. But to those of you who don’t embrace one of the top mainstream faiths (such as me), this story is still an entertaining story of avarice, hubris, youth, experience, heroism, sacrifice, and yes…battles.

Without giving away any of the fun parts, let’s just say that this is the tale of how one generation of surviving heroes has changed in comparison to those just joining the fray. Though they are young, the realities of conflict temper them, forcing them to mature faster than if they’d stay with those they seek to protect. As with soldiers throughout history, the comfort of the self becomes secondary to the success of the mission.

Do I recommend it? Well, I’ve read it several times already, so I guess you could make that assumption. I suggest you click on the link and get yourself a copy. Me? I’m waiting for the next installment, Trackers : Book Two in The Birthright Project.