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colorfulleo92's review
4.0
A fast paced, super entertaining novel with people with superhuman powers that promises no dull moments and delivers very much! Eager to continue on with the series
texaswolfman's review
5.0
Wow. Great start to a new series. Spy thriller meets the X-Men. Definitely looking forward to the sequel.
thoroughlymodernreviewer's review
4.0
MJ-12: Inception is an alternate history sci-fi thriller involving a group of people who have been given super powers by an anomaly created in the aftermath of the Hiroshima bombing at the end of World War 2. These "Variants" - as they are called throughout the book - are recruited by the American government into a program known as the Majestic 12. Their goal: be an extra force for the United States Intelligence and Military communities. Naturally, things just get more complicated from there as Cold War tensions and former Nazi scientists are woven into the story. It's really quite something.
This was quite a surprise. I've been familiar with the general lore of the Majestic 12 UFO conspiracy for a few years, and when I saw this book, I was immediately intrigued by the title. Obviously, just by reading the summary, it's clear that this book has very little to do with the Majestic 12 mentioned in UFO conspiracy circles. But that's one of this book's greatest strengths.
It draws heavily upon aspects of the conspiracy (including using some of the names in the original MJ-12 document) as well as weaving in other real-world political and military figures into this story of a bunch of humans turned into superhumans by an anomaly caused by the Atomic Bomb being dropped and being recruited by the American government as part of a top-secret intelligence and military program. The book goes so far as to include mockups of MJ-12 documents (relating to whatever has just happened in the novel) to lend even more credence to the idea that this is based off the supposed real life MJ-12. (The origins of the real life MJ-12 even get a clever nod in one scene in the first third of the book; it was really clever.)
I expected this book to be like the Transformers film, but in novel form. I expected a mindless summer blockbuster style thriller. But what I got was something better. If we're going to continue using the analogy of movies here, MJ-12: Inception is closer to a Marvel movie than a Transformers film. It's very much still an action-thriller, but there's a lot of time and care spent developing the characters and their involvement and chemistry with each other.
You'd think a story that's basically sold as "what if the X-Men were spies?" wouldn't bother to actually have depth, but you'd be wrong. There's a lot of depth. One of the characters, Cal, repeatedly questions the morality of what he's being asked to do. He spends great deals of time trying to rectify his potentially destructive powers and his Christian faith. Another character, Maggie, allows herself to get swept up and consumed by her powers, leading other characters to question whether or not this is a wise or safe move.
It's little touches like that that make this book stand out and become something better than the pulpy story it looked like it would be. I really can't emphasize just how surprised I was by this. I thoroughly enjoyed it. If you're a fan of spy novels, thrillers, superheroes, or alternate histories, you should definitely check this book out.
Be warned, it's the first of a series - and it ends on a cliffhanger. Not a terrible one, the main plot is wrapped up in the novel, but there are some teasers left that will make waiting for the sequel (coming out in September) difficult. Color me excited for more of these books! Kudos, Michael J. Martinez. You hit this one out of the park.
This was quite a surprise. I've been familiar with the general lore of the Majestic 12 UFO conspiracy for a few years, and when I saw this book, I was immediately intrigued by the title. Obviously, just by reading the summary, it's clear that this book has very little to do with the Majestic 12 mentioned in UFO conspiracy circles. But that's one of this book's greatest strengths.
It draws heavily upon aspects of the conspiracy (including using some of the names in the original MJ-12 document) as well as weaving in other real-world political and military figures into this story of a bunch of humans turned into superhumans by an anomaly caused by the Atomic Bomb being dropped and being recruited by the American government as part of a top-secret intelligence and military program. The book goes so far as to include mockups of MJ-12 documents (relating to whatever has just happened in the novel) to lend even more credence to the idea that this is based off the supposed real life MJ-12. (The origins of the real life MJ-12 even get a clever nod in one scene in the first third of the book; it was really clever.)
I expected this book to be like the Transformers film, but in novel form. I expected a mindless summer blockbuster style thriller. But what I got was something better. If we're going to continue using the analogy of movies here, MJ-12: Inception is closer to a Marvel movie than a Transformers film. It's very much still an action-thriller, but there's a lot of time and care spent developing the characters and their involvement and chemistry with each other.
You'd think a story that's basically sold as "what if the X-Men were spies?" wouldn't bother to actually have depth, but you'd be wrong. There's a lot of depth. One of the characters, Cal, repeatedly questions the morality of what he's being asked to do. He spends great deals of time trying to rectify his potentially destructive powers and his Christian faith. Another character, Maggie, allows herself to get swept up and consumed by her powers, leading other characters to question whether or not this is a wise or safe move.
It's little touches like that that make this book stand out and become something better than the pulpy story it looked like it would be. I really can't emphasize just how surprised I was by this. I thoroughly enjoyed it. If you're a fan of spy novels, thrillers, superheroes, or alternate histories, you should definitely check this book out.
Be warned, it's the first of a series - and it ends on a cliffhanger. Not a terrible one, the main plot is wrapped up in the novel, but there are some teasers left that will make waiting for the sequel (coming out in September) difficult. Color me excited for more of these books! Kudos, Michael J. Martinez. You hit this one out of the park.
infinitefreetime's review
5.0
I have gone on the record twice as being a big fan of the work of Michael J. Martinez. I have read all three of his previous books from his Daedalus trilogy, and I loved the latter two enough to rave about them on my blog. In the third one, he was kind enough to mention me in the afterword. I’ve never met the guy, but we interact occasionally on Twitter. He is my favorite current, working adventure writer. I have no idea if he’s noticed my books or not.
Well, one way or the other, I lucked into an advance copy of the first book of his new series. The book is called MJ-12: INCEPTION, and the series is just called Majestic-12.
The Daedalus books were about… well, quite a lot of things, actually. Dimension-hopping hard-sci-fi steampunk space galleons with aliens on Venus and ancient magic affecting the real world. They were, uh, a bit hard to categorize, but what was clear about the entire series was that Martinez had a huge amount of fun writing them, particularly in the last installment of the series.
MJ-12: INCEPTION is a very, very, very different series from the Daedalus books. So much so, in fact, that were it not for his love of genrebending (or, perhaps, hatred of the idea of genre) bleeding through, I’d not have been able to guess that the books were by the same person. That said, I can find out quickly if you are interested in reading the book by asking a very short question: How do you feel about Cold War superheroes?
Okay. You just told yourself whether you should read this book or not. And if I have any influence, you should. MJ-12: INCEPTION isn’t as madcap or as breathtakingly original as the previous series, but it’s a convincing period piece set at the very beginning of the Cold War, right after the end of World War II. Harry Truman is a character, as is large chunks of his Cabinet, and if Martinez played fast and loose with any historical events other than a couple of obvious ones they got past me. It’s not as fun as his previous series but I’m not sure that’s a criticism, as “Cold War thriller” isn’t necessarily a genre I need to be a lot of fun. It is, instead, a solid espionage story that links the emergence of superpowered people, known as Variants, to the Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombings (well, Hiroshima, specifically) and then imagines what might happen if the United States and the Russians both had access to an expanding pool of metahumans. Along the way we get a cool look at mid-1940s tradecraft and a bit of Bond-level gadgetry.
It’s not the Martinez I’m used to, but I’ve pre-ordered the hardcover despite getting the book for free. The rest of you can have it on September 6. I highly recommend it.
Well, one way or the other, I lucked into an advance copy of the first book of his new series. The book is called MJ-12: INCEPTION, and the series is just called Majestic-12.
The Daedalus books were about… well, quite a lot of things, actually. Dimension-hopping hard-sci-fi steampunk space galleons with aliens on Venus and ancient magic affecting the real world. They were, uh, a bit hard to categorize, but what was clear about the entire series was that Martinez had a huge amount of fun writing them, particularly in the last installment of the series.
MJ-12: INCEPTION is a very, very, very different series from the Daedalus books. So much so, in fact, that were it not for his love of genrebending (or, perhaps, hatred of the idea of genre) bleeding through, I’d not have been able to guess that the books were by the same person. That said, I can find out quickly if you are interested in reading the book by asking a very short question: How do you feel about Cold War superheroes?
Okay. You just told yourself whether you should read this book or not. And if I have any influence, you should. MJ-12: INCEPTION isn’t as madcap or as breathtakingly original as the previous series, but it’s a convincing period piece set at the very beginning of the Cold War, right after the end of World War II. Harry Truman is a character, as is large chunks of his Cabinet, and if Martinez played fast and loose with any historical events other than a couple of obvious ones they got past me. It’s not as fun as his previous series but I’m not sure that’s a criticism, as “Cold War thriller” isn’t necessarily a genre I need to be a lot of fun. It is, instead, a solid espionage story that links the emergence of superpowered people, known as Variants, to the Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombings (well, Hiroshima, specifically) and then imagines what might happen if the United States and the Russians both had access to an expanding pool of metahumans. Along the way we get a cool look at mid-1940s tradecraft and a bit of Bond-level gadgetry.
It’s not the Martinez I’m used to, but I’ve pre-ordered the hardcover despite getting the book for free. The rest of you can have it on September 6. I highly recommend it.
selfwinding's review against another edition
4.0
Excellent spycraft and it gave me a lot to think about in regards to writing alt history. Obviously this is extremely well researched, and with intermittent "reports," it feels authentic in the way alternate history should.
Maggie easily stands out as my favorite character, and I think she has some of the most interesting development, but Frank, Danny, and Cal are all great and I can't wait to see what happens in the next installment of this series.
Maggie easily stands out as my favorite character, and I think she has some of the most interesting development, but Frank, Danny, and Cal are all great and I can't wait to see what happens in the next installment of this series.
loryndalar's review
3.0
Enjoyed it, though it might be edging toward "goodies and baddies" Cold War boy's own... but then, it does hint at more (hence my tagging "Lovecraftian") though that may / may not come through... if it does in the sequels, I'll be much happier!
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