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mxsallybend's review against another edition
4.0
Ranker's Charge: Deliverance at Van Demon’s Deep is a book that came recommended to me as "Final Destination meets magic and mayhem in a mine rescue scenario" and that's a fair description.
S.P. Stevens weaves a tale of monsters and magic in a fight for subterranean survival that manages to pack some interesting surprises into what is a tightly-plotted novella. There is a hero we're rooting for, just one week away from retirement; a priest we're rooting against, both too pious and too corrupt; and a young boy we're uncertain about, a source of tension as well as a mystery.
Ancient mines are always a great setting for fantasy, but Stevens ups the claustrophobic tension a few notches with cursed one-men known as the Unbound scrambling around like ravenous ghouls, lizard-like monsters in the depths, and the ever-increasing threat of suffocation as the army prepares to poison the entire complex. Despite all that, this is not a grim, hopeless tale of two men at each other's throats, but an exciting tale of heroism and escape.
Clearly, there is a lot more to the world to discover, a lot of questions raised here for which there are no answers, but Ranker's Charge is a perfect first taste of the Bindcrafter Tales.
http://beauty-in-ruins.blogspot.com/2018/09/fantasy-review-rankers-charge-by-sp.html
S.P. Stevens weaves a tale of monsters and magic in a fight for subterranean survival that manages to pack some interesting surprises into what is a tightly-plotted novella. There is a hero we're rooting for, just one week away from retirement; a priest we're rooting against, both too pious and too corrupt; and a young boy we're uncertain about, a source of tension as well as a mystery.
Ancient mines are always a great setting for fantasy, but Stevens ups the claustrophobic tension a few notches with cursed one-men known as the Unbound scrambling around like ravenous ghouls, lizard-like monsters in the depths, and the ever-increasing threat of suffocation as the army prepares to poison the entire complex. Despite all that, this is not a grim, hopeless tale of two men at each other's throats, but an exciting tale of heroism and escape.
Clearly, there is a lot more to the world to discover, a lot of questions raised here for which there are no answers, but Ranker's Charge is a perfect first taste of the Bindcrafter Tales.
http://beauty-in-ruins.blogspot.com/2018/09/fantasy-review-rankers-charge-by-sp.html
micksland's review against another edition
3.0
3/5 stars
This is a self-published story about a group of soldiers trying to escape a mine. I enjoyed the plot overall. It reminded me of “Tomb Raider” in novel form. While the plot and characters were fairly standard, there is a reason that tropes exist. The “grizzled war veteran protagonist” is always fun to read about.
I felt that it could have used some more editing; there were numerous run-on sentences that bothered me. I don’t mind the use of run-ons in dialogue, but this style was not very enjoyable to me. However, it was a fun, quick read for people who like fast-paced adventures.
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2021-2022 Book Bingo: Self-published story
This is a self-published story about a group of soldiers trying to escape a mine. I enjoyed the plot overall. It reminded me of “Tomb Raider” in novel form. While the plot and characters were fairly standard, there is a reason that tropes exist. The “grizzled war veteran protagonist” is always fun to read about.
I felt that it could have used some more editing; there were numerous run-on sentences that bothered me. I don’t mind the use of run-ons in dialogue, but this style was not very enjoyable to me. However, it was a fun, quick read for people who like fast-paced adventures.
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2021-2022 Book Bingo: Self-published story
mharrison13's review against another edition
4.0
I received a copy of this novella from the author in exchange for an honest review. The book was released August 1, 2018.
What is it about?
Seargent Kiprik is one week away from retiring from the army when he is sent on a mine rescue mission. Inside the mine, however, are many dangerous creatures and getting out will not be so easy.
Was it good?
According to the author, this is just a tasting of the bind crafter universe. I get the feeling that the actual stories will not follow Sergeant Kiprik, but I really enjoyed this story and I am very curious to learn more about this world and these creatures.
What is it about?
Seargent Kiprik is one week away from retiring from the army when he is sent on a mine rescue mission. Inside the mine, however, are many dangerous creatures and getting out will not be so easy.
Was it good?
According to the author, this is just a tasting of the bind crafter universe. I get the feeling that the actual stories will not follow Sergeant Kiprik, but I really enjoyed this story and I am very curious to learn more about this world and these creatures.
writeramyshannon's review against another edition
4.0
Riveting story
Ranker's Charge was an interesting story that kept the reader guessing, and brought right into the action. This book was raw and I enjoyed it very much. Kiprik was a character that had many sides, but it was his experience, and survival instincts that kept the story together. The story was well-written, and followed a great plot line. I look forward to more stories from this new author.
Ranker's Charge was an interesting story that kept the reader guessing, and brought right into the action. This book was raw and I enjoyed it very much. Kiprik was a character that had many sides, but it was his experience, and survival instincts that kept the story together. The story was well-written, and followed a great plot line. I look forward to more stories from this new author.
dissidentreviews's review against another edition
3.0
Nice plot: race against time, monsters, miasmas and backstabbing. Worldbuilding has some holes in it.
Full review on my blog: https://nouw.com/cwidmann/s-p-stevens-deliverance-at-van-demons-de-35994750
Full review on my blog: https://nouw.com/cwidmann/s-p-stevens-deliverance-at-van-demons-de-35994750
storytimewithlily's review
3.0
This was a pretty easy short read. Disclaimer: I don't think I am the target audience for this book.
It was a strange mix of fantasy, adventure survival, magic and zombies?
The Unbound weren't really zombies, but they reminded me of them which is probably one of the reasons I haven't given this more stars. I'm not really a fan of zombies they kinda terrify me.
The main characters were interesting and fleshed out with different personalities and their interactions and the actions they took were very in keeping with their characters.
Other downsides besides the game were that it took me a while to figure out what was going on at the beginning and then I finished the book with a lot of questions as well. What actually are Unbounds? What is the Miasma? What did those spore things do to Kiprik? And what happened a time the end?
Overall, I think lots of people would enjoy this book more than I did as I don't really think I was the target audience. If I was maybe a boy and a bit younger than I am now I might have liked it more (there were two female characters in this book and they had a combined screentime of probably three pages it was very much a male action adventure story).
It was a strange mix of fantasy, adventure survival, magic and zombies?
The Unbound weren't really zombies, but they reminded me of them which is probably one of the reasons I haven't given this more stars. I'm not really a fan of zombies they kinda terrify me.
The main characters were interesting and fleshed out with different personalities and their interactions and the actions they took were very in keeping with their characters.
Other downsides besides the game were that it took me a while to figure out what was going on at the beginning and then I finished the book with a lot of questions as well. What actually are Unbounds? What is the Miasma? What did those spore things do to Kiprik? And what happened a time the end?
Overall, I think lots of people would enjoy this book more than I did as I don't really think I was the target audience. If I was maybe a boy and a bit younger than I am now I might have liked it more (there were two female characters in this book and they had a combined screentime of probably three pages it was very much a male action adventure story).
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