Book Review Blitz – The Contaminants

Hey Everyone!
Angie here with a book review for a book called The Contaminants. I really enjoyed this one. I gave it 5 stars for sure. It was quick and just good. Check it out below and read my full review at the bottom. Happy Monday!

About the Book

Title: The Contaminants (New Dakota Series, Volume 1) | Author: Devin K. Smyth | Publication Date: June 9, 2015 | Publisher: Firedrake Books, LLC (2nd Edition) | Pages: 230 | Recommended Ages: 12+

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Summary: When the American government’s attempt to “purify” Earth causes a worldwide nuclear holocaust, teen friends Jessil and Soraj are among the few to escape the planet. Orbiting in a cruiser designed to help regenerate Earth’s ecosystem, they assist Soraj’s father, who leads the process to salvage a location for the cruiser’s safe return. But when a mysterious distress signalarrives from Earth, Jessil is desperate to discover who sent it. She and Soraj join the reconnaissanceteam that descends to the planet, a world very different from the one they knew. In such a strange land, can their search-and-rescue effort succeed? And if it does, will it mean failure for Earth’s recovery?

More Buzz About the Book

“The Contaminants, a work of dystopian fantasy for teens from Devin K. Smyth (the pen name of Kevin Speth), serves as the first volume of his New Dakota series. Composed of two believable first-person narratives and based around two father-child relationships, this is a novel that prizes emotions as much as it does technology.” ~ Rebecca, Foreward Reviews

“The Contaminants by Devin K. Smyth is a story of survival, friendship, loyalty, and hope set in the aftermath of planetary devastation. I loved this book... I didn’t want to put the book down. I wanted to keep reading to see what happened next. This is a great start to what I hope will be a continuing series.” ~ Ubiquitous Bubba, Amazon

“This story had me sucked in fromthe very beginning, and I had trouble putting it down. The science was thorough and awesome. The characters were portrayed at different ages and through different stages of their journey with skill and a perfect arc. ” ~ Amie M., Amazon

“An exciting trek to a post-nuclear Earth! Tightly composed and never off tangent in its delivery, “The Contaminants” by Devin K. Smyth packs many punches” ~ Future Boy, Amazon

About the Author: Devin K. Smyth

Devin K. Smyth is the pen name of Kevin Speth, a part-time novelist and full-time marketing copywriter in the field of children’s entertainment. He resides in southern Wisconsin with his girlfriend and their herd of cats. The Contaminants is Devin K. Smyth’s first novel and is the first in the “New Dakota” series.

Firedrake Books | Goodreads

Book Review

5 out of 5 Stars

Devin K. Smyth did an awesome job of getting you right into the action in this book. Though the book started out in a dream, the dream was more of a flashback, so it had actually happened.

I really liked the stark contrast of the 2 main characters. One character was so analytical and the other is all impulse. This book is written in 1^st person from the perspective of each of these characters—one male and one female. This kind of writing always takes me a while to get used to when I start reading a book, but once I get used to it, it helps the book move more quickly. I also like that the two main characters were mostly together at chapter changes, and so the story just picked up where it left off just from a different perspective rather than having two separate stories that you have to jump between. It really kept the action moving and gave the book a lot of forward momentum.

The book could have used another proofreading, just comma issues and a few misspellings, but the actual wording and such is all wonderful. The sentences and paragraphs flow very well. The storyline was great. I really enjoyed reading about the new earth and the creatures that lived there. I thought the evolved humans were a nice touch as well.

I thought the characters had great motivations and acted properly within the realm of acceptability for their character with very few exceptions. The characters were real and were surrounded by believable people so that I didn’t even question while I was reading, whether their story was true.

All in all, I really enjoyed this book. It was very clean, highly acceptable for teens as well as adults, and it was a quick read. It definitely deserves 5 stars.