Thursday 25 April 2019

James Frey & Nils Johnson-Shelton: The Calling (2014)

    When the game starts, the players will have to find three keys. The keys are somewhere on earth. The only rule of their Endgame is that there are no rules (Goodreads).

     Having not read The Hunger Games, I was able to read this novel pretty much unbiased, but from what I know of Collins' series, Frey's story is definitely not the same. With that out of the way, this novel was very enjoyable. Each character is developed well, and the frequent swapping between them leads to near-perfect pacing. Having so many competitors be morally ambiguous is also a plus, as each has near equal rights to the title of protagonist. Obviously some are more villainous than others, but overall, a wide variety of characters, some meeting their end as a subversion of expectations, is utilized extremely well. That being said, there are perhaps too many main characters. Dealing with so many is obviously a daunting task, and the authors dealt with it relatively well, but problems still arise as so many names could possibly become jumbled in the reader's mind. The "normal outsider" character is definitely a good addition, however, and provides a refreshing break in the midst of supernatural circumstances. Overall, the premise is good, the lore is slightly underdeveloped, but character variety and diversity sets the Endgame series apart in its introductory novel. 8.4/10