≫ [PDF] The Adventures of Kid Combat Volume I Curse of the Red Beryl Christopher A Helwink 9781587368158 Books

The Adventures of Kid Combat Volume I Curse of the Red Beryl Christopher A Helwink 9781587368158 Books

Download As PDF : The Adventures of Kid Combat Volume I Curse of the Red Beryl Christopher A Helwink 9781587368158 Books

The Adventures of Kid Combat Volume I Curse of the Red Beryl Christopher A Helwink 9781587368158 Books

Even considering that this was written for children, this book is seriously flawed.

S.O.C.K. is the "Secret Organization of Clever Kids," a group of children dedicated to opposing Mr. Jones and his relentless pursuit of . . . capitalism? Despite multiple scenes featuring Jones, we never get a clear idea of what, exactly, he is doing that is so bad. Apparently he's made many of the adults in the town interested in material success, which really makes me wonder what the town was like before he arrived. Jones never becomes more than a hollow symbol of what the children oppose.

The kids aren't opposed to lavishness when it comes to themselves. Their HQ is a underground extravaganza of hydraulics, wood, and glass (Who built it? Who funded it?). Their actual activities and goals remain completely and frustratingly vague. Most of the plot involves their attempts to recover a membership list from Jones (why would they need to recover it if Jones could just read it?) and rescue a captured member. I can't imagine many children truly being engaged by this plot.

Note to author: when the rest of the kids get cool action-based nicknames, calling the only female member "the girl" and the only disabled member "Roller" is appalling.


Tags : The Adventures of Kid Combat, Volume I: Curse of the Red Beryl [Christopher A. Helwink] on Amazon.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. <div><div>When teenager Kyle Christensen moves to town, he joins a secret group of Defenders that encounter Artie Jones -- a billionaire tech mogul that is obsessed with The Book of Darkness</i>,Christopher A. Helwink,The Adventures of Kid Combat, Volume I: Curse of the Red Beryl,Wheatmark,1587368153,Westerns,Children's Books 9-12 Years,Action & Adventure - General,Adventure stories (Children's Teenage),Adventure stories (Children'sYA),Children's BooksAll Ages,Children: Grades 4-6,JUVENILE,JUVENILE FICTION Westerns,Juvenile Fiction,Juvenile Fiction Action & Adventure General,Juvenile Grades 4-6 Ages 9-11,United States

The Adventures of Kid Combat Volume I Curse of the Red Beryl Christopher A Helwink 9781587368158 Books Reviews

Having just reviewed something that pushes the boundaries of Young Adult to the adult end of the genre I thought it time to try some thing a bit more tween friendly.

The kid combat series has been pushing its way up the barnes and Noble top 200 list for young readers and with such a mysterious looking cover I couldn't hold off reading it any longer.

What Helwink has created here in his debut for the Kid Combat series is an exciting groundwork for a fantastic concept. The opening gambit jumps in, James Bond style, with Kid Combat neck deep in enemy territory, mission accomplished all that remains is escape. Escape from a highly fortified, highly guarded enemy strong hold. How does he do it? Well you will have to just read the book to find out. But it does involve some pretty slick writing and a great imagination on Helwink's part.

Often when writers set up stories that they know will be an ongoing series they needlessly bog the reader down with endless details setting the scene, filling in all the gaps and over fleshing the setting in the first book. Helwink doesn't fall into this trap and charges headlong into the adventure adding just enough detail as he goes to keep the story fluid. Some major elements only falling into place in the final chapters. The mysterious secret base known only as 'the playground' being one such example. He also leaves plenty of questions unanswered, compelling reason enough to go find the other books in the series. "The Heist of Spring Road Toys" and "Jones Strikes Back".

Of course the ultimate hero is only convincing if he faces a truly powerful arch nemesis. So who is Kid Combat's Moriarty? His evil other half that plots to destroy the town that Kid lives in? The nasty Phillip Arthur Jones and his mewling minion number two fill the roles. Jones is a very believable villain, especially post recession.

Kid Combat isn't alone in his quest to rid Elmcrest of this malevolent menace. He is accompanied by the familiar band of sidekicks. There is the braining computer whiz, hacking military satellites and local power grids. The strong-willed and clever girl, the comedic twins and a raft of slick gadgets all helping Combat in his missions.

The most amazing thing about this series is the price. They are all free. Yes thats right you can download all three books in the series for absolutely no money down. Amazing. Suitable for eight years and up, but be warned exciting scenes may cause hearts to race and nails to be bitten.

Look out for the other Kid Combat books reviewed on here soon.

Age 8+ (Advanced Readers)
The odd vagueness and meandering story line reminded me of the work of middle-school students, who are struggling to piece together the basic elements of writing a story, before developing any real understanding of the qualities that make a work interesting, enjoyable, or effective.

The characters are cardboard, and the plot is incoherent. Sure, we understand the concept -- an incredibly competent hero, who can't fail, defending his community; but there's no suspense, no empathy, no believability, and nothing about the characters or plot that draw readers in.

Stock characters and situations appear at the author's whim, but we're left wondering what the real point of the story is.

This is a terrible book, and I cannot believe that the 5-star reviews on are legitimate.

If there are schools using this book as part of their curriculum, the teachers involved should probably be re-evaluated.

I
Even considering that this was written for children, this book is seriously flawed.

S.O.C.K. is the "Secret Organization of Clever Kids," a group of children dedicated to opposing Mr. Jones and his relentless pursuit of . . . capitalism? Despite multiple scenes featuring Jones, we never get a clear idea of what, exactly, he is doing that is so bad. Apparently he's made many of the adults in the town interested in material success, which really makes me wonder what the town was like before he arrived. Jones never becomes more than a hollow symbol of what the children oppose.

The kids aren't opposed to lavishness when it comes to themselves. Their HQ is a underground extravaganza of hydraulics, wood, and glass (Who built it? Who funded it?). Their actual activities and goals remain completely and frustratingly vague. Most of the plot involves their attempts to recover a membership list from Jones (why would they need to recover it if Jones could just read it?) and rescue a captured member. I can't imagine many children truly being engaged by this plot.

Note to author when the rest of the kids get cool action-based nicknames, calling the only female member "the girl" and the only disabled member "Roller" is appalling.