The Last Hero Trilogy - Books 1 & 2

The Last Hero Trilogy (Books 1 & 2) by Nathaniel Danes
Publisher - Solstice Shadows
Publish Date - 10/14/14
Genre - Science Fiction
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Goodreads

My Rating:

I really don't read a whole lot of science fiction but when I was contacted by the author about reviewing this trilogy, I decided to give it a shot. The main reason I wanted to read these was because of the first thing you read when you go his website - "Mostly blind, he writes to create universes where he has no limitations.".

I knew that someone who is not able to experience the beauty of the world around him each day would create amazing universes inside his imagination. I was right. Danes manages to create a massive world within his trilogy that is full of life, excitement and deep characters.

The Last Hero starts out on Earth, much farther into the future than today and revolves around Trent Maxwell. Trent was a war hero in the last war Earth experience before a group of pacifists made contact and convinced humans to leave violence behind forever. Then an alien species attacks Earth and forces mankind back into its militaristic ways. Trent finds himself forced to leave behind his wife and young daughter to lead the mission against this new enemy. Because of the laws of space and time, Trent will not return home for over a decade, missing his daughter's entire childhood. He finds himself traveling back and forth through space on multiple missions that span an entire century, Earth time. Trent must deal with the loss of his family and what he gave up while fighting for the future of mankind.

Book 2 of the trilogy is The Last Revenge. Now that Trent has lost just about everything that was important to him in life, the only thing keeping him going is revenge for the people of Earth. Trent continues the war against the Kitright but faces challenges as other underhanded plans reveal themselves to him. The largest armies that the universe has ever seen converge on the battle field but it's difficult to determine if a victor will be decided.

The Last Hero books are full of military space action and take you on a ton of twists and turns as the plot unravels. What I really loved about these books, and what I think sets them apart from other Science Fiction novels is the emotion. Danes manages to create thoughtful, complex, emotional characters that truly pull at your heartstrings. While the battles are exciting, the struggles, sacrifices and victories that the characters go through truly keep you on the edge of your seat and leave you wanting more.

If I had one criticism, it would be that some of the battles were a bit too drawn out for my taste. I found myself skipping over some of the sentences to get through the "military" action pieces. I wish that some of the description that went into the battles would have been utilized to better describe the worlds and enemies the characters encountered.

Overall, these were fun, exciting books. Even if you aren't a science fiction fan but are looking for something different to read, you should give these a try. This weekend is the perfect time to pick these up - starting Friday, The Last Hero will only be $0.99 on Amazon! Go get them so you are ready for the third book when it comes out. I know I'll be waiting!

Pair This With: Alamos Malbec

This is a great, everyday wine to keep stocked on your shelf. It's from Argentina and I love Malbecs from this region. The Alamos Malbec has a rich, deep color with hints of stone fruit flavors. You get a lot of black raspberry and currant in the front with a long, sweet finish.