Title: 7th Son: Book One – Descent
Author: J.C. Hutchins
Genre: Apocalyptic Science Fiction Thriller
Released: 24 February 2006 – 23 July 2006
Located: Podibooks, iTunes, Author’s Site
Formats Available: Podcast, dead tree version through St. Martin’s Press, multiple ebook versions
When I decided to write reviews of podcast fiction, I created a spreadsheet and began listing all the stories I had listened too. I placed them in the order I planned on reviewing them and put a tentative date next to each. Several times the remaining titles on the list have been moved down due to the fact that I’ve finished listening to a newly completed podcast and want to review it immediately.
When I’m reviewing legacy podcasts, it usually isn’t that I’ve finally gotten around to listening to them, but that I have gone back to that original spreadsheet and picked the next title off the list.
And hence we come to 7th Son. While I did not listen to 7th Son: Book One – Descent as it dropped, I had caught up by the time the second and the third books dropped.
So, on to the review.
Synopsis: Three weeks ago, the U.S. president was murdered by a four-year-old boy.
Today, seven men stare at each other in a locked conference room. Kidnapped and brought to this underground facility, the strangers are sitting in silence, thunderstruck. Despite minor physical differences, they all appear to be the same man, with the same name … and the same childhood memories.
Unwitting participants in a secret human cloning experiment, these seven “John Michael Smiths” have been gathered by their creators for one reason — to capture the mastermind behind the president’s assassination.
Their target? The man they were cloned from; the original John Michael Smith, code-named John Alpha.
Soon our heroes — John, Jack, Michael, Kilroy2.0 and the others — realize the president’s murder was merely a prologue to Alpha’s plans. As the mystery deepens and the implications of Alpha’s scheme are slowly revealed, the clones decide to stand against John Alpha. The outcome will unearth a conspiracy larger than they could have ever imagined. (stolen from Podiobooks site)
I am also going to include the Author’s Note that Mr. Hutchins now provides at Podiobooks: This is “The Beta Version” of this podiobook. 7th Son: Descent is now available as a print novel from St. Martin’s Press. During the editorial process, significant changes and improvements were made to Descent’s print manuscript. Character names were changed, and events at the end of the print novel were modified in ways that will impact the rest of the print trilogy. The print novel represents an official reboot of the 7th Son series.
Due to these changes, this “Beta Version” of Book One: Descent is no longer the “official” version of the podiobook. Please visit the 7th Son: Descent (The Print Edition) page to subscribe to the definitive version of the story.
Production: As you can see by the release date, Mr. Hutchins is no “johnny come lately” to the podcasting scene. He has been working at his trade from early on in the game. That being said, his production on 7th Son is very strong. All of the audio levels are quite professional sounding and I never had a complaint about audio at all. My biggest area of dissatisfaction with Mr. Hutchins production was with the inclusion of “The Story So Far” being used in every episode of all three books. In fact, whether it is true or not, I have heard it said that Mr. Hutchins “invented” TSSF as many of us know it today. If you are unaware of my feelings of this device, I’ll simply state I don’t like it, at all.
Cast: Mr. Hutchins does all of the voice work for 7th Son, but I am almost loathe to call it a straight read. Mr. Hutchins attacks his narration with great energy. Each character comes alive with a personality of their own due to Mr. Hutchins handling. No, definitely not a straight read.
Story: As far as stories go, this is one of the more original I’ve stumbled upon. From the opening scene it is unique. I have read a few critiques complaining about lack of realism in some of these scenes. If ultra realism is your hangup, I suggest you stay away from science fiction, because at some point most stories are going to ask you to hang up what you “know” and go along for the ride. 7th Son asks you to do this early and often.
Verdict: I would love to give 7th Son a “Must Listen” verdict simply because I know how many people have loved it. In fact, I believe it is based on that love and fan faithfulness, at least in part, that helped Mr. Hutchins secure a contract for 7th Son from a big New York Publisher. Sadly, I can’t give that recommendation. Simply stated, I didn’t enjoy 7th Son. Why? (Feeling like I should be ducking virtual thrown rotten tomatoes at this point. LOL) Stay with me. I DID listen to all three books in their original format. I did not listen to most of the additional content. I haven’t listened to anything else by Mr. Hutchins.
At the time I was listening to 7th Son, there weren’t NEARLY as many works of fiction being podcast as there are now. Partly due to that fact, and partly due to the fact that I always hope that “things will get better” and can’t stand not knowing how something ends, I usually stick with things I start.
My main reason for my antipathy for 7th Son lies in the fact that in almost all my choices of entertainment, I am VERY character driven. If you can make me love your characters, I’ll forgive almost anything. If you can’t, it really doesn’t matter how tightly the story is crafted or how the action leads you from one scene to the next, I’m going to walk away with a feeling of promise unfulfilled. This was true for me with 7th Son. There were many characters, both clones and non-clones, and I really couldn’t make myself care for a single one of them.
In a minor secondary matter, I didn’t care for Mr. Hutchins reading style. On this issue, it is just a matter of personal preference and I almost didn’t include it, but to be fair, I talk about the readings that I love, and feel I should mention that the narration in this book tends to be “over the top”.
I know I am greatly in the minority. 7th Son has become a podcast phenomena, and I am glad for Mr. Hutchins. I am truly happy when ANY podcast author is awarded a publishing contract. These authors give alot to us for free. This is true of Mr. Hutchins as well. While researching this review, I discovered what many all ready know: not only are the original versions of these stories available, but the edited and published versions are as well. In both podcast and pdf form. For free. Stellar. Simply Stellar.
So.. back to that verdict. While I might not have enjoyed the story, many many people have. If you like a tight, action driven science fiction thriller that moves along at a brisk pace, and characterization isn’t an issue for you, 7th Son is definitely something you should check out. If, however, you’re a reader/listener that wants to get to know the characters, feel for them, live through their eyes, feel free to go ahead and give 7th Son a shot, but don’t feel bad if you decide to hit the stop button.
Disclaimer: I do not follow Mr. Hutchins () on Twitter. To the best of my knowledge, he has never followed me. I was not offered anything to write this review (or not to, as the case may be).
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