I received an Advanced Copy of The Calling and therefore can only base my review on the story and not the puzzle.

When I first started reading this there were similarities to other books I have read that I won’t mention. 12 original lines, 12 players and 1 winner, there are no rules, and only one of these Players will survive which means the other 11 will die.

These players are all within a certain age, they are trained since birth.

12 meteors crash down on Earth, right where the said Players are which is their Calling, they all travel to the same destination where they will start the Endgame.

In this book all of the players are searching for the first key and they will be lead to it with a clue, each player has a different clue which is embedded in their head via kepler 22 an alien or god, whatever it was, it wasn’t human. They each have to decipher their clue to lead them to the key.

I am not going to tell you anymore as it is a great adventure and I did really enjoy the story even without the puzzle. The suspense was fantastic and obviously there was killings and maiming that were quite gory but all worked well within the story.

I felt I got to know most of the characters really well, their traits, their nature and what made them tick. I am hoping to get to know more about the others in the next book.

I do have a feeling that the player who activated the first key may not actually win though.

I am looking forward to reading the second book in the series. ( )

okay so I'm finished reading... I don't like the ending because my favorite player is dead... ugh... anyway... it's still good... ( )

En un mundo habitado por 12 linajes milenarios, cada uno de ellos entrena a un joven jugador para que sea capaz de afrontar un acontecimiento catastrófico. Ha llegado el momento. Los 12 jugadores de los 12 linajes responden a la Llamada que les llevará a emprender una búsqueda por todo el mundo para encontrar tres llaves antiguas que salvarán su linaje... y el mundo. El juego final ha comenzado. Y sólo uno de los 12 jugadores puede ganar. Los perdedores no sobrevivirán. ¿Te atreves a jugar?

I have two main issues with this book. The first is the way it treats violence. This book is almost gleefully graphic. Sure, if you’re into unnecessary violence, it might be your thing, but it certainly isn’t mine. I really liked the characters (except the sociopath ones), but I hate the innovative and horrible ways they come up with to kill each other.

Second off, this book is clearly a thinly veiled attempt to make money. This book has been out for less than five months and it already has two “companion novellas” for you to buy. Moreover, this book is almost 500 pages and it still needs a sequel somehow (just another thing for you to buy).

I’m not even gonna get into Hunger Games comparisons, because that’s already been done. Suffice to say, this book is basically the Hunger Games, set nowadays and (somehow) more violent. It certainly has its differences, but there are too many similarities for it to be a coincidence.

So just find a different book. This one is a waste of time.
( )

3.5 status
Rather difficult to get into the story but once I got to know the characters better I couldn't put the book down. ( )