The Unwanted by Z T Soyoye

I would like to thank the author for a copy of this novella in exchange for a fair and honest review

Published - Out Now

Price - £3.99 Kindle eBook £8.99 paperback

"Let the Lightning Engulf you”15-year-old Alexander Charon embarks on his journey at a new school as he struggles to form bonds and relationships with those around him. He begins to unravel his hidden talents, forcing his life to take an unexpected turn as he witnesses the murder and kidnapping of his friends. He must use his newly found skills to solve mysteries and protect those he cares for before it's too late. Can Alex rise up as he attempts to persevere against adversities? Or will he fall into despair as hope dwindles with each new obstacle?

Ever wanted to be a superhero? As a kid it would probably have been flying who wouldn’t want to up, up and away? I think it’s because as we navigate the joys of growing up we all end up desiring something to help protect us from the world which makes a lot of sense and as we grow older we can then use heroes to explore other facets of growing up, never giving in or giving up. In Z T Soyoye’s start to a new series The Unwanted we go on a fast paced trip of a young man discovering the world is more complex than he ever knew.

Alexander Charon lives on the edge of losing everything. A scholarship kid at a prestigious school to survive he must balance both his exam results with getting on the basketball team. Failure at both means expulsion and for him a personal failure to letting his mother down. But a strange sense of deja vu affects him on a stressful day and seeing his best friend gunned down in a kidnapping ends up exposing that Alexander has some unique abilities of his own as he is rewound before things happened. Slowly Alexander meets other teens with the same abilities and finds himself up against a powerful set of opponents.

I really enjoyed the way Soyoye captures teenage angst that feeling that everything you do has huge consequences. Alexander is dealing with a lot of pressure he is reluctant to share. It gives the novel a tension to feel the main character himself doesn’t feel in control of things very much and is feeling his way through. I liked Alexander’s humility and sense of humour. On top of this Soyoye’s ideas of kids with super powers while not too original are thought through giving him set pieces both in sports and fighting opponents. I liked the personal battles that are thrown into t his story that gives it something to play for.

There is however a sense that we’ve seen this story before and while well structured I didn’t feel I’d seen anything particularly new in this tale. The reveals and foreshadowing are often obvious if you pay attention to character descriptions. There is also a temptation to be overly descriptive with often purple prose that overdoes the setting up of scenes and characters - perhaps a little more time to allow characters to breathe and allow us to get to know them better prior to the action may have helped.

It was a fun read but while the tale points towards future adventures for Alexander to come I think ultimately not quite enough for me to continue reading future tales.