Gary Lovisi has done it again. He has taken his love of ERB’s John Carter and made his own character, Jon Kirk. I’ve read the first 3 books in his Jon Kirk of Ares series and enjoyed them. This is not a retelling of John Carter, but a series all its own.
Jon Kirk has died on Earth, but he is alive and well on Ares. Jon Kirk is a hero that doesn’t let a minor thing like his death slow him down from being a hero of an alien world.
The Mind Masters is Gary Lovisi’s 4th venture into a very enjoyable series. Jon Kirk, like John Carter, goes against fights against incredible odds and when he faces even impossible odds, he fights even harder.
An advantage you get in Gary Lovisi Jon Kirk of Ares series is that you are given a listing of “The People & Places In The Jon Kirk Of Ares Chronicles.” This gives you over 4 pages of all the information you need to keep you from wondering who is who.
Believe it or not, the main villain is named Doom. I wonder where I saw that name before? Another familiar name is Zod. I’ve been waiting for him to say, “Kneel before Zod.” Not going to happen, but one can hope.
Throughout the book, each time you think “It can’t get worse for Jon Kirk,” it does. Not only is he faced with the possible end of his adopted world of Ares, but also…You will have to read the book to find out. A quick piece of advice, read the books in order or else you will get spoilers. This is a Sword and Planet series at its best. It measures up to the Legacy of ERB’s John Carter of Mars books. Also be sure and look for his 5th book of The Jon Kirk of Ares, The Time Masters.
All 5 books in the series, are available from the publisher Wildside Press at www.wildsidebooks.com; also at the author’s website www.gryphonbooks.com; eBay, Amazon, and ABE Books.
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