The Unwanted (edit title/settings)

• Rated 5 stars

“The Unwanted grabs you from the first page and hangs on until it's over...but is it really over? A thrilling read, done very well without using any offensive styles of language or situations (something I prefer in a book). An exciting book for sf/fantasy lovers within a wide range of ages who enjoy reading the non-real that seems so real. I would highly recommend this novel and am looking forward to the next one...and the next...and the next...”

• Rated 3 stars

“This book has the feel of an epic story, but hasn't quite achieved that status. The characters weren't fleshed-out enough. They certainly underwent several learning points, and improved themselves, but it didn't feel like they were real enough. The plot, however, shows a bit of promise, if a bit cliche. With all this said, about half-way through the book, I began to really enjoy it. I'm interested to see where Daniel Carter goes with the series.

*This book was provided free by the author. I was not required to write a positive review, and the opinions expressed are my own.*”

• Rated 5 stars

“Amazing! I have to say, I wasn't so sure about this book when I first started. Genetic experimentation on babies? Well, I'm so glad I read it! This book is amazing. A superhuman race being genetically created, multiple murders being committed by a madman and God in the middle. Yes, it's a families faith in God that keeps them going despite many obstacles. Two young nurses working in a clinic overhear a conversation about the killing of the 5 newborns. They kidnap the newborns and run away. They raise them as their own at the ranch of Nurse Janet's Uncle Leigh. Leigh is a good man, a strong man, a faithful Christian man who believes God helps us through anything, all we have to do is ask for help. The characters in this book are colorful and full of life. I was able to feel the wonderment felt by Janet and Michelle as the children grew. A sign of excellent writing when the reader can 'feel' the emotions of the characters.

This book is incredible. Even if you are not a strong believer in the Christian aspect, it is worth reading. The genetics alone will intrigue you. The madman behind the experiments is someone psychologists would love to get their hands on! I look forward to books two and three in this trilogy. I want to see what happens with the children, how their abilities will affect them as they grow. How the madman will interfere with their lives.
Excellent book Mr. Carter. You have managed to integrate science and religion.”

• Rated 4 stars

“
Back in October, I interviewed Daniel L. Carter about his book, The Unwanted, the first in an urban fantasy/thriller trilogy. At that time I had not read it, but Daniel later sent me a free PDF copy as an apology for some chaos that ensued when he switched blog addresses. After interviewing him, then reading the book, I decided it would make a nice gift for certain family members, and purchased three print editions to send out before Christmas.


Clever marketing tactic, Daniel!


Anyway, I've intended to review The Unwanted here for a while, but just had too much on my plate. I may never completely catch up on everything I need to do, but I am starting to chip away at the pile.


The great deconstructive revolution in superhero comics began (IMO) with Alan Moore's Watchmen series and Frank Miller's The Dark Knight Returns in the mid-1980s. Its influence has affected every medium featuring superheroes to this day. In comics, perhaps the aftershocks can be felt strongest in Astro City. On television, the recent Heroes series followed in Moore's footsteps (or more accurately, perhaps, it took the superhero to the logical destination on the route Moore initiated). Daniel weighs in with his own deconstructive depiction, though in prose form and (thankfully, for me) from a markedly different ideological perspective.


Whereas Moore's story concept grew out of the question: "How would the world be different from what we know if someone like Captain Atom ("Dr. Manhattan") really existed?" Daniel may very well have started with a question like, "What would it have been like for Ma and Pa Kent to raise a child like Clark/Superman?" Or Xavier raising the X-Men. You get the idea.


FBI agent Nick Catlin is on the tail of some interstate arsonists with a penchant for black market hospital equipment. But every time he gets close to the perps, they are tipped off, a secret laboratory goes up in smoke, and bodies of five infants (always five) are found dead at the scene.


This time, though, nurse Janet Renard, a woman with a conscience, was hired by the bad guys to work at the lab. Rather than let them die, she and a friend spirit the babies away before the explosion. Rightly fearing the resources available to her erstwhile boss, she disappears off the grid, sneaking from Chicago to Oklahoma where she seeks refuge on the ranch of her estranged Uncle Leigh.


From here, the story really becomes about these children, who it turns out were genetic experiments. They begin to demonstrate superhuman/supernatural abilities at an early stage, as well as rapid aging.They're a youthful superteam-in-waiting, kind of like the X-Men, though there are no masks, capes, costumes or grandiose platitudes about "fighting crime." There's a huge, strong one, a fast one, an empath/intuitive one, a technological savant, and a berserker. The latter, Marcus, becomes the heavy-hitter in the narrative after Nick Catlin disappears through the second act. His abilities are not precisely explained, but he strikes me as a Wolverine-type character whose superhuman amp-ups work much like the TV version of the Hulk (Bixby/Ferigno) did.


The action is crisp during the first chapter. Then the novel, necessarily, shifts emphasis to character development. All these characters are human, so there's some drama and conflict you'd expect to find with real people in real life...compounded by the challenges of raising five superbeings on the down-low. Saving your property from the bank and tax man is a tall enough order without the added stress of an evil supervillain scouring the earth to find and kill you. (But am I being redundant here? Nevermind.)


The Unwanted: Book One does work toward a climax, but one which leaves plenty hanging for the next book in the trilogy. I can't be specific on chapter and verse because I'm going on a reader's subjective sensibilities here (my own, in case you were wondering), but the ending is the weakest element IMO. Daniel was careful to let his Darth Vader get away, but I didn't feel the closure of the Death Star being destroyed, either. This is my biggest gripe and, like I said, it's so subjective I can't argue it with tangible bullet points.


In summary, Daniel has written an entertaining, thought-provoking urban fantasy here, which I expect to get even more interesting, and have plenty more action, in the next two novels now that the "origin story" has been established.


Book 1 The Unwanted is available now through Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Christianbooks.com, Parable or you can simply purchase it directly from Daniel's official website www.theunwantedtrilogy.com via PayPal.”

• Rated 5 stars

“The Unwanted is a dark sci-fi tale of suspense and supernatural horror that pulled me into another world with lightning speed. And when author Daniel L. Carter had me in his well-defined landscape interacting with his dynamic, believable characters, it was all I could do to leave long enough to eat, sleep and do my chores.

This story is that gripping! That original!

The story opens with FBI agent Nick Catlin taking his life in his hands by entering the Chicago territory of a known crime kingpin. He's undercover, seeking clues about the recent bombings that always claim the lives of five children. He barely gets out of there alive... The story rapidly proceeds to another bombing, but this one goes wrong for the perpetrators when two young women manage to save the five children.

And the chase is on! Janet and Michelle need a place to hide the children. The evil characters need to find the children and eliminate them before the world finds out what they've done to them and foils their evil Master Plan. And Nick's FBI team needs to stop them from killing again, to discover what else they are hiding and why they are killing children in the first place.

The women manage to hide the children on Janet's Uncle Leigh Barrus's ranch in Oklahoma. The terrifying tale she tells him about genetic experiments is only the beginning of the shocking truths behind the murders of so many children.

For years, they manage to elude the evil people, who employ every devious means possible to find them and kill them all, including Janet and Michelle and anyone else who stands in their way. It's a huge challenge caring for the children (three boys, two girls) because they're growing at twice the rate of other children. It's soon evident that they also have super-human skills that differ from child to child. With the help of her uncle and his handsome ranch hand--who is attracted to Janet--they survive, with the children saving the day when their persecutors get close.

I can't tell you much more without spoiling the plot, but will attempt to intrigue you with questions: What role did Janet and Michelle play in originally helping the bad guys? Why did they suddenly take the children and run? What are the children's super-skills? How do they use them against the evil ones who pursue them? Why does Michelle want to leave them? What happens because of this? What or who is the horrible creature that lurks in the background of this story--a creature so huge it makes walls crumble when it walks? Why did he attack Sampson, the largest and most powerful of the children? Why is Sampson reluctant to kill him? And what does the FBI do when it finally "gets" the family?

This is such a twisting, complex story that I could go on and on with questions, but I think you get an idea of what our protagonists are facing. To learn more, you will have to read for yourself. I promise you a satisfying ending, yet one that holds the door wide open for the second in Carter's trilogy.

With surprises around every corner, this author is spot on with his pacing, plot, characterization, dialogue, etc. There are a lot of upcoming, good writers out there, but Carter is one of the best to cross my path in ages. To weave a complex, dark story like this around Christian protagonists and values is quite a feat.

In fact, I'll stumble way out on a limb by saying: Daniel L. Carter is a literary force to be reckoned with--a modern-day C. S. Lewis... I can't wait to read the rest of this trilogy! Write fast, dear author... Write fast!

Reviewed by Betty Dravis, October 6, 2010
Author of "Dream Reachers" (with Chase Von) and other books
”

• Rated 5 stars

“Article first published as Book Review: The Unwanted by Daniel L. Carter on Blogcritics.
The Unwanted begins with a series of bombings, which include children in the death toll; the FBI is investigating them. At each scene, it is the deaths of the five children, always five, which weighs heavily on Nick Catlin’s conscious. He is the lead agent on the case and is disturbed to find children involved in any way. Why always five and why include children at all? Nick intends to find the underlying cause of these bombings, and even as he is talking to his partner, they have to respond to another scene. This is an extremely new bombing, and something has happened, while almost everything is the same as in the other scenes, there are two woman from the group that have disappeared, as well as the children, all five of them. As they arrive at the new scene, the site is not as organized; the job appears to be hurried and seems to lack the finesse of the other bombings. One of the bodies recovered is that of a police officer, bringing even more problems into play. How far does the information leak go, will they be able to control the information in order to catch a killer?

Nick and his team race against time hunting a cruel and sadistic killer, murdering both witnesses and children to hide his motives. Nick is in deep, it is imperative to find the answers to these killings and to stop the murder of the children. Their suspect is a geneticist, full of anger towards the U.S. He blames them for the death of his family, and while he remains hidden, his henchmen are out creating havoc and destruction. What is it about the children, that put them at risk of this killer?

The FBI are operating against a cold and calculating mind, with knowledge of their every move, able to cut them off at every opportunity. Nick finds himself drawn into the madness, struggling with his own demons, and as he begins to see improbable things, he worries that his very investigation is at risk. Is what he has seen an experiment or has Tibon Agha, their suspect, engineered a mutant army?

As he tracks down the missing children, he finds more then he has bargained for. The children have far exceeded the size and abilities of other children their age and there is something both unnerving and yet special about all of them. Each has developed different characteristics and abilities. They have been raised with God and have a heavy belief in prayer, and when they are finally found by Tibon and his crew, they must come together and rely on each other and their belief in God, to not just save themselves and their adopted families but the country itself. In addition, as Nick fights for his own life, he too must rely on the help of these children, for it will take skills and abilities, far above what he and his team are capable of to stop Tibon and his mutations.

In The Unwanted, Daniel L Carter has developed the very world of today, yet covered it with a sheen of other worldliness, seeming to set up a futuristic place rife with possibilities and powers. The characters are well developed each with characteristics that are unique and all with an old-fashioned sense of love and caring. Their mutations put them at risk and yet they have survived far longer then predicted. It is the current consensus that they have only lived to their current age due to their closeness and belief in both God and prayer. Religion is a part of this story, and woven throughout the entire frame of the story structure; the work would not survive without it. It is not pushy or an effort to foist religion, it is just an intricate part of the story giving it a unique edge. The children are charismatic and extremely different in their personalities, and each has a strength that makes them unique. The nurse Janet Renard, one of the two that escaped with them becomes their pseudo mother, with her family their extended family. This is a well-written story, staying true enough to science that it somewhat plausible. Daniel's writing brings to mind the Maximum Ride series, by James Patterson. The characters come off the page and are just young enough to be lovable. They have problems and phobias as well as anger and other personality traits that make them much like you and me.

Daniel has created a wonderful story full of surprises and human emotions. The book is fast paced and interesting, often leaving you tense and uncertain, but always rooting for the children, hoping they can overcome the hardships they endure as their bodies begin to change. He takes a page out of science to create a fiction that one day may actually be one of our headlines, and while you feel uncomfortable at how the children came to be what they are, they did not choose to be this way, and you are with them, feeling their dreams and really liking their character and personalities. This story is unique and the characters solid making a strong foundation for a faith based science fiction. This is a truly remarkable story.

”

• Rated 5 stars

“The sci-fi, paranormal parade continues with another barnburner that is a series. Trust me, when you read this you will be glad it is a series, there is so much info, backstory, and plotline crammed into this installment, reading the next two is a must. The plotline is complex, the reading enjoyable and fun; there are just so many facets and elements to it. Without further ado, here is the synopsis of the novel:
“ An explosion shatters the night sky.... Smoke and flames erupt over the city of Chicago. FBI Agent Nick Catlin watches helplessly as their only lead straps on a glider and leaps off a high rooftop, soaring toward Lake Michigan. They've lost him, again. The crime scenes always fit the same pattern-five babies are among the casualties. Fourteen months later, though, in New York, no infant bodies are found. Nick's gut tells him the killer was somehow interrupted in his work and that he won't stop until he tracks down those children and finishes what he started. Oklahoma rancher Leigh Barrus is barely making ends meet when his estranged niece, Janet, shows up at his ranch with five babies in tow. The terrifying tale she tells him about genetic experiments is only the beginning of the shocking truths.... A gripping sci-fi thriller for all ages Book One in The Unwanted Trilogy”
Serious goings on here, the novel is like watching a high wire balancing act. Carter mixes a concoction of equal parts bad guy, good guy, paranormal, prayer and religious overtones, with good dialogue and excellent suspense. For those that cringed when I mentioned the religious overtones and prayer, I must say Daniel Carter did a fine job of including them without seeming to be preachy or talking down to anyone, it was in good taste. Well done.
The Unwanted could easily be a movie or excellent graphic novel; it has all the right elements and feel to it. The characters have been given a great beginning in this first installment of the trilogy, I for one am looking forward to finding out where Mr. Carter takes these characters and how this ends up. The Unwanted is a novel you should Want to read for all the right reasons. Check it out and go for the ride.
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”

• Rated 4 stars

“The Unwanted is book one of Daniel L. Carter’s Unwanted Trilogy. It opens with the FBI watching a huge explosion, and moves rapidly forward to the flight of two young women and a small group of children in a pilfered jeep. Then the roller-coaster ride begins.

Five children, unwanted by some and dearly loved by others, are growing up way too fast. Their powers may be genetically engineered, or God-given, or both. But wherever they’ve come from, those caring for these youngsters soon know that God loves all his children. And whatever their growing pains, the “unwanted” children soon begin to trust God.

Alternately sweet, sad, endearing, scary, other-worldly and solidly settled in this world and its troubles, The Unwanted is an exciting tale with well-measured back-story and well-drawn characters, keeping science and religion in just the right balance for the tale. Science fiction and superpowered fantasy mix surprisingly well and consistently with prayer and belief. There are no long conversion lectures, and no protracted scientific explanations, just real people with real cares and flaws, a few skills touching on the realm of the unreal, and a story where protagonists learn to trust each other and trust in God.

This is certainly a series to watch, and it’s good to know the author’s already working on Book Two.
”

• Rated 5 stars

“As the book gets underway, Janet finds herself suddenly tossed in the air like a rag doll landing hard upon the cement as explosions rent the air around her in Poughkeepsie, while 5 dolls of the human kind, lie in the backseat, wailing and afraid. As explosion after explosion continues, Janet knows only one thing…she has to get herself and her precious cargo out of there and now!

In the backseat awakens friend and fellow caretaker, Michele with a blinding headache. The two had moved the infants to safety, but suddenly it occurs to both women that they are riding in not only a stolen Jeep, but in one that belonged to an officer of the law. If the badge in the ashtray were any indication, they had rushed from one kind of trouble to another and now that they had stolen the Jeep, they couldn’t very well tell the police what had really happened before the explosion and seek safety there.

Michele and Janet discuss their options, and Janet suggests they take the children to her uncles home in Newburgh to think things out, so they can do what is right for the children. Little do Janet nor Michele realize that though they were not five ordinary children, but children who would prove to be a challenge in ways they had never dreamed possible. All the time, the children and the two women who whisked them away from peril would be in danger along with their young charges.

Rarely do I read a book that grabs me from the first sentence and keeps me so enthralled that I spend the night like a kid, under the covers with a flashlight wanting to finish it all, yet sad and disappointed when the final page is turned. But this book is exactly that!

At an age where most responsible adults sleep the requisite 8 hours a night, I actually saw the dawn rise as I shut the book on what promises to be a fantastic, imaginative and thrilling trilogy. In fact, I wish the author hadn’t limited himself to a “trilogy” as I could see the premise and characters extending on as Lee Child’s “Reacher” does, with endless adventures and thrills and surprises around every corner.

The writing of Daniel L. Carter is such that the reader is pulled into the lives of the adults in this story, as they discover each new facet of the children and as they face conflicts due to these facets. To be a part of the story, is a rare talent but one Carter uses with finesse.

I will stop here in talking about the book and will not tell more of the plot in this review. For as to do so would cheat the reader out of one of the most exciting and riveting “new” books I have read in a long time. With other authors jumping on the “vampire story” train, writer Daniel L. Carter thrusts the reader into a world that is so unbelievable that it suddenly becomes believable. Giving each character within this book a personality that grows and fleshes out in such a manner that the reader actually feels a part of the action, is a talent and gift that makes this book one not to be missed. If you are like myself, enjoying books both riveting and “on the edge of your seat” exciting, then this is the book for you.

I wholeheartedly endorse and recommend this book for all ages from teens through adults. It is a refreshing change from the “vampire of the month” books and opens doors to exciting possibilities in the soon to be released (I hope) installments in this trilogy. Bravo, Mr. Carter!….you have a winner here. In word, action and deed, your characters have captured the attention and respect of this reviewer and in my world, that says a lot!

And to the reader, I say only one thing…buy this book, you won’t be sorry!



”

• Rated 5 stars

“I really enjoyed this book, it kept me on my toes, always wanting to find out what was going to happen next. It is filled with plenty of action and heart warming situations. Looking forward to the next in the series. ”