The Phantom of the Earth by Raeden Zen

The Phantom of the Earth

(The Phantom of the Earth #1-5)

Author: Raeden Zen

Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

Pages: 1650 (This edition contains all 5 books)

Genre: Science Fiction, Dystopia, Fiction, Fantasy, Apocalyptic

Review: I read this series as a beta reader back in April. I was not asked to review it, but figured I should since I spent a lot of time reading it.

It absolutely stands out from other apocalyptic novels that I’ve read. The settings and characters were so well written and developed that it was impossible not to like them, dislike them, and even feel for them when necessary. The characters are certainly unique and diverse, even the descriptions of the characters were different, which was very interesting to read. Overall, the dialogue was well written and appropriate. It definitely focused on what each character wanted at that point in the story.

I found one line really unique and I kept remembering it while I was reading. “May it end as grandly as it began.” I’m not sure why it appealed to me, but it seemed to be more of a positive way of saying, “the end is yet to come” but without the sense of ending or finality. There was another significant quote from one of the books, “Life is pleasant. Death is peaceful. It’s the transition that’s troublesome.” – by Isaac Asimov, which was a very standout quote to start one of the books. Altogether, it was a very interesting series.

At some points it reminded me of a video game called Mass Effect that I have seen my siblings play. The dystopian universe and unique character names really reminded me of it.

One of the downsides for me was all of the scientific language and the constant need to refer to the appendix that was provided. It seemed too scientifically challenging for a common person at times. I think you have to be very into science and science fiction to thoroughly enjoy this book for all that it is worth.