Freedom's Call, John Walker ~ Book Review

I decided to give myself something totally different to read when approached by the publicist for Freedom's Call, by John Walker.

This book is absolutely not of the typical genre that I would choose to read, but it seemed like it would be an interesting story.

From the author's website:

"Johnny Locker is the leader of a massively popular movement to overhaul the nation’s Social Security system. Unbeknownst to him, another movement is in place—and this one’s much more dangerous. A charismatic military hero has a plan to overthrow the entire governmental system and replace it with one more closely based on the Constitution. And he wants Johnny’s help.

Johnny is quickly swept up in the general’s big ideas, but he soon realizes that the new leader is just as corrupt as the old. With the support of other dissidents, Johnny finds himself once again leading a grassroots movement that will reshape the nation. He has always been a bit of a rebel, but to answer Freedom’s Call, he must also become a revolutionary."

I wanted to know this Johnny Locker ~ who I kept referring to as Johnny Walker. And even WROTE that here initially. Oops! ~ I wanted to feel like he was real. As the story started off, I was a bit confused. But I think so was the character, so it wasn't that bad that I had no idea what was happening. And then it started flowing. I went through pages 30-something to about 90 or so and was shocked at how quickly I turned the pages. I wanted to know what the heck was happening with the US, the military, the secrets. I wanted to know why Johnny was pulled into this, and what the general behind all of this truly had in mind for the USA.

And then I tapered off. At first I thought the book was 130 pages, and I was thinking, okay, easy and fast read. But then I looked again (am I the only one who tends to check how many pages I have left when reading?) and saw I had 180. Oh. Eh.

I liked how the story unraveled, but had a hard time buying not so much what was figured out and how quickly, but what Johnny's role became as things fell into place. I liked the minor characters a lot. Jonesy (I think that was his nickname) was a fave who wasn't truly established. I also liked Nick a lot and wanted to hear more from him.

While I, personally, struggled with finishing the book because I had to suspend my disbelief a bit too much for this kind of story ... I actually would have preferred it if it was a longer novel. If it had fleshed out the characters a bit more, gave us more time to figure out what was truly going on, and let us know Johnny more as the person he was before all of this came down. Perhaps had I seen some of that I might have been able to believe the story more. In the meantime, it's set in the future of the US, a future I truly hope we never come to see.

If you like a little politics or military business in your reading, it's worth a look. If you're not always a fan of that kind of story, but are hoping that the actual STORY will capture your attention enough, I say skip it. It leaves you wanting more of a story that you're not going to get in those 180 or so pages.

** This review was written based on a free copy of the book I received from the publisher. I have not been compensated in any way, shape or form for writing this review. **

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