Official Review: Live Like a God by Taylor Kole

[joshfee77]

[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Live Like a God" by Taylor Kole.]

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3 out of 4 stars

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Live Like a God is a young adult fantasy adventure novel by Taylor Kole. Josh Ridley is a regular guy. He goes to work, pays taxes, watches TV, and spends time with his girlfriend, Karen. But he longs for more. He invests money in a program in which he is shrunk down and placed in a terrarium housing a miniature natural environment, Betaloome, for 39 days, to act as a god to many tiny villagers who live there. As part of the shrinking process, his body transforms from "flab to ab", gaining speed, strength, and muscle mass, giving him a distinct advantage over other men in his new surroundings. This new god, whom the villagers of Reysona call "JoshRidley" (one word), is suddenly irresistible to women, able to slay frightening creatures, and a protector to all. But with his talents come responsibilities. Among the dangers he faces are huge "eviscerators" (ants) and "trappers" (spiders), both far larger - and faster - than a man in this tiny world. Elsewhere, in the city of Atlantis, lives the god RobertJohnson, the only man from Earth to have ever made his stay in Betaloome permanent. All RobertJohnson asks from visiting gods is total obedience. Unfortunately, thanks to his new powers, JoshRidley is now total ego...

I enjoyed this book. The story is action-packed and entertaining, a sort of cross between Thor, Gladiator, and Honey, I Shrunk the Kids. It contains some creative descriptive passages, such as: "The occasional dome-shaped droplets of water dotting the floor made the atmosphere alien. Waist-high, the droplets appeared gelatin and poking them dispersed the fluid like a ruptured amniotic sac." This provides a clear mental picture and is elegantly written. Kole's description of the world of the terrarium and its terrifying giant insects is formidable and fearsome.

I like the way Josh's experience as a god of the tiny world leads him to reevaluate his life. He learns that, in many ways, he is not living to his full potential but only "going through the motions". There are some interesting comparisons between his boring "regular life" outside of Betaloome and the action-packed, dangerous, adrenaline-charged life he leads in the tiny world of the terrarium. Also, he has to face down his own insecurities upon failing to complete a certain task, which reminds him he still has imperfections and limitations despite his godlike strength and abilities. There are also some funny moments, such as the cockiness of one of RobertJohnson's sons saying they would all be gods on Earth, too. With their unattractive faces, ratty hair and male pattern baldness, this is definitely overconfidence against all evidence to the contrary.

Live Like a God does, unfortunately, need some divine editing. It certainly isn't bad, but I did find ten minor errors by around a third of the way through. Most of these errors are punctuation, but there are also a few missing words, and odd words used incorrectly at times, such as "affects" in place of "effects". Another example is the sentence: "He might have closed the distance in time had she ran toward Josh, but she had ran away." Both instances of "ran" in this sentence should be "run". These errors are the exception, not the norm, but an edit is still needed.

Overall, I rate Live Like a God 3 out of 4 stars. It is a great, entertaining story with mostly minor editing issues. It would appeal to young adult readers, particularly those who enjoy violent, action-oriented fantasy. Potential readers should keep in mind that it does contain gruesome violence (tiny people being attacked by giant insects) and some sexual content. However, I found it an entertaining story from start to end.

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Publisher's Note: This review is based on a pre-publication draft. The editing errors noted have since been fixed.
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Live Like a God
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[kandscreeley]

This is one that I haven't quite heard of before. I mean, there's Honey I Shrunk The Kids, but that's a bit different. It's certainly intriguing to think about. It's too bad about the editing, but it really doesn't sound overly distracting. Thanks.

[Bianka Walter]

This is a very cool concept for a book! The idea of having to fight ants and spiders is horrifying.
Awesome review

[Ayo Stephen]

I loved this most and is interesting where Robert Johnson becomes a god that stayed permanent in baterleon and didn't over misuse them but rather needed only peace from visiting gods,brilliant idea here

[Amanda Deck]

Ayo, sounds like you might be planning a trip to Betaloome soon! The review did make it sound rather intriguing.

[kaymontacell]

Thanks for the review! I think it's interesting that the book takes a direction in which the main character, while he does receive god-like abilities, he can still fail. That's something that a lot of "dropped into another world settings" seem to flub up, in my opinion.

[Sakilunamermaid]

Damn, I want to read this now. Such a cool concept, like the movie Honey I Shrunk the Kids but on purpose. I like that the character learns a lesson too. I would love to experience natures beauty from a different perspective or at a different scale.

[joshfee77]

This is one that I haven't quite heard of before. I mean, there's Honey I Shrunk The Kids, but that's a bit different. It's certainly intriguing to think about. It's too bad about the editing, but it really doesn't sound overly distracting. Thanks.

Yeah, some interesting fantasy with a pretty unique premise. Entertaining stuff.

[joshfee77]

This is a very cool concept for a book! The idea of having to fight ants and spiders is horrifying.
Awesome review

Thanks! I personally couldn't think of anything more frightening than facing giant ants, spiders, and the praying mantis. Shudder...

[joshfee77]

I loved this most and is interesting where Robert Johnson becomes a god that stayed permanent in baterleon and didn't over misuse them but rather needed only peace from visiting gods,brilliant idea here

Definitely some interesting ideas and dynamics between characters. Thanks for commenting.

[joshfee77]

Ayo, sounds like you might be planning a trip to Betaloome soon! The review did make it sound rather intriguing.

Intriguing and terrifying! But if enormous ants and spiders are your thing... Count me out though!

[joshfee77]

Thanks for the review! I think it's interesting that the book takes a direction in which the main character, while he does receive god-like abilities, he can still fail. That's something that a lot of "dropped into another world settings" seem to flub up, in my opinion.

Yeah, I'm a strong believer that all characters, no matter how godlike, should be flawed in some way. After all, can any of us claim to be perfect? I know I can't! Thanks for your comments.

[joshfee77]

Damn, I want to read this now. Such a cool concept, like the movie Honey I Shrunk the Kids but on purpose. I like that the character learns a lesson too. I would love to experience natures beauty from a different perspective or at a different scale.

It is certainly worth a read. I found it very entertaining once it got going. And like you say, a different perspective on the everyday.

[Bonnie Shelby]

Loved your review! Especially how you compared the book to those three movies - you gave me a good picture of what it's like, and made it sound pretty awesome!

[ChristineV1999]

Thank you for the review! I would love to read this as soon as possible, the review is very intriguing and interesting, I would love to take my hands on that book tomorrow!