Star Child: Places of Power

This was a great novel! The main character made smart decisions (possibly a little -too- well for a 13yo), wasn't a whiny brat, and had serious moral dilemmas that challenged him throughout! I will certainly be reading the next books!

The story was pretty good, and the premise well thought out. The world creation was fantastic. However, the writing itself leaves much to be desired. Every few pages there would be words missing, leaving the reader to fill them in. There were a few plots points that felt totally shoved in to get to the next part, with little to no thought. And most importantly, even after reading it, I still have no idea if SC was a middle schooler or high schooler. He was described as a middle schooler by context, but his actions and phrasing were upper high school. Meaning the main character was always changing, giving no blocks to build the rest of the world. All in all, the story is fantastic but the writing is terrible. 6/10

Well written and keeps you reading on - even when you told yourself you'd stop two chapters back. If you like X-Men storylines, you will enjoy this one. The powers are creative and the author takes great care to invent a world and follows through with sources within sources -- I really enjoyed the parts were SC has stolen a book from the library on those with abilities and you get to read it along with him. Details like that are great. At times, I got confused about settings because sometimes the description picks up right in the middle of a scene and sometimes the dialogue doesn't flow as well as others but it's a very fun read and I've recommended it to several friends.

One star for an interesting premise. That being said, the plot moved at seemingly random intervals in unconnected bursts of thought; the author seemed to have had a single idea for the entire novel, and then do what he had to do to get there, and throw together what some think passes for an apt ending. The writing was elementary in itself as well, as though a middle school age child decided to write a science fiction book with the help of a parent. Any scientific concepts that the author attempted to use to aid in suspension of disbelief or perhaps just to try to show he had some sort of knowledge on the subject were often juvenile attempts that went virtually unexplained or were simply incorrect. It is also worth noting that, besides using the diction of a middle schooler to express thoughts, it seemed the author also went through the editing process of one, with incorrect spellings found in a PUBLISHED FINAL DRAFT. Unbelievable waste of time and money, which is a shame given the honest potential in the main premise.

An interesting concept story that is not fully developed. As a reader I look for a story that confronts, challenges or affects the human condition. The opportunities in this book are extensive, but are never really addressed. The interaction of the characters did not flow comfortably - at least for me.

I enjoyed this book alot, it is a very interesting concept on how characters powers are determined by the circumstances and region of their birth. The concept is also well explained in the book. Leonard Petracci also does a great job of keeping the suspense up throughout the entire book leaving you unable to put it down! My only critique is that the book could have used a little more character development and world building. It is a good first book though and I am excited to read future installments of this book series

The book had potential but it fell into a common problem, too ambitious for the length. The writer has created an intriguing world with the potential for some very good stories but they're trying to do too much too quickly. A comparison to the Mistborn series is useful. The various powers and effects should be grown over time and not just plopped down into a plot line. Having the abilities arise over time along with the logical effects would have provided more depth to the material.

The problem with creating superpowers is that it's hard to comprehend the major effects they can have. Larry Niven in the Gil the ARM series took a very small power and showed how it could radically change things. In this case a superpower is created that potentially could destroy the world, and at a minimum kill everyone within sight instantly and negate any defenses. It's too much power to be able to be held in a story that requires suspense. A few minutes of thought can create hundreds of applications for the power that dwarf anything in the book. There really aren't any limits to it except imagination. It's not a spoiler but picture a force point and a human brain, problem solved instantly. I'll let the readers figure out on their own why the alleged limitation in the book really isn't a limitation at all.

Worth reading but it could have been so much more.

If you like well written characters with superpowers. I recommend this book. Just like others like it (Worm by Wildbow is a good example) it puts a spin and depth on the "superpowered teens" trope. There are some things about then MC that bug me (mainly how he seems to have a perfect grasp of what's going on a few times without the reader being given any explanation) but believe me I anxiously await Book 2. Devoured this in a day and a half!

This is a great start to an entire world of powers. The writing was light and felt quick to read, and the perspective of a 14 year old boy trying to find his way was both engaging and felt genuine.

I’d suggest this book for those who like sci-fi/modern day fantasy, and audiences as young as (perhaps mature) age 13. There is fighting/violence and cruelty to students in various forms. It had a similar feel to Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card, but the political drama was much lighter and more in the background. Adults may notice some “child logic,” but no real plot holes.

There was so much world building that I can’t wait for the next book!

The book was a fun super power based story. The characters were a bit flat but enjoyable and the power system was unique and fun. The main character was pretty powerful and the bad guys were pretty inept. Overall, I enjoyed the book and would read a sequal if it came out. I've followed the author in case of such an eventuality.

It has an interesting outlook, i noticed quite a few typos and the explanations on powers is not uniform. For example the main character appears to control black holes. This would give him control over time, space, and matter. What if he doused his orb into an ocean and then dumped the contents back out? Or the heart of the earth? The ability to capture light seemed way under thought of.

I really like this book I can't wait for the sequel. I hope Fino and Darian come back. I do think however that the characters need more character development currently they seem kind of bland except Slugger. Like I could not get a clear reading on any of the main casts personalities. Lucio Darian and SC all just seemed to have the same personality. Then if the character doesn't have a bland personality they have a one note personality. Slugger sarcastic and Fino angry etc. That's the only reason I didn't give this a perfect 5.

Other wise good story love the concept.

This book simply brought me back to the height of my enjoyment of reading. Back when I spent nights with a crank up light reading under the blanket on a school night giggling like a schoolgirl simply from how much I loved to read. Its been a very very long time since I had found a book that gave me this feeling.

Thank you so much for this

I really liked this book!! I think he could write a 2nd book, it was that good. I was totally invested in the characters and I was sad when the book was over. I’m an older YA fraction reader and i have thought about this book a great deal since I read it. Good books stay with you!!=)

Having read the chapters on reddit and finding it on here, i was thrilled to start reading. I was afraid it would go the usual "here's an x-men knock off" route but i was pleasantly surprised! The story is written and laid out simply, leaving the reader with nothing but curiosity. It's an origin story that doesn't rely on being one. I desperately want to read more and am excited for future stories in this world.

I saw this back when it was just a post in r/writingprompts back in reddit awhile ago. All of a sudden, I saw that the guy who wrote it made it into a book. Clicked on the link. 3$? might as well give it a shot. Turns out that its one of the better stories I've read in the past month.

Decent plot, interesting enough to keep your attention till the end of the story.

Looking forward to book 2.

The concept of the book pertaining to locale birth and its innate ability to tie with ones supernatural abilities is a new concept from my perspective. This makes it some what of a new area to explore. Going into the book it was entertaining and similar to other hero's, mainly in the hero's journey. Although the main difference in "Star Child" would be the comic relief created by some characters.

The main down fall for me were the grammatical errors and typos.

Bought this after reading the reddit writing prompt. It's pretty well polished, although a few predictable fairy tale-esque moments come through. All in all it was a very good story, and I look forward to a sequel.

I️ found this book very enjoyable. Every free moment of my day I️ spent reading this. It’s got a great story and great characters that develop well. I️ recommend this book to anyone looking for something out there.

The first half of the book had promise, setting things up nicely...then the book became lost after the 3/4 mark. I found myself jumping pages only to realize I could fill in the parts I jumped over. Given the price I don't think I can try anything else by this author in hope of recovery.

To the Author: the book was decent as was the story line, the only problem is the manipulation levels of Whoever ended up as Star Kid at the end was annoying, it characters need idiosyncrasy which was probably there power but you completely destroyed the form of identification by creating a mimicry and then stating itcan’t use it’s full power as the original but bypass that by power absorbing at that point and to top it all off you add someone who can create false memories, now how am I supposed to follow along with any characters at that point there were no characters in your book because anyone could be anybody and since no one made any clear statements as previously chapters stated, which means that your universe that you created is not govern by rules of any type so good job if you were trying to write a chaos theory book but if not then you should probably drop this

The writer starts with a child like premise that if your born near cold, you might get cold related powers. If your born near parrots, you might become a mimic. Really silly 3rd grade mentality premise. Insultingly so. Even if you get past that premise, the main character has a power because he was born in space. But the author does little, throughout the book to explore the power. And the main character repetitively uses it so it’s a one trick pony. The author's villains were predictable. The story reeked of something to Ephesians read by or to a five to ten year old child. If that.

Reader thoughts:
Fun book, but not phenomenal. I enjoyed it and can't even point to anything it did wrong, just that I'm going to forget it quickly.

The plot was good. Hidden power, on the run, school for the powerful delinquents, principal lady with hidden agenda, magical brainwashing, police hunter with something to prove, and power competitions to rank students. The elements were there, and they were arranged in a new, fun way. The book never dragged, although I did get annoyed that SC let himself get brainwashed and distracted from his goal.

SC was a likeable character. I rooted for him. He wasn't very clever, though, which I wanted. He didn't figure out lots of new uses for his powers in delicate and creative ways, which I was expecting.

He also didn't seem fully fleshed out as a character. He makes friends within a day of his new school, but he makes no mention of the people at his old school, where he has been for his entire life. Seriously? What's with a character's existence starting on page 1?

Now, granted, there was a first chapter intro piece (maybe a prologue?) with SC as a child, but the rest of the book still didn't reference his life before he met that one flying girl. What were his hopes, his dreams, his friends, his fears? Did he have a life before the book started?

Writer thoughts:
I know backstory can slow down a book's pace, but it fleshes out the character so much better that it's worth it (unless you're writing a short story or a horror story or something and have to keep the pacing to a sprint).

Benefits to backstory and referencing a character's life before page one?
Creates character depth
Helps reader identify with the character
Deepens motivation
Raises stakes

As it was, SC lost his mom on, like, page 20, but it didn't feel as big of a deal as if SC had thought about his mother later in the book. He wanted to rescue her, but he never relived memories of her or where they'd been or what they'd done. Did they celebrate holidays together? Did she ever scrimp and save to buy him nice shoes? Did he ever help her make a favorite meal?

I received this book in exchange for an honest review and I think it would most appeal to people who like coming of age/ya urban fantasy with a hard magic system.

To understand the main character you first need to know a little bit about the world building. This book has a serious superhero alternate-reality vibe to it. The magic system is based on the conditions of your birth, some people under the right conditions can develop a magic based on their birth environment. People who are born on airplanes can fly, people born near volcanos can use fire, people born on mountains get ice powers etc. SC was born in an illegal location, in space. Both he and his mother have to go into hiding because he isn’t supposed to exist, and if the wrong people found out he could be captured and killed.

SC’s mother is arrested by the police and he’s able to get away, however, after sitting and brooding about how he should have done something to help his mother, he explodes out of anger and guilt and uses his powers in a way he never has before, he ends up blowing apart his apartment complex.

SC is able to make “force points” which look like black marbles that draw everything around them towards the force point. It’s sort of like having the power to create mini black holes. Since he’s the only known space-born person his powers are unregistered and he sparks the interest of the authorities. They don’t know where he is, but they’re searching for him after he explodes his apartment.

A series of unlikely events leads him to a school for those who can use magic and while he’s there he’s disguising himself as a telekinetic. He still doesn’t want to reveal what he really is, and is doing a halfway decent job of passing off as a normal kid. He makes a few friends, one of them was born in Hollywood and he’s able to implant memories and feelings into a person. Another is named Ariel, born on a plane and able to fly, her father makes things complicated since he’s the one trying to hunt down the person who destroyed the apartment.

Something is wrong with the school he’s attending, however. His friends come to him with a theory that the school is implanting motivations in a similar way that Hollywood kid can, indoctrinating them to be loyal to the school for unknown reasons. They begin to investigate and things get complicated.

This was a single pov told in the first person from the main character, it was a very straightforward way of telling a story so it worked well for the audio.

This was a really fast-paced book, a ton of plot lines were being introduced in the first third of the book and then a larger one about halfway through. It’s also written in a way where you can really fly through it.

I do think this is a good book for the right target audience, I’m not usually a fan of young adult but the magic system in this one and the magic school both kept me entertained. I wish there was a little more character development, this was a plot and worldbuilding driven book.

Audience:
For people who like:

* hard magic system
* superhero-like abilities
* alternate world/urban fantasy
* single pov
* first person narration
* magic schools
* faster paced books
* audiobooks

Ratings:

Plot: 12/15
Characters: 9/15
World Building: 13/15
Writing: 11/15
Pacing: 13/15
Originality: 11/15
Personal Enjoyment: 7.5/10

Not for me and personally if I were the MC I would’ve used my power to kill everyone who got in my way once I knew what I wanted. His power can be so OP but he never uses it to destroy everything. Idk maybe I read the book wrong but it sounds like he could’ve killed everyone anytime he wanted to.

This a fun little story. The premise turns our ideas of how the world works on end and makes for something that is a bit less predictable. The characters are fun and as the story builds it is easy to see that the ending will come all too soon. Worth a read (and the few bucks it costs to enjoy).

Read through it mostly on their subreddit. Didn't really keep me interested and I found myself bored though the 3rd part. Guess I'm just not the target audience. Not as bad as some other self published works.

Star Child is an impressive read that will suck in teens to adults alike. This is the sort of book you look at the clock and realize it's 4am. You *really* need to go to bed but you just have to know what happens next. Petracci's chapter by chapter style always keeps you in the action. If you enjoy books such as Ender's Game, you will likely enjoy this book. Character development is strong. You find yourself forming alliances with the characters and feeling true dislike for others. Petracci has woven a nicely detailed world that I greatly look forward to seeing again.

Very interesting word building, the action is a bit fuzzy at times and the book needs a bit a more flesh to it (we don't know much about the overall geopolitical situation SC lives in, or how the baddies are able to get away with what they do without someone higher-up figuring it out). Is there not an FBI or a CIA in SC's country? What is the background of his country? etc.

Holy crap, one ofy favorite reads of all time. Been following it since nearly the beginning, and its been a complete and utter delight watching the story of Star Child unfold.
My one regret is having to wait for updates... Which you won't have to! Get this book!

You ain't guessing where this one's going.

I was new to reading stories by Leo and happened upon them by chance.

Star child is a fantastic novel that reminds me of a mix between Harry Potter and X-Men. The wide array of powers shown and Leo's excellent description and story makes for an excellent read!