Imagine reading the book The Wizard of Oz and having it end just before the Wicked Witch gets melted…..

The Mortal God has a promising premise.  A so-called mutant who has some intriguing abilities…like not needing to breathe… leads an elite group of operatives as a superior soldier. He’s successful on many levels and with many campaigns….until he learns ‘the truth’.  No spoilers here, mind you, but of course, this truth changes everything.

Stripped of his rank and ostracized, he travels across the galaxy searching for new allies.  He’s angry; he wants revenge, and his life depends on his success. With 24 chapters, author E.F. Skarda has plenty of time to flesh out the characters he meets, draw compelling settings and landscapes, and work some fresh twists into a slightly familiar plot line.  There’s love and loss, loyalty and betrayal, mystery and action, everything a Space Opera ought to have.

Now, remember, it’s book ONE, so you do end up with more than a few questions spiraling in your head; questions I’ll not ask and, by doing so, drop a ton of spoilers on you.  I’m hoping these open-ends in the plot will be neatly tied up in book Two and not left dangling…although, sometimes that’s just the way life is, right?  Sometimes things happen and we’re left wondering.  It may be too early to say with this one.

MC Commander Kyle  Griffin has everything you want in a protagonist: he’s interesting, flawed, determined, and even vulnerable. I felt like much of this book was expository, in that, many of the things that happened were setting up future events.  So, although engaging, the story also left me feeling a bit….just a bit…. disappointed. Not because it wasn’t an entertaining read, but because I was left with so many unanswered questions.  Some might say that’s a great cliffhanger and an assurance readers will dive into book two.  I hope, because there’s a lot of promise yet to be fulfilled with the story.