Wild Side: Nate Temple Series Book 7

Silvers has had a long, limit pushing track record with this series, and it shows in the momentum he has for everything that goes on in this book. While it makes in an impossible 'pick up and read' sort of novel, the book carries on sheer force of character detail and development on par with a genuine human being, not just a character archetype hammered into a protagonist slot. Silvers' flair for dramatic build up and sharp, veering twists in the plot structure are exemplified in bold throughout every step in the story, both small and grand in scale.That said, the book has broken the prior mentioned trend of limit pushing. It is by no means falling short, in any regards when compared to his other works in the series, but it seems to have shown, for the time being at least, the 'ceiling' to Silvers' drama capacity for the overall story and world. Nate Temple is no longer struggling to adjust to every single monkey-wrench thrown his way by the skin of his fingernails, but is becoming an empowered force all of his own, which while a change for the character and development to the overall plot of the series, the execution of it through the book didn't shatter the previous status quo the way the last few entries pointedly have.This is far from a failing on Silvers' part, maintaining a bar this high after pushing it so repeatedly is a feat unto itself, and lesser authors who might have failed even to push so often so consistently might just as well start to have quality drop rather than rise or maintain. Whether he can push higher still in the future or keep the new status quo stable remains to be seen of course, but seven books in and going strong, he's already proven his quality and imagination as an author several times over. Even if he does peak and maintain here, it will still run as contender for top modern fantasy with ease.In regards to the details for the book, it rolled a good bit longer than previous entries and encompassing as much as it did, there was a bit of staggering to the momentum of the story in contrast to the build up the last few books had been setting in place. The inclusion of a whole new, richly layered fantasy environment is always a challenge to incorporate properly in any work, and while Silvers' take on the land of the Fae highlighted the disorienting, layered illusion and deceptive qualities that the Faerie mythos are known for, it did feel a bit glossed over. With the de facto background of St.Louis for most of the series thus far, there has been a consistently present setting for the story to unfold that readers can easily imagine and fill in the gaps for, but for something as distinctive as the world of the Fae, it just felt like there needed to be more to immerse the reader into the foreign reality properly, especially given the focus of struggling duality within the first person narration through that stretch of the story. Even the Fae themselves were glossed over for a good number of them, only described loosely as fearsome beasts with little detail as to what made them seem alien or formidable.Thankfully, this was not an issue in regards to the characters. One of Silvers' longstanding issues with the first few books was while being very capable of making and introducing interesting characters to the story and their involvement with the plot at hand, some of the characters could fall very quickly to lackluster placement and details later on, especially in regards to some of the female characters being relegated to mostly supporting roles without much detail given to them. He has expressed great improvement in this regard with the last few entries, especially this one putting more of a highlight on said female characters as they undergo the same sort of struggles as Nate through the main stretch of the story.Another good example was his inclusion of his second series' main protagonist, Callie Penrose. Rather than pushing her merely to a supporting role, their interactions highlight traits both recognizable to those who read from her perspective in her book, as well as traits that she didn't necessarily exhibit through her own perspective but show pointedly in Nate's view towards her. She still expresses naivete in regards to some aspects of his life and magic, but surprises him with her insight and attitude towards things that stir things within him in turn that he isn't sure what to do with. It all shows she is not being shoehorned into a paltry love interest position to replace his ex, Indie, but rather highlights different facets to their interest and attachment to eachother that have leeway to advance into something more elaborate and significant to both their series' storylines. It is thankfully not something Silvers seems to be rushing to push forward with, giving it time and room to develop naturally, and hopefully will not fall into needless overlap between their books from them being together more consistently.The ending, while suitably climactic for Silvers' style and record with the series, also showed a bit of faltering as well. It was by no means unsatisfying to read, tensions running to the peak and finality being given to issues that had stretched over multiple books in the series, but the means and execution of some parts were rather unexpectedly abrupt, with little attention or focus on them for very long given how significant some of the issues at hand were. A battle against a Greek goddess is elaborated on well enough, but a one-on-one with the mentally twisted shell of the woman who was at one time the love and core of Nate's life, while dramatically presented, is emotionally tepid, almost sterile even. There is little 'turn the page, finish the chapter and move forward' closure in the air, and while there is the sense that it ties things up, there is very little time or focus on what feels like there should be more to be said, to the point that thing still feel pointedly unspoken with how quickly things moved along. It's entirely possible Silvers' is waiting to elaborate on this in the next book, but the way it was written and positioned between other events occurring at the finale make it feel something of a missed opportunity for yielding the proper impact.Overall though the book has, to a significant degree, wrapped up and rearranged many things affecting the course of the overall series. The back-stage motivations and actions of many different things have been put to a close, while other issues have arisen in the immediate and potentially in the long term. It serves to show that surviving, and even being victorious doesn't mean automatically making things normal again, instead setting the stage again for an entirely new direction and focus for what lies ahead. Silvers has proven himself well able to juggle multiple plot points and arrange them any number of ways to keep the story from being truly predictable, and I am eager to see what he deals out next.

What's it like to always roll sixes and come out ahead, when you've been getting kicked in the head? Ask Master Temple he knows. Another delightful romp through the St. Louis and other locations that, well, it's better If you just read it for yourself. Have fun and cheers.

Nate and friends, prepare for a war that hasn't come in a year, leaving doubts and a lessoning of fear. Nate knows Natalie hasn't given up, the war is coming and it will end with her death or his.

Jimminy Freakin' Christmas!! Wow. I'll admit, I was a little skeptical when I first started reading these "Nate Temple" stories. I'd really only decided to read the first one after seeing it compared -- several times -- to stories about a certain Chicago-based wizard that I've liked for several years (and yes, I'd also liked the sadly-single-season tv show, too, which I have on DVD!). Since that wizard has been conspicuously absent for far too long, I figured I'd try a book or two about this "Nate Temple" guy because I was curious. I didn't have especially high expectations, because I knew NOTHING could compare to my fave wizard and his friends in Chicago, the Never-Never, and elsewhere.I. Was. Wrong.I'll admit, I thought Nate was sort of interesting in/during/after the first book, and yeah, he had some interesting friends, acquaintances, and enemies. After reading the second book, I was thinking Nate and Company were a little more interesting, but I just didn't see him as being the wizard I'd hoped he'd be. After the third book -- I was caught up in Nate's World, and there were no more thoughts of other wizards (well, maybe wondering what Gandalf might've been like in his 30's, if he'd been modernized, and become a smarta$$, and carried no staff). It's a strange comparison, perhaps, but I remembered how I'd thought of Lady Gaga as just a Madonna-wanna-be, and now I can see her as being much more ... with her own phenomenal talents and having her own unique kinds of Superstardom ... and NOT really much like Madonna after all.Each book took me deeper into the Temple-verse. I fought against being sucked in, against reading too quickly for fear of missing details that would be important later, and fought reading too slowly because I was nervous and anxious and wondering what would happen next. Nate wasn't the wizard I was looking for -- he was Something Else ... Someone Else ... a person I could never have imagined, in a world I could never have imagined, in spite of the fact that I live in the same town where Nate (supposedly) lives, good ol' St. Louis.No Spoilers: Here I sit, later by seven books, several weeks, dozens of nights when I lost much-needed hours of sleep in favor of reading (coz I can't read during my day job!), I-won't-say-the-number of evenings when I should've been working from home and was instead reading the insanity sprung forth from author Shayne Silvers' warped mind, and far too many near-heart-stopping moments to count, and I'm typing a review on Amazon. The Ride has been worth it !!!!!!!!!!! And I don't think Nate (or Shayne) are done yet.If you like stories about magic-wielders, friends, monsters (vampires, and werewolves, and cowtipping a Minotaur, oh my!!), fights both physical and magical, friends, Gods from a variety of pantheons, friends, plot twists and character surprises, friends, and watching a man learn about himself and his family as he matures into one helluva scary and determined Good Guy (ok, with some gray zones on his metaphorical White Hat) with some awesome friends who are more like family, then do yourself a favor, and read the first book. Then read the second book. And then, I dare you, read the third book. See if you can resist being swept up in the craziness that is Nate's life. I don't think you'll choose to walk away, unless it's to grab a beer (or a glass of Macallan), and settle in with the next book. This latest book, "Wild Side" brings some story lines to a close, and opens up new ones. It was a great climax after a long-running build-up, satisfying in its conclusions, and intriguing with potential for What Comes Next.Wow. Read the series, and see if you can be more eloquent.

This series gets more and more intense every book! Nate is back again trying to find out which God has risen and to get with killing them.In true Nate temple style Wild side had me laughing from page one. Picture Hercules getting the mick taken out of him while playing beer pong to give you an idea of the humour.This books sees horseman War come into his character and also allows us to see a different side, a more wild side to Nate and some of his closest friends. Travelling through the land of Fae the reader is taken into a world full of the bizarre which is written so well I felt I was there on the journey.This book provides some answers and creates more questions but is done in the easy to read, hilarious, descriptive style that makes this series a favourite of mine.If you want original, laugh out loud escapism then this book is a must in your library!

Wow, this series just gets better and better with every book being even more packed with action than the one before!! Nate's back in Wild Side, his 7th book in the series that starts with Obsidian Son. No-one is safe from Nate's snark whether friends, family, enemies or even gods?! I challenge you not to laugh as he romps through myths, legends and pop culture with his own brand of Nate-ness!!Nate has always had a lot going on but this was so enthralling with one thing after another so that you just had to read 1, or 2 or 3, more chapters. Even then you were disappointed if you had to put it down because life got in the way of finding out what happened next, and his snarky responses?!

Riveting, subtle, blunt & totally intriguing. With Nate Temple taken out of circulation, his friends & allies need to stand up & be counted, or be crushed underfoot.Can Nate find his way back to a home under siege in time or will he find smouldering ruins where his team faced their crucible?

Once again Mr Silver taunts us with more questions and hints than answers. You can't help turning the next page, reading just one more chapter.And you can't help laughing, and the occasional tear.Nate has to leave his friends to fight this war for themselves, while he gets in touch with his inner caveman, it's just for a couple of days..Nate has trials, transformations and tragedy in his immediate future. Will he accept the mantle of the Horseman? Will he manage to kill a Godwithout it? Like I said, you find yourself having to read just a bit more, until there is no more to read and you are counting the daysuntil December!

Easy books to review. I just love fantasy and urban fantasy and the amount of action and number of characters Shayne Silvers fits into his books is incredible. Constant action from start to finish and there is, I think, four or five more left to read in this series alone, never the mind the others! He does not split his story into sub-stories with different heroes. It is all about Nate Temple and the maelstrom that follows him around. Cracking.