Customer Reviews

Outriders (The Birthright Project, Book 1)

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This is a novel of post-apocalyptic science fiction. Specifically, it's Christian Science Fiction, but it has the feel of fantasy; it should please both camps of devotees--fantasy lovers and sci-fi lovers.

Set in a future world and after a series of catastrophic wars, OUTRIDERS shows the earth partially uninhabitable (with many toxic areas). Humanity is affected in some gruesome new ways. Tyranny, enslavement, rape, endless bloodshed--in other words the just as gruesome old ways persist.

Because the main characters are believers in the One True God who loves and seeks out men and women to save, the God who offers his Holy Spirit to believers, and the God who preserves a remnant through all catastrophes in all ages, they have moral dilemmas in this novel. That's part of the fun of reading it. It's also instructive on a theological level, without doing it like a sermon. It arises naturally from characters put into plot-consistent situations.

Buy this book. It's wonderful. Here's the lowdown:

It's the future. Earth is damaged from catastrophic warfare. Christians were led by God to build an UNDERGROUND ARK where they were kept safe. After a time, OUTRIDERS--young, healthy, "called" believers--are sent out of the Ark with a mission. It's a hard life, a sort of future "frontier" existence, where danger takes many forms, human and inhuman.

You follow two main characters through various adventures in this post-apocalyptic Earth setting: Niki, a relentless, powerful, warrior-woman. The kind you want to help you get through the wilderness, even if she's got a bit of an impatience-with-fools issue. And Brady, a smart, savvy leader with a godly man's heart and a warrior's way with a sword, who is dealing with some strong-willed folks in the OUTRIDER ranks, not to mention daily survival issues.

They are members of one of various enclaves of Outriders that are strewn across the continent, whose task is to gather specimens of natural creation (as opposed to "transmogrified" or mutated creation) to send back to the Ark for study and preservation.

Niki and Brady were two of the original 4 OUTRIDERS sent up to the surface. They're sent out of the Ark young (like 16). (And in a thrilling fashion you'll enjoy reading about. Scary, too.) They rely a great deal on Providence and their physical endurance and their wits.

In this book, God is a very real presence and miracles are part of the daily life.

So is constant danger from evil folks, notably Baron Alrod and his "sorcerer", Ghedo. They're always up to some brutal business, such as altering humans and animals into mutations that they can use in battle and to keep control over their territory. The villains are pretty unredeemable bad, which is not my fave kind of villain, as I do like to have motivation and more sides than just mean-mean-nasty-mean.

Fortunately for the OUTRIDERS, they are endowed with God-provided tools (very, very cool ones) and special gifts (gifts of the Spirits transposed to a sci-fi world) that help them do their work on the surface and do good to non-Birthrighters who dwell topside.

So, our gal Niki is, for the first time in her years as a first-ever Outrider (the toughest of the tough, she is), sent to retrieve a threesome of rookie outriders who are joining the Horesh outrider community. Things get complicated as the four trek to Horesh--going out of their way and far into trouble.

Brady, who's back at the homefront (Horesh) while Niki is in the frozen lands with the rooks, repeated battles the evil Baron Alrod and his mogs (transmogrified critters and humans). Disobedience within Horesh brings conflicts deadlier than any Brady's faced before.

Eventually, there comes a spiritual showdown.

That's right: Holy spirit beings--God, angels--are real in this story, and so are evil spirit beings. And the people are not perfect--which is a good thing, or we'd be bored out of our skulls.

The spiritual aspect, in fact, is handled beautifully in the novel. The Outriders are genuinely good-hearted folk, even with their sins and flaws. They care about outcasts and the downtrodden. They seek to liberate those in bondage. And we are shown how good motivation and sincerity are not always enough. Wisdom and obedience play a part. Humility and sacrifice, too.

Mackel clearly cares about social issues. This book resonates with current events--euthanasia, stem cell and other genetic research, crass consumerism, out-of-control vanity, ecological issues.

I found this book spiritually uplifting, and it was also vibrant and a ripping good read with a good heart!

If you like science fiction/science-fantasy, I totally recommend this. Have patience through the confusing opening scenes: You will get oriented. You will be rewarded for your patience.

Come on. Order it now! And then join me in waiting eagerly for book two of The Birthright Project.

Mir
of Mirathon blog
asst editor at Dragons, Knights & Angels
A Magazine of Christian Science Fiction & Fantasy

At first, submersing in Kathy Mackel's world is like being drenched with a pail of ice water. Normal men and women torn from their quiet villages and turned into hideous giants against their will; riders on giant hornets; bats and rodents the size of horses; all these monstrosities the products of so-called sorcerers unscrupulous enough to transmogrify innocent creatures to satisfy their stronghold lords' insatiable lust for power and influence.

Only a small group of people, the Outriders of Horesh, attempts to stand against these evil lords. The Outriders come from the Ark, a mysterious sanctuary buried somewhere deep under the ice. Led by visions and prophecies, the population of the Ark sends out volunteers who build camps, collect specimens, and attempt to reclaim a corrupt world by teaching the truth to a suppressed and intimidated populace while helping them in their need as they are able.

But even this brave group consists of mere human beings, each with their own troubles and weaknesses. Niki, for instance, has no idea why Brady sent her north to fetch a group of new rooks in transit from the Ark. She's a warrior, not a babysitter! She's always been prepared to do anything that was required of her, and has never let herself be stopped by anything, either. But Brady, the camp leader and the man she realizes she truly loves, says he's sending her on this mission so she can learn to listen. Listen to what? Things don't get easier when she comes to believe he only sent her away so he can be alone with his love, and that doesn't seem to be Niki!

Timothy is a wonderful singer, but he also believes Brady has become weak and should let him lead the camp. Then the camp's young teacher, Ajoba, decides she no longer has to obey Brady because she is now under the divine guidance of an angel. She leaves camp without permission to search for and help the transmogrified giants, taking an irreplaceable tool necessary to the camp's survival with her. Is she really on a holy mission, or has she been deceived by her own pride? How can Brady outwit the cruel and powerful Baron Alrod of Traxx -- who has made it his highest priority to find and kill him -- all the while trying to keep his people together while so many problems are seething beneath the surface?

Outriders is a beautifully and tensely written novel that asks us take a good look at ourselves in the light of truth. Being the first volume of the the Birthright Project series, it doesn't answer all the questions it raises but does it ever draw us in! I loved reading this book, and I can't wait for the second one. Come on, Kathy, hurry it up!

Outriders, by Kathryn Mackel, is one of those books that will grab your imagination and take it for a wild ride through a familiar, yet alien land. With full characters that make you care, and excitement that can get your pulse racing.

Generations after warfare and pollution poisoned the planet and destroyed civilization, one group of survivors remembers their heritage, their birthright. From their sanctuary, the Ark, sunk deep below the arctic ice they train their young to be outriders who do the impossible. To return to the surface world and save the original creation and spread the forgotten Truth. But these young people face more than a poisoned world.

So called sorcerers, wielding the last remnant of science that helped destroy mankind, create abominations by transmogrifying animals and humans to suit the whims of their warlord masters. Only by holding to the Truth that they know, can the outriders hope to overcome the mogs and the greater evil that festers in this poisoned world.

Kathryn Mackel has created a tale full of biblical symbolism and imagery, one of haunting beauty and terrible destruction. All of her characters come through as full people, who each struggle with their own human natures (or fully give in to them) while seeking to fulfill their mission. You come to care for each of the main Characters as soon as you meet them, even when it is clear they are being hard headed and foolish.

One thing I thought Kathryn did extremely well was the "jangle" of the rookie outriders. It came off as totally believable and fluid, but not impossible to understand. However, some of the action scenes felt a bit muddled, and the world-building didn't always hold up for me, but that was easily forgiven in the scope of the journey each character took.

Can't wait for the sequel.

In Outriders, Kathryn Mackel gives us a world that is believable and dangerous, and she puts into that world some loveable characters. The good characters stand in contrast to the largely wasted earth and to the monstrosities created when the evil warlords mess with nature. From the beginning, I sympathized with the young and noble birthrighters.

The characters feel real--three dimensional--they have unique personalities, goals, and conflicts. Nikki is tough and yet vulnerable, Brady is strong and sure and yet struggles with anger and fatigue. When I finished the book, I felt like I knew these characters and I wanted to read more. I want to see what happens to these new friends. I want to see Timothy succeed, especially. I want to go to all their weddings and dandle their babies on my knees. I really like these young people and want to see what kind of world they build.

I had a little bit of a struggle getting into the book because of some of the strange terms used. Probably because I'm not accustomed to this genre, the new world and technology overwhelmed me at first. If you have the same trouble, stay with it. After a few chapters you'll understand it all and the story will fly.

My only criticism is that I found a couple of Nikki's action scenes hard to believe and/or hard to visualize.

Other than that, I thought the book was most excellent. This is the kind of book you can love the first time you rip through it simply because the characters and their struggles feel real. And then you can love it again the second and third time through, as you slow down and find meaning in the folds of the story. There are some clear spiritual lessons but nothing feels forced or preachy.

I eagerly await the next in the series so I can see what happens to these characters.

It's been a while since a dug into a big, juicy fantasy like this and Mackel didn't disappoint me. From the world on the ark to the darkness beyond where the outriders live, this vibrant, detailed world of wonder kept me turning pages. As if a page turning story wasn't enough, the spiritual truths about pride, leadership, love and friendship caused me to pause several times to pray and think. I certainly hope the sequel is in the works. I can't wait to see what happens to the outriders next!

The Endless Wars have destroyed much of the earth, and all of the technology that man once enjoyed. Only genetic altering potions remain, and these have fallen into the hands of sorcerers that use them without conscience. The villagers, men, women, and children alike, are torn from their homes and taken to laboratories where they are mogged (altered) into horrific beings and forced to serve the evil lords that rule the land.

Some are mogged into gargants, giants to be used in warfare, grotesque in their unnatural size. Others are given beauty-enhancing treatments and sent to the harems of noble men and women to be used for pleasure. Many are blended with animal genetic patterns to give them a feature or attribute that will be of use to the kingdom. The sorcerers also experiment with plants and animals, warping creation into frightening forms and beings.

A remnant of originals (persons who have not been genetically altered) survived the Endless Wars by gathering what little knowledge and technology remained on the earth and fleeing to the North. Using their combined skills, they built an Ark and sunk it beneath the icecaps. There they flourished for generations until a prophecy came to them telling them it was time to gather specimens of original creation before the evil lords and their sorcerers mogged God's creation out of existence.

Four young people were chosen, three men and one woman, to leave in the first group. They were sent out of the Ark to establish a camp on earth. Their mission . . . to gather original specimens of plants and animals, to assist other groups in coming to the surface, and to spread the gospel of a kind and loving God who cherishes all of creation and offers hope in the next life. They adapt to life on the brutal surface, where every day holds dangerous challenges.

As Niki, the female in the group, rides North to retrieve a new group of rookies, Brady and the other members of the camp battle Lord Alrod and his army of gargants as they attempt to invade a neighboring kingdom. Brady becomes a target for Lord Alrod's wrath, putting himself and the camp inhabitants in danger. And when the rooks are harder to manage than Niki planned, she winds up in a battle she cannot win until she looks inside and faces the truth about herself.

Timely and fascinating premise: Endless Wars, greed and toxic pollution have damaged the planet almost beyond recognition. A secret community of survivors lives hidden in the Ark and sends emissaries to restore the Creation and protect their colonies. Sometimes weak in faith, sometimes strong, with interesting failures and foibles, they fight fierce battles such as we all face in the spirit realm. They also face strange powers and physical enemies--wizards and mogs--the transmogrified ones--and mutated plants, animals and people. They fail or prevail with aid of the originals who do their bidding, with the fibers of shroud, and with the help of God and songs of praise.

And with different genders and age groups, they love and fight each other. When one youngster newly arrived from the Ark rebelled against Niki, his sometimes overbearing but noble female superior, he found himself in danger and he sang:

"'Glorious! You are glorious...' Cooper began. 'You know this song, right? Sing with me.'

"The man wasn't singing. No matter. Cooper couldn't stop now because the music filled him, warming him through and through, more sure than this man sitting next to him, more solid than the ground under him.

"'You're the Lord almighty. We sing your praise in all the earth.'

"The man in silver doubled over, clutching his side as if someone had stabbed him. He pushed away from Cooper, fading into the darkness.

"'Don't go!' Cooper tried to follow, but he felt the fingers of his mother stroke the inside of his heart and tell him to keep singing...."

Victoria James has provided their songs.

And Kathryn Mackel has created a series of exciting new page-turners along with this exciting new world.

Kathryn Mackel invites us into a post-modern future where the future of mankind is bleak at best. The land has been ravaged by nuclear war and deadly toxins have made much of Earth uninhabitable. Evil men hold seats of power and they have perverted God's creation through DNA manipulation, a process known as transmogrification. Innocent men, women, and children are continually taken captive and subjected to these horrific tests and experiments. Man has forsaken his Creator, and evil ravishes the land. However, there is hope.

A remnant of believers has built a modern day ark that is hides beneath the polar ice caps. They teach and train their children in the ways of the Lord, with the hope that they can impact the world above. As the children mature they are sent to the surface to live as Outriders and Trackers. Their mission is to scout the land and teach a lost world a message of hope it so desperately needs. Can they make a difference before mankind is truly lost?

This is a wonderful fantasy series that is chocked full of action, suspense, and heart. Mackel gives us a frightening glimpse into the future of mankind that is both original and eye-opening. The story seems to wander a bit at times, but overall the plot development is cohesive and effective. Mackel's strength is in the action sequences which are thrilling and full of excitement. Violence and gore are effectively used to draw readers into the heart of the battles. The heroes of this story are teens and young adults who have nothing to rely on but their training and a deep faith in God. Their faith is inspiring and encouraging as time and time again they trust in God, no matter how difficult the task.

This series is highly recommended for fans of fantasy and science fiction. Much of this material is intense and intended for mature readers, but it is appropriate for older teens. The lessons of strong faith and discipleship found in this series are worthwhile for adults and teenagers alike. (From Christian Library Journal)

Imagine our world thrown back to an age of superstition and base survival, after devastation by fire and war. Imagine genetic manipulation used as a form of sorcery, where humans and animals are transmogrified into gruesome creatures, where giant hornets called hoornars are a stinging threat. Then imagine a hidden group saved for a godly purpose.

You have entered the strange, beautiful, and horrific world of Kathryn Mackel's "Outriders." This is a cautionary tale, a rich allegory, and an adventure-fantasy rolled into one. In the way Tolkien made Middle Earth seem like a precursor to our present world, Mackel shows our world as it might be. There are scenes here that will stay with you for a long time--underwater terrors; spiritual showdowns; and sympathetic monsters. Woven throughout, wisdom and imagination form a resplendent tapestry of deeply wrought storytelling.

Although the book starts with action, it took me a bit to get into due to the layers of characters and world-building. Once those were settled in my mind, I was completely enchanted. Or maybe enchanted is the wrong word. This is a work to be savored and explored for its richness. With unforgettable characters, such as Niki and Jasper and Brady, the tale is rife with conflicts of faith, romance, and purpose, all centered around a strong, Christian worldview.

With "Trackers" coming out soon, the story of the birthrighters is sure to continue in its own unique vein of fantasy that's deep enough for college age and beyond, while still appealing to the questions and gifts of youth.

The first book in Kathryn Mackel's Birthright Project takes the reader on an incredible ride into an extraordinarily imaginative world. The first clue that Mackel's creation is no ordinary Christian novel occurs when we travel with Niki, an outrider, through a frozen land to wait for a whale to break through the ice. The creature delivers husks containing people, or rooks, it transported from a hidden ark.

While Niki struggles to escort the rooks to safety, Brady and other outriders battle the leader of a genetically mutated world, Baron Alrod. The outriders work to restore their birthright-God's original creation. Mackel's futuristic earth is brimming with unique and thought-provoking creations--both humanoid and botanical. Woven subtly throughout the plot is God's great mercy for all creation and His desire for those lost to hear His truth.

Outriders is a science fiction that echoes with fantasy, intrigues with the supernatural, and scares with thoughts of what Earth could become with continued genetic engineering. Mackel definitely thinks outside of the box with her creation of this series.