7th Son: Descent

(Author)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Hutchins's debut SF thriller, the first in a trilogy, has the unusual distinction of starting life as a popular podcast. The fast pace set from the beginning serves the story well in audio or print, especially considering that most of the characters are clones of the same man. They're sent to find their Alpha after he rigs a proxy assassination of the president of the United States through stolen government technology capable of unleashing chaos everywhere. Hutchins successfully fleshes out each clone as a separate personality, from happy everyman John Smith to the priest who fears that, as a clone, he has no soul. Though there's not a lot for the hard SF crowd, thriller readers seeking edge-of-your-seat action flavored with conspiracy and futuristic tech will love every page. (Nov.)
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Review

"Hutchins is the real deal -- 7th Son's opening XX pages hammer you with literary shock and awe. Effortlessly blending hard research with a staggering imagination, his high-tech nightmares leap off the page and lodge in your brain like a literary headshot. Raw, brilliant and detailed."  - Scott Sigler, author of Infected

“J. C. Hutchins takes the science thriller and pumps it full of rocket fuel in 7th Son: Descent.  It has weird science, convoluted conspiracies, plenty of action, and a very creepy premise that will leave you paranoid and shaken."

---Jonathan Maberry, multiple Bram Stoker Award--winning author of The Dragon Factory and Patient Zero 

“7th Son is breakneck storytelling at its absolute best. Characters---dark, duplicitous, and fascinating---stalk through a rich techscape that’s so real, so plausible, that it compels and haunts. The book is relentless in its pace, brilliant in its execution, and just so damned entertaining.”
 

---Patrick Lussier, director of White Noise 2, Dracula 2000, and film editor of Red Eye

(part of the Scream trilogy)

 

“Not only does J. C. Hutchins put together a great story with 7th Son, he’s successfully cracked the code of building a loyal following.”

---Michael A. Stackpole, New York Times bestselling author

 

 

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Product Details

• Paperback: 368 pages
• Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin; Original edition (October 27, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0312384378
• ISBN-13: 978-0312384371
• Product Dimensions: 8.1 x 5.5 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (48 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #225,405 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Tremendously Fun Action Read, September 28, 2009

By	mychelona (USA) - See all my reviews

(What's this?)

I'm not normally a reader of science fiction, but that's okay, because 7th Son is far more of a thriller in the vein of Michael Crichton or Dan Brown. Seven men are kidnapped and brought to a secret government facility, where they discover that they are actually clones, part of a project dealing with human cloning and memory recording. They have been brought back together to defeat the man they were cloned from, who is bent on revenge against the program that made him - I thought this was an interesting twist and added some depth to the villain.

Two days before I read this, I had read The Lost Symbol, the new Dan Brown, and they have some similarities - an interest in codes and symbols, in the cross between science and faith, but, frankly, I enjoyed this much more. The writing is far better than Brown's clumsy prose, and the action is tight. It manages to bring up some really interesting issues about human cloning and nature versus nurture and the soul, but mostly it's just a fun, fast-paced read. I knocked it out in a few hours by the pool.

Warning - this is apparently the first book in a trilogy. As I neared the end, I kept wondering how the author was going to wrap it all up, and it doesn't get wrapped up - it's more like the end of a first act in a movie, but it does really open the door. I'm looking forward to the next book.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great concept, great execution, October 9, 2009

By	Blake Petit "Novelist, Comixtreme.com columni... (Ama, Louisiana United States) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

(What's this?)

I'm pretty familiar with J.C. Hutchins' work -- I've listened to his podcast fiction for some time, and I've been very eager to see how it would translate to the printed page. I wasn't disappointed at all.

In the wake of a presidential assassination, seven men named John Michael Smith are abducted from around the country, brought together at a secret complex, and told the truth about their lives. They're part of an enormous experiment, one that has shaped every moment of their lives, and one that makes them the only people capable of hunting down the assassin before he does something even worse.

Hutchins has done some really impressive work here. He comes up with not just one, but several intriguing concepts that could each support a story of their own -- the 7th Son project, NEPTH-Charge, the Mem/RI and so on -- and combines them all into a tense, powerfully charged thriller. The John Smiths, although obviously having a common origin, are each different, unique individuals with their own personal story arcs that make them more than placeholders in the story. The puzzles and challenges they face are tailored for these characters, and the cliffhanger sets things up very nicely for the next two installments of the trilogy. That's the other thing -- this is the first book of three, but unlike so many trilogies, you don't feel like this was padded to stretch it out. There's plenty enough going on here to sustain the story across three volumes.

You don't often see a really original twist on the thriller, but Hutchins has brought something new to the table. Fans of thrillers and contemporary sci-fi would do well to check this one out.

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Pure awesome!, October 6, 2009

By	Ivy Reisner (Brooklyn, NY USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

(What's this?)

If you missed the podcast phenomenon you can find it at http://jchutchins.net. If you favor audio books to print books, I have to suggest listening to the podcast. For one thing, it's free. For another, the author has an amazing voice. You'll love it.

If you prefer your books in print, not audio, you're going to want to pick this up. The book starts with a presidential assassination and keeps building from there. It's one of the best rides in print out there. It's exciting. It's fun. It's compelling. It drags you through to the end, not letting you put it down for a moment. Easily the best book of the year.