Kindle Unlimited
Unlimited reading. Over 4 million titles. Learn more
Read for Free
OR
Kindle Price: $0.99

Promotions apply when you purchase

These promotions will be applied to this item:

Some promotions may be combined; others are not eligible to be combined with other offers. For details, please see the Terms & Conditions associated with these promotions.

Read with our free app
You've subscribed to ! We will preorder your items within 24 hours of when they become available. When new books are released, we'll charge your default payment method for the lowest price available during the pre-order period.
Update your device or payment method, cancel individual pre-orders or your subscription at
Your Memberships & Subscriptions

Buy for others

Give as a gift or purchase for a team or group.
Learn more

Buying and sending eBooks to others

  1. Select quantity
  2. Buy and send eBooks
  3. Recipients can read on any device

These ebooks can only be redeemed by recipients in the US. Redemption links and eBooks cannot be resold.
Kindle app logo image

Download the free Kindle app and start reading Kindle books instantly on your smartphone, tablet, or computer - no Kindle device required.

Read instantly on your browser with Kindle for Web.

Using your mobile phone camera - scan the code below and download the Kindle app.

QR code to download the Kindle App

Follow the author

Warren Hately
Follow
Something went wrong. Please try your request again later.

Zephyr I Kindle Edition

by Warren Hately (Author) Format: Kindle Edition
3.9 3.9 out of 5 stars 186 ratings
See all formats and editions
*** It's the smartass cinematic superhero series that has readers split! *** The place is Atlantic City: a sweeping longitudinal metropolis rebuilt following widespread devastation in 1984. Superhumans are not only real, they’re human. All too human, as Nietzsche would say. Zephyr is a cynical, smart-assed superhero kicking butt in a celebrity-mad alternate universe where Manhattan’s a mutant-infested ruin and the Beatles were a superhero team. “I absolutely loved this book. The author is whip smart and dissects this genre like a surgeon” – Joe Gazzam, author of Uncaged With his daughter getting into the business and his wife showing him the door, it’s easy to wonder if Zephyr’s life might be easier without his ever-growing powers, and supervillains, extradimensional invasions and city-shaking calamities derailing his best efforts at life. If you love Deadpool, Alan Moore’s Watchmen, The Boys or even the Marvel Cinematic Universe, you’ll love Zephyr because it’s a dark, sarcastic, irreverent adventure on a par with the best in the business. Grab it today. *** Editorial reviews “It’s a skilfully-written superhero fantasy resonant with emotion. Expect to feel your soul move as the swaggering narrator bears comic and often poignant witness to the vagaries of a life both bizarre and very like our own” --AA Attanasio, author of the Radix tetrad and The Dragon and the Unicorn series. “The book deconstructs the superhero in the most entertaining, cynical and interesting ways” --Michael Ivan Lowell, The Suns of Liberty series. “There are so many subtle yet brilliant liberties that Hately takes with reality that makes his world pop as a unique, fun, unpredictable sand box in which he hatches super human adventures on par with anything else on the market” – reader Greg McCubbin. “Here is a brutally honest look at a superhero for a mature reader. A darkly humorous look at the strains and excesses of a hero who is past his prime” --reader Keiran Jones. “I strongly recommend this book and can’t wait to read the others in this inventive, entertaining series” --reader Mike Flota. *** Get it now. A book series, not a comic. Zephyr Vol.1-3 also available as a boxed set.
Previous slide of product details
  1. Book 1 of 8
    Zephyr
  2. Print length
    274 pages
  3. Language
    English
  4. Sticky notes
    On Kindle Scribe
  5. Publication date
    January 20, 2014
  6. Reading age
    16 - 18 years
  7. Grade level
    12 and up
  8. File size
    5633 KB
  9. Page Flip
    Enabled
  10. Word Wise
    Enabled
  11. Enhanced typesetting
    Enabled
  12. See all details
Next slide of product details

Shop this series

See full series
This option includes 8 books. See included books
Shop this series
There are 8 books in this series.
Bundle price: Kindle price
$11.79
Bundle price: Kindle price
$23.92
Bundle price: Kindle price
$41.89
By clicking the above button, you agree to the Kindle Store Terms of Use

This option includes 3 books.

This option includes 5 books.

This option includes 8 books.

Something went wrong.
Please try again.
Zephyr Book 1 - Book 8
Bundle price: Kindle price
$11.79
Bundle price: Kindle price
$23.92
Bundle price: Kindle price
$41.89
By clicking the above button, you agree to the Kindle Store Terms of Use

Customers also bought or read

Is this feature helpful?
Page 1 of 1Start overPage 1 of 1
Previous page
  4. Just Stab Me Now
    Kindle Edition
    $4.49
  11. Industrial Strength Magic
    Kindle Edition
    $7.99
  13. Rising Tides (Capes Book 1)
    Kindle Edition
    $7.99
  14. X-Men Masterworks Vol. 1
    Kindle Edition
    $12.99
  15. Super Powereds: Year 1
    Kindle Edition
    $4.99
  20. Spawn #1
    Kindle Edition
    $0.00
Next page
Loading...

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B00C3C4OZU
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ (January 20, 2014)
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ January 20, 2014
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 5633 KB
  • Simultaneous device usage ‏ : ‎ Unlimited
  • Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 274 pages
  • Page numbers source ISBN ‏ : ‎ 1493588389
  • Customer Reviews:
    3.9 3.9 out of 5 stars 186 ratings

About the author

Follow authors to get new release updates, plus improved recommendations.
Warren Hately

Warren Hately

Customer reviews

3.9 out of 5 stars
186 global ratings

Customers say

Customers find the book enjoyable, entertaining, and excellent. They describe the story as interesting, skillfully written, and resonant with emotion. Readers praise the writing style as well-written, with facial expressions more expressive than words. They appreciate the superb pacing and gritty execution. Customers also love the humor and mention that the book has a darkly humorous slant.

AI-generated from the text of customer reviews

Select to learn more
EnjoymentReadabilityWriting stylePacingHumor
22 customers mention "Enjoyment"22 positive0 negative

Customers find the book entertaining, amazing, and excellent. They describe it as an excellent read with detailed action scenes. Readers also mention it's a nonstop thrill ride.

"...the 'hero', or if you just want a well written, superbly paced, action packed, super-powered adventure, I wholeheartedly recommend not only this book..." Read more

"I like this series - it's pretty gripping and engaging, and one of the web serials (along with Legion of Nothing) that has made me wish there were a..." Read more

"...The book deconstructs the superhero in the most entertaining, cynical and interesting ways...." Read more

"...Overall a really great intro novel to the world of Zephyr." Read more

22 customers mention "Readability"22 positive0 negative

Customers find the book interesting, enjoyable, and skillfully written. They say it's a fast-paced story with interesting characters. Readers also mention the book is an impressive fantasy and a superior take on superheroes. They also find the backstory intriguing and the world complex but understandable.

"...you just want a well written, superbly paced, action packed, super-powered adventure, I wholeheartedly recommend not only this book, but the entire..." Read more

"...This seems appropriate to the superhero genre. For the most part, I expect people to either love or hate this series - I like it." Read more

"...deconstruction of the superhero myth, there is also a fast-paced, exciting story that will please any superhero fan...." Read more

"...in a different but recognizable alternate universe makes for an enjoyable story that has me very interested in the sequel." Read more

18 customers mention "Writing style"15 positive3 negative

Customers find the writing style very well-written, with facial expressions more expressive than words. They also appreciate the intrigue of the characterisation and the complex but understandable world.

"...does balance the 'anti' and the 'hero', or if you just want a well written, superbly paced, action packed, super-powered adventure, I wholeheartedly..." Read more

"This is a great read and Mr. Hately is a wonderful writer...." Read more

"...colourful characters come to life in vivid detail, facial expressions more expressive than words, action sequences spanning across the panels with..." Read more

"...The rest of the universe fleshes out nicely around him, and the writing is sharp, the events of the book are somewhat depressing on the surface,..." Read more

8 customers mention "Pacing"8 positive0 negative

Customers find the book superbly paced, action-packed, and gritty. They say it's gritty and unique. Readers also mention the book adds more layers of real life to a world with superpowered heroes and villains. They also mention it'll add more layers to realism.

"...the 'anti' and the 'hero', or if you just want a well written, superbly paced, action packed, super-powered adventure, I wholeheartedly recommend..." Read more

"...It is gritty. Zephyr is a conflicted character who has lots of issues and mostly copes with them by trying not to think about them very much...." Read more

"...Not only is our hero, Zephyr, super strong, super-fast and able to fire lightning bolts at you, he is also just a regular schmoe...." Read more

"...Many superhero tropes — but an absolutely insane pace, and fight scenes that mentally knock you on your ass (that make sense?)...." Read more

6 customers mention "Humor"6 positive0 negative

Customers find the humor in the book darkly humorous. They also appreciate the author's comedic ability and mention the book is a superhero romp.

"...his escapades, a credit to the author's comedic ability and darkly humorous slant in this novel...." Read more

"...I loved the humor and the mentions of several well known celebrities. I found myself smiling often and I even lol'd a few times when reading this...." Read more

"A refreshing spin on superheroes lives and the world they live in.Very funny,and I love the use of real actors and personalities.Well done!" Read more

"...It's a nonstop thrill ride. Action, comedy, it has it all. If you need a good read, this is the book to read." Read more

Top reviews from the United States

Keiran Jones
5.0 out of 5 stars Fantastic start to a fantastic series
Reviewed in the United States on July 21, 2015
Verified Purchase
Huge fan of this series, and the author's other works. I stumbled across this title when I was going through a 'superhero' reading phase. I'd read a lot of vaguely appropriate superhero novels and was feeling a bit jaded of the endlessly similar origin stories, forming of super groups, love triangles, the common tropes that pepper almost all the superhero fiction here. It reminded me of the old saturday morning cartoons of the Fantastic Four, when they were given a robot sidekick to make everything kid friendly. When Superman had a Superdog companion. Sigh.

And then I started to read Zephyr. Here is a brutally honest look at a superhero for a mature reader. A darkly humorous look at the strains and excesses of a hero who is past his prime. A massively flawed individual who often uses his powers to simply escape responsibilities and obligations in his life. Someone who uses his standing in society to revel in sordid excesses. The novel is also a tale of the hero's attempts to restructure his life, to reorient his priorities in life and accept his role in his family and in the larger society around him.

Zephyr is an excellent read, full of action scenes that are detailed enough to feel real, while depicting the reality breaking super-powered characters and fights. The pacing is perfect, really pushing into the 'can't put it down, just one more chapter' category. I often found myself laughing alternately at and with the protagonist through his escapades, a credit to the author's comedic ability and darkly humorous slant in this novel. Most impressive to me was the humanity given to such a fully fleshed anti-hero, the scenes that wrought sympathy for him and the problems he faced, followed by scenes that showed the protagonist's frustrating immaturity or general incompetence in a way that was almost embarrassing to read,

So if you are tired of repetitive good guy super heroes, if you are looking for a more nuanced superhero, if you want an anti-hero that really does balance the 'anti' and the 'hero', or if you just want a well written, superbly paced, action packed, super-powered adventure, I wholeheartedly recommend not only this book, but the entire (and ongoing) Zephyr series. I bought them all, I'm sure you will too.

If you do enjoy this book as much as I did, I also suggest reading the Blackjack series by Ben Bequer, They Tell Me I'm The Bad Guy by R. D. Harless, and the How To Succeed In Evil series by Patrick E McLean.
2 people found this helpful
Helpful
 Report
T. J. McIntee
4.0 out of 5 stars You'll love it or you'll hate it.
Reviewed in the United States on December 10, 2014
Verified Purchase
I like this series - it's pretty gripping and engaging, and one of the web serials (along with Legion of Nothing) that has made me wish there were a greater quantity of superhero novels out there. I'm not really much for graphic novels or comic books, and the superhero genre has generally been of limited interest to me.

It is gritty. Zephyr is a conflicted character who has lots of issues and mostly copes with them by trying not to think about them very much. The narrative style is highly informal. I find this charming; others might not. Zephyr is the sort of superhero who ends up on all the wrong pages of tabloid magazines, and doesn't really know how to manage money or his own life.

The spelling will strike some readers as odd, as it is generally British convention; I've seen others complain about this. There are perhaps two mis-spelled words that I've noticed over the whole series - Exocet and fugue (resp. rendered "Exorcet" and "fug.") "Fug" is actually a Britishism for a thick and fetid atmosphere (which could describe a mental fugue metaphorically), so that might only be one, and I don't really know if I should expect the character of Zephyr to actually know how Exocet is spelled.

Some of the pacing - and the choice of volume breaks for the books - may seem a little odd, because the material was originally released as a web serial. This seems appropriate to the superhero genre. For the most part, I expect people to either love or hate this series - I like it.
Helpful
 Report
M. Flota
5.0 out of 5 stars Fast Paced Deconstruction of the Superhero!
Reviewed in the United States on August 27, 2013
Verified Purchase
This is a great read and Mr. Hately is a wonderful writer. The book deconstructs the superhero in the most entertaining, cynical and interesting ways. Not only is our hero, Zephyr, super strong, super-fast and able to fire lightning bolts at you, he is also just a regular schmoe. He has all the same problems as you and me and it's fun to watch how he has to try and use his superpowers, and the fame that comes along with them, as a way to get by and make some money out of the whole deal--all the while fighting evil. He's got a wife and kids and the daily stresses and joys that come along with that. If superheroes really existed, this is probably what they would really be like.

He's out to form a super team to fight evil---because super villains exist in this world as well---but also to cash in the on good PR that a team will bring! And does anyone seriously doubt that this isn't what would really happen? But midst all the deconstruction of the superhero myth, there is also a fast-paced, exciting story that will please any superhero fan. I strongly recommend this book and can't wait to read the others in this inventive, entertaining series.
3 people found this helpful
Helpful
 Report

Top reviews from other countries

Neil Stenton
5.0 out of 5 stars When I grow up I want to be Zephyr
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on August 18, 2014
Verified Purchase
I came to this book with little in the way of knowing what it was about. I've corresponded with the author on social media and, for the price, took the plunge and bought it to fill my kindle up.

Glad I did too. In a world not unlike our own, but one where superheroes and supervillians live amongst us and try to survive the constant media circus and one upmanship, Zephyr has his own struggles - of the family variety. It reminded me of Alan Moore's 'Watchmen' to a point but with hints of noir about it, wise cracking one liners, great action sequences and twisting plot.

There's a couple of surprises along the way and the odd minor, and major, celebrity pops up from time to time.

The good news is this is the first of a series, so the story carries on.

Try it if you like your superheros all grown up, and with grown up problems.
One person found this helpful
 Report
DvE
4.0 out of 5 stars Worth it once it gets going
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on November 3, 2018
Verified Purchase
Worth persisting as once you get that this superhero universe nothing like any other the story is a gripping read.
Report
Denny
3.0 out of 5 stars Massively let down by heavy-handed homophobia
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on May 29, 2014
Verified Purchase
I really enjoyed this series, apart from one thing. The author has decided to just ram in paragraphs of raging homophobia at regular intervals. It doesn't advance the plot, it doesn't go anywhere, it's just ... there. It's cringe-inducing, totally unnecessary, and fairly horrible in its intensity sometimes, and for me it took this series down from an easy 5 star rating to barely scraping 3 stars.
18 people found this helpful
 Report
Mr. D. M. Ewin
5.0 out of 5 stars SUPER COOL!!!!
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on May 3, 2016
Verified Purchase
If you're after a change from the usual "Superhero" gumpf.....this is the book for you. It's a witty look at the life of an average Superhero who not only has to deal with supervillians but also hanging out with his super chums at the hottest night clubs being treated like some sort of rock star. The writing is fluid and draws you in to his world of superheros that arent your usual square jawed boyscouts such as Captain America or Superman....these characters are flawed and all too human, brilliantly Witty and wry.
Report
Kindle Customer
1.0 out of 5 stars One Star
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on June 29, 2016
Verified Purchase
I really, really can't stand anything written in present tense.
3 people found this helpful
 Report

Report an issue


Does this item contain inappropriate content?
Report
Do you believe that this item violates a copyright?
Report
Does this item contain quality or formatting issues?
Report