LIGHTCASTER

There’s no eternal rest for the talented, as a soldier discovers the hard way in Bergeron’s supernatural military thriller.

Navy SEAL Hunter Carmichael always fought for what he felt were the right reasons: to protect his teammates and his country. But that idealism didn’t protect him on his last earthly mission, during which he lost his life—but it turns out that the afterlife also needs fighters. Hunter learns that brother gods D and J have been battling for millennia, conscripting the souls of humans for their armies. Hunter is informed that his talents make him a one-in-a-billion prospect. However, he and the other soldiers in the afterlife don’t have any memories of their lives on Earth. D makes Hunter his right-hand man, in charge of all his military forces. Hunter receives his own special strike force made up of soldiers Verdune, Sierra, and Orto, who serve him well through several campaigns. One of those adventures includes unearthing a community of pacifists who are living underground in an afterlife city to escape nonstop warfare on the surface. After Hunter loses some of his favorite soldiers, he starts to question the war and his role in it. A climactic battle raises the stakes, setting up a sequel as Hunter wrestles with losses and doubts. In his debut novel, Bergeron has created a complex backdrop for a prospective series, although this first installment seems to barely scratch the surface of this fictional universe. Still, Hunter’s mindset will be easy for readers to comprehend; his frustration while struggling to use his existing skill set in a strange, new environment is palpable. Hunter proves to be an admirable protagonist whose sense of morality survives the jarring transition to the afterlife; interestingly, this often proves to be an obstacle, as he has no idea which power players can be trusted. Bergeron also supplies a colorful supporting cast, and late revelations effectively open things up for a sequel.

An intriguing and promising beginning to a complex fantasy series.