Finding His Feet

***A copy of this book was provided by the publisher to Bayou Book Junkie in exchange for a fair and honest review***

Kaden Pace was injured while on a mission and now in an attempt to hide his still damaged body and psyche he refuses to remove his armor, something that hasn't gone unnoticed. When he gets a new assignment to escort two cadets, Bradley and Wayland, he's surprised. He had thought he'd be escorting twin boys in order to take possession of the armor of a fallen soldier, now he finds out he will be escorting two sisters, their father a high ranking government official. This is only the first of things that don't go the way they planned.

On the train they meet Shun when he rushes into their carriage at the last minute. Shun is different, something Kaden notices right away. Unlike most young men his age, he had no desire to be in the Army, instead wishing the war to be over and the fighting to stop. However, after an attempt to raid the train, Shun seems to show more and more interest in their mission and information on the workings of their armor. Not suspecting anything amiss, the three reveal information about their armor, before Shun gets off at his stop.

When Kaden and the Cadets arrive at the camp they are informed the armor they were sent to retrieve has been stolen. It doesn't take much before Kaden finds out it was stolen by Shun. The three then set off to track Shun down and recover the armor. If only this was an easy task.

Led through an abandoned town they all face unexpected trouble and in turn have to team up. While it may be hard for Shun to trust the Warriors and in turn for them to trust him, they need one another. Kaden will have to lean on Shun and Bradley, something he is not used to doing. With their armor now in enemy hands they'll all have to trust and rely on each other, even when everything seems to be against them.

What I Loved: Author Sandra Bard did an excellent job of creating the backdrop of this story, between the many small details to the building of the characters and the imagination that is required to approach a story like this.

What I Liked: The idea that even in the most unlikely places and or circumstances people can come together, in friendship, love, necessity to fight to survive. That even a damaged soul can find a way to step out of the dark and into the light.

What I did not like: I'm pretty sure I never want to read another book about armor, or mentioning armor. Out of 5000 locations, the word armor was used almost 1000 times, yet after reading a book that is focused on armor, I still don't really even understand it *sighs*. This is why I generally avoid Sci Fi/Fantasy themes, I always feel like I'm lost. I was not sure whether this was Science fiction, fantasy, post apocalyptic or maybe all three?

I want to be sure to say, that while I did not truly love this book, that in no way means that fans of this genre won't enjoy it. If you're into Apocalyptic, SciFi and Fantasy I'm sure you'll appreciate Finding His Feet. Sandra Bard is definitely a very talented author with an incredible talent to create such detailed worlds and characters and I definitely commend her for that.

3.5 Stars!

4 1/2 - 5 Hearts Reviewed by Pixie

Kaden was orphaned by war, joining the army was for the security of three meals a day, as rumors fly that the Army was going to send anyone who was not ready to join the armored unit back to the orphanages for another three years has Kaden trying out for the armored unit. Injured while on a mission Kaden is now desperate to prove that he is still an asset before anyone realizes the extent of his injuries. Sent on a simple mission to oversee two cadets (Wayland and Bradley) retrieving the armor of a dead warrior, things begin to go wrong.

Shun has one mission in mind, destroy the armor of the man who hurt his mother. Meeting up with three armored warriors gives Shun the perfect opportunity to exact his revenge… but things go drastically wrong when he confides in a friend.

Kaden is a fantastic character; he has a strength of will that just jumps off the page. Shun is a little harder to get a grip on as a character as the story is from Kaden’s perspective, but he seems to be a great man who is a little naïve and a little too trusting with those he calls friends.

Their relationship gets off to a rocky start… what with Shun nicking the armor that Kaden was trying to retrieve! But they quickly start to semi trust each other when they have to work together to get it back from the man who stole all the armor units when Shun is betrayed. Their trust builds quickly though and their physical reaction to each other helps a lot with that, and their relationship does move quickly although it isn’t an easy one.

Wayland and Bradley (the cadets) also play a large part in this story; they have their own problems with each other due to sibling rivalry, both girls trying to prove themselves so it’s gets a little sticky at times as their resentment spills over.

The storyline is amazing, we have fantastic armor that is so much more than any of them realize, then we have the danger that seems to lurk everywhere, there’s loads of action as they try to get the armor back and then we also have a huge great doozy of a surprise that just comes out of nowhere and leaves you gobsmacked as the ramifications hit you.

This is a well-crafted story that shows us the strengths of the characters as well as their weaknesses, it shows a love that begins to blossom in really hard times, it throws you into settings that come alive around you and it reveals treachery from unexpected quarters.

I recommend this story to those who love science fiction that is laced with mystery and suspense, who adore characters who will overcome any obstacles to prove their worth, who love difficult love stories, and an ending that is just the beginning.