Sunday 2 September 2012

Control Point

Control Point by Myke Cole is an interesting fantasy spin of a military adventure story. Oscar Britton, the main character is a lieutenant in the US Army who develops a prohibited magical ability - to open gates between any two points and goes on the run. He gets captured and is sent to a 'black ops' place where he is forced to join the army as a civilian contractor and learn to control his ability to become a weapon.

Some interesting questions are raised. Is it right to force people to join the military is they have a special ability? Is it right to persecute people because they have an ability that is not on an list of acceptable abilities? Should society have some controls built into to protect society from those with powerful abilities? In these contexts it reminds me a bit of Amped (expect the military bit).

The book is a fast paced adventure story with a fantasy twist. I think the book has a wide appeal. If you like fantasy stories set in the modern world; or military adventures of government agencies fighting secret/illegal wars; or stories about 'mutant' abilities appearing in a modern context this book might be for you.