The First Ten Focus Group Feedback for The Noble Mercenary: The Fellowship of the Ancient Covenant
Because The Noble Mercenary was Book of the Day, some of our most trusted members have carefully looked over the cover, the description, and other aspects of this book as a part of purchase-intent focus group. We then asked each participant in the focus group if they planned to buy and read the book, and why they planned to buy and read the book or not. Their answer to that question and reasons are displayed below. We call this awesome feature The First Ten Focus Group.
Keep in mind, the responses from the members are not reviews. This is purchase-intent focus group which means the participants are people who have NOT yet bought or read your book. A purchase-intent focus group is an important and extremely useful marketing tool for any product, not just books. For other products, you might walk on the street and show people an item in a package and poll them about whether they would buy if or $X or not. These kind of focus groups are one of the ways big marketing companies find the ideal price points for products and test the effectiveness of different packaging. The focus group can help you identify your market so you how to target ads of your book, and it can (but may not) provide you new useful info about your "packaging" (e.g. your book cover, your book synopsis on Amazon, etc.). The point of the focus group comments is to give you information from people who have not bought or read your book about why they plan to buy your book which will help you in marketing the book. These are not reviews or critiques of your book because they are not from people have read the book. This is a marketing tool, not reviews. The trick of book marketing and book advertising is that you have to convince people who have not read your book yet that your book is worth buying and reading. For marketing, it doesn't matter much if people love your book after reading it if you cannot convince potential buyers before they read it that they will love it.
IMPORTANT: Any score over 10% is considered very good. And any score above 0% is acceptable. This is because we only poll about 20 or so readers, and all readers have to say "no" to almost all books. Over a million books are published each year. Even a very active reader cannot come close to even reading 1% of books out there.
This is also why publishing books is such a tough industry.
Vickie Noel
I must confess, I probably wouldn't have bothered with this book outside the program; I'm not one for epic battles and sword fights. I do, however, like the play on words in the title, the oxymoron feature it possesses. Yet, I was beginning to get bored somewhat before the scene of the Alexius' hearing propped up. I liked the way he handled the case and also how Ian became friends with the muslims who eventually assisted them when the Germans attacked. I thought it was funny when Alexius said, "Leave me now, as my royal bowels have been discomforted by this sordid business.” I couldn't find any error whatsoever; the book's professionally edited. I'd seen an OBC review, but it's the prospect of learning new speech expressions that prompts me to read further.
First Ten review added on February 11, 2019, at 4:08 am by Vickie Noel.
Do you plan to read the whole book? Yes!
briellejee
Based on the cover and title, I think I would have sampled the book. Both aspects are interesting and caught my attention. Seeing the two-faced cover, I immediately wanted to know what the story is about. As for the first ten pages, I find the prologue a bit tedious to read because of the names of the fighter jets and the technicality of it all. n the first chapter, I couldn't help but notice that the timeline shifted drastically. From 1943 to 1101A.D., one person could tell that Ian and Jacques should have already been dead, and not piloting aircraft to kill Germans. Any reader's interest and curiosity would have been piqued with that kind of mystery. I liked the setting where Jacques and Ian are knights more than pilots. However, the author's writing style confuses me a lot. It seems like there is too much happening in one place. This sounds like a good book and story though. But I think the way it is written makes me lose my attention easily. With that said, I think I will not read the rest of the book. I found no noticeable errors and the official OBC review seems persuasive enough to call on readers to sample this.
First Ten review added on February 11, 2019, at 3:09 am by briellejee.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No
Bianka Walter
This is not a book I would have sampled without the first ten program. I am not a big fan of historical fiction. The opening of this book is a fighter jet sequence set in WWII. I found the prologue to be a bit boring. I don't really enjoy drawn-out fight scenes, especially those in jets where I don't really follow the flight lingo. In the first chapter, the book jumps back to 1101AD with the same characters, which I didn't really understand, but after reading the OBC review and the Amazon blurb, it made more sense to me. This book seems to be well edited; I found no errors. I will not be reading this book further. Aside from the fact that I was not drawn in after the first ten pages, I don't like to read books in the series before I've read the first.
First Ten review added on February 11, 2019, at 1:34 am by Bianka Walter.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No
Mercelle
Judging by the cover, I wasn't going to read this book, but the OBC review urged me on when it mentioned that the author narrates the story of three immortals. When I read the first ten pages, I liked that Jacque wouldn't let Ian check out the men lying on the roadside by himself, because it could be a trap. The text needs a round of editing because I noticed one error, wrongfully capitalized words, on loc 117. That is the only thing I would change about the bit I read. I will, however, not read the rest of the book because it doesn't appeal to me.
First Ten review added on February 11, 2019, at 1:33 am by Mercelle.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No
MsTri
I was very attracted to both the cover and title for this book. Then I read the Amazon synopsis and OBC review (the only one I read) and found myself on the edge, unable to make up my mind. I'm not too keen on the romantic aspects, but I do love tales of (semi)immortals. Also, I never read stories out of order. Insofar as the sample, I was glad that I didn't notice any grammatical errors, indicating that the entire book is likely professionally edited. I also liked the part where Ian tended to Ishmael's fathers wounds. I have no suggestions for changes because the book is written quite well already, and having read the sample, I am now closer thinking that I WILL read this tome.
First Ten review added on February 11, 2019, at 1:14 am by MsTri.
Do you plan to read the whole book? Yes!
Fu Zaila
The cover is great. The sample was written well and edited professionally. I liked how the book is action-packed right from the beginning. It is an adrenaline ride throughout, which I loved. I did not like the too technical details of the air fight. And it seemed like an overstatement that Jacques's experience was totally enough to destroy fighter planes without propellers. I won't be reading the book since I'm not interested in military or aircraft fights.
First Ten review added on February 10, 2019, at 10:01 pm by Fu Zaila.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No
Heidi M Simone
Without this program, I would not have sampled this book. The cover looks a little too aggressive for my taste, and the title and blurb aren't ones that pique my interest. The genre does not affect my opinion of the book since the premise isn't one that I would read. Looking at the customer and OBC ratings do not sway my opinion of the book one way or the other. I didn't see any glaring errors while reading. There seems to be quite a bit of action as the pilots are flying over Germany in 1943. On the other hand, in the Prologue, the talk of Jacques and Ian being pilots, their missions, and general war talk do not interest me. Jumping into 1101 AD, in Constantinople, could have been an interesting twist, but I'm afraid as I am not connecting with any of the characters, I do not feel a pull into reading about their journeys into either their past or their present storylines. Due to not having read the first in the series and not feeling any connection with any of the characters, I do not plan on reading the rest of the book.
First Ten review added on February 10, 2019, at 9:31 pm by Heidi M Simone.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No
Chelsy Scherba
I like the immortal aspect of the characters. It’s very interesting to imagine Jacques and the other characters as 900 year old beings sworn to help any who need them. It was intriguing to see them flying fighter jets in World War Two one minute, and the next, escorting German prisoners to Constantinople and helping an injured Arab and his son. The editing looks very professional without errors. I like the subtitle on the book cover about a secret covenant, which is very intriguing. The man’s face illustrates the jump in time periods well also. The review was positive and gave interesting details about the plot and characters. I was excited to read this book, but would rather read the first novel before this one since these books are part of a series. I will add this book to my list and read the free copy I received after enjoying the first book.
First Ten review added on February 10, 2019, at 6:59 pm by Chelsy Scherba.
Do you plan to read the whole book? Yes!
CataclysmicKnight
I'll admit that somehow I missed the intention of the cover of this book. I assumed it was some weird cyberpunk fad where only one eye had a mask over it, which was intriguing in its own right since I enjoy cyberpunk. Even with my confusion I almost definitely would've looked into this book even if it wasn't the book of the day.
I was a bit bored at first with the book, as the author kept mentioning different plane types and the differences between them. But then the action kicked off, and I quickly started to enjoy it. The air battle was rather cool, but what I really loved was when the prologue ended and the first chapter jumped to 1101 AD. I'm also intrigued by how the two times will be linked. The writing was smooth, but I did find a single error - "Jacques adversary spun" should use "Jacques'" or "Jacques's".
I probably wouldn't have bought the book if it wasn't free since I have such a huge TBR list, but I'm definitely interested in the book and want to read more of it.
First Ten review added on February 10, 2019, at 5:58 pm by CataclysmicKnight.
Do you plan to read the whole book? Yes!
Alice Heritage
While I am quite interested in the subject of mercenaries, I wouldn't have sampled this book on my own as I don't normally read fiction about World War II. As the sample was about pilots and fighter jets, I won't read the rest of the book as I don't normally like to read about those subjects. The editing seemed generally good, although I noticed the error "Nazi's efforts" - this should most likely have read "Nazis'". I liked becoming more familiar with the military origins of terms like "flak" and "wingmen", and even "full throttle". Also, as I have seen a barrel roll at an air show, it was interesting to see that in action, as it were. I don't think anything about the book needs to be improved for those who like second world war stories. I didn't check out the OnlineBookClub review as I already knew this wouldn't be my cup of tea.
First Ten review added on February 10, 2019, at 3:19 pm by Alice Heritage.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No
Yoli García
Even though I love historical fiction novels, I would not have sampled this book without this program. The title of the book does not appeal to me. The OBC review did not convince me to read the book. I was not into the concept of semi-immortal beings taking care of people through the ages. The book seems professionally edited. The scenes in which Jacques attacks Nazi planes and defends his wingmen were a bit interesting. I did not like that the storyline jumped from the Nazi period in 1943 to Constantinople in 1101 AD. I will not read the book because I am not into its premise and timeline.
First Ten review added on February 10, 2019, at 11:22 am by Yoli García.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No
Annelore Trujillo
I would not have sampled this book based on the genre, blurb, OBC review, cover and title. I only occasionally read non-fiction books, and this book about immortals didn't seem like something that would interest me. After reading the first ten pages, I won't be finishing this book. There was a lot of battle action, but this isn't for me. The book opened with a fighter jet war scene in which they were trying to shoot down enemy planes. This type of story doesn't interest me. The book did seem to be professionally edited, and I liked the style of writing.
First Ten review added on February 10, 2019, at 10:00 am by Annelore Trujillo.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No
Kareka88
I like the cover, and the title makes it seem like it would be an exciting book to read. However, I started reading and bogged down with all the technical aviation terms and numbers. I began to enjoy the storyline a bit better in the first chapter. I liked the exchange between Ishmael and Ian when Ian helped Ishmael by tending to his father's injuries. My favorite quote was when Ishmael says, "Camels do not fly. You are the most unusual knights." Even though I enjoyed the interaction between Ian and Ishmael, I will not finish this book. I had a hard time following the story, and the character's personalities weren't developed enough for me to relate to them. I felt dumped right in the middle with no introduction. I read a review on OnlineBookClub, and the reviewer described the book in such a way that I was better able to understand the premise. Possibly if I had read the first book, I could better appreciate this one. I will say that it seemed well edited and I did not notice any grammatical errors in the sample.
First Ten review added on February 10, 2019, at 9:42 am by Kareka88.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No
Samantha Simoneau
Love the cover image and the title. I also love the short, to-the-point blurb and the fact that, apparently, you follow two stories at once (taking place in different time periods). I'm guessing these people are immortal somehow, which is instantly interesting to me. This felt familiar, and then I realized that I have read the sample for the first installment in this series. The reviews are gushing, but there's only two, so I wouldn't really pay attention to them. On to the sample. "1600 horsepower" should be hyphenated because it precedes and describes "engine." There should be a comma between "England" and "to." "Blue Nosed" should be hyphenated, and there should be a comma between "blue" and "pointed." "109's" should not have an apostrophe, especially since "190s" doesn't on the same page. There should be a comma between "scrutiny" and "he." There should be a comma between "Yeager" and "had." There should be a comma between "jets" and "and," as well as between "stick" and "and," and between "apogee" and "he." There should be a comma between "roll" and "and." "Right hand" should be hyphenated because it precedes and describes "Me-262." There should be a comma after "Take that." I believe "over rotate" and "over rotation" should be hyphenated. "Four bladed" should be hyphenated. There should be a comma between "advantage" and "the." There should be a comma between "turn" and "maintaining." There should be a comma between "guns" and "Jacque." There should be a comma between "adversary" and "ripping." "Do you read," should end in a question mark, not a period. There should not be a comma between "hit" and "am." There should be a comma between "forward" and "firing." "Five plane" should be hyphenated because it precedes and describes "force." There should be a comma between "rudder" and "and." There should be a comma after "Our thanks to you." "180 degree" should be hyphenated. There should not be a comma between "wingmen" and "and." Okay, this book needs more proofreading and editing. These errors are listed in the order I came across them, but I didn't include more complex ones, such as when a sentence changed tense in the middle or there was passive voice misuse. The dogfight scene was easy to imagine and exciting, and I became very interested in Jacque as a character and wanted to know his backstory, but I'm not going to download this book today even if it is free right now. I simply won't finish it because I will find the errors distracting and bothersome. I think this book has a great premise, and I would definitely read it if it was more free of errors.
First Ten review added on February 10, 2019, at 9:37 am by Samantha Simoneau.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No
sarahmarlowe
The cover design is beautiful! It certainly would have captured my attention. The illustration is professionally done, and the title design is very clean. When I read the opening of this book, you had me at P-51 Mustang. Then, when you threw in the B-17 and the ME-262, I knew this was probably going to be a book for me. As I continued to read, I found that the dialogue is natural, the characters are interesting, and the text is well-edited. I enjoyed reading about Jaques and Ian in the medieval setting, and I can’t wait to read more! I will definitely be reading this book. I have not read an OBC a review.
First Ten review added on February 10, 2019, at 9:14 am by sarahmarlowe.
Do you plan to read the whole book? Yes!
micoleon13
This is a great cover page which got my attention immediately. I was interested in finding out more about the book. The OnlineBookClub review was very complementary and outlined a story that I would be interested in. I found the fact that the semi-immortal beings are termed "millennials" amusing. I was looking forward to reading it. The pages which I read were well written and edited and I was drawn into the airfight with Jaques as he protected the bombers. With the large jump back in time from 1940s to 1101AD, I was curious as to where the story was going to go next. I would like to continue reading this book and I have no ideas for improvement.
First Ten review added on February 10, 2019, at 7:21 am by micoleon13.
Do you plan to read the whole book? Yes!
Sonya Nicolaidis
The cover page of this book is certainly intriguing, and prompted a closer look. It was clear that this book relates to a medieval time period from the title and subtitle, but the airman’s mask is a little confusing. The reviews speak of immortals who travel through time, providing some hints as to the story, and also indicate a stimulating read. I was interested from the outset, but am a bit reluctant to read books that form part of a series. I wasn’t too interested in the start of the book: any kind of conflict can be laborious in the retelling, rather than drawing the reader in, and this air battle seems to be isolated and unrelated to anything else in the first ten pages. However, the story improved drastically thereafter, and I was quite captivated. Ian and his companions’ experiences in Constantinople are described well, and the story develops interestingly. Their encounter with the Arabic tribesmen rounds out the story nicely, promising further excitement in future pages. I think this book has been carefully edited as I noticed no errors in the sample. What I really appreciated most is how, through careful language and descriptions, the author is able to immerse his readers in that time period and make them feel part of the story. The author is a gifted storyteller, and I would have liked to read on further. I would read this whole book without hesitation, providing this book can stand on its own merit and make sense without the others in the series. The whole idea of immortality spanning many historical epochs is very appealing to me, as I’m sure it is to many readers of historical fiction.
First Ten review added on February 10, 2019, at 4:12 am by Sonya Nicolaidis.
Do you plan to read the whole book? Yes!
Cristina Chifane
Since both the title and cover are eye-catching, I would have probably sampled the book even without the first ten program. This is book two in the series, so I would have to read book one if I decided to read it. There are no editorial reviews and only two customer reviews. For me, the descriptions of the battle scenes in the prologue were too long and boring. Similarly, the dialogues seemed unrealistic. In Chapter One, I enjoyed the description of Constantinopole, but it was too brief. Otherwise, Ian and Jacques' journey and their meeting with the Muslim boy and father didn't manage to hold my attention. Once again, many of the lines in the dialogues were redundant and inauthentic. Although there were no visible editing errors, I wasn't impressed by the author's writing style to continue reading. Despite the OBC reviewer's enthusiasm for the book and the four friends' adventures, the sample made me decide not to read it.
First Ten review added on February 10, 2019, at 2:57 am by Cristina Chifane.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No
Mai Tran
This book sounds like a fast-paced, action-packed thriller. The fact that this is the second book of a sequence does give me some pause because I haven’t read the first book. However, since the summary gives sufficient background information and the official review assures that some stories in the book can be read as a standalone, I’m willing to give it a chance that I otherwise wouldn’t without the program. I’m pleased to say the sample doesn’t disappoint. I thoroughly enjoy the dogfight in the prologue and the trip to Constantinople in the first chapter. The book seems well-written except for a few minor mistakes that could be fixed with further editing like missing capitalization (“Brown dog,” location 85) and missing possessive (“Jacques adversary,” location 97). The narrative sounds natural and engaging. I look forward to reading the rest of this book.
First Ten review added on February 10, 2019, at 2:19 am by Mai Tran.
Do you plan to read the whole book? Yes!
ladycraic
I would have chosen to read the first few pages of The Noble Mercenary apart from First Ten. I was intrigued by the fascinating cover right away. Apart from the fact that the blurb implied some epic action was going to occur throughout this book, I was very excited about the locations where this story would take place. I found the first few pages interesting despite all the "foreign" terminology and the names I did not know. Though it was a bit difficult to keep up with the names of the aircrafts, the action-packed first few pages captured my interest. I turned to the official OBC review to glean what I could about what to expect for the rest of this book. Though I'm not particularly excited about romance or cliffhangers, I'm willing to join these semi-immortals as they battle against The Select. The Noble Mercenary seems professionally edited and I didn't notice any grammatical errors.
First Ten review added on February 10, 2019, at 2:03 am by ladycraic.
Do you plan to read the whole book? Yes!
revna01
I think the title and cover of this book are awesome, and the Online Book Club review gave just enough information about the semi-immortal group to interest me. The first ten pages produced no noticeable errors. I read of Jacques and Ian who were bomber pilots fighting the Nazis. In Chapter One, Jacques and Ian are headed to Constantinople with German prisoners to face justice when they meet Ishmael and his injured father. I liked the building of the friendship between Jacques and Ian and the transition from fighter jets to horseback. I thought the dialogue could have been more engaging, though. Ultimately, I like the premise and would like to read this book, especially since the reviewer said it was professionally edited.
First Ten review added on February 9, 2019, at 11:35 pm by revna01.
Do you plan to read the whole book? Yes!
LV2R
The book cover and title look really good and interesting. The Smashwords and Amazon Blurb both described the book as four heroes continue the story in Jerusalem, Constantinople, France, and Ireland fighting thieves, pirates, and a chief. In the modern day stories, they must prevent an assassination attempt and a drone attack. I was not sure about the book and needed to read the sample. The first ten pages describe Jacques and Ian piloting P-51fighter jets during WWII, escorting the B-17 Bomber planes and shooting the enemies down. I best liked how the author described Jacques maneuvering his three-plane squad to position to fight off the enemy planes because it was like being there in the plane with him. The book seemed to be edited well, though I found one error on page 14: “The second jet had continued on its proscribed course …” As far as I know, “proscribed” should be “prescribed” (I could be wrong.) The OBC review mentioned that Ian, Jacques, Serena, and Desiree are the four heroes, who are semi-immortal beings more than 900 years old. They are defenders of all people, and they adapt to different cultures and time eras. I want to read the book because it sounds interesting with the different stories over different time eras and cultures, as the four heroes protect people.
First Ten review added on February 9, 2019, at 11:07 pm by LV2R.
Do you plan to read the whole book? Yes!
Kristy Khem
The cover design, title, blurb, and Amazon reviews encouraged me to read this book. However, the sample did not meet my expectations. The prologue described a war scene and I really hate reading about war. The first chapter had too much dialogue and not enough descriptions of the setting. Despite this, I enjoyed reading about Ian and his friends’ readiness to help people. I was surprised that he gave Ishmael’s father a concoction of date wine and chamomile tea, without informing Akram about the alcohol content. Arabs don’t consume alcohol, but I understand he only did it to help him sleep well. I did not see any errors in the sample so I assume it was edited professionally. I’m not a fan of this story so I would not buy and read it.
First Ten review added on February 9, 2019, at 10:10 pm by Kristy Khem.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No
Kendra M Parker
I believe I saw the first book in this series a while ago as the book of the day. I enjoyed the prologue’s swift pace with the dogfight between Jacques and the Germans. The first chapter was interesting with going back so far in time and seeing Jacques escorting his brother and two German soldier prisoners. I liked the way that it mentioned how Ian had been working so hard at developing his healing salve. I did find an error at approximately location 122, where the sentence reads, “I couldn’t let you go alone, brother, besides, I need a vacation...”. The comma after brother should really be a semicolon. Had I not had some clue about this book, I think I would be completely confused coming into the second book of the series. I definitely feel like I need to read the first book first, though. Since I haven’t read the first book, I don’t think I’m going to read this one, either.
First Ten review added on February 9, 2019, at 7:16 pm by Kendra M Parker.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No
psychopathycathy
If I had not read the sample, I would not have read the book as it doesn't seem like my genre, though I like the cover art. After reading the sample, I have not changed my mind. Terms like "All-Free French RAF Squadron" and "blur pointed nose cowling" went a little over my head; the sample was professionally edited though. I did not read the official review but that did not affect my decision.
First Ten review added on February 9, 2019, at 6:24 pm by psychopathycathy.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No
Sarah_Khan
The cover and title of this book are intriguing. I probably would not have picked it up because it is a sequel and the Amazon blurb does not give any information about the first book in this series. The first few pages were professionally edited. I was hoping for a little summary of the previous novel. The prologue was a little boring for me since I am not interested in planes. The first chapter was better at grasping my attention, I liked the time change and was interested in the place, Constantinople. Since this book seems like it is a mix of stories told in modern time and the olden age. I fear my interest will wain, therefore I do not intend to read the rest. Although the OBC review does mention that certain chapters of this book can be read as stand-alone stories, there is not mention of how this book relates to the first. Which is another reason for me to pass on reading this book today.
First Ten review added on February 9, 2019, at 6:03 pm by Sarah_Khan.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No
HRichards
I probably wouldn't have picked this book up on my own as I'm generally not interested in war books. Having read the sample I won't be continuing on with the book as the plot didn't really appeal to me. The sample deals with Jacques, a fighter pilot in WWII. He engages a Nazi aircraft, then flies back with his group. The sample is appealing to people who like war books, as the action is good. I wasn't that interested in the plane descriptions. The grammar is pretty good, but I noticed an error in the line "Our thanks to you Eagle Claw" where there should be a comma before Eagle Claw. I have not read any other reviews of this book.
First Ten review added on February 9, 2019, at 5:24 pm by HRichards.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No
Jsovermyer
The cover art is strange, but interesting. The title, The Noble Mercenary, is not very exciting. The official review rated this book very highly. I like the idea of four semi-immortals fighting to save the world. There is a lot of action in the first ten pages. However, the detailed description of the airplane battle was boring to me. The main characters Ian and Jacques are portrayed as really good people, but we can't tell much about them. At least in the beginning of the book, the characters are too heroic and not very realistic. The book seems to be professionally edited and I found no grammatical or spelling errors. Although I like the premise of the book, the story was not that appealing to me. I will not be finishing it.
First Ten review added on February 9, 2019, at 4:58 pm by Jsovermyer.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No
Kajori Sheryl Paul
'The Noble Mercenary' is a book written by Patrick John Donahoe. The title, blurb, the OBC review, and the customer reviews in Amazon did a good job of convincing me to give the book a try.
The sample of the book leads me to believe that it is a historical fantasy. It focuses on Jacques and Ian. The book starts with an air-fight during the Second World War in Germany. It then goes back to Constantinople in 1101 AD. I did not find any error. This leads me to believe that it is professionally edited. The book is well-written. I like that about the book. However, I will skip this book for now as I am not in the mood to read a book about mercenaries.
First Ten review added on February 9, 2019, at 3:00 pm by Kajori Sheryl Paul.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No
desantismt_17
This book’s title didn’t hook me. The description grabbed my attention with its fantasy and almost superhero elements. Before sampling, I thought about reading. After sampling, though, I’m going to pass. The book appears professionally edited. I noticed no errors. The writing didn’t draw me in like I hoped. It is well-edited and flows well, but I just couldn’t get into it. In addition, WWII bomber stories don’t really grab my interest. Granted, this is a prologue, and the book description says the story spans centuries, but this part really just didn’t interest me. Chapter one brought us to Constantinople, but the writing still didn’t pull me in. I have no improvements to suggest. The OnlineBookClub.org was positive but very mechanical-sounding. Though positive, the tone didn’t leave me feeling that the reader enjoyed the book, so much as found it technically flawless.
First Ten review added on February 9, 2019, at 12:24 pm by desantismt_17.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No
cpru68
The action takes off immediately in this opening as Jacques commands a small group of pilots in protecting American aircraft that is out to defeat Germany. He is known for his Ace flying skills and successfully brings down the enemy even while risking his own life to help others. The German enemy is no match for him as he swoops in and easily takes them out.
I liked the fast paced writing of this. I could visualize each maneuver and the action like it was a movie, so the author has done a great job with the writing. I did not see a single error in punctuation, spelling or grammar. I have no suggestions for improvements because this seems so well done, and the official review gave it a high score.
I won’t be finishing this one as I have not read the first book in the series. I felt a little thrown off not fully knowing the background of the four characters who are millennials until I read the review. So while the writing is awesome, I felt like I had come in part way to the story. And from what the review said, this one leaves readers waiting for the third installment. So for now, I am not going to finish this one.
Without the online book club I don’t know if I would have found this one on my own search. I generally read non-fiction, so I appreciate the opportunity to have read the first portion of this to see what the series is all about. I will send it out on my social media for others to look into.
First Ten review added on February 9, 2019, at 11:42 am by cpru68.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No
Laura Ungureanu
"The Noble Mercenary" is a historical fiction about semi-immortal beings. The book opens with Jaques, Ian, and their group, serving as B-17 bombers in England. Although I am intrigued by the many possibilities the author can come up with, the sample didn't catch my attention because I don't like reading about war. For this reason, I am not going to continue reading this book, but I would have checked it out without the program. I found no grammar errors.
First Ten review added on February 9, 2019, at 11:14 am by Laura Ungureanu.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No
Camille Turner
I think I would've sampled this book even without the program because from the title, cover, and Amazon blurb, it seems to be a fantasy based on history that incorporates a lot of different countries, which appeals to me. After reading the first ten pages, I believe the book to be professionally edited as I didn't note any errors. My impression has changed because I now see that the story will include a lot of war and flying details, which don't appeal to me personally, so I won't finish reading the book. One thing I did like was that the author has clearly done his research. He included so many specific details about Jacques and his fellow fighters' planes, from the way in which they fought the Germans to the details of their plane controls to the types of planes they flew and fought. I wouldn't improve anything, as I think those who like flying and action will love the first ten pages and be interested in the book. I'm just not personally interested in those kinds of stories.
First Ten review added on February 9, 2019, at 9:56 am by Camille Turner.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No
Scerakor
From the cover, blurb, and review of this book, I wouldn’t have read it. This is the second book in the series, and even though it sounds great, I would like to read the first one before attacking this one. After reading the first ten pages I didn’t change my mind and therefore will not be buying and reading the rest of this book. I loved how the book jumped right into both action and historical fiction. Starting off with the dog fight between P-51s and Me-262s give the reader a taste of action and taught the reader about the aircraft used in this conflict. That being said, and as mentioned earlier, the fact that this book sounds good makes me really want to start with the first book before reading this one. Therefore, I will not be reading the rest of this book yet, but will definitely try it after I get the first one. I didn’t see anything specific that I would have wanted to change within the sample that I read, but it did seem well written and edited. The official review did not affect my decision at all.
First Ten review added on February 9, 2019, at 9:06 am by Scerakor.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No
gali
I would not have chosen to sample the book on my own as it is the second book of a series, and I have not read the first one. I didn't change my mind after sampling the book. I don't like reading a series out of order, nor do I care for war/anti-terrorism themes. The book continues the adventures of four semi-immortal beings during the crusades and present times. As I didn't read the first book, I found it difficult to get into the book and found it a bit confusing. It started in the present, War World II, and then flashbacked into 1101 AD, finding Ian and Jacques in Jerusalem, serving as French knights. Recapping the events of the first book would have eased the entry into the tale. I love the combination of history and fantasy in the tale. I enjoyed the scene in which Ian and Jacques saved the wounded Arab. While the premise of semi-immortal beings that do not age, and fight evil during different time periods, is refreshing, it didn't pique my interest. I didn't notice any glaring errors, besides a couple of missing commas. Ex: "That evening around the campfire, Ian, Jacques, Duyan and James…" (no comma after "Duyan"). I will not read the book because it is a sequel, and it didn't engage me. The official review further steered me away from the book by mentioning its slow-paced plot and a cliff-hanger ending.
First Ten review added on February 9, 2019, at 8:54 am by gali.
Do you plan to read the whole book? No
Total ~ 31%
The Noble Mercenary earned a score of 31%.
In other words, out of the top-level reviewers who read at least the first 10 pages of this book, 31% plan to read the whole book.
IMPORTANT: Any score over 10% is considered very good. And any score above 0% is acceptable.
Over a million books are published each year. Any given person could not even read .0001% of the books out there. This means readers have to be very selective. Even taking the time to look over reviews and blurbs, let alone read samples, is more time than most readers can afford for most books. The First Ten is a powerful focus group that addresses those issues. It creates a helpful tool for authors, publishers, and other readers.
Go to main Bookshelves page for The Noble Mercenary
