Few Are Chosen: A dystopian comedy science fiction adventure

M T McGuire

Sep 2010 · K'Barthan Series - Humorous Dystopian Sci fi Adventure Book 1 · Hamgee University Press

About this ebook

Readers of science fiction dystopia comedy books who also like portal fantasy will (hopefully) enjoy the dry sarcastic humour and satire of this series. There are dark sections and some gallows humour, but this is, for the most part, a light sci fi novel. 

A man chosen by destiny. The wrong man.

Meet The Pan of Hamgee: coward, unwilling adventurer and, by some miracle, K’Barth’s longest surviving outlaw. He just wants a quiet life so working as getaway driver is probably a bad career move. Then he falls in love at first sight with a woman he hasn't even met who comes from an alternative reality. That’s when things really begin to get complicated.

Meet Ruth Cochrane: she’s the Chosen One, destined to play a pivotal role in saving K’Barth from a cruel dictator. She’s never heard of K’Barth, though. She’s a public relations executive from London and she’s totally unaware of the chaos about to hit her life.

Meet Lord Vernon: power hungry psychopath on the brink of world domination. He wants to cement his hold on K'Barth by kidnapping the Chosen One and forcing her to marry him. Only one person is standing in his way: someone who doesn’t even realise it, The Pan of Hamgee. For The Pan, and Ruth, that’s a deadly problem.

Written in British English with some light swearing. There is dark stuff in here but any readers who have read all the Harry Potter books without any worries should be OK with this series. Suggested cinema rating, PG: first novel in a complete science fiction/fantasy series of 4 books.

Runner up in 2011 Wishing Shelf Awards

Awarded Awesome Indies Seal of Approval

Awarded IndiePENdents seal of approval.

Few Are Chosen is the first book in the K'Barthan Series of dystopian humorous science fiction books. It is set in a contemporary dystopia, in a parallel reality but there is some futuristic technology. This book ends in a cliff hanger and for full enjoyment readers are strongly advised to read the series in order, continuing the story with The Wrong Stuff, K'Barthan Series: Part 2 (green cover) after reading this one.

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INTERVIEW WITH THE AUTHOR

Q – What made you write this series?

A – If you want the honest answer I wrote it for me. As a reader, I love British satire and humor (or humour). I love wit; funny epic fantasy series like the Discworld novels and comedic sci fi like Douglas Adams. I like sff and speculative fiction, I like adventure and action and a gripping tale that zips along quickly, I like genre mash ups and I love an angsty dystopian world. However, the best science fiction and fantasy stories, for me, are funny. I aim to write comedy in the tradition of all the great humorous British authors. I like to aim high. I wanted protagonists people could love and empathise with, mavericks, misfit characters, real people ... except they're not all people obviously, some of them are other alien (ish) species. This book is about misfit heroes and heroines winning the day, it’s about good versus evil even when the good guys are on different sides. It's dystopian science fiction fantasy action - it's dystopia but it's comedy, it's sci-fi but it's planet-based. You'll find all sorts of quirky characters and interesting alien species: from 6ft Swamp Things with antennae to cute furry creatures like the Blurpons, with their fluffy ears, big button eyes and penchant for extreme violence.

Oh ... and did I mention the flying car chases?

Q – Do our readers have to read the K’Barthan Series in order?

A – Yes otherwise the character development – and some of the technology – will make less sense the books go in this order:

- Unlucky Dip, K'Barthan Series: Prequel

** - Few Are Chosen, K'Barthan Series: Part 1 - this book **

- The Wrong Stuff, K'Barthan Series: Part 2

- One Man: No Plan, K'Barthan Series: Part 3

- Looking For Trouble, K'Barthan Series: Part 4

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SIMILAR AUTHORS:

Robert Rankin, C Gockel, Patty Jansen, JJ Greene, FJ Savage, Heide Goodey, EM Foner, Robert Asprin, the Stainless Steel Rat and Space Team series.

KEYWORDS:

Dystopian world, dystopia, parallel universe, young adult literature, best science fiction, light novel, comedic sci fi ebook, coming of age, dry sarcastic humour, gallows humor, adventure stories, humorous books, epic reading, British humour, ya fantasy, funny comedy books, comedic short science fiction stories Dystopian, dystopia, parallel universe, young adult literature, best science fiction, light novel, sci fi, coming of age, dry sarcastic humour, gallows humor, adventure stories, humorous books, epic reading, British humour, ya portal fantasy

Ratings and reviews

G’day MTM, Thank you for the free K’Barthan series books. Never before in my near 60 years of reading, have I been compelled to provide feedback to an author and am very delighted that you are the very first that I have responded to. Yes, “few are chosen” indeed! As a big fan of sci-fi from a very early age (I’d believed we’d already conquered our Solar System and was shocked when I was set home from school to watch man land on the moon, for the very first time! Oh well, there went my dreams of flying to Mars…), and so I have found Book 1 of the K’Barthan Series an absolute blast and a joy to read. It brought back the expectation, the wonderment and excitement that I had reading my first sci-fi books as a child. “Few Are Chosen: K'Barthan Series: Book 1” is very engaging with a brilliant mix of all the ingredients that makes a good read even greater! The characters one can easily relate to with their human qualities oh-so real, the settings and the techno-sci-fi elements are very imaginative, the plot, sub-plots and themes develop at just the right pace and even though I’m not a big fan of book series, I found this first book of the this series of yours most entertaining and thoroughly engaging. So much so, that I've now read the whole series! I highly recommend this and the whole series not only to sci-fi readers but for the sheer joy of reading to everyone that enjoys a good page turner. It has all star elements that make this a must read. Sincerely from Down Under, A

This whole series is absolutely amazing. I got the first one just to kill time because it is free, and i bought the other three right away. I could not put them down. I read them in every spare moment. They have a wonderful story and very relatable characters.

Got it because it was free but blown away by the story and it's characters, well done author

About the author

M T McGuire enjoys the real world but wouldn't want to live here full time. That's why she writes books. She grew up, or at least, got bigger, half way up a windy down in Sussex. Her home was also the first location choice for Hogwarts, in the Harry Potter films, so maybe it's not so strange that she's ended up writing spec-fic. Perhaps there's something in the water up there, apart from chalk. She now lives in Bury St Edmunds, in Suffolk, with a McOther, a McMini and a selection of very silly cars. She hasn't found a way to make any of the cars fly, and none of them is fitted with ordnance, but she and her team of evil scientists are working on that.

Despite being 46 now, and supposedly, an adult, M T checks all unfamiliar wardrobes for a gateway to Narnia. She hasn't found one so far but she lives in hope.