Well, when I wrote this review, it was because I loved the Carter series by Hosted Author Topher_Lydon (aka Christopher Patrick Lydon aka CPL aka Topher). I didn't realize that we'd have a re-appearance on the forums and a forthcoming new Carter book to look forward to.

If you hadn't seen, CPL posted Saturday:

Hello,
yes there will be an announcement soon.The Black Prince will come. As will a new Carter.
I am just getting ducks in a row to start writing, and re-reading my series so I can actually write this one competently.

So with that, here is my review of the first book of the Carter series, Carter's Army!

Review by Trebs
Status: Complete
Word Count: 64,295

Christopher Lydon is one of GA's prolific authors. Carter's Army is one of his early works, yet one that still holds up very well. It is actually the first book in his seven book Carter Saga, that starts with this story of Carter in high school through college and multiple careers.

Will Carter is from England and had moved with his father to Canada. Very bright (and handsome), he feels a bit out of sorts with his high school, mainly due to being English. The sports he knows and excels at are not ones that anyone plays in his Canadian school, which is fixated on hockey.

At home, it is even worse with his soldier father ("the Major") and his father's new family – second wife Jackie and infant daughter Lucy. Will never seems to quite measure up to his father's expectations.

Still, Will has made good friends, excels in English and the written word though can't get by without a cup of coffee.

There is quite a richness and depth to the people who surround Will - from good friends Lisa and Brodie, to new friends like hockey players Andrew and Jared, and even minor characters like Will's Aunt Majella and her husband Arthur as well as Andrew's mother Micheline. Topher fleshes each out and their actions and motivations ring true to who they are.

A ruined locker leads to a missed bus and an encounter on the walk home in what becomes a huge snowstorm. As many times as I have read this story (probably eight or nine so far), the way Topher unfolds each scene and each detail still make me eagerly scroll to the next word and thought.

Will soon after gets caught in a compromised position - seen being tender with another boy shortly after they had shared a first kiss. The other boy isn't clear to the witness, but Will's actions soon spread quickly through their small high school and town. How his friends, family and schoolmates react not only rapidly influence Will's life, but the school and town as well.

This is a high school coming of age story, but it is also but one chapter of a longer story of Will Carter. This portion is set in 1994 and you'll continue to see many of these characters in books 2 - 7. There are many highs and lows in Will's life - and you get to follow along for a fascinating ride. I highly recommend the Carter series, especially this incredible beginning.