Review: Environmentally Friendly

Environmentally Friendly by Elias Zanbaka
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I’d like to start by saying thank you to the author. Elias Zanabka contacted me regarding a review request, offering up an action-thriller. I was lured in by the following: “It is centres around a highly unstable army veteran hell-bent on waging his own personal war against Mother Nature. He is the number one target being hunted down by the police in the city of Los Angeles as he rampages through the city in an attempt to provoke such a powerful and overwhelming force as Mother Nature into a highly personal battle. Out of that entire police, only one officer has gone against the grain and become intent, almost to the point of equal obsession in helping that army veteran to do the impossible and bring Mother Nature to its knees.” Being the sucker for thriller that I am, I said yes to giving the short story a read.

I should point out, before I say any more, that I am extremely hard to please when it comes to short stories. I cannot explain why, but I always expect more from them than I do full length novels. I know it is quality over quantity, yet in many cases I fear that cutting a story down to a handful of pages will prevent me from experiencing everything I hope for. This ranges from a lack of character development through to there being no real action. Of course, this isn’t always the case. I know such is not the case in many situation. However, despite my knowledge, I still find myself a little bit tentative before I enter a short story.

Fortunately, Environmentally Friendly was a fun little read. In fact, I would love to see it as a full-length novel. If I’m being completely truthful, such is what prevented it from getting a higher rating.

The writing was wonderful and the storyline thrilling. I had no issues with that. Yet I wanted more. I felt as though this was part of one much larger story. It was as though we were seeing but a single aspect of something much bigger. Whilst everything was brought together nicely, and whilst a lot of fun was had, I felt as though it could have given us something more. I wanted to know more about the characters. I wanted to know more in terms of build-up.

For those looking for a short read, this is perfect. It gives you all you ask for. For me, being the picky person I am when it comes to my reads, I found myself wanting more. This isn’t a bad thing, not really. You know a story has pulled you in when you’re left wanting more. It is great when something so short leaves you feeling as though an entire story could be created from but a few pages. Who knows, such could perhaps happen one day.

Overall, it was a great quick read. It is certainly worth it.

Once again, I’d like to say thank you to the author for giving me the chance to read this in exchange for a review. It was much appreciated, and I cannot wait to see what comes next!

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