This was a kindle book I picked up for free earlier this year. It was a quick read, only took a few hours to read. It starts off real enough, & then rather abrumptly shows its fantasy side, & that's when the story really starts to take off.

As with most first books in a series, there's a certain amount of world & character building, which I did enjoy. There are lots of hints of action, but other than the climax at the end of the story, nothing really happens in the story, & all the hints of future development do not come to pass. Of course, this is so the reader just HAS to buy the next book to see what happens, but I just didn't get invested in the book enough to really need the next part.

I give it 4 stars, however, as it was an enjoyable read up until the end - I just wish things had been settled a bit more. It felt too much like an advertisement for the rest of the series instead of a stand alone book, but that's just my two cents. ( )

A fun book! Looking forward to Book 2. ( )

Another amazing debut, I had a great time reading this book. It moved wonderfully, allowing my mind to immerse in a great story!

What if the instrument you played is magical? It can gather a crowd and make you famous in a instant. I know, right? Imagine what theses instruments could bring you! And that folks, is exactly what the book is like. Jammed packed with great action, instant fame, and of course who can forget those pesky fairies. Pssh!

The love interest is what I expected. I love watching them admire each other from afar. I have a feeling that around these instruments, their love will deepened. I liked that they already have a friendship established and the tension between them is the best. They understand each other and have a love that I hope will one day will be.

If you love an out of this world story read this! It's really unique with a fresh new spin on music. Fairy Metal Thunder represents everything that should be in a YA book. Fun, exciting, and magical! Thrilling and awesome, Fairy Metal Thunder rocks! ( )

Jason plays in a garage band that doesn’t look like it’s going to go much further than their garage. His parents are also not accepting him hanging around troublemakers and wasting time instead of working.
One night when he is babysitting his sister, he discovers a little green man stealing his mother’s earrings. Jason follows him to fairyland. While waiting for the goblin Grizlemor to find the earrings, Jason sees four fairies playing instruments while children dance in a circle. He decides to take the instruments back to the human world for his band.
At first the other band members don’t believe that the instruments are from fairy, but when they start playing and it seems their music attracts everyone, they start to believe. Then when they bring Mitch’s house down, they realize what they have.
In the mean time, an elf has been hired to hunt down the instruments with his unicorn. We also follow the original owners of the instruments as they are punished for the loss of the instruments and how they have to try and go on making a living.
I really liked this story. It’s a modern twist on the fairytale and it has the true, dark fairytale creatures. I got sucked into the story and couldn’t wait to see what happened next. I felt for poor Jason, but I have a feeling that his luck will improve in the next story or two. I definitely will be buying the next books. I think this is a story that anyone would enjoy. ( )

I just finished reading this book and what a wild read! I really enjoyed this novel by J.L. Bryan! It really fits well with young adult audience.

The Good: I was really nervous after reading the blurb as to how Bryan would navigate this novel. I was scared it would either come out too juvenile or completely unreadable...but he totally made everything work! I loved the mixture of the magical world with the real world. When it started I totally got a Labyrinth/Alice in Wonderland type of vibe and I loved the main character Jason. I liked his relationship with his sister. It was like a brother/sister ally type of thing and it's refreshing instead of seeing the typical I-hate-my-sibling relationship. The world building was AWESOME in this novel. Bryan totally brought to life the world of Faerie and I almost wish I could visit!! I LOVED LOVED LOVED the goblin Grizlemor and again reminded me of the goblin from Labyrinth. What I think I appreciated most from this novel is that it is such a fun, light read. YA is saturated with such heavy topics right now (not that I don't like that...I do!) but it's refreshing to read something that isn't super depressing or heavy. This is a book that leaves you smiling and happy after the last page. Lastly...I just want to praise the amount of brilliant editing that went into this book. This book is a prime example of what self-published authors need to start doing. Invest in a good editor and cover designer! Even I have taken notes from Bryan on how to produce a brilliant self-published book!

The Bad: I would have liked to see his characters just a BIT more realistic per their age. I felt that whenever Jason talked...he was more along the ages of 14 or 15 and not a junior in high school. Most of the characters seemed much younger than what their supposed age was.

Overall, this was an AWESOME read and I highly recommend it, especially for the younger audience! I give it an A-!!!

**I received this book free from the author in exchange for an honest review. All the opinions are my own and I was not obligated to write a favorable review. ( )