I’m a sucker for bands of immortal warriors. I’m also always willing to entertain the idea of starting a new series, so it would seem I hit paydirt with Christine Murphy’s Sphynx Resurrected. It’s an interesting premise; the immortal warriors are humanoid aliens who decamped to Earth when their planet was overrun by another destructive alien species, Wraiths. Unfortunately this premise was overshadowed by some big problems and I found the book very difficult to read.

The heroine is Stormy, an everyday woman who works a civilian job in a mysterious para-military type compound deep in the Arizona desert. The employees are encouraged to live on-site, where the only excitement is gossiping with coworkers. The office scuttlebutt includes the disappearance of fellow employees. One day the boredom is disrupted by the appearance on Stormy’s floor of a group of seldom seen soldiers who inhabit the lower floors of the complex.

Since a monumental battle in ancient egyptian times when their last Power Keeper was killed, the immortal Sphynx warriors have been searching for a replacement. Without a Power Keeper to absorb life force from living things and filter it to the warriors, the warriors have been trying to sustain themselves, with limited success. For millennia they’ve been on the edge of starvation for the needed energy and the situation has become dire. When evidence proves that Stormy has the needed DNA to survive the change required to become a Power Keeper, the warrior leader, Michael, takes immediate steps to secure her.

Stormy begins her new life in a sea of pain from the change forced on her. Kidnapped and taken to a secret underground city, she is unknowingly pair-bonded with Michael. She soon finds herself studying fighting technique, learning the history of her new people, and joining the warriors in hatred of the ruling council. Her new existence seems fraught with danger, even as she becomes enchanted by it.

You know those books where the author makes it more than apparent that one of the characters is a villain, but for some stupid, blind reason the main characters can’t seem to catch on? Somehow one of the Wraiths has infiltrated the alien society and has become one of the ruling council members. Oh, don’t worry, that’s not a spoiler since you would have gotten it in five seconds, too. This Wraith, named Turin, feels to Stormy like none of the other aliens do, does nothing but evil deeds and mischief making, poisons the population, and sets explosives outside one of the gates by which the Wraiths invade Earth, and still no one catches on. I found that whole situation so vexing that it undoubtedly colored the rest of the reading experience.

Another thing that really irked me was the fact that a huge deal was made of the fact that the few Sphynx warriors left alive after thousands of years of fighting off the Wraiths have allowed themselves to be slave collared. The collars have electronic controls with remotes that remain in the hands of…guess who? That’s right, Turin. If you’re the only force that stands between your entire race’s existence and annihilation, and the annihilation of all life on your planet, are you going to meekly accept being controlled? No. That whole scenario was so unbelievable that I found myself gritting my teeth in annoyance.

Lastly, to add just a little more piquancy to my pleasurable reading experience, the font was completely crazy. This was undoubtedly not the author’s fault, but I found it almost impossible to read text that looked like this. If I wasn’t already going blind and cross-eyed with annoyance at the plot, I would have undoubtedly done so due to my ARC (advanced reader’s copy). I sure hope they correct that in the final version.

There are ten more examples of why you should give this one a pass, but its not necessary to go there. Just take my word for it and wait for the next band of immortal warriors if you want to start a new series.