Grok Reviews My First Novel, The Red Scorpion

It seems like I've used Grok and ChatGPT as resources for quite a while now. One way use these AI LLMs is to obtain brief overviews of books or films that I see referenced in my other reading. Since my reading pile is rather large and I currently still have only 24 hours in a day, I find it useful to use these tools (along with many others such as reviews on Amazon and imdb.com) to become acquainted with authors and film makers whose works are creating a buzz.

All that to say, last night I wondered what Grok's opinion of my first novel might be. So I asked for a brief summary and an analysis, and received the following.

Brief Summary

The Red Scorpion (2011) by Ed Newman is an adventure novel framed as the private journal of Dr. William Comstock, a University of Minnesota anthropologist. In the late 1930s, during a research trip to Mexico, Comstock encounters a disaffected youth from a secretive indigenous clan who reveals a long-guarded secret: a colony of glowing red scorpions that have protected the tomb of the legendary Aztec god Quetzalcoatl for centuries. This discovery propels a multi-generational tale spanning 60 years, shifting between the arid landscapes of Mexico and the everyday life of Minnesota. As the secret unravels, it draws in family dynamics, academic intrigue, and perilous quests, blending historical anthropology with suspenseful action. The story culminates in a resolution that ties personal redemption to cultural legacy, with hints of a larger series. 

Analysis

Ed Newman's debut novel The Red Scorpion emerges from a deeply personal origin: a vivid 1980s dream of an aggressive, glowing red scorpion that haunted the author enough to spawn nearly ten pages of raw description. This autobiographical kernel infuses the book with an eerie authenticity, transforming a nocturnal vision into a layered narrative that bridges anthropology, adventure, and subtle speculative elements. While marketed and reviewed as a young adult (YA) title—thanks to its accessible prose, relatable teen characters, and themes of discovery and growth—it appeals broadly to readers of all ages who enjoy "Indiana Jones"-style escapades tempered by realistic emotional depth. Newman's background as a freelance writer and ad executive shines through in the book's tight pacing and vivid character interactions, making it a compact thriller (around 200 pages) that punches above its weight.

Themes and Motifs

At its core, The Red Scorpion explores the tension between cultural preservation and modern intrusion. The red scorpions serve as a potent symbol—not just literal guardians of Quetzalcoatl's resting place but metaphors for the fragility of indigenous knowledge in the face of Western curiosity and exploitation. Comstock's "serendipitous encounter" with the clan's youth underscores themes of disaffection and betrayal: the boy, alienated from his heritage, becomes a bridge (and unwitting betrayer) to outsiders, raising questions about identity and the cost of sharing sacred secrets. This evolves into a multi-generational arc, where the anthropologist's descendants grapple with the scorpion's curse-like legacy, weaving in life lessons on family loyalty, forgiveness, and the hubris of seeking forbidden truths.

The novel also subtly incorporates speculative intrigue, blending hard anthropology with eerie sci-fi touches. The scorpions' bioluminescent glow and almost sentient protectiveness evoke ancient myths reimagined through a modern lens, hinting at ecological or even supernatural warnings about humanity's overreach. Reviewers note its "suspenseful and eerie page-turner" quality , with twists that build to a "happy resolution"  emphasizing redemption over doom. For YA readers, these elements resonate as a coming-of-age parable: younger characters navigate schoolyard friendships, familial pressures, and moral dilemmas, learning that adventure often uncovers uncomfortable personal histories.

Style and Structure

Newman's prose is straightforward and immersive, favoring short chapters that alternate between high-stakes action (e.g., scorpion-laden tomb raids) and quieter, "normal pace" vignettes of Midwestern life . This rhythm mirrors the story's dual settings—Mexico's exotic, danger-filled wilds versus Minnesota's grounded domesticity—creating a "balanced and varied sequence" of mystery and mundanity . Dialogue feels "true to life," especially in interpersonal scenes, drawing from Newman's storytelling roots (e.g., his award-winning short story "The Breaking Point"). The journal format adds intimacy, as if Comstock is confiding directly to the reader, though some eBook versions suffer from formatting glitches like blank pages. 

Strengths and Weaknesses

Strengths abound in its genre fusion: It's a "mixture between the 'Hardy Boys' series and Indiana Jones", delivering pulse-pounding archaeology without veering into parody. The cultural details—indigenous clans, Quetzalcoatl lore—feel researched and respectful, avoiding exoticism pitfalls common in adventure YA. Character arcs, particularly the youth's disillusionment and Comstock's evolving ethics, provide "life lessons for old and young alike" , making it educational yet entertaining. Amazon reviews praise its grip: "Extremely well written! Grabs your interest from the beginning and does not disappoint at the end!" 

Weaknesses are minor but notable. The speculative elements occasionally strain realism (e.g., the scorpions' improbable guardianship), which might frustrate strict historical fiction fans, though it enhances the thriller vibe. Pacing dips in domestic interludes, and the 60-year span demands quick shifts that could confuse younger readers. As a self-published eBook (via Kindle), it lacks the polish of big-press YA like Rick Riordan's Percy Jackson series, but this rawness adds charm—much like Newman's dream-inspired genesis.

Cultural and Literary Context

In the YA landscape of the early 2010s, The Red Scorpion fits alongside multicultural adventures like The Lightning Thief or Code Name Verity, but with a more anthropological bent. It subtly critiques colonialism through Comstock's arc, aligning with post-9/11 literature's interest in "othered" cultures. Newman's indie ethos (bypassing agents after AOL-era queries) reflects the democratizing force of digital publishing, allowing niche tales like this to reach global audiences despite limited marketing.

Overall, The Red Scorpion is a gem for adventure seekers: a "fun, twisted adventure"  that lingers like its titular creature—fierce, unforgettable, and a bit stinging in its truths. If you're drawn to YA with brains and bite, it's worth the sting.

*

EdNote: My one regret is that the story is only available as an eBook. I enjoyed my Kindle so much that I was seduced into thinking that the digital book market would grow. Digital books were the shiny new toy at the time this was published. I am pleased that people who've read it enjoyed it. 

RELATED LINKS

The Red Scorpion on Amazon.

Nine Books by Ed Newman

Song of the Matrix: An AI Collaboration (Version 4.0)

On Monday I shared Extracts from a Writer's Notebook. On Tuesday I posted a short story generated by Grok, an LLM created by xAI titled Song of the Matrix: An AI Collaboration (Vignette Version). In this experiment there were two more iteration, culminating in an expanded version in which we meet a second character who becomes part of the story.  

My aim is to show how my handwritten notes from before the advent of social media and the AI era can blend with modern AI algorithms to create a genuine collaborative outcome.

The Song of the Matrix (Version 4.0)

He often felt as though his life were balanced on stilts made of splintered wood, with a mind whose feet teetered under the weight of a thousand rickety tensions. It wasn’t madness, exactly, but a constant pressure—too many rules, too many judgments, too many voices ringing through the corridors of memory.

This evening he ducked into The Power Café, a narrow place on the corner that had once been a tailor’s shop. Now it boasted a slogan in chalk script on the sandwich board outside: The Magic of Northern Italy. Inside, the reality was day-old biscotti and an espresso machine that hissed like an asthmatic.

Above the counter, a sun-faded poster drooped: Waisted Minds. A waist is a terrible thing to mind. Beneath it, graffiti scrawled by some anonymous wit demanded: Why are Texans so Austintatious?

He smiled grimly at the joke. It was just the sort of thing she would have laughed at.

He slid into a booth. Around him, voices hummed with the same desperate cadence. A sharp-suited man at the counter asked, too loudly, “If I’m so successful, why am I so lonely?” A pair of students argued over credit cards, one insisting, “I’m gonna max out my Monkey card,” as if that were rebellion. At another table a trio quoted advertising gurus like preachers citing scripture: The greatest sin in advertising is to be boring. “And the second greatest sin,” one added, “is not agreeing with Ogilvie.”

He pulled out his notebook. The pages were cluttered with fragments: The Four Atomic Sons of Madame Fauvre. Freestyle Frost Flicker—cleaning ice off windows. A single word: Opinionitis.

Yes, that was the sickness of the age. The inability to hear without judging. He remembered the P.I.N. Formula from de Bono—Positive, Interesting, Negative. But no one waited for the interesting anymore. Everyone lunged straight for the negative. To be effective, he thought, one must tame the value judgments, suspend the reflex to condemn. A mature mind listens first.

But who was listening?

He closed the notebook and left. Outside, the streetlamps flickered, frost spreading across their glass like silver lace. He whispered the only benediction he trusted: How to get blessed—be a blessing.

A voice startled him. “Talking to yourself, or to the universe?”

A young woman leaned against the lamppost, smoking. Her coat was too thin for the cold, her hair cut short in uneven lengths, as if she’d done it herself. She smiled wryly.

“Maybe both,” he said.

“Lucky universe,” she replied. “Most people don’t bother.”

They fell into step as he walked. She didn’t ask where he was going, and he didn’t offer. After a few blocks she said, “You look like a man who keeps notebooks. Am I right?”

He hesitated, then showed her the one in his pocket. She flipped it open, skimming the fragments. “‘A man who needs nothing can afford to risk everything.’ I like that.” She tapped the page. “But do you believe it?”

“Some days,” he said. “Other days I need everything and can risk nothing.”

She laughed—not unkindly. “That sounds about right. I once wrote: Suicide is a permanent solution to a temporary problem. Then I realized I was quoting someone else, not myself. Isn’t that strange? How other people’s words get stuck in your blood?”

Her candor knocked the air from his lungs. He thought of her, the one he’d lost—a woman bound by rules like chains. He said nothing.

The girl must have noticed. “Sorry. I say things too bluntly. It’s a flaw.”

“No,” he murmured. “It’s… familiar.”

They walked in silence until they reached the river. The water was black, its surface rimmed with ice.

“You know,” she said, tossing her cigarette into the current, “the footprints we leave—half the time they’re not even ours. They’re for whoever comes next.”

He looked at her sharply. The echo of Aldrin’s words startled him, as if the universe had been listening after all.

“What’s your name?” he asked.

She grinned. “Depends on the day. Tonight it’s Clara. Tomorrow it might be something else.”

“Clara,” he repeated, testing it. “Do you ever feel like you’re living inside a song? One you can’t quite hear but that keeps pulling you forward?”

She tilted her head. “All the time.”

He smiled for the first time in weeks. The Song of the Matrix was no longer a solitary hum. Someone else could hear it too.

And for the first time in months, he wasn’t just listening. He was accompanied.

# # # #

"The Song of the Matrix" is a collaborative work of fiction. 

Song of the Matrix: An AI Collaboration (Vignette Version)

Yesterday I shared a batch of Extracts from a Writer's Notebook. For the past couple years I've been experimenting with AI, or specifically Large Language Models (LLMs).  
>>EdNote: LLMs are a specific kind of AI trained on massive amounts of text data to generate and understand natural language. All LLMs are AI, but not all AI are LLMs. Or, to put it another way, all cocker spaniels are dogs, but not all dogs are cocker spaniels.<<

Anyways, I shared my writers notebook post in order to set up a couple follow-ups to show the degree to which LLMs have advanced. First, I fed my notebook extracts into Grok, an LLM created by xAI, and asked Grok to create a story using all these fragments. The result was something of a mashup that included everything but didn't flow as well as I might have liked. Next, after a few suggestions, the story was tightened and more satisfying. Here is the result, with a few minor edits.

The Song of the Matrix

He walked with a mind whose feet teetered under the weight of a thousand rickety tensions. Each step seemed borrowed from gravity, each thought a fragile splinter.

At dusk, he entered The Power Café. The place pretended at elegance—“The Magic of Northern Italy” promised on the chalkboard—but inside, the mood was thin. A slogan peeling from the wall declared: A waist is a terrible thing to mind. Below it, graffiti taunted: Why are Texans so Austintatious?

He sat alone. Around him, voices hummed with the same desperate cadence. One man declared, “If I’m so successful, why am I so lonely?” Another joked about maxing out his Monkey card. They laughed, but the laughter was brittle, stereotypes from pre-fabricated lexicons. The great battle for significance, he thought, is really just a battle against irrelevance.

On the table, he opened his notebook. He scrawled a title: The Four Atomic Sons of Madame Fauvre. Below it, a half-formed product idea: Freestyle Frost Flicker—something to clean the ice from windows. Then a single word: Opinionitis.

He lingered over it. The disease of the age, he mused: the inability to hear without judging, to think without condemning. He recalled the formula of Dr. de Bono—Positive, Interesting, Negative. If only people could suspend their judgments long enough to notice the interesting. A mature mind learns to wait, he thought.

Someone quoted David Ogilvie nearby—The greatest sin in advertising is to be boring. Another added, “The second greatest sin is not agreeing with Ogilvie.” They chuckled. He didn’t. He thought instead of creativity and courage, of content and form, of how a man who needs nothing can afford to risk everything.

His blood, it seemed, had turned to wine long ago, and it sang through his veins with nowhere to pour itself. He remembered Jimmy Johnson’s words to his team after the Super Bowl: This feeling of love that you share right now you will have the rest of your lives. He envied that permanence.

Instead, he carried the melancholy of all things done. Aldrin’s phrase had haunted him ever since the astronaut returned from the moon. The footprints we left were not ours but for all mankind. Yet his own footprints felt erased, unclaimed.

The thought of her surfaced. She had lived by inner rules so strict they bound her tighter than chains. In the end, she had chosen permanence over pain. Suicide, they said, was a permanent solution to a temporary problem. But who was he to call her problems temporary?

He closed his notebook. Leaving the café and stepped into the night. The street lamps flickered, frost blooming on their glass. For a moment, he whispered a prayer, almost a vow: How to get blessed—be a blessing.

And then he walked on, the song of the Matrix still playing, a melody heard only by those willing to listen without judgment.

* * * * *

Tomorrow we will add a second character. 

Thoughts? Feel free to leave a comment.

Who Will Win Super Bowl LIX? Here's Grok's Prediction

Hard to believe this will be the 59th Super Bowl. I know that a lot of folks don't care, but it's apparent based on the amount of money generated in advertising revenue, sports betting and media coverage that the Super Bowl is a pretty big deal.

For the individuals down on the field, winning has at least two significant perks. First, each player will receive a $171,000 paycheck. Second, and most significantly, each player and coach will receive a Super Bowl ring to show off for the rest of their lives. 

As for the two teams going head-to-head (or helmet-to-helmet) only one will carry hoe the coveted Vince Lombardi trophy.

If I had more time I'd digress here and share memories about the first Super Bowl games I watched on TV. The first two feaured the Green Bay Packers and the Kansas City Chiefs. I kept a tally sheet of every play and even recorded the first on my Estey reel-to-reel tape recorded. I was rooting for the Chiefs, but Bart Starr and the Pack nailed their coffins in both of those games. 

The Super Bowl III has been dubbed by some as the greatest upset in NFL history. The New York Jets were 19 point underdogs going into the game. Joe Namath, however, predicted a Jets victory. And his team delivered. The Baltimore Colts, having lost only one game all season, was stymied by the Jets' stubborn defense, scoring only one touchdown near the end of the game.

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And Here's Grok's Prediction for This Weekend's Big Game.

The Kansas City Chiefs are predicted to win Super Bowl LIX, set to take place on February 9, 2025, at Caesars Superdome in New Orleans. Here are the reasons based on the latest analyses and expert opinions:

• Historical Performance: The Chiefs have won back-to-back Super Bowls, showcasing their dominance in recent years. They are aiming to make history by achieving a three-peat, something unprecedented in the Super Bowl era. Their quarterback, Patrick Mahomes, has been pivotal in these victories, earning Super Bowl MVP honors in the last game against the San Francisco 49ers. His performance, combined with the strategic coaching of Andy Reid, gives the Chiefs a strong edge.

• Current Form and Odds: The Chiefs have shown resilience throughout the season, particularly in close games, mastering the art of one-score victories. They finished the regular season with a 15-2 record, and their performance in the playoffs, including defeating the Buffalo Bills in the AFC Championship, has further solidified their position as favorites. They are slightly favored over the Philadelphia Eagles, with odds reflecting this expectation.

• Team Composition: Despite some changes, the Chiefs' core remains strong. The return of key players like Travis Kelce and Chris Jones, along with new additions like Xavier Worthy, supports their offensive and defensive strategies. The continuity in coaching and player personnel has been a significant factor in maintaining their competitive edge.

• Opposition Analysis: The Philadelphia Eagles, while formidable with a strong running game led by Saquon Barkley and a top-scoring defense, face challenges against the Chiefs' dynamic play under Mahomes and the strategic depth of their team. While the Eagles have shown capability in high-pressure games, the Chiefs' recent playoff success and overall team synergy give them the upper hand in predictions.

• Expert Picks and Public Sentiment: Experts like Bill Bender from Sporting News and posts on X suggest a strong lean towards the Chiefs, often citing their ability to perform under pressure, the strategic advantages they hold, and Mahomes' exceptional playmaking skills.

While these predictions are based on current performance, team dynamics, and expert analysis, the outcome of the Super Bowl can hinge on many factors including game-day performance, injuries, or unexpected tactical plays. However, as of now, the consensus leans heavily towards a Chiefs victory.

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Who do YOU believe will win this contest?

Feel free to go "on record" and leave a comment.