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Spiral by Paul McEuen – Book Review

Posted on December 2, 2011
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Pacific Ocean 1946: Liam Connor of the British Army, a global expert on germ warfare, is sent to help the US Navy foil an attempt by a Japanese submarine to unleash the world’s first biological super-weapon. Code-name: Uzumaki. Translation: Spiral. The devastating decision is made to annihilate Spiral by releasing the world’s fourth atomic bomb, obliterating the weapon before it can release its catastrophic payload.

New York, present day: Connor, now a world-renowned Nobel prize-winner working on the cutting edge of nano-science technology, prayed that the spectre of Spiral would never return. But now it is back and the stakes are exponentially higher. Spiral would be virtually unstoppable with current technological advances and only Connor holds the key to its cure. Those who seek Spiral will stop at nothing to obtain Connor’s knowledge, even if it means his death and that of everyone he holds dear. As the race begins for Spiral, will the world survive the Doomsday scenario about to unfold?

If you’re looking for a fast paced thriller – and Christmas stocking filler given the time of year and close proximity to the festive period – that deftly explores science and technology without seemingly drawing breath then Spiral by Cornell scientist Paul McEuen is undoubtedly the book for you. Spiral is unquestionably one of my finds for 2011 and another one of those books that not only completely surprises you, it leaves you wanting more. A well thought out and delivered ending, McEuen effortlessly ties up the loose ends but at the same time leaving the door open for future adventures – I for one hope we haven’t heard the last of Jake Sterling and Maggie Connor.

The narrative is intelligent, well-structured and told at such a frenetic pace that you’ll find it difficult to draw …

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Brodmaw Bay by FG Cottam – Book Review

Posted on November 27, 2011
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Brodmaw Bay seems to be the perfect refuge for James Greer and his family. When his young son is the victim of a brutal mugging, Greer wants to leave London – the sooner the better – for the charming old-fashioned fishing port he has just discovered.

But was finding Brodmaw Bay more than a happy accident? What is the connection between the village and his beautiful wife? When his friendly new neighbours say they’d welcome some new blood – in a village where the same families seem to have lived for generations – are they telling the whole truth?

Perhaps the village isn’t so much welcoming them as luring them. To something ancient and evil. As it has lured others before . . .

 

Brodmaw Bay is another one of those books I’ve picked up this year that had me hooked before I’d read the first page.  I’m talking about the covert art design of course. A dark silhouette of a distant village – Brodmaw Bay – and the promise of something sinister lurking beneath the surface of the mirky water, what’s not to love? We all love a little something to heighten our senses and make us a little scared, Brodmaw Bay certainly does that!

Written by F.G. Cottam the book works on many levels, it has subtle humour, a very dark and psychological theme and is fairly insular, especially when it comes to the Bay. The Bay draws James Greer and his family in at just the right, or is that wrong, time. They are sucked in to the traditions they find endearing at first but it soon becomes blatantly obvious things aren’t what they seem, the people and the Bay itself hiding a violent and troublesome pass that mixes death and the destruction of a religion.…

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The Red Coffin by Sam Eastland – Book Review

Posted on November 19, 2011
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It is 1939. The world stands on the brink of Armageddon. In the Soviet Union, years of revolution, fear and persecution have left the country unprepared to face the onslaught of Nazi Germany. For the coming battles, Stalin has placed his hopes on a 30-ton steel monster, known to its inventors as the T-34 tank, and, the ‘Red Coffin’ to those men who will soon be using it.

But the design is not yet complete. And when Colonel Nagorski, the weapon’s secretive and eccentric architect, is found murdered, Stalin sends for Pekkala, his most trusted investigator. Stalin is convinced that a sinister group calling itself the White Guild, made up of former soldiers of the Tsar, intend to bring about a German invasion before the Red Coffin is ready. While Soviet engineers struggle to complete the design of the tank, Pekkala must track down the White Guild and expose their plans to propel Germany and Russia into conflict.

The Red Coffin by Sam Eastland – the second in the Inspector Pekkala series – is another title shortlisted for the 2011 CWA Ellis Peters Historical award this month and a book that completely took me by surprise. I have to say when I read the book cover I wasn’t immediately blown away. Russia in 1939, the height of Stalinism, held little interest to me if I’m truthful but after finishing Island of Bones by Imogen Robertson – another title shortlisted for the awards – I wanted to tackle something completely different.

Although the idea of Russia in the late 30’s didn’t exactly excite me, the front cover did. Evoking images in my mind of Steve McQueen and his solitary thrilling ride in The Great Escape I opened the book, settled down and began reading – I didn’t stop. I couldn’t put …

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Island of Bones by Imogen Robertson – Book Review

Posted on November 16, 2011
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Cumbria, 1783. A broken heritage; a secret history…

The tomb of the first Earl of Greta should have lain undisturbed on its island of bones for three hundred years. When idle curiosity opens the stone lid, however, inside is one body too many. Gabriel Crowther’s family bought the Gretas’ land long ago, and has suffered its own bloody history. His brother was hanged for murdering their father, the Baron of Keswick, and Crowther has chosen comfortable seclusion and anonymity over estate and title for thirty years. But the call of the mystery brings him home at last.

Travelling with forthright Mrs Harriet Westerman, who is escaping her own tragedy, Crowther finds a little town caught between new horrors and old, where ancient ways challenge modern justice. And against the wild and beautiful backdrop of fells and water, Crowther discovers that his past will not stay buried.

Island of Bones by Imogen Robertson marks the third in a series featuring the enigmatic and fastidious Gabriel Crowther and the wonderfully captivating Mrs Harriet Westerman. A finalist in this year’s CWA Ellis Peters Historical Awards – 30th November – Island of Bones, published by Headline, is sure to be a front runner at the awards ceremony for its engaging and free flowing narrative, entertaining storyline and a very well developed investigation. Although – as I have already mentioned – part of a long standing and successful series I had no trouble in picking up the novel and beginning my journey despite having missed the earlier adventures.

I was immediately transported to the 18th century where I experienced a public hanging and the inevitable shame it brought upon a family which in turn prompted Lord Keswick to sell his family’s land, seek privacy and detachment by changing his name following …

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Back Slash by Bill Kitson – Book Review

Posted on November 14, 2011
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What is the secret of the forester living a hermit-like existence in the remotest part of the Wingate Estate? Is he a callous murderer? Is he now taking a terrible revenge on those who wronged him? Or, does the truth lie elsewhere? A ruthless killer is on the rampage, one with a distinctive trademark. With resources decimated by a flu epidemic, Mike Nash is forced to use unorthodox tactics to expose a web of corruption and deceit spanning the years. Evidence all seems to point to an inevitable conclusion, but will Mike be able to uncover the truth, and can he do so before it is too late for all concerned – be they innocent or guilty?

Back Slash by Bill KitsonBack Slash took me by complete surprise. I’ve not had the pleasure of reading any of Bill Kitson’s previous work but on the strength of his latest Mike Nash adventure in crime solving I will have to make sure I go back to the very beginning and discover more about this maverick cop and what makes him tick. Back Slash is the fifth in a series that began in 2009 with Depth of Despair. If the others are half as good and entertaining as this novel then I highly recommend you check out the rest of the series, perhaps beginning with the debut title allowing you to enjoy the character development and growth I didn’t and although this novel is part of an established series I found Back Slash stood alone well.

The one thing I hadn’t expected was its fluidity. Back Slash includes an incredibly fast paced narrative and although used far too frequently, this is a book I certainly didn’t want to put down. Kitson somehow manages to cram a lot of evidence, murder and skulduggery – not forgetting a …

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The Killing Way by Anthony Hays – Book Review

Posted on November 10, 2011
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It is the time of Arthur, but this is not his storied epic. Arthur is a young and powerful warrior who some would say stands on the brink of legend. Britain’s leaders have come to elect a new supreme king, and Arthur is favored. But when a young woman is brutally murdered and the blame is placed at Merlin’s feet, Arthur’s reputation is at stake and his enemies are poised to strike. Arthur turns to Malgwyn ap Cuneglas, a man whose knowledge of battle and keen insight into how the human mind works have helped Arthur to the brink of kingship. Malgwyn is also the man who hates Arthur most in the world. After the death of Malgwyn’s wife at Saxon hands, he became Mad Malgwyn, killer of Saxons and right-hand lieutenant to the warrior Arthur. Right hand, that is, until a Saxon cut his sword arm off and left him to die on the battlefield. Arthur rescued him. Now a one-armed scribe and a heavy drinker, Malgwyn rejects the half-life that his liege gave him. But loyalty is sometimes stronger than loathing…and Malgwyn is pulled toward a puzzle that he can’t ignore.

Reading as many books as I do each month one of the fundamental requests I have from an author is that the work of fiction is entertaining, flows well and has a story that is strong enough to hold my imagination and concentration until the very end. For the most part The Killing Way by Anthony Hays succeeded in keeping me glued to the book, reading it over two very busy days, and once I’d made my way through the initial pages – struggling to come to terms with numerous characters and language – I settled into a rhythm and found myself warming to the narrator and …

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11.22.63 by Stephen King – Book Review

Posted on November 6, 2011
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WHAT IF you could go back in time and change the course of history? WHAT IF the watershed moment you could change was the JFK assassination? 11/22/63, the date that Kennedy was shot – unless . . .

Jake Epping is a thirty-five-year-old high school English teacher in Lisbon Falls, Maine, who makes extra money teaching adults in the GED program. He receives an essay from one of the students—a gruesome, harrowing first person story about the night 50 years ago when Harry Dunning’s father came home and killed his mother, his sister, and his brother with a hammer. Harry escaped with a smashed leg, as evidenced by his crooked walk.

Not much later, Jake’s friend Al, who runs the local diner, divulges a secret: his storeroom is a portal to 1958. He enlists Jake on an insane—and insanely possible—mission to try to prevent the Kennedy assassination. So begins Jake’s new life as George Amberson and his new world of Elvis and JFK, of big American cars and sock hops, of a troubled loner named Lee Harvey Oswald and a beautiful high school librarian named Sadie Dunhill, who becomes the love of Jake’s life—a life that transgresses all the normal rules of time.

It’s very rare – in fact I don’t think it has happened – for me to finish a book and immediately begin writing a review. Over the past 14 months I’ve read some amazing books, some have moved me to tears, some have made me laugh endlessly and some amazed me in their energetic narrative that will remain with me for years to come, as long as my memory holds! I finished Stephen King’s 11.22.63 approximately five minutes ago and so moved was I with his storytelling and the enforced spellbinding relationship between Jake Epping – otherwise …

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The House of Silk – Sherlock Holmes by Anthony Horowitz – Book Review

Posted on November 3, 2011
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THE GAME’S AFOOT… It is November 1890 and London is gripped by a merciless winter. Sherlock Holmes and Dr Watson are enjoying tea by the fire when an agitated gentleman arrives unannounced at 221b Baker Street. He begs Holmes for help, telling the unnerving story of a scar-faced man with piercing eyes who has stalked him in recent weeks. Intrigued by the man’s tale, Holmes and Watson find themselves swiftly drawn into a series of puzzling and sinister events, stretching from the gas-lit streets of London to the teeming criminal underworld of Boston.

As the pair delve deeper into the case, they stumble across a whispered phrase ‘the House of Silk’: a mysterious entity and foe more deadly than any Holmes has encountered, and a conspiracy that threatens to tear apart the very fabric of society itself… Sherlock Holmes is back with all the nuance, pace and powers of deduction that make him the world’s greatest and most celebrated detective.

Many years ago, my father introduced me to Sir Arthur Conan Doyle – not in the flesh mind, I’m not quite that old – and his famous detective, Sherlock Holmes. As an impressionable teenager I lapped up the adventures of the pipe smoking, slipper wearing, Stradivarius playing detective and his loyal companion and biographer Dr John Watson. I couldn’t get enough. Who could ever forget The Sign of Four, The Hound of the Baskervilles and my favourite A Study in Scarlet.

A few years down the track my father – yes, he introduced me to a lot of things as a kid! – sat me down one winter’s day and we watched a double bill of Sherlock Holmes (Basil Rathbone and Nigel Bruce) and the comedic genius of Will Hay, it was a real father/son moment. I have …

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My Monster Burrufu by Alberto Corral – Book Review

Posted on October 23, 2011
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Seven-year-old Olivia has just moved to a new house — the same house where a lonely monster named Burrufu lives hidden in a secret attic. One night, unable to resist the smell of delicious cookies, Burrufu sneaks out and is discovered by Olivia. The two soon learn that you can find friendship in the most unexpected places. ‘My Monster Burrufu’ is a story of overcoming fear, a curse, and a most unusual monster who learns from a little girl how to trust his heart.

Rarely do I get the opportunity to review a book aimed at young children but when a new and vibrant publishing company – Petit Grande Idee - from Los Angeles got in touch to ask if I’d like to take a look at their debut title I jumped at the chance given the message the book aims to deliver – never judge a book by its cover – and is predominately aimed at young children aged 9-12 years old, although saying that adults will enjoy it too!

My Monster Burrufu is a delightfully charming tale of a young girl who, along with her father, moves to a new three story house away from the hustle and bustle of city life for a fresh new start. On exploring the house Olivia discovers the house has a resident monster and although her father doesn’t believe it to be true he tells her monsters living in a house bring good luck. Eager to explore further and meet her monster she baits him with fresh cookies and the most unlikely friendship begins!

The major message behind the book is one of see people for who they are, not on how they look. We are all guilty in one way or another of judging someone on appearances and this …

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Perfect People by Peter James – Book Review

Posted on October 22, 2011
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John and Naomi are grieving the death of their four-year-old son from a rare genetic disorder. They desperately want another child, but they realize the odds of their next child contracting the same disease are high.

Then they hear about geneticist Dr Leo Dettore. He has methods that can spare them the heartache of ever losing another child to any disease.

At his clinic is where their nightmare begins.

They should have realized something was wrong when they saw the list. Choices of eye colour, hair, sporting abilities. They can literally design their child. Now it’s too late to turn back. Naomi is pregnant and already something is badly wrong . . .

Ten long years in the making, from research, to writing, to editing and finally publishing, Perfect People by Peter James is a book that will entertain, shock and perhaps most of all leave you wondering what if on so many levels. Just how far will parents go to ensure the safety and health of their unborn children? What lengths will they go to secure their future and to what cost? Who will eventually pay for their decisions – the parents or the children themselves? What would you do?

Are we doing the right thing?

Unless you’ve been living under a rock over the last few years I’m sure you would not only have heard of Peter James but no doubt read at least one of his Roy Grace crime thrillers. When I began reviewing books in late 2010 – before I’d come out from beneath the aforementioned rock – within a couple of months I began hearing Peter’s name – along with a well-deserved stellar reputation (Peter’s not mine!) – and everyone in the industry telling me I simply had to read some of his work. …

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Hell & Gone by Duane Swierczynski – Book Review

Posted on October 17, 2011
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There are some criminals so dangerous the world can never know about them.
They can’t be held in regular prisons.
They must never be released.

They’re here – in a secret underground prison miles away from anywhere. And now, so is Charlie Hardie. The shadowy organisation running the jail sent him there as punishment for getting in their way. But he’s not a prisoner. He’s in charge.

He can leave any time he wants, he’s told. There’s just one catch: if he goes, everyone in the prison dies, including innocent guards.

But when Charlie realises his family may be in danger, he knows he must protect them at any cost.

Even if it means blasting his way out, one inmate at a time…

Charlie Hardie is back and there’s no stopping him! Hell & Gone represents the second title in a trilogy featuring the enigmatic and opinionated Charlie Hardie, a house sitter for want of a better description, who finds himself in all sorts of trouble right from the very beginning – we wouldn’t want it any other way!

When we last met Hardie – Fun & Games – he’d clearly seen better days for our hero had been left battered and bruised following an explosive encounter with The Accident People, he was literally fighting for his life. A powerful group of individuals led by the voluptuous and ruthless Mann, they are a group for hire protecting the rich and famous. Nothing and no one would stand in their way. Charlie Hardie had other ideas and it nearly cost him his life.

Published by Mulholland Books Hell & Gone is another one of those books I’ve found hard to review purely due to spoilers, or my desire to give away as little as possible in a review! As with …

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The Roots of Betrayal by James Forrester – Book Review

Posted on October 16, 2011
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1564: Catholic herald William Harley, Clarenceux King of Arms, is the custodian of a highly dangerous document. When it is stolen, Clarenceux immediately suspects a group of Catholic sympathisers, the self-styled Knights of the Round Table. Francis Walsingham, the ruthless protégé of the queen’s Principal Secretary, Sir William Cecil, intercepts a coded message from the Knights to a Countess known to have Catholic leanings. He is convinced that Clarenceux is trying to use the document to advance the cause of the Catholic Queen. And soon Clarenceux enters a nightmare of suspicion, deception and conspiracy. Conflict and fear, compounded by the religious doubts of the time, conceal a persistent mystery. Where has the document gone? Who has it and who really took it? And why? The roots of betrayal are deep and shocking: and Clarenceux’s journey towards the truth entails not just the discovery of clues and signs, but also the discovery of himself.

A little over a year ago I read Sacred Treason by James Forrester – the Pen name of Ian Mortimer – and was immediately hooked into the trials and tribulations of William Harley and his family in 16th century England. In The Roots of Betrayal, the second of a trilogy featuring Clarenceux King of Arms, Harley is back with a vengeance determined to ensure the safety of not only his family but a document that would have serious repercussions around England – the Percy/Boleyn marriage agreement – should it be discovered and used to bring down the reign of Elizabeth.

In his author notes at the end of his book, James Forrester reemphasises that The Roots of Betrayal is a work of pure fiction and should not be considered historically accurate. That’s all well and good but for someone – me – with incredibly limited …

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A Single Shot by Matthew F Jones Book Review

Posted on October 9, 2011
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Anyone’s life can change in an instant. In Matthew F. Jones’s acclaimed novel, one man’s world is overturned with a single shot.

Trespassing on what was once his family’s land, John Moon hears a rustle in the brush and fires. But instead of the deer he was expecting, he finds the body of a young woman, killed by his stray bullet. A terrible dilemma is made worse when he stumbles upon her campground – and the piles of drugs and money concealed there.

Moon makes his choice: he hides the corpse, and takes the cash. His decision will have consequences he can neither predict or control.

Originally published in 1996, A Single Shot by author Matthew F Jones is proof, if ever it was required, that Mulholland Books are on the right track. Still in its infancy, the publisher – part of the Hodder & Stoughton stable in the UK – continues its fine publication record with another intriguing and dark title.

Billed as a classic Noir novel, A Single Shot is one of those titles you find yourself asking one simple question throughout – what would I do?. Set over a period of one week the premise for A Single Shot is simple; a man named John Moon is out hunting – illegally I may add – and finding a deer in his sights releases the safety catch on his shotgun and takes his shot. He wounds the animal and as he approaches his kill discovers the deer has escaped leaving a bloodied trail and so begins a week of decisions that will, one way or another, have a lasting effect on a number of people. Moon decides to track the deer rather than leave it to die an agonising death – quite a noble decision – but …

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Bryant & May and The Memory of Blood by Christopher Fowler – Book Review

Posted on October 6, 2011
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On a rainswept London night, the wealthy unscrupulous Robert Kramer hosts a party in his penthouse just off Trafalgar Square. But something is wrong. The atmosphere is uncomfortable, the guests are on edge. And when Kramer’s new young wife goes to check on their baby boy, she finds the nursery door locked from the inside.

Breaking in, the Kramers are faced with an open window, an empty cot, and a grotesque antique puppet of Mr Punch lying on the floor. It seems that young Noah Kramer was thrown from the building, but the child was strangled, and the marks of the puppet’s hands are clearly on his throat…what’s more, there was a witness.

It’s a perfect case for the Peculiar Crimes Unit. As John May and his team interrogate the guests, Arthur Bryant heads into the secret world of automata and stagecraft, illusions and effects. His suspicions fall on the staff of Kramer’s company, who have been employed to stage a gruesome new thriller in the West End. As a second impossible death occurs, the detectives uncover forgotten museums and London eccentrics, and take a trip to a seaside Punch & Judy show.

Then Bryant’s biographer suddenly dies. Was it a tragic accident, or could the circumstances of her death be related to the case? There’s just one hour left to solve the crime, but Bryant has buried himself away with his esoteric books. The stage is set for a race against time with a surprising twist…

Incredibly entertaining, Christopher Fowler’s Bryant & May and The Memory of Blood is another title – this year – that has taken me by complete surprise and entertained me from start to finish. The narrative is infectious and flows remarkably well throughout and together with an intelligent and humorous dialogue that had me …

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