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My Top 15 Books of 2011

Posted on December 19, 2011
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After reading in excess of 120 books this year it was never going to be easy whittling the list down to just 15 favourite books of the year let alone 10! Following last year’s top 15 books of 2010 I thought I’d keep to the same formula but before I list my top books of 2011 I wanted to take time out and mention a handful of titles that narrowly missed out.

Alison Bruce’s The Calling, the third in the DC Goodhew series, is a strong police procedural and an incredibly entertaining crime novel. If you are looking for a standalone novel with an evocative story, stunning landscape and vibrant characters then look no further than Peter Robinson’s Before The Poison. We change the pace a little with two books I struggled to put down Death Mask by Kathryn Fox and Already Gone by John Rector. Finally we have The House of Silk by Anthony Horowitz a throwback to Arthur Conan Doyle and the first Sherlock Holmes title to receive the blessing of the Conan Doyle estate.

And so without further ado my top 15 reads of 2011:-

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15
 Beauty and the inferno – Roberto Saviano

Few people have had to endure – or will ever have the courage to do so – what Roberto Saviano has since the release of Gomorrah in 2006. In Beauty and the inferno he continues to name names and never shies away from adversity or death. The fact that this book took two years to publish is testament to the dogged determination of Roberto and the crew at Maclehose Press. Exceptional.

Published by Maclehose Press- Review

14
 Before I Go To Sleep – SJ Watson

There’s something so powerful and natural about this book that makes me want to read it again

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Top 10 Debut Titles 2011

Posted on December 17, 2011
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As we near the end of another year I thought I’d have a little fun with a couple of top 10 lists. The first, the top 10 debut titles released and reviewed in 2011 and an overall top 10 that includes debut authors and established authors.

Top 10 Debuts in 2011

A number of titles that have caught my eye this year and I thought, before I list my top 10 titles,  I’d start with a few titles that almost made it into my top 10 list and all deserve a special mention. In August Roxy Freeman shared her heart breaking story in Little Gypsy, a book that is guaranteed to bring a tear to your eye. July gave us an emotional story of a woman accused of murdering her best friend – Turn of Mind by Alice LaPlante and finally Spiral by Paul McEuen a stunning bio-tech thriller from the Cornell professor.

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10
 Twists and turns in abundance, “Random” will shock you to the core – Robertson weaving his magic with fluidity that belies his experience. Highly recommended but not  for the fainthearted!  Take a bow Craig – clean up on aisle 4!Published by Simon & Schuster – Review
9
 If you’re looking for an adrenaline pumping adventure, believable characters and a few jaw dropping moments then look no further than Hunted by Emlyn Rees. Danny Shanklin is about to set the world on fire, the only question remains – can anyone stop him?Published by Corsair – Review

 
8
 An intelligent novel, Pariahis a remarkable debut from David Jackson. In Callum Doyle, Jackson certainly has a protagonist well worth protecting – I for one can’t wait to see what he comes up with next. New York’s finest battle it out in this pulsating crime thriller.Published
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Creep by Jennifer Hillier – Book Review

Posted on December 14, 2011
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If he can’t have her . . .

Dr. Sheila Tao is a professor of psychology. An expert in human behaviour. And when she began an affair with sexy, charming graduate student Ethan Wolfe, she knew she was playing with fire. Consumed by lust when they were together, riddled with guilt when they weren’t, she knows the three-month fling with her teaching assistant has to end. After all, she’s finally engaged to a kind and loving investment banker who adores her, and she’s taking control of her life. But when she attempts to end the affair, Ethan Wolfe won’t let her walk away.

. . . no one else can.

2011 has been quite the ground breaking year for me and incidentally marks my first full year reviewing and I can honestly say I wouldn’t change the experience for the world. As we approach the festive season – happy holidays, the coke lorry, turkey (cooked), stuffing, did I mention the coke lorry?  – the books are still arriving thick and fast and despite a volatile financial market there appears to be no let-up in publications, January is going to be a very busy month. Apparently crime does pay!

Creep is available in the UK (Paperback & Kindle) & US (Hardback)

With that in mind choosing the next book to read/review is never easy, people often ask me how I make my decision, sometimes it’s as simple as taking pot luck, closing my eyes and picking up a book off the shelf and other times it’s a long drawn out process depending on my reading mood and publication deadlines. When Creep – by debut Canadian author Jennifer Hillier – arrived in the mail, the cover garnished with handcuffs attached to a metal chain, I was in the …

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Julia by Otto de Kat – Book Review

Posted on December 8, 2011
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One summer’s afternoon in 1981, a factory owner, Christiaan Dudok, is found dead in his study having taken his own life. He has left no suicide note, but on his desk is a newspaper from 2 April 1942, reporting on the bombing of the north German town of Lubeck. The list of the dead includes the highlighted name of Julia Bender. As a young man finishing his studies in Lubeck in 1938, Christiaan is irresistibly drawn to Julia, a courageous German who has emphatically rejected the Nazi regime. But that same year he is forced to leave both Germany and the woman he loves, even though he suspects that he is making the greatest mistake of his life. Julia is the story of a life lived wrongly, of a love so great that it endures for decades, and yet still fails. Fear of life and loss of courage, and terrifying inhuman fanaticism are the compelling themes explored in Otto de Kat’s elegantly accomplished, elegiac novel.

I’ve had Julia by Otto de Kat on my bookshelves for a few months now – this review unfortunately missing the publication date by a few weeks – and although I’ve walked past the shelves daily, catching the title in my peripheral vision on numerous occasions, I’ve never been tempted to pick up the book and start reading. I couldn’t tell you why, just one of those things I guess, but one thing I can categorically say now, without hesitation; is that I wish I’d read it when it first arrived!

Physically it reminds me of another title from Maclehose Press I reviewed back in September – Good Offices by Evelio Rosero – and although similarly small in stature, Julia certainly packs a literary punch with an evocative and beautiful narrative that effortlessly reaches the …

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Already Gone by John Rector – Book Review

Posted on December 7, 2011
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Jake Reese is an ordinary guy with an ordinary job, trying to block out the memory of his violent past by planning for the future with his new wife, Diane. But the past has a habit of refusing to stay buried…When two men attack Jake in a car park and cut off his ring finger, he tries to dismiss it as an unlucky case of being in the wrong place at the wrong time. But when events take a more sinister turn and Diane goes missing, Jake knows he can no longer hide from the truth. As he embarks on a mission to find Diane, Jake finds himself dragged back into the life he thought he had walked away from forever and the days ahead begin to unfold in terrifying ways…

A little over a year ago I read and reviewed Cold Kiss by John Rector, a dark tale of two strangers who make one mistake after another – a book I incidentally loved – when they stumble across a stranger in a bar. A classic Noir title, Cold Kiss is as strong a debut as you could hope for so it was with eager anticipation I began reading his latest title Already Gone a few days ago and although not in the same vein as Cold Kiss it was one of the quickest reads I’ve had in 2011. If ever there was a book I would class as “I couldn’t put that down” this year, Already Gone is without doubt at the top of that category.

The book is a veritable page turner and, set at an enviable pace, it just begs to be read. The narrative is crisp, well written and delivered at such a breakneck speed that I finished the book in a little under …

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Lynn Shepherd talks Charles Dickens

Posted on December 7, 2011
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A little over twelve months ago I read Murder at Mansfield Park by Lynn Shepherd and was blown away by the narrative, storytelling and characterisation, so much so the book was one of my top reads for 2010 and to this day holds a special place on my shelf for a number of reasons. Murder at Mansfield Park, published by Corsair, is now available as an E-Book download.

I hadn’t expected to enjoy it, it’s not the sort of book I would normally read but such was its endearing prose I found myself spellbound and if anyone has any doubt about whether the book is for you why not take time and read my review of Lynn’s book or just listen and watch Lynn enthusing about the title in her video.

“When one of the principle cast members is brutally killed, the book moves up a gear and becomes an enchanting murder mystery. Can one class a murder as enchanting?! The grim discovery of the body in a muddy ditch introduces us to an assured thief-taker, or private detective to you and me – Charles Maddox.”

In the second of Lynn’s videos the author talks about her new murder mystery Tom-All-Alone’s – a book inspired by Charles Dickens’ Bleak House – which is published early next year by Constable & Robinson in the UK to coincide with the celebrations marking the 200th anniversary of Charles Dickens’ birth in February 1812 – the book also serves as Lynn’s personal tribute to the renowned author who died aged just 58 years old.

If you’d like to learn more then please do visit Lynn Shepherd at her website.…

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Anthony Hays and Potatoes

Posted on December 3, 2011
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I like crime fiction and suspense thrillers.  I like them to be accurate, as much as possible.  As an author myself, I set high standards for my own work.  Of course, occasionally I screw up.  It is inevitable.  In a recent entry in my Arthurian series, I made the error of mentioning, in a list of foods served at a banquet, potatoes. Yes, I knew that potatoes were not around in 5th century Britain.  I made a mistake, one that nobody else caught either until one vigilant reader saw it. The reader claimed that she had almost tossed the book aside on reading that.  I thought that was a bit extreme. Little things like that happen. But what shouldn’t happen is when authors make errors simply because they assume they know what they’re talking about. That’s bad. And it gives all of us a bad name.

Many years ago, I was talking to a bestselling author of contemporary thrillers.  His books were set in exotic locales around the globe.  I mentioned that it must be great to travel to all of those places to do research. “Oh,” he said, offhandedly, “I never go to those countries until after the book is written. I use travel brochures.” His answer bothered me then, and it bothers me now.  Recently, while reading a thriller, on the bestseller lists, I was reminded of how dangerous that was. The Killing Way Review.

This particular author had set a short scene in Kuwait.  In the great scheme of things, it was actually a scene that could have been cut without harming the broader plot. Would that it had. The author’s protagonist, sitting at a restaurant in Kuwait, orders a vodka martini. Upon reading that scene, I completely understood my reader’s reaction to potatoes in …

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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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