Enter the dark blog tour

today I am on the blog tour for Enter the dark by Chris Thomas – his first novel which has been republished by Bloodhound books.

the story:

An anonymous website, a few clicks, and Joe Henderson’s life is changed forever.

‘The Red Room’ is the only place where the inadequacies of a weak justice system are righted and where the line between good and evil becomes blurred. When the lights go up, viewers bid, criminals are punished, and the Brotherhood of the Righteous broadcasts a show like no other.

The room has remained hidden until now, when a video arrives in the inbox of the Metropolitan Police Cyber Crime Unit: the torture and killing of a notorious criminal. But outclassed, outplayed, and torn apart by corruption, is there anything Detective Pete Harris and his team can do except watch?

Their only lead may be the room’s latest bidder, Joe Henderson. Because when Joe found the Red Room, it found him too, and now the Brotherhood are watching through the wires, willing to do evil for a righteous cause, to become the men that even monsters are scared of.

As they pull Joe deeper into the dark web, will he find any mercy and any way out? Or will he be the Red Room’s next volunteer?

My thoughts:

This Novel starts off with an interesting premise, none of us know very much about the dark web and the darker side of human nature tends to fascinate people. This novel does have some flaws however – I found the process of solving the crime quite unbelievable and the ending a little flawed there were just a few to many twists for me.

However this is a gruesome novel that raises some interesting questions, such as is vigilante justice ever acceptable and I really liked the idea of having a crime set on the dark web. The author has started off well and could be one to watch this is a solid 4* read for me

 

One Punch blog tour by Keith Dixon

My turn today on the one punch blog tour by Keith Dixon – this is an interesting book for me, I have read some of Keiths work before but felt like this went in a different direction.

the story:

Paul Storey is an ex-cop looking for a job. Bran Doyle was a boxer but he’s now looking for a driver. And perhaps a little more.

Storey takes the job but soon finds himself involved in more than driving. There’s a murder. And conspiracy. And another murder.

And then the real trouble starts.

My thoughts:

Although I haven’t read the first book in this series, I feel like this one stands alone and can be enjoyed on its own merits. It’s a little out of my comfort zone for a read as Storey seems like a real mans man and the novel is all action. That said the plot moves along at a reasonable pace and I enjoyed how nothing was quite as it seemed.

The characters were interesting and the weird family dynamics fit well with the main plot of the novel. If you like reading a more all action type of novel than this will keep you hooked until the very last page. A 4* read for me

He made me blog tour

Today I have the great pleasure of being on the He made me blog tour for Oliver tidy’s second booker and cash novel – currently being republished by bloodhound books and the second offering in what is my favourite of Mr Tidy’s series of novels.

The story:
David Booker and Jo Cash are experiencing similar stuttering starts to their new lives on Romney Marsh when Rebecca Swaine turns up seeking help. Someone is demanding a lot of money from her husband and she wants to know why.

What do the dying words of one man – he made me – actually mean? 

As the mystery unfolds people will come undone and reputations will be ruined before the answer becomes clear.

At the end of the day Mrs Swaine might end up wishing she’d let sleeping dogs lie…

My thoughts:

I really enjoyed this novel  – it is the one that for me cemented this as my favourite of Oliver’s series of books. Booker and cash feel like really likeable people who you want to find out more about and this novel, brings them back and makes you feel even more involved in their lives.

The story in this one is fascinating and features the area of Romney marsh so well it almost feels like an extra character, there are some excellent literary references as well. This has a faster pace and really packs in the twists and turns whilst still featuring all of Oliver’s trademark humour.

If you haven’t discovered oliver tidy’s works yet whats keeping you – he is one amazing crime writer. This is yet another 5* read for me and I look forward to finally reading the long awaited third in the series.

Beyond Evidence blog tour

Beyond evidence is a novel by Emma L clapperton and published by Bloodhound books – it has an interesting premise that after reading one of her novellas made me very excited to read one of her novels

The story:

In an alleyway in Glasgow lies a decomposing corpse of a slain female baking in the midday heat. No one has found her yet, but medium Patrick McLaughlin knows she is there. It is not the first time he has dreamt of death… and it will not be the last.

When several bizarre murders take place the local police start to request DNA samples from twenty something year old men.

Through a hunch, and in the belief that the terrifying dreams hold the key to the identity of the murderer, Patrick works alongside the police to track down the predator before they can strike again. But as the nightmares increase they begin to threaten Patrick’s sanity.

my thoughts:

I enjoyed the novella featuring these characters and I think this made me buy into it a little more. In a full length novel this book suffered a little from first novel syndrome to much establishing the characters and premise which sometimes impacted the story.

That said the idea of a true psychic helping solve crimes is very unusual, the only other place i’ve seen it done is in Charlaine Harrises grave sight series which is one of my all time favourite series of books.

The premise was entertaining however and the crime moved along well with the influence of the characters. The characters felt fleshed out and interesting and the element of supernatural was handled well and believably.

I on the whole enjoyed this novel and would happily read another in the series. I think the author could be a fresh new voice in crime fiction offering valid supernatural crime novels set in the UK. This is a solid 4* read for me.

movies you didnt realise were based on books

I’ve not done a blog list in a while – and having found one of the books mentioned here over half term and really enjoying it, I decided to publish a list of 5 books that you didnt realise were turned into movies/had movies based on them. Some of these novels are absolutely cracking.

1) The Parent trap – Erich Kastner   https://www.amazon.co.uk/Parent-Trap-Pushkin-Childrens-Flapped-ebook/dp/B00OFIBEBC/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1496431216&sr=1-1&keywords=parent+trap

Ok so I didn’t realise this was a novel first – the movies of the parent trap both orginal and lohan versions are amazing. and when i stumbled across this in the childrens sections of waterstones I was really excited, and the movie is a fairly faithful adaptation, this is a charming read for kids and adults alike.

2) Make Room Make room – Harry Harrison https://www.amazon.co.uk/Make-Room-Penguin-Modern-Classics-ebook/dp/B00F02CI9O/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1496432172&sr=1-1&keywords=make+room+make+room

The novel that Soylent Green is based on and a completely fantastic read, this is the one I discovered during half term. I’m not sure how faithful an adaptation the movie is because to date I haven’t seen the film. However I am converted into a Harry Harrison fan after reading the novel – a fantastic look at the overuse of resources and overpopulation that is still timely today.

edit  – I have now watched the movie – which is fantastic and eerily sinister in its famous twist – it has very little in common with the original novel. Both raise interesting questions but i think the novel edges it for the intelligence of the points it makes.

3) The Graduate by Charles webb https://www.amazon.co.uk/Graduate-RosettaBooks-Into-Film-ebook/dp/B003XRELYS/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1496432350&sr=1-1&keywords=the+graduate

This is a novel I didnt know existed and another fascinating read. Again I can’t tell you how faithful the adaptation is because like a true bookgeek i’ve only read the novel so far. It is an interesting insight into relationships between lovers and families, that is very of its time.

4) Anything by Ira Levin – although my choice is Sliver https://www.amazon.co.uk/Sliver-Introduction-Jonathan-Ira-Levin-ebook/dp/B00GHK7992/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1496432518&sr=1-1&keywords=sliver

Ira Levin is the source of many movies including the stepford wives, boys from brazil and Rosemary’s baby but my favourite of his novels is probably Sliver a chilling story of obsession, although aparrently the movie adaptation of this is not that great. All of the novels mentioned here are well worth a read.

5) All you need is Kill by Ryosuke Takeuchi https://www.amazon.co.uk/All-Need-Kill-Manga-manga/dp/1421576015/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1496432789&sr=8-1&keywords=all+you+need+is+kill

This is what the movie live die repeat is based on and is also a novel – a fantastic story in manga form I wholeheartedly recommend this as a read once again I can’t vouch for the movie but the manga is awesome.

That’s my list but i’m sure there are many more people can think of and I’d be interested to hear your suggestions in the comments below.

The Suicide plan by Emma L Clapperton

My turn on todays blog tour for the suicide plan by Emma L Clapperton, thanks to bloodhound books for the review copy.

this novella is about:

Standing up and welcoming everyone to the spiritualist church is something Patrick McLaughlin does most evenings. Most of the faces in the audience are familiar to him, except one. David Hopkirk walks into the West End Spiritualist church in Glasgow and slits his own throat in the middle of a demonstration. But why?

Patrick is then catapulted into a case, which sees the death of a child, a failed court case and a family torn apart.

Soon Patrick will have all the pieces of the puzzle but will he be able to fit them together in time?

My thoughts:

This is exactly the kind of novella that I would choose for myself, there is an excellent hint of the paranormal to it. Although Emma is a new author for me this wont be the last of her novels I will read.

I enjoyed the story it packs a lot into a small number of pages. Patrick is a believable character who is well drawn out. The balance of straight investigation combined with his abilities as a psychic is well done and I found his psychic abilities quite believable in the context of the novella.

The story is fascinating and all the characters are interesting which draws you into the investigation, i found this to be a read in one sitting type of novella and am eager to find out what happens with Patrick next. A solid 5* read for me.