The Way Of The Worm - Ramsey Campbell

 

 'More than thirty years have passed since the events of Born to the Dark. Christian Noble is almost a century old, but his and his family’s influence over the world is stronger than ever. The latest version of their occult church counts Dominic Sheldrake’s son and the young man’s wife among its members, and their little daughter too. Dominic will do anything he can to break its influence over them, and his old friends Jim and Bobby come to his aid. None of them realise what they will be up against – the Nobles transformed into the monstrousness they have invoked, and the inhuman future they may have made inevitable . . .'

 So, here we are at the end of Mr Campbell's trilogy and the final chance for Dominic Sheldrake and friends to defeat Christian Noble's (now global)  dark church.

 Dom, Jim and Bobby are getting on a bit by the time this endgame comes around experience (or so it is said) but can anything really have prepared for the hellish Lovecraftian horrors ahead? Even more so when Dom's family are involved.

 I have enjoyed this series from the page 1 and waited eagerly for each new episode, watching the Sheldrake and co. go from youth to old age and seeing how the Noble's church and plans would develop. What has surprised me most is how much story Campbell manages to fit in the books, even when, at times, it feels like it is a slow burn. When he pulls everything together the results are as good, if not better, than anything out there in the genre. Campbell has been doing this job for decades and this trilogy 'The Three Births of Daoloth' shows the master still at the top of his game.

 I don't like to use phrases like 'edge of your seat stuff' but The Way Of The Worm really was that

Highly Recommended (best read as a series though)  5/5*

 

Many thanks to Anne Cater and Random Things Tours for inviting me onto this blogtour, and please check out the posts by the other bloggers (below)

The Kaiju Preservation Society - John Scalzi

 Oh, this was so much fun. Imagine getting a job where you get to go to a parallel earth and study/protect humongous Godzilla and almost Cthulu type creatures. That's what happens when lead character (Jamie) gets screwed over at work and ends up as a deliveroo type bicycle food delivery operative. While making one of his deliveries he meets an old acquaintance who offers him the chance of better employment.

 And that's where the fun begins - and trust me, this novel is a whole heap of fun.

 The job involves a portal jump to an alternate earth where these giant creatures live. Jamie and his new friends and co-workers are the titular Kaiju Preservation Society and the job basically describes itself. 

 Now, this kind of story needs a big bad out to spoil everything and use the Kaiju for their own personal gain and, to be fair, they are kinda signposted from the get-go but, you know what? I don't care 😉.

 I don't care, because this isn't some deep morality tale, it's a fun read with an alternate earth and 

Giant!

Freakin'!

Monsters!!

 The banter between the leads made me chuckle at times and the whole pitch of the thing was just right.

 I haven't read much Scalzi before but I will be raiding his back catalogue with a vengeance.

 Thanks to Black Crow PR for inviting me onto this tour. Please have a read of the posts by the other bloggers (below)

Our Lady Of Mysterious Ailments by T L Huchu

 

                   About The Book

Some secrets are meant to stay buried

When Ropa Moyo discovered an occult underground library, she expected great things. She’s really into Edinburgh’s secret societies – but turns out they are less into her. So instead of getting paid to work magic, she’s had to accept a crummy unpaid internship. And her with bills to pay and a pet fox to feed.

Then her friend Priya offers her a job on the side. Priya works at Our Lady of Mysterious Maladies, a very specialized hospital, where a new illness is resisting magical and medical remedies alike. The first patient was a teenage boy, Max Wu, and his healers are baffled. If Ropa can solve the case, she might earn as she learns – and impress her mentor, Sir Callander.

Her sleuthing will lead her to a lost fortune, an avenging spirit and a secret buried deep in Scotland’s past. But how are they connected? Lives are at stake and Ropa is running out of time.

         

                        My Thoughts

 Well, here we go, back into the dystopian, post apocalyptic Edinburgh that we first saw in The Library Of The Dead . . . oh, and it's so good to be back.

 With her previous business now behind her Ropa is now she is now working a new job that will, hopefully, allow her to develop her skills and get lots of experience - but she soon finds out that it's an unpaid internship. This being the case Ropa, who is her family's bread winner has to take on side jobs to earn cash. 

 One of these is trying to find a cure for a teenage boy who is in a coma at Our Lady Of Mysterious Ailments. Time is short and more teen-agers are going the same way. Ropa's search leads her to one of the four Schools of Magic and plenty of scrapes in her search for answers.

 This second in the Edinburgh Nights series is an improvement on The Library Of The Dead (which is going some, as I really enjoyed that too). Maybe it is the author growing in confidence but the characters felt more fleshed out here and the Edinburgh of this book felt just a bit more 'real'. As before the speech is quite Scottish a good bit of the time which could put people off (not me, I read quite a lot of Scotland based fiction so I'm used to it) but I hope it doesn't as this series is a lot of fun.

 I've seen the Edinburgh Nights series compared in story style to the Rivers of London  and actually think that is quite apt.

 The second in a series that is going from strength to strength and I'm already looking forward to the next one.

 4.5/5*

 Many thanks to Stephen Haskins, Black Crow PR and Tor books for inviting me to review the book and providing a copy of said book. All views and opinions are my own.