King's Artesan by Cas Peace - A review

This, book 3 in the first of the 3 trilogies, picks up from exactly where the second ended. Major Sullyan (Sully)has won her battle but is suffering severe injuries as a consequence. With help she manages to remove the majority of the poison on her body but there is still a small portion within her she can't reach and if it is left there it will kill her.

The answer turns out to be that to cure her completely she needs the staff, the 'maguffin' from the first book, which is still in Taran's cellar back in their home realm but Sully, due to the poison in her system is unable to cross between realms so it is up to her friends to retrieve the staff before the enemy get to it.

This is a very good end to a quite remarkable story and the author has done a very good job of tying up the loose ends here while setting things in motion for the next series in the trilogy. The whole world (or series of world's if you want to think of it like that)is well realized and the lead characters are the kind of people you want to spend time with. Add to that a quite clever magic system and you're onto a winner.

As a lead character Sully is probably one of the best there is at this moment in time. She is a leader who cares for, and about, those under her command and her friends but is prepared to do what
 is needed to get the job done.

So, the next up will be a new trilogy and hopefully it won't be too far away as I can't wait to travel in Cas Peace's realms again.

A phenomenal effort - 5 out of 5 stars

The Broken Shore by Catriona King - a review

The fifth book to feature Superintendent Marc Craig and his squad is more of what I expected - an intriguing murder to keep you guessing (even when you think you have the answer you'll find you are doubting yourself), a good feel for Belfast and the surrounding area, and the company of characters that feel like old friends.

The Crime this time involves the murder of a young woman where method and location have startling similarities to a murder 30 years ago, at the height of The Troubles. There is also a side Story that is a lot closer to home for one of the characters.

There is reference to events from earlier in the series and appearances from at least one character from a previous story so it would be of benefit (although not essential) to read the other books first.

As with the previous books in the series the storytelling is top notch, making you want more when the book is over. There is insight into the lives of the squad members, sometimes little things, sometimes momentous, but even the little things feel like they matter.

I am looking forward to the next book and seeing where things go for Marc Craig and his team. One thing is certain - Catriona King is a writer who deserves to be up there with the best of the crime writers -I see a bright future ahead for her

Nine Lives by Terry Tyler - a review

I must say that until recently I haven't been a massive fan of short stories but here is another collection that has helped to change my mind.
I have been a fan of Terry Tyler's long fiction so trying the "short stuff" didn't take too much thinking about.
What we have here are nine excellent slices of human life, each slightly different but all well told. The author, as she usually does, gets you right under the skin of her characters. The stories, as you would expect, are not over long but that doesn't lessen the enjoyment factor.
A good solid collection suited to both male and female readers. Hopefully there will be more like this in the future.

Painter of the Heavens by Bart Stewart (a review)

I was given a copy of this book by the author in exchange for a true and fair review.

This is a story of two parts, the first being the meeting, relationship etc of the two main characters, Penny and Lyle, the second part being the aftermath of their actions. When they meet it seems in his bookshop. She falls for him straight away and they have several discreet dates but he tells her he is on the verge of "something big" so she must keep their relationship secret and tell no-one.

After several dates he lets her in on his secret - he, along with an acquaintance, has forged a letter from William Shakespeare and now he knows he can trust her he needs her help to sell it at auction, after which they will spend the future together living a much better life from the profits.

As you would expect from this kind of story things go wrong just as they are about to make good their escape to pastures new and the story turns into a hell for leather chase and that is where the story real picks up pace. The first 3/4's of the book felt like it could have been a strand for a season of Desperate Housewives and went at a much steadier pace.

The main problem for me was the lead characters - I just didn't connect with them overly. Lyle, as he needed to be, was a somewhat shady guy but Penny was just a little too wet. The way he treat her at times I would have expected her to leave him but she just kept going back to him.

The final resolution of events worked out well though. That seemed more like the Penny I would have expected her to be.

All in all, an enjoyable enough book that would make good holiday reading (and as for the Desperate Housewives comment - that was meant as a compliment, I was actually  a fan of the show)

Shot Through The Heart by Ed James (review)

Ed James will be better known to his readers for the (quite excellent) Cullen books, a series of detective stories set in and around Edinburgh.

This latest from him moves him firmly into supernatural/ Hammer House of Horror territory - and, boy, has he done it well.

The story revolves around Mark Campbell who is writing a book on 'The Clearences' - not a good time in Scotlands history. Having a wife and new baby Mark uses an assistant to do some of his research but gets a call to say she is missing.

Mark goes up to the village of Ruthven to search for her but (as you may expect) all is not as it seems. Some of the villagers will talk to him, some won't, but there are certainly 'things afoot' in the Highlands of Scotland.

I do not want to give too much away so all I will say is, the book is very atmospheric and ramps up a lot of the tension by suggestion rather than blood and guts on every page. We see a man slowly seeming to fall slowly apart as he tries to come to terms with what is happening both to him and around him.

As I mentioned earlier, very much in the Hammer vein but also rather reminiscent of mid career James Herbert (when I felt he did his best work)

4 and 1/2 stars

Congress of the Dead by Timothy W Long (a review)

What a brilliant idea....America was in shutdown at the time this short story was written, politicians bickering over the budget, people not being able to go to work in certain sectors. In a time of gloom and despondency one man set out to have some fun and put a smile back on peoples faces by doing what he does best.......sending the zombies to Congress.

What impressed me first and foremost was that although this is only a short story there is still time for the author to give a reason for the start of the zombie outbreak (so few zombie authors do that these days).

Timothy. W. Long is one of the leaders in the field of both zombie fiction and comedy zombie fiction. This falls firmly into the latter catagory and is a must read.

Now, any chance the same can be done for the UK government ;-)

Six of the Best: A Hellish Half Dozen by Kevin Bufton (a review)

A couple of weeks ago I entered a competition on facebook, the prize was a copy of this book - thankfully I won. This is a really good collection!

As you would expect from the title their are six short stories in this collection, three zombie tales and three general horror.

The book opens with Mother's Milk, a truly disturbing tale of mother and child in the aftermath of the zombie apocalypse. I had become a little tired  the whole zombie genre before reading this story but this author has really made me change my mind. It has moments that will truly set the reader on edge, horror as it should be.

Next comes 'The Shoot' where a wrestling fan gets to interview The Masked Marauder, the first interview the MM has ever done, and learns a secret he wasn't expecting.

Next up, '53' another zombie tale, set in the same universe as Mother's Milk. The 53 in the title is the time between death and reanimation. The story is set in what is left of a hospital and shows another angle to life after the apocalypse.

Roots, story 4 is set in the Old West with a father and two sons under siege from..........tumbleweed

The Wren is in the style of a folk tale set around Christmas but certainly not with a Christmassy ending.

The final story, Hooked, is another zombie tale but this time with a nautical leaning and set in the mid 19th century.

All these stories are of a very high quality. Horror, as a genre, can seem a bit overdone at times but this collection gives me hope for the future. I will certainly be looking out for more from this author and I suggest that, if horror is your thing, you do too, but for now I am heartily recommending this collection to you.