Category Archives: Book Reviews

Catherine of Braganza: Charles II’s Restoration Queen by Sarah-Beth Watkins – Review

Insurrectio by Alison Morton – Review

Title – Insurrectio (Roma Nova #5)
Author – Alison Morton
Genre – Historical Thriller
Length – 276 Pages
Publication – April 2016
My Rating – 5/5 Stars

Synopsis

‘The second fall of Rome?’

Aurelia Mitela, ex-Praetorian and imperial councillor in Roma Nova, scoffs at her intelligence chief when he throws a red file on her desk. But 1980s Roma Nova, the last province of the Roman Empire that has survived into the twentieth century, has problems – a ruler frightened of governing, a centuries-old bureaucracy creaking for reform and, worst of all, a rising nationalist movement with a charismatic leader.

Horrified when her daughter is brutally attacked in a demonstration turned riot, Aurelia tries to rally resistance to the growing fear and instability. But it may already be too late to save Roma Nova from meltdown and herself from entrapment and destruction by her lifelong enemy…

Review

Have you read Aurelia yet? The previous book in the series. If not click here to read my review – Aurelia (Roma Nova #4)

When we left Aurelia a lot had happened to her and I wondered how easy it would be for her to pick up the pieces.. well now we know. Some time has passed since the events with Caius Tellus and Aurelia has settled down to her role in Roma Nova well. She’s enjoying life albeit a stressful one, a daughter who is coming of age and a partner who yearns to be free of life’s constraints. She juggles this life and work balance well until she finds out Caius is due to be released!

Caius quickly worms his way into Aurelia’s life again by using his charm on the ruler of Roma Nova..Aurelia does everything in her power to rid herself of this man but he’s as slippery as they come.

There’s the added stress of the rising nationalist movement who believe men are being oppressed. I particularly loved this role reversal from what we see reported in the news today.

What I really enjoy about the authors work is that even though the story has a strong female lead and is very focused on how capable women are in general at no point do I feel it’s a dig at men at all, more a celebration of women.

This is a more brutal tale than the last, more death and at times the pain is very close to home for Aurelia. I wasn’t sure how she could continue..but push on she does.

There’s some great scenes in this book between Caius and Aurelia which leave others to wonder who’s side is Aurelia really on, but we know..she would never side with the likes of him..but she needs to earn the trust of individuals in this book which gave her some vulnerability which suited the tale perfectly and it was a joy to read.

The book definitely picks the pace up as events don’t just affect Aurelia now.. they threaten Roma Nova itself and some very powerful people have been removed..what can Aurelia do??

It’s a historical fiction/political thriller, lots of twists with brilliant development of the characters. Some of which we may not see again..or will we?? I hope so.

Morton ticks all the boxes for me, suspense, action, love, death, pain and anguish and one hell of a lead character who is very likeable.

Looking at the book in general one for the other things I love is it’s neither too short or too long for my tastes and the pacing of the tale means it develops quickly but with what feels a natural progression rather than forced.

Super tale to read. Have a look!

My thanks go to th author for the chance to read/review her work. Certainly an author I’ll keep an eye on.

To find out more head to Amazon or Goodreads.

Blog Tour – Brick by Conrad Jones

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Today I’m taking part in the blog tor for Brick bu Conrad Jones. Bloodhound Books kindly supplied a copy of the book for review but after reading this I bought a copy myself as it’s just that good!

Here’s the blurb –

Title – Brick
Author – Conrad Jones
Genre – Crime Thriller
Length – 314 Pages
Publication – 23^rd May 2017
My Rating – 5/5 Stars

Synopsis

A hard-boiled and utterly gripping crime thriller from a best-selling author

When a teenager is the victim of an unprovoked attack while walking his dog, a murder investigation begins. A cruel twist of fate makes his innocent family the targets of a vicious campaign of terror.

As the detectives of Liverpool’s Major Investigation Team try to contain the violence, several key members of an organised crime family begin to topple, causing shockwaves across the world.

Why was the teenager attacked?

And will the villains be brought to justice?

Review

Brick is an action packed tale of gangsters, drugs and murder.

We get two stories playing out. The first following Bryn, a local teenager, who rubs someone up the wrong way ends up in a shed load of danger..and it’s not just him.. these men mean business and It could mean the end to his whole family. The man he pissed off has ties to some very dangerous men.

The second story is a full on tale of drugs and betrayal.. There’s no loyalty among thieves they say. Brick explores this and what we get is one hell of a book! Gripped would be an understatement.

I was instantly hooked by the prologue and I had high expectations for the story which I’m glad to say the author exceeded!

It’s a tale of the dark underbelly of society and you felt for Bryn and his family.. it really does look like there’s no where they can hide.

You really will get sucked into this one quickly.

To find out more head to Amazon or Goodreads.

Chase: The Hunt for a King by Thomas Dellenbusch – Review

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Title – Chase: The Hunt for a King (Chase (EE) Book 2)
Author – Thomas Dellenbusch , Richard Urmston (Translator)
Genre – Crime, Thriller, Mystery
Length – 118 Pages
Publication – Feb 2017
My Rating – 5/5 Stars

Synopsis

Translated Version from the popular German book series of Movie-Length-Theatre-Of-The-Mind-Stories

Scotland on the brink of independence: the government is planning its own Scottish monarchy. But when a member of the close-knit planning group reveals the identity of the candidate for the throne, suddenly people appear who want to prevent this royal ascension at all costs – including murder. When CHASE is called in to assist, Jérome and Chen Lu travel to Glasgow. Together with the Scotsman James Campbell, they hunt for his father’s murderer. A secretive wax seal leads them into a maze of ancient legends and lost manuscripts. Can they solve the mystery and save the king – or will old ruins become their grave?

Review

This is the second book in the CHASE series. If you didn’t catch my review of book one then click here – The Hunt for the Mute Poetess.

On to book two…. This time the author lets other members of the CHASE team shine and this meant the story was not only enjoyable but fresh. This added some depth to the team which we were introduced to in the previous book and it’s this kind of slow but steady build-up that makes me invest in a series.

The CHASE team have a habit of being in the wrong place at the wrong time and they’re thrust into a life or death situation as a friend of Jérome’s life hangs in the balance.. it’s all linked to the death of his father and ties to the past and the Scottish monarchy itself.

There’s plenty of twists to this tale and exciting revelations to keep the reader hooked. Fast paced scenes keep the action flowing but there are also points in the book where you and the characters can reflect on events. For me this reminded of TV character Columbo, a real mystery to be solved and it takes the CHASE team to figure things out.

A real joy to read I must admit and both the author and the translator have got this book spot on. I really wouldn’t have guessed this book was translated from German to English at all and the story works well. It especially fits at the moment with Brexit and the question of Scotland’s independence being discussed.

A super quick, easy and fun read. I’d go so far as to say it would be impossible not to enjoy the book.

To find out more head to Amazon or Goodreads.

Juggernaut: a new sequel to The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde by Eamonn Martin Griffin – Review

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Title – Juggernaut: a new sequel to The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde
Author – Eamonn Martin Griffin/Robert Louis Stevenson
Genre – Fantasy/Horror
Length – 311 Pages
Publication – March 2017
My Rating – 5/5 Stars

Synopsis

A thrilling new sequel to Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde.

1911. London is in limbo between two monarchs. Edward is dead and George not yet crowned.

Ex-military doctor Toby Latimer is lately installed in private practice after Boer War service. His life is easy, his indolence assuaged by East End charitable work.

Latimer is summoned to an irascible client. He finds he’s been summoned to witness a will reading. The will is that of one Edward Hyde.

And now, Latimer’s life is anything but straightforward…

Presented here as a chilling double-bill in one volume for the first time: Robert Louis Stevenson’s The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde together with Eamonn Martin Griffin’s all-new continuation, Juggernaut.

Review

I’ve reviewed author Eamonn Martin Griffin before and love his work so when he contacted me to say a new book was out I jumped at the chance to read it.

Now two things stood out. Firstly the cover.. Damn that’s a nice cover! I would have bought this book based on that alone. Secondly Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde has to be my favourite classic horror tale. I loved it as a kid and still do now.

If you’ve not read The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde then fear not.. now is the time as that tale is included.

What happened if someone else found out about Jekyll’s work? 20 years later Hyde’s will shows up, why now? Well I’m not going to spoil it for you, you’ll need to read Juggernaut!

Okay..maybe one little tit bit..lets just say Jekyll and Hyde’s legacy certainly isnt gone..but just who is behind things and what does Juggernaut stand for.. read and see 🙂

So what does Griffin bring to the tale? To start with he gets the flow of the book spot on and the two books work perfectly. He brings the language up to date but at the same time it really does feel like the stories fit together.

If you liked the suspense of Stevenson’s work you’ll love Juggernaut as Griffin keeps this style of tale going strong right until the end when the pieces of the puzzle are put together.

It takes a brave man to write a sequel to such an established book but Griffin did a brilliant job for me and I think it will help boost his reputation as an author but also open up the world of Stevenson to a new generation of youngsters who might have been put off by the language used by Stevenson.

For me this was an exciting read.. not only is it a brilliant piece of storytelling in itself but it breathes life into one of my favourite books.

I do think Stevenson would enjoy Griffins sequel and I hope you do too.

Griffin has a talent from writing and this books just cements how good he is.

To find out more head to Amazon or Goodreads.

Minnesota: Her Account; Her View by Nick Knardirell – Review

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Title – Minnesota: Her Account; Her View
Author – Nick Knardirell
Genre – Crime Fiction
Length – 226 Pages
Publication – Sept 2015

My Rating – 5/5 Stars

Synopsis

Groomed by her father to one day take over the Family business, Fuada ruled with an iron fist. Undermined by her brother and betrayed by her right hand man, she finds herself backed into a corner. Murders, informants, mistaken identity and the purposeful mistakes of her brother create an unquestionable trail that lead straight to her. Controversial, conflicted, secretive, narcissistic, arrogant and prideful are a few words that describe Fuada Busticnam. While narrating the story of her life from prison, she journeys through her past to discover why she landed there.

Review

Minnesota is quite a hard-hitting story from the start. It’s a tale of a young girl groomed from a very young age to take over the family business. Not everyone is happy with the choice as this dark underworld is still mainly fronted by men.

The story is a memoir of events that lead to the downfall of the family. Not only does Fuada Busticnam have to contend with the family heads looking down on her she also has a wayward brother who thinks he should be running the family, even though clearly he doesn’t have what it takes.

This isn’t a slow burner by any means but I found myself reading this one slowly more so just because I was enjoying the tale and really wanted to soak everything up.

The development of the story is really what made this a great book for me.. we see the little girl grow up and become a fearsome gangster leading a double life and it progressed at an easy pace for the reader.

At times the events are emotional and we glimpse an insight to the gangsters mind as she justifies the punishments she doles out. As strange as it is you find yourself actually liking the character and wanting her to succeed, it’s like even though she’s a bad person she has a code she sticks by and for that reason I warmed to her.

A deep hitting story which I was drawn into easily. A fan of crime books should enjoy this but I’d certainly recommend this to anyone really..Not a book I’ll forget any time soon that’s for sure.

My thanks go to the author who provided a copy of the book for review.

To find out more head to Amazon or Goodreads.

Chase: The Hunt for the Mute Poetess by Thomas Dellenbusch

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Title – Chase: The Hunt for the Mute Poetess
Author – Thomas Dellenbusch, Richard Urmston (Translator)
Genre – Crime Thriller
Length – 116 Pages
Publication – Aug 2016
My Rating – 5/5 Stars

Synopsis

Enrique “Rique” Allmers runs a security firm in Hamburg, Germany. When he encounters a young woman fleeing from pursuers through the local fish-market, he takes her under his wing. They get away, but the same men – now with reinforcements – are still on their tail. Rique doesn’t know
who she is, or the identity of those who are after her. Because she doesn’t speak a word to him…

Review

Thomas Dellenbusch is a German writer and this is the first book in the Chase series that has been translated into English.

I was interested as soon as I read the word KopfKino..I’m guessing you don’t know what this means? Neither did I. It’s a German term for Theatre of the mind and it means relaxing, thought-provoking and enthralling movie length stories. The books certainly ticks all those boxes!

So on to the story itself. Rique is forced to defend a girl when he sees her running for her life, clearly scared out of her wits. The goons chasing her want the girl back but what they don’t realise is Rique isn’t just a normal guy.. he’s part of the CHASE group, highly skilled individuals who offer services such as security.. he manages to scare the goons away and with his team behind him he looks to stop this gang..but why are they after her?

This girl is mixed up in in a situation she never knew existed and Rique is going to put the puzzle pieces together for her one bit at a time.

The thing I liked about the book the most was the CHASE team itself, A Mission Impossible type of team. Each member has their own skill set which the author showcases throughout the tale.

The story flows logically and you are sucked in deeper and deeper as facts are revealed. Towards the end the suspense was killing me.

Does the book work being translated into English? It most certainly does. If I hadn’t of known I would never have been able to tell.

Overall a top notch plot translated perfectly for English readers. I’m pleased to say book 2 has already been translated and I’ll be reviewing that shortly!

Highly enjoyable and very much the engrossing fast read I was after. There wasn’t a thing I didn’t like about this one.

I hope to see many more from Thomas.

To find out more head to Amazon or Goodreads.

Vikings to Virgin – The Hazards of Being King by Trisha Hughes – Review

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Title – Vikings to Virgin – The Hazards of Being King: Book 1
Author – Trisha Hughes
Genre – Historical Fiction
Length – 333 Pages
Publication – Feb 2017
My Rating – 5/5 Stars

Synopsis

In Vikings to Virgin – The Hazards of Being King Trisha Hughes provides the reader with a pacey introduction to the many pitfalls faced by the ambitious as they climbed the dangerous ladders of royalty. It is easy to think that monarchs are all powerful, but throughout the Dark and Middle Ages it was surprisingly easy to unseat one and assume the crown yourself. But if it was easy to gain … it was just as easy to lose.From the dawn of the Vikings through to Elizabeth I, Trisha Hughes follows the violent struggles for power and the many brutal methods employed to wrest it and keep hold of it. Murder, deceit, treachery, lust and betrayal were just a few of the methods used to try and win the crown. Vikings to Virgin – The Hazards of Being King spans fifteen hundred years and is a highly accessible and enjoyable ride through the dark side of early British monarchy.

Review

What I’ve learnt from this book is it wasn’t easy being King.. but at the same time it wasn’t always a good thing to be related to a King, your likely to be used as a pawn during a rebellion or murdered to eliminate your claim to the throne.

This was a most informative book and I felt the author did a great job of bringing each of these Kings and Queens to life while also giving the reader a great insight to such issues as disease and aliments suffered at the time. I thought I knew a lot about Henry VIII but after reading this he’s even more shocking than I first thought.

I think what I loved about this book the most was how it’s presented. Rather than focusing on one person this book covers many and that made it different compared to anything else I’ve read.

Some of the rulers covered I’ve read about previously and I thought I might be bored reading things I already know but Trisha’s style of writing made it exciting again and I loved it from start to finish.

This is a historical fiction novel but only in the sense that the author has used dates/events to the best of her knowledge and research. There is of course periods in time where little evidence remains or when we do have sources available there’s generally another which says something different.

My advice to the hardcore historically accurate people, just enjoy the tale for what it is. This book brings together so many periods of time into bitesize chunks manageable by anyone and enables the reader to then delve further if they wish.

This is the kind of book that gives you the juicy interesting facts and ignites the flames of passion for history. I’m a big fan of history. It was probably my favourite subject at school and it’s certainly made me want to revisit a few historical characters.

If you like your history but don’t want to get into something a little too heavy then this is the prefect condensed but action packed and detailed version of history you’re after!

Enjoy!

To find out more head to Amazon or Goodreads.

Ghosts of Tomorrow by Michael R. Fletcher – Review

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Title – Ghosts of Tomorrow
Author – Michael R. Fletcher
Genre – Dystopian
Length – 369 Pages
Publication – Feb 2017
My Rating – 4/5 Stars

Synopsis

The children are the future.
And someone is turning them into highly trained killing machines.

Straight out of school, Griffin, a junior Investigations agent for the North American Trade Union, is put on the case: Find and close the illegal crèches. No one expects him to succeed, Griffin least of all. Installed in a combat chassis Abdul, a depressed seventeen year old killed during the Secession Wars in Old Montreal, is assigned as Griffin’s Heavy Weapons support. Nadia, a state-sanctioned investigative reporter working the stolen children story, pushes Griffin ever deeper into the nightmare of the black market brain trade.

Deep in the La Carpio slums of Costa Rica, the scanned mind of an autistic girl runs the South American Mafia’s business interests. But she wants more. She wants freedom. And she has come to see humanity as a threat. She has an answer: Archaeidae. At fourteen, he is the deadliest assassin alive. Two children against the world.

The world is going to need some help.

Review

Quite an interesting story this one. People now have the choice to live forever as a machine and the black market trade in children to be used as killing machines is big business!

I loved the idea of the different chassis you could be downloaded into.

Griffin is investigating this black market and the crèches that supply the children, things don’t go his way and children die..this just spurs him on even more but you can see it affects him.

One such kid who didn’t manage to escape a crèche is an autistic girl, who gets named 88. Some very bad people want to use her highly intelligent brain in order to make money but she starts to become more aware of what they have done to her.

Their worlds collide when they both decide to track down who is behind the illegal trade. Without spoiling the story too much it tracks back to one man..and let’s just say he’s a little crazy..and he’s getting more and more unstable.

I enjoyed the plot a lot, very easy to follow. The best thing had to be the development of the story itself. I enjoyed the characters for sure but the plot itself is what kept me hooked more.

The idea of harvesting kids isn’t an easy one to swallow and it gets a bit gory at times with some violence but it all adds to the tale and makes it unlike anything I’ve read before.

It a brutal vision of the future and I does make you think about what could happen if technology keeps advancing. At times the action is gut punching.

A dark and grim tale but full of action and detail. Brilliant development throughout. All in all not a book that you’ll easily forget. If you enjoy the genre this will be right up your street and if like me you like the idea of people being transferred into robot shells you’ll love it. I loved that the author touched on the moral side of things also asking if machines should have the same rights as humans.. if anything like this happened in real life you know this would be something that would crop up so the tale really does make you think.

I received a review copy of the book in exchange for an honest review, my thanks go to the author for the chance to read/review their work

To find out more head to Amazon or Goodreads.

Blog Tour – The Red Cobra by Rob Sinclair – Review

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Title – The Red Cobra
Author – Rob Sinclair
Genre – Thriller
Length – 374 Pages
Publication – 4^th April 2017
My Rating – 5/5 Stars

Synopsis

Carl Logan dedicated nearly twenty years of his life to the Joint Intelligence Agency. Now living in a secret location, under the new identify of James Ryker, he wants nothing more than to be left alone, the chance to start a new life away from chaos, violence, destruction and deceit.

It’s not long, however, before Ryker’s short-lived idyll is destroyed when he is tracked down by Peter Winter, his ex-boss at the JIA. Winter brings with him news of the murder of a woman in Spain, Kim Walker, whose fingerprints match those of one of Ryker’s former adversaries who’s been missing presumed dead for years – an infamous female assassin known as the Red Cobra.

A cyberattack at the JIA led to the Red Cobra’s profile being compromised, and Winter believes JIA agents may now be at risk too, Ryker included. But Ryker knew the elusive Red Cobra better than anyone, and when he sees the grisly pictures of Kim Walker’s corpse, he has news for Winter – she isn’t the assassin at all …

So just who is the mystery dead woman? And where is the real Red Cobra?

Review

So we are back with Carl Logan..or James Ryker as he’s now called. If you’ve not read The Enemy Series yet there’s no need to worry, a fan of the series will love this but it’s written in such a way that it works perfect as a standalone novel.

Ryker has tried to distance himself from his previous employers but how long did he really think it would be before someone tracked him down…not long enough and he’s soon sucked back into the world he tried so hard to forget.

The Red Cobra surfaces..Ryker never believed she was dead and this is his chance to finish what he started years before.

What we get is a very clever tale and it took a while to put all the pieces together, especially as we learn quickly not everyone is out to help Ryker. It’s one hell of an exciting tale and that ending left me in no doubt there’s more to come.

We get a brilliant backstory to the Red Cobra that shows how proficient a killer she is but has she met her match this time? And why has her finger prints suddenly resurfaced after so many years?

Engrossed would be an understatement. I loved this one and found myself totally fixated with finding out the truth much like Ryker.

The past has caught up to Ryker and as much as he wants to forget Logan, as he’s not that man anymore it’s easier said than done.

Brilliant from start to finish and the asking price of 99p on kindle is nothing so I happily snapped up a copy!

This is the best yet from Rob Sinclair.

To find out more head to Amazon or Goodreads.

Other stops on the tour –

Bits About Books
Baatty About Books
Chelles Book Reviews
Shelley Wilson Author
Ali The Dragon Slayer
Anne Bonny Book Reviews
The Great British Book Off
Relax And Read Book Reviews
By The Letter Book Reviews
Bibliophile Book Club
Segnalibro
Chat About Books
My Chestnut Reading Tree
Crime Book Junkie
Bookstormer

David's Book Blurg

Book reviews from a guy up north (UK)

Category Archives: Book Reviews

Catherine of Braganza: Charles II’s Restoration Queen by Sarah-Beth Watkins – Review

Insurrectio by Alison Morton – Review

Blog Tour – Brick by Conrad Jones

Chase: The Hunt for a King by Thomas Dellenbusch – Review

Juggernaut: a new sequel to The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde by Eamonn Martin Griffin – Review

Minnesota: Her Account; Her View by Nick Knardirell – Review

Chase: The Hunt for the Mute Poetess by Thomas Dellenbusch

Vikings to Virgin – The Hazards of Being King by Trisha Hughes – Review

Ghosts of Tomorrow by Michael R. Fletcher – Review

Blog Tour – The Red Cobra by Rob Sinclair – Review