Tag Archives: Bloggers

Blood Moon by John David Bethel – Review

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Title – Blood Moon
Author – John David Bethel
Genre – Crime Thriller
Length – 451 Pages
Publication – December 2016
My Rating – 4/5 Stars

Synopsis

On a hot, steamy afternoon in Miami, Cuban-American businessman Recidio Suarez is brutally beaten and abducted. Handcuffed, shackled and blindfolded, he has no idea why he has been targeted. What he discovers is heart-stopping. What he endures during almost a month of captivity compares only to the most horrendous stories of prisoners of war. He is tortured, and under the threat of death, and worse – the rape of his wife and torture of his children – Suarez is forced to hand over his multi-million dollar holdings to his captors.

Suarez survives and then spends the next few months staying one step ahead of the murderous pack. During this time, he and his lawyer, Nolan Stevens – a former Special Agent in Charge of the Miami Office of the FBI – are having difficulties convincing the Miami-Dade Police Department that a crime has been committed. Their efforts are complicated by Steven’s difficult history with the head of the MDPD Special Investigations Division, who is not interested in pursuing the case.

Review

Blood Moon is an intense thriller. Although the tale is a work of fiction it’s based on real events which made for a gripping tale as you didn’t really know which aspects were fact and which fiction.. it didn’t bother me not knowing..it just had the cogs in my mind ticking trying to imagine what it must have been like living any of the events portrayed in the book.

So the story follows Suarez who is kidnapped and forced to give everything up..his money, his house, his entire life basically. Suarez quickly works out there’s going to be no way they will let him leave alive..they want to get every last penny out of him they can and they will do anything for it.

What we get is a rather engrossing read but at times disturbing with its gruesomeness. What I really enjoyed was the reality hit you get.. the descriptiveness  of the mental and physical torture and also the lasting effects this has on Suarez, mind and body.. this really did make the story real to me.

As a reader I did feel frustrated at how no one put the pieces together, banks, friends and family etc but I think it shows the personal touch to life I feel we’ve lost over the years.. as long as something doesn’t affect them they continue along the same path. Suarez’s wife does believe her husband is in trouble but she just doesn’t know how bad things are and with her trust issues regarding the police I understood why she didn’t raise the alarm.

I must admit by the end of the book I really enjoyed the character of his wife she develops an exciting edge to her in the later stages of the tale.

There’s some really good twists in this tale that kept me hooked, after Suarez narrowly escapes death you’re invested in his recovery and you’ll find yourself exasperated with the lack of support he gets from those who should be helping him.. luckily his family and a close friend Nolan Stevens know he wouldn’t lie and help him come to terms a little with what has happened and set him on the path to get justice.

Before reading the book I sort of had ideas on how the plot would progress.. the end result was nothing like my thoughts, the events are so unexpected and dark but so riveting.  It’s that reality check moment again.. since the story is based on a real crime you sort of don’t want to love/enjoy the story as you feel a little bad but you do.. it’s certainly got some wow moments that stick with you.

To find out more head to Goodreads or Amazon

Scent of Death by Jonathan Ross – Review 

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Title – Scent of Death
Author – Jonathan Ross
Genre – Thriller
Length – 310 Pages
Publication – 15th June 2017
My Rating – 4/5 Stars

Synopsis

James Goodwin uses his olfactory equivalent of perfect pitch to sniff out people’s emotions, from love to malice. He earns a handy living by uncovering corporate cheats, but he’s growing bored. When billionaire Garth Cotton asks him to cook up the world’s first love potion, James first smells a grand challenge, and accepts. But once on the high seas in Cotton’s mega-yacht, James smells treachery. He sniffs out secrets that land him and Cotton’s dazzling assistant, Samantha Heartgrave, on a timeline to death. To save himself and Samantha, James must exercise his gift of smell in ways he never dreamed possible.

Review

Scent of Death was a rather riveting read. I really enjoyed the plot and that the main character uses his gift of smell to earn a living.

James is bored of the same old work and is looking to challenge himself. When he’s offered the chance to help create the first true love potion he jumps at the chance without any thought.

What happens next is that impulsive decision comes back to haunt him. Garth Cotton isn’t all he seems.

James has been brought in solely to help make the love potion that has already been created smell appealing, in its current form no one would buy it, so from the off he clashes with the scientist who created the scent who resents James’s presence and involvement.

We also meet Samantha who James can’t figure out.. she’s a tough cookie to crack even for James.

Over time James comes to the conclusion he’s not going to get out of this alive but he doesn’t get much chance to get away.

It’s a fast paced tale which has an exciting, action packed ending.

What this author certainly does well is write the high octane story. It’s the spy action thriller without the spy.. you get average Joe Bloggs..well average as in not trained with weapons etc.

Overall its well written easy read, nice characters with fast but decent development with an unexpected but really enjoyable plot that is very intriguing indeed.

Here’s the blog exclusive, I reviewed for this author last year – The Jumbee’s Daughter. Now I enjoyed the tale but I thought things progressed a little fast at times. This story just felt better, the plot tighter. Yes there’s still a couple of times I felt things moved a bit fast for my taste but this book was much more my cup of tea, the development was just better. There was nothing wrong with the previous book but overall this book just ticked more boxes for me.

One thing I always try to do is support authors. While I received a free copy of the book for review I really enjoyed what to me is development from the author so I was very happy to purchase a copy myself today to celebrate the release.

To find out more head to Goodreads or Amazon.

Blog Tour – The Black Hornet by Rob Sinclair – Review

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BlackHornet FINAL

Title – The Black Hornet (James Ryker Book 2)
Author – Rob Sinclair
Genre – Thriller
Length – 350 Pages
Publication – 12th June 2017
My Rating – 5/5 Stars

Synopsis

The Black Hornet: an action packed and utterly gripping thriller from the best-selling James Ryker series

What do you do when the love of your life vanishes without a trace? If you’re ex-intelligence agent James Ryker you search for the answers whatever the cost, however much blood and sacrifice it takes…

Six months ago Lisa was taken from Ryker, and he’ll stop at nothing to find out who is responsible and why. Following a trail to Mexico, the ex-Joint Intelligence Agency asset soon finds himself in the firing line of enemies he long thought he’d left behind. Set-up for the murder of a former informant, Ryker is thrown into a crumbling jail run by The Black Hornet, the notorious leader of a Mexican drug cartel. But what connects the cartel to the informant’s murder, and to Lisa’s disappearance? And just who is the mystery American claiming he can help Ryker in his hour of need?

The Black Hornet is the second book in the bestselling James Ryker series. Part Bourne, part Reacher, it’s an explosive and action-packed thriller to rival any other.

Review

The Black Hornet is the second book in the James Ryker series. Ryker has a past.. a past he’s trying to escape from but six months ago his life was turned upside down again..Lisa.. the woman Ryker loves was taken.

Ryker is hell-bent on finding Lisa and those behind her kidnapping..he heads to Mexico as his search continues and finds himself in deep trouble when he’s thrown in prison.

We get introduced to a couple of new characters both play their cards close to their chest so it’s hard for Ryker to figure out who to trust.

A mysterious man claims he can get Ryker out in exchanged for is assistance. He knows all about his particular skill set and he needs his talents. At first Ryker refuses but when things start to get brutal and violent he’s left with no choice. To make things even harder for Ryker this man says he has information on Lisa!

Ryker follows his gut and ends up working on a job for the JIA again. Ryker is happy to do this for two reasons. One he know the mysterious man who helped him get out of prison will show he face again.. he’s got his own agenda that collides with Ryker’s mission and two..he knows deep down he misses it. He may be getting older and he hasn’t used his talents for a while but he’s not over the hill yet.

Ryker has some great development during book, you can see he’s torn. He wants the quiet life but at the same time he knows he couldn’t escape his that life for long. He loves Lisa but he’s struggling with guilt..If he had just been home he could have stopped it all happening.

This book is a little more brutal than the last but it’s exactly what the story needed, prison isn’t going to be a nice place is it?

I loved The Red Cobra, book 1 in the series.. I LOVE this one more if that’s possible. In this book Ryker is much more the focus of the tale and I couldn’t fault it one bit.

Douglas Ashford had to be my favourite character in this tale, some lovely twists thrown in from the author to give you the “Oh my!” moments.

I’m certainly hooked in for more from the author!

My thank to Bloodhound Books and Rob for having me on the blog tour

To find out more head to Goodreads or Amazon

 

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Author Bio:

Rob is the author of the critically acclaimed and bestselling Enemy series of espionage thrillers featuring embattled agent Carl Logan, with over 250,000 copies sold to date. The Enemy series has received widespread critical acclaim with many reviewers and readers having likened Rob’s work to authors at the very top of the genre, including Lee Child and Vince Flynn.

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Rob’s fourth book, the pulsating psychological thriller Dark Fragments, released by Bloodhound Books in November 2016, has been described as ‘clever’ and ‘chilling’ and an ‘expertly crafted’ story, and became an Amazon UK top 50 bestseller soon after its release.

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Rob’s James Ryker series follows on from the Enemy books, with the first novel, The Red Cobra, being released in April 2017 and quickly becoming an Amazon bestseller in the UK, US and Canada. The second book in the series, The Black Hornet will be released June 12th.

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Rob began writing in 2009 following a promise to his wife, an avid reader, that he could pen a ‘can’t put down’ thriller. He worked for nearly 13 years for a global accounting firm after graduating from The University of Nottingham in 2002, specialising in forensic fraud investigations at both national and international levels. Rob now writes full time.

Originally from the North East of England, Rob has lived and worked in a number of fast paced cities, including New York, and is now settled in the West Midlands with his wife and young sons.

Links:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Rob-Sinclair/e/B00LFXNU76/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1488963366&sr=8-1
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https://www.facebook.com/robsinclairauthor/?fref=ts

https://twitter.com/RSinclairAuthor
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http://www.robsinclairauthor.com/

Q&A with Charlotte E. English!

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Regular followers of my blog will know the name Charlotte E. English..quite probably my favourite author right now. The biggest thing I’ve enjoyed is how she manages to write books that are different but at the same time the same..Have I confused you? Well take the Malykant Mysteries series, currently 7 books strong. Each has the same basic idea.. Konrad Savast brings justice for those murdered but each tale is very different from the last but builds nicely on the foundations set in the previous tale.

Charlotte has kindly answered some questions for me 🙂

Thank you Charlotte!

Enjoy!

 

First I must ask, if you are willing to share, who does your covers? They are so eye-catching and for me fit with the tone of the tales perfectly.

I have a few different cover artists by now, but the ones for the Malykant Mysteries are done by Streetlight Graphics. They do terrific work every time, and I’m looking forward to seeing what they come up with for the next batch of covers!

Covers for me are so so important, get it right and someone will buy the book..get it wrong and they won’t even look twice at it. Do you agree with a covers importance?

Yes, of course. As a buyer of books as well as a writer, I know that the cover is the first thing that catches my attention when I am shopping. It also sets the mood for the story, and creates expectations in the reader as to what they’ll be getting if they dive into the book, so it’s important to get it right. I think the Malykant Mysteries covers work well in both respects – they are eye-catching and also set the mood well.

Where has your inspiration for the series come from?

Well, funny story… the short answer is that I don’t know, because I never set out to write anything like it. There came a winter some years ago when I had just finished writing a long novel, and my mood at the time was as grey as the weather. I felt in need of a change of pace before I embarked upon the next long project, so I thought: I’ll write something shorter, and light-hearted, and funny.

I couldn’t write a word of any of this. I sat in a chair with a notebook and pen and tried… and what I got instead was Konrad Savast, grim as winter itself, chasing murderers through a frozen forest. Which I enjoyed, in spite of its being the very opposite of what I had planned to do. And so I learned that sometimes, it’s best to let my subconscious drive, because who knows where we might end up?

How do you manage to keep the series fresh?

I think it helps that the series has a lot of scope to begin with – the basic story is quite simple, in that somebody dies and Konrad has to figure it out. There’s infinite variation possible within that. Meanwhile, this is the only dark fantasy series that I write; my other projects are very different. This means that every dark and creepy idea that I get is Konrad’s by default. And there is a lot to draw on from popular mythology; Konrad has encountered my own take on vampires and werewolves, not to mention ghosts galore, and there’s so much more still left to work with.

7 books in, does Konrad have an expiration date looming?

Not at all! We are barely getting started here. In the last few titles, I’ve been laying the groundwork for some new story arcs which will take the series through many more books. I expect to be writing about Konrad and friends for some years to come.

I’ve said it before but for me you are Queen of the short story although I love your longer works too. Do you have a preference on which you prefer to write?

Once I would have said longer novels, without hesitation, but at the moment I’m finding that I prefer the shorter stories. I think it’s because I have always needed variety, as a writer – however much I love and enjoy each series that I write, I cannot stick with the same thing for too many months together without growing stale. Shorter books lend themselves well to this approach, as I can produce a complete title in a relatively short time and then swap to something else. I’ve just started a new series of shorter-length titles, Modern Magick, and like the Malykants, I’ll be writing these in between all the other things I do. Maybe it sounds a bit mad that way, but it works for me.

Do ever find yourself scrapping paragraphs to make the books fit a certain word count?

Strangely, no. I didn’t plan the length of the first Malykant Mystery, any more than I planned its content. The story took shape by itself, and I haven’t had any trouble keeping the later books to approximately the same word count (although, book by book, they are gradually getting longer…).

What’s next for you?

My next release will be the first story in the new Modern Magick series, and currently I am writing one of those colourful fairy tale things that I love so much. Later in the year, I have the next Tales of Aylfenhame book coming up, and of course, book 8 of the Malykant Mysteries.

I’m very happy to know there’s more to come from Charlotte! If you missed my recent review of her latest work click here – The House at Divoro

You can learn more about Charlotte via her website here – http://www.charlotteenglish.com/  . The site also links nicely to her social media accounts so you can connect with the author whichever way you like 🙂

I’d love to know if you’ve read Charlotte’s work before of if you indeed plan to.

Matthew Harffy Q&A

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Today I’m doing something a little different to my normal Q & A’s.

I’ve been a loyal fan of Matthews for a while now and I recently bought the hardback copy of his book, The Serpent Sword.

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Now I don’t think there was anything wrong with the self-published book but the new hardback is so gloriously beautiful I just had to own it.

One of the clear differences I spotted instantly was this beautiful map! Every good book needs a map!

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The new release got me thinking. Beobrand really has grown over the series from a young man into an older but not necessarily wiser man, trusted by many even though he doesn’t see his own worth in himself.

There is deep changes within him during Killer of Kings as it’s time for Beo to head home and face his past..

It’s be a long journey for Beobrand and also for the author.

Matthew very kindly offered to answer a few questions about his work.

Enjoy.

 

So one of the big changes since I first read The Serpent Sword is you’ve been picked up by Aria Fiction (Well-deserved I might add).

One of the biggest OMG moments is seeing a hardback version of The Serpent Sword hit the shelves. It’s really great to have been along with you on your journey and I’d like to ask a couple of questions.

Is it a good feeling to have a publisher behind you and do you miss anything about being self-published? 

It is great to have a team of professionals behind me now. The feeling that things are happening behind the scenes is really amazing. This includes things such as the brokering of translation deals, or selling the audio rights to Audible, and things like press releases, marketing and publicity.

As to whether I miss anything about being self-published, I think the truthful answer is not much. I suppose I am a control freak, and I have very strong ideas about how I like to do things, so if I miss anything, it is having total control. Having said that, I think Aria and its parent publisher, Head of Zeus, are perhaps different from the norm in terms of publishers, as they allow me a lot of input into things like the covers and are keen to involve me in most of the decisions, which I am really grateful for. Aria is a very young, dynamic publisher and they can get things done very quickly. I think I would possibly go mad working with one of the much bigger publishers, that have very slow turnaround from handing in a manuscript to seeing it published. As it is, I am already sometimes frustrated by the loss of agility from when I was self-published. However, any perceived loss of control is more than outweighed by improvements to quality and visibility and distribution of my books.

Do you feel any pressure to churn out the books or do you thrive having targets to meet?

Yes and no! Having deadlines that are written into a contract certainly focuses the mind and I would go as far as to say that at the beginning of the year, when I knew I had a new manuscript to deliver in November and I had nothing written, I felt the pressure. Now that I am hundred thousand words into the first draft of book 5, Warrior of Woden, that pressure has lessened. However, once I’ve handed it in, and I look towards book 6 which is due for delivery to my editor by November 2018, I am sure the pressure will be on me again. So there is pressure, but I actually think having targets is a really good thing for any long project. Even when I was self-published, I set myself weekly and monthly goals. Without them there is a tendency to drift and not to progress towards a defined target.

Since being picked up have the books gone through more editing?

The Serpent Sword and The Cross and The Curse both went through a couple of extra rounds of editing. But as they had already been published and edited when I was self-published, the process was lightweight, with not many changes being made. For the subsequent books, Blood and Blade, Kin of Cain and Killer of Kings, the editorial process has been slightly more thorough than when I was self-published I would say, mainly due to the fact that the publishers pay different types of editors, such as copy editors and proofreaders, who are professionals. When I did these things myself, I enlisted family and friends and was lucky to have people with an eye for detail who I could turn to.

I’ve been very impressed with some of the comments from my copy editor, who manages to spot points of inconsistency in things like names and spelling between books. For example, he mentioned that I had used the name of a small character in book 3 that was also mentioned in book 1, but in each occurrence it was a different character being referred to but sharing the same name. It was a very minor point but by changing the name in one of the books it removes any confusion that might be there for the reader.

So far in your writing career what’s been your highlight?

It’s hard to name just one. Getting the first good reviews from total strangers, finishing each novel, signing with Aria. I think recently the two things that stand out are hearing the audiobooks for the first time (I was worried that I wasn’t going to like them, but in the end I loved what Barnaby Edwards has done with them), and holding in my hands the recently released hardback edition of The Serpent Sword. There had been two versions of print on demand paperbacks of the book already, but for some reason the hardback feels more real. Not just that, but the book is now available in libraries and in high street shops, which is a huge step forward.

Any low moments?

There are lots of moments when the writing process gets me down. It is by definition solitary, and it is easy to lose sight of the ending of the story and to get lost. Now that I have a few books under my belt I push through these moments, trusting that I’ll find a way. So far, I’ve managed to do just that.

It’s also very disheartening to receive truly negative reviews. I understand that not everyone is going to like my writing, and that’s fine, but from time to time somebody will leave a review online that seems to be trying to cause offence. I know all authors get this type of review, so I know it’s nothing personal, but it certainly feels personal when somebody is slagging off a book it’s taken a year to write!

It doesn’t affect me now as I am not actively sending out my manuscripts looking for a deal, but earlier on in my career, when I was looking for a publisher and, before that, an agent, it was quite demoralising to receive rejection after rejection. Writing certainly isn’t for the fainthearted.

Looking at the hardback the biggest improvements I see is the map which is much more prominent and detailed. Whose idea was it to make this addition?

I agree! The map is wonderful. I had always wanted a better map in the books, but when I self-published I was doing all of the work myself, including the maps, so I didn’t have the skills or the time to do anything more detailed than a simple map of Britain with the place names of the major locations in the books. When releasing the books again, Aria spruced up the maps I had created, making them look more artistic, but they hadn’t added any more detail.

When the hardback was being designed, I went to a Head of Zeus sales conference in London and was approached by Nicolas Cheetham, the deputy MD of the publisher. He produced a rolled up printout of a new map that was more detailed and drawn in the style of Tolkien’s maps from Lord of the Rings! Nic had read the Serpent Sword and thought a better map would really elevate the hardback release. Having seen the final product, I can only agree with him. The plan at the moment is to include similar style maps in all subsequent hardback releases of the Bernicia Chronicles.

Who picks the quotes for the backs of the books, you or your publisher?

That was the publisher. There were a few that didn’t get used on the hardback, but I don’t know how they decided which to use. I’m guessing other quotes might get used on the paperback edition.

The most important question..when’s the next hardback coming out?

The hardback of The Cross and The Curse is due for release in November 2017, coinciding with the mass market paperback release of The Serpent Sword. Just in time for Christmas!

So the next book for release is Killer of Kings. What should we expect?

In Killer of Kings we follow Beobrand south into East Anglia. There he quickly finds himself embroiled in a battle of epic proportions. On his travels he also returns to his old home village in Kent where he meets old friends and uncovers some dark secrets.

What’s next for you?

Right now I am writing book 5 of the Bernicia Chronicles, Warrior of Woden. After that, it will be on to book 6! When I finish that, we’ll have to see what’s next. I’ve got a few ideas about more books in the series, or starting a new series, but time will tell!

Thanks for the great questions. It’s always a real pleasure doing an interview on your blog.

Thank you Matthew for taking the time to answer my questions.

Killer of Kings is out now! You can read my review here or head straight to Amazon

Want a Hardback copy of The Serpent Sword? Check out Amazon for more details.

Killer of Kings Blog Tour!

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Today it’s my turn on the blog tour for Killer of Kings by Matthew Harffy, book 4 in the Bernicia Chronicles series.

If you’ve not read me reviews for the rest of the series and the standalone novella click the images below to find out more!

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Want to know more about book 4? Well here’s the blurb followed by an extract to hook you in.

Synopsis :-

AD 636. Anglo-Saxon Britain. A gripping, action-packed historical thriller and the fourth instalment in The Bernicia Chronicles. Perfect for fans of Bernard Cornwell.

Beobrand has land, men and riches. He should be content. And yet he cannot find peace until his enemies are food for the ravens. But before Beobrand can embark on his bloodfeud, King Oswald orders him southward, to escort holy men bearing sacred relics.

When Penda of Mercia marches a warhost into the southern kingdoms, Beobrand and his men are thrown into the midst of the conflict. Beobrand soon finds himself fighting for his life and his honour.

In the chaos that grips the south, dark secrets are exposed, bringing into question much that Beobrand had believed true. Can he unearth the answers and exact the vengeance he craves? Or will the blood-price prove too high, even for a warrior of his battle-fame and skill?

Extract –

FRANKIA, ad 635

“Be careful there, you two!”

The cry came from old Halig. He worried like a maid.

Wuscfrea ignored him, leaping up to the next branch of the gnarled oak. The bark was damp and cold, but the sun was warm on his face as he looked for the next handhold. They had been enclosed in the hall for endless days of storms. Great gusts of wind had made the hall creak and moan as if it would collapse and when they had peered through the windows, the world had been hidden beneath the sheeting rain.

After so long inside it felt wonderful to be able to run free in the open air.

A crow cawed angrily at Wuscfrea from a perch high in the canopy of the trees. The boy laughed, echoing the bird’s call.

“Away with you,” Wuscfrea shouted at the creature. “You have wings, so use them. The sun is shining and the world is warm.” The crow gazed at him with its beady eyes, but did not leave its branch. Wuscfrea looked down. Fair-haired Yffi was some way below, but was grinning up at him.

“Wait for me,” Yffi shouted, his voice high and excited.

“Wait for me, uncle,” Wuscfrea corrected him, smiling. He knew how it angered Yffi to be reminded that Wuscfrea was the son of Edwin, the king, while he was only the son of the atheling, Osfrid. The son of the king’s son.

“I’ll get you,” yelled Yffi and renewed his exertions, reaching for a thick branch and pulling himself up.

Wuscfrea saw a perfect path between the next few branches that would take him to the uppermost limbs of the oak. Beyond that he was not sure the branches would hold his weight. He scrambled up, his seven-year-old muscles strong and his body lithe.

The crow croaked again and lazily flapped into the sky. It seemed to observe him with a cold fury at being disturbed, but Wuscfrea merely spat at the bird. Today was a day to enjoy the fresh air and the warmth of the sun, not to worry about silly birds. For a moment, he frowned. He hoped Yffi had not seen the crow. Crows were the birds of war. Whenever he saw them Yffi recalled the tales of the battle of Elmet, and how the corpse-strewn bog had been covered by great clouds of the birds. The boys had frightened themselves by imagining how the birds had eaten so much man-flesh that they could barely fly. It was a black thought. As black as the wings of the crows. To think of the death of their fathers brought them nothing but grief. Wuscfrea shook the thoughts away. He would not allow himself to be made sad on such a bright day.

Glancing down, he saw that Yffi was struggling to reach a branch. He was a year younger than Wuscfrea, and shorter.

“Come on, nephew,” Wuscfrea goaded him. “Are you too small to join me up here? The views are fit for a king.” Wuscfrea laughed at the frustrated roar that came from Yffi. Yet there was no malice in his words. Despite being uncle and nephew, the two boys were more like brothers, and the best of friends. Still, it was good to be the superior climber. Yffi, even though younger, was better at most things. The long storm-riven days had seen the younger boy beat Wuscfrea ceaselessly at tafl and Yffi had joked that someone with turnips for brains would only be good to rule over pigs. The words had stung and Wuscfrea had sulked for a while until Yffi had brought him some of Berit’s cheese as an offering of truce. Wuscfrea loved the salty tang of the cheese and the insult was quickly put aside.

Now, as he pulled his head and shoulders above the thick leaves of the oak, Wuscfrea wondered whether he would ever be king of anything. Certainly not of this land, rich and lush as it was. This was Uncle Dagobert’s kingdom. Far to the south of Bernicia and Deira, the kingdoms his father had forged into the single realm of Northumbria. Far away and over the sea. A safe distance from the new king.

Wuscfrea breathed in deeply of the cool, crisp air. The treetops on the rolling hills all around swayed in the gentle breeze. The leaves sparkled and glistened in the sunlight. High in the sky to the north, wisps of white clouds floated like half-remembered dreams.

One day, he would travel north with a great warband, with Yffi at his side. They would have ships built from the wood of this great forest and they would ride the Whale Road to Northumbria. They would avenge their fathers’ slaying and take back the kingdom that should have been theirs. Wuscfrea’s chest swelled at the thought.

“Vengeance is a potent brew,” Halig had said to him when they had spoken of the battle of Elmet one night over a year before. “Drink of it and let it ferment in your belly. And one day you will wreak your revenge on the usurper, Oswald,” the old warrior had touched the iron cross at his neck. Wuscfrea had thought of how Jesu told his followers to turn the other cheek when struck and wondered what the Christ would think of the lust for revenge that burnt and bubbled inside him. But then Wuscfrea was the son of a great king, descended from the old gods themselves so they said, so why should he care what one god thought?

Tempted yet?

Here’s my thoughts –

Beo’s back and this one is just as brutal as it’s predecessors. Beobrand is older but still as sharp and hot-headed as always.

Old enemies show their faces again but this time Beobrand might actually be able to rid himself  of them..that ever present shadow looming over him.

War is coming and while on a mission for Oswald Beo is sucked in and the bloodlust takes holds..it’s time for a blood feud to be settled.

We get a great mix of action and suspense as the focus switches from Brobrand to Reaghan back home struggling to figure out her place in Beobrand’s absence.  She’s resented by others because of her past but she’s powerless to change it.. While the action is non-stop this switch of focus really gave it a suspenseful build up.

Chapter 15 was my favourite chapter of the story, real white knuckle moment. Scary and exciting at the same time.

Harffy once again holds no favouritism with his characters..not all Beo’s gesithas will make it home… but neither will Beobrand’s enemies.

The character I most enjoyed was Wynhelm. I didn’t like him at first but as he developed throughout the tale I warmed to him like I felt Beo did to. Although he may rub Beo up the wrong way he’s loyal and is faultless in his logic.

The one difference I felt this book had over the rest in the series is that Beobrand gets some closure, so it does leave me wondering what could possibly happen next.

Harffy is one of my top authors who never disappoints and he has my thanks for having me on the blog tour. I would also like to thank Yasemin at Head of Zeus who organised everything. While I’m always grateful for the ARC of the book it was my pleasure to purchase the book on release.

Killer of Kings is a strong book that solidifies this series as being one of the best to be published in recent years.

My verdict – 5* all the way!

Keep an eye on my blog tomorrow for a Q&A with the author himself who kindly answered some of my burning questions.

If you’d like to know more head to Amazon or Goodreads.

Other stops on the tour –

History.. The Interesting Bits – 5th June

Love Books Group – 7th June 

Breakaway Reviewers – 8th June

Stephanie Churchill – 9th June

What Cathy Read Next – 10th June

Lives and Loves of a Book Nerd – 11th June

Parmenion Books – 12th June

 

Author info:

 

Matthew grew up in Northumberland where the rugged terrain, ruined castles and rocky coastline had a huge impact on him He now lives in Wiltshire, England, with his wife and their two daughters.

Buy links

Amazon: http://amzn.to/2nNItf2

Kobo: http://bit.ly/2nNEyPz

iBooks: http://apple.co/2ocWWEi

Google Play: http://bit.ly/2ocS2Y7

 

Follow Matthew

Website: www.matthewharffy.com

Twitter: @MatthewHarffy

Facebook: MatthewHarffyAuthor

 

Follow Aria

Website: www.ariafiction.com

Facebook: @ariafiction

Twitter: @aria_fiction

Instagram: @ariafiction

NetGalley: http://bit.ly/2lkKB0e

Sign up to the Aria newsletter: http://bit.ly/2jQxVtV

 

The House at Divoro by Charlotte E. English – Review

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Title – The House at Divoro (The Malykant Mysteries Book 7)
Author – Charlotte E. English
Genre – Fantasy
Length – 155 Pages
Publication – May 2017
My Rating – 5/5 Stars

Synopsis

Konrad Savast is the Malykant: foremost and most secret servant of the God of Death. His job? To track down the foulest of murderers and bring them to The Malykt’s Justice. No mercy. No quarter.

When Nanda shows up with a pressing invitation to a post-Solstice house party, Konrad is unenthusiastic. Eino Holt, their host, might have a taste for theatricals, but Konrad emphatically does not.

But then a corpse turns up, mutilated and hidden in a pantry cupboard. Konrad soon learns that the house at Divoro harbours many a dark secret…

Dark fantasy meets classic murder mystery in this seventh installment of Charlotte E. English’s Malykant Mysteries.

Review

Oh how I love Konrad.. I’m so glad we have another story to read. First off I must say the covers for the series keep getting better and for me fit the tale perfectly.

Followers of my reviews will know I’m a big fan of Charlotte’s work. She has to be my favourite writer so the bar is always set high.

Well once again she’s leapt over the bar set by the previous tale and has given me the best one yet.

What English always seems to get spot on for me is the balance between story and character development. In a short tale it’s not easy to make you enjoy the characters but English does just that, building on previous tales but at the same time a reader could easily pick the series up from here as we are given just the right amount of background info when setting up the scenes that it’s easy to understand the relationships between the main characters.

My favourite line of the book has to be “it was bad because he felt as fresh as an aged pair of socks, and approximately as lively” – Sounds like me most days ha

As I’ve said this is the best tale yet, English easily keeps the series fresh and interesting and I love the continuing development of Konrad. He doesn’t like to give much away but he’s a loveable character.

In this tale, as usual a body is found..but there’s a few strange twists that leave you thinking “What?” or “How?”. It’s these twists and turns that keep you hooked.

Again what I’ve always loved about the authors work is  the writing itself.. Never dumbed down but never overly complex, it might be a dark tale but the writing is suitable for young and old alike.

The suspense was killing me with this one right till the end and the page count means you can easily get sucked in and read this in one sitting or over two.

Konrad struggles  in the tale more than the last to keep his secret life just that..a secret so it was a great chance to see him put his different personas to use.

I can’t write a review on this book without mentioning Optapi and Eetapi, Konrad’s serpents who help him in his role as the Malykant, their dark humour makes them quirky and fun and I love when they show up. It’s a strange relationship between them and Konrad and for me it’s the best thing about the series..after the plot of course 🙂

The Malykant series is rather unique in my opinion. I’ve read nothing like it before and I just can’t get enough.

To find out more head to Amazon or Goodreads.

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

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Title – Catherine of Braganza: Charles II’s Restoration Queen
Author – Sarah-Beth Watkins
Genre – Historical
Length – 168 Pages
Publication – April 2017
My Rating – 5/5 Stars

Synopsis

Catherine of Braganza, a Portuguese princess, married Charles II in 1662 and became the merry monarch’s Restoration queen. Yet life for her was not so merry – she put up with the king’s many mistresses and continuous plots to remove her from the throne. She lived through times of war, plague and fire. Catherine’s marriage saw many trials and tribulations including her inability to produce an heir. Yet Charles supported his queen throughout the Restoration, remaining devoted to her no matter what. Outliving her husband, she ended up back in her home country and spent her final days as queen-regent of Portugal.

Review

I’m no historian I’ll admit but I’ve really wanted to learn more over the last few years. What Watkins gets perfect for a reader like me is she manages to make a historical character come to life. There’s lots of facts to take in but you don’t feel bogged down or bored at any point, it’s all relevant and interesting.

Once again Watkins manages to introduce me to someone I’ve heard of but knew very little..and it’s a very compelling tale indeed.. Catherine didn’t have things easy in her life.

The years with Charles were tough..he wanted an heir that she just couldn’t provide and the author manged to convey the struggle she must have been going through. Charles’s treatment of Catherine at times was harsh and scandalous but at others he showed his loyalty to her.

Catherine does her best to fit in at the English court despite the obvious hatred some held for her, she must have been a very strong woman indeed.

Overall it’s a very captivating tale. There’s plots galore and mistresses as you’d expect from the time but the tale really does open your eyes to someone we should really know more about..too many people in history are overshadowed..Catherine should not be one of them.

If you enjoy fact more than fiction give this book a go and if indeed you prefer fiction I still suggest you read the book. I never would have thought I would enjoy a tale such as this, a biography, “where’s the action” I always thought..but how wrong I was. It’s full of excitement and so much more.

Sarah-Beth Watkins definitely makes me want to read/learn more history.. there’s so much out there to explore.

My thanks go to Chronos Books for providing a copy of the book for review.

To find out more head to Amazon or Goodreads.

Do you know Movie-Length-Stories? Guest-Post by Author Thomas Dellenbusch.

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Today its pleasure to bring to a guest-Post by Author Thomas Dellenbusch from Germany. I recently reviewed Thomas’s work and asked the author if he would like to chance to give a little background info to himself and his work. I must admit I’m very glad indeed that he agreed 🙂

Enjoy

P.S if you missed my reviews click the following links (Spolier..both 5* ratings! ) –

The Hunt for the Mute Poetess 

The Hunt for a King

 

Hi everyone, my name is Thomas. David asked me to write this guest post for you to explain how I came to my movie-length-stories and for what they are good for. It’s a pleasure to me, because there is an important question I have to you ask about a rumor that exists in the German book-scene about English readers. I’ll come back to it later.

First let me introduce myself. I am a German author and publisher, born 1964 in Düsseldorf and still living there. My English isn’t native, so please excuse, if there are mistakes in my text, in particular in grammar. From 1982 to 1999 I was a detective at police, then quit voluntarily to become a writer, predominantly for the advertising industries. In 2013 I founded a small publishing company for movie-length-stories. I’ll come back to this topic. In my leisure time (apart from reading books of course) I like to play boardgames and watching good movies.

Why Movie-Length-Stories?

Back to the topic. In some evenings my girlfriend and I do like to switch off the TV and to read books aloud to each other. One of us read aloud and the other one listen to it. It’s like listening an audiobook but live. We like that a lot, but…  What shall we read? It’s not that easy as it sounds. Obviously full-novels are no option, because they are too long. You’ll never finish them in one evening. Short stories instead? Too short. Short stories end within a maximum of 20 pages, so they don’t fill the evening. There should be something in-between. Stories that fill an evening but also end in time. Stories with a reading time of about 2 hours like an average movie. Movie-Length-Stories. A term was born.

What I am talking about are novellas with a length of about 80 or 100 pages. But novellas are hard to find in German bookstores, because they aren’t that popular in Germany. German readers love full-novels, the thicker the better. Some German book-bloggers said to me that they are convinced that novellas could only be the half-way-finished rubbish by an unable and untalented author. Isn’t that kind of thinking silly? Anyway… I am a writer, so I decided to write my own movie-length-stories and to found a small publishing company for that purpose.

Meanwhile, 4 years later, my German slogan “KopfKino in Spielfilmlänge” (theatre-of-the-mind in movie-length) has its own fanbase, and there are currently 20 different movie-length-stories (and 6 anthologies) available, 8 of them written by me and the other ones by 6 other authors under contract. The genres are typical for entertainment: from romance to thrillers, but no horror, erotica or drama.

Every single story is available as a Kindle e-book and additional as an audiobook. A friend of mine is owner of a professional music-studio, so I can produce professional audiobooks for a fair price. My thought was, that if I offer stories for reading aloud, there should be also an audio-version available. And last but not least: Most of the 20 stories are also available as paperbacks, each 116 pages.

Meanwhile I got the response from my readers that reading aloud is not the primary way to use these movie-length-stories. Mainly they are bought for all the daily interludes, a trip on the train, the bus, the car or a plane, the hours spent in waiting-rooms or at the hairdresser’s, on your coffee-break or during an afternoon at the beach, before turning out the lights at bedtime and so on.

Now I come back to my question about the rumor about English readers that exist in the German book-scene. Whenever I speak to German professionals (editors, agents, publisher, etc.) I always receive the same answer: Thomas, you should live in America or in the UK. Because American and English readers meet novellas with much more respect than German readers do. This form of literature is much more popular there than it is here.

Unfortunately I don’t know your book-scene or your reading mentality. Is that true? Do you meet novellas with more respect, do you like them? Please let me know in the comments below.

Maybe now you probably want to try out what I am talking about? Recently my two movie-length-thrillers “CHASE: The Hunt for the Mute Poetess” and “CHASE: The Hunt for a King” have been translated into English by Richard Urmston, member of the American Translator Association. They are available on amazon.co.uk as Kindle ebooks and paperback. “The Hunt for the Mute Poetess” is also available as an audiobook, narrated by Morgan Peter.

I hope you’ll enjoy these two mysterious puzzles. Let me know afterwards. Thanks in advance.

Best to you and have fun

Thomas Dellenbusch

Movie-Length-Stories.com

 

Thank you Thomas!

Please do check out his work..they were a real treat to read. Head to Amazon to find out more.

Insurrectio by Alison Morton – Review

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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.