Dead Money - Srinath Adiga

What's the one thing they say you can't take with you if you die?

What if you could?

Ladies and Gentlemen, from the Bank of Eternity, I give you... Afterlife Dollars.

Spawned as an idea from a city trader, who was trying to get back the considerable amount of money that he had lost of a gangsters. Using Chinese fables and old stories of leaving money for the ferryman to take you to the other side.

Afterlife Dollars came into being. A load of unethical shit, and lie after lie a backstory evolved.

What was being sold? Nothing, a belief. Did it not matter? No. People thought they were investing in money that was going to be available to them when they died. They knew that they would not see anything till they were dead. The perfect fleece.

Then came Europe, a trader who had, had enough. Warnings made and ignored and a folio being built that would be more than profitable when the crash eventually came. With far right politics thrown in for good measure.

From something I thought that I wasn't going to enjoy to being engrossed within half an hour. Not my usual thing, but good just the same.

Status: Completed

Rating: 4.4/5.0
 

Shiver - Allie Reynolds

 A possibility of two shorter novellas. Two stories, a decade apart, friends and rivals. The snowboarding set, in their heyday, when nearly everything done was groundbreaking. 

The rich that, don't worry, the sponsored who manage by video and photo shoots and the poor that work three jobs throughout the closed season to be able participate.

Following a group of friends, with the ups downs, downright dirt and the death or thought of murder of one of their own. Regrouped at the last place that they were all together. Here's where the fun begins, played with, manipulated and left to stew.

A debut, that has you wondering just what was going to happen next,a good old fashioned 'who dunnit'.

Status: Completed

Rating:    4.3/5.0

The Word Trove - Elias Vorpahl

Surreal, from start to finish.

Think of a word. All that we know is that is female, not the word the gender.

What happens when a word forgets its meaning. Is forgotten over time or replaced with a newer one.

A journey, a chance encounter with vocal chords and a friendship with Rhyme and Reason

Status: Completed

Rating: 3.8/5.0
 

Burn, Beautiful Soul - William J. Donahue

 What's the first thing that comes to mind when you hear the name Basil?

For me it's Fawlty "Excuse the waiter, he's from Barcelona". John Cleese at his comic best. Showing my age a little there.

However, I digress. Basil, the demi-god. The seventh stand-in for Lucifer in 'Our Fiery Home'. A passion for poetry, a longing for the great outdoors. It also turns out, that he's quite good at marketing.

A nod to Lovecraft, in a battle royale.

Status: Completed

Rating: 4.2/5.0

The Stranger in My Bed - Karen King

Can amnesia really change someone?

An accident, or a deliberate act of malice?

 A crash, and two years lost, could you manage? The last thing that could be remembered, getting off the plane from their honeymoon.

What would you do? Question, worry, try to piece things together?

A dark hidden past and actions any normal person would have more than kittens at, if they were them.

This, is a little gem. It holds your interest and draws you ever deeper in to the plot the more that you read. The characters are strong and well shaped. Developed and with strong histories, as both past and present are interwind.

Would I recommend  this book? Yes without a doubt.

 Status: Completed

Rating: 4.7/5.0

The Searcher - Tana French

 

Where to start, whilst the beginning is normally the best place. This book whilst following the path from start to finish, this bounces around. This is not a complaint it flows well even if it deviates in places.

OK, for starters, there's a a retired Chicago cop who has moved to Ireland for a quiet life, the troubled family; that everyone knows, the missing teenager and the big boys from Dublin. Oh yes, and the villagers.

I don't want to give to much away, as this is something that you need to read. Hats off, this really is THAT GOOD.

Status: Comleted

Rating: 4.8/5.0

Little Bones - N. V. Peacock

  Where to start? A miss spent childhood, daddy daughter time with a massive twist. 

My memory fails me, but lets fast forward a generation. A family, more than content with the life that they had.

A fair, a skeleton and a world up-ended. Step in psychics and podcasters, all with their own agendas.

I would like to be able to say that I have read even some parts of her back catalogue, but I haven't.

This is a gripping story that has you hanging on for dear life, as soon as you have read the opening paragraph. It ebbs and flows, draws you in and has you jumping to the wrong conclusions.

A thoroughly enjoyable read, if you need some suspense in your life for a couple of days. Do yourself a favour, go out and buy this. 

Status: Completed

Rating: 4.8/5.0

Bell Hammers - Lancelot Schaubert

In my defence, the good lord told me to do it. Before you go find a shirt where the sleeves do up at the back closely followed by the men in white coats.

I've had this book for quite a while now, and it would appear that I have done both it, and the author some injustice in having not read it thus far.

It follows the life of one family, residents of Little Egypt. Their fight against the Oil companies, both locally and nationally on the environment. I mean no harm, but it could easily have veered off on the environmental track, as they had a copy of a report by EXXON which denied global warming as a fallacy. So as to melt the Alaskan ice flows to make it easier to drill for oil.

But that is just a small part of the story.

Overall, it is a story about friendship, love, family, oh yes and the good lord himself (who got most of the best lines).

Status: Completed

Rating:4.2/5.0

The Devil and the Dark Water - Stuart Turton

Bit of a strange one this, after the first few chapters everything is awash.  The period in which it is set is just as hard to nail down. But it has to be somewhere between the 1500 - 1800.

You get what you expect from that era. Wooden boats, demons, lashes, pomp, circumstance and everything between. There's even a dwarf for good measure.

The book reads well, despite being stuck in a single area for most of it. It could have been so much worse, so kudos where its required.

The characters are strong, intertwined as is inevitable. Through their development the plot builds and holds as much gusto as a sea storm.

I wasn't sure if I was going to like this, slightly out of my comfort zone. It took longer to read than other books. But it held my interest, and kept me picking it up.

 

Status: Completed

Rating: 4.2 / 5.0
 

Night Boat to Tangier - Kevin Barry

 Audiobook

`

OK, so its not very often that I do one of these, but I had a fairly long drive, and thought as I change  to music, Audiobook.

Written and read by the author. Whose, Irish accent rolled over vowels in the way in which only the Irish can.

The book starts and ends in a ferry port in Spain. Two older gentlemen (using the term lightly),  there on the off chance that they may spot someone.

Said gentlemen both had a colourful past, being drug barons, moving coke, hash, crack and heroin. Using them all as well.

There's the usual sidelines of property and bars around for laundering.

Keep an eye out for the occultist dealer, she brings a light all of her own to the book.

Status: Completed

Rating:4.6/5.0

The PVRITAN - Birgitte Margen

Two stories, several hundred years apart. The setting and the setting. Religion ties everything together. Death and penance. Boston, priests and detectives.

A bible some 700 years old, scriptures found. Bodies staged.

 This was an off chance read, and it was well worth it. It was easy reading and flowed well. The historical parts were short, but gave insight to the main body of the story.

If your stuck for something to read, this should find its way onto your reading list.

 

Status: Completed

Rating: 4.7/5.0
 

Red / Black - Rachel Atherton-Charvat

A triple whammy, AA, GA and NA and that's just the doctors wife.

This could oh so easily fallen of the rails. Addiction, is at best a minefield to write about. Every person is different, as is each addiction. It does well to incorporate the drugs and alcohol along side the gambling. Yes people have multiple addictions.

Back to the story. For a debut novel, this is excellent. The characters and the plot are very strong. The casino's are well represented but  only due to the narrative of what's going through the characters mind for bet placements.

Army, a move to Germany, infidelity and a marriage breakdown.

I could give you more, but this is one story you are going to have to read for yourself.

Just remind yourself this one thing, "...the house always wins..."

Status: Completed

Rating: 4.4/5.0

One of Those Days - Andrés Leiva

This is a first for me in quite some time.

I have to admit, that I couldn't bring myself to finish this. It's not through lack of trying. It's not written badly, the artwork is good. I just  that I couldn't bring myself to pick it back up.

Sorry.

Status: Abandoned

Rating: 2.4/5.0

Trio - William Boyd

 

A collection of three's. Three parts to the book, three main characters. I know there's more, but I can't recall.

    1960's Brighton, Young Actress, wanna be pop star and a ladder to the moon. Backdrop using the area in and around the afore mentioned location. Filming is a constant, and rewriting the script is unavoidable.

    Full of the sixties favourites, sex, drugs and rock 'n' roll. Although not much of the latter.

    It is set at a modest pace, with a plot that throws a few twists in it.

Status: Completed

Rating: 4.0/5.0

The Secret of Rosalita Flats - Tim W Jackson

    I was initially drawn to this book with the 1920's style font used for the title.

    This is no slow burner, it draws you in makes you ponder and spits you out wondering what just happened. The main protagonist is a piece of property, with a past more blurred than most.

    A dead father, with more to hide than the rest of an island combined. A hunt for documents, and a truth that must come out. Add to that a phobia of sharks and scuba certification. 

    Small island mentality, a single police officer. The sum of the parts is greater than that of the whole.

    This book has left me reaching for it several times after finishing it.

    I don't think I have done this before, but the Blacktip Island Blog is a must to feed any hunger for more.

Status: Completed

Rating 4.9/5.0
 

The Last Fight of Human Race - Sanyukta Suryawanshi

 IMMORTALITY

 

    The quest for, and the rebellion against.

    The plot, and the characterisations are strong. There a few areas which are a little grey. You think that some characters are countries apart. Only to find them together within a few paragraphs.

    The resistance is trying to eliminate those that are already immortal - those that are, appear to be cumbersome and whilst slower than humans, but have a strength almost inhuman.

    Blame the scientists, someone's got to.  

 

Status: Complete

Rating: 3.8/5.0

Things to do When You'd Rather be Dead - Michael Guillebeau

     Down and out, an ex-detective finds himself travelling around schools and fetes, peddling the wares of the local police district.

    His cross to bear, the death of his wife and daughter at the hands of the 'angel of mercy'. And the killing of a priest by his own hands.

     This book, whilst claiming to be a comedy fails at it. Don't get me wrong. It is a good read, but what comical moments there are, are overshadowed by the story itself.

    The plot-line and characters are strong, and it allows the story to flow seamlessly. 

    There are a handful of locations, that are returned to on numerous occasions, to allow the build up for the next part to come to life.

    The only downside, is that the title takes forever and a day to type.

Status: Completed

Rating: 4.4/5.0

The Stranger Times - C K McDonnell

     Castlefield, a pimple on the nose of Manchester, supplying the lighter side of life since Roman Occupation.

    Based on the assumption that there are two forms of weather, raining or waiting to rain. The backdrop is set.

    A  motley crew, of "Journalists", an editor with a drink problem and a blunderbuss, and a newbie.

    Whilst the news for this paper maybe far fetched, the national enquirer would have been proud. Gods and Monsters sell, end of.

    With almost as many twists and turns as the M60, this page turner keeps you coming back for more. I hate to say this, but I woke up, and found myself reaching for this book to find out how it ended.

Oh yes...... and don't forget the ketchup.

Status: Completed

Rating: 4.6/5.0

Strange Labour - Robert Penner

 

     OK, so after a self-inflicted hiatus of reading in general. I thought I should think about making a return. So, here I am.

    Looking at #netgalley, for some inspiration, I stumbled across this in the Read Now Section. So here goes, sit back, kick off the socks and shoes and enjoy (hopefully).

    Although nothing is mentioned directly, something has happened the world and its residents. There are large swathes of the human race that have just upped and joined the diggers. They build trenches. Lots of trenches, all over the world. There are small pockets of people who haven't 'turned'. This seems to be where the individual in question. Has the urge to join the diggers, never to be seen again.

    We join Miranda, a drifter heading out west. She takes jobs where she can to support herself, care homes, outdoor work. She is joined by Dave, an ex maths teacher of considerable IQ, who has a taste for 'weed', stories and conspiracy.

    Whilst being almost constantly stoned (medically induced - epilepsy). He functions normally. He knows things, how to get fuel, what food is available, what drugs you can find where and whom to trade them with.

    There are neat pockets, where you are not on the road. Each bringing, its own trials and tribulations. Not all, is as it would seem.

    I read this in a couple of sittings, after pin the tail on the donkey selection. It held my interest, which is rare at the moment.

Status: Completed

Rating: 4.0/5.0

To Be Taught If Fortunate - Becky Chambers

Scientific findings, and a question that needs an answer.

This novella, packs a mighty punch into its 130'ish pages. The life of four astronauts scientists to the bone. A mission, four planets and detailed findings. The crew, follows to the last letter, in everything that they do. Something, thrown into conversation, almost flippantly......

 

This is Becky Chambers, first stand-alone story, and a right corker in is as well. 

 

Status: Completed

 

Rating: 4.3/5.0 

Lovecraft Country - Matt Ruff

(Audiobook)

Let me first state this. This book is far removed from what I was expecting. Not a bad thing all in all, and a fully enjoyable trip.

Set in 1950's America, it follows the (mis)fotrtunes of two related African American families, and a lodge where segregation seemed as far out of place, as the staple tradition of PB&J. Oh yes, the lodge. Full of alchemists.

Enjoy.

Status: Completed

Rating: 4.2/5.0

The Other People - C J Tudor

If you were to take a wander through this book, you would get arrested.

Based around the UK motorway system, there are a few characters who find themselves intertwined.  There a plenty of areas, that are described which you will find with ease, bridges and services are the easiest.

A car, a child. Murder. A parent who refuses to believe what he has been told. A sub-plot, drink, cars, and accidents. Organised, through the dark web, you can wish for whatever you want. At a price.

There is more than enough in this book to probably have kept it going for a couple of hundred pages more, without it detracting from it in the slightest. It is a real pager turner. In fact, including being at work, this only took me a couple of days to read (reading and work, don't mix very well with me, I can't normally read at all).

This lady, is fast becoming one my favourite authors. Would I recommend it, yes. Would I tell someone to buy it yes (their not having my copy). If I could think of a third question, I would have put it here.

Rating: 5/5

Status: Completed

Permanent Record - Edward Snowden

If it wasn't for the fact that the released stories are available on certain news publications, this would have made an excellent work of fiction.

Were it not for the selflessness of Mr. Snowden, who knows quite how far, and how much the NSA and CIA would have gone with their Mass Surveillance projects. I doubt it is fully known how far reaching its current projects are. As highlighted in the positions held by the author himself. People are given new jobs, new locations, and a new level of security clearance that allows for a darker project to be carried out.

The truth, might be out there. But, what may once have been nothing more than a work of science fiction. Has today, become reality.

Rating: 5/5

Status: Completed

The Forward Collection - Various

 This is a collection of Science Fiction short stories, that have been collated by Blake Crouch and released as a series by Amazon. These a free of charge to read, if you have Prime Reading or Kindle Unlimited.

Please find below links to my reviews, that are on goodreads. The series order, follows the links order

Ark - Veronica Roth

Summer Frost - Blake Crouch 

Emergency Skin - N. K. Jemisin
You Have Arrived at Your Destination - Amor Towel
The Last Conversation - Paul Tremblay 

 RAND0M1ZE - Andy Wier

Scarlet Traces - Various Authors

Scarlet Traces: A War of the Worlds Anthology.

A collection  of short stories based around War of the Worlds, by H G Wells, and Scarlet Traces an idea from I believe, Ian Eddington.

Based loosely, around war of  the worlds. Each author provides their ideas around what they thought might have happened in the years following the failed alien invasion. Be that massive empire gains for the British, due to re-engineering alien weaponry. Fighting wars against the aliens on Mars and Venus. Having Holmes and Watson on the case. Or simply finding T S Elliot and Thomas Edison making cameo appearances. This book has it all.

Each story, at my reading speed took about half an hour. Not too short, to think about skipping. And, not too long, to loose interest.

If your a fan of Wells. This could provide some interest, as to how things could have developed. If your not give it a go. There maybe something there for you.

Rating: 3.8 / 5.0

Status: Completed.