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REVIEW – Whitesands by Johann Thorsson
Whitesands is a mysterious, haunting, and exceptionally ambitious debut novel. It was tragic and lyrical. Johann Thorsson has various examples of excellent social commentaries running through the heart of the plot. Racial prejudice, spousal murder, and child abduction make for an ominous threat. It gave the reader the feeling of a threat hiding in the shadows, and I was willing to discover the stories’ secrets. Dip your toe into the grey waters, it’s not comfortable and it threatens to swallow you whole, there are moments where the subject matter is not enjoyable, but this is crime fiction…its darkness is where we feel at home. Thorsson delves into the human condition,…
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Review: The Shape of Night by Tess Gerritsen
The Shape of Night is a story about guilt and loss. It tells the story of Ava Collette, a woman that is running from her past. She distances herself from her family, her work, and predominately her memories. I don’t think you can outrun your past, you can just maybe stall it for a while. A food writer that has become hooked on alcohol to deal with her emotions. It all gets too much and she decides to rent a house, Brodie’s Watch, a large stately home overlooking the sea in a remote coastal peninsula of Maine. Will it provide Ava with the distance to get her head straight and…
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Review: The Tale of the Tailor and the Three Dead Kings by Dan Jones
The Tale of the Tailor and the Three Dead Kings is a medieval ghost story that was immortalised in the early fifteenth century. Dan Jones has based his retelling upon the original Latin scripture of the story. You can feel the authentic, old-time feel to the storytelling. The dialogue, the mannerisms, and the interpretations were at one with the story being told. The introduction sets up the story nicely and pushes you to think more deeply about the time in which the tale Is told. The story flowed beautifully even if it was super short.
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Review: August’s Eyes by Glenn Rolfe
As a firm favorite author, Glenn Rolfe, I was over the moon to be reviewing his new release, August’s Eyes. Dreams that bleed into reality? Reminiscent of Nightmare on Elm Street…yes, please! John has a great life. Fulfilling career, beautiful wife, a roof over their head. The only thing that is missing from their life is a baby. Sarah longs to complete their family but John feels settled with how they are now. They’ve tried before and he can’t bear to see that hurt etched upon his wife’s face again. Things begin to change for John when he starts having disturbing dreams. There seems to be no rhyme or reason…
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The Devil’s Mistress by David Barclay | Book Review
The Devil’s Mistress is superiorly dark and lyrical. It transcends from bleak to a darker shade of grey. The witch trials have always been an interesting but upsetting period of history for me. It’s an enjoyable read but also is a keen investigation into the human condition. This story looks to examine the depth of the human mind. Barclay tackles themes of misogyny, sexism, and turning the idea of what a witch should be on its head. When tackling such a trope, the author has to create protagonists that we want to root for, Barclay has done this with consummate skill. The Devil’s Mistress takes place in Virginia in the…
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Warding by Kev Harrison | Book Review
Kev Harrison proves he can put his magic to anything, whether that’s writing about European Folklore or in the case of Warding, a story of supernatural proportions. As always with Harrison’s work I was intrigued by the premise but let me tell you – nothing prepared me for the intensity and claustrophobia that would have me enthralled. He is the master of uneasiness and reading Warding was no different. It’s a novelette but incredibly fast paced with a small bunch of characters that are instantly relatable with values and working moral compasses. Warding has done the impossible. How on earth can you pack in bucket loads of emotion, heart and…
