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Tome by Ross Jeffery | Book Review
Tome – its clarity was never more focused and established from the very first page. Dark and depraved. The story is multi-faceted as it strips the layers back of the human condition. Boy does it show the human condition for what it truly is, hungry for power and destruction. Tome is a story that examines many prejudices rife in not only America’s penial system. Racial abuse, misogyny and homophobia feature strongly, and Jeffery has tackled the sensitive themes with both class and tenderness without skipping on the reality. This novel is a highly intelligent and brutal story on multiple levels. Jeffery has birthed a new sub-genre of horror; he mixes…
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Before They Are Hanged by Joe Abercrombie | Book Review
“we should forgive our enemies, but not before they are hanged.” Before they Hanged is another masterpiece in storytelling and exemplary characterization. The first half the book felt like a continuation of the Blade Itself – a set up story…a massive prologue, if you like. Again, Abercrombie sets up the story with the consummate skill of masterful bard. It’s a story of epic proportions, vivid worldbuilding and terrible treachery. You are immediately catapulted into the world once more, carrying on from where The Blade Itself left off. Not a beat dropped, a breath wasted, or a thought discarded. The Blade Itself really was a set up book, introducing us to…
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Halloween Fiend by C.V. Hunt | Book Review
Halloween Fiend is a seriously creepy tale. The residents of Strang (yup, Strange without the E) know not to go out after sundown. The streets are eerie and quiet, but that’s not the only thing that is wrong with this town. They are haunted by an entity that prowls the streets. The only thing that stops them being killed is the sacrifice of small animals being left on their doorsteps. Apparently, guinea pigs and the likes are a tasty snack for the creature that is called Halloween. Once a year however, someone gets the dot – a term for a randomly selected resident to satiate the monster for another year. …
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Venus in the Blind Spot by Junji Ito | Book Review
Venus in the Blind Spot is my first ever Manga novel. It isn’t something that I would have necessarily picked up but I received it in an Abominable Book Box. It certainly won’t be the last. The artwork and the storytelling is both horrific and awe inspiring. There is tales of misadventure, Japanese lore, and the undercurrents of love and suffering constantly being the backbone of the collection. Darkness has seeped into these stories and it’s a set of stories that aren’t likely to be forgotten in a hurry. The characterization was spot on. On first meet you think these people have the perfect lives, perfect families and perfect lifestyles…
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The Wife by Shalini Boland | Book Review
The Wife was typical of the genre. It was set up with an ambiguous event that would implicate the characters and future events. We were given loaded dialogue, a perfect husband and family but something missing, there’s always something missing. The prologue sets the tone; apparently everyone knows that the events don’t add up, but the protagonist, Zoe, is just living in blissful ignorance. I didn’t enjoy this one as much as the last Shalini novel I read, but that’s not to say this isn’t a good book, I did want to race through the chapters but, the believability was niggling in the back of my mind. The Wife examines…
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The Blade Itself by Joe Abercrombie | Review
Well, isn’t The Blade Itself as deadly as a hushed-up autopsy? Grimdark? I swallowed it up and asked for another portion just like little Oliver begging for more. With its deadly plot and guillotine sharp character arcs, this is going to be a novel that I will take comfort in rereading time and time again. It’s a story that feels like a homecoming. Its cozy and deadly in equal measure (well as cozy as a dagger threatening to spill every drop of blood.) imagine wandering in the mountains and finally making your way home – a fire inviting you in, you can’t help but be enveloped by it…this is The…
