Fair Warning - Michael Connelly

Michael Connelly returns with a new gripping thriller for the page turner this Summer.

Connelly the writer behind Harry Bosch, returns with another character he has written before - Jack McEvoy; a journalist for a consumer website who is on the hunt for a serial killer of women.

McEvoy himself has his baggage, a broken relationship with his love who was his source and she lost her job for that, to save him jail time.

Connelly as ever is in the Los Angeles setting as his milieu and playground; traversing from Downtown to Hollywood to Pasadena to Cedars Senai. These landmarks are all prevalent in our minds eye so a well read reader will be able to picture most of the action, it is down to Connelly to keep us entertained.

That he does in bundles as McEvoy has to combat two policemen who have it in for him as a suspect when a body pops up not far from McEvoy. That sets in motion the wheels for the narrative of a story that involves genetics and genealogy as the plot revolves around women with broken history looking for a link for their past which they believe to be an answer in their own DNA, using those online DNA profiling.

The twist is that the dark web gets ahold of this private information, and then sell it to women-hating cell groups who then pick off women who are risky propositions and then easy targets for a serial killer.

McEvoy untangles this dark web of intrigue and uncovers a conspiracy involving unsavoury characters whose motives are nothing but welcoming, culminating in a showdown with the character calling himself 'The Shirke' so named after a carnivorous bird, a man who believes himself to be atop of the flighted food chain.

Connelly cleverly writes his narrative to build McEvoy as both an investigator but also the fear of being a suspect, and how closely the police work with the awareness and fear themselves of making mistakes a theme familiar to viewers of the Bosch television series.

As ever, Connelly writes with a swiftness and clarity which is refreshing as ever and will be enjoyed by old and new fans alike. One of the world's best thriller writers has done it again.

Fair Warning is out now on all formats.

We Begin At The End - Chris Whitaker

 

New novel by Chris Whitaker released by Zaffre Books in April 2020

For some people, trouble just finds them.

Thirty years ago, Vincent King became a killer.

Now, he's been released from prison and is back in his hometown of Cape Haven, California. Not everyone is pleased to see him. Like Star Radley, his ex-girlfriend, and sister of the girl he killed.

Duchess Radley, Star's thirteen-year-old daughter, is part-carer, part-protector to her younger brother, Robin - and to her deeply troubled mother. But in trying to protect Star, Duchess inadvertently sets off a chain of events that will have tragic consequences not only for her family, but also the whole town.

Murder, revenge, retribution.

How far can we run from the past when the past seems doomed to repeat itself?

Review
Whitaker does a great job of writing a thriller that reaches for the heights of American novella, the dual narrative structure of each chapter which takes us into the point of view of wither Walk (Chief Walker), the local sheriff who seeks to find answers to another murder in Cape Haven and the other side of the coin is the story of Duchess being displaced in Montana following the murder of her mother, Star.

Walk is one of those great American idealists like Atticus Finch and others, someone who seeks to do the hard work but overshadowed by past errors and the ill health that is befalling him at this vital stage of his investigation.

Duchess is written as a tough cookie of a young girl, who will not take any rubbish from anyone to fight her corner and protect her brother Robin, like her Mum, Star, did for them.

You have this contrast of a coming of age novel, and for Walk a coming to the end which is a unique take on two different paths for two lead protagonists.

This book was a pleasant one to read, the swiftness and nimbleness of the plot pays off dividends once the action is ramped up. The utilisation of Montana and the grandfather, Hal, who portrays the stillness of that landscape in contrast to the mayhem of California.

Whitaker paints a world that is both of now and from a timeless period - the Montana scenes read like something from a Richard Ford novel while the murkiness of California reads like a Michael Connolly story.  All the more staggering considering that Whitaker was born in London, he writes of America as good as any author I can recall.

Recommended for those who require to be whisked away from this mad mad world.

We Begin At The End is published by Zaffre Books on 2nd April.
My thanks to Compulsive Readers for the opportunity to review on the blogtour.

Endgame by Daniel Cole

The third Ragdoll book, Endgame, by Daniel Cole is published on Thursday 5th September

William 'Wolf' Fawkes returns following a brief absence from the majority of Hangman; to be the main driving force of the narrative.  Fawkes returns following the suicide of former colleague, Finlay Shaw; something does not add up though for Wolf who believes there is more than meets the eye in regards to the suspected suicide.

With his former partner, Emily Baxter and private detective Edmunds; Wolf attempts to solve the case in a race against time as he puts his career on the line while not everyone in the Met wants him back to begin with.

Cole does a clever narrative trick of showing the investigation into the suicide along with a flashback narrative of Finlay along with his then partner Christian in the late 1970s, when they made a name for themselves in drug busts and yet became the target of gangs who seeked retribution.

Once the narrative gets going in the 70s narrative in terms of Finlay and Christian dicing with death and establishing the relationships Finlay's suicide leaves in limbo, then the present day narrative takes off especially when Wolf and Baxter must address his leaving the end of Book 1, Ragdoll.

Daniel Cole, author of Endgame.

Cole has created in Baxter a unique female protagonist - fierce yet vulnerable, stubborn but knee-jerk - and the chemistry with Wolf who is a cantankerous soul brings the emotions to the fore for all.  In this novel, Wolf is merely a tool for psychological insight into the waste he left behind, his reappearance granting people a chance to vent and rage against his cynicism and selfishness.

What sets this book apart from the other novels of the trilogy - whereas the opener was a true original concept and plot; the sequel was an action packed female fronted thriller; Endgame is a book less about the end result but how you get there, a tale about camaraderie and fraternity within the police force - the bond forged between the boys (and girls) in blue and the ties that bind them to each other.

While the title may have a sense of finality to it all, hopefully that is not the case and the characters such as Wolf and Baxter can continue to work together and we be able to join them on the ride.

Endgame is out from Orion Books on 5th September.
I am appearing on the Compulsive Readers Blog Tour on 6th September

My thanks to Tracy Fenton for the opportunity to review.

Our Life In A Day - Jamie Fewery

The debut novel from journalist Jamie Fewery, takes a unique narrative concept to tell the story of a relationship over 10 years.

Esme and Tom, meet by chance at a fancy dress party - they are the two who have not bothered to get dressed up so immediately there is a kinship bond between the two of them, a common footing from which to spring off.

That night Tom escorts Esme home to her flat south of the river, this walk they get to know each other and they agree to meet the next day. A relationship is blossoming.

Fast forward to 10 years later, on the day of their 10th anniversary, as a treat Esme decides to play a game where Tom has to come up with the story about their life together. 24 post-it notes, one signifying one hour of any hour of any day from the last 10 years - so we embark upon a flash backing and jumping around narrative where we encounter surprise birthday parties, Christmas get-togethers, long disruptive car journeys that paint the picture of a partnership and the obstacles that society can thrust upon you such as parental passings and the past that hangs around you.

While comparisons will be drawn no doubt to David Nicholls' One Day, this is an altogether different book which does not have the unnecessary ending Nicholls' book had which redeemed the quite frankly awful character of Dex.

Fewery has taken great care in constructing two lead characters who are fully rounded and while they have negatives and drawbacks, the realisation is 'don't we all'.  Tom is flawed in that he has his demons from his university days, attempting to deal with the pressures of uni life by drowning his sorrows too much and forcing himself to make a terrible decision.  That decision comes back to haunt him and his rendering is one of the better ones to show the pain of mental illness in young men, a portrayal rarely seen in literature and goes hand in hand with the current social groundswell taking place.

Esme meanwhile is written beautifully, like women in fiction she is stubborn, forthright and opinionated but loyal and faithful to Tom to a tee.  In the inevitable adaptation, you can picture Emilia Clarke (Game of Thrones) taking on the mantle of her role.  We are now past the manic pixie dream girl and landed in the land of beautifully stubborn young lady.

Fewery writes with a conciseness and clarity, I read the book in less than a week ripping through chapters at will. He has created two very rounded characters - a forthright female with her own ambitions and stubborn as hell, while in Tom he has written a man who has his demons and is wary to share them.  This is a great portrayal of mental illness; we as men need to open up and share our problems - when you communicate openly you can share the burden but also find some resolution and consolation in being honest about how you are feeling.

This book will garner a great audience and is a lovely book to purchase for Christmas; this is a book written for both sides of the argument, this is not a book solely written by the male gaze instead it can be considered a metrosexual novel of an altering relationship.

Our Life In A Day is published by Orion Books on 27th December 2018.

In The Wake - Helen Treverrow

Helen Treverrow's debut novel is released from Urbane Publications on 28th June

When a body is found floating in London's Royal Albert Dock, public relations expert Kay Christie is sent to quiet the media, but things become complicated when it emerges she knows the victim.

Centered around the Excel center in London, a major exhibition is overshadowed by this body being found.  A convoluted narrative structure involving Kay's father who works at the exhibition hall, and the tightly knit support network around her starts to unravel as secrets much like the body rise to the surface.

Opening with the disappearance of a French nurse from her London hospital around Christmas time - the imagery Trevorrow evokes the harshness and cold of the London winter is depicted succinctly, showing the combination of how lonely the big city can be when you are questioning your own decisions in life.

Kay is in her 40s, gay and partnered with Julia, a woman who is enjoying an Indian summer with high-profile media commitments; and yet Kay is not happy. Kay drinks regularly, she is in love with her job but not in love with her routine. The introduction of a female police officer, Polly - younger and vital stirs some lustful yearnings within her which has been absent for sometime.

This melodramatic shift to a women's narrative in unison with the crime story is a risky venture, and on occasion the crime story struggles to be heard beside the Sapphic storyline; at times this reader felt that the love scenes were overpowering the actual crime story narrative and the interest in the case being solved.  Kay is an intelligent, successful woman and yet her life is full of quandry with Treverrow delicately explaining her psyche following a sexual assault from years past; which is told to us in flashback.

Rose Gold Interview with David Barker

David Barker returns with the sequel to his hit novel, Blue Gold, featuring the returning characters of Sim Atkins. This is Rose Gold, I had the pleasure of being to ask Mr. Barker some questions for the #blogtour of Rose Gold.

You have come to writing later in your life, how did this come about?

I’ve always enjoyed writing, even while I was working as an economist. It’s a challenge to convey complex information in a fashion that is succinct, easy to understand and interesting. I had thought about a change in career towards financial journalism but more recently decided that I wanted to stretch myself and try my hand at creative writing.

What was the gestation of Blue Gold and Sim Atkins?

In my previous role I did a lot of research into commodity markets, and one recurring theme was the notion that fresh water would become a precious resource over the next 20 years. I realised that a world war for water would be a great setting for a novel and suddenly I knew what the opening and closing scenes would be for a story.

How long did the first book take to complete, how many drafts?

From that very first idea to the published book hitting shelves, it was about seven years. Talking to other authors I have come to realise this is not uncommon for first novels, especially because most of us write our debuts while working full time. And I think it was the ninth draft that went to print. The biggest changes happened between drafts one and two, which occurred after I had attended the Faber Academy novel-writing course.

What is your normal working day like, do you have a daily word target?

There are certain times of the year when I am just trying to think of new ideas for sticking points in the current project or for completely new future projects. At other times, I am focusing on the promotional side of things. But when I am in first-draft mode, then yes, I try to aim for 2000 words a day. I often get that done by lunchtime (I’m an early riser), so will tend to spend the afternoon reading novels. As Stephen King says, an author should split their time evenly between reading and writing.

What did you like to read growing up, there is a lot of Fleming in your work?

Funnily enough, I did not read a lot of his novels. I loved Douglas Adams, both his Hitch Hiker books and the Dirk Gently series. I read quite a bit of fantasy: Stephen Donaldson and, of course, Tolkien. And I enjoyed Frederick Forsyth’s global thrillers.

What do you read now?

An eclectic mix. I appear on a monthly Radio Berkshire show called Radio Reads, and we review a new book that can be chosen from any genre. I attend a local book club that focuses on Sci-Fi and Fantasy, so that’s my second book of the month. I normally find time for a third book each month, and that varies a lot. I get invited to quite a few book launches so often pick-up the latest best-seller then, or I’ll try to read something from one of my fellow Urbane authors.

Can you talk about the relationship with Urbane Publications?

They are a fantastic independent publisher with big ambitions. They are very supportive, without being proscriptive about what or how you should tackle your latest project. And one thing that really helps their books stand out is the beautiful design detail (in the physical book). For example, in my latest book Rose Gold, there is a double-page spread at the start of each of the three parts, showing a black background and a moon at a different stage of its cycle. In my first novel, Blue Gold, there were faint water droplets in the background of every page.

You have one more book in the trilogy to write, can you give anything away?

It’s called White Gold, and it should be out in May 2019. Something happens to Sim in Rose Gold that becomes the main driving force of his story arc in the final book (no spoiler alerts). But I also wanted to give more time and space to his old partner, Freda Brightwell, who was a big hit with female readers from book one, so you’ll see a lot more of her. And of course, the baddies are bigger and badder than ever!

What will you write after the trilogy is complete?

I’m not entirely sure yet. I have a couple of ideas that are rattling around inside my brain, but both are completely different to the Gaia trilogy.

Any advice for would be scribes?

Keep going – it’s a long slog to complete a novel, and even once it’s finished it’s a tough road to publication. Don’t be put off by the knock-backs or stumbling points. And don’t forget to write with passion – if you try merely to emulate some book trend that’s currently successful, chances are your own voice will disappear along with the fire inside your belly.

Rose Gold is out from Urbane Publications now on all formats

Rose Gold - David Barker

David Barker returns with the sequel to his hit novel, Blue Gold, featuring the returning characters of Sim Atkins.

The events of the world are still changing, following on from the adventures featuring OFWAT, Sim is thrown a curve ball from the off, learning a life-changing fact and then being asked to go to the moon.

The moon is the next landscape to be mined for the minerals that could help the forever changed Earth, perhaps as an outpost for new territories. Sim undergoes an intense changing regime and within 8 days is on the moon space station.  Yet this requirement to go to the moon, is a means to change the environment of the main character who must endure in a different milieu from previously.

Barker writes with a real lightness but swiftness; he is able to render an environment and atmosphere quickly utilising character dialogue to progress character development.  This is reminiscent of the writing of Matthew Reilly - whilst Reilly worked on a wider more outlandish scale with huge set pieces and explosions; Barker utilises the environment to his advantage. By having a base on the moon, you have people out of their comfort zone from the outset creating an underlying wave of tension and conflict as the diverse multi-ethnic world population of the base have to co-exist.

Author of Rose Gold - David Barker

However, the yarn is gripping and moves a breakneck speed, for me it did not reach the same heights as Blue Gold did. Yet, the book is certainly one of the better action-adventure novels this reviewer has read - Barker cleverly takes his influences of Ian Fleming, Tom Clancy, Dan Brown et al to make a winning favourite in Sim Atkins - the type of guy who usually sits behind a desk but elevates and surprises himself with how well he can become something better than he thought he was. 

That everyman quality shines through Barker's brilliant depiction of Sim as with the diverse cauldron of characters that pop up throughout the book from the erstwhile Lin to the detailed Piet as well as android Henry the AI who provides the key to the running of the whole base; and Barker does not waste pages with exposition and needless character thoughts, he uses dialogue as a means to shape story and extend plot with efficiency.

Barker is quite prescient in terms of future technology he grants his characters an item called tab rolls on their wrists, a sort of Apple watch which details your journey, time, sleep patterns but linked to a main body such as Henry who can monitor and advise on your behaviour, but has sinister reaches akin to Big Brother watching you. Having just been on a trip to Walt Disney World, they gave us magic bands a sort of GPS locator come money band where you can pay for items at leisure.

Barker leaves things up in the air - in terms of Sim quite literally - in readiness for the next part of the trilogy White Gold (out May 2019), where the heroine of Blue Gold Freda who we last see escaping a prison in Russia, is now front and centre at the beginning - thanks to an exclusive extract written at the book's conclusion.

Again, this is a brilliant thrilling novel from Urbane Publications who specialise in believing in under-appreciated authors whose work deservedly gets much needed exposure; Rose Gold is a thrilling addition to the Atkins trilogy, one more to go and this reader cannot hardly wait.

I will be featuring in the #RoseGold blog tour on 18th May

Rose Gold is out from Urbane Publications on Thursday 10th May

Joseph Knox interview

Joseph Knox - Author of Sirens and The Smiling Man

Joseph Knox garnered critical and commercial acclaim when Sirens was released in early 2017, he returns with the second in his Aidan Waits series this time Waits is investigating the mysterious death of a man in the fourth floor of a disused hotel whilst tackling a variety of professional and personal obstacles.

In spite of his busy media schedule this week, his publishers Transworld Books granted me some time with Joseph on the day of his book release.

• When you set out the first book ‘Sirens’ – did you have the plot for the sequel in mind already or did it come to you following the success of the first novel?

I was asked to write a short story for the Waterstones edition of Sirens, and it took place a little after the events of that book. As the story came to an end I realised that someone awful was watching Aidan, and that he was unaware of it, and I knew then that would inform the next book…

• Was there a temptation to keep Waits fighting his demons/addictions or was the journey of sobriety necessary to character development/arc?

There’s nothing more tedious than watching a character learn a lesson in one book and then be re-set back to normal in the next. Aidan will keep moving forward as long as I’m writing him. Also – his idea of sobriety is just to stop popping pills. Hopefully as long as he can keep drinking he’ll stay sane…

• Do you know someone like Waits or is he a collage of people?

He reminds me of one guy I know.

• I was struck by the warmth of the book, it is set in summer and I found that atmosphere radiating off the page, was that deliberate?

That’s very nice to hear, thank you. It was intentional to go for that as a reaction against the deep freeze of Sirens. Probably the same reason Aidan got off speed. I didn’t want to write the same book twice.

• How many drafts did you go through?

Agh, impossible for me to say I’m afraid. I rewrite every time I re-read, which is a lot, and when I was hacking at The Smiling Man I worked 20 hours a day for six months. I’d often re-write a scene several times before I let myself get up and leave. Lots and lots of drafts.

That's a lot of writing - ''I worked 20 hours a day for six months' 

• Did you lay out the plot or follow the Lee Child way of writing it as it comes to you and Waits?

As with Sirens I had a kind of tone, a kind of atmosphere that I was writing towards, but I’m afraid I don’t plan. Maybe my life would be easier, but I think the books, or certainly the characters, would feel less natural.

• What noir have you been reading lately? Anything else you recommend? 

Not what anyone else would really call noir, but my idea of it certainly (as it pertains to tone, language, atmosphere, weirdos and doom), Ottessa MoshFegh’s short stories, Homesick For Another World.

• Will we be seeing Waits again soon?

I’m working on the next Aidan novel as we speak. After that, I don’t know…

• Do you have a wish to write in a different genre?

 Not really. A lot of crime writers seem to come to the genre having crapped out of what they really wanted to do – but for me it’s true love. I feel like Smiling Man is so different to Sirens, and my idea for book three is so different again, that I can keep pushing forward and challenging myself in this genre. It helps that they take place in a kind of heightened noir-ish landscape where anything and anyone seems possible.

 The Smiling Man is out from Doubleday Press now in Hardback

Blue Gold - book review

Published by Urbane Publications and due for release on 11th May, the debut author by David Barker Blue Gold tells the story of a future world where water is at a premium, a commodity that territories fight over and lives are lost over the ability to drink clean water.

Barker is a part-time economist, who has turned his hand at novel writing and he has successfully crafted a page-turning tub thumping action adventure that is fun to read and shows a real potential. 

Our hero is Sim Atkins, (he goes into why he is called Sim and not Simon) a data analyst for OFWAT, the Government agency for Water regulation, who gets summoned to the Overseas Division after becoming aware of unusual activity from his satellites.  Swiftly Sim is thrust into an odd couple/buddy relationship with Freda, an older female who has a limp as well as emotional baggage and does not welcome the burden of a bothersome partner.

In the same vein of Indiana Jones, James Bond and Bourne, the pair globe trot from Biggin Hill to Brazil to Mount Rushmore to China to the Himalayas.  They encounter many individuals including the brilliantly monikered Bo Brunswick, where swords are crossed and backs stabbed.

Author David Barker's debut

Being British, Barker writes with a particular tongue in cheek imbued by the youthfulness of Sim - who is not familiar with any film from before Star Wars quoted by his partner - coupled with the older more mature Freda, who acts like she has seen it all before yet still keeps her cards close to her chest.

The set pieces and fight scenes are easy to follow and have a zip that reminds you not only of Dan Brown but the far superior work of Matthew Reilly who wrote huge elaborate action adventures with subtle characterisations in unison.

Urbane Publications are a new voice in the big world of publishing, but they continue to strike gold with these new authors with voices and stories to share not only on a small scale but ones that can travel and translate. 

Blue Gold informs us of a world where water levels will rise, water will be in such high demand that people will store ice from each other and it is thought over like oil has been in the late 20th century.  It is a neat twist on a familiar geopolitical tension in the current climate.

Blue Gold will be published by Urbane Publications on 11th May

The Captain Class

Written by Wall Street Journal writer, Sam Walker, The Captain Class is a look at how the captain of a given great side can have the influence on a team's performance perhaps greater than the more heralded coach or manager.

Using a mixture of in-depth research, statistical analysis and psychological studies, Walker has looked at team sport across the spectrum and attempted to nail a theory that perhaps the Captain is the focal point of these Tier One (elite) sides that separates them from the Tier Two sides that fail to break through; this difference leads to dynasties and dominance instead of one-season wonders.

In the first part of the book, Walker breaks down what makes a great team; was this team in the sport far and away the best side, did they beat equally great sides, was this dominance sustained over a period of time sometimes with managerial/coaching changes occurring. This analysis includes win percentage and record against equally high percentage win sides in playoffs and championship matches.

Walker is good in bringing light to some unheralded sports, the most distant team he selects is the Collingwood Magpies who ruled Australian Rules Football between 1927-1930.  Other teams selected are from Cuba's women's volleyball team (1991-2000), the women Hockeyroos of Australia (1993-2000) and the French men's handball team (2008-15) whose captain Jerome Fernandez led the team to a European Championship win knowing his father was on his deathbed.

In an early chapter, Walker makes the point that the teams he notes are not led by a supreme talent as their captain but within that side may be contain an elite or illustrious talent yet having an elite talent does not mark it out as a Tier One team, hence why Michael Jordan's Chicago Bulls side is absent.

However, within these great teams selected by Walker are the Brazil soccer side which had Pele, the Barcelona football side of this millennium which contains Lionel Messi and Dan Carter in the New Zealand All Blacks of 2011-15.

Yet by the end Walker brilliantly deconstructs the legend of Jordan as a leader and why he does not make the cut. Walker's ideal leader is one who shies away from the limelight off the court, would rather fold laundry and get 12 hours sleep a night; they lead by example, bending not breaking the rules to gain a distinct advantage in flashpoints, using both verbal and non-verbal communication to instil motivation into their teammates. 

This is indicative in the chapter concerning Tim Duncan of the San Antonio Spurs, an NBA side that has made the playoffs for the 19 nineteen seasons Duncan was a professional in the league before his retirement last summer.  Duncan is a man who does not waste his movement on the court, hence his high efficiency numbers, he is a presence without being overbearing and he speaks to his teammates in platitudes instead of shouting. At times he may have been boring, but his winning record would suggest that if it wins 5 NBA titles do not knock it.

One criticism I would aim at this list is the absence of one cricketing side from across the vast history of the sport when there have been periods of dominance in the Test match arena by either the West Indies of the 1970s/80s to the Australian sides led by either Don Bradman in the 1940s or the 1990s side captained by either Mark Taylor or Steve Waugh.

My argument would be that Walker has concentrated on team sports and has not given attention to the sport not requires a strong captain as a necessity for success; an individual that can inspire and yet not break out with record scores or statistics.  Much has been made in the past about the leadership of Mike Brearley for England Cricket side in the late 1970s/early 1980s, a captain who was the best captain but definitely not the best player who could motivate some failing troops. 

However, Walker decides to ignore the achievements of Don Bradman, still one of the greatest cricketers of all time who retired with the highest average in Test cricket whilst overseeing a dominant period in their history. On the other side of the coin, you have Clive Lloyd, captain of West Indies, who was not the best player but inspired with great innings and was tactically astute to make big differences on the field of play. 

Cricket is a game that requires in-game tinkering and leaves a coach very much impotent to the on-field action; the captain dictates field positions, bowler rotations and tactical tinkering to combat an ever-changing batting line-up and the captain is always the most prized wicket of any bowling side. Whilst Walker makes an explanation in his discourse nevertheless it is something this reader should not have been ignored.

Author Sam Walker

Nevertheless, this is a brilliant book that is both page-turning, entertaining with the stories of these legendary characters who may shrink from the limelight off the court but shine brightly once they are on it with their leadership and influence that lives on in their sport and their clubs/national team histories. 

With his amazing research Walker has himself led by example as to combine the best of both worlds, the acumen of the academic world married with the all encompassing passion of sports and competition convincingly shining a light on the unsung heroes of team sports in recent history.

The Captain Class is released in the UK by Ebury Press on 18th May in Hardback

What Alice Knew

This intriguing novel by T. A. Cotterell tells the story of Alice, a faithful wife, whose love for her husband is sorely tested by his indiscretions one night.  Set in the Bristol area, it follows on the footsteps of other novels I have read this year set outside of the Metropolitan hub-bub of London such as Oxford for We All Start As Strangers and the grim drabness of Manchester in Sirens.

Alice is a portrait artist, married with two children beloved in the area and a model of maternal nature. This is put to the test by her husband's may or may not be adulterous behaviour which may or may not have led to the death of a flirtatious admirer.

The novel hopes to be a gripping thriller in the same vein of keystone texts such as Gone Girl and The Girl on the Train, and yet this was a book this reader found hard to get through.  The combination of somewhat implausible plotting, the hysterical nature of the faithful wife losing her mind and sometimes unnecessary art history lessons.

By the final 70 pages when Alice goes to visit her mother do you understand the psychology of Alice fully in that she wants to please everyone and people take advantage of her grace from her bitter mother to her awful siblings who live far away from her as well as the home in Scotland.

The ending felt a bit contrived and rushed unfortunately, but then again the plodding nature of the plot to begin with perhaps the writer wanted to get away from these characters he created. A potential pivotal standoff with an old school mate for Alice when she paints her portrait is handled muddily and instead makes Alice even more vulnerable and this weakness does not enforce our sympathy but instead pity; not something you ever want to extend to someone.

At times the book felt like it wanted to say so much, but was unable to due to the weakness of the protagonist and the ending where she attempts to fall on her husband's sword is both ill timed and messy.

A shame after a strong opening that this book could not maintain the focus nor the attention of this reader.

What Alice Knew is released in Hardback/Paperback by Black Swan (Goldsboro Books) on 4th May

A Monster by Violet

The debut novel by Laura Wake is a gritty to the bones drama about a young girl, the eponymous heroine who we follow on a week in her life.

Violet has abducted her best friend's baby, Maria. Her friend is an addict and the child would likely have died in her care, so doing what she thinks is best for the child and perhaps hopeful of starting afresh herself, Violet takes the child and withdraws what money she has in her account and heads for the Isle of Wight.

We follow Violet as she becomes a born again person doting on Maria and her feeds, looking after her and realising that she has to leave the temptations of drugs and addiction behind if she is too care for the child.

Violet thinks she can have the best of both worlds taking Maria to a house party that goes wrong when a snake is thrown into the mix and she has sexual contact with some other girl's boyfriend.

These dark episodes are merely the lead narrative, running parallel is the flashback to Violet as a ten year old and how she become a troubled teen and young adult; her home life is good but following the cot death of her younger brother she starts to rebel and her parents marriage hits the rocks.  There is also the unsettling storyline of a female teacher attempting to make Violet good again, which could have been construed as grooming in another plot.

However, Wake is better when following Violet and Maria on their journey around IoW yet the novel does somewhat lose its way nearer the novel's conclusion when they abscond a boat and head for France with a Portugese waiter, Sergio for company. On the boat, Violet's demons come to the fore and her paranoia regarding being possibly followed nearer brings down here downfall.

The book has good moments, especially as you see Violet becoming more maternal and the blossoming friendship between her and Sergio is nicely handled; yet the flashback storyline is dropped somewhat abruptly and does not fully explain her addictive future nor what her relationship with her parents is.

Some critics feel she is an abhorrent lead character, I think of her as reminiscent of the lead character Lily, Agyness Deyn played in the little seen film Electricity.  A smart girl who has her own mental demons to overcome, and is lost in the big bad world and is always attempting to run away from it.

A Monster By Violet is out now from Urbane Publications

Sirens

Debut novels are all the rage in this the early part of 2017, new crime voices are making big strides and in recent months I have reviewed thrilling bows from A. A. Dhand with Streets of Darkness and the impending arrival of Daniel Cole's Ragdoll.

Whilst Ragdoll is that mixture of genuine thriller writing, good plotting and the page turning abandon you find in Lee Child or Dan Brown novels; there is another new voice on the block. Joseph Knox is here to make himself heard and Lee Child himself, has been most praiseworthy of this debut novel.

Sirens tells the story about DI Aidan Watts, a disgraced policeman in the Manchester Police Force, who whilst on suspension is asked for a special undercover role in finding a politican's daughter's whereabouts; but when Watts gets further into the loyalties of a crime lord he the past becomes murkier and the present day darker.

Knox in an interview with Radio 5 Live's Phil Williams last week said it took him the best part of seven years to finish the novel which prompted a bidding war between 10 publishers, with Doubleday/Transworld Publishers coming out on top.

Knox writes with a real verve and creates a foreboding atmosphere of a darker side of Manchester, much like Dhand did with Leeds and Bradford in his work.  The author has a keen eye on little details which he shares with Watts from the politician not wearing his wedding ring when away from his wife to the way people share looks and talk too loudly at house parties.

In the radio interview, Knox promised another novel starring Watts is in the works.  Whilst the line between good and evil is tread with fear by our protagonists, Knox is not afraid to take you to these places and his admiration for Manchester is clear to see. Should he continue to write with this flair and character, it will not be the last we hear of him.

Sirens is out from on Thursday 12th January from Doubleday Press/Transworld Publishers

Showboat: Book review

From the much heralded author, Roland Lazenby comes the sure to be seminal text about one of the generational icons of basketball.  Lazenby has written numerous tomes and novels about the stand out performers in the NBA culminating in his biography, Michael Jordan: The Life (2014).

Lazenby's knowledge over his subject is second to none having written five dozen nonfiction books mostly about basketball and American football.  In taking on the subject of Kobe Bean Bryant, he is attempting to make sense of one of the most difficult personas in professional basketball of the last 25 years.

Kobe Bryant is one of those lightning in a bottle talents that come along once in a lifetime. Unless you compete in basketball when there are talents such as his every 10 year cycle. Before Jordan, there was Magic Johnson, before Magic there was Dr. Julis Erving, before Erving there was Wilt Chamberlain.  And after Kobe there was LeBron, and now there is Steph Curry.

Talents such as the men just mentioned are seminal, they are awe-inspiring, they are able to do things on the court not seen before and not seen since.  They rekindle your love of the game, leave you gasping for breathe and adjectives to describe wheat they achieve. And yet this talent and gift to the public is single-minded, selfless and full of sacrifices.

Lazenby makes not of this following Bryant's young life following in the footsteps of his father Joe, a talented player in his own right who left the NBA to play in Europe, primarily Italy.  This brought young Kobe into contact with players of flair and individuality but also showed him a lifestyle he did not want to replicate. Bryant wanted to be better than his father, and that meant succeeding in the NBA, a place his father could not.

Bryant, along with LeBron, was the last great player to forego the route of College Basketball and jump straight into the big time. Since LeBron, the rules have changed as the NBA and NCAA agreed that any player must complete a minimum of one year in college before declaring for the NBA draft (in football it is two years).

Bryant was always going to make the jump when he was mixing it up with pros at his junior year of high school culminating in a state championship of Pennsylvania as he was the talk of Philadelphia.  The leap to the Los Angeles Lakers was a dream come true and a meeting of two great world views, with the end of Magic Johnson due to his HIV illness, the Lakers were a big team struggling to be relevant as Jordan and the Chicago Bulls ran the show. The Lakers needed to be relevant and with the acquisition of Bryant in the draft they had a large piece of the puzzle to regain a championship banner.

Throughout the novel, Lazenby goes to great lengths to make sense of Bryant's supposed selfishness and bloody single mindedness throughout his career; an individual who cannot play well with others, not a team player, shouting at team-mates for not passing him the ball.

These accusations followed Bryant throughout his career with him taking too many shots, ultimately missing too many shots and yet when he was hot there was probably no hotter shooter in the NBA. Bryant could score 30+ in halves of games quicker than others, from all regions most famously his fadeaway from 12 feet over the despairing arm of a defender.

Lazenby goes deep into the relationship with Shaquille O'Neal, an unbeatable tandem that garnered three straight NBA titles together something to rival Jordan's Bulls of the mid 1990s and yet O'Neal had to leave as it was Kobe's team and his alone.

By the end of the career, injuries mounted up onto a body that had played non-stop in the NBA for close to 20 years and the years of preparation before that.  His contract crippled the Lakers when they needed to rebuild and his last season turned into a farewell tour as he took to the floor of many courts for the last time.

It culminated the only way Kobe knew how to, bringing down the curtain on his professional career with 60 points in his last game at Staples Centre. Bryant brought the house down and left you wanting more. Yet Bryant could not give anymore in his desire to succeed and to be the best; his ambition was reached yet he broke some hearts along the way.

A great book and read for lovers of the NBA and Basketball for one of the more complicated players of all time.

Showboat is out now from Little Brown and Company now for £19.95 RRP, although the kindle edition is better with more pages.

Streets of Darkness

Born and bred in Bradford, A. A. Dhand is a befitting example of write what you know. Dhand has written a gritty and gripping thriller for his first book entitled Streets of Darkness, featuring a new anti-hero Detective Harry Virdee. 

Harry (or Hardeep) is suspended when we meet him, yet enlisted to help with a murder enquiry off the books to save his career. Harry has a lot going on in his life, his Muslim wife is expecting their first child and his marriage is a question of contention as Harry is a Sikh and mixed faith marriages are frowned upon in general especially in such a sub-contential bastion as Bradford is. The mixing of faith, religion and politics is one of the key storylines running in the book.

A A Dhand, the author of Streets of Darkness

The book is being pitched as a mix of the questionable hero like Luther and the hard nose naturalism of The Wire, and in Dhand's prose he does not hold back writing very graphic descriptions of drug use and violence seemingly paramount within the day in the life narrative. 

Mixing many tropes of the thriller genre - race against time, rivals from different backgrounds having to work together and put differences aside, are you on the right side of the law - Dhand writes with a crispness and pace that is good to see in a new British writer following in the footsteps of Lee Child, who many think of as a naturalised American.

Dhand writes with intelligence about religion and respect to his home town yet never wavering from his zest for character and narrative.  He has a keen eye for observational detail in characters be they periphery or central, and can inject little details such as when Harry sneezes when he enters a disused boxing gym due to the swirling of dust, a small detail that is sometimes overlooked in bigger thrillers on page and screen.

The film rights have already been optioned, and if they can find the right actor of Muslim hertiage then perhaps they can have a great series or film on their hands. My call to play Harry would be Arsher Ali, while he plays socially awkward characters or insecure souls, he has a bit of recognition in terms of his appearances in Line of Duty and The Missing, and if he can beef up a bit then he has the range to do Harry justice.

Arsher Ali is Harry Virdee

Streets of Darkness is both page turning and can leave you wincing at the bleakness of human nature, but in this day and age it is good to see a book that is entrenched in reality and not sugar coating such matters as inter-racial marriage, race hate crimes and political corruption.

Streets of Darkness is released by Bantam Press on 16th June for £12.99 in Hardback and £7.99 on Kindle

https://www.penguinrandomhouse.co.uk/publishers/transworld/