Another Space in Time

Well written, five star, speculative science fiction, that is great entertainment especially for those that like the zany end of the Sci-fi family of genres. I have a fundamental criticism, but I hope it doesn't put people off reading. This book has plenty of merit so that really wouldn't be justice. I have no idea whether the lack of descriptive writing of the finished work was due to the pen of Twiss or the scalpel of the editor. The book certainly has the harsh editing of tangential description that is so fashionable. We are repeatedly told that this thin-form style is necessary to overcome the short attention span of modern readers. It is certainly a love of 'fashionable' book critics. I feel that this was a book written twenty thousand words longer only to starved of anything more than was strictly necessary to keep the heart pumping fast through every chapter. Sadly, we had to get to the final pages of the book before we could really appreciate the 'for...

   Paw-Prints is a pretty solid standalone, but for all that I regret not reading Hollow Moon first. I would have preferred a full prologue, rather than the sometimes rather clunky slotting in of backstory when the author felt it necessary. However, when strong prologue is so frowned on by so many 'modern writing experts' its often avoidance is only to be expected. The problem is that gradual past history integration requires very a great deal of the writer, far more than the ability to tell a good story or write entertainingly. This is an excellent book, don't think for a minute that it isn't, but sometimes the simplest way of doing things is actually the best.    This is a book suited to a young teenage audience, and so equally to everyone who doesn't require more adult content. I very much enjoyed the book from well the wrong side of fifty. Good story telling is good story telling.    The book was published in 2013, yet partly through naive spac...

A read packed with energy and pace, like an action thriller film that puts plausibility in second place to high adrenaline entertainment. I had little sympathy for the main character, a hormonally overloaded scum bag who is a thug first and an investigator second. I don't think we are meant to have any. The book is exciting escapism that provides the thrills of the screen or video game while allowing the freedom of imagination allowed by the written word. Grammar fiends will be disturbed, as will those who expect a perfect line edit; but that said, this book does what it sets out to do in a very readable style. If the episodic nature of the violence and sex become predictable that is only because these activities are so true to the appropriately drawn set of characters. The script is definitely tongue-in-cheek, never even nodding to plausibility, and very amusing at times. The whole plot is outrageously ridiculous, which I'm sure is exactly as was intended. This is a good qui...

First off- this is a five star book that sits somewhere in the ground between murder mystery and paranormal genres. I don't think it quite manages the bridge, though I'm sure that plenty of readers will disagree. The book is clearly marketed as paranormal mystery, so it isn't like anyone should be surprised by the ground covered. However, the book starts a long way from paranormal, in a sort of commercial backstreet of hazy time passed town. Then suddenly, we are in a world of crazies, where the strongest characters are all walking dead or missing. My view is that Broadwell would have done better by plotting the book firmly on one side or the other of the murder mystery-paranormal trench. Perhaps my view is fatuous, based too much on taste, so enough of that. As to the quality and the style of the writing, they are both top-drawer, as they always are with Nikki Broadwell's books. This plot starts with a whimsical backwater charm, in which the 'witchcraft' is...

I don't often say this, but this is a novel has a plot with real originality, although that is obviously only based on my own mix of 'have read'. Yes, even with the millions of English language books pouring out of a million authors liberated from the stranglehold of the old literary mafia, I feel that Dahl has delivered some brand new plot details. She delivers a fresh feeling story backed by an interestingly individualistic and totally weird look at the psychology of survival and its darkest reflections. This is a well written first person narrative that manages to take science fiction video game scenarios on-board and make them momentarily believable. For me, Dahl actually manages the art of suspending plausibility. I was particularly drawn in by her alien environment, which was painted with such broad and yet convincing brush strokes. The last chapters perhaps lost its way a little as the main characters 'died' a little too often, but the hanging pu...

In many ways this is a classic Western. To this is often very masculine genre is added the touch of a female writer. We also have the post-modern twist of the female character that is more able than most men, but here the 'superbeing' augmentations of so much of this trend have been avoided. The central character is indeed a young woman who is more capable than most men, but this is all based on realistic physical abilities, learned skills traditionally considered 'masculine', and a huge amount of female intuition and guile. A believable heroine matched by an equally plausible and well thought out cast, set in an accurately drawn historical setting on the Oregon Trail of the early 19th Century, makes for a very good read. The book is a feel good story, High Chaparral sort of stuff, in which the good guys eventually win. All the characters are clearly labelled, reminding me of the 1940s/50s movies in which the good guys always had light coloured Stetson hats, an...

      I haven't read Thane, the first in the sure to at least be trilogy, so I can confidently report that King's Table works very well as a standalone. This is fantasy fare that exists in some timeless parallel space between the invention of advanced metallic crafts and the end of the tyranny of kings, in a sort of fantasy "middle-ages". I believe it is reasonable to put this book in a "Game of Thrones" category genre, if that makes any sense to those familiar with Bow's writing as everyone apart from me sees to be familiar with George Martin's. This book is definitely suitable to all those competent enough and or likely to read it, in other words without containing passages of Games of Thrones 'adult fantasy'.      Bow is a more than competent writer with the skills to see through an interesting and complex plot. The two more than often go unmatched. My only criticism is that some of the timelines between different threads of the story w...

        Here we have an interesting montage of short stories, which actually are 'just the ticket' to set the dreams rolling as one lays down one's head. Well, a couple of the stories may cause nightmares, but at least one won't be worrying about the unfilled tax return, or how about how to get to work and the kids to school. We are all different, so do bear in mind that horror does creep from the page to the dark.         I really enjoyed the way the words are put together as much as the stories themselves. Johnson writes very easy prose. The writing often has the grace and effortless flow of swans on water, with the sometimes surprising and unsettling flurries of that species. Swans have their warning hiss, and sudden explosions of power.      As the cover says, there is certainly mystery and fantasy in these stories, though perhaps suspense is rather over egging the content. These are short stories, some of which have strong...

     From page one we are drawn into the strange psychologically disturbed world of Jonathan, a man deeply in love with his wife. Despite this it appeared for a hanging period of time that he was even going to fail to say his marriage vows. Maria adores Jonathan. She has to as he is seems to be avoiding close moments. She has had her problems as well, being helped by the therapist who subsequently struggles to help Jonathan. Would you know it, the Doctor has her own bag of problems. A lot of ghost need exorcism and one character is possibly beyond all help in this present life.      This is a really well written psychological thriller with deeply drawn and convincing main characters. I read the book in a day, which for me a slow pedantic reader, is most unusual. This alone well demonstrates the books quality, shortish though it is. The overriding message in the book for me, not that Davis really tries to build one, is that the flaws we see demonstrated ...

This is a very engaging mix of short doggy stories from one of dogs' very best friends, David Gordon Burke. Most of these short stories lean towards the sad and tragic with some nice yappy endings. However, Burke's raison d'être is exactly that dogs are being mistreated, in Mexico in these cases, and we humans need to do a lot about it. The problem may be acute in Mexico though hopefully improving, but that is certainly not the case in all corners of the world. Burke makes very good use of newspaper reports between his conventional short stories, which greatly add to the ambient feel of seriousness behind his reflections. All the stories are based on general truths from real incidents, though some have been lightly fictionalised to make them more engaging and rounded. The stories are well written, though the version I read had a few very inconsequential typos. There is always danger in not mentioning this, as grammar fiends seem to so enjoy destroying great writing, like...

Okay- so you have your first ever completed fiction book. You are not alone, another thousand have been written today. So, how are you going to add enough to your great story to turn it into something that readers will think is great? A good idea is to sit down with the 'Elements of Active Prose' for an hour, before you start your first personal edit. Ten more private edits, then read again. You will hopefully find that you have absorbed at least a little from that hour of advice. Of course, you could read Newland's guide first. But most of us won't, I wouldn't, I was born knowing how to write. Few of you will be quite as arrogant as I tend to be, but I'm sure you get the picture. There isn't a wrong way to write, but there is often a better way. Do I follow all the rules? Not a chance. Will you? I don't know, that's not the point. The point is to learn to sit outside your work looking in, seeing where you could do things just slightly better...

These short stories are like snapshots in time, the way things were in passing, not stories that conclude, but rather flashes of action that are left to run on in our own imaginations. There is a good diversity of main characters each with their own stories, stories painted with good supporting casts. There is a partial end point to a couple of the stories that strongly determines direction, but basically the reader is left with a great deal of adventure. These glimpses into other's lives are set in French, English and Spanish speaking environments. I'm sure that they reflect by degrees not only Rogers observations and also his own experiences across the world. As with all collected works, some will interest any individual reader more than they will another. All though are enjoyable and encouraging of thought long after the book reading device has dropped into stand-by mode. This is a short book, quality rather than quantity, and well worth the little it costs. I only...

The title is very appropriate- a good place to start and a connection that is often missing. The future here isn't one I would be eager for, one in which a super species, computer intelligence, and manipulated humans/androids, seem to subvert the very laws of nature and even of physics. This is about progress defeating culture, science defeating religion, and I sense a final hopelessness for the rebel 'Orphanage' in a following book. The 'Mother against invention' may not get another outing, as the script does stand alone, but I expect one. The style is very much telling, reporting, by characters. There is no omnipresent voice. This is a difficult style to pull off. We read a series of reports from different characters, different angles and shifting time. I was happy with that, but felt I needed to be taking my own notes. I'm sure I missed some significant points, which is always easier to do when the story is driven by detail about events rather that events ...

I could have sworn that Miss Maple was back, in Scottish guise. Is it ever fair to compare, possibly not, but this is very Agatha Christie-esk for the modern century. 'One Two' is a great first in series, introducing some wonderful characters of senior years. Lamprey has a very easy read style and an ironic, subtle humour that says most by what it leaves out. The plot is complex enough with a couple of classic murders, lots of possible clues and badly attached leads, some more doggy than others. All the bits simply can't be quite put together until Edge gets a grip on the case. The older generation will enjoy this, if they can find their glasses, and the ageing youths and middle readers should enjoy noting that at least at the Grasshopper Lawns, 20 miles north of Edinburgh, old age doesn't necessarily mean the end of joie de vivre not to mention a bit of nitty-gritty. This is a relatively short read, one sitting for those that consume books at burning pace and only...

This is a beguiling and imaginative read, about an eccentric group of characters that remain individually believable even though in any combination they produce a potpourri with very weird odours and even whiffs of the macabre. Zany humour adds bounce to articulate flowing prose, making this book an easy yet rewarding read. I think of this as light literary fiction, with flourishes from, yes you guessed it, a potpourri of genres. Murder is the central focus, though the crime itself is really just a plot device to help us explore the psychology of the small town, rural, American characters. The book is so pacy and easily absorbed, painting such graphic pictures, that I found myself drawn to compare it with elements of zany type TV series like Northern Exposure, Desperate Housewives, without the omnipresent voice, or even some of the irreverence and immediacy of character penetration in Breaking Bad. The multiple POV first person writing works a treat here, letting one get a very ...

I enjoyed this adventure from the perspective of a superhero. The plot catapulted me into a sort of Batman, or Incredible Hulk type world, a normal landscape inhabited by an individual with Marvel Comic type superpowers. I appreciated the good and bad in his character, the do-gooder who comes to believe that some dark activity is justified by the intention to bring greater light. That is a behaviour that we all see in politics and business, as well as amongst those in pursuit of more personal goals. The cops that support the just bad to bring down to the evil, the wife that turns a blind-eye to her husband's dealings with narcotics because they provide the income to put food on her kids table, the person that robs rich Peter to pay poor Paul. But is it ever right to risk the killing of innocents to get at a greater evil? Arguably sometimes this can be so. This idea provides the binding theme of Elsner's plot. The book is written in a very easy read style that keeps the p...

This has elements from a mix of genres; including supernatural, spiritual, romance, sci-fi, and speculative fiction. Overall, it is well written and very entertaining. I particularly enjoyed reading this as a series of short-stories, being only disappointed with the lack of connect between the science fiction, the regressive themes, and the end of the book. The past lives are all exciting reads, though saddled with my common complaint that it is funny how more often than not past life memories are of infamous and famous events and times, rather than of ordinary lives. This makes for good entertainment, whilst reducing plot 'credibility'. A-Lo, if this is 'future biography', certainly gets the Halo. However, the bar to reaching redemption is set so high that I'm quite sure I'd be stuck in Limbo, or Clapham, or Mean Street forever. Perhaps like most superb destinations the already resident wish to stop 'Heaven' getting too crowded. Only special frie...

     Jennings has developed a good plot line into engaging entertainment of the modern Mills and Boon variety. The story centres on the relationship between a rich, career minded, single, businessman and a mother separated from a drug dealing father. The child goes missing in the aftermath of an earthquake. The relationship between the mother and the child runs rather superficially, as a background to the developing bond between the main character and the mother. A think that unless there had been very strong relationship difficulties between mother and child, which their apparently weren't, the loss would have impacted more forcefully on the adult relationship. Readers will draw their own conclusions. However, I'm sure I won't be the only one that sees this as strange. Having pointed up this one possible flaw, the story works well in all other respects.      Apart from some rather avant-garde verb structures the style of writing works well. These const...

Good historical thriller, which fitted in well to what I believe I know about 17th Century 'British Isles'. The plot had many stock historical themes from the Civil War and Protectorate periods. That isn't a criticism, as historical fiction without strong anchors in well studied events is very difficult to buy into. The book is well enough written, conveying all the hardships and customary behaviours associated with those torturous times without every straying far into harsh graphic detail. This creates a book for a very wide readership. We are given the colours and outlines, being left free to paint the stronger images for ourselves. That doesn't mean the story lacks bite, far from it. The characters are drawn with a depth of individual and understandable emotions and prejudices, especially in the light of the historic backdrop. As one living much of my life in one of the last country houses to hold to the King, in one of the strongest Royalist areas in the Civil War...

As the book starts we are already on the other side of a dystopian meltdown. The rebuild, worldwide will be painfully slow, but progress will be made. The story is set in one small area, the area that will be served by one new power station. Some of the wealthy, in their gated communities have come through a worldwide conflagration relatively unscathed, not so most of the population. There is a lot of excitement, heaps of intrigue, and a very clever interplay of characters in the plot. Sometimes the detail was actually too clever for me, to mathematically complex, but I breezed on to find, as I suspected, that the maths of who did what to whom and when didn't particularly matter. The story is in the series of results from the complex interplay of competing and variously empowered players. I don't hesitate in giving this book five stars, but the proof-reader needs eliminating and replacing before the next book, just as unceremoniously as are so many of Miller's characters...

My initial enjoyment was thrown a bit by some unnecessarily sloppy grammar, but don't let this put you off. The book develops into good quality thriller. However, the version I read does need one more edit. For some reason the standard of editing improved with a few strange reverses as the chapters rolled by. The plot is very exciting, though in places the unsavoury activities didn't actually need even the depth of description they got. Some of the descriptions of physical assault walk the line between suspense and horror. But yes, the script does depict the terrible realities that victims of perverted sexual crimes sometimes face. It is clear from early on in the story that Black has a good grasp of the technologies that drive the plot, and an interest in some of the wider debates driven by Edward Snowden et al., our general worries about cyber terrorism and financial exploitation by criminals inside and outside our governmental and financial institutions. At first, I thoug...