Found Wanting - how many times can someone be double-crossed?

In this thriller by Robert Goddard, our hero is Richard Eusden, a Foreign Office employee who is sucked into a dangerous game of cat and mouse when his ex-wife contacts him out of the blue. She is acting on behalf of their old friend, Marty. Richard's job? To bring an attache case belonging to Marty's grandfather to his friend in Europe. However, when Richard gets to the appointed destination, it's not Marty who meets him, but someone else, who has double-crossed his friend and has taken him hostage. Having handed over the case, Richard rescues Marty, who is determined to get the case back and spend his last few weeks (he is terminally ill), having the adventure of a lifetime. And so begins a chase across Europe, and a mystery involving the contents of the case which purport to contain evidence proving, once and for all, what the fate was of Anastasia Romanov. However, with so many people after that case, is there something else going on too? In Found Wanting, the author has put so many twists and turns and double dealings that it is, quite frankly, hard to keep track of who is who and what they want. I seemed to spend much of my time being as bewildered as poor Richard Eusden. The action quickly moves from country to country with the case changing hands on numerous occasions. I do like my action coming thick and fast, but even this a little on the frantic side for me.  I did get swept along, but I am still not 100% sure that I fully understood everything by the end of the book, which is a little disappointing. A definite page-turner and a pleasant way to while away a few hours. Not a cracker to end 2017 on, but not a complete duffer either!

My STAR rating: THREE.

Length: 478 print pages.
Price I paid: £0.50.
Formats available: print, audio cassette, ebook.

The Christmasaurus - enjoyable twist to a Christmas story

If you are looking for an unusual but ultimately heart-warming Christmas story, then look no further. The Christmasaurus, by Tom Fletcher might be pitched at children aged between 7 and 12, but I believe it is for anyone who is young at heart, and who likes to read with a smile on their face. It is the story of William Trundle, a young boy who is happy with life until new girl, Brenda, appears at school and he becomes the target for her own special form of bullying. William lives with his Christmas-mad father, his mother having died many years ago. William, on the other hand, is obsessed with dinosaurs. When William writes to Santa this year, he just asks for one thing, a dinosaur. Unbeknownst to William, an egg, frozen for thousands of years, has miraculously hatched at the North Pole, and guess what, the occupant is a dinosaur - a unique dinosaur that Santa calls The Christmasaurus. All he wants to do is fly like the reindeer and pull Santa's sleigh. Needless to say, on Christmas Eve, William and the Christmasaurus meet and William thinks all his dreams have come true. However, lurking in the shadows is The Hunter, a man who wants to hunt and kill the rarest creatures on the planet. His plan is to take down one of the magical flying reindeer, but when he sees the Christmasaurus, his plan changes. This story is very funny and full of action. There are some great scenes filled with peril, as well as some surprises along the way. There is so much to love about this book, with excellent characters, sparky dialogue and a sprinkling of Christmas magic that never sinks into the saccharine. My only criticism was the device used for how the elves at the North Pole communicate - singing in rhyme. Initially this was funny, but it got a bit wearing after a while and I found it interrupted the flow of the action - particularly in the audio edition I read, narrated by Paul Shelley. That aside, this if a definite crowd pleaser, and if you like Roald Dahl, then I would recommend you give this book a try.

My STAR rating: FOUR stars.

Length: 400 print pages.
Price I paid: £0.99 (Christmas offer from Audible)
Formats available: print, unabridged audio download, unabridged audio CD, ebook.

Kolymsky Heights - complex spy thriller

Kolymsky Heights by Lionel Davidson is a spy/thriller novel set, for the most part, in a cold and forbidding Siberia. However, this is no run of the mill spy/thriller. It is extremely detailed and complex and boy oh boy, do you need to concentrate! The action starts in the UK, when a university lecturer receives a coded message from a scientist he met many years ago. But the message isn't for him, it's for a third academic, Johnny Porter. Once he is located and persuaded to take on the mission - break into a secret underground scientific base in Siberia to meet the sender of the message - the action really gets going. Porter is descended from Canadian Inuits and is an exceptional linguist. Because of this and his physical appearance, he can pass for his ethnically similar counterparts in Siberia, making him the ideal man for the job. After a tricky entry into the country, he hides in plain sight among the locals until he can find a way to reach the base, extract the secret the scientist is so desperate to share with the world, and make his escape. There follows an epic chase to the border, and I mean epic. A very enjoyable, thrill-packed read, with so much going on that it is almost dizzying at times. The author has thrown everything at this novel, and you certainly have to suspend your disbelief more than once, as the scrapes Porter gets into and then manages to extract himself from are, at times, bonkers. Not even James Bond is that good! A lot is expected of the reader, with long and detailed passages about some of the socio-political background as well as the science involved in "the secret". But if you let yourself go, sit back and enjoy the ride, then you will have a thoroughly good time. It didn't quite get full marks from me, due to some overlong segments and, as I fear is the case with almost all spy/thrillers, the predictable nature of the female characters - all of whom, of course, found Porter totally irresistible! However, I can definitely recommend the audio edition, narrated with gusto by Peter Noble, which was gifted to me by my lovely brother-in-law.

My STAR rating: FOUR.

Length: 496 print pages.
Price I paid: FREE (a present).
Formats available: print, unabridged audio download, abridged audio cassette, ebook.

Stardust - Magic!

When Neil Gaiman is on song (and when isn't he?), he is a joy to read. And so it proves with Stardust, a fairy tale for the more grown up amongst us. Not much happens in the small town of Wall, except, that is, for every nine years, when the Faerie Market takes place in the meadow on the other side of "The Wall". It's the only time when humans mix with the Faerie Kingdom that they live next door to, but totally separate from, thanks to, yes, you've guessed it ... The Wall! During one such market, Dunstan Thorn meets the alluring Una, and one thing leads to another! Nine months later, a baby boy is left at the gap in The Wall and Dunstan raises the child - Tristran. Unaware of his mixed heritage, when Tristran is 18, he falls for Victoria Forester. One night, they see a shooting star fall into the Faerie Kingdom, and in an effort to win at least a kiss, and hopefully her hand in marriage, he vows to retrieve it for her. And so begins Tristran's adventure as he leaves everything behind in search of the star. When he finally discovers it however, it turns out to be a beautiful young woman named Yvaine, and she is not happy! Tristran may be put out by her attitude, but persists with his quest, which inevitably, leads them into all sorts of scrapes. However, there are others who want to find the star too, including the Lillim - ancient witches who know that if they can secure the heart of the star, it will restore their youth - and nothing and nobody is going to stand in their way! This book has a great mix of good and evil, as you would expect in a fairy tale. There are some deliciously evil baddies, some incredibly inept baddies and a fine array of goodies, but none of them are sickly sweet. As you would expect in any book by this author, there is plenty of humour, especially if you like it on the dark side. There is real heart too (no pun intended), with the relationship between Tristran and Yvaine developing in an interesting, but ultimately satisfying way. The characters are plentiful, and each have a part to play - although not all of them were as well drawn as I would have preferred. This isn't a long book and while it raced along, I sometimes felt that some sections raced along just a little bit too speedily. But I am probably being a bit too picky here ... it's just that I was enjoying the story so much that I wanted it to last a little longer! I've just downloaded another of his books, in audio format this time, and am already looking forward to delving into it, especially as it is being read by the author himself.

My STAR rating: 4 STARS.

Length: 224 print pages.
Price I paid: FREE OFFER.
Formats available: print, unabridged audio download, unabridged audio CD, ebook.

The Blade Itself - Superb!

Why do I do this to myself ... I spot a book on offer and think, oooo, that sounds good, and then I read it and IT IS GOOD ... but it's the start of a series! So why is that a problem? Well, I am already in the middle of lots of book series, and I don't know when I'm ever going to get them all finished! As you can already tell by now, The Blade Itself: Book One Of The First Law by Joe Abercrombie, is one such book. And what a book! The action is full on from the start and I was hooked from the very first sequence which featured Logen Ninefingers fighting for his life. He is an infamous warrior from the North, who is in a blood feud with Bethod, the new King of the Northmen. Trying to flee from this feud and make a new life, he comes across an sickly man, and ends up taking him back to his home. It turns out that this man is an apprentice to Bayaz, the First of the Magi, who persuades Logen to accompany him to Adua in the Union Kingdom ... even though it's hard to believe that Bayaz is anything but a balding, fat fraud in the vein of the Great Oz! Meanwhile, Inquisitor Glokta, a former fencing champion and hero of the last war, but who, following his capture and subsequent torture during that war, now spends his days in endless pain, which only seems to be eased when he is meting out torture to the enemies of the Union! Also in the mix is Captain Jezal dan Luthar, a shallow, self-obsessed nobleman who has been chosen to take part in the upcoming fencing competition, but who would much rather play cards with his friends and live a life of ease. We spend much of the novel really getting to know these apparently disparate people as their stories slowly but surely start to converge against the backdrop of an impending war. There is so much to love about this book - the excellent characters who are all so well drawn, the action sequences so lovingly yet brutally told and the underlying threat from the Northmen that builds throughout the pages. The dialogue is spiky and believable and Inquisitor Glokta brings a darkly acerbic wit to the piece that even though he is not exactly Mr Nice Guy, you can't wait for him to reappear (think Alan Rickman's Sheriff of Nottingham). There are a couple of strong female characters in this novel, and I am hoping that they get more space in the next book. An excellent set up to the trilogy that I will most definitely be seeking out. I read the audio edition, narrated by the wonderful Steven Pacey.

My STAR rating: FIVE.

Length: 544 print pages.
Price I paid: £5.99
Formats available: print, unabridged audio download, unabridged audio CD, ebook.

Tales of Nibiru: Volume One Z.I.R.M. - The Zombie Revolution starts here!

In the strange world of Nibiru, one young vampire - Rhaul - becomes increasingly disturbed by the treatment being meted out on anyone who isn't one of his kind. His parents had fought for the rights of all beings, but since their untimely "permanent" deaths, these rights have slowly, but surely, been eroded by their new leader, his uncle Derek. Rhaul would do almost anything to stop his world slipping back into the dark days of the past where his best friends, a feisty Werewolf and stoical Zombie (name of Timothy!) would end up as second class citizens, and vampires would get to indulge their bloodlust to their cold unbeating heart's content! He takes a stand against his own kind and joins forces with Z.I.R.M. (Zombie International Rights Movement), resulting in the most unlikely battle where body parts are not only lost, but end up being used as weapons! Tales of Nibiru: Volume One Z.I.R.M., by B.B. Taylor romps along at great speed and features some memorable characters - especially Viola, the fabulously blood thirsty librarian (note to self, never take a book back late to her library!). Full of surreal images and big dollops of humour, this short book is aimed at younger readers who like it a little dark and are fed up of sparkly rainbows. It will take you to a strange world where your sympathies will definitely lie with the Zombies - and there aren't many of those! By no means a perfect book - the kindle edition does have some typos and not all the sections flow smoothly - however, I think that this has potential, and may just be the beginning of a bonkers new world that may come to inhabit the fantasy literature shelves in future years.

My STAR rating: THREE.

Length: 60 print pages.
Price I paid: FREE.
Formats available: print, ebook.