Friday Face Off : any scary cover you like?
25 October 2019
Filed under Book Reviews
Tags: A favourite scary cover, Friday Face off
Here we are again with the Friday Face Off meme created by Books by Proxy . This is a great opportunity to feature some of your favourite book covers. The rules are fairly simple each week, following a predetermined theme (list below) choose a book, compare a couple of the different covers available for that particular book and choose your favourite. Future week’s themes are listed below – I’ll be updating the list next week to include themes for 20202, if you have a cover in mind that you’re really wanting to share then feel free to leave a comment about a future suggested theme. I’ve also listed events that take place during the year, that I’m aware of, so you can link up your covers – if you’re aware of any events that you think I should include then give me a shout. This week’s theme is:
For Halloween – pick any scary cover you like
Hopefully this week is easier than last week? I can’t wait to see what you’ve all come up with. This week I’ve gone for a whole mishmash of covers – I couldn’t choose one so I picked a few – see which one grabs you:
So difficult to pick a favourite but I do love the cover for I am Legend:
Which is your favourite?
I’ve updated the list and included themes through to the end of 2019 – I’ve also included events that I’m aware of so that you can perhaps link your themes up where possible (if you know of an event you’d like to share that let me know in the comments). I also have a list prepared for 2020 and so will set up a separate page soon for forthcoming themes. As always, if you wish to submit an idea then leave me a comment.
Next week – A cover that is predominantly grey
Future themes: (if you’re struggling with any of these themes then use a ‘freebie’ or one of your favourite covers)
2019
(I’m hoping that November will once again bring to us SciFiMonth – Twitter @SciFiMonth)
1st November – A cover that is predominantly grey
8th November – “big badda boom” – a cover that features an explosion
15th November – “No thinking thing should be another thing’s property, to be turned on and off when it is convenient.” – a cover featuring a robot
22nd November – A cover that is Futuristic
29th November – “When a day that you happen to know is Wednesday starts off by sounding like Sunday, there is something seriously wrong somewhere.” – a cover that is 60s sci fi
6th December – Now is the winter of our discontent, Made glorious summer by this sun of York” – a cover that puts you in mind of winter
13th December – A cover that features a temple/or religious icon
20th December – Longest Night – a dark and foreboding cover
27th December – the festive season – a cover that is glittery or sparkling
(2020 – January is Vintage SciFi month so I’ll be including possible themes to take that on board.
Interview, Cody T Luff, author of Ration
Today I’m really pleased to be posting an interview with Cody T Luff whose book Ration I read a few weeks ago and has stayed with me ever since. Definitely a thought provoking book and one that doesn’t pull any punches but absolutely compelling – it drove me to read into the early hours of the morning. My review is here and if you like dark dystopian stories that make are absolutely gripping then you really should give this book a try. Seriously.
Hi Cody, thanks so much for agreeing to an interview. Firstly, I’d like to welcome you to my blog and secondly apologise for the lateness in posting this interview. (People did I mention all my latest calamities? Yes?? Okay, so I’ll move on then…)
For the readers out there how would you describe Ration in one or two quick sentences?
Ration is a story about deprivation, it’s a story about survival and how we make desperate and difficult choices at the edge of our mortality. Ration is also about love, a kind of love that grows in dark circumstance.
This is a very dark world where the veneer of civility has worn thin. What was your inspiration for this world?
Ration’s world is inspired by our own change in the social landscape in the last few years. I am a community college instructor and my classes are always populated by amazing students, and yet every day my students are faced with such things as food insecurity, destructive challenges to their identities, and the need to make impossible choices for their families and for themselves. Ration may be set in a dystopian world, but its roots are firmly lodged in reality.
You’ve eliminated men from your novel. Would you say this simplified things or gave you problems?
This is a great question. In many ways, it simplified Ration, but in just as many, it complicated how the world was constructed. The choice to eliminate men from the world was an early one. I wanted a chance for my characters to have specific and individual voices, while touching on the horrors that women face all over the globe. Horror has a strong precedent for powerful female characters. I wanted very much for Ration to push that precedent even further.
I love your style of writing, it almost belies the horror contained within. How long have you been writing for and what has that journey been like for you? Has your style changed noticeably, do you still love your earlier work?
I’ve been telling stories for the majority of my life. Sometimes I’ve told those stories in front of a camera or on the stage of a theater. I started writing as a boy, but did not find my voice as a writer until my early twenties. It is a strange thing to examine one’s own style, especially asking really tough questions such as how does that style influence the story, and for the most part I don’t have an answer, at least not yet. My earlier writing was far more internal, the characters struggling with their own inner demons. As my writing has changed, I have tried to find a balance between what is inside and outside of the character. I think this is because as I mature as a writer and as a gray-bearded human, I’ve discovered that often what is felt inside changes the perspective of what is outside. I still like my earlier work, but it does feel like it was written by another person, and I hope that I have enough time to see all the people that I can be on the page over the years.
The characters are so well written and jump off the page straight into the mind’s eye. Do you have a favourite character from the central four??
While I don’t have a favorite character, I’ve done my best to match the girls and their desires with the Women in the book. Each character has a psychological counterpoint in another character, and each character is reflected in the actions of another character. I wanted these people to be human, truly human, so even the barbarous Ms. Glennoc has something inside her that maybe all of us can recognize in ourselves.
Is this a world that you would consider returning to, even if not to this particular time and place?
Yes, this is a world that continues to haunt me, and I have found that even as I am working on newer projects, the world of Ration has drawn me back in. Writing these characters was fascinating simply because they would not do what I asked them to do. They demanded I tell their stories in a very specific way, and by the time I had finished, the characters seemed to have more to say.
Finally, could you fill in the gap ‘if you love ‘x” you’ll love Ration’. I know authors steer clear of comparisons for good reason but I feel it’s a good way of recommending the book to others. Feel free to ignore this question though if it makes you feel uncomfortable :D.
If you love Cormac McCarthy’s The Road, you’ll love Ration. Although, several readers have pointed out to me a few disturbing comparisons to Annie, which makes for a fun comp, but does give me the willies.
Thanks again Cody 😀
I love Cody’s answers and can’t wait to see what he comes up with next, I’m certainly excited to learn from the above that the possibility of a return to this world may be on the cards. I’ll now have to stalk his social media places to see what he’s writing next because if Ration is any indication it’s going to be something I desperately want/need to read.
And… a bit more information about Cody:
Website : https://codytluff.com/
Can’t Wait Wednesday : Smoke Bitten (Mercy Thompson #12) by Patricia Briggs
23 October 2019
Filed under Book Reviews
Tags: Can't wait Wednesday, Mercy Thompson #12, Patricia Briggs, Smoke Bitten, Wishful Endings
“Waiting On Wednesday” is a weekly meme that was originally created by Breaking the Spine. Unfortunately Breaking the Spine are no longer hosting so I’m now linking my posts up to Wishful Endings Can’t Wait Wednesday. Don’t forget to stop over, link up and check out what books everyone else is waiting for. If you want to take part, basically, every Wednesday, we highlight a book that we’re really looking forward to. This week my book is : Smoke Bitten (Mercy Thompson #12) by Patricia Briggs. I’ve finally caught up with this series and so I’ll be anxiously awaiting the next instalment.
Mercy Thompson, car mechanic and shapeshifter, faces a threat unlike any other in this thrilling entry in the #1 New York Times bestselling series.
I am Mercedes Athena Thompson Hauptman.
My only “superpowers” are that I turn into a thirty-five pound coyote and fix Volkswagens. But I have friends in odd places and a pack of werewolves at my back. It looks like I’m going to need them.
Centuries ago, the fae dwelt in Underhill–until she locked her doors against them. They left behind their great castles and troves of magical artifacts. They abandoned their prisoners and their pets. Without the fae to mind them, those creatures who remained behind roamed freely through Underhill wreaking havoc. Only the deadliest survived.
Now one of those prisoners has escaped. It can look like anyone, any creature it chooses. But if it bites you, it controls you. It lives for chaos and destruction. It can make you do anything–even kill the person you love the most. Now it is here, in the Tri-Cities. In my territory.
It won’t, can’t, remain.
Not if I have anything to say about it.
Expected publication March 2020
The Ordshaw Vignettes by Phil Williams
22 October 2019
Filed under Book Reviews
Tags: Blue Angel, Phil Williams, The Ordshaw Vignettes, The Violent Fae, Under Ordshaw
Today I’m so happy to be taking part in a blog tour for the third book in Phil Williams urban fantasy series that got off to a great start with Under Ordshaw. (My review of which can be found here.)
To celebrate the release of The Violent Fae, the closing chapter of the Ordshaw series’ The Sunken City Trilogy, Phil is sharing twelve short stories from the city of Ordshaw. The Ordshaw Vignettes are tiny insights into life in the UK’s worst-behaved city, each presenting a self-contained mystery.
You can read today’s story below. For the full collection, visit the other wonderful blogs taking part in the tour (see the banner above). I’ve provided the details for the other books in the series below plus a link to Phil’s author page but for now let’s get to the fun part – the story:
*
The Banker
Fighting the urge to run the light, Freddie Procter hit the brakes with a curse. West Farling, 2am on a Tuesday, there was no one around. The light had no business changing. And he’d been on the road too long already. He swallowed, reassuring himself it’d been worth it. The Chinese were a cinch for PickLathe Finance. Those rosy-cheeked tykes were drowning in giggles after five pints, delighted by Procter’s ability to hold alcohol, oblivious to the loan terms they’d agreed to.
That, my friends, was how you made millions.
Now if the light would kindly change, he could celebrate with another Macallan back home. But something metal clicked behind his ear. A sound familiar from films: a cocking gun.
“Don’t move,” a voice said. “Not one inch.” Procter flashed a look at the rear-view mirror, and the voice got rougher, “Eyes ahead, prick.”
Procter stuttered, “Look – look here – I don’t – don’t know –”
“Cram it!” the man snarled. “Wanna die here?” There had been nothing in the mirror. And the voice was strangely distant. How could someone possibly be – “I’ll put a hole in your brain, you don’t do exactly as I say.”
This couldn’t be happening. He couldn’t speak, and Procter talked huge deals all day – won over the hardest bastards –
“Phone, wallet, gaudy rings, all on the passenger seat. Longer you take, deeper it’ll hurt.”
His rattled body took over. Nodding as he emptied his pockets, Procter painfully wrenched the rings off.
“Now leave the keys and get the fuck out. Walk away, don’t look back. I see your eyes, there’s a bullet in them. Understand?”
Procter hadn’t stopped nodding. He grappled the door handle and tried to stand, trapped by the belt. With a high-pitched “Ah!”, he clawed at the release and fell onto the road. He skittered up, mouth moving voicelessly, mind raging: he could negotiate, why wasn’t he talking the lunatic down? But he was moving away fast. Half a block away.
The car revved loudly and he turned back.
The shining BMW crossed the intersection with the door still open, yellow interior light floating through the dark. There was no one inside. It jolted out of view, then came a loud bang of impact. Twisting metal screeched short pain as the engine coughed a death stroke.
Procter was running back – thoughts catching up. The idiot had crashed his car – amateur – he was not fleeing. He raced into the crossroad. The car’s bonnet was folded around a bent, sparking lamppost. The lights blinked on and off. It was empty. Thirty grand of machinery destroyed, no one to account for it.
What in hell? There was no one nearby – just the driver’s door open – but he saw on the passenger seat, his things were gone. All that remained was a drunk’s ruined ride and him standing confused. A click in his ear and an angry voice. A gun he never saw. Who would believe it?
To hell with this – Procter turned and ran again. He’d report the car stolen from home – to hell with this, and to hell with the faint peal of laughter somewhere in the sky. Ignore it and go – ignore that flurry of batwings passing a rooftop – he was imagining things, scaring himself, had to get the hell away. He was bloody drunk. Imagining, even that tiny, joking voice up high. “Told you you couldn’t damn drive.”
*
Ahh, don’t you just love the fae – probably not if they stole your valuables and crashed your car I suppose. Although Freddie doesn’t exactly come across in the best light does he?!
I love this story and I think it gives a great feel for the style not to mention it’s a perfect little taste of what you can expect from the series. I can’t wait to read the other stories being shared as part of the tour. The next instalment is ‘The Troubled Child’ – colour me intrigued – and will be shared by Space and Sorcery tomorrow.
And, because I love covers, and because the covers for this series are so good, here is the complete set for you to feast your eyes upon:
Plus a lovely novella to add to the collection:
About Ordshaw and The Violent Fae
The Ordshaw series are urban fantasy thrillers set in a modern UK city with more than a few terrible secrets. The Violent Fae completes a story that began with Under Ordshaw and its sequel Blue Angel – following poker player Pax Kuranes’ journey into the Ordshaw underworld. Over the space of one week, Pax unravels mysteries that warp reality and threaten the entire city.
The Violent Fae will be available from Amazon on Kindle and in paperback from November 5th 2019.
If these vignettes are your first foray in Ordshaw, I’m pleased to share with you that Under Ordshaw is on offer on Kindle in the US and UK between 28th October – 1st November and for ease I’ve listed the links to Goodreads and Amazon below.
Under Ordshaw Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/40092074-under-ordshaw
Under Ordshaw UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B07CXYSZVN
Under Ordshaw US: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07CXYSZVN
Blue Angel Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/43232280-blue-angel
Blue Angel UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B07L33XJZ7
Blue Angel US: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07L33XJZ7
The Violent Fae Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/48246084-the-violent-fae
The Violent Fae UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B07Y7CRV1L
The Violent Fae US: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07Y7CRV1L/
Finally – more information about the author can be found here.
Happy reading everyone.
#SPFBO5 My fourth batch of books
October is the fourth month of the Self Published Fantasy Blog Off. As with last year I have divided my 30 books into five batches of six books (selected using a random sequence generator). Each month I will highlight that month’s selection at the start of the month, providing details about the books and the authors. As the month progresses I hope to have a clear favourite out of each batch – although things don’t always go to plan of course – I will provide mini reviews for each book and hopefully a full review for each book that I read fully or choose to be a semi finalist. The aim being to then choose a finalist from those semi finalists.
Obviously, this month I’m late posting about my fourth batch of books, for which apologies, a couple of weeks without wifi has not helped in this respect. But, I have been reading and and I’m hoping to post my feedback very soon.
I’d like to wish everyone the best of luck and I hope you all enjoy the competition.
Without further ado here are my six books for October:
The Blade Within by Jackson Lear
Someone kidnapped the wrong girl.
Twelve hours ago Raike didn’t even know she existed. Nor would he have cared. That was until the only clue to her kidnapping lay in a cryptic note foretelling her death – a note Raike has seen once before. Now he’s prepared to lose everything to get her back.
Standing in his way is an alliance of two mercenary companies, a city watch who cares more about stopping Raike than finding the missing girl, and an imperial general who had little to fear – until Raike came along.
A gripping fantasy thriller that will keep your heart racing until the very end.
Orphans of the Dead by Phil Dickens
EIGHTEEN YEARS AFTER THE END OF THE WORLD, LIFE GOES ON.
Charlotte and Joe Dáithín are dhampirs: half-human, half-vampire. But beyond their unique heritage, and the fact that their parents saved the human race from extinction, they have little in common.
Charlotte is in training to take over from her mother as the Sentinel, a powerful and self-assured warrior. Comfortable with her destiny, and madly in love with her girlfriend Emily, there’s little else she wants from life.
Joe still has a lot of growing up to do. His life revolves around finding ways to get drunk or stoned with his friends, and duty and battle are the last things on his mind.
But between a powerful demon with an unknown agenda, and a drug that provokes a powerful blood lust, both siblings are about to have their lives turned upside down.
A desperate princess, a magical traveler, and a watch that binds them together with the fate of a dying world.
Vi Solaris is the heir to an Empire she’s barely seen. Her parents sacrificed a life with her to quell a rebellion and secure peace with a political alliance. Now, three years past when her wardship should’ve ended, Vi will do anything to be reunited with her family.
The Empire is faltering beneath the burden of political infighting and a deadly plague. Yet, Vi can’t help but wonder if her inability to control her magic is the true reason her parents haven’t brought her home. Suspicion becomes reality when she unleashes powers she’s not supposed to have.
Powers that might well cost her the throne.
As Vi fights to get her magic under control, a mysterious stranger appears from across the world. He holds the keys to unlocking her full potential, but the knowledge has an unspeakable price — some truths, once seen, cannot be ignored.
All eyes are on her and Vi must make the hardest choice of her life: Play by the rules and claim her throne. Or, break them and save the world.
Daughter of Fate by Aaron Hodges
When Knights attack the temple of Skystead, seventeen-year-old Pela is the only one to escape. Her mother and the other villagers are taken, accused of worshiping the False Gods. They will pay the ultimate price – unless Pela can rescue them.
Pela has never left the safety of her town, let alone touched a sword. What chance does she have against the ruthless Knights of Alana? She’s not a hero.
But she knows one.
Her uncle Devon was a mighty warrior once, in times when magic filled the world. Age has withered his strength and he retired long ago, but maybe he will answer the call of family.
Can Pela convince him to stand against the darkness one last time?
River of Thieves by Clayton Snyder
We were the worst kind of people. For the best reasons.
After a robbery gone horribly wrong, cursed thief Cord broadens his horizons and plans to execute the heist of a lifetime. With fellow thief and knife connoisseur Nenn in tow, the two build their ragtag crew to target the heart of the kingdom – Midian, the seat of tyrant King Anaxos Mane. As treachery, horrifying creatures of nightmare, and opposition bar their path at every turn, the gang must depend on skill – intellectual, martial, and magical – to deliver them an endless summer and keep them free from the clutches of evil despotism. If they don’t sh*t the bed first.
The Gates of Golorath by R MGarino
At the edge of the world stands a gate to another realm. The fallen angels, the Lethen’al, sealed it when they fled the Apostate. It has lain dormant, forgotten for seven thousand years. But the Lethen’al have not been idle in their absence. They have mastered the arts of magic and of war, in preparation for their enemy’s return.
Arielle is descended from the founder of the Areth’kon, the martial school. She dreams of becoming a Mala’kar, a Bladeless Master, like her parents before her. But she lived in the shadow of other’s expectations for so long, followed the path they set for her without question, and forgotten her own desires. To reclaim who she is, she leaves her former life and lover behind to start anew at the Gates. But her past claims a stake in her future, and refuses to let her go.
Angus is driven by a secret; a failure he is ashamed of. To rectify his disgrace, he is determined to learn the ways of the sword. Forsaking the teachings of the Magi, he arrived at the Gates to train with his father’s people. Raised on the heroic tales of the Blademasters, he strives to live by their example. But the Blademasters here are nothing like the stories.
When their squads arrive at the Gates for their final year of military training, Angus and Arielle are drawn together. The truth of who they are has the power to reshape the history and purpose of their people, but it is guarded by royal decree.
Will they be able to handle the truth of who they are? Can the world? Can they contain the magnificent powers they wield or will they destroy everyone in their way?
All the while, a new enemy stirs in the shadows.
Books and travelling with Lynn 