No Sleep till Doomsday (Dru Jasper #3) by Laurence MacNaughton Review + Giveaway
9 October 2018
Filed under Book Reviews
Tags: Dru Jasper #3, Giveaway, Laurence MacNaughton, No Sleep Till Doomsday
Today I’m reviewing the third (and possibly the final) instalment in Laurence MacNaughton’s Dru Jasper series plus I’m very pleased to offer a giveaway – so check out the information at the bottom of the post if you want to chuck your hat into the ring – because who doesn’t want to win free books (especially when they’re this good)??
This is a series that I’ve thoroughly enjoyed. It’s a popcorn read for sure but if you’re in the mood for a blast of fun with a bunch of crazy characters racing around trying to save the world then this is going to be just the ticket. Grab yourself a seat and some snacks and settle in to the Dru Jasper series. My reviews for book 1 and 2 are here and here, All of the stories so far have been self contained and in that respect I think can be read as standalones and please be aware of potential spoilers before reading the following.
I must say that No Sleep wasted no time whatsoever in racing into the plot. There was no build up here but an all out dash from the starting gate as the most recent threat to the world began it’s countdown. As the story starts Dru’s crystal shop is broken into and an ancient artifact stolen by somebody who seems to be a crystal sorceress – which is very surprising as it appeared up to this point that Dru was the only one. This sorceress is incredibly powerful though. At the same time Rane and Salem are attacked by a huge bat and Salem loses his defensive amulet in the melee that ensues. A number of other coincidences feed into the story and sightings of other unnaturally large beasts on a similar scale to the bat. Something is about to go wrong and Dru and her crew seem to be outnumbered and outmanoeuvred. Still, what they lack in strength and magical ability they more than make up for with their cheery disregard for personal safety and grim determination against the odds. The gang need to find the Apocalypse Scroll but in order to do so they need first to find a way to all get along and work together. Not easy when one of the gang is possessed.
What I love about this series is the characters. Every book has added extra layers and made me fall a little more for them – all of them to be honest. Dru. She comes across as a bit dippy, a tad insecure maybe but she is actually deceptively strong willed and incredibly loyal. Her own abilities have increased considerably and with them her confidence has grown. Greyson on the other hand seems to be suffering something of a confidence crisis. Sure, he’s definitely the eye candy of the piece and Dru becomes a babbling mess whenever she’s in his presence, but, his power is a result of the demon that possesses him. If the demon goes he’ll return to being a regular guy won’t he? Don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying that Greyson loves the whole demon, red eyed, easy to flare up into a temper possession but, it does make him different, and powerful. And it comes with a beast of a car – Hellbringer. I love this car. It’s truly developed a moody and almost dog like persona as it stalks the streets protectively with it’s engine growling. Then we have Salem and Rane and their fiery on/off relationship. Salem I guess is the character that you’re not supposed to really like. He tries particularly hard to remain aloof and contemptuous of the others, although to get back to the dog analogy his bark seems to be worse than his bite in that respect. He really doesn’t trust Greyson and thinks it’s only a matter of time before the demon takes control. The only person he has any affection for his Rane. Rane and Opal, Dru’s stalwart friends – both so very different and yet such good friends. I love these two. Rane’s ability to change into any number of different materials or metals just fascinates me – as does all the mention of the crystals and what they are used for and Opal brings a certain stylish attitude to the cast.
So, you see what the author did. He went and created a bunch of characters that have only gone and worked their magic on me and it makes me happy. A series I would definitely have no hesitation in recommending.
I realise I’ve not said much about the plot or world here. Well, the world here is a modern one so easy to envision and the plot – well, I think I could be forgiven for saying that the plot is another ‘stop the evil person and save the world’ storyline which is much the same as the first two books. However, don’t be put off by that it’s not a criticism. There’s plenty of creativity, crystals, muscle cars, and death defying rescues not to mention giant bats and other creepy critters. the relationship between Dru and Greyson is becoming much more concrete and the strong bonds of friendship are further strengthened.
For me, this is urban fantasy the way I love it. The series has gone from strength to strength and I’ve formed strong attachments to the characters. On top of this there is just plenty of fun. It all feels a little tongue in cheek, it’s definitely not taking itself too seriously and it gives me a sort of Scooby Doo/Wacky Races vibe but in written format and for grown ups. The only thing missing here is somebody shaking their fist and saying “darned pesky kids”.
I’m not sure if this is the end of the series or not. The story is, as with the previous books, self contained, but I think there is scope for more yet to come. I’ll keep my fingers crossed in that respect.
I received a copy through Edelweiss courtesy of the publisher, for which my thanks. The above is my own opinion.
GIVEAWAY
The lovely people at Pyr have generously provided two copies of No Sleep Till Doomsday for a giveaway. This is international, you don’t need to follow me or any such. Just leave me a comment below if you would wish to be entered into the competition or leave me your twitter handle and I can let you know when the winners are announced, or leave me your email. The competition is open for one week.
Don’t be shy and don’t forget you have to be in it to win it!
For more information the Goodread’s page is here.
Good luck everyone.
‘The bigger they are the harder they fall’
Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme where every Tuesday we look at a particular topic for discussion and use various (or more to the point ten) bookish examples to demonstrate that particular topic. Top Ten Tuesday (created and hosted by The Broke and Bookish) is now being hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl and future week’s topics can be found here. This week’s topic is:
Longest Books I’ve Ever Read
The page counts are approximate so don’t hold me to them! And, I think these are possibly the longest books I’ve read although It’s equally possible that I’ve forgotten one or two here and there. I suspect that we may all share a few books this week:
- JRR Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings 1200 pages (Not sure if this one really counts because technically speaking this is three books. But, I read it as a whole so I’m going for it.
- Way of Kings by Brandon Sanderson just over 1000 pages
- A Song of Ice and Fire by GRR Martin just over 800 pages
- Gone with the Wind by Margaret Mitchell over 1000 pages
- The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexander Duman1276 pages
- Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell by Susanna Clarke 1006
- The History of Tom Jones by Henry Fielding over 900 pages
- Kushiel’s Dart by Jacqueline Carey over 1000 pages
- The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova 700 pages
- American Gods by Neil Gaiman over 600 pages
Trail of Lightning (The Sixth World #1) by Rebecca Roanhorse
8 October 2018
Filed under Book Reviews
Tags: Rebecca Roanhorse, The Sixth World #1, Trail of Lightning
The short and sweet version of this review is that I really loved Trail of Lightning and I can’t wait to read more of Maggie Hoskie’s adventures in this post apocalyptic world. For a debut novel this is most impressive, gradual and layered world building, great pacing and characters that really do jump off the page. For me, Roanhorse manages to introduce myths and legends in a way that breathes heart and soul into this world and not only that she makes you like the characters. There may be gushing.
Maggie Hoskie is a Dinétah monster hunter. As the story opens she is enlisted to help find a young girl who has gone missing. This is a world where Gods and monsters roam with abandon and when Maggie finally catches up to the girl, high in the mountains, her abductor is much worse than she had anticipated. A golem like creature, terrifying and difficult to kill but on top of that is the realisation that a powerful witch created this monster and Maggie needs to find out why.
I’m going to keep my description of the plot to the above. There are plenty of reviews for this book that already do a fine job of outlining the storyline.
Why I loved this? Threefold. (1) Characters that are flawed. They make mistakes. They feel real. The story slowly reveals their histories and that makes them relatable. In a nutshell they’re not perfect, but then who is. I loved these characters. On top of that great chemistry, between the two central characters. I’m not a romance reader (not a judgement call just personal preference) and yet I loved the relationship that began to bloom in this book. None of that instalove that I find so irritating but a realistic build up of feelings that can’t be denied.
(2) Great worldbuilding. This is a world where climate change has devastated the world and a cataclysmic event known as the ‘Big Water’ not only raised the water levels but at the same time released magic, gods and monsters. Some of the clan members found themselves with certain abilities, related to the heritage of the person’s clan, in this case Maggie finds herself with certain powers. However, most people don’t consider these powers a gift. They’re more like a curse and in Maggie’s case they’ve lead to her living a rather isolated existence, shunned by most of the clans. This is a fantasy world inspired by Native American myth and culture and it’s a world that I found fascinating to read about. I was literally hooked to this book and in fact I was really disappointed when I reached the end. I wanted more.
(3) The writing. I don’t know how to put it into words other than to say the writing here just works for me. There’s a perfect balance of creativity and description. There’s a light touch and an expectation that readers will go with the flow. For example Maggie. She comes across as hostile, frosty even – she pushes people away and I guess at the start it makes her something of a puzzle. I love that Roanhorse doesn’t try to rush in with explanations to make you like her immediately but instead leaves things to develop at a natural pace so that you can make your own mind up gradually.
In terms of criticisms. Well, to be honest, I’m so enamoured by this book that I can barely recall anything and I’m not overly anxious to scrabble around to come up with things. I think that the plot played second fiddle a little but, honestly, I think this is near damn perfect for me.
People, believe the hype. In this case it’s all well deserved.
An incredibly entertaining novel, and an introduction to an author that I will definitely read again. A gritty and fascinating world and a tough and yet at the same time vulnerable protagonist that I can’t wait to get to know better.
I bought the audio version of Trail of Lightning and it was brilliant. I practically spent two full days with earplugs in ignoring my family until I reached the conclusion. The narrator was Tanis Parenteau.
Weekly Wrap Up : 7th October 2018
7 October 2018
Filed under Book Reviews
Tags: Creatures, Dracul, No Sleep Till Doomsday, Priest of Bones, The Tethered Mage, Weekly wrap up
I didn’t do a weekly wrap up post last week because the date coincided with my Month in Review post so let’s see what I’ve been up to (apart from sitting trying to figure out where all the time is going to – is there a black hole? Did I not get the memo?)
My last wrap up was 23rd September – since then I’ve read:
Week ending 30th September :
- Priest of Bones by Peter McLean
- Dracul by Dacre Stoker – review to follow
Week ending 7th October:
- No Sleep Till Doomsday by Laurence MacNaughton
- The Tethered Mage by Melissa Caruso
- Creatures: The Legacy of Frankenstein by Emma Newman; Tade Thompson; Paul Meloy; Kaaron Warren; Rose Biggin
Next week’s reads: (i’ve put three but that’s probably a bit ambitious, still…)
- In the Night Wood by Dale Bailey
- Charmcaster by Sebastien DeCastell
- Chasing Graves by Ben Galley
Upcoming reviews: (these look bad! I am trying to catch up but my blog was too busy for more posts last week):
- Starborn by Lucy Hounsom
- Envy of Angels by Matt Wallace
- Noir by Christopher Moore
- The Burning Chambers by Kate Mosse
- Trail of Lightning by Rebecca Roanhorse
- Record of a Spaceborn Few by Becky Chambers
- Dracul by Dacre Stoker
- No Sleep Till Doomsday by Laurence MacNaughton
- The Tethered Mage by Melissa Caruso
- Creatures: The Legacy of Frankenstein by Emma Newman; Tade Thompson; Paul Meloy; Kaaron Warren; Rose Biggin
I’d love to know what you’re reading this week.
#SPFBO4 Interview with Suzanne Rogerson, author of The Lost Sentinel #1 in the Silent Sea Chronicles
6 October 2018
Filed under Book Reviews
Tags: #1 Silent Sea Chronicles, #SPFBO 2018, Interview with the Vampire, Suzanne Rogerson, The Lost Sentinel
Today I’m pleased to welcome to my blog Suzanne Rogerson, author of The Lost Sentinel #1 in the Silent Sea Chronicles.
As you may be aware if you’re following the SPFBO competition or my updates I’ve recently cut a further five books and unfortunately The Lost Sentinel was part of that second round of cuts. However, as I’ve mentioned previously I don’t just see the SPFBO as a competition with only one winner. I like to think that all the authors who enter the competition are winners, maybe not for the elusive No.1 spot, but in bringing awareness to their own books and to the huge self published market that’s out there. I think you all deserve a massive round of applause simply for putting your books forward. (N.B. – Suzanne’s books are currently on sale worldwide and the links for further information are below).
Anyway, enough of all my chatter. Let’s move on to the interview with the wonderful and rather lovely Suzanne:
Hi Suzanne, welcome to my blog, I’d like to start by asking if you could share with readers a little bit about yourself and your book/s.
Hi Lynn. Thanks for having me over for an interview.
I’m an author of epic and heroic fantasy and I’ve been self-publishing for almost three years. I first discovered my love of fantasy when I read a page of Druss the Legend over my husband’s shoulder way back in my teens. It was at a time when I knew I wanted to write but couldn’t decide which genre to try. Thanks to David Gemmell, and my husband, I’ve been obsessed with the fantasy genre ever since!
My debut was Visions of Zarua published in 2015.
This year I’ve entered The Lost Sentinel into SPFBO, which is my second fantasy novel and Book 1 in the Silent Sea Chronicles.
The Lost Sentinel is set on the magical island of Kalaya, which is dying as the connection between the people and their magic fades through ignorance and distrust. We follow three main characters;
Tei is a young woman forced to leave home when her magic is discovered. She flees to the mountains to join the other exiles and takes up their cause to find their dying Sentinel’s replacement. This person is the key to saving the magic, but mysterious Masked Riders are determined to thwart them.
Brogan is a newly appointed Assembly member who would rather be back on his farm than making decisions about Kalaya and its magical community. From the start he realises the Assembly, the ruling body on the island, is corrupt and he’s forced to face some difficult choices when he discovers compromising facts about his past.
We also follow Farrell, a pirate hunting sea commander of a race who were forced from their home when magic-hating invaders attempted to annihilate them. They have made a new life on a barren island dubbed Stone Haven, but their existence is harsh and when they hear of a magical island across the sea the temptation proves too much for the desperate people.
The three storylines come together over the course of the first two books – The Sentinel’s Reign (No.2) is out now.
I think I read on your author’s page that you started writing stories at age 12. Have any of your characters or storylines survived and fed into your published works??
Yes, I did complete a whole novel when I was 12 in 6 old excise books that I have tucked away in the bottom of the wardrobe.
The story was about a 15-year-old girl forced to move home and leave everything she loved behind – so that part of the story is very much like Tei’s situation in The Lost Sentinel. There are also elements of heroism and sacrifice in my first novel that are predominant in The Lost Sentinel.
You published your first book in 2015. What lessons did that teach you in terms of publishing Lost Sentinel and has your writing process evolved over the three years since?
When I first self-published I had no contacts in the blogging community and hadn’t considered sending out ARC’s to reviewers. Visions of Zarua disappeared until I did a blog tour 7 months later.
I learnt to be more organised with The Lost Sentinel. I sent out early ARC’s, arranged a big blog tour, 99p pre-order, giveaways etc. I made sure there was as much buzz as I could create around publication day. However, it was so stressful I promised myself I wouldn’t do it again.
With my third book this year, I sent out ARC’s and had a low key unofficial blog tour around the release date. It was much less stressful, but I think the book sales may have suffered as a result. I also hadn’t banked on a prolonged heat wave and the World Cup happening around my publication date. Terrible timing!
The last few years have shown me that I can achieve it all by myself, but if I want to keep my sanity and sell books then I may need to get some help with the promotional side of the business.
My writing process has definitely changed as well. I format the document as I go along using saved setting in Word’s style menu. This has saved me days of work adjusting the text.
I’ve also used excel spreadsheets to plan my chapters and scenes so I have a clear idea of the various story threads and the timelines.
Such a lot of time and effort goes into publishing a book. I think readers are often blissfully unaware of the ins and outs. Would you say that writing has been everything you had hoped? What aspects of being an author do you really enjoy for example and what aspects are not as good?
Writing and publishing my own books has been much better than I could have imagined. I’ve reached readers all over the world and there’s nothing as gratifying as reading reviews from complete strangers who’ve really connected with my work. That’s the best aspect of it for me. I love the writing and creating side (and I’m also a self confessed editing addict), but when someone says they’re in love with one of my characters, or that they couldn’t read through their tears, that means everything to me.
The hardest part is waiting. Waiting for those sales and reviews to come in, and trying not to be disheartened when things are slow. The competition for a reader’s time and money is immense and being part of SPFBO this year has shown me just how good the competition is. Sometimes that makes it hard to keep up the enthusiasm. Just yesterday I was feeling low about my writing career, but then I opened my latest W.I.P, Book 3 in the Silent Sea Chronicles, and realised I couldn’t wait to carry on the journey with these wonderful characters who no longer just exist inside my head. I know I have people eagerly awaiting my next book so I refuse to give up on the dream just yet.
What next? After you finish the Silent Sea Chronicles do you have something else in mind? Will you stay in the same world but maybe take on a different character’s story?
After the Silent Sea Chronicles (SSC) trilogy is complete, hopefully sometime in 2019, I have a couple of ideas I want to follow up on.
One is to write a prequel for the SSC, which will focus on pivotal moments in the history of the people and the magical islands. In particular how the island of Stone Haven lost its magic and the near annihilation of Farrell’s people before their escape across the sea.
The next book I hope to finish is a standalone and will be another heroic fantasy. I started it during Nanowrimo a few years ago and it’s still waiting for an end. The characters have been calling to me so I’m really excited about continuing with it. Plus as one of the main characters is an apothecary, I’ve bought myself an online Herbal Mastery course. I love a bit of research and I love plants so that should be really interesting.
I’m also thinking of publishing a short story anthology at some point next year. So I have plenty to keep me busy.
That sounds great. So many plans in the pipeline. How do you find time to relax or have fun? Or has writing become a thing that you never switch off from??
I hardly ever switch off from writing and the many tasks involved in self-publishing and marketing my books. Sometimes it’s exhausting!
But I am still at my happiest when I’m writing, so I don’t regret the path I’ve chosen.
My favourite way to relax is watching films and reading books, or going for walks, though we don’t find as much time for that now the kids are getting older. I keep hoping to get a dog one day, but it’s a two against two vote in this house.
Finally, to conclude on a slightly different note can you tell readers:
What’s the last book you read. What book are you reading currently. What book do you plan after that one is completed?
Funnily enough my answers will be SPFBO related as I’ve picked up a few of this year’s contenders and have pledged to myself to read them over the coming months. I’ve recently finished The Exercise of Vital Powers by Ian Gregoire. This was an almost from Kitty’s group in 2017. It was a very entertaining read and I’m looking forward to the sequel.
I’m currently reading Game Bird by Aidan R Walsh. I’m really enjoying this and wish I had more time to just sit and be totally immersed in the story.
Not SFPBO related but I won a first edition signed hardback copy of City of Lies by Sam Hawke. I’m just a few pages in, but I already feel as though I’m going to love it.
I plan to read another SPFBO book after these two and I have a couple from your group Lynn, which are high up on the list to read. So I may go for either A Wizard’s Forge by A.M Justice or High Barrens by Alice Sabo.
It’s been great to be a part of SPFBO this year and I wish the remaining authors good luck in the competition.
Thanks very much for agreeing to feature me, Lynn.
Suzanne, thank you so much for taking part in my interview and the competition. It’s been a pleasure chatting to you. I think there’s some excellent advice for others amongst these answers and a lovely shout out for the books you’ve read and plan to read. I would like to take this opportunity to wish you all the best with the Silent Sea Chronicles.
I’d also like to share with readers that Suzanne’s books are currently on sale worldwide. Check out the links below for information:
Visions of Zarua – Standalone epic fantasy
Books and travelling with Lynn 