My Review (4 stars out of 5) The Green Viper is book 4 in the James Ryker series, and the first I’ve read by this author. Following a mysterious message, Ryker sets out to track down the son of his dead boss, who has got himself embroiled in a dangerous world of drugs and gangster…
Category: Writing
‘Passageways’ by Lisa Fox
My Review (5 stars out of 5) This is a collection of twenty-seven speculative short stories exploring the idea of journeys. A mix of science fiction, fantasy, and horror, they are peopled by characters whose hoped-for destinations take them on a variety of strange and disturbing routes. With any collection of stories, there are always…
‘Want You Dead’ by Peter James
My Review (5 stars out of 5) Detective Superintendent Roy Grace looks forward to his wedding to Cleo, followed by a well-deserved honeymoon. But an obsessive psychopath has plans of his own, beginning with the murder of a doctor. The killer’s ex-girlfriend also finds herself in danger when a series of bizarre events threaten to…
‘The Edge’ by Jim McGhee
My Review (4 stars out of 5) This is the fifth book in the DI Barney Mains series and the first I’ve read by this author. Following on from the previous book, DI Mains is haunted by his belief that the assassin known as The Ghost is still alive. The theory is strengthened when a…
How to Be a Crap Writer (Part 3)
In my previous posts on the topic of being a crap writer, I’ve looked at identifying those among us who are not literary greats, as well as the kinds of silly writing mistakes many authors make. This time around, I’d like to share my thoughts on more subjects that irritate me, and spoil books that…
‘Lost Solace’ by Karl Drinkwater
My Review (4 stars out of 5) In search of a lost ship, Opal Imbiana hopes to recover a secret in a lonely nebula far from colonised space. But all alone with only an experimental spacesuit and the ship’s computer to aid her quest, she must enter a dangerous and unpredictable environment. This is the…
‘The Spy Across the Water’ by James Naughtie
My Review (4 stars out of 5) The Spy Across the Water is book three in a series of spy stories, and the first I’ve read by this author. The book opens with a funeral, and we soon learn that the dead man is Ambassador Will Flemyng’s brother. Flemyng’s usual working life in the Washington…
‘The Good Wife’ by Gemma Rogers
My Review (4 stars out of 5) Young wife Chloe is caught in an unhappy marriage with a husband who controls her every move. Forced to wear the clothes he chooses, limit her food intake to only ten mouthfuls at a time, and have all her movements tracked, she begins to feel she might never…
‘London Tales’ by Tim Walker
My Review (4 stars out of 5) This is another collection of stories from Tim Walker, with eleven tales taken from various points along London’s timeline. Subjects range from legendary Iceni queen, Boudica (seen from the point of view of the Romans), to more modern stories set in the twentieth century, such as a tale…
‘Under the Dome’ by Stephen King
My Review (5 stars out of 5) A small New England town is suddenly wrenched from the rest of the world when an invisible forcefield drops over it. Cars, planes, and people smash into the dome causing horror and panic. Iraq War veteran Dale Barbara is on his way out of the town when the…
Colin Garrow 