Tuesday 26 January 2016

Tuesday Falling


Tuesday Falling by S Williams




The following review was posted on UK & US Amazon and Goodreads.

I was really surprised by this book. I can't quite believe this is a debut novel, it's that good. I enjoyed reading it and finished it over two nights. I first heard about it on a Facebook book group when the book was on a free offer.  Tuesday Falling, is largely about a small young woman with extraordinary talents wreaking revenge on street gang rapists in a most unusual way.
Worth a mention to say that there are no gratuitous rape scenes - whenever rape is mentioned, the characters in the book are accurately portrayed as suffering from the terrible lasting effects on victims of the crime. The revenge wreaked on the perpetrators however, is not for the faint-hearted.

Set in modern London, but with a dystopian, dare I say underground slant, but including some very interesting historic details of Victorian London in the descriptions of the old, now defunct underground rail stations and tunnels. How historically accurate the descriptions are I have no idea, but they certainly add a lot of interest and drama to the story.

It's hard to describe the book too much without giving away too many spoilers and each new detail in the story is revealed very cleverly, bit by bit, by the author for the reader to discover, so I'll leave it there. I really hope to read more by this author. 

Tuesday 5 January 2016

My First Read of 2016

My first read of 2016 and what a cracker it was!

The Theseus Paradox by David Vidicette
My rating 5 stars *****
Review also posted on US & UK Amazon & Goodreads



A scary, hold your breath, rollercoaster of a book.  My first read of 2016. This was a well written, excellent read, and if I wasn't going through a busy time, would have finished it in a few sittings. I need a long lie down in a darkened room after reading this one!

This part, written by the author in the forward of the book drew me in and I knew I had to read this book. "I went out to work on 7 July 2005, and two weeks later I came home wearing the same clothes and with fifty-six people dead. The quest for the truth about the London bombings took years to unravel" 

Given the background of the author David Videcette, a former Scotland Yard investigator within the Metropolitan Police, who was a detective in the Anti-Terrorist Branch during the 7/7 London bombings in July 2005, the reader has to decide what is real and what isn't. A real brain teasing conundrum that leaves you wondering throughout the whole of the book. Some of the evidence from the actual investigation into the 7/7 bombings was publicly aired at the inquest into the bombings in 2010, but little reported at the time. The book is very cleverly written and it must have been a difficult book to write, given the constraints of the Official Secrets Act. As he writes on his website " "I can't tell you the truth, but I can tell you a story".

The author conveys the atmosphere of that time period during the terrible aftermath of the 7/7 atrocity " This wasn’t London any more. This was a place he didn’t recognise". 
The leading character in the book DI Jake Flanagan, expresses his frustration about the lack of manpower to complete the tasks that he and his team were given.

At times, I had to get into the mindset of an adrenaline fuelled red blooded male, not usually easy for this old granny, but I can understand why some of the warts and all, off duty behaviour of the fictional character of DI Jake Flanagan was included. Nobody, I suspect, could be in this line of work day after day, without letting off a bit of steam on the very rare occasion that they were off duty during this intense investigation.
Reminds me in parts of one of my favourite TV series, Homeland - although that was fiction and this was - well you just don't know!

As a renowned older lady we all know and love, is alleged to have said to a former butler of some repute, "There are powers at work in this country of which we have no knowledge". 
I sincerely hope that there is a continuing series of books about DI Jake Flanagan. I'll have to read them with my head under a cushion though, and have long breaks admiring fluffy bunnies and flowery things! 

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Theseus-Paradox-deception-Detective-Inspector/dp/099342631X/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1452011041&sr=8-1&keywords=david+videcette


Monday 4 January 2016

Military History To Be Read pile for 2016

Military History on my To Be Read pile for 2016

Rather belatedly, this is a book I keep meaning to read, and now have a copy


The Sleepwalkers: How Europe Went to War in 1914: Christopher Clark




From the Amazon description:-
The pacy, sensitive and formidably argued history of the causes of the First World War, from acclaimed historian and author Christopher Clark


Fritz and Tommy: Across the Barbed Wire: Peter Doyle and Robin Schäfer


I'm looking forward to reading this one, written by two respected and experienced military history researchers.




From the Amazon book description:-

Fritz and Tommy: Across the Barbed Wire takes a unique look at the experiences of the German soldier - in direct comparison with those of his British counterpart. 


The Gestapo: The Myth and Reality of Hitler's Secret Police: Frank McDonough





From the Amazon description:-
This fascinating and absorbing new book, drawing on original Gestapo files, provides a wide range of vivid and fascinating stories that explore the tragic human plight of victims of Nazi terror, and the motives of the German citizens who denounced them.