Tag: Great Characters

Witness 8 by Steve Cavanagh

On By The Unseen LibraryIn Thriller4 Comments

Publisher: Headline (Trade Paperback – 13 August 2024)

Series: Eddie Flynn – Book Eight

Length: 392 pages

My Rating: 4.5 out of 5 Stars

Amazon

For those in the mood for a highly entertaining and exciting legal thriller, look no further than the latest book from the always impressive Steve Cavanagh, Witness 8.

Over the last couple of years, I have become a major fan of entertaining thriller author Steve Cavanagh.  A compelling writer with a flair for over-the-top narratives, Cavanagh has deeply impressed me with books like his twisty standalone novel, Kill For Me Kill For You, as well as his outstanding Eddie Flynn legal thriller series.  Following a former conman turned defence attorney, the Eddie Flynn books are always deeply enjoyable as Cavanagh brings some outrageous legal thriller scenarios and fills them with some fantastic characters.  The last two books in the series, The Devil’s Advocate and The Accomplice, have been a ton of fun, and the latest entry, Witness 8, has been one of my most anticipated reads of 2024.

Ruby Johnson is a seemingly ordinary nanny and maid who works for many of the wealthy families in Manhattan’s exclusive West 74 Street.  Memorising their needs, routines and secrets, Ruby has made herself indispensable to various families on this elite street, even though most of them look down on her due to her family’s past connection to the rich community.  However, Ruby is about to shake up the entire street when she witnesses the murder of one of their most controversial inhabitants.

The only person who truly knows who committed the terrible murder, Ruby sneaks away key evidence and places an anonymous call to the police, naming the killer.  However, Ruby lies about who the true killer is, and instead frames an innocent man for the murder and turns the entire street against him.  As chaos descends upon West 74 Street and an innocent family suffers the stigma associated with murder, it becomes clear that something is very wrong with Ruby, and that she will destroy anyone to get what she wants.

It soon falls to Eddie Flynn, former conman turned trial attorney to defend the innocent man accused of the crime.  Facing off against an ambitious District Attorney, the all-consuming secrecy of the West 74 Street’s inhabitants, and threats much closer to home, Eddie Flynn will need to bring every legal trick and con in his vast repertoire to keep his client out of jail.  However, can even Flynn and his expert team uncover what Ruby has done in time to save an innocent man, or will her dark secrets strike again and bring even greater tragedy?

Steve Cavanagh continues to impress as his latest book, Witness 8, was an amazing and compelling thrill ride that had me hooked the entire way through.  The eighth book in the Eddie Flynn series, Witness 8 was extremely fun, and I had an outstanding time getting through it.

Witness 8 has a fantastic story behind it that really drags the reader in with its outrageous plot, ambitious legal sequences, and eccentric characters, all of which is a trademark of the Eddie Flynn series.  Initially focusing on the character of Ruby Johnson, you witness the starting events of the plot that see the housekeeper become a central figure in a murder investigation, which serves as a great start to the book while also expertly introducing one of the novel’s most complex figures.  From there, the plot begins to focus on series protagonist Eddie Flynn, and his eccentric colleagues, as they are tasked with defending the man Ruby framed and uncovering the reasons behind his arrest.  Clashing with an ambitious district attorney, Flynn starts utilising his trademark unpredictable tactics to infuriate and confuse his opponents, which results in some fun early scenes.  However, Flynn faces lethal problems of his own when the leader of a gang of corrupt cops puts out at hit on him, believing him to be a threat to his organisation.

The story goes in some very interesting and unexpected directions as the protagonist finds himself forced to simultaneously defend his client and deal with the killers coming for him.  Cavanagh does a great job of breaking the story up across various distinctive characters, with the machinations of Ruby blending well with the legal manoeuvrings of Flynn and the investigations of his team.  The author also adds in several other great alternate perspectives, including that of the wonderfully sinister gentleman assassin, Mr. Christmas, who starts to take his own interest in several characters associated with the case.  These intriguing alternate perspectives allow for a more elaborate, yet still fast-paced novel, and I loved where some of the various character arcs went.

The second half of Witness 8 is loaded up with surprises, tragic blows, over-the-top moments and funny ploys from the protagonist, and you are constantly on the edge of your seat as you wait to see how everything unfolds.  I really appreciated the excellent way that Cavanagh builds up towards the big conclusion of the plot, and the resulting payoff comes together extremely well.  The closer you get to the end, the more you appreciate how the author had previously layered in clues and hints in the first half of the book, and I particularly enjoyed the breadcrumbs about Ruby’s motivations and what she hoped to achieve.  The author tops this off with some fantastic and entertaining cons and schemes from the protagonist, which results in some ironic comeuppances for several of he more morally dubious characters.  This proved to be a very fun ending, and it will be interesting to see where some of the storylines go from here, especially around some newly introduced characters.

Much like the previous entries in the series, Witness 8 can be read as a standalone novel, and new readers can have a wonderful and easy time exploring the accessible and interesting series and characters for the first time.  Witness 8 was the usual fun mixture of action, clever legal scenes and overall insanity that fans of the Eddie Flynn series are well use to.  I always like the unique legal scenarios that Cavanagh comes up with for his books, and the one in Witness 8 was pretty damn good, as the protagonist deals with the crazed witness who has her own schemes in this murder.  The story veers into psychological thriller territory at times when it comes to this main antagonist, and her twisted tale of revenge and recompense blended well with the thrilling adventures of Flynn and his cohort.  Cavanagh did a great job of keeping the story running at a fast pace, and the inclusion of several deadly assassins hunting after Flynn, ensured that the reader was constantly engaged with the book, especially with the inclusion of some well-placed tragedy.  While much of Witness 8 is light and is primarily dedicated to providing entertainment, Cavanagh throws in some particularly dark moments throughout the book, which provides some memorable and powerful moments for the reader.  This blend of tones, which includes some extremely troubling scenes, helped to ensure that Witness 8 was more than just a one-trick pony story, and readers will really love the book’s depth and dark humour.

However, for me the best parts of Witness 8, and indeed any Eddie Flynn book, were the excellent scenes that depicted Flynn engaged in his trademark legal cons and shenanigans.  Cavanagh’s well thought out courtroom sequences are always enhanced by the outrageous actions of his protagonist, as he uses unconventional tactics garnered from his conman past to trick and manipulate events to his advantage.  These ploys often play off the more conventional tactics of his opponents and the rest of Flynn’s legal team very well, and you are never quite sure what direction his trial strategy is going to go.  While I usually prefer a more straightforward courtroom sequence in a legal thriller, I deeply enjoy seeing Cavanagh’s more entertaining takes on the story element, and it is so much fun to see what outrageous ploy the author comes up with next.  These eccentric court scenes play off the rest of the book extremely well, and I felt that they were once again a great highlight of this Eddie Flynn book.  Indeed, I kind of wish that the author had ensured that more of the book was spent inside the courtroom rather than having the protagonist battle assassins, but I still really appreciate how the story came together.

A key part of why Witness 8 was so entertaining was the fantastic and memorable characters featured within it.  Cavanagh utilises an intriguing cast for Witness 8, that includes a collection of recurring characters from previous books, as well as several new figures who are cleverly inserted into this story.  I have already mentioned how much fun series protagonist Eddie Flynn was in Witness 8, and his entertaining ploys and determination to stick up to even the most dangerous people in the city, ensure that he is a hard character not to like.  While much of Flynn’s story revolves around him outsmarting the bad guys in humorous ways, Cavanagh also ensures that there are some darker moments for Flynn in Witness 8, especially as he finds his team under threat and someone close to him hurt as collateral damage.  The rest of Flynn’s team, including his legal partner Kate Brooks, the firm’s lethal private investigator Bloch and former serial killer hunter Gabriel Lake, are well represented throughout the course of Witness 8, with Lake’s unique past coming into play in some compelling ways.

While these protagonists are great, Cavanagh also spent a lot of time building up some outstanding and memorable antagonists who really fit the series’ unique vibe and proved to be major highlights of Witness 8.  The most prominent of these is Ruby Johnson, the seemingly innocent maid, who manipulates events around the murder for her own advantage.  Cavanagh does an excellent job selling Ruby as a conflicted and damaged being, haunted by her past and the terrible things she needs to do.  I really appreciated how effectively Cavanagh sets up Ruby as a particularly dangerous figure, and you really buy into her issues and dark persona, especially as Cavanagh throws in some interesting curveballs around what drives her.  In addition to Ruby, the other major antagonist I want to highlight is the assassin Mr. Christmas.  A deadly killer with curiosity, class, a dash of morality and a love for Marlon Brando films, Mr. Christmas steals nearly every scene he is in as he manoeuvres around the other players in the book.  A professional who likes to keep things sporting, Mr. Christmas enjoys interacting with his targets before he kills them, and his encounters with many of the characters, including Flynn and Ruby, are some of the most captivating parts of Witness 8.  Cavanagh did an outstanding job building up Mr. Christmas here, and I loved his genial threats and unique professionalism, as well as his connection to Gabriel Lake, which provides some much-needed seriousness around this figure.  Indeed, it seems like Mr. Christmas is a figure that is likely to return in future entries in the series, which is something I am rather keen for.  Throw in a raft of other desperate, greedy or easily manipulated figures, and Witness 8 had a truly amazing cast of characters that ensured this book was everything you could hope it to be.

Witness 8 was another amazing novel from Steve Cavanagh, who continues to produce some of the most entertaining and fun legal thrillers you are likely to read.  Filled with big characters, outrageous situations, and complex scenarios, Witness 8 had me hooked the entire way through, and I honestly could not stop reading this fantastic read.  I really cannot emphasise how much fun I have with the Eddie Flynn series, and I cannot wait to see what cool story Cavanagh comes up with next.

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A Darkness Returns by Raymond E. Feist.

On By The Unseen LibraryIn Fantasy1 Comment

Publisher: Harper Voyager (ebook – 1 August 2024)

Series: Dragonwar Saga – Book One

Length: 480 pages

My Rating: 4.5 out of 5 Stars

Amazon

Prepare to return to one of the most iconic realms of fantasy as acclaimed author Raymond E. Feist presents the reader with another high fantasy adventure set across multiple worlds with A Darkness Returns.

Raymond E. Feist is one of the most impressive and long-running authors of fantasy fiction in the world today, who has been writing intriguing reads for over 40 years.  Feist is best known for his extensive Riftwar Cycle, a connected series of books that follow a variety of threats and conflicts on several fantasy words created by Feist.  Starting with Magician in 1982, The Riftwar Cycle initially focused on a war between two different fantasy worlds joined together by a magical rift in space, with the realm of Midkemia, which had a more classic European fantasy vibe, being invaded by armies from the Asian inspired world of Kelewan.  Feist would write an interesting array of different storylines as he continued to expand his fantasy series across many years of internal plot, and there ended up being nearly 30 books in the Riftwar Cycle, which ended back in 2013.  I have been a huge fan of this series for years, as it was one of the first fantasy series I ever really got into, thanks to various unique sub-series that moved the history of Midkemia and its associated realms along at an intriguing pace.  Key highlights for me include the associated Empire trilogy, that Feist co-wrote with fellow fantasy author Janny Wurts, and Talon of the Silver Hawk, which was one of the first big fantasy novels I read as a young teenager.

While Feist apparently ended his Riftwar Cycle books some years ago, it turns out that he couldn’t leave his original world alone for too long.  His next trilogy, the Firemane Saga, which started back in 2018 with King of Ashes, initially showed a captivating adventure on the new fantasy world of Garn, following a whole new group of protagonists.  However, as the series continued with Queen of Storms and Master of Furies, it became apparent that the Firemane Saga existed in the same dimension as the Riftwar Cycle, with several characters from Feist’s original novels having cameo appearances.  The final book, Master of Furies, identified a major threat lying dormant beneath Garn, and the novel ends with the protagonists of the Firemane Saga travelling through a rift to Midkemia to learn how to defeat it.  This new novel, A Darkness Returns, is set immediately after the events of Master of Furies and seeks to bring together the worlds of the Riftwar Cycle and the Firemane Saga for one epic adventure, while also introducing Feist’s new The Dragonwar Saga series.  Naturally, as a fan of both prior series and Feist’s writing in general, I was very excited, and A Darkness Returns has been one of my most anticipated books of 2024.

A new darkness is rising, one that could destroy two worlds and everything in them.

After finally defeating the nefarious Pride Lords on their home planet of Garn, Hatushaly, last scion of the Firemane dynasty, has agreed to travel to the world of Midkemia to attempt to learn how to harness his unique magic.  Accompanied by his wife Hava and their trouble-seeking friend Donte, Hatu finds Midkemia to be a strange world, but one filled with boundless opportunity and magic as he begins to study on the peaceful Sorcerer’s Island, under the tutelage of the great magician Magnus, and Magnus’s reincarnated father, Pug.

As the newcomers settle into Midkemia and attempt to find their place in this new world, word quickly reaches them of the trouble they left behind on Garn.  The nefarious Church of One has risen to power and seeks to enslave or destroy everything in front of it.  The only independent nation left is the newly formed kingdom of Marquensas, under the rule of the benevolent King Daylon Dumarch.  There, Hatu’s friend Declan Smith, a master swordsmith and Daylon’s newly discovered brother, has been declared prince and struggles to accept the new responsibilities thrust upon him.

As Declan leads the newly formed Marquensas army against the invading forces of the Church of One, it becomes apparent that there is something far more sinister behind the fanatical soldiers.  A dark presence is guiding them, one the magicians of Midkemia are painfully familiar with: the Dread creatures from the Void.  Having waged several destructive wars to hold back the malign influence of the Void, Magnus and Pug are determined to save Garn as well, and it soon becomes apparent that the only thing that can save it is Hatu’s unique magic.  As Hatu learns to control his powers, he must work with his friends, both new and old, to find a way to hold back the oncoming darkness before both his home, and the other worlds in his dimension, are destroyed for good.

A Darkness Returns sees Feist back in fine form as he combines two of his iconic worlds into one impressive and exciting story.  Following several excellent protagonists across a series of compelling adventures, A Darkness Returns was the classic high fantasy story I had really been craving, and I had such an amazing time with this book.

I deeply enjoyed the story contained with A Darkness Returns, and Feist produced a fantastic read that strongly harkens back to his original stories.  Set shortly after the events of Master of Furies, A Darkness Returns’ plot follows key protagonists from both the more recent Firemane Saga trilogy and Feist’s classic Riftwar Cycle as they complete a series of connected adventures across the worlds of Garn and Midkemia.  Feist focuses on several different character arcs and storylines simultaneously, which presents a rich and complex narrative with a bit of something for everyone.  The main protagonist of the Firemane books, Hatu, finds his story strongly enmeshed with that of key Riftwar Cycle characters Magnus and Pug, who attempt to uncover the secrets of Hatu’s magic as well as the dangers hiding in Garn.  At the same time, we have a more classic fantasy war story back in Garn as Declan and his brothers prepare for battle against the encroaching Church of One, with his arc feature several small-scale battles.  There are also some intriguing storylines around Hava’s attempts to get back to life on the sea, no matter which world she’s on, the ever-unpredictable Nakor, begins to explore certain multi-dimensional areas to quantify the threat coming for both worlds, while Donte goes rogue and starts his own criminal organisation in Midkemia.

I found myself getting really stuck into the various storylines that Feist came up with for A Darkness Returns, and this proved to be a very fun story.  Each character arc went in some interesting directions, and they all proved entertaining in their own way.  I personally found myself getting more drawn towards the parts of the books focusing on Declan and his brothers’ military actions in Garn and Donte’s burgeoning criminal enterprise in Midkemia, which prove to be an excellent contrast to the more magical theory laden storylines of Hatu, Magnus and Pug.  As the book progresses, Feist works to bring the various storylines together, usually done by having the magical characters using rifts to transport between worlds and working with the other relevant protagonists.  I think this helped to create an overall compelling narrative, as the various characters work together to discover the full extent of the threats facing them.

I did feel that A Darkness Return’s narrative did get a little overcomplicated towards the end the book, especially as Feist, through his characters, started diving into all the magical theory and knowledge that the author has been building up for 40 years.  This made parts of the last half of the book a little hard to get through, especially for the more casual reader, as there were a lot of elaborate concepts to digest.  The story also suffers a little from being the first book in a new series, with Feist having to spend a lot of time setting stuff up and revisiting old storylines, and as a result A Darkness Return’s conclusion is a little less epic or memorable than it could have been.  However, those who weather through some of the more problematic aspects of this narrative through it are in for a lot of fun with A Darkness Returns, as Feist produces some outstanding and exciting moments while also setting up a lot of future adventures.  I ended up really enjoying where each of the separate storylines went, and readers are in for a fun mixture of magic, military action, and criminal adventure.  These separated storylines come together extremely well as the book continues, and it proves hard not to get addicted to the overall story.  I think that A Darkness Returns proved to be a strong start to this new series, and I am confident it will only get better from here.

One of the things that might possibly impact a person’s ability to enjoy A Darkness Returns is their prior experiences with reading Feist’s books.  As I mentioned above, A Darkness Returns is heavily related to both the author’s more recent Firemane Saga, and his long-running Riftwar Cycle, which started back in the 1980s.  As a continuation of both series, the plot of A Darkness Returns is heavily enmeshed with the events that occurred in the prior books, and there are constant references back to them.  While Feist does do a pretty good job of recapping these events, especially those featured in the Riftwar Cycle, I could see a reader who is unfamiliar with the past 40 years of Feist fiction getting lost as A Darkness Returns continues.  While dedicated fantasy lovers can probably get away with starting their Feist experience with A Darkness Returns, I would probably recommend reading the Firemane Saga first at a minimum to understand the history around several of the main characters and the world of Garn.  As such, this book might not be for everyone, especially those looking for a new series to start off with.  However, fans who have read a lot of Feist’s work in the past are in for a real treat, as you once again get to visit two of Feist’s epic worlds and see figures from both interact for the first time.  I especially enjoyed the long-awaited return to the world of Midkemia, which was such a vital part of my early fantasy experiences, and it was fascinating to see how it has changed since the previous books.  I appreciated seeing Midkemia through the eyes of the fresh characters from Garn, which ensured some extra recapping that will help returning readers.  It proved quite entertaining to see these newer characters find out all the magical and interdimensional craziness that occurred during the many Riftwar Cycle books, and I deeply enjoyed getting back to Feist’s most iconic setting.

Another great highlight of A Darkness Returns was the large and varied cast of characters that Feist focussed the story around.  Most of these characters were established figures from previous books, and it was great to get a continuation of many of their storylines, especially as Feist left many character arcs open from their last appearances.  It was fun to see many of these characters interact throughout A Darkness Returns, especially as a major feature of this book was figures from separate series coming together for the first time.  This includes the intriguing returning cast of the Firemane Saga, who were a key part of this book.  These younger figures (young in the sense that they are all in their early 20s and because Feist only created them recently), serve in great contrast to the older wizard from the Riftwar Cycle, especially with their more energetic adventures.  My favourite of these characters was either the dependable and brave Declan or the brash wildcard character Donte, both of whom had the best segments in A Darkness Returns.  The primary protagonist of the book, Hatu, while interesting, did have too much of a chosen-one vibe around him, and I think Feist decreases his enjoyability by making him too powerful and all-knowing.  Still, it was great to see all these Firemane Saga characters again, and Feist set up some interesting storylines and interactions around them.

However, the characters that Feist fans are probably most excited to see again where Magnus, Pug and Nakor all of whom are major established figures in the Riftwar Cycle.  All three characters are quite fascinating in their own ways and have long histories in Feists books.  Magnus has long been one of the main wizards of the series, and it was great to see him return here as the elder statesman guiding the various younger characters.  Nakor is an entertaining trickster who is the reincarnation of long-running figure of the same name.  While the details of his reappearance in this series does get a little technical, he was still a lot of fun, and it was great to once again see his more unusual approach to magic.

However, the most interesting figure was the returning Pug.  Pug has been Feist’s main character since the very first Riftwar Cycle book, Magician, with many of the subsequent plots revolving around his magical adventures, and he is probably one of fantasy fiction’s most iconic protagonists.  Pug was killed off in the final Riftwar Cycle novel, although the last scene saw his son, Magnus, finding him resurrected as a young man without any memory of his past life.  However, this reincarnation story element is at an end as with his return in A Darkness Returns, Feist utilises the strange magics of Hatu to bring back Pug’s old personality.  While you could argue that Feist might be better off stepping away from this long-running character, I personally loved seeing Pug again, and it gave me a major nostalgia hit.  Between these great figures and more, I really loved the cast of A Darkness Returns, and it was so much fun to see the figures from both series come together for one massive adventure.  I look forward to seeing how their storylines further advance through the rest of The Dragonwar Saga, and I have no doubt that Feist will provide them with exciting stories and massive tragedy.

I had an amazing time getting through A Darkness Returns, and it was so much fun to have another high fantasy adventure from Raymond E. Feist.  Between the nostalgia, the exciting action, fantastic characters, and the ambitious way in which Feist brought together two of his major series, A Darkness Returns has a lot going for it, and it proves hard not to get caught up in the resulting story.  While there are a few issues that may turn off newer readers, I personally had an outstanding time, and all established Feist fans are guaranteed to love A Darkness Returns.  An overall awesome and impressive read from one of fantasy fiction’s most enduring authors.

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The Outsider by Stephen King

On By The Unseen LibraryIn Audiobook, Five-Star Books, Horror, Thriller, Throwback Thursday12 Comments

Publisher: Hodder & Stoughton/Simon and Schuster Audio (Audiobook – 22 May 2018)

Series: Standalone/Holly Gibney series

Length: 18 hours and 41 minutes

My Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

Amazon

After years of having it on my to-read list, I finally got around to checking out The Outsider by Stephen King, and boy was it a particularly epic book.

Fans of this blog will know that I have been getting more and more into Stephen King lately, especially as I have been lucky enough to receive copies of his more recent books.  I have so far deeply enjoyed Mr Mercedes, Later, Billy Summers (one of my favourite books of 2021), Fairy Tale, Holly (one of my favourite books and audiobooks of 2023), and You Like it Darker (one of my favourite books from the first half of 2024).  These have all been amazing reads in their own way and I really enjoyed the elaborate stories, dark plots, and complex characters that King comes up with.  However, one of my new favourite King novels with a captivating scenario was the fantastic read The Outsider.

Released back in 2018, The Outsider was an intriguing novel that really caught my attention with its unique concept.  I immediately identified it as a book I wanted to read, but I was unable to fit it into my reading schedule back then, which I deeply regret now.  Despite not reading it when came out, The Outsider remained firmly in mind, especially as it had connections to the Bill Hodges trilogy, which I had also heard good things about.  This need to check out The Outsider was dramatically increased after I read Holly last year and was blown away by the elaborate and exceedingly dark story.  As such, I have been looking for an opportunity to enjoy The Outsider for a while, and a recent road trip gave me all the excuse I needed, and boy was I glad that I did.

It is the worst crime to ever occur in the history of Flint City.  A young boy, Frankie Peterson, has been brutally killed, raped and mutilated, his violated body left on display out in the local park.  The Flint City police, led by detective Ralph Anderson, are determined to find the monster responsible for Frankie Peterson’s death, and they soon zero in on a prime suspect, local sports coach and one of Flint City’s most respected citizens, Terrence Maitland.

With unassailable evidence and numerous witnesses placing him at the scene, the police have a watertight case against Maitland, and Anderson orders the public arrest of the coach in front of his family, friends, and the entire town.  However, despite the DNA, fingerprints, and numerous reliable witnesses indicating that Maitland killed Frankie, Maitland insists that he is innocent and has an airtight alibi for the time of the murder, having been in a major public conference in another city, surrounded by unimpeachable witnesses.

Determined to prove that Maitland committed the murder, Anderson and his colleagues attempt to destroy his alibi.  But the further they dig, the more apparent it becomes that Maitland was nowhere near the scene of the crime, and Anderson begins to believe Maitland’s pleas of innocence.  With lives being destroyed all around him and the citizens of Flint City baying for Maitland’s blood, Anderson is forced to figure out how a man can be in two places at once.  But when the situation takes a dark turn, both Anderson and Maitland’s supporters call in unusual investigator Holly Gibney, whose own experience with impossible cases will take them in the darkest of directions.

Well damn, that was particularly awesome.  I knew I was going to love The Outsider well before I read it, but even I was unprepared for how impressive and captivating this novel proved to be.  Featuring King’s typical elaborate storytelling, powerful characters, and unique insights into the human mind, The Outsider was a complex and sinister read that will have you hooked from the very beginning and which gets a very easy five-star rating from me.

King presents the reader with an incredibly, dark, complex and thoughtful narrative that burrows into your head and refuses to leave.  Starting off strong and proceeding into darker and more horror-lined territory, this complex narrative sucked me in almost instantly thanks to the very impressive initial story concept.  Introducing a particularly gruesome murder, The Outsider starts off in crime fiction/legal thriller territory, as King showcases the details of the initial arrest of Terrence Maitland, while also bringing in a few key characters.  These early chapters are cleverly offset by a series of short inclusions that showcase police interviews and forensic evidence for the main investigation, all of which firmly paints Maitland as the killer.  However, events take an outstanding turn shortly into the book, when Maitland reveals an impossibly airtight alibi that flies in the face of the substantial evidence of the police.  The full extent of this alibi is particularly compelling, especially with King name-dropping one of his peers, and it really turns the entire plot on its head.  The subsequent scenes are extremely intriguing, as the reader sees both sides of the case, and find themselves wondering if Maitland committed the crime, is completely innocent, or whether something far more sinister is going on.  I honestly love every second of this first half of The Outsider, and I cannot emphasise just how exceptional and thought-provoking this complex scenario proved to be.

At around the halfway point, The Outsider features a substantial moment that changes the entire tone and focus of the plot.  While I was initially a little disappointed with this, mainly because I was already loving the direction the story had been going up to that point, it helps turn The Outsider into a more typical King novel, loaded with complex horror elements that reflect dark human nature.  The author also deeply enhances the story’s emotional drama, placing several characters in terrible situations, and amping up the desperate tragedy of the plot.  Thanks to the introduction of recurring King protagonist Holly Gibney, the protagonists start to consider a more unnatural solution to the crime and begin to investigate accordingly.  I quite enjoyed the dive into the darker, supernatural side of the story, and the resulting investigation is quite unique, requiring the grounded protagonists to believe in the unknown.  King ensures that the supernatural investigation elements of the book come across in a compelling and sensible manner, and it was intriguing to see how the character’s reached their conclusions.  The case eventually leads the protagonists on an extended trip to Texas, which ends with a series of showdowns.  King keeps the intensity of the plot going all the way to the very end, and readers will be left guessing about who’s going to survive and how the story will unfold.  The chase for the culprit and the big showdown were a very solid conclusion to the entire narrative, and you will come away extremely satisfied with how The Outsider ended.

I really enjoyed how this book came together, and I personally think that this was one of the stronger King novels I have so far had the pleasure of reading.  A lot of this comes down to the initial clever scenario, which King does an extremely good job of setting up.  The whole idea of someone accused of a crime they are innocent of and have a perfect alibi for really makes you think, and King utilises it to perfection, diving into the thoughts of the police, the alleged perpetrator, and the various family members associated with it.  It helped that King once again returned to his favourite setting of a small American town, and he was able to capture the resulting chaos as rumour and fear spread throughout Flint City.  You can really feel the emotional turmoil of all the people in the town, especially the main characters, and it helped to deeply enhance the impact of every scene, especially when you have no idea whether Maitland committed the crime or not.  The way in which the author starts off as a more traditional crime fiction story also works extremely well and helps to drag the readers into the plot with its mystery.  However, the transition over to horror is particularly effective, and the way in which the darkness infecting the plot goes from that created by ordinary humans to something more supernatural, is an effective and powerful part of the book.  This proved to be a particularly haunting and moving read that will keep you up late at night thinking about how you would react in the exact same scenario.

While most of King’s books prove to be standalone reads, The Outsider is connected to the author’s previous Bill Hodges series due to the inclusion of a major supporting character.  I had heard in advance that readers needed to be familiar with the Bill Hodges books to fully appreciate this book, however, I felt that The Outsider stood on its own merits as a standalone novel.  New readers can easily dive into The Outsider’s excellent story without any issues and will become enthralled in King’s complex mystery and his excellent depictions of human nature.  Established fans of the Bill Hodges books will probably get the most out of The Outsider, especially as it is a continuation of King’s unique look at the crime fiction genre, and the return of a key character offers a lot of opportunities for those who loved his previous trilogy.  However, I would say that this is a book that pretty much all mystery, thriller or horror fans can really enjoy, as there is something for everyone here, although some readers should be warned about how dark and graphic this story can get.

I really need to highlight the outstanding character work that King featured within The Outsider.  This fantastic book featured a rich cast of complex small-town characters who find themselves caught up the twisted darkness of a small child’s murder and the subsequent revelations about who was behind it.  King does such an exceptional job of diving into the various mindscapes of the impacted characters, from the obsessed investigating detective who is taking the case personally, to the distressed wife of the apparent killer, and even the confused accused himself.  The complicated mindscapes of all these characters, and more, are shown in exquisite detail throughout The Outsider, and you really grow attached to their powerful personal tales.

While I don’t want to go into too much specific detail about the book’s primary cast here for spoiler reasons, I will say that the way the various characters deal with events and the many dark twists makes for quite a personal and emotionally charged read, and it was fascinating to watch so many characters try to let go of their conventional thinking and try to see the world in a different light.  I also must highlight the intriguing way in which King enhances his cast in the second half of The Outsider by bringing in investigator Holly Gibney from the Bill Hodges trilogy.  Holly, the slightly unusual but brilliant private eye, proved to be a compelling addition to the plot, and it proved very interesting to see her interact with the established cast, especially as Holly has a much more open mind due to her previous experiences.  Fans of the Bill Hodges books will really love seeing Holly return, and her compelling character development since her original appearance in Mr Mercedes proves to be a great part of the book.  I really cannot emphasise just how impressive the various characters, as well as their complex development, is in The Outsider, and you will have to check it out.  Be warned though, no one comes out of this book unscathed, including the reader when they become attached to these great figures.

As I mentioned above, I managed to enjoy The Outsider while out on a road trip, which meant that I listened to the audiobook version of it.  I have had some great success with Stephen King audiobooks in the past, and The Outsider was another impressive example of how this format can enhance the powerful story within.  Coming in with a substantial runtime of nearly 19 hours, listeners do require a bit of a time investment for The Outsider audiobook, but it is well worth it.  I felt that I got a fantastic sense of the story while listening to it, and I love the intense depictions of the characters, the small-town setting, and the dark deeds being done within.

In addition to the great way it brings to the story to life for the reader, one of the big highlights of The Outsider audiobook was the inclusion of veteran actor Will Patton as the narrator.  Patton, who has lent his voice to several of King’s previous audiobooks, does an outstanding job narrating The Outsider.  His softly spoken and measured voice really fits the dark and sinister story contained within The Outsider, and you get an excellent sense of the personal horror and complex emotions that the events of this book unleash.  Patton also does an outstanding job voicing the eclectic and damaged characters featured within The Outsider.  Patton infected many of these characters with his southern accent, which fit the small-town vibe of The Outsider extremely well, and you can really imagine King’s characters a lot better with Patton’s voice behind them.  Highlights for me include his take on the antagonist of The Outsider’s real voice, as well as an entertaining old lady found down in Texas, who steals all the scenes she’s in, especially with Patton’s exaggerated tones.  However, I did feel that Patton overplayed the awkward nature of Holly Gibney when she entered the plot.  Patton made all of Holly’s dialogue, as well as the description of events in the chapters told from her perspective, very subdued and halting, which messed with the flow of the audiobook.  While I know that he was trying to capture Holly’s ethereal and damaged nature with this narration, it was honestly a bit distracting.  Despite this slight annoyance, this ended up being an awesome way to enjoy The Outsider and I can personally guarantee that it is an incredible accompaniment to a long road-trip.

Overall, The Outsider proved to an outstanding and exceptional book from the always impressive Stephen King that I could not get enough off.  Featuring both an incredible mystery and some brilliant dark horror moments, The Outsider is a particularly gripping and intense read that will live rent free in the dark corners of your brain.  Highly recommended and one of my new favourite Stephen King books.

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The Mercy Chair by M. W. Craven

On By The Unseen LibraryIn Five-Star Books, Thriller13 Comments

Publisher: Constable (ebook – 6 June 2024)

Series: Washington Poe – Book Six

Length: 420 pages

My Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

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Acclaimed author M. W. Craven introduces one of the darkest novels of 2024 with the complex and highly addictive thriller, The Mercy Chair.

M. W. Craven is an interesting author who I am becoming a bigger and bigger fan of the more I read. I started getting into his work last year with the awesome Fearless, which saw a lawman turned drifter go up against a deadly drug cartel. I had an amazing time with Fearless, and I am looking forward to the sequel, Nobody’s Hero, in a few short months.  However, before we get to Nobody’s Hero, I need to rave about Craven’s other 2024 novel, The Mercy Chair.  The Mercy Chair was a captivating and unique novel from Craven that served as a part of his Washington Poe series.  The Mercy Chair is the sixth entry in this great English crime fiction series, and frankly I have still not recovered from how epic and shocking its narrative turned out to be.

Detective Sergeant Washington Poe of the National Crime Agency has seen many unsettling things during his career as a police officer, especially since he started teaming up with unusual civilian analysist Tilly Bradshaw to investigate the worst murders England has to offer.  However, his latest case has impacted him in ways few others have, and months after the events in question, Poe sits down with a psychologist to tell a tale of woe and despair unlike any other.

The case is an investigation into the brutal death of controversial religious figure Cornelius Green in Cumbria.  The victim, the leader of an extreme conservative church, has been found tied to a tree and stoned to death by someone who wanted him to suffer.  Brought in due to the brutality surrounding the killing and the religious significance of the victim, Poe and Tilly set about trying to discover which of Green’s many enemies or supporters might have wanted him dead.

Digging into their victim’s past, Poe and Tilly begin to believe that Green’s death might be connected to another infamous slaying of a religious family that occurred in the area many years ago.  Believing that the original killer, a troubled young member of Green’s church, has returned, the detectives attempt to uncover what caused her to snap and kill her parents and brother.  However, their investigation soon uncovers a series of terrible events from the past that still haunt many to this day.  What is the mercy chair, and how did a twisted religious figure bring so much despair to so many?

Gosh this was a damn impressive read!  The Mercy Chair was a particularly epic book that I have not been able to stop thinking about.  Exceedingly dark and hauntingly addictive, The Mercy Chair is guaranteed to steal your breath away with its many twists and turns.  An easy five-star read; The Mercy Chair ended up being one of my favourite books from the first half of 2024 for some very good reasons.

I cannot emphasise just how good the narrative of The Mercy Chair turned out to be, as Craven really dug deep to produce the most twisted and haunting narrative he could.  Starting off in an interesting way, with the traumatised protagonist, Washington Poe, recounting the events of his previous case to a psychologist, which instantly ensures that the reader knows something bad is about to happen.  The resulting set-up for the case proves to be very effective, and you are soon presented with an intriguing scenario of a religious leader stoned to death.  Craven also presents some compelling complications to the case in the form of an unwanted assistant for Poe and Tilly, the interest of the local bishop, and strange connections to a previous mass killing.  This first half of the book is very strong, and I honestly got hooked on the book very early due to Craven’s strong writing and ability to set up a good murder case.  The author does a great job of layering a lot of clues and hints about the events to come in this first half, not that it does you a lot of good, as there are so many sinister surprises to come.

While I really enjoyed the first half of The Mercy Chair, the second half is what really makes this book a first-rate thriller, as Craven brings all the darkness and thrusts the reader into a world of emotional pain.  I honestly cannot go into too much detail about what happens in the second half of the book, as too many hints could ruin The Mercy Chair for potential readers.  However, I will say that Craven is a dark genius, and I still cannot get over how crazy and harrowing things got.  The case goes in some very disturbing and inventive directions, and the author unleashes a multitude of twists, most of which are very well-set up in advance.  While I saw a few surprises coming or was able to guess the significance of certain subtle inclusions, I honestly could not predict everything that Craven’s diabolical mind came up with.  Trust me when I say that The Mercy Chair’s story gets darker and darker the more you progress through it, and no matter how many times you think it can’t get any worse, it does.  The author ends the narrative in a very interesting place right after a final massive twist comes out, and you really will not be prepared for every surprise that comes your way here.

I really appreciated the great way that Craven told his latest novel, especially when it comes to The Mercy Chair’s unique narrative set up where the protagonist discussed the case with a psychologist sometime after the actual case.  The transition between Poe’s perspective of the case as it unfolds and his discussions with the psychologist after the fact really enhances the impact of the story in so many interesting ways.  In particular, you get some fascinating discussions around the psychology and people involved in the events, and I loved the multiple dark hints that the protagonist gave the audience about how more bad things were still to come.  This, combined with the multitude of elaborate and clever clues and hints featured throughout the entire story, really heightened anticipation for the later parts of the book, although even with all these hints, I wasn’t prepared for just how dark things got.  I felt that Craven really hit the right balance of mystery, intriguing character development for the protagonists, and utter suspense at the events occurring, and frankly once you get stuck into the main murder, its near impossible to get away from this book.  While The Mercy Chair is the sixth book in the Washington Poe series, it can easily be read as a standalone novel, even by those readers unfamiliar with the series.  Craven does an excellent job setting up the story and reintroducing the protagonists, so new readers can easily drop in here without any issue at all.  While long-term fans of the author/series will probably get a little more out of The Mercy Chair in terms of character growth, anybody can have an epic time with this book, especially if they love gritty and shocking mysteries with some brilliant twists.

It’s hard to talk about The Mercy Chair without mentioning the outstanding characters featured within, although I honestly risk spoiling certain story elements if I discuss the new figures in the book.  However, I do need to highlight the great way that Craven continues the outstanding partnership between main character Detective Sergeant Washington Poe and civilian analysist Tilly Bradshaw, which has been such a fantastic part of the previous Washington Poe books.  Poe, a gruff and fractious veteran cop, plays off the brilliant and socially awkward Tilly perfectly, and they form a rather unusual pairing that works extremely well throughout the course of the mystery.  There is a certain level of humour to their interactions, especially as both can be outrageous in their own way, and I liked the sibling vibes that Craven set up between them throughout the book.  While the author does reiterate a lot of his protagonist’s character traits from the previous books, there is also some excellent emotional development amongst the two.  Poe, who has grown from an angry loner into somebody capable of holding down a romantic relationship, ends up going through some major emotional and psychological issues thanks to the grim impacts of this case.  Watching Poe lose his grip on his calm is very powerful, especially as his deteriorating mental state corresponds with growing intensity of the investigation and the terrible revelations he uncovers.  I honestly grew so attached to Poe because of his frank narration of events throughout the book, and his partnership with Tilly honestly made this book for me.  Craven leaves Poe and Tilly’s story in an interesting place at the end of The Mercy Chair, and I look forward to seeing how they overcome their latest obstacles in the next book.  Throw in a great cast of supporting characters, including some complex victims and perpetrators and a bunch of fun recurring figures, and The Mercy Chair’s characters really help to make this story something very special.

With The Mercy Chair, M. W. Craven has officially become one of my favourite thriller authors and I cannot emphasise just how incredible this novel is.  Craven produces an outstanding and powerful story that features a particularly clever and shocking mystery that I could not get enough of.  Loaded with elaborate twists, complex characters, and so many dark revelations, The Mercy Chair is guaranteed to make you an instant fan of Craven, no matter how hard you try to forget his narrative’s intense tragedy.  I loved this book so much, and I honestly wonder what would have happened if Craven had gotten his way and made it even darker.

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Point Nemo by Jeremy Robinson

On By The Unseen LibraryIn Audiobook, Five-Star Books, Science Fiction, Thriller5 Comments

Point Nemo Cover

Publisher: Podium Audio (Audiobook – 5 April 2024)

Series: Standalone/Book One

Length: 9 hours and 31 minutes

My Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

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The always entertaining and intense Jeremy Robinson returns with a compelling and dark science fiction adventure that takes the reader on one hell of a mushroom trip with Point Nemo.

Jeremy Robinson is an intriguing author who has been contributing some exiting and wild books to various genres for nearly 20 years.  Best known for his over-the-top science fiction and horror thrillers, Robinson has written a ton of fantastic books over the years, including his Chess Team, Nemesis Saga and Antarktos Saga series, as well as an awesome collection of standalone novels.  I am mostly familiar with the books in Robinson’s more recent Infinite Timeline connected universe, which feature a huge collection of compelling standalone novels that gradually came together as the series continued.  I had a wonderful time with several entries from this universe, including Tribe, The Dark and Mind Bullet, the latter two of which were amongst my favourite books and audiobooks of 2021.  I have been meaning to read a lot more of Robinson’s books, and I finally got the chance when I grabbed a copy of his latest audiobook, Point Nemo.  Originally a screenplay by Robinson, the author morphed Point Nemo into a complex novel that I really got stuck into.

Alien life has been discovered, and it’s far closer to Earth than we ever realised.  Mission Specialist Julie Rohr, an astrobiologist, has been sent to the International Space Station to study a strange, migratory space dust called xylem that has unusual properties that could benefit all of humanity.  However, despite appearing benign, the xylem is both alive and extremely insidious, causing the International Space Station to fail and crash towards Earth, dragging Julie with it.  The destination of the crash landing is Point Nemo.

Lying in the heart of the South Pacific, Point Nemo is the most remote and desolate place on the entire planet.  Thanks to its strong and isolating currents, Point Nemo is essentially a dead zone, devoid of life or any form of land, which makes it the perfect place for the world governments to crash their satellites.  However, that is no longer the case, as a mysterious island has begun growing in the middle of Point Nemo without anyone knowing.  Worse, the island appears to be made up of xylem, and it has begun moving towards inhabited waters.

Determined to investigate this mysterious occurrence and rescue Julie and her research, the US government sends in a small team to find her.  Among the team is Julie’s estranged father, renowned mycologist Dr Finn Maddern, who journeys from his isolation in the Amazon rainforest to save his daughter.  However, that might prove to be harder than expected as the xylem-forged island is swiftly evolving, becoming ever more dangerous and giving birth to an array of strange and terrifying creatures.  As the team begins to suffer tragic loses, it quickly becomes apparent that the island has hostile intentions for all of humanity, and if it escapes Point Nemo, it could destroy all life on the planet.  Can Julie and her father find the secrets of the alien island before its too late, or will they end up food for the malicious life forms coming for all of humanity?

Jeremy Robinson produces another high intensity, clever, and exciting read that had me hooked the entire way through.  Point Nemo was a very impressive science fiction thriller that make excellent use of the author’s intriguing story concept to create an intriguing and haunting story.

Point Nemo had an outstanding and epic narrative behind it that is heavy on the action, intriguing science fiction elements, and just a bit of body horror, which allows for an intense and fast-paced read.  Starting off with a few explosive space station crashes, and never slowing down from there, Point Nemo grabbed my attention very early on, and I liked the unique scenarios that Robinson kept introducing to the plot.  There is a fast but comprehensive introduction to the various key players to the story, including primary protagonist and point of view character, Dr Finn Maddern, a literal jungle-man scientist who joins to the team to save his daughter.  The protagonists are soon dropped onto the mysterious island, where they quickly begin to understand the unique makeup of the island, and the unusual biological processes going on.  I felt the first half of this book was very strong, and while it loses a little of its storytelling punch due to the need to introduce the scenario, it was still extremely gripping.

The second half of Point Nemo is where things really pick up, as Robinson begins to unleash the full horror of the island the protagonists find themselves trapped on.  There are some gruesome deaths, insane action sequences, and some very dark moments, as the protagonists begin to understand the full horror of the quickly evolving alien island, and desperately try to find a way to either escape or stop the island from destroying the world.  This leads up to a very desperate and compelling conclusion, as the protagonists risk everything to save the day, only to encounter tragedy and more and more deadly alien creatures.  The various action sequences littering the second half of the Point Nemo were exceptional and I really liked the sheer tension that Robinson was able inject into the book at times, especially in the final, extended struggle.  I cannot emphasise how captivating and exciting this second half of Point Nemo was, and I powered through it so damn quickly.  Robinson ends everything on an interesting note that potentially hints at a sequel to come, and I look forward to seeing how he might expand on this fantastic narrative in the future.

Robinson has a very fun and distinctive style for his novels which he reuses again for Point Nemo.  Told pretty much exclusively from the first-person perspective of his excellent and compelling protagonists Finn Maddern, the reader is quickly thrust into the action while also being treated to some very relatable insights from his protagonist.  As is typical with a Robinson book, Point Nemo moves very fast and is very explosive at time, with the protagonists quickly falling in line with the adventure into the unusual scenario.  This book did feel a little overly cinematic at times, probably because that this novel was originally a screenplay, but Robinson has done an outstanding job of fleshing out his original concept into a complete and complex book.  Readers unfamiliar with Robinson’s style might not fully appreciate the more casual dialogue and character traits that he utilises, but I think it works extremely well, especially as there is a lot of fun humour and realistic reactions spread out here.

All the protagonists are very relatable and human in their portrayal, and I found myself getting attached to those that survived.  Even those who die due to their own mistakes are quite easy to understand (to a degree, one character’s death was very frustrating), as they have very human traits of stubbornness and pride.  Protagonist Finn Maddern was easily the standout of the book, and while his brilliance and humour are typical Robinson protagonist traits, you have to love his jungle scientist background, especially as it sets him up very nicely as a protagonist for this book without turning him into an impossible action hero.  Finn’s central perspective for the vast majority of the story is very easy to follow, and Robinson builds him up as quite a complex figure with a powerful past thanks to his first-person narration.  The author does switch up the perspective of Point Nemo at times, especially towards the end, and this proves to be quite an effective writing move at times, as it really shows how serious and game-changing events are getting.  Point Nemo ended up being a very good standalone book from Robinson, which can be easily enjoyed by any reader looking for a highly thrilling read, although established fans of the author will no doubt appreciate the fun joke references to some of his other works.

I think one of the strongest elements of Point Nemo was the unique science fiction elements that Robinson came up with as the basis for his story.  A mysterious alien spore that crashes satellites, enhances biology, creates a massive, connected living island in the ocean and evolves various crazy alien creatures is an outstanding concept that the author uses to full effect in their narrative.  The author does an excellent job of breaking down the science behind these elements and presenting it to the reader in a compelling way.  There are also some fun dives into mycology, especially as Earth fungi and mushrooms bear some interesting similarities to the alien spores and play a big role in the overall story.  The unique island and its fantastic creatures prove to be an amazing part of the book, and I loved how crazy and over-the-top Robinson made them.  The various dangers and creatures encountered by the protagonists are legitimately scary at times, and Robinson allows them to make his story particularly gruesome at times.  This includes some dark body horror moments that will stick in my mind, and which allows for a particularly shocking narrative that will keep readers very engrossed.  I honestly cannot talk up Robison’s science fiction elements enough, especially as this very inventive story basis allowed for a particularly exciting and captivating narrative.

There are several series and authors out there whose works I would always recommend that potential readers should check out on audiobook.  Jeremy Robinson is one of these, as all the novels of his that I have enjoyed have been in their audiobook format, which were really damn awesome.  This is once again true for Point Nemo, which proved to be an incredible listen.  Coming in with a run time of nine and a half hours, the Point Nemo audiobook was a lot of fun, especially as it enhanced Robinson’s exciting adventure, while also showcasing the intense action in all its gory glory.  It also helped that Point Nemo was narrated by the legendary R. C. Bray, who is one of my favourite audiobook narrators.  Robinson and Bray have a great partnership going, with Bray narrating most of the author’s recent books.  Bray has an incredible voice that works extremely well for thrillers and high excitement tales, and any audiobook read by him becomes instantly better.  His tones work wonders in the first-person chapters of Point Nemo, and I loved the deep and likeable tones he assigns to the various characters.  His narration for the main character, Finn Maddern, was particularly good, and Bray really captured the multiple elements of this complex character.  I love how Bray was able to simultaneously bring out Finn’s humour, passion and intensity with his voice work, and you really get drawn into his personal journey as a result.  Due to this voice work, as well as how the story was enhanced by being read out, I would strongly recommend the audiobook format as the best way to enjoy Point Nemo.

Jeremy Robinson continues to show why he is one of the best and most insanely inventive authors of the science fiction thriller.  Point Nemo is an exciting, addictive, and slightly insane read that had me hooked all the way through, especially as Robinson brought out some amazing and impressive science fiction elements to really enhance his action-packed story.  I had such a great time with Point Nemo, especially with its audiobook format with narrator R. C. Bray, who helped to turn this into a five-star read.  I cannot recommend Point Nemo enough, and I look forward to more books from Robison in the future, especially if the audiobooks are as epic as this one was.

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Warhammer 40,000: Deathworlder by Victoria Hayward

On By The Unseen LibraryIn Audiobook, Extended Universe, Science Fiction, Tie-in Novel, Warhammer9 Comments

Warhammer 40,000 - Deathworlder Cover

Publisher: Black Library (Audiobook – 23 April 2024)

Series: Warhammer 40,000

Length: 11 hours and 1 minute

My Rating: 4.75 out of 5 stars

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Debuting author Victoria Hayward presents one of the year’s most compelling entries to the Warhammer 40,000 canon, with the outstanding and grim novel, Deathworlder.

I have made no bones about how much love I have for Warhammer 40,000 extended fiction, which honestly features some of the very best media tie-in novels currently being written.  One of the things I particularly love about Warhammer fiction is the sheer range of compelling and impressive authors that are adding to the lore and narrative of this universe.  While a good chunk of the novels come from grizzled veteran Warhammer authors, the Black Library has also been cleverly utilising a range of intriguing new writers to offer fresh stories to the franchise, and some of the best books in recent years have been an author’s very first novel.  In 2023 alone there were several outstanding Warhammer 40,000 novels from first time authors, including The King of the Spoil by Jonathan D. Beer, Creed: Ashes of Cadia by Jude Reid, and Longshot by Rob Young, all of which were among my favourite debuts of the year.

2024 also looks set to a be a good year for authors making their debut through Warhammer fiction, especially when it comes to Deathworlder, the very first novel by exciting new author Victoria Hayward.  Featuring a compelling and exciting plot, Deathworlder has been on my radar for a while, and I ended up grabbing Deathworlder on audiobook as soon as I could.

There are many dangerous foes and deadly enemies stalking the galaxy in the far future, but none are as insidious, destructive and terrifying as the alien menace, the tyranids.  Made up of innumerable biological lifeforms, the tyranids traverse the galaxy, devouring entire planets and adding it to their biomass.  Hundreds of former human planets have fallen to the hivefleets of the tyranids, and the next world to be consumed is the planet of Lazulai.

Once a magnificent planet of beauty and rich resources, Lazulai is currently on the brink of destruction.  The armies of humanity were unable to hold back the invading tyranid hordes, and now the planet has begun to change as it is devoured by the alien lifeforms covering its surface.  Only a few small pockets of resistance remain, including the 903rd Catachan Night Shrikes, who garrison one of the last fortresses still standing.  However, hope remains in the most unlikely of places.

Receiving intelligence about a mysterious piece of archeotech that may hold the key for saving the entire system, Major Wulf Khan is given one final mission to retrieve the technology.  Leading a small mixed squad, Major Khan must use all the innate Catachan skills of infiltration and survival in extreme environments to lead her soldiers through the alien jungles that have sprouted up in the wake of the tyranid advance.  However, while the Catachans might be the best jungle fighters humanity has to offer, they are facing off against an unstoppable foe, capable of adapting to the greatest of obstacles.  Can Khan and her Catachans prove they are the deadliest survivors in the galaxy or will the tyranid horde consume them alongside the last remnants of Lazulai?

Deathworlder was a particularly dark and intense Warhammer 40,000 novel that grabbed my attention from the very beginning.  Hayward came up with a wonderful story that expertly highlighted the opposing Warhammer factions while also making full use of some very strong character work to tell an emotionally charged narrative.

I really liked how Deathworlder’s story unfolded as it proved to be a gritty, character-driven tale of survival.  Starting off by expertly showing the end of the planet setting and the despair being felt by the various protagonists, the story quickly moves along into the main quest, with the Catachan protagonist, Major Wulf Khan, leading a small squad of troops out to recover valuable technology before the planet dies.  The story is primarily split between the perspectives of Khan and the Cadian Lieutenant Kaede Anditz, who joins the squad as a guide towards their final objective.  This leads to an intriguing first half of the book, as the eclectic squadron of protagonists begins their trek towards the objective.  There are some dark and grim moments here, especially as large chunks of the protagonist’s comrades get killed in the lead-up to their mission, and the reader is soon engulfed in the horrifying early stages of the destruction of the planet.

The second half of Deathworlder only gets darker, as the protagonists encounter more and more obstacles on their quest.  I really appreciated how Hayward focused on the alien and human monsters that the protagonists are forced to deal with, and the author ensures that emotions are constantly running hot as the characters encounter worse and worse things.  A particularly powerful moment splits the perspectives of the book even further, while also leading to some very dark experiences.  There are some excellent action set pieces, compelling character moments, and dark examinations of humanity on the edge, through this part of the book, and I honestly found it impossible to put Deathworlder down at times as a result.  Everything leads up to the final sequence as the protagonists encounter even darker surprises and revelations as they attempt to survive.  There are several exceedingly tense moments where you are constantly left wondering if any of the protagonists are going to make it, and I loved how desperate things got.  Hayward ends everything on an intriguing note, and readers will come away very moved by how this great narrative came together.

I felt that Hayward had a great dark tone for Deathworlder that really showcases just how deadly and hopeless parts of the Warhammer 40,000 universe can be.  The focus on characters who had already accepted that they were going to die, as well as the terrible changes that a loss in this universe can result in, gave a particularly intense edge to the book, which I felt made helped it really stand out.  Things get quite dark in Deathworlder, as Hayward really wanted to highlight the terrors of the tyranid, and I honestly got a major horror vibe at times, especially when it came to some particularly gruesome deaths (the field of stuck soldiers still makes me shudder).  While there is plenty of action, tragedy and lore dumps, I felt that the author’s decision to really focus on the book’s unique characters and camaraderie was very clever, and I became really invested due to the exceptional character work.  Deathworlder also proved to be a very strong addition to the Warhammer 40,000 franchise, and Hayward ensures that there is plenty of appeal for both established fans and new readers.  Indeed, I felt that Deathworlder would be a very good entry point into the larger fiction surrounding the Warhammer 40,000 franchise, especially as Hayward’s fresh writing shows just how complex a novel set in this grimdark universe can be.

While Deathworlder would be a good entry point for new readers, established Warhammer 40,000 fans will also get quite a lot out of this book, especially as Hayward expertly highlights two exceptional factions, the Catachans and the tyranids.

Essentially an army of Rambos, the Catachans have been a fan favourite regiment for ages and are always a great inclusion to any narrative.  I have read a few books around the Catachans, including Catachan Devil by Justin Woolley.  These novels, while fun, always tend to focus on the more stereotypical aspects of the Catachans: muscles, jungle craft and big knives.  However, Hayward takes a bit more of nuanced look at the Catachans in Deathworlder, showing them to be a complicated group of soldiers who fall back on the hard-talking jungle killer personas when the going gets tough.  While one very fun character does live up to the stereotype, primarily for comedic effect, for the most part the Catachans are shown as practical survivors, who in this book, are at the end of their tethers.  As such, you see a much more compelling side to the Catachans, and it was fascinating to see how complex the members of the regiment are, as well as how damaged they are by the constant fighting and slaughter.  The author’s use of alternative perspectives allows the readers to see the Catachans in various lights, both from within their own minds, and through the eyes of the Cadian Lieutenant Kaede Anditz, who grows to respect their culture and methods as the book continues.  I really appreciated this more realistic and grounded look at the Catachans in Deathworlder, and Hayward really showcased her ability to portray an iconic human regiment.

While the Catachans get a lot of the focus, you also really need to highlight the tyranids in Deathworlder, who serve as an outstanding antagonist.  While I have enjoyed a few great books where the tyranids were terrifying monsters, including Day of Ascension by Adrian Tchaikovsky, Leviathan by Darius Hinks and Duty Calls by Sandy Mitchell, Deathworlder might be one of the best portrayals of the tyranids that I have so far read.  That is primarily because Hayward’s story is set on a world already being devoured by the tyranids.  The resulting scenes of destruction, despair and digestion prove to be quite horrific, and few writers have really captured just how disturbing this scenario would be.  I felt the various scenes where the protagonists, who themselves are being slowly digested by falling spores, encounter the continuous horrors of the dying world, were so damn good.  The human experience with these horrors is a key part of Deathworlders appeal, and the despairing reactions from both the hardened soldier protagonists, as well as civilians they encounter along the way, really sells just how horrifying the situation truly is.  Even the more typical tyranid threat is well represented in Deathworlder.  The author really captures the fear associated with hordes of ravenous, chitinous aliens as they overrun simple soldiers.  While the tyranids are occasionally depowered by the protagonist’s plot armour, for the most part they are outstanding monsters, and the constant threat they could suddenly represent, proves to be a fantastic part of the novel.  As such, fans who love tyranids are in for a real treat with Deathworlder, and seldom are they a better monstrous villain than in this book.

I cannot write my review of Deathworlder without once again mentioning the impressive characters featured within this book.  Hayward excelled at introducing and exploring complex and damaged protagonists, and their very human, very determined actions, prove to be the true heart and soul of the narrative.  You go through a lot with these characters, and their overwhelming humanity in the face of continuous horrors and loss makes for a very powerful read.  There are some great characters here, including main protagonist Major Wulf Khan, a grizzled Catachan fighter who finds her desire to complete the mission constantly challenged by the losses of those around her.  Her trusted orderly, Sergeant Rutger Haruto, proves to be an excellent backup, especially as his constant curiosity and sensible nature helps to keep his commander in check.  Alternate point-of-view character Lieutenant Kaede Anditz is another excellent addition to the cast, and I think that his unique perspective of the Catachans he suddenly finds himself serving with ensured that their compelling portrayal in Deathworlder really came through.  Anditz is also going through a lot of trauma, especially after witnessing the slaughter of every Cadian soldier on Lazulai, and Hayward really ensures that his guilt and horror really shine through in his chapters.

While the characters above are great, my favourite was probably Trooper Falke Adair.  A muscled Catachan with a heavy flamer, Adair is essentially a walking Catachan stereotype, something she really acts up as the book continues.  Crass, disrespectful and always looking for a fight, Adair steals any scene she becomes a part of, and her over-the-top mannerisms and actions are very entertaining.  However, as the book continues, and characters, particularly Anditz, get closer to her, you see that much of her bravado is a front, and she proves to be one of the most complex figures in the entire novel.

I also must highlight the brilliant character of Lamya.  A Genestealer Cult propagandist, Lamya is captured at the start of the novel and dragged along by the squad for her knowledge.  An arrogant and slightly unhinged noble turned tyranid-worshipping stooge, Lamya plays off the other characters perfectly, and her distain for those around her is so much fun.  However, the more they traverse Lazulai, the more Lamya comes face to face with the horrors that her cult helped to bring to her planet.  Caught between her own beliefs and the horrors she witnesses, Lamya goes quite insane as the book continues, while also providing some of the most compelling perspective of events in the entire novel.  Throw in a scheming Tech Priest and a silent Catachan sniper, and this proves to be an outstanding cast of main characters that you really grow attached to as you watch their intense personal and physical journey.

Unsurprisingly, I chose to check out Deathworlder on audiobook, which is just the best way to enjoy a Warhammer novel.  This was very much the case with Deathworlder, and I loved how effectively and vividly the story came across as it was being read out to me.  The exciting action, captivating characters, and horrendous horrors of the narrative really came to life, especially when read out by talented narrator Gabrielle Nellis-Pain, whose work on The King of the Spoil audiobook last year was very fun.  Nellis-Pain did another outstanding job with Deathworlder, and I love how effectively she told Hayward’s elaborate story.  I particularly enjoyed the excellent voices she gifted to the various characters within Deathworlder, and she very effectively captured the cool protagonists in all their martial glory.  This was particularly true for the over-the-top Catachan protagonists, and you could really visualise the muscular characters as she narrated.  Nellis-Pain also ensured that appropriate alternate accents were given to characters from other human factions, such as the Cadians or the Adeptus Mechanicus, and I particularly enjoyed how well the narrator expressed the mechanical nature of the latter.  I honestly believe that this book wouldn’t have been as impactful if I had physically read it, and I strongly recommend the audiobook version as a result.  Coming in with a run time of 11 hours, Deathworlder was so much fun to listen to, and you can power through it in no time at all.

With her very first novel, Deathworlder, debuting author Victoria Hayward shows she is a writing force to be a reckoned with, especially when it comes to Warhammer fiction.  Deathworlder was an outstanding Warhammer 40,000 novel that features a truly dark and intense narrative, loaded with great characters and compelling depictions of Warhammer universe.  An exceptional read from start to finish, I cannot talk this novel up enough, and I am really intrigued to see how Hayward follows up her amazing debut.

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Star Trek: The Next Generation: Pliable Truths by Dayton Ward

On By The Unseen LibraryIn Audiobook, Extended Universe, Science Fiction, Star Trek, Tie-in Novel3 Comments

Star Trek - Pliable Truths Cover

Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio (Audiobook – 21 May 2024)

Series: Star Trek: The Next Generation

Length: 11 hours

My Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

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Leading Star Trek author Dayton Ward presents a compelling new tie-in novel that bridges the gap between two of the franchise’s most iconic shows in the outstanding and impressive Pliable Truths.

I have mentioned a few times on this blog that Star Trek extended fiction is amongst some of the richest and most comprehensive of all the assembled tie-in fiction.  There are hundreds of intriguing novels that expand on the universe introduced in the television series and movies, all of which are highly fascinating, especially for fans of the various shows.  While I haven’t explored Star Trek extended fiction as much as some other franchises out there, I have had the pleasure of reading several outstanding books, with some of my favourites including The Captain’s Oath by Christopher L. Bennett, The Last Best Hope by Una McCormack and Die Standing by John Jackson Miller.  Due to my enjoyment of these previous books, I keep an eye out for new Star Trek releases, and I was very intrigued when I saw that Dayton Ward had released a new book, Pliable Truths.

Dayton Ward is well-known science fiction author who has made a name for himself creating tie-in fiction for several different franchises.  Ward’s most comprehensive work involves writing Star Trek novels, with the author writing an intriguing collection of different Star Trek books connected to different series.  I have read a couple of Ward’s books in recent years, including The Next Generation novel, Available Light, and the Original Series novel, Agents of Influence.  These previous books from Ward both proved to be very impressive, and I had a great time reading them.  As such, when I saw that Pliable Truths was written by Ward, I knew it was going to be another fantastic read, especially as the author has a lot of experience writing fiction for the various Star Trek series, periods and timelines.  This latest novel, Pliable Truths, while ostensibly tied-into The Next Generation series, also serves as a compelling bridging novel between the events of The Next Generation and its spin-off series, Deep Space Nine.

Following a tumultuous series of events, Starfleet has managed to thwart a planned invasion of a Federation system by the Cardassians.  Thrown into political disarray by their military defeat, the Cardassian civilian government has acceded to Starfleet demands and ordered the withdrawal from the occupied planet of Bajor.  Long enslaved by the Cardassians, the Bajorans are determined to once again rule themselves, but they first reluctantly require the assistance of the Federation.

To ensure a peaceful transition of power to the new Bajoran government, Starfleet orders Captain Jean-Luc Picard and the Enterprise to the Bajor to oversee negotiations between the Bajorans and the Cardassians.  Still recovering from his own recent trauma suffered at the hands of a Cardassians torturer, Picard is unsure if he is ready to fairly arbitrate the question of recompense and justice.  But with no other choice, Picard travels to the massive Cardassian space station orbiting Bajor, Terok Nor.

Attempting to stay neutral and calm, Picard soon finds his patience tested by the disruptive tactics of the Cardassians, as they seek to gain advantage from the chaos surrounding the withdraw.  The situation looks to become even more complicated when Ensign Ro Laren receives a message from a long-missing friend, exposing deadly secrets from inside Cardassian space.  Forced to balance the needs of the Bajorans with a desire to stop a new war erupting between the Federation and the Cardassians, Picard will need to utilise all his diplomatic skills to salvage the situation.  But can even Picard remain calm when he comes face to the face with the man responsible for his recent torture?

Dayton Ward continues to showcase why he is one of the top authors of Star Trek fiction with this compelling and intriguing read.  Serving as a brilliant bridge between two key shows, Pliable Truths has an outstanding story behind it that does an amazing job diving into the iconic lore and characters of the Star Trek universe.

Pliable Truths had a great narrative behind it that sought to simultaneously fill in certain gaps between The Next Generation and Deep Space Nine, while also producing a standalone narrative that proved quite intriguing to get into.  Set between the events of The Next Generation episode Chain of Command and the first episode of Deep Space Nine, Pliable Truth’s main story primarily follows The Next Generation cast, as well as several of the best characters from Deep Space Nine, as they attempt to help Bajor adapt to its independence.  At the same time, a separate storyline follows a group of Bajoran labours working at a Cardassian prison camp, whose freedom is threatened by the dark secrets surrounding the camp.  I very much enjoyed how both storylines unfolded, as the Cardassian labour camp part of the narrative is quite intense and focuses on a raft of intriguing new characters engaged in a game of cat and mouse, as the prisoners try to work out why they are still imprisoned and how they can save themselves.  At the same time, the storyline around the Enterprise crew and Bajor focuses on the attempts to rebuilt Bajor and the future Deep Space Nine space station, as well as the ongoing negotiations between the Cardassians and the Bajorans, moderated by Picard.

This main storyline with the established characters of the two series proves to be an entertaining and enjoyable experience, especially as Ward works in so many references and key characters.  The unique interactions between the characters from both shows, most of whom never shared screentime, is very fun, and Ward does a great job playing up both the emotional and entertainment value of these interactions.  However, the heart of this story revolves around Picard as he comes face to face with the Cardassians after the events of Chain of Command where he was tortured (“There are four lights!”).  This proves to be an emotionally charged part of the story, especially when Picard is required to deal with his former torturer Gul Madred.  As Picard is forced to deal with his trauma, his crew encounter a series of complications and sabotages they need to overcome to save the station and the planet.

Both storylines come together extremely well as Pliable Truths nears its end, and I liked how well Ward balanced these separate narrative threads.  The darker moments of the Cardassian prison planet serves as an interesting contrast to the fanservice taking place in the main storyline, and I think this combination of storylines made for quite a distinctive narrative that stood on its own.  Ward brings a certain amount of tragedy to the end of Pliable Truths, which helped to enhance some of the more positive moments of the story, including Picard regaining his confidence, and the potentially bright future for Bajor.  All the main story elements get wrapped up satisfactorily, and I liked some of the entertaining twists that Ward through in there.  An overall impressive story and one that will appeal to a lot of Star Trek fans, Pliable Truths was a great read that I couldn’t get enough of.

Now this proved to be a very interesting Star Trek novel which is primarily going to appeal to fans of the franchise.  Ward, who knows more than most about Star Trek, does a wonderful job turning Pliable Truths into a compelling bridging novel between the two key series.  Showcasing the events that lead to the Federation having a presence on Deep Space Nine and the Cardassian withdrawal from Bajor, Pliable Truth fills in a lot of the gaps between The Next Generation and Deep Space Nine.  There is a lot of detail covered here in Pliable Truths as result, and I really enjoyed Ward’s take on the story and how the intervening events likely unfolded.  As a fan of both shows, I found this to be very cool, especially as Ward layers in a ton of clever and intricate references that fans of both shows, especially Deep Space Nine, will really appreciate.  Things like Riker’s legendary win at Quarks, the early machinations of Garak, the reasons behind O’Brien’s decision to stay at the station, and more are all featured here, and Ward obviously had fun including them in his story.  Ward also takes the time to cover the various atrocities of the Cardassian occupation of Bajor, which is referenced a lot in the shows, and which becomes a key part of this plot.  Discussing the various horrors committed by the Cardassians adds a darker tinge to much of the plot, and the obviously parallels to real-life occupations, ensure the reader comes away very thoughtful.  As such, Pliable Truths really is geared towards existing Star Trek fans, although I’m sure casual readers can probably have fun with this book, especially if they have watched some of Deep Space Nine.

One of the best parts of Pliable Truths was the excellent way in which Ward presented several iconic Star Trek characters and utilised them in the plot.  All of the key characters from The Next Generation were very strongly featured in Pliable Truths to various degrees, and even a few minor recurring characters had major showings in this book.  Each of them is featured in a manner very similar to how they appeared in the show, which I deeply appreciated, and it is a testament to Ward’s abilities as an author that he made them feel very realistic here.  The most prominent of these is Captain Jean-Luc Picard, who has the most compelling storyline in the entire novel.  Picard, who in the story recently suffered from immense torture during the Chain of Command episodes, is shown to still be in mental recovery during this book, especially as his latest ordeal compounds various other traumatic experiences Picard has suffered over the years.  As such, much of this book is dedicated to Picard facing his Cardassian-related demons, which becomes the emotional heart of the story.  This becomes especially true when Picard’s former torturer appears, and their resulting scenes together are some of the strongest in the books.

Aside from The Next Generation cast, quite a lot of Pliable Truths is spent focusing on several intriguing figures who would go on to become main characters in the Deep Space Nine series.  Ward does a great job setting the scene for them to enter the plot of the new show, and I liked the way in which the author bridged the gaps between their first appearances on Deep Space Nine and their established backstories.  The includes focusing on Miles O’Brien and examining the reasons why he chose to leave the Enterprise and become an engineer on the station.  Quark and Odo get several fun sequences, Deep Space Nine antagonist Gul Dukat gets to menace around in all his arrogant glory, while Major Kira has an extended sequence with her badass abilities on full display.  However, my favourite character appearance was the always entertaining Elim Garak.  The “former” Cardassian spy turned “simple” tailor, Garak has some great moments in Pliable Truths as he starts to come to terms with his exile, as well as the growing fortunes of his former comrades/rivals.  Ward does an outstanding job capturing the hilarious nature of Garak and his cutting remarks, and he proved to be a fantastic figure in Pliable Truths, especially with his final hilarious, if sinister, scene.  I loved seeing earlier versions of several key Deep Space Nine characters in this story, especially as they also have unique interactions with their The Next Generation counterparts, and any fan of the show will have a wonderful time seeing them in action here.

As with most pieces of tie-in fiction I enjoy, I ended up listening to Pliable Truths on audiobook, which proved to be an excellent experience.  I personally find that the Star Trek books come across extremely well in this format, and at times it almost feels like you are watching one of the television shows.  A lot of this is due to the excellent narration of Robert Petkoff, who has lent his voice to many Star Trek audiobooks over the years.  One of my favourite audiobook narrators, Petkoff is well known for his ability to replicate the voices of many of the characters from the Star Trek franchise, especially the original series.  His work in Pliable Truths is pretty damn epic, especially as he brings so many classic characters to life with his great impersonations.  I felt that his versions of many of the Next Generation cast members, particularly Picard, Riker, Worf and Data, came across extremely well in Pliable Truths, and I also liked his take on the various Deep Space Nine characters that appeared, including Odo, Quark and Garak.  In addition to his great take on many of the characters from the show, Petkoff also supplies fitting voices to various new figures who only appear in this book.  In this case, Petkoff takes care to really highlight the species of the relevant character, utilising accents and tones associated with them from the show.   This excellent voice work really helped to drag me into the story, and I had a brilliant time listening to this wonderful audiobook.  Coming in with a run time of 11 hours, this is a very easy audiobook to get through quickly, and I would strongly recommend Pliable Truths in this format.

Pliable Truths was an incredible new Star Trek novel from Dayton Ward that provides fans of the franchise with some great callbacks to two classic television series.  Featuring a fantastic story and great interpretations of so many amazing characters, I had a wonderful time listening to Pliable Truths and it was one of the better audiobooks I have so far listened to in 2024.

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The Chaos Agent by Mark Greaney

On By The Unseen LibraryIn Audiobook, Five-Star Books, Thriller13 Comments

The Chaos Agent Cover

Publisher: Sphere/Audible (Audiobook – 20 February 2024)

Series: Gray Man – Book 13

Length: 17 hours and 34 minutes

My Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

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One of the leading authors of the spy thriller genre, Mark Greaney, returns with another epic entry in his iconic Gray Man series, The Chaos Agent.

Readers of this blog will know that I am a massive fan of thriller author Mark Greaney, who has been wowing the world with his elaborate and exciting stories for years.  Ever since I started reading thrillers, Greaney has been a major figure in my yearly reading schedule, with books like Armored and Red Metal (cowritten with Hunter Ripley Rawlings IV), ensuring that he became a must-read author for me.  However, his most iconic body of work is his Gray Man series, which follows legendary former CIA agent and assassin Court Gentry, known as the Gray Man, as he engages in carnage across the world.  This series, which people may be familiar with thanks to the Netflix adaptation, is so damn good, and I really love the elaborate and intense stories that emerge.  This includes the impressive first novel The Gray Man, as well as later books like Mission Critical, One Minute Out (one of my favourite books and audiobooks of 2020), Relentless (one of my favourite books and audiobooks of 2021) and Sierra Six (one of my favourite books and audiobooks of 2022) and Burner (one of my favourite books and audiobooks of 2023).  Naturally, I grabbed Greaney’s latest novel, The Chaos Agent, the first chance I could, and it proved to be another amazing read.

Across the world, elite scientists are being murdered in a series of elaborate and well-coordinated assassinations.  The killers are well equipped, well prepared, and seem capable of striking across multiple countries.  The only connection between the killings is the area of expertise the victims are known for, as someone is targeting the world’s leading experts in artificial intelligence and robotics.

As the killings continue, it appears that only two major assassins aren’t involved in the plot, the Gray Man, Court Gentry, and his lover Zoya Zakharova.  Hiding out in Central America after their last mission once again forced them to become fugitives, Court and Zoya are seeking the quiet life together after all their years apart.  But an assassin’s work is never done, and soon an old family friend of Zoya’s seeks them out, hoping that they can help identify the individuals behind the attack.  Initially reluctant to get involved, Court and Zoya soon find themselves targeted by association, and must flee an army of dangerous killers and mysterious advanced combat drones.

Forced to find out who is hunting them, Court and Zoya soon discover that the killings are linked to a deadly proposed artificial intelligence weapon that could change everything about modern warfare.  To discover what’s truly going on, the two former agents and their allies need to investigate the one survivor of the ongoing assassinations.  But with their target now protected by an old friend of theirs, Zack Hightower, in an isolated fortress, Court and Zoya will need to use all their connections and luck to find the truth before it’s too late?

The Chaos Agent was another excellent novel from Greaney, who continues to highlight why he is one of the world’s leading spy thriller writers.  This latest Gray Man novel ended up being a lot of fun, especially as Greaney goes a little overboard with the plot, and I deeply enjoyed the resulting adventure.

Greaney came out of the bag with something very exciting in The Chaos Agent, which is mainly down to how over-the-top and crazy the main narrative ended up being.  This story starts off relatively low-key, with a couple of random killings, and an update on the lives of the protagonist, Court Gentry, and his partner Zoya Zakharova.  Naturally, it doesn’t take long for Gentry and Zakharova to get dragged into the action, and this starts an intense fugitive arc for them, as they find themselves being hunted by various killers across central America.  At the same time, the other supporting characters of the book are investigating the worldwide plot around the assassination of various AI experts.  This results in a compelling investigation angle that continues for a large portion of The Chaos Agent, and it was fun to not completely know the identity of the book’s antagonist until towards the end.  This first half of The Chaos Agent definitely got my attention, and the compelling action, intense mystery, and intriguing characters help to draw the reader in.

The second half of The Chaos Agent is where things start to get particularly interesting, as Greaney amps up the story and throws it into overdrive.  In particular, the antagonists get even more crazy, which is well shown in an intense action sequence involving Gentry and Zakharova in contact’s house in Central America.  These additional opponents give The Chaos Agent a real science fiction edge to them, and it was a gloriously over-the-top inclusion that I really loved.  The various character storylines soon come together after that, as all the characters end up in Cuba investigating who is truly behind everything and why.  There are some cool sequences here, including complex and intricate multi-perspective operations as various players manoeuvre around each other to achieve their goals.  This all leads up nicely to the big extended finale, where all hell breaks loose as Greaney sets up a massive firefight with various sides thrown into the mix.  The action here is intense, with the carnage flying thick and fast, and with so many perils coming for the protagonists.  It all ends on a pretty big cliffhanger that will play nicely into the next book in the series, especially as two major supporting characters find their situation drastically changed due to their decisions.

I deeply enjoyed how this cool novel unfolded, and Greaney utilises his trademark writing style to great effect with this excellent story.  The high-intensity action, fast-paced plot, and intriguing overarching storyline came together wonderfully, and it proves very hard not to get drawn into The Chaos Agent as a result.  I particularly love how Greaney so effortlessly jumps between different character perspectives throughout the course of the book, which allows for a more complex and enhanced story.  These quickfire changes in perspective also work extremely well in some of the book’s more intense sequences, especially as seeing the various participants continuously react to other character’s actions, allows for some outstanding scenes.  Good examples of this include a sequence in the Cuban docks where Gentry and a rival assassin move around each other trying to simultaneously protect or kill their target.  These scenes, and more, are true highlights of this book, and I love how well they were able to incorporate the particularly eccentric inclusions that Greaney featured within The Chaos Agent.

As with most of the books in the Gray Man series, The Chaos Agent can easily be read as a standalone novel.  Greaney does a good job of recapping any the relevant key events from the prior novels where needed so new readers can enjoy this book without knowing anything about the rest of the series.  That being said, established Gray Man readers will probably get a little more out of The Chaos Agent, especially when it comes to seeing how the various character relationships unfold.  It also helps that this proved to be a particularly memorable entry in the series.  Not only does Greaney go all out with his very inventive and exciting story, but there is a great combination of story elements there that everyone can enjoy.  The intense action pairs well with a deep dive into modern technology elements, and Greaney pulls together an intriguing mystery about who is behind everything, rather than showing the antagonist from the get-go.  While some of the twists around the true antagonist are a little predictable, Greaney played them out well, and they worked into the massive status quo changes at the end of the book.  I will admit that I did find some of Greaney’s writing, including the dialogue, to be a little robotic at times in The Chaos Agent, which is kind of ironic when you consider the story focus.  The way some parts of the writing or dialogue came together just didn’t feel right to me at times, and that slightly decreased my enjoyment of the book.  Still, the awesome story more than made up for it, and I felt this was an awesome addition to the overall series, especially as the epic ending has got me extremely excited for the next book.

One of the things that I really enjoyed about The Chaos Agent was Greaney’s intriguing look at the future of AI and how it could be utilised in the military and intelligence fields.  Greaney clearly did some research on the subject, and several characters spend significant time lecturing about the potential advantages and dangers of AI weaponry.  I found this to be utterly fascinating, and this ends up being quite a key part of the book, especially once the protagonists find themselves beset by advanced drones and other distinctive weaponry.  As I mentioned above, Greaney uses this AI concept to make The Chaos Agent a little more science fiction than his previous novels.  While I won’t go into too much detail here, as frankly it is best experienced in the context of the story, some of these elements were very outrageous, and it made the story quite fun with some unique action.  While it was very over-the-top, Greaney did paint everything with a film of realism, and I came away from The Chaos Agent with a healthy respect and fear for the potential future of AI in the military, especially as Greaney is probably right and someone will use it to kill the rest of us.

Aside from the complex writing and cool AI elements, The Chaos Agent’s story is also enhanced by a great cast of characters who are cleverly showcased throughout the plot.  This includes protagonist Court Gentry and his partner Zoya Zakharova, who were reunited in the last book.  Gentry and Zakharova form an effective team as the main protagonists of The Chaos Agent, and it was fun to see them in action again.  However, Greaney also adds in an element of dissention, especially as neither really has the ability to trust other people, and they are both concerned about their potential future.  Their combined storyline goes in some interesting directions, and the final twist of the book ensures that their relationship will be a big part of the next entry in the series.  Greaney also brings back fun recurring character Zack Hightower, who worked with Gentry and Zakharova in the past.  Hightower is always great value for money, and he had an interesting run in The Chaos Agent as he’s hired as security for a tech billionaire being targeted.  Hightower ends up being an integral part of the book, and it was great to see him working with Gentry and Zakharova again, especially as his new job leads to some dark moments for him.  Throw in an excellent supporting cast, which includes some recurring faces and some new intriguing antagonists, and this ended up being an excellent book that makes fantastic use of its characters.

I have always found that the best way to enjoy one of the Gray Man novels is to listen to it in its audiobook format, which really enhances the story.  This is once again true for The Chaos Agent, which turned out to be such an epic listen.  The audiobook format, which has a substantial runtime of 17 and a half hours, proved to be a lot of fun, and I deeply appreciated how well it enhanced Greaney’s already fun story and writing style.  The constant movement between perspective characters, especially in the action sequences, comes across really well, and the intense fights feel so much more real and impactful when they are read out.  It helps that The Chaos Agent was once again narrated by Jay Snyder, who has voiced all the other Gray Man novels.  Snyder has a great vocal range that really lends itself to a spy thriller novel like The Chaos Agent, and all the over-the-top tough characters are captured extremely well in this audiobook, with Snyder expertly bringing back recurring voices from the previous Gray Man audiobooks.  The rest of the extended cast also get appropriate and fitting tones, and you can see Snyder is really trying to get the voices to match the characters.  This includes accents, as Snyder tries to capture many of the ethnicities captured within The Chaos Agent’s story, including a pretty good attempt at the New Zealand accent.  As such, I really found myself getting drawn into The Chaos Agent’s story while listening to it, and while Snyder can also be a tad robotic at times, this audiobook format was a pretty exceptional way to enjoy this amazing book.

Overall, The Chaos Agent was another excellent addition to one of the very best spy thriller series currently running.  Mark Greaney always goes all out with his amazing Gray Man novels, and The Chaos Agent is one of his most intense and gripping reads yet.  Clever, compelling, and featuring some particularly fun story features, The Chaos Agent is an excellent read that gets another five-star rating from me.

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Hill 112 by Adrian Goldsworthy

On By The Unseen LibraryIn Historical Fiction1 Comment

Hill 112 Cover

Publisher: Head of Zeus (ebook – 23 May 2024)

Series: Standalone/Book One

Length: 495 pages

My Rating: 4.75 out of 5 stars

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Prepare to dive headfirst into the deadliest of struggles as acclaimed historical fiction author Adrian Goldsworthy provides a captivating look at the Normandy invasions with his epic novel, Hill 112.

Adrian Goldsworthy is an impressive historical fiction author who has been producing some great novels as of late.  A respected historian, Goldsworthy made the jump back to fiction in 2011 when he started his Napoleonic Wars series.  I had the great pleasure of reading the first few books in the series, including True Solider Gentlemen and Beat the Drums Slowly, and Goldsworthy prove to be an outstanding author who would focus his stories on intriguing historical elements.  His Napoleonic Wars series ended up featuring six novels before he dove into Roman historical fiction in 2017 with his Roman Britain series.  Starting with Vindolanda and also featuring six novels, the Roman Britain series sounds very awesome, and it is one I need to check out in the future.  Due to how much I enjoyed some of Goldsworthy’s previous books, I made sure to grab a copy of his latest release, Hill 112, which provides a compelling examination of the bloody invasion of Normandy during World War II.

June 6th, 1944.  After years of enduring the Nazi onslaught, the Allies are finally ready to begin their campaign to invade occupied France.  But to liberate France and free all of Europe, the Allies first must make a perilous landing and brave the full force of the German army waiting for them.  The destination for their fateful landing: Normandy!

As the Allies begin their invasion, three young soldiers, former classmates from south Wales, are amongst the troops landing in Normandy.  The charismatic James must put his previous experience as cricket captain into practice by leading a troop of Sherman tanks into fray.  The athletic Mark is forced to prove himself as the young officer in charge of a platoon of infantrymen, while Bill, the group’s resident firebrand, finds himself in the middle of the fighting as he serves as a private soldier.  However, none of these young men are truly prepared for the carnage to come.

The battle-hardened German army is determined to push the Allies back into the sea, and soon both sides find themselves caught up in a brutal battle for survival.  Into the middle of this, James, Mark and Bill find their courage and luck tested like never before as they finally experience the horrors of war and the seemingly unbeatable Germans.  Their fates, and that of the entire Allied war effort, will be decided in one of the most brutal fights of the Normandy campaign, the battle for Hill 112.

Goldsworthy brings together one of his heaviest and moving novels yet with the incredible Hill 112.  A gritty and realistic war story that seeks to capture the experiences of young soldiers during Normandy, Hill 112 was a fantastic and moving novel that drags readers right into the heart of the fighting.

Hill 112 has a great story to it that, while simple in concept, hits the reader hard and provides a powerful look into the realities of war.  Told from the perspective of three young soldiers as they experience their first taste of combat, Hill 112 is a very moving war novel that is hard to look away from at times.  Starting with the first day of the Normandy landings, you initially follow James, who leads the charge with his tank unit, while Mark and Bill wait back in England for their deployment to the front.  While this did make James’s chapters a lot more interesting and exciting than the others’ at the start of the book, I liked how Goldsworthy chose to start the remaining two characters off back in England.  Not only was historically realistic, but it allowed you to get to know these two protagonists and other supporting characters before the fighting, while also building up the tension, especially when you compared their experiences with what James was going through on the front.

It doesn’t take long for Mark and Bill to make it over to Normandy, and from there the reader becomes enmeshed in seeing all three protagonists facing the tough campaign in Europe.  There is a lot of action and a ton of tragedy in this part of the book, and it was fascinating to see them slowly adjust to the new normal of battle, as they experience the true horrors of war.  Goldsworthy continued to keep the three protagonists separated for most of the story, which allows each of them to grow, while also showcasing several different fronts at the same time.  Their storylines start to converge as the book continues, especially when they find themselves at the foot of the tactically significant Hill 112.  The last third of the book is essentially all out fighting as the three protagonists attempt to survive the desperate battle for the hill.  The carnage flies thick and fast in this part of the book, and you are constantly on edge as the three characters fight on, while also trying to understand the necessity and impacts of war.  I was deeply captivated for this entire part of Hill 112, and I couldn’t stop reading as I waited to see the fates of all three characters.  Goldsworthy did not disappoint, as the ending to this book was extremely shocking and powerful, and you come away wondering about the sacrifices, experiences and emotions of those involved in the fighting.  This was a such a great character-driven war story, and I came away very impressed with how it all unfolded.

I deeply enjoyed the compelling and powerful story that Goldsworthy created for Hill 112 that hits all the right notes for the reader.  Goldsworthy made the clever choice to provide the reader with a more insular look at the invasion, as the viewpoint is limited to the lower-ranked protagonists, more concerned with their own battles, rather than a look at the large war going on around them.  This proved to be an excellent choice of focus, and I deeply appreciated the way in which Goldsworthy was able to get into the mindset of the young soldiers fighting this war.  The constant switching between the three main protagonists allowed for a complex and intriguing story, as they experienced different battles while coming to terms with the fighting in their own ways.  Goldsworthy has a real talent for showing the chaos of war, and you are thrown into innumerable skirmishes, firefights and large-scale battles, all of which is captured in its full destructive glory.  You can honestly feel the bullets flying and the shells landing as you pour through Hill 112, and the constant conflict, danger and excellent portrayal of the fighting ensures that readers have a very hard time pulling their attention away from this amazing book.

Goldsworthy clearly did an exceptional amount of research for Hill 112 as this book is loaded with historical detail as the author meticulously covers key events of this initial invasion.  While the main regiments featured in Hill 112 are fictitious, Goldsworthy bases them on actual participants of the fighting, and you get incredibly detailed depictions of the early days of the Normandy campaign for the English and Canadian forces.  This includes events that followed from the initial landings on Normandy all the way to the conclusion of the fighting around the titular Hill 112, a key historical battle.  Readers get a very compelling and intensive look at how the campaign unfolded, and it was interesting to see how hotly contested this initial fighting in France was, especially as most modern war movies/television series usually show swift victory the moment the allies are off the beaches.  The battle of Hill 112 was naturally a compelling part of the book which the author covers in heavy detail, noting the movement of all the relevant units and the various attacks.  I got so engrossed in Goldsworthy’s recounting of this battle, and readers are left haunted and amazed that so much death occurred for a simple hill in the countryside.

The author really did not spare any detail when it comes to the fighting, and you get a comprehensive vision of the potential experiences of the participants in these battles.  Goldsworthy really dives into every single aspect of the solider experience, and you come away with insights into the conditions, equipment, training and attitudes of the troops, all of which greatly adds to the gritty realism of the story.  This is particularly true in the battle scenes, and it was very compelling to see how the soldiers would have fought, as well as other factors that came into play, such as the Allies’ overwhelming artillery.  I especially enjoyed the many scenes that focused on vehicular combat as one of the protagonists spends most of the book inside a Sherman tank, fighting against German armoured units.  The sequences in the tank are always a high-strung affair, and Goldsworthy expertly captures the cramped conditions, fast-paced fighting, and constant peril that the British crews experienced.  The author further increases the authenticity of the book by having his protagonists experience various incidents that were recorded to have happened during these invasions.  The author cleverly retells these events to feature his characters, and the various experiences, some of which are quite hellish, add a lot of intensity to the book.  Goldsworthy really pulls no punches when it comes to showcasing the experiences of Allied soldiers in Hill 112, and it proves hard not to deeply appreciate his ability to utilise a massive amount of historical detail to tell a good story.

I must also highlight the intriguing characters featured within Hill 112 who added a lot to the impact of the book.  The three main characters, James, Mark and Bill, are all quite intriguing in their own way, and I appreciated how they ran the gambit of young people who would have joined the war effort after leaving school.  Goldsworthy ensures that each of these main characters have a compelling backstory which contrasts in a moving way to their current experiences, and it was moving to see them grow up throughout the course of the horrendous ordeals they find themselves in.  These three main characters are also accompanied by a huge supporting cast of fellow soldiers, officers, tank crews and other figures, each of whom travel with the protagonists to engage in the fighting.  Many of these supporting characters are exclusive to the chapters told from the perspective of a particular protagonist, allowing for unique interactions, and Goldsworthy often provides relevant backstories for these supporting characters as well.  This cast of additional characters gets quite extensive as the book continues, which can make remembering everyone a little hard at times.  However, that proves to be a short-term problem at best, as the supporting players usually doesn’t last too long in the fighting.  This proved to be an excellent and intense character-driven novel, and I really appreciated how well Goldsworthy captured the experiences of these young soldiers in war.

Adrian Goldsworthy once again brings the past back to haunt his readers in the outstanding and moving novel, Hill 112.  A highly detailed and impressive war novel, Hill 112 does an incredible job capturing the experiences of young soldiers in the Normandy campaign and you will quickly become absorbed in the resulting story.  Highly recommended, especially for those fans of military history, Hill 112 was such an amazing read.

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Devil’s Kitchen by Candice Fox

On By The Unseen LibraryIn Australian, Thriller10 Comments

Devil's Kitchen Cover

Publisher: Bantam Australia (Trade Paperback – 26 March 2024)

Series: Standalone/Book One

Length: 480 pages

My Rating: 4.75 out of 5 stars

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One of Australia’s very best thriller authors continues her hellacious 2024 with the outstanding and epic read, Devil’s Kitchen.

Candice Fox is a very impressive author who has been doing an amazing job representing Australian authors on the international stage with her epic thrillers.  Starting off with some intriguing outback thrillers, including her Archer and Bennett series and Crimson Lake books (the latter of which have been adapted into the Australian television series Troppo), it didn’t take long for Fox to gain worldwide appeal, especially once she started collaborating with James Patterson.  Fox with Patterson has written several amazing reads, including the Detective Harriet Blue series, The Inn, 2 Sisters Detective Agency, and Fox’s other 2024 read, The Murder Inn.  Fox has also been writing some amazing standalone thrillers in recent years, including Gathering Dark, The Chase and Fire with Fire.  I have had an amazing time with these outstanding books, and they usually end up being some of the top books by an Australian author each year.  However, Fox’s latest novel, Devil’s Kitchen, might be her best thriller yet.

Everyone knows firefighters are heroes, and in the FDNY, no team is more daring or brave than the members of Engine 99.  For years this tightknit band of firefighters has stood against the worst blazes New York has to offer, working together to save lives and keep the city safe.  However, beneath this heroic façade, the four members of Engine 99 harbour a dark secret: they are ruthless and successful thieves.

Utilising their knowledge of fire to create opportunities and destroy evidence, the Engine 99 crew have pulled off several impressive heists and stolen millions of dollars.  With their loyalty, skills and ability to work within the system, the team seems unbeatable.  However, that changes when the family of one member of the team, Ben, goes missing.  Convinced that someone else on the Engine 99 crew had something to do with their disappearance, Ben attempts to make a deal with the law to save them.  However, Ben is unprepared for the carnage his actions will bring down.

Andrea ‘Andy’ Nearland is a professional undercover operative with a dangerous past.  She has spent years learning to get close to people to learn their darkest secrets and will do anything to bring her targets to justice.  Joining the team after obtaining intensive firefighting training, Andy begins the arduous task of gaining the rest of the team’s trust with Ben’s reluctant help.  However, getting through the web of secrecy surrounding the rest of Engine 99 and finding out what happened to Ben’s family will be difficult, especially as the team plots their most ambitious heist yet.  With tensions running higher than ever and her obsessive employer trying to drag her out, can Andy find out all of Engine 99’s dark secrets before it’s too late, or will her tangled web of lies and emotional connections bring her down?

This was a particularly epic book from Fox that I couldn’t put down.  Featuring an ambitious and powerful narrative that pushes the boundaries of relationships, loyalty and doing the right thing, Devil’s Kitchen had me hooked the entire way through, and this was truly an outstanding read.

I really cannot emphasise enough what a great story Devil’s Kitchen had, and this ended up being a dark and compelling thriller.  Featuring a gripping prelude that ensures you get drawn into the story, Devil’s Kitchen is quickly split between the perspectives of main characters Andy and Ben, as Andy begins her infiltration of the Engine 99 crew after Ben contacts the authorities about his crew’s criminal actions.  Joining as a new member with a romantic connection to Ben, Andy attempts to gain their trust, while the crew begins planning a new heist with destructive potential.  What follows is an intriguing game of cat and mouse as Andy uses her skills at infiltration to try and find out all their secrets, even the ones that Ben doesn’t want her to know, all while the rest of the crew battle their suspicions about her motivations.

The plot goes in some intriguing directions as Devil’s Kitchen continues, as all the team’s dark secrets and Andy’s troubled past come to light.  Andy proves to be a very smooth operator as she gets closer to finding out the truth, while Ben is a complex and haunted figure, desperate to save those he cares about, while also hoping to keep his worst secrets to himself.  I loved the many layers of deception, personal struggle and compelling personalities contained within the story, as the protagonists attempt to discover what happened to Ben’s missing family and how it ties into his heist work.  At the same time, Andy and Ben get closer, and Andy is forced to deal with her overprotective employer and former lover, whose jealousy and concern about the situation causes more trouble for her.  The last third of the story is particularly epic, as the truth in all its forms gets out, and everyone is thrown into some desperate directions.  Fox pulls together some excellent twists and turns here, and all the big reveals were suitably shocking and intense.  This was probably one of Fox’s best conclusions, and all the elaborate story threads come together perfectly, ensuring that the reader comes away satisfied with the various solutions to the book’s big mysteries.  At the same time, there are some dark and shocking moments, and I honestly did not expect how tragic Fox would make her conclusion.

I have a lot of love for how Fox brought her story together, and this proved to be a very well-written book.  The intense back and forth between the two perspective protagonists presents the reader with a dramatic and complex read, especially as both have hidden motivations and desires.  In many ways this is almost a psychological thriller, especially as Fox does an outstanding job diving into why Andy desires connections in every identity she takes on, while Ben is caught between his intense loyalty to the crew and his desires to save his loved ones.  This balance of thriller storyline and character arcs really works, and I ended up invested in both Andy and Ben’s unique storylines, even if that threatened to lead to tragedy.  Fox keeps up a fantastic and fast pace for this novel, and I honestly couldn’t put Devil’s Kitchen down at times, I was so engrossed in seeing the next dark turn or compelling character moment.

I have mentioned Andy and Ben a few times, and they really were the tortured heart and soul of the team.  Fox portrayed Ben as an outstandingly complex figure, and you really get invested in his motivations for both staying quiet and trying to end his crew’s heist careers.  Ben is forced to experience some major moral dilemmas in Devil’s Kitchen, and despite his criminal focus, you can’t help but feel bad for him.  While I enjoyed Ben’s chapters and story arc, I found Andy to be the more compelling character and I loved the idea of a master infiltrator who can go undercover and get close to people.  Fox does an excellent job of expanding out her motivations and insights while ensuring that the reader will be interested in finding out more about her past.  These gradually reveal some intriguing details into why she is so good at taking up new identities and her dangerous habit of getting too close to her targets becomes a recurring theme.  I found Andy’s clever perspective to be some of the best parts of Devil’s Kitchen, and her various techniques for getting closer to her targets were extremely clever.  I think there is a lot of potential in an extended series focused on Andy (or whatever her name will be in the future), especially as there are some open doors when it comes to her past.

Aside from Andy and Ben, I have to highlight the three antagonists of the story, the other members of Engine 99.  Made up of a damaged veteran firefighter, an unhinged fixer, and a young trainee with a gambling problem, they, along with Ben, have become a tightknit group, loyal only to each other and dedicated to earning a sufficient retirement.  Due to the story requiring Andy to get closer to them and learn their secrets, you get drawn into their tangled relationships and connections, especially as the secret to what happen to Ben’s family, as well as their latest plot, lies in uncovering that.  I really enjoyed getting to know these three additional figures, especially as you get drawn into their dark motivations and outlooks on life.  They prove to be suitably complex and intriguing antagonists for the story, and it was fascinating to see how Andy and Ben navigate their interactions with them.

Overall, I felt that Devil’s Kitchen was a pretty amazing novel from Candice Fox, and it was one of her most impressive thrillers so far.  Featuring a particularly intense, character-driven storyline focused on lies, deception and misdirection, Devil’s Kitchen had me hooked from the very beginning and I could not rest until I uncovered every single clever twist and outrageous reveal.  An exceptional read from one of Australia’s best authors, I cannot wait to see more from Fox, especially as she has yet another book coming out later this year.

Devil's Kitchen 2

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