Tag: Sequel

King’s Ransom by Matthew Reilly

On By The Unseen LibraryIn Australian, Five-Star Books, ThrillerLeave a comment

Publisher: Pan Macmillan Australia (Trade Paperback – 29 September 2026)

Series: Sam Speedman – Book Two

Length: 496 pages

My Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

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Prepare for one of the more insane and compelling thrillers of 2026, as Matthrew Reilly brings all the chaos he can in King’s Ransom, an incredible novel I had a ton of fun with.

Earlier this year I finally got the chance to read the 2025 novel from iconic Australian author Matthew Reilly, The Detective.  The first book in Reilly’s new Sam Speedman series, The Detective was a particularly addictive novel that saw an unusual private investigator, Sam Speedman, as he becomes involved in a shocking case going back over a century, involving missing persons, dead detectives and modern-day slavery.  Thanks to its excessive narrative, amazing humour and enjoyable main protagonist, I found The Detective to be a particularly addictive read that ended up getting a full five-star rating from me.  I really cannot emphasise how much I loved The Detective, and I was immediately keen to continue the series.  Luckily, I’d timed my reading of The Detective so that I only had a little bit to wait for the sequel Reilly released this year, King’s Ransom.  Bringing back Speedman for another complex case, King’s Ransom was an intriguing sequel with a suitable crazy plot.

Plot Synopsis:

Five innocent hostages. Five private investigators. A fiendish ransom game. Has Detective Sam Speedman met his match? A fast and deadly Matthew Reilly thriller.

A DARING ABDUCTION

The richest man in the world has been kidnapped. Along with four of his children.

THE DEADLY CHALLENGE

The kidnapper’s demand: the five best private detectives in America must come to the missing tech billionaire’s penthouse in New York City by noon and engage in a deadly series of riddles and ransoms to find and rescue them.

THE FIFTH DETECTIVE

Among the five investigators brought to New York is Sam Speedman.

Skinny, bespectacled and brilliant, Sam is different to most other detectives.

But as the situation escalates and the bodies mount, Sam is going to discover that appearances can be deceiving and that maybe some villains are best left alone…

Now this was an awesome sequel!  King’s Ransom was an extremely fun thriller as Matthew Reilly presents a layered and impressive story, loaded with over-the-top antagonists, crazy moments and multiple clever twists.  I ended up powering through this fantastic book in very short order, and I was immensely entertained the entire way through.  Due to how damn addictive this was, I have to give King’s Ransom a full five stars, and this was probably one of my favourite thriller releases of 2026.

I was uncertain how Reilly was going to top The Detective in this sequel, but the author did not disappoint as he produced another suitably outrageous story that drags you in with its big moments and intense reveals.  Set a year after the events of The Detective, King’s Ransom follows a now famous Sam Speedman, who is woken up at night by the FBI and urgently flown to New York City with his team.  A mysterious figure has kidnapped the world’s richest man, Aristotle King, and his five children from their luxury penthouse, and is now demanding the attendance of the five best private detectives in the country.  The author does a great job immediately setting the scene for this intriguing scenario while also provide a succinct and effective reintroduction to the protagonist and several other returning supporting characters.

Once everything is set up, Reilly dives right into the action as the kidnapper starts challenging the detectives with a series of riddles that reveal the location of the hostages, each of whom are in some sort of peril.  While the protagonists initially prove successful at solving the clues and saving the victims, things quickly get out of hand, with various traps, attacks and ploys stacking up the body count around the survivors.  This extended sequence of riddles and traps takes up most of the first half of King’s Ransom, and Reilly keeps raising the stakes and throwing in more carnage as the book continues.  There are also some excellent clues and hints throw into this first half of the book, which the author comes back to later, and I really appreciate these inclusions in hindsight.  This entire sequence leads up to a big confrontation, which appears to resolve the entire case suspiciously early, with the supposed masterminds caught or killed, while Speedman finds himself rocked by a personal tragedy.

While this first part of the book is extremely exciting and draws you in with its big moments, the second half of the book is where the truly impressive narrative work is contained.  Despite being distracted by personal issues, Speedman finds himself drawn back into the case, especially when he discovers various inconsistencies in the official narrative.  Resolving to investigate the full circumstances of the kidnapping, Speedman soon finds himself being opposed by the FBI (including his girlfriend’s ex-husband) and other people invested in the case.  Worse, he soon encounters an antagonist with an unparalleled mind for planning and evil.  This results in some fantastic discoveries, as well as an excellent cat-and-mouse storyline, as Speedman attempts to uncover the truth while being hunted by everyone.  The big twist about some of the responsible parties is clever, even though some of the revealed individuals are a little obvious, and the sheer range of insanity and action around this part of the story keeps you highly engaged as you eagerly wait to see what happens next.  Following a final excellent public reveal and confrontation Reilly ends the story on a fun note, with everyone getting what they deserve one way or another, with chilling hints at further insanity to come thrown in.  A wonderfully addictive story that lived up to all my expectations.

This was another well-written and easy-to-read thriller from Reilly, who sets an impressive and crazy story around his unique protagonist.  Serving as an excellent sequel to The Detective, King’s Ransom features an effective move away from its original southern setting, and instead masterfully utilises New York City as an outstanding background.  King’s Ransom works well as a both a follow-up and a standalone read, especially as Reilly effectively recaps relevant moments from the first book.  The author again makes great use of the first-person perspective in this novel, allowing you to see the entire case through the entertaining eyes of his protagonist.  This allows you to get not only the benefit of the humorous observations of the protagonist but a great firsthand look at the unique case, including all its exciting twists and reveals.  It also works to build up tension, especially when things get particularly personal and the protagonist finds himself dropped into several desperate corners.

All this draws you into the very intense story, and I loved just how outrageous and over-the-top the story turned out to be.  While some moments are possibly a little too crazy, it all fits the tone of this series perfectly, and all thriller fans are guaranteed to have an outstanding time getting into it.  I also must highlight the various drawings that were featured in the novel, especially as they provide an interesting way at looking at the unique clues and scenarios of the book.  The diagrams showing how some of the book’s death traps were set up, as well as how Speedman attempted to counter them, were particularly awesome, and I loved how well they supplemented Reilly’s descriptive style and helped the reader envision the crazy situation even more.  The author did another amazing job of writing King’s Ransom, and I cannot emphasise how well Reilly’s writing style helped to showcase his latest outrageous plot.

The final thing I want to highlight about King’s Ransom was the outstanding and distinctive characters featured within it.  This includes Reilly’s unique new protagonist, Sam Speedman, a brilliant private investigator with a severe lack of normal social skills.  Reilly does an amazing job showcasing Speedman’s unique thoughts, which are usually both fun and insightful and make him a very well-written autistic character.  Despite the character’s established lack of social skills, he spends much of this book making unlikely connections, with many of his detective peers, and others, quickly realising his investigative prowess.  I appreciated how Reilly did a good job showcasing Speedman’s character growth since the first book, especially his new confidence after getting a girlfriend and making new friends, and Speedman remains a particularly entertaining and relatable protagonist to follow.

Without going into too much detail about the rest of the characters in this book, especially as it could result in some spoilers, I will say the supporting cast for King’s Ransom was particularly good.  Not only do you get some fantastic returns from The Detective but there are some great new characters introduced in this book.  For example, the four other detectives summoned to the scene alongside Speedman are a wonderful eclectic mixture, while the kidnapping victim, Aristotle King, provided a fun look at the dark lives of the uber wealthy.  All these characters, and more, added a lot to the plot, and I appreciated how well Reilly dove into their personalities and motivations of everyone involved in the case, especially as it provided hints about how involved they truly were.  I will say that the best new characters ended up being the eventually revealed main antagonist of the story, who Reilly builds up as a particularly diabolical supervillain.  Serving as a dark shadow to Speedman, this new antagonist really grabs your attention when they are showcased in their full evil glory.  I really appreciated that Reilly introduced a worthy nemesis for Speedman in this second book, and readers will appreciate the resulting battle of wits, which goes so damn crazy.

Matthew Reilly continues to wildly entertain with his latest brilliant thriller.  King’s Ransom was a deeply exciting and awesome read that I honestly couldn’t get enough of.  An outstanding second Sam Speedman book, King’s Ransom was a ton of fun, and I honestly couldn’t get away from its insanely inventive and captivating plot.  A highly recommended read, especially for those who love intense and over-the-top plots, I really enjoyed King’s Ransom, and I cannot wait to see what Reilly writes next.

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Hard Town by Adam Plantinga

On By The Unseen LibraryIn Thriller, Throwback Thursday1 Comment

Publisher: Grand Central Publishing (Paperback – 8 April 2025)

Series: Kurt Argento – Book Two

Length: 307 pages

My Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

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Rising thriller author Adam Plantinga follows up his excellent first novel with the intense and highly addictive sequel, Hard Town, and outstanding book I read so damn quickly.

Readers of this blog may remember that at the start of 2025 I had the great pleasure of reading a particularly epic thriller novel, The Ascent.  The debut novel from new author Adam Plantinga, The Ascent was a fantastic novel that followed a former cop, Kurt Argento, who finds himself stuck in the middle of a brutal prison riot, which forces him to fight through several levels of a deadly killers and criminals.  I had an amazing time with The Ascent (it was one of my favourite debuts of 2024), and I have been keen to read more from Plantinga for a while, especially as he intended to write more about his original protagonist.  After highlighting it as a cool upcoming novel early last year, I finally got a chance to read Hard Town and I’m glad I did.

Plot Synopsis:

When a plea for help sends retired Detroit cop Kurt Argento to the small desert town of Fenton, Arizona things immediately don’t appear to be as they seem, and he finds himself unravelling secrets that want to stay hidden and questioning his own moral compass.

After having survived a deadly prison break, ex-Detroit cop Kurt Argento is ready for some quiet. Still working through his grief over the passing of his wife, Argento finds himself house-sitting for a friend with his loyal companion, Hudson, a Chow Chow-Shepard mix. It’s a simple life, picking up odd jobs here and there, but it’s one that Argento is content to live.

Then Kristin Reed shows up with her young son, Ethan, and begs Argento to help find her missing husband… and Argento tells her he’d just be in the way. He’s no investigator, not anymore. He’s a handyman who fixes fences. But he’s not one to ignore his gut feeling when something is wrong. After an attempt to talk with Kristin more in the next town over, just to find her and her son missing as well, Argento starts to notice that Fenton, Arizona is more than meets the eye.

First there’s the large, overly equipped public safety team complete with specialized tactics and sophisticated weaponry. Then there’s the unusual financial boosting of failing small businesses by the U.S. government. And finally, there’s one man with no name who seems to have control over this town in an unprecedented way.

Argento finds himself unravelling not just the truth behind the disappearance of a family, but a conspiracy that’s taken a whole town to cover up. But Fenton, Arizona is going to push him further than he’s ever had to go. And along the way, he may just lose a part of himself as well. Because justice isn’t as black and white as Argento would like to believe.

Hard Town was a great second novel from Plantinga, who follows up his debut with a highly compelling sequel I had an outstanding time with.  Loaded with striking action, an excellent over-the-top story and a gritty protagonist, Hard Town was an amazing novel that is worth checking out.

Plantinga pulls together an excellent plot for Hard Town, which I felt served as an excellent continuation of the protagonist’s personal journey, while also working well as a standalone story with its own distinctive plot.  Reintroducing protagonist Kurt Argento as a battered survivor with some infamy behind him after the events of The Ascent, Hard Town sees him get dragged back into trouble when a desperate woman begs him to investigate the disappearance of her husband from the town of Fenton, Arizona.  Despite his misgivings, Argento eventually agrees to help, only to discover that the woman and her young son have gone missing.  Searching for answers in Fenton, he discovers a surprisingly well-equipped police force of former soldiers, while a mysterious genius is holding court in town.  Plantinga sets up this unusual scene extremely well in the first third of Hard Town, and you soon become quite engrossed in uncovering the full mystery, especially as things are just about to kick off in all the wrong ways.

It’s around this point that the entire tone of Hard Town changes dramatically, and Argento finds himself caught up in a deadly battle for survival.  After an intense extended sequence, you follow Argento as he attempts to uncover the true secrets of Fenton while also searching for his own brand of justice.  This involves an interesting investigation arc, followed up by a dangerous plan to gain allies and resources.  Plantinga perfectly paces out the second half of Hard Town, drawing you into Argento’s plans before hitting you with the big confrontation.  This final part of Hard Town is extremely brutal, with multiple deadly fights and encounters.  Plantinga throws in a couple of good twists here, as well as a lot of over-the-top deaths, and you will find yourself extremely hooked.  Everything wraps up in a satisfying, dark ending, with the protagonist resolving the story at a cost, and thriller fans will come away happy with how Hard Town turned out.  I personally loved this well-planned out and compelling narrative, and I ended up powering through the entirety of Hard Town in only a couple of days.

You can see that Plantinga has improved as an author since his first book, as he has done a good job moving the plot away from the prison setting of the first book into a sprawling adventure throughout Arizona.  Hard Town initially had a bit of a slower pace to it, which I felt helped to build tension and allowed for a stronger, more character-focused read.  The use of an underlying mystery to drive the initial plot and increase tension and interest was a great choice by Plantinga, and it allowed the author to take his time to set up the story.  Once things do kick off, Plantinga does not hold back, bringing in a series of intense confrontations and over-the-top moments to raise the stakes and sate the action fans.  Plantinga makes sure there is a gritty realism to all the action, as Plantinga provides detailed depictions of event, amping up the impact of events.  I also quite enjoyed the multiple realistic depictions of police techniques and procedure, as Plantinga pulls from his own extensive personal knowledge of law enforcement to enhance his story.  All this results in a powerful tone for Hard Town, which intensifies the action and the fantastic focus on the characters.

While there is a lot of carnage in this thriller, Hard Town isn’t all action, as Plantinga adds some nuance to the plot, especially around protagonist Kurt Agento’s motivations and the morality of the antagonists.  Argento, who the author expertly reintroduces in this sequel, continues to develop from the angry figure we were introduced to at the start of The Ascent.  Now somewhat calmer, Argento is forced back into the life of violence when pushed in the most dramatic of ways, although Plantinga continues to portray him as having a little more restraint, while also moralising a little more over his actions and desire for revenge.  The author works in some interesting flaws and personal concerns for the protagonist to deal with.  Despite certain moral quandaries Plantinga includes in the plot, there is not a moment that you aren’t on the side of the protagonist as he seeks justice, especially after a certain scene.  The clever and usually over-the-top ways that Argento attempted to resolve the situations he found himself in also draws the reader to his side, and there were some very memorable moments in this plot as Argento attempted to get justice.

While most of the book’s focus was on Argento as protagonist, Plantinga does include some interesting supporting characters, especially in the book’s antagonists.  These antagonists are a group of mysterious soldiers who have taken over policing in the small town of Fenton as part of a larger mission.  Employed to ruthlessly defend their objective and keep the town in order, these characters do some terrible things and there are some true monsters amongst them.  However, Plantinga includes a couple of conflicted figures in their midst, and their varied morality becomes an interesting plot point, especially when Argento seeks his revenge.  The objective of these soldiers and their government agent handler adds in some interesting moral conflicts to the plot, especially as they try to balance the need for dark actions with the overall objective of the mission they believe in.  I enjoyed how Plantinga balanced these morally grey characters by also including a completely irredeemable character as Hard Town’s main antagonist.  The sinister mastermind behind the whole operation in Fenton, this initially unnamed antagonist was delightfully over-the-top, and Plantinga had fun writing in his sense of superiority and evil nature.  If anything, the author made him too outrageously evil, as this character came across as a parody of an arrogant intellectual, but I still had fun seeing this antagonist in action, especially when confronted by the more serious Argento.  All these characters add a lot to Hard Town’s story, and I felt that Plantinga’s character work was a lot more impactful in this sequel.

Adam Plantinga showcases his improvement as a writer in this excellent second novel, Hard Town.  An amazing and nuanced thriller novel that balances an emotionally charged plot with some outstanding action, Hard Town was a highly addictive read that I found near impossible to put down.  I really had an amazing time with this sequel, and I look forward to reading more from Plantinga going forward, especially as the third book in this series, Dark Country, just came out.

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Everybody Wants to Rule the World Except Me by Django Wexler

On By The Unseen LibraryIn Comedy/Satire, FantasyLeave a comment

Publisher: Orbit (Trade Paperback – 27 May 2025)

Series: Dark Lord Davi Duology – Book Two

Length: 327 pages

My Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

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If you are in the mood for some compelling fantasy fiction with some bonkers humour behind it, make sure to check out the 2025 novel, Everybody Wants to Rule the World Except Me by Django Wexler, a fantastic and highly entertaining fantasy you can’t help but love.

Back in 2024, I had the very great pleasure of picking up the hilarious novel, How to Become the Dark Lord and Die Trying by Django Wexler.  The first book in his Dark Lord Davi duology, How to Become the Dark Lord and Die Trying was an amazing read that followed protagonist Davi, the fated hero of a fantasy realm who keeps dying and respawning with every failed attempt to save the humans of The Kingdom from an incoming monster horde led by a rotating array of leaders known as the Dark Lord.  After thousands of years spent dying in the most brutal of ways, Davi finally has enough and decides to instead try to become the new Dark Lord herself and win that way.  This amazing novel was honestly one of the funniest things I read in 2024, and I have so much love for the addictive story and impressive humour that Wexler loaded into it.  As such, I made sure to grab the sequel, Everybody Wants to Rule the World Except Me, as soon as I could last year, especially as it ended the duology.  While I did read and deeply enjoy Everybody Wants to Rule the World Except Me last year, I failed to write a review for it, which has been haunting me for nearly a year.  With Wexler’s latest novel, The Only Way Out Is Up, just released and in my reading queue, I had to pull together a review for Everybody Wants to Rule the World Except Me, so I can enjoy this new book guilt-free.

Plot Synopsis:

Dark Lord Davi rules the kingdom, but she must now break the time loop that binds her in this hilariously bloody conclusion to the Dark Lord Davi duology.

After countless failures (let’s not dwell on it), Davi has finally saved the kingdom from evil–by becoming the Dark Lord herself. But now, the hordes of wilders are at her command, and they still want blood. Human blood. And Davi’s not sure she can commit to the total extermination of humanity.

With restless armies at her doorstep, a treasonous duke scheming for power, and the legend of an ancient magician looming over her shoulder, Davi must find a way towards peace and uncover the truth behind her time loop if she is to bring harmony to the kingdom. Also, her girlfriend is mad at her. So, there’s that too.

Wexler did a wonderful job writing Everybody Wants to Rule the World Except Me, which contains a fantastic story with tons of humour and over-the-top moments.  Best read as a sequel to How to Become the Dark Lord and Die Trying, this follow-up perfectly wraps up the duology, while standing out in its own amazing way.

Once again following the duology’s titular protagonist Davi, the recently crowned Dark Lord of the wilders, Everybody Wants to Rule the World Except Me sees Davi try to mend the mistake of bringing together a horde of monsters.  To stop all the killing, Davi heads towards the Kingdom in advance of horde, hoping to negotiate a treaty.  However, rather than the usual nation that Davi has gained control of multiple times before, Davi instead finds that in the months she was away becoming the Dark Lord, the incompetent Duke Aster has taken over the Kingdom, while her usual love interest, Prince Johann, is already married to someone else.  With her horde nearly at the borders of the Kingdom, Davi needs to find a way to convince the humans to trust her. At the same time, Davi attempts to discover who or what is behind bringing her to this world and the constant time loops.

I loved the resulting story, as Wexler showcases an entertaining blend of politics and personal drama, as Davi and her orc girlfriend, Tsav, must attempt to control both sides of the war.  The first half of the story is particularly funny, as Davi is at her most entertaining, attempting to build credibility with the lords and adventurers of the Kingdom without the usual introduction of her magical mentor.  There are some brilliant moments here, with Davi’s ploys usually falling flat thanks to her manic personality, but her persistence and magical ability allow her to start making strides towards her goals.  At the same time, Davi and her friends start making progress uncovering the secrets of her origins in this world, which nicely builds on some hints that Wexler threw into the first book.  Naturally, things go to hell, as various antagonists force the war to go ahead, and Davi is forced to come up with some unusual solutions to the problems.  I love the crazy scenarios that Wexler envisions his protagonist coming up with, and the resulting carnage was very entertaining.  The author does an excellent job moving from there to the big reveal about the villain of the duology, and while the reveal of the ultimate manipulator isn’t too surprising, their identity and how it ties into Davi’s past is both clever and very dark.  This results in an epic, fun final confrontation which hits a lot of emotional high notes and is guaranteed to keep you hooked.  Readers will come away very satisfied with the resulting story, and I think that Wexler wrapped up this entire duology extremely well.

As with the first book in this duology, Everybody Wants to Rule the World Except Me was an excellently written novel that perfectly combined a compelling fantasy narrative with outrageous humour.  Told exclusively from the first-person perspective of the protagonist, much of the book’s humour is drawn from Davi’s oddball personality as she bombards the reader with an array of internal jokes, silly observations and half-remembered references from the real world.  This works to lighten most of the scenes in the book, and the contrast between dark fantasy events and the protagonist’s over-the-top or utterly insane responses, especially in the eyes of the other characters who have no idea what is going on or what she is referencing, will keep you laughing the entire way through.  Favourites for me include a fun The Lord of the Rings inspired attempt at magical intimidation, which was only slightly ruined by the protagonist’s bad sense of direction, as well as certain dastardly responses to other characters ploys.  Special mention once again goes to Wexler’s use of footnotes throughout Everybody Wants to Rule the World Except Me, which further enhanced the humour, and kept the readers on their toes as the book continued.

While Wexler tends to focus on unleashing his entertaining humour in this duology, there are a lot of other great elements to it that should be mentioned, such as the novel’s excellent character development.  This includes around Davi, who, after an untold number of time loops, had started to lose her humanity and had trouble seeing other beings as real.  Much of this book is her trying to maintain her sanity amid the chaos, and finally appreciating the connections she has made, both in her previous incarnations and in her current role as a dark lord.  I also must highlight Davi’s love interest, Tsav, an orc who accompanies Davi into the human kingdom in disguise.  While sharing Davi’s vision for peace between humans and wilders, Tsav is more wary, having grown up oppressed and hunted by human Guildblades her entire life.  Her attempts to fit in amongst the humans while witnessing them commit murderous acts against her kind is an interesting subplot that helps remind you just how dark parts of the setting are, even with all the humour.  This is honestly just the tip of the amazing character work in this novel, and when combined with other elements like the intriguing fantasy creatures, bonkers action and general insanity of Wexler’s writing, you get an impressive blend of elements that allows for a particularly addictive read.

Overall, Everybody Wants to Rule the World Except Me was an outstanding novel from Django Wexler, and one I should have reviewed earlier.  Serving as a great sequel to the author’s previous Dark Lord Davi novel, Everybody Wants to Rule the World Except Me utilises all the charm and humour of the first entry in the duology, allowing for a unique and exceedingly fun fantasy read.  As such, this duology comes highly recommended for those readers looking for an entertaining fantasy read that not only has some heart but will also make you laugh like crazy.   I am so excited to read Wexler’s next book after enjoying this series, and I am hoping to check out The Only Way Out is Up in the coming week.

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Waiting on Wednesday – First Degree Murder by Jennifer Pearson

On By The Unseen LibraryIn Murder Mystery, Waiting on Wednesday, Young AdultLeave a comment

Welcome to my weekly segment, Waiting on Wednesday, where I look at upcoming books that I am planning to order and review in the next few months and which I think I will really enjoy.  Stay tuned to see reviews of these books when I get a copy of them.  For this latest Waiting on Wednesday, I check out an intriguing murder mystery release coming out next year with First Degree Murder by Jennifer Pearson.

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2027 is shaping up to be an excellent year for sequels, with several impressive authors following up on amazing novels with compelling and intriguing continuations.  One of the ones that I am currently most excited for is First Degree Murder, a follow-up to one of the better mystery novels of 2027, Drop Dead Famous by Jennifer Pearson.

Drop Dead Famous was a captivating young adult murder mystery I was lucky enough to read earlier this year.  Following an amateur teenage sleuth who investigates the murder of her famous sister with the help of an obsessive fan girl, Drop Dead Famous featured a particularly strong mystery, with Pearson loading in a ton of twists and shocking reveals as the protagonist uncovered various secrets about her town and her damaged family.  I had an incredible time reading Drop Dead Famous, and I really cannot get over how clever the story got.

Due to how impressive I found Drop Dead Famous, I have been eagerly awaiting a potential sequel for a while now, and I was very happy to find out some details.  This sequel, First Degree Murder, is set for release in May 2027, and will once again bring back the entertaining protagonists for brand new mystery.  Based on how strong Pearson’s first excellent teen thriller was, I’m expecting great things from the sequel, which I imagine will be filled with even more twists and shocks.  As such, First Degree Murder is now one of the books I’m most looking forward to in 2027, and I cannot wait to get my hands on it.

Plot Synopsis:

THIS CAMPUS HAS SECRETS. AND ONE OF THEM KILLS.

Stevie Baker came to Wexford University hoping to leave the past behind. But when her friend Nate is found dead in his dorm room, Stevie is thrust into the middle of another murder investigation. And this time, the police are looking at her.

Determined to clear her name, Stevie and her best friend Colby start asking questions of their own. But the deeper they dig, the more dangerous the truth becomes. Because a killer is still out there.

Waiting on Wednesday – Eight Tastes of Treachery by Ryan Rose

On By The Unseen LibraryIn Fantasy, Waiting on WednesdayLeave a comment

Welcome to my weekly segment, Waiting on Wednesday, where I look at upcoming books that I am planning to order and review in the next few months and which I think I will really enjoy.  Stay tuned to see reviews of these books when I get a copy of them.  In my latest Waiting on Wednesday post, I highlight a very fun upcoming fantasy novel that is likely to be one of the top sequels of the year with Eight Tastes of Treachery by Ryan Rose.

Last year I had the very great pleasure of reading the cool fantasy debut novel, Seven Recipes for Revolution.  The first book from author Ryan Rose, Seven Recipes for Revolution was a gripping and unique read that followed a magical, but lower-class, chef, who found himself in the centre of a revolution.  A compelling novel with a very clever and tasty concept behind it, Seven Recipes for Revolution was an outstanding book, and it ended up being one of my top debuts of 2025.

Due to how awesome I found Rose’s first novel to be, I have been eagerly awaiting a second novel from the author for a while, and I was very excited when I found out that he had a sequel to Seven Recipes for Revolution coming out this year.  This sequel, Eight Tastes of Treachery, is set for release in July 2026, and looks set to be another epic fantasy novel that will take the food-based magic and class warfare of this distinctive fantasy world in a whole new direction.

Plot Synopsis:

Monster Hunter and Empire of the Vampire collide in the adventurous sequel to Seven Recipes for Revolution, guaranteed to make you crave delicious fantasy dishes.

Three years after eating the rich, Paprick Bessa is an infamous warchef known as the Butcher. Numbed by grief and war with the ousted rulers, Paprick no longer enjoys cooking and can’t create new recipes. So when Ranch finally reaches a tenuous ceasefire with the Rare, Paprick seizes the chance to reheat his passions, opening a restaurant with a menu all his own.

But conspiracy interrupts the opening night, his own emphon destroy the restaurant, and all signs point to the neighbouring Empire of the Badgeboar. Whoever orchestrated this threatens to destroy everything Paprick and Ranch’s common fought for, and the Butcher leaves no threat breathing. To find the attacker and stop another all-out war, Paprick, his partner Cori, and his kitchen brigade journey west to curry favour with the Empire’s questionable elite and investigate its mysterious religions.

Treacherous forces and dire prophecies lie in wait for Paprick’s arrival, and all the while, the Rare re-arm in the east. Facing magics and flavours unlike any he’s ever tasted, Paprick will have to choose what matters most: his people, his passions, or his partner. He can’t save all three.

I like the sound of this cool plot for Eight Tastes of Treachery, which I think has a ton of potential.  An intriguing and complex sounding follow-up to the narrative from Seven Recipes for Revolution, this new plot sounds extremely awesome, and I cannot wait to see how it leads up to the dark future we’ve already seen in parts of the first book.  The continued dive into the food-based magic of this world, including some alternate regional recipes is going to be very interesting, and I’m curious to see how this will impact the plot.  I’m also keen to see Rose’s dive into the impacts years of war will have on his protagonist, especially as we’ll likely see it from multiple angles thanks to the series’ chronicle style format.  As such, I’m very excited to read Eight Tastes of Treachery later this year, and I cannot wait to see how Rose continues to develop as a writer.  A sure to be outstanding read from a great rising author!

Quick review – Whisky Valley by Joan Sauers

On By The Unseen LibraryIn Australian, Murder Mystery, Quick Review1 Comment

Publisher: Allen & Unwin (ebook – 3 June 2025)

Series: Southern Highland Mystery – Book 2

Length: 384 pages

My Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

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Australian screenwriter Joan Sauers returns to the Southern Highlands with another cosy and compelling mystery Whisky Valley.

Back in 2023, I had the pleasure of reading Joan Sauers’s first book, Echo Lake, a cosy Australian mystery that really stood out thanks to its great use of several small towns in the picturesque Southern Highlands as a background setting.  While not my usual cup of tea, I quite enjoyed Echo Lake, especially as I drive through the Southern Highlands all the time, and I was curious when Sauers released a sequel novel last year.  This second book from Sauers, Whisky Valley, proved to be another fantastic read, that combines entertaining characters with beautiful locations and a clever mystery.

Plot Synopsis:

A missing violinist. A rising flood. A race against time. Intrigue, music and danger collide in Whisky Valley.

After nearly being murdered last year, Rose McHugh battles anxiety as she uses her investigative skills to find her son’s best friend, a famous violinist who is missing along with his priceless violin.

As floodwaters rise, Rose uncovers secrets and lies among the missing man’s fellow musicians, as well as their patron and her enigmatic psychologist husband.

But when a body is found, can Rose shield her son from suspicion?

Whisky Valley was a genuinely nice and enjoyable mystery novel from Sauers, who provided a great balance between character moments and the underlying murder narrative.  Bringing back protagonist Rose McHugh as she continues her troubled settlement in her beloved Southern Highlands, Whisky Valley quickly introduces a new crime involving a missing violinist with connections to Rose’s son.  Determined to solve the case before her son is suspected, Rose soon uncovers deeper secrets beneath the musical world of the victim and uncovers details of a troubled family.

I quite enjoyed how this new mystery from Sauers unfolded, and there was a certain amount of uncertainty and alternating suspects that will keep readers guessing until the end.  Indeed, I felt that the mystery in Whisky Valley was stronger than that of the first book, and I really enjoyed just how captivating and suspenseful events got as this book progressed.  This great mystery blended well with the other key aspects of the book, including the protagonist’s continued exploration of her new local area, her various relationships and friendships, including a new romance, and the fallout from the trauma of Echo Lake.  This allowed for a quite emotionally rich novel at times, especially with a lot of compelling conflicts and complex problems coming out of the woodwork.  Sauers did a great job building up a lot of different issues in the plot and slowly resolving them throughout the course of Whisky Valley, and you come away a lot closer to the relatable protagonist of this novel as a result.

While I did enjoy Sauers’ latest mystery, my favourite part of Whisky Valley had to be the author’s excellent use of the beautiful Southern Highlands of New South Wales as a backdrop for her mystery.  Sauers has a clear love of the Southern Highlands, which is quite evident in this series, as the protagonist lovingly describes various picturesque places found throughout the area.  As someone who spends a bit of time visiting or travelling through the Southern Highlands, it was really entertaining to see the protagonist explore various locations I was familiar with throughout the course of the book, and it helped to give a sense of realism to the plot at times.  These locations also serve as compelling backdrops to the crimes and drama of the story, and thanks to Sauers’ great descriptions, you can really envision some of the remote locales where murders are taking place, even if you’ve never been to this unique part of Australia.  Throw in some interesting dives into the region’s history and culture, which is a fantastic inclusion to the book, and you come away really appreciating Sauers’s use of the Southern Highlands in this series, especially after how well she uses it in Whisky Valley.

Joan Sauers continues to impress with her compelling and heartwarming cosy murder mystery series.  Her second book, Whisky Valley, was another great read that combined a fantastic mystery with some interesting character moments a wonderful background setting.  An excellent read that I enjoyed checking out.

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Broke Road by Matthew Spencer

On By The Unseen LibraryIn Australian, Five-Star Books, Murder Mystery, Thriller2 Comments

Publisher: Allen & Unwin (Trade Paperback – 1 July 2025)

Series: Rose Riley – Book Two

Length: 389 pages

My Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

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Australian author Matthew Spencer presented one of the best Australian crime fiction reads of 2025 with his outstanding and deeply impressive sequel novel, Broke Road.

Back in 2022, I had the great pleasure of reading the fantastic debut novel of Australian journalist turned author Matthew Spencer, Black River.  Featuring a compelling crime fiction narrative about a mysterious series of deaths around the Sydney river system, Black River was a wonderful novel that ended up being one of my favourite debuts of 2022.  I had a lot of fun with Spencer’s first book, and I was very curious when I saw that he had a sequel coming out this year, Broke Road.  I made sure to grab a copy as soon as I could, and I ended up being blown away by how good this sequel was.

Plot Synopsis:

A late-night phone call is never good news for Homicide Detective Sergeant Rose Riley. This time she’s being sent up to the Hunter Valley, where a woman has been found dead in her home.

Rose grew up further along the valley. She knows that for every vineyard and golf course resort visited by tourists to the ‘wine country’ there are as many dilapidated fibro houses and drug dens, in the shadow of one of the state’s largest prisons.

A media hound points the finger at the husband, angering Rose but capturing the attention of journalist turned true crime author Adam Bowman. His book on the ‘Blue Moon Killer’ made him famous but the case nearly cost Rose her life, and she’s not sure how she feels about seeing him again.

Suspects abound, from the grieving husband to sinister business interests and suspicious locals. But when new evidence connects the crime to an old case, Rose realises they have no time to lose. The murderer is ready to strike again.

Broke Road was an amazing new novel from Matthew Spencer, who really impresses with this second outing, producing a complex and gritty Australian crime fiction narrative that really draws you in.  Intense, clever and featuring some likeable characters, Broke Road ended up being an incredible sequel to the author’s first book, and it was one that I deeply enjoyed.

Spencer made some very interesting narrative choices that worked extremely well to tell an elaborate and deeply personal crime fiction story.  Set after the climatic events of Black River, the novel initially follows main protagonist, Detective Sergeant Rose Bailey, as she travels to investigate a brutal murder of a married woman with connections to a successful local winery.  Transferring this book from the urban streets of Sydney to the iconic Hunter Valley in rural New South Wales, Spencer provides a whole new feel to this sequel, which allows Broke Road to do its own thing.  Initially set up as a typical small-town Australian murder mystery, with Rose investigating first the victim’s husband and other members of the nearby town, things take an interesting twist when Black River’s other protagonist, reporter Adam Bowman, arrives in town to investigate the case.

What follows is a complex and deeply captivating mixture of story elements as the protagonists are forced to deal with their complicated feelings towards each other.  Simultaneously exploring the traumatic aftermath of the events of Black River while also seeing both main characters investigate the case in their own way, the plot of Broke Road becomes extremely addictive.  A lot of this is due to how the author expertly raises the stakes as the plot continues, with the several related murders across the country coming to light, hinting at a deadly and notably chilling predator stalking the Hunter Valley.  I really appreciated how the book’s story threads came together, and Spencer throws in various alternative motives, clever red herring and some great personal interactions in the lead-up to the conclusion.  The eventual big reveal in Broke Road’s finale was extremely well handled, with an exciting confrontation well mixed with all the author’s clever clues coming together.  Spencer ends everything on a great personal note, which ties everything up quite nicely and resulted in particularly outstanding narrative.

I felt that Broke Road was an outstanding novel in many ways, especially as it worked well as both a complex standalone crime novel and as a sequel to Spencer’s first book.  While any new reader can easily jump into Broke Road, Spencer works the fallout of Black River’s plot into both the plot and the protagonist’s character arcs, with both main characters still dealing with their trauma and leftover feelings.  This allows for a much more emotionally rich narrative, especially when tied into other character elements, such as Rose’s past connections to the area surrounding the murder scene.  Spencer cleverly chose to focus more on Rose in this sequel, allowing her to develop more as a character after spending much of the first book in Adam’s shadow.

Spencer also provides a very compelling change of scenery from his previous novel, taking the protagonists and readers into a much more rural setting.  Australia’s iconic Hunter Valley worked perfectly as a background to Spencer’s complex mystery, and the beautiful landscape, as well as its interesting mixture of inhabitants, added a lot to Broke Road’s impact and distinctive feel.  I also personally felt that Spencer provided a much more well-written novel with this sequel, which showcases his growth from the first book.  While the author does maintain his series’ grim tone, especially when it comes to the very disturbing killer, the story in this sequel was a lot sharper and the character arcs managed to hit a little harder.  I also think that the author brought all the story elements together a bit more concisely in the finale, allowing for a much more enjoyable journey to the end of the book.  All this really highlighted Spencer’s great development as a writer, and it will be interesting to see how he continues to improve going forward.

With some outstanding writing, clever storytelling and many grim murders, Broke Road was an exceptional book from Matthew Spencer, who really showcased his writing ability with this book.  An amazing sequel that also stands on its own feet, Broke Road is guaranteed to hook you early, and it was easily one of the best Australian crime fiction novels of 2025.

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Hotel Lucky Seven by Kotaro Isaka

On By The Unseen LibraryIn English Translation, Thriller2 Comments

Publisher: Harvill Secker (Trade Paperback – 12 November 2025)

English Translation: Brian Bergstrom

Series: Hitman – Book Four 

Length: 291 pages

My Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

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One of Japan’s most entertaining thriller authors, Kotaro Isaka, presents a great new entry in his shared crime fiction universe, with the wonderfully unhinged and entertaining Hotel Lucky Seven.

Kotaro Isaka is an amazing author who has dominated the Japanese crime fiction scene for years, thanks to his amazing and over-the-top thrillers that are filled with distinctive characters and entertaining narratives.  In recent years, Isaka has gained more of a Western following as several of his books have been translated and released in English.  This includes his best-known novel, Bullet Train, which was adapted into a particularly entertaining film with Brad Pitt a couple of years ago.  While I loved the film, I am also a major fan of the original Bullet Train novel, which is very different from its adaptation in its own awesome way.  Having really enjoyed Bullet Train when it came out, I’ve tried to read the other translated Isaka novels that have come out in his Hitman series, including the cool prequel novel Three Assassins.  While I did miss out on The Mantis, I made sure to grab a copy of Isaka’s latest book, Hotel Lucky Seven (released in Japan under the title 777).  Serving as a direct sequel to Bullet Train, Hotel Lucky Seven follows the terminally unlucky assassin Nanao, as he finds himself in a whole new mess.

Plot Synopsis:

A luxury hotel full of assassins – what could go wrong?

Nanao ‘the unluckiest assassin in the world’ has been hired to deliver a birthday present to a guest at a luxury Tokyo Hotel. It seems like a simple assignment but by the time he leaves the guest’s room one man is dead and more will soon follow. As events spiral out of control as it becomes clear several different killers, with varying missions, are all taking a stay in the hotel at the same time. And they’re all particularly interested in a young woman with a photographic memory, hiding out on one of the twenty floors.

Will Nanao find the truth about what’s going on? And will he check out alive?

In this original, gripping and inventive follow-up to the international bestseller Bullet Train, Kotaro Isaka demonstrates his unparalleled gift for unique characters and unexpected twists.

Hotel Lucky Seven was another very impressive outing from Isaka, as he once again wows with his outrageous array of assassins, fighting for their lives amongst a complex conspiracy narrative.  Slick, relentlessly entertaining and very addictive, Hotel Lucky Seven was an amazing read, and one that I powered through in less than a day.

Isaka created another very fun over-the-top story for Hotel Lucky Seven that quickly drags you in with its fantastic action.  Initially focusing on the main protagonist, Nanao, who has only recently recovered from his near-death experience on the deadly bullet train, the book sees the constantly unlucky character enter a hotel for a routine delivery, only to find himself in the middle of another quickly deteriorating situation.  Forced to kill someone while delivering a birthday present, Nanao soon find himself drawn into a larger confrontation involving Kamino, a young woman with an impressive memory, who is trying to escape her underworld boss.  Having accidently killed or incapacitated Kamino’s bodyguards while trying to flee the hotel to save his handler, Nanao soon finds himself reluctantly helping Kamino contend with a band of assassins known as the Six.  This proves to be a great central focus for Lucky Seven, which Isaka further enhances with intriguing chapters focused on other amusing characters like the killer team of Pillow and Blanket, two effective body removalists who are stalking the halls of the hotel on their own mission, as well as some interesting interludes around a famous politician in the restaurant who is being interviewed by an ambitious reporter.

These interlocking storylines come together nicely as the book continue, and I liked how well the various chapters flowed into each other.  Isaka keeps loading up the action as Nanao uses his unlikely combat skills against the various members of the slowly dwindling six as he desperately tries to escape the hotel.  After some very entertaining antics, as well as a couple of over-the-top deaths, the author sets up for the big conclusion, with the surviving characters coming together for a big confrontation.  While the story had been very fun, if relatively straightforward, up to this point, Isaka throws in an excellent twist that makes you re-evaluate the rest of the book.  There was a ton of great build-up throughout the entire story, with your perspective of one character completely changing in the best ways.  This really enhanced the overall impact of the entire story, and I came away very satisfied and intrigued by this impressive piece of Japanese fiction.

I really enjoyed the great style that Isaka utilised in Hotel Lucky Seven, which is reminiscent of the rest of the books in his Hitman series.  Made up of fast-paced chapters that switch between the several main characters, Isaka moves his exciting story along very effectively, quickly grabbing the reader’s attention with his complex characters, entertaining action, and great humour.  Serving as both an enjoyable sequel to Bullet Train and a fun standalone crime thriller, this is a very accessible novel for any reader to get into, even with its subtle yet noticeable Japanese aesthetics.  Indeed, I felt that Hotel Lucky Seven had more of a certain cinematic edge than Isaka’s previous novels, no doubt a result of the success he had with the Bullet Train film, and this help to make this book a lot easier to appreciate for new readers.  It also helped that some of the characters, such as killers known as the Six, would be fun to cast in a film adaptation, and the over-the-top figures terrorising a hotel with blowguns were particularly fun.

Speaking of awesome characters, I personally loved seeing the return of the unlucky killer Nanao, who was the best part of the original Bullet Train novel (where his role was a little less central than Brad Pitt’s in the film).  Serving much more a central role in this sequel, Nanao was the heart-and-soul of Hotel Lucky Seven, and it was very fun to see him continue to get in trouble while trying to do the right thing.  The rest of the characters are a little more serious, well as serious as people living in a world of killers can be, and I liked the certain philosophical edge that several of them had when it comes to their actions, especially the fun killer duo of Pillow and Blanket.  Throw in a couple of interesting additional villains, none of whom are really what they seem and who benefit from some layered backstories and misdirection with their intentions.  This extremely unique cast really fit the light-hearted vibe that Isaka loaded this excellent thriller with, and I had a wonderful time seeing their murderous antics and complex interactions unfold.

Overall, I had a wonderful time with Hotel Lucky Seven, which was one of the more entertaining and compelling thrillers I read last year.  A very worthy sequel to Bullet Train, Hotel Lucky Seven was another incredible read from Kotaro Isaka that will keep you hooked right to end with his awesome action, brilliant humour and fantastic storytelling.  It honestly will be interesting to see if Hotel Lucky Seven gets a film adaptation at some point, which honestly could turn into something very fun if they get a good cast for it.

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Waiting on Wednesday – Paradox by Douglas Preston and Aletheia Preston

On By The Unseen LibraryIn Science Fiction, Thriller, Waiting on Wednesday2 Comments

Welcome to my weekly segment, Waiting on Wednesday, where I look at upcoming books that I am planning to order and review in the next few months and which I think I will really enjoy.  Stay tuned to see reviews of these books when I get a copy of them.  For this week’s Waiting on Wednesday, I highlight an outstanding upcoming thriller filled with weird science and outrageous themes with the very cool sounding Paradox by the father/daughter team of Douglas and Aletheia Preston

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Back in 2024 I had the very great pleasure of reading my very first novel from Douglas Preston with the outstanding novel Extinction.  A fantastic thriller that saw two very different cops try to solve a bloody disappearance that took place in an exclusive mountain resort filled with genetically modified clones of mammoths and other pre-historic creatures, Extinction was a very fun book packed full of over-the-top twists and some very chaotic moments.  Thanks to Preston’s impressive and action-packed story, that featured murderous neanderthal clones amongst other entertaining moments, Extinction proved to be an extremely captivating and addictive read that I powered through so very quickly.

The awesome and frankly insane Extinction made me a big fan of Preston, and I’ve been trying out some of his other cool releases, including the amazing thriller Badlands, that Preston wrote with his long-time collaborator Lincoln Child.  However, I’ve always been curious to see if the somewhat open-ended narrative of Extinction could be expanded on, especially with the murderous neanderthals now out in the wild, filled with vengeful thoughts about homo sapiens destroying their species.  Well it turns out that Preston was also curious to see where his story to go, as we have a sequel to Extinction coming out soon with the very intriguing sounding Paradox.

Serving as the second book in the Cash & Colcord series, Paradox will see Preston bring on his daughter Aletheia as a writing partner, as he follows the protagonists from the first book into a new investigation, while the genetic consequences of the first book continue to lurk in the shadows.  I love the sound of this awesome sequel, and if it is anywhere near as epic and excessive as the first book in the series was, then I know I’m going to love it.  As such, I have very high hopes for Paradox, and I feel like it is going to be a particularly enjoyable read.

Plot Synopsis:

The new powerhouse team of Douglas Preston & Aletheia Preston are joining together to “enter the world” of the New York Times bestselling Extinction.

One of the holiest relics in Christendom, inexplicably defaced…

A paranoid old prospector, ritualistically murdered…

A controversial exobiologist, tortured and dismembered…

When a reclusive man is found dead under grisly circumstances in the Colorado wilderness, CBI Agent Frankie Cash and Eagle County Sheriff Jim Colcord, whom we met in the New York Times bestseller, Extinction, team up again on their most enigmatic and dangerous case yet. Their investigation uncovers a trail of bizarre killings, baffling money transfers, and a fanatical secret society.

And all the while, the resurrected Neanderthals, who vanished into the Colorado mountains, seem to be biding their time for something…spectacular.