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Blood Axe – Q&A with Leigh Russell

Today I am delighted to be able to welcome Leigh Russell to Grab This Book. I was introduced to Leigh’s work last year when I read Race to Death a great murder mystery which featured DI Ian Peterson who also takes the lead in Leigh’s new book: Blood Axe. I was thrilled to be offered the chance to join the Blood Axe blog tour and I was delighted that Leigh agreed to take time to answer a few of my questions.

Can you tell us a little about Blood Axe?

Blood Axe features perhaps one of my simplest and yet most mysterious killers so far. It’s difficult to say too much without risking spoilers, so I think all I can say is, please read the book and find out… In Blood Axe, Ian Peterson has his work cut out trying to trace a very elusive killer while, at the same time, coping with the threatened break down of his marriage.

Blood Axe is the third book to feature DI Ian Peterson as the lead character yet readers may still primarily associate you with the Geraldine Steel novels. Why did you decide to give Peterson a chance to run solo rather than create a new detective team from scratch?

When Geraldine Steel moves to London, leaving her sergeant behind, they keep in touch. Ian Peterson appears briefly in her following books. So when the Geraldine Steel series became popular, and my publisher was talking about my writing a second series, a spin off series for Ian Peterson seemed like a good idea. It has been a challenge to develop the two characters and have them interact across the two series, at the same time making sure each book also works as a stand alone for readers who chance upon any of them. After what happens to Ian Peterson in Blood Axe, there are plenty of interesting possibilities for his future, but I don’t want to include any spoilers here!

Do you begin a new book by deciding that you are going to write a Geraldine Steel or Ian Peterson story or does the plot idea come first and you work out which character is the ‘best fit’ for the lead?

The process starts with my schedule, and which series I need to write for next. If I have to deliver a manuscript for Geraldine Steel in six months’ time, I can’t become engrossed in a story set in York. Recently I signed a three book deal with Thomas and Mercer, as well as accepting another three book deal for No Exit Press. With the new Lucy Hall series to write, I have decided to focus on Geraldine Steel and the Ian Peterson series is going to lapse for a while. But he is not going to disappear as a character, so you can speculate about what is going to happen next, which is what I’m doing right now.

As Blood Axe draws upon on the history of York, and features one of the main tourist attractions in the city, I imagine that Blood Axe was always going to be a Peterson book?

Yes, the inspiration for Blood Axe came to me while I was on a visit to York. By chance the British Museum was hosting a major exhibition, with lectures, about the Vikings, giving me access to some of the world experts on Viking culture and civilisation. The exhibition and lectures were fascinating, and the experts were incredibly helpful, as I was keen to make sure my Viking’s thoughts and beliefs were as authentic as possible.

Why did you choose York for Peterson’s stories?

I wanted him to move to a town or city that was a long way from Kent, where his wife’s family live. He has connections with the area, as he was born there. But the most important reason was that I love York, and setting the Ian Peterson series there means I can go there regularly on research trips. I’ll be back there in November for book signings, and back again in March when I’ll be talking at York Literature Festival about why I set my series in York.

I always like to ask this: Why do readers love serial killer stories given how horrific the concept is in reality?

True crime is a popular genre, and I understand its appeal, but I don’t like reading about real crimes. I find it too upsetting. Yet somehow, in fiction, crime becomes a form of entertainment. I think there are several reasons for the appeal of serial killers. Crime fiction is, basically, goodies and baddies. The more evil the villain is, the more desperate readers are to see the killer brought to justice. So serial killers make for tense reading. They can also be interesting characters, and I am always fascinated by my killers. A review in Crime Time wrote that ‘Russell takes the reader into the darkest recesses of the human psyche’. I’m not sure how I get there, but it’s all fiction!

On a more personal level, what do you enjoy reading? Who do you consider to be your favourite authors?

My taste in reading is fairly eclectic. I was fortunate enough to spend four years studying English Literature at university, which meant that I basically spent four years reading. I really can’t pick out favourite authors, but a few I particularly like are Harper Lee, John Steinbeck, Mary Shelley, Dickens, Jeffery Deaver, Edith Wharton, Kazuo Ishiguru, Frances Fyfield, Lee Child, Simin Beckett… there are hundreds more… it’s a bit of a mixture!

When do you find time to write and do you have a writing habit or routine?

I am so busy at the moment, with a new book just out, that is quite difficult to find time to write. That said, I have no set routine, and am rarely free to spend a whole day at home focusing solely on writing. There is always something going on, meetings with my publishers, book signings, library talks, literary festivals, interviews, research, apart from everything else in life… When I can spend a day at home, I usually stay in bed until late morning, answering emails and planning my writing for the day… with a little procrastination on social media thrown in… After that, I move into my study and settle down to write. Truthfully, it doesn’t really matter to me where I am as I write in bed, at my desk, in the car (not when I’m driving!), on the train, in cafes. I never leave the house without my ipad. The final edited manuscript for the first book in my new Lucy Hall series, Journey to Death, was emailed from a beach in the Seychelles where I had gone on a research trip. With the Internet, you really can write anywhere in the world.

Are you a meticulous plotter, do you sit down and prepare exactly how the story will unfold before you start to write?

I try to plot my books carefully in advance, but my ideas don’t always work out. The overall shape of the book is in my head before I start, what Lee Child calls his “five second elevator pitch”, but writing books is an organic process for me. If is much more fun to write and see what happens. Sometimes it works out on the first attempt. With more books to write, I am having to work to tighter deadlines with less time for revising and reworking, so I might have to be more meticulous at the planning stage.

When not writing how do you enjoy spending your downtime?

I haven’t had any down time for about six years, but I enjoy what I do and think myself lucky to be able to write full time.

Finally, can you give us any clues as to what we can hope to see in your next book?

I’m just planning the ninth Geraldine Steel novel. There may be some surprising revelations about Geraldine’s family that lead her to question herself and the kind of person she is. Oh, and there’s a murder fairly early on…

My thanks to Leigh.

Blood Axe is published by No Exit Press and is available in paperback and digital formats here: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Blood-Axe-Di-Ian-Peterson/dp/1843445433/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1447632586&sr=1-1&keywords=blood+axe

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November 16

Blood Axe (DI Ian Peterson 3) – Leigh Russell

Silently dipping his oars in the water he made his escape. It was a weary journey, with few spoils to show for it. Next time he would do better. He looked back over his shoulder. The bridge had disappeared, swallowed up by the darkness. From its walkway he too had become invisible. Only the bloody body of a woman showed he had been roaming the streets that night.

D.I. Ian Peterson investigates a series of gruesome and brutal axe murders in York. As the body count mounts, the case demands all Ian’s ingenuity, because this is a killer who leaves no clues.

My thanks to No Exit Press for my review copy.

DI Ian Peterson returns in Blood Axe, the new thriller from Leigh Russell. Having enjoyed his previous outing (Race to Death) where Peterson and his wife were put through serious trials as the hunt for a murderer unfolded I was keen to see what lay ahead. Suffice to say I was not prepared for an adversary like the ‘Hunter’ that appears in Blood Axe.

I am always keen to avoid spoilers but as the book description (above) refers to ‘a series of brutal axe murders’ I am on reasonably safe ground to discuss a little bit about the murders in Blood Axe. An axe wielding killer is stalking his prey around the city streets, his victims appear random and robbery does not appear to be a motive as money is not taken from a victim’s purse. But the nature of the killings gives the police some major cause for concern – axe attacks are brutal and bloody and this killer seems to have no qualms about unleashing murderous fury on his victims.

With no real leads or clues to pursue the pressure soon descends upon the investigative team, headed up by DI Ian Peterson. We see how Peterson handles working with a younger colleague who he feels is not as committed to the job as Peterson was himself. Added friction is raised when allegations made by a young witness seem unlikely to Peterson but his colleague is more inclined to take the allegations on good faith. Conflict within the investigative team and also for Peterson further problems are arising at home as his wife struggles to adapt to life in York and becomes increasingly frustrated by Peterson’s long working days.

I believe that the success of an ongoing series depends upon a strong supporting cast to back-up the lead character and Leigh Russell is developing exactly that. The interplay between the police characters shows how they struggle to maintain morale when faced with an investigation which seems to be going nowhere. In Blood Axe we also get to ‘ride along’ with the killer as he stalks his next victim, we get an insight into the thought process of the hunt and it is a disturbing distorted reality we see.

I actually visited York a few weeks ago and this added an extra level of enjoyment to my reading of Blood Axe. I could clearly imagine the narrow York streets that the Hunter crept down as he stalked his prey, Leigh Russell captures the feeling of the city brilliantly and it let me immerse myself into the story.

Blood Axe is an entertaining murder mystery with a twist that few will see coming. Fans of Leigh’s previous books will be pleased with a cameo from Peterson’s old boss Geraldine Steel. New readers have an atmospheric read to enjoy and a cast of characters you will want to read more of.

Blood Axe is published by No Exit Press and is available in paperback and digital formats now.

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November 15

Warren the Xiiith (Warren the 13th): The All Seeing Eye – Tania Del Rio

Meet Warren the 13th, a cursed twelve-year-old Victorian bellhop who’s terribly unlucky, yet perpetually optimistic, hard-working, and curious. Warren’s pride and joy is his family’s Warren Hotel, but he’s been miserable ever since his evil Aunt Anaconda took over the management. Anaconda believes a mysterious treasure known as The All-Seeing Eye is hidden somewhere in the walls of the hotel, and she’ll do anything to find it. If Warren wants to preserve his family’s legacy, he’ll need to find the treasure first – if the hotel’s many strange and wacky guests don’t beat him to it!

Our review copy came from Publishers Group UK (PGUK).

We are a very book oriented family, my boys were read to from a very young age and their love of books has grown as they get older. My eldest son is now 9 and is glued to his books and comics at every opportunity he gets. Recently he had the opportunity to read Tania Del Rio’s forthcoming book Warren the 13th – he devoured it over the course of a couple of nights and has been picking it up on a regular basis to revisit the story.

I have had a look through the book too and it is gorgeous to look at – filled with beautiful artwork which compliments the story and there is a hidden message to find too (a challenge my son is not prepared to give up on).

I asked my son to tell me a little about the story…

“Warren 13th is about a boy who runs and lives in a hotel. His mean uncle recently married a witch (Aunt Anaconda) who has two sisters – they are all members of the Triangle Coven…they are the nasty baddies“.

While Warren is in the garden he stumbles upon a journal which belonged to one of his ancestors (Warren 2nd). “A peculiar page explains about a mysterious object called the All Seeing Eye – a cryptic poem tells how the All Seeing Eye can grant power across the land but could also be used to destroy the hotel“. I clarified that the hotel is Warren’s home, and his legacy, so he cannot allow the All Seeing Eye to fall into someone else’s hands. Unfortunately the Triangle Coven also want the All Seeing Eye so Warren will have a fight on his hands.

I asked him to tell me what kind of story it was…”funny, adventurous, surprising and action packed“. He has taken the book into school to show his friends and the other bookworms in his class are asking how they can get a copy too. Although we get through a fair number of books in our house it is not often that a story catches his imagination quite in the way that Warren 13th has done. As a parent I would highly recommend this book, I measure the reading enjoyment by how much my kids talk about a book, how often they ask to read it and whether they bring me the book to share their favourite bits. Warren 13th ticked all the boxes and he was genuinely disappointed when he finished it – a second read through is looking likely.

Warren 13th will be published on 24th November by Quirk Books.

Copies can be pre-ordered here: http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/1594748039?keywords=warren%2013th&qid=1447592968&ref_=sr_1_1&s=books&sr=1-1

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November 11

Fishbowl – Bradley Somer

Even a goldfish can dream of adventure…

From his enviable view from a balcony on the 27th floor of an apartment block, Ian the Goldfish has frequent – if fleeting – desires for a more exciting life. Until one day, a series of unfortunate events gives him an opportunity to escape…

Our story begins, however, with the human inhabitants of Ian’s building. There is the handsome student, his girlfriend, and his mistress; an agoraphobic sex worker, the invisible caretaker; the pregnant woman on bed rest; and the home-schooled boy, Herman, who thinks he can travel through time.

And as Ian tumbles perilously downwards, he will witness all their lives, loves, triumphs and disasters…

My thanks to Ebury Press for my review copy which I received through Netgalley.

Ian is a goldfish – he is not having the best of days as he has just been knocked from his safe perch on the balcony of the 27th floor of an apartment block. As Ian plummets to the ground he gets a very brief adventure as he whizzes past the windows of the apartments below, spotting some of the occupants as he falls.

If we were just to follow Ian then Fishbowl would be a very short read. Fortunately for the reader there are many more interesting lives to read about as the apartment block that Ian lives (lived?) in is full of fascinating characters. We read about Connor – Ian’s owner – who has been cheating on his girlfriend and is frantically trying to kick his mistress out of his flat while his girlfriend makes her way up to visit him. The lift is out and Connor is on the 27th floor so this will buy him some time, during his state of panic Connor re-evaluates some of his life choices. As does his girlfriend who is hauling up the 27 floors and questioning whether she and Connor have a future.

We read the tragic story of an agoraphobic, Claire. She can no longer face being outside her apartment but has developed a coping mechanism for having her groceries delivered and ordering everything she needs online. She works as a telephone sex worker, the perfect career for someone that does not want to leave her apartment – steady money and a regular client base. But for Claire there are challenges ahead which will test her resolve to the limit and push her to face her fears.

Jimenez is the building maintenance man – he has been asked to repair the lift (again). If he can patch up the antiquated mechanism it will save his employers the cost of calling out an official engineer. Not that Jimenez will be thanked for his endeavours, it is expected that he will jump through the hoops despite any reservations he may have about his ability to repair the lift.

There is home-schooled Herman, learning from his grandfather. Pregnant Petunia Delilah who is hoping to have an uncomplicated home-birth and flashing past all their lives is Ian the goldfish on his plummet to the pavement.

Fishbowl is a clever collection of stories about people’s lives. The link is the apartment building and a small fish accelerating towards a pavement (a pavement of which he is blissfully unaware). This really is a great example of how people make a story.

Personally I struggled with Fishbowl. I do not read short stories so the brief look into all these different lives felt too much like a collection of loosely connected tales. That said, I recognise how clever Fishbowl was and Bradley Somer weaves these lives together with real skill. Not for me, but I would still recommend it to readers that enjoy reading about interesting lives.

Fishbowl is currently available in Hardback and digital formats from Ebury Press.

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November 10

The Lobster Boy and the Fat Lady’s Daughter – Charles Kriel

Rogue military cop Melanie Barry is a detective like no other and when her step-father is arrested and framed for murder, Mel is his only hope.

Mel pursues a heartless killer through the darkest heart of the gothic South, only to discover the mysteries of her own shadowy past revealed in blood.

Set on the carnival lot of a South Georgia tobacco town, The Lobster Boy And The Fat Lady’s Daughter is a wild Lynch-ian ride through a world that few people have ever experienced.

Before I cover the book I need to comment on how Fahrenheit Press brought it to my attention – by telling me absolutely nothing about it! I was lured in by the promise of mystery and the chance to support something new and different. Fahrenheit managed to persuade Amazon to put their book up for sale with no title announce, no author named and no description of what the book was about – other than it was a crime novel. The pitch was ‘trust us and we will give you a great book’. The ultimate mystery story! Gotta love someone trying something different so I signed up as an early adopter (as a result I got a nice name check in the book too – along with a fair few of my fellow bloggers).

So what the Hell did I buy?

Well it turned out to be a ripper of a read. A murder story with more than a few exciting action scenes, plot twists and intrigue plus some of the most memorable characters I have read in any book for a long time.

Melanie (Mel) Barry grew up amongst the carnival people – raised by the Lobster Boy and the Fat Lady and surrounded by performers, acrobats, ‘freaks’ and mermaids. The Carnival folk wanted a life away from authorities and the anonymity that the carnival could provide them – Mel bucked that trend by becoming a military cop. She is smart, skilled and tough as nails but she is also on the run, AWOL from the army and keeping a very low profile.

A murder of a prominent townsperson at the Carnival leads to the arrest of Mel’s father – Lobster Boy (Charlie). Mel returns to the carnival to investigate and quickly establishes that it would have been physically impossible for Charlie to have committed the murder. But in this town there is a very close network of prominent businessmen running the show and although Charlie’s carnival has provided them with some very pleasant distractions in the past – this time around Charlie is not receiving any preferential treatment.

Mel’s investigation soon leads her into direct confrontation with the cabal running the town but also throws up some figures from her past, not every familiar face brings a happy memory. As the investigation progresses Mel finds herself in increasing danger – siding with a local lawyer and one of the acrobats from the carnival the trio face down threats and attacks in a series of exhilarating action sequences.

The Lobster Boy and the Fat Lady’s Daughter was a refreshing and highly entertaining read and Kreil captures the essence of carnival life better than any story I have read in the past. Mel is a kickass action hero and I hope this is a character I can read about in future. May be too quirky for the more conventional reader but this is a book you would be foolish to overlook.

The Lobster Boy and the Fat Lady’s Daughter is published by Fahrenheit Press and is available now in digital format

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November 5

Lost Girls – Angela Marsons

Two girls go missing. Only one will return.

The couple that offers the highest amount will see their daughter again. The losing couple will not. Make no mistake. One child will die.

When nine-year-old best friends Charlie and Amy disappear, two families are plunged into a living nightmare. A text message confirms the unthinkable; that the girls are the victims of a terrifying kidnapping.

And when a second text message pits the two families against each other for the life of their children, the clock starts ticking for D.I. Kim Stone and the squad.

Seemingly outwitted at every turn, as they uncover a trail of bodies, Stone realises that these ruthless killers might be the most deadly she has ever faced. And that their chances of bringing the girls home alive, are getting smaller by the hour…

Untangling a dark web of secrets from the families’ past might hold the key to solving this case. But can Kim stay alive long enough to do so? Or will someone’s child pay the ultimate price?

My thanks to Bookouture for my review copy which I received through Netgalley.

Back in March I reviewed the debut appearance of DI Kim Stone in Angela Marson’s Silent Scream, I really enjoyed it. Then in late June I reviewed Evil Games (the second in the series) and it blew me away – a really gripping thriller. Now it is early November and I get to review the 3rd Kim Stone novel: Lost Girls. I may need to break out my thesaurus to find some new superlatives I can use in my review.

Lost Girls is stunning. A majestic race against time for DI Kim Stone to recover two kidnapped girls. But the twist is that the kidnappers are only interested in returning one of the girls and are playing the parents off against each other to see who will pay the most to recover their child. Nasty and brutally effective – the emotion Angela Marsons generates between the families makes for compelling reading and Stone is caught in the middle.

The reader gets to see the investigation into recovering the girls but also we follow the kidnappers and experience the trauma of the girls too. The shifting viewpoint really emphasises the enormity of the task facing the police. We share the fear of the victims, the hopeless and angry tension of the families and we see the stone cold evil from the kidnappers – one of whom is delighting in the possibility of harming the children. A comprehensive overview of the whole story and it works splendidly, you cannot help yourself from being hooked by this thriller.

A double kidnapping is more than Stone can be expected to co-ordinate on her own and good use is made of Stone’s squad. I enjoy seeing the return of these characters and I always feel that the supporting cast in any series needs to be believable and enjoyable to keep me returning book after book. Added to the existing team members are external specialists in hostage/kidnap scenarios and these new faces cause Stone some additional issues to contend with – she is not a woman who enjoys being out of her comfort zone and this case is really stretching her to her limits. Factor in the additional pressure from the police chiefs and the need to maintain a press black-out (while a local journalist is snooping around determined to score points off Stone) and you have all the key ingredients for a tense thriller.

Lost Girls was an amazing read, I read the final chapters with a racing heart as the endgame played out. There were twists and shocks right up to the very end and it is hard to think of any other books this year which have held my attention as much as this one did. Lost Girls easily scoops a five star score from me – loved it, didn’t want it to end.

Angela Marson’s DI Kim Stone books are essential reading for any crime fiction fan. For Angela Marsons to have produced three top quality novels in a single year is a phenomenal achievement, a quality writer on stunning form. I am already looking forward to seeing what the future may bring when the next Kim Stone novel is due, hopefully there will not be too long to wait.

Lost Girls is published by Bookouture and is available from 6th November.

Follow Angela Marsons on Twitter at : @WriteAngie

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November 4

Secrets of the Last Nazi – Iain King

A mind-blowing conspiracy thriller

THE GREATEST DISCOVERY OF THE 20TH CENTURY.

KEPT SECRET.

UNTIL NOW.

Berlin, 2015 – a well-connected SS Commander is found dead, having protected the last secret of the Nazi empire for seventy years. A discovery by Nazi Scientists so potent it could change the balance of world power – forever.

Led by misfit military historian Myles Munro, an international team begin to piece together the complex puzzle left by SS Captain Werner Stolz. As their hunt across Europe gathers pace, the brutal killing of one of the group signals that they are not the only ones chasing the answer.

Plunged into a world of international espionage, Myles only has his intellect and instincts to keep him alive. As the team edge closer to an explosive truth, it becomes clear to him that there is a traitor amongst them.

Who can Myles trust? And can he unravel the clues of the past in time to save the future?

My thanks to Bookouture for my review copy which I received through Netgalley.

Myles Munro is a clumsy military historian, he has a cloud of scandal hanging over his head but is called into government duty to investigate the secrets left by former Nazi Werner Stolz. It seems that Stolz may have been keeper of a vast collection of Nazi information – documents and records far too important to be overlooked and potentially of huge value to modern governments.

A delegation of representatives from UK, America, Russia and France are brought together to investigate what Stolz has left behind, however, their investigations are not as secret as they may believe and it is not long before they find themselves in mortal danger.

Secrets of the Last Nazi plays out over a few European countries and feels suitably grand in scale for an international thriller. The action comes thick and fast and there really is a mesmerizing concept underpinning the whole story – one which initially seems unbelievable but as the story unfolded I found myself accepting as viable and plausible. Sharing the secret at the heart of the story is a massive spoiler, suffice to say that both the Church and scientific community combine to try to suppress the nature of Stolz’s legacy such is the risk that it poses to their credibility.

As the investigative team narrow down the clues that Stolz left for those that would follow him the reader learns that there is a traitor in their midst. As the story builds to the dramatic finale the stakes are raised and it becomes clear that our team will not all escape unscathed. Iain King created a small cast of characters that you will want to get to the bottom of the mystery they are facing. As the team members start to waiver and fall (and with suspicion of their motives always in question) you cannot help but keep reading.

While I do not normally seek out thrillers which are founded in the legacy of WW2 I was drawn into Secrets of the Last Nazi and will highly recommend it. It was refreshing to read a book which was much grander in scale than my normal choice of story and Iain King weaves the threads of a fantastic narrative into a slick adventure.

Secrets of the Last Nazi is published by Bookouture and is available in paperback and digital format.

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November 3

Monster – C J Skuse

At sixteen Nash thought that the fight to become Head Girl of prestigious boarding school Bathory would be the biggest battle she’d face. Until her brother’s disappearance leads to Nash being trapped at the school over Christmas with Bathory’s assorted misfits.

As a blizzard rages outside, strange things are afoot in the school’s hallways, and legends of the mysterious Beast of Bathory – a big cat rumoured to room the moors outside the school – run wild.

Yet when the girls’ Matron goes missing it’s clear that something altogether darker is to blame – and that they’ll have to stick together if they hope to survive.

My review copy came from Maximum Pop books.

A girls boarding school, the winter holidays and half a dozen girls are unable to travel home for the holidays so are stuck in their remote school over Christmas with just a single adult (the school matron) to supervise them.

My previous experience of reading about girls boarding schools only extends to the Enid Blyton Mallory Towers books, however, it is pleasing to see that the bitchy infighting between the girls is still very much in evidence and still makes for fun reading. It should be noted that CJ Skuse adds an extra level of bitchiness and takes the sexual references to a level that would have made Ms Blyton blush.

But what of the titular Monster? Well it seems that the remote school may have a mysterious monster running free in the woodland and open moors which surround the school and its grounds. Several of the girls claim to have spotted it over the years but no one is ab e to give an accurate description of what they have seen – assuming they actually tell anyone that they have seen the monster in the first place!

Monster follows Nash – she wants to become Head Girl of Bathory Boarding School but she is facing stiff competition and is also having to deal with personal trauma as her beloved older brother has gone missing and is feared dead. We see Nash struggle to maintain a degree of control as she tries to balance her impeccable image at school while facing taunting and snide jokes from some of the meaner girls she boards with.

I don’t read many YA novels but sometimes I find that the content can be more shocking or explicit than I originally expected. Monster begins with quite a mild tone and keeps this going for the majority of the book – until the endgame where CJ Skuse unshackles the restraint and delivers a nasty and quite brutal reward.

At the end of Monster I was left with the sense of having experienced a classic Doctor Who story. In the 60’s there was a period of time where the Doctor experienced a sequence of stories defined as ‘Base under Siege’ and this is how I viewed Monster. A small band of humans battling for survival against the odds with a Monster lurking and picking them off.

All good fun and very readable.

Monster is published by Mira Ink and is available now in paperback and digital format.

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November 2

Talk of the Toun – Helen MacKinven

‘She was greetin’ again. But there’s no need for Lorraine to be feart, since the first day of primary school, Angela has always been there to mop up her tears and snotters.’ An uplifting black comedy of love, family life and friendship, Talk of the Toun is a bittersweet coming-of-age tale set in the summer of 1985, in working class, central belt Scotland. Lifelong friends Angela and Lorraine are two very different girls, with a growing divide in their aspirations and ambitions putting their friendship under increasing strain.

Artistically gifted Angela has her sights set on art school, but lassies like Angela, from a small town council scheme, are expected to settle for a nice wee secretarial job at the local factory. Her only ally is her gallus gran, Senga, the pet psychic, who firmly believes that her granddaughter can be whatever she wants. Though Lorraine’s ambitions are focused closer to home Angela has plans for her too, and a caravan holiday to Filey with Angela’s family tests the dynamics of their relationship and has lifelong consequences for them both.

Effortlessly capturing the religious and social intricacies of 1980s Scotland, Talk of the Toun is the perfect mix of pathos and humour as the two girls wrestle with the complications of growing up and exploring who they really are.

My thanks to Helen and Thunderpoint for my review copy and for inviting me to join the blog tour.

As Helen and I live in the same corner of the world I was able to attend the launch of Talk of the Toun. During the evening Helen read from the book and brought her characters to life for the room – everyone was captivated. I closed my eyes and was transported to 1980’s Falkirk such was the brilliance of her reading. Naturally nobody wants to be transported back to Falkirk in the 80’s so I opened my eyes again pretty quickly!

Talk of the Toun is a fantastic coming of age story following Angela and her best friend Lorraine as they cope with their teenage years as they reach the end of their time at school. This is a story which will make you laugh then cry, characters can be very ‘un-pc’ and Helen MacKinven does not shy away from addressing awkward and sensitive issues.

For two teen girls there are a wealth of daily challenges to overcome, in a predominantly Protestant town attending the Catholic school means even walking down the street can bring trouble. Now factor in their quest to lose their virginity, Angela wanting to escape her life to follow her dream of attending Art School and Lorraine having to help look after her handicapped sister and you find two young women with a story you want to read.

A highlight of Talk of the Toun is the supporting cast: Angela’s parents, her Gran (a sometime pet psychic) and cover star Bimbo the dog all bring the extra dimension you want which will bring the depth to the story and add the realism that lets the reader buy into the tale. These are people you want to read about – once you start to learn about their lives you want to know more and see how they overcome the challenges which the author has placed in their way.

I would highlight that the book is written with plenty of local flavour. Language and phrases which are all very recognisable to me (as this is the world I grew up in) MAY cause some readers not accustomed to the Central Scotland dialect some mild confusion – this should not be something that puts you off reading Talk of the Toun. It is authentic, believable and lots of the humour relies upon the language being natural.

Talk of the Toun is a strong debut novel which deserves to be read. For those of us who experienced life in the 80’s it will strike many chords and bring back so many memories. I wonder if Helen MacKinven could put me together a soundtrack to go along with the book too?

Talk of the Toun is published by Thunderpoint Publishing and is available in paperback and digital format.

You can follow the rest of the blog tour at the sites below:

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October 31

Savage Lane – Jason Starr

When recently divorced Karen moves with her two kids into a nice suburb of New York she finds peace and joy for the first time in years. But unbeknown to Karen, her neighbour Mark, unhappy in his own marriage, has been living a fantasy life with her in the centre – a fantasy life that becomes a full-blown obsession.

My thanks to No Exit Press for my review copy

Savage Lane can almost be considered a peek behind the curtains into the lives of some of the families living in suburban New York. The focus is Karen, a divorcee with two kids – she is friendly with Mark but Mark is obsessed with Karen. Mark mistakes Karen’s friendship for something more and seems to be under the impression that Karen is looking to begin a relationship with him, giving Mark the chance to be free from his often-drunk and unloving wife Debs.

Debs, meanwhile, is keeping her own secrets from Mark. Yes she is drinking to excess – something causing her children concern (if not her husband), however Debs is having an affair of her own with a much younger man who will not take ‘no’ for an answer and is not happy when an increasingly guilty Debs suggests that their relationship should come to an end.

As you may guess, Savage Lane pitches these individuals together and focusses on their secrets and their fantasies and exploits the fragile nature of their relationships. These are unhappy and vulnerable people and it is a compelling read seeing how their neurosis and naivety makes them act in the most unexpected of ways. The supporting cast of characters are equally complex and unpredictable all of which makes for an entertaining read. Without drawing on spoilers – one character’s obsessive nature leads to a shocking loss of control and the implications on the other families featured in Savage Lane is significant and life changing. Jason Starr does a great job of making his dysfunctional families come to life and I genuinely felt that in some cases their irrational and obscure behaviours were leading to them getting the payback they deserved.

The strapline for the book is ‘Everyone has a secret’ in Savage Lane they certainly do and some are deadly.

I really enjoyed reading Savage Lane. It was quite dark in places and the characters all seem to be missing a degree of self control or the ability to rationalise their actions but this made for a great story so I was happy to accept they were all flawed.

When I was offered the opportunity to join the Savage Lane blog tour I was thrilled to be offered the chance to take part. Particularly as I knew Jason Starr is also a writer of comic books. Jason has worked on iconic titles such as Wolverine and Punisher. As I have been a fan of comic books for many years I was keen to ask Jason his thoughts on their place in the literary world – this is his response to my question:

Do comic books and Graphic Novels get the recognition they deserve?

Comics and graphic novels have a huge, growing audience around the world, so they certainly have the respect of readers. Some comics have crossed over and gained so-called “literary” respect, but I’m not sure if that has gone much beyond Maus, Watchmen, and Neil Gaiman’s work. I think there is a common misconception among readers who don’t read comics that comics are just for teenage boys. I think these people are missing out on sensational storytelling going on in comics right now–in mainstream superhero titles, and especially in indie comics. I think part of the challenge the comic industry has in reaching this readership is in how to overcome the “intimidation factor” of comics. If you’ve never read comics, or haven’t read them since you were kid, the comics section at bookstores can seem quite foreboding–I don’t think people know where to start. But I suggest asking for recommendations because there really is some great stuff out there.

My thanks to Jason and to Harriett at No Exit Press

Savage Lane is published by No Exit Press and is available in paperback and digital formats now.

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