Dead – Grab This Book

The Dying Squad – Adam Simcox (audiobook)

WHO BETTER TO SOLVE A MURDER THAN A DEAD DETECTIVE?

When Detective Inspector Joe Lazarus storms a Lincolnshire farmhouse, he expects to bring down a notorious drug gang; instead, he discovers his own dead body and a spirit guide called Daisy-May.

She’s there to enlist him to the Dying Squad, a spectral police force made up of the recently deceased. Joe soon realises there are fates far worse than death. To escape being stuck in purgatory, he must solve his own murder.

Reluctantly partnering with Daisy-May, Joe faces dangers from both the living and the dead in the quest to find his killer – before they kill again.

I am reviewing my bought copy of the audiobook of The Dying Squad

The blurb (above) actually contains spoilers for the first few chapters of the book. Probably just as well as it would be really tricky to try to review The Dying Squad while trying to keep quiet the fact the lead character, Joe Lazarus, is dead. Not that Lazarus knows it immediately. We join him on a stakeout as he prepares to bring down a gang who have been providing drugs to the local community. The property under surveliance is an isolated farmhouse but when Lazarus enters the property he finds two suspects dead in the hallway and – shockingly – his own dead body in an upstairs room.

Throughout this introduction Lazarus is being accompanied by Daisy-May. She strolled over to speak with him while he was watching the farmhouse and then, despite all his warnings, she followed him into the property and was with him when he discovered his body. Daisy-May is dead too. But she has had more experience at being dead and it is her job to guide him into his afterlife and into purgatory.

No rest for Joe Lazarus, he has a job to do for the woman that runs purgatory. She needs Lazarus to return to earth and find his killer. He will have Daisy-May for company and she will help him investigate and to understand what he can and cannot do now that he is dead. Having Lazarus and Daisy-May together for so much of the story means their interactions need to be fun and by God they are. I loved the zippy one-liners, the sass and the sarcasm. Daisy-May is such a strong character and I loved listening to her keeping Lazarus in check.

One element of The Dying Squad which I really enjoyed was the way Adam Simcox built up the real world, the afterlife and how the characters traverse between the two. Then there are the citizens of purgatory – a mass of lost souls or a sinister collective seeking a purpose? I wasn’t sure how they may fit into the story but contrast that to the evil forces (both on this earth and beyond it). There are bad guys in The Dying Squad and there are REALLY bad guys. The author can dispense some particularly nasty punishment to his characters when a fate worse than death is a geninue threat that will keep them focused on their mission.

It’s clever and creative storytelling in The Dying Squad and as all the “normal” rules are suspended I really did not know what may lie ahead for Lazarus and Daisy-May. Adam Simcox does a great job of developing his key characters, I was buying into their stories right from the first pages and the shocks they expereinced were equally shocking to me. Terrific fun to read – or to listen to in my case.

The audiobook is narrated by Sophie Aldred (soon to be seen back on our television screens reprising her role as Ace in Doctor Who). As a long time fan of the Big Finish Doctor Who audio adentures I have listened to Sophie Aldred’s voice on more dog walks than I can count. As such, listening to her reading The Dying Squad was an absolute treat. She captured the feisty nature of Daisy-May superbly and brought the gravitas and drama for Lazarus as he contended with the changes in his life (beginning with his death). I have a short list of favourite audiobook narrators but after hearing The Dying Squad I will need to make that short list a little bit longer.

The Dying Squad comes with lashings of darkness and you’ll need to have an acceptance for fantasy in your crime stories to enjoy this book as much as I did. Personally I couldn’t get enough of this story and because I was a little late to the party in discovering The Dying Squad the sequal, The Generation Killers, has already been released. Reader – I have bought that too.

The Dying Squad is available in paperback, digital and audiobook format. You can order a copy here: https://www.waterstones.com/book/the-dying-squad/adam-simcox/9781473230767

Category: 5* Reviews, Audiobook, From The Bookshelf | Comments Off

June 13

Dead is Beautiful – Jo Perry

“These books are weird, unique, funny and sad all at the same time.”

DEAD IS BEAUTIFUL, finds Rose leading Charlie from the peace of the afterlife to the place he hates most on earth, “Beverly Fucking Hills,” where a mature, protected tree harboring a protected bird is being illegally cut down.

The tree-assault leads Charlie and Rose to a to murder and to the person Charlie loathes most in life and in death, the sibling he refers to only as “his shit brother,” who is in danger.

Charlie fights-across the borders of life and death–for the man who never fought for him, and with the help of a fearless Scotsman, a beautiful witch, and a pissed-off owl,

Charlie must stop a cruel and exploitative scheme and protect his beloved Rose.

My thanks to Emma at Damppebbles for the chance to join the blog tour. I received a copy of Dead is Beautiful from the publisher – Fahrenheit Press.

The 4th book in the Charlie and Rose adventures and one of the most loved (and unusual) series which I follow. Here are the need to knows:

Charlie is dead. Shot in the chest and life extinct.

Rose is a dog. She too is dead. Left tied up with no access to food or water until life drained away.

Charlie and Rose can visit the living world if they choose to do so but cannot interact or influence anything which happens.

Dead is Beautiful can be read as a stand alone story but I’d urge you to read all the Charlie and Rose books as they are hugely enjoyable.

Now you’re caught up on the basics – lets consider Dead is Beautiful. Guided by Rose, Charlie finds himself in Beverly Hills or “Beverly Fucking Hills” as he calls it – this area seems to represent everything Charlie hated about society when he was alive.

The story begins with a tree being felled – Rose is a frenzy of spirited activity as she tries to prevent (ineffectively) the destruction of a protected tree which is home to an equally protected species of owl. Fortunately for Rose a very naked woman is also nearby and willing to put herself into harms way to save the owl from murder.

Needless to say the presence of an angry woman and the arrival of the police to investigate an attempted murder allegation grants both owl and tree some reprieve. However, there are people at work who need that tree gone and will not permit a small owl to thwart their plans – they consider there are much bigger priorities to address.

As you may have gathered, Dead is Beautiful takes a dark humoured view on society and our priorities. Charlie and Rose will watch events unfolding and guide the reader through the story, the reader learns what is happening as they do.

For Charlie the events in Dead is Beautiful will be personally challenging as this return to the real world sees him encountering his “shit brother”. Clearly there was no love lost between the brothers and Charlie finds it hard to be sympathetic to the problems his brother will face. Actually he rather enjoys quite a lot of the misfortune which shall befall his elder sibling.

Although they cannot interact with the real world there is a distinct threat for Charlie to face in Dead is Beautiful and the consequence of his failure was just too grim to consider. The fact ghosts can also be unpleasant bullies should (with hindsight) not have been too much of a shock but when a ghostly bully turns on our heroes I can’t say I enjoyed seeing them reeling.

I did very much enjoy the bonus appearance of an outspoken Scottish punk who was happy to have a vocal and very direct opinion on many things which were occurring. I always enjoy seeing a fellow Scot displaced from their native land and bringing a touch of “home” to far flung places! These scenes were joyous and had me grinning like a loon as I read them.

Jo Perry once again delivers a cracking story with her oddly paired protagonists. Dead is Beautiful is recommended – as are all the Charlie and Rose stories.

Dead is Beautiful is published by Fahrenheit Press in paperback and digital format. You can order a copy here: http://www.fahrenheit-press.com/books_dead_is_beautiful.html

Remember: if you order a paperback copy of a Fahrenheit Press book they also make sure you receive a digital copy of your purchase too.

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April 11

I Want You Gone – Miranda Rijks

The only obituary you never want to read – is your own.

Laura Swallow is dead.
A life cut tragically short, says the newspaper obituary.
But that’s a lie.
Estate agent Laura did not die in a car accident. She is alive and well.
At first, Laura thinks it’s a sick joke.
But multiple announcements of her death are followed by increasingly sinister real-life events. Already fragile, struggling to recover from a recent divorce, Laura is plunged into a living nightmare.
Who can she trust? Her new lover? Her clients and work colleagues? What about her ex-husband and his smug fiancée? Can Laura even rely on her best friends? And why is it that Laura’s present troubles are so tied up with her sister’s sudden death all those years ago?
But one thing Laura is sure of – someone out there wants her to suffer. Wants her gone.
Forever.

My thanks to Emma at Damppebbles Blog Tours for the chance to join this tour. I received a review copy in order to participate in this blog tour.

This was a twisty and unsettling story which saw lead character, Laura Swallow, put through an emotional wringer. If you enjoy your protagonists to experience all the trauma (rather than swan through a story observing misfortune for others while they remain untouched) then add I Want You Gone to your reading list immediately.

Laura is a divorcee, her ex-husband is living with a younger woman and Laura is making a tentative to begin dating again. She has a good job at a local estate agency and seems to be building some self-confidence but her world is about to be rocked in a way she could never have anticipated.

It begins with an obituary in the local paper. Laura’s obituary. But there must have been a terrible mistake – Laura is alive and well and most certainly did not die in a car accident as the paper suggests. Things get worse for Laura when a client, an old school friend, raises a complaint about her behaviour while she is showing him around a property. This is just the start of a sequence of unexplained attacks (or pranks?) where Laura is the target. Each incident becomes more venomous and her personal safety no longer seems assured.

With only a few friends or colleagues she feels able to trust, who can help keep Laura safe as she struggles to understand why someone seems intent on destroying her.

Some fun twists and a few dark touches kept me reading. I was keen to find out why Laura had been singled out and enjoyed my journey to enlightenment.

I Want You Gone is published on 13 April 2019 by Inkubator Books and you can order a copy here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B07PZ8Q3LT/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_bibl_vppi_i1

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January 5

Dead Is Best – Jo Perry

Charlie and Rose are back in their much anticipated new adventure. Charlie’s step daughter lies dying on a beach. She needs help. Some serious help. But how did she get there and what can on earth can a dead guy and his dead dog do? Plenty as it turns out. As Charlie & Rose ride to the rescue in their own unique way it soon becomes clear that the body on the beach was only the beginning…

One of the most unusual (but enjoyable) partnerships I have encountered while blogging. Charlie is dead. Rose, a dog, is also dead. Together they can drift in and out of the real world and spectate but their capacity to interact is virtually nil.

Dead is Best opens with Charlie’s step-daughter Cali suffering a near-death experience. She sees Charlie and Rose and begs for their help before she is returned to her unhappy existence. Charlie and Rose return to the world to keep a watch over Cali and the full extent of her problems soon become clear.

I love how Jo Perry tackles events in Dead Is Best. While Charlie and Rose cannot intercede during events Charlie is a highly effective narrator. He can travel to where Cali is but when necessary he can move to a different location, for example to see how Cali’s mother (Charie’s ex-wife and her new husband) are handling their “difficult” child. Not Well it would appear.

Charlie begins to understand how tough life is for Cali – a troubled teen who appears to have fallen in with a bad crowd. As the story progresses and Cali finds herself in trouble with the law we see the true strength of her character come to the fore.

As non-corporeal entities Charlie and Rose can be anywhere they need to be and often witness the worst of people. They see acts of violence and bullying which the protagonists would never let a “human” observe and Charlie’s frustration at his inability to intercede seeps through – brilliantly written by Jo Perry.

The Charlie and Rose stories are quite unlike anything else I read and I cannot recommend them highly enough. Hunt them down…or use this handy link: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Jo-Perry/e/B00PEG4T9I/ref=dp_byline_cont_ebooks_1

Dead is Best is published by Fahrenheit Press in digital and paperback format.

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June 1

The Suicide Plan – Emma Clapperton

Standing up and welcoming everyone to the spiritualist church is something Patrick McLaughlin does most evenings. Most of the faces in the audience are familiar to him, except one. David Hopkirk walks into the West End Spiritualist church in Glasgow and slits his own throat in the middle of a demonstration. Buy why?

Patrick is then catapulted into a case, which sees the death of a child, a failed court case and a family torn apart.

Soon Patrick will have all the pieces of the puzzle but will he be able to fit them together in time?

My thanks to Sarah at Bloodhound books for a review copy and the chance to join the tour.

The Suicide Plan was a wee gem of a read. I don’t normally (well don’t ever) read short stories or novellas but I quite liked the sound of this one so decided to give it a go and I am glad I did.

The story was quite harrowing in places and Emma Clapperton is not pulling any punches as she puts her characters through the emotional wringer. The story opens with a man who felt he had no one left to turn to for support. He takes his own life in a crowded hall in the presence of a spiritualist in the hope that his suicide will lead to his plea for help being heard from beyond the grave.

As shocking and traumatic as that incident may have been for the spiritualist, Patrick McLaughlin, he reaches out to the deceased man to try to understand why he would take his own life. Some communication is possible and Patrick starts to look deeper into past tragedies.

No spoilers are allowed but The Suicide Plan is a cleverly delivered tale which I rather enjoyed. If you enjoy a supernatural twist to your crime stories this is one to pick up.

The Suicide Plan is published by Bloodhound Books and can be ordered here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Suicide-Plan-Emma-Clapperton-ebook/dp/B072C5294G/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1496299531&sr=1-1&keywords=the+suicide+plan

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