May 31

Ghost Virus – Graham Masterton

The girl had been staring into her mirror all morning before she picked up the small bottle of sulphuric acid and poured it over her forehead.

Samira was a young woman with her whole life ahead of her. What could have brought her to this? DC Jerry Pardoe and DS Jamila Patel of Tooting Police suspect it’s suicide. But then a meek husband kills his wife, and the headteacher of the local school throws her pupils out of a window. It’s no longer a random outbreak of horrific crimes. It’s a deadly virus. And it’s spreading. Somehow, ordinary Londoners are being infected with an insatiable lust to murder. All of the killers were wearing second-hand clothes. Could these garments be possessed by some supernatural force?

The death count is multiplying. Now Jerry and Jamila must defeat the ghost virus, before they are all infected…

 

My thanks to Melanie at Head of Zeus for the chance to join the tour.

 

When I read a horror story I like to begin with the understanding that anything goes.  I don’t want a story which is content to ground its-self in the confines of reality, that is what psychological thrillers are meant to do.  I want an author to embrace the freedom of being able to do whatever they like to put their characters through the emotional wringer (and a fairly high body count is a bonus).

In Ghost Virus Graham Masterton has very much taken the freedom available to him and has infected some Londoners with an insatiable lust to murder. The common thread (no pun intended) is that all those infected have been exposed to second hand clothes which form a lethal symbiotic relationship with their host and drive them to kill.

As the carnage escalates we get two cops trying to make sense of these seemingly unrelated acts of violence. Jerry Pardoe and his new colleague Jamila Patel are perplexed by the horrific scenes they are called to investigate but soon start to see a pattern in the behaviour of the murderers.  The challenge they face is that there is no logical or rational explanation to accompany the events they are witnessing.

Graham Masterton has a dark and disturbing imagination and this comes through in Ghost Virus.  There is no glossing over the violent acts, the horror is very much front and centre of the story.  Horror fans will love it. As a frequent reader of police procedurals there was also a very strong investigation by Pardoe and Patel for me to enjoy too.  Everything I enjoy in a story – sit back, pick up the book and let the story flow around me. Bliss.

Fantastical horror and a criminal investigation. Will not be for the crime purists but I enjoyed this immensely.

 

Ghost Virus is published by Head of Zeus and is available in digital format.  You can order a copy here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Ghost-Virus-Graham-Masterton/dp/1788545044/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1527632832&sr=1-1

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February 11

Perfect Days – Raphael Montes

Perfect DaysThe path to true love rarely runs smoothly…

Teo, a medical student, meets Clarice at a party. Teo doesn’t really like people, they’re too messy, but he immediately realises that he and Clarice are meant to be together. And if Clarice doesn’t accept that? Well, they just need to spend some time together, and she’ll come to realise that too.

And yes, he has bought handcuffs and yes, he has taken her prisoner and yes, he is lying to her mother and to his mother and to the people at the hotel he’s keeping her at, but it’s all for her own good.

She’ll understand. She’ll fall in love. She’ll settle down and be his loving wife.

Won’t she?

 

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

 

Perfect Days is one of those books that I cannot actually talk about in any great detail.  It needs to be read. And once you find out what Teo has planned you will probably want to read it in a single sitting!

This one comes with a warning though – not for the squeamish or the faint of heart. The story will take some very nasty turns along the way, there will be bad language and there were even some scenes which had me wincing as I read them. I couldn’t put it down!

Perfect Days is a dark tale of obsession and neurosis. Teo is socially awkward but believes that he may have found his soul mate in Clarice. He is prepared to go to any lengths to ensure Clarice gets to see him in the best light. Unfortunately for Teo, Clarice is just about to take an extended vacation to work on her screenplay and has no plans to be around Teo long enough for him to show her his limited charms.

Taking matters into his own hands Teo plots to abduct Clarice so that they can spend some quality time together. What follows is a sequence of events that will spiral out of Teo’s control in ways which he could never have anticipated. Oh and it gets messy. Very messy.

Perhaps the most chilling aspect of Perfect Days is the finale. I was NOT prepared for the ending that Raphael Montes delivered. My gob was smacked. I utterly loved the journey but the finale was…well I cannot tell you THAT. But trust me when I say it will get to you.

 

Perfect Days is published on 18th February by Vintage and you can pre-order your copy here: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Perfect-Days-Raphael-Montes/dp/1846559529/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1455142355&sr=8-2

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