Blog #7 I am legend by Richard Matheson

Bored? Looking for a quick read? I suggest you give I am Legend a try.

Now, get Will Smith, New York and his lovely wee dog out of your head.

This book is genuinely scary, not many books do give you a fright, but the mood set in this book is fantastic. The protagonist gives an interesting insight to life in a post apocalyptic world.

Remember, this was one of the first living dead type books of its kind. It is very kitsch to laugh about the "Night of the living dead" straight to VHS from the early 80's but you have to just forget about those preconceptions and open yourself up to an interesting take on the undead.

This book gives you depth to a grieving husband, the monotonous drudgery of his life juxtaposed against the seemingly unreal situation he finds himself, which is living alone with night stalking "vampires" and the fact he does not have the ability to answer why things are happening but try's to in vain.

The bad: Wish it could have been a tad longer and (without spoiling anything) answer some background questions. If you hate science fiction this book will obviously not be up your street.

The good: The mystery within the book completely makes it. Hard to create depth with one character but this book nails it. Quiet humours in parts as well.

Conclusion: You should defiantly read this book if you like World War Z or enjoy the Walking Dead series on tv. I give it 5/5, may not be to everyone's cup of tea!

Blog #6 Shogun - James Clavell

".......Mark...Mark, do you hear me? You have got to read this book....ok??"

"Yes, yes I hear you!!!....For frigs sake"

Be honoured as this was the tail end of a conversation with one of my mates down at the pub watching football. He, who shall be nameless, burnt my ear off for a solid 30-40 mins about Shogun by James Clavell.

He has recommended some solid books in the past, for example, Killing Pablo and The Motorcycle Diaries but the passion he showed describing this book was unprecedented. I ordered it the very next morning.

It is described as an epic story of feudal Japan and epic it is. Be prepared to be sucked in completely. Before Shogun, I did not think feudal Japan would intrigue me. The stereotypical image came to mind of geisha girls, alot of opaque paper doors and angry men with swords. I like history so I do not know why I have not delved into this world before. I am so glad I did, as the stereotype was turned on it's head.
This story happens to be a classic tale of culture differences, where English Pilot (sea captain/navigator) John Blackthorne, is shipwrecked on the shores of Japan. Blackthorn and his crew are the first English people to arrive in Japan of their own accord (as it was thought that only the Spanish/Portuguese were the only people able to get to the far east from the known world because of their superiority on the high seas).

This book has everything; love, honour, hate, war, politics, death, east meets west philosophy. The list is endless. You essentially become John Blackthorne when you read this book because you are indeed a stranger in the land of mysterious 17th Century Japan.

As I have mentioned there is politics in this book but do not be worried, it is fascinating.  Everyone is worried about John Blackthorne's appearance in Japan. The Spanish catholics are afraid their days of dominating Japanese souls are numbered because Blackthorne's men are the first protestants to set foot on Japanese soil.

Bad: Ok, she's a long old read but if you get the time to take this book in, you will be rewarded with a story that you WILL pick up again. Do not leave this book in the loo to pick up now and again.
Good: Most of my review has been biased probably because it has been such a good read! Characters have so much depth and the scenery painting by Clavell is fantastic.

Summary: How can one man have so much impact on a nations being? Read this book and find out. Very hard to put down! I give it 5 out of 5!

Blog #5 The Corruptible: A Ray Quinn Mystery (Not from X Factor Fame)

Ray Quinn.... Ray Quinn.... "I know that bloody name from somewhere" I told myself when I selected this book to review.

iPhone on, tap safari, type in Ray Quinn. Que bout of laughter....

Do the same, you will. Any who, I thought that I would not be able to read The Corruptible. I could not get the Freddie Munster look-a-like out of my head. However, as with many books I was surprised as I slowly became engrossed in the story.

Ray Quinn is an ex-cop who is now a private detective, living with a painful and permanent injury to his leg and has the customary side-kick in the form of Crevis, "pronounced like the ice-sheet", apparently.

Not meaning to give the game away but the private eye premises is usually the same; ex-cop, down on cash, hard on drink, bored of their work, dingy office, looking for one big case, out of love and out of luck and so on. I was not really geared up for this book as I thought it would be all these cliches, however I wanted to give it a go anyway and for it to prove me wrong and in some ways it did.

Ray has been assigned by a mysterious big time money maker to find another ex-cop (Logan Ramsey) who has stole some sensitive information from Ray's current employer. Ray acts like its going to be tough to find him, however Ray used to know of Logan and is excited by the prospect of being able to solve a case pretty efficiently and with a huge pay check, all in time to have a large whiskey on the rocks before bed.

Logan Ramsey is found murdered in a motel.  (I rolled my eyes and continued to read, the twists are predictable but its a decent read none-the-less) This is where the book takes off, not like a fighter jet, more perhaps like a struggling swan.

The Good: Takes time to get into the story but it is part of a series, so I guess the author is giving a bit of a back story somewhere along the lines. I did like this book actually. Its really not that bad.

The Bad: Its no Grisham, new characters appear and disappear and are as boring as one another.

The Summary: As the title of the book suggests, the author tries to make the reader guess who is actually the 'bad guy' The writer is an ex-cop and this is particular evident in the book. But, I have to be honest, I have read better and gritter for example Birdman by Mo Hayder. I give it 3.5 out of 5.

Blog #4 My Uncle Oswald by Roald Dahl ... (It's not for kids!)

My PlayStation is dead.... I know.... I know.... folks would rather not read about the blogger's woes, however, there is a reason why it is included so bear with me.
I take one night a week to chill in front of the old PlayStation and play video games. She has served me well got me through university and many a night watching DVDs. However, with a glitch in the middle of "Skyrim" it's life terminated, out with a flash of the screen and a beep. #Frustration

After an agonising hour of using the hairdryer on and off on a cold setting and aiming it at the internal motherboard I gave up (its now residing in the hallway collecting more dust than usual until I decide whether to A. Throw it from a moving car, B. Sell it for scrap or C. Bury it), I then turned to the kindle and thought about when I was a kid playing the Commodore 64, which took ages to load and how I used to read Roald Dahl books to pass the time (Uber Geek).

I fell in love with Roald Dahl books when I was growing up, my favourite being The wonderful world of Henry Sugar followed closely by The Witches. So I began searching the Amazon archive and found Roald Dahl adult books. Adults books you say? Yes, and they are extremely adult.

I purchased My Uncle Oswald and was immediately transported back to the mindset of that 10 year old kid as Dahl's style of painting a picture with words is truly amazing.

Uncle Oswald is a narrative based book and like many Dahl books it has stories within stories, I personally love that, it appeals to the your inner child, a sense of always wanting to be told a story.

I laughed through the book, actual laugh out louds's and not 'lol's that are put on the end of texts. Uncle Oswald contains tongue in cheek moments and sometimes the tongue is sticking right out at you! I never thought mini-stories about male and female performance problems in the bedroom where so funny! The main character, you guessed it, Uncle Oswald is a love Lothario who in 1912 travels the world in search of an elusive, male stimulant.

I did not know what to expect from this book and was pleasantly surprised by the lack of me putting the kindle down. Really thoroughly enjoyed the 1912 references and scene constructing that Dahl is known for.

To some it may be shocking that their old favourite story teller can be so crude but this is washed away with so much humour, (it's less 'Roy Chubby Brown' and more 'Peter Kay' The first time you heard Peter Kay that is, about 12 years ago and not the Peter Kay of today .... still peddling "Garlic Bread!"..... give it a rest man)

Anywho it was a refreshing discovery and ticked all the boxes of an addictive page turner, helped along the way with no PlayStation to distract me.

Fifa, Skyrim and Call of Duty can wait, as I am now going to investigate some of his other books meant for adults.

Good points: The book tends to wander, but trust me, in a good way, you are being told the story through Uncle Oswald who is recanting his escapade and starts to dote and tends to go off on a tangent but are brought back to the storyline this is quite funny and didn't get old for me. Imagine a crazy old grandparent at a Christmas family party who is not afraid to tell their mind.

Bad points: Some elements are still child-like in nature but this again is one of the only faults I could find. I love Dahl so it is hard to find fault with the man.

Summary: Thoroughly enjoyed uncovering this gem and would fit fine in any ones collection, best not read it out to your kids going to bed though! I give it a 4.5/5

Blog #3 - The Scroll by Grant R Jeffery & Alton L Gansky

One last dig.  One final descent into the twisted tunnels of ancient Jerusalem.  Will the truth be found among the treasures that lie beneath the holy city? 
Treasure, the dangerous Middle East, romance, jet setting. If you set writing a book with these elements, you are raising the bar of expectations to the maximum but Indiana Jones it ain't.

So to answer the original question, yes the truth was found.... that this book does not deliver what it promises.

The background of the authors (Grant R. Jeffery & Alton L. Gansky) are that they are biblical scholars.

(Alarm bells should be ringing because biblical scholars and fiction writing usually do not mix ....expect for Son of Perdition by Wendy Alec, I whole hearty recommend you read that book)

Grant R. Jeffery has sold millions of books worldwide honing in on people's fascination with the prophecy's that lie in the Bible, end times and the hysteria over the year 2012.

Jeffery should stay with writing his texts about biblical archaeological theories and definitely not placing them into his novels. It just does not work. It cheapens them.

Back to The Scroll, it is not well written or well presented. You just do not believe in the characters, you can tell that the author is using them as a tool to explain his theories about the Bible. For example, when a character who is introduced that knows nothing about either, archaeology or the Bible queue page after page of the 'intellgent' archaeologist explaining (patronising) the reader and the poor newbie character by revealing everything in detail. Boring.

The subject matter did not bore me as I have studied archaeology in the past, it is actually the method that the author has used that grates on me.

Either write a book about your theories about bible prophecy with side notes for evidence, or write a novel that is constructed in a way that you can believe the story first and let the reader muse about the archaeological findings or possible hidden theories later.

Good points: The Scroll is short ... oh ok...something positive... it has a flashes of strong points where you start to believe the main characters' (Dr. David Chambers) struggle about losing his faith in God however the like ability is dashed the moment Chambers expands his theories on archaeology and there is no sympathy for him because of his bitterness about his fiance leaving him. I personally think she had a lucky escape!

Bad points: There is no humour in the book. It's predictable, tame and the price of £8.01 (Kindle edition) is far too much to ask.

In summary: There are some twists and turns but all are predictable. I was very disappointed. I wanted to like the book but the main character is arrogant, argumentative and bitter towards rival archaeologists (which made me laugh ironically) and ex-lovers. The Scroll is a monotone story blurted out over a couple two dozen chapters failing to deliver on its promise of gold, guns and glamour. A poor 1/5.

Second Blog: Tom Clancy - Without Remorse (Once read, you certainly won't be full of it)

I could probably write a blog solely on Tom Clancy, a fact that some (or most) may find sad.

While getting to grips with blogging about all sorts of different books, I feel the need to share my experience with one of my favourite authors and express my wish for you to pick up one of his books and judge for yourself.

Without Remorse is a book in the Tom Clancy series that is a prequel of sorts. The other Clancy books, are 'Bourne Supremacy' in nature, while this story has an element of harking back to the 'classics' where the main protagonist John Kelly/Clarke is a tragic hero, full of flaws and while his intentions are good, his methods are questionable.

The Clancy series usually has the main story revolving around the characters Jack Ryan and/or John Clarke however this book has a twist. It is solely about John Kelly (later to become John Clarke) the one-day head of the CIA, and his mysterious dark past . The book unravels the enigma of John and gives the reader an interesting insight into the man's back story.

Without Remorse is set in the era of the Vietnam War with John having to free POW's and also having to suppress Baltimore drug dealers and avenge the wrongs against his loved ones on the home front.

So, your thinking action, action, action, full of cliches and testosterone coming out of your eyes (some image) .... well not entirely. It does obviously contain heart pounding moments of action but Clancy's writing style has introduced tension in droves.  Possibly true Tom Clancy fans who want guns, glamour and a cigar at the end of a story will not like this as much, but Without Remorse is wrought with emotion and Clancy lets the reader into the vulnerability of an intelligent, hurt man who is faced with painful decisions.

Good points: The imagery is fantastic as well as the reader being endeared to the main character. A perfect book to start someone off wishing to find an author who has a rather large series of other good books. You will not need to read any of the other Clancy novels to get a grips with this classic.

Bad points: Slightly violent. May not be for the light hearted but what do you expect with Clancy.

In summary: I would give it a 4/5, it may not be for every ones taste however I believe the majority of people will like this book. If not, I would love to see why not!

First Blog (Be Gentle): A Game of Thrones (A Song of Ice and Fire, Book 1)

When you play the game of thrones, you win or you die - Cersei Lannister

Trying to find a quote to sum up a book within a book can be quite challenging, however the quote above does the Game of Thrones (A Song of Ice and Fire, Book 1) justice.

Cliches such as gripping should be kept solely for books like this. I was given an Amazon Kindle for Christmas and my first purchase was Game of Thrones (A Song of Ice and Fire, Book 1) by George R. R. Martin , it was priced £1.99 and seemed great value. Living a 20 minute drive from where the TV series was filmed and having watched the show when it was on Sky Atlantic, also helped this to become an easy purchase.

Within 5 days the book was read, a combination of an addiction to the kindle and the fact that the book took me by the....throat. I hardly had time for turkey, stuffing or talking to the family.

I am a self-confessed crime thriller lover first and fore most, however this book could throw that preconception into some doubt and I might delve into fantasy a serious thought. However I am open to all sorts of genre.

This book has all the stereotypical fantasy genre elements; kings, queens, good guys, bad guys, life, love and death. No wonder HBO/Sky picked it up! Do not hold your breath though for some fantastical beasts of myrrh, as to not spoil the book, however they do not make any real appearance.

The main context for the book is set in a medieval type world with people who have a slight belief in gods but don't practise their belief outright due to lack of faith and no real sightings or evidence as such. There are seven kingdoms which are ruled by one king which has a history of bloodshed and divided loyalties.

My favourite storyline is that of the men of the wall who are the outsiders in society that choose, or are forced, to take the black, which patrol a huge wall across the northern part of the land (think Hadrian's wall but on a grander scale). They patrol against peoples beyond the great wall who are wild in behaviour and also against possible mythical beings who are shadow like and either do or do not exist.

Good points: The book is in and of its own world with lots of historical content to boot. You do not need to buff up on it or re-read passages to absorb this knowledge.

The multiple view points that the author writes from are really engrossing. They give you a feel for the persons thinking, this may be confusing at the start but by a couple of chapters you start to recognise names and places quickly and are endeared to the main protagonists.

The sense of foreboding doom is prevalent throughout the book. The Starke family, one of the many families in the book, have a motto,winter is coming. This is quite apt as the book is dark, gritty and no one is safe as people are killed off without warning. Which for me, makes for a fantastic read.

Bad points: Don't expect serious mythical creatures to come out of the pages just yet. If you are looking for orcs, trolls, skyrim type stuff? Then look elsewhere. I personally like the way the author has wrote the book in a way that you know that mythical beings exist, however you are more interested in the interweaving stories.

The book is quite graphic with issues such as murder, sex (incest), infanticide, gory battle scenes however they do play their part in the book and are not glorified in a way to make them too shocking, however you have been warned.

In summary: In all honesty, I actually wish I had not blogged about this book first as I sound like a gushing reviewer, but I should not be ashamed, I really enjoyed this book. I found myself trying to cram in as much reading as possible. The author has created colourful characters which you will either love or love to hate.

I would rate this book 5/5. It draws you in and you will not put it down. Friends have said that as the series of books progress they get better, which I find hard to believe because a Song of ice and fire is immense. The biggest compliment is that the second book has been downloaded and ready to go.