The Little Country by Charles de Lint

Janey Little discovers a book hidden in her grandfathers attic. She is captivated by the first few pages and that is by an author she loves but did not know of this book. Then an old boyfriend comes back into her life unexpectedly and then things start to get complicated.

A strange cult leader has been searching for this book for most of his life. The last time he 'felt' it was when it was last opened some forty years ago. There is nothing he will not do to get his hands on this book this time.

I am slowly reading my way through de Lint's books in something close to published order and so far I have enjoyed every word. To start with I thought this would be the first book I was not going to enjoy but as I got into the story this feeling changed. Janey is a bit whiney and likes everything her own way, to the point where it drives people away. Anyone that does not agree with her is either shouted down or ignored. Her ex coming back into her life only seems to give her another reason to moan. Not a great start!

Ignoring this part of the story I persevered as there are two definite threads running in this story. You find that besides Janey's story we are also reading the book she has discovered and this story has a magical quality that I have come to expect when reading de Lint. The two stories seem far removed from each other but as we reach the climax we come to realise they are closely related. Also a very nice twist at the end, I'll not explain as it would spoil the read if you pick it up.

Another brilliant read from de Lint, another recommendation from me if you enjoy Urban Fantasy.

Information Received by E.R. Punshon

Bobby Owen has been a beat policeman for just over three years when he finds himself at the scene of a murder. At first he is simply another policeman at the scene but his inquisitive nature and frustrations at not not being more involved finally get him seconded to the C.I.D temporarily on this case.

He finds himself mainly doing the footwork but the detective in charge sees something more in Bobby and starts to include him more in the crime investigations.

This is the first of over thirty books about Bobby Owen as we follow his career in the police force of thirties and Forties Britain.

Originally published in 1933 this first instalment is a brilliant insight into life of thirties England. I really enjoyed this ebook even if the storytelling is a bit convoluted and life is seen through rose tinted glasses. Owen is an interesting character, driven by the need to know answers to unsolved mysteries. Dedicated to the truth at any cost to himself.

This story has a great plot with twists and turns on almost every page. I am not one who can ever guess early who the perpetrator of these crime books is, in this one it was even harder because we do not find out until quite late in the story that there are two.

I highly recommend this ebook if you enjoy period crime writing, or even crime writing in general.

Ten Thousand Thunders by Brian Trent

Ten Thousand Thunders by Brian Trent

Expected publication date 6^th October 2018

In a future time, the world is run by industrial factions and for 300 years there has been peace of sorts. Now war is upon civilisation once again, this time there seems to be something else at play. An

unexplained explosion on the Moon and the destruction of a space craft within seconds of the explosion seem at first unrelated but it is soon realised they are related.

In the aftermath, Gethin Bryce is tasked with finding out what went wrong and what forces are at play. He is joined by a Wastelander and two operatives from an opposite industrial faction. This disperate quartet aim to get to the truth about what is going on and try to halt the total annihilation of all life in the solar system as war would surely bring the end of everything.

I found the plot facsinating but somehow, reading the book left me deflated. The characters seemed flat, I did not like them or hate them. The writing is well paced and kept the story moving along nicely. What world building there is, is quite sparce. I like good world building in SF, sadly this left me wanting more.

Overall, a good solid read, hopefully more and better to come as I will be looking out the next episode as I understand the author is already working on it.

My thanks to Flame Tree Press, Brian Trent & Netgalley for the eARC copy in return for an honest and fair review.

Coffin Road by Peter May

A man washes up on the shore and does not know who or where he is.
A young girl becomes rebellious with her mother after her fathers apparent suicide two years ago. Then discovers he is almost certainly still alive.

A detective is brought in to discover just who the murdered man is whos body is discovered by holiday makers.

DS George Gunn (of the Lewis trilogy) returns in this story where almost nothing appears what it seems to be.

To start with the man washed ashore seems to remember nothing about who he is, yet has fractional memories returning to him as he gets back to a house that he is apparently renting.
This part of the story goes on rather long and it is a great relief when we finally meet some of the other characters.

Firstly we meet Karan, a rebellious young girl who is slowly going off the rails until she discovers her presumed dead father might actually be still alive.
DS Gunn is frustrated that he is getting nowhere with his investigation as his main suspect has no memory of who he is or what he is doing on the island.

This mishmash of single strands is bought together nicely with an eco twist in the tale, one that is very relevant today.
Another really good story with the Highlands scenery once again taking centre stage in another Hebrides tale from Peter May

Dead Simple by Peter James

Roy Grace is a thirty-something inspector who is trying to come to terms with his new desk promotion when he finds himself getting involved in a missing persons case. On a stag night, four young men are killed in a road accident and the fifth, the groom, is missing.

His business partner and his fiance both become suspects as Grace feels there is something not quite right with their statements or behaviour.

As the search for the missing man becomes more urgent as the days go by, Grace becomes more involved in the case.

I really enjoyed this book. The plot is entralling, there are plenty of twists and turns as one minute you feel that Grace has it covered, the next it seems as if all hope has gone. Another book that kept me awake till the small hours as I just had to know what would happen.

Highly recommend this one.

The Katharina Code by Jørn Lier Horst

As this is the twelfth book of the Wisting series I was a bit worried that I would be missing a lot of the characters history. I have to admit that this was not the case.

Wisting is a Cheif Inspector in the Norwegian Police Service. Every year for the past twenty four years he has reread the files of a cold case as it has played on his mind that som,ething was missed at the time.

Adrian Stiller, from Police HQ has been assigned to go through the files of another cold case that is two years older, Stiller thinks that both cases are linked.

I soon settled into this book, the characters are well rounded, as you would expect. The story telling has a brilliant pace, starting off gently and building steadily to where Wisting finds himself in a life threatening situation. I found myself having to slow my reading pace as I was rushing through it. I like to savour books when I read them but this one really started to get me racing!

I notice some of the earlier Wisting books have been translated into English. I will definitely be searching them out.

I would like to thank the publishers Penguin UK/Michael Joseph, Jørn Lier Horst and Netgalley for inviting me to read this book and give an honest review.

Earth Abides by George R Stewart

Earth Abides by George R Stewart

Ish finds himself one of just a few survivors after a mysterious virus pretty much wipes out humanity. He travels across America looking for survivors but ends up back at his family home on his own. Over time he does find a few survivors and a small community is founded.

They have to deal with the slow loss of utilities as they fall down but more survivors arrive and the community grows.

Children are born as they face more hardships but generally the community thrives under these new conditions.

This book has dated badly in places, a lot of things are very much stuck in the late forties but the main thrust of the story, the survival and the building of a new lifestyle shine through strongly. Although this book starts of as a disaster novel, it ends up with a surprising amount of hope for the future