Cell, book review. (Stephen King)

Big, bold, blood thirsty apocalyptic fantasy fiction, all rolled into one neat little package by the best in the business?

Well, almost.

Some Stephen King books have as much in common with the horror genre as Bridget Jones's Diary, but Cell certainly isn't one of them.

The book starts like a punch to the face, smack, and you're in; you're in the middle of Boston to be precise, and the world is going mad, losing its head; people are starting to go crazy, committing mass suicide, attacking each other with gut retching, blood thirsty ferocity. (The incident is later referred to as the Pulse).

A proper Horror then? You bet; don't read this if you’re squeamish.

Our main character, Clayton Riddell - he's just managed to sell some artwork and has a spring in his step when the shit hits the fan - links up with the somewhat bookish Tom McCourt and rather excellent Alice Maxwell, (who quickly became my favourite character), her mixture of vulnerability and teenage verve being reminiscent of Beverly Marsh from 'It'.

The story centres round Clayton and his small posse, escaping the ever apocalyptic Boston, to begin the journey that will result (we hope) in Clayton finding his son.

They hole up in Tom McCourt's house for a night before pressing on, they find a school headmaster and a single pupil, (Jordan), who they try to convince to join their quest, and commit mass murder on the way.

Bloody, thoughtful, slightly SCI-FI, horrific and touching in equal measure, this book is Stephen King doing what everybody thinks he is doing, in all of his books, but rarely does, (most of his books are nowhere near as bloodthirsty as this one) and coming up trumps. 

It did feel like something was missing thought, and I won't spoil it by telling you the end, but it stopped very abruptly, and unlike a lot of his books, there was very little backstory to most of the characters.

It wouldn't surprise me it there's an unabridged version of this book somewhere in the SK vault; one with a bit more of a beginning, more character development, (like what happened at Jordan's school) and maybe even, what happened after Clayton finds . . .

Almost spoilt it!

Three and a half stars then, but if you're a King fan, I'm sure you'll read it anyway.

The Angel's Game, book review. (Carlos Ruiz Zafon)

I've been having a foreign affair (evidence to the left), and what a ride.

It goes to show just how important it is for books to be translated and shared around the world, because these three are great.

This post is about my favourite one though, Carlos Ruiz Zafon's, The Angel's Game.

Where do I start with this book? It's one of the few books I've read that doesn't fit into a given genre. It is thrilling, sexy, frightening and spooky, in equal measure. It is pacey, has excellent and very memorable characters; there is love and loss, and all wrapped up in the atmospheric backdrop of early twentieth century Barcelona.

So, where better to read a book that is set in the fair city of Barcelona, than Barcelona!

No I didn't arrange my summer holiday around my reading habits, (I'm not that sad), but I did wait for Barcelona before I started the book, and it added to the experience.

The novel follows the life the loves, the ups and downs, of the main character, David Martin, as he fights his way out of poverty, start to write under a pseudonym, fall desperately ill, only to be saved by the mysterious Senor Corelli, with a book deal to end all book deals: One hundred thousand Francs, for a single book to be written over a twelve month period. (I'm still waiting for my letter, Senor Corelli).

The deal is struck and Martin's illness wanes, but there is skulduggery abound. His previous employers are killed in an arson attack, his beloved Cristina, is betrothed to another, (his benefactor) only to be driven to despair and . . . (no spoilers here I'm afraid). His muse, a young girl by the name of Isabella, is thrust upon him one night, and I couldn't tell whether she was going to be a distraction, a love interest, or fill his world with further anguish!!

A shockingly good read then, and all the better I think for being the middle book in a three book series, that was so good as a stand-alone novel, that I didn't realise it had a prequel and a sequel, until after I'd read it.  

As near to a five star book as I've got this year and I feel certain that it will be in my top five books of 2016.

Highly recommended

Revival, book review (Stephen King)

Not up to his normal standard this one but intriguing all the same. 

King does what he does best at the beginning of this book, he hooks you in with great characters and dangles the carrot of what might be. (I read the first sixty pages in one sitting)

He accomplishes this twofold. Firstly the book is narrated by the main character, (Jamie Morton) who hints at thing that haven't happened but inevitably will and secondly, the chapter names are a list of what they contain, therefore giving the reader a hint as to where things are going.

Take chapter three as an example: 'The Accident. My Mother's Story. The Terrible Sermon. Goodbye.'

The terrible sermon is mentioned earlier in the book so we know it is coming, but when it does, it still hits hard because the writing is so good. 

The story moves through the decades and we witness the characters growing up and getting older. My favourite part is when Jamie is a teenager (Not surprising since I write mainly about teens in my young adult books), how he joins a band - something which I suspect has an autobiographical element to it - and how he finds first love. Then, there's drugs, drink, women, and always, where ever he goes, just around the corner, is the minister who conducted the terrible sermon, Charles Jacobs.

The lighting storm is interesting and sets the scene for the latter part of the book. There is loss and recovery, family tensions and more, which all adds depth to the book, but ultimately, the ending isn't the best. 

The mysterious 'other world' that Charles Jacobs is looking for, felt a bit hashed, as if the author only had ninety-five percent of a story and had to quickly make up the remaining five. 

The journey getting there however was good and well worth a week or so of one’s time. 

One of Mr Kings smaller, more manageable books this one, reminding me of the Hard Case file book he wrote a few years back, 'Joyland', which does end up with a small cameo appearance here.

A solid 3 stars for this one then; not a masterpiece, but a pleasant read all the same.