I’ve read The Survivors by Jane Harper and watched the Netflix TV series at the same time, so — rather than a plain review — I thought I’d do a post on comparative observations about screen adaptation. Ditto with The Thursday Murder Club novel by Richard Osman and the movie. Aaand I’ve covered Jane Harper’s […]
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Book Review: Autolycus the thief, by Michail Sidiropoulos
A lesser known bronze-age character as a basis for mythical story – of course I jumped on the chance to read it. What to Expect An embellished telling of the life of the grandfather of Odysseus, told from his own point of view. The story starts with him as a child being dispossessed and growing […]
Writing Old Books
A few weeks ago, the wife and I went to a used-books fair. We came back with a haul of some interesting finds from the “Old Books” tables. While there were too many others we had to leave behind, I’d like to draw your attention to those below, as I’ve bought them with the explicit […]
Book Review: A Natural History of Ghosts, by Roger Clarke
I came across this on The Rest Is History podcast, where the author featured as a guest and reviewed some of the history of ghosts in the UK. What to Expect An attempt to examine if England truly is the most haunted nation, whether it’s the isles’ weather or just the people. After setting the […]
Book Review: Stonelands, by Joseph Malik
Malik is one of those authors whose works I’ll read on principal, knowing that they’ll be outstanding (see my reviews for Dragon’s Tail and The New Magic). This novel uses the same world as his previous ones, albeit at a different location and characters so it’s independent from the others. I’ve had the pleasure of […]
Historically Fashionable or Fashionably Historical?
A few weeks ago I posted the below image across socials, which made the comments explode… In a good way. So here is some more fun stuff about historical fashions. This was accompanied by my caption/addition of: Yes, you’re going commando. There is no effing way I’m teaching you how to put on a loincloth. […]
Book Review: In Deep Coprolite, by Douglas Lumsden
Readers of my reviews and blog know I love Lumsden’s noir modern alt-history fantasy world. What to Expect A new adventure for Shade the Collector and his buddy Dwayne. This time a river spirit entrusts him with a coprolite (petrified excrement) to hide and guard. Naturally, the shadowy intelligence agency that employs him on occasion […]
Book Review: Mole Creek, by James Dunbar
Mole Creek is not far from where I live, and as I enjoy Tasmanian crime fiction I thought I’d give this a try. What to Expect Expect a fast-paced thriller, taking place in modern day Australia and during the Vietnam War. Most of the novel is from the point of view of the protagonist, Xander […]
Book Review: An Instance of the Fingerpost, by Iain Pears
I’ve had this on my TBR for a while, and when it was recommended by The Rest Is History podcast I decided it was time. What to Expect A Rashomon-style story in 17th century England. A Venetian dilettante physician arrives in England nominally to address his father’s collapsing business concerns, but spends very little time […]
Blurbing Books 🤪
I see variations of this floating around the net: Funnsies aside, here’s an explanation of why authors find it hard to write blurbs for their own books (so you feel smarter) and what to do about it (so you can act smarter). Why do we find it hard to blurb our books? This comes down […]
FELIX THE FOX MYSTERIES 