Notes of Life

I’ve been so busy that I nearly forgot to do this month’s review round-up! Anyway, without further ado…

9th August – Mud, Sweat and Tears by Bear Grylls
Mud, Sweat and Tears is the autobiography of Bear Grylls – adventurer, family man, Chief Scout and former SAS soldier. I began to feel quite lazy while reading this book, the man has done so much in his short life! This is an inspiring autobiography and one I’d certainly recommend.

16th August – Black Swan Rising by Lee Carroll
This is the first book I’ve read for the Transworld Book Group Challenge and the first book in a trilogy. I really enjoyed reading Black Swan Rising, so much so that Transworld kindly sent me a copy of The Watchtower (the second book in the trilogy). If you enjoy reading urban fantasy books, then make sure you check out Black Swan Rising.

21st August – The Secret Speech by Tom Rob Smith
The Secret Speech is the second book in Tom Rob Smith’s Leo Demidov trilogy. As I was sent Child 44 (the first book) and Agent 6 (the third book) for review, I just had to get The Secret Speech to complete the set. It’s a brilliant and tense crime thriller trilogy and one that I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend.

29th August – The Watchtower by Lee Carroll
The Watchtower is the follow-up to Black Swan Rising. It was great to be able to read this so soon after Black Swan Rising and I can’t wait to read the third book in the trilogy (but I think I’ll have to!).

So, I was lucky enough to read four excellent books this month and September is looking like it may be the same. I’m currently reading The Colour of Death by Michael Cordy for the Transworld Book Group Challenge and I’d already recommend it!

I’m also looking forward to a couple of book events this month… Watch this space!

Author: Lee Carroll
Publisher: Bantam Press
ISBN: 978-0-593-06597-6

Having submitted my review of Black Swan Rising for the Transworld Book Group Reading Challenge, the wonderful people at Transworld kindly sent me a copy of the second book in this wonderful urban fantasy trilogy to review.

The Watchtower follows on from where Black Swan Rising left off. Garet James is struggling to come to terms with who, or what, she really is. Having believed she’s received a sign from Will Hughes, the 400 year old vampire who has disappeared along with her ancestor’s silver box, she heads to Paris in search of Will and the path to Summer Country, the legendary land of the Fey. Garet’s trip takes her on a dangerous journey on which she encounters more strange and mythic creatures. Will she succeed in her search?

Was The Watchtower as good a read as Black Swan Rising? It certainly was! Being mainly set in France and England and partially in the past, this book had a slightly different feel to Black Swan Rising’s New York. I felt the story’s pace quickened as the story went on and, once again, Lee Carroll provides us with an urban fantasy mystery and adventurous page-turner.

The chapters alternate from Garet’s first-person perspective to following Will in third-person narrative. Will’s chapters follow his life from before he became a vampire and we’re treated to historic settings from England and France in 1602, while Garet’s chapters are mainly set in present day France. This alternation in chapters doesn’t work very well in some books I’ve read, but I felt the author team of Lee Carroll (Carol Goodman and her husband Lee Slonimsky) made it come together suitably in The Watchtower. I had no problem in the narrative switching and even found it easy to follow with the story flowing well.

Once again, we’re treated to all manner of characters in The Watchtower… There’s the vampire, of course, as well as a dryad living in the Luxembourg Gardens, a gnome who lives beneath the Jardin des Plantes Labyrinth and an ancient botanist metamorphosed into Paris’ oldest tree, to name just a few. The legendary, real-life character of John Dee also makes a return appearance in The Watchtower. Unlike many other urban fantasy stories, this is a trilogy that treats us to all kinds of beings, rather than just focusing on one or two.

Having read Black Swan Rising and The Watchtower in quick succession and really enjoyed them both, I now can’t wait for the third book in this trilogy (though with The Watchtower having only just been released this month, I may have a while to wait!). This is definitely a trilogy you should read in order, but it’s also one I wouldn’t hesitate in ecommending to any urban fantasy reader.

Buy The Watchtower by Lee Carroll at the Book Depository.

Read my review of Black Swan Rising by Lee Carroll.

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Please note: I received this book free from Transworld Publishers in return for a review. However, this has in no way influenced my opinion of the book.

I’m trying to get fit at the moment (though how long that will last is anyone’s guess, but the intent is there!). I’m going for bike rides at least twice a week (which is hard work as it’s quite hilly here in Mid Wales!) and going for walks every now and then too. So today, when the clouds parted and the sun broke through, Mum & I decided to go for a walk. After discussing various options (we’re not short of walking country around here), we decided on the Stiperstones, over the border in Shropshire.

Unfortuntely, by the time we got to the car park the heavens opened and it tipped down with rain. So we sat in the car for a while hoping it wouldn’t be a wasted journey and the rain would stop.

Thankfully, the rain didn’t last too long, so we headed up through the purple heather…

… towards the rugged outcrops of rocks known as Manstone Rock and The Devil’s Chair.

However, once up there the heavens opened once again and the wind was quite fierce too. So we didn’t walk as far as we’d have liked to for fear of getting soaking wet. Of course, as we were on our way back town the hill the rain stopped and the wind settled down. Maybe the Devil was on his chair and didn’t want visitors today? Who knows, but the weather certainly wasn’t kind to us while we were up there!

If you’re ever in Shropshire, I would certainly recommend a visit to the Stiperstones. There are a number of routes to walk in the area, as well as an all-ability trail. On a clear day, you can see mile and miles of the beautiful Shropshire countryside and even into Mid Wales.

I’ve been many times before, but I’m hoping to go again soon… though on a nicer day!

Author: Tom Rob Smith
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
ISBN: 9780857204097

Having read and loved Tom Rob Smith’s debut novel Child 44, I had no doubt I’d be reading the follow-up novel The Secret Speech.

The Secret Speech takes us back to 1950’s Russia where former Secret Police Officer Leo Demidov lives with his wife Raisa and the two young girls they adopted. The young girls have not forgiven him for his part in their parents murder. It seems they’re not the only ones who haven’t forgiven Leo… Stalin’s successor Khrushchev has written a secret speech and it is distributed to the nation. The speech denounces Stalin as a murderer and, as such, the police are now enemies. With someone intent on revenge, Leo finds himself and his family in more danger than they’ve ever been.

So, did The Secret Speech live up to its predecessor?

It certainly did. Tom Rob Smith must delight in giving his readers tense and gripping reads. I kept telling myself I’d put the book down at the end of the chapter and go to bed, but found myself reading on through the chapters, needing to find out what happened next.

Once again, the reader gets a real feel for 1950’s Russia and the regime its people lived under. The book had me wincing at some of the treatment the characters sustained. How people could do that to other people is beyond my comprehension, but it happens and Tom Rob Smith writes it so you can imagine the scenes all too well. Admittedly, I didn’t think The Secret Speech shocked me as much as Child 44 did, but, nevertheless I found it a thrilling read.

If you enjoy thrillers that are tense, gripping and ruthless, then this is a series for you!

If you haven’t already read Child 44 then I would recommend doing so before reading The Secret Speech. I’m already looking forward to reading the 3rd book in this series, Agent 6, to find out what Leo Demidov must overcome next. I already have Agent 6, so look out for that review soon.

Buy The Secret Speech by Tom Rob Smith at the Book Depository.

Read my review of Child 44 by Tom Rob Smith.

Tom Rob Smith is a British author from London.

This is the 22nd book I’ve read for the British Books Challenge.

I spotted this little bird at Coed-y-Dinas a couple of weeks ago. It was hopping around looking for food. If you know what bird it is, please let me know via the comments!

Edit: Phil has kindly identified the little bird for me. It’s a male common chaffinch. Thanks Phil!

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