"The Candidate" by Daniel Pembrey

Daniel Pembrey's "The Candidate" is a wonderfully evocative novella that puts you right in the middle of the action and slowly winds fingers of dread and uneasiness up your back. With its spare prose and sense of impending doom, you follow along with protagonist Nick as he tries to pinpoint what has happened to him and what's going on.

The pace is fast and the action unfolds quickly, but that's mostly due to its shorter length, which is my only regret with the book. I feel the characters could have been fleshed out a bit more; however, they were fully drawn and easy to identify with. The author says a whole lot with a little. I'm definitely looking forward to more from his pen.

Seductive and Compelling......

“Dangerous Illusions,” the first novel by Joseph J. Gabriele, has a sensuous seductive pull that draws you into the story, slowly narrowing the fascinating cast of characters and suspects until you find you’re furiously reading the last few pages to find out who and why. I found myself mesmerized by these people and their lives and I sincerely hope the author see fit to create more stories around some or all of these unique individuals.

As a particular fan of noir, I found this novel to embody more of the atmosphere and language of that genre than novels that are actually billed as such. New York City became its own character and I found myself wrapped in her embrace as I walked the streets along with the protagonist. From the glitz and glamour of the upper echelon to the grimy underbelly lurking just beneath the surface, this story will take you on a ride you won’t want to miss.

"The Runner" will leave you breathless!

Within the first page of reading “Runner” by Patrick Lee, my palms were sweaty and tingling and the hair on the back of my neck was on end. And the action moved on relentlessly from there. Every time you thought you might have a moment to catch your breath, a new twist or unforeseen event occurred which plunged you right back into the maelstrom. The pacing was incredible, the characters sympathetic and likeable without being overdone, and the plot was extremely unique. It’s hard to write a review without using hyperbole, but in this case, every word is completely justified. If you want a pulse-pounding, action-packed thriller that doesn’t let up and manages to involve you so thoroughly in the action that you feel like each event is happening to you, don’t miss “Runner.” And plan to get everything else that Patrick Lee has ever written because I sure am.

Alma Katsu's "The Taker Trilogy" - A Very Unique Series

When I read the first book in Alma Katsu's "The Taker" trilogy, I was under the mistaken impression that this was going to be another vampire series.  Boy was I wrong.  After devouring the second book "The Reckoning" and the 2014 release "The Descent," I can't recommend these books highly enough.

Here are the reviews I gave them.  Check it out and then check the books themselves out!

THE RECKONING
Alma Katsu’s second installment of the “The Taker” trilogy was an astounding surprise. She manages to overcome the mediocrity that plagues second, or middle, books in a series and writes a fascinating and completely compelling story that captivates from the very first word. I found it almost impossible to put this book down and was quickly mesmerized by the smooth, seductive narrative and the hypnotic weaving of the back stories of a few of the main characters.

“The Reckoning” referenced by the title is not what you would expect or anticipate at the close of “The Taker,” but each character in the book has a reckoning of some type. These epiphanies are surprising and in some cases, shocking, and pull you further into the unfathomable mysteries surrounding these characters. At the end of the book, I found that it was the characters, even more than the action, that made me wish their stories would never end.

THE DESCENT
Truly great books introduce characters into your life that seem as real as the people around you, characters that you’ll never forget. Starting with “The Taker,” Alma Katsu has brought to life just such intriguing and compelling characters, ones that I’ll be thinking about for a long time to come. After reading “The Descent,” the final installment in the trilogy, I have to say that I really hate to bid adieu to these characters and the world-building that was introduced in this last book.

Filled with the atmosphere and otherworldliness that permeated the first two books, “The Descent” brings to a satisfying and fitting conclusion one of the most original stories I’ve read in a long time. The premise was truly unique and the revelation near the book’s end was one I really didn’t see coming.

For anyone that’s thinking of giving this series a pass, please reconsider. I virtually devoured these books, especially the last two, and would recommend them to anyone who is looking for something unique and enthralling. You don’t run across books like this every day. No matter what’s up next for Alma Katsu, you can be sure I’ll be reading it, no matter what genre it’s in. Highly recommended.