Review: The Diabolist by Layton Green (Dominic Grey 03)

Book info:

Form: e-book, pdf format

Genre: paranormal thriller\crime mystery
Target audience: adults

Synopsis (from Goodreads):

In this gripping thriller, the bizarre murder of a Satanic priest in San Francisco draws Dominic Grey and Viktor Radek, private investigators of cults, to the scene. Witnesses claim a robed figure, seemingly able to appear and disappear at will, set fire to the priest. When the leader of another Satanic cult in Paris dies under similar circumstances, the case only grows stranger… and more dangerous.

Convinced that a charismatic New Age prophet is behind the murders, the investigators undergo a perilous journey into the world of the occult as they try to penetrate the prophet’s inner circle. From the catacombs of Paris to London’s nefarious East End, from the haunted walls of York to a monastic fortress in the Sicilian wilderness, the case plunges Viktor and Grey into a vortex of black magic, ancient heresies, and the dark corners of their own pasts.

The Diabolist is a chilling novel that not only pulsates with action and suspense, but also mines a trove of fascinating historical, philosophical, and paranormal research to probe some of our closest held beliefs. From the opening pages to the astonishing conclusion, this latest installment in one of today’s most original new thriller series is not to be missed.

My impressions: 

It is my third review of a Dominic Grey book and, although the novel is a perfect standalone, I do recommed reading the previous installments. If you are interested here are my old reviews of The Summoner (01) and The Egyptian (02) posted on this blog.

All of them feature the Czech religious phenomenologist Viktor Radek and his resourceful colleague, Dominic Grey. Think Sherlock Holmes and Watson, but in the Grey series, Sherlock prefers absinthe to cocaine, and Watson is an expert in jujitsu and lock picking. First two novels were self-published and very well-received. Personally I concidered them one of my best indie finds when it comes to paranormal thrillers. Now the author got a publishing deal with Thomas & Mercer - I admit I was curious whether it made the next installment better or worse, with the author enjoying (hopefully) a professional editorial help.

The Diabologist is a novel about two things - the nature of belief, and the dichotomy of good versus evil. Yes, it's a rip-roaring, pulse-pounding adventure, but actually I loved the most parts dealing with philosophical divagations about the concept of evil, and how it's defined (or justified) within the bounds of faith and belief in our society. It all begins with the mysterious deaths of two prominent religious figures but do not let the adjective 'religious' fool you - one is the head of the House of Lucifer and the other of the Church of the Beast. Both are condemned as heretics by an unknown magus and burnt. It turns out the public perception of a 'Satanist' is just as troubled and diverse as that of a 'Christian' faith and our two protagonists must navigate that maze in order to find the culprit because a murder is still a murder even if the victim had a rather unsavoury (and fully deserved) reputation.

The best, absolutely best parts of this novels are closely connected to professor Victor Radek, a 60-year-old Czech gentleman who loves absinthe a bit too much for his own good and is a religious phenomenologist. Every time he entered the scene, either reminiscing about his past or dealing with the ugly present, the whole book got more intelligent and interesting. He had so many awesome things to say about so many topics: Alastair Crowley, Zoroastrianism, the cults of Satan and/or Lucifer, definition of good and evil, theodicy (so divagations how come evil exists in a world created by a God who is an epitome of goodness and fairness) and whether real magic, black or white, exists.

The parts narrated from the pov of Dominic Grey were not bad either (he is the kick-ass guy who used to live in Japan so small wonder) but here I can repeat practically everything I wrote before: time and again I caught myself wishing our sweet hero had a bit more sense of humour, that healthy irony and distance which make people, real or fictional, so likeable. Unfortunately in this novel Dominic sounded as dour and boring as in the previous ones; sometimes simply boring, from time to time even stupid but never ever funny. There wasn't any other character provided for the balance and I wonder why. Would it be so difficult to make our Dominic fall for a moderately cheeky, funny girl, full of ironic wit? And as I've already mentioned falling in love...Anka, the Romanian beauty by his side, was my biggest disappointment and, in my opinion, the weakest character of this installment. In fact I think she is the weakest female character written by Mr. Green so far - mind you the previous two were hardly great. My main complaint? Apart from other things Anka sounded simply artificial. I felt as if the author, not knowing what to do, gathered several incongruous traits, threw them in together, shaked a bit and hoped they would result in an interesting female. Unfortunately they didn't want to glue together.

Ok, so we have a girl from Romania, a homeless orphan to boot, who feels in the UK at home and speaks fluent, idiomatic English. She says it's because she was raised by English-speaking nuns in an orphanage until her super-powers kicked in and she was proclaimed a devil worshipper and thrown out. Oooo-kay. Still it was just an orphanage…and she never mentioned how many years she spent there.

Then allegedly she moved to a small town and found a post of a librarian (sic! without practically any education!). During that time she self-taught herself a lot about occultism and other paranormal abilities (because small-town libraries, Romanian or otherwise, have so many occult books on their shelves, right?). And, of course she polished her English (speaking and practising with whom, I pray? A butcher? A baker? A homeless drunkard for the lack of the candlestick maker?). Mind you Anka was very beautiful, simply stunning, even compared to those elegant, pampered London ladies (and I do beg the author to show me where he found such ladies in London) but, apart from one evil man called Simon (or Darius) Azar, nobody got interested in making use of exceptionally good appearances of that girl. No goody-goody stranger, no mafia, no neighbour pimp, no model agency, not even a hopeless romantic. Were they all completely blind?

Finally the ending. It was the silliest, most schematic and Dan Brown-esque part, especially with Anka being disqualified from the position of a Dominic's girlfriend because: a) she lied to a complete stranger about her role in a certain cult (how dared she, this stranger being Dominic himself!) b) she killed with a knife another character (not saying who because it would be a spoiler, let me just assure you he was one manipulative jerk) c) she was looking remarkably ugly during the act of killing d) she was manipulated, probably even coerced, by a sociopathic cult guru into having sex with certain individuals while being videotaped (how dared she!). *Le sigh*. Such sins cannot be forgiven, right?

Still I loved some of the settings - Paris catacombs! Sicily! Cambridge! London! The cover is nice as well - I love those blue walls and sidewalks.

Final verdict:

Despite unreal female character one of best occult thrillers I've read this year. If Dan Brown was able to write such a book he would crow about it for the eternity and award himself a medal. It was fast-paced and decently researched, fully enjoyable. Yes, it had flaws but find me a flawless book.

Review: Soul Meaning (Seventeen) by A.D. Starrling

Book info:

Form: pdf format

Genre: paranormal thriller

Target audience: everybody interested in the genre I suppose

Synopsis:

Lucas Soul…an immortal like no other. He’s been hunted and despised for centuries just because he is a ‘half-breed’ – born of a Bastian mother and a Crovir father, apparently a major boo-boo among both immortal factions. He’s been shunned and forgotten – mostly. His seventeen shots at death have been serving him well enough to keep him alive and kicking unitl modern times. Now the years of relative peace and quiet are coming to an end.

All of a sudden Lucas finds herself mercilessly chased by the Hunters – elite Crovir killers- and dies twice during one week, kind of grim record for him. Being on your last life is no fun – Lucas and his completely human partner, Reid Hasley, must find out why the Crovir decided to change their policy so abruptly and discover many other secrets while touring Europe in a truly extreme style.

My impressions:

It was one of those stories you can enjoy while being in an appropriate set of mind. It reminded me of Indiana Jones movies – full of action, with a dash of info about this or that, a whiff of romance and a lot of running, shooting, killing and escaping while the characters were trying to save the world and their hides. Don’t take them too seriously and you’ll be fine – entertained, amused, even distracted from the ugly reality for an hour or so. Did this book managed to work its magic? Partially.

My first general remark – the author knows a lot about different machines and she loves describing them. Cars, motorcycles, helicopters, guns, computers and such seemed to play an important role in the adventures of Lucas & co. Apart from that she knows biology, chemistry and human anatomy quite well (yes, her background shows).

My second remark: there were many historical events and figures mentioned in this one, among them Miyamoto Musashi, one of the most famous samurai of Japan and Jan Sobieski, a Polish hetman and then the king of Poland who saved Vienna from the Turks in the 17th century. Despite the fact that those tidbits were sometimes presented in the form of small infodumps I was more than ready to forgive it just because they existed. I also liked the fact that the majority the book were set in different European countries.

Of course there were things I didn’t like.

What made Indiana Jones movies so popular and watchable? After all they were pretty stupid productions which you could easily accuse of different transgressions against the laws of physics, common logic and history. However one thing made them stand out – the fact that the protagonist and also some supportive characters, e.g. Indiana’s father, were as three-dimensional and funny as it was only possible in such films. What about Lucas Soul? 

I do hope deep down he is one nice guy but I think in this book he simply didn’t have time to present his colourful personality. In other words for me it was too much action too little character development. I liked Reid and Lucas' banter, they added the much needed comic relief between all the fighting and dying that was going on but it was too little. Our poor immortal had to slash and duck and shoot and run and give chase with little or no respite from the beginning to the very end - I felt tired just reading about it. A HALO jump? No problem. Shooting grenade launchers in the middle of a university campus in broad daylight ? What fun! Jumping from burning helicopters onto skyscraper roofs? A piece of cake! Slaughtering a bunch of Hunters? Give me a minute or two and it is done...

I understand it is an action-driven novel but still I think a bit more balance in the narration would make it better. What’s more, Agatha Vellacrus and Felix Thorne, the two main baddies, were as thin as cardboard – you could count their lines using only your fingers and they existed solely to be vanquished. Ok, it is just the first installment, perhaps it will be better. To tell you the truth I prefer a weaker first part and stronger rest than the other way round – it is really painful to watch a series going downwards.

My other carpings?

Let me start with a direct quote:

“I left the car, crossed the shallow fore garden and knocked on the front door. It was opened by an elderly gentleman.‘Je peux vous aider?’ said the man in a frail voice, blinking in the porch light.”

‘Je peux vous aider?” Hmm…very informal bordering incorrect. I think in the context (an old man inquiring a complete stranger of the purpose of his visit) it was a mistake. It should be „Puis-je vous aider?” Or if you wanted to avoid a bit dated and stiff verb form (but hey, it was un vielliard speaking!) he could say: “Pourrais-je/ Est-ce que je peux vous aider ?“or simply “Que’est-ce que vous souhetez ici, Monsieur?”

It would be also nice if different characters, Lucas among them, could restrain themselves from saying or commenting something ‘drily’ or ‘wryly’ throughout the narration – if I drank a shot every time they did it I would get completely sozzled after the first half of the book.

One more thing and a serious spoiler, highlight to read or skip:

Anna Godard and Lucas Soul are each other’s love interest. They also happen to be close cousins – as close as you can get. Their mothers were sisters and their fathers were brothers. I know they are immortals and soul mates so perhaps different rules apply here but…ick.

Final verdict:

Not bad for a debut novel, a high-octane paranormal thriller to boot. The epilogue really made me curious about the whole immortal business but the lack of proper character building kind of ruined this one for me. I do hope the next installment will be slower and better. Because it can be slower and better. I think the author has a lot of potential for that. :)

Review: Sins of the Angels (The Grigori Legacy 01) by Linda Poitevin

Book form: Kndle format e-book
Genre :Dark Urban Fantasy, PNR.
Target audience: adults? I guess so.
Source: borrowed


Synopsis (from Goodreads): 

A detective with a secret lineage. An undercover Hunter with a bullet-proof soul. And a world made to pay for the sins of an angel…
Homicide detective Alexandra Jarvis answers to no one. Especially not to the new partner assigned to her in the middle of a gruesome serial killer case—a partner who is obstructive, irritatingly magnetic, and arrogant as hell. Aramael is a Power—a hunter of the Fallen Angels. A millennium ago, he sentenced his own brother to eternal exile for crimes against humanity. Now his brother is back and wreaking murderous havoc in the mortal realm. To find him, Aramael must play second to a human police officer who wants nothing to do with him and whose very bloodline threatens both his mission and his soul. Now, faced with a fallen angel hell-bent on triggering the apocalypse, Alex and Aramael/Jacob Trent have no choice but to join forces, because only together can they stop the end of days.

What I liked:

Well, it was a quick read, I grant you. Well paced, entertaining even. Most of the book consists of a hunt of a demonic killer who is simply too sadistic to live. It was also funny but I don’t think it was done deliberately by the author…rather my skewed sense of humour I suppose. The world build was a mix of angel mythology (or rather angelology) and murder suspense making this book another example of Dark Urban Fantasy. Overall not bad. The main heroine, Alex, was your usual kick-ass police officer with a huge chip on her lovely shoulder about knifes and such but somehow she seemed a bit bland to me. She actively lived in denial for most of the novel and then, when she discovered who and what she really is…well, nothing changed, not really. She remained a strong woman and a good cop…so basically a clone of her other DUF sisters. Ok, I am hopeless at good points, let’s move to the other section.

What I didn’t like:

My devil outfit fits here like a glove so I am donning it again with pleasure and satisfaction. In fact I think I’ve been missing it. Maybe that’s why I decided to read a book about angels out of my free will again…I hate angels and demons in fiction – ok, most of them. This book didn’t do anything to change my attitude.

Anyway, are you ready for a little tour around hell? Good. Let our sightseeing begin. Spoilers ahead so be sure to duck if you don’t like them!

First stop – an empty vodka glass signifying a complete lack of good ideas when it comes to angels, demons, heaven, hell, limbo and all that religious jazz. In other words and in my humble opinion angelology sucks here. Why? Heaven reminded me of a big corporation where employees are numerous, repressed and insecure, higher management consist of overly ambitious, bullying, shady types and the employer remains aloof and conspicuously absent, spending her time most probably in a villa on Majorka. Not that I have anything against Majorka villas per se ;)  but anyway, shouldn't Heaven be a bit more esoteric, sublime place?

A showcase – the problems of our sweet Power angel, Aramael (like “I’ve got the power!” song from Bruce Almighty, a mediocre comedy but suiting my mood right now). His biggest sin is falling in love with a mortal human woman. Mind you he was tricked to do so by the powers that be and he couldn't help himself. His second biggest sin is blasting into smithereens a serial demonic murderer who was endangering the life of his sweetheart and her family. Hello, hell to heaven, hell to heaven…what’s going on? After all he is still that creature hell-bent on doing good and punish the damned and wicked (excuse my Hellish), isn’t he? Heaven are you reading me well? It seems we have an authority problem…

Our second stop features a bull’s eye and should be called “being innocent always sucks”. Here you get your souvenir tee-shirt with the same black-red bull’s eye right in the middle of  your chest and on your back as well just in case somebody missed it the first time. Why? Alex, our main female lead, is a Naphil so the hated spawn of Fallen Angels, the Grigori, and mortal women. Many times removed. Why is she the lowest of low? Why doesn’t she deserve even an angelic guardian? Why Aramael hates her guts as soon as he hears about her? Is she duplicitous or immoral? Is she a politician? Does she peddle drugs to teenagers, lure people into a bar and then sell their organs on eBay? Does she profit from human trafficking? No? Has she at least kicked a puppy? No, never. Her only fault is that she was born. What a sin…no, don't cry over such a reasoning, not yet, let’s move on, ladies and gents because before us is the biggest attraction of our little tour.

Could I have your attention, please? Give a big cheer for a big pink pyramid sign in a purple circle which indicates: the One Almighty is a She. Female. Woman. Sacred Feminine. Does it improve things? It should have but with a truly devilish grin I am proud to inform you: it actually makes things WORSE (remember my outfit – I am coming from the other side of the fence). She is unpredictable, She takes wrong decisions, She keeps her underlings in the dark, She punishes innocents for crimes perpetrated by others, She cannot distinguish a real careerist from a loyal worker, She takes back from her creatures the most precious gift they had been given (and it had been given by Her in the first place, mind you…)...well,  if this is the good ONE She-Almighty show me a devil, please! Amusing like hell! I guess the Lady needs a strong male arm to guide her...actually Lucifer might be a perfect candidate for the job!

Finally something to make your trip unforgettable – a romantic rollercoaster! Yeeehaw! Here are our loops. First is quite geneel but surprisingly twisted - angels in this book happen to be gender-divided into males and females. Ugh. Small wonder the One made falling in love impossible and punishable. What would happen if Heaven was all of a sudden full of pregnant, overly sensitive she-angels? Or what if two testosterone-packed angelic alphas decided they fancy the same girl? Or even the same guy? Or if one angel cheated on the other...it would become hell in no time…ok, heading to a really steep drive, please stay in your seats and fasten what needs fastening asap.

Aramael shouldn’t fall in love with Alex because of her secret dirty lineage and him being an angel so a creature forbidden to engage in any relationship with humans. Alex shouldn’t fall in love with Aramael/ Jacob Trent because she has more than enough on her tray as a cop, she doesn’t wear either make-up or sexy underwear and she works ungodly hours. However, as soon as they touch each other sparks are flying, demons are laughing, angels are tearing out their feathers in disgust, church bells are ringing, lightning strikes in the same place twice and dogs are howling across the globe. In short Alex and Aramael are in love against all odds. Like that, in a second. Did you get a vertigo? Well, you shouldn’t. It’s not their fault. It was predicted. They can’t help it. They were tricked. They are soulmates or used to be soulmates and once in love always in love…what a stinky pile of fluffy rubbish.


Thank you very much, it was a pleasure to be your guide, see you next time soon and sorry for the stench, our cleaning lady is on strike and nobody else knows how to sweep in hell. You know, as soon as you start all brooms kind of catch fire...

Final verdict:

What could I say…I won’t pick up another angels-and-demons story any time soon. If you want to hear the other, more angelic side of the story head for Book Girl Blodeuedd’s blog and read her review. Pure heaven! After that hellish trip you might actually deserve it!

Mini review: The Gift of Illusion by Richard Brown

Book info:
Book from: pdf file, e-book,
Genre: paranormal thriller, crime story
Target audience: adults




This book was provided by Melissa (BaT) who got it from the author in return for an honest review. Honest it will be. First the short summary, though.


Synopsis (from Goodreads):

An ancient evil has returned to continue the study it began over a century ago, and it's looking for volunteers. Isaac Winters is the perfect test subject. He's a detective with a damaged past, and something to prove.

On the night of his wife's murder sixteen years ago, which left him a single father, Isaac thought he had seen the worst mankind had to offer.

Until now.

It moves like a virus from person to person, carefully selecting its next host, and leaving a trail of incinerated bodies in its wake. There are no witnesses and no evidence except for a small statue of some unknown figure. Accompanied by a partner short on experience, Isaac must uncover and defeat this faceless villain before it takes from him the greatest reminder of his dead wife and his greatest treasure. Their daughter.

What I liked:

It is a paranormal thriller along the likes of Stephen King and Dean Koontz. I admit the author has a gift for description and the opening scenes are a good example of that - the apparent murder of a young girl by fire, and the subsequent death of her mother and her father send Detective Isaac Winters and his reluctant partner Daniel Simmons into a world of confusion and doubt. The whole premise makes me wonder how twisted of a mind the writer that wrote this book must have. I know, I know, not my problem. I did like the way the climax of the story broke out of the pattern I'd been expecting.

What I didn’t like:

I had a lot of trouble getting into this book. While I found the idea interesting it was basically another case of a good novel ruined by poor editing. There is more to telling a good story than just having a good idea. The book is definitely copy edited only - free from typos, misspelled words and grammar mistakes, but with some major issues outside of that.

For example the main character, although presented as an experienced investigator, makes assumptions without evidence and then shares those with a witness; he also pockets evidence from a crime scene as a kind of souvenir, and repeatedly puts his completely bare hands all over before the scene has been investigated by the forensics team. I guess in a normal world he would be sacked instantly for messing up in the most unprofessional way and hindering the investigation. Any cop would say you that much. Apart from that I must say I didn't like Isaac. This is a bigger deal for me than it sounds; I'm a very character-driven reader, and a main character I really like will get me over a lot of other difficulties. Isaac was simply not the right guy.

What’s more…there are a few instances of foul language which made me squirm but nothing too extreme or very annoying. The largest issue of this novel, in my very humble opinion, is the use of the narrative voice. In the first two chapters there are at least three different points of view used. It hardly makes the reading easy; usually a writer would pick one style and stick with it for the clarity’s sake. I suppose the book would have worked best in a close third person narrative.

The main villain of the story left me wanting more. I do like well-fleshed baddies and it is clear Richard Brown created just a rough sketch of a really evil psychopath with potential. I really could have done with the bigger picture, adding some more explanations, back story and depth instead of gory detail. Also the ending was a little rushed for me – it was definitely too abrupt and open-ended.

Finally, despite the fact the book is written for an adult reader, I would still want to warn you that this novel is not something for people with a weak stomach. There are scenes so graphic and gruesome inside I had to skim the text because I really thought I might be as sick as a dog. These include macabre descriptions of carving human bodies and even some scenes of necrophilia (I did manage to avoid reading them in full after glimpsing the idea). Brown has created a villain so depraved that it literally churns the stomach. The question is whether you want to meet him at all.

Final verdict:

I wasn't blown away by this one, although it had some good moments. I never quite understood what "The Gift" really was about. Even the ending left me feeling flat if not slightly disgusted. Perhaps I lack imagination.