The Undead Part 1 by R. R. Haywood

The book focuses on the first three days. 

Howie son of Howard, is a night manager at a supermarket. During the day, he is forced to attend a manager's meeting. This means he doesn't need to work the night shift. It's a rare Friday night off. All day he has been hearing about random attacks in Europe, on the radio, and on TV. Small snippets of information are gathered before his attention is stolen. 

This book is fast with characters you'll love or hate (like all of R. R. Haywood's books). Howie wants to check on his mum and dad. He steals a bike. This gives us a view of a disseminated town and highway. They have gone looking for him, so he heads back to his place. He stops in at his old workplace and runs into Dave (not David) one of his night shelf packers, and together they head to London to find Howie's sister. 

Along the way, there are many battles and many discoveries. 

For instance, during the day, the zombies move slowly with stiff joints. But at night, they growl and awaken into high speed killing machines. 

Part one ends on a cliffhanger. Luckily I bought a pack on 1-20. Already halfway through Part two. 

   

The Caller by Chris Carter

The Caller is book 8 in this series. But it's the first I've read of this author. When I say 'read' I mean 'listened to, as I had the audiobook. 

It's a pity this book sucked as the premise was great. A killer finds people to kill and adds a touch of torture for friends or family. By video call, the victim's friend or whatever is asked a series of three questions, and every wrong answer ends in the victim suffering and dying. 

One day, he video calls Mr. Jay. Mr. Jay doesn't like watching his wife get killed because he can't answer one question. Mr. Jay is a hitman for a cartel and knows how to find people. It is his job. 

Throw in the mix, two cops, Detective Robert Hunter, and Carlos Garcia. Hunter seems to know a lot. 

One of the letdowns in this book is his Captain needs to be told how a stalker acts, and the mind behind such acts. Shouldn't the Captain have a rudimentary understanding of that?  He explains a lot. 

Another letdown of this book is the narrator (Thomas Judd). His voice sounds dull, and drones on. He seems uninspired with this project and just wants to get it done. This is the main reason I couldn't get into this book. 

The killings were great, but the rest was dull. 

Two stars for the murders only. 

The Devil's Stop by Scott Blade

 

The Devil's Stop is a thriller that starts a bit like Rambo, in that a sheriff stops to chat with a drifter and sends him off in the opposite direction. But Jack is on a mission, and that is to visit as many towns and places across the US that has "devil" in the name. 

He is an ex-navy Seal, when he left he had nothing to do, no plan, zip. Until he sees a sign with the name "devil" in it and wonders how many places in the US have a devil, or reference it, in their name. 

Apparently, there are quite a few.

Hell's Bent is on the ass-end of North America. It borders a massive forest that can take one to Canada. 

The town has a few secrets. An unnamed grave, many bikers have just left, and more bikers are moving in. 

He stops for breakfast at a diner and asks about the grave. The reception turns cold and some truckers want him to leave. 

In town, he helps an old couple with a heavy box. He sees a very pregnant woman get off the train (bus?) and the truckers circle him. 

And that's where the story kicks off.  

Scott Blade has written a killer of a story. The hero isn't Superman, just a well trainer Seal, retired. But he knows weapons, he knows how to follow a trail, and spring surprises. But so does the man he is hunting. 

Some of this story is quite gruesome according to some. I didn't think so. I also felt it was believable and in many ways reminded me of Jack Reacher. 

This is book 10 in a series. I had no idea. It reads like an individual book. There's no need to read others before this (like Jack Reacher). 

 

Amok by Barry Eisler

This is the first Barry Eisler book that I have read. The publicity of his first book many moons ago introduced his books to me, but I never got around to buying them.  (John Rain books.)

AMOK is a stand-alone novel involving an ex-military man pulled into helping the CIA. He'll get 5 grand a week, and they will keep his abusive father in prison. But Dox doesn't think his old man should stay in prison. His father's parole is coming up and he's in two minds about it. The family wants him to side with them and requests he stays in prison.

He accepts the job, or else there is no book. 

Next, we meet Felix, Joko, and the lovely and single-minded Isabel.  She has tapes to get to America. She wants to expose what happens when the cameras have stopped rolling. 

This book is set in 1991. Eisler mixes fiction with real events with expert ease. 

It's a good story and fast-paced. There's even a love story, but the timeline is too short for the book's deep "I love you" part. 

The characters acted as I would expect them to. The meat of the book is to expose a hidden war raging in Timor for the last 16 years. 

The face-off between Dox and Joko seemed too fast after the build-up. But Joko ultimately won. 

All up, this is a brilliant book. The story is a cracker 👏 and it's well worth a few notes of your hard-earned cash. 

The Contestant by Nick Thacker

This is the first Nick Thacker audiobook that I have read / listened to. The story is about Josh Lane, an ex-military computer genius who takes a job working for Bearbridge. 

The company implants an AI chip in his head that allows him to do many things that are unclear. The company also gives him a prototype car to use. 

Then he is kidnapped. 

He is to be a contestant in a game. 

A fiery death awaits those who lose a round. 

There is a surprise contestant as well.

Also, the NSA has a vested interest in him. 

This is an interesting book. 

I wish there wasn't an NSA component. 

Nick writes plot-driven books with little detail and characterization. Millions of people love this style, but that's not for me. I prefer character-driven books. Still, I enjoyed this book. 

The next section deals with the audiobook. For some reason, this book was on the BookFunel site. Which means I need to download the app and burn data to listen. That's kinda shitty. And it cant be downloaded so I couldn't listen on my preferred app. 

Was this a computer-spoken book?  There are many clues pointing to the possibility that it was. For example, the same tone was used for two speakers in a conversation. There were so many run-on sentences, it wasn't a pleasure to listen to. Then the audio editing was messed up with several pages repeated often throughout the book. It's a really good way to throw someone out of the story world. 

It annoyed the fuck out of me. 

. 

Double Dose by F. Paul Wilson

As mentioned in my previous review of book one, I started listening to book two straight away. Book one had a lot of setup and character intros, a load of action, and smooth storytelling. In book two, everything is all set and ready. 

We learn a few things in this book, for example, Reese is a dick and easily swayed by the confidence of others. The Duad, Pard, can be attacked / hurt, and the visitors are not exactly aliens per se -- they are old gods. You know who I'm talking about. But there are aliens here and they have experienced the 'love' of the old gods. 

We are also introduced to two new characters. I liked the characters and their interactions with the story, but why were they here? They had no impact on the story (not that I could tell). 

The good overcoming evil is expected and well played out, Daley faced a lot of troubles emotionally leading up to the end, which toughened her up. 

Karma, from book one, is back. He thinks Daley is a goddess after what she had done to him. He finds the dagger he stabbed into her heart and thinks she left it for him. He changes his name to Jeffery and vows to change his life. Unfortunately, his previous life skills prevent that from happening, and he thinks it is the goddess guiding him. He visits his Aunt, Juana, Daley's friend. She tells him he is to protect the goddess no matter what. He doesn't understand, the goddess is all powerful, but he will do it. 

This book brings a very satisfying ending to the tale of Daley, and the Duad. The ending comes in hard and fast, with four different things happening at the same time. He could write more books involving these two characters and I'll read them. And review them. 

Double Threat (Duad book one) by F. Paul Wilson

Many moons ago when I was a publisher, I reprinted one of his short stories. It was weird and awesome. The anthology "Damned if You Don't" is well out of print now. So, I know his writing is awesome.

Well known for his Repairmen Jack books, he has published a lot of others in the SFH range.  

This book was advertised as a stand-alone book, but it isn't. I had both books anyway. I finished the first and went straight onto the second. 

The story is about a hustler, Daley, whose latest money maker backfires on her and she decides it is time to cash out. Chased into the desert by a disgruntled customer, Daley hides in a cave. Something falls on her head and she passes out, only to wake up with something on her head. 

At the same time, a secret group worships The Visitors and waits for their return. They run their clan, life, and stocks from translated details in the scrolls. The group becomes very large, very rich, and very secluded. Today, they have been warned about the Duad, an evil entity that can destroy The Visitors. 

The Duad blends with Daley. 

The son of the clan leader falls in love with Daley. 

Daily falls for him, as well. 

Once it is confirmed that Daley is in league with the Duad, plans are put in place for her assassination. Nothing can stop The Visitors return in 10 days' time. 

This is a brilliant story. Wilson does his normal excellent job and gives us characters with vast backgrounds and goals. The story of Daley and the Duad is paced well and we are introduced to the Duad in a natural setting. Her meeting with Juana after the cave experience sets Juana up as a person who knows more than she is telling. 

The story is riveting. You won't regret reading this. Remember though, it is a two-book story. Don't blame the author for this lie, advertisers are there to make money. A lot of people like a book series. But many don't want to be left hanging. So, it was advertised as stand-alone. Get both books, call in sick to work, and devour this excellent book and then move on to book two. 

I blew through this novel in a week and instantly opened the second.