UNDERCOVER Buzz

Following the wonderful discovery of a little attention thrown my way via Seana Graham's Not New For Long Blog, I figured I should share a few links to highlight the kindness from some early readers of my latest novel, UNDERCOVER.

So, first up, Seana makes me feel warm and fuzzy with her wonderful account of my writing history (from her own perspective) AND a review of UNDERCOVER.

And I was delighted with this review over at Crime Fiction Lover, from the wonderful Keith Nixon.

Tony Black was kind enough to invite me 'round to his place for a wee guest post. You can find that on Pulp Pusher.

And Anthony Neil Smith was kind enough to send me a bunch of one-word questions, and the resulting review ended up on his fine blog. Go there, read the review, tell him his hair looks marvellous.

And before all the above, there was Nigel Bird's excellent early review over at One Man's Opinion.

I've also been lucky enough to accumulate some nice reviews on Amazon. The novel is currently on a modest 5-star streak. See what they had to say on the UK site and the US site.

Thanks to all. It rocks my socks off that the novel is out there and seemingly doing what it's supposed to do; being read by wonderful people.

Link-link-link-link...

Peolple are lovely, aren't they? Admittedly, I'm in a very good mood today, but they really are.

Here are a few things some lovely people have said about my writing.

Paul D. Brazill gives WEE DANNY a short review/shout-out on You Would Say That, Wouldn't You?

Seana Graham reviews WEE DANNY as well, over at Not New For Long.

Eva Dolan reviews WELCOME TO THE OCTAGON in the latest issue of Crime Factory (page 143).

And for the first time (to my knowledge), my work has been reviewed in French. Quite extensively. If Google Translate is to be trusted, it's an informed and positive review. I think. Any French-speakers out there want to confirm that for me? The review is by Dominique Jeannerod and it's posted on Europolar.

Je suis heureux.

What's THE POINT of this Competition?

The winner of this contest has been chosen and contacted. Thanks to all who had a punt.

Right, you beautiful people. I'm feeling a little needy and neglected today so I'm going to invite you all to enter a wee competition that'll hopefully cure me of my self-pity.

I want more Amazon reviews, most preferably a 20th 5-star review for WEE ROCKETS on Amazon UK, but I'll gratefully accept anything you're willing to give me. So, review any of my books on Amazon UK or Amazon US (or both!) between now and Friday 15th March 2013 at 23:59 GMT, and I'll enter you into a draw for a signed copy of the paperback version of THE POINT.

You up for it?

I hope so. It'll be embarrassing if nobody enters.

Of course, I'm no stranger to embarrassment.

But I keep setting myself up for it.

New Blood

Let's face it; this blog has lost its review mojo. And something needs to be done about it! Am I the man to rise to the occasion, come out swinging and furiously rattle the keyboard to the Rocky soundtrack?

No.

I've tried and failed too many times at this point.

But the wonderfully tattooed and envy-inducing cool dude pictured below might well be the CSNI saviour.

Meet Wayne Simmons, best-selling horror author and big-time genre fiction fan. He's currently on a crime fiction kick and is enthusiastic to share his views on his current reading. And I'm the lucky bugger that gets to host said views.

This could be the start of something big. And even better, I've made a top contact who'll keep me right come the zombie apocalypse. And it is coming, folks. T'is only a matter of time.

Muah hah hah hah haaaaaa.

Three Great Novellas

CALIFORNIA by Ray Banks

In California Banks introduces us to Shuggie, an ex-con who may have finally figured out how to control his temper. He's on a mission to get from Calfornia, Falkirk, to California in the US. All he needs to do is collect the ill-gotten loot he'd stashed in his home town and get gone. Simple enough, so long as nobody gets in his way.

This is a short, straightforward read that is exceedingly well written. The insight into Shuggie's psyche is chilling in its stark authenticity. Banks is a heavyweight in the gritty Brit crime genre. Powerful.

SHOTGUN GRAVY by Chuck Wendig

Atlanta Burns, a teenager with attitude... and a shotgun. Shotgun Gravy is almost like Falling Down in high school. When a teenager with a reputation for brutal violence decides to go on a crusade against the bullies in her town it isn't long before she fnds herself and her ragtag mini-gang of friends in serious trouble. Noble as her intentions may be, she's bitten off way more than she can chew.

This novella is a shotgun blast of a read. Highly recommended. I'll be very interested to see what Atlanta Burns gets up to in her next adventure.

BARRACUDA by Raymond Embrack

This is a novella that oozes tongue-in-cheek wickedness. The hyper-reality that Embrack has created in Blonde City is tweaked to crystal meth levels. Peter Surf is a badass protagonist that the reader has utter faith in. Faith that he will strike down upon his enemies with great vengeance and furious anger. The plot is your basic revenge tale but the fun Embrack has with it livens what might have been a flat, worn-out story. The gangs of criminals the protagonist encounters could have been spewed from the mind of Tarantino if he were on a bad acid trip. Considering the pricetag, you can't afford not to buy this novella. Download and enjoy immediately.

You'll find links to these novellas on my Amazon profile page.

New Review Policy

Last year I began writing shorter reviews to (I had hoped) allow me to produce more of them for the blog. It turned out I averaged about one review a month which represented only a small fraction of my actual reading. And I'm not even sure that the reviews did any real good for the books. So this year, I'm changing my approach again.

One thing that I've found since I released THE POINT and WEE ROCKETS is that the reviews that seem to have the most traction are those on Amazon. Now, this could well be because I'm relying heavily on Kindle sales, but I'm pretty sure that many other writers attach a lot of value to them too. I took a little time to think about whether or not it was 'professional' to review other writers on Amazon and came to the conclusion that most people don't give a feck about that sort of thing. And so, from now on, when the fancy takes me, I'll be reviewing my latest reads on Amazon. But just so the blog still has a bookish element to it, I'll be gathering them up every once in a whole and posting them on CSNI.

My main concern in this endeavour is how seriously people will treat my reviews. I'm not a fan of the 5-star system but that's what I have to work with. Thing is, when I'm reading a book that isn't floating my boat I do this really wacky thing... I stop reading it. So the majority of my reviews are going to be in the 4 and 5 star range. I suppose you could argue that the challenge is getting me to finish reading your book. Then again, most people don't give a feck about this foible either.

So, constant visitors, the latest Amazon reviews:

The Cold, Cold Ground by Adrian McKinty

Adrian McKinty is one of my favourites. He's a forerunner in the latest generation of Northern Irish crime writers. And this is the book he was born to write. A police procedural featuring a catholic RUC officer set against the backdrop of the 1981 hunger strikes. Talk about ambitious... But McKinty is a master of the craft and he has applied all of his talent to The Cold, Cold Ground.

The writing is electrifying, the characters top notch and his ability to spin a great yarn is enviable. If you want to learn a little about that crazy chapter in Northern Irish history and read an excellent story as well, you need look no further.

Buy this book.

Stolen Souls by Stuart Neville

Stuart Neville brings us back to his dark version of Belfast in the latest Jack Lennon investigation. Set over Christmas, this novel delves into the murky depths of human trafficking in Northern Ireland and the gangs that control it. It's set at a relentless pace throughout with all the now distinctive hallmarks of a Neville crime novel. If you're a fan of the Belfast series there are plenty of little references to the previous books to delight and intrigue the constant reader. But they never distract from the main force of the story. I look forward to his next instalment.

Stolen Souls is 24 meets Die Hard in Belfast. Come on, tell me you don't want to read that and I'll tell you you're a liar.

All The Young Warriors by Anthony Neil Smith

This was officially my first Kindle read and I have to say, this book alone is pretty much worth the price of the Kindle reader. Just a pity the author couldn't get a percentage off that price-tag.

The story is set in Minnesota and Somalia, places of opposite extremes in temperature and culture. The narrative is split between a recently widowed, angry cop and a terrified American-born Somalian who has gone to his father's home country to join the 'ragtag army'. This is a big, ambitious story and it is handled with expertise by Smith. A tremendous novel with a distinct and confident voice. I actually slowed my reading down around the 80% mark to make it last a little longer. I'll be reading more from this guy.

All The Young Warriors is an emotional gut-punch. I'll be thinking about it for a long time to come.

Review This!

Our Adrian McKinty has been very busy on the aul Blogosphere recently. In the less than a week he's informed, raged, philosophised and advised.

The majority of the material centres around a rather snooty review of McKinty's The Bloomsday Dead. Now, you should all know by now, my opinion on Adrian McKinty's novels. No? Well, start by reading my review of The Bloomsday Dead. Or even better, just go buy the entire Dead Trilogy featuring the unkillable Michael Forsythe, and read it yourself. I mean, at the end of the day, it's your opinion that counts. I'm only here to tell you what I like about the crime fiction I've read. If what I say helps you choose your next book, then happy days.

And if you want more than my opinion, try Crime Always Pays, Critical Mick, Detectives Beyond Borders, Crime Scraps, Euro Crime, Petrona, The Rap Sheet, It's a crime! (Or a mystery...) or In Reference to Murder. And there's more out there. Ordinary Joes and Josephines with good taste in books. Forget the snobs. Us bloggers are the wave of the future.