Black Canyon by Jeremy Bates.

Brian is 11 years old and goes camping with his parents to visit the Black Canyon within the Gunnison National Park in Colorado. This novella tells the story of how Brian got along on this lovely trip with his mam and dad.

I really enjoyed reading the Black Canyon, which is odd because it is narrated in the first person by Brian who is only 11 years old. But this novella is told in a very adult fashion. Jeremy Bates is rather clever because he starts his novella from the viewpoint of Brian looking back on his family camping trip in Colorado. This allows Jeremy the scope to write Brian’s story in a very adult way, using the understanding of our world and an extensive vocabulary that an 11 year old would not be able to deliver. Nice one Jeremy, which means we can get a child’s story without it being childish, sugary sweet or Disney-like.

There is some lovely subtle humour in this novella, for example…

My mom kept calling one of the women she worked with a skank. I wondered if maybe she meant “skunk.” Sometimes when she was drinking she didn’t always pronounce her words correctly.

… So we have a nice camping trip with mam and dad. What could go wrong? Slowly doubts are thrown into the story and you begin to wonder how 11 year old Brian is enjoying his trip with mam and dad. Then little doubts develop about Brian’s personality and his relationships with people around him. I loved how Jeremy weaved these little doubts into the story which made me suspect what may happen. I thought it was great how Brian explained in his own words just why things had worked out the way they had.

I am NOT a fan of novellas as I prefer a BIG read that can last me for days on end. That way I really get into a story, live the book and type up a review during my weekly rest period. However, the Black Canyon is an EXCEPTION. I thought this novella was BRILLIANT and the plot was very well thought out indeed. I loved this book and it was simply a joy to read. Well done Jeremy, you have written a wonderful novella with no boring bits or padding out of the tale. I think the length of this story is spot on and what is nice is that the location, although real, is not the key, it is the event of a family camping trip. Although the Black Canyon is a SHORT read, it certainly packs a punch and I can find nothing wrong with it, so it gets the top score of 5 stars from me.

The Catacombs (World’s Scariest Places #2) by Jeremy Bates

The Catacombs are a network of tunnels beneath Paris which are said to extend more than 300 kilometers (186 miles) and reach depths of 30 meters (100), too deep for phone coverage. Follow 4 characters who go on an underground adventure to explore hidden treasures etc in this hidden world beneath the streets of Paris.

I thought this thriller from Jeremy Bates was okay. The structure of this novel is similar to his previous book, the Suicide Forest and offers the same huge vocabulary that helps make this story such an adult read. Jeremy manages to capture the atmosphere of the catacombs very well indeed when he writes…

I tried to imagine what it would be like to walk alone in utter blackness, with only your hand on the wall to guide you, your mouth dry from dehydration, your throat and lungs burning from the rank air and the countless hours of screaming for help, your feet weeping with blisters, your legs jellied with exhaustion, nothing around you but tunnels and more tunnels, ad infinitum.

Yes, it is clearly very scary being lost in complete darkness within 300 km of tunnels below Paris knowing that nobody can hear you scream. I felt Jeremy explained these fears very well indeed as our 4 characters tried to exit the nightmare they had become trapped within.

The plot of The Catacombs was okay and was a regular urban legend of a hidden community. The main problem I had with The Catacombs was that I read it straight after Suicide Forest. I thought that Suicide Forest was a GOOD 4 star read and in comparison The Catacombs was simply not as good. For me The Catacombs was an okay 3 stars read because it lacked the wonder threaded within the script of the Suicide Forest.

Suicide Forest (World’s Scariest Places #1) by Jeremy Bates.

If you go out into the woods today. You’re sure of a big surprise. But this is no picnic time for teddy bears. A group of 7 people enter Aokigahara Jukai, which is near Mt. Fuji in Japan. The Japanese call it the “Sea of Trees” but others refer to it as the Suicide Forest. They are taken there by a guy called Honda who said “According to our myths, it was once the site of ubasute. Families would abandon their young or elderly there during periods of famine, so there would be less mouths to feed. Because of this, many Japanese think the forest is now haunted by yurei, or souls of the dead.”

I liked how Jeremy has done his research, for Suicide Forest is a real location. He also includes the local culture and words, for example a bento box and ramen shops. Jeremy really got the atmosphere of the Suicide Forest, giving it a creepy yet very real feel to it. I really enjoy walking my dog through woods but this is not a walk in the park for these 7 people who abandon the regular tourist trail.

Suicide Forest is written in the first person of Ethan Childs, who is an English teacher. I liked the little bits thrown into the story about teaching English to the Japanese and the funny things they can say. English is a great living language and I loved the bit were Ethan had words with Tomo - “Have lunch,” I corrected him vacantly. I didn’t usually do this outside the classroom, but “take lunch” always irked me, one of those expressions the Japanese favored that just sounded wrong.

I found Suicide Forest to be a GOOD read that plays on the urban legend horror theme. I liked how it was a first person narrative so that the reader feels they are at the center of the action. Suicide Forest is an adult book that fully explores the issue of suicide but is not preachy or religious. The quality of Jeremy’s writing is good and he has a very wide vocabulary, forcing me to click many a word on my Kindle, to be sure of it’s meaning.

Suicide Forest kept me entertained but I did NOT enjoy it as much as The Taste of Fear, another of Jeremy’s books. Because of the background, the choice of a real location and the urban legends attached, Suicide Forest for me was a GOOD 4 star read.

The Taste of Fear by Jeremy Bates.

The Taste of Fear is a thriller set in Africa, where American movie star Scarlett Cox and her husband, hotel tycoon Salvador Brazza have a short holiday break with many problems.

I have NOT read any of Jeremy Bates novels before and started reading The Taste of Fear with open eyes. What a lovely surprise I got from reading this book. Jeremy creates such great suspense and tension, your alarm bells are constantly ringing with the next threat on Scarlett or Salvador. Not only that but the reader gets the story from the assassin and the terrorist who are on their trail. So you know how the net is tightening around Scarlett and Salvador but they are blissfully enjoying their holiday in Tanzania. Then Scarlett and Salvador become involved in plots against them in this fast paced thriller that chills with suspense and tension.

I found the writing quality in The Taste of Fear to be top class. There is a very wide use of vocabulary and quite often I had to pull up the dictionary on my Kindle to be sure, for example “spelunker”. I loved how it was not just a plot driven novel but had lots of background and explanations about the detail of what was going on in the moment. All this extra information about how things are done, brought so much added value to my enjoyment of this book. Some of the characters were Mai-Mai rebels - and a quick search on the internet proves these people do exist in the Congo and Jeremy has truly done his research and has not made the bad guys up from his imagination. The whole story was told in a very adult way.

I liked the characters that Scarlett and Salvador met along the way. Jeremy knows how to develop colourful characters and no character became a drag. I liked the dialogue between ALL the characters and enjoyed the dark humour said between them. I really liked how this book was not politically correct and that Jeremy felt comfortable including snips that really made me chuckle, for example…

It made her wonder what early man had thought when he came down from the trees and was confronted with this new and alien world full of opportunity and danger.

The baboons watched the Land Rover pass with their sparkling black eyes, unalarmed, likely used to seeing their distant cousins come this way.

But a lot of these well-armed government-backed guerilla groups became consumed with their unbridled power, ultimately raping and pillaging and participating in rampant cannibalism, with a special taste for the local pygmy population.

“Not bad for an old man,” Zamir said, rolling his shoulders to get the feeling back in his arms. “Not bad for a Jew,” Fitzgerald shot back.

… I was really impressed with The Taste of Fear and thought it was an OUTSTANDING read that gets the top score of 5 stars from me. I became engaged, engrossed and entertained by this story. However, I will NOT look at a barbecue the same way again!

Arseda: The world's worst customer service by Pete Sortwell

Pete Sortwell is a comedy author and he set up a parody Twitter account pretending to be the Asda Service Team. This book transcribes the Twitter feeds of genuine users who raise issues with Asda, the tweets from Pete’s parody Twitter account and tweets from the genuine Asda Service Team. The format of Pete’s book clearly shows which tweets are from the his parody Twitter account and those tweets from the genuine Asda Service Team.

Well, this book is a HOOT! I thought it was brilliant. The beauty of this book is that although Pete wrote the parody tweets, all the rest of the tweets are genuine. I found it was a wonderful illustration of how Twitter works, how genuine shoppers feel about their Asda experience and how people on both sides of the customer service desk have a sense of humour. I loved the use of language on ALL of the tweets, from the colourful language of the genuine users, the tongue in cheek humour of Pete Sortwell and the corporate set responses from the genuine Asda Service Team. I thought it was lovely how Pete did ALL his parody tweets in character, so as you progress through his book, you feel that his tweets are from a real person and you develop a relationship with him that is similar to what you enjoy with your workmates. Pete even had his own parody corporate set responses to the tweets raised by genuine shoppers. I loved this consistency and all credit to Pete because Twitter reacts extremely quickly in real time, so his tweets had to be done on the spur of the moment. This is very different from regular author work where you have all day to draft a full page, edit and publish.

I loved the humour of this book as it showed how the general public really act. I can find nothing wrong with this book and I do not think that anyone would be offended if their tweets had been included. Many genuine shoppers spotted the parody account and took the tweets in good spirit. My favourite tweet conversation involved the issue of toilet cleanliness in Asda supermarkets, the possible use by drug addicts, the use of special lighting and the effect of drug users deserting Asda in favour of Tesco.

I do not think that the management of Asda will be bothered by this book. When companies have a Twitter account they must accept the rough and tumble of Twitter life, taking the praise with the criticism on the chin. I really loved the content of this book, I found it very entertaining and it made me chuckle. It was a great antidote to the polished corporate speak we have to endure everyday, so this book gets the top score of 5 stars from me. Well done, Pete.