A Reading Update and The Science Fiction Novel - Mike Carey

Occupied, I hope

A quiet sunny day here today. Neither Jo nor I went anywhere, we just hunkered down. I finished a book, took the dogs for walks and finally got rid of the branch that landed on our deck December or January. While I was in the computer room I noticed two sparrows flying in and out of one of the little bird houses we purchased awhile ago. They were hauling in twigs and stuff. I hope they are making a nest. It'll be neat to watch.

So besides sawing 'branchy' up into pieces, I also finished a book this morning while I was relaxing with Jo, the 4th book of my 12 +4 Challenge. I have of course also started another one. I'll update those and continue with my look at the Sci-Fi novel.

Just Finished

1. Summertime All the Cats are Bored by Phillipe Georget (Inspector Sebag #1). I had previously read the 2nd book in this trilogy.










"Summertime All the Cats Are Bored is the first book in the Inspector Sebag trilogy of books by French author [author:Philippe Georget. I had previously read the 2nd one but finally managed to find the 1st in the series. I have the 3rd book on my bookshelf and plan to finish the series off this year.

Anyway, in this mystery, Inspector Gilles Sebag and his colleagues in Perpignan, southern France are trying to solve the disappearance of a Dutch woman who was there on vacation. At the same time, just down the road, another Dutch woman has been found murdered on the beach. The detectives must ascertain if the two events are related, is there a serial killer around? As well, a young wife reports the disappearance of her husband, a taxi drive, to Sebag. As the investigation continues, it becomes apparent that the taxi driver may have been involved with the Dutch girl as a pimp.

At the same time, Sebag is beginning to wonder if his wife Claire is having an affair. Little things are making him have doubts. Their two children each head off on vacations with friends and Claire eventually goes on a cruise. This situation is an ongoing theme in this story and adds an extra dimension to an interesting story.

The mystery is told from varied perspectives, Sebag's, that of the purported murderer and that of the Dutch woman. It's an interesting way to proceed with the events. There isn't a lot of forensics in the story, although they do play a role. The story focuses more on the detectives, their investigation and their gatherings to pass on information and try to solve the murder and disappearance.

The story moves along nicely. Gilles and his co-workers are all interesting and the mystery unravels nicely. Sebag relies on his insight and sudden bursts of inspiration to resolve the events and come up with a very satisfying solution. It's unfortunate that Georget only wrote 3 books in this series as, while I look forward to reading the 3rd book, it would also be nice to continue with the series. (4 stars)"

Currently Reading

1. Open Space by Deryn Collier (Bern Fortin #2). I read the first book in this series a few years back. This is the 2nd and final book in this series set in the interior of British Columbia.

"On a fall day in Kootenay Landing, a local man abandons his van at a remote border crossing and disappears into the bush. Hours later and miles away another man, known to be a small-time drug dealer, is shot in the forehead along a popular hiking trail. On the surface, the two incidents seem unrelated. And yet the two men have been best friends since elementary school.

As Bern Fortin works alongside police constable Maddie Schilling to connect the two cases, they discover secrets with roots buried deep in the past. Why did Gary Dowd disappear? Who shot Seymour Melnychuk? Why was Dr. Sinclair already on the scene? Who really controls the hills and forests around Kootenay Landing? Amidst the chaos of the case, a reporter shows up, asking disturbing questions about Bern’s military past. Everyone has something to hide, and no one in Kootenay Landing seems willing to talk. But Bern Fortin is well aware that no secret can remain buried forever—not even his own."

The Science Fiction Novel - Mike Carey

 

Mike Carey

Mike Carey is a relatively new author to me, in that I'm currently reading his first Felix Castor book. I think the series is somewhat like Jim Butcher's Dresden Files. Castor lives in a dystopic London full of ghosts and zombies and is a necromancer.

Carey was born in Liverpool in 1959 and is a comic book writer and also an author of novels. He is also known for the film The Girl with All the Gifts (2016). He has been involved with such comic series as Lucifer, Hell-blazer, X-Men, etc. His first prose novel was The Devil You Know (2006), the first in his Felix Castor series. He has now written 5 books in this series and also numerous other novels. I'm currently about 1/3 of the way into The Devil You Know and like it very much so far. I have the first three books on my shelf.

a. The Devil You Know (2006).











"Felix Castor is a freelance exorcist, and London is his stamping ground. It may seem like a good ghostbuster can charge what he likes and enjoy a hell of a lifestyle--but there's a risk: Sooner or later he's going to take on a spirit that's too strong for him. While trying to back out of this ill-conceived career, Castor accepts a seemingly simple ghost-hunting case at a museum in the shadowy heart of London--just to pay the bills, you understand. But what should have been a perfectly straightforward exorcism is rapidly turning into the Who Can Kill Castor First Show, with demons and ghosts all keen to claim the big prize. That's OK: Castor knows how to deal with the dead. It's the living who piss him off..."

b. Vicious Circle (2006). 

"Felix Castor has reluctantly returned to exorcism after a successful case convinces him that he really can do some good with his abilities---"good," of course, being a relative term when dealing with the undead. His friend Rafi is still possessed, the succubus Ajulutsikael (Juliet to her friends) still technically has a contract on him, and he's still dirt poor.

Doing some consulting for the local cops helps pay the bills, but Castor needs a big private job to really fill the hole in his bank account. That's what he needs. What he gets is a seemingly insignificant "missing ghost" case that inexorably drags him and his loved ones into the middle of a horrific plot to raise one of hell's fiercest demons.

When satanists, stolen spirits, sacrifice farms, and haunted churches all appear on the same police report, the name Felix Castor can't be too far behind..."

c. Dead Men's Boots (2007). 











"You might think that helping a friend's widow to stop a lawyer from stealing her husband's corpse would be the strangest thing on your To Do list. But life is rarely that simple for Felix Castor.

A brutal murder in King's Cross bears all the hallmarks of a long-dead American serial killer, and it takes more good sense than Castor possesses not to get involved. He's also fighting a legal battle over the body - if not the soul - of his possessed friend, Rafi, and can't shake the feeling that his three problems might be related.

With the help of the succubus Juliet and paranoid zombie data-fence Nicky Heath, Castor just might have a chance of fitting the pieces together before someone drops him down a lift shaft or rips his throat out.

Or not. . ."

Mike Carey's complete listing can be found at this link.

Have a safe weekend.