The Book Plank

The Clown Service by Guy Adams Tom Greene has been reassigned The Department: Section 37 Station office, Wood Green The Boss: August Shining, an ex-Cambridge, cold war-era spy The Mission: Charged with protecting Great Britain and its interests from paranormal terrorism The Threat: An old enemy has returned, and with him operation Black Earth, a soviet plan to create the ultimate insurgents by re-animating the dead. A while back I read The Good, the Bad and the Infernal from Guy Adams, and with that books he had won me over and since then I have been keeping a keen eye on his books. When I saw that Del Rey was publishing his new book, The Clown Service, I was quite happy! What I have come to learn from Guy Adams' books is that they are creative, quick, clever and are a pleasure to read. With the Clown Service, Guy Adams ventures into the field of espionage. What really made the promise of this book for me was the "less is more" kinda blurb, those br...

Author interview with Rowena Cory Daniells I have always enjoyed a great Epic Fantasy adventure and when I came across the books of Rowena Cory Daniells they directly caught my attention. Her series: King Rolen's Kin and The Outcast Chronicles, though both Epic Fantasy are competely different. King Rolen's Kin is a rollicking adventure full of magic and courtly intrigue with a focus on a lot of action. The Outcast Chronicles is something different and rally caught me off guard a few times. I still remember that moment with Imoshen and the boat, hauntingly beautiful. And what really makes both these series great is the way that they are written, once you sit down with one of these books, you are totally absorbed until the end.  Last year there was an announcement that a fourth book in the King Rolen's Kin was being published by Solaris (!), it's out now called: King Breaker. Author bio: Rowena Cory Daniells is the bestselling fantasy author of  King Rolen’s Kin, T...

The Air War by Adrian Tchaikovksy, Shadows of the Apt #8 All is in turmoil as the world moves towards war. In Solarno, the spies watch each other and ready their knives, while Myna sees the troops muster at its border and emotions run high as it vows never to be enslaved again. In Collegium, the students argue politics, too late to turn the tide. In the heart of the Empire, new pilots have completed their secretive training, generals are being recalled to service and armies are ready to march. Their Empress, the heir to two worlds, intends to claim her birthright. And nothing – either within the Empire or beyond it – will stand in her way. A conflict is coming, the like of which the insect-kinden have never seen. Having finally been able to catch up with this series with Heirs of the Blade last month I was thrilled to continue the story once again in The Air War . So far the Shadows of the Apt series hasn’t let me down once and Adrian Tchaikovsky just keeps on amazing me ...

She Who Waits by Daniel Polansky, Low Town #3 Low Town: the worst ghetto in the worst city in the Thirteen Lands. Good only for depravity and death. And Warden, long ago a respected agent in the formidable Black House, is now the most depraved Low Town denizen of them all. As a younger man, Warden carried out more than his fair share of terrible deeds, and never as many as when he worked for the Black House. But Warden’s growing older, and the vultures are circling. Low Town is changing, faster than even he can control, and Warden knows that if he doesn’t get out soon, he may never get out at all. But Warden must finally reckon with his terrible past if he can ever hope to escape it. A hospital full of lunatics, a conspiracy against the corrupt new king and a ghetto full of thieves and murderers stand between him and his slim hope for the future. And behind them all waits the one person whose betrayal Warden never expected. The one person who left him, broken and bitter, to ...