Books – The Vorrh
Brian Catling’s The Vorrh is a very beautifully written book, with the […]
I look up
All my life, on a clear night, I look up. The vast, […]
Books – Against The Day
Where do I begin? While this is not my favourite book, it […]
Books – Jonathan Strange & Mr.Norrell
If the awards and critical acclaim have not steered you towards the […]
Billie and Amy
Amy Winehouse had voice to burn, a sound burnished by a drunk […]
Frank Sobotka
David Simon’s The Wire is high on all lists of unmissable television. […]
Books – The Violent Century
This is a story about superheroes in the second world war and […]
Hiding the ventriloquist*
“My name’s Gant and I’m sorry for my poor writing.” So begins […]
It’s Snakewood launch day :) Listen to Chapter 1 here:
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I used to stand in bookshops pt 2
I was gearing up for March 17th, when I’d finally see my […]
They followed their mercenary calling…*
The poem ‘Epitaph On An Army Of Mercenaries’ by AE Housman** is […]
Books – The Bone Clocks
The title of David Mitchell’s marvellous book almost fully encapsulates it, as […]
How Sláine and a handful of mushrooms defined the magic of Snakewood*
My debut fantasy novel Snakewood, due out in March, is the realization […]
I used to stand in bookshops…
…as a teenager, then a man in my twenties and thirties and […]
Books – The Children Act
I’ve written here about my miserable realisation I wouldn’t read more than […]
Books – H is for Hawk
Helen Macdonald has opened her soul, and unlike most of us, is […]
Books – The Goldfinch, The Liars’ Gospel
“if our secrets define us, as opposed to the face we show […]
Books – The Girl With All The Gifts
Minor spoilers regarding early part of novel ahead… I’ve not personally overdosed […]
Books – The Deluge
I’d been putting off trying to articulate my thoughts on Adam Tooze’s […]
Stannis Baratheon is not the Mayor of Casterbridge
This post contains Game of Thrones spoilers, for, well, almost all of […]
The Banner Saga
I was captivated by the gorgeous artwork when it first popped up […]
Books – The Quantum Thief
This book has no right to be a debut. It’s exhilarating, a […]
Books – Rivers of London, The Blade Itself
I recently read, back to back, Ben Aaranovitch’s Rivers of London and […]
Burning a million pounds
It had been a long time since I listened to The KLF’s […]
Peter Jackson’s ‘Ring Cycle’ – a love letter
I’ve read a lot of complaints over Peter Jackson taking a short […]
Books – Here
Here, by Richard McGuire, is no less than the zenith of the […]
Proximity and the manipulation of moral feeling
News coverage of Isis and Gaza recently has reminded me of Henry […]
Books – The City & The City
Hopefully all China Miéville’s novels are as original and engaging as this […]
Knowledge – a few helpful questions for the internet age
How do you know what to believe? The internet has fragmented the […]
Books – House of Leaves
If the horror genre is a journey, then House* of Leaves, by […]