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Laline Paull – The Ice | Review

Title: The Ice

Author: Laline Paull

Type: Fiction

Page Count/Review Word Count: 374

Rating: 4*/5

Laline Paull – The Ice

Disclaimer: While I aim to be unbiased, I received a copy of this for free to review.

This book was interesting because it took a different approach to structure and storytelling. Most of the plot follows the aftermath of the tragic death of a young environmentalist, and the ensuing enquiry in which they try to establish the truth. That means that the critical incident happened before the story even starts, which means that all of the action is effectively set in the denouement.

To counter this, the author uses flashbacks and jumps backwards and forwards in time, which can be disconcerting from time to time but which works quite well. True, it’s sometimes difficult to tell exactly what’s going on, but it’s still enjoyable and it actually encourages your mind to put the pieces together and to slowly discover the truth for yourself.

A good chunk of the story takes place against the backdrop of Svalbard, where a wealthy businessman has teamed up with his friend, an environmentalist, to purchase some land. Only all sorts of political interests start to get involved, and many of the characters are forced to do things that they otherwise might not have done. It’s a novel of intrigue, then, and it raises some important questions about the future of our world if we continue to abuse the planet in the way that we do.

Laline Paull

The writing was pretty good, although it felt too flowery for me from time to time, and I liked the illustrations and the quotes at the starts of each of the sections. I’d say that it’s probably not suited to everyone, but if you like to read political thrillers and stuff that will engage your brain and push you to guess what the truth is, it’s worth a go. There’s a twist at the end, of course, but I didn’t guess what it was – in fact, I suspected something else entirely.

The only other thing to mention is the cover, which is gorgeous. Of course, I’ve got an advance copy and so the cover might change before you get your hands on it. But still!

Laline Paull

Click here to buy The Ice.

Peter James – Looking Good Dead | Review

Title: Looking Good Dead

Author: Peter James

Type: Fiction

Page Count/Review Word Count: 532

Rating: 4*/5

Peter James – Looking Good Dead

It’s Roy Grace time again, and there’s no need to point out that I’ve been reading these out of order because I’m already aware of that. Luckily, they still work as standalones, and so it depends what kind of reader you are. Some people will want to read this in order; others, like myself, will prefer to read it by picking up a book at a time whenever you happen to see them in a charity shop. But either way, you should read them.

Peter James’ books intrigue me, and after reading just a couple of them, I realised I’d have to slowly work my way through his back catalogue. As an author myself, I think part of this is because he’s very good but he’s also relatable. Unlike George R. R. Martin, for example, I think I could write like Peter James, if I put in the time and effort. I mean, I’d rather develop my own style, but the fact that I can almost see his thought process actually helps me to enjoy the book more.

In this story, we follow what happens after a guy picks up a CD that somebody left behind on a train. He puts the CD into his computer, watches the footage that the CD contains, and finds himself witnessing a murder. But the murderer knows that the footage is being watched by someone who doesn’t have authorisation, and so they threaten retribution if it’s reported to the police.

Peter James

Meanwhile, Roy Grace is investigating a mutilated corpse that was discovered without its head, while simultaneously building a team around himself and routinely ruining their social lives by calling them in the middle of the night with new ideas about the case. Of course, that’s got nothing on what happens to Tom Bryce, the struggling businessman who discovers the CD in the first place.

It’s a quirky little story line, and while James’s depiction of technology gets better and more astute throughout the series, he still does a good enough job here to draw the reader in and to start asking questions. And you get to see the darker side of humanity, the side that visits questionable websites and commits crimes to stop themselves from being bored.

Overall, then, it’s an interesting little read, and a pretty good book to start with if you’re new to James’ work. In part, that’s because it’s near to the start of the series, and so you’ll be coming in at the beginning and you’ll get to see Grace’s team evolve over time. In fact, despite the fact that each of James’ books can work as a standalone, some of the later ones do contain spoilers that could hamper your enjoyment if you read them out of order.

This isn’t my favourite Roy Grace novel, but it’s definitely up there. Even though it’s a little old now, it doesn’t feel dated, and if anything you can sense the freshness with which Peter James went about creating his characters even in the early days. It’s loads of fun to read.