Continuing to showcase new and interesting talent we are very pleased to welcome Victoria Taylor Roberts to the Byte the Book family with her short story 'Hotel Room'. This piece of flash fiction was first published as part of Victoria's first short story collection, Hidden & Other Stories
Victoria has been living in London for the past two decades during which time she has worked as a writer, musician, actor and university lecturer (among other things). Although she has been writing for television in recent years, Victoria is a huge fan of the short story genre.
If you are interested in reading more of Victoria’s work or if you are a writer and have a short story that you think we might like then please do get in touch at info@bytethebook.com.
Click here to buy this book
This is Chris Chalmers debut novel and it's a cracking read. With the central location of Clapham Common, Five to One has four stories framed by a fifth: a helicopter crash that introduces the book and brings the different strands together at the end. The four main stories focus on the lives and loves of: Ian, an ex-city worker turned gardener; Glory, a care assistant in an old age home; Tony, a fantastically bitchy and slightly gullible Kiwi ad exec; and Mari, a local estate agent.
Initially I found it difficult to get to grips with all the characters, but as the book progressed it became easier and easier to follow, until I was eventually racing through, eager to find out how the stories would end. There is also quite a bit of cynicism towards relationships which I guess is at odds with my romantic view of the world, but as we got towards the end it did become a poignant study of genuine love in our big and fantastically diverse city.
I'm a complete Londonophile, though admittedly a North-London-centric-Londonophile, even so I enjoyed getting to know another bit of our city. Chalmers is a real master at creating different voices, and there is genuine skill here both in the way that he has structured the book and also the individuality of the characters. The subject matter and shape of the book reminded me of John Lanchaster's 'Capital', and David Mitchell's 'Cloud Atlas'. I hope 'Five to One' proves to be popular, and we get to read lots more from Chalmers in the future.
Continuing in our commitment to help writers at all stages in their career, we're very excited to be showcasing Aidan Thomas' short story, 'My Fear and I'. This piece of flash fiction was first published in Issue 5 of British literary magazine Structo.
Aidan is a graduate of Durham University and is working at a media think tank in London. He is currently writing his first novel, 'Facing the Music', a story about fear set in the music industry.
If you are interested in reading more of Aidan's work or if you are a writer and have a short story that you think we might like then please do get in touch at info@bytethebook.com.
Our book club met for the first time this Monday. There were seven of us, seven people that hadn't met before but all liked books. I'd put up ads along the high street, including a poster at Bluston's (my proudest achievement) plus Map Cafe and we at Byte the Book had blogged, Facebooked, LinkedIn and Tweeted about the event. We're hoping the numbers will grow over time.
The aim of the book clubs is to have a network of book clubs reading a book (or perhaps a few books) at the same time each month. People can discuss them locally in their own book club but also it would be good if they could do so across the web.
I also wanted people to read as readers, because I think reading is the beginning of a slippery slope into writing and if that can be encouraged, well happy days. I've actually never been to a book club before, but the first term on my novel writing course at City University was a bit like a book club. In the very first session we were all asked to speak about the kind of books we liked, which I asked everyone to do on Monday, and it was a good way to get to know each other. Then in my college class we were given a genre a week and we're each asked to pick a book from that genre and review it for the group, that's a bit more intense so we've simplified it here, but I still intend to get us to read broadly. I absolutely loved the book club part of my course, for I really believe that all good writing comes from good reading and I wanted to bring that aspect of reading to Byte the Book’s book clubs.
I picked quite a light book for this month's session, '50 Shades of Grey' in a genre now described by the industry as, 'Mummy Porn'. I then spent last weekend re-reading it and making notes, below are some of the questions I came up with for the group:
Does Ana have all the power?
It's quite clear what Christian looks like, but what does Ana look like?
What effect does first person present have on the narration?
What do we think about her subconscious and inner goddess?
What did you think about the emails, do they add to urgency of the book?
Can she really LOVE someone after one month?
What do we think about the names, Grey, Steele etc?
No one has even held her hand before, is that really believable?
Someone once said every book is a thriller, what's the thriller element in this book?
Why is this book so popular?
Did you enjoy this book and would you recommend it to other people?
Please feel free to comment on any of these questions above, or if you have a book club reading these books try asking these questions in your group.
I'll focus here on our answers to the last three questions:
Someone once said every book is a thriller, what's the thriller element in this book?
It's both will she/won't she be able to tame him and also the fear and excitement that goes with all the sadomasochism.
Why is this book so popular?
Although this book is described as Mummy Porn and a completely new genre, we thought that it was quite strongly reminiscent of Mills and Boon or even Jackie Collins, the kind of book that some people in our group read a lot of their teens. We also agreed that it was very easy reading, and like Harry Potter tapped into the YA (young adult) market, the kind of book everyone is reading these days, as these books tend not to be too challenging and so can fit into our busy and demanding lives.
Did you enjoy this book and would you recommend it to other people?
Most said they did enjoy it, although with some reservations, but they said they would recommend it, which goes towards explaining why this book is so popular.
Our next session is on 28th May at Map Cafe at 46 Grafton Road, Kentish Town from 7pm. We'll be reading Kurt Vonnegut's 'Slaughterhouse 5'. It took Vonnegut 20 years to write it, and is his response to being part of the bombing of Dresden and has the absurdity of war as it's main theme. It's absolutely brilliant and kind of fits into the sci-fi genre but like all good books transcends it's genre. It’s also nice and short (only 192 pages). You can buy it online here: Slaughterhouse-Five (Kurt Vonnegut Series), or if you live locally pop into Owl Bookshop on Kentish Town Road who are offering 15% off to Book Club members.
If you are interested in coming along on 28th May please register on our events page or drop us an e-mail at: info@bytethebook.com
Finally if you are interested in setting up your own, Byte the Book, book group to read alongside ours please get in touch at: info@bytethebook.com
Review written by Caroline Goldmsith
You can buy this in Kindle format here now: Seed
Note it won't be published in paperback until July 201Seed by Ania Ahlborn
One of the fresh faces from Amazon’s new 47North imprint for sci-fi, horror and fantasy titles is Polish born Ania Ahlborn. Now resident in the USA, Ahlborn’s writing has been compared to early Stephen King. Her first novel “Seed” introduces us to Jack Winter, husband and father of two girls. After a terrifying car accident, Jack’s six year old daughter Charlie begins to change, seemingly possessed by a dark force that Jack tried to outrun as a child so many years ago.
Set in the deep South of the States there are some standout scenes of domestic horror here, in the vein of Peter Blatty’s “The Exorcist” and, of course, the ultimate creepy kid, Damien Thorne. But although it is well-written the horror is nothing new and I even found myself questioning, towards the slower middle of the book, whether Charlie’s behaviour was just a standard temper tantrum rather than the result of some supernatural force.
Comparisons with early King are a little rash to my mind. Ahlborn is a competent, if unpracticed, writer but her storyline is flimsy, perhaps better suited to a short story or a novella rather than a novel. Her characters are never really explored and the richness and detail that King brings to his work just isn’t here. Even Ahlborn’s “evil demon” is never really developed to its potential and whilst I don’t mind the tease of unanswered questions, I found that, actually, here I didn’t care very much to know.
In its defence, the book is a quick and entertaining read with a good, albeit rushed, ending. Ahlborn can clearly write horror and I would read her again but for a first offering this was a little disappointing.
2
Review written by Caroline Goldsmith
Buy this book from Amazon here: Tiny Sunbirds Far Away
Twelve year old Blessing is torn from her air conditioned life in Lagos with her brother Ezekiel and her parents when her father is found “on top of another woman”. Flung from their lives of relative luxury to a rural existence of poverty in the searing Nigerian sun with her grandfather and grandmother, Blessing’s world is turned upside down. Set in the dramatic Nigerian delta, Watson’s book paints a bleak picture of a community torn apart by sectarian violence as their country is drained of the precious “black gold” by the foreign oil companies from the west.
There are some truly harrowing scenes when Watson handles the subjects of female circumcision and the all-pervading threat of violence, and sexual violation from the “area boys” and the local police. But this is far from a bleak book. Watson writes with a gentle humour and an real affection for her characters. This is, on the one side, a coming of age tale as Blessing is flung from childish innocence to a world of struggle and blood but it is also the story of a family and the place they call home. It is a story about morality, responsibility, survival and the love of a family. Many of the final scenes are written with such poignancy and beauty that I shed real tears and the voice of Blessing stayed with me long after I had closed the book.
Christie Watson’s writing is authentic and beautifully observed, blending the tragic with the comic. This is her debut novel, and winner of the Costa Award 2011. She is truly a writer to watch.
Tiny Sunbirds Far Away by Christie Watson is published by Quercus Books.
It is our intention that Byte the Book is a place where fiction is both explored and celebrated, and to help writers at all stages in their careers. So we are very excited this month to be showcasing Rachel Mann and her short story, 'Plaza de Armas', which was one of the shortlisted one-page short stories in the Fish Prize in 2009.
Rachel is a graduate of Columbia University and has worked for many years as an editor in educational children's books. Her first novel, 'On Blackberry Hill', is a coming-of-age story about love and Jewish mysticism at summer camp.
If you are interested in reading more of Rachel's work or if you are a writer and have a short story that you think we might like then please do get in touch at info@bytethebook.com.
Review written by Caroline Goldsmith
Welcome to London. A city where vampires and other creatures of the darkness roam amongst us, working, commuting, paying taxes and looking for someone to love... and feed from. Cassandra Bick is a Sensitive, a human being with the power to sense a supernatural creature and she uses her unique gift in a very unique business venture. Cassandra runs Dark Dates, an agency specialising in introducing vampires to their ideal and willing human partners. What Cassandra cannot foresee is that her business, her friends and she will be swept up in a supernatural war that threatens the very existence of the city she calls her home.
The book world has been inundated with a tidal wave of vampire novels in recent years but Tracey Sinclair offers us something a little different. Cassandra, as a character, is mature, self-aware with a wry sense of humour. She’s the sort of girl you can imagine sharing a bottle of wine with. In stark contrast to some of the passive heroines we have been presented in other paranormal fantasy books, Cassandra is a girl for grown-ups, in charge of her own destiny and distinctly likable.
Written with a clear love of London, the novel uses the familiar landmarks and backdrops of the city expertly for a story that brings to life another world of vampires, demons, witches and other creatures of the fantastic. Sinclair is also clearly a lover of the fantasy genre and fellow aficionados will delight in the references to other works both literary and other. Most of all Sinclair is not a writer that shies away from an action scene. These are well written, convincing and thrilling.
Fast paced, this is a novel that will keep you turning the pages until the inevitable disappointment of the last one. But fear not, part two is in the works now.
You can buy Dark Dates by clicking on the following link: Dark Dates (Cassandra Bick Chronicles)
We’re very pleased to welcome Caroline Goldsmith to Byte the Book and look forward to reading her reviews. Caroline has worked in publishing for 12 years in various roles including sales, marketing, publicity and rights. Having spent many years suffering from “digi-phobia” she has now embraced the digital publishing age with gusto (although her house is still groaning with paper books). She recently designed her first book cover for a friend and in the summer of 2012 co-founded Red Button Publishing. She reads as widely as she can but has a hankering for all things horror.
You can read her reviews by clicking on the links below:
Dark Dates (Cassandra Bick Chronicles) - Tracey Sinclair
Tiny Sunbirds Far Away - Christie Watson
Seed - Ania Aniborn
Anno Dracula - Kim Newman
Bring Up the Bodies - Hilary Mantel
The Psychopath Test - Jon Ronson
How I Became a Famous Novelist - Steve Hely
Beast in the Basement - Jason Arnopp
Wolf Night (Book Two in the Cassandra Bick Chronicles) - Tracey Sinclair
Capital tells the story of South London street, Pepys Road and it's affluent dwellers who, by virtue of increased property prices, are millionaires. That is almost all of them, not the shop owner, nor the traffic warden, or the nanny, or the builder all of whom come to spend time in the street and all happen to be immigrants. The central story of the book that runs through it, a bit like the river Thames flowing through London, is the tale of the mysterious postcards that get posted through letterboxes on the street with photos of their homes and the slogan 'We Want What You Have' and then the more threatening behaviour that ensues. Around this central plot an incredible range of stories are weaved, most notably the inevitable fall of banker, Roger Yount and his spoilt wife Arabella.
I had a real sense of the world in which this book is set, the street is a character straining under the expectation of wealth that property prices had put on mere bricks and mortar. The meditation on the divide between rich and poor is interesting and the writing is superb throughout. However it is a long book and at times it did feel like a collection of short stories, although they were all interlinked and did come together at the end. On reflection some of the more intense scenes are made less intense by the episodic nature of the form, that is because there are so many stories we don't dwell too long on any characters' happiness or misfortunes and it does perhaps suffer slightly for that. However all the scenes were interesting so I don't know which of them I would cut to increase the intensity.
I love London for its vibrancy and for the range of people that live here, and this book did reflect those qualities. One could draw comparisons with Dickens, although I have to admit I much prefer Lanchester as his characters didn't feel as much like caricatures as they often do in Dickens. For the time that I was reading Capital I felt as though I was living on Pepys Road and, as was no doubt Lanchester's intention, felt very grateful not 'To Have What any of them Had', because despite the value of their homes, they were still people having to cope with life. A life that any accumulated wealth couldn't completely protect them from: fatal illnesses strike, share values fall, people lose their jobs, property prices fluctuate, none of our material capital is as stable as our capital city's ancient stones and even then there will be a time when they disappear too. This is a really interesting book, written with a journalistic understanding of contemporary times and a novelist's humane sensibilities, Lanchester is a master of both.
If you're interested in buying this book click on this link: Capital
