Sea Sick by Iain Rob Wright

Description from Goodreads:

"IT WAS SUPPOSED TO BE RELAXING…

Police Officer Jack Wardsley’s life ended the moment his partner died, stabbed to death by a deranged druggie. Now, years later, Jack is a changed man, with a head full of secrets driving him insane. His recent record of police brutality and a reputation for not following the rules has prompted his seniors to give him an ultimatum: take a few weeks off, relax, and find some way to let go of all the anger – or else find another job.

That’s why Jack is about to board The Spirit of Kirkpatrick, a cruise liner built for relaxation and fun. Pretty soon, however, Jack realises that a little R&R is the last thing he’s ever going to get aboard the cursed ship. There’s a virus onboard, making people insane and bleeding from the eyes. The whole ship is overrun with blood and death, and there is nowhere to escape. 

Just when Jack thinks his number is up and his life is over, he wakes up. The day is exactly the same. In fact, everything is the same. Jack is forced to witness the viral outbreak again and again as it ravages the ship and its passengers over and over, day after day. Jack finds himself trapped in a repeating hell. 

It won’t be long before Jack realises there are others onboard just like him – and that some of them know more than they’re letting on."

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To be totally honest, I was expecting a cheesy zombie novel especially as it was a free download from Amazon but I was pleasantly surprised; it kept me entertained from start to finish.

I don't need to go into detail about the story itself as it's clearly described in the blurb above but what I will say is that I found it different to the usual zombie books that are around in that it's not just about blood, guts and gore which, I'm not going to lie, there is some graphic scenes of death but this is not the main focus of the book.

The main character, Jack, is an interesting one.  He did take time to grow on me because I felt like he was wasting time rather than trying to figure out what the heck was going on but once he did, his police instinct kicked in and that determination to get to the bottom of the dire situation in which he finds himself in came to the fore.

Written at great pace, this is an easy book to read.  There are a few grammatical errors but it didn't distract me from enjoying it and I will certainly be reading more by this author.

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Author website:  Iain Rob Wright

Author twitter:  @IanRobWright

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Other books I've read and reviewed by this author:

Click here for my review

Natural Selection by Stephen Leather: A Spider Shepherd Short Story

"A good introduction to a great character"

Blurb from Goodreads:

"An action-packed short story featuring Dan “Spider” Shepherd during his days on the SAS selection course. Shepherd is tested to his limits - and is given his nickname.

Natural Selection is about 14,000 words, about thirty pages, perfect if you have half an hour to spare."

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I am a huge Stephen Leather fan and particularly love his character Dan “Spider” Shepherd. This short story introduces “Spider” and, for those of us who are already familiar with him, provides a little insight into his early years during selection for the SAS and the origins of his nickname. For those who aren’t, this short read provides an introduction to a great character and series of books that you will quickly become addicted to.

Even though this is a short story, it provides a good indication of the excellent writing style and skills of Stephen as an author and I would definitely recommend it to anyone who enjoys a good action story with great characters.

I downloaded this story from Amazon for free and as of today, 31st January 2016, it remains free so give it a go, you have nothing to lose.

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Stephen Leather is one of the UK's most successful thriller writers. He was a journalist for more than ten years on newspapers such as The Times, the Daily Mail and the South China Morning Post in Hong Kong. Before that, he was employed as a biochemist for ICI, shovelled limestone in a quarry, worked as a baker, a petrol pump attendant, a barman, and worked for the Inland Revenue. He began writing full time in 1992. His bestsellers have been translated into more than ten languages. He has also written for television shows such as London's Burning, The Knock and the BBC's Murder in Mind series. Two of his books, The Stretch and The Bombmaker, were made into movies. You can find out more from his website - http://www.stephenleather.com/

Twitter - stephenleather

The Line Unseen by Joe Hart - Free download

"A good quick read"

Description:

“From the author of LINEAGE, SINGULARITY, and EVERFALL comes this short story of supernatural horror.

A man, walked on his entire life by others, discovers his wife's infidelity, and decides to do something about it. After a deadly encounter in an alleyway he must look into the depths of himself to find the line unseen, and face the horror beyond.”

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This is a short story I picked up for free from Amazon and, to be honest, because it’s free I didn’t expect too much but was actually pleasantly surprised. Although it’s short - about 28 pages on my Kindle and around 9,000 words - it packs a lot into a short space of time.

The book is well written, the characters believable and well developed and the story is interesting with just the right amount of gore. There is tension and atmosphere with a twist at the end which leaves you wondering where your line is and where it will take you.

Overall, a good quick read and a good introduction to the works of this author which I would highly recommend especially as I have read one of his full length novels - The River is Dark - which I thoroughly enjoyed.

I would also like to mention how great I think the cover is - it’s really eye-catching and ominous - well done to the person who came up with that.

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Author website: http://www.joehartbooks.com/

Author twitter:  @AuthorJoeHart

You can still download a free copy of this short story from Amazon UK and US, Barnes & Noble, WHSmith and others … go get it and enjoy!