Hell Divers VII: Warriors by Nicholas Sansbury Smith

Format: Kindle
Rating:  5 Stars
Reviewer: Laurel

Wow.

I settled down to read this next instalment in the saga of the Hell Divers, and once again was blown away into the electrical storms with their mutant creatures, human-hating machines and some seriously twisted humans. Into the world, too, of X, Roger, Mags, Michael, Les… all our old friends, along with some new ones. Dark, gritty and violent, the world of the Hell Divers isn’t one for someone with a delicate stomach – but thank goodness it’s fiction! Right?

I loved how Smith expanded the story in this book, taking his Hell Divers farther across the world than they’d been before, and facing even more dangerous threats. After all, what do you expect when you decide to take on the machines? But once again, Smith reminds us that, all too often, the true monsters hide behind human faces.

An excellent story so well told, and I look forward to reading the next one very much.

Extinction Darkness (Extinction Cycle: Dark Age 4) by Nicholas Sansbury Smith and Anthony J Melchiorri

Format: Kindle
Rating:  5 Stars
Reviewer: Laurel

What an explosive, fantastic conclusion to one of the best series I’ve read in a long time. The Extinction world has been around for a good few years now, and it was wonderful to see Melchiorri and Smith team up to write this sequel series to the original. And what a ride it has been.

Thank you SO much for taking the time to give us more of Fitz, Reed, Horn and all the other characters in this series, and for introducing us to some fabulous new ones. Cornelius, Corrin, Timothy and Azrael, to name a few. If you ever want to write more, I’ll be ready to read more any day.

Extinction Ashes by Nicholas Sansbury Smith and Anthony J Melchiorri

Format: Kindle
Rating:  5 Stars
Reviewer: Laurel

Following the attack on Manchester, we rejoin the story with Beckham and his family and friends in the air, hoping for a safe landing somewhere. That turns out to be the beleaguered New York outpost and the brave men and women fighting to protect their own.

I found this book the darkest of the series this far, and as a consequence it was a difficult read. But this is all good, as I’m heavily invested in the characters, so it makes for challenging reading when they’re going through tough times. At one point I almost gave up hope, but then I learned that there’s another book to come, so that perked me up a bit.

It was really good to spend more time with Team Ghost and the rest of the characters between the pages of this book. The ending was satisfactory in terms of some issues being resolved, and I look forward to the next book very much.

Hell Divers V: Captives by Nicholas Sansbury Smith

Format: Kindle
Rating:  5 Stars
Reviewer: Laurel

I’ll be honest: I was nervous to pick up this book. Given how HD4 ended, followed up by the title and cover of this book, I was hesitant to learn what happens next. This made it difficult to get into the book to start off with. Don’t get me wrong. My issues had nothing to do with either the quality of the writing or… or perhaps they had everything to do with it. In the Hell Divers series, Nick has created a cast of characters who have become dear friends. I feel I’ve been with them through their ups and downs, thick and thin, disappointments, losses, wins. And because of this and the direction of the story – for me, at least – it became increasingly difficult to contemplate more bad stuff happening to any of them. About the only thing that gave me the courage to plough on was reports I was hearing from others who had read it.

And was that faith well rewarded! I should perhaps have trusted Smith more… Don’t be silly. I do trust him. I’m just not so sure I trust some of those monsters he invents quite as much, though! And as is to be expected, this book is packed full of all types of monsters. But it’s also chock full of good people.

Given the self-induced rocky start, once I really got into the story, it settled right down into being a classic addition to the Hell Divers’ story – aforementioned monsters and all. I’m not sure if this is one of the shorter stories in the series, but it certainly went down a treat in the end. I’m glad to have read it, and I look forward to reading more about the further adventures of the Hell Divers.

PS: The dog’s fine!

The Day of the Triffids by John Wyndham

Format: Paperback
Rating:  4 Stars
Reviewer: Laurel

I’ve known of this book for many years, and though people have recommended me, I just never got around to reading it – until now.

Bill Masen, a biologist who works with triffids, is in hospital, recovering from an accident with a triffid. On the day he is due to have bandages removed from his eyes and find out if his sight has survived the attack, he awakens to silence. Certainly, the whole world is different to how it was when he went to sleep the night before. Discovering that he is one of the fortunate ones to have not been blinded when green lights appeared in the night sky, he soon ventures out into the new world.

This story is of how Bill acclimatises to the new world, the people he meets and how he survives. It is also a story of the menace of the triffids.

I really enjoyed this tale. Although it may appear gentle and somewhat primitive relative to more contemporary post-apocalyptic tales, the menace of the triffids is especially chilling, and Masen’s assessment of life is, I felt, quite spot on. I really appreciated how Wyndham really got into Masen’s head and asked (and perhaps answered) genuine questions about how life would be following an apocalypse.

A very good read. Why did it take me so long to pick it up?