Maria Savva's Blog - Posts Tagged "execution"
New releases by talented independent authors
You probably hear about the new releases from the big publishing houses, but you may miss announcements from independent authors about their new books. I've heard about a few new releases from some of my favourite indie authors in the past few months, so I thought it would be nice to promote them here.
I haven't read any of them yet, but I know that these authors usually write stuff that I enjoy. I hope you'll find something in the list to add to your to-read lists.
Maisie - by Julie Elizabeth Powell
About the book:
Maisie is special. Yes, she is blind, yes she’s an orphan and yes, few know her roots. But inside, she sparkles, more than an angel, more than those majestic stars that layer the universe in glory. Some see this sparkle while others deny its existence and insist she is nothing more than a brat, one that even her own parents didn’t want.
Maisie also has a secret. One she’d never share because if she did, she knew they’d lock her away in one of those places the others talked about - where all the weird people go.
Even Maisie doesn’t understand it all, but knows that one day she’ll meet the woman and the boy...those that she believes are part of her dreams, in a land where she can see, where colours are vibrant and the moon shines as bright as the sun.
What is the truth, and will Maisie ever find it?
Buy the book:
Amazon US: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07...
Amazon UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B...
Amazon CA: https://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/B073...
*********************************
The Glass City, by Jen Knox
About the book:
WINNER of Prize Americana for Prose, Jen Knox’s The Glass City is a shrewd yet playful collection that explores the dangers of extremes with a subtle, skillful elegance. In these sixteen stories, weather becomes a mirror for the internal struggles of Knox’s indelible cast of characters. An aging acrobat looks for connectivity online as her city floods, two sisters are tasked to spread their mother's ashes on flowers that no longer exist, a man's scars become tattoos as he attempts to outrun truth, a reluctant host shares an island's secrets, and families survive natural disasters that shake out lies and bury inhibitions.
Buy the book:
Amazon US https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/099...
Amazon UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/0...
Amazon CA: https://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/0996...
******************************
Tipping Point, by Terry Tyler
About the book:
'I didn't know danger was floating behind us on the breeze as we walked along the beach, seeping in through the windows of our picture postcard life.'
The year is 2024. A new social networking site bursts onto the scene. Private Life promises total privacy, with freebies and financial incentives for all. Across the world, a record number of users sign up.
A deadly virus is discovered in a little known African province, and it's spreading—fast. The UK announces a countrywide vaccination programme. Members of underground group Unicorn believe the disease to be man-made, and that the people are being fed lies driven by a vast conspiracy.
Vicky Keating's boyfriend, Dex, is working for Unicorn over two hundred miles away when the first UK outbreak is detected in her home town of Shipden, on the Norfolk coast. The town is placed under military controlled quarantine and, despite official assurances that there is no need for panic, within days the virus is unstoppable.
In London, Travis begins to question the nature of the top secret data analysis project he is working on, while in Newcastle there are scores to be settled...
This is the first book in the Project Renova series; the second, Lindisfarne, is due to be published in September 2017, with the final instalment in the middle of 2018. A collection of outtake short stories, Patient Zero, is in progress, and should be available around December 2017.
Buy the book:
Amazon US: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07...
Amazon UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B...
Amazon CA: https://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/B074...
**********************************
CONDEMNED: An Overview of Execution Methods Throughout History, by Darcia Helle
About the book:
Non-fiction: From hangings to beheading to lethal injections, Condemned brilliantly outlines the shocking, often-cruel conduits connecting early execution methods with modern-day executioners.
Buy the book:
Amazon US: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07562J92P
Amazon UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B07562J92P
Amazon CA: https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B07562J92P
*********************************
The Book of a Thousand and One Destinies, by Gareth Lewis
About the book:
A paranoid Sultan, an Assassin found only in stories, and a Storyteller caught up in their battle.
Once upon a time, a great Sultan was plagued by an Assassin who struck at him with stories and lies. A young Storyteller is gathered with her colleagues, and forced to share her stories with the Sultan before their voices are stilled forever.
In a war of destinies, enslaved jinn, and comparative truths, the Storyteller must tread dangerous ground in what may be her final recital.
A fantasy novella.
Buy the book:
Amazon US: https://www.amazon.com/Book-Thousand-...
Amazon UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Book-Thousan...
Amazon CA: https://www.amazon.ca/Book-Thousand-O...
******************************
Incognito, by Khaled Talib
About the book:
Specialist Ayden Tanner is dispatched by a covert division of the global hacker group, Anonymous, to find the pope who is missing.
A frantic search begins in Italy and beyond its borders amid speculation that the Holy See may know more than they are telling.
Buy the book:
Amazon US: https://www.amazon.com/Incognito-Khal...
Amazon UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Incognito-Kh...
Amazon CA: https://www.amazon.ca/Incognito-Khale...
*************************************
Femme Fatale, by Dominic Piper
About the book:
When private investigator Daniel Beckett foils an assault on a young girl in London’s West End, it leads to an offer of work from a sinister and unlikely source in Soho’s Chinatown.
But what starts out as a straightforward missing persons’ case soon takes on a more ominous aspect as he discovers a trail of blackmail, sadistic violence, conspiracy and murder, plus an influential, privileged and poisonous presence that seems to permeate all spheres of society.
The perpetrators, however, are not expecting to encounter an individual like Beckett; an intelligent, amoral and fearless individual with a skill-set that points to a covert and violent past.
Acquiring an entrancing and mysterious female associate, his investigation leads him into London’s electrifying burlesque scene where it seems some of the answers may lie.
But no one is as they seem, and the truth is unexpected and disturbing.
Femme Fatale is the third novel by Dominic Piper featuring private investigator Daniel Beckett.
Buy the book:
Amazon US: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07...
Amazon UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B...
Amazon CA: https://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/B073...
******************************
I haven't read any of them yet, but I know that these authors usually write stuff that I enjoy. I hope you'll find something in the list to add to your to-read lists.
Maisie - by Julie Elizabeth Powell
About the book:
Maisie is special. Yes, she is blind, yes she’s an orphan and yes, few know her roots. But inside, she sparkles, more than an angel, more than those majestic stars that layer the universe in glory. Some see this sparkle while others deny its existence and insist she is nothing more than a brat, one that even her own parents didn’t want.
Maisie also has a secret. One she’d never share because if she did, she knew they’d lock her away in one of those places the others talked about - where all the weird people go.
Even Maisie doesn’t understand it all, but knows that one day she’ll meet the woman and the boy...those that she believes are part of her dreams, in a land where she can see, where colours are vibrant and the moon shines as bright as the sun.
What is the truth, and will Maisie ever find it?
Buy the book:
Amazon US: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07...
Amazon UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B...
Amazon CA: https://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/B073...
*********************************
The Glass City, by Jen Knox
About the book:
WINNER of Prize Americana for Prose, Jen Knox’s The Glass City is a shrewd yet playful collection that explores the dangers of extremes with a subtle, skillful elegance. In these sixteen stories, weather becomes a mirror for the internal struggles of Knox’s indelible cast of characters. An aging acrobat looks for connectivity online as her city floods, two sisters are tasked to spread their mother's ashes on flowers that no longer exist, a man's scars become tattoos as he attempts to outrun truth, a reluctant host shares an island's secrets, and families survive natural disasters that shake out lies and bury inhibitions.
Buy the book:
Amazon US https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/099...
Amazon UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/0...
Amazon CA: https://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/0996...
******************************
Tipping Point, by Terry Tyler
About the book:
'I didn't know danger was floating behind us on the breeze as we walked along the beach, seeping in through the windows of our picture postcard life.'
The year is 2024. A new social networking site bursts onto the scene. Private Life promises total privacy, with freebies and financial incentives for all. Across the world, a record number of users sign up.
A deadly virus is discovered in a little known African province, and it's spreading—fast. The UK announces a countrywide vaccination programme. Members of underground group Unicorn believe the disease to be man-made, and that the people are being fed lies driven by a vast conspiracy.
Vicky Keating's boyfriend, Dex, is working for Unicorn over two hundred miles away when the first UK outbreak is detected in her home town of Shipden, on the Norfolk coast. The town is placed under military controlled quarantine and, despite official assurances that there is no need for panic, within days the virus is unstoppable.
In London, Travis begins to question the nature of the top secret data analysis project he is working on, while in Newcastle there are scores to be settled...
This is the first book in the Project Renova series; the second, Lindisfarne, is due to be published in September 2017, with the final instalment in the middle of 2018. A collection of outtake short stories, Patient Zero, is in progress, and should be available around December 2017.
Buy the book:
Amazon US: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07...
Amazon UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B...
Amazon CA: https://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/B074...
**********************************
CONDEMNED: An Overview of Execution Methods Throughout History, by Darcia Helle
About the book:
Non-fiction: From hangings to beheading to lethal injections, Condemned brilliantly outlines the shocking, often-cruel conduits connecting early execution methods with modern-day executioners.
Buy the book:
Amazon US: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07562J92P
Amazon UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B07562J92P
Amazon CA: https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B07562J92P
*********************************
The Book of a Thousand and One Destinies, by Gareth Lewis
About the book:
A paranoid Sultan, an Assassin found only in stories, and a Storyteller caught up in their battle.
Once upon a time, a great Sultan was plagued by an Assassin who struck at him with stories and lies. A young Storyteller is gathered with her colleagues, and forced to share her stories with the Sultan before their voices are stilled forever.
In a war of destinies, enslaved jinn, and comparative truths, the Storyteller must tread dangerous ground in what may be her final recital.
A fantasy novella.
Buy the book:
Amazon US: https://www.amazon.com/Book-Thousand-...
Amazon UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Book-Thousan...
Amazon CA: https://www.amazon.ca/Book-Thousand-O...
******************************
Incognito, by Khaled Talib
About the book:
Specialist Ayden Tanner is dispatched by a covert division of the global hacker group, Anonymous, to find the pope who is missing.
A frantic search begins in Italy and beyond its borders amid speculation that the Holy See may know more than they are telling.
Buy the book:
Amazon US: https://www.amazon.com/Incognito-Khal...
Amazon UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Incognito-Kh...
Amazon CA: https://www.amazon.ca/Incognito-Khale...
*************************************
Femme Fatale, by Dominic Piper
About the book:
When private investigator Daniel Beckett foils an assault on a young girl in London’s West End, it leads to an offer of work from a sinister and unlikely source in Soho’s Chinatown.
But what starts out as a straightforward missing persons’ case soon takes on a more ominous aspect as he discovers a trail of blackmail, sadistic violence, conspiracy and murder, plus an influential, privileged and poisonous presence that seems to permeate all spheres of society.
The perpetrators, however, are not expecting to encounter an individual like Beckett; an intelligent, amoral and fearless individual with a skill-set that points to a covert and violent past.
Acquiring an entrancing and mysterious female associate, his investigation leads him into London’s electrifying burlesque scene where it seems some of the answers may lie.
But no one is as they seem, and the truth is unexpected and disturbing.
Femme Fatale is the third novel by Dominic Piper featuring private investigator Daniel Beckett.
Buy the book:
Amazon US: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07...
Amazon UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B...
Amazon CA: https://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/B073...
******************************
Book Review: "Condemned: An Overview of Execution Methods Throughout History" - by Darcia Helle
Condemned: An Overview of Execution Methods Throughout History by Darcia HelleMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
I wasn't going to read this book because the idea of reading about execution methods seemed just a bit too dark (even for me... a dark fiction writer!). I did download a copy onto my Kindle, however, to support the writer as she's a brilliant fiction writer and I always enjoy her books. "Condemned" is her first non-fiction book. One day, I started reading it out of curiosity. I know from reading Helle's fiction that she is not someone who includes unnecessary gore in her books, even though she writes quite dark crime fiction. I was hoping that "Condemned" would not be too gruesome. Helle's writing style is engaging and the approach she's taken with this book is a kind of conversational study, looking at the history of execution. Because of the subject matter, there are some upsetting and hard-hitting parts, but I think that the writer has got the balance right so that it's not a painful read but is instead a fascinating one.
It's an eye-opener, both revealing and educational. I learned a lot about how the approach to execution has changed over the centuries, and the different methods that were/are used and why they were developed, etc.
It was interesting to read about how public executions were once a common thing. It really does make you think about human nature. The real life cases that are discussed in the book also make you wonder about the systems that are currently in place. Helle makes it clear in the book that she is against the death penalty but it's not a book about why capital punishment should be scrapped. It's, as the title states, an overview of the past and current systems. Helle has highlighted, using real case studies, many flaws with the lethal injection and electric chair methods that are still in use today in the USA.
This is a well-researched and an informative book. I would recommend it to anyone who would like to find out more about what types of methods of execution exist. It's probably not an exhaustive list but it covers many and varied methods and gives a succinct history. It also includes quotes from many people involved in the whole process, from those who invented the devices/methods to those who carry out, or have carried out, the executions.
"Condemned" is narrated in a clear and concise way. I was hooked from the start.
An insightful and thought-provoking read.
View all my reviews
