Endurance

Endurance #1

by T.J. Blake

London is silent. Severed bodies lie amongst the rubble. What once was a lively city is a now a murderous grave, enclosed in smoke and ash. The cause of the destruction is unknown. Left haunted and terrified, survivor Tom Williams confronts the brutal, mutilated streets as he fights to uncover the truth. Could he be the last hope to restore normality?

174 pages, Kindle Edition

First published March 28, 2013

About the author

Most known for his psychological thriller, suspense and mystery novels.

By day Blake is a content specialist and business owner. By night, he could be any one of his mysterious characters. He's currently posing as psychic medium, Arabella, from Familiar - available now.

Blake's most successful novel to date, DECEPTION: A Love of Lies hasn't let readers look at passing dog walkers the same.

Connect with Blake:
T. J. Blake #Author blog
@TJBlake93
'Like' on Facebook

Becoming T. J. Blake
Being a child that needed speech therapy and extra support with writing and spelling, Blake was never considered to be a child who would enjoy the craft of writing.

His passion for writing lopsided slightly as school life took over. Once he completed his GCSE's though, Blake showcased his passion for writing in college. The A-Level subjects English Language and Film Studies encouraged him to write more and to continue a journey into further education; where he graduated Kingston University with a BAHons degree in Creative Writing with English Language & Communications in 2015.

The prospect of writing to entertain people across the world is something Blake thrives on. Since becoming a self-published author in 2013 with Amazon, Blake has written and published four novels, which are all available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Waterstones.

Blake on writing - "When I go over my plot, I critique as a harsh and predictive reader. I don't want a reader to guess what is going to happen before it happens that just ruins the fun, right?"

REVIEWS
'Clever writing. Genuinely smart. It tells me we're in the hands of an author who knows what he's doing'

'Blake has the unerring skill on how to tell a good story... This is an author to watch. His talent is remarkable'

'T. J. Blake does an amazing job depicting the full range of emotions that these characters feel, especially obsession, rage, passion, contempt and confusion'

'Blake has real talent and I am definitely looking forward to more novels from him in the future'

'The character and scene depictions really paint the picture in your mind. A highly believable plot line, intriguing characters and twists & turns make this (DECEPTION) a real page-turner'

Reviews

[megHan · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a crazy story full of nonstop action (like on every page) and unexpected moments that just left you thinking wow. There were several twists and turns and it moved fast, like an action movie.

I really like the way the story begins, after something big has happened, but not after the whole story is finished. You go back with him as he remembers the events that led him to where he is "now," before heading off on the main part of the story.

And every time you think you have things figured out, something new happens and you're like "wait, what?!?!" (I like those kinds of stories.)

This was definitely a fun read :)

Note: I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

[Billy Buttons · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was entered in The Wishing Shelf Book Awards. This is what our readers thought:

Title: Endurance
Author: T J Blake
Star Rating: 3 stars
Number of Readers: 16

Readers’ Comments
‘A very enjoyable, fun read. Exciting, ever scary. Too many grammatical errors though. Strong cover and blurb.’ Female reader, aged 44
‘This story, although exciting with many plot twists, needs a good editor to sort it out. It is often too wordy and there are a number of grammatical and punctuation errors.’ Female reader, aged 51
‘The style of writing is very short and sharp which works pretty well in a book of this genre. The sentence structure, in parts, needs work though and there is the odd typo here and there. The plot is exciting and I liked the London setting. The cover could do with spicing up a little but the blurb works well.’ Reader (professional editor) aged 47
‘I did like this book in many ways but the style of writing seemed determined to stop me. The author is in love with the semicolon which is bugging and he insists in writing ever sentence with eight words or less. Solid plot but in need of an editor to sort it all out.’ Female reader, aged 51
Stats
Cover 6/10
Editing 5/10
Writing Style 6/10
Plot/Story/Contents 7/10
Of the 16 readers:
8 thought the cover was good or excellent.
7 would read another book by this author.
12 felt the plot was the best part of the book.

‘Very exciting with lots of twists and turns.’ The Wishing Shelf Awards

[Nina Soden · Rating 4 out of 5]

Endurance started out with a really well written prologue that grabs your attention. However, you later find out that you end up re-reading the prologue in the form of a chapter within the book. Although I don’t mind flashbacks I don’t really enjoy re-reading long sections.

With that said – this book, like so many self-published books had its ups and downs. I can say with honesty that the story has a lot to offer a reader. I think the author provides the reader with lots of twists and unexpected turns in the story line – most of which make sense. There were a few times where I had to re-read things to make sure I understood what was happening and which story line I was in.

This is not my typical genre, but as a reader I did enjoy it.

Again, like with most self-published books there were a few editing issues and formatting issues, but I can easily over look those. I’m a writer myself and I understand that not all the spelling and grammar errors can be caught even after 10 – 12 editors review a book.
So, I’m giving this book 4 stars and I would recommend it. I would love to read some more work by this author and see how his writing changes as he gets more experience.

[Jaron Vail · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've never been to London, but, after reading T.J. Blake's debut novel, Endurance, I feel that I may have been their in some distant dream in another life. Blake takes the reader into London and lets the reader drink the life of Tom Williams, the protagonist of the novel.Endurance is packed with twists and turns. I couldn't put the book down! It is a fast read with an intoxicating blend of horror and fantasy. Though the focus is rightfully on Tom Williams, Blake missed the opportunity to develop some important supporting cast members that became crucial to the story. I wanted to get to know the characters in Tom's journey more intimately than how they were presented to me.

That said, this is a very well done debut novel. T.J. Blake has real talent and I am definitely looking forward to more novels from him in the future.

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book. Lots of twist and turns most of which are unexpected, make's a lovely change. Can't wait for more

[Chrystal Roe · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it!

This book was particularly terrifying, because it had so many unexpected plot twists. Of course the humans were the most terrifying monsters in the story.