Blood Never Sleeps

by Mark Morey

In the chaos of the Syrian Civil War, three individuals see their lives dramatically changed by the rise of Islamic State. Young Adnan Richie and his wife Ranim have their lives turned to hell when Islamic State wins control of Raqqa. Kurdish schoolgirl Sarya Goran joins the Kurdish Women's militia; determined to defeat Islamic State before they bring their cruelty to her home province of Rojava. Blood Never Sleeps is about ordinary people dealing with Islamic State in different ways, to eventually converge on Raqqa for that final, dramatic confrontation.

306 pages, Paperback

Published March 25, 2018

About the author

Writing a novel didn’t cross my mind until after a visit to the local library where I couldn’t find a book that interested me. That led me consider a new pastime - write a book. That book may never be published, but I felt my follow-up cross-cultural romance-crime hybrid set in Russia had more potential. So much so that I wrote a sequel that took those characters on a journey to a very dark place.

The opening of the Red Sun Will Come came to me in a dream, and to this day I have no idea why Moscow. I had never been there before, but during the course of developing this novel we did visit Russia, and my wife and I both fell in love with Moscow. It is a world city: exciting, dynamic, visually beautiful and more What better setting for a romance with many difficulties?

Beyond part-time work and part-time writing I particularly enjoy travel.

But writing is my favourite pastime and I have many more tales that I would like to tell. Keep in touch to see where my next journey will take you.

Reviews

[Ann Reed · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed reading the novel “Blood Never Sleeps”. It is not the type of book I usually select, so I appreciated the chance to learn about important historical events from the point of view of people who were affected first-hand. The book covers a lot of ground with different characters. It moves through many scenes which focus on personal relationships, the challenges of surviving in an occupied city, training to serve as a soldier in a time of war, and actual scenes of conflict. I found the characters and scenes vivid and engaging.

I was struck by the chance to enter a different world and gain first-hand knowledge about what is happening in this part of the world. At first, I wasn’t sure I would be interested in the characters, since their lives are so different from mine. But I was immediately drawn into the story of the five main characters. My favourite part is probably the training and early battle testing of Sarya, because I related to her conviction and her passionate desire to fight against the terrible forces which have stolen her homeland.

The sentences and paragraphs were crisp, succinct and flowing. The descriptions of people and places and actions were interesting and sufficient to create powerful visual images as I read throughout the novel.

The novel is very professionally executed. I am very impressed with this novel and it was very inspiring to read.

[Allan Challis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Blood Never Sleeps is a fascinating tale of love defeating hate, as enthusiastic young Kurdish militia take on the cruelty of Islamic State, with a dramatic finale set in the city of Raqqa. Two tales are told, that of Syrian Arabs living under the cruelty of Islamic State in Raqqa, and that of Kurdish militia of young men and young women determined to defeat that cruelty before Islamic State advance further to the north. The key character, Kurdish schoolgirl Sarya Goran, is well-developed with her youthful enthusiasm tempered by her studious upbringing, which makes her quite believable. She endures danger, discomfort and towards the end, is becoming overcome by the stress of battle, in a real and believable manner. The key Arab character Adnan sees much barbarity, cruelty and tragedy around him, but has no choice to get on with life seeing no end in sight for their plight. Adnan's perspective shows why the military campaign is so important.

Real and dramatic events wrapped into a fast-flowing narrative with real and believable characters. Highly recommended.

[B.J. Tiernan · Rating 5 out of 5]

BLOOD NEVER SLEEPS is an engaging account of the city of Raqqa, a city in Syria, that is being taken over by the Islamic State. It is a time of the Arab Spring and its response to oppressive regimes. This heart-wrenching tale of what happens when ordinary people stand up for their freedom and fight for it has Ranim and her husband's lives being turned upside down when the Islamic State takes control of the city of Raqqa. For me, it is Sarya Goran, a young girl, who wins my heart as she fights for her cause. As always hope springs for a better outcome when heroes and heroines surface, and this story is no different. I found this novel to be well-researched, and I learned a lot about a subject that is so dark to me. I love it when an author brings real history to life through fictional characters and this author does it well. Somehow, he puts a face on those historical statistics and teaches us that until we start looking at each other as a valued "thou" instead of an "it" or a "thing", not much is bound to change. I highly recommend this novel.

[Max Power · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thoroughly engaging and very relevant book. I tend to shy away from current political stories when I read for pleasure, but I was glad I made an exception in this case. While I avoid politics for pleasure, I do keep up with developments and here is a book that I think more people should read. I believe it can be hard to write about such a conflict especially as a man relating in particular female strife but the author has risen to the challenge. A very good read that I am pleased to recommend.

[Joey Paul · Rating 4 out of 5]

I picked this book up having read a previous book by Morey. This one deals with the events of the Arab Spring and the resulting war in Syria. I have to say that it made things a lot clearer for me, and it was obvious that he'd done his research. The characters were a little wooden, but otherwise relatable and easy to understand. I enjoyed reading the book, seeing how the story played out. Overall a good book and a good read!

[Lucinda Clarke · Rating 3 out of 5]

EXPLAINS THE CONFLICT IN SYRIA
This book clearly explains the complicated situation in Syria and for the first time I got a firm understanding of the sad situation in that country. Morey’s story follows the experiences of three groups of people struggling to survive under the most appalling circumstances and highlights the part played by the women in the fight against the invaders.

[Kat Drennan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Morey puts a personal face on the Syrian dilemma that we rarely see beyond headlines. The story is told through the eyes of those who live it. Morey has done a nice job of representing the issues and posing the hoped for outcomes of the people caught in a terrible situation. The prose is well written and edited if at times a bit flat emotionally.

[Jana Petken · Rating 4 out of 5]

A well put together book looking at the personal cost of war; in this case The Syrian Civil War and fight against ISIS. This was an enjoying, informative read but failed in the emotional department. The characters were a bit empty, and I didn't feel invested in them. Overall, though, it as informative and worth the read.

[Alice Pickard · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautifully written with marvelous, multi-dimensional characters, gorgeous descriptions and a riveting plot. Blood Never Sleeps is a remarkable story about contemporary events, where love literally triumphs over hate.