Before there was Jaws, there was… QUINT Fifteen years since I landed on Amity, an island full of rich folks adrift between the Hamptons and Montauk. Got a business and a boat, got me a truck with my name and a pretty shark scratched on the door. Carved it myself. Bad job. I got ghosts around me, lot of ghosts. Gotta put ‘em somewhere. Can’t drink ‘em all. Ain’t here for company, and I only got two stories for telling company anyways. Thinking if I get them stories down, on paper mind, then that’s just between me and the ink. You already know the end of his story: now find out where it all began. So much more than a fisherman, Quint is a survivor, a fighter, a man who has left three wives in his wake. From his time as a young sailor facing the horrors of the sinking of the USS Indianapolis, to a deadly night-long showdown with a frenzy of sharks years later, before he finally settles on the island of Amity. I’ve lost count of the number of times I’ve watched Jaws. It could well be my favourite film. If I put my mind to it…

When prodigal daughter Heather Evans returns to her family home after her mother’s baffling suicide, she makes an alarming discovery–stacks and stacks of carefully preserved letters from notorious serial killer Michael Reave. The “Red Wolf,” as he was dubbed by the press, has been in prison for over twenty years, serving a life sentence for the gruesome and ritualistic murders of several women across the country, although he has always protested his innocence. The police have had no reason to listen, yet Heather isn’t the only one to have cause to re-examine the murders. The body of a young woman has just been found, dismembered and placed inside a tree, the corpse planted with flowers. Just as the Red Wolf once did. What did Heather’s mother know? Why did she kill herself? And with the monstrous Red Wolf safely locked inside a maximum-security prison, who is stalking young women now? Teaming up with DI Ben Parker, Heather hopes to get some answers for herself and for the newest victims of this depraved murderer. Yet to do that, she must speak to Michael Reave herself, and expose herself to truths she may not be ready to face. Something dark is walking…

Louise is a single mom, a secretary, stuck in a modern-day rut. On a rare night out, she meets a man in a bar and sparks fly. Though he leaves after they kiss, she’s thrilled she finally connected with someone. When Louise arrives at work on Monday, she meets her new boss, David. The man from the bar. The very married man from the bar…who says the kiss was a terrible mistake, but who still can’t keep his eyes off Louise. And then Louise bumps into Adele, who’s new to town and in need of a friend. But she also just happens to be married to David. And if you think you know where this story is going, think again, because Behind Her Eyes is like no other book you’ve read before. David and Adele look like the picture-perfect husband and wife. But then why is David so controlling? And why is Adele so scared of him? As Louise is drawn into David and Adele’s orbit, she uncovers more puzzling questions than answers. The only thing that is crystal clear is that something in this marriage is very, very wrong. But Louise can’t guess how wrong―and how far a person…

A plane crash in the Arizona desert. An explosion that sets the world on fire. A damning pact to hide an appalling secret. And one man bound to expose the truth. He is Solomon Creed. No one knows what he is capable of. Not even him. When Solomon Creed flees the burning wreckage of a plane in the Arizona desert, seconds before an explosion sets the world alight, he is acting on instinct alone. He has no memory of his past, and no idea what his future holds. Running towards a nearby town, one name fires in his mind – James Coronado. Somehow, Solomon knows he must save this man. But how do you save a man who is already dead? When it comes to thrillers, I’m always looking for a novel that will keep me on my toes. I want fiction that delivers the unexpected and throws me the odd curveball or two. Simon Toyne’s latest, Solomon Creed, is a great example of how a thriller should be. An inscrutable main protagonist stumbles into the middle of a tricky situation and has to not only to survive, but also learn something about his own mysterious origins. Between Creed and…

Chicago 1931. Harper Curtis, a violent drifter, stumbles on a house with a secret as shocking as his own twisted nature – it opens onto other times. He uses it to stalk his carefully chosen ‘shining girls’ through the decades – and cut the spark out of them. He’s the perfect killer. Unstoppable. Untraceable. He thinks… Chicago, 1992. They say what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger. Tell that to Kirby Mazrachi, whose life was shattered after a brutal attempt to murder her. Still struggling to find her attacker, her only ally is Dan, an ex-homicide reporter who covered her case and now might be falling in love with her. As Kirby investigates, she finds the other girls – the ones who didn’t make it. The evidence is … impossible. But for a girl who should be dead, impossible doesn’t mean it didn’t happen… Seems it’s time for another one of those book related confessions. I’ve heard good things about Moxy Land, and apparently Zoo City is a bit special as well, but with the exception of a single short story I’ve never actually read any of Lauren Beukes work before. This embarrassing admission leads me to the following question – why…

Battle Lines is the third book in a series and so there is a good chance that there may be minor spoilers in this review (honest, I’m not kidding around you know). Oh well, don’t say I didn’t give you fair warning. Dracula is on the verge of coming into his full power. Department 19 is on the back foot. Ladies and gentlemen: welcome to war. The stakes? Mankind’s very survival… As the clock ticks remorselessly towards Zero Hour and the return of Dracula, the devastated remnants of Department 19 try to hold back the rising darkness. Jamie Carpenter is training new recruits, trying to prepare them for a fight that appears increasingly futile. Kate Randall is pouring her grief into trying to plug the Department’s final leaks, as Matt Browning races against time to find a cure for vampirism. And on the other side of the world, Larissa Kinley has found a place she feels at home, yet where she makes a startling discovery. Uneasy truces are struck, new dangers emerge on all sides, and relationships are pushed to breaking point. And in the midst of it all, Department 19 faces a new and potentially deadly threat, born out…

Winter approaches Westeros like an angry beast. The Seven Kingdoms are divided by revolt and blood feud. In the northern wastes, a horde of hungry, savage people steeped in the dark magic of the wilderness is poised to invade the Kingdom of the North where Robb Stark wears his new-forged crown. And Robb’s defences are ranged against the South, the land of the cunning and cruel Lannisters, who have his younger sisters in their power. Throughout Westeros, the war for the Iron Throne rages more fiercely than ever, but if the Wall is breached, no king will live to claim it. Someone of you may have spotted that I started reading this gargantuan series just before the first season of the television adaption aired here in the UK. So far I’ve managed to stick to this routine. Book two was read last year and I’ve been waiting patiently for another year to pass before I could immerse myself in the lands of Westeros once again. The War of the Five Kings continues and everywhere violence, treachery and political power-plays abound. Martin really likes to make his characters suffer doesn’t he? No one is safe from their creator’s steely gaze. Arya…

I do hope that everyone is having a relaxing and enjoyable festive season. Now that most of the serious over-indulgence is done with for another year, I thought it was about time to take a look at what new book-related loveliness is due in 2013. Here are my top ten books I’m looking forward to reading in the next six months or so. Hope you enjoy. Ack-Ack Macaque by Gareth Powell Publication Date: 3rd January Publisher: Solaris Genre: Simian Steampunk Science Fiction The Blurb: In 1944, as waves of German ninjas parachute into Kent, Britain’s best hopes for victory lie with a Spitfire pilot codenamed ‘Ack-Ack Macaque.’ The trouble is, Ack-Ack Macaque is a cynical, one-eyed, cigar-chomping monkey, and he’s starting to doubt everything, including his own existence. A century later, in a world where France and Great Britain merged in the late 1950s and nuclear-powered Zeppelins circle the globe, ex-journalist Victoria Valois finds herself drawn into a deadly game of cat and mouse with the man who butchered her husband and stole her electronic soul. Meanwhile, in Paris, after taking part in an illegal break-in at a research laboratory, the heir to the British throne goes on the run….

Bilbo Baggins is a hobbit who enjoys a comfortable, unambitious life, rarely travelling further than the pantry of his hobbit-hole in Bag End. But his contentment is disturbed when the wizard, Gandalf, and a company of thirteen dwarves arrive on his doorstep one day to whisk him away on an unexpected journey ‘there and back again’. They have a plot to raid the treasure hoard of Smaug the Magnificent, a large and very dangerous dragon… With the forthcoming release of the first part of The Hobbit it seems only right and proper that I get around to finally reading the book for the first time. Yes, I know I’m thirty-eight and I should probably should have read it years ago but I’ll let you in on a secret. I’m more than a little intimidated by what you would probably term classic fiction. There I’ve said it. I’ve finally admitted my secret shame. Why am I so overwhelmed? Well, The Hobbit is the perfect example to help illustrate my problem. The book was first published way back in 1937. Since then, many people, the vast majority of whom (probably all) are far cleverer than I, have read it and produced an in-depth…

For 3000 years, love has been an art in the Orient. And so has Death  Here is the origin of Nicholas Linnear, half English, Half Oriental, who is about to enter a terrifying world of merciless assassins bound by the blackest codes of honour and skilled in the deadliest martial arts. Caught between East and West, a past he can’t escape and a destiny he can’t avoid, he is trapped in a web of old lust and present passions that will converge on a terrifying moment of revelation and revenge… Early this year I made the decision that I would try to re-visit some older books that I’ve enjoyed in the past. I was keen to see how well a novel stands the test of time. I think probably the toughest genre to avoid aging badly is thrillers. That’s why for this review I decided to re-read a novel that I remember being a favourite, The Ninja by Eric Lustbader. Nicholas Linnear is a complex character, the product of two completely different cultures but not really belonging to either.  There is a quiet stillness and an introspective quality to him that I like. Every action or comment that he makes seems measured…

A word of caution – Department 19: The Rising is a direct sequel to Department 19. If you haven’t read the first book in this series, and you really should, there is a distinct possibility that this review may contain minor spoilers. You have been warned! 91 DAYS TILL ZERO HOUR. THAT’S 91 DAYS TO RUN. 91 DAYS TO HIDE. OR 91 DAYS TO PRAY FOR DEPARTMENT 19 TO SAVE YOU… After the terrifying attack on Lindisfarne at the end of the first book, Jamie, Larissa and Kate are recovering at Department 19 headquarters, waiting for news of Dracula’s stolen ashes. They won’t be waiting for long. Vampire forces are gathering. Old enemies are getting too close. And Dracula… is rising. Last year I read Will Hill’s debut novel, Department 19, and I really enjoyed it. It was a lot of fun and a perfect introduction to the action/horror genre for a young adult audience. Vampires, werewolves and a secret organisation that keeps them all in check. I ask you, what’s not to love? The second book is just out on paperback and it picks up the action shortly after the climatic events that ended book one. It’s nice to…

Department 6 is the Army. Department 13 is MI5. Department 19 is the reason you’re alive. When I initially launched The Eloquent Page I didn’t even consider reading, never mind reviewing, any young adult fiction. Towards the end of last year I changed my mind and decided to take the plunge. I read The Enemy by Charlie Higson and All You Need is Kill by Hiroshi Sakurazaka and I have to admit I was just blown away by both. They were great examples of their respective genres and it was clear to me that young adult fiction had come a long way since my teenage years. With those experiences still fresh in my mind, I was keen to try another novel aimed at the teen market. There has been a lot of buzz around the Internet in the last couple of months regarding Department 19 by Will Hill so when I got the opportunity to read an advance copy I jumped at the chance. Seen through the eyes of sixteen year old Jamie Carpenter, the reader is introduced to the United Kingdom’s most secret government agency – Department 19. Jamie and his widowed mother are attacked by a strange creature one night in…