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Nigel Gordon

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Everything posted by Nigel Gordon

  1. Without doubt, this is some of the best writing that I have seen for a long time. It has something of the feel of the late Chris James to it, but it is definitely Cole Parker. If Cole can keep this this up until the end, it is going to be a masterpiece of writing and storytelling.
  2. My grandfather told me that chess is a cross generational game. The man learns it from his grandfather, however, his son does not learn it from his father, considering it to be a boring old man's game. It is the son's son that the man teaches the came to, so it passes from grandfather to grandson, so sees a resurgence about every other generation.
  3. A very enjoyable read, that was clearly well researched.
  4. I, for one, don't look at WWI romantically. If you want to know how most Brits look at it, watch "Oh What a Lovely War". It reflects what I think is the main British view of the war, that it was one great big fuck-up.
  5. Thanks for the update, John. Good to read that Mike is out of hospital. Hope his recovery goes well.
  6. That is a nightmare I dread. Just take the precaution of getting myself a 5G tablet and if the staff object I will point out it is my phone and under NHS rules I am allowed to have a phone with me. Depriving anybody of their Laptop is a crime in this day and age.
  7. Yes Rutabaga, it's an edgy story, but the writing style is not edgy. In my opinion the writing does not have the sharpness, the crispness that "Going Home" has. Not that surprising, it was written fourteen years ago, and in fourteen years any writer of talent will develop their style. One thing I think we can all agree on is that Cole is a writer of talent. By the way, thanks for the link to "Distorted Perspective", have not read it for ages and it is certainly worth re-reading.
  8. Cole said this was different from his usual fare, and it certainly has a different feel about it. For a start, the writing seems stronger, more edgy than Coles usual style, which, if anything, is usually somewhat mellow. It will be interesting to see where the story is going to go.
  9. Doing better, but still have major problems. Cannot type at the keyboard for very long. About ten minutes maximum at one time. The review was actually typed up for me by a friend. I just cut and pasted it. Do most of my reading on my tablet.
  10. The Suit by Amy Lane There are times when one gets overwhelmed with reading and as a result, some things get missed. I got my copy of The Suit by Amy Lane at the beginning of June. At that point, I had just started to read The Swerve by Steven Greenblatt, about the discovery of the lost works of Lucretius and how they brought about the Renaissance. It's a good, interesting, informative book, but hard reading. As a result, The Suit got put on one side to be read later. Unfortunately, a birthday and a number of gifts meant a pile of books to be read later. A pile I did not get through, due to illness, before Christmas when more was added to it. As a result, I only reached the bottom of the pile and The Suit last month. Then reading was interrupted by a need to attend the International Blackpool Convention of Magicians. It seems that the world was determined I was not going to read this offering from Amy Lane. However, I eventually did manage to finish it. That is my first comment about the book. It is long, over 300 pages. The first book in the Long Con series is a lot shorter. Each one since has seemed to get longer. My gut feeling is that this one is about ten percent longer than it needed to be. I got the feeling that the same piece of information was being presented to me a number of times in slightly different forms. Though it was always information that you need to understand the story. The book is about the relationship that develops between two of the characters from earlier adventures in the Long Con series, Michael Connoly, the ex-con mechanic and the slick art historian come insurance investigator Carl Cox. This relationship is set against the need to obtain the help of a European gangster in the search for a bone marrow donor. The developing relationship between the two men is touching and handled sympathetically. The ongoing story, about the investigation into the death of the gangster's brother in a mysterious accident, is interesting and well-written. It keeps your attention. However, the last part of the plot for me goes a bit askew There is something about the plot that did not quite work. At the start of the book, Amy Lane writes that she wanted to write about falconry. I can understand why. Having flown a falcon, I would love to be able to write something about them one day. I think though in the plot line that Amy has taken in this book, she has pushed the suspension of disbelief a bit too far. There is something about the last third of the book that does not quite work. It is good, it is interesting. It's well written but I don't think Amy knew enough about her subject to get the details right. What she has got wrong I don't know. It is just that there is something that jars in the last part of the book, it does not quite come together. The late Ian Fleming, the creator of James Bond, said if you got all the details right, the reader will believe anything. I think there are some details that Amy must have got wrong, though what they are I do not know. Having said that, this is still a very good read, and the first two-thirds of the book are, in my opinion, amongst some of Amy's best writing. Especially the physical relationship between Michael and Carl. It is written in a much more believable and sensitive style than some of Amy's earlier works. where I would admit I would often jump over the sex scenes just to get on with the story. Over the years Amy seems to have got a lot better at writing such scenes. Well worth reading and if you are into the Long Con series, this is essential reading, otherwise the next in the series will not make sense. On the whole, I enjoyed the book and would recommend it to anyone I know who likes this type of MM romance adventure. I just have a slight problem with the plotline at the end.
  11. Nigel has asked me to write this reply. At the moment he has difficulty spending more than a few minutes a day at the keyboard. Any longer he is in severe pain. Medication, sufficient to control the pain leaves him in a fuzzy state where he is unable to work. Unfortunately, due to a speech defect, speech recognition software does not work for him. His doctor is hopeful that with time, physical therapy will at least ease, if not cure the condition, but has emphasised that it is likely to be some time before results are seen. A rough outline for a 4th instalment of the Brian and David stories was done last summer, with the intention that it would be written up for Christmas last. Unfortunately, health issues prevented Nigel from being able to work on this or anything else for that matter. At the moment it is unlikely that there will be another instalment. Nathan p.p Nigel Gordon
  12. "The Rising Tide" is the start of a new series, "The Luck Mechanics", from Amy Lane. It is available from Amazon in Kindle and paperback formats. Before I go onto review the book, just a couple of criticisms I need to get out of the way first. For a start, it could have done with a second or maybe third edit. In the first part of the book, there were points where sentences just did not make sense. There seemed to be the odd word missing. Maybe American English and English have departed far enough that some constructs are not needed in the one that are in the other. However, my experience has been that it is the other way around, that it is English who are dropping words that can be implied from their sentences. I know I am. Strangely enough in the first couple of chapters and in later chapters, it does not occur. The second thing is do not buy the paperback book. It is available both as an eBook and a paperback version. The inside margins are far too narrow on the paperback version which makes reading the end or start of lines difficult at times. This is not a problem that you will experience with the eBook version. Having made those points, what about the review? Well, Amy Lane seldom disappoints and she has not done so this time. Take a tidal archipelago island, Spinner's Drift, that is a refuge for misfits, particularly those who are being chased by somebody. Add to that Scout Quintero, a wizard who is banished from the family compound by his father because he is gay and who is now being chased by his father, because he rescued his sister from the father's control. To that, you can mix in Lucky, who is being chased by gangsters because he is, lucky. The island is a safe place for both of them, but it has its own dangers and its own magic. Magic that brings Lucky and Scout together. A danger that they need to confront. One arising from the great love that was long in the past. The island works its own magic on Scout and Lucky, who despite his fear of attachment, finds himself falling for Scout. This is a well-crafted story, well-told. Lane's magical world is logical within its own terms. The scenes of gay sex are handled well and fit within the story; they are not there just for titillation. Though they are titillating. I can well recommend this gay romance and can't wait to read the next volume in the series.
  13. Chris James has always been one of my favourite writers on this board. One thing I particularly admired him for was his ability to write empathetic Native American characters. In Indigo and the Cowboy I think he did it at his best. It is so pleasing to see it listed in The Dude's Picks. If you have not read it in the past, now is your chance to read a great story. If you have read it in the past, you know it is worth re-reading.
  14. It looks as if this is going to be a bad winter flu season.
  15. Great to hear that you are improving and able to do more. Just don't do too much too soon. We all want you back fit and well, but not before you are fit and well. Best wishes.
  16. My clocks are not all the same but I have a similar problem, though with the UK time code broadcast, which is transmitted from about 30 miles away. Found out that because of the reinforcing bars in the concrete beams of my house, the radio signal was being blocked. Strangely enough, although one of the clocks fails to pick up the UK signal, it does pick up the German one, which originates 600 miles away. My friend who is a retired professor of physics informs me that the rebar in the beam behind that clock are reflecting the German signal back onto the clock, rather than blocking them. This results in an amplification of the signal strength.
  17. I am pleased to see that this story has turned up in the Dude's Picks from the Past. It is a great read, though be prepared for some heart wrenching moments.
  18. That is great news John. Thank you for letting us know, and for keeping the site running.
  19. Hi John Thanks for keeping us up to date. I've sent Mike an email. Do you know if he is able to Skype?
  20. Wonderful news. I hope that his recovery proceeds at a pace.
  21. I am impressed with Michael's second chapter. I have lived and worked in Munich and know the modern city fairly well. At least the central city. It has a feel to it which is different to other German cities that I know well, Stuttgart, Dusseldorf, Frankfurt and Rattingen. It has a specific Bavarianess about it that Is difficult to describe or put ones finger on but makes you feel that you are in somewhere which is not quite German. In Michael's description of the arrival in Munich and the subsequent experience of carnival, he touches on that same spirit of Barvarianess, that things are not the same as elsewhere. Although he is describing the city of over two hundred years ago, it is a city I know and one which I can relate to. Somehow he has managed to capture something of the essence of Munich, which undoubtedly was there years ago and is still there today.
  22. The late Ian Fleming, creator of James Bond, said that if you got all the details correct people would accept whatever you wrote at fact, or at least words to that effect. In "In the Service of Princes" Michael Arram is getting the details correct. The story is set in the latter part of the 18th century and he uses the term German Sea to refer to what we now call the North Sea. That was the correct terminology for the period. As his use of the term Dutch to describe a visitor from Ruritania. At that time the term Dutch meant 'of the German', and was used to refer to anybody whose native language was one of the many dialects of German, be it low or high German. It did not mean an inhabitant of the Netherlands, as it was to come to mean in the following century. Michael Arram, also refers to the stink of horse manure in the streets of London. Another detail which so precisely sets the scene, as does he description of the mire and meers of the Norfolk wetlands. By these means we are given a firm foundation for the world of James Rassendyll the Earl of Burlesdon and his half brother, Heinz, the younger son of the King of Ruritania. Once again Michael Arram takes us in the the web of politics that surround that land, which he has brought so much to life in his stories. This one has got off to a great start and I am interested in seeing where it is going to go. Wherever it is going, one can be assured it is going to be a good read, coming as it does from the pen, or rather the keyboard, of Michael Arram. You can find it here: https://awesomedude.com/mike_arram/in-the-service-of-princes/index.htm
  23. If there were no loose ends I would not be able to keep on writing about Johnny.
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