The Devil's Advocate by Steve Cavanagh

 

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You can buy the Devil's Advocate....Here

The Blurb...

A DEADLY PROSECUTOR
They call him the King of Death Row. Randal Korn has sent more men to their deaths than any district attorney in the history of the United States.

A TWISTED RITUALISTIC KILLING
When a young woman, Skylar Edwards, is found murdered in Buckstown, Alabama, a corrupt sheriff arrests the last person to see her alive, Andy Dubois. It doesn't seem to matter to anyone that Andy is innocent.

A SMALL TOWN BOILING WITH RAGE
Everyone in Buckstown believes Andy is guilty. He has no hope of a fair trial. And the local defense attorney assigned to represent him has disappeared.

A FORMER CON-ARTIST
Hot shot New York lawyer Eddie Flynn travels south to fight fire with fire. He plans to destroy the prosecutors case, find the real killer and save Andy from the electric chair.

But the murders are just beginning.

Is Eddie Flynn next?

My Review...

In this novel Steve Cavanagh steps right into John Grisham territory. Not afraid to take on the master in his home ground.

 Our hero Eddie Flynn and his ragtag gang of legal warriors step out of their cormfortable New York, liberal world to take on a death penalty case in the hot, sweaty and deeply racist southern state of Alabama.

Their opponent is a serial killer who just happens to kill people using a most deadly weapon i.e."the law." The local DA gets his kicks filling the electric chair, but he doesn't care who he puts in that chair. They don't even have to be guilty. 

Loved the character of the dodgy DA Randall Korn  who is an evil, disingenuous, sickly individual played in my head by John Redwood the former Welsh Sec John Redwood (yes the guy who mimed the wrong words to the Welsh national anthem and looked pissed off for having to do so) Sometimes my head does cast the strangest characters in books that I read, but this one is bang on. Anyway back to the book.

I have read some criticism of the white supremacist sub plot as being slightly cheesy, parody and over the top and I can definitely see where this is coming from but (and I've said this before and will probably say it again, if you want reality watch a documentary) I think it just within the bounds of artistic licence. Especially when you consider right wing groups did actually storm the Capitol in Jan.

A little niggle that bothers me is that Eddie is hired by Berlin. Berlin is vastly powerful black ops/CIA/Homeland security type who has access to practically unlimited financial and material resources. He is very powerful with the ability to kill without being held to account. While he does so for good there is absolutely nothing to stop him using his unbridled power for selfish or even evil reasons. Absolute power, unchecked can give way to corruption (as can be seen is the political arena in both U.K. and USA). I can't help feeling that Berlin would be Eddie's natural enemy and not his ally (possibly not Berlin per se but definitely the role he occupies) Anyway its a minor quibble and probably only in my head and no one else's. 

As always where Cavanagh shines is piling up the evidence and situation against the innocent on trial, backing him into such a corner that you fear he will never escape. However Eddie and the gang ingeniously and theatrically blow the evidence out of the water to provide their own evidence and unmask the real villain.

Two things I really like about this book (on top of the usual stuff that I like about Cavanagh's books). Its now more of an ensemble rather than just Eddie. Makes for multiple POV and character issues. I also like the fact that they are out of New York and are on the road, it really adds another dimension. I Would love to see Eddie and the gang really out of their comfort zone in the UK. Possibly even in Cavanagh's native Northern Ireland, now that would be a real culture clash.

I think Steve Cavanagh's books are great. The latest author in a great tradition of courtroom dramas from to kill a mocking bird, anatomy of a murder, 12 angry men, in cold blood, a time to kill, the rainmaker, a few good men et al. If you enjoyed any of them you'll love Steve Cavanagh.

Selected Quotes...

"It’s never about the first time evidence goes missing. It’s the efforts to cover up that original sin that will corrupt your soul, utterly."

"Only in the greatest country in the world would a working mother have to weigh up buying medication for herself or her son."

"In a capital-murder case, the jury has to be ‘death-qualified’. They have to be willing to impose the death penalty if the defendant is convicted."

"Doing the right thing has consequences, same as doing nothing. And it can be just as hard to look at yourself in the mirror."

‘When you see something that is not right, not just, not fair, you have a moral obligation to say something.’

About the author...

Steve Cavanagh is an Irish author from Belfast and at the age eighteen he studied law by mistake. He is now the international award-winning author of the Eddie Flynn novels. His debut novel, The Defense, was nominated for the Ian Fleming Steel Dagger Award for Thriller of the Year, and The Plea won the Prix Polar Award for Best International Novel. Steve is still a practicing lawyer (someday he’ll get the hang of it) and co-host ofthe chart-topping podcast Two Crime Writers And A Microphone. He has been involved in several high-profile civil rights cases, his Eddie Flynn novels have been published in over twenty countries, he’s married with two young children, and in his spare time he is mostly asleep.

Q&A with Rob Vaughan author of August Lost

Hello Rob! 😀👋 Give us a brief outline/history about yourself.

I’m 38 from Aberdare. I grew up wading through rivers, climbing trees and getting filthy. I met my wife when we were 15 and are proud parents to William. At 17, I joined the RAF and have served ever since. Finding a balance between family and service life has been difficult, but being good at one makes me better at the other.

Give us a brief outline of your latest book.

August–Lost follows a detective who has lost his connection to emotion. He doesn’t understand empathy, sorrow, happiness, and struggles to engage with people. His only focus is finding evidence and catching killers. But when he finds evidence that proves the existence of an elusive hitman, he angers someone who creates masterpieces that are fuelled by unbridled emotion. 

Where can readers purchase your book?

   

You can buy August Lost.......Here

The ebook version and paperback can both be found on the Amazon market place. But I am looking to make it available through local book shops.

Where can readers find out more about you?
I have recently developed a website. You can check out my website .... Here
And you can find me on Twitter as @RobVaughan82.

What was the hardest scene to write?

The characters are examples of what people could become when trauma is a recurring part of their childhood. At an early age I discovered I could survive brutality from someone who is supposed to keep me safe. And as I grew older, I realised that it actually gave me strength. Those experiences made me who I am and the lessons I took from them taught me how to be better, how to excel, how to be a good person.

But when I wrote a certain scene, even though I held a lot back from the page, I found my heart pounding and my eyes filling up. Even my siblings found it difficult to read.

Do you find it difficult to write from a different gender/ethnic background point of view?

I am a White, Welsh, heterosexual man. Some would say that I’m not qualified to write as a different gender, ethnicity, sexuality etc, and I agree with that to a certain degree. Stereotyping ethnicities, sexual preferences or gender qualities can be extremely harmful. Even if the writer thinks they are being flattering, they can cause offence or pain and that is something I hope I never do. A writer has to be responsible for what they publish and they must think of the audience.

That being said, I’ve never murdered anyone. To try and portray the mind of a killer without being one; I am equally underqualified and I hope it stays that way!

When I wrote from the POV of Val Marsh, I wanted convey a strong and professional woman while showing that sexism is very much alive. I see, hear and challenge it a lot in day-to-day life.

In the first draft, I had older male characters calling Val “my dear” and “darling” etc, and tried to show her deflecting it. The reason for it was to show that she was up against more than trying to catch a killer. She was strong enough to endure arrogant and patronising people in authority. But my editor pointed out that it could be misinterpreted as the author’s beliefs, so I took it out. Afterall, I’ve never been subjected to that kind of behaviour and cannot comprehend the damage it can cause. Nor have I ever thought like that, so I don’t understand the motivation to do it. 

It is part series. Is there another in the pipeline?

Yes. I wanted to write a book but I couldn’t condense the story into just one novel. As the story played out in my mind, it overflowed into two, then three. Now I have a path for the entire storyline and the three books will come under the series title Masks of Sanity.

How did you first get into writing?

I spend a great amount of time flying in the back of cargo aircraft and that gives me plenty of time to read. But I never entertained the idea of writing before I started a new and very demanding role.

The place where I was working was a toxic environment. Bullying was rife, accepted and sometimes endorsed. I found myself being a prime target for some of these people. I was new to my rank and didn’t want to cause waves in case I lost the promotion, so I endured it. 

When I was driving home every Friday, I found myself reliving the events of the week and dwelling on the things I should’ve done/said.

The longer this went on, the more I alienated my family, and soon, they were encouraging me to take action. After about a year (yes, I’m stubborn), I tried to highlight the problem, but those in power just brushed it under the carpet.

One day, during my hundred-mile drive to work, I refused to imagine what was waiting for me. Instead, I reflected on the day before when I sat with my wife to watch a movie. She always guesses the endings and declares “I should’ve written the script.” So, I thought about a story that would entertain her and keep her guessing. A story that she wouldn’t guess the ending to and one that I could use to handle my stress.

What have been your favourite books to read throughout your life and why?

The Count of Monte Cristo has always been my go-to book. I love the cunning and commitment to revenge. Who can honestly say they’ve never fantasised about repaying an evil deed?

Another great author who keeps me coming back is Karen Slaughter. Ever since I read Blindsighted, I have loved being shocked by scenes that are the product of a very dark mind. And even though she may be a lovely person, the stories she tells are brutal.

You can buy the Count of Monte Cristo.....Here

You can buy Blindsighted....Here

Who is your favourite author and why?

LJ Ross is who I look for these days. Her ability to set a scene and make me a part of it is outstanding. I am always standing just behind her characters and feel and see everything they do. I remember reading the opening scene to Holy Island and actually reached to turn my collar up against the rain.

She offers just enough to show, but leaves enough room for my imagination to do the rest.

Has any book that you have read changed you?

It’s going back a long time, but when I was around ten, I read a book called The Midnight Fox. I’d never been a reader up until that point but there was something in those pages that woke my mind’s eye.

I remember a scene from the book where Tom (the MC) tried to imagine a new colour, which got me trying to imagine a new colour. That was when I began reading and using my imagination.

If you could be any character from literary fiction who would it be?

It would have to be Geralt of Rivia from the Witcher series. He’s hard as nails, rides around on a horse, sleeps under the stars, and wields two swords. Sounds pretty cool right?

The books are fantastic and Henry Cavil is doing a great job of bringing the role to life on Netflix.

What is your favourite quote?

You never lose. You either win or you learn – Nelson Mandela.

No matter what situation you find yourself in, applying this philosophy to your life will make you a better person. It’s something I want my son to live by.

What comes first plot or characters?

It’s a bit of a chicken and egg scenario. For August, I wanted to put a very dark person next to everyday people. Someone who smiles and goes about their business, but would have no compunction about hurting you in ways that would never occur to you. To me, that is a dreadful thought. But what else? What would make him a monster? In order to see his traits, he needed a plot that could showcase his skills, and as the plot evolved, so did the character.

On the other side of the coin, the protagonist had to be up to the task. You can’t have an unbeatable villain, nor can you have a flawless hero and it’s the plot that gives them the arena to duel in.

Do you plan it or when you sit down it just happens?

I have a long commute to and from work which gives me ample time to think about possible paths. And most of the time, when I sit down to write, I have an idea of where the characters are heading. But as the words flow, more often than not, something changes and I become a passenger. There have been so many times when I’ve stopped and thought “how the hell did that happen?”

I start by pantsing it. But that will only get you so far. Eventually, an element of planning needs to be used to tidy it all up.

How to you create characters in your books, are they cast in your mind or composites of real people?

My characters are made from the people in my life. Obviously, I amplify certain traits to make them suit the storyline, but I believe a character is more relatable when they’re anchored to reality.

They are also shaped by my mood at the time of conception. Val has one hell of a temper when I’m in a bad mood so I have to be in a good place to write her scenes.

What is the most difficult part of writing for you?

Sometimes I have too many ideas and that slows me down. I have an idea, then think “what if” and change my direction. Then “what if” and change again. The only way to get out of it is to be strict with myself and say enough is enough. 

If you are self published why? And how did you go about it?

I wrote August for my wife. It was a gift for her and therapy (of sorts) for me. However, after editing and formatting, we agreed that I should publish it.

I jumped into the query trenches for a while, but rejections and silence are unintentionally cruel. It takes phenomenal strength to go round after round trying to get an agent and in the end, you either win or you learn.

The one thing I learnt was that no one is interested in a random query from someone with no accolades. Literary agents have a huge responsibility to their listed authors. Priority must be given to their clients and that means prospective clients are only looked for with one eye.

Editing, formatting and cover designs cost time and money– resources that need to be focused on their proven clients. Successfully getting an agent and publisher to gamble on an unknown author is incredibly difficult. So, before I ask them (again) to take a risk on me, I thought I’d put my money where my mouth is.

I employed a developmental editor and made amendments. Then employed a copy-editor and made more. And finally, a proof reader for honest feedback. It’s an expensive process but worth every penny.

At the moment, I am a sapling hiding inside a forest and all the other trees are growing. Before I try again, I needed to grow roots and show them that I am worth the risk. That’s why I chose self-publishing.

How do you research your books?

There are elements of the story that are delicate and required a fair bit of research. I am not a psychotherapist nor am I a police investigator, but I spoke to enough professionals to ensure I didn’t tread on any toes. One thing I did discover before writing the investigative scenes is that each force/constabulary has their own standard operating procedures. They all handle cases differently.

What is the best and worst thing about being a writer?

The best thing about being a writer is being part of the writing community. I still feel like I don’t deserve to be there– Imposter syndrome is a funny thing, but authors are incredible people and support each other.

Then there is the feeling of seeing your name under a title you made, and knowing the story inside came from you.

As for worst thing; I haven’t really experienced any negatives yet apart from self-induced pressure. But I know there will be vocal people out there who take pleasure in condemning your work. I see other authors receiving horrible reviews, and others getting hate mail. I don’t know what prompts people to do things like that, but I they are entitled to their opinions. 

What is your next project?

August needs company. There are two more books in this series that are edging their way to completion. My job now is to make sure I tie up all the threads while staying true to the characters and their journey.

The other series I’m writing was started a few months ago. I write this one when I’m in a mischievous mood.

People are warriors on social media; saying things they would never say in person. Unfortunately, this is the way of the world and the only time our society pays attention is when we are slapped across the face. The only “truth” people believe these days is what they read online. This series shines a light on that

Share something that your readers will not know.

I sat my GCSE English and Maths exams when I was 37. It’s never too late.

Favourite place, favourite film, favourite song, favourite food?

Ascension Island – a small island in the Atlantic. Great people, beautiful scenery and perfect weather.

Coach Carter - An inspirational true story of a transformational leader who inspires a group of young men to reach their potential.

The Sound of Silence cover by Disturbed - The band’s music paid tribute to the lyrics and made it unforgettable.

Pizza - Because it is awesome. 

Sleepless by Louise Mumford.

 

⭐⭐⭐⭐

You can buy Sleepless.....Here

You can follow Louise Mumford here...Here

The Blurb...

Thea is an insomniac; she hasn’t slept more than three hours a night for years.

So when an ad for a sleep trial that promises to change her life pops up on her phone, Thea knows this is her last chance at finding any kind of normal life.

Soon Thea’s sleeping for longer than she has in a decade, and awakes feeling transformed. So much so that at first she’s willing to overlook the oddities of the trial – the lack of any phone signal; the way she can’t leave her bedroom without permission; the fact that all her personal possessions are locked away, even her shoes.

But it soon becomes clear that the trial doesn’t just want to help Thea sleep. It wants to control her sleep…

My Review...

Thea suffers from insomnia, as a result she is constantly tired, irritable and struggles to pay attention. It is much like permanent jet lag. Being a shift worker myself I can see how sleep deprivation can cause all sorts of issues. 

After being the cause of a minor road accident, Thea resolves to do something about her insomnia and signs up to a medical trial on a remote island (based on Caldey Island?) much to the chagrin of her post menopausal, activist mother (played in my head by Fiona Shaw of Baptiste 2🤷‍♂️) Thea's mother is a wonderful character who wears vagina print scarves!  

The trial starts well and Thea begins to get a little more sleep and even begin to make friends. However,  after a short trip on the island to the old monastery, Thea begins to smell a rat and with a few companions begins to investigate.

Sleepless is an enjoyable British, science gone wrong, horror thriller. It put me in mind of an up to date John Wyndham (Day of the Triffids, The Midwhich Cuckoos etc) with a touch of Soylent Green thrown in.

The author describes the curse of insomnia particularly well and it is no surprise that in the notes at the end of the book she confesses that she is a victim of the dreaded insomnia. 

I was amazed to see that this is a debut novel. The narrative is polished and slick, you would swear that the author is a veteran of long-standing. It augers well for a long career in fiction writing.

As with all the best dystopian tales there is a scary nugget of truth in the story that could possibly evolve one day into actually becoming reality. This book would make a great episode of Black Mirror or a Netflix binge watch box set. Now to try to get some kip😳🛌😴!

Selected Quotes...

"It was her small safe space where she could crawl and hide after an exhausting day spent trying to seem human."

"Her eyes felt as if they’d been put in the oven for too long."

"Harriet led her to a cathedral. This cathedral, like every cathedral before it, was built to stun the masses into greater belief."

"But that was beta- testing for you. Unpredictable. Thankfully, it was frighteningly easy for people to be wiped away– if you chose the right people in the first place. But still… messy."

"She was just one more body for a company that wanted to erase what happened here, forget it, smooth it over like a plasterer smoothing over a wall, hoping the blood wouldn’t seep through."

About the Author...

Louise was born and lives in South Wales. From a young age she loved books and dancing, but hated having to go to sleep, convinced that she might miss out on something interesting happening in the world whilst she dozed – much to her mother’s frustration! Insomnia has been a part of her life ever since.

She studied English Literature at university and graduated with first class honours. As a teacher she tried to pass on her love of reading to her students (and discovered that the secret to successful teaching is… stickers! She is aware that that is, essentially, bribery.)

In the summer of 2019 Louise experienced a once-in-a-lifetime moment: she was discovered as a new writer by her publisher at the Primadonna Festival. Everything has been a bit of a whirlwind since then.

Louise lives in Cardiff with her husband and spends her time trying to get down on paper all the marvellous and frightening things that happen in her head.

Easy Meat by Rachel Trezise

 

You can buy Easy Meat.........Here

The blurb...

The south Wales Valleys, 23rd June, 2016. It’s another long day chopping beef carcasses up at the slaughterhouse for former reality TV star and Iron Man contender, Caleb Jenkins, whose untroubled world unravelled when his old man’s carpet business went bust last year, another casualty of the global financial crisis. While he’s busy trying to manage the well-being of his conspiracy-theorist brother, the mortgage keeping a roof over his bankrupt parents’ heads, his own excruciating grief, internal rage and impossible credit score, politicians of all persuasions are promising the scared and voiceless people around him real change.

Desperate for acknowledgement and a transformation he can’t quite bring about by his own means, Caleb is on the edge.

Easy Meat is a glimpse of a young man and a country on the verge of a momentous decision.

My Review....

At only 121 pages long this is a punchy longish short story/novella.

Easy Meat tells the story of a day in the life of Valley Boy Caleb Jenkins. The day in question just happens to be the day of the Brexit referendum. Caleb is a man on the verge of a breakdown. He is struggling with his awful, low paid job in a slaughterhouse, where the rest of the workers are Polish immigrants. He is wilting under the pressure of sharing his home with his now bankrupt and homeless parents and weed addicted layabout brother. On top of this he has real girlfriend and child issues to contend with. He just needs a little something to help him turn the corner, just an opportunity to get back to normal.

For me there are a few little niggles with this novella. While the Merthyr setting is integral to the story I found the overuse of street and neighbourhood names to be a little distracting as was the ongoing description of butchering beef carcasses. While I understand that this was used as a counterpoint while Caleb's story was told in flash-back I thought the carcass dissection scenes were overdone. After reading this you may well sway away from eating meat. I don't know but would hazard a guess that the author is a vegetarian. and lastly I did not quite "get" the ending. Again these are subjective and probably say more about me than the writing.

Being a Valley Boy myself (I may have mentioned that before 🙄🙈) the area where I thought the author was absolutely bang on was in describing the socio-political malaise that now overwhelms the once proud working class, once labour voting valleys. The Valleys were the area that benefit most from European investment but still voted in favour of Brexit. She is very clever in that she does not do this by using macro-political policy statements, indeed politics is hardly mentioned overtly at all, but by describing the micro day-to-day encounters that Caleb and his family have. You see the frustration that had caused a gap in the market that UKIP and Brexit exploited. It seems that while most people voted Brexit not for ideological reasons but because the status quo just was not working. You are left feeling that there is a lack of opportunity and an inevitability that this festering social inertia will continue. 

The author brings a caustic description to these encounters that is savagely sarcastic and well observed, (and with a hint of Raymond Chandler read in Humphrey Bogart's voice) see selected quotes. Any senior figure in the labour party (or indeed Plaid Cymru) would do well to read this book. It is a Welsh Boys from the Blackstuff for the Love Island generation. 

Finally, I know we shouldn't judge a book by its cover but this cover is a belter.

Selected Quotes...

"It couldn't get any worse, the man said, rubbing his beer belly. There's families up on the hill surviving on charity from the church, like something from Victorian times

Sad, Caleb said.

Chuck a hand grenade in I reckon, the man said, see what happens."

"He'd been a cast member on the 2012 series, with seven other twenty somethings from every Abercwmnowhere in post industrial south Wales, bodybuilders with the IQ of crayons, ballooned on steriods and Pinot Grigio-soaked Beyonce wannabes. It was TV designed for rubberneckers who thought the salad always greener in someone else kebab."

"He noticed the peroxide blonde in the queue next to him was looking at him too, bottle green eyes homed in on him like a missile on a target. Scorching hot but obviously high maintenance, if not borderline insane."

"You know what it's like. We're working class bro.We're easy meat."

About the author...

Rachel Trezise’s debut novel In and Out of the Goldfish Bowl won a place on the Orange Futures List in 2002 and is now part of the Library of Wales series. In 2006 her short story collection Fresh Apples won the Dylan Thomas Prize. Her second collection Cosmic Latte won the Edge Hill Prize Readers’ Award in 2013 while her travel memoir Dial M for Merthyr won the Max Boyce Award. Her first play Tonypandemonium was produced by the National Theatre of Wales and won the Theatre Critics for Wales Award for best production. We’re Still Here was also produced by the National Theatre of Wales in 2017 while Cotton Fingers toured Wales, Ireland and Scotland, receiving a Summerhall Lustrum Award at the Edinburgh Festival. She lives in the Rhondda.

The Road By Cormac McCarthy

 

⭐⭐⭐⭐

You can buy The Road.......Here

The blurb...

In the wake of an undefined apocalyptic event, a father and his son walk alone through burned America. Nothing moves in the ravaged landscape save the ash on the wind. It is cold enough to crack stones, and when the snow falls it is gray. The sky is dark. Their destination is the coast, although they don’t know what, if anything, awaits them there. They have nothing; just a pistol to defend themselves against the lawless bands that stalk the road, the clothes they are wearing, a cart of scavenged food—and each other.

The Road is the profoundly moving story of a journey. It boldly imagines a future in which no hope remains, but in which the father and his son, “each the other’s world entire,” are sustained by love. Awesome in the totality of its vision, it is an unflinching meditation on the worst and the best that we are capable of: ultimate destructiveness, desperate tenacity, and the tenderness that keeps two people alive in the face of total devastation.

My Review...

This book was recommended to me by two friends on twitter, both authors themselves and I can see why. The writing is stripped back and accurate. A technical masterpiece in delivering two basic human emotions. Love and terror. I defy anyone who reads this book not to feel those emotions. The fact that someone can take their thoughts and, after committing them to paper, make you feel the same emotions as the author does while writing is truly amazing. This thought/emotion transfer is what good writing means to me.

I found the writing to be reminiscent of Hemmingway's "The Old Man and The Sea"

It uses staccato sentences, minimal and extremely basic dialogue, it all makes for a simple honest, supremely crafted tale. Also the books are similar in depicting what seems an unwinnable battle between the protagonist(s) and their environment and the dangers contained there in, be it shoals of sharks or bands of cannibals. With these simple tools the author creates a masterpiece. He is so good at what he does that you don't see the effort that goes into it. The only thing I can relate it to is like watching Steve Davis play snooker when he was in his pomp. Everything is executed so well it looks effortless, but you know it isn't.

While the father is world weary and fearful, the boy harbours optimism. The young lad  wants to meet and befriend others, while the father is reluctant. As they move through the landscape, the boy's approach to life becomes tempered by experience. Yet if humanity is to survive, then his sense of co-operation and kindness must survive too. After all, if that is lost, what is the point of survival. Their differences not withstanding, the love between them shines out partly because it is enveloped by the darkness of the misery that surrounds them. 

That said this book is grim and unyielding. The author is clever in that he does not use chapters so there is no respite from the terror, It is unrelenting. This is probably the closest to a real post apocalyptic world that I have ever read. No glamour of the hunger games here. (see selected quotes.)  I am a grizzly bear on the outside and a teddy bear on the inside. I can't watch The Walking Dead for fear of nightmares and have been known to cry at It's a Wonderful Life (and the occasional John Lewis Christmas advert.) That is why I have only given 4 stars. Great book but far too grim for me, this reflects on me rather than the superbly written book.

It honestly makes you think to yourself If there was an apocalypse I should shoot myself in head quickly to avoid the horror of survival. For that reason alone you will not forget this book.

Selected quotes...

" This is my child, he said. I wash a dead man's brains out of his hair. That is my job. Then he wrapped him in the blanket and carried him to the fire."

"Just remember that the things you put in your head are there forever, he said. You might want to think about that.

You forget some things don't you?

Yes. You forget what you want to remember and remember the things you want to forget."

"he saw for a brief moment the absolute truth of the world. The cold relentless circling of the intestate earth. Darkness implacable.... The crushing black vacuum of the universe. And somewhere two hunted animals trembling like ground foxes in their cover. Borrowed time and borrowed world and borrowed eyes with which to sorrow it."

"Can you do it? When the time comes? When the time comes there will be no time. Now is the time. Curse God and die. What if it doesn't fire. It has to fire. What if it doesn't fire? Could you crush that beloved skull with a rock? Is there such a being within you of which you know nothing? Can there be?

About the author...

Cormac McCarthy is an American author, playwright, and screenwriter, best known for his Western characters and historical settings in his novels. He served the U.S. Air Force briefly, while studying at the University of Tennessee. He wrote for the university magazine and won the Ingram-Merrill Award. After publishing his first novel, The Orchard Keeper in 1965, he set off for Ireland on a traveling scholarship. He was mostly poor throughout his early writing days but traveled a lot. He won the Rockefeller Foundation Grant, the Guggenheim Fellowship, and the MacArthur Fellowship. In 2007, he won the Pulitzer Prize for Literature for this post-apocalyptic novel The Road. Some of his other notable works are Blood Meridian and The Border Trilogy. He got married and divorced thrice and now lives in New Mexico. (from thefamouspeople.com)

Zen & The Art of Motorcycle Maintenance

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

You can buy the 40th anniversary edition of 

Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance........Here

The blurb...

 A philosophical odyssey into life's fundamental questions during an unforgettable summer motorcycle trip, Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance transformed a generation and continues to inspire millions

One of the most influential books written in the past half-century, Robert Pirsig's Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance is a powerful examination of how we live and a breathtaking meditation on how to live better. Following a father and his young son on a summer motorcycle trip across America's Northwest, it is a story of love, fear, growth, discovery and acceptance. Both personal and philosophical, it is a compelling study of relationships, values, and eventually, enlightenment – resonant with the confusions and wonders of existence.
Acclaimed as one of the most exciting books in the history of American letters, this modern epic became an instant bestseller upon publication in 1974.

‘The book is inspired, original…the analogies with Moby-Dick are patent’ New Yorker
‘Mr Pirsig has written a work of great, perhaps urgent, importance... Read this book’ Observer

My Review..

Only 47 years late to the party but Wow! where to begin with this...

Firstly it is three threads in one book

1. It is a travelogue of a man and his 12-year old son travelling from Minnesota to San Francisco via motorbike in the 60s.
2. It is story of a schizophrenic (the father) who has been purged of his alter ego (Phadreus a PhD philosophy student, who went insane contemplating the concept of Quality) by electro-shock treatment in a mental institution. The man is now free but his alter ego  gradually begins to enter his conscience again as the motorcycle journey progresses.
3. Most importantly it is a philosophical paper on our place in the grand scheme of things, how we fit into the universe and how the universe fits into us. He calls it an investigation into Quality. However: the term quality can be misleading. I think if you substitute the word Quality for Tao (Or as Douglas Adams would call it in The Hitch-hikers guide to the Galaxy, Life, the Universe and Everything) you get a much better understanding of what he is driving at.

While the first two themes are interesting in and of themselves, their main role is to serve as a break from the heavy lifting of reading deeply abstract, philosophical tracts. These tracts are indeed heavy going. I often found myself re-reading them several times just to gain a basic understanding of them, but it is worth it.

While it is not the most entertaining book that I have ever read it is probably the most fascinating. Often the question is asked "has any book changed your life?" My head is buzzing with this book. I think in years to come, for me, this will be that book. The trouble is unless you have read (and mentally digested) it is hard to explain why. It melds Western thinking with Eastern thinking. The issue of "Quality" is to big to be approached head on, it has to be approached by allegories. The main allegory being that the system of motorcycle maintenance is an allegory for life itself and as such this book is not really about motor cycles, its about the human experience and how to live our best lives, which in turn will bring a pleasant aesthetic and calmness to the world around us. 

The book builds theory on theory showing us that the motor cycle (life) is not separate from us, we are not subject and object but are intrinsically linked in a sort of constant feedback loop with everything. If we carry the proper maintenance (develop a zen approach) on the motorbike (life) in a thoughtful and precise manner we will get a fulfilment that is often sadly lacking in today's world. The words sound very clumsy as I'm writing them, I'm afraid I'm not explaining concepts well. Read the book, Persig does it beautifully, often with a lovely, lyrical style.

This edition (40th Anniversary) contained some interesting extras

• A series of fascinating letters between the author and publisher over several years. The book was famously turned down 121 times. The publisher eventually published not for profit (he thought it probable that there would be none) but because he thought it was his duty to try bring these writings to the attention of the world, which begs the question would a book like this published today.
• An afterword by the author (now deceased) that is just heartbreaking.
• Questions for discussion.

The book dissects how we live our lives and how we can live better. Dont get me wrong, this is a Marmite book (For non Brits, that means that you will either love it or hate it. There is no middle ground.) And the book has to find you at the right time of your life. I have no doubt that if I read this at 20 years of age, I would have said that he is a bit pretentious and is going to disappear up his own backside, but as you get older you become more mellow and start to think about Life, the Universe and Everything and about Quality.

Bottom line.. An amazing revelatory book

Selected Quotes...

"We're in such a hurry most of the time, we never get much chance to talk.The result is a kind of endless day to day shallowness, a monotony that leaves a person wondering years later where all the time went and sorry it's all gone"

"What's wrong with technology is that its not connected in any real way with the matters of the spirit and the heart."

"Mental reflection is so much more interesting than TV it's a shame more people don't switch over to it. They probably think what they hear is unimportant but it never is"

"Or if he takes whatever dull job he is stuck with - and they are all, sooner or later, dull- and just to keep himself amused starts to look for options of Quality and secretly pursues the options, just for their own sake, thus making art out of what he is doing, he's likely to discover that he becomes a much more interesting person and much less of an object to the people around him because his Quality decisions change him too."

"The place to improve the world is first in ones's own heart and head and hands, and the work outward from there. Other people can talk about how to expand the destiny of mankind. I just want to talk about how to fix a motorcycle. I think what I have to say has more lasting value."

“When one person suffers from a delusion, it is called insanity. When many people suffer from a delusion it is called a Religion.”

“The only Zen you find on tops of mountains is the Zen you bring there.”

About the author...

Robert M. Pirsig was the renowned author of the bestseller, ‘Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance,” a popular cult classic of the present century. As a child, he believed that there was a theory that could explain the different singularities of life and he hoped that science would be the solution to his queries and enlighten him. Contrary to his conviction, he arrived at a number of hypotheses for many given phenomenon while he was doing laboratory work at the University of Minnesota. This resulted in the deterioration of his academic performance and his subsequent dismissal from the university. He advocated the theory of ‘Metaphysics of Quality’ and through his works he explained the impact of “quality” and “good” over reality. His theory is the culmination of Western and Oriental philosophy through which he offered solutions to the crises of values in the western civilization. He also authored another famous book ‘Lila: An Inquiry into Morals’, which was nominated for the Pulitzer.