Thomas Purser's Blog
December 1, 2013
Chaudjour has the pleasure of interviewing Jason Parent, author of What Hides Within.
Q1 One of my favorite scenes in What Hides Within, is the drunken liaison between Clive and Judith. What inspired this scene?
A Life. Alcohol makes one do stupid things.
Q2 Which scene was the most difficult to write and why?
A All the scenes involving Victoria. She is a character who holds a special place in my heart. Writing her as sad, dejected, neglected – I feel what she feels when I write it. And the her last scene…
Q3 Who’s your favorite character from What Hides Within?
A tie between Victoria and Chester. Victoria’s like the daughter I never had. Chester is the darkness I do have and need to get out.
Q4 Biblical and non-biblical texts are packed with gods, demigods and an assortment of other worldly beings. Considering this statement, why did you specifically choose the Nephilim?
A The Nephilim fascinate me, mostly because they are referenced in the New Testament, yet only some of what is written about them is accepted as scripture by some religious factions. I suspect most Christians today have never heard of them.
The Book of Enoch fleshes out their story. These “sons of God” and “daughters of men” half breeds were sometimes viewed as giants. Supposedly, they were eradicated for a rebellion against God. Obviously, I add my own twist to how these mighty may have fallen.
Q5 What’s next for What Hides Within? Are you planning a sequel, prequel or an off-shoot?
A Nothing is in the works yet. But I do have an outline of Victoria’s story, should I choose to write it.
What Hides Within
A Life. Alcohol makes one do stupid things.
Q2 Which scene was the most difficult to write and why?
A All the scenes involving Victoria. She is a character who holds a special place in my heart. Writing her as sad, dejected, neglected – I feel what she feels when I write it. And the her last scene…
Q3 Who’s your favorite character from What Hides Within?
A tie between Victoria and Chester. Victoria’s like the daughter I never had. Chester is the darkness I do have and need to get out.
Q4 Biblical and non-biblical texts are packed with gods, demigods and an assortment of other worldly beings. Considering this statement, why did you specifically choose the Nephilim?
A The Nephilim fascinate me, mostly because they are referenced in the New Testament, yet only some of what is written about them is accepted as scripture by some religious factions. I suspect most Christians today have never heard of them.
The Book of Enoch fleshes out their story. These “sons of God” and “daughters of men” half breeds were sometimes viewed as giants. Supposedly, they were eradicated for a rebellion against God. Obviously, I add my own twist to how these mighty may have fallen.
Q5 What’s next for What Hides Within? Are you planning a sequel, prequel or an off-shoot?
A Nothing is in the works yet. But I do have an outline of Victoria’s story, should I choose to write it.
What Hides Within
November 26, 2013
What Hides Within. Written by Jason Parent. Reviewed by Thomas Purser.
What Hides Within. Written by Jason Parent.
Reviewed by Thomas Purser.
I received a free copy of What Hides Within in exchange for this review.
What Hides Within is an extremely well written, darkly humorous observation of the human condition in the modern world. Go out and buy it now before the press runs dry.
The dark humour and scathing snapshot of people’s lives is right up my street.
I really can identify with what author Jason Parent is saying about our lives and the way we attempt to navigate a path through an increasingly manically hilarious, ocean of stupidity, arrogance and utter absurdity.
To some degree or other, Jason Parent’s characters are all traumatised by modern life and exist in two places simultaneouslyThe first place is the chaotic and inane physical world outside their heads.The second place is the chaotic and inane world inside their heads.
Clive, the main character is having an experience inside his head that can’t be explained by the insane and barbaric physical entity known as modern medical science, with its tick box fixation that dictates whether one is insane or not.
Through his characterisations, Jason Parent is reminding us that we live in a cognitively constricted and increasingly dumb society, and if we were to let go of this epidemic of dumbness, we might discover the world we live in is not as linear as we have been led to believe.
Although the themes Jason Parent addresses are serious and tragic, What Hides Within is written from a caustically funny (and I mean very funny!) perspective and at no time is the novel overbearing or preachy in its tone.
The pace and continuity are all moving in the same direction. In other words there are no sudden surprises or unexplained and totally disorientating twists in the plot. When characters die in What Hides Within, they stay dead.
I will conclude the review by reaffirming what I said in the introduction,What Hides Within. It’s a superb, thought provoking novel that is hilarious and thoroughly entertaining.
I highly recommend it. So rush out and by a copy now. You won’t be disappointed.
What Hides Within[bookcover:What Hides Within|15828555
November 23, 2013
Ethereal Influence, The Inquisition. Written by Lana Bradstream. Reviewed by Thomas Purser.
Ethereal Influence, The Inquisition.
Written by Lana Bradstream.
Reviewed by Thomas Purser.
Thomas Purser received a free copy of Ethereal Influence, The Inquisition, in exchange for this review.
Ethereal Influence is an informative and well-written novel. The story is set during the sadistically insane times of the Inquisition.
Bradstream’s treatment of the eternal struggle for the human soul is as honest as it is brutal. The violence and futility of religion are entirely exposed, along with the degeneration of the sadistic perpetrators, who are as far removed from a compassionate and loving god as anyone could be.
Ethereal Influence has good characterisation, with both main protagonists, Ayla and Nikolaus, displaying the confused and often hypocritical thoughts and actions all of us can identify with.
Both characters have their weaknesses and their temptations to deal with, whilst at same time attempting to navigate a path through the chaotic and often highly disorientating and pitiless human experience.
The pace of the novel was consistent and added to the readability. From a reader’s point of view, there was no need to try and work out ambiguous and inconsistent explosive events that bare little or no relation to the rate the novel moves to its conclusion.
The continuity was coherent and well orientated which, again from a reader’s point of view, makes reading the novel a pleasure rather than a chore. There‘s nothing worse from a reader‘s perspective than finding oneself flicking back through the pages to make sense of a sudden and unexplained change in the plot.
Fortunately Lana Bradstream’s structured continuity, consistent pace and well-developed and contextual characterisations allow for effortless evocation of the plot and therefore make the novel effortlessly convincing.
I recommend Ethereal Influence, The Inquisition to everybody, but especially to those interested in human history and its wonderful and terrifying quest for truth and peace.
Written by Lana Bradstream.
Reviewed by Thomas Purser.
Thomas Purser received a free copy of Ethereal Influence, The Inquisition, in exchange for this review.
Ethereal Influence is an informative and well-written novel. The story is set during the sadistically insane times of the Inquisition.
Bradstream’s treatment of the eternal struggle for the human soul is as honest as it is brutal. The violence and futility of religion are entirely exposed, along with the degeneration of the sadistic perpetrators, who are as far removed from a compassionate and loving god as anyone could be.
Ethereal Influence has good characterisation, with both main protagonists, Ayla and Nikolaus, displaying the confused and often hypocritical thoughts and actions all of us can identify with.
Both characters have their weaknesses and their temptations to deal with, whilst at same time attempting to navigate a path through the chaotic and often highly disorientating and pitiless human experience.
The pace of the novel was consistent and added to the readability. From a reader’s point of view, there was no need to try and work out ambiguous and inconsistent explosive events that bare little or no relation to the rate the novel moves to its conclusion.
The continuity was coherent and well orientated which, again from a reader’s point of view, makes reading the novel a pleasure rather than a chore. There‘s nothing worse from a reader‘s perspective than finding oneself flicking back through the pages to make sense of a sudden and unexplained change in the plot.
Fortunately Lana Bradstream’s structured continuity, consistent pace and well-developed and contextual characterisations allow for effortless evocation of the plot and therefore make the novel effortlessly convincing.
I recommend Ethereal Influence, The Inquisition to everybody, but especially to those interested in human history and its wonderful and terrifying quest for truth and peace.
November 16, 2013
Seeking Dr. Magic. Review
Seeking Dr. Magic.
Written by Scott Spotson.
Reviewed by Thomas Purser.
Thomas Purser was given a free copy of Seeking Dr. Magic in exchange for this review.
Seeking Dr. Magic is the story of an incredible global enigma. The main character Tony Hetfield is an ex-government agent who takes it upon himself to track down this spectacular global enigma.
That’s all I’m going to say about the story. I think it’s best for the reader, rather than the reviewer to unravel the plot. Believe me it’s worth the wait because Seeking Dr. Magic is a cleverly-crafted, well paced and visually exciting novel.
Talking of visuals, I was particularly impressed by Spotson’s urban scenes, especially when describing the many colourful and sinisterly vibrant characters that literally leap from the page and become three dimensional as they somersault into the mind of the reader and cascade back out again.
The characterisations are not over-elaborate and fit perfectly within the context of the story. This use of characterisation gives Spotson more room to tell the story and blaze the reader with yet more cool visuals, adding a subtle depth to the characters without over burdening the reader with too much unnecessary detail.
The pace flows at a steady rate throughout the novel. No sudden jumps or unexplained out-of-context accelerations or sluggishness.
In other words, Seeking Dr. Magic is not a struggle to read. The characters and plot effortlessly unfold and allow the reader to concentrate on enjoying the novel, rather than trying to find their way out of a maze of irritating and unnecessary literary devices.
The continuity is fine. Each character, chapter and theme are consistent with no sudden and entirely unexplained resurrections of characters killed off earlier in the novel.
Seeking Dr. Magic is a thoroughly entertaining read. I recommend it.
Written by Scott Spotson.
Reviewed by Thomas Purser.
Thomas Purser was given a free copy of Seeking Dr. Magic in exchange for this review.
Seeking Dr. Magic is the story of an incredible global enigma. The main character Tony Hetfield is an ex-government agent who takes it upon himself to track down this spectacular global enigma.
That’s all I’m going to say about the story. I think it’s best for the reader, rather than the reviewer to unravel the plot. Believe me it’s worth the wait because Seeking Dr. Magic is a cleverly-crafted, well paced and visually exciting novel.
Talking of visuals, I was particularly impressed by Spotson’s urban scenes, especially when describing the many colourful and sinisterly vibrant characters that literally leap from the page and become three dimensional as they somersault into the mind of the reader and cascade back out again.
The characterisations are not over-elaborate and fit perfectly within the context of the story. This use of characterisation gives Spotson more room to tell the story and blaze the reader with yet more cool visuals, adding a subtle depth to the characters without over burdening the reader with too much unnecessary detail.
The pace flows at a steady rate throughout the novel. No sudden jumps or unexplained out-of-context accelerations or sluggishness.
In other words, Seeking Dr. Magic is not a struggle to read. The characters and plot effortlessly unfold and allow the reader to concentrate on enjoying the novel, rather than trying to find their way out of a maze of irritating and unnecessary literary devices.
The continuity is fine. Each character, chapter and theme are consistent with no sudden and entirely unexplained resurrections of characters killed off earlier in the novel.
Seeking Dr. Magic is a thoroughly entertaining read. I recommend it.
November 11, 2013
FetishModel Motel
Hi everyone,
Fetishmodel Motel is a story based on140 character chapters. It was originally written for Twitter, hence the 140 characters limit.
Follow this link http://chaudjourpublishing.co.uk/eboo...
Kind regards
Thomas Purser.
Fetishmodel Motel is a story based on140 character chapters. It was originally written for Twitter, hence the 140 characters limit.
Follow this link http://chaudjourpublishing.co.uk/eboo...
Kind regards
Thomas Purser.
August 24, 2013
Authors Interviews
I'd like to interview dark,dystopian fantasy authors. Let me know if your interested.
thomaspurser@chaudjourpublishing.co.uk
Kind regards, Thomas Purser.
thomaspurser@chaudjourpublishing.co.uk
Kind regards, Thomas Purser.
August 14, 2013
Review of The Eve of St Venus
The Eve of Saint Venus, by Anthony Burgess, is a great insight into English life during the middle of the 20th century.
The Eve of Saint Venus, like so many of Burgess' work, steps out of the everyday reality and challenges our notions of what reality really is.
This work is hilarious, caustic and infinitely insightful, whether Burgess is talking about class conflict, sexual orientations or any other of the many subjects he includes in his works, it's a masterpiece in esoteric fiction.
ThomasThe Eve of St Venus
The Eve of Saint Venus, like so many of Burgess' work, steps out of the everyday reality and challenges our notions of what reality really is.
This work is hilarious, caustic and infinitely insightful, whether Burgess is talking about class conflict, sexual orientations or any other of the many subjects he includes in his works, it's a masterpiece in esoteric fiction.
ThomasThe Eve of St Venus
August 13, 2013
Vathek
I'm reading Vathek by William Beckford for the second time. Vathek and other books like it, for example Candide, are the forefathers of modern fantasy.
Beckford understood that the world is more than a five senses experience.
Vathek is the story of a cruel and ruthless Sultan, who will stop at nothing to achieve his aims.
Beckford exposes the criminality behind the crown and the hypocrisy of the Sultan's double standards and lies.
I'd recommend this book to any modern fantasy fan or anyone who enjoys excellent literature.
Cheers,
Thomas
Vathek
Beckford understood that the world is more than a five senses experience.
Vathek is the story of a cruel and ruthless Sultan, who will stop at nothing to achieve his aims.
Beckford exposes the criminality behind the crown and the hypocrisy of the Sultan's double standards and lies.
I'd recommend this book to any modern fantasy fan or anyone who enjoys excellent literature.
Cheers,
Thomas
Vathek
August 10, 2013
Into Forever
Hi everybody.My name's Thomas Purser and I'm an author from London, UK. I write dark urban fantasy, fantasy sci fi and urban fantasy.
