Graven Image

by Charlie Williams

It knocks the wind out of you, reality does...

Brothel bouncer Leon shouldn't be here. A week ago he stepped over the line, maiming a violent VIP punter. But he can't stay away. Not with his daughter Kelly being so young and vulnerable. If he can sort it out with Graven, take the punishment he knows he is due, maybe they can call it a debt paid. But when Kelly goes missing Leon realises what kind of debt is due.

All is not as it seems in this fast-paced novella from the author of Stairway to Hell and the acclaimed Royston Blake series.

Genres: Crime, Noir

120 pages, Kindle Edition

First published April 1, 2011

About the author

Author of the Mangel series of DEADFOLK, FAGS AND LAGER (US edition BOOZE AND BURN), KING OF THE ROAD, ONE DEAD HEN and MADE OF STONE, all featuring nightclub doorman antihero Royston Blake. Plus standalone STAIRWAY TO HELL and novella GRAVEN IMAGE. English, scatalogical and dark.

Reviews

[Bene Vogt · Rating 2 out of 5]

While not entirely bereft of laughs, this suffers brutally both from comparisons to Williams ' other, brilliant saga about a bouncer and a plot that starts to feel predictable early on and doesn't hold a single surprise from there.

[Heath Lowrance · Rating 5 out of 5]

A brutal but funny MF of a novella from Charlie Williams, GRAVEN IMAGE seems designed to keep the reader always a little off-kilter. The protagonist, Leon, tears across the pages in a mad search for his daughter, and he won’t allow anything to stand in his way. The real strength of this story is the slowly creeping realization that there is something… wrong… with Leon and his perception of events. About three-fourths of the way through, you start to get some ideas about what’s really happening, but that doesn’t lessen the horrible blow that comes when Leon finally realizes it himself. A different tone from Charlie’s Mangel novels, but equally compelling.

[Any Length · Rating 2 out of 5]

I listened to the audio book with no prior knowledge about it's contents.
Subsequently I had to work out for myself that these are the rantings of an insane person.
The book begins with what a appears a normal thinking person, called Leon realizing his daughter has been abducted in order to make him pay for a misunderstanding where he had hurt someone. Further in to the book it gets really wired and Shadow no longer makes sense. His mental deterioration is at first perceived as a jumping in tracks in the recording. Then it dawns on the listener that this Leon character is seriously disturbed. In this regard it wasn't too bad. But I didn't enjoy it that much.

[Karin Montin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Charlie Williams has knack for telling a story in a really strong first-person voice. He also has a thing for unreliable bouncers, as readers of the Mangel trilogy-plus will know. In this novella, a brothel bouncer on leave after overreacting to a crisis searches desperately for his daughter. Things get stranger and you finally realize why. Violent and funny with a fitting end.

[J. A. White · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good little book, short and to the point. The first person narration is quite well done and consistent throughout the story. It took me a while to wisen up to what was going on which doesn't happen to me much with that kind of stories and I really did not see the end coming so another plus.

[Kirk Dickinson · Rating 2 out of 5]

Great book, exactly what I was looking for. Very original prose with a short but brutal and entertaining story.

[Trent Smith · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reviewed at Pulp300...

http://pulp300.wordpress.com/2013/01/...