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Killer Bytes
A killer is stalking London; a banker is already dead, killed in an explosion, and there are more victims in the killer’s sights.Techno geek and Internet journalist, Wil Jackson becomes inadvertently embroiled in the investigation when he interviews one of the murder victims, and the killer starts communicating with Wil via the Internet. Can Wil help the police stop the killer before the body count increases further?
195 pages, Kindle Edition
2 people want to read
About the author
Alan Williams
1 book26 followersWriter, environmentalist, naturalist, allotment holder, blogger, vlogger, reader of books and dog owner.
Blogs:
http://tontowilliams.com
Blogs:
http://tontowilliams.com
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
January 13, 2012
KILLER BYTES by Alan Williams
At the request of the author, the first half of a digital manuscript was provided, at no cost to me, for my honest opinion.
Synopsis: A killer is stalking London; a banker is already dead, killed in an explosion, and there are more victims in the killer’s sights.
Techno geek and Internet journalist, Wil Jackson becomes inadvertently embroiled in the investigation when he interviews one of the murder victims, and the killer starts communicating with Wil via the Internet. Can Wil help the police stop the killer before the body count increases further?
Killer Bytes is a novella of intrigue from blogger, Alan Williams, due for publication in 2012. Follow Alan via his blog http://tontowilliams.posterous.com or on twitter @tontowilliams http://twitter.com/tontowilliams.
My Thoughts and Opinion: This is the second time this has happened to me and I feel that it is the greatest honor and most humbling experience to be bestowed with and that is to be entrusted with an author's manuscript for review.
Through blogging and the PR company, Partners In Crime Tours, I met someone who is an outstanding blogger and reviewer. After working with him on several projects, I had a feeling that he might also be a writer. I asked and he said that he had been working on a novella and asked if I would read it and give him my honest opinion. For me, that's like being asked to be the Godmother of someone's baby. Such an honor yet also a huge responsibility.
As I said, he sent me only the first half, as the 2nd half was with his editor. I started reading with great skepticism because now it was going to be the moment of truth. The novella starts off with a prologue and within the first couple of pages, the book grabbed me. The suspense and action was fast paced. The writing style flowed and it was easy to create my own imagery from the detailed prose. There were only two (2) items that I felt that could be improved upon, which with time, mentoring and professional advice, would help make this blogger's work into an author's success. Those 2 items were, and only during a couple of places in the story, a bit of simplistic dialogue and the other being of tweaking to make the story in certain places tighter and mature. Oh and one other big problem was the fact that now, I don't know what happened next, I don't know how the story ends, and who the killer was. But overall, from what I read, and knowing that this will be his debut novella, I was quite impressed. I definitely see a tour in his future.
My Rating: 4
At the request of the author, the first half of a digital manuscript was provided, at no cost to me, for my honest opinion.
Synopsis: A killer is stalking London; a banker is already dead, killed in an explosion, and there are more victims in the killer’s sights.
Techno geek and Internet journalist, Wil Jackson becomes inadvertently embroiled in the investigation when he interviews one of the murder victims, and the killer starts communicating with Wil via the Internet. Can Wil help the police stop the killer before the body count increases further?
Killer Bytes is a novella of intrigue from blogger, Alan Williams, due for publication in 2012. Follow Alan via his blog http://tontowilliams.posterous.com or on twitter @tontowilliams http://twitter.com/tontowilliams.
My Thoughts and Opinion: This is the second time this has happened to me and I feel that it is the greatest honor and most humbling experience to be bestowed with and that is to be entrusted with an author's manuscript for review.
Through blogging and the PR company, Partners In Crime Tours, I met someone who is an outstanding blogger and reviewer. After working with him on several projects, I had a feeling that he might also be a writer. I asked and he said that he had been working on a novella and asked if I would read it and give him my honest opinion. For me, that's like being asked to be the Godmother of someone's baby. Such an honor yet also a huge responsibility.
As I said, he sent me only the first half, as the 2nd half was with his editor. I started reading with great skepticism because now it was going to be the moment of truth. The novella starts off with a prologue and within the first couple of pages, the book grabbed me. The suspense and action was fast paced. The writing style flowed and it was easy to create my own imagery from the detailed prose. There were only two (2) items that I felt that could be improved upon, which with time, mentoring and professional advice, would help make this blogger's work into an author's success. Those 2 items were, and only during a couple of places in the story, a bit of simplistic dialogue and the other being of tweaking to make the story in certain places tighter and mature. Oh and one other big problem was the fact that now, I don't know what happened next, I don't know how the story ends, and who the killer was. But overall, from what I read, and knowing that this will be his debut novella, I was quite impressed. I definitely see a tour in his future.
My Rating: 4
April 16, 2012
Now, in a total departure from my standard review style - I have a rant to get off my chest! Indy authors - LISTEN UP!! There seems to be some sort of trend out there and I've noticed it mostly with self-published authors. For some reason, there is a vital part of the book missing: the author's bio!! I don't know whether it is the inner stalker in me or if my mother was particularily good at instilling in me the need to know something about who I am taking to bed with me (or into the bath, or sharing other quiet and intimate moments with), but I want to know a little about you. A picture wouldn't hurt either. Alan William's bio is conspicuously absent from Killer Bytes. And that is the only negative I have to offer in regards to this fabulous novella.
Knowing this tour was up and coming and considering the blizzard raging outside (yes, this was the end of last week), I picked up Alan William's offering and headed for a hot bath. I opened to the first page where it says "Killer Bytes a novella of intrigue" and then continued on. Intrigue is right! I was immediately drawn in. This is 'psychological thriller' at it's best. Mr. Williams doesn't use gore or sensationalism; instead he lets the mystery worm its way into your mind. Instead of getting all tangled up in the killings and the killer, my mind was totally involved in the process of catching the bad guy. How was it going to happen? Would it happen soon enough? Are the good guys making the right moves or is this going to get one of them killed as well? I read the entire book in that one 'tub session', got out and realized I'd totally forgotten to shave my legs!
Kudo's to Mr Williams! Killer Bytes is an enjoyable and involving book.
Knowing this tour was up and coming and considering the blizzard raging outside (yes, this was the end of last week), I picked up Alan William's offering and headed for a hot bath. I opened to the first page where it says "Killer Bytes a novella of intrigue" and then continued on. Intrigue is right! I was immediately drawn in. This is 'psychological thriller' at it's best. Mr. Williams doesn't use gore or sensationalism; instead he lets the mystery worm its way into your mind. Instead of getting all tangled up in the killings and the killer, my mind was totally involved in the process of catching the bad guy. How was it going to happen? Would it happen soon enough? Are the good guys making the right moves or is this going to get one of them killed as well? I read the entire book in that one 'tub session', got out and realized I'd totally forgotten to shave my legs!
Kudo's to Mr Williams! Killer Bytes is an enjoyable and involving book.
February 7, 2012
Ok, first things first, I know the author. In fact, I would probably describe myself as a friend of the author. Which means that anything I say next is going to be coloured with that brush. I did, however, pay cold hard cash for my copy of the book - a whole 99c (USD) - which is probably also necessary knowledge before you read my review. And, finally, I don't normally read police procedural books, but I picked this up because a friend had written it and it only cost 99c, so I couldn't see the harm. Assuming that is all the information you need - here's my review.
I liked it. It should really be read in one sitting (which is entirely possible because it is more of a novella than a novel) to get the full enjoyment of the story. This is not a "who-dunnit" as the book isn't over padded with red-herrings, wild-goose chases, and other animal-themed asides. No, this starts with a murder, moves on to another murder, and continues until....well, until the end (HA! You're not getting any spoilers out of me.). Along the way a blogger gets involved, and helps the police out with their enquiries (in a positive way).
All in all it is a quick and easy read, with a satisfying conclusion. I'm looking forward to the follow up, which will hopefully flesh out the characters fully. The problem with a novella is that there isn't enough to fully form the characters, and I want to know more about Wil and Chief Inspector Price.
I liked it. It should really be read in one sitting (which is entirely possible because it is more of a novella than a novel) to get the full enjoyment of the story. This is not a "who-dunnit" as the book isn't over padded with red-herrings, wild-goose chases, and other animal-themed asides. No, this starts with a murder, moves on to another murder, and continues until....well, until the end (HA! You're not getting any spoilers out of me.). Along the way a blogger gets involved, and helps the police out with their enquiries (in a positive way).
All in all it is a quick and easy read, with a satisfying conclusion. I'm looking forward to the follow up, which will hopefully flesh out the characters fully. The problem with a novella is that there isn't enough to fully form the characters, and I want to know more about Wil and Chief Inspector Price.
February 6, 2012
Wil Jackson is a tech blogger, self-confessed geek and generally mostly harmless. He is therefore somewhat surprised when the police turn up on his doorstep asking why his last interviewee - an investment banker - has been killed in an explosion. However, this proves to be just the first of a string of gruesome murders and when the killer starts sending taunting messages via the internet it falls to Wil to use all of his skills to find the connection between the apparently unrelated victims.
This an engaging and absorbing first novella from author and blogger Alan Williams. The plot rattles along, with the mystery being unravelled as the corpses pile up. It is refreshing to read a detective story where the use of the internet is handled realistically without being belaboured. There is a touch of wish-fulfilment at work as well, as the hero works from a fantastic sounding hi-tech shed in his garden and begins an affair with a glamorous politician.
It's a short book, but it left me wanting more and I hope the author returns to these characters soon!
This an engaging and absorbing first novella from author and blogger Alan Williams. The plot rattles along, with the mystery being unravelled as the corpses pile up. It is refreshing to read a detective story where the use of the internet is handled realistically without being belaboured. There is a touch of wish-fulfilment at work as well, as the hero works from a fantastic sounding hi-tech shed in his garden and begins an affair with a glamorous politician.
It's a short book, but it left me wanting more and I hope the author returns to these characters soon!
January 30, 2012
This is the second time this year I've had the pleasure of reading a book written by someone I actually know. I'm very impressed with this first effort, and even though I'm not a big fan of the crime genre, I found this to be a very enjoyable and fast-paced read. For me, the most interesting element was the character of the hero, a tech blogger whose office is a living ark. If the author gives this character, Wil Jackson, another story, I'd like to know more about his history.
March 22, 2012
review to follow
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews