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Fable
Turning over a new leaf can be hard sometimes. For high school senior Neil Karp it means putting his burnout lifestyle behind him, salvaging his grades before college, and perhaps even plucking up the courage to talk to his crush. That's the easy part. When he and his friends run afoul of the local drug dealers, they become trapped in a rapidly escalating feud which promises only violence and terror.
And if things were not bad enough, something from Neil's past has returned, a creature as bizarre and otherworldly as it is deadly. Neil had hoped he had severed this dark relationship permanently, but with the violence and intimidation rising between him and the town's criminal element, this 'friend' could be his only hope at survival. But when the dust has settled, will he survive the friendship?
And if things were not bad enough, something from Neil's past has returned, a creature as bizarre and otherworldly as it is deadly. Neil had hoped he had severed this dark relationship permanently, but with the violence and intimidation rising between him and the town's criminal element, this 'friend' could be his only hope at survival. But when the dust has settled, will he survive the friendship?
273 pages, Kindle Edition
Published February 19, 2021
5 people are currently reading
18 people want to read
About the author
Daniel James
5 books70 followersDaniel James is an author of speculative fiction from Liverpool, England. He is the recipient of 3 Kirkus Star reviews for his supernatural fantasy thrillers Hourglass, The Ferryman's Toll, and Hair-Trigger Smile. Hourglass and Hair-Trigger Smile were also voted one of Kirkus Reviews' Best 100 Indie novels of 2021 and 2024, respectively. He is represented by Laurie Blum Guest at Re-Naissance Agency.
Daniel first began writing as a hobby and creative outlet to maintain his sanity whilst completing his Bachelors of Science at Liverpool Hope University. Introverted or anti-social, call it what you will, he spent an inordinate amount of his adolescence thinking about superheroes, horror movies, and listening to punk rock and metal. He regrets nothing.
Daniel first began writing as a hobby and creative outlet to maintain his sanity whilst completing his Bachelors of Science at Liverpool Hope University. Introverted or anti-social, call it what you will, he spent an inordinate amount of his adolescence thinking about superheroes, horror movies, and listening to punk rock and metal. He regrets nothing.
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
September 11, 2022
[Blurb goes here]
Neil has an imaginary friend, a very... protective imaginary friend, that has been out of the picture for years. When Neil and his buddies end up being the target of local drug dealers, his friend comes back to help, but that is not necessarily a good thing.
I enjoyed this book a lot, the characters are well thought out, the good guys and the bad guys have their own flaws and problems. The author took the time to give us a glimpse into the lives of all involved, which makes the story —for me at least— three dimensional. There's a certain rhythm to the dialogues, specially the ones between Neil and his buddies.
I wouldn't think of this story as only a horror one, it has definite splashes of gore, fantasy and Sci Fi. I found it hard to put the book down, since every time things got a bit quiet, chaos ensued, so I kept on reading.
I had a lot of fun reading Fable, and I do recommend it.
Thank you for the advanced copy.
Neil has an imaginary friend, a very... protective imaginary friend, that has been out of the picture for years. When Neil and his buddies end up being the target of local drug dealers, his friend comes back to help, but that is not necessarily a good thing.
I enjoyed this book a lot, the characters are well thought out, the good guys and the bad guys have their own flaws and problems. The author took the time to give us a glimpse into the lives of all involved, which makes the story —for me at least— three dimensional. There's a certain rhythm to the dialogues, specially the ones between Neil and his buddies.
I wouldn't think of this story as only a horror one, it has definite splashes of gore, fantasy and Sci Fi. I found it hard to put the book down, since every time things got a bit quiet, chaos ensued, so I kept on reading.
I had a lot of fun reading Fable, and I do recommend it.
Thank you for the advanced copy.
May 8, 2021
TW: Violence, drug use, underage drinking, fowl language,
*****SPOILERS*****
About the book: Turning over a new leaf can be hard sometimes. For high school senior Neil Karp it means putting his burnout lifestyle behind him, salvaging his grades before college, and perhaps even plucking up the courage to talk to his crush. That's the easy part. When he and his friends run afoul of the local drug dealers, they become trapped in a rapidly escalating feud which promises only violence and terror.
And if things were not bad enough, something from Neil's past has returned, a creature as bizarre and otherworldly as it is deadly. Neil had hoped he had severed this dark relationship permanently, but with the violence and intimidation rising between him and the town's criminal element, this 'friend' could be his only hope at survival. But when the dust has settled, will he survive the friendship?
Release Date: February 19th, 2021
Genre: Horror/Sci-fi
Rating: 🌯🌯🌯🌯
What I Liked:
• Neil, Sam, and, Matt killed me with their banter
• The story is an interesting take on high-school life
• I enjoyed that the perspective of the drug dealers are also shown.
What I Didn't Like:
• The year this takes place was a little confusing.
Overall Thoughts: I seriously LOVED the friendship with Neil, Matt, and Sam! They made me laugh out loud so many times. This book is a weird weird one but in a good way. If you love books that have a weird sense of humor this is a good one to read. Sometimes the characters got on my nerves but they are teenage boys so that's bound to happen. There is a lot of talk about drug use in the story but I can see it's to full the story. The ending was kind of just okay for me.
Final Thoughts: Like I said the story felt more grounded in the 90s for me. At times it felt like this book reminded me of the movie Dazed and Confused but instead of a beating on the last day of school it's a beating for hitting the drug dealer. I could definitely see myself checking out other stuff from the author.
IG | Blog
Thanks to publishers and Netgalley for this book for review. All thoughts are my own
*****SPOILERS*****
About the book: Turning over a new leaf can be hard sometimes. For high school senior Neil Karp it means putting his burnout lifestyle behind him, salvaging his grades before college, and perhaps even plucking up the courage to talk to his crush. That's the easy part. When he and his friends run afoul of the local drug dealers, they become trapped in a rapidly escalating feud which promises only violence and terror.
And if things were not bad enough, something from Neil's past has returned, a creature as bizarre and otherworldly as it is deadly. Neil had hoped he had severed this dark relationship permanently, but with the violence and intimidation rising between him and the town's criminal element, this 'friend' could be his only hope at survival. But when the dust has settled, will he survive the friendship?
Release Date: February 19th, 2021
Genre: Horror/Sci-fi
Rating: 🌯🌯🌯🌯
What I Liked:
• Neil, Sam, and, Matt killed me with their banter
• The story is an interesting take on high-school life
• I enjoyed that the perspective of the drug dealers are also shown.
What I Didn't Like:
• The year this takes place was a little confusing.
Overall Thoughts: I seriously LOVED the friendship with Neil, Matt, and Sam! They made me laugh out loud so many times. This book is a weird weird one but in a good way. If you love books that have a weird sense of humor this is a good one to read. Sometimes the characters got on my nerves but they are teenage boys so that's bound to happen. There is a lot of talk about drug use in the story but I can see it's to full the story. The ending was kind of just okay for me.
Final Thoughts: Like I said the story felt more grounded in the 90s for me. At times it felt like this book reminded me of the movie Dazed and Confused but instead of a beating on the last day of school it's a beating for hitting the drug dealer. I could definitely see myself checking out other stuff from the author.
IG | Blog
Thanks to publishers and Netgalley for this book for review. All thoughts are my own
September 28, 2021
Check out all of my reviews at www.bookmarkedreviews.com
I received this ARC from Netgalley in return for an honest review.
What if your imaginary childhood friend could come to life and deal with the bullies making your life miserable? That the question that Daniel James explores in his latest self-published novel. Neil Karp and his friends are your typical teenagers in their senior year of high school when they run afoul of the local drug dealers. As the dispute escalates, Neil is shocked one evening to see a figure dancing on a rooftop. It Frogmoore, his tweed wearing, talking imaginary friend who defended Neil from bullies once before. Except that in teaching the bullies a lesson, Frogmoore killed them leaving Neil traumatized and on medication. It seems that Frogmoore has once again appeared in Neil's time of need. But his murderous appetite has only grown while he has been away. Neil now struggles between wanting his bullies gone and not wanting Frogmoore to kill on his behalf.
This is a really quirky and unique novel. It has a definite 1980's feel to it. It would have been perfectly at home as a horror flick during my years in high school. I love the idea of an imaginary friend coming back and becoming homicidal. But the tale of the murderous Frogmoore gets overshadowed by the constant increase of hostilities between Neil an his friends and the drug dealers. I didn't really need to have chapters form the bad guys' point of view. It felt unnecessary. They're bad guys. They don't need depth. It's not that kind of novel. It felt like Frogmoore was overshadowed and used too sparingly. I wanted more of the serial killer frog! He's much more interesting than common drug dealers. Overall, James has a talent for recreating teenage dialogue, making it feel natural. Some of the best scenes are of Neil and his stoner friends sitting around getting high. The interactions between Frogmore and Neil are also compelling. I just wish that there had been more of them.
I received this ARC from Netgalley in return for an honest review.
What if your imaginary childhood friend could come to life and deal with the bullies making your life miserable? That the question that Daniel James explores in his latest self-published novel. Neil Karp and his friends are your typical teenagers in their senior year of high school when they run afoul of the local drug dealers. As the dispute escalates, Neil is shocked one evening to see a figure dancing on a rooftop. It Frogmoore, his tweed wearing, talking imaginary friend who defended Neil from bullies once before. Except that in teaching the bullies a lesson, Frogmoore killed them leaving Neil traumatized and on medication. It seems that Frogmoore has once again appeared in Neil's time of need. But his murderous appetite has only grown while he has been away. Neil now struggles between wanting his bullies gone and not wanting Frogmoore to kill on his behalf.
This is a really quirky and unique novel. It has a definite 1980's feel to it. It would have been perfectly at home as a horror flick during my years in high school. I love the idea of an imaginary friend coming back and becoming homicidal. But the tale of the murderous Frogmoore gets overshadowed by the constant increase of hostilities between Neil an his friends and the drug dealers. I didn't really need to have chapters form the bad guys' point of view. It felt unnecessary. They're bad guys. They don't need depth. It's not that kind of novel. It felt like Frogmoore was overshadowed and used too sparingly. I wanted more of the serial killer frog! He's much more interesting than common drug dealers. Overall, James has a talent for recreating teenage dialogue, making it feel natural. Some of the best scenes are of Neil and his stoner friends sitting around getting high. The interactions between Frogmore and Neil are also compelling. I just wish that there had been more of them.
October 26, 2021
Changing drug dealers was the start of it all.
Neil, Matt, and Sam are school friends who enjoy their pot smoking. Well, Neil did until his dad got lung cancer and Neil realised it was time to rethink certain things in life. Their dealer, Staubach, hangs around with Noakes, who is affiliated with the hard local gang and Staubach is no stranger to using violence to sort issues out. Sam decided to get some stash from Sticky, another dealer, and when Staubach finds out, he decides to pay the boys a visit. After a confrontation where Staubach believes he was humiliated, the friends know they are marked.
Incidents happen at school that make them realise that they are safe nowhere, which saddens Neil as he has finally mustered up the courage to speak to Lindsey, a girl he has had a crush on for a while. Just being around Neil might not be safe for her. As they contemplate how to deal with the situation, Neil sees something that reminds him of a time when he was young and saw what he believed was an imaginary figure. This being, a giant toad named Frogmore, came through from another world once upon a time, and would do anything to keep Neil’s friendship. Anything including killing.
An untimely death sparks a war between the friends and Staubach and the gang that escalates into a frenzy of violence, retaliation, and outright hate. To save the friends, Frogmore might be back, but doing things his way. And his way, could mean disaster for everyone.
I wasn’t sure what to expect when reading this, which left it open for me to just enjoy the story as it flowed. The violence is quite graphic and it was a shock to see how the level was “acceptable” – not in the book, but by the characters towards each other. I enjoyed the way the supernatural element ran parallel to the main story in a very believable way. Very often too much artistic licence is taken but in this, the reasoning behind it almost seemed plausible!
I found the fact that the POVs from the “bad guys” was also offered made for interesting reading. It gave you an insight into some of their actions and also some of their regrets. Having Sam explain why he smoked as much as he did, gave his character a deeper understanding instead of glossing over the stoner image. Frogmore was quite a character to accept. His manipulation of people and situations made you want to hate him but also in a macabre way cheer him on. And the ultimate explanation of where he was from and the beings there gave a new meaning to “we come in peace”.
The one thing that needed fixing on this script was the formatting. It looked as though it had been set for print as there were page numbers in the ToC and the drop caps were not aligned. Sometimes big spaces cropped up in the middle of a page and the author’s name randomly appeared. This was very offputting.
Ultimately though, I did enjoy this book as its premise was not one I’ve read before. Yes, there were things that could have been added or taken away, but as a read without thinking too hard about it, this was an interesting one!
Thanks to NetGalley for the opportunity to review this book.
Neil, Matt, and Sam are school friends who enjoy their pot smoking. Well, Neil did until his dad got lung cancer and Neil realised it was time to rethink certain things in life. Their dealer, Staubach, hangs around with Noakes, who is affiliated with the hard local gang and Staubach is no stranger to using violence to sort issues out. Sam decided to get some stash from Sticky, another dealer, and when Staubach finds out, he decides to pay the boys a visit. After a confrontation where Staubach believes he was humiliated, the friends know they are marked.
Incidents happen at school that make them realise that they are safe nowhere, which saddens Neil as he has finally mustered up the courage to speak to Lindsey, a girl he has had a crush on for a while. Just being around Neil might not be safe for her. As they contemplate how to deal with the situation, Neil sees something that reminds him of a time when he was young and saw what he believed was an imaginary figure. This being, a giant toad named Frogmore, came through from another world once upon a time, and would do anything to keep Neil’s friendship. Anything including killing.
An untimely death sparks a war between the friends and Staubach and the gang that escalates into a frenzy of violence, retaliation, and outright hate. To save the friends, Frogmore might be back, but doing things his way. And his way, could mean disaster for everyone.
I wasn’t sure what to expect when reading this, which left it open for me to just enjoy the story as it flowed. The violence is quite graphic and it was a shock to see how the level was “acceptable” – not in the book, but by the characters towards each other. I enjoyed the way the supernatural element ran parallel to the main story in a very believable way. Very often too much artistic licence is taken but in this, the reasoning behind it almost seemed plausible!
I found the fact that the POVs from the “bad guys” was also offered made for interesting reading. It gave you an insight into some of their actions and also some of their regrets. Having Sam explain why he smoked as much as he did, gave his character a deeper understanding instead of glossing over the stoner image. Frogmore was quite a character to accept. His manipulation of people and situations made you want to hate him but also in a macabre way cheer him on. And the ultimate explanation of where he was from and the beings there gave a new meaning to “we come in peace”.
The one thing that needed fixing on this script was the formatting. It looked as though it had been set for print as there were page numbers in the ToC and the drop caps were not aligned. Sometimes big spaces cropped up in the middle of a page and the author’s name randomly appeared. This was very offputting.
Ultimately though, I did enjoy this book as its premise was not one I’ve read before. Yes, there were things that could have been added or taken away, but as a read without thinking too hard about it, this was an interesting one!
Thanks to NetGalley for the opportunity to review this book.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews