I just submitted a review of ‘Right to Kill’ on amazon.com. Simply put, I loved it. Read on for the full review:
I’ve been a fan of John Barlow since first reading ‘Hope Road’ quite a few years ago. So when I was asked to write a review of his latest story, I knew it would be good, I just never expected it to be /this/ good.
Like all three books in the Hope Road series, the characters in ‘Right to Kill’ all feel as if you’ve known them, or people like them, for ages. Some you would never include on your Christmas list, but others feel so real you want to hug them, laugh with them, cry with them.
The main character, Detective Sergeant Joe Romano feels utterly real too. He’s smart and principled, a /good/ man, but he’s also a little bit broken and a little bit lost. The pillars of his life have shifted and he’s treading water, going through the motions in the hope that he’ll rediscover some meaning to life.
When Craig Shaw is found burnt to a crisp in his Mum’s old Corolla, it’s Joe Romano’s colleagues in the Leeds police force who seem to be going through the motions. Why? Because Craig Shaw is a drug dealer and general low life, and the world is probably better off without him.
But does anyone really deserve to die?
As far as Joe Romano is concerned, the answer is no and he sets out to prove it.
How Joe proves it will keep you reading long past the point when you know you should turn out the light and go to sleep. I know it had that effect on me, and I can honestly say I did not see the ending coming. And yet, Barlow told this story so well that there was a huge sense of ‘oh, of course!’ once the identity of the killer is revealed.
That fulfilling sense of resolution is why I call this story the perfect thriller. We learn as Joe learns, clue by clue. We may not be as smart as Joe in putting the pieces of the jigsaw together, but once he does, we know it’s right. It could be no other way.
Telling enough but not telling too much is a tightrope without a safety net. Walking that tightrope is damn hard, but John Barlow makes it seem effortless.
This is a story I would recommend to anyone. I wish I could give it a 6 out of 5.
The link to ‘Right to Kill’ on amazon.com is below:
Have a great weekend everyone!
cheers
Meeks
July 18th, 2021 at 4:04 am
I can’t help but juxtapose the words “the world is probably better off without him” to a certain former “won by a landslide” President and think of all the victims of Covid 19 who would still be alive if the world had been without him the past year and a half.
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July 18th, 2021 at 11:23 am
I know what you mean and I agree. Sadly, another clown it orchestrating another terrible covid outcome in another so-called First World country. π¦
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July 15th, 2021 at 3:05 am
I have not read anything by John Barlow, I actually have never heard of him. This is a very good review so I will have a look for him on Amazon.
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July 15th, 2021 at 10:27 am
I first ‘knew’ John Barlow via Indies Unlimited, a website devoted to helping Indie writers. He is very good. If you can’t get an ebook of this book, try one of his earlier books, esp Hope Road.
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July 15th, 2021 at 2:23 pm
Thanks, Meeks, I’ll do that.
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July 15th, 2021 at 8:22 pm
π
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July 13th, 2021 at 1:22 am
This sounds fabulous, Andrea. I trust your judgement. I’m going to pick it up although my kindle is groaning, “No no, not another one!” Lol. Thanks for the great recommendation.
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July 13th, 2021 at 12:34 pm
I’m pretty sure there is a Kindle version but I couldn’t find it when I went back on amazon to get the link.
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July 13th, 2021 at 1:18 pm
Only hardcover. π¦ I was disappointed. But I suspect it’s only a matter of time before it shows up in paperback and on kindle.
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July 13th, 2021 at 3:04 pm
I hope people remember by then. Trad pubs are so short sighted. π¦
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July 14th, 2021 at 12:33 am
I agree! They have to be on top of their game or they’ll miss out of readers.
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July 14th, 2021 at 9:59 am
They’re a bit like the Titanic, very hard to turn around. They still see ebooks as a threat, hence the pricing and the delay in publishing in that format.
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July 14th, 2021 at 11:31 pm
A risky strategy in my opinion. π
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July 15th, 2021 at 10:39 am
Mine too. π
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July 12th, 2021 at 3:53 am
This is certainly high praise, Meeks. Thanks for this excellent review.
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July 12th, 2021 at 8:47 am
He’s good, really good. And you are you and your Mum. I read While the Bombs Fell and really enjoyed it.
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July 12th, 2021 at 1:11 am
I’ll try it. I’ve been looking for a new read.
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July 12th, 2021 at 8:48 am
I guarantee, Pat. You will like it. π
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July 13th, 2021 at 4:00 am
I’m working on it, but so far all I can find is a hard-back that is over my limit. There was a kindle price almost as high as the hard-back. I’ll have another look on Amazon and see if I can get a paperback.
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July 13th, 2021 at 12:33 pm
Yes, it’s a bit weird. I found a Kindle version the first time. The next time I looked for the title to get the link, all I could find was the hardcover version. John Barlow is from the UK so I wonder if the full set of version can be found there.
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July 14th, 2021 at 8:09 am
Usually I like to buy paperbacks of these books, and pay for them the going rate. I do order samples sometimes, but I try to have a good reason for doing that. When it comes to something that I intend to keep and put on my shelf, I feel I should pay its price.
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July 14th, 2021 at 9:31 am
I hear you, but I stopped buying paperbacks soon after I bought my first Kindle. Even with glasses, now, I find the small print very tiring to read. Really annoying as I used to be shortsighted – could thread the tiniest needle. Not any more. π¦
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July 15th, 2021 at 1:45 am
I just can’t get into curling up with a Kindle. I like to flip back and forth in pages, which I find problematic with the Kindle. Now I will say this: I once bought a Nook $ which after about a year died, was still under warranty, and the store replaced it with (my choice) a new Kindle. That was at least two years ago. Now the screen is cracked in a zillion pieces, but it still works like a charm! (I’ll get a new one when I have to, but don’t want to abandon the old girl just because of a few wrinkles. I can do anything on my Kindle that I can do with my mainframe, but it is the small K, and the screen is too limited for much writing work. I would consider at 10″, but Scott has one, and it is too awkward because of its weight. Its OK propped up against something, but for hand-holding its a problem.
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July 15th, 2021 at 10:36 am
I have an old kindle gathering dust somewhere but do all my reading [now] on a Kindle Fire which has the colour screen. Much heavier but I need it for checking my own books, esp. the how-to books which have colour illustrations etc. Never really had a tablet that I could ‘work’ on. That said, dug out my old laptop to use as a storage device. lol I really don’t like ‘small’ computers! I think I’m a Luddite in that respect. π
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July 16th, 2021 at 2:39 am
Mine is a Kindle Fire, the only one I have had. Scott has a newer one, but it is the large size and it would be uncomfortable for me for regular use. The original Nook I had wasn’t too impressive, but it had a warranty on it that would replace nonfunctioning machines free…so I traded it in on the Fire that I have now. It is all beaten up, but still works perfectly. One more good drop will probably do her in, but I’m using it as long as it works.
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July 16th, 2021 at 9:28 pm
lol – yes, my Fire is still going strong too, despite a couple of drops onto tiles. They’re almost unbreakable!
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July 15th, 2021 at 1:53 am
I like to have the paperbacks that have been written by actual people that I know personally on the shelf. Not many: all of yours; an old librarian friend’s children’s book’; a few by blogging pals….Blissett’s Thesaurus Library; Jnana’s book about the newspaper business;… my Cousin Greg’s family histories…and about half of the fantasy novels my friend and professor C Dale Brittain wrote about wizards long (before Roling.
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July 15th, 2021 at 10:33 am
I’m starting to get a small collection of friends books too. They sit proudly on my mantlepiece. π Reading though, mostly happens on my Kindle.
Never in my life did I think I’d ever be someone whose books sit on someone else’s bookshelf. It is a wonderful feeling.
-hugs-
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July 16th, 2021 at 2:40 am
Yep, I agree.
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July 16th, 2021 at 2:43 am
I mentioned my professor friend C. Dale Brittain, and I have seven or eight of her paperbacks. She also is the author of I don’t know how many books on Medieval History. She told me she made more money on her fantasy novels than she ever made with her history textbooks.
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July 16th, 2021 at 9:26 pm
Hmm…I’m assuming the history texts were published by a university or publisher vs fantasy as an Indie?
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July 11th, 2021 at 2:50 pm
Sounds good! I shall get a sample from Amazon this weekend! Thanks, Andrea!
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July 11th, 2021 at 3:35 pm
Always welcome, Jill. π
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