March 5, 2025 • 21 mins
On this special episode, Paperback Warrior ranks the best reads of February, 2025. It's a countdown from worst to first as Eric offers capsule reviews and recaps for all 17 reads from the month of February. Listen here or watch the video presentation complete with book covers on the YT channel HERE.
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Hello again. This is Eric with the Paperback Warrior blog,
YouTube channel and podcast bringing you another ranking video. On
this one, I'm ranking my reads from the month of
February from worse to first. These books are ranked with
capsule reviews, cover artwork and other interesting tidbits. As always,
if you haven't already subscribed, please do so. This is
also being broadcast as a special podcast episode as well.
(00:21):
Should be able to find it on any streaming platform
the same as you listen to the normal podcast episodes
audio on podcast, video on YouTube. I like to give
people options because I'm a nice guy. Let's kick things
off with number seventeen, which is Dead White. The book
was published in nineteen eighty three by Tour and authored
by Alan Ryan. Now. I had found very little enjoyment
(00:43):
with Ryan's first novel, titled The Kill. It made it
into our Paperback Warrior Hall of Shame. I was hoping
Dead White would be better. I was dead wrong. The
premise is a small town in upstate New York that
is experiencing a nasty blizzard. To complicate things further, a
train arise by way of abandoned railroad. Tracks like these
haven't been used in decades. But the train pulls up
(01:06):
and it turns out to be a traveling circus of clowns.
But these clowns may be ghost extracting vengeance on the town.
This should work, and work well. The town cut off
from help due to the blizzard, these killer clowns hunting
the citizens down. Everyone holds up in the local hotel
to fend off the clowns. That's how it should have worked.
But Ryan chose to write three hundred and fifty six
(01:27):
pages of people making coffee and idle chit chat. This
is absolutely one of the worst books I've ever read,
and it suffers from horrendous editing. I have no idea
what anyone was thinking that was remotely involved with this book.
It is a disaster. Again. This is Dead White by
Alan Ryan. Number sixteen is Death World two. Now. I
(01:48):
really enjoyed the first Death World. It was published in
nineteen sixty, written by Harry Harrison. Harrison returns with Death
World two, but this is a different ball of wax.
The book stars hero Jason, trying to survive, is captured
by a warring clan. The book just recycles the same
scenes over and over again. Jason escapes the warring clan,
(02:08):
he's captured by another warring clan and then escapes to
be captured again. The whole time, he's this multifaceted guy
who can fix anything, motor ships, facilities, weapons, He just
can't fix this book. It's kind of silly, it's kind
of preachy at times. Skip this book again. It's Death
World two by Harry Harrison. Number fifteen is Forgive the Executioner.
(02:33):
This is a British publication on New English Library from
nineteen seventy eight, written by an unknown author to me
named Andrew Lane. It's two hundred and twenty five pages
and works like a standard entry in something like The
Butcher or Death Merchant. A guy named Alan Payne is
extracting vengeance on the people behind the murder of his family,
but the people involved with the IRA terrorist group. So
(02:56):
Paine infiltrates the IRA as an explosives expert. Using his
experience from serving in the Vietnam War. He creates little
accidents that kill off his fellow IRA members, but he
never stops there, and he also targets the Protestants since
he feels that the entire war between the Protestants and
the IRA contributed to his family's murder, Payne runs around,
(03:17):
gets laid a lot, and has a romance with a
double agent. This was a pretty good read. Again. If
you like men's action of venture novels of the nineteen seventies,
then this book is for you again. It's called Forgive
The Executioner by Andrew Lane. My fourteenth pick is The
Hangman's Forest. This was authored by William Joseph and published
independently in twenty twenty three. It's a crime fiction novella
(03:39):
at one hundred and twenty pages, starring a detective named
Aya Kua San. He was dismissed from the Chicago Police
Force due to a shooting incident his first week on
the job as a new deputy, and a rural, unnamed
town concerns a serial killer. This weirdo is out capturing
victims and hanging them in the forest, thus the name
of the book. Joseph's narrator centers around the investigation and
(04:02):
the clues leading to the murderers whereabouts. Sprinkling in is
a few presentations from the killer's point of view, just
to mix things up. This was an OK page turner. Again.
This is Hangman's Forest by William Joseph. Number thirteen is
Dark Shadows Number three, Strangers at Collins House. This was
authored by William Ross as Marilyn Ross and published by
(04:22):
a Paperback Library in nineteen sixty seven. Of course, this
ties into the television series and focuses on young Victoria
Winners and her stay at the large mansion in Maine
titled Collins House. Now. In the television series, a vampire
named Barnabas eventually appears, and the show takes on a
supernatural feel. In these early Dark Shadows paperbacks, there isn't
(04:42):
anything supernatural, and Barnabas, the Bloodsucker hasn't even appeared yet.
In this book, a couple of people come to stay
at Collins House. One of them is a reclusive man
named Henry Collins. Victoria learns that he's got a secret
room in the mansion where he stays. The mystery is
that Henry apparently had a love in New York City
that died under suspicious circumstances. Soon, Victoria finds herself targeted
(05:06):
as she nearly dies from various accidents around the house.
Is Henry Collins trying to kill Victoria or help her? Also?
Is Henry her father that's a good question. This was
a good mystery novel that was aided by the through
story in these books on Victoria, who grew up as
an orphan who's trying to locate her biological parents and
why they abandoned her. Again. This was Dark Shadows number three,
(05:27):
Strangers at Collins House by William Ross as Marilyn Ross.
My twelfth entry in Today's Countdown is Brian Smith's horror
novel The Gauntlet. This was published in twenty twenty three
by grind House Press. The book begins with a guy
named Nick and his married neighbor Christa getting into an affair.
The two decide to take off for the Pocono Mountains
(05:48):
to spend some quality time together in the sack while
they decide what Christa should do about her annoying husband.
The two stop for gas in a really bizarre small
town in the middle of nowhere. Arriving in town, Nick's
immediately assaulted by a guy wearing a mask and carrying
a machete. It turns out that anyone from outside of
town that enters the town's limits must compete in a
(06:09):
gauntlet game. Nick and Christa are forced in the crazy,
violent contests similar to something you'd see in Netflix's The
Squid Game. This was entertaining and I enjoyed the wild
ride that Nick and christ are forced upon. It definitely
kept my attention throughout the whole book. Again, this is
The Gauntlet by Brian Smith. Number eleven is Vice Trap
(06:30):
by Elliott Gilbert. This was originally published by Avon in
nineteen fifty eight. It's now a reprint by Blackgat Books,
which is an imprint of Stark House Press. The book
is presented in first person by Nick, a mechanic who
just recently served a prison sentence. Oddly, the cop who
busts to Nick in the first place is now friends
with him. The CoP's name is Madrid, and now he's
(06:52):
dating Nick's former girlfriend, Lona. Madrid pitches to Nick that
they should do a bank heist together during the town's parade.
Madrid willvolunteer to be on patrol that day and he'll
cover for Nick and his friends. But as these things go,
it doesn't quite work out and the whole thing goes
to hell in a hand basket. This was a pretty
good crime to our paperback, and I always enjoy bankheist
(07:13):
I mean reading them, not performing them. I'm terrible with money.
This was Vice Trap by Elliott Gilbert. My top ten
kicks off with the first installment in the dragon Heart series.
The novel is called Vikings Slave and it was published
in twenty thirteen and authored by Griff Hosker. The book
begins in seven hundred and ninety a d and introduces
(07:35):
a young boy nicknamed Crow. He's shunned by his village
and he's picked on by his peers due to him
being only half Saxon. Soon, the Saxon village is raided
by Vikings and Crow is captured along with his mother.
Crowe is renamed Gareth and begins to enjoy his new
home with Vikings. The Vikings introduce Gareth to an older
(07:55):
Willior named Ragnar, who soon trains him to be a
master swords and over the next two hundred pages, Gareth
becomes a warrior, gains a family, and fights for his
village by overtaking more Saxon villages and feuding with a rival.
I felt like this was such a great journey and
I enjoyed the character so much. Believe it or not,
there's twenty two more installments in this series, so I
(08:18):
need to get to work reading more of these books,
but again, this is Viking Slave by Griff Hosker, and
I really enjoyed it. Number nine is that hell Bound
Train by Robert Block. This is a short story that
was originally published in the Magazine of Fantasy and Science
Fiction in nineteen fifty eight. The story stars a drifter
named Martin. One night, Martin is nearing death and the
(08:40):
devil arrives on a long black train to take his
soul to a warm place down under. But Martin offers
a deal for the devil. He requests that he be
allowed to live further. He wants a special watch that
will allow him to stop time just once. Martin says
he's gonna stop time when he finds a happy place
in his life that he's gonna be content with. So
(09:01):
the devil plays along, gives him the special watch, and
Martin continues living the reader's tag along on Martin's self discovery.
He gains employment, gets super wealthy, gets comfortable, but he's
hesitant about using the watch because he always feels like
he can be happier tomorrow and the day after and
so forth. This turns into a nightmare for Martin, pondering
(09:22):
when his life will reach the pinnacle of happiness. It's
a cautionary tale told brilliantly by Robert Block. This is
a great, great read. Again It's that hell Bound Train
by Robert Block. My eighth entry is Suddenly at Singapore
by Gavin Black. This is the first installment of the
Paul Harris series, which ran from nineteen sixty through nineteen
(09:44):
seventy nine, encompassing thirteen total books. Suddenly at Singapore was
published in hardcover in nineteen sixty and then later in
paperback by Signet. The book, of course stars Paul Harris,
a World War II veteran who experienced life as a
prisoner of war. He was held by Japanese forces alongside
his brother. After the war, both Paul and his brother
(10:05):
continue to live in Singapore and run a successful shipping
and freighting enterprise. But one of the business deals they
have is smuggling weapons into the good people of Southeast
Asia so they can fend off all those Communist overlords.
This novel centers around Paul's brother being murdered execution style
with a bullet to the back of the head. Paul
attempts to find out who the murderer was while also
(10:25):
fending off a pesky detective who thinks Paul had something
to do with it. The book's first half was far
better than the second, but I enjoyed the book overall.
It's got a spy fiction feel to it, even a
nautical escapism, but it doesn't really fall into the espionage realm.
Paul is just a successful businessman who just gets caught
up in adventures again. The book is called Suddenly at
(10:48):
Singapore and the author is Gavin Black. Number seven on
the countdown is Dark Justice. This is a brand new
crime fiction novel that's being published on March eleventh by
Rough Edges Press. I have it in Kendall and it's
three dollars. The author is J. L. Hughes and the
book is what I like to consider a hunt the
serial killer type of story. At four hundred and thirty pages,
(11:11):
it's a modern book, so it's got plenty of padding
to get the page count up, but that's fine because
the book is really entertaining and it held my attention.
A town called shadow Hook in upstate New York is
being terrorized by a serial killer nicknamed the Redeemer. He
captures high profile victims and then drains them. Of all
of their blood. A New York Police Department homicide detective
(11:33):
named Jade Carmichael is the protagonist. She's got a direct
connection to the killer because years ago he or she
killed her mother in the same fashion. The book is
the typical investigative mystery, as the police examined clues, interviews suspects,
and eventually chased down the killer. I enjoyed the book
and really liked this Jade character. There's some unexpected twist
(11:54):
and turns that added to the enjoyment. Again, This is
Dark Justice by J. L. Hughes. Place goes to a
short story titled The Hound of God. It's thirty nine
pages and it's written by Jonathan Mayberry and published as
an ebook in twenty twenty three by Titan. What's cool
about this short story is that it stars Solomon kan
(12:14):
the Puritan hero that Roberty Howard created. I've talked about
Solomon Kane here on the show and reviewed his stories
often on the blog. And this story, Solomon Kane arrives
in a small village and discovers the entire population has
been shredded apart. Body parts and mangled corpses are lying everywhere.
Who did this kind of carnage. Cain finds animal prints
(12:37):
that are mixed with over twenty boot prints from soldiers.
So how did this ravenous creature kill this many people
but somehow spare the soldiers. Eventually, Kine discovers the horrible truth.
This was about par for the course when it comes
to Caine's stories. A lot of the stories featuring the
character work in the same fashion, so I think Mayberry
played it a bit safe, but that doesn't detract from
(12:58):
the enjoyment at all. This was a solid read and
a rare Solomon Kine story written by someone other than
Robert Y Howard. Again, this was The Hound of God
by Jonathan Mayberry. If you haven't subscribed, please do so.
One click really helps me out. If you have a moment,
click the like button in this video subscribe comment. I'll
take all the interaction I can get, because that's the
(13:18):
whole reason why I do these videos. Be sure to
turn on notifications for the channel. That way you get
all the new videos when they come out. My number
five pick is the two thousand and seven novel Deadfall
by Robert le Perulo. This is the first of two
books starring a survivalist strongman guy named John Hutchinson. In
this book, Hutchinson, who's actually a full time journalist, joins
(13:41):
three friends on a hunting trip to Saskatchewan, Canada. They're
dropped in by plane for a week of hunting and
camping outdoors in the middle of nowhere, and their only
weapons are bows and arrows. That's their deal. They archery,
hunt deer and elk. This deer Hunter horror novel explodes
when a group of men and women arrive in the
nearby small town of Fiddler Falls and begins killing its
(14:02):
citizens using advanced weaponry. To who are these crazed killers?
Why are they running rough shot over the town? These
four hunters are the only saving grace for the citizens.
They must fight the bad guys in a Most Dangerous
Game sort of way. This book is like one big
summer blockbuster movie with survival helicopters, planes, humbies, satellite weaponry,
(14:24):
machine guns. It's like a combination of Rambo, Mad Max,
The Wild Bunch and The Most Dangerous Game. I loved
this book again. It is Deadfall by Robert Lipparulo. My
fourth place goes to The Sister of Cain by Mary Collins.
This was originally published as a hardcover in the early
nineteen forties, and was just recently published in a brand
(14:45):
new edition by Stark House Press. A pregnant woman named
Hilda arrives at a California mansion to meet her husband's sisters.
Hilda's husband's away fighting daring World War two, and she
needs a place of comfort to go to while she's pregnant.
When she arrives, she meets the sisters, including the the oldest,
a domineering, motherly figure named Pauline. It turns out that
each sister in the house has a beef with Pauline,
(15:07):
and then one night, Pauline's found dead in her bedroom
with a knife in the back. It's up the detective
named Cassidy, who arrives and tries to figure out who
the murderer is. The investigation digs up the family's history,
the future inheritance, details of the will, and the individual
motives each sister has in offering Pauline. Hilda is a
remarkable character, and she ends up teeming with Cassidy to
(15:28):
solve the case. I enjoyed the moody atmosphere of the
mansion and the small suspect list. It was a slow
build over two hundred pages, but very rewarding in the end. Again,
This is The Sister of Cain by Mary Collins, and
kicking off my top three reads of February is John
Blackburn's nineteen seventy three novel Deep among the Dead Men.
(15:48):
This is the first of two books starring a journeyman
named Bill Easter. Now Easter has served as a mercenary,
a smuggler, an oilman. He's been a gangster and assassin,
a bodyguard, and a lover. When the book begins, Easter's
with his girlfriend and her father on a boat off
the coast of a fictional country called Leonia. His newest
scheme is to dive one hundred feet down the salvage
(16:08):
gold from a sunken ship. The problem is that the
coast and waters are controlled by the newest dictator to
the country. To get the ability to salvage the gold,
Eastern needs to get into Leonia and kill off the
dictator and replace him with the last puppet dictator. After
completing this mission, he could start the salvage process, but
there's always problems with a good gold salvage, and Easter
(16:29):
runs smack into a killer on board the salvage ship.
Who's the killer? What's he or she? After? The book
mixes in elements of spy fiction, nautical adventure, and a
mystery who done it to make the narrative come alive.
There's also a sense of humor injected into the story
that kind of reminded me of John Gardner's boise Oaks character.
This book was excellent, and I just read the second
(16:49):
bill Easter book titled Mister Brown's Bodies, which I'll cover
on next month's ranking video. My runner up to best
Book of February is V. C. Andrews's novel Flowers in
the Attic. The book was published in nineteen seventy nine
and adapted into a film in nineteen eighty seven and
again in twenty fourteen. The book is presented in first
person narration by Kathy, a twelve year old girl who
(17:12):
accompanies her fourteen year old brother Chris, and their twin siblings,
five year old Carrie and Corey, to their mother's childhood mansion.
This secret journey and arrival at the mansion is after
Kathy's father dies in a car wreck. Her mother, Karen,
tells the family that they must return to her childhood
home because they've got no money. Her mother and father
are extremely wealthy, but they kicked Karin out of the
(17:34):
family decades ago. Karinn never told her father she had kids.
Through letters, she confines in her mother that she has
a family and the explanation that her husband just recently died.
Her mother agrees to secretly house Kathy and her siblings
in the upstairs wing of the house, right beside the attic.
The deal is that Karin will try to get back
into good graces with her father, get ridden back into
(17:55):
the will, and then we'll tell her father about the
kids and they'll all live happily ever after. But one
night in the attic turns into a week into a
month in two years, Kathy and her siblings endure horrible treatment,
both mental and physical abuse, and eventually have to decide
if they should try to escape this makeshift prison that
Krinn and her mother have made for the kids. This
(18:17):
was a disturbing book, and it's got some incest in it,
which adds to the controversial responses to the book back
when it was first published and even today. It's a wild,
wild book that makes for a captivating read now. I
reviewed the book on the blog on February fourteenth, but
I also discussed the book in depth for about a
half hour with fellow book tuber Zach Skiver. You can
(18:37):
search YouTube under his name. First name is Z like Zebra,
A like Apple, K like King, last name S like Sam,
K like King, I like Igloo, V like Valentine, E
like Edward R like Romeo. Watch that video exchange between
the two of us over the book again. This is
Flowers in the Attic by VC Andrews. So my favorite
(19:01):
book of February, we're down to the end. My favorite
book of February was The Hound of the Baskervilles by
Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. This is the fourth Sherlock Holmes novel.
It was originally published in magazine format in nineteen oh
one and then published in hardcover in nineteen oh two.
In this book, a doctor named Mortimer visits Holmes and
(19:21):
Watson and explains that a man named Charles Baskerville has
died from a heart attack. The weird part is that
he died out on the moors from cardiac arrest, and
right beside of his corpse were giant hound prints. What
type of dog scared Charles? It turns out that years
before this murder, a Hugo Baskerville had kidnapped a local
(19:41):
farmer's daughter and then was apparently killed by a large
demonic dog. Is this demonic dog on the loose again?
Did the dog frighten Charles to death? Mortimer employs Watson
to find out the answers. In the last act, Sherlock
arrives to assist Watson in determining just what's happening in
this spooky region of England. The book is just brimming
(20:01):
over with atmosphere. You've got the foggy moores, the idea
that something supernatural might be occurring, and of course lots
of death. The story is superb, the writing is excellent,
and of course the character development with the suspects has
set at just the right pace for the discovery to
be well earned. The Hound of the Baskervilles by Sir
Arthur Conan Doyle is a mandatory read. And there you
(20:24):
have it, all seventeen books I read in the month
of February. My writing partner Tom Simon. He also contributed
one review to the blog in February, and that was
Empire of Silence by Christopher Riosio. Maybe saying that name wrong.
That book isn't included in my list because I didn't
read that one. But his review for the book was
a positive one and he seemed to enjoy the eight
hundred page epic again. It's called Empire of Silence by
(20:47):
Christopher Riosio. Don't forget to check out the newest Paperback
Warrior podcast episode number one hundred and fifteen, which just
dropped on March the third. I also have another podcast
episode on March the seventeenth. In the meantime, you can
read new reviews nearly every day at Paperback Warrior dot
com and be sure to follow me on facebook 's
threads and Instagram. Take care ann As always, thanks for watching.
Hello again. This is Eric with the Paperback Warrior blog,
YouTube channel and podcast bringing you another ranking video. On
this one, I'm ranking my reads from the month of
February from worse to first. These books are ranked with
capsule reviews, cover artwork and other interesting tidbits. As always,
if you haven't already subscribed, please do so. This is
also being broadcast as a special podcast episode as well.
(00:21):
Should be able to find it on any streaming platform
the same as you listen to the normal podcast episodes
audio on podcast, video on YouTube. I like to give
people options because I'm a nice guy. Let's kick things
off with number seventeen, which is Dead White. The book
was published in nineteen eighty three by Tour and authored
by Alan Ryan. Now. I had found very little enjoyment
(00:43):
with Ryan's first novel, titled The Kill. It made it
into our Paperback Warrior Hall of Shame. I was hoping
Dead White would be better. I was dead wrong. The
premise is a small town in upstate New York that
is experiencing a nasty blizzard. To complicate things further, a
train arise by way of abandoned railroad. Tracks like these
haven't been used in decades. But the train pulls up
(01:06):
and it turns out to be a traveling circus of clowns.
But these clowns may be ghost extracting vengeance on the town.
This should work, and work well. The town cut off
from help due to the blizzard, these killer clowns hunting
the citizens down. Everyone holds up in the local hotel
to fend off the clowns. That's how it should have worked.
But Ryan chose to write three hundred and fifty six
(01:27):
pages of people making coffee and idle chit chat. This
is absolutely one of the worst books I've ever read,
and it suffers from horrendous editing. I have no idea
what anyone was thinking that was remotely involved with this book.
It is a disaster. Again. This is Dead White by
Alan Ryan. Number sixteen is Death World two. Now. I
(01:48):
really enjoyed the first Death World. It was published in
nineteen sixty, written by Harry Harrison. Harrison returns with Death
World two, but this is a different ball of wax.
The book stars hero Jason, trying to survive, is captured
by a warring clan. The book just recycles the same
scenes over and over again. Jason escapes the warring clan,
(02:08):
he's captured by another warring clan and then escapes to
be captured again. The whole time, he's this multifaceted guy
who can fix anything, motor ships, facilities, weapons, He just
can't fix this book. It's kind of silly, it's kind
of preachy at times. Skip this book again. It's Death
World two by Harry Harrison. Number fifteen is Forgive the Executioner.
(02:33):
This is a British publication on New English Library from
nineteen seventy eight, written by an unknown author to me
named Andrew Lane. It's two hundred and twenty five pages
and works like a standard entry in something like The
Butcher or Death Merchant. A guy named Alan Payne is
extracting vengeance on the people behind the murder of his family,
but the people involved with the IRA terrorist group. So
(02:56):
Paine infiltrates the IRA as an explosives expert. Using his
experience from serving in the Vietnam War. He creates little
accidents that kill off his fellow IRA members, but he
never stops there, and he also targets the Protestants since
he feels that the entire war between the Protestants and
the IRA contributed to his family's murder, Payne runs around,
(03:17):
gets laid a lot, and has a romance with a
double agent. This was a pretty good read. Again. If
you like men's action of venture novels of the nineteen seventies,
then this book is for you again. It's called Forgive
The Executioner by Andrew Lane. My fourteenth pick is The
Hangman's Forest. This was authored by William Joseph and published
independently in twenty twenty three. It's a crime fiction novella
(03:39):
at one hundred and twenty pages, starring a detective named
Aya Kua San. He was dismissed from the Chicago Police
Force due to a shooting incident his first week on
the job as a new deputy, and a rural, unnamed
town concerns a serial killer. This weirdo is out capturing
victims and hanging them in the forest, thus the name
of the book. Joseph's narrator centers around the investigation and
(04:02):
the clues leading to the murderers whereabouts. Sprinkling in is
a few presentations from the killer's point of view, just
to mix things up. This was an OK page turner. Again.
This is Hangman's Forest by William Joseph. Number thirteen is
Dark Shadows Number three, Strangers at Collins House. This was
authored by William Ross as Marilyn Ross and published by
(04:22):
a Paperback Library in nineteen sixty seven. Of course, this
ties into the television series and focuses on young Victoria
Winners and her stay at the large mansion in Maine
titled Collins House. Now. In the television series, a vampire
named Barnabas eventually appears, and the show takes on a
supernatural feel. In these early Dark Shadows paperbacks, there isn't
(04:42):
anything supernatural, and Barnabas, the Bloodsucker hasn't even appeared yet.
In this book, a couple of people come to stay
at Collins House. One of them is a reclusive man
named Henry Collins. Victoria learns that he's got a secret
room in the mansion where he stays. The mystery is
that Henry apparently had a love in New York City
that died under suspicious circumstances. Soon, Victoria finds herself targeted
(05:06):
as she nearly dies from various accidents around the house.
Is Henry Collins trying to kill Victoria or help her? Also?
Is Henry her father that's a good question. This was
a good mystery novel that was aided by the through
story in these books on Victoria, who grew up as
an orphan who's trying to locate her biological parents and
why they abandoned her. Again. This was Dark Shadows number three,
(05:27):
Strangers at Collins House by William Ross as Marilyn Ross.
My twelfth entry in Today's Countdown is Brian Smith's horror
novel The Gauntlet. This was published in twenty twenty three
by grind House Press. The book begins with a guy
named Nick and his married neighbor Christa getting into an affair.
The two decide to take off for the Pocono Mountains
(05:48):
to spend some quality time together in the sack while
they decide what Christa should do about her annoying husband.
The two stop for gas in a really bizarre small
town in the middle of nowhere. Arriving in town, Nick's
immediately assaulted by a guy wearing a mask and carrying
a machete. It turns out that anyone from outside of
town that enters the town's limits must compete in a
(06:09):
gauntlet game. Nick and Christa are forced in the crazy,
violent contests similar to something you'd see in Netflix's The
Squid Game. This was entertaining and I enjoyed the wild
ride that Nick and christ are forced upon. It definitely
kept my attention throughout the whole book. Again, this is
The Gauntlet by Brian Smith. Number eleven is Vice Trap
(06:30):
by Elliott Gilbert. This was originally published by Avon in
nineteen fifty eight. It's now a reprint by Blackgat Books,
which is an imprint of Stark House Press. The book
is presented in first person by Nick, a mechanic who
just recently served a prison sentence. Oddly, the cop who
busts to Nick in the first place is now friends
with him. The CoP's name is Madrid, and now he's
(06:52):
dating Nick's former girlfriend, Lona. Madrid pitches to Nick that
they should do a bank heist together during the town's parade.
Madrid willvolunteer to be on patrol that day and he'll
cover for Nick and his friends. But as these things go,
it doesn't quite work out and the whole thing goes
to hell in a hand basket. This was a pretty
good crime to our paperback, and I always enjoy bankheist
(07:13):
I mean reading them, not performing them. I'm terrible with money.
This was Vice Trap by Elliott Gilbert. My top ten
kicks off with the first installment in the dragon Heart series.
The novel is called Vikings Slave and it was published
in twenty thirteen and authored by Griff Hosker. The book
begins in seven hundred and ninety a d and introduces
(07:35):
a young boy nicknamed Crow. He's shunned by his village
and he's picked on by his peers due to him
being only half Saxon. Soon, the Saxon village is raided
by Vikings and Crow is captured along with his mother.
Crowe is renamed Gareth and begins to enjoy his new
home with Vikings. The Vikings introduce Gareth to an older
(07:55):
Willior named Ragnar, who soon trains him to be a
master swords and over the next two hundred pages, Gareth
becomes a warrior, gains a family, and fights for his
village by overtaking more Saxon villages and feuding with a rival.
I felt like this was such a great journey and
I enjoyed the character so much. Believe it or not,
there's twenty two more installments in this series, so I
(08:18):
need to get to work reading more of these books,
but again, this is Viking Slave by Griff Hosker, and
I really enjoyed it. Number nine is that hell Bound
Train by Robert Block. This is a short story that
was originally published in the Magazine of Fantasy and Science
Fiction in nineteen fifty eight. The story stars a drifter
named Martin. One night, Martin is nearing death and the
(08:40):
devil arrives on a long black train to take his
soul to a warm place down under. But Martin offers
a deal for the devil. He requests that he be
allowed to live further. He wants a special watch that
will allow him to stop time just once. Martin says
he's gonna stop time when he finds a happy place
in his life that he's gonna be content with. So
(09:01):
the devil plays along, gives him the special watch, and
Martin continues living the reader's tag along on Martin's self discovery.
He gains employment, gets super wealthy, gets comfortable, but he's
hesitant about using the watch because he always feels like
he can be happier tomorrow and the day after and
so forth. This turns into a nightmare for Martin, pondering
(09:22):
when his life will reach the pinnacle of happiness. It's
a cautionary tale told brilliantly by Robert Block. This is
a great, great read. Again It's that hell Bound Train
by Robert Block. My eighth entry is Suddenly at Singapore
by Gavin Black. This is the first installment of the
Paul Harris series, which ran from nineteen sixty through nineteen
(09:44):
seventy nine, encompassing thirteen total books. Suddenly at Singapore was
published in hardcover in nineteen sixty and then later in
paperback by Signet. The book, of course stars Paul Harris,
a World War II veteran who experienced life as a
prisoner of war. He was held by Japanese forces alongside
his brother. After the war, both Paul and his brother
(10:05):
continue to live in Singapore and run a successful shipping
and freighting enterprise. But one of the business deals they
have is smuggling weapons into the good people of Southeast
Asia so they can fend off all those Communist overlords.
This novel centers around Paul's brother being murdered execution style
with a bullet to the back of the head. Paul
attempts to find out who the murderer was while also
(10:25):
fending off a pesky detective who thinks Paul had something
to do with it. The book's first half was far
better than the second, but I enjoyed the book overall.
It's got a spy fiction feel to it, even a
nautical escapism, but it doesn't really fall into the espionage realm.
Paul is just a successful businessman who just gets caught
up in adventures again. The book is called Suddenly at
(10:48):
Singapore and the author is Gavin Black. Number seven on
the countdown is Dark Justice. This is a brand new
crime fiction novel that's being published on March eleventh by
Rough Edges Press. I have it in Kendall and it's
three dollars. The author is J. L. Hughes and the
book is what I like to consider a hunt the
serial killer type of story. At four hundred and thirty pages,
(11:11):
it's a modern book, so it's got plenty of padding
to get the page count up, but that's fine because
the book is really entertaining and it held my attention.
A town called shadow Hook in upstate New York is
being terrorized by a serial killer nicknamed the Redeemer. He
captures high profile victims and then drains them. Of all
of their blood. A New York Police Department homicide detective
(11:33):
named Jade Carmichael is the protagonist. She's got a direct
connection to the killer because years ago he or she
killed her mother in the same fashion. The book is
the typical investigative mystery, as the police examined clues, interviews suspects,
and eventually chased down the killer. I enjoyed the book
and really liked this Jade character. There's some unexpected twist
(11:54):
and turns that added to the enjoyment. Again, This is
Dark Justice by J. L. Hughes. Place goes to a
short story titled The Hound of God. It's thirty nine
pages and it's written by Jonathan Mayberry and published as
an ebook in twenty twenty three by Titan. What's cool
about this short story is that it stars Solomon kan
(12:14):
the Puritan hero that Roberty Howard created. I've talked about
Solomon Kane here on the show and reviewed his stories
often on the blog. And this story, Solomon Kane arrives
in a small village and discovers the entire population has
been shredded apart. Body parts and mangled corpses are lying everywhere.
Who did this kind of carnage. Cain finds animal prints
(12:37):
that are mixed with over twenty boot prints from soldiers.
So how did this ravenous creature kill this many people
but somehow spare the soldiers. Eventually, Kine discovers the horrible truth.
This was about par for the course when it comes
to Caine's stories. A lot of the stories featuring the
character work in the same fashion, so I think Mayberry
played it a bit safe, but that doesn't detract from
(12:58):
the enjoyment at all. This was a solid read and
a rare Solomon Kine story written by someone other than
Robert Y Howard. Again, this was The Hound of God
by Jonathan Mayberry. If you haven't subscribed, please do so.
One click really helps me out. If you have a moment,
click the like button in this video subscribe comment. I'll
take all the interaction I can get, because that's the
(13:18):
whole reason why I do these videos. Be sure to
turn on notifications for the channel. That way you get
all the new videos when they come out. My number
five pick is the two thousand and seven novel Deadfall
by Robert le Perulo. This is the first of two
books starring a survivalist strongman guy named John Hutchinson. In
this book, Hutchinson, who's actually a full time journalist, joins
(13:41):
three friends on a hunting trip to Saskatchewan, Canada. They're
dropped in by plane for a week of hunting and
camping outdoors in the middle of nowhere, and their only
weapons are bows and arrows. That's their deal. They archery,
hunt deer and elk. This deer Hunter horror novel explodes
when a group of men and women arrive in the
nearby small town of Fiddler Falls and begins killing its
(14:02):
citizens using advanced weaponry. To who are these crazed killers?
Why are they running rough shot over the town? These
four hunters are the only saving grace for the citizens.
They must fight the bad guys in a Most Dangerous
Game sort of way. This book is like one big
summer blockbuster movie with survival helicopters, planes, humbies, satellite weaponry,
(14:24):
machine guns. It's like a combination of Rambo, Mad Max,
The Wild Bunch and The Most Dangerous Game. I loved
this book again. It is Deadfall by Robert Lipparulo. My
fourth place goes to The Sister of Cain by Mary Collins.
This was originally published as a hardcover in the early
nineteen forties, and was just recently published in a brand
(14:45):
new edition by Stark House Press. A pregnant woman named
Hilda arrives at a California mansion to meet her husband's sisters.
Hilda's husband's away fighting daring World War two, and she
needs a place of comfort to go to while she's pregnant.
When she arrives, she meets the sisters, including the the oldest,
a domineering, motherly figure named Pauline. It turns out that
each sister in the house has a beef with Pauline,
(15:07):
and then one night, Pauline's found dead in her bedroom
with a knife in the back. It's up the detective
named Cassidy, who arrives and tries to figure out who
the murderer is. The investigation digs up the family's history,
the future inheritance, details of the will, and the individual
motives each sister has in offering Pauline. Hilda is a
remarkable character, and she ends up teeming with Cassidy to
(15:28):
solve the case. I enjoyed the moody atmosphere of the
mansion and the small suspect list. It was a slow
build over two hundred pages, but very rewarding in the end. Again,
This is The Sister of Cain by Mary Collins, and
kicking off my top three reads of February is John
Blackburn's nineteen seventy three novel Deep among the Dead Men.
(15:48):
This is the first of two books starring a journeyman
named Bill Easter. Now Easter has served as a mercenary,
a smuggler, an oilman. He's been a gangster and assassin,
a bodyguard, and a lover. When the book begins, Easter's
with his girlfriend and her father on a boat off
the coast of a fictional country called Leonia. His newest
scheme is to dive one hundred feet down the salvage
(16:08):
gold from a sunken ship. The problem is that the
coast and waters are controlled by the newest dictator to
the country. To get the ability to salvage the gold,
Eastern needs to get into Leonia and kill off the
dictator and replace him with the last puppet dictator. After
completing this mission, he could start the salvage process, but
there's always problems with a good gold salvage, and Easter
(16:29):
runs smack into a killer on board the salvage ship.
Who's the killer? What's he or she? After? The book
mixes in elements of spy fiction, nautical adventure, and a
mystery who done it to make the narrative come alive.
There's also a sense of humor injected into the story
that kind of reminded me of John Gardner's boise Oaks character.
This book was excellent, and I just read the second
(16:49):
bill Easter book titled Mister Brown's Bodies, which I'll cover
on next month's ranking video. My runner up to best
Book of February is V. C. Andrews's novel Flowers in
the Attic. The book was published in nineteen seventy nine
and adapted into a film in nineteen eighty seven and
again in twenty fourteen. The book is presented in first
person narration by Kathy, a twelve year old girl who
(17:12):
accompanies her fourteen year old brother Chris, and their twin siblings,
five year old Carrie and Corey, to their mother's childhood mansion.
This secret journey and arrival at the mansion is after
Kathy's father dies in a car wreck. Her mother, Karen,
tells the family that they must return to her childhood
home because they've got no money. Her mother and father
are extremely wealthy, but they kicked Karin out of the
(17:34):
family decades ago. Karinn never told her father she had kids.
Through letters, she confines in her mother that she has
a family and the explanation that her husband just recently died.
Her mother agrees to secretly house Kathy and her siblings
in the upstairs wing of the house, right beside the attic.
The deal is that Karin will try to get back
into good graces with her father, get ridden back into
(17:55):
the will, and then we'll tell her father about the
kids and they'll all live happily ever after. But one
night in the attic turns into a week into a
month in two years, Kathy and her siblings endure horrible treatment,
both mental and physical abuse, and eventually have to decide
if they should try to escape this makeshift prison that
Krinn and her mother have made for the kids. This
(18:17):
was a disturbing book, and it's got some incest in it,
which adds to the controversial responses to the book back
when it was first published and even today. It's a wild,
wild book that makes for a captivating read now. I
reviewed the book on the blog on February fourteenth, but
I also discussed the book in depth for about a
half hour with fellow book tuber Zach Skiver. You can
(18:37):
search YouTube under his name. First name is Z like Zebra,
A like Apple, K like King, last name S like Sam,
K like King, I like Igloo, V like Valentine, E
like Edward R like Romeo. Watch that video exchange between
the two of us over the book again. This is
Flowers in the Attic by VC Andrews. So my favorite
(19:01):
book of February, we're down to the end. My favorite
book of February was The Hound of the Baskervilles by
Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. This is the fourth Sherlock Holmes novel.
It was originally published in magazine format in nineteen oh
one and then published in hardcover in nineteen oh two.
In this book, a doctor named Mortimer visits Holmes and
(19:21):
Watson and explains that a man named Charles Baskerville has
died from a heart attack. The weird part is that
he died out on the moors from cardiac arrest, and
right beside of his corpse were giant hound prints. What
type of dog scared Charles? It turns out that years
before this murder, a Hugo Baskerville had kidnapped a local
(19:41):
farmer's daughter and then was apparently killed by a large
demonic dog. Is this demonic dog on the loose again?
Did the dog frighten Charles to death? Mortimer employs Watson
to find out the answers. In the last act, Sherlock
arrives to assist Watson in determining just what's happening in
this spooky region of England. The book is just brimming
(20:01):
over with atmosphere. You've got the foggy moores, the idea
that something supernatural might be occurring, and of course lots
of death. The story is superb, the writing is excellent,
and of course the character development with the suspects has
set at just the right pace for the discovery to
be well earned. The Hound of the Baskervilles by Sir
Arthur Conan Doyle is a mandatory read. And there you
(20:24):
have it, all seventeen books I read in the month
of February. My writing partner Tom Simon. He also contributed
one review to the blog in February, and that was
Empire of Silence by Christopher Riosio. Maybe saying that name wrong.
That book isn't included in my list because I didn't
read that one. But his review for the book was
a positive one and he seemed to enjoy the eight
hundred page epic again. It's called Empire of Silence by
(20:47):
Christopher Riosio. Don't forget to check out the newest Paperback
Warrior podcast episode number one hundred and fifteen, which just
dropped on March the third. I also have another podcast
episode on March the seventeenth. In the meantime, you can
read new reviews nearly every day at Paperback Warrior dot
com and be sure to follow me on facebook 's
threads and Instagram. Take care ann As always, thanks for watching.
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