Trapped within the decaying carcass of the Pearson quarantine facility, and starved of creative oxygen, Barry James is a fast receding heartbeat in a body occupied by an incurable disease with only pen and paper offering an escape into the outside world. A latter day Papillion imprisoned for an illness he didn’t ask for and … Continue reading “Asylum by Marcus Low”
Category: Oxford Link
Book reviews connected to Oxford
Poster Boy by N J Crosskey
Imagine Brexit on steroids where GDPR has been consigned to the bin and the resident of number 10 has assumed the role of Data Controller for a society in which privacy is fast becoming the privilege of power. This is Big Brother for the internet age as the English Reclamation Party (ERP) dictate a nationalistic … Continue reading “Poster Boy by N J Crosskey”
The Geography of Friendship by Sally Piper
A dark shadow has been cast over the friendships of Lisa, Nicole and Samantha as they attempt to recreate a life changing Outback trek that has left a nightmarish imprint on their psyches. The inanimate austerity of rock and sand is occasionally lifted by the reflected light of the sea whose changing tides begin to mirror … Continue reading “The Geography of Friendship by Sally Piper”
The Key to Flambards by Linda Newbery
Imagine the Famous Five tweeting their thoughts for the day before rambling into the countryside in search of adventure and jolly japes. The Key to Flambards manages to depict this surreal fictional jump as the nostalgic undertones of Enid Blyton seep into the Facebook generation with every turn of the sepia tinted page. The green and pleasant land of … Continue reading “The Key to Flambards by Linda Newbery”
Murmuration by Robert Lock
Starlings provide the panoramic perspective on a town whose fortune has been made from the hypnotic impact of the sea but whose ultimate demise is overseen by a pier whose physical permanence has been gradually eroded by the tides of time. The murmuration of winged guardians are the town’s avian hard drive, able to host … Continue reading “Murmuration by Robert Lock”
A Necessary Murder by M J Tjia
Heloise Chancery is an exotic Victorian sleuth, a cat walk Sherlock with a wardrobe to die for and not a deerstalker to cry over. She has a charisma that adds colour to a London landscape shrouded in grey, a celebrity in an era when the paparazzi hounded their prey in a horse and carriage. With … Continue reading “A Necessary Murder by M J Tjia”
Lucy and Linh by Alice Pung
Lucy Lam is on the verge of drowning in the oestrogen filled waters of Laurinda school but manages to prevent an emotional shipwreck by regaining her sense of self just as the life-boats are being lowered. Much like the Vietnamese boat people she is descended from she demonstrates a resilience and desire to survive seemingly … Continue reading “Lucy and Linh by Alice Pung”
Fire On The Mountain by Jean McNeil
Standing as a metaphorical sentinel, a glowing mountain protects a post colonial African outpost from the 21st century and the cold wind of change it threatens to brings with it. Esteemed author Pieter is the physical presence in tune with the spirituality of his environment but the dreamer fears the nightmare of a disintegrating family … Continue reading “Fire On The Mountain by Jean McNeil”
Hotel on Shadow Lake by Daniela Tully
Nazi Germany provides the malevolent oxygen to a story of unrequited love, and lives tarnished by greed and loathing. The swastika becomes the symbol of social and familial disintegration as Martha Wiesberg sees her brother descend into a void of darkness. As the plot transcends the Atlantic the arch dictator’s controlling characteristics are reflected on … Continue reading “Hotel on Shadow Lake by Daniela Tully”
Outwalkers by Fiona Shaw
Jake Riley’s youthful life is being inexorably sapped by an educational establishment whose duty of care owes more to repression than expression. The Academy attempts to imprison the hearts and minds of its reluctant inhabitants and is an unwanted symbol of the government’s determination to control the people of England at any cost. The Coalition … Continue reading “Outwalkers by Fiona Shaw”