Lies Ripped Open: A Month Later

So, Lies Ripped Open came out just over a month ago, and I thought it would be nice to see how it’s done.

In short it’s done very well. It entered the Amazon top 100 bestselling books in the US, and was just outside in the UK. In fact after a month in the US, it’s here:

Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,821 Paid in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Paid in Kindle Store)

• #1 in Books > Science Fiction & Fantasy > Fantasy > Arthurian
• #1 in Kindle Store > Kindle eBooks > Science Fiction & Fantasy > Fantasy > Arthurian
• #1 in Books > Science Fiction & Fantasy > Fantasy > Myths & Legends

And in the UK, it’s here:

Amazon Bestsellers Rank: #917 Paid in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Paid in Kindle Store)

• #1 in Kindle Store > Books > Science Fiction & Fantasy > Fantasy > Myths & Legends > Arthurian
• #1 in Books > Fiction > Fantasy > Myths & Legends > Arthurian
• #1 in Kindle Store > Books > Literature & Fiction > Action & Adventure > Men’s Adventure

I’ve got to say, I’m more than a little astonished by how well it’s done. And review wise it’s been great too.

Liz Wilkins said:

I’m not going to make any bones about what a huge fan of this series I am, most people know it anyway, but just to be clear I am a HUGE fan of this series.

With Lies Ripped Open the addictive quality of the Hellequin Chronicles goes into overdrive – I read this, fast and furious into the early hours of this morning so Steve McHugh definitely owes me a coffee or six – but you kind of just have to keep going once you start.

The backstory is fleshed out in this instalment, giving some insight into past events and also setting us up for more to come – Nate is on top form here and the magical mythology that the author has created using his own obviously insane imagination and mixing it up with stories we all know has also taken a huge jump in depth and creativity.

This is quite firmly in the adult market – Urban Fantasy for those of us who like our stories uncompromisingly realistic despite the mythological backdrop, Lies Ripped Open was a purely joyful read that I was more than happy to lose sleep over.

The dialogue is witty and full of ironic clarity, I love all the characters and each new novel brings something a little different than the last, the ongoing storyline is really well constructed – for that reason I would recommend reading these in order, although you CAN jump in at any point and have an excellent time.

Brilliant. The only problem being of course is now the wait starts for book 6. Which after THAT ending you will kind of wish you had sat there already. Taps foot.

If you haven’t read these yet and are a fan of all things magic and mayhem then this whole series will definitely be for you.

Jesse said:

This fifth book in the Hellequin series moves the main, overarching plot forward quite a bit. There are a number of significant developments that take place along the way, and several major situations change in a no-turning-back sort of way. As is typical with this series, the book was riveting from start to end and left me wanting more, yet was also very satisfying at multiple points along the way.

So, all in all, it’s been a wonderful month. But I know people want to be told what’s happening next. Well unfortunately I can’t tell you that yet, I should be able to soon enough, but for now that’s going to have to stay under wraps. I can tell you that Book 6 is being written, and that the Flashbacks are set in 1195 in the Kingdom of Jerusalem, but that’s it.

Thank you to everyone who grabbed a copy to read or listen to, it’s been wonderful hearing how much people have enjoyed it. Here’s to many more to come.

Until Dawn

I’ve played a lot of games over the years. A LOT. And for a while I was very much into my horror games; Resi Evil, Silent Hill, those kinds of games. Resi 2 and Silent Hill 2 are both some of the greatest games ever made.

The Last of Us is one of my favourite games of all time, it’s a brilliant mesh of horror, action and stealth that really works, although it helps that it had a great story with fantastic characters. 

Well, Until Dawn came out just a few days ago and I’ve finished it. It didn’t take long- about 7 hours- but I’ve already re-started to try and save everyone. It’s a brilliant, unsettling, scary, and funny game. It has some of the best acting in a game I’ve seen in ages and a genuinely good story.

In the era of Telltale games and the re-emergence of the point and click adventure game, Until Dawn does it better than anyone has so far. It’s probably my favourite game this year alongside Witcher 3.

The thing about it that amazed me, was how the characters grow. You start the game and think several of them are self-important dicks, but as the horrific events unfold (and there’s some properly grim stuff in there) these characters change, they grow and become people they need to be to deal with the situation. It’s brilliant writing and something that isn’t done enough in games.

So, if you like horror, or just a good story, Until Dawn will be right up your street. Even my wife, who has almost zero interest in videogames, sat every night I was playing it to see how it ended, to see which characters lived and died through my own actions. And she still wants to watch it again to see if I can save everyone. 

Oh and Peter Stormare is fantastic in it. If you own a PS4 and like good stories, pick it up. You won’t regret it.