The Sound of Sirens by Ewan Gault - [Review]

The Sound of Sirens by Ewan Gault 
[Review]

Print length: 286 pages
Publisher: Garrison (Leamington Books)

Publication date: 22 October 2021

My Review: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Synopsis

In a dead-beat coastal town in North East Scotland, seventeen-year-old Malky Campbell is desperate to help his pregnant and heroin addicted girlfriend. DI Stark, a middle-aged detective, alarmed by the rise of teenage and gang crime in Port Cawdor, uncovers the operations of a county line gang that are flooding the area with drugs and engaging in a vicious turf war with the local crime family. Malky has just started working on his family's trawler with his cousin Johnny, when their boat pulls up Johnny's brother in its nets. The rest of the crew, the tightly-knit community and the police start to suspect that the cousins are responsible for his death. With his brother dead, Johnny inherits the family trawler, which he had planned to use to smuggle drugs into the country for the county line gang, giving him enough money to start a new life. Ewan Gault's debut, The Sound of Sirens is a tough, modern crime novel, presenting the complexities of young life in a town at the end of the line.

Review

A harrowing concoction of crime, violence and heartbreak. A story that will leave a permanent imprint on your heart!

I was absorbed by the plot almost instantly, unlike many other books, Ewan doesn't mess around and the plot begins with Malky's uncle Joe's dead body being fished out of the water. From the moment that Joe's body was discovered, it was clear that something fishy (no pun intended) had happened and here the story begins to unwind. 

The main character is seventeen-year-old Malky Campbell who by all means, appears to have a better academic chance than his other family members and people believe that Malky stood a good chance of being something good but with the influence of his cousins that chance is greatly reduced. The fishing community is a tight-knit bunch who believe Malky is destined to be in charge of his family's trawler. Malky and his family live in Port Cawdor which was previously a successful fishing town but has now succumbed to the drug epidemic, where young people dream of leaving but always somehow end up mixed up within the drug scene. I adored Malky, you could see his kindness shining through and his internal struggles with doing right by his family whilst trying to save his pregnant and heavily addicted friend from the harsh conditions she is living in. As the story continues you can see that Malky is faced with going against his own moral compass to make a decision to help his friends which leaves Malky in a very precarious spot. The entire time I was reading this book I was on edge, wishing Malky to make the harsh but sensible choice but knowing heartbreakingly that he is just a teenage boy who is in love and love is a powerful drug in itself. 

I would argue that in Malky's case, love was his drug of choice and was the core reason why he makes some of the decisions he does, he's desperate to not only love and save his pregnant friend but to also be loved and I think that's what broke my heart the most. 

DI Stark is an experienced officer who is sickened by what Port Cawdor has turned into. He is a hardened police detective who has had to deal with the ongoing drug crisis his town is facing, He fears what this drug rampaged place will do to his daughter Zoe and after seeing the worst of the worst type of drug-related crimes, he really wants out, but first, he has to figure out what exactly is going on within the trawler community. DI Stark is an intelligent and driven character that needs to unearth whatever secrets Malky is holding and he won't stop until he has achieved it but he also had a lot of heart hidden under that grumpy exterior. 

This story whilst absolutely heart-breaking is an incredible read, you see humanity at its lowest, you experience what crippling addiction and poverty looks like, but the saddest thing of all is you see insurmountable amounts of hope that burns within the youth that have all the odds stacked up against them. This is the finest crime novel I have read in a long while, I absolutely recommend to anyone who loves a good authentic crime story to give this book a read, you won't regret it!

Many thanks to the publisher for sending me a copy of this book, I hope to see more of Ewan Gault's fantastic work in the future! 

Waterstones purchase link here

Foyles purchase link here

About The Author

Ewan Gault is an English teacher at a sixth form college in Tottenham. Originally from Scotland, he's lived and worked in Japan, Italy and for the last nine years in England. He loves running long distances and reading short stories: his favourite writers in this form are Denis Johnson, Alice Munro and Raymond Carver. 'The Sound of Sirens' is his first crime novel. The novel grew out of a short story that was published in New Writing Scotland a decade ago and which contained a group of characters whose stories demanded telling. Chapters in the novel have won Aberdeen Uni's Toulmin Prize and The Fish Knife/CWA prize.

Follow Ewan Gault on Twitter: @EwanGault

Exploring the love of reading

                                                                        

                    Many people from all over the world love to read, reading has been a known hobby for many centuries, although in the past it was mostly available to the educated and wealthy members of society but thankfully reading is getting more and more accessible through the help of local charities and libraries, so everyone no matter what their circumstances can fall in love with reading.  

I asked the book community on Twitter why they love to read and the most common factor was escapism. No one can deny that everyday life can be exhausting, and what is a more perfect way to escape your troubles than to dive into a world of your own choosing. Many people on Twitter agreed that reading was a perfect way to deal with stress as @JaneMakar said "It makes me forget the everyday stresses and takes me in to a world of my own choosing, whether it be romance, mystery, horror, I love the escape." whilst @NicholasDAngus said, "It's an escape, and it makes me happy. Simple as that.". There were many more comments supporting this and I must admit, it's partly the reason as to why I love to read too. There is no better escapism than being able to pick your own world, adventures and battles and everybody, especially now during this climate needs a way to escape, even if it's only for a little while.

Another user brought up a wonderfully valid point that I think many people who are disabled or have limited mobility can relate to,

@Adrian66228674

 explained "Being disabled with mobility issues, reading takes me to places I would never would go and allows me to experience things I never could in my own life. It opens vistas that would otherwise remain unknown.". I think this is a beautiful way of summing up why you love to read, it can allow you to experience things that are otherwise impossible to do so.

@OnTheTrail81 made a very important point on this topic by saying "I find that most writers in almost any genre are the ones who ask the really important questions of what we are and why we are. That's why I read. It helps me understand why I am the person I am. Obviously that deserves more detail than a tweet but it's the short of it.". This is a beautiful observation and it's very accurate, reading can help you understand so much about not just your own character but also others, it can take your current understanding and mould it to a much more sophisticating form.

As it is clear from the points made here, reading isn't just great for educational purposes but also extremely helpful in aiding your own mental wellbeing by finding a great medium to healthily release stress.

If you would like to see the full thread about the love of reading, please click here. Why not share some of your own reasons for loving reading in the comments below.

A massive thank you to all those who shared their love for reading and to all the authors for writing such beautiful words that we can escape too for moments of comfort.

Additional information

Credit for image 1: https://unsplash.com/photos/OJZB0VUQKKc?utm_source=unsplash&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=creditShareLink.

Credit for image 2: https://unsplash.com/photos/rjm78PEyYLc?utm_source=unsplash&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=creditShareLink

 In the Shadow of Time by Kevin Ansbro 
[Review]

Print length: 388 pages
Publisher: 2QT Limited (Publishing)
Publication date: 30th August 2021

Price: £10.99

My Review: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Synopsis

"I was in Mexico City for three months, and yet returned to England on the same day that I left..."

Through her time-travel research, physicist Dr Sofia Ustinova has attracted the interest of higher beings from a distant galaxy...

Luna, a porcelain-skinned teenager, lives alone in a Danish forest where she guards an astonishing secret...

Pablo, an optimistic shoeshine boy, struggles to earn a living on the sweltering streets of Mexico City...

Meanwhile, Hugo Wilde, a British secret agent, embarks on a mission to kill a Russian assassin, unaware that his life is about to change in ways he could never have imagined...

Review

This is the first novel that I have read written by Kevin Ansbro and I know it will definitely not be my last. I fear that I will not be able to write a decent review for this extraordinary story as my words alone cannot even begin to articulate the journey this story took me on. 

This book is so beautifully written, I could literally picture Silkeborg Forest in Denmark where you are first introduced to a fair skinned young lady who is not what she appears to be. It's 1970 and she has just become an orphan but thankfully the Gods were looking out for poor little Luna as she is taken in by a man that teaches her how to stay alive and to hide her true self. By 1986 Luna is a sixteen year old girl fending for herself in the forest whilst guarding her heavy secret. 

Throwing time forward to 2020 where physicist Dr Sofia Ustinova is eagerly awaiting her husband's departure, but instead comes face to face with a British MI6 agent who is there to deliver some sweet karma to Sofia's monstrous husband but to both of their surprise, the hardened MI6 agent falls head over heels with Sofia. This is just the beginning of an amazing journey that Kevin takes you on. 

Kevin does an absolutely stellar job in intricately weaving the different time frames and instead of it feeling jarring, it flows smoothly and pleasantly, taking you on a ride of your life. I was concerned at the beginning that following many characters may become confusing but the story was perfectly composed and each character felt like family.

The machine takes Sofia, Hugo and his friend Vincent back to the past. These odd individuals make a humorous bunch but also a heart-warming family which only becomes more unique with the addition of Pablo and Luna. This is a very brief overview of the wonderful story that doesn't even begin to scratch the surface in all reality, you just have to delve straight into it and experience it for yourself.

I cannot thank Kevin Ansbro enough for transporting me to this magical realm where wrongs are put to right, where love can be found even in the darkest of places and lastly for providing me with a positive story that warmed my heart and my soul. 

Amazon purchase link: In the Shadow of Time: Amazon.co.uk: Ansbro, Kevin: 9781914083228: Books

About The Author

I was born of Irish parents, and have also lived in Malaysia and Germany.
My formal education was at Hamond's Grammar School in Swaffham, and at the Norfolk College of Arts and Technology (Stephen Fry being a much more famous former student).
I write in the magical realism genre, meshing otherworldliness into the harshness of our real world. I also like to handcuff humour and tragedy to the same radiator.
Perhaps incongruously for an author, I have a background in karate and kickboxing and travel extensively - particularly in the Far East.
I'm married (to Julie) and currently live in Norwich, England.
Stuff about me: I'm a foodie and an avid reader who values good manners, love and friendship above all else. I am constantly putting my foot in it, am reputed to have a wicked sense of humour and love to laugh, but sometimes do that 'snorty pig' noise when I do.
I'm also easy-going and extremely friendly. Come on over and have a chat - I'll put the kettle on!

(Taken from Goodreads).

Follow Kevin Ansbro on Twitter here: @kevinansbro

Find more info about Kevin Ansbro here: Homepage - Kevin Ansbro