Info
Written By: Michael J Malone.
Published By: Orenda Books.
Thanks to the publisher for sending me a physical copy of the book for the purpose of this review, also thanks to Random Things Blog Tour for adding me to the tour.
Overview
Hiding from the world in her little white cottage on the shores of a loch, Annie Jackson is fighting to come to terms with the world of the murmurs,
a curse that has haunted female members of her family for centuries.
While she is within the ancient, heavy stone of the old dwelling, the voices merely buzz, but the moment she steps outside the door they clamour to torment her all over again, bringing with them shocking visions of imminent deaths.
Into this oasis comes her adoptive mother, Mandy McEvoy, begging for Annie's help. Mandy's nephew Damien has gone missing, after dropping off his four-year old son at his mother's home.
Unable to refuse, but terrified to leave her sanctuary, Annie, with the help of her brother Lewis, is drawn in to a secretive, seductive world that will have her question everything she holds dear, while Lewis' life may be changed forever…
Overview taken from the official book press release.
Review
Here we have another thriller but this time more atmospheric and on the gothic side, The Torments by Micheal J Malone is a bit more of a thinking man's (or woman's) thriller as there are alot of twists and turns in the storyline that do make sense if you are paying attention as the story builds.
The story follows Annie Jackson who has a gift, or what could be perceived as a curse, within her head she hears murmurs that give her visions of impending deaths - but there is nothing she can do about said deaths she just knows it will happen, this is seen by the local community as witchcraft and soon the rumours circulate with Annie finding solace in her cottage way out in the sticks away from prying eyes and interfering busy bodies.
That is until one day her adoptive mother Mandy gets in contact, Mandy's nephew Damien has gone missing and trying all other lines of enquiry the only other option is to see if Annie can use her powers to find him. This puts Annie in a terrifying situation but she knows she can't refuse, family means the world to her and so she just has to help, but doing so could well turn things alot darker than they need to be.
Another introduction to another great author, Michael J Malone has a unique almost artistic feel to his writing that he uses the words to illustrate the story allowing the reader to tune into their imagination and step into the world that he has created but be sure to strap yourself in as this is no Disney. I enjoyed the story and found the character of Annie fascinating she seams to have many layers intriguing to say the least.
Summary
Time now then to put my thoughts into a summary, overall I enjoyed the book it had an almost chilling feel to it but allowed the reader to get into the book first before it gets too dark allow the reader to become captivated into the story. A different flavour to the thrillers I'm used to but definitely an enjoyable experience.
Verdict-Out of 5 ⭐
⭐⭐⭐⭐
GOOD
I give The Torments a good score of 4 ⭐, a darkened thriller that builds the world almost around you allowing you to become captivated by the storyline. Definitely a recommendation from me.
Note on The Author
Michael Malone is a prize-winning poet and author who was born and brought up in the
heart of Burns' country. He has published over 200 poems in literary magazines
throughout the UK, including New Writing Scotland, Poetry Scotland and Markings. Blood
Tears, his bestselling debut novel won the Pitlochry Prize from the Scottish Association
of Writers. His dark psychological thriller, A Suitable Lie, was a number-one bestseller, and
is currently in production for the screen, and five powerful standalone thrillers followed
suit. The Murmurs, first in the Annie Jackson Mysteries series, was published to critical
acclaim in 2023. A former Regional Sales Manager (Faber & Faber) he has also worked as
an IFA and a bookseller. Michael lives in Ayr, where he also works as a hypnotherapist.
This review was part of the Random Things Blog Tour please check out the other bloggers on the tour
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