Mike Bennett

Alright if you liked the first half of U&F, and who doesn't, then you're going to love U&F2 Bonded in Blood. Sure it's all the same characters, except for all the dead ones from part one, but how can you resist ancient vampire cults and Russian white slavers in the same paragraph? We've got pirates and even Nazis too so there is something for the entire family to enjoy. Nobody's walking away from this table not feeling (en)gorged.

Even though this was foolishly offered as a free pod-cast you show more know you want the real thing to read over and over again to your grandchildren since Mike's voice will just frighten the wee ones. So do yourself a favor and purchase this heirloom and we'll all be just a little bit happier. show less

The last time we heard from Underwood and Flinch in Resurrection, Flinch discovered he has no choice in being Underwood's guardian. He also can't stop Underwood from killing people. In Underwood and Flinch: Bonded In Blood by Mike Bennett, the story picks up right after the first one ended.

With David and Lord Underwood both knowing where each other stand, Underwood decides to find out what the local nightlife of Almacena is like. They go to a bar that is owned by friends of Lydia and show more Underwood sets his sights on the wife of the bar's co-owner Michelle. Underwood wants a new mate but things are not that easy as David and Lydia do not approve of his choice.

To make matters worse the Russian mafia is hunting down the owners of the bar and Michelle's husband does not want to give up his wife. Also Lydia has plans of her own to get Underwood to make her and the other members of the Black Circle into vampires, even if she has to trick her master to do it. There is also the question of whether David can handle the job of being Underwood's guardian.

That's not all you get in Bonded In Blood. This book also gets into how Underwood became affiliated with Flinch. His origin story starts in the early 18th century and explains how Underwood was forced to become a pirate and how his escape attempt lead him to become a vampire. The story shifts seamlessly from the present to the past and then back to the present.

Mike Bennett has a great story here and the book was hard to put down. I think what I liked best about the book was how it worked as drama, horror, action and comedy. I loved when Underwood starts talking about butts and also when Underwood starts dancing to Motorhead with Michelle.

There were also some great horror scenes such as when 4 pirates are being stalked by something in the dead of the night and when Underwood looses his cool in a strip club. Mike Bennett adds a lot of different ingredients to his story and it works well even if you're not a horror fan. There were also some great fight scenes throughout the book and the story itself is very deep.

This story also looks at the theme of redemption, loyalty. love and friendship. You get to see Underwood and Flinch's relationship change throughout the book and even when they don't see eye to eye, they still work great together. Even some of the minor characters in Bonded In Blood get some great scenes. One part where the Russian Mafia shows up at Michelle's bar is memorable and there is a scene where even though both Michelle and her husband are Under Underwood's influence, they still manage to show their love for each other.

The only thing that bothered me a little was the ending. It made sense and kept true to the themes of the book but there was one loose end that needed to be tied up. There are more books scheduled in the Underwood and Flinch series and I hope Mike Bennett does as good with the next book as he did on the first two. Bonded In Blood is a good example of how great vampire fiction can be. Even if you don't like vampires you will find something to like here. show less

I first encountered One Among the Sleepless many years ago, when I listened to it as a story released in the form of a podcast. I continued following Mike Bennet's offerings, and while I eventually couldn't remember that much about One Among the Sleepless, I always remembered liking it. I therefore felt a little nervous about reading it. What if I didn't like it this time around?

I still like it.

From the outset, the story seems like a down to earth tale about relatively normal people living show more their lives in relatively normal ways. Then the book gradually takes a turn for the weird, gets stranger, and then goes onto rather cleverly bouncing back and forth between absurdity and utter normality. In a strange way the book never feels too ridiculous or unlikely, even at the heights of its absurdity.
The book has a collection of interesting characters. They don't develop much, but they don't need to: they serve their purpose very well, and drive the story onward. Some of the characters are thoroughly likable, charming, and witty people. Others are horrible, strange, mad, or all of the above. These elements are balanced rather well.
It has to be mentioned that this book has quite a large amount of debauchery in it. Thankfully it never seems out of place. Occasionally overdone, yes, but very deliberately so, and only to create the sense of excessiveness, and sometimes absurdity, that is called for in many of the book's scenes.
My biggest problem with the book is the ending. While it wasn't bad, it seemed to fizzle out, giving the impression of ending without the story being quite finished. I'm all for open endings, but this seemed incomplete rather than open. It didn't leave me guessing, but rather left me just not knowing. It didn't even leave me with the feeling of anything being unresolved. It just stopped. In a story revolving so heavily around characters, it would be nice to have a little more closure for at least some of them.

Overall One Among the Sleepless was a very enjoyable read. It's not for everyone, but if you aren't easily offended, if you like slightly strange stories, and if you feel like a quick, darkly funny, entertaining, very British piece of good fun, you could do much worse. show less

It's 2008 and Lord Underwood has risen from the grave in Spain after 50 years. Alcoholic former medic David Flinch is poised, however reluctantly, to take his familial place as mortal guardian to Lord Underwood. But wait, Lord Underwood must feed of course and how to dispose of all those bodies, or do we really need to? And what about the Sect and David's sister who desperately wants Lord Underwood to turn her into a vampire? Then there are all those pesky Russian mobsters looking to avenge show more a murder, and the English pub owners who thought they were hidden from them. Pirates (real ones), Nazis, werewolves, white slavery, and nosy detectives too.

Are you sick of wimpy sparkly vampire romance stories? Well U&F is a vampire novel like no other you have ever read (or listened to, or seen).

Check out the treats in Mike Bennett's Hall of Mirrors or what Dusty and Gaz have in store for you over at One Among the Sleepless if you are still skeptical of how good this can be. show less