Neil Rochford
Author of The Blue Ridge Project
Works by Neil Rochford
Tagged
Common Knowledge
- Birthdate
- 1987-03-23
- Gender
- male
- Occupations
- novelist
short story writer
teacher
bar manager - Short biography
- Neil Rochford is an Irish man, which means that he harbors crippling self-doubt and confidence in pretty much equal amounts. He loves fiction where minds are bent and bad things happen, and tries to emulate that in his own creative works.
He started writing short stories in 2014, some of which will be available in the upcoming short story collection, Dark Wings. The Blue Ridge Project, a dark speculative suspense story, is his debut novel. It was released in May 2016 and is the first in a series.
He has been lucky enough to live in a few different places around the world, from Estonia to Brazil, and would recommend it to anyone that wants to open their mind and shake off the dust.
In his downtime from writing fiction, he also tries his hand at freelance writing, teaching, hospitality and marketing. - Nationality
- Ireland (birth)
- Map Location
- Ireland
Members
Reviews
Good Action, But with Limited Plot Integration
The Blue Ridge Project develops three seemingly unrelated stories: Andrea Nox is a detective who is trying to solve a murder/suicide; Robert Duncan is a freelance journalist who stumbles on the biggest story of his life; and Frank Mortimer is the demented son of a rich and powerful family who is just trying to tame his demons. Only in the conclusion do we learn what these seemingly distinct lives have in common…and it’s not anything good.
I show more tend to have a weakness for any story based in part on science and technology, and this one is. In fact, some of what is described is not as far-fetched as is implied, and the tension could have been increased considerably, for me, if the tech had seemed more realistic and less like quackery. But kudos for the tie to current science nonetheless. The story is also well paced and delivers consistent action – there’s never a dull moment. Some of the action seemed unnecessarily gory; I really did not need such intimate detail on the physical traumas inflicted. But this is a personal preference, and others may find that the blood and guts adds to the tension.
There were, however, a couple of downsides. First, the characters and plot lines tended to be unbelievable in places. Most everyone in law enforcement seemed to be hard-drinking and prone to violence. At one point, a police Captain instructs a detective to kill someone and the detective has no qualms with this guidance. Later, this detective suspects someone of a horrendous crime, but that does not stop her from getting drunk and going to bed with him. And a site that is the home to clandestine experimentation is guarded by a system that kills anyone within range. Just what is going to happen when a school bus driver accidently makes a wrong turn? There were just too many bizarre people and situations to allow me to fully immerse myself in the story.
But the primary limitation for me was that the crux of the story, the glue that was to tie the three story elements together was never fully developed. It is almost as if this integrating theme, the experimental technology, was only there so that three, otherwise unrelated short stories would appear to be connected.
So, for fans of well-paced and occasionally gory action with some vague technology underpinnings, the Blue Ridge Project should meet your interests well. show less
The Blue Ridge Project develops three seemingly unrelated stories: Andrea Nox is a detective who is trying to solve a murder/suicide; Robert Duncan is a freelance journalist who stumbles on the biggest story of his life; and Frank Mortimer is the demented son of a rich and powerful family who is just trying to tame his demons. Only in the conclusion do we learn what these seemingly distinct lives have in common…and it’s not anything good.
I show more tend to have a weakness for any story based in part on science and technology, and this one is. In fact, some of what is described is not as far-fetched as is implied, and the tension could have been increased considerably, for me, if the tech had seemed more realistic and less like quackery. But kudos for the tie to current science nonetheless. The story is also well paced and delivers consistent action – there’s never a dull moment. Some of the action seemed unnecessarily gory; I really did not need such intimate detail on the physical traumas inflicted. But this is a personal preference, and others may find that the blood and guts adds to the tension.
There were, however, a couple of downsides. First, the characters and plot lines tended to be unbelievable in places. Most everyone in law enforcement seemed to be hard-drinking and prone to violence. At one point, a police Captain instructs a detective to kill someone and the detective has no qualms with this guidance. Later, this detective suspects someone of a horrendous crime, but that does not stop her from getting drunk and going to bed with him. And a site that is the home to clandestine experimentation is guarded by a system that kills anyone within range. Just what is going to happen when a school bus driver accidently makes a wrong turn? There were just too many bizarre people and situations to allow me to fully immerse myself in the story.
But the primary limitation for me was that the crux of the story, the glue that was to tie the three story elements together was never fully developed. It is almost as if this integrating theme, the experimental technology, was only there so that three, otherwise unrelated short stories would appear to be connected.
So, for fans of well-paced and occasionally gory action with some vague technology underpinnings, the Blue Ridge Project should meet your interests well. show less
Overall, this thriller mystery worked. The first half was complicated by getting to know the characters and how they fitted into the story. This added to the intrigue and the story itself provided plenty of intrigue.
The pace, plot and character development were good.
I received this as a LibraryThing Member GiveAway. Thank you.
The pace, plot and character development were good.
I received this as a LibraryThing Member GiveAway. Thank you.
This review was written for LibraryThing Member Giveaways.
This was a great book! It was a real page turner and I thoroughly enjoyed it. I am looking forward to the next book in the series.
This review was written for LibraryThing Member Giveaways.
Statistics
- Works
- 1
- Members
- 8
- Popularity
- #1,038,910
- Rating
- 4.3
- Reviews
- 3
- ISBNs
- 1
