Joe Talon

Book 146 - Joe Talon - Money for old bones

Lorne Turner, the former SAS, PTSD survival expert is back. The second novel which flirts round the edges of the supernatural is another great read. Much slower this time to build up the threat and once again what I love about these books is that Talon does not excuse or dismiss Turner’s past. He faces it…he challenges it…and he brings us along every difficult step with him…sharing every heartbeat…every bruise and torn muscle.

This time show more Turner and his close ‘family’ are brought together to protect a rectory that is being reshaped as a refuge for women and their families. The local bigwig with money to spend and ghosts he wants laid to rest is in everyone’s way.

As the slow, creeping, inevitable conflict rises…Turner has to do battle with rains that are almost Biblical…his own inner demons…and greed and the pursuit of wealth that may very well test a man’s heart and indeed his very soul.

A book that is never preachy…but always honest…can never be said to be pure of heart…but definitely has heart, sees relationships tested…grow and once again…emphasises that family goes beyond blood. As for the supernatural element I feared at one point this would take over and take away from Talon’s wonderful storytelling. Thankfully he resists…it is there…it isn’t ignored but the true thread and spine of the story is Turner…surviving…living…and perhaps finally…he is half way out of the dark.

Thankfully there is more to come…can’t wait. show less

Book 179 - Joe Talon - Dead of the Winter Sun

A return to the disturbing but wonderful tales of Lorne Turner, our soldier turned survival guide, continuing to suffer from PTSD, with his simply fabulous support system of Heather, not quite his girlfriend, and Ella, the most incredible local vicar with such a stoic faith that it makes you want to get to know her and be really close friends with her.

One of the things I love about Talon’s writings is that he doesn’t try and solve the PTSD in show more one sitting…it is a journey…a long and painful one for both Turner and those he loves. The peace he yearns for is in a constant battle with the violence and demons of his past.

When the mother of a friend turns up dead, Lorne finds himself drawn into the a web of horror so dark…even he might not come out of it unscathed…he tries continuously to extricate himself from the twisted events…but…when he is captured the torturous truth begins to emerge.

Talon’s flirting with the supernatural continues in this third Turner novel and it is fascinating as the dark ID of his psyche emerges several times to help save him. A plot that touches on WW2 scientific treatments of soldiers, overseas secret agency experimentation and through to dangers to Turner’s widening ‘family’ circle continues to be brutal…but the closeness and triumph that emerges in such a dark tale is, as always, deeply moving.

Good vs evil…right vs wrong.

Life is always lit in shades of light and dark…

A rare hidden literary talent that deserves much praise. show less

Book 239 - Joe Talon - Bad Waters Run Deep

Another terrifyingly brilliant book in the Lorne Turner paranormal series. It is change from the normal in that this time Turner and his ‘family’ are called to a private school to ‘debunk’ the ghostly going’s-on. It is like taking a sidestep into the 1950s at the school- from a principal taken straight from ‘Mallory Towers’ to a death that wouldn’t be out of place in a Christie’s Poirot.

There is little more disturbing than the show more death of a child and with the paranormal thrown it is taken to another level. Talon is brilliant at wringing the raw emotion and horror from our PTSD stricken ‘hero’ … Turner. At first it seems that it is all a wild goose chase…then the noises begin…the macabre phantoms are seen.

What is in the lake ? What horrific secrets does it hold ?

What I loved from Talon…an author I discovered on Twitter, was someone who gets PTSD…who understands how it breaks someone..again and again…turns them inside out at the drop of the hat and with no warning because everyone’s trigger is different …everyone’s straw that breaks their back can be light as a feather on another.

As for the climax… a battle across time with Lorne trying to be peacemaker…but can he keep his beast in check or will he be lost for a thousand years.

Outstanding writing. show less

Book 115 - Joe Talon - Counting Crows

I got a message on Twitter…an actual message…I had read the novella by Joe Talon and had sent him a tweet telling him how much I enjoyed it. Much to my surprise he sent a reply asking if I would review his new book…a sequel to the novella.

With the same well written and rounded characters this was another challenging and at times quite dark book. Wonderfully, the light is always more welcome in the darkest of nights.

Lorne Turner returns…still a show more broken…a former soldier looking for redemption type bloke…in a failing business…in a failing house, in what he increasingly believes, is a failing life.

His PTSD is taking control and his one light….a local vicar he has befriended…keeps him above the craziness of the world.

One morning he is out on one of his runs and come across a body…what follows again touches on the darkness and supernatural that was hinted at in his first story. Light vs dark…life vs death…sanity vs insanity…the themes are challenging…the darkness is oh so very dark but the love between the three main characters is so infectious and believable that this is another page turner that you won’t want to put down.

Prayers…light….life…and what it means to be alive…really alive is the heart of this story ….and more than that….it is about love…between friends…deep…real…forgiving…honest love.

Sharing the tears of a broken man at the centre of this story, was followed by a punch-the-air ending that had me cheering…with enough of a tantalising sting that left me gasping for what comes next. Can’t wait. show less