Craig R. Saunders

I received an review copy of this novella from the publisher, Darkfuse, in exchange for an honest review.

This was a very dark ride. Like some of the other reviewers I am familiar with Saunders’ work—through Darkfuse. He is writer of very tense stories. His characters are well drawn and evoke our sympathy as they are shredded on the blades of fate, impossible situations or bad luck, or sometimes by other characters with garden tools. Seriously, he is the only writer I have ever known to show more use an elevator as a weapon. He is a pretty hard core guy.

Characters are Saunders’ strong suit. Tortured characters that are tough but find that some situations are beyond toughness to overcome. But that doesn’t stop them from trying. Unit 731 is no exception. You can’t help but sympathize and root for several of these men who are tortured both physically in the present and by their wrongful deeds or mistakes of the past.

However, I have to agree with Bill that I just couldn’t buy into the storyline. It was just so implausible to me that I had to pretty much ignore several plot lines in the first part in order to just enjoy the very interesting second act. I think the Unit 731 tie in weakened the story, IMHO.

3.5 to 4 stars based on two very good characters (Reggie and David) and a strong second half. show less

Anyone obsessed with the history of Imperial Japan’s Epidemic and water Purification may possibly be lacking in social skills…and Luke Benson is no exception. When we first encounter Luke he is with his friends Damien and Miles “the 731” and about to uncover the contents of a little wooden box…”In the tin, dried desiccated: a c**k, severed at the root. Even withered as it was it was unmistakable”. This nicely sets the tone for the rest of this character driven story of one show more family’s madness, relationships and hidden secrets that boil over into a bloody encounter. There are some wonderful characters most notably hired killer Leverett Caron, the wanderer David Ellison returning home, and Reggie Ellison a grizzled old Korean War Vet with stories to tell. When this dysfunctional family meet blood will fly and events will occur that can never be undone.

Craig Saunders in an author of dark fiction and this is a compelling short novella that showcases his writing talent. I look forward to his future publications. show less

I picked out Masters of Blood and Bone as my next review, because I honestly think it is a little piece of genius expounding the gluttony of power, disguised as a dark fantasy novel. Which was a bit of a blind sight, considering I picked it up thinking it was a Harry Dresden/John Taylor-esque paranormal noir.

It certainly contains all the norms, but there was a message in there slightly more socially conscious than simply angry gods, mentally instable wizards and a grumpy, fat, arse sore show more detective that's good with death.

When you consume power, become bloated and ungainly with it, your power is an overestimation of your worth and a front that hides your fallibilities. In turn, your underestimation of those you lord power over, is ultimately the biggest failing you'll never see coming. I am looking around me right now and I see Janus everywhere. And I see the arse sore detective pulling him down at every turn. Whether you're on the side of good or evil is simply a subjective opinion held in ones heart and mind, it ultimately comes down to what we want. How we go about getting it, whose the judge? A God? Now there's the sticking point.

There is a real world parallel here, that I wanted to plaster up on every damn wall. Which is strange for me, because I usually keep my social consciousness firmly under wraps in light of it being unwieldy when let out of it's cage. I jail it in books!

Is it the best fantasy out there? Well, it's certainly different. It's probably the most disturbing I've read in a long time, sex as power, mind control to achieve goals (simply if you eject enough of your own vitriolic ink into a blank space, you'll ultimately fill it up to the point of creating a slave to your will) , mass sacrifice as a means to an ends. However, it is tempered by a dark, sarcastic intelligent humour, and there is a depth of emotion I didn't expect. It's a fast paced novel, but it isn't rushed, the flow is mastered beautifully. Even if I hadn't been wearing my 'sick of the world' hat, I still would've enjoyed it on a Nightside level.

So, it's not for the faint hearted or the prudish, but then, if you don't push the boundaries you set your own trap. Check it out if your in the mood for something left of the normal.

Hardcopy Worthy? I would buy it in a heartbeat if one existed. Alas! This review was originally posted on Book Frivolity show less

This is...a weird book. The story follows two characters: Holland, an assassin that works in the supernatural world (though it's never made clear whether he himself is supernatural or just an extraordinary human) and his daughter Ank (who is definitely supernatural). Holland has let himself since the death of Ank's mother, but he is still a formidable individual. The story opens as Holland is investigating a brutal murder and discovers some definite supernatural elements. As he continues to show more look in to things, nothing ever quite adds up. I don't want to say anything more because I'll risk spoiling something and a major draw of this book is the surprising turns the plot takes.

Speaking of which, having the plot run off in a direction that the reader never expects is becoming something of a hallmark for Craig Saunders. It's present in the novellas he's done for DarkFuse, albeit to a lesser degree (owing, I'm sure, to the shorter format), but the surprising twists and turns come hard and fast in this book. I find that's often a hard thing for a writer to pull off effectively and continuously, but Saunders is holding steady so far.

One of the more appealing things (to me, at least) in this book is how Saunders has taken several mythologies and combined them all to form the backbone of his story. By the halfway point, Roman and Jewish/Christian icons have taken center stage, with the Greeks making an appearance by the end of the story to help wrap everything up. On top of this, there are hints throughout that a number of other mythologies are real and Holland has interacted with them in some capacity in the past. Again, this is a tricky thing for a writer to pull off successfully because robbing from existing mythologies can very easily lead to a situation where an author is just standing on the shoulders of giants if they do not bring something fresh and entirely their own to the table. Rest assured, Craig Saunders does that in spades with this book.

Probably my only real complaint is that even at the end of the story, I still wasn't sure what, exactly, Holland was. It's stated several times that he's just an exceptional human, but as I mentioned earlier, there are a number of hints throughout that that isn't the whole story. I think it may be my own relative unfamiliarity with the mythologies Saunders pulled from that leave me with this minor bit of confusion. But even accounting for that (and recognizing that it's largely an issue with me as a reader rather than Saunders as a writer), I wholeheartedly recommend Masters of Blood and Bone. show less