Charles R Stubbs

Ann and Travis are back and embroiled in a new adventure that might be the death of them. “Retribution” picks up five years after “Web of Deceit” and begins with a student murdered in North Wales. As the authorities try to solve this crime, another man, Craig Fletcher, plots a complicated revenge against a man he suspects of trying to kill him six years ago. The two plot lines intertwine and Travis and Ann are unwillingly dragged into the thick of things.

I won’t give you any more show more of the plot because I don’t want to give anything away. There are so many unexpected twists and turns that follow fast one upon the other that the story moves along at a breakneck pace. Fortunately, the writing is clear and the author has done a masterful job of keeping the reader engaged. Personally, I was on the edge of my seat and several times frantic with worry that some of my favorite characters might not make it to the end. Despite the twists (which really are unexpected), it is easy to follow the action so that you don’t get confused. The story is much more of a tale of thriller/suspense than a mystery, although there is certainly a mystery element.

An interesting aspect is the interplay of the natural world and technology. Stubbs draws a frightening picture of how technology can be used to track and even manipulate people, with a fascinating counterpoint of how listening to something as simple and natural as a bird’s song can aid us in unexpected ways.

Having read “Web of Deceit,” I was pleased to see Ann and Travis again, and I was particularly pleased with how Travis has developed. In fact, although I liked him in “Web of Deceit,” I found that I really enjoyed this more mature version of him. Stubbs does an excellent job with characterization and I look forward to another story featuring Travis an Ann to continue their life journey. show less

Web of Deceit
It’s great when you find an author new to you and particularly when that author has successfully combined two of your favorite things: computers and bird watching. In many ways, Web of Deceit reminds me of mysteries such as And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie were you follow the trail of several characters as they eventually cross for better or worse. The story starts with snippets of the characters as they try to grapple with technology and an infant World Wide Web at show more the dawn of the Internet age.

When we first meet George Travis, he’s already in a desperate situation, trying to use a public Internet workstation to determine what, if anything, is being said about him on the Web.
His search is not just to feed his vanity—Travis is on the run and someone is creating horrendous lies about him to make it even more difficult for him to get help or claim he is innocent of wrongdoing.

Thanks to the Internet, everyone believes Travis is implicated in the death of Chris Morgan, a man he met while bird watching.

Ann is in a class to learn about the Web and how to create effective web pages for her job and coincidentally ran into Travis while they were both, also, bird watching.

Likewise, Gareth Evans, editor of the North Wales Sentinel, is also grappling with the World Wide Web and modern technology in his efforts to pull together news stories to keep his business alive.

This sets up the complex, suspenseful plot where the reader is never sure what will happen next. The characters are very real with good qualities and flaws that anyone can sympathize with. Ann is perhaps the most sympathetic as she tries to wrestle with the problem of how much faith to put in Travis and how much assistance to give him as he flees from the authorities in his efforts to find a way to prove his innocence.

Travis, himself, often seems to be an unreliable narrator and several times I found myself wondering along with Ann just how much to trust him because like so many characters in Web of Deceit, each one has secrets that keep the suspense roaring along towards the conclusion.

This is one of the few books where you truly are surprised at the twists and turns. As it speeds towards the end, the reader can’t turn the pages fast enough to find out the next shocking surprise.

For those, like myself, who are fanatical bird watchers, there are fascinating glimpses into birding in the U.K. and how being in the wrong place at the wrong time can have horrifying consequences. show less

First, I decided to read this as a business associate mentioned he really enjoyed the book - the first by the author who we both knew professionally (but not in the book business). Well I was gobsmacked as the book is spectacular! Set in Wales, includes birding so already piqued my interest - both "characters" in the book. The plot is clever but not overly so and a most satisfying read. I am really impressed by this first effort. The novel was complex but not at all taxing and well paced; show more initially I found it a little didactic (internet stuff) but that soon passed. Seems like there might be a Travis series but not sure how? Would like to see Anne again. show less

Stubb's second and another superb yarn - related directly to its predecessor. While still set in N Wales and involving bird watchers there doesn't seem to be quite as much actual watching in this one. Plus I feel the baddies and more "regular" baddies than before although I'm pressed to articulate this further. Unusual use of time overlapping, rather than simply moving backward and forward in the story time line. While not giving the story away there is a real clever and innovative use of show more birding used by one of the characters to locate himself which I loved. If the author does continue with these characters and developing story it will be interesting to see where it might go - I wouldn't be surprised as the first and this story conclude roughly 10 years ago.

I once had a very fleeting meeting with the author in his previous business life. MR Stubb's prowess continues to impress me mightily. show less