James Alderdice's "The Usurper"...A Book Review

The cover of James Alderdice's The Usurper shows a bloody crown. The old adage is, "You can't judge a book by its cover," But, in this case, the visual of a bloody crown gives you a pretty good idea of what you're in for when you pick up this book.

Power, revenge, brutality, heroics, and good old-fashioned pulp fiction storytelling at its best.

Imagine a Frank Frazetta painting in literary form.

Alderdice has produced a collection of stories that follows Gathelaus and his journeys, his quests, his triumphs, and his adventures that lead him to becoming the Usurper King. This is Book 1 of The Brutal Saga. You name it--Gathelaus faces it and ultimately defeats it. Giant snakes, vampires, killer crawfish, evil sorcerers, giant gods newly awoken from stone--as you read Alderdice's account, at least my mind, goes to his imagination and ingenuity. About the time you catch your breath from the latest predicament Gatherlaus is in, the man leaps feet-first into another. I especially liked the inclusion of scripture interwoven into the stories.

This is a book of battles, of blood, of warriors killing each other so that good can prevail. If this is the kind of literature you want to read, The Usurper has it in buckets. And when you're done with this one, Alderdice has scores more. But don't worry--the man produces books almost as fast as you can read them.

Check out The Usurper on the Amazon website: HERE. Check out the adventures of Gathelaus and the Sellsword. It will not disappoint.

James Alderdice's "Brutal"...A Book Review

It took me a few weeks to get through the audiobook of James Alderdice's Brutal. I usually listen while at work and work's been extra busy lately, so I wasn't able to finish the book in a speedy manner. In fact, I started it, listened to the first couple of chapters, then I took a break. I sent the author a message telling him I was enjoying what I had heard so far. He responded back thanking me for the kind words.

I then told him, it was pretty graphic--lots of violence.

He had a classic response,

"Well, it is titled Brutal."

Touché.

If you are prone to judging books by their covers, take a look at Brutal. What do you see, front and center? A bloody sword. That's basically what you're going to get in the pages of this book. A man who wields the sword has no name; he's known as The Sellsword, and he's very good at using that sword to end lives, and fight for justice.

In the world created by Alderdice, a sword must be used to battle the evil brought by paladins and wizards. The world is gritty, savage...in a word, brutal. The author puts you in the room, in the action. And how he describes the duchess, you'd swear she stepped straight from a Frank Frazetta painting.

I don't watch Game of Thrones, or other type shows. And truth be told, I might not have chosen this particular book, except for a couple of reasons. It's getting great reviews, and I know the author and want him to succeed. If you like a story that combines gore and humor and justice and evil and more gore, you'll enjoy this book. You can order it on the Amazon page: HERE. Give it a shot--it's both grim and dark. Well done, James!

James Alderdice's "Brutal"...Getting Rave Reviews!

One of the fringe benefits of getting involved in the exciting world of writing is getting to know other authors and enjoying their stories. And when you get to know them, you hear about their successes.

And you're happy for them.

Before I hung around a bunch of writers at conventions, I hung out with people in plays at theaters, as well as some people involved in films. I noticed something about writers. I realize I'm generalizing here, but for the most part, authors want to see each other succeed. They're excited when good news from a fellow author hits.

So when local author James Alderdice, a.k.a. David J. West posted on social media that his book, Brutal, was chosen by Fantasia Reviews as one of the best books they reviewed all year, it made me happy. You can find the review website: HERE. You can read about how Brutal was named their Best Literary Value in 2017: HERE. And you can order Brutal on Amazon: HERE. It's only 99¢ right now!

I've read several of Mr. Alderdice/West stories. His impeccable fashion sense is only eclipsed by his fantastic writing. I've not read Brutal yet, but, based on the opinions of others, it's one I definitely should read.

And I'm guessing you should to.