Book Review: Blackthorn by Terry Tyler

Blackthorn by Terry Tyler

Blurb

The UK, year 2139

One hundred and fifteen years ago, a mysterious virus wiped out ninety-five per cent of humanity.

Blackthorn, the largest settlement in England, rose from the ashes of the devastated old world. It is a troubled city, where the workers live in crude shacks, and make do with the worst of everything.

It is a city of violent divisions, crime, and an over-populated jail block―until a charismatic traveller has a miraculous vision and promises to bring hope back to the people’s lives.

Blackthorn falls under Ryder Swift’s spell, and the most devoted of all is the governor’s loyal servant, Lieutenant August Hemsley.

Twenty-one-year-old Evie has lived her whole life in the shacks. She and disillusioned guard Byron Lewis are two of a minority who have doubts about Ryder’s message. Can they stand against the beliefs of an entire city?

My Review

Blackthorn by Terry Tyler is a fascinating addition to the brilliant post-apocalyptic Project Renova universe. It examines what happens when religion is re-introduced to civilisation by a handsome and charismatic traveller generations after life as we know it has been wiped out by the ‘bat fever’ virus.

Blackthorn is a very character driven novel and is told from the first person perspectives of three main characters who come from all walks of life in the new world. Evie is one of the working class “Shackers”, Byron is a guard, and Lieutenant Hemsley is very close to Governor Wolf North.

I loved how each character had their own distinct voice and the multiple POV really allows the reader the get to know all of the characters better, as it allows you to see them through the eyes of the characters too.

Although Blackthorn is part of the Project Renova universe, with many of the characters descending from people we have met in earlier novels, it can easily be read as a stand alone novel. I did enjoy finding out how the characters in Blackthorn were connected to characters from earlier novels, and it was deeply satisfying to be able see how some things played out so many years later.

5 stars!

Details

Author: Terry Tyler

Published: November 25th 2019

Source: Own Copy

Read: Kindle, 509 pages, February 2020

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#BookReview UK2 (Project Renova #3) by Terry Tyler @TerryTyler4

UK2 by Terry Tyler, featuring Ziggy

Goodreads Blurb

‘Two decades of social media had prepared them well for UK2.’

The pace steps up in this final instalment of the Project Renova trilogy, as the survivors’ way of life comes under threat.

Two years after the viral outbreak, representatives from UK Central arrive at Lindisfarne to tell the islanders about the shiny new city being created down south. Uk2 governor Verlander’s plan is simple: all independent communities are to be dissolved, their inhabitants to reside in approved colonies. Alas, those who relocate soon suspect that the promises of a bright tomorrow are nothing but smoke and mirrors, as great opportunities turn into broken dreams, and dangerous journeys provide the only hope of freedom.

Meanwhile, far away in the southern hemisphere, a new terror is gathering momentum…

‘I walked through that grey afternoon, past fields that nobody had tended for nearly three years, past broken down, rusty old vehicles, buildings with smashed windows. I was walking alone at the end of the world, but I was a happy man. I was free, at last.’

Although this concludes the Project Renova trilogy, there will be more books in the series. A collection of five side stories is planned, and another novel, set far into the future.

My Review

UK2 is the gripping third installment of the post-apocalyptic Project Renova series. I liked it even more that the ending left plenty of room for more stories from this world, because I am hooked!

UK2 picks up after the world is almost wiped out by a virus and most of the main characters from the beginning of the series have settled on a small remote island, Lindisfarne, in the UK. The group on Lindisfarne have long since grown accustomed to living on the island, free of electricity, social media, money, and all the trappings of modern day society. They have already weathered plenty of tragedy and have settled into their new way of life, although it is obvious they will constantly have obstacles to overcome in the future.

Doyle has quickly become disenfranchised with the new UK (UK2) which has been set up by the slimy Alex Verlander from Project Renova. It’s clear to Doyle that the people in charge don’t have the people’s best interests at heart, but he has no choice but to travel to Lindisfarne to recruit the inhabitants to come to UK2.

I loved the character development from Tipping Point to UK2. By the end of this novel it was clear that all of the main characters had undergone some serious personality changes due to the crazy experiences they’d gone through. Some had grown far stronger than they had ever been before the virus hit and others had gone completely bonkers. The use of multiple point of view chapters illustrated these character changes perfectly.

You can check out my reviews of the first two novels in the Project Renova series: Tipping Point and Lindisfarne

About the Author

Terry Tyler

@TerryTyler4 on Twitter… I am a writer, with 17 books on Amazon. I’m obsessed with The Walking Dead and all things post apocalyptic, also love South Park, Game of Thrones, autumn and winter, history, and most books/films/TV series to do with war/battles/gangsters. I’m a vegan who falls off the wagon now and again. Live in the north east of England with my husband, who I love even more than Daryl Dixo

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Book #Review: ‘Lindisfarne’ by Terry Tyler @terrytyler4

Lindisfarne by Terry Tyler

Goodreads blurb

Sequel to Tipping Point, Project Renova Book 1

Six months after the viral outbreak, civilised society in the UK has broken down. Vicky and her group travel to the Northumbrian island of Lindisfarne, where they are welcomed by an existing community.

New relationships are formed, old ones renewed. The lucky survivors adapt, finding strength they didn’t know they possessed, but the honeymoon period does not last long. Some cannot accept that the rules have changed, and, for just a few, the opportunity to seize power is too great to pass up. Egos clash, and the islanders soon discover that there are greater dangers than not having enough to eat.

Meanwhile, in the south, Brian Doyle discovers that rebuilding is taking place in the middle of the devastated countryside. He comes face to face with Alex Verlander from Renova Workforce Liaison, who makes him an offer he can’t refuse. But is UK 2.0 a world in which he will want to live?

Lindisfarne is Book 2 in the Project Renova series.
A book of related short stories, entitled Patient Zero, features back and side-stories from minor characters, and should be available in November, 2017. Book 3 is due in mid 2018.

My Review

Lindisfarne is the  second book of the fascinating post-apocalyptic Project Renova series by  Terry Tyler. Lindisfarne picks up where Tipping Point left off with a mystery virus wreaking havoc across the UK and the rest of the world. Vicky and her group travel to a small remote island to start a new life where they meet up with a various of groups of with the same idea in mind. But forming a new society from the dregs of the old one isn’t easy for Vicky and the new occupants of Lindisfarne, and the same old power and ego struggles of the past rear their head and create problems. We also find out some more about Project Renova and how the virus was originally developed and spread through Brian Doyle’s experiences in the south.

I absolutely loved this book! Terry Tyler’s decision to write this series from multiple point of views really gives you a comprehensive insight into the perspective of all of the characters and the characters are mostly everyday kind of people.  This series really makes you wonder what would I do in a post-apocalyptic world?

Links

Find out more about the author and the Project Renova series at Terry Tyler’s website

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Tipping Point by Terry Tyler @TerryTyler4 book review

Tipping Point by Terry Tyler and the things I would miss most in a post-apocalyptic world 

Goodreads Synopsis

‘I didn’t know danger was floating behind us on the breeze as we walked along the beach, seeping in through the windows of our picture postcard life.’

The year is 2024. A new social networking site bursts onto the scene. Private Life promises total privacy, with freebies and financial incentives for all. Across the world, a record number of users sign up.

A deadly virus is discovered in a little known African province, and it’s spreading—fast. The UK announces a countrywide vaccination programme. Members of underground group Unicorn believe the disease to be man-made, and that the people are being fed lies driven by a vast conspiracy.

Vicky Keating’s boyfriend, Dex, is working for Unicorn over two hundred miles away when the first UK outbreak is detected in her home town of Shipden, on the Norfolk coast. The town is placed under military controlled quarantine and, despite official assurances that there is no need for panic, within days the virus is unstoppable.

In London, Travis begins to question the nature of the top secret data analysis project he is working on, while in Newcastle there are scores to be settled…

This is the first book in the Project Renova series; the second, Lindisfarne, is due to be published in September 2017, with the final instalment in the middle of 2018. A collection of outtake short stories, Patient Zero, is in progress, and should be available around December 2017.

My Review

Tipping Point is a fascinating post-apocalyptic novel set in 2024. A new social media platform called Private Life has emerged as the digital place to be, until a deadly virus discovered in Africa swiftly spreads across the globe causing chaos until civilisation as we know it to come to a grinding halt.

The novel focuses on English Mum, Vicky, and her family who live in a small town on the Norfolk coast which is quickly placed under military control when the UK’s patient zero is infected with the deadly virus there. Vicky’s partner, Dex, has been a long time member of what she thought was a nutty conspiracy theory group, but she quickly discovers they had been right all along and joins up with the Unicorn group as a matter of survival. But Dex was working on Unicorn business at the time of the outbreak and nobody knows where he is or if he survived.

Tipping Point is Terry Tyler’s first post-apocalyptic novel, but she has slipped into this genre with style and ease. I was very quickly drawn into this novel and love the concept of a social media platform being behind the end of civilisation. I am thrilled to be able to read the next book in the Project Renova series, Lindisfarne straight away as Terry Tyler is not only a brilliant writer, she is also incredibly quick.

Lindisfarne is already available on Amazon and continues right where Tipping Point left off!

Details

Title: Tipping Point (Project Renova #1)

Author: Terry Tyler

Published: Self-Published August 5th 2017

ASIN: B074LSCX5M

Pages: 448

Genre: Science Fiction, Dystopia, Post-Apocalyptic

Source: Author

My Rating: 5/5 stars

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