Friday 11 September 2015

Review ~ Solomon Creed by Simon Toyne




Harper Collins
September 2015


His Past is Unknown. His Future Unwritten


In the Arizona desert, on the outskirts of the aptly named town of Redemption, a plane crashes, and an explosion threatens to engulf both the town and its people. Out of the smoke and ashes comes an enigmatic stranger, a man with no memory of who he is, who appears, seemingly out of nowhere, and who has more questions about him than answers. But one thing is certain; Redemption, with Solomon Creed in it, is never going to be the same again.

The book gets off to a complex and exciting start. The pace is fast and furious, and the short and snappy chapters lend an air of exciting anticipation which really focuses your attention. The multi layers of the plot are skilfully woven together and form the basis of a story that is steeped in mystery, so that it becomes not just about what’s happening in the here and now, but also about what happened in Redemption’s past. There’s more than a hint of the glory days of the Wild West about Redemption, but the air of  covert ambiguity which surrounds Solomon Creed, and the very modern aspects of the plot, gives the novel a contemporary edginess which is quite compelling to read.

There is no doubt that this first book in the Solomon Creed series gets off to a rollicking good start. And for me to say more about the fundamentals of plot, counter plot and malice would be to spoil a very enticing read, and that wouldn’t be fair, as the book needs to be read without any spoilers from me. However, what I will end by saying is this, there’s an undeniable cinematic quality to the unfolding drama in Solomon Creed, which would, I think, make a great all action movie. The eponymous Solomon Creed is incredibly mesmeric, an unfathomable stranger who doesn’t suffer fools and makes no allowances, but when he speaks you listen, and his actions really do speak louder than words. I can't wait to read more about him in future novels.






My thanks to Jaime at Harper Collins  for my copy of this book.




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