Good afternoon, bookworm, please come on in from the wind – oh, your hat! Don’t worry, the cat is chasing it and I’m sure he’ll bring it back soon. We just need to keep an eye out for him returning or he’ll stash it somewhere, never to be seen again. There’s tea in the pot under the cosy shaped like a dragon and some homemade custard creams to go with it. It’s lovely to see you here again; I always enjoy our little chats. I’ve been itching to tell you about the third instalment of the Reprobation series by Catherine Fearns. This one is even darker than the the previous two, if that’s possible, and due to the Chaos Magick, Satanism and Occultism within it, I’ve had to create a very special cage around it – can you imagine the carnage if it weighed in on one of the frequent squabbles between the other books and genres? Without further ado, let me tell you all about it.

Here’s the blurb: Can you hear it?

A professor of psychoacoustics is found dead in his office. It appears to be a heart attack, until a second acoustician dies a few days later in similar circumstances.

Meanwhile, there’s an outbreak of mysterious illnesses on a council estate, and outbursts of unexplained violence in a city centre nightclub. Not to mention strange noises coming from the tunnels underneath Liverpool. Can it really be a coincidence that death metal band Total Depravity are back in the city, waging their own form of sonic warfare?

I’ve given you the author’s background in my reviews of the previous two books so I won’t tell you again. I wonder if Catherine Fearns would be willing to do an interview? I’m fascinated by her writing!

And here’s my review: The second book in the series left me with my mouth hanging open and I knew it wouldn’t be the last we heard about the Ars Adramelechum or the characters caught in its entrails. Once again, Catherine Fearns has captured the discordant aspects of Liverpool life perfectly, from the “scallies” to the glamorous and all that come in between.

I found myself googling the theories and idealogies in the novel, as I did with Consuming Fire, which were fascinating to me. Anyone who’s opened a window in a car travelling fast on a motorway can think of the discomfort caused to the ear drums, so I can only imagine what a painful death the intense sonic weapon caused. The plot was believable despite being steeped in perception, religion and the supernatural and I could picture the nefarious people involved in the plans perfectly. I wish I could talk about the ending but I wouldn’t want to spoil it for anyone who reads it. But I literally couldn’t read it fast enough, so desperate was I to know what was going to happen on Halloween…

I think someone could read this book as a standalone but I’d recommend starting from the beginning otherwise there’s a risk of not feeling the emotional upheavals the protagonists go through. In this novel, Dr Helen Hope’s more vulnerable side is revealed as she ponders what she can offer her death metal musician boyfriend, Mikko, compared with his legion of fans. DI Darren Swift wakes up to his own crushing grief each day following nightmares about the cases he’s worked on over the last year. Mikko and his band felt so fun; he’s deeply intelligent but it’s sometimes hidden behind the scatterings of “dude” and f-bombs! I adore these characters and feel a sense of loss having got to the end of the trilogy. I truly hope there is more to come. A 5 star series in my view!

If you fancy buying a copy for yourself, just click on the book image above to take you to the relevant page. I don’t get anything for providing the link, I’m just being a helpful bookworm. I did receive a copy in return for my honest opinion and I’m grateful to the author, publisher and Rachel’s Random Resources for this.

Ah, quick – there’s the cat with the hat! Not the book on this occasion but I do love a bit of Dr Seuss every now and then. I’m glad it’s been returned to you. It’s been lovely to chat with you but I fear I must dash off – it sounds as though one of the gangster-filled books from the crime section is trying to break into the cage I mentioned earlier… take care, bookworm, farewell!