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Tuesday, 11 January 2011

Tuesday Review: Hellogon by John Booth

Tuesday Reviews are all about new connections for me. I try hard to pick books that I haven’t read before, by writers that I don’t normally read, in genres that I wouldn’t usually pick up, even in the library or brand new authors.

I also try to include a couple of links to Blogs or Websites that I find interesting at the end of the post.

So what’s today’s Review?

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Hellogon by John Booth

Peter Craig has been trained from childhood as a fifth columnist for the British Empire. He thinks he has been expelled from the Establishment for murder.

The truth will take him to other worlds and lies will be his only hope of salvation.

Can he save two worlds or will he destroy one or both of them?

Is he a hero or a villain?

When I read a Book, it has to grab my attention quickly and hold it. If I have to work too hard to understand what is going on or get lost in too much information, then I will often put it down as quickly as I picked it up. I suppose in that sense, I am very much like the Young Adults this book is targeted at.

Hellogon is a complex story of love, betrayal and power. John Booth has a writing style that immediately brings you into the world you are reading about. With a few well written paragraphs, he hooks you and before you know it, you’ve read more than you intended to.

The story challenges stereotypes and brings up difficult subjects like genocide and sexuality in a way that makes them easy to understand either side of the issue, but as well as making you think, it is also entertaining, perfect for its target market.

Peter’s relationships with the young women around him are handled deftly, with a touch of romance and a wry sense of humour reassuring the reader that the characters are taking the predicaments they find themselves in seriously. What sex scenes there are superbly crafted, in a way that is natural.

Hellogon discusses the uses of power and the basics of politics without making them boring. From a Teaching point of view, this books would make a brilliant book for a discussion group in secondary school, either for English or Personal and Social Education.

John Booth also knows how to craft a cliff hanger. The last chapter of the book had me alternately aghast at what had happened and agog to find out what happens next!

While the book is aimed at the Young Adult Market, the readers need to be mature enough to handle the subjects covered. It is a book that I can see myself giving to my son and daughter when they are older, safe in the knowledge that there is nothing in the story that would harm them at all.

Hellogon is an enthralling read and one that I can thoroughly recommend, not just as a Writer or Editor, but as a Teacher and a Parent.

To read a free sample


To buy a copy:


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About the Author of Hellogon:

John Booth has been published in some strange places - Poetry with famous poets in 1974, a technical paper in Prague in the 1980's and in a collection of Summer Short stories and an anthology of Erotica Stories a few months ago.

One day he hopes a publisher will fall in love with one of his novels, novels he didn't start writing until 2006. Hope is always fun.

Strangely enough the hope became a reality. You can buy his debut novel "Wizards" in both print and digital format at:


You can find his other work at - http://johnbooth.weebly.com

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I’ve got a couple of new places for you to visit now…


Jake Barton is a talented writer witha dark sense of humour and his blog is a place worth visiting!


This website is great for information about Angels, Ghosts and Demons. Everything from names to pictures – it’s the perfect place for horror writers and fantasy writers…
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