Welcome to the first of a new weekly column called #LadLitSunday. This is a weekly round-up of everything lad lit from book launches and author news to latest reviews and giveaways to cool articles and lad humour that has appeared across that thing called the internet in the last seven days.
First up this week is the exciting news that the bloody masterpiece that is The Book With No Namecould be coming to the big screen in the near future. I caught up with the author behind The Bourbon Kid series this week and he told me: "The rights for The Book With No Name are now in the hands of a company called Belga Films. I’ve worked with them on the script for a movie. I’m really happy with what they’ve done and it’s already caught the eye of one of my absolute favourite Hollywood A-listers (although I can’t say who just yet!)."
Furthermore, his next novel see's The Bourbon Kid return to action with his new anti-hero, The Red Mohawk, in The Plot To Kill The Pope which has already been a big success in Europe. Watch this space!
New York based Epoch Times this week published an article titled 6 Action Page-Turner Book Series That Oddly Haven’t Been Turned Into Movies Yetfeaturing the likes of The Gray Man, John Rain and Earl Swagger. The paper said: "Here are six series of books for men, that have been absolutely ripe for the picking for years now, but which for some reason haven’t been turned into movies yet." Well worth checking the article out.
Another author I had the pleasure of interviewing this week was Jon Rance. He is currently working on novel number five and told me: "It's a romantic comedy set
in London. That's all I can say at the moment. It's really my first
romantic comedy novel and I'm very excited about it."
Helena Bonham-Carter has been talking this week about the new BBC drama Love, Nina which hasbeen written for screen by by Nick Hornby. The five-part series is inspired by Nina Stibbe's book of the same name, and is sure to be a hit what with Oscar-winning Hornby seemingly having a never-ending golden touch.
Quick Bits
Lad Lit author Danny Wallace has been confirmed as one of the guests on The Virgin Radio Takeover, which will air Sundays from 10am.
A study has found that men make up their minds about a book quicker than women; reported in The Guardian.
Tweet of the Week
Nick Spalding posts this wonderful review straight from the heart. Or the pants...
I fear Google Translate didn't do a great job of translating this excellent 5 star review of Eine Fette Chance... pic.twitter.com/96J8FwBKXV
To take part in #LadLitSunday simply use the hashtag when posting a comment on your social media feeds and I will do my best to mention all of the best comments here on my blog.
Have you heard about that international best-selling book that doesn't have a name? You know, the one written by that anonymous author?
No? Hmmm, let me ask you another question then. Have you heard about the white-knuckle roller coaster thrill-ride sandwiched into 450 pages of blood-splattering, side-splitting wit and carnage, fused together by a hitman who has spent far too much time at the Heartbreak Hotel, a Mexican barman who is serving up more piss than Bear Grylls could handle, and an alcoholic supernatural serial killer who Van Helsing couldn't even compete with on his best day?
No? No?! In that case you had better get the hell of my blog and never return because you must have been living under some sort of literary rock to not be familiar with one of the most exciting authors of his (or hers?) generation. With comparisons to Quentin Tarantino and Hollywood queuing up to transfrom the blood-thirsty residents of Santa Mondega into a cinematic psycho's playground (not to mention Margot Robbie being a fan), the man who uses the moniker of his most famous creation is on a mission to make sure you never forget the name The Bourbon Kid.
But because I'm feeling in a charitable mood, I'll let you watch this video so you can be introduced to the best book you haven't read yet. For those of you who have already welcomed The Book With No Nameand it's three sequels (The Eye of the Moon,The Devil's Graveyardand The Book of Death) into your heart and know why you should avoid the Tapioca bar at all costs, feel free to relive the wonderful story again before reading my interview with The Bourbon Kid as he talks about his crazy creation and his new soon-to-be-a-cult-success book The Red Mohawk.
Hey Bourbon Kid, pull up a seat while I pour you a drink. So let's get down to business - Sanchez was and always will be the real star of show right?
Absolutely! Initially I stuck him in The Book With No Name just so that he could be the eyes and ears of the reader, but he ended up becoming so much more. I used to be a bartender myself, so lots of the things Sanchez sees, hears, thinks and does, are things I experienced. I never poured piss in anybody’s drink though.
You tied up all the loose ends in The Book of Death to complete the story, but do you miss Santa Mondega?
I miss it a lot. By creating a fictional city where pretty much anything goes, I was able to get away with some pretty crazy shit that readers would never accept if the stories were set in New York, London or Paris. It also gives the story more appeal to international audiences than say, a book set in a quiet English village.
Your writing style and stories have been compared to the likes of Quentin Tarantino, but where do you really get your inspiration from? Hopefully not real life experiences!
Actually some of it is from real life. In my days as a bartender I met characters like the Bourbon Kid, Rodeo Rex, Elvis and Marcus the Weasel, although I obviously exaggerated them for the book. Some of the stuff that happened in TBWNN was based on events that happened when I was working. For example, I once did see Papa Smurf get beaten up by a couple of angry nuns on a fancy dress evening. That made it into the book. But mostly my inspiration comes from movies. I like to take little pieces from lots of movies of different genres and then stick them all together and see what happens. It can be fun. In The Red Mohawk for example, I imagined what would happen if the killer from the Halloween movies showed up in Dirty Dancing.
The Red Mohawk is your latest outing about a crazy serial killer stalking the residents in the small town of B Movie Hell. Tell me where this new idea came from and is this the start of a new series of books, and if so, what can we expect from the next installment?
I was watching the movie Drive one day and there’s a scene about an hour in, where Ryan Gosling (who is the hero) sticks on a rubber mask and starts stalking Ron Perlman. And I started thinking, what if that was the opening scene of the movie? You’d think Gosling’s character was a total psycho. So I decided that it would make a good starting point for a novel. Consequently the opening scene of The Red Mohawk involves a masked serial killer stalking a police officer.
I read somewhere that you might be thinking about pairing The Bourbon Kid and The Red Mohawk together later on down the line. Any truth in that?
It’s what’s coming next. It’s called The Plot To Kill the Pope and it’s already been a success in Europe and it will be out here in a matter of weeks. It’s pretty insane and features the Bourbon Kid, the Red Mohawk, Elvis, Rodeo Rex and a plot to kill the Pope that also involves Frankenstein and Dr Jekyll. I’m pretty sure there’s never been a book like it before, which is always my aim when I write something. If it turns out there is already a book like it, I’ll be livid.
The characters you have created are all very unique and endearing (in that serial killing, blood thirsty, anti-hero type of way). Which one is your favourite character and why?
It’s a toss up between Sanchez and the Bourbon Kid. They’re actually very similar characters except that Sanchez is a coward who pours piss in people’s drinks if he doesn’t like them, whereas the Bourbon Kid kills them. But also in The Plot to Kill the Pope there is a character called Jasmine who first appeared in The Red Mohawk. She’s great fun and provides the comic relief that’s normally reserved for Sanchez.
The Book With No Name was commissioned for a TV series called Pulp. What happened with that and is it true that Tobey Maguire’s Material Pictures are developing The Red Mohawk into a film?
Unfortunately Pulp got cancelled before it really got off the ground which was a big disappointment. But the rights for The Book With No Name are now in the hands of a company called Belga Films. I’ve worked with them on the script for a movie. I’m really happy with what they’ve done and it’s already caught the eye of one of my absolute favourite Hollywood A-listers (although I can’t say who just yet!). And Tobey Maguire’s Material Pictures are working on a TV series based on The Red Mohawk. So it’s all looking very good at the moment. I’m keeping my fingers crossed that at least one of these projects makes it to the screen.
You made that successful transition from self-published author to best selling author. What is the best advice you would give to all aspiring indie authors?
I guess from my own personal experience I would say, "Don’t write what you think publishers want. And don’t try to write like anyone else. No one can write like you better than you can, so do that instead! And cut out all the boring bits."
Your books have received quite a cult following over the past decade. What is the strangest thing you have had a fan ask you or request?
I’ve had quite a few people pitch me their idea for a novel and then offer to split the royalties with me if I write it for them. Can you imagine that? Cheeky bastards.
Tell me about it. Hey, how about in your next book Dan Hilles from my novel The Drought teams up with The Bourbon Kid and they go around killing every girl who refuses to sleep with Dan? You can write it and then I'll help with the administrative side of things like looking after the bank accounts. What do you think? Why are you looking at me like that? Oh no, please put the bourbon down! Let's wrap this up before you do something stupid! Finally, what can we expect next from you?
Well The Plot To Kill the Pope will be out soon. And that will be followed by a new one I’m writing which is currently called The Roman That Followed Jason. But it will probably end up being called something else. But it’s got Sanchez in it, so it’ll be good fun.
Sounds amazing - I can't wait to read it! Thanks again for agreeing to do this interview. I'm genuinely a huge fan of your books - The Bourbon Kid series is definitely up there in my top 5!
My pleasure. And I wish you all the best success with your novels The Drought and The Flood.
For more information on The Bourbon Kid and my book reviews click in the links throughout this article and make sure you check out this amazing rogues gallery of Santa Mondega's finest.
If you have taken a look around this blog, you'll notice I have a bit of a crush on The Bourbon Kid. It's not what you're thinking, I don't like him like that. It's more like a loving respect you feel for someone who goes around killing werewolves and vampires at will after going on a 12-hour whiskey bender. You know what I mean?
I was lucky enough to recently interview the author behind The Bourbon Kid and during my research for the interview I came across this wonderful set of character images of the residents of Santa Mondega; that wonderfully hellish town in The Book With No Name, drawn by a talented artist by the name of Gait44 on website Deviant Art. Enjoy...
That man has done it again! The best-selling author of The Bourbon Kid series is back with another belter of a book, caked with blood, action, bullets, hookers, dirty cops and a psychopathic killer in a skull mask with a red mohawk - and that's just the first couple of chapters!
Without doubt, the author behind his very own mask is one of my favourites. His blend of violence and dark humour never fails to disappoint, and in his first outing since wrapping up the Santa Mondega stories, it might have been easy to take his foot off the pedal. After all, so much went into making Santa Mondega the wonderful dysfunctional community it was
But step forward the residents of B Movie Hell (yes, that's the name of the town). They might not have a barman like Sanchez, but they do have an egotistical ex-porn movie producer who now runs a brothel (and pretty much everything else in town), and he has been pretty much left to do as he pleases since he bought and renamed the small town.
That is until the FBI turn up to investigate the mysterious serial killer who dons the frightening halloween mask with a red strip of hair who is hacking anyone up who gets in his way.
Agents Jack Munson and Milena Fonseca have been put on to the top secret case to capture the escaped mental patient, but they're not exactly welcomed with open arms in B Movie Hell. What starts to unravel is a town full of dirty little secrets, including one very big secret the FBI have been keeping for nearly two decades.
There are some awesome movie references used in this book, sometimes so subtle you'll want to re-read to make sure you have spotted them all. And then there are some pretty obvious ones, like the Dirty Dancing loving prostitute called Baby.
It's wonderfully paced and the author is brilliant at piecing all of his characters together one way or another and has a knack of making you fall in love with the biggest anti-heroes of them all. It's the cartoon circus of American wrestling in the 80s and 90s combined with cult slasher movies from yesteryear all rolled into one. Go buy it!
The Bourbon Kid is back baby! The fourth installment of this wonderful Tarantino-esque romp returns to Santa Mondega after the bloodbath in the Arizona desert in The Devil's Gravyard, for the final conclusion to what has become my all-time favourite book(s).
Egyptian Mummy Rameses Gaius is on the verge of becoming the king of Santa Mondega; assembling an army of the undead to wreak havoc and pretty much kill anyone who stands in their way following the apparent death of The Bourbon Kid.The breakdown in law and order has sunk to a new low, what with the local police force being all but wiped out following the most recent bloodbath.
Now reliant on volunteers, the only two people stupid enough to put their names forward are Sanchez the bartender and Flake the waitress. The fact that Sanchez is attacked by a bunch of cookie-selling Girl Guides tells you all you need to know about his ability to shield the city from the evil engulfing it.
And when Sanchez stumbles across a mysterious book in the local library that is being hunted by his long-time crush Jessica the Vampire Queen, the bumbling bartender is only too happy to try and return the book to her, yet completely oblivious to the destruction it will cause by ending up in the wrong hands.
The good citizens of Santa Mondega (those who are left anyway) have only one real hope left, and when that last hope is to pray for the return of the world's most prolific mass murderer, you know things have hit rock bottom! Still, it isn't long before The Bourbon Kid is pulled back into the fold following the kidnap of his childhood sweetheart Beth, at which point you know it won't be long until all hell breaks loose!
Written with the same comedy timing and energy that has poured off the pages of the previous three books in the series, The Book of Death is another fine example of good old fashioned guts-and-gore fun! The characters all remain so unique in their own way, yet blend together in this wonderful world of werewolves, vampires, zombies, drunks, serial killers, and half-wits!
If reports are to be believed, JJ Abrahams - the Hollywood director and producer - has bought the film rights to The Bourbon Kid series and is rumoured to be creating a TV series based on the books called Pulp. I for one can't bloody wait!
Have you ever wondered what would happen if X Factor met Night of the Living Dead? Me neither, but I’m sure as hell pleased that the anonymous author of The Devil’s Graveyard chose to mash these two unlikely forces together!
The third in the Bourbon Kid series (following The Book With No Name and The Eye of the Moon) takes a detour away from the vampire and werewolf infested city of Santa Mondega, and instead we are plonked bang in the middle of the Arizona desert at the Hotel Pasadena, which seems to be the holiday destination of choice for the undead as well as every lowlife and murderer in the country! Throw in an army of flesh-eating zombies and you have a whole different meaning to the term self-catering!
The reason for this gathering of ghouls is to take part in a TV talent show called ‘Back From the Dead’ but unbeknown to them is the fact chief judge Nigel Powell (And yes, Nigel Powell is a parody of Simon Cowell from the bright white smile to the devil horns!) has rigged the contest and has hired a stone cold hitman to bump off the other contestants as an insurance policy.
Queue the appearance of everyone’s favourite mass murderer, The Bourbon Kid, to sweep in and throw a spanner in the works, especially when he takes it upon himself to make sure no harm comes to one of the contestants, Emily, who reminds him of someone he knew a lifetime ago before the bourbon transformed him into a raging killer.
But The Kid is not the only one to make a return to form as the hapless bartender Sanchez once again steals the show with some seriously laugh-out loud scenarios after turning up at the hotel after winning a competition to earn himself a weekend away. Only Sanchez could win something and end up in Hell!
What else can I say about this writer and this series of books that I haven't said in my previous two reviews? He/she has the uncanny ability to articulate the most gruesome of scenes yet they still leave you with a smile on your face. It is laced with wicked dark humour throughout which means the laughs come as thick and fast as the blood that scatters each page.
It’s simply another great triumph from the author, and it just as hard to put down as the previous two. If I'm being ultra critical it's not quite as good as the first two instalments, but they set the bar so high that it's by no means a criticism on what is a fantastically enjoyable read!
Well, Mr Anonymous has done it again! This fantastic follow-up to the The Book With No Namesees The Bourbon Kid make a triumphant return to form in this bloody, violent, brutal, and hilarious dark comedy. I was hoping for more of the same and this book duly delivered!
The Eye of the Moon picks up immediately where The Book With No Name left off in the wonderfully supernatural city of Santa Mondega; where the humans are the ones considered ethnic minorities living amongst all the vampires and werewolves.And if that wasn't terrifyingly frightening already for the residents of Santa Mondega to contend with, a bloody Mummy has been awoken and has now escaped from the museum.
With the Bourbon Kid gone AWOL, everyone else seems to be hell-bent of
finding the mysterious Eye of the Moon to take control of the power
that it wields.
We see also the return of young lovers Dante and Kacy, Peto the kung-fu monk, and of course the legend that is Sanchez the bartender, who is back to his self-deprecating self! Throw into the mix the US Secret Service, a corrupt police force, and a little fella who calls himself the Dark Lord, and you have the recipe for another rip-roaring thrill ride!
The pace of the story is as frantic as it was the first time round, and the author once again displays a truly fantastic skill for setting up cliffhangers chapter after chapter. Yes it's gory, yes it's full of foul language, and yes there are more killings that a 1980s Arnie action film, but who cares! If you don't like that sort of thing, don't buy the bloody book and moan about it later! I saw one review that complained it was too much like a Quentin Tarantino film and then went on to say how much they loathed Tarantino films. To that person I say - jog on you muppet! I don't particularly like costume dramas so I simply switch off the TV when Downton Abbey comes on!
I've said it once and I'll say it again - Twilight nearly ruined the vampire genre by turning it into a mushy love saga! I say we need more Bourbon Kids, more gruesome blood-sucking murderers, and more sequels to the The Book With No Name!
Imagine
a story about gangsters, Kung-Fu Monks, an Elvis-impersonating bounty
hunter, and swarms of vampires all living in a world that is a cross
between The Lost Boys and From Dusk Til Dawn (and not a Twilight reference in sight)! Do I really need to say anything else to get you excited?!
Ok, I suppose I better had otherwise it would be a pretty pointless review...!
Miles
Jensen is a detective in the mould of Fox Moulder from the X-Files, and
he is sent to the lawless town of Santa Mondega to investigate a spate
of vicious murders. Unbeknown to Detective Jensen is that the root of
all this evil is down to a mysterious blue stone known as The Eye of the Moon and
all of the low-lifes and blood-sucking creatures of the night that
prowl Santa Mondega will stop at nothing to get their hands on it.
It
soon becomes very apparent that all of the victims have one thing in
common - they have all read the ancient Book With No Name and not one of them has lived to tell the tale. Detective Jensen will need to piece
together all the clues if he is to work out what the hell is going on,
and he meets some very strange characters in the process, including The Bourbon Kid - who just happens to be a serial killer, blasting his way through the undead, but not before he has a sampled a shot of his beloved whiskey! A special mention has to go to my favourite character - Sanchez the bartender. The guy is such a weasel, but you can't help but like his self-obsessed and bleak outlook on life. Then again, if you owned a bar and all your clientele were blood suckers, you probably wouldn't be too happy-go-lucky yourself!
This
book packs a punch from the very first page and is laced with black
humour that will have you chuckling away despite all the blood, gore,
and guts that comes in between. The author, who remains anonymous to
add further intrigue to the story, manages to convey his story in such a
way that it is never a chore to read, and you are always looking
forward to picking it up again. The quickest way I can sum up The Book With No Name is by calling it a Quentin Tarantino movie in the making. It is such a pleasant change to read a proper good old-fashioned vampire story without a ridiculous love triangle splattered all over it. And if that
ticks all the boxes for you then make sure you get yourself a copy of
this book!
Welcome to the first of a new weekly column called #LadLitSunday. This is a weekly round-up of everything lad lit from book launches and author news to latest reviews and giveaways to cool articles and lad humour that has appeared across that thing called the internet in the last seven days.
