The Devil Upstairs

Blog tour time! I know, what is going on this Murder Month?!

And this is linked to The Devil Upstairs by Anthony O'Neill. I read his previous novel, Dr Jekyll and Mr Seek (a "sequel" or sorts to Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde) a few years ago and thorough enjoyed myself. So when I was asked if I wanted to be involved in this blog tour, I jumped at it. But, this sounds a little creepy...

The Devil Upstairs follows Cat Thomas, who moves from Florida to Edinburgh into her dream house. Everything is perfect. Expect the neighbour upstairs. He is loud, rude and respects nothing. In sheer desperation, Cat appeals to the Devil to do something, anything.

Then upstairs goes deafly quiet. Has Cat's nightmare ended, or just begun...?

I am so excited to be involved in this tour and I have something to share. Anthony O'Neill found time to write a small guest post for the tour about the novel's title! How very intriguing!

Before I hand you over to Anthony, I just want to thank him for finding time to write this and to Jaz at Black and White Publishing for asking if I wanted to be involved in the tour! If you fancy checking out his website - anthonyoneill.net - you are always welcome. And if you are curious over The Devil Upstairs, you can read more about it on Black and White Publishing website. Now, over to Anthony!

Book Review - Dr Jekyll and Mr Seek

I don't normally write reviews for blog tours. This is usually a big fat no-no with me and the blog. So, me breaking this rule is a very strange move, you might think. And you would be right.

But stay with me on this one. Stay with me.

Dr Jekyll and Mr Seek takes place several years after the shocking events of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde, and Mr Utterson is shocked. A man claiming to be the missing Dr Jekyll has reappeared. But this is impossible as Mr Utterson knows the truth. The truth that Dr Jekyll was Mr Hyde and Mr Hyde is dead. But as this claimant charms Jekyll's friends and reclaim his estate and fortune, Mr Utterson decides to find proof to unmask this Jekyll. But with the body count beginning to rise, Mr Utterson wondering if he's losing his grip on reality and wonders how far he will go to get to the truth...

Now, this shouldn't be my cup of tea read. This really shouldn't. I never like "sequels" of classic stories as it makes me uncomfortable and wonder if it's disrespectful to the original. But I devoured this is less than 5 days. I couldn't put it down!

Now, I haven't read the original Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde (something I will have to correct in the future), I can't tell you if this sits well next to it, but I enjoyed this story and the twist on the original on identity thief and, because of this, you start to question Utterson and his motives.

Ok, I have to admit there are little things I don't like. The final chapter bothers me as, without revealing too much, leaves the door open for you to connect the dots. Now, in some books, I am on board with this, but with this, I'm not sure I'm 100% behind it. I see why it went that way, but I feel that maybe something more solid would be helpful...

Barring the last chapter, I found this a gripping read and I can see it being adapted for TV very easily. Very much a creepy, gothic Halloween tale for the BBC, with lots of fog, shadow and unsettling moments where you don't trust the show...

Anthony O'Neill Talks Dr Jekyll & Mr Seek

Today is my stop on the Dr Jekyll and Mr Seek tour! So here we are!

Now, the plan was to get a review of the book itself up on time (and I still hope to do so but in a seperate post - FINGERS CROSSED!). But, I am very honoured to have Anthony O'Neill on the Pewter Wolf and asked a few non-spoiler questions about Dr Jekyll and Mr Seek.

I won't talk about what the book is about (I ask an elevator pitch question so wait, dear reader), but Anthony is author of several books, such as The Lamplighters, the Empire of Eternity and The Dark Side, which 20th Century Fox have bought the film rights to and has Oscar-winning screenwriter Steven Zaillian attached to produce.

Before I hand over to past me asking Anthony questions, I just want to thank Anthony for taking time out to answer my questions and Lina at Black & White Publishing for allowing me to take part in this blog tour!

Now, onto the questions and answers!