It's never raining but it's pouring.
Reviews Have been pouring in for "The River Girls Torment" and I am pleased to convey that the vast majority are very good indeed. Sure there are a couple with niggles but mainly I am a superstar (kidding). I am going to copy and post them all (including those that do not say that it is the best book ever written) on the web pages so they can be easily read.
I am lucky enough to (mainly) garner good reviews but never expect them all to be good. Everyone, after all, has different tastes and different ideas of what a good book should be. I have my own idea of what a good tale is and do not often agree with others reviews and so why should they, not then have the opportunity to dislike my books. A faerie tale for adults (though this one is safe enough for teens as well) is not always well recieved, for that matter fantasy stories, as a genre, are sometimes not that well recieved by a certain portion of the media.
I do not mind that, we fantasists need the pragmatists to draw us together as a race, much as they do in return, otherwise eschewing any progress. Yet it seems a shame to me that we cannot seem to come to terms of some sort.
I can certainly appreciate any factual book or even a semblance of fact, I enjoy historical fiction for example and history in general, I enjoy science fact as well as fiction, even hard science fiction (which seems a step too far for many) so even though I intend to post them all "en masse" to a new page, I thought I would post a couple here and see what you think. A couple of goodies first, then those that find me not so praiseworthy. Two of each to maintain balance.
The River Girls Torment" Is the new novel by Raymond Walker author of "A Shiver" and "Moon Child and Other Tales" This peculiar new novel is easy to get involved in, leaving you always wondering about will happen next. Few authors would even consider writing a novel that has only two characters, few authors would write a novel with so much dialogue and narration, few authors would understand that such a simple tale could capture the imagination and the romance in our soul.
I am Sixty seven and a grizzled old fool yet Raymond Walker has made me believe in love again, believe in destiny and things that are meant to be.
A beautiful book for those who love; love.
Horace Williams.
Writers Life.
29/01/2016
I have been a fan of Raymond Walkers Fantasies since I first read "A Shiver" when it was still a short story many, many, years ago. I have always enjoyed his "Difference" his inability, or perhaps, choice; to comply. He refuses to write the standard fantasy, Tolkein style, as so many others do. He refuses and writes most of his fantasies as romances, clever and different, few characters, almost all love stories and all unique in thier own way. "The River Girls Torment" for me, is the epitome of his books, so far, as I am hoping for so much more from him. An antithesis of "Nut Brown Eyes" I believe that R.Walker has done what Jack London could not do and create a true antithesis of his great novel, "Call of the Wild" as "White Fang" was a pale imitation. "The River Girls Torment" draws back from the ideas of "Nut Brown Eyes" no longer is the language about sex leading to love. But rather, Love for the sake of love and togetherness.
I think this the greater novel.
Robert Bouson.
Poetry Monthly.
26/01/2016
And as I promised. A couple that were not so good.
Keith Branch,
Chicago Advertiser.
Are Raymond Wakers books good? I have no Idea, Are Raymond Wakers books different?
Sure they are. Does different make them good? I am not so sure. I do kinda like them in an odd way but there is a reason why there are many authors that we love and Mr Walker sticks to none of them.
He never sticks to normal formats, there are far to few characters, and in "The River Girls Torment" there are only two and both of them difficult to understand. I rather like what R.Walker does, I suspect he will either win the nobel prize for literature or vanish forever. This is lovely but not really good enough in my opinion from one that is capable of more.
I honestly do not understand what people get from this, I dislike the book, a silly fairy tale by an author that should know better, This seems an amalgum of fairy tales that this author has already written. He is capable of much more and should be concentrating on other things.
A good tale.
Good enough?
Two stars out of five.
Janis Penbury
"Hearts and Souls" Magazine.