Fotografía de autor

Jon Steele

Autor de The Watchers

5 Obras 585 Miembros 29 Reseñas

Sobre El Autor

Incluye el nombre: Jon Steele

Series

Obras de Jon Steele

The Watchers (2011) 384 copias
Angel City (2012) 111 copias
War Junkie (1992) 49 copias
The Way of Sorrows (1800) 40 copias

Etiquetado

Conocimiento común

Género
male

Miembros

Reseñas

In a market flooded with novels dealing with supernatural themes, “The Watchers” stands out for strength of its characters, the originality of the plot and Jon Steele’s remarkable ability to make magic visible in the familiar.

“The Watchers” is set in the part of Switzerland that I know very well. The locations Jon Steele describes: the ancient wooden steps of the Escaliers du Marché, the Lausanne Palace Hotel, the building that Marc Rochat lives in in Ouchy, the orange warning lights on Lac Leman and of course Lausanne Cathedral, are all places that I recognise. Jon Steele not only brings them to life, he evokes their inner magic, lighting them up in my imagination so that I see them afresh and know them for the first time.

The three main characters in this book strongly engaged my emotions: the American who sells her beauty for the use of rich men, who loves to watch herself in the mirror but cannot push aside the glamour she casts to see what she has become; the Brit detective who cannot sleep but is not yet truly awake; the Québécoise cripple with with a damaged mind, brilliant imagination and the heart of a lion. Each of them is imperfect. Each of them sees a different Lausanne. Each of them has a distinctive voice. Together they light up this book.

The plot and the world that it imagines, puts a twist on ancient legends that is original, plausible and intriguing. Jon Steele is brave enough to slow the pace of the storytelling so that comprehension dawns slowly but is all the more deeply felt for that.

In a story of good versus evil Jon Steele takes the time to show how blurred the boundaries are between the two, nor does he shy away from depicting the cruel violence that evil produces. He doesn’t glorify it but he doesn’t look away either. He uses it to cast the shadows that emphasises the light.

This is Jon’s Steele’s first novel. As Marc Rochat might say, I am very sure it should not be his last.
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Denunciada
MikeFinnFiction | 19 reseñas más. | May 16, 2020 |
I found this novel in my local supermarket, while bored to death. The tiny blurb on the back intrigued me, but I almost put it back three times... I am SO glad I didn't, and took it home! What an atmospheric work of art, for a novel. Jon Steele is my new favorite author.


In a market flooded with novels dealing with supernatural themes, “The Watchers” stands out for strength of its characters, the originality of the plot and Jon Steele’s remarkable ability to make magic visible in the familiar.


In this age of instant gratification that drives the two page chapter, it is refreshing to see that one author is not afraid of long, drawn out character building and the slow, tension filled ascent to what you know will be a stunning end of the novel. Richly atmospheric and surprisingly tender amid all the gathering gloom, this is a beautifully written book to savior and enjoy, especially when all of the action finally does get going. I have NO problem with waiting for 100 pages for the characters to develop, figure out what the HECK is going on in this novel, or find out what happens next. And quite frankly, I don't understand why others do. If you want instant gratification, go read some short stories!! (And quite frankly, 500 pages gets me hot. More? I'm there!! I had no problem being hooked from the second chapter.)

Steele created three solid characters in Jay Harper, Marc Rochat and Katherine Taylor. You will find yourself cheering for Marc (who reminded me of Quasimodo), as le guet of the Lausanne Cathedral as he helps Taylor find redemption. Steele keeps you wondering about Harper until far into the story. Each of them is imperfect. Each of them sees a different Lausanne. Each of them has a distinctive voice. Together they light up this book. The portrayal of Marc Rochat and his adorable cat Monsieur Booty is in particular evocative and memorable. I was never quite sure if that cat understood what was being said or not... and that's ok, too.

The plot and the world that it imagines, puts a twist on ancient legends that is original, plausible and intriguing. Jon Steele is brave enough to slow the pace of the storytelling so that comprehension dawns slowly but is all the more deeply felt for that. Be ready for twists and turns, as Steele weaves a masterful story around you. There are four parts to the story, and people have to actually follow the threads of the story. I was never sure where this ride was going, and I enjoyed every minute of this feeling.

Angels in a mystery novel is new to me, but they fit perfectly. But don't expect wings or halos. Do expect a murder mystery, a supernatural thriller, and beautiful writing.

In a story of good versus evil Jon Steele takes the time to show how blurred the boundaries are between the two, nor does he shy away from depicting the cruel violence that evil produces. He doesn't glorify it but he doesn't look away either. He uses it to cast the shadows that emphasizes the light. (Some sexual situations, if you don't like that, don't read this novel. They are integral to the plot.)

This is Jon’s Steele’s first novel. As Marc Rochat might say, I am very sure it should not be his last. This novel was difficult to put down, and rejoin everyday life. I can barely wait until the 2nd part of the series is out, in June. And I am telling everyone I know that they HAVE to read this book. I loved that I had to constantly guess where the book was going, and that rarely happens, anymore... not after reading SO many books in my lifetime. :D
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Denunciada
stephanie_M | 19 reseñas más. | Apr 30, 2020 |


I received a complimentary copy of this book from NetGalley for the purpose of review. The review is my honest opinion and I was not paid for this service.

Since reading The Watchers, I've spent more than a bit of time imagining what mad road the author might steer the story down in Angel City, but none of my imaginings were even remotely correct. The ending can only be described as diabolical and will surely give whole new meaning to the word ‘cliffhanger’.

This astounding novel contains loads of action, a touch of esoteric history and a claustrophobic trip into the tunnels beneath Paris. The author has a gift of giving voice to the different characters, creating characters that leap off the page to scare you or steal your heart (as Rochat does in "The Watchers". Rochat is one of the most endearing characters I've met in a book in many years).

Picking up a few years after the first book of the series, Angel City hits the ground running. The first scene would certainly serve as a wonferful climax in most other books, as Harper is busy saving Paris from certain destruction - if not the world. Katherine is living the quiet country life, as a candle maker in Washington state, while raising her precocious son Max. Both these scenarios play a smaller part of a larger picture, of the Angel Wars; and a defrocked priest and his son, with confused motives comes into play.

Harper and Katherine return, but with their memories scrubbed, (mostly--pesky little unauthorized memories break through). Their stories, separate this time, form the two main narrative strands. Kat's story is less eventful than Harper's, initially, but was the more fascinating for me. She is slowly putting together what happened to her in the past, trying to decipher just what is going on in her high security present, getting used to being a mother, and falling in love with her bodyguard. Everything is done so well in this section, the characters are so believable and the developing friendships and romance so movingly portrayed, and the growing sense of danger, so subtle but so very there totally sucking the reader right in to the story, until the brilliant cliffhanger ending that had me scrambling to try to find more pages.

While The Watchers had more background and buildup about it, which focused on Harper and Katherine learning about this world of angels and demons, and their half-breed counterparts, and their own place in this world. Angel City moves at a much quicker pace than the first novel. Harper charges into action from the first chapter, delivering quips like a British Humphrey Bogart, while learning more about his own past. Max gives Katherine purpose, making her question less before she acts. It's wonderful to see that motherhood did little to change her brassy, "fuck you" nature. It's these characters, and their emotions, while finding out more about the past and it's place in this mess, that tether the series of revelations and action sequences. And, it's better than a Michael Bay movie... at least in MY head, it is. lol


Darker, yet more entertaining, Jon Steele gives a wider scope to his mythology, connecting it to human complexity. He also leaves you with an ending that will shock you into tears... while leaving you desperately hungry for that final installment.

The ONLY issue I had with this novel, besides the ending, was that Max giggled way too much. Like... almost constantly.

(My response, without giving away the ending? "NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!
And then a little crying.)

Man, this book ......!! Every time when I put down the book of his I've been reading into the wee hours of the night, unable to stop, I find myself with a haunting sense of longing and missing the world he created, the world into which he so effortlessly immerses his readers, the world of his storytelling that you never want to leave.

Thank you, Jon Steele. Now get that third book finished! ;)
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Denunciada
stephanie_M | 7 reseñas más. | Apr 30, 2020 |
The second part of the Angelus Trilogy, Angel City leads us further in the stories of Jay Harper and Katherine Taylor, introduced to us in the first in Jon Steele's series, The Watchers.

I'm not sure what genre I would put this novel in. Given its notion of angels taking the forms of men, and walking amongst us, the idea of being able to warp time, a bus that appears to be able to break the sound barrier, science fiction/fantasy would appear to be the prime candidate, but as the story unfolds, it begins to fit equally well in the mystery-thriller-detective genre. With a bit of a religion thing going on.

After a prologue taking us through events in Montsegur in the 13th century, the actions get to an explosive start in September 2013, where Jay Harper is trying to prevent a devastating attack on Paris, while Katherine is living in small-town America under the protection of the Swiss Guard.

Following the events in the Watchers, both Kat and Harper have had each other wiped from their respective memories, and Angel City tells the next part of their stories in parallel. While Katherine devotes her time to looking after her young son Max, Harper is assigned on a mission to learn more about the actions of a defrocked priest who talks of the time of the prophecy.

Steele is a talented author. He switches between the relative peace of Katherine's life and the full-on thrill ride of Harper's with ease. There are some beautiful moments between Max and her son, as well as a touching love story, while the action in Harper's world moves along, for the most part, at a cracking pace. I found both lead characters likeable; Harper, in particular, has some great line: describing someone's excitement as 'like a plane-spotter just receiving word Amelia Earhart's Lockheed Electra had been spotted after eighty years and was making its final approach to Le Bourget', or after meeting again the person who left him for dead 'and three days later I rose from the dead. It's been known to happen.'

The characters and the humour make this a very readable work. There are some niggles - the journey through the catacombs felt overly long, and some passages on astronomy felt more detailed than they needed to be. It also seemed to take a long time before the relevance of the prologue became apparent. But these are minor, and overall this is a very readable book that holds the reader to its cliffhanger ending.
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Denunciada
TheEllieMo | 7 reseñas más. | Jan 18, 2020 |

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Estadísticas

Obras
5
Miembros
585
Popularidad
#42,856
Valoración
4.0
Reseñas
29
ISBNs
37
Idiomas
2

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