Posted on  20/08/2024 17:20:49

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

'I'm afraid, sir, that I am of the opinion you are quite insane.'
...'There was never any debate on that score. Mad as a hatter, old man.'

A nice addition to the Brackenford Series, this short novella gives readers a little insight into the head of the infamous Ezekiel Barker.

Told from his perspective, this story has a different tone from the rest of the series. Not as funny and funky and a lot darker. Ezekiel Barker is after all, a killer in every sense.

Set free after being kept for years on a tight leash by a ruthless master, preserved in a cryogenic state and defrosted only at need; Barker now struggles with a heavy conscience and tries to find absolution at the bottom of a bottle. Except that absolution doesn't want to be found and, to make matters worse, he is suddenly forced to choose in between being handed over to the Custodians and accepting a bizarre job for an insane amount of money.

With no choice left but to accept the shady deal, Barker needs to set the bottle aside, get himself together and get moving. After all, he'll need all his wits about him since
the whole scheme is absolute madness.

Faced with an opponent who's mad as a hatter, Barker will need to confront his own conscience and make a choice. Turn tail and flee in the face of past mistakes and a seemingly useless future; give up the fight and let it all go; or grab the bull by the proverbial horns, gritt his teeth and press on.

For those of you who haven't read any of Nick Moseley's books, this short story can be read as a standalone. But you will enjoy it a lot more after having read the first 2 books in The Brackenford Cycle. And it does not provide you with a clear taste of this author's writing. This one is much darker than his other works, and by far not as funny. It also set down a few key elements for future books.

I did enjoy the change in pace and style and am now looking forward to the next book in series.
Fingers crossed it will have Ezekiel Barker in it! He'd make a nice addition to team Trev. Especially in bringing the smart-mouth down a notch or two. :)

Check out this book and more of Nick Moseley here