Category: Action/Thriller Publisher: Crystal Lake Publishing
ISBN-10: 0992170710
Type: Fiction
Pages: 184
Copyright: June 2013
ISBN-13: 9780992170714
Price: $3.99 (eBook)
Think of Sleeper(S) as a modern version of Sleeping Beauty, mixed with zombies, Sci-fi, adventure, thriller and a bit of horror.
The sleepy English locality of Middletown is about to get even sleepier, as a strange malady starts to affect the population. It spreads quickly, causing the authorities to quarantine this small city, and seek out the only person who might be able to help: Doctor Andrew Strauss. However, Strauss has a secret, one that has linked him to this place all his life, one that has linked him to a particular person there, though he doesn’t yet know who. But he’s not the only one hiding things – and as he ventures into Middletown to collect samples with an army escort, a mixture of UK and US troops, cracks soon begin to appear in the operation. Especially when his team come up against the most terrifying threat humankind has ever known… From the imagination of the award-winning and bestselling author of Who’s Been…? and RED (optioned for film and turned into an award-winning feature script), this chilling reworking of another well-loved fairy tale reads like a heady mix of The Andromeda Strain, Inception, Outbreak and Quatermass, and is a tale that’s bound to delight genre fans the world over.
Professional Reviews
Sleeper(S) will do anything but put you to sleep
Sleeper(s), by Paul Kane, is a rapidly moving tale of nature and science gone awry. Add in booze, sex, cultural diversity, and political subterfuge, and I believe Mr. Kane has something here for every one. Some parts of this story are amazingly in line with my own thoughts regarding the possibilities of the evils that governments sometimes engineer, or might, given the chance. I am not a believer in having Prologues in books, tending to feel they give too much of the story away. However, the one here was skillfully used and added to the book. Even better than that was the Epilogue. This was a superb piece of prose having me say,"Look at the possibilities!" That being said, I am hoping that Mr. Kane sees fit to share a second book with us. This could be a series.
Paul Kane is a superb author. I most highly recommend you read Sleeper(s).
Horrific Outbreak Style Shenaningans
It started with Mr Eley and his controlling wife visiting Dr Wray. Mr Eley was more tired than usual and prone to dropping off. At first the doctor dismisses it as the result of overwork, but as she examines her patient she notices signs of anaemia and clamminess of his skin. And he is not the only one. Slightly concerned she takes a blood sample for analysis. By the time the anomaly in the patient's blood has been found it is too late.
The Central Hospital is already overcrowded with what they are calling severe cases of Narcolepsy. Authorities outside Middletown are alerted to the fact that the sleeping sickness is airborne. The town is soon quarantined with no mobile signals or internet.
Soon we meet Andrew Strauss, a genius doctor in the world of virology but also an insomniac boozer. In a hotel, away at a conference, as a keynote speaker, he is hiding from a one night stand with his assistant, when she turns up at his room door with the army. He is needed to investigate Middletown.
Kane starts with the shocks just a few pages in, as the bodies start to collapse under the power of this strange disease. The novella is thoroughly researched with an air of authenticity to it, particularly where the biology and science is concerned. Strauss is also a rather interesting character; he is damaged and flawed, putting his six year friendship and relationship with assistant Bridget in danger through his irresponsible actions and his obsession with a woman he dreams about every night. A woman who can't possibly be real. Or can she?
It is clear Kane has been influenced by the work of John Wyndham and he is happy to admit this, as Kane indulges his inner fanboy with lots of classic SF references.
There is a bonus short story at the end, Masques, which I suspect is a Poe adaptation from his forthcoming book Rue Morgue.
A good solid piece of SF/Horror, Kane proves why he has such a good reputation within the genre. Worth your pennies!
