Category: Fantasy Copyright: Apr 12, 2009
ISBN-13: 9780955592713
How a growth hormone experiment went horribly wrong and how an isolated rural community dealt with the monster that arose.
Introducing The Motorscope -
a new means of telling the future.
Mad Max crossed with All Creatures Great and Small
Forget the stars, tealeaves or bathwater. The future for telling the future is the motorscope.
Obviously.
If only Slake hadn’t souped up Mrs Osmotherly’s 2CV. She might then have been able to read the road signs properly and save Mr Heckmondwike a whole lot of trouble.
What she has spotted, though, is Nick Hob, the Horsepower Whisperer. If Hob is abroad in the Wold, whose soul can he be after?
But everyone’s problems are exhibiting accelerated growth.
It’s big. It’s woolly. It’s already got cloven hooves and soon it’ll have horns.
It is the terrible Lamb of Wormton.
An Anarchadian Novel
Excerpt
"Widdershins!" called Mr Heckmondwike.
Widdershins was his three-headed collie. The Greeks may have conceived the idea of a three-headed dog but the Wormtonians had given the concept practical reality through very selective breeding. They had endowed every Three-headed Wormton Sheepdog with, as well as three heads, three tails and twelve legs.
The masterstroke, however, was to give each Three-headed Wormton Sheep Dog three bodies. These bodies were completely independent of each other and came complete with a tail and a matched set of legs. The result was a sheep dog that could be in three places at the same time.
Consequently, it was a simple task for Wid, Der and Shins to round up the unfortunate lamb and bring it, bleating and confused, to Mr Heckmondwike.
He picked up the lamb and examined it while its concerned mother looked on.
"Ah reckon ah'll have to keep an eye on this young rascal mesen, now," he said.
"What does tha suppose he put into it?" asked Mr Gaffathwaite
"Haven't a bloody clue. Ah'll keep this family group together," he said, "but separate from t'rest of t'flock. We can check any changes against its twin." Mr Heckmondwike stared into the eyes of the injected lamb. "What did he do to thee?" he asked it. "Eh? What did he do to thee? And when shall we knaw?"
Professional Reviews
Filled with belly laughs, wildly entertaining!
Bob Blackman has done it again – delivered a rapid-paced, rollicking good fun, ride of a story. Mr. Blackman’s second book, The Wormton Lamb, returns us to the land of Anarchadia. This time we find our heroes in the placid countryside and small towns far from the bustling city.
Billy Brockhouse hates the Wold and he hates manure. It seems to be everywhere he steps. All Billy wants in life is to break into the growth hormone market and be BiggaBeast’s number one salesman. But what does he get? Manure! Always manure!
In rides the intrepid soul trader, Nicholas Eldrich Hob, on his super-powered motorcycle, Nosferatu, with the promise to solve all Billy’s problems if he’ll only trade a small little thing he doesn’t even notice all that much – his soul.
What results from their ill-considered negotiation tumbles the inhabitants of the Wold in general and the town of Wormton in particular into an out-of-control romp through quiet pastures, over rolling moors and right into the middle of town. The Wormton lamb is not a gentle pet you’ll want to bring home to your children.
Before all is said and done the town of Wormton will see the return of the Wild Hunt, be invaded by the Rural Marinas – the militia – and be besieged by the Wormton lamb itself.
It’ll take the energetic endeavors of a budding horsepower whisperer, a beautiful nurse, Wormton’s wise woman, a squad of guardian angels, every motorized vehicle they can get their hands on, and a cat to roust out this overgrown beast and restore the Wold to tranquility. But wait! What are those soul traders doing here?
Will they collect what they desire most? Can true love be found in the midst of near-panic and the Wild Hunt? Will the Wold ever be the same?
Mr. Blackman took what he knows and loves best, and turned it into a great read filled with belly laughs, irreverent commentary on life, the world, history, and society in general. He tossed the whole mix together to create a quick-paced, engrossing novel. His quirky characters are outrageous and believable at the same time. The events in his story are beyond belief but wildly entertaining.
The Wormton Lamb, while not as frantic- paced as Mr. Blackman’s first book, The Horsepower Whisperer, keeps the reader guessing and turning page after page until the very, last word. This reader can’t wait to see what he’ll come up with next!
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Winner 2012 NABE Pinnacle Book Award in Fan