Review:

A groups of schoolgirls attempt a magic spell which goes wrong, while Dai Williams is dealing with his new found fame after he saves the Queen's life. I did not realize that this was the second book in the series and I will be reading the first one. Full of strange and curious events, it was certainly entertaining. I liked the mix of telepathy along with the mystery of what happened with the mobile phones. I'm sure more is explained in book one, but there was enough here to keep me reading. I would definitely recommend it.

I was excited to jump into this book. From the description it sounded very interesting and I expected it to be a quick read. Within a few chapters I was having a difficult time following the multiple story lines even though it was clear that they would tie up nicely further into the story.

I didn’t connect with any of the characters, and Dale’s constant testicle pain made it difficult for me to want to continue to read. After struggling for four days to make progress in the book, I gave up at 50%. This is my first DNF (did not finish) in years.

Read all of my reviews at my blog at the-pink-moose.com

The Knowing: A Thrilling horror fantasy by David Graham is a story about a variety of different characters - a young teenage girl who is a witch, a police officer from America and his partner/boyfriend and an MI5 agent from England. In this story we are first introduced to some young girls who are witches (in England) and they are working on producing a hex to put on Dai Williams who has recently been knighted by the Queen for helping to save her life from what many believe was a stroke. The hex back fires on the girls and instead ends up sending them to the hospital. The Queen is keen to what they were up to and attempting to do and so she has a talk with the girl's mother. Dai (David) is living in England with his pregnant girlfriend/fiancée. He goes up to visit with the Queen per her request and ends up having a few drinks and then ends up disappearing for 24 hours leaving many to wonder what really happened to him. The two American police officers - Steve and Dale are visiting England for their vacation and one of them is quickly afflicted by a severe pain in his nether regions that soon begins to show him things that are going to happen. He under goes many examinations to see what is causing this but can find no solid reason. There is a threat to many of the people and it's up to them to figure it out and save everyone.
When I first read the synopsis for this story I was really excited and hopeful concerning it because I am a huge fan of horror and I figured with the fantasy/magic element that it would really take things up a notch and make it something truly impressive. Well, I hate to say it but for me this book was more of a comedy than anything. When I read about the teenagers being made to be locked away in institutions because of the radiation from cellphones making them go crazy and commit homicides and other brutal attacks or just go crazy my immediate thought was this is going to be super cool to read about. But while the author takes the time to point this out and make it a focal point of your mind they really don't touch too much on it and it has no real role for me in the story. The story takes place on both sides of the pond and it's very enjoyable to read but when someone says horror....this is story isn't what I would even classify it as.
What I honestly don't like is how the story jumps from one character to the next and at random like it does. There isn't any way to really predict or know who is going to be the one the story focuses on next. One minute you are following Steve and Dale and then you've jumped to Dai with his psychic abilities and then you're back with the girls or the girl's mother. Some of the characters are more interesting than the rest. The author at times isn't totally clear about what is going on with each character. For example...I didn't know for a good while that Dai's (David) fiancée couldn't talk. I figured that out later on in the story. Also, some of the dialogue and words used were a bit confusing and I felt the author could have taken the time to at least have told us once what some of the abbreviations were and stood for.
While this is not a story that I would classify as horror or even scary it is an enjoyable read. It is engaging from the very beginning and keeps you wanting to know what happens next with the characters you really come to gravitate towards. For me this is more of a mystery with comedy expertly written in the right places to give you a giggle at the right moments concerning the situations and circumstances that some of the characters deal with. It's interesting and fun for sure.
All in all I'd rate this book 4 out of 5 stars. It's very well written and edited so that there are no editorial errors to speak of. I just would not classify this book as horror in the sense of what the average person calls horror or scary. If anything...if I had to call it horror I'd say it's a light horror and something that is a passing scare at best for those who spook easily. But the characters are engaging and interesting, even the minor characters. So if you're looking for a unique read that has some twists and a few surprises but leans more toward comedy/mystery then this is the book to pick up. But if you are looking for something that is steeped in horror and has a true fantasy edge...you may want to pass on this one unless you just want a good read.

This book had no idea what it was and I had no idea what I was reading.

Just to break down the blurb, the teens and the Kansas City police officers are completely unrelated and don’t even meet until the very end of the book. Dai Williams is rather useless and has nothing resting with him. I don’t know who Kim Newman or Ben Aaranovitch are but I can tell you this is not urban horror. I don’t know what this was other than ridiculous.

The only way I can really describe the book is it’s like following a stumbling drunk home. You’ll eventually get to your destination but not before you lurch around, wander down some side streets, go backward, forward, side to side, fall face down into a puddle and get back up again. The author was way more concerned about being quippy and dropping as many “intelligent” references as possible than just telling the story. Development didn’t just happen. It happened with a reference to a show or with a snide comment or a paragraph of meandering thought. It was so all over the place it made keeping the actual story straight exceedingly difficult.

I really shut down when “the knowing” turned into a prophetic nutsack. That’s not a euphemism. A dude’s balls give him “the sight.” I don’t even know what to do with this book. It looks vaguely put-together. Nice cover. Interesting, if a little quirky, story going on. But the actual book is a mess. I’m motion sick at the end of it for all the lurching it does. I know what the author is trying to do but I think it falls flat. The exceedingly heavy-handed “humor” coupled with a lot of English-specific colloquialisms made context nearly impossible and the book feels like it wasn’t plotted. It just zigzags all over the place with very little cohesion.

THE KNOWING just didn’t work in any respect. It’s tonally off from the blurb, it can’t stick to its own story, and the author has shoved himself so deeply into the never-ending quips that it became too difficult to even see the characters anymore. The world is lost too. It doesn’t seem at all developed, but instead seemed like a good concept that just coasted on the surface without any digging. And it provided great support for telepathic testicles. So there’s that.

1

I received a copy of this book from the author in exchange for an honest review.

"The Knowing" written by the very imaginative David Graham is a thrilling contemporary urban horror book published by Urbane Publications.
The story is set in London and focuses on evil forces invading London intent on destroying the human race.
At first I wasn't sure if this was my type of book, I'm not a major fan of horror books, but to be honest once you start reading it you realise that it's not a traditional horror book but more a fantasy/mystery book. "The Knowing" follows on from the author's previous book "The Screaming" - I personally haven't read this book but I don't feel you need to in order to enjoy "The Knowing", as there's enough information in it for you to catch up on and it could also quite easily be enjoyed as a standalone novel anyway.
I loved the involvement of the 'witchery business' - I do like stories about witches and I think this is what kept me intrigued throughout the book. I thought all the varied characters were interesting and detailed well and i particularly liked the Queen's very weird and unusual character!!
Although this book isn't something I would not normally pick up off a shelf, I acquired it through the monthly 'Urbane Book Club'. The great thing about this club is that you get a copy of every printed book they publish in the year that you join, and in doing so you get books that may/may not be your usual genre or liking. I'm pleased I received this book this way as I was therefore able to read something I may have missed out on and am now able to recommend to others.
There's probably quite a few genres this entertaining book could fit into, so if you enjoy urban horror/mystery/magic/dystopian etc then you will definitely enjoy this fast paced and intriguing book, and I will certainly be looking to read more by this author in the future.
3.5 stars rounded up to 4.

I was excited to jump into this book. From the description it sounded very interesting and I expected it to be a quick read. Within a few chapters I was having a difficult time following the multiple story lines even though it was clear that they would tie up nicely further into the story.

I didn’t connect with any of the characters, and Dale’s constant testicle pain made it difficult for me to want to continue to read. After struggling for four days to make progress in the book, I gave up at 50%. This is my first DNF (did not finish) in years.

Read all of my reviews at my blog at the-pink-moose.com