I spent a week with my lovely wife on the volcanic island of Lanzarote in the Canary Islands. Idea: get away from her work pressures and the frozen north of England; get me away from the web and writing. We took books both Kindled and papered and enjoyed our apartment in Arriete overlooking the sea as you see here.

In fact the view is north towards the quaint village of Punta De Majeres where I stayed last June with UK Authors. Note the not-so-calm sea as the Trade Winds kept us cool.

While there I read several books, Meter of Corruption by Wolfgang Schimanski: A thriller in which beautiful women are as eager for sex as they are clever at finance, fighting and getting into trouble. A page turner for those readers liking escapism, an action book without worrying too much about cliches and odd typos. ASIN for your kindle at B00II9LKLS

I read The Martian by Andy Weir, an interesting hard science fiction in which astronaut, Mark Watney is left for dead on Mars. He survives and so he should with his masterful engineering and botanical knowledge. I think he could have grown the legumes as well as spuds but I really enjoyed the nerdy aspects. If you think his way off and back to Earth was rather too much like the film, Red Planet (2000) then so do I. I also think Mark could have guessed he’d be watched by satellites and be able to make a radio from all the parts he had but it is a great geeky book. I would have had Martians even if like sand amoeba but hey ho.

Also read Into a Glass Darkly by Sheridan Le Fanu. Liked the Conan Doyle / Walter Scott style but what might have gripped a reader in 1872, the conflicts’ resolutions are too obvious for modern readers.

Meanwhile I discover that my short horror story, IMPULSE, which is based on the childhood ditty, As I was going up the stair I met a man who isn’t there… A chap is so burdened with work and relationship stress he ducks it all and takes a holiday to Gozo near Malta. Except that he finds his past not catching up with him as vanishing too much! Here it is and FREE to read along with other great stories.

I also discover two marvelous reviews of ARIA. I’m tempted to be naughty and cherry pick their best bits but here they are in full.

Would Make a Great Movie! Compelling and provocative Story!,February 18, 2015

By

Mark Fine | The Zebra Affaire

This review is from: ARIA: Left Luggage (Kindle Edition)

A mysterious out-of-this-world suitcase found wedged on the International Space Station triggers a viral catastrophe of apocalyptic end-of-days proportions on the humans habitants on the earth below. Unlike the typical B-movie type scenarios of less sophisticated science fiction, “ARIA Left Luggage” avoids the gratuitous and the obvious–sparing the reader passages about seamy bodily fluids and dismembered limbs. Hence, I really enjoyed this book because it added such intelligence and integrity to the genre, without sacrificing drama and body count.

The fact that the alien contagion was manifested as rapidly overwhelming amnesia–is so relevant to this baby boomer generation that’s facing an epidemic of real-world diseases that impair memory and cognitive functions, such as Alzheimer. By tapping into our collective fears in this regard, Nelder certainly had my attention.

The author ably describes the consequences of losing one’s mind by describing acute scenarios; a pilot en route over the Atlantic loses his way, with tragic consequences, when he forgets the flights final destination. It was truly frightening to witness, through the author’s eyes, how civil society can so rapidly deteriorate back into the Stone Age as humanities memories fade to naught.

My personal interpretation of Geoff Nelder’s Sci-Fi allegory is a near-future modern day twist on the Dark Ages or Middle Ages–a period devoid of inspiration and culture possible due to famine and disease including the dreaded “Black Death” (Bubonic plague); it began at the fall of the Roman Empire and ended at beginning of Italian Renaissance – The Age of Discovery. Possibly the Italian doctor featured in the story triggered this thought, as well as the choice of “ARIA” being Italian for “Air” as the acronym for the virus.
This is a cerebral, thoroughly researched, and most enjoyable. The characters are vividly rendered, with their flaws and smarts displayed for all to see, making them memorable. For me it took only a minimal suspension of disbelief, and the plot felt thoroughly plausible. Just substitute ARIA for an another earthbound airborne virus, accelerated throughout humanity due to population density, easy accesses to transcontinental travel, unrestricted borders, and the potential transmission speed of the disease would be like no other time in history.

As for those interested in survivalist prepping, but with an intelligent scientific / medical twist, ARIA promises to be a satisfying read. For those fans of science fiction, here you will find an immediacy and relevance (note the recent Ebola scare) that will trigger within you all the “it-came-from-outer-space” drama and tension you’d ever desire. Character-driven and a diverse cast, plus the compelling plot, suggests ARIA: Left Luggage has the makings of a fine motion picture.
+++ Thanks Mark!

This is from Jean Gill author of One Sixth of Gill.

Just finished ARIA:Left Luggage by Geoff Nelder and would definitely recommend it. Here’s my review ‘Classic ‘what-if’ world-threat sci-fi: What if an amnesia bug went viral? Who would remember enough to be able to fight it? What decisions would you take to survive?

Very convincing ‘what if’ sci-fi disaster novel as exciting as the classic invasions of Triffids and Midwich Cuckoos. The range of the novel shows global consequences through detail of a few places geographically far apart (London, Houston, north Wales, Banff, Australia) A variety of characters draw the reader into everyday human dilemmas and relationships in such an inhuman situation, all very nicely done (although ‘nastily done’ is probably more appropriate).

I don’t like violent scenes but, for my taste, Geoff Nelder keeps the story entertaining, showing plausible conflicts – and deaths – without dwelling on gory detail. The working relationships reminded me of the petty rivalries and allegiances in any job and the wry humour lightens the depressing consequences of ARIA.

I was intrigued by the premise but what really impressed me was the detail of the way ARIA spreads and its impact. I can’t say whether the technological details are accurate but the logic, the portrayal of people and places and the twists of the narrative kept me fully involved.

My only disappointment was that there wasn’t more of a conclusion. I know there’s a sequel and I look forward to that but I do like more of a resolution at the end of a book even if some loose ends are left dangling for the next one.

 

Note from Geoff

Apologies to Jean about the ending. Always tricky to leave readers wanting more but without leaving too many frustrated loose ends. I thought I’d trodden that slippery path with an airborne device and with readers reasoning what was likely to happen to those left behind. I can assure Jean that in Book 2, ARIA: RETURNING LEFT LUGGAGE loose ends are tied up and questions are answered. Ah, but more questions bubble up, the aliens sneak in and romance crops up in surprising circumstances. Is it completely tied up by the end. Sorry, Jean – well there’s Book 3…

 

To grab a copy of one of my ARIA books here are the links

Kindle – Amazon.com http://www.amazon.com/ARIA-Left-Luggage-ebook/dp/B008RADGYC/

Paperback Amazon.comhttp://www.amazon.com/ARIA-Left-Luggage-Volume-1/dp/1905091958/

Kindle UK – http://www.amazon.co.uk/ARIA-Left-Luggage-ebook/dp/B008RADGYC/

Paperback UK http://www.amazon.co.uk/ARIA-Left-Luggage-Geoff-Nelder/dp/1905091958/

Publisher’s website with more details and formats.http://www.ll-publications.com/leftluggage.html

Buy it quick before you run out of memory!

You tube video trailer
http://youtu.be/oh0AAXIe8VU