Matt Hilton Thrills

Long v Short

2012-01-27T15:32:00.002Z

I recently guest blogged at Kindle and talked about the difference (for me) of writing short Joe Hunter stories as opposed to full length novels. Take a shufty here if you';d like to read what i had to say on the subject.
http://www.kindlepost.co.uk/2012/01/the-long-and-the-short-of-it.html

Blizzards Won't Stop Me (only slow me down)

2012-01-25T15:36:00.000Z

I've been on my travels recently, the biggest journey being a trip across the Atlantic to visit various cities in the Mid-west USA to promote CUT and RUN.

Mid-January perhaps isn't the best time to travel to the great lakes area, because of the inclement weather. I'd been watching the weather forecasts and saw that snow was expected. But I didn't let it stop me. More worrying was the thought of five different flights (that makes ten take-offs and landings) in less than a week, plus the prospect of driving on the right hand side, in a left had drive car, automatic instead of gear stick, for the very first time (apart from an aborted attempt in Spain one time when I drove the wrong way into a one way system EEK!). But, hey, am I not a roughty-toughty thriller author, unfazed by such things as these? Supposedly. Anyway, I girded my loins, jacked myself up on Kalms, and set off.

My wife went with me, and good job because she's the only thing that keeps me from blowing a fuse in the airport. The flight to Newark was fine - getting through Immigration wasn't. Is it me or is immigration at Newark the slowest process in the world? Had to run to make my connecting flight to Pittsburgh and only made it by the skin of my teeth. The flight into Pittsburgh was a bit bumpy, but having been on the go for a day and a half by then I managed to sleep most of it. Thank you Kalms.

My first event was at 'Mystery Lovers' book store, Oakmont, Pittsburgh, and it was a real treat. A beautiful bookshop in a beautiful location, with some very welcoming readers and shop staff. Also, a pleasant surprise was meeting 'Donna' a friend I'd made by chance when visiting Baltimore a few years ago. Who knew how small a world the earth had become?

That day blizzards had forced Chicago O'Hare airport to cancel 500 flights and the prospects of making my next engagement was looking grim. But it was off to the airport and with a slight delay - and the need to have our plane de-iced on the runway - we took off and arrived safely in Chicago. This is where good friend, and Bouchercon maestro, Judy Jongsma Bobalik showed up to whisk us around town and show us all the sights. I'd preconceptions - or misconceptions - about Chicago based on watching old mobster movies. It was and is a beautiful city, made all the more magnificent for the snow. The following day I attended a mystery writers' event at Ela District Library, Lake Zurich, alongside Julie Hyzy, Jamie Freveletti, Bryan Gruley and Jason Karlawish. It was again a superb event with some enthusiastic and knowledgeable readers in attendance. Naomi McEneely of Lake Forest bookshop was on hand to supply books, and she proved to be a lovely lady and new friend. As mystery authors are sometimes want to do, we all headed off to a dive bar for beer and popcorn. A real treat and one of my first views of 'real America'. Next round is on me, Mr Gruley.

By now trepidation was growing concerning the impending drive up to Milwaukee, and again Judy Bobalik showed genuine friendship and generosity by offering to drive us there. I accepted thankfully. So the following morning Judy collected me and my wife from O'Hare and took us north, to meet another top guy and friend, Jon Jordan of Crimespree magazine, who shuttled us the remainder of the way to Milwaukee. Knowing my taste in music, Jon had even been thoughtful enough to shove a Robert Gordon rockabilly CD in his player. Sweet. Being the generous host he is, Jon took us to his home where his wife and co-magazine editor, Ruth was waiting for us. Their home is an author's dream, with every wall holding case upon case of books, pop culture and movie memorabilia. Awesome. Their welcome, hospitality and generosity didn't end there: it culminated that evening in a home cooked meal that I could barely put a dent in, and great company alongside Jon, Ruth, Bryan VanMeter and 'Sheriff' Joe Schmidt.

The next day saw Jon and Ruth collecting us again and showing us the sights of Milwaukee, including a trip to the world famous Harley Davidson museum, where we lunched, and I had about the largest cheese/steak burger I've ever seen in my life. It would have been rude to leave even a morsel on my plate wouldn't it?

Then it was off to Mystery One book store in Milwaukee for another well attended event. But that was after meeting at the Comet Coffee Bar with Barbara Vey of Publishers Weekly to conduct an interview and video interview. You can grab links to both these interviews in the preceding post to this one.

The event at Mystery One was cool. Adding to the ambience was the smell of freshly baked cookies - thanks Bryan - and the presence of some top people, old and new friends alike.

The night didn't end there. We all went to a Mexican restaurant where I sampled skirt-steak for the first time. It was good, but didn't come near the steak fed to me by Jon and Ruth Jordan the night before. It was great to see old friends Penny and Denny joining us too.

Back at the hotel I watched the snow growing steadier by the hour, and come the following morning it was once more of blizzard proportions. It didn't stop Ruth Jordan fetching us and taking us to the airport for our flight home. Ruth did a terrific job of negotiating the snowy streets, even when a collision in front of us blocked the route and we had to go off road (actually it was through a housing estate, but doesn't it sound more daring that way?). Again our plane was subjected to de-icing on the runway, but we were off, up and away back to Newark with little time to spare. From there it was back to Manchester UK, and the drive back to Cumbria.

Dropping off my wife at home it was a quick turn around for me, and I returned to the railway station at Carlisle for a trip up to Glasgow, Scotland, for an event at Club 29, where I met and enjoyed a night in the presence of Waterstones staff from all over Scotland, alongside fellow authors Sophie Hannah, Imogen Robertson, Robyn Young, Louise Welsh and Gary Mulgrew. It was a great night, where again I met old and new friends, with a special mention to fellow author Russel McLean who I bump into at events all over the world. By the time I returned to my hotel room I'd been on the go for around forty hours solid, but hey ho. It's part and parcel of the job I guess.

The following morning seen me back on a train to Carlisle, and I marvelled at how beautiful the Clyde looked, garlanded with early morning sunshine. Then it was a short drive home to my house in Cumbria. What a trip, but every minute well worth it.

Can't wait for my return trip to Cleveland, USA for Bouchercon 2012 this year, where again I hope to see Judy, Jon, Ruth and the rest of the gang. And, yeah, another trip to Scotland is most likely on the cards.

Slash and Burn the Movie?

2012-01-20T15:27:00.002Z

I will do a full report of my recent trip to the USA to publicise Cut and Run soon, but in the meantime here are links to two interviews I did while in the US, both with Barbara Vey of Publishers Weekly and BeyondHerBook.com.

http://blogs.publishersweekly.com/blogs/beyondherbook/?p=5520

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jgjbOHP-Akk

Do you agree with my dream cast list for a movie version of SLASH and BURN?

Happy New Year! What's Occurring in 2012?

2012-01-02T13:56:00.001Z

Hi all, and may I take this opportunity to wish you all a happy, healthy and prosperous new year.

There has been much happening in the world of Joe Hunter of late, and I'm pleased to announce that Dead Men's Harvest - Joe Hunter 6 - has been met with favourable reviews in the UK. The paperback edition of Dead Men's Harvest will go on general sale within a few days, on 5th January to be precise.

Those of you who prefer electronic books to paper these days will probably be pleased to hear that my UK publisher, Hodder and Stoughton, are due to release an anthology of six Joe Hunter short stories direct to Amazon Kindle. "Six of the Best" is now available for pre-order, but goes on general sale on 19th January 2012, so not long to wait. You can take a look here: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Joe-Hunter-Short-Stories-ebook/dp/B006HAMCPI/ref=pd_rhf_dp_p_t_2

The next big event in the Joe Hunter calendar is the release of the seventh action-packed book in the series called "No Going Back" on 16th February. Matt will be holding a book launch on or around that date, but details have yet to be finalised.

Here's the blurb from No Going Back:

'Jameson Walker approaches Joe Hunter when his daughter Jay and her friend Nicole go missing at a gas station in the Arizona desert while on a cross-country trek across the North American interior. He mentions that a robbery/homicide at the gas station as worrying as the girls were due to be in the vicinity at that time. Joe accepts the job of locating the girls, though not at first convinced there's much to worry about. As Joe picks up the girls' trail he discovers that other young women have also disappeared in the area, and comes across the brutish Logan family.'

'No Going Back' will be available from all major booksellers, and can also be purchased from various on-line sites.

In the USA, two Joe Hunter books hit the stands this winter. Both 'Slash and Burn' and 'Cut and Run' were released as mass market paperback originals, and are available from all places books are sold. Because of the popularity of the books, Matt has been asked to do a mini-tour of the US and on 12th January will be in Pittsburgh, on the 14th he'll be in Chicago, and lastly on the 16th in Milwaukee.

Visit Matt's blog here http://matthiltonbooks.blogspot.com for updates on times and locations of each appearance.

Matt will also be appearing at venues in the UK during the first two months of this year, including Wigan library on Thursday 26th January, and Bishop Aukland Townhall, County Durham, on Thursday 28th February. Again check on Matt's blog for full details.

To ensure you keep up to date with all Joe Hunter and Matt Hilton news, please join them online.

http://www.matthiltonbooks.com is Matt's official website

http://www.facebook.com/MattHiltonAuthor for all Matt Hilton news on facebook.

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Joe-Hunter-Crime-Thrillers/153735557978125 for Joe Hunter specific news on Facebook.

@MHiltonauthor to follow Matt on Twitter.

Keep on keeping on

Matt

What's Matt Up To? Lots.

2011-12-23T18:42:00.000Z

There are quite a lot of Matt Hilton books hitting the shelves of late, or are imminent, and I thought a quick review of all that's on the go may be helpful to those of you interested in my output.

First up is the paperback edition of Dead Men's Harvest which goes on sale in the UK on 5th January 2012 but is already available from Amazon here: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Dead-Mens-Harvest-Joe-Hunter/dp/1444712667/ref=tmm_pap_title_0?ie=UTF8&qid=1291725685&sr=1-2

And on the 19th January 2012 Joe Hunter: Six of the Best an eBook anthology of Joe Hunter short stories will be available on Kindle (but can be ordered now): http://www.amazon.co.uk/Joe-Hunter-Short-Stories-ebook/dp/B006HAMCPI/ref=pd_rhf_dp_p_t_4

Joe Hunter's next adventure - No Going Back - will then go on sale in hardback in the UK from 16th February 2012, and can be pre-ordered now here: http://www.amazon.co.uk/No-Going-Back-Joe-Hunter/dp/1444712683/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1324661645&sr=1-1

Away from Joe Hunter for a moment, there are also three new eBooks available from Matt Hilton and all are available on all Amazon platforms.

Dominion is an apocalyptic thriller reminiscent of the movies '28 Days Later' meets 'Aliens' and can be downloaded here: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Dominion-ebook/dp/B006GT3NPI/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1324664758&sr=1-1

Darkest Hour is an historical horror thriller set against the Fall of France in WW2 and is reminscent of the movies 'Saving Private Ryan' meets 'Van Helsing'. This is Matt's latest standalone horror book and can be downloaded here: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Darkest-Hour-ebook/dp/B006P2BHAE/ref=pd_rhf_dp_p_t_3

Also from Matt Hilton but under the pen name J A Norton, there's a YA horror adventure called Deliver Us From Evil and it can be downloaded here: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Deliver-Us-From-Evil-ebook/dp/B006C752U8/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1324664985&sr=1-1

Also, a short story, 'The Skin We're In' is included in The Mammoth Book of Best British Crime 9 http://www.amazon.co.uk/Mammoth-Book-British-Crime-Books/dp/1780330944/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1324665106&sr=1-1

Another Matt Hilton short story 'Apocalypse Noo' appears in Wild Wold Publishing's 'Holiday of the Dead' under the pen name Vallon Jackson: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Holiday-Dead-John-Russo/dp/1907954058/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1324665214&sr=1-2

While in the USA, both Slash and Burn (Joe Hunter 3) and Cut and Run (Joe Hunter 4) have just gone on sale too: http://www.amazon.com/Slash-Burn-Matt-Hilton/dp/0061718475/ref=pd_sim_b_5 and http://www.amazon.com/Cut-Run-Hunter-Matt-Hilton/dp/0062079948/ref=pd_sim_b_1 respectively.

Six of the Best for Christmas

2011-12-22T10:07:00.000Z

http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B006HAMCPI/ref=cm_sw_r_fa_dp_8z37ob0S510RS

Joe Hunter: Six of the Best can now be pre-ordered for your Kindle to be delivered to your device on 19th January. Why not treat yourself?

Six of the Best Joe Hunter has always hated bullies. And Tony Largo is a bully who has picked the wrong target when he assaults a war veteran.
Homecoming Joe promises a grieving mother he'll bring her son home, whatever it takes.
Sand Dance When a hot-dog seller gets mugged, Joe finds a sneaky way of getting revenge.
UV Ray Joe and his best buddy RInk don't play by the rules when they take on a child abuser at a bowling alley.
Instant Justice Carl Riley didn't sound like the name of a beast. But he was a man who preyed on the faceless young who worked the neon strip. Until he came face to face with Joe.
The Other Side of the Street Joe plays the Good Samaritan.

Wear your Best Boots

2011-12-19T18:51:00.000Z

Really pleased to announce that my younger brother, and fellow scribe, James Oliver Hilton, has made available his first collection of crime/action stories as an eBook on Amazon. 'When Dancing With Death' collects three of Jim's 'McMurder' stories, plus two standalone stories, one an urban crime thriller, the other a conspiracy theory thriller...all five of them gems filled with humour, pathos and kick-arse action.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B006MK4Y0E/ref=cm_sw_r_fa_alp_eZD7ob1W43KZM

DOMINION paperback

2011-12-14T13:09:00.000Z

http://www.lulu.com/product/paperback/dominion/18742971

I mentioned previously about my horror thriller 'Dominion' and how I chose to self-publish it as an eBook to avoid reader confusion etc regarding my usual Joe Hunter thrillers, and how I wished to keep the books as separate entities. This hasn't changed, and the book is available to download via all the Amazon platforms, .com, .co.uk, .de, .it, etc. However, what did become apparent was that many of my readers still prefer a paper book over an electronic one, and various people asked that I make 'Dominion' available as such. I've done so, making the book a POD product via Lulu.com (see the link above).

One reason why I resisted at first, was because with POD there's always a slight hike in price. This is because the publisher charges per page and 'Dominion' is a hefty read of over 175,000 words (500 pages), and then also expects a take from the 'profit' margin, not to mention adding postage costs. Any way, because people did ask, I decided to make it available and allow my readers to decide if they wished to pay the price for the product they demanded. To help out, I've cut my part of the profit, reducing the overall cost by 10%, and bringing down the cost to what you'd expect to pay for a similarly sized trade paperback in bookstores.

Other reasons why I decided to publish Dominion are as follows:

Regular publisher feedback was generally very good, though none were in position to offer publication. I knew I had a good book, but it didn't sit with these publishers' styles or catalogues and may prove awkward for them to market to the general public. However, the book was good enough in my opinion to find its own market.

I had sent portions of the book to a selection of readers both from the horror and thriller communities and the feedback was that it worked for both markets, yet didn't fully sit in either. Therefore I was happy that I'd developed my own sub-genre from both angles. Is it a thriller with horror, or a horror with thrills? I'll allow my readers to decide that, I thought, and the only way to do that was to make it available to them.

I spent many, many hours working on, and then revising and editing Dominion, and did not wish to see it left to languish on my hard drive. Even if one person reads and enjoys the book in any of its forms, the writer in me will be satisfied. It will mean all of those many hours won't have been wasted.

Plus, I'm greedy. No. I don't mean I expect to make much money from Dominion. I am greedy for readership, like all authors. We want people to read our words otherwise why would we write them down? So, yeah, greed and selfishness also prompted me to publish the book. Paradoxically I hope some readers are equally greedy to read my words. It will mean that I've done something worthwhile for us all.

A trade paperback copy can be found here: http://www.lulu.com/product/paperback/dominion/18742971

But if you prefer an eBook you can get it at Amazon.co.uk here and Amazon.com here .

No Going Back for Joe Hunter

2011-12-13T12:02:00.000Z

Loving the cover for Joe Hunter seven 'No Going Back' which will be published February 16th 2012.

The Osseus Box Rises Again!

2011-12-11T15:48:00.001Z

The incredibly talented horror and crime writer Lee Hughes is finally making his

superb horror novel "The Osseus Box" available as an on-going serial over at

http://theosseousbox.blogspot.com/p/chapter-1-jesus-people.html and you can

catch the first instalment here. This was a favourite of mine (and still is) over at

Thrillers, Killers 'n' Chillers where it first appeared in a shorter form.

More 'What's Occurring'...

2011-12-05T11:36:00.001Z

I know I'm throwing lots at you at the minute, but here's a brief resume of all the

stuff that's coming out/is out at the moment, just so you don't miss anything (see

first comment):

Out now:

Slash and Burn - paperback (USA) Joe Hunter

Cut and Run - paperback (USA) Joe Hunter

Blood and Ashes - paperback (UK) and eBook (worldwide) Joe Hunter

Dead Men's Harvest - hardback (UK) and eBook (worldwide) Joe Hunter

Holiday of the Dead - short story anthology featuring zombies containing a short story from me under pen name Vallon Jackson paperback and eBook (worldwide)

Off The Record - charity anthology with foreword by me in paperback and eBook.

Deliver Us from Evil - YA horror novella eBook (worldwide) under pen name J A Norton

Dominion - Horror/thriller eBook (worldwide)

Coming soon:

Early January (5th) - paperback of Dead Men's Harvest (UK) Joe Hunter

Early January (5th) - paperback Mammoth Book of Best British Crime 9 includes a short story from me.

Mid-January (19th) - eBook Six of the Best (worldwide) Joe Hunter

Mid February (16th) - hardback of No Going Back (UK) Joe Hunter

Darkest Hour - horror eBook (worldwide)

If anyone wants further info about any of these projects just say...

Six of the Best: available to pre-order now.

2011-12-03T16:00:00.001Z

Joe Hunter: Six of the Best is an eBook collection of action-packed Joe Hunter tales with twists in the tail, and is now available for pre-order via Amazon: http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B006HAMCPI/ref=cm_sw_r_fa_alp_1mK2ob1P3W0DP

SEMPRE VIGILE PRESS - a new venture for Me.

2011-12-02T17:04:00.001Z

Here's some news on a few projects I've been working on for quite some time. Most of you here know me as the author of the Joe Hunter thriller series. Others also know that I write other stories in different genres - primarily that of horror under various pen names (Vallon Jackson, Jack Norton, J A Norton). I'm one of those authors who can't bear NOT to have a book on the go. Therefore when I'm not writing the latest Hunter thriller, I will work on other standalone books.

Now, then, when I've offered these books to publishers, there has been a little problem that gets in the way. The 'Matt Hilton" brand is infinitely connected to Joe Hunter, and there is no desire to cause confusion either for the buyers or readers of Joe Hunter's adventures, so my publishers have politely declined to bring out the stand alone books, though I've received their blessing to bring them out elsewhere.

So here's what I'm doing instead:

I'm going to bring out my books as eBook originals, through my own self-publishing efforts called SEMPRE VIGILE PRESS. If demand is large enough I may look into the possibility of bringing out hardcopy editions - unless some nice horror publisher is reading this and makes me an offer.

A few weeks ago I published a young adult horror novella under the pen name J A Norton called 'Deliver us from Evil', primarily as an exercise into the hows, why, and wherefores of self publishing an eBook, while also working to get ready my first full length adult novel.

My first stand alone horror/thriller is called DOMINION, and it is now available through Smashwords.com to the US market, as well as all Amazon platforms.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B006GT3NPI

Spec-Opssoldier, First Sergeant Ellis Kirby leads a JSOC unit into the Tora Ghar cavesystem in Afghanistan in search of WMDs, but finds something much worse.Infected by an ancient power summoned by an evil cleric Kirby and hiscompanions are whisked back to secret military laboratories in the US. Theplague of creatures - known as rakes - that is subsequently unleashed threatensto wipe out the entire population of the United States and perhaps the world.

Kirbywakens in his room to discover that everyone in the lab has been slaughtered,and the monstrous flesh-eating creatures are loose and rampaging throughout theland, killing and propagating their species with abandon.

Througha country rapidly overwhelmed by the ravenous creatures, Kirby aims to returnhome to his parents’ farm in Iowa, but on his return – following a perilouscross country journey through rake-infested lands - he discovers that they aredead, so chooses instead to take the fight back to the monsters and theirmaster.

Acrossthe same devastated landscape travel Bree and Jill Adams, sisters at odds, whomust face their past to survive the future, and three misfits collectivelyknown as the Ruby gang. Each must endure their travails before all of them arethrown together, and then with Kirby, in a race to the eastern seaboard wherethe final conflict between man and beast is destined to play out in a battleencompassing modern warfare and ancient magic.

Thebook isn’t a techno-thriller; it focuses on the human stories, and the terrorof the plague seen through the eyes of the central characters, and is one offear, horror, hatred and violence, but also of adventure, humour, courage, loyaltyand hope. It runs at over 175 K words, so is quite a hefty read.

One industry insider has described DOMINION as being like "28 Days later" meets "Aliens", an accolade I'll gladly take.

Hope you enjoy my first venture into self-publishing.

CUT and RUN - USA

2011-11-30T16:05:00.001Z

Cut and Run, the fourth of Joe Hunter's high-octane thrillers in now available in paperback in the USA, and on sale from most major booksellers.

If I had Written a YA Horror Novella...

2011-11-25T17:11:00.001Z

If I had written a YA horror novella it probably would have been very much like J A Norton's 'Deliver us from Evil', and I highly recommend it to any of your younger siblings (or indeed you if you enjoy high-adventure, horror, fantasy and action). Norton has made the novella (about 40K words) available as an eBook on Amazon, Smashwords etc. Take a look if you're looking to purchase a gift for kids over 13+

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Deliver-Us-From-Evil-ebook/dp/B006C752U8/ref=pd_rhf_gw_p_t_2

New Look Cover for DMH

2011-11-23T14:45:00.001Z

I'm chuffed with the design team at Hodder and Stoughton who have re-imagined the cover of Dead Men's Harvest for the UK paperback market (out in early January 2012). Hope you like it too.

What's Occurring?

2011-11-14T10:45:00.000Z

These are the current editions of Joe Hunter adventures on sale at this current time (although Cut and Run doesn't officially hit the bookshelves for another fortnight but you might see it cropping up). Dead Men's Harvest - the sixth Joe Hunter thriller - is the latest to be published in the UK in hardback, while Blood and Ashes (JH 5) graces the shelves in paperback. Slash and Burn and Cut and Run (JH 3 and JH 4 respectively) are the current paperback books available in the USA.

Coming soon...

Dead Men's Harvest (JH 6) will be released in the UK in January 2012
No Going Back (JH 7) hits the shelves in February 2012.
Six of the Best - a Joe Hunter eBook short story collection will be available to download from early January 2012.
My short story 'The Skin We're In' originally published in 'Even More Tonto Short Stories' will feature in The mammoth Book of Best British Crime 9 (2012) in February 2012.

A paperback edition should be released in the USA in Spring 2012 - further news on this as it comes to me.

Nowhere Man

2011-11-13T16:01:00.000Z

A group of families who rule the world. A group of women no one would suspect. A diabetic girl on the run. A detective in turmoil. DI Mike Yorke never mixes work and play- but his latest case on Holy Island has come a little too close to home. Aunt May is in a coma. Street kid Smiler is seeing doom at every turn. Childhood friend Dave is obsessively praying.
The Drugs factory has been broken up, the enslaved children rescued and the monastery returned to the monks. Mike should be moving onto the next case, but the horror of that night won't leave him alone.
He thinks he's seen the worst, he has no idea of what's still to come

Nowhere Man - the new Mike Yorke book from Sheila Quigley is on sale from this Thursday 17th November

Ding! Ding! Round One...

2011-11-13T11:52:00.001Z

I'm a big fan of the old pulp masters, primarily Robert E Howard. Howard is remembered for creating Conan the Cimmerian, King Kull, Solomon Kane, Red Sonja, and other characters you might have subsequently come across in movies and comic book adaptations. However he also wrote a whole raft of other characters not immediately recognised, but who were always larger than life heroic figures. Howard wrote prolifically, selling stories to the pulp magazines of the time, and other than heroic fantasy, was known for writing humorous westerns, treasure hunting adventures, and boxing or fight tales. It's through my appreciation of these lesser known Howard tales that I was excited to hear about this new series 'Fight Card' as it harks back to those good old days.

Paul Bishop's new novel, Felony Fists, has gone live on Amazon and Barnes and Noble, as has the second book in the series (The Cutman by series co-creator Mel Odom). The Fight Card books are being written under the unifying pseudonym Jack Tunny, but the actual authors of each book are not a secret. They have the next two books in the series, Split Decision by Eric Beetner and The Knockout by Robert Randisi ready to come out over the next two months.

The Fight Card series is inspired by the boxing/fight stories in the sports pulps from the '30s and '40s, such as Fight Stories Magazine and Knockout Magazine as well as the Sailor Steve Costigan tales from Robert E. Howard.

FELONY FISTS

Los Angeles 1954

Patrick “Felony” Flynn has been fighting all his life. Learning the “sweet science” from Father Tim the fighting priest at St. Vincent’s, the Chicago orphanage where Pat and his older brother Mickey were raised, Pat has battled his way around the world – first with the Navy and now with the Los Angeles Police Department.

Legendary LAPD chief William Parker is on a rampage to clean up both the department and the city. His elite crew of detectives known as The Hat Squad is his blunt instrument – dedicated, honest, and fearless. Promotion from patrol to detective is Pat’s goal, but he also yearns to be one of the elite.

And his fists are going to give him the chance.

Gangster Mickey Cohen runs LA’s rackets, and murderous heavyweight Solomon King is Cohen’s key to taking over the fight game. Chief Parker wants wants Patrick “Felony” Flynn to stop him – a tall order for middleweight ship’s champion with no professional record.

Leading with his chin, and with his partner, LA’s first black detective Tombstone Jones, covering his back, Patrick Flynn and his Felony Fists are about to fight for his future, the future of the department, and the future of Los Angeles.

Inspirational Stuff

2011-11-12T12:27:00.000Z

http://www.inspirationforum.co.uk/showthread.php?tid=1413

Here I'm interviewed by Fiona McVie at Inspiration Forum and talk about my writing, my influences and inspiration and also upcoming projects. If you think you know everything you need to know about me as an author, fair enough, but if you aren't tired of hearing my dulcet tones you might want to check it out. Who knows? There could very well be something new to learn ;-)

FINALLY!

2011-11-03T18:52:00.002Z

Finally after eighteen months or so since Judgment and Wrath graced the shelves of US bookshops, book three in the Joe Hunter thriller series has been published as a mass market paperback. Yes, SLASH and BURN is finally available from William Morrow and Company (Harper Collins) and is earning good reviews. The book has been released in much higher numbers than Joe's previous outings, and I'm hopeful of him winning the audience he deserves across the pond. Because some readers will be coming on to Joe Hunter for the first time, I wrote an extra introductory chapter to this edition, giving new readers a taste of Joe not seen in the UK edition (Hodder and Stoughton).

Here's the best news though. In little more than three weeks, book four, CUT and RUN, will also go on sale, hopefully adding to the buzz as both Joe Hunter and Matt Hilton's names begin to appear in heretofore unknown corners. I'm stoked about the possibilities, but also trying to remain cool, calm and collected as I also keep my fingers firmly crossed in hope that the books are a success.

It's my understanding that the paperback of Judgment and Wrath (still as yet unpublished) will be out early next spring - but I guess this is down to the relative successes of SAB and CAR. Here's hoping.

Six of the Best - Joe Hunter short stories

2011-10-21T13:53:00.000+01:00

Coming in January next year is a collection of brand new never-seen-before Joe Hunter short stories that will be released by Hodder and Stoughton as an ebook via Amazon Kindle. Before anyone asks, no I'm not getting on the bandwagon of authors who are now releasing short stories onto Kindle as a way of making an extra buck (though admittedly it's not bad recompense) but that I wanted to share these stories with Joe's fans - old and new - in a wider format.

Regular followers of my books and blogs etc know that I'm a voracious writer, and that when I'm not penning the latest Joe Hunter book I can't allow my writing fingers to settle and often come up with short stories or flash fiction. I share some of these stories here at the blog, or put them out into the world under pen names, but there are some I've held on to for some time - plus some brand new stories scripted for this collection - that deserve a wider audience. The collection will go out under the title "SIX OF THE BEST".

No, it's not a spanking book, though there might be a few sore butts after Joe's done kicking them.

The title comes from the lead story, and yes, there are six stories in total, so it's a double-header really.

Included in the collection are:

1. Six of the Best
2. Homecoming
3. Sand Dance
4. UV Ray
5. Instant Justice
6. The Other Side of the Street

plus there will be sample chapters from the upcoming Joe Hunter 7 - No Going Back - to whet your appetite.

Some may wonder about the process of writing short stories versus novels, so here's my take on it:

The long and the short of it is this:

I’m one of those authors that simply love to write and the medium isn’t as important as putting words on paper. Therefore I’ll write in any style that suits the story I’m attempting to narrate. Often it will be suited to a full novel, but as regularly a story can be told in much fewer words, and its as likely for me to come up with a Joe Hunter story as a flash piece or short story as it is a full novel. Writing a novel takes many hours of slogging away at the keyboard, but that doesn’t mean that a short piece is any less a feat of endurance. With a short the rules of structure still apply, but in this case there is less room for error, so it has to be that more concise. Words cannot be wasted yet characterisation, setting, plot and – for a Joe Hunter story – pace are still essential to the telling of the tale. In other words, penning an effective short isn’t an easy get out, in fact they can be more troublesome than writing a full novel where you have more ground to establish the finer details.

So why do it?

The reason I write short stories is because they challenge me. I’ve written more than a dozen novels so I know I’ve got what it takes to deliver a full book. The novels are my bread and butter, my “must do’s”. However, with the short stories it’s different. I tend to write these as a form of enjoyment, and have fun with them along the way. It’s not unknown for me to pen shorts in different genres that include noir, crime, thriller, horror and sci-fi, but one thing that binds them all is that there’s a hefty dose of humour running throughout. That doesn’t mean to say that they’re laugh out loud funny, but that they have a quirk or turn of phrase, and I have fun coming up with a particular emphasis on a sting or twist in the tale. Often the story begins with a single word or phrase. Take the lead story from my collection “Six of the Best”: It’s an old English term that describes a form of corporal punishment. I couldn’t resist the idea of someone receiving their just desserts, I just had to find a way of incorporating the phrase into the narrative, without it becoming obvious from the get go. My Joe Hunter books are known for their fast-paced action, and with the Hunter short stories this remains true, where the phrases that influenced them help determine the forms of action. With this collection of stories I believe I’ve achieved what I set out to do. That is to deliver the same fast-paced action Joe Hunter’s readers have come to expect, while also being true to myself and having fun along the way. Hope you enjoy them as much as I did writing them.

The collection - Six of the Best - will be available from January 5th 2012 (and for pre-order soon) and will be very competitively priced, and initially will go out in the Amazon Kindle format. Further news about other formats will be made available as I receive it.

Rogue Island

2011-10-06T18:59:00.003+01:00

“Rogue Island,” by Bruce DeSilva is one of the most honored crime novels of the year – winner of the prestigious Edgar and Macavity Awards for best debut novel and a finalist for the Anthony, Barry and Shamus awards.

The main character, Liam Mulligan is as old school as a newspaper man gets. His beat is Providence, Rhode Island, and he knows every street and alley. He knows the priests and the prostitutes, the cops and the street thugs. He knows the mobsters and the politicians – who are pretty much one and the same. Now, someone is systematically burning down the working class neighborhood he grew up in, and people he knows and loves are perishing in the flames. With the cops looking for answers in all the wrong places, it’s up to Mulligan to find the hand that strikes the match.

Rogue Island has received rave reviews, with The Dallas Morning News declaring that it “raises the bar for all books of its kind.” And it has drawn praise from a who’s who of best-selling crime novelists including Dennis Lehane, Harlan Coben and Michael Connelly. For example, Joseph Finder says: “With “Rogue Island,” Bruce DeSilva accomplishes something remarkable: he takes everything we love about the classic hardboiled detective novel and turns it into a story that’s fresh, contemporary, yet timeless.”

The book is available in trade paperback and Kindle editions here: http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_c_1_13?field-keywords=bruce+desilva&url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&x=19&y=14&sprefix=bruce+desilva
and in the UK here: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Rogue-Island-Bruce-DeSilva/dp/0765329816/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1317924054&sr=8-1

Find Her

2011-09-27T10:08:00.001+01:00

I mentioned a few weeks ago that I have become a member of the Hardboiled Collective and brought a review of Zoe Sharp's latest eBook to your attention. I will be regularly bringing you recommendations from authors writing in the hardboiled tradition and today it is the turn of FIND HER by Jochem Vandersteen.

A Trestle Press original digital short story series by Jochem Vandersteen:
“ Husband, father, vigilante... Mike Dalmas left Special Forces to become a dedicated family man, but when his daughter gets molested he had his revenge, killing the pervert who committed the crime.
Now the Bay City cops keep him out of jail if he takes care of their dirty work. The things their badge won't allow them to do but for which Dalmas has the right skill set.
Mike Dalmas is blackmailed in saving a young girl from a known sex offender. The cops want him to find her before she dies or loses the will to live. The clock is ticking... Will Dalmas be prepared what is needed to find her in time?”

This is a new action / adventure / crime series by Jochem Vandersteen, founder of the Hardboiled Collective and blogger of Sons of Spade, author of the Noah Milano series. It's his first story to come out from publisher Trestle Press.

FIND HER can be found here at amazon:http://www.amazon.com/Find-Mike-Dalmas-Story-ebook/dp/B005P9FSQC/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1316944615&sr=1-1

What a Blast!

2011-09-26T19:31:00.002+01:00

I've had a few adrenalin-charged escapades of late - some good, some bad - but all have helped me as a writer. They say that you should write what you know. Well, I can now speak with experience when it comes to firing live rounds and what it feels to be seconds from death, both of which often feature heavily in my writing.

First thing first. Recently I took a trip to Jamaica to celebrate my 25th wedding anniversary (I know I look way too young, but I did marry at the tender age of three years old) and everything was great. Hurricane Irene swept by the island during our stay but left its calling card by way of high winds, pelting rain and a lightning storm to end all storms...just as we were taking off in our airplane. Anyway, we were tearing down the runway when a lightning bolt struck the plane and blew up the left engine. Flames, sparks and smoke gouted across the runway. Doing around eighty miles an hour and losing one engine meant only one thing: the plane swung crazily to the left and was heading off the runway. Then it swung to the right and it felt like we were going to roll over, before the quick thinking pilot hit the brakes to abort take off. We were of course then thrown forward in our seats. Was there a lot of screaming and praying? No. It all happened so quickly that all that went through my mind was "Oh. This is it then?" It was only afterwards when the plane rocked to a standstill and the truth set in that a chorus of surprise set in, followed by shock and the wailing began. The firetrucks turned out to douse the engine and then we were towed back to the gate and all the passengers spilled into the disembarkation lounge. It was only then that I began thinking about how much it would be to charter a boat home. I was determined that I was never going to get back on an airplane in my life, but at the back of my head knew that I just had to. I had to get home, and then had to take another four flights to reach St Louis for Bouchercon World Mystery Convention in a little over a week's time. So, I thought WWJHD? I girded my loins and got back on the replacement plane brought in a day later.

By the time I flew to St Louis I'd put the incident down to experience and told myself that things could have been much worse. Apparently another five seconds later and we'd have been at optimum speed for take off (170 mph) and things would have ended up very differently indeed. The new engine that was required for the plane had a price tag of £15 million pounds, plus the bill for putting up more than 300 passengers in a 5* hotel all inclusive amounted to £158,000 - so maybe I had nothing to complain about.

I got my second major adrenalin buzz while in St Louis. I had the pleasure of accompanying fellow Brit thriller author Zoe Sharp and her husband Andy, and a couple other readers, to the Top Gun shooting range where I had a literal blast shooting some of the guns I feature in the Joe Hunter series. My favourite remains the SIG Sauer P226 but have to admit that shooting a MP5 submachine gun does leave you with a sense of awe. Earlier during the convention I'd had great fun at a shooting range simulator at the hotel where real guns had been attached to gas bottles to simulate 'real fire' sensation, and I really enjoyed that, however when compared to the genuine thing there was something missing. When handling a real gun, with live rounds, there's always that sense of cold fear and absolute respect lurking in your mind. This was brought home to me while shooting the MP5. I was goggled and earphoned-up, and merrily gave rip with burst after burst of ammo at the targets. Then one of the scalding hot spent brass shells dropped inside my right goggle and burned my eyelids, followed seconds later by another that dropped neatly in my left goggle and burned my eyelids on that side too. It served to remind me that BULLETS ARE DANGEROUS. But my little burns also gave me a little ego trip, thinking "Well, that's my warrior stripes earned." It was a superb experience, and one that left me adrenalized but also with a sense of great responsibility. What a blast. A hearty thank you goes to Zoe and Andy for allowing me the opportunity to satisfy my shooting jones.

Plus a second hearty thanks go out to all the Bouchercon gang, and in particular Jon Jordan and Ruth Jordan of Crimespree Magazine, Judy Bobalik and Beth and Jeff Tindall.

N.B Apparently flying is still the safest form of travel and it was a million to one chance that a similar incident should happen to me, and about ten million to one that it should ever happen again. For one hot shell to go inside my goggles was about a million to one. For a second hot shell to go in the opposite side about two million to one. Then again it's about a million to one that I will win decent money on the National Lottery so I've just gone out and bought a ticket.

Musings From the Fluffy Navel Rides Again!

2011-09-11T16:52:00.001+01:00

This past month has been a very busy one, what with two books coming out (Blood and Ashes in paperback and Dead Men's Harvest in hardback) and all the associated publicity work that I've been up to alongside them. I've barely had time to update my blog, and I apologise for only hitting you with my latest reviews and such. My writing seems not to have moved on much since last I updated you all, but I have been working hard on a few separate projects to get them ready for publication in one way or another.

Joe Hunter Eight (Current title RULES OF HONOUR) is now in the bag - discounting line edits, full edits, page proofing etc - and is now with my editor. I've also been working hard on writing six brand new Joe Hunter short stories to be released exclusively as an eBook in the early months of next year. It's called SIX OF THE BEST and I really hope you all enjoy this collection. I've also been working on a totally different project that must - for now - remain a secret. It's not Joe Hunter, but it is an action-packed, high-octane thriller, with a genre twist you might not have expected from my pen. More news on that soon...which I hope will be GOOD news.

Good friend of mine, Vallon Jackson, has also been doing some work of his own, and his GOOD news is that independent film makers "Third Act Montage" have picked up his short apocalyptical story THE DAY to adapt in to a short movie. I can't wait to see what they come up with. They did an amazing job on the Joe Hunter movie-promo I shared with you all a few months ago. The Day is now in production and I'll update you all once I know more details or have some sample shots to share.

In a few days time I'll be hopping over the Pond to the USA to attend Bouchercon in St Louis, where I'm taking part in a couple of panels, doing a couple of signings and also giving away 50 copies of Slash and Burn to some lucky recipients. SAB is being released at the end of October by William Morrow and Co as a paperback original, and because some readers might be coming across Joe Hunter for the first time, I've written a brand new chapter that was not included in the original UK edition. Less than a month later, Cut and Run will also be available in the US. Publication of the paperback edition of Judgment and Wrath has been put back in the US until sometime late Spring next year (just in case you were wondering). While I'm in the US I hope to attend a gun range to familiarise myself with the proper handling of handguns again (all for research purposes I assure you) and am also visiting a wolf sanctuary. Can't wait. Though I'm planning on an eventful journey, I hope it doesn't end the way my recent vacation to Jamaica did. While picking up velocity on the runway during take off, my plane was struck by lighting, the engine exploded, and the plane veered wildly out of control before the quick thinking pilot saved all our lives with an emergency stop before we went completely off the runway. Scary stuff, but all fodder for an active fiction author's imagination.

Once I'm back from the next trip, I'll be getting on with Joe Hunter nine. At this time I haven't a clue where the story will take me or Joe, but rest assured, you can count on Joe doing the do as per the norm.

On the publicity front, things are coming to an end for the year. I do have a trip planned to East Boldon Library in N.E England 7.30 on Thursday 29th September, so if you're in the region please pop along. Then I've got my calendar cleared until the new year to get down to some serious writing. Those of you aspiring authors longing for publication, take note: Publicity now takes up more of my time than the actual writing of the books. But it's an extremely important facet of my career (and yours), particularly now that there are less bookshops and retailers pushing your books for you, few newspapers giving up column inches to new books, and less money in the publishers' pot to spend on promotion.

On the promotion front. If you've purchased a Joe Hunter book and liked it, perhaps you can kindly go on Amazon or any other review sites and put up an honest review of the book. It seems only my detractors - or those with an axe to grind - currently post reviews, and my rankings and sales are possibly suffering for it. Now you might care less that it could hurt my pocket, but it also might mean that in the future there could be no more Joe Hunter books released, if the publishers don't think they're viable. I'm sure you don't want that?

To finish....I just wanted to mention a quick "Congratulations" to Dean Crawford, whose debut book Covenant is due for publication. It's one to keep an eye out for, trust me.

Another goodie...

2011-09-08T14:21:00.001+01:00

http://www.reviewingtheevidence.com/review.html?id=8931

Another good review for Dead Men's Harvest has come in, this time from Linda Wilson at Reviewing the Evidence.

Crimesquad.com's September Author of the Month is...

2011-09-06T20:27:00.000+01:00

...Little ol' me.

I was thrilled and honoured to hear that Chris Simms, editor at Crimeqsuad.com chose me as Crimesquad's author of the month for September. Here's a brilliant review of Dead Men's Harvest along with a special Q and A I completed for the site. I know you've possibly read other interviews by me lately, but I assure you there'll be something new here you haven't heard from me before.

http://www.crimesquad.com/author-month.asp

Blistering reviews are coming in for the latest Joe Hunter book

2011-09-06T20:23:00.000+01:00

Brill review of Dead Men's Harvest from Shotsmag. Excellent stuff. http://www.shotsmag.co.uk/book_reviews_view.aspx?BOOK_REVIEW_ID=324

Huge thanks to Adrian Magson and the Shots crew.

Talking to Myself.

2011-08-19T17:32:00.001+01:00

When you're asked to interview yourself, you can answer some of the burning questions that readers often ask but don't go into the usual interviews. Well, at SEA MINOR I do just that...answer those frequently asked questions you'd all like the answers to.

http://nigelpbird.blogspot.com/2011/08/dancing-with-myself-matt-hilton.html

Thanks to Nigel Bird for the opportunity.

The Wait is Over

2011-08-18T17:22:00.000+01:00

The Harvestman is back! And determined to wreak revenge on Joe Hunter. When Rink is ambushed by a team of highly skilled killers, Joe is pretty sure his friend is being used as bait. And the intended prey is Hunter himself. Joe has to go 'off radar' to rescue his friend. Their deadly game of cat and mouse reaches its climax on the rusty hulk of The Queen Sofia - a container ship used by human traffickers - moored off the North Carolina coast where Joe's ex-sister-in-law is being held hostage. Against overwhelming odds, and amid a ferocious storm, Joe comes face to face with his old enemy Tubal Cain.

AVailable from today from Hodder and Stoughton in hardback and eBook formats.

...and while I'm talking books.

2011-08-17T12:40:00.000+01:00

Other books, better described as straight crime that you will also enjoy are as follows....

Simon Kernick's latest bestselling paperback

A 'smashing, gritty debut' from Howard Linskey

The first in a new Mike Yorke series from Sheila Quigley

The Hardboiled Collective

2011-08-17T12:20:00.003+01:00

As a writer of hardboiled crime - yeah, that's another name for crime thrillers if you hadn't heard - I was pleased when approached by book reviewer and author JV Steen of Sons Of Spade to join a group of likeminded authors to help promote and support others in our field. I was delighted to do so and have joined the Hardboiled Collective. Over the coming months I will be bringing you news of each author and their current book but for a quick overview you might want to take a quick look at this Listmania entry over at Amazon:

Basically, if you like Joe Hunter, or you like Jack Reacher, then you're more than likely going to like the writing of these fine individuals.

First up is news about a brand new e-antholgy of short stories from fellow Brit - and Cumbrian - Zoe Sharp whose Charlie Fox collection FOX FIVE has just come available on Kindle.

FOX FIVE is a collection of stories by the highly acclaimed crime thriller writer, Zoë Sharp. All feature her ex-Special Forces soldier turned self-defence expert and bodyguard, Charlotte ‘Charlie’ Fox.

In A Bridge Too Far, we meet Charlie before she’s become a professional in the world of close protection. When she agrees to hang out with the local Dangerous Sports Club, she has no idea it will soon live up to its name.

Postcards From Another Country has Charlie guarding the ultra-rich Dempsey family against attempted assassination – no matter where the danger lies.

A finalist for the CWA Short Story Dagger, Served Cold puts another tough woman centre stage – the mysterious Layla, with betrayal in her past and murder in her heart.

Off Duty finds Charlie taking time away from close protection after injury. She still finds trouble, even in an out-of-season health spa in the Catskill Mountains.

And finally, Truth And Lies puts all Charlie’s skills and ingenuity to the test as she has to single-handedly extract a news team from a rapidly escalating war zone.

Also included: Excerpt from KILLER INSTINCT: Charlie Fox book one, Meet Charlie Fox, Meet Zoë Sharp, info on the other books in the Charlie Fox series.

Praise for Zoë Sharp and Charlie Fox:

‘Ill-tempered, aggressive and borderline psychotic, Fox is also compassionate, introspective and highly principled: arguably one of the most enigmatic − and coolest − heroines in contemporary genre fiction.’ Paul Goat Allen, Chicago Tribune

'If you don't like Zoë Sharp there's something wrong with you. Go and live in a cave and get the hell out of my gene pool! There are few writers who go right to the top of my TBR pile − Zoë Sharp is one of them.' Stuart MacBride

'Anyone with a brain wants Charlie Fox for the girl next door. Funny, compassionate, and with moves that can − and do − kill, Charlie is the indelible creation of the remarkable Zoë Sharp.’ Gayle Lynds

P.S. I left Zoe Sharp's book off my previous entry in anticipation of doing this one. Charlie Fox could easily sit alongside any of the tough guys mentioned in my 'If you like Joe Hunter piece...' below...

If you like Joe Hunter then you'll like...

2011-08-13T12:10:00.002+01:00

The sixth Joe Hunter thriller from Matt Hilton

The second Harry Tate spy thriller from Adrian Magson

The second Ryan Lock thriller from Sean Black

The second Paul Dark spy thriller from Jeremy Duns (aka Free Country)

The first in a new spy thriller series featuring Will Cochran from Matthew Dunn

The first 'Victor' spy thriller from Tom Wood

The second to latest Dan Shepherd thriller from Stephen Leather

My Inspiration

2011-08-10T13:01:00.000+01:00

OK, there are many of you who will read the heading above and think that I'm going to start naming names of all the authors who have inspired me to date. I think I've already done that on a number of occasions and you're probably sick of hearing me going on about the same people. No, all I'm going to do here is mention one name in particular. That name is ADRIAN MAGSON.

Now I'll probably embarrass Adrian in saying so - he's such a humble guy - but of all the author's I've read and admired, Adrian probably gave me more of an inspirational boost than any. Now it could be quite simply that Adrian was the first 'real' author I ever corresponded with, but his words of encouragement gave me the proverbial kick up the butt that my writing aspirations required way back when I was still aspiring to be published. Adrian might not even remember our short email conversation, back when I bit the bullet to congratulate him on hearing of his publishing deal with Creme De La Crime for the first in his Gavin and Palmer series. On Adrian's urging I submitted my latest novel to his publisher - and it was rejected. But, hey. Not such a bad thing. Because I also gained some great feedback and advice from both CDLC and Adrian. As a result of that I continued writing. Believe it or not, but prior to that I was on the cusp of giving up on my writing dream. The advice was just the push I required, and glad I am that I spoke with Adrian that time.

Since then I've followed Adrian's writing, through the Gavin and Palmer books, and more recently through Red Station, and Tracers (Harry Tate series), and Death on The Marais, and Death on the Rive Nord (tbr) (Lucas Rocco series). But also, I have also avidly followed Adrian's 'beginners' column in WRITING MAGAZINE. I was chuffed to hear from Adrian recently that he had plans to pull all his columns together in one volume, and here it is. WRITE ON! The Writer's handbook.

For any aspiring author there's good advice on writing, and there's great advice, and from Adrian you only get the latter. This book is a superb addition to any author's shelves - beginner or advanced - and - written in Adrian's engaging, anecdotal and witty style - is actually an enjoyable read (unlike many text books). An interviewer asked me recently which book on writing I'd recommend, and without pause I said Stephen King's ON WRITING. I wish I'd had Adrian's book on hand at the time because my answer would assuredly be different. I'd have said Adrian Magson's WRITE ON and Stephen King's On WRITING. Yeah, it really is that good in my opinion.

You can grab yourself a copy here:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Write-Writers-Help-Adrian-Magson/dp/1908006773/ref=sr_1_13?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1312976486&sr=1-13

Dead Men's Harvest - Joe Hunter 6

2011-08-08T14:37:00.001+01:00

Dead Men's Harvest - Joe Hunter 6 - is only a little over a week from hard back publication on 18th August 2011 by Hodder and Stoughton. I will be officially launching the book on Saturday 20th August at Waterstone's Carlisle branch, Scotch Street, Carlisle, Cumbria, UK at 11:00 am if anyone can make it along (I'll be in store for five hours so plenty time). This is your opportunity to have your books personalised.

Joe Hunter VS Prisoner 1854
The Harvestman is back, and he's got a bone to pick...

Me Interviewed!

2011-08-06T12:09:00.000+01:00

http://wp.me/p18Ztn-uZ

Morgen Bailey interviewed me for her blog on writing and teased from me some little known facts. Why not skip on over and see what we've got to say. Morgen blogs and interviews different authors twice a day and her site is a great asset for any writer - aspiring or otherwise.

On the Go...

2011-07-29T18:20:00.002+01:00

I've had a crazy busy time of late on the publicity trail for the paperback of Blood and Ashes, and the upcoming sixth Joe Hunter thriller, Dead Men's Harvest, and have had the pleasure of seeing/meeting/chatting with old and new friends in many corners of the UK and also in New York while at Thrillerfest at the beginning of July. I just wanted to give a quick hello shout out to everyone that I've met along the way and to say thanks for the ongoing support.

So...to everyone at Whitburn library, Middlesbrough Central Library, Carlisle Waterstone's, Kendal Library, Outerwest Library (Newcastle), Nottingham library, Goldsboro Books, Carlisle Library, Thrillerfest (New York), Theakston Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival (Harrogate), York, Stockton-on-Tees, and all places in between...thank you.

Oh, and if you can get along to Waterstone's Emerson Chambers, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, tomorrow, Saturday 3oth July between 11:30 and 16:OO...hello and thank you in advance.

Out Now! Blood and Ashes in Paperback

2011-07-21T09:37:00.000+01:00

Today is the official release date for Blood and Ashes - the fifth Joe Hunter thriller - in the UK. If you've been hanging on to grab a copy, now's your chance. It's available through all the usual outlets.

Off The Rails

2011-07-15T19:19:00.001+01:00

Watch out for these amazing posters appearing up and down the UK rail network over the next week or two. If anyone sees one and has a camera handy. Please snap it, maybe with you in the picture and send it to me and I'll show the pictures here at Matt Hilton Thrills.

Blood and Ashes is published in paperback by Hodder and Stoughton on 21st July in the UK

On The Mean Streets

2011-07-14T20:52:00.000+01:00

http://www.writersworkshop.co.uk/crimefiction/2011/07/matt-hilton-interview-by-barb-ettridge/

I recently had the pleasure of talking to Barb Ettridge at MEAN STREETS a fresh new crime fiction site, where I spoke about my writing style, my previous work and the influences of martial arts on my writing. Why not pop over and take a look? Some of the questions aren't the type you'd normally expect.

The Full Moon is about to grow Brighter

2011-07-12T13:23:00.000+01:00

When a full moon fills the night sky, P I Roman Dalton becomes a werewolf and prowls the dark streets of the city battling creatures of evil. Paul D Brazill's Drunk On The Moon is an intense and hard-boiled noir / horror series, brought to you by some of the finest dark fiction writers around, including Vincent Zandri, Julia Madeleine, Benjamin Sobieck, Richard Godwin, Katherine Tomlinson, Frank Duffy, B R Stateham, Jason Michel, John Donald Carlucci and Cormac Brown....and not to mention PDB himself.

For those of you unfamiliar with PDB's writing...where have you been?

Spinetingler Award nominee Paul D. Brazill was born in England and lives in Poland.His stuff has appeared in loads of classy print and electronic magazines and anthologies, including the 2011 Mammoth Book Of Best British Crime. His short story collection '13 Shots Of Noir' will be published in 2011. He writes a column for Pulp Metal Magazine and contributes to Mean Streets Magazine and has won a legion of readers at his blog 'You Would Say That, Wouldn't You?'.

Paul is the kind of noir/crime fiction/hard boiled/mystery/horror/humour writer who makes others jealous of his inimitable style (yep, and that includes me). Some have even dubbed him the 'Noir Bukowski'. Add to that he's also a great guy who selflessly promotes and supports other authors' work. Drunk on the Moon is Paul's brainchild - a series of ebooks from Trestle Press - that follows his main character Roman Dalton - Ex-Detective, Current Werewolf - through the Sin City-ish landscape of 'The City', and it is a great, rollicking fun read, full to the brim of Paul's usual gritty noir, northern humour and fiendish horror. But PDB being PDB, he didn't want to keep all the fun to himself. he opened the floodgates to other top authors in the field, and future editions of the ongoing series will be penned by those illustrious names above. More will likely join the ranks. I intend being along for the ride (reading the editions as they come out at the very least).

You can get the first part of the series here at Amazon UK for only £0.86. or at Amazon USA for only $1.38.

"A crackling fun read that puts werewolves in a Sin City/hardboiled world" --Dave Zeltserman

"A great, rollicking fun read, full to the brim of Paul's usual gritty noir, northern humour and fiendish horror." - Matt Hilton

Me and technology doesn't mix...

2011-07-03T20:05:00.000+01:00

So I sold out...

I went and got myself one of those Kindle e-reader thingamajigs, despite my inner protestations. I've held out for a long time (hell, I'm the type who only recently changed from a VHS recorder to SKY+, and still play CDs as opposed to MP3s) in the hope that people would see sense and go back to buying 'real' books.

But I got to thinking. I'm currently doing re-reads of some of my own books, before forging ahead with edits, and with a few long flights ahead of me shortly, thought it would be much easier with them on a Kindle device than carting 600 + pages of one book, and 300 + pages of another, in my hand luggage.

Oh, yes, it's easy to download your own documents. All you do is plug in teh USB lead provided and then drop your files into the Kindle icon. So said the salesman.

Yeah, right.

So how come it didn't work for me? OK, they appeared in the doc folder in the Kindle icon on my computer screen, but they didn't appear on my Kindle.

A google search ensued.

Try compressing the file to a zip. Yep, Zip's the word, because although the title then appeared on my Kindle, the damn thing wouldn't open. Is it me or what?

Now then, the story continues.

Oh, you can email them to Amazon to convert and then they'll send them to your Kindle. Woohoo!

Oops, you need wireless technology to do that.

D'oh! I have my internet hardwired to the router cause I don't get any damn wireless coverage from my network (did I mention I live out in the sticks?)

Then you'll have to up-grade and pay and extra £41 pounds to get 3G technology.

OK, I can do that. Simple swap then and I'll pay the extra?

Yes, but we close in 45 minutes.

78 mile round trip to my supplier (for the second time today).

Oh, didn't I say you needed wireless for this model? says the salesman.

No. You told me I could USB it to my hard-wired router.

OH! Sorry. You need wireless.

So give me the 3G one.

Can you wait? I can't do a refund because our computers and tills are down.

(Back to good old paper and pens, and we get things sorted).

By the way, I'm not sure if you'll get 3G coverage out your way. You might still have to drive to somewhere with more coverage to download stuff. (The salesman is now taking a couple surreptitious steps away and placing a counter between us).

I just scowl.

Back home, I try again.

The email works. Yeehaa! But I can't have a free download, I have to pay, because I'm not using Amazon's free service and the 3G is more expensive.

Why you little.....

So...is it me or what?

Can't see me ever loving these things.

But watch this space.

New Direction, New Covers, New Chapter

2011-06-23T18:44:00.000+01:00

On sale in the USA 29th Nov 2011

I'm excited to announce that Joe Hunter has been given a bold new look from my US publishers (Harper Collins) and because i now know that advanced reader's editions of the books are now going out I am happy to share the new look covers for the books. I'm over the moon with them and think the design team have did a splendid job. More excitingly, both books come out almost back to back with Slash and Burn coming in October, while Cut and Run follows only a short month later. Add to this that Slash and Burn includes a brand new chapter never read before, and there's something for Joe's fans to look forward to. Hope you are as happy as I am?

On sale in the USA 25th Oct 2011

The Harvestman is Back!

2011-06-19T13:09:00.000+01:00

On sale 18th August 2011

In a little over eight weeks Joe Hunter's sixth adrenalin-fuelled outing will hit the shelves in the UK and Commonwealth.

For those who haven't yet figured it out, The Harvestman is back....because you asked for it. The book is a loose sequel to Dead Men's Dust, though it does happen in the current story arch and timescale (following the events described in Blood and Ashes).

Hope you are looking forward to this one? I had a blast writing it.

Mammoth Book of Best British Crime Vol 9

2011-06-14T14:46:00.001+01:00

I'm a little slow in announcing this here, but it has been a busy old time of late, but I'm thrilled to say that a short story of mine called THE SKIN WE'RE IN first published last year in 'Even More Tonto Short Stories' from Tonto Books, has been picked up by editor extraordinaire Maxim Jakubowski for inclusion in the 2012 (spring) edition of his on-going must-have crime anthology series The Mammoth Book of Best British Crime (Volume 9).

It's a real honour to be included alongside some of the biggest name in Brit crime writing, as well as some close friends and fellow scribes such as Adrian Magson, Paul D Brazill, Col Bury, Nick Quantrill and other fine people. I have it on good authority that there will be 38 stories featured from across the gamut of crime writing styles, and think it's going to be a real biggee.

Survey of British Murder (fiction)

2011-06-14T09:39:00.000+01:00

http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/jun/13/survey-british-murder

It was nice to get a mention in the Guardian newspaper as part of the CWA's survey on murders in crime writers' books. Apparently one author killed off 150 victims in his last book. I wonder who that could be? I'm pretty sure I only managed 149.

How's this for an odd occurrence?

2011-06-08T17:03:00.001+01:00

Today my writing finger was blessed!

So You Want My Advice, Huh?

2011-06-08T16:56:00.000+01:00

I often get asked by aspiring authors for advice on getting published. I've recently penned this letter and thought it might be helpful to others:
There's a process for most fiction authors and it generally runs the same course. Some people are lucky in that they get a contract on an idea and a few chapters, but it's not usually the norm. It's best to get your full book written before you even start to look for an agent or publisher, as being 'untested' they will want to check that you have the stamina to write a full novel and can carry your idea through to the end. A book these days usually runs anywhere from 80,000 to 130,000 words, and you maybe want to get the book to those kinds of proportions before you begin seeking representation or publishing.
There's no right or wrong way to write. Some meticulously plan and plot the book out before writing it, others, like me, write from the seat of the pants. I just have an idea and go with it and see where I'm going to end up. BTW, my books tend to run at about 90,000 words (for comparison).
When your book is ready to start sending out, my advice is to seek representation from an agent. Now this is the difficult bit. Agents act as middle men and clearing houses for publishers these days, and to be taken on by an agent is a massive step, almost as difficult as getting a contracted deal from a publisher. Very few publishers accept submissions directly, and use the agent to send them only the best. When your book is written, go back over it with a fine tooth-comb and edit it and sort out any typos or inconsistencies. Get someone else that you trust to also read it, but also someone who will tell you the truth if you have any weaknesses or hanging plot lines (your family and best friends tend to tell you only good things which doesn't really help).
When that is done and you've made it the best you can, start checking out agents who might be interested in your style of book. The bible for this is the Writers' and Artists' Yearbook which lists all the reputable agencies and contact details. Also check on the internet and look at authors you admire and find out who their agent is. It is always better to have a name to send your book to rather than just sending it to the agency itself, as it shows you've taken time to do your research.
When you have an idea of who might be interested check their submission guidelines (often they're on their websites or in the fore mentioned WAA yearbook). The industry standard tends to be that you must mail them an intro pack. This comes with an introductory letter, in which you briefly describe your book, and any plans you have for follow ups (they're looking for writers who have more than one book in them) as well as the approximate word count, followed by a brief bio of yourself. Say for example that you're an ex soldier. Mention that in your intro letter as it is your USP (unique selling point) particularly if your book involves soldiers/military etc as it shows you have the know how. Also mention other writers you think your book may be targeted towards to attract some of their readers. e.g. "I believe my book is in a similar style to that of Lee Child and Matt Hilton etc" as it then helps them think of their target audience and marketing strategies very early on. Also you will need to include a short synopsis of your book - usually a one side A4 sheet - with all the salient points and characters from your book included. Lastly you send the first 3 chapters or approximately 30,000 words of the beginning of your book. Again there's a standard in that it must be on A4 paper, double spaced with a clear margin, and on only one side of the paper (black ink). This is to allow editing and notes as early on as this. If you don't stick to that format they'll probably just bin your submission without looking at it. It's always a good idea to include your contact details in your intro letter, but also put them on the first page of your book incase the letter and book get separated. Also include a SAE for return of your pack if they don't want it (courtesy is everything).
Usually you can expect to wait a few weeks before you hear anything. Don't be disheartened if you are rejected, just move on to the next agent on your list. Rejection is par for the course, but who knows, you might strike it lucky early on. If there's any feedback take it on board. If an agent requests to see your full book you've achieved a massive first step. Be prepared to work hard. They'll probably ask for changes - but they're the experts and know what the publishers want so go with it. If you become precious about your book they might find you awkward to work with and not take you on. There's usually a test period of a month or two before they will agree to represent you and in this time they can still turn you down.

A few pointers:
Avoid anyone who asks you for money. Some agents do charge a reading fee, but most don't. They make their money (commission at about 10 -15 percent) when they sell your book. Anyone raving about your book who then asks for money are cowboys. Sadly there's a lot of them out there. Don't be caught out by flashy websites and graphics, and big promises. If in doubt, Google them and see what others are saying about them. Usually frauds are exposed this way, and yet still some aspiring/desperate authors end up handing over piles of money to them with no book deal at the end of it.
Avoid vanity publishers. These are the companies who rave about your book (without an agent) and say they'll print it for a fee - usually £thousands - and all you get is a few poorly printed books with no marketing or anything. You often see them advertising in the backs of newspapers or popping up on the website with such claims as 'We want your book' or 'We'll print Your book' and such like. Criminals, that's what they are.
Ebooks or print on demand is a new way of publishing yourself, but it's always best to go the traditional route first.
I think that's all for now. Good luck and I look forward to seeing your book on the stands.
Matt Hilton

Dodgy Dealings

2011-06-03T18:44:00.000+01:00

http://deancrawfordbooks.blogspot.com/2011/06/dodgy-literary-agents.html

Wise words from thriller author Dean Crawford on the subject of dodgy literary agents. Well worth a look if you are an aspiring author currently seeking representation.

An Author's Lot

2011-05-14T19:52:00.000+01:00

So what's happening in my world?

The short answer is loads.

But I guess you want the long answer.

Well, I'm about to kick off on the publicity trail and anyone who has been following this blog knows that there's actually more to an author's life than just sitting at a computer writing the latest draft. It's one thing writing the book, getting it through the editing process to a satisfactory position where the editor is happy with it, but then you must do your damnedest to get the word out to potential readers.

So here, briefly, is what is on the cards in the next few months.

Radio interview with Siren FM. Check. It's in the bag and should be airing some time this coming week around the Lincoln area, as well as a podcast from South-side Broadcasting. I will post a link when it comes available.

Next week from 19th - 22nd may I'll be at bristol for Crimefest. This year I'm on a panel called 'The Grass is Greener': USA Vs UK, and for the first time will be moderating a panel called Without reservations: No Holds Barred. I'm thoroughly looking forward to Crimefest, which is rapidly becoming the best crime fiction convention in the UK.

After a very short break - where to be honest I'll be working on my next draft so it's no break at all - I'm off to Whitburn Library, South Tyneside on Friday 10th June. If anyone's in the area please come along and support your local library.

On 13th June I'm then attending the Middlesbrough Literary festival alongside Stephen Booth and Graham pears, and forensic specialists from the nearby university for a night of crime fact and fiction.

On Wednesday 15th June I'm joining Zoe Sharpe, Diane Janes and other authors at Kendal Library, Cumbria for a night of crime.

Rounding off that week, I'll be at Nottingham Crime readers day at Nottingham Library on saturday 18th June.

A few days later, Tuesday 21st June, its off to London for the inaugural Crime in the Court: Goldsboro Books's new crime spectacular in Cecil Court, London.

Couple weeks writing are then on the cards, but then it's off to New York for Thrillerfest 7th - 10th July, where I'll be taking part on a panel talking about balancing real life and fiction.

Then it's the Theakstone Old Peculiar Crime Writing Festival at Harrogate, Yorkshire from Thursday 21st- Sunday 24th July.

But that's not all that's happening that week. Blood and Ashes is released on 21st July, and running alongside it will be a week long campaign on Talk radio where I'll also be taking part in live interviews. With an audience of over 2.5 million, I'm looking forward to this one.

All that done and dusted, I then start looking forward to the launch of the next book - Dead Men's Harvest - in mid-August, at the same time as publicising the impending release of both Slash and Burn and Cut and Run in the USA, this coming winter. For this I will be heading off to Bouchercon, St Louis, Missouri between 14th and 18th August.

Who said an author only sits at a computer writing? This is just the tip of the iceberg and doesn't take into consideration all the social networking, blogging, guest blogging etc that must be undertaken.

At the same time I'll be putting the finishing touches to JH 8, Starting JH 9, line editing and proofing JH 7, and Line editing and Proofing JH 4 for the US market. Plus other little projects I've got on the boil.

Mind you, it's still the best job in the world and I wouldn't change it one bit.

Speaking of Vallon Jackson...

2011-05-07T22:43:00.002+01:00

The zombie anthology containing Vallon Jackson's story APOCALYPSE NOO entitled Holiday of the Dead is now available for pre-order at Amazon and will be out 18th May 2011. With over 500 pages, 38 stories from some of the top names in horror fiction it's getting some fabulous reviews. The book is also available on Kindle and Smashwords.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Holiday-of-the-Dead/dp/1907954058/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1304802205&sr=1-2

Published by Wild Wolf Publishers

The Weird Vault of Vallon Jackson

2011-05-07T22:00:00.000+01:00

Some of you here know I have an alter-ego called Vallon Jackson, and that when whim takes him he will shanghai my typing fingers and pen something from his crazy-weird imagination. Well, I've kind of exorcised him and banished him to his own vault where you can read all of his horror, ghost, crime, noir and weird stories. There's some over there that you have not read yet. Why not pay him a visit here: The Weird Vault of Vallon Jackson

New Joe Hunter Site

2011-05-02T20:03:00.000+01:00

http://joehunterbooks.wordpress.com/

Folks, I have taken the decision to close down my sister blog Joe Hunter's Fixers as it was not being used as I would have wished. But all is not lost, it has been reborn Phoenix-like as a new Wordpress site aptly named JOE HUNTER BOOKS.

I will be transferring some of the better posts from the defunct Fixers site across there, and adding lots of new Joe Hunter stuff.

This is to separate Joe-centric news from all the general writing and rigmarole that goes on here. I hope you'll visit and make it a regular stopping off point along during your browsing.

See all you Fixers across there, OK?

No Ordinary Joe the Movie

2011-04-30T23:42:00.002+01:00

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XLOnc-OGTCs

I've been teasing with some production shots from a mini-movie book trailer produced by those wonderful people at Third Act Montage and am proud to now share it with you. Click the link for your first look and let me know what you think in the comments.

Enjoy!

Blood and Ashes down under.

2011-04-27T11:07:00.001+01:00

Here's a review of Blood and Ashes from the 'Sydney Morning Herald' I was made aware of this morning that I'm particularly proud of and would like to share with my readers. I'm assuming most of you DO NOT dislike violence in your action thrillers.

Your first look at Dead Men's Harvest

2011-04-25T15:33:00.001+01:00

The Harvestman is back! And determined to wreak revenge on Joe Hunter.
When Rink is ambushed by a team of highly skilled killers, Joe is pretty sure his friend is being used as bait. And the intended prey is Hunter himself. Joe has to go 'off radar' to rescue his friend.
Their deadly game of cat and mouse reaches its climax on the rusty hulk of The Queen Sofia, a slave ship moored off the North Carolina coast where Joe's ex-sister-in-law is being held hostage.
Against overwhelming odds, and amid a ferocious storm, Joe comes face to face with his old enemy Tubal Cain.

Published 18th August 2011 by Hodder and Stoughton and available for pre-order now at: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Dead-Mens-Harvest-Matt-Hilton/dp/1444712632/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1291725685&sr=1-2

It's Alive!

2011-04-23T15:43:00.000+01:00

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Holiday-of-the-Dead/dp/B004XJ7HZK/ref=sr_1_5?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1303470073&sr=1-5

For those of you interested, and who have one of those kindle-reader type thingamajigs, you might like to know that you can now purchase the Kindle edition of the zombie anthology Holiday of the Dead via Amazon.co.uk and Amazon.com.

Alternatively you can order a copy direct from the publisher http://www.wildwolfpublishing.com

'Big Bopper' or 'Matt the Knife'?

2011-04-10T20:33:00.001+01:00

http://at-the-bijou.blogspot.com/2011/04/rat-pack-revue-you-know-what-i-like.html

Over at the fabulous Absolutely*Kate's amazing site AT THE BIJOU her Rat Pack Review is in full swing and I couldn't resist. Have you ever guessed what author intrusion I'm guilty of: if not take a peek over and find out. You might be surprised...you definitely won't let me near a karaoke mic again.

H is for Hilton Honoured

2011-04-09T10:51:00.001+01:00

Over at author and blogger Sue Harding's I REFUSE TO GO QUIETLY she has been conducting an alphabet of writing and I am honoured to have been chosen to represent the letter H. Thank you, Sue, I'm well-chuffed.

You can read what Sue says here: http://irefusetogoquietly.blogspot.com/2011/04/h-is-for-hilton.html

The sun is shining...bring out yer dead.

2011-04-09T10:43:00.001+01:00

The sun is shining outside as I write this, so it's probably a good time to bring your notice to the holiday-themed zombie anthology I'm part of under my darkside's pen name of Vallon Jackson. The Book is called HOLIDAY OF THE DEAD and comes from Wild Wolf Publishers. It will be on sale in shops and online from mid-May, but if you'd like to pre-order a copy direct from the publisher you can do so here:
http://wildwolfpublishing.com/ZombieAnthology.aspx

The zombie apocalypse can really put a downer on your holiday…

38 holiday-themed zombie stories from new and established authors including Night of the Living Dead co-writer, John Russo, Tony Burgess, Shaun Jeffrey, Rod Glenn, Iain McKinnon, Matt Hilton, David Dunwoody, Wayne Simmons,Bowie V Ibarra, Joe McKinney, Remy Porter, A P Fuchs, Thomas Emson and Eric S Brown.

Over 500 pages crammed full of flesh-eating horror and dark humour from the cream of UK, US and Canadian talent. Theme parks, serial killers, seaside resorts, Christmas, Thanksgiving and fishing trips. You’ll scream, you’ll laugh and you might even shed a tear…

Holiday zombie horror has never been so entertaining.

Dark Inside By Shaun Jeffrey

Squawk By Remy Porter

Jennifer By Iain McKinnon

Cherry By Tony Wright

A Side of Cranberry Sauce By Clyde Wolfe

Dig By Lee Kelly

Apocalypse Noo By Vallon Jackson

Thanksgiving Feast By A.M. Boyle

Oatmeal Cookies By Eric Dimbleby

In The End By R. M. Cochran

Naked Fear By Tonia Brown

Undead Side of the Moon By Lyle Perez-Tinics

A Change is as Good as a Rest By Tom Johnstone

Storm Coming Down By Iain S Paton

Rockets’ Red Glare By Bowie V Ibarra

Zombie World Death Perception By Calvin A. L. Miller II

School’s Out By Derek Gunn

Guises By S. Michael Nash

Ladykiller By Ricki Thomas

Daddy Dearest By Dave Jeffery

Sleep Comes Does Never By A. P. Fuchs

Roman Holiday By David Dunwoody

Larry and Hank’s Big Dead Fishing Adventure By Eric S Brown

Home Is The Sailor, Home From The Sea By William Meikle

Burj By Nigel Hall

A Dark Moon Honeymoon By Rob Smith

The Last Trip Together By John McCuaig

The Day The Music Died By Joe McKinney

Wabigoon By James Cheetham

The Four Of July By Shawn M Riddle

Where Moth and Rust Destroy By Thomas Emson

The Zombie Whisperer By Bob Lock

The Day I Discovered The Truth About The Man In The Red Suit By R. Phillip Roberts

December In Florida By Asher Wismer

One Dead Whore By Wayne Simmons

Seahouses Slaughterhouse By Rod Glenn

Bonus Material

A special short story by Night of the Living Dead co-writer, John Russo ‘The Walk-In’
An exclusive excerpt from the screenplay for the forthcoming film sequel to Pontypool written by Tony Burgess

USA covers

2011-04-08T17:50:00.000+01:00

Coming December 2011

Coming November 2011

These are mock ups for the paperback editions of Slash and Burn (JH3) and Cut and Run (JH4) due for mass market paperback release in the USA this coming November and December. The type will be in flashy embossed foil, but this gives you some idea of what to look out for on the bookshop shelves. I like these covers: very evocative looking, and I hope you do to.

Apocalypse Noo - the back story.

2011-04-06T16:35:00.000+01:00

Regular visitors to my blog will already know that apart from the Joe Hunter books, I occasionally enjoy dipping into the medium of the short story. Usually when doing so, I tend to also dip into genres not necessarily associated with a thriller author. You can read samples of my out put via the sidebar where there are links to some of the shorts I've posted on the web. They range from gritty crime, to humorous crime, to horror, to ghost or weird tales. Some are even thrillers.

One of the worst kept secrets associated with me is that I occasionally write under the pseudonym of Vallon Jackson. My reason for doing that is to keep my other writing distinct from my Joe Hunter books so that there is no reader confusion. Well...in my guise of Vallon Jackson I was approached by an old friend of mine - under his pseudonym of Remy Porter - to submit a short story to an anthology. The catch was the story was to be written to a specific brief, that of a zombie story set against the backdrop of a holiday destination or theme. I'm not known for writing about the Risen Dead, but had recently read another anthology (The New Dead aka Zombie) on just such a subject and found it to be good fun. Coupled with that I'd just watched a few movies - Carriers, The Crazies, The Andromeda Strain - dealing with apocalyptical plagues, as well as the TV series The Walking Dead, and thought: "Why the hell not?"

My story might be different than others in the upcoming anthology, with a different feel - I'm not that well read in the genre (although Dead Beat by Remy Porter did make its way in to my hands last year and proved to be a great read) - but I hope you will enjoy it. It's called APOCALYPSE NOO.

The anthology is huge, with around 600 pages and 38 short stories from new and established authors and is set to light a huge flame under horror readers this May. It will be available from all the usual outlets or direct from the publisher's website at http://wildwolfpublishing.com

Some people have been wondering about my pen name, and why it came about. Here's a clue: my parents are Val and Jack, and I'm their son. Easy when you think about it.

Joe given voice

2011-04-06T13:56:00.000+01:00

This is a podcast from South Side Broadcasting where Slash and Burn was given the treatment as Book of the Month (March 2011). Some highly energetic readings from the book for your enjoyment, as well as expert reviews at the end. (there's a couple minutes of advertisements you can zip over in the middle). Enjoy!

http://southsidebroadcasting.podbean.com/2011/04/05/slash-and-burn-march-2011-book-of-the-month/

On the bookshelves

2011-03-29T11:35:00.000+01:00

The first in Sheila Quigley's new series

The first Harry Tate thriller

A quick head's up to let my readers know about two new editions on the bookshop shelves. I've mentioned both these books before from two of my writing friends, but thought it pertinent to remind you that both books are now out in paperback.

Where to meet authors - you might be surprised.

2011-03-23T09:59:00.001Z

On Thursday 17th March - coincidentally St Patrick's Day - I was in London to attend my publisher's annual sales conference bash, which was at the remarkable setting of Cafe de Paris in Leicester Square. It was a great night, with everyone dressed in amazing fantasy costumes for a masque ball, complete with a devil and angel on hand to usher the speakers on and off stage. I was in great company - not only from my friends and supporters from Hodder but with some great authors, including John Connolly, Gervase Phinn, Laini Taylor, Robyn Young, Ciara Geraghty, plus guest celebrity, Kirstie Allsopp.

Coming out of the venue, Leicester Square was in full party spirits, with droves of revellers dressed for the occasion in green hats and shamrocks, and all that business. Trying to flag a taxi was impossible, so I set off shanks pony style and hoofed it back to my hotel a couple miles away.

An early rise the following morning found me on a three and a half hour train journey back to Carlisle, Cumbria, followed by half and hour in the car to my house to pick up my wife, for a real quick turn around for a trip I'd booked up to my favourite getaway on the remote banks of Loch Tay in Scotland. So back in the car I went to take my dog to the kennels, then on the road for another four or five hours as I wended my way up north (with a few sight-seeing stops en route) to the log cabin I'd rented for a few days.

Talk about opposites.

Glitzy London one day, a remote hillside the next.

Here's the strange thing, though. I expected to meet authors while in London, but not on the banks of Loch Tay. As it was, on the Monday morning when preparing to head home, I bumped into writing buddy David Barber (Flash Fiction Offensive and David Barber's Fiction World) who just happened to be passing on his way to his day job. We had a good chinwag - which never is long enough to catch up on everything - before a bacon sandwich and a coffee (not to mention an insistent waitress who called me into the cafe) beckoned. It was great to see David, and in such an unlikely setting. What were the chances, eh?

Val McDermid, THE famous crime writer, told me that she was once 14,000 feet up in the Rockies only to be hailed by a passing climber...who she knew quite well. Odd, isn't it?

More Coming Soon Stuff.

2011-03-15T14:46:00.000Z

Here are a couple more images taken from the project I'm working on with Third Act Montage. Hope you are all enjoying the sneaky peek. All will be revealed soon.

The calloused fingertip burns bright.

2011-03-08T20:24:00.001Z

I've been a little quiet on the blog front lately, but rest assured it isn't that I haven't got anything to say, only that the words are going down fast and furious at another location. No, I haven't absconded to another site or anything, I'm talking about my latest Joe Hunter thriller. I'm currently working hard to bring you all the 8th book in the series, and when I get the writing bit between my teeth I'm at full gallop. Not that this one is an easy book to write - it's anything but.

With this one I'm trying a little experiment and going for a mystery as well as the hard actioner that Joe's readers have come to expect. Feedback from BLOOD AND ASHES has been very good indeed, but some have had mixed feelings that I concentrated on Joe's character this time round. Some felt that it made the book deeper and much better, while others found that the characterisation slowed the pace a tad. I'm infinitely aware that introspection can place stumbling blocks in the way of hard action, and the process of solving a mystery can also have the same detrimental result. I'm trying therefore to produce a book that has a mystery to solve but without losing any of the balls to the wall pace that the previous Joe Hunter books have all had. I'm thinking hard, writing hard, and probably doing about twice as much back tracking through the text as I normally do. But I'm enjoying the process (though it's taking more time and energy this time, hence the lack of posts here). I hope that you all enjoy the end result when I finally get it done.

Coming soon...again...

2011-03-01T11:07:00.002Z

Copyrighted image THIRDACTMONTAGE

Coming soon...

Lesson Learned (a writing tip)

2011-02-28T12:00:00.000Z

I don't consider myself a political beast, in fact I'm one of those that has mixed emotions about most political agendas (sometimes known as apathy). One thing I'm not, and never have been is right wing - despite what people might think from Joe's sometimes uncompromising attitude. Like Joe though, I hate injustice, I hate bullies, and I hate racism. I think this does come out in my writing.

When leakage occurs it is inevitable that you will make a statement of sorts - deliberately or not.

When writing Blood and Ashes, I wanted the villains - a group of Neo-Nazi White Supremacists - to come over as truly deplorable and had to look to their targets in real life to make them a plausible enemy. Something I didn't consider was that the fictional elements of the book would have an impact on any of the ethnic groups I chose to use in the book. Therefore I was very surprised to see the accompanying story reported in The Jewish Telegraph, on Friday 25th February 2011.

I'm thoroughly pleased to see that Joe (and his actions) was taken in the context that I intended, and that he has been hailed as a defender of the Jews of Manhattan, as much as he is of every other race. Like I do, Joe judges people by what is in their hearts and souls, and not by race, creed or colour. His best friends Rink and Harvey proves that point.

When writing, do you consider the reaction your writing engenders in your readers? Personally I did not give it much thought before, but the lesson is learned.

A Couple of Top Reads

2011-02-27T12:08:00.002Z

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Silver/dp/B004P1J2TA/ref=sr_1_8?ie=UTF8&s=digital-text&qid=1298631280&sr=1-8

Steven Savile is an awesome writer who has penned dozens of books in various genres - all of them thrilling - and his novel SILVER was one of my reading highlights of last year. Well, if you've got one of those E-reader thingamybobs and want a great read for a very low price, then hit the link above.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Tracers-Harry-Thriller-Adrian-Magson/dp/0727880136/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1298808510&sr=1-1
Also, anyone who knows me, knows I'm an admirer of Adrian Magson's work, and I'm pleased to say that his latest Harry Tate thriller is now available, called TRACERS. I haven't read it yet, but it's winging its way to me now and I can't wait. The previous Harry Tate thriller RED STATION was a great read, and another of last year's reading highlights for me.

US Crime Drama's Master Craftsman

2011-02-27T11:27:00.001Z

In this week's Cumberland News, there was a great review of BLOOD and ASHES by Steve Matthews at www.bookscumbria.com that I felt needed sharing. I'm indebted to Steve and Gwendolyn for all their support.

Review by Steve Matthews of Books Cumbria

“Brook Reynolds woke up screaming without knowing why.” A car had tail-gated her on a mountain road, then screeched past and blocked the road. She had swerved off, the car rolling through the forest. “’Help me,’ she said again more loudly . . . ‘I’m covered in gasoline. Please . . . somebody help me.’” She could hear voices. “Then the first one said, ‘Yeah. Take these matches. You’d better finish her off.’”Brook Reynold’s vicious murder – the local cops record it as a tragic auto accident – is the reason that ex-counter-terrorism agent Joe Hunter finds himself driving north to Pennsylvania. Her father, Don Griffiths, has called for his assistance. He knows that someone is out to get him and his family. His past life has made him a target for some of the most dangerous men in America.
Joe calls at the house in Bedford Wells. He senses he is being followed. He is shown into the darkened house by a resentful Millie. “I hear you’re supposed to be some sort of knight errant these days,” she says. Joe doesn’t want to hear when Don sees it as murder, tells him about the threatening e-mail from Carswell Hicks. Hicks is supposedly dead, burnt in a helicopter accident escaping from prison. Joe walks away.
Two men are waiting, threateningly, sitting on the bonnet of his car. “Just make sure you head outa here and know what it means if you come back.” Joe had been twiddling the keys in his hand. “The sharp point rammed directly into the stocky man’s neck an inch below the lobe of his ear.” The other man was a tougher case. He was coming towards Joe “fingers tightened to spear into my exposed throat.” There was a wet sound from where Joe’s elbow hit, and the man staggered backwards, spitting out loose teeth.
Within minutes, both men are dead, in the boot of their SUV and left on a lonely trail in the forest.
Joe Hunter has been trained to the point where killing is almost an instinct. His wife left him. He’s five feet eleven, greying hair, thirteen stone and of an athletic build, ex Parachute Regiment, living in Florida and operating as a “freelance security consultant”. He is in fact a vigilante, ready to carry his SIG SAUER P226 wherever it is needed and use it to deadly effect.
And throughout “Blood and Ashes” Joe needs that gun and all his resources and training as he finds himself defending a desperate and terrified family from a vengeful master criminal. But far more is at stake. Carswell Hicks is at the heart of a fascist plot to regain white supremacy in an America ruled by Barack Obama. The Koreans are supplying plutonium isotopes and the Statue of Liberty, New York and the free world are under threat from these racist thugs.
Matt Hilton, who leads a quiet life, writing books in Abbeytown, knows what he is talking about. The violence is graphic and choreographed with all the precision of a classic ballet. Alternating chapters let Joe tells his own story, each move, each desperate blow, each telling shot, and show us the thugs, their machinations and their hot pursuit.
The novel is closely crafted, sparing in character, crowded with action. The plot builds from the threat to one family until we see how the threat involves everyone. Yet Joe Hunter is the key. It is his actions, his skill and training and his courage that will keep the world safe.
This is Matt Hilton’s fifth book. He is a master craftsmen, shaping and building his story to a dramatic and exciting climax.

Signed copies of Matt Hilton’s “Blood and Ashes” are available from Bookends, 56 Castle Street, Carlisle, and 66 Main Street, Keswick, and from www.bookscumbria.com.

Book Launch 17th Feb 2011

2011-02-21T13:00:00.000Z

Shots Says: "A High-Octane Addition"

2011-02-18T20:24:00.001Z

I'm over the moon at the reception that Blood and Ashes is garnering, and already there have been a number of superb reviews that I've posted here on the blog. The latest comes from Mike Stotter at Shots Magazine, probably the best known crime fiction site in the UK. I was chuffed to bits to read Mike's take on the latest Joe Hunter thriller. You can see it here: http://www.shotsmag.co.uk/book_reviews_view.aspx?BOOK_REVIEW_ID=181

Thanks to Mike and all the Shots crew.

Blood and Ashes - the latest

2011-02-16T15:08:00.000Z

So there's been a little confusion over the publication of Blood and Ashes in the UK. As most of you probably know by now the book was originally coming out tomorrow on the 17th February, but for some reason (missed even by me) it came out a fortnight ago on the 3rd.

It makes having a launch event a little bit academic, but nevertheless I'm looking forward to meeting friends, family and supporters for a good get together tomorrow evening. I would like to thank Gwenda and her team at Bookends in Carlisle for their support (and patience), and also John and his team at The Merienda in advance. Likely I'll be so busy tomorrow I won't get chance to do so.

While I'm on, I just thought I'd share the proposed cover for Blood and Ashes for when it is released in paperback later this summer. I love the colours and the direction the design team have taken with this one.

Blood and Ashes paperback cover

Coming soon...

2011-02-15T23:09:00.001Z

Coming soon...

Copyrighted image Thirdactmontage 2011

WTF is Vallon Jackson?

2011-02-14T18:49:00.001Z

Some of my readers here may already be aware that I have a pen name or alter ego that I use when writing non-Joe Hunter stuff, particularly if it is in the horror or humorous crime genres. I often joke that my pseudonym is the worst kept secret on the blogosphere, but some of you might have missed it. The name is Vallon Jackson. Sounds a bit strange, I hear you say. There's a story behind it that I might tell one day, or maybe some more astute family member or friend might spot what the connection is.

Anyway, you're probably wondering why I mention this.

There's a good reason.

I was asked to submit a story to an anthology coming in June 2011 from WILD WOLF PUBLISHING
( http://wildwolfpublishing.com/default.aspx ) to which I jumped at the opportunity. The only thing is that the story APOCALYPSE NOO is not a typical 'Matt Hilton' tale, but one definitely from the off-kilter mind of Vallon Jackson.

Here was the brief: "write a zombie story but with a holiday theme", so you can probably see where I'm coming from. In Apocalypse Noo I draw on a recent trip to Scotland, and the scaremongering news stories we've all been hearing lately. The way the news has been, anyone would be forgiven for thinking the end of the world is nigh!?!

I hope my readers enjoy the story when it comes available this June. I'm going to be in good company. Some others already noted as being involved in this most anticipated Zombie anthology are Remy Porter (author of Dead Beat), Tony Burgess (author screenwriter of Canadian zombie flick, Pontypool), John Russo (co-writer of the classic, genre-creating Night of the Living Dead), amongst many other notables of the horror genre. The book WISH YOU WERE UN-DEAD looks to be a great one, and I hope some of you will keep an eye out for it. It's a move for me (although you can read some earlier Vallon Jackson via the links on this page) but one I hope you enjoy. Don't worry, Joe Hunter will still be going from strength to strength.

Matt (or Vallon depending on how you look at it).

The evidence is in...

2011-02-14T17:04:00.000Z

Here's a very good review of Blood and Ashes from Linda Wilson at Reviewing the Evidence.

Reading it, I had to smile. Linda feels that Joe Hunter's introspection in this outing slowed things a tad, while other reviewers have pointed out the same thing as adding depth, humanity and character to Joe. It just proves that you can't please everyone all the time ;-)

Enjoy.

...and thanks to Linda for a balanced and well-received review.

http://www.reviewingtheevidence.com/review.html?id=8734

Cut and Run at Eurocrime

2011-02-14T10:42:00.001Z

http://www.eurocrime.co.uk/reviews/Cut_and_Run.html

Michelle Peckham offers her take on Cut and Run over at Eurocrime.

Thanks Michelle.

Talking about Souls

2011-02-10T11:28:00.002Z

http://bcove.me/tnmgwp5q

Me talking about Judgment and Wrath at Thrillerfest 2010

News from the USA

2011-02-08T12:10:00.000Z

I recently had a great chat with my US editor at William Morrow and company, talking over plans for the future Joe Hunter books and have come to a couple of exciting decisions to help spread the books to a larger reading market.

The big news is that both Slash and Burn (book 3) and Cut and Run (book 4) will be released as mass market originals, both of them this coming Winter. Slash and Burn will be out in November, with Cut and Run coming out only one month later in December. I'm thrilled as it means that the publication schedule will pick up now to reflect more closely that adopted in the UK. It is then my belief that a mass market edition of Judgment and Wrath will be released the following spring, with further editions still to be decided on.

Because of the new publication strategy I have agreed to write a new introductory chapter to Slash and Burn, so, even if you have read the UK edition, there will be something new and unique in the US version.

The team at William Morrow are currently working hard on designing the covers for the coming books and as soon as I have them I'll share them with you.

Hope my US readers are as pleased as I am at this news.

thanks
Matt

This is more optimistic :-)

2011-02-07T12:39:00.000Z

In response to my previous post, Sue Harding puts forward a plan to get everyone reading again. I'm signing up and happy to do so.

http://irefusetogoquietly.blogspot.com/2011/02/turning-tide-bring-out-your-books.html

This is worrying :-(

2011-02-05T11:20:00.001Z

http://leighrussell.blogspot.com/2011/02/httpwww.html

Author Leigh Russell talks about the imminent closure of 20 Waterstone's stores throughout the UK. A worrying prospect for authors, a sad day for readers.

New Look for SHOTSMAG

2011-02-05T09:23:00.001Z

Shotsmag is one of the top crime and thriller websites in - not only the Uk - the world, and without doubt anyone interested in crime fiction in general have visited at one time or another. In the last few days the wonderful editors at the site have revamped the look of their website, making it fresh and vibrant and a treat for the eyes. Something I'm thrilled about is that the good folks there have chosen to feature me and Joe Hunter in an article entitled 'An Englishman Abroad' as well as posting a webcast I recorded last year where I talk about the Joe Hunter books and my writing day. Please take a look over at the new site, I think you'll like it.

http://www.shotsmag.co.uk/

And if you'd like to read the feature, it's here: http://www.shotsmag.co.uk/feature_view.aspx?FEATURE_ID=157

Five Looking Glasses!

2011-02-05T09:15:00.000Z

http://www.crimesquad.com/reviews.asp

...and from Graham Smith over at Crimesquad.com Blood and Ashes gets a five star rating (or five looking glasses) for which I'm infinitely grateful.

The Wow-Factor!

2011-02-05T09:10:00.000Z

Following the interview I did over at Milo's Rambles, top bloke Miles has also put up his review of Blood and Ashes. To say I experienced the WOW-Factor is an understatement.

http://www.milorambles.com/2011/02/04/blood-and-ashes-by-matt-hilton-book-review/

The reviews pour in

2011-02-05T09:06:00.000Z

http://falcatatimes.blogspot.com/2011/02/thriller-review-joe-hunter-5-blood-and.html

The publication of Blood and Ashes has come with some surprises for me, not least the favourable way in which the book is being received this time and the number of people and reviewers taking notice. Notwithstanding all the wonderful people who have supported Joe Hunter (and me) throughout the last couple of years, I'd like to say thank you to those now putting pen to paper (actually fingers to keyboard) and writing well thought out, concise reviews of my work. Like the one above from the Falcata Times.

thanks
Matt

Joe Hunter 5 Live!

2011-02-03T12:06:00.000Z

There has been a little confusion over the publication date of Joe Hunter 5 - Blood and Ashes - and with it a little to-ing and fro-ing as I've attempted to re-juggle the date and the events surrounding it.

As you might recall it was originally slated for release today, but marketing decisions put back publication until the 17th February. Well, it appears that other marketing decisions have been made and the publication shoved forward again until TODAY.

Yes. Blood and Ashes is now available on general sale throughout the UK!!

So, all you good people who have been waiting for Joe's next high-octane thriller, it's out there now just waiting for you to go grab a copy.

Sorry about the confusion, but it was a situation totally out of my hands. Because I was under the impression it was still a full fortnight away, I have booked a venue for the book launch, and it will still go ahead on Thursday 17th February as planned. For anyone coming along it starts 7 pm at The Merienda, Treasury Court, Carlisle.

OUT NOW IN THE UK
Hardback edition from Hodder and Stoughton

Mailing List

2011-02-02T09:33:00.001Z

Some people have asked for advance notification when the various Joe Hunter books will become available and I have decided to do an email notification. If you wish to be added to the list, please drop me an email at matthiltonbooks@live.co.uk to be added to the list.

The Femmes Go Wild

2011-02-01T14:21:00.000Z

Lily Childs is a writer I've grown to admire, whose prose never fails to curdle the blood, or to leave a tickling sensation at the back of the skull for hours after I've finished reading one of her often dark and macabre tales.

Lily has grown to be admired by many other authors as well, and so there was no shortage of submissions when she cast her net to bring in some of the top female writers on the blogosphere (and beyond) for her momentous February Femme Fatales - 28 daily stories to be posted throughout the month of February.

Why not treat yourself and have a look here: http://lilychildsfeardom.blogspot.com/

Tales from the grape vine

2011-01-30T14:50:00.001Z

This morning saw me finishing revisions and corrections to Joe Hunter seven, No Going Back, based on a line edit by my wonderful editor, Sue Fletcher at Hodder and Stoughton. It served me well, getting my head back into the Joe Hunter-sphere - a place I hadn't really trod since October last year. It was good to be back and hear Joe's voice in my head once more, and it has enthused me to knuckle down and get on with his next adventure.

However, there were first a few neglected chores to see to, so (reluctantly) I joined my good wife in the garden to trim back a vine that has grown to magnificent proportions and was threatening to engulf both our house and the building next door. Like Joe Hunter, I've had a few dodgy moments in my life, one of them which has left me with an equally dodgy knee, so going up a ladder wasn't my most favourite chore of the day. Needs must though and I set to it with minimal moaning (you should hear me on a good day!), and got stuck into the vine with a vengeance. Sacoteurs aren't men's tools. I'm not even sure I can spell the word correctly never mind use them with deft aplomb. I elected to the mannish approach of ripping and tearing the vine from limb to limb, battling valiantly. The problem is - unless you're Alan Titchmarsh - gardening and authoring should never be mixed. Cue blisters and a beautiful blood bleb the colour of my frost reddened cheeks. But the job's done and behind me, and I can now settle down to writing with a clear conscience (but sore hands).

Do you understand the self-sacrifice I put myself through to bring you Joe's latest adventure? ;-)

p.s. I'm seriously thinking of insuring my 'typing finger'.

An in-depth interview for your delectation A.K.A 'Of Cheeseburgers and Kings'

2011-01-29T12:29:00.000Z

I recently had the pleasure of being interviewed by top reviewer and blogger Miles over at Milo's Rambles, who did a great job of teasing information from me.

If you'd like to read the interview, and see what the Dickens the title above refers to, take a click here: http://www.milorambles.com/2011/01/29/an-interview-with-author-matt-hilton/

I'd like to also take this opportunity to thank Miles for being such a great supporter.

Thanks.

Matt

The guy who came in from the warmth

2011-01-24T13:45:00.002Z

Howdy folks,

it's been a while since I've said anything much on here, but things like the Christmas holiday, New Year and a trip to Tenerife for a well-earned break have got in the way somewhat. But now I'm back...to let you know...that I can really shake it down. Oops, slipped into a song there, but it probably tells you that I'm in upbeat spirits and ready to Rock 'n' Roll again.

As I've hinted in the past, I've been working on a project totally unrelated to Joe Hunter, and am just adding the finishing touches to it. The truth is, I'm not yet ready to share anything about the project (though a couple of trusted 'friends' might know what I'm talking about) but it's not because I'm being greedy, selfish or protective, only that I'm under strict orders to keep my lips zipped. The truth is that the project is a big step away from the Joe Hunter universe and that it may never see publication, or if it does, might go out under a pseudonym. Nevertheless, if/when it's out I will probably be able to give enough hints and prods in the right direction so my readers know what to look out for. If, say, someone got the connection and happened to tell everyone then what could I do to stop them ;-)

As it is, I'll be adding the finishing touches to the project, then in the next couple of weeks will be gearing up to get my teeth into Joe Hunter 8. At this stage I've no plans for the next Hunter book, but will be racking the old grey cells to come up with something fresh and exciting that will please Joe's followers.

Also, another little project I'm working on, that is related to Joe Hunter, is with THIRDACTMONTAGE and I'm stoked to see the finished product. More on this later as things begin to gel, but I've had permission to share with you this image (copyrighted to THIRDACTMONTAGE) and I hope you like it.

More on this soon.

In the meantime, CUT and RUN is now out in paperback, and pretty soon - Thursday 17th February to be exact - Joe Hunter 5 BLOOD and ASHES will be out in hardback in the UK. Signed copies will be available from GOLDSBORO BOOKS in London, and from ALAN WHITE FINE BOOKS in Brighton. I am holding two events in my home town of Carlisle, Cumbria. I will be holding a book launch party at 7 pm on Thursday 17th February at The Merienda, Treasury Court, Carlisle, open to all who wish to come along and get their books personally signed and dedicated. Then, for those who can't make the party, I'll be in Waterstone's, Scotch Street, Carlisle from 12.30 pm (for a couple of hours) on Saturday 19th February doing the do. I hope to see a few of you along. If you can't make it, I'll be signing stock at both BOOKENDS (who are kindly supplying books for the launch party) and at Waterstone's afterwards.

Cheers folks

Matt

Cut and Run - reviews come in

2011-01-22T16:51:00.000Z

Jochem Steen over at SONS OF SPADE gives his punchy take on CUT AND RUN here:
http://sonsofspade.blogspot.com/2011/01/cut-and-run-joe-hunter-by-matt-hilton.html

Thanks JV

New Book, New Publication Date

2011-01-14T16:56:00.000Z

Blood and Ashes, the fifth Joe Hunter thriller has a new publication date in the UK. previously the book was to come out on the 3rd February, but a decision has been made to hold back publication for a fortnight until 17th February. Undoubtedly those of you who have pre-ordered the book will still get your copies on or around the first week in February (I'm aware copies are now being sent out from the larger distributors).

I will be holding an 'official' launch party in my home town of Carlisle, Cumbria, on or around the new date of the 17th and will confirm details as soon as possbile for anyone intending to come along.

The wait is almost over...

2011-01-06T18:42:00.001Z

In the UK, 'CUT AND RUN' the fourth high-octane Joe Hunter thriller is released today in paperback.

Many of my readers here have already caught Joe's fight against the misogynistic pro-killer, Luke Rickard, but if you haven't, don't worry, there'll be no spoilers here.

Well, maybe a little one. In CUT AND RUN Joe's past came back to haunt him BIG STYLE, and the same can be said for the next book in the series - BLOOD AND ASHES - albeit in a very different way.

Those of you eagerly waiting to get your hands on a copy of BLOOD AND ASHES the good news is that you've only a little under a month to wait. The fifth Joe Hunter book, published by Hodder and Stoughton, will be released in hardback on 3rd February 2011.

Here's the blurb:

Brooke Reynolds died in a car crash. Tragic accident, the police say. But her father Don Griffiths knows otherwise. And he wants Joe Hunter to find the men responsible.

Joe is not convinced – until he is attacked by two troublemakers, and Don's other daughter is also threatened. Looks like more than coincidence. And sure enough, the entire family is soon under siege with only Joe to protect them. The ensuing blood bath is only the beginning of a trail of death that leads right to the heart of a racist conspiracy.

White supremacists want to hold the government to ransom; and they have got hold of a dirty bomb to add weight to their case.

Joe is on countdown: can he stop the plotters before they reduce the free world to ashes?

And here's the cover to watch out for:

REDUX

2011-01-06T11:39:00.000Z

http://pdbrazill.blogspot.com/2011/01/flashback-guest-blogger-matt-hilton.html?spref=tw

At Paul D Brazill's top rated blog 'You Would Say That, Wouldn't You?' he has reposted a guest blog I did over at his site. So if you want to know the truth about Joe Hunter, how he came about as a character and who my influences are as a writing, take a mosey on over to Paul's site. While you're there, have a look around, there are some fantastic posts, as well as some of Paul's top notch noir, crime and horror stories.

New Year, New Books, Old Haunts.

2011-01-04T17:54:00.000Z

Hi folks,

it's been a week or two since I last said anything here, but like everyone else I've been up to my eyes with the Holidays. If I haven't already said so personally, then I wish you all a happy, healthy and prosperous 2011.

I've been writing. No surprises there then? I am an author and that's what I'm supposed to do, I guess. But it has been a funny few months, between delivering book seven in the Joe Hunter series, and before starting the eighth. I've been pottering around, really, doing 'other stuff' with my writing, but nothing that I can show you or even tell you about....yet. I did do my little Joe Hunter Christmas poem, and hope you enjoyed it. Otherwise, there's nothing much that I can put my finger on as far as my writing's concerned. I often find November and December are limbo months for authors, or maybe it's just me. I have been working on another project, but this was just a personal exercise, and it may never see publication, so I feel there's not much to tell.

Still, there is some good stuff coming up soon.

In two days time (6th January) the paperback edition of CUT AND RUN hits the stands in the UK.

And in just under a month's time on the 3rd of February 2011, the fifth Joe Hunter book - BLOOD AND ASHES - will be published in hardback in the UK (Hodder and Stoughton).

For those of you interested, or who intend attending if/when it happens, I'm looking to hold an official launch for Blood and Ashes, but haven't as yet fixed a date/location, but worry not, I'll keep you all informed. It will be on or around the publication date.

I've a couple events coming up in the next few months:

For those of you attending the York Festival of Writing, I'm attending for the full duration this time, from the 24th through to the 27th of March. Please come along and say, hi, and I look forward to meeting you all there.

Also, a regular fixture on my calendar is CRIMEFEST, and this year it will be at its usual venue again (the Bristol Marriott) from 19th through to 22nd of May, and I'll be there. Again, I'd love to meet anyone who read my books and look forward to saying hello. It's a great convention and I urge readers, writers or aspiring authors to come along. You'll be glad you did.

Twas Two Nights Before Christmas - A Joe Hunter Poem

2010-12-23T12:23:00.000Z

Twas Two Nights Before Christmas

(A Christmas poem featuring Joe Hunter)

Twas two nights before Christmas, when all through the house  the killer was stirring, the heartless louse. The stocking was pulled over his head with care,  in hopes no one would know him if they seen him there.

The children were tied up in their beds, while chloroform fumes danced in their heads.  And mamma with her ‘kerchief employed as a gag,  had just lost her brain after her husband was also whacked!   When out on the lawn there arose such a clatter,  the killer sprang from her body to see what was the matter. 

Away to the window he flew like a flash, tugging up his zipper as he threw up the sash.  The moon on the breast of the new-fallen snow  gave the luster of mid-day to objects below.  When, what to his worried eyes should appear,  but a jet black Porsche, that should not have been there.  

With a big ol’ driver, so lively and quick,  he knew in a moment it must be that Rink.  More rapid than an eagle his partner came,  and he whistled, and shouted, and called the killer by name!   "Now killer! Now, murderer! Now, rapist, I’m fixing,  on coming on, stupid, to give you a Blitzing!”  To the top of the porch, to the top of the wall the killer should dash away or else he would fall!  

As dry leaves that before the wild hurricane fly,  when they meet with an obstacle, mount to the sky.  So up to the house-door Joe Hunter he flew,  with his hand full of gun, and a KABAR too.   And then, in a twinkling, the killer heard the clicks, the racking  and chambering of the SIG-Sauer P226. 

As he drew in his head, and was turning around,  through the front window Hunter came with a bound.   He was dressed all in black, from his head to his foot,  and his clothes were all spotted with glass and with blood. 

A bundle of hurt Hunter brought to this place,  and he looked like the Grim Reaper, with his KABAR raised.   His eyes-how they twinkled, his grim smile so scary!  He brought up his gun, but he was in no hurry!  His tight-lipped mouth was drawn up like a bow,  as he unloaded the SIG like a flurry of snow.  

There was a stump of an arm and a scatter of teeth,  and the blood it encircled the killer’s head like a wreath.  He had a wound in his face and more in his belly,  where his intestines were pulped like a bowlful of jelly!   He was shuddering and pumping, the guts right out his self,  Hunter laughed when he saw him, in spite of himself! 

A round through the eye and a chunk from his head,  soon told Hunter that the killer was dead.   He spoke not a word, but went straight to his work,  and pulled down the stocking, to identify the jerk.  And spotting the incriminating tattoo aside the killer’s nose,  he gave a nod, and he pulled out his phone!  

He sprang to the Porsche, and Rink gave it throttle,  and away they flew like the cork from a bottle.  No one heard Hunter exclaim, ‘ere they drove out of sight,  "Hi, Walter, a clean up crew’s required again tonight!"

Based with much respect on ‘Twas the Night Before Christmas’ a poem  By Clement Moore.

Rudolph's not the only one with a red nose!

2010-12-20T20:57:00.000Z

http://matthiltonbooks.blogspot.com/2008/12/christmas-morality-tale.html

For those of you new to my blog, or who have even read it in the past but don't mind reading it again, here's a short Christmas morality tale featuring Joe Hunter. Enjoy!!