Book review: Headcase by Jack Heath

Wednesday, November 30, 2022 Permalink

Headcase by Jack Heath is the fourth in the series featuring cannibalistic problem solver Timothy Blake. Annoyingly my review of this book’s predecessor, published in 2020, mentions it ending with a bit of a twist. Alas I shared no spoilers and as I was super keen to read this, I was too impatient to go back and skim Hideout to jog my memory.

It didn’t actually matter however. I’m assuming perhaps that the love of Blake’s life, FBI agent Reese Thistle found out about his flesh-eating predilections and the pair broke up, as here he’s pining for her while working with new partner Zara on a covert CIA operation in the US.

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four-stars

Book review: Hideout by Jack Heath

Sunday, November 29, 2020 Permalink

I blame our lack of daylight saving but I’ve been waking early which was my excuse for starting Jack Heath’s latest release Hideout at 5am in the bath accompanied by diet coke (my caffeine of choice) and brownies (the… ahem, breakfast of champions).

As is my habit, before starting a new book in a series I re-read my review of its predecessor. And in my review of the second in the Timothy Blake series, Hunter, I commented that we were left with a cliff-hanger. Annoyingly I don’t include spoilers in my posts which meant I had to get out of the bath and get my copy of Hunter off the shelf to re-read the ending. (Surely risking my neck on wet slippery tiles.)

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four-half-stars

Book review: Hunter by Jack Heath

Tuesday, March 5, 2019 Permalink

Canberra-based author Jack Heath released Hangman last year – his first adult novel. I enjoyed it and commented at the time on lead character Timothy Blake’s status as an anti-hero… as we learn there about his less-than-palatable predilections. (Which I still won’t mention here as they come as quite a shock in the first novel and there may be newcomers reading this….)

But he describes himself thus…

A bad guy who does bad things for bad reasons. I’m not religious, but the word damned seems to cover it. p 26

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four-stars

Book review: Hangman by Jack Heath

Wednesday, December 20, 2017 Permalink

It seems kinda unusual to read a book about the FBI by an Australian author, though I’m not sure why. Canberra-based Jack Heath is best known for his young adult novels, though the blurb I read on the publisher’s site indicates Heath has had a myriad of careers and experiences.

In a note to readers, Heath talks about his interest in capital punishment – in those on death row and those employed to be there in the final moments… and its impact. I’m opposed to the death penalty (the good ol’ eye for an eye is so bloody subjective) but didn’t feel as if I was drawn into any ethical debate here and think Heath probably needed to go down a different route if that was his intention. That’s just an ‘aside’ however, but I hadn’t realised that was his inspiration until I read the author’s notes at the end of the book. For me, this is very much a character-driven book (my favourite kind) but with a few ethical twists thrown in when it comes to our anti-hero and lead character.

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three-half-stars