Hydra by Matt Wesolowski - Blog Tour Review

I don't think I can put into words, just how excited I am to be part of the blog tour for Matt Wesolowski's newest novel, Hydra. I absolutely loved Six Stories, so jumped immediatey at the chance of reading more of his work! 

Hydra

One cold November night in 2014, in a small town in the north west of England, 26-year-old Arla Macleod bludgeoned her mother, father and younger sister to death with a hammer, in an unprovoked attack known as the "Macleod Massacre." Now incarcerated at a medium-security mental-health institution, Arla will speak to no one but Scott King, an investigative journalist, whose Six Stories podcasts have become an internet sensation.

King finds himself immersed in an increasingly complex case, interviewing five witnesses and Arla herself, as he questions whether Arla’s responsibility for the massacre was a diminished as her legal team made out. As he unpicks the stories, he finds himself thrust into a world of deadly forbidden "games," online trolls, and the mysterious Black-eyed Children, whose presence extends far beyond the delusions of a murderess. 

My Review

Matt Wesolowski is officially a genius. The way he crafts and weaves his stories is just, well....genius! I didn't think you could get a better book than Six Stories and then out came Hydra and proved me very wrong. 

Telling the story through podcasts is such a modern and unique way of storytelling and it really lays everything out so nicely for the reader. The writing is so exquisite that you feel like you are actually "listening" to a podcast instead of reading it. Scott King is an extremely interesting character in himself and I enjoy the way he goes about investigating cold cases, not necessarily to solve them, but to try and shed more light on them. Its definitively something I would listen to in real life or watch a documentary on. 

I won't touch on the plot as to do so would be to take away any new readers discovery of the twists and turns throughout. I will say however that you can really feel Wesolowski's origins in horror as Hydra is extremely creepy and gave me chills throughout the book. The story is fresh and full of surprises and I really enjoyed trying to discover the why of the horrendous crime that had occurred. 

Without gushing too much more, all I can say is go out and buy Six Stories and Hydra and read them immediately, you will not regret it! 

I gave this book ALL THE STARS! 

About The Author

Matt Wesolowski is an author from Newcastle-Upon-Tyne in the UK. He is an English tutor for young people in care. Matt started his writing career in horror, and his short horror fiction has been published in numerous UK - and US - based anthologies such as Midnight Movie Creature Feature, Selfies From The End Of The World, Cold Iron and many more. His novella, The Black Land, a horror set on the Northumberland coast, was published in 2013. Matt was a winner of the Pitch Perfect competition at Bloody Scotland Crime writing Festival in 2015. His debut thriller, Six Stories, was an Amazon bestseller in the USA, Canada, the UK and Australia, and a WHSmith Fresh Talent pick, and film rights were sold to a major Hollywood studio. 

Don't Forget To  Check Out The Rest Of The Tour

Six Stories by Matt Wesolowski - Blog Tour Review

I've been waiting patiently and finally the day has come when I can share my review of Six Stories by Matt Wesolowski! Today marks the turn of Life Of A Nerdish Mum on the blog tour for this amazing book. 

Six Stories

The novel is constructed as a series of podcasts, in which an investigative journalist describes the circumstances around the death of a teenaged boy in an outward-bound centre, interviewing witnesses, suspects and people close to the incident. Their six accounts form the six stories of the title, creating a "chilling and compelling, page-turning thriller that also delves deep into notions of truth, perception and loyalty"

My Review

Another amazing 5 star read from Orenda Books. I swear Karen has a golden touch when picking out books to publish! 

Six Stories is an absolute breath of fresh air in the crime genre with an incredibly modern and unique way of presenting a story. The story is told in the form of pod casts that cover six interviews with people involved with the murder of a teenager twenty years previously. 

The writing is beautiful and easily draws you in, making you feel like you are listening to the pod casts as they are being broadcast - in fact this is the first book that I've ever wished I could listen to in audio because I think it would be perfect. The interviews are personal and are at times uncomfortable both from the person being interviewed and the reader. The way the story unfolds from different perspectives is so smoothly done and I was kept fully immersed the entire time I was reading. 

Matt Wesolowski has really captured the complex relationships of teenagers as well as their thoughts and feelings. Each character, both likeable and un-likeable are all extremely well fleshed out and believable. Scott King I found fascinating and his narration throughout the book really added to the atmosphere instead of disturbing it, he also added important information without feeling like it was being tagged on or info-dumped. It was skillfully done and I really enjoyed the whole experience. 

Scarclaw Fell, the site of the murder is a character completely in it's own right with its overpowering presence and beauty, Matt Wesolowski describes Scarclaw Fell in such a way that you can picture yourself within it and feel it around you as you are reading with the trees looming over you. 

Overall an excellent read and one I think everyone needs to go out and try as it's something so new and exciting, but with a theme that's recognisable and comfortable. 

I gave Six Stories 5 stars. 

About The Author

Matt Wesolowski is an author from Newcastle-Upon-Tyne in the UK. He is an English tutor and leads Cuckoo Young Writers creative writing workshops for young people in association with New Writing North. 

Wesolowski started his writing career in horror and his short horror fiction has been published in numerous magazines and US anthologies.

Wesolowski's debut novella ‘The Black Land‘ a horror set on the Northumberland coast, was published in 2013 by Blood Bound Books and his latest horror novella set in the forests of Sweden is available in 'Dimension 6' magazine through Coeur De Lion Publishing.

Wesolowski was a winner of the Pitch Perfect competition at 'Bloody Scotland'; Crime Writing Festival 2015, his subsequent debut crime novel 'Six Stories' will be available through Orenda Books in the spring of 2017

Don't forget to check out the rest of the blog tour stops