Category Archives: Tom Doyle

War and Craft by Tom Doyle
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American Craftsmen, Book 3

Synopsis: America, land of the Free…and home of the warlocks.

The Founding Fathers were never ones to pass up a good weapon. America’s first line of defense has been shrouded in secrecy, magical families who have sworn to use their power to protect our republic.

But there are those who reject America’s dream and have chosen the Left Hand Path. In this triumphant conclusion to Tom Doyle’s imaginative alternate historical America, we start with a bloody wedding-night brawl with assassins in Tokyo. Our American magical shock troops go to India, where a descendant of legendary heroes has the occult mission they’ve been waiting for.

It all comes to a head in a valley hidden high in the mountains of Kashmir. Our craftspeople will battle against their fellow countrymen, some of the vilest monsters of the Left Hand Path. It’s Armageddon in Shangri-La, and the end of the world as we know it.

Review: I liked the first two volumes. I admit that at first glance this genre is not necessarily my favorite but Tom Doyle handles perfectly the words and his stories and I spend each time a very good time. Moreover, he always has the great idea at the beginning of the novel to re-situate the story so that we can remember the previous events.

So we’re going back into a new story, starting with the marriage of two of our main characters which, of course, does not turn at all the way it should. Indeed, after a big fight, it seems that Madeline has disappeared. Nobody knows what made her go through the afterlife or if she is a prisoner of some entity.

I admit that, as always, my favorite characters are Rezvani and Dale, whom I always take great pleasure in following. So I was very happy when I saw that we were concentrating mainly on them. It must be said that the poor chracters will not necessarily spend very good times. Moreover, our dear heroine now pregnant will also have to face her new condition.

I really had a good time with this conclusion. As I said Tom Doyle has a way of his own to share his stories and is easily carried away. Our four heroes are going to have a hard time and new and old enemies will surface. It is a volume full of action that takes us in different countries to offer us a very good conclusion.

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War and Craft de Tom Doyle (VO)
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American Craftsmen, Tome 3

Résumé (traduction personnelle) : Amérique, terre de liberté… et maison des sorciers.

Les pères fondateurs étaient de ceux qui ne laissent jamais passer une bonne arme. La première ligne de défense de l’Amérique a été créée en secret, des familles magiques qui ont juré d’utiliser leurs pouvoirs pour protéger notre République.

Mais il y a ceux qui ont rejeté le rêve américain et qui ont choisi le Chemin de la Main Gauche. Dans cette triomphante conclusion de Tom Doyle imaginant une Amérique alternative, nous commençons avec une soirée de mariage sanglante remplie d’assassins à Tokyo. Notre troupe magique d’Amérique s’en va en Inde, où un descendant des héros légendaires leur propose une mission occulte qu’ils attendaient.

Tout se rapporte à la tête d’une vallée cachée dans les hautes montagnes de Kashmir. Nos sorciers devront se battre contre les leurs, certains des monstres les plus affreux du Chemin de la Main Gauche. C’est l’Armageddon à Shangri-La et la fin du Monde tel que nous le connaissons.

Avis : J’avais bien aimé les deux premiers tomes. J’avoue qu’au prime abord ce genre n’est pas forcément mon préféré mais Tom Doyle manie parfaitement les mots et son histoire et je passe à chaque fois un très bon moment. De plus, il a toujours la très bonne idée, au début du roman, de resituer l’histoire pour nous permettre de nous remémorer les évènements précédents.

Nous repartons donc dans une nouvelle histoire, en commençant avec le mariage de deux de nos personnages principaux qui, bien sûr, ne tourne pas du tout de la manière dont il aurait dû. En effet, après une grosse bagarre, il semblerait que Madeline ait disparu. Personne ne sait si ce qu’on lui a fait l’a fait traverser dans l’au-delà ou si elle est prisonnière d’une quelconque entité.

J’avoue que, comme toujours, mes personnages préférés sont Rezvani et Dale, que je prends toujours beaucoup de plaisir à suivre. J’étais donc très contente quand j’ai vu que nous nous concentrions principalement sur eux. Il faut dire que les pauvres ne passeront pas forcément de très bons moments. De plus, notre chère héroïne maintenant enceinte va aussi devoir faire face à sa nouvelle condition.

J’ai vraiment passé un bon moment avec cette conclusion. Comme je le disais Tom Doyle a une manière qui lui est propre de partager ses histoires et on se laisse facilement emporter. Nos quatre héros vont avoir du fil à retordre et de nouveaux et anciens ennemis vont faire surface. C’est un tome plein d’action qui nous entraine dans différents pays pour nous proposer une très bonne conclusion.

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Guest post & Giveway: Left-Hand Way by Tom Doyle
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The Uncanniness of Birthdays

Today is the birthday of one of the co-hosts of this blog. Joyeux anniversaire, Delhia! I think birthdays are a fine topic, since they come into play in my American Craft series. (Also, the second novel in the series just had its book birthday last week.)

My two novels, American Craftsmen and The Left-Hand Way, chronicle the modern-day adventures of the magician-soldiers and psychic spies known as craftspeople, while also telling how their ancestors inspired the creepier fictions of Poe and Hawthorne. In The Left-Hand Way, the surviving craftspeople from the first book are scattered overseas like bait to draw out an ancient evil (and their journeys include a brief passage through France).

Astrologers and others make much of the connection between the exact moment of birth and a person’s fate. With the advantage of fictional hindsight, I’m able to create such connections for my story. The protagonist of my first book is Dale Morton, descended from the historical Thomas Morton of Merry Mount, who is sometimes called “America’s first rascal.” One of the founders of the competing Left-Hand (i.e., evil) branch of Dale’s family, Joseph Curwen Morton (a Lovecraftian name), uses his occult power to ensure that his twin children Roderick and Madeline (Poe-related names) are conceived precisely on the day the U.S. Constitution is signed, and born on the day it’s ratified by a sufficient number of states. “I tied your birth to the birth of a nation,” their father says. “I hope you appreciate the power in that.”

Whether they appreciate it or not, Roderick and Madeline remain tied to the fate of the country throughout their unnaturally extended lives, eventually corrupting the very core of the U.S. craft services, the ultra-secret H-ring below the Pentagon. As pointed out by G.K. Chesterton (and more recently by Tim Powers), this sort of spooky connection of events gets into our heads despite whatever our rational minds think about it.

I’ve also had to think about the rough timing of the births of other members of the Morton family tree, as well as the family of the most interesting new character in book 2, Royal Navy Commander Grace Marlow. Her family goes back to the historical Christopher Marlowe (the “e” gets dropped) and Francis Walsingham on one side, and Tituba of Salem on the other. I had to time the generations of her fictional family such that they could have inspired various literary creations, including Brontë’s Jane Eyre, Kipling’s Kim, Conrad’s Marlow, and Fleming’s Bond.

Finally, another way the timing of a birth can have both practical and occult significance in my story: the various romantic relationships in my books are eventually expected to produce offspring, as it’s a particular duty of craftspeople to their homelands to continue their families. Both through reason and occult farsight, one might guess that certain couples like those in my books will have unusually significant kids. This leads to two opposing courses of action. Various occult parties would like to kill such craft couples before they have a chance to have children, while other organizations will do whatever is necessary to protect the prospective parents, but drop their concern for the would-be father immediately after confirmation of pregnancy.

Oddly, last year’s book birthday had its own creepy correspondence for me. Within days of the American Craftsmen’s release, I was beginning the process of discovering I had cancer. I’m fine now and most probably completely cured, but at the time this seemed an odd convergence of events. Also, I wrote a surprising number of cancer metaphors into book 2 well before my diagnosis, so it was if I were trying to tell myself something. Again, my rational mind dismisses these synchronicities, but my fiction-writing brain does not.

By the way, I’ll be in Paris and the north of France next month, both enjoying the sights and taking notes. If any of the French readers of this blog have any good occult, literary, or historical recommendations for my travels that I might otherwise miss, please let me know. And if you’d like to read or listen to my other stories, please check out my website.

 

American Craftsman, Book 2

 

Synopsis:Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy meets ancient magic, with the fate of the world hanging in the balance

Poe’s Red Death returns, more powerful than ever. Can anyone stop him before he summons an apocalyptic nightmare even worse than himself?

In this second book of Tom Doyle’s contemporary fantasy series, the American craftsmen are scattered like bait overseas. What starts as an ordinary liaison mission to London for Major Michael Endicott becomes a desperate chase across Europe, where Endicott is both hunted and hunter. Reluctantly joining him is his minder from MI13, Commander Grace Marlowe, one of Her Majesty’s most lethal magician soldiers, whose family has centuries of justified hostility to the Endicotts.

Meanwhile, in Istanbul and Tokyo, Endicott’s comrades, Scherie Rezvani and Dale Morton, are caught in their own battles for survival against hired assassins and a ghost-powered doomsday machine. And in Kiev, Roderick Morton, the spider at the center of a global web, plots their destruction and his ultimate apotheosis. After centuries of imprisonment, nothing less than godlike power will satisfy Roderick, whatever the dreadful cost.

 

 

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The Left-Hand Way by Tom Doyle
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American Craftsmen, Book 2

Synopsis: Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy meets ancient magic, with the fate of the world hanging in the balance

Poe’s Red Death returns, more powerful than ever. Can anyone stop him before he summons an apocalyptic nightmare even worse than himself?

In this second book of Tom Doyle’s contemporary fantasy series, the American craftsmen are scattered like bait overseas. What starts as an ordinary liaison mission to London for Major Michael Endicott becomes a desperate chase across Europe, where Endicott is both hunted and hunter. Reluctantly joining him is his minder from MI13, Commander Grace Marlowe, one of Her Majesty’s most lethal magician soldiers, whose family has centuries of justified hostility to the Endicotts.

Meanwhile, in Istanbul and Tokyo, Endicott’s comrades, Scherie Rezvani and Dale Morton, are caught in their own battles for survival against hired assassins and a ghost-powered doomsday machine. And in Kiev, Roderick Morton, the spider at the center of a global web, plots their destruction and his ultimate apotheosis. After centuries of imprisonment, nothing less than godlike power will satisfy Roderick, whatever the dreadful cost.

Review: I did read the first volume and had a lot of fun with the story. I confess that I did not remember all the details of the book but that’s why I loved the introduction that the author has added before the first chapter! Oh yes, because it allows us remember what has happened before and the details of the world created. This is not something that we often see in novels, but I found it fantastic to let the reader the opportunity to recall the events.

Let’s go back a little more precisely to the story … We find the characters that we have discovered previously with great pleasure. Yes, we follow alternately Scherie, Endicott and Dale throughout their adventures. We also have some parts from the evil Roderick who reveals his plans over the chapters. It must be said that he is determined to remove and destroy all our protagonists. While the three are trying to uncover him to do the same, they will face many trials. Each in a part of the world, Dale will have to try to manage some ghosts, Scherie faces the spirits that haunt her and so understand a little more about her powers, and finally we also have Endicott. It was a pleasure to discover a bit more about him in this volume. Thus, he meets with a young woman there and we see their relationship evolve at the same time over the chapters.

It was very interesting to discover the actions of each, to see how they would all act in front of the demons that pursue them. The world that Tom Doyle has created is really fascinating to discover and I loved the fact that we found so many places throughout the story. Oh yes, from Istanbul to Tokyo, via Greece, France or Ukraine and the United States, we have a lot of places and events to discover. As I said, we learn a little more about Endicott here, and it was interesting as we had a more chance to see Dale and Scherie before. It was also fascinating to understand Roderick and the plans he was trying to stage.

I will not say much more for fear of revealing too much, but I would recommend this series that we can read with pleasure.

4

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The Left-Hand Way deTom Doyle (VO)
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American Craftsmen, Tome 2

Résumé (traduction personnelle) : Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy rencontre la magie ancienne, avec le destin du monde dans la balance.

Mort Rouge de Poe revient, plus puissant que jamais. Quelqu’un peut-il l’arrêter avant qu’il invoque un cauchemar apocalyptique encore pire ?

Dans ce deuxième livre de la série de fantasy contemporaine de Tom Doyle, les American craftsmen sont dispersés comme appât à l’étranger. Ce qui commence comme une mission de liaison ordinaire à Londres pour le major Michael Endicott devient une chasse désespérée à travers l’Europe, où Endicott est à la fois le chassé et le chasseur. Se joint à lui à contrecœur, le commandant Grâce Marlowe du MI13, l’un des soldats magiciens les plus meurtriers de Sa Majesté, dont la famille a des siècles d’hostilité justifiés envers les Endicotts.

Pendant ce temps, à Istanbul et Tokyo, les camarades d’Endicott, Scherie Rezvani et Dale Morton, sont pris dans leurs propres batailles pour survivre contre des tueurs à gages et une machine apocalyptique alimentée de fantômes. Et à Kiev, Roderick Morton, l’araignée au centre d’un réseau mondial, planifie leur destruction et son apothéose finale. Après des siècles d’emprisonnement, rien de moins que la puissance divine ne satisfera Roderick, quel que soit le coût terrible.

Avis : J’avais lu le premier tome à sa sortie et j’avais pris beaucoup de plaisir avec l’histoire. J’avoue que je ne me rappelais pas tous les détails de l’histoire mais j’ai adoré l’introduction que l’auteur nous rajoute en début d’histoire ! Oh oui, car cela nous permet de nous remettre en mémoire ce qu’il s’est passé auparavant et de remettre un peu son univers en place si on en avait oublié des parties. Ce n’est pas quelque chose que nous avons souvent dans les romans, mais je trouve ça fantastique de laisser l’opportunité au lecteur de se remémorer ce qu’il se passe.

Revenons-en un peu plus précisément à l’histoire… Nous retrouvons avec grand plaisir les personnages que nous avons découverts précédemment. Oui nous suivons Scherie, Endicott et Dale alternativement tout au long de leurs aventures, nous avons aussi d’ailleurs quelques parties pour notre méchant Roderick qui nous dévoile ses plans au cours des chapitres. Il faut dire que ce dernier est bien décidé à supprimer nos protagonistes. Alors que les trois essaient de le débusquer pour faire la même chose, ils vont devoir affronter un grand nombre d’épreuves. Chacun dans une partie du monde, Dale va devoir essayer de gérer les fantômes, Scherie doit faire face aux esprits qui la hantent et ainsi en comprendre un peu plus sur ses pouvoirs et enfin nous avons Endicott. C’était un plaisir d’en découvrir un peu plus à son sujet dans ce volume. Il rencontre ainsi une jeune femme et nous voyons leur relation évoluer par la même occasion.

C’était très intéressant de découvrir les actions de chacun, de voir comment ils allaient tous agir face aux démons qui les poursuivent. Le monde que Tom Doyle a créé est vraiment fascinant à découvrir et j’ai adoré le fait que nous découvrions tant d’endroits au cours de l’histoire. Oh oui, d’Istanbul à Tokyo, tout en passant par la Grèce, la France ou encore l’Ukraine et les Etats-Unis, nous avons un grand nombre de lieux et événements à découvrir. Dans ce roman, j’ai trouvé que nous nous concentrions un peu plus sur Endicott, c’était intéressant comme nous avions eu un peu plus l’occasion de voir Dale et Scherie auparavant. C’était aussi fascinant de comprendre Roderick et les plans qu’il essayait de mettre en scène.

Je ne vais pas en dire beaucoup plus de peur d’en révéler trop, mais je vous conseille cette série qui se lit avec plaisir.

4

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American Craftsmen by Tom Doyle
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Synopsis: In modern America, two soldiers will fight their way through the magical legacies of Poe and Hawthorne to destroy an undying evil—if they don’t kill each other first.

US Army Captain Dale Morton is a magician soldier—a “craftsman.” After a black-ops mission gone wrong, Dale is cursed by a Persian sorcerer and haunted by his good and evil ancestors. Major Michael Endicott, a Puritan craftsman, finds gruesome evidence that the evil Mortons, formerly led by the twins Roderick and Madeline, have returned, and that Dale might be one of them.
Dale uncovers treason in the Pentagon’s highest covert ranks. He hunts for his enemies before they can murder him and Scherie, a new friend who knows nothing of his magic.
Endicott pursues Dale, divided between his duty to capture a rogue soldier and his desire to protect Dale from his would-be assassins. They will discover that the demonic horrors that have corrupted American magic are not bound by family or even death itself.
In Tom Doyle’s thrilling debut, American Craftsmen, Seal Team Six meets ancient magic–with the fate of the United States hanging in the balance . . .

Review: I did not know anything about Tom Doyle or his novels, and it’s true that I usually avoid books that are more or less connected with the army, but the synopsis immediately intrigued me when I read it. I was therefore curious to see how the story would be. I must say that in the end I really had a good time with the novel.

Dale Morton went through many hardships in his life, and his last mission proved to be a total failure. Being cursed and hoping to leave the army, he finds himself with a large number of enemies at his heels. And while he did not know who wants him dead, he will have to embark on a quest to find the culprits. On his way he meets Scherie, a young woman out of the ordinary and who will be present for him in all circumstances. And it could also be that this woman turns out to be much more than what people thought, starting with Dale. As they try to survive together, an enemy approaches increasingly trying to eliminate all opposition.

The story of our two heroes was really interesting and I loved the author’s ideas about these Craftsmen, holding all these extraordinary gifts. The only thing that bothered me a bit is the sudden change of point of view for the characters. It was sometimes quite difficult to see the changes of people and to understand where we were heading. But this is just a detail and I enjoyed seeing all the characters. Dale and Scherie form a perfect duo together and they are desperate to complete their quest. They will also learn a lot about each other this way. But we also meet the ghosts of the Dale’s father and grandfather, two really interesting characters. It was very funny to see them together arguing constantly, and yet in the end, they may well be that they are surprised by the evolution of their relationship.

This novel was a nice surprise and perfectly combines magic, conspiracies and investigation. A surprise a little different from the books I usually read.

4

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American Craftsmen de Tom Doyle (VO)
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Résumé (traduction personnelle) : Dans une Amérique moderne, deux soldats se fraient un chemin à travers les héritages magiques de Poe et de Hawthorne pour détruire un éternel mal – s’ils ne s’entretuent pas en premier.

Dale Morton, capitaine dans l’US Army, est un soldat magicien – un “craftsman “. Après une mission black-ops qui a mal tourné, Dale est maudit par un sorcier persan et hanté par ses bons et mauvais ancêtres. Le major Michael Endicott, un craftsman puritain, trouve des preuves horribles que les mauvais Mortons, anciennement dirigés par le jumeaux Roderick et Madeline, sont revenus, et que Dale pourrait être l’un d’entre eux.
Dale découvre la trahison dans les rangs les plus élevés et secrets du Pentagone. Il chasse ses ennemis avant qu’ils ne puissent le tuer, lui et Scherie, une nouvelle amie qui ne sait rien de sa magie.
Endicott poursuit Dale, partagé entre son devoir de capturer un soldat rogue et son désir de protéger Dale de ses prétendus assassins. Ils découvriront que les horreurs démoniaques qui ont corrompu la magie américaine ne sont pas tenues par la famille ou même la mort.
Pour les débuts passionnant de Tom Doyle, American Craftsmen, Seal Team Six rencontre la magie ancienne – avec le sort des Etats-Unis dans la balance . . .

Avis : Je ne connaissais pas du tout Tom Doyle ou le roman, et c’est vrai que j’évite d’habitude les livres qui sont plus ou moins en rapport avec l’armée, mais le résumé m’a tout de suite intrigué quand je l’ai lu. Aussi j’étais curieuse de voir ce que l’histoire donnait réellement. Je dois dire qu’au final j’ai vraiment passé un bon moment avec le roman.

Dale Morton a traversé un grand nombre d’épreuves dans sa vie, et sa dernière mission s’est révélée être un échec total. Se retrouvant maudit et espérant quitter l’armée, il se retrouve avec un grand nombre d’ennemis à ses trousses. Et alors qu’il ne sait pas qui le veut mort, il va devoir se lancer dans une quête afin de trouver les coupables. Sur son chemin il va rencontrer Scherie, une jeune femme hors du commun et qui sera présente pour lui en toutes circonstances. Et il se pourrait d’ailleurs que cette femme se révèle être bien plus que ce que les gens pensaient, à commencer par Dale. Alors qu’ils essaient de survivre tous les deux, un ennemi se rapproche de plus en plus, essayant d’éliminer toute opposition.

L’histoire de notre héros était vraiment intéressante et j’ai beaucoup aimé les idées de l’auteur au sujet de ces Craftsmen, détenant tous des dons extraordinaires. La seule chose qui m’a un peu perturbé est le changement soudain de point de vue des personnages. C’était parfois assez difficile de voir les changements de personne et de comprendre vers qui on se dirigeait. Mais ce n’est qu’un détail et j’ai adoré découvrir tous les personnages. Dale et Scherie forment un parfait duo ensemble et sont prêts à tout pour achever leur quête. Ils en apprendront d’ailleurs beaucoup sur l’autre de cette façon. Mais nous rencontrons aussi les fantômes du père et du grand-père de Dale qui ne se supportent pas, mais alors pas du tout. C’était donc très drôle de les voir ensemble à se disputer constamment, et pourtant au final, il se pourrait bien qu’ils soient surpris par l’évolution de leurs rapports.

Ce roman était une jolie surprise et allie parfaitement magie, conspirations et investigation. Une bonne surprise qui change un peu des livres que j’ai l’occasion de lire.

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