Beast by Matt Wesolowski #Review #Giveaway

I am delighted to be on the Orenda Blog Tour to celebrate the launch of Matt Wesolowski's latest Six Stories Episode, Beast. I have reviewed the first three in the series and you can read my reviews here: Six Stories  |  Hydra  |  Changeling

I also have the opportunity to offer a giveaway of one print copy of Beast to one lucky winner. Details on how to enter are at the foot of this post (Worldwide)

Continuing the unique, explosive Six Stories series, based around six podcasts comes a compulsive, taut and terrifying thriller, and a bleak and distressing look at modern society’s desperation for attention. Beast will unveil a darkness from which you may never return…

 

In the wake of the ‘Beast from the East’ cold snap that ravaged the UK in 2018, a grisly discovery was made in a ruin on the Northumbrian coast. Twenty-four-year-old vlogger, Elizabeth Barton, had been barricaded inside what locals refer to as ‘The Vampire Tower’, where she was later found frozen to death.

Three young men, part of an alleged cult, were convicted of this terrible crime, which they described as a ‘prank gone wrong’. However, in the small town of Ergarth, questions have been raised about the nature of Elizabeth Barton’s death and whether the three convicted youths were even responsible.

Elusive online journalist Scott King speaks to six witnesses – people who knew both the victim and the three killers – to peer beneath the surface of the case. He uncovers whispers of a shocking online craze that held the young of Ergarth in its thrall and drove them to escalate a series of pranks in the name of internet fame. He hears of an abattoir on the edge of town, which held more than simple slaughter behind its walls, and the tragic and chilling legend of the Ergarth Vampire… 

                                                                                     My Thoughts

 The fourth in this Six Stories series does not disappoint. The re-telling of a cold case through six podcasts is such a satisfying format which gives you a 360 degree look at events slowly, witness by witness. There is an element of horror in Beast with hints of vampires and a clever twist on this subject. How could vampires be interpreted in this modern, social media world we live in?

    This is a look at a local folklore which has sprung up around a local landmark and the tale of the Ergath Vampire. It is threatening and isolated, and the mystery of what led to Elizabeth's death is full of the question, what if...? The story chills and menaces in equal measure and leads the reader into a terrifying world. Full of atmosphere and with a strong sense of place, this is a haunting and contemporary look at horrors lurking just out of sight- or are they?

In short: Read if you dare...

                                                                              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- an US-based anthologies such as Midnight Movie Creature, 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. A prequel, Hydra, was published in 2018 and became an international bestseller.

 

You can follow Matt here  Twitter, |  Facebook|   Goodreads 

 

Book link: Amazon UK

 

Thanks to Karen Sullivan, Anne Cater and Orenda Books for a copy of the book and a place on the Blog Tour!

Giveaway (Worldwide)

 

To win a print copy of Beast, just Follow and Retweet the pinned Tweet at @bookslifethings and good luck!

 Closing Date is 16th February 2020 and there is one winner.

*Terms and Conditions –Worldwide.  The winner will be selected at random via Tweetdraw from all valid entries and will be notified by Twitter and/or email. If no response is received within 7 days then I reserve the right to select an alternative winner. Open to all entrants aged 18 or over.  Any personal data given as part of the competition entry is used for this purpose only and will not be shared with third parties, with the exception of the winners’ information. This will passed to the giveaway organiser and used only for fulfilment of the prize. I am not responsible for despatch or delivery of the prize.