Tuesday 4 September 2012

Darren Humphries - The Man from U.N.D.E.A.D.

This is a series of rather funny novels featuring Agent Ward - the Man from U.N.D.E.A.D.  He occupies a parallel, slightly futuristic world in which we, the general public, are guarded from the knowledge and effects of magic, demons, dragons and more.

The Man from U.N.D.E.A.D. Book 1 - the Curious Case of the Kidnapped Chemist

Link to Amazon.com  The Man from U.N.D.E.A.D. Book 1: The Curious Case of the Kidnapped Chemist

My review -

This is an action packed adventure in a world which is shot through with magic, alien creatures and mythological beings from which we are protected by an agency - U.N.D.E.A.D. The story is narrated by Ward, a likeable and self-deprecating agent and the plot is full of twists and turns. It's an exciting and fast moving story and full of humour. It's not the belly laugh, slapstick type but is clever and subtle, using word-play and wonderful, memorable phrases, the sort of humour I much prefer. I am relatively new to Darren Humphries' work and he grows on me with each book. I was delighted to find, at the end of this, that there's a sequel. I now understand there is a whole series planned - Bring it on!

The Man from U.N.D.E.A.D. 2 - Zombie Apocalypse Now

Link to Amazon.com  The Man from U.N.D.E.A.D. 2: Zombie Apocalypse Now

My review -

As a self confessed non-zombie fan, I wonder why I am reading, let alone reviewing, this book. It's because it's the second in the U.N.D.E.A.D series and because it's written by Darren Humphries.
In the first in this series we are introduced to the hero, Agent Ward. He is a clever, daring and very likable character and any book starring him will have me reading it.

We find ourselves in a world infested at regular intervals by aliens, supernatural beings, mythological creatures and magic, from which the public are protected by the Agents from U.N.D.E.A.D. Here we continue to follow Ward as he takes his new and surprising sidekick on a chase across the globe to find out who is re-animating corpses and why.

As always, the author uses clever word-play and very funny descriptions that light up the often ludicrous situations in which our hero finds himself. I love Darren Humphries' style of writing and I'm so pleased that there are to be more in this series, especially in view of the new working partnership we discover at the end of this book.

The Man from U.N.D.E.A.D. Book 3 - Do Dragons Dream of Burning Sheep?

Amazon.com  The Man from U.N.D.E.A.D. 3: Do Dragons Dream of Burning Sheep?

My review -

I received a preview copy of the third book in this fantasy series which is really taking off now. I enjoyed the first, I really enjoyed the second and I'm thrilled to bits with the third. I think some of this is from knowing and loving Agent Ward. He is one of those characters in a book that you really warm to and I can only bear finishing one of these UNDEAD stories because I know I'll be meeting him again in the next. He is very good at his job but that involves causing chaos. He is daring, brave, but admits that he is often scared to death. He's aware of his failings but very likeable with it. In this volume he deals with a dragon, one of the deadliest beasts there is (apart from his Boss). Incidentally, I notice that if you have missed out on this series till now, you can buy the whole trilogy in one volume and catch up at your leisure (but I hope the author won't stop at three).

The beauty of these books for me is the warmth and wit of Darren Humphries' writing. He is funny without being crass and I enjoy his work immensely. There's always plenty of action in these stories and they are crisply told. If Agent Ward comes to his own personal Reichenbach Falls I shall be gutted!

You can now buy the Trilogy - The Man from U.N.D.E.A.D. Trilogy
Amazon.com  The Man from U.N.D.E.A.D. Trilogy

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