Much as I love my kobo, I spent a few hours today picking out some new reading material - REAL BOOKS!

I managed to find a Charlaine Harris title that so far I've only read on my e-reader and I picked up half a dozen Darren Shan books from his 'Demonology' series.  I loved his Saga of Darren Shan so buying this set of books was a no-brainer for me and I daresay a full review of each will follow as soon as I have time to catch up!  Having worked a little on fairy tales at college this past month, I found a very interesting book by one of my favourite authors, James Herbert.  Once...

The dust cover fly leaf gives away a small promise of the book's plot and it appears to be steeped in fairy lore, with all the goodness and charm of fairy tales, but there's a darker edge to this particular story and I haven't even scratched the surface of it yet.  I know, they say 'Don't judge a book by  its cover!' and I'm afraid I did just that!  Do you think I can be forgiven - this Once...?

I'm only a few pages in, and it appears the protagonist of the tale, Thom Kindred, has survived a stroke and subsequent car crash that might well have killed him.  Although his recuperation is slow, doctors have released him from hospital and he is heading back to the home of his childhood; Castle Bracken.

The dust cover is black, with an embossed pattern on it, representing billowing brambles which dwarf the building in the bottom left corner.  Also visible is a fox or jackal, together with a raven and some fairy folk.  The back page reads, 'A scary Tale of Faerefolkis & Evildoers, of Lovers & Erotic Passion, of Horror & Belief.  Written only for Adults.'  

I have already noticed a subtle link with another book already in my collection: Faerie Tale by Raymond E. Feist; which is a tale about a young boy who gets snatched away by the evil powers of faerie for nefarious purposes and his twin sets out to win his brother back.  The tale is filled with faerie folk and has links to demons, which links us back again to the Darren Shan books I mentioned earlier.  For those who are interested in books by Laurell K. Hamilton, I will warn you, the Merry Gentry series this particular tale is not!  It's harsh reading at times, although not overly graphic if memory serves me well (I dare say it's another one I will be picking up again in a few weeks - if only to compare with Once...)  The book tends to dwell on the evil side of faerie which is dark and somewhat frightening.

I cannot wait to make a proper start on Once... but I have some coursework beckoning and I need to do some more research for two presentations I have to give next month.  I have approached my favourite author for assistance with this, but have not had an answer as yet - I will keep trying.  What I would give for just a few more hours in the day, or perhaps a little pixie dust...