John Samson – appreciation

John Samson

One of the reasons TSL came into being was to publish John’s writing following our discovery of how subjective the world of publishing is. That journey is a long story, not for here.
As John is one of TSL’s two directors, it makes passing any comment on his writing difficult as there’s an assumption that naturally I will say positive things about it.
Not all of what John writes is my kind of book. The Good Vicar by his alter ego RJ Whitfield and Cold Fiction (short stories) are two such publications. However, as written elsewhere, they grew on me showing how complex John’s writing is. They say the sign of a good book is thar it teveals something new every read. If that’s the case, then John has written a few good books. My favourite is his first – Powerless, a moving encounter set in a stalled lift during a power outage. Reading Lady Chatterley in Africa is quite different in tone but a similar theme. In contrast to the style of Reading Lady Chatterley, Shaka are Dead is written in a colloquial style – best start it aloud until you get the flow. The Fall of the Romance Empire brings John’s wit and love of puns to the fore.
And in a brave move, he’s written a World War 1 novel set in Africa. Dancing with the Monkeys was a surprising read – gaining a special place in my novels of the campaign. He’s learnt something from all my ramblings over the years. The war plays an important role in the story but it is not a war book.
There’s another book on its way – as with all the others, I won’t know more about it other than the title until it appears in my inbox…