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The Strange Task Before Me: Being an Excerpt from the Journal of William J. Upton by Sean Gibson
some_okie_dude27's review
(EDITED REVIEW)
Though I wasn't as taken with this as I was with the full length Camelot Shadow novel, I still find this installment to be a solid and enjoyable interlude into the fine work that is Camelot Shadow.
catchme_ridingnerdy's review
5.0
This is the kind of writing I love! I’m usually a bit weary of books written in journal format, but this worked amazingly and it did not take away from the plot at all.
I loved the main character. At first I found him quite full of himself and then I realized that it totally worked for his personality. Upton is witty, funny, and clever (which means Mr. Gibson must be someone fun to hang out with over some gin).
This is good fiction. A captivating main character, an interesting plot (who was the client, magic?! what happened?!), and seedy/mysterious side characters.
I will be starting the series this novella is a prequel for because, well, I have to know what happens!
I loved the main character. At first I found him quite full of himself and then I realized that it totally worked for his personality. Upton is witty, funny, and clever (which means Mr. Gibson must be someone fun to hang out with over some gin).
This is good fiction. A captivating main character, an interesting plot (who was the client, magic?! what happened?!), and seedy/mysterious side characters.
I will be starting the series this novella is a prequel for because, well, I have to know what happens!
acton's review
5.0
A hearty thank you to Sean Gibson for sharing this captivating prequel to The Camelot Shadow...I enjoyed it immensely. Upton is a most comical, witty rake of a bookseller. In this case, William Upton, rare book seller, manages to find himself dealing in covert, dangerous stuff.
Baron Harold Frederickson is an intriguing recluse of a character, well drawn as both creepy and somehow appealing. He is a curiosity that the reader looks forward to learning more about. This is exceedingly well-done.
Gibson's writing style is smart, funny, and charming and I would recommend this to anyone. Hopefully, one does not need to borrow a hooded lantern and prowl around in the dark to unearth a copy.
Baron Harold Frederickson is an intriguing recluse of a character, well drawn as both creepy and somehow appealing. He is a curiosity that the reader looks forward to learning more about. This is exceedingly well-done.
Gibson's writing style is smart, funny, and charming and I would recommend this to anyone. Hopefully, one does not need to borrow a hooded lantern and prowl around in the dark to unearth a copy.
mistled's review
5.0
Good lord, I want more of that. That ending though.
I got towards the end of this and honestly thought, "Well, he's wrapped things up... how are there still a few pages to go?" And then...
But I'm getting ahead of myself.
The Strange Task Before Me is a novelette about a bookseller who has been given the seemingly impossible task of tracking down an exceptionally rare tome in just a few scant days or suffer the unspoken consequences. The entire thing is told as a series of entries from the diary of William Upton, the aforementioned bookseller. I know a few of you are wary of the journal entry format, but don't let it worry you. With the whole of events taking place over a very short time period, William's diary doesn't have time to get sidetracked into nonsense, and William (Sean) is enough of a writer to not make the common mistake of leading us to think "yeah, this is fine, but would be so much better in person."
The formatting quickly takes a backseat to the characters and the general sense of "I want to know all the things about all of this."
We have the mysterious client, who is seemingly overpaying for a tome that no one really wants to talk about.
The book itself, which may be powerful... or not... but certainly makes us speculate as to what other powerful books could exist and what groups may want them and why.
The possibly insane and probably violent Baron whom we better see more of in a future story... look, I couldn't figure out what gif to use for the Baron, so have this unicorn instead.
Oh, did I forget to mention that unicorns are real? I mean, probably. It's difficult to say, but magic is real, if hidden and mostly unknown, in the world of Camelot Shadow, so I'm leaning towards 'yep'.
Which leads us to the elephant in the room. This is a prequel of [b:The Camelot Shadow|24020362|The Camelot Shadow (Camelot Shadow #1)|Sean Gibson|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1439188786s/24020362.jpg|43082272], so you may be worried that you need to be familiar with that novel before reading this one. Absolutely not. While you should read The Camelot Shadow because it's really good, this story stands on its own. They share a main character, but they are set decades apart, so don't worry about which one you read first. Just read them both.
For full disclosure, the author sent me a free epub of this. And for fuller disclosure, I pre-ordered a copy on Amazon after reading it, because we should support good writing. Also, it's a dollar at the moment (always?), so it's not exactly breaking the bank. And it's on Kindle Unlimited if you have that. Look, I just want you to read good fiction, and this is certainly that.
I got towards the end of this and honestly thought, "Well, he's wrapped things up... how are there still a few pages to go?" And then...
But I'm getting ahead of myself.
The Strange Task Before Me is a novelette about a bookseller who has been given the seemingly impossible task of tracking down an exceptionally rare tome in just a few scant days or suffer the unspoken consequences. The entire thing is told as a series of entries from the diary of William Upton, the aforementioned bookseller. I know a few of you are wary of the journal entry format, but don't let it worry you. With the whole of events taking place over a very short time period, William's diary doesn't have time to get sidetracked into nonsense, and William (Sean) is enough of a writer to not make the common mistake of leading us to think "yeah, this is fine, but would be so much better in person."
The formatting quickly takes a backseat to the characters and the general sense of "I want to know all the things about all of this."
We have the mysterious client, who is seemingly overpaying for a tome that no one really wants to talk about.
The book itself, which may be powerful... or not... but certainly makes us speculate as to what other powerful books could exist and what groups may want them and why.
The possibly insane and probably violent Baron whom we better see more of in a future story... look, I couldn't figure out what gif to use for the Baron, so have this unicorn instead.
Oh, did I forget to mention that unicorns are real? I mean, probably. It's difficult to say, but magic is real, if hidden and mostly unknown, in the world of Camelot Shadow, so I'm leaning towards 'yep'.
Which leads us to the elephant in the room. This is a prequel of [b:The Camelot Shadow|24020362|The Camelot Shadow (Camelot Shadow #1)|Sean Gibson|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1439188786s/24020362.jpg|43082272], so you may be worried that you need to be familiar with that novel before reading this one. Absolutely not. While you should read The Camelot Shadow because it's really good, this story stands on its own. They share a main character, but they are set decades apart, so don't worry about which one you read first. Just read them both.
For full disclosure, the author sent me a free epub of this. And for fuller disclosure, I pre-ordered a copy on Amazon after reading it, because we should support good writing. Also, it's a dollar at the moment (always?), so it's not exactly breaking the bank. And it's on Kindle Unlimited if you have that. Look, I just want you to read good fiction, and this is certainly that.
gingerbookaddict's review
4.0
This was a super fun installment for the growing Camelot Shadow series.
All Will all the time!
This one picks up with the action right away.
A mysterious man looking for a mysterious book offering bucks!
Will signs up no questions asked!
William is quickly becoming a new favorite character of mine. He has mad skillz! Tripping over stuff in the dark *check*, appreciation for the finer things *check*, the ability to jump into adventure with both feet *check*, all the while finding new and impressive ways to insult the wrong person!
This was a super fun quick read.
I look forward to more adventures!
*** pre read****
The author gifted me with his new book before it hits the eshelves!
I read the first in this series [b:The Camelot Shadow|24020362|The Camelot Shadow (Camelot Shadow #1)|Sean Gibson|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1439188786s/24020362.jpg|43082272]
and Boom! I have a review for it too!
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1266669719?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1
All Will all the time!
This one picks up with the action right away.
A mysterious man looking for a mysterious book offering bucks!
Will signs up no questions asked!
William is quickly becoming a new favorite character of mine. He has mad skillz! Tripping over stuff in the dark *check*, appreciation for the finer things *check*, the ability to jump into adventure with both feet *check*, all the while finding new and impressive ways to insult the wrong person!
This was a super fun quick read.
I look forward to more adventures!
*** pre read****
The author gifted me with his new book before it hits the eshelves!
I read the first in this series [b:The Camelot Shadow|24020362|The Camelot Shadow (Camelot Shadow #1)|Sean Gibson|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1439188786s/24020362.jpg|43082272]
and Boom! I have a review for it too!
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1266669719?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1
trish204's review
4.0
This is the prequel to The Camelot Shadow, kindly and generously provided by the author (no, knowing the author does not influence my rating).
The story presented here takes place quite some time before the adventures of the novel and the events are recounted through William Upton's diary. William Upton is a bookseller in London and quite a quirky character. Apart from an enormous love for scotch and the opposite sex, he's also willing to go to quite some lengths to procure whatever book a client desires (for the right price).
However, the job he has to complete here, and in only 4 days as well, is more than he could have initially suspected. Thus, we are not only treated to an intimate look into Will's world, in fact a glance into his very mind, but also hurdle along with him on a small but significant treasure hunt through a very atmospheric London (and some surrounding areas) until we get a very nice twist at the end.
The story told here is light and very funny, but also mysterious and thrilling and I very much enjoyed Will's enigmatic and unique point of view.
The story presented here takes place quite some time before the adventures of the novel and the events are recounted through William Upton's diary. William Upton is a bookseller in London and quite a quirky character. Apart from an enormous love for scotch and the opposite sex, he's also willing to go to quite some lengths to procure whatever book a client desires (for the right price).
However, the job he has to complete here, and in only 4 days as well, is more than he could have initially suspected. Thus, we are not only treated to an intimate look into Will's world, in fact a glance into his very mind, but also hurdle along with him on a small but significant treasure hunt through a very atmospheric London (and some surrounding areas) until we get a very nice twist at the end.
The story told here is light and very funny, but also mysterious and thrilling and I very much enjoyed Will's enigmatic and unique point of view.
mudder17's review
5.0
4.5 stars
I wasn't sure if I would like this as much as the first book (although this is a prequel), especially because I'm not usually a fan of the journal format for a book. But this is a really fun short story and the format totally works for it. Mr. Gibson's trademark verbosity is very much alive in this one and it had me cracking up even when it wasn't supposed to be funny. Although there were plenty of places where it was supposed to be funny and I did actually laugh (even though I'm in the library and supposed to be quiet). This was an easy story to be read in one sitting (see, Sean, I told you I had to wait until I had time to sit and read it because I wouldn't be able to stop once I started) and naturally it leaves me wanting more, damn you, Sean!
While I don't think you have to read The Camelot Shadow first, I think it definitely adds to the story to have knowledge of that world. Thank you for an entertaining read, Mr. Gibson! Now get to writing! ;-)
I wasn't sure if I would like this as much as the first book (although this is a prequel), especially because I'm not usually a fan of the journal format for a book. But this is a really fun short story and the format totally works for it. Mr. Gibson's trademark verbosity is very much alive in this one and it had me cracking up even when it wasn't supposed to be funny. Although there were plenty of places where it was supposed to be funny and I did actually laugh (even though I'm in the library and supposed to be quiet). This was an easy story to be read in one sitting (see, Sean, I told you I had to wait until I had time to sit and read it because I wouldn't be able to stop once I started) and naturally it leaves me wanting more, damn you, Sean!
While I don't think you have to read The Camelot Shadow first, I think it definitely adds to the story to have knowledge of that world. Thank you for an entertaining read, Mr. Gibson! Now get to writing! ;-)
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