Author Archives: niall

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the painted man

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The Painted Man (Demon Cycle #1) by Peter V Brett

From Goodreads:

As darkness falls after sunset, the corelings rise—demons who possess supernatural powers and burn with a consuming hatred of humanity. For hundreds of years the demons have terrorized the night, slowly culling the human herd that shelters behind magical wards—symbols of power whose origins are lost in myth and whose protection is terrifyingly fragile. It was not always this way. Once, men and women battled the corelings on equal terms, but those days are gone. Night by night the demons grow stronger, while human numbers dwindle under their relentless assault. Now, with hope for the future fading, three young survivors of vicious demon attacks will dare the impossible, stepping beyond the crumbling safety of the wards to risk everything in a desperate quest to regain the secrets of the past. Together, they will stand against the night.

My Rating: 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

This is my second time to read this book. The first was a couple of years ago but for some reason I didn’t go on to read the rest of the series. I don’t understand why as this is an excellent book and the best fantasy story I’ve read for quite a while.

There is a solid core of well defined main characters aided by interesting minor characters. Together they are used in a really good way to create the back story of the main characters and bring them together.

It’s a far from predictable story without being too shocking, just the right blend to keep the story believable but still interesting.

Looking forward now to reading the rest of the series.

metric century

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Turned up for the Club Sunday morning spin yesterday determined to keep my momentum going now that I’m back on the bike and back out with the Club again. Nearly shit a brick when they announced it was to be a 100km spin!

I did plan to do a 100km this month but not for another fortnight or so. I didn’t think I had the legs to complete the distance and definitely didn’t think I had the legs to stay with the group over that period of time. But, I did and I did!

It wasn’t all roses though. At times I was really struggling. Every hill I was fighting just to stay with the other guys and I drifted off the back a number of times and had to dig deep to catch up.

The route was a new one for me heading around by Lough Derg, Pettigo and Laghey returning home via Barnes Gap. It’s a road I’ve looked at a number of times but never actually cycled until yesterday. In fact I don’t think I’ve ever been in Pettigo before either.

Great route and a big personal milestone as I haven’t cycled 100km since November 2018.

click the image to view on strava
coffee stop in laghey

mind games

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This morning I went cycling with the Club. That’s a simple statement that covers (up?) a whole lot. Getting to that point was the result of a lot of small steps that took effort and not all from myself. It started with a phonecall earlier in the week from one of the other guys asking me to come back out again. It’s not the first time I’ve been asked and not the first time by this person but this week it came at the right time.

Then came the small steps from me, getting my bike back from service in Halfords, getting my gear ready, getting my lights and Garmin charged, setting my alarm, putting my bike in the car yesterday, filling my bottle, getting dressed and leaving the house. Every one a small step that involved overcoming a separate mental objection resulting in a very enjoyable Club spin.

I was very nervous this morning, full of doubts about my own fitness, my ability to cycle the distance and to stay with the group but also going back out with people I know. Friday I cycled with strangers and that was mentally a whole lot easier.

In the end I surprised myself on all counts. It wasn’t easy and I know the group weren’t pushing too hard but I hung in there, was able to stay with them, not get dropped (except on one climb), enjoyed myself and completed my longest cycle for 3 months.

click the image to view on strava

I’ve always been a quiet person socially and it’s only in recent years that I’ve taken up cycling and found a group that I enjoy and feel part of. Over the last 12-18 months I’ve become more reclusive again, especially over the last year to the extent that today was almost exactly 7 months since I’ve cycled with the Club.

One phonecall was the catalyst to change that. For a non-physical part of the body the mind has such a lot of control.

a traditional christmas

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With my change of job this year has come an unplanned bonus, traditional Xmas opening hours and therefore traditional Xmas holidays. We worked right up until Xmas Eve with an early dart home and have been closed for the last 3 days giving me my first Boxing Day off and at home for 7 years and, according to Facebook Memories only my second in the last 10 years!

It has been a nice, family orientated Xmas this year with the last minute addition of Mum and Dad and my brother for dinner on Xmas Day, visiting a lot of the rest of my family on Boxing Day in Mum and Dad’s and obviously having 3 days to spend with my own family.

As a bonus I even managed to get out on the bike for a couple of hours this morning. A spin organised by MTB Donegal in Barnes Gap which turned out to be really enjoyable and gave me a fitness confidence boost that I wasn’t expecting after at least 2 weeks of inactivity and crap eating culminating in the excess that is also a traditional Xmas!

click the image to view on strava

a discovery of witches

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All Souls Trilogy #1 by Deborah Harkness

From Goodreads:

Deep in the stacks of Oxford’s Bodleian Library, young scholar Diana Bishop unwittingly calls up a bewitched alchemical manuscript in the course of her research. Descended from an old and distinguished line of witches, Diana wants nothing to do with sorcery; so after a furtive glance and a few notes, she banishes the book to the stacks. But her discovery sets a fantastical underworld stirring, and a horde of daemons, witches, and vampires soon descends upon the library. Diana has stumbled upon a coveted treasure lost for centuries-and she is the only creature who can break its spell.

My Rating: 🌟🌟

Came across this author while browsing around Easons looking for inspiration for some new Science Fiction or Fantasy authors to read. The story looked sufficiently interesting to add to my list but I really wish I hadn’t bothered!

It’s a sloppy romantic novel with poor plot design and character creation, trying to be a fantasy novel with a gothic twist. I can only imagine that the author is a Twilight fan or is trying to cash in on the vampire genre.

There are a few good scenes scattered through the book that did give me hope that it would improve but barely enough to keep me there to the end and definitely not enough to make me want to read another one.

Disappointing as I think the author had a good and reasonably original idea, just very poorly executed.

keep on running

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I posted a couple of weeks ago about starting the None to Run program. Pleased to say I’m still at it and started Week 3 today.

Week 1 was fine but I had to do Week 2 twice as I only managed one run the first time before life intervened and knocked me off track. Restarted it last week and also felt able to add some extra time on R2 and 3 starting each of the 7 intervals 5sec early, adding on an extra 10sec and running 2min for the final interval.

I started W3 a day early today as I won’t be able to run during the week. It meant I was running for the 4th day in 7 and there are two additional intervals so I decided to stick with the plan. However, on the last interval I felt good and decided to run 2min once again 😊

This plan starts very easy and increases very slightly each week so it suits me really well. I had strong doubts I would make it this far and that I wasn’t built to run but so far so good. I haven’t been doing the strength training though which needs to change before the difficulty increases much further but I can already feel a significant change in the strength of my legs.

rosie finally learning how to pose for the camera

the retribution

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The Retribution (Carol Jordan and Tony Hill #7) by Val McDermid.

From Goodreads:

There is one serial killer who has shaped and defined police profiler Tony Hill’s life. One serial killer whose evil surpasses all others. One serial killer who has the power to chill him to the bone: Jacko Vance. And now Jacko is back in Tony’s life – even more twisted and cunning than ever before.

My Rating: 🌟 🌟 🌟

This book had a lot of potential. Carol and Tony are moving their lives to a new chapter and moving closer to a proper relationship, Jacko Vance breaks out of prison and there is another sicko serial killer on the loose. Somehow, however, the author manages none of the story lines particularly well.

Everything about this book is grand but it’s far from great. The twin stories of the new killer and Jacko’s revenge spree were very underdeveloped and really should have been two separate books while the ending was shockingly sudden and verging on ridiculous with Jacko. Both stories felt like the author ran out of time, especially with the new killer. This story just finished very abruptly. Add in the complete overreaction by Carol towards Tony and the overall story left a bad taste.

The saving grace of this book is the development of the secondary characters, especially Paula and Stacey. The second story line allowed for this but I really would have preferred to see this happen in a separate book.

It’s a step in the series and worth reading but the next instalment needs to be much better to rescue the series.

the immortal throne

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The Immortal Throne (City #2) by Stella Gemmell

From Goodreads:

No one is safe, and no one is to be trusted as the bloody war that began in Stella Gemmell’s The City continues…

The dreaded emperor is dead. The successor to the throne is his nemesis, Archange. Many hope her reign will usher in a new era of freedom and stability. Soon however, word arises of a massive army gathering in the shadows of the north. They are eager to lay waste to the City and annihilate anyone—man, woman, or child—within it.

Yet just as the swords clang in fields wet with the blood of warriors, family feuds, ancient rivalries, and political battles rage on within the cold stone walls of the City. A hero must rise up and restore the peace before anything left to fight for is consumed by the madness.

My Rating: 🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟

This is a true epic fantasy story. I read the first book (The City) a while ago and had forgotten a lot of the detail of the story so it took me a while to get into it. Like other reviewers the first section was a bit confusing as it goes back in the timeline of the first book and tells the ending from a different perspective. Many of the smaller characters from the first book reappear in this one in a starring role with major characters from the first taking a bit of a step back.

Once the timeline catches up the story really hits its stride. This is only Stella Gemmel’s second solo novel but it’s obvious that she worked closely with her husband David on his books. Her character creation and scene depiction is brilliant and combined with great storytelling makes this a very enjoyable read. I really did enjoy it and while I liked how it ended I was disappointed that it did!

I think my favourite aspect of the story is how she created many small connections between characters and then brought them together, sometimes more than once, to build towards something bigger and of more significance. There’s also no single standalone central character. There are a minimum of 4 or 5 that the story builds around and all of them are equally important. She also doesn’t mind killing off the odd character either!

I really hope that Stella Gemmel writes more books and if she does I hope they are as good as this one.

n2r w1r2

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Week 1 Run 2

click the image to view on strava

After the excitement of R1 tonight was more of a reality check. R1 was a well rested Sunday morning while today was in the dark after 2 busy days at work averaging 10k steps each day and a row/cross trainer session in the gym yesterday evening.

I felt slow and awkward on the running intervals but in hindsight the trails in Monellan are too rough for comfort in the dark and wearing trainers. They’re great in hiking boots and walking the dog, even in the dark, but not for running. As my runs will be mostly in the evening and therefore in the dark I need to pick another location but I have one in mind.

I also felt very flat footed and heavy this evening which is why I previously gave up on C25K after the first couple of runs. I’m not sure if I’m being hyper sensitive to my gait, if it was the trail and the dark that was throwing me off or if my gait is that bad? Sitting on the sofa now there’s some tenderness in my shins but no pain. Running was the same.

After all that negativity I did enjoy it, especially the better sections of the trail and I did do three 40/45 second intervals. I was tempted to do an extra one or two but I managed to keep control of the enthusiasm to avoid injury and stuck with the plan.

Walked about 1km extra back to the start in about 10min but have decided to only record the actual N2R workouts so I can monitor progress properly.

none to run

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I’ve been cycling for almost 7 years now and I’ve always enjoyed hiking and walking but I’ve never been a runner! Up to now this image has described me perfectly:

I’ve tried running a few times but it was always a case of too much, too soon due to lack of understanding how to start running. I’ve tried Couch25K a couple of times but gave up after a couple of runs due to lack of motivation. I also have a really bad running style that combined with a poor training strategy has resulted in a tendency towards shin splints.

I was researching C25K again last week and came across NoneToRun (N2R) which is for pure beginners. C25K is distance based with the ultimate aim of running 5km at the end of 9 weeks. N2R is time based with the aim of running 25min non-stop at the end of 12 weeks. It’s also walk/run based but incorporates some basic strength training to build endurance and avoid injury. It also has a very active and very supportive Facebook Group.

I had planned to cycle this morning but was suffering from a complete lack of motivation to get on the bike. Eventually I was that pissed off I decided to give N2R Week 1 a go 😱

To make things that bit easier I decided to go to Monellan Woods so I could run on the trails. I know Monellan well from walking the dog and MTBing and figured it would be less public and easier on the joints as well as a more enjoyable environment.

The first couple of run/walk intervals felt quite easy but I could feel the effects increasing towards the end. I did feel pretty comfortable throughout and could see the temptation to do more but stuck to the plan.

click the photo to see on strava

I ended up at 35min as my 25min finished and I was still 10min from the car but left the watch recording to the end.

I did have a few niggles with my shins but nothing bad so hopefully that doesn’t get any worse and with time my legs will get stronger and my gait and form will improve so that I avoid injury.

I had Rosie with me for company. She loves Monellan but her reaction to my running sections was so funny. Totally confused and over excited the first couple of times. Only issue was having to stop twice to put her on the lead when we met other walkers. If I go early or later in the evening then I won’t have that issue.

rosie doesn’t really get selfies 🤣