Interview at Self-Publishing Review

There’s a new interview with me up at Self-Publishing Review. Here’s a brief excerpt:

MR: The cover blurb of Chion poses a question – “How will you survive?”. By the end, I think that most readers will have asked themselves this question, because in Chion, there are no easy answers. Once the full effect of the disaster becomes apparent, survival depends on the result of some agonising decisions.

DS: I’m always fascinated by the grey areas of life, where our notions of right and wrong are put to the test and we face challenges and where there aren’t any easy answers.

MR: Do you think that you would make a good survivor in a post apocalyptic scenario?

DS: I think I would. First, it’s a big help if you’ve watched everything by Ray Mears! But more than that, you’ve got to have the sort of mind that can remain calm in a crisis and can see the big picture rather than just the danger right in front of you – to ask yourself not only where the next meal is going to come from, but how we’ll sustain ourselves indefinitely.

This was a big theme in Chion. Even the larger food supplies that everyone was clamouring over were merely postponing the inevitable. Most people were prepared to live in denial of what was coming, as long as they could see the next meal, when the real solution lay in facing up to the scale of the crisis and thinking outside the box.

[ Read Full Interview ]

Chion reviewed at Books For Youth

Another great unsolicited review of Chion has cropped up, at a site called Books For Youth. Here’s an excerpt:

This story makes many ‘traditionally published’ books I’ve read pale in comparison … It’s an original story idea – which seems to be hard to find now-a-days–and has a good underlining message … This story is filled with a constant moral dilemma: how far do you go to save those you care about?

[ Read Full Review ]

Chion reviewed at Self-Publishing Review

Chion has clocked up yet another excellent review, this time at Self-Publishing Review. Here’s an excerpt:

The book is a similar high-concept apocalypse similar to M. Night Shyamalan’s “The Happening” or “The Mist” based on a Stephen King story. Except where those movies fail – and fail deeply, as “The Mist” has one of the most distressing and frustrating endings in movie history – Chion succeeds. Perhaps movies are the best comparison for Chion because the book is seriously cinematic – one of those books where you forget you’re reading.

[ Read Full Review ]

Two Irish sci-fi authors chat

This month, Chion is being toured by the Christian Fiction Review Blog. In short, that means that reviews of the book and interviews with me will be posted by participating members of the blog (see below). It’s mostly an American-based affair, but I had a nice surprise when one of the reviewers, a New Zealander called Grace Bridges, turned out to be currently living near Dublin, Ireland, not that far (on a global scale) from me. In a strange coincidence, I happened to be reading her own novel, Faith Awakened, at the time. Spooky.

Instead of doing a typical email interview, we decided to meet up and do a proper in-person audio interview. And it’s not just an interview with me about my book. I decided to make it a double interview, where we’re both asking the questions. Here it is.

Download interview: [ Part 1 ] [ Part 2 ] [ Part 3 ] [ Part 4 ]

CFR Blog interviews with Darryl Sloan, conducted by:

• Grace Bridges, author of Faith Awakened (Introduction)
• Grace Bridges, author of Faith Awakened (Part 1)
• Grace Bridges, author of Faith Awakened (Part 2)
• Grace Bridges, author of Faith Awakened (Part 3)
• Grace Bridges, author of Faith Awakened (Part 4)
• Cathi Hassan
• David Brollier, author of The 3rd Covenant

CFR Blog reviews of Chion, written by:

• Grace Bridges, author of Faith Awakened
• David Brollier, author of The 3rd Covenant (Part 1)
• David Brollier, author of The 3rd Covenant (Part 2)
• David Brollier, author of The 3rd Covenant (Part 3)
• David Brollier, author of The 3rd Covenant (Part 4)
• David Brollier, author of The 3rd Covenant (Part 5)
• David Brollier, author of The 3rd Covenant (Part 6)
• Caprice Hokstad, fantasy novelist
• Melissa @ Bibliophile’s Retreat
• Cathi Hassan
• David Brollier @ Christian Mystery Writers
• Steve @ Back to the Mountains
• Laura Davis, Christian author

Mrs. Giggles rates Chion 95/100

Romance fiction reviewer Mrs. Giggles has just posted a terrific review of Chion on her site. What’s an apocalyptic sci-fi thriller doing on a romance site? Well, my bleak and harrowing novel does have its tender moments. Here’s my favourite snippet from the review:

The main characters of Chion are teenagers and I can easily imagine that some people would view this book as one aimed at young adults, but there is nothing dumbed-down or kiddie-like about this story. Some of the scenes here are not for the faint of heart though. Not that they are violent or gruesome, but because they drive home the evil men can do in situations such as this one. A teacher is driven to insist that the students starve so that the teachers can eat, for example. There are more disturbing scenes here, but I’ll let the reader discover them for herself.

[ Read Full Review ]

“A story that you simply mustn’t miss” – Jeffrey Allen Davis on Chion

Independent Christian fiction writer Jeffrey Allen Davis has just posted a review of Chion on his blog. Jeff’s review is a bit different from the others, as he made a couple of unique observations:

The book does set up some disturbing images. It shows how a major disaster like this would affect society. We see people killing one another over food. We see a man murdered in front of his small children. We see a child held at gunpoint by a teacher who has decided that “survival of the fittest” means that the teachers should live and the students should starve. Sloan didn’t put these things in for shock value. Indeed, the bloodshed is not detailed very much at all. This is not a boiled-down thriller. We see a sense of realism that shows that even our society’s innocents would be harmed in these events.

With a bittersweet ending, this is a story that you simply mustn’t miss.

[ Read Full Review ]

POD People rates Chion 9/10

Chion has just received its sixth review, this time by novelist Emily Veinglory at POD People. She rated the novel 9 out of 10 and said:

I read a lot of mediocre books, but this wasn’t one of them. Seamless, engaging and appealing … Chion is effortless to read and the story unfolds strong until an ending that is perhaps too pat in some ways but still manages something of a clever twist.

[ Link ]

“Best book I’ve read this year” – Will Hadcroft on Chion

Fellow author Will Hadcroft (Anne Droyd and Century Lodge and The Feeling’s Unmutual) has posted a review of Chion on his blog. Here’s an excerpt:

What starts out as a science-fiction thriller, becomes, by turns, a tale about a group of increasingly paranoid and frightened people stuck in an enclosed place, an adventure about fugitives on the run, and a love story.

Shades of John Wyndham (The Day of the Triffids) and John Christopher (the Tripods saga) come through as Chion mimics the best of the old post-apocalyptic greats, while at the same time remaining poignant and contemporary.

Darryl Sloan is a keen observer of human nature. His plotting is meticulous and clever. He deserves to have national and international success with this. It is the best book I’ve read this year.

[ Read Full Review ]

Chion is Book of the Month at The PODler

I had a look around the various POD book review blogs recently and was delighted to discover that Chion has been selected as April’s Book of the Month at The PODler. There was stiff competition that month, with two other book rated “A” and “A+”.

[ Link ]

Chion highly rated at Critical Mick

My novel Chion has acquired yet another great review, this time at book review site Critical Mick.

In a welcome relief from the vast majority of sci-fi, Darryl Sloan has built his novel on a truly original notion … It’s gripping stuff, never dipping into the typical end-of-the-world clichés … Ranking right up there with Lucifer’s Hammer [by Larry Niven & Jerry Pournelle].

[ Read Full Review ]

Big interview on The Writing Show

I’ve been looking forward to sharing this one with you. Mick Halpin of The Writing Show podcast recently travelled up from Dublin to Portadown to interview me. We had a wonderful, relaxed discussion, where I talked about childhood horrors, my fascination with end-of-the-world fiction, my maverick self-publishing strategies, my filmmaking endeavours, and numerous other topics. The download is a hefty 27 Mb MP3 file, translating to 49 mins of audio. Mick has also put online a full transcript of the interview, featuring numerous photos and links to all the various things we talked about (also featuring a bonus “unruly review” of Zombie Genocide).

[ Download Interview ] [ Show Notes ] [ Transcript ]

PODlings rates Chion HOT!

Press is coming in thick and fast at the moment. Hot on the heels of the last glowing review comes another; this time it’s at PODlings:

Chion has to be one of the most unique thrillers I’ve ever read. I mean, how many thrillers will there be that rehash, dinosaurs, sharks, killer viruses, aliens or rampaging beasts? Well, never fear, because Mr. Sloan has made a monster out of pristine white snow, of all things, and this story will grab you and hold you just as fast as the fluffy flakes themselves! … On every level, it delivers right up to the end.

PODlings also kindly invited me for interview.

[ Read Review ] [ Read Interview ]

Interview on The PODler

The PODler, a book review blog that recently rated my novel Chion A+, got in touch to do an interview with me. It’s online now.

[ Read Interview ]

Interview on Taste, NewsTalk FM

On Saturday evening I took part in a panel discussion on Irish radio programme Taste, broadcast on NewsTalk 106-108 FM. The channel is difficult to pick up here in the North, but the wonders of internet streaming technology meant that I could record it online. I’ve cut a large section out of the middle of the discussion, because it comprises the two in-studio guys talking at length on ebooks. Most importantly, I got to plug my book and provide a few insights into my self-publishing experience.

(The big interview on The Writing Show is due to go online on 23 April.)

[ Download Interview ]

Chion rated A+ at The PODler

I’ve just submitted Chion to several review blogs dedicated exclusively to print-on-demand books. The first review is in, from The PODler, and what a review! Here are a few excerpts:

Chion starts with a brief, one page, exchange that gives us a hint of some unimaginable disaster having struck the world. In cinematic fashion, we enter the action of chapter one as Jamie Metcalfe and other kids of Clounagh Junior High School hear screams coming from outside, where a few of their mates have been stuck to the ground by what appears to be ordinary snow. When Alex Vennard touches a flake, however, he learns that whatever this stuff is, it is definitely not snow. In fact, it is something that grips his hand and won’t let go. In desperate attempt, inspired by mounting panic, his teacher pours hot water on it, hoping to melt it, but the stuff will not. In a fit of panic, Alex frees himself by tearing off a bit of his skin. How can you NOT keep on reading?

I found myself really wanting to know the answers to the questions that have been posed by the story. I think the reason for this lies in the high concept: adhesive snow – this is the stuff of Hollywood blockbusters … But there is more to this novel than just a high concept. Inside the school, trapped by the weird snow, a genuine, beautifully evoked, human drama unfolds … Unlike much of Christian fiction, there is no heavy proselytizing here, no dogma being pushed on the reader. Instead the focus is on the timeless themes of love, sacrifice, and faith that any human being appreciates and believes in..

I think this is a book that exemplifies the very best of POD.

[ Read Full Review ]