Review
Anyone who reads this review blog will know that im a big fan of Paul Collards writing, since book one he has managed to capture the spirit of Sharpe, that action and pace, the thrill and horror of battle but it was tempered with a style and pace that engaged and held the reader pinned to their seat, i’ve usually finished each book in a single sitting, never wanting to leave Jacks side.
Unlike Sharpe, Jack has grown as a character, he has book by book become more complex, the introduction of introspection and doubt, the subtle weaving of PTSD into his core fabric. Since the Siege of Delhi, Jack has seemed and felt indestructible, but he has become darker, a true killer yet one who saves his demons for the battle field. The Rebel Killer takes jack deeper into that darkness and his own mortality.
The Rebel Killer is somewhat different from the other books in the series, it holds the full horror of war, mortality and the depravity of the human condition, the true horror of civil war. Jack must face his own limits and ultimately change his view of who he is and what he can do, can Jack change the course of his life? his journey to that is one of pain and revenge, like many he must hit the darkest depths of his soul before he can search for absolution.
As always i highly recommend this and all Paul Collards books.
(Parm)

Hi Karen,

My Next review is:-

“The Rebel Killer(Jack Lark Book 7):A Gripping Tale Of Revenge In The American Civil War”, written by Paul Fraser Collard and published in hardcover by Headline on 26 July 2018. 432 pages ISBN-13: 978-1472239075

This is an utterly spellbinding book. The plot is absolutely gripping and truly stunning and leaves you wanting to race to the end to find out if your suspicions are correct. Mine were not and I was left absolutely surprised and stunned at how everything turned out.

The Rebel Killer is the seventh book featuring Jack Lark, who is a bit of a scoundrel, born in an East London slum and who has managed to con his way into a high position as an officer in the British army, fighting heroically in the Crimea, India and other places but not wanting to return to London and after making a promise to a dieing man, he is now in America in 1861 and has fought in the American Civil War initially on the side of the Union but following the defeat in the battle of Bull Run he is lost in woods in the company of a black former slave girl named Rose.

Whilst trying to protect her, he is shot and left for dead and awakes in a military hospital. Before he passed out as a result of his wound Jack believes that some renegade confederate soldiers who had shot him , were going to hang Rose.

Jack vows to avenge the death of Rose, by trying to capture and kill the officer in charge of the platoon of soldiers that attacked him. Before all that can occur Jack needs to regain his fitness and therefore he must rest and do all the things that will help him recover his full strength.

Unlike some of the other books in this series the author does not only focus on the battle scenes and the blood and gore that is attributed to them but he gives Jack time for introspection. Time to think about his past and his future. Jack has the body of a professional soldier, covered in scars from many previous wounds and campaigns he faced and looking to a future where a lot of movement is going to be filled with joint pain from all of his mistakes in the past.

In the ward of the hospital he is in, there is a black nurse who is particularly helpful and sympathetic to Jack and ultimately helps Jack to escape when he is fit enough to ride a horse. He provides Jack with a uniform of the confederacy and Jacks adventures continue. I consider this the best of the seven books of Paul Fraser Collard that I have read and I really look forward to reading more books from this very talented writer. Strongly recommended.


Best wishes,

Terry
(To be published on the eurocrime.co.uk in due course)

The Rebel Killer is a stunning adventure which is impossible to put down. It is one of those books every reader hopes to find, which don’t come along too often; you are desperate to finish it, but want it never to end, and feel bereft as soon as you have read the last word, knowing that you were not quite ready to say goodbye to such a wonderful story.

I have followed Jack Lark’s story from the very beginning, The Scarlet Thief was a refreshingly different and new innovative style. There is no shadow of the inimitable Sharpe from Bernard Cornwell, which many stories of 19th century soldiering are trying to recreate. Though their starts in life may have been similar, their attitude to soldiering are polar opposites. Where Sharpe seeks honour within the ranks of the army, and the regiment is his family, Jack feels no such connection to a particular regiment, nor a particular army, for that matter. And yet, both have that unique quality, they are natural soldiers and leaders, bound by their own personal interpretation of honour to do the decent thing. In battle they are invincible, natural leaders, soldiers follow them without question.

That is where the comparisons end, however. Jack Lark is very much his own man. He has the ability to change his coat and his allegiance wherever and whenever he has to, whilst still holding on to a set of values which make him an admirable leading man. He is no mercenary, rather a soldier fighting for his own reasons and always where the battle is fiercest. He is a lovable rogue in every way.

Paul Fraser Collard is a wonderful storyteller, he pulls you into the action from the first page and keeps you constantly wanting more, wanting to know what happens next, wanting to know if the bad guys get there’s, wanting to know if it will all be alright in the end. Jack Lark is a wonderful creation, an impostor, a man who can take on whatever guise, whatever uniform the situation requires. But there is one constant, he’s a soldier, a warrior and he will never give up the fight while there is breath – and blood – in his body.

In The Rebel Killer Jack’s character really comes to the fore. His need for introspection, to decipher his own motives and justify his actions offer a new perspective on the story and great insight into the hero. He grows in this book, as a human being and a soldier, realising where his talents lie and using them to the full. In The Rebel Killer he is driven by thoughts of vengeance and the need to be alone, to not have to be responsible for others. However, that is not – and never has been – his way. He has a natural protective instinct and cannot leave others to fend for themselves, no matter how much easier it would make his life.

These relationships – with friend and enemy alike – are what brings Jack’s story to life. His talent is not just for killing, but for touching the lives of those around him., not that he always realises this.

In the midst of the American Civil War, Paul Fraser Collard has dropped this English chameleon and left him to fight for his vengeance and survival. And as such created a story which views the war from both sides and shows how men fought, not for the political ideals of their leaders, but for their families, their comrades and their own survival. The action is frenetic and vividly, colourfully described. The reader is not merely an observer, but thrust into the heart and heat of battle, fighting for their next breath, alongside Jack Lark. You can feel the heat and dust of battle, hear the cannons roar and the screams of the wounded and dying.

The Rebel Killer is a wonderful story, not to be missed, and probably the best Jack Lark tale yet. I cannot wait for the next instalment and to see where Jack goes next.

Another Jack Lark book, another resounding success for Paul Fraser Collard.

Book 7 still finds Jack in the States, but this time in the other side of the Civil War. A slight departure from previous books, Jack is no longer looking for a commision in an army so he can fight. This time we find Jack on a personal mission for revenge. Lark hits some of his lowest points so far throughout the course of this book, and come the close it looks like the landscape has shifted, and we may see in different man in future novels.

I love these books, they really remind me of Cornwell's Sharpe books at their best. Easy to pick up, rollicking storyline, great main character, nothing too complex or over thought, just a solid read. Long may they continue!