Evocations is the debut short story collection from horror writer James Brogden. The majority of stories in the compilation have been published in various anthologies, such as Den of Eek, Dark Horizons and The Big Issue, so this collection serves as Brogden's greatest hits.

And the stories really are great.  I have previously compared Brogden to Stephen King and this has never been more evident. His stories share King's trademark for taking a high-concept bonkers idea and grounding it in the everyday so it becomes utterly terrifying. Brogden treats us to malevolent paint blisters, the Christmas spirit incarnate and a toilet-dwelling octopus.​

Also, like King, he instils a pitch-black sense of humour​ into his stories. Brogden's humour is a unique combination of British cynicism and Australian irreverence, whilst retaining the self-mockery of both nations. His stories will make you smile... when you aren't quivering with fear. I have seen Brogden perform at spoken word events and both Junk Male and The Decorative Water Feature of the Nameless Dread go down a storm with the crowd.

Brogden also shares a talent for delivering inspired pieces of ​flash fiction, which makes this collection ideal for commute-occupying digestion. The Gas Street Octopus and chilling opener The Phantom Limb are just a couple of short pages but will stay with you for years.

Many of the stories feature Brogden's home city of Birmingham, another of his author trademarks, as seen in novels The Narrows and Tourmaline. Readers will learn why the Curzon Street railway station is now disused (it involves zombie cats) and will meet the immortal Smith of Hockley (who finds fellow immortals enjoying a pint in Digbeth). Brummies will also relish references to further landmarks, such as the Rotunda, the Bull Ring and even the Sea Life Centre at Brindley Place.

Brogden is surely one of the only published authors to be specialising in Birmingham urban fantasy. His grudging affection for his city is reminiscent of China Mieville's relationship with London, albeit with a West Midlands spin. It makes for original, refreshing writing, which deserves to be championed by Birmingham avid readers.

The Gears of Madness is the compilation of Iain Grant's hexalogy of first-class steampunk novellas.

I have read and reviews all six over the past two years and it has been an absolute pleasure to delve into the historical, fantastical world of a Victorian age with modern technology, space travel and otherworldly monsters.

The Sedgewick adventures serve as an excellent crash course into the steampunk genre. Each story is bite-sized and easy to digest during a commute. They are also highly readable, in that they are entertaining page-turners with humour, action and mystery packed into their economic word counts.

Professor Sedgewick and his trusty batman Cadwallander are the steampunk equivalent of Sherlock and Watson: the former is brilliant but peculiar, whilst the latter is the loyal grounded everyman.

Four of the stories are told from Cadwallander's very British and gentlemanly perspective, which makes for a very amusing narrative. The other two tales are narrated by free-spirited adventurer Mina Saxena and dutiful Inspector Wilmarth. If Sedgewick is Sherlock then these two are Irene Adler and Inspector Lestrade.

The variety offered by this collection is dazzling, with Grant assembling a greatest hits of key steampunk tropes: aliens on a spaceship, discovering a cult on Mars, relic-hunting in Tibet, a locked room mystery, subterranean monsters and an Armageddon-inducing finale. Each is peppered with historical figures albeit with a fantastic twist, such as Queen Victoria, Empress of India and Mars!

It is hard to pick a favourite because each novella is so different, flitting between genres under the general steampunk banner. Angels of the Abyss is science-fiction, The Well of Shambala is an old-fashioned adventure romp and The Bridge to Lemuria evolves from a detective story to a giant monster movie! Perhaps it is unfair to pick a favourite because all six tales are interlinked through their characters, events and references, and they are neatly drawn together by the final instalment. Although, for the record, Lemuria is my favourite.

The Gears of Madness is a towering accomplishment which deserves a large readership and a Netflix adaptation. Fans of Sherlock and Doctor Who will love these adventures, so grab yourself a copy now. This is Grant's magnum opus.

Fans of AA Abbott will be pleased to hear that her latest thriller delivers all of her trademark motifs: sex, violence, shady characters, corporate deals and city-hopping between Birmingham and London.

Abbott once again shows her detailed knowledge of both cities, with references to pubs, streets and regional vernacular all accurate and familiar. This authentic world-building helps the reader become fully-immersed in Abbott's gritty tale and locals will enjoy references to some of their familiar haunts.

As you would expect from Abbott, the past is fast and the narrative hops between the six characters at breakneck speed. Many of these characters are a lot more complex than the characters in her early novels, such as After The Interview, which means you may still be deciding who to root for until the last few chapters. This makes for exciting reading.

Abbott also breaks new ground in the plot, exploring new depths of London's criminal underbelly, such as illegal gambling, identity theft and false marriages, all of which are fascinating. The second half of the novel then focusses on the disappearance of beautiful croupier Kat and the competing friends and enemies who are racing to find her.

The highlight of the novel is the mismatched pairing of sensible Amy and arrogant actuary Ross, who join forces to search for Kat across Birmingham. Their love-hate relationship is very entertaining and turns several corners as the novel unfolds. Another highlight is the dramatic conclusion in the secret tunnels beneath Birmingham's Jewellery Quarter, which makes for an extremely tense and claustrophobic finale.

If you are looking for a UK thriller, equal parts corporate and criminal, then look no further. Here comes The Bride's Trail.

The Clovenhoof series continues to expand to Discworld-sized proportions with its fourth outing.

As with the third book, Hellzapoppin' boldly sidelines the central trio from the earlier novels, including the titular Clovenhoof himself, to allow focus on a new group of characters.

This 'new' group are the Welsh island-dwelling monks of St Cadfan's who appeared in Pigeonwings, and also the demon Rutspud who was introduced in Satan's Shorts. A few other familiar faces appear briefly, such as mischievous schoolboy Spartacus Wilson.

The plot focusses on a staircase between St Cadfan's and Hell, allowing monk Stephen and demon Rutspud to form an unlikely friendship, whilst they each have their own mysteries to solve.

As ever, Goody and Grant's trademark Pratchett-style humour is correct and present with vast amounts of theological material to play with. The decision to explore Hell was a good choice, considering the series has already visited Heaven, and allows the demons to shine after the saintly ensemble in Godsquad. The demons are a lot of fun, whether it be pencil-pushing Scabass or the inventor Belphegor who acts as Hell's answer to Q. This is a Hell where demons are punished with a room of kittens and an Enya compilation album.

The monks are equally good for a laugh. St Cadfan's is essentially Craggy Island from Father Ted, with habits instead of dog collars, and lots of them. They also share the same bickering buffoonery found at Unseen University in Discworld.

Add to that the vast number of tortured souls in Hell, which include Boudica, Beatrix Potter, Tesla, Escher, Florence Nightingale, Mama-Na and a Neanderthal, and you have the series' largest cast list yet. Good and Grant brilliantly juggle all of these characters, taking every opportunity to get laughs from such a rich smorgasbord of fictional, biblical and historical figures.

Hellzapoppin' is my favourite book so far in the Clovenhoof series and shows the franchise is continuing to evolve, expand and go from strength to strength.

The final instalment in Iain Grant’s steampunk hexalogy does not disappoint.

It plays out like every decent series finale should: reuniting your favourite characters, wrapping up loose ends, darting around the globe, jacking up the action and raising the stakes to sheer Armageddon.

Narration is back in the hands of Cadwallander, the metal-armed Watson to Professor Sedgewick’s Sherlock Holmes, after a slight detour in book five.

...although that might be over-simplifying the narrative. Thanks to an experimental but brilliant narrative device, Cadwallander (and therefore the reader) is able to experience the viewpoints of several different characters, such as "seditionist adventuress" Mina Saxena and the iron-lunged Grand Duke Alexei Mikhailovich. This head-hopping makes for an exciting pace, as we are introduced to exotic locations and new characters at adrenaline-pumping speed.

Fans of the series, of which there are many, will enjoy the references to the previous instalments. The first two chapters alone reference The Angels of the Abyss, The Bridge to Lemuria and The Shadow Under London. The reappearance of Chioa Khan, the ten-year old Maurits Escher and Queen Victoria herself is very welcome and meets the steampunk expectation of presenting genuine historical figures in a fictional context.

As we now expect, Grant's world is overflowing with invention. A particular highlight are the auto-matichesky-chelovek, essentially men controlled by "engine-driven, punch card-controlled braces" which bind their bodies and force them to carry out tasks. We learn that many men die in this condition but the braces continue to move their limbs, so "the dead [can] dig as well as the living." Chilling stuff.

​The finale is superb, taking place two-hundred miles above Mount Kilimanjaro on an orbital docking station, and literally takes the series to nail-biting new heights.

The Herald of the Ancients is a fitting end to Grant's steampunk magnum opus. I only hope Netflix commission a mini-series because this would be great on screen.