Carver Cult – Emma's Biblio Treasures

BLOG TOUR REVIEW: Kill Them With Kindness by Will Carver

Published June 19th, 2025 by Orenda Books
Crime Fiction, Psychological Ficiton, Medical Fiction, Political Thriller, Alternative History, Dystopian Fiction, Metaphisical Ficiton

Today is my stop on the blog tour for this thought-provoking and unforgettable thriller. Thank you to Anne at Random Things Tours for the invitation to take part, and to Orenda for sending me a copy of the book in exchange for my honest review.

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ABOUT THE BOOK:

A Japanese scientist thwarts an international plot to release a deadly virus by mutating it to make people kinder, but something goes horribly wrong … A darkly funny, mind-blowing speculative thriller from the ‘most original writer in Britain’ (Daily Express)…

‘Utterly believable, dark and disturbing … one of my books of the year’ Trevor Wood

‘Brilliantly original … an alternative reality of the pandemic that’s both terrifyingly plausible, relevant and timely’ Sam Holland

‘His best yet. Carver just gets better and better’ S.J. Watson

‘Arguably the most original writer in Britain’ Daily Express

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Compassion may be humanity’s deadliest weapon…

The threat of nuclear war is no longer scary. This is much worse. It’s invisible. It works quickly.

And it’s coming.

The scourge has already infected and killed half the population in China and it is heading towards the UK. There is no time to escape. The British government sees no way out other than to distribute ‘Dignity Pills’ to its citizens: One last night with family or loved ones before going to sleep forever … together. Because the contagion will kill you and the horrifying news footage shows that it will be better to go quietly.

Dr Haruto Ikeda, a Japanese scientist working at a Chinese research facility, wants to save the world. He has discovered a way to mutate a virus. Instead of making people sick, instead of causing death, it’s going to make them… nice. Instead of attacking the lungs, it will work into the brain and increase the host’s ability to feel and show compassion. It will make people kind.

Ikeda’s quest is thoughtful and noble, and it just might work. Maybe humanity can be saved. Maybe it doesn’t have to be the end.

But kindness may also be the biggest killer of all…

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MY REVIEW:

Starting a new Will Carver book is always an event. You know that whatever you read will consume you and change you in some way from this point forward. A master of his craft, Carver has a style all his own that breaks the mould of what you expect in any genre. And once you’ve read one of his books you’ll be a fan for life and part of the #CarverCult.

His latest offering, Kill Them With Kindness, starts as boldly as you’d expect from Carver, with the impending euthanasia of the whole country as they await a deadly gas that would wipe us out painfully. The story then jumps back to a year earlier, where we meet Dr Haruto Ikeda, a Japanese scientist who accidentally discovers a document containing a timeline for releasing the deadly virus he’s currently studying. It will be a global catastrophe. So, he takes it upon himself to stop it happening and mutates the virus to infect people with kindness instead of killing them. But is compassion the answer to the world’s problems? Or is it about to be the biggest killer of them all…

Thought-provoking, witty, quirky, original and captivating, Carver has crafted another unforgettable thriller filled with scathing social commentary and shrewd observations. I was hooked from the first lines, completely immersed in every word of this all-too-real story. It is clear to see where Carver has been inspired by real people and events, giving it a timely and realistic feel that makes what you’re reading all the more terrifying. Like it could actually happen. I felt like I’d stepped into an alternative history and not a story born of a man’s impressive imagination. Carver’s books are best discovered for yourself, so I don’t want to say any more about the plot, only that this is a book that everyone should read.

Powerful, sharp, daring and uncompromising, this is another unmissable thriller from the incomparable Mr. Carver. Read it now!

Rating: ✮✮✮✮.5

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Will Carver is the international bestselling author of the JanuaryDavid series and the critically acclaimed, mind-blowingly original Detective Pace series that includes Good Samaritans (2018), Nothing Important Happened Today (2019) and Hinton Hollow Death Trip (2020), all of which were ebook bestsellers and selected as books of the year in the mainstream international press. Nothing Important Happened Today was longlisted for both the Goldsboro Books Glass Bell Award 2020 and the Theakston’s Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year Award. Hinton Hollow Death Trip was longlisted for the Guardian’s Not the Booker Prize, and was followed by four standalone literary thrillers, The Beresford, Psychopaths Anonymous, The Daves Next Door and Suicide Thursday. Will spent his early years in Germany, but returned to the UK at age eleven, when his sporting career took off. He currently runs his own fitness and nutrition company, and lives in reading with his children.

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BUY THE BOOK:

Orenda Books | Bookshop.org* | Waterstones* | Amazon*
*These are affiliate links

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Thanks for reading, Bibliophiles xxxx

Please check out the reviews from the other bloggers taking part in the blog tour.

BLOG TOUR: Upstairs at the Beresford by Will Carver

Published November 9th, 2023 by Orenda
Mystery, Suspense, Thriller, Psychological Thriller, Horror Fiction, Horror Parody, Satire

Welcome to my stop on the blog tour for this deliciously diabolical thriller. Thank you to Anne at Random Things Tours for the invitation to take part and to Orenda for the proof copy.

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SYNOPSIS:

Hotel Beresford: a grand old building, just outside the city, where any soul is welcome, and strange goings-on mask explosive, deadly secrets. A chilling, darkly funny sequel to Will Carver’s bestselling The Beresford…

There are worse places than hell…

Hotel Beresford is a grand, old building, just outside the city. And any soul is welcome.

Danielle Ortega works nights, singing at whatever dive bar will offer her a gig. She gets by, keeping to herself. Sam Walker gambles and drinks, and can’t keep his hands to himself. Now he’s tied up in a shoe closet with a dent in his head that matches Danielle’s broken ashtray.

The man in 731 has been dead for two days and his dog has not stopped barking. Two doors down, the couple who always smokes on the window ledge will mysteriously fall.

Upstairs, in the penthouse, Mr Balliol sees it all. He can peer into every crevice of every floor of the hotel from his screen-filled suite. He witnesses humanity and inhumanity in all its forms: loneliness, passion and desperation in equal measure. All the ingredients he needs to make a deal.

When Danielle returns home one night to find Sam gone, a series of sinister events begins to unfold. But strange things often occur at Hotel Beresford, and many are only a distraction to hide something much, much darker…

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MY REVIEW:

“But this is Hotel Beresford.
It lives, it breathes, it gets to know the people inside.
It knows what has to be done.”

Hotel Beresford is a strange place. Anyone is welcome at the grand building just outside the city, but not everyone can leave. There are many rumours that surround The Beresford, but the truth is more ominous than anyone would imagine. And it is all observed by Mr. Balliol, the mysterious resident of the Penthouse suite. And we watch with him, seeing snapshots from the lives of some of the staff and residents of the hotel, witnessing the best and worst of humanity as Balliol searches for the souls that offer him the perfect opportunity to make a deadly deal.

He’s done it again. A standing ovation to Will Carver for crafting another deliciously diabolical tale that is impossible to resist. Carver is a genius and he just gets better with every book. He is a master storyteller and dark dream-weaver, making the fabric of reality shift and crack around you as he merges the everyday with the sinister and unexplained to create a world straight out of our nightmares. And he knows exactly how to pull the reader into that world and make them lose themselves there. His writing is sharp, searing, smooth and seductive, striking a resonant chord as he weaves social commentary and complex social issues into this creative and thought-provoking twist on the well-known good vs evil trope. It made me laugh out loud one moment, seethe the next, and kept me on the edge of my seat from beginning to end.

“There are still rumours about the place. Bundy hid out here for a few days, once, while evading the cops. There’s a tunnel underneath where Kennedy or The Beatles could sneak in through the back. Urban legends that lend an air of mystique to Hotel Beresford.
But now reality is superseding the myth.”

The second in Carver’s The Beresford Trilogy, Upstairs at the Beresford is edgy, original, unsettling and addictive; a macabre conundrum you are powerless to resist, much like those who signed away their souls to Balliol. It starts out strong, diving head-first into the action from the first page and never lets up, forcing you to just hold on and enjoy the bumpy ride. The hotel is a cesspit of people who are merely existing rather than living and there’s dark secrets, peculiar happenings, nefarious characters, inhumanity and far more death than is normal for any hotel. The desperation, danger, duplicity and dysfunction oozes from every crevice, the lives of those inside becoming one with the building itself. And this is not a building like any other. Beresford is alive. It seems to breathe and feast on the souls of those that cross its threshold, either keeping them for itself or changing them forever and unexplainable occurrences are par for the course for its staff. I loved how it was so creepy, unpredictable, absurd and yet also totally plausible.

There is a compelling mix of characters in this book that range from the relatable, recognisable, lovable and quirky to the deplorable, menacing and vile. They all have their moments where they shine, but there were a few who I particularly enjoyed reading. Young Odie first comes to mind with his love of books and sweet nature. He was far too good for The Beresford and it was impossible not to love and root for him. I also liked Carol, the widowed hotel manager, and Mrs. May, who I enjoyed learning more about after enjoying her character in the last book. The biggest villain for me was without a doubt Danny. That man gave me the ick and I was rooting for him to get his dues.

Outstanding, alluring, inventive and devilish, Upstairs at the Beresford is a must-read. And while you’re at it, go and read Carver’s backlist too. I promise you won’t regret it.

Rating: ✮✮✮✮✮

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MEET THE AUTHOR:

Will Carver is the international bestselling author of the January David series and the critically acclaimed, mind-blowingly original Detective Pace series that includes Good Samaritans (2018), Nothing Important Happened Today (2019) and Hinton Hollow Death Trip (2020), all of which were ebook bestsellers and selected as books of the year in the mainstream international press. Nothing Important Happened Today was longlisted for both the Goldsboro Books Glass Bell Award 2020 and the Theakston’s Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year Award. Hinton Hollow Death Trip was longlisted for Guardian‘s Not the Booker Prize. He spent his early years in Germany, but returned to the UK at age eleven, when his sporting career took off. He turned down a professional rugby contract to study theatre and television at King Alfred’s, Winchester, where he set up a successful theatre company. He currently runs his own fitness and nutrition company, and lives in Reading with his children.