Set in St Ives the Cornish boutique holiday resort this fast paced page turning adventure fantasy draws on the locality, traditions, religions and myths for its themes. Starring Alexander Crowley a smart arsed shoot from the hip trickster (Supposedly the bastard Great Grandson of Aleister Crowley the 20th Century Occultist) who is on the run from his recent escapades. He decides to lay low in a … decides to lay low in a holiday home borrowed from a dubious benefactor and his swashbuckling adventures throughout the summer draw on supernatural foundations and circumstances that are well researched and contain a modicum of reality. From the minute he enters the town our hero is pitched at odds with the local mobsters, demons and deities.
There is an intriguing and exciting cast of supporting characters who are a delight;
Booby De-Faux – a needy “Sidekick”
The Spirit Saint who acts as “Minder” supported by her mysterious cat “The Black Manilishi”
A Vampire assassin and a Killer King are also along for the ride and even romance is on the cards as our character, a renowned and successful womaniser seems this time to be looking for a meaningful relationship amongst all the chaos.
Strap in!
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You have been warned to “strap on” as Don Barr astonishes his readers with A New King in Town. Even the cats knew there was a new king in town as they follow Alexander Crowley as he makes his way through the city of St. Ives. With British sarcasm and humor, this urban novel will make you smile as this swindler hypnotizes simpletons to do his bidding. With no respect for rules or authority, Alex makes this city his playground for the summer, while he hides out. But players in this tourist paradise has their own ideas.
A New King in Town, by Don Barr, will sure to amuse as this cocky Brit faces a new set of competition on his vacation. As a magician, Alex, intermingles with other paranormals and humans. Throughout this book the characters are unique, though scary at times. My favorite part was when Alex swaps five of his sins for three virtues with an angel. A little dark, but entertaining.
Alexander Crowley, reportable related to the occultist Aleister Crowley, has just hit the seaside town of St.Ives, Cornwall, intent on a bit of R+R. Question is whether he’ll find it. He and his pal: local author Booby de Faux kind of get into other peoples’ business as Alex is tasked with several “tasks” that the local Saint,IA, accompanied by her familiar black cat “The Black Manilishi” gives him…and if he actually completes them?
Being familiar with British farce and slang through other reading, this “cheeky” set of short stories reminds me of “Monty Python” meets “Are You Being Served” with the colorful “embellishments” of Absolutely Fabulous. When I started reading, I was a bit put off by the language, but was driven by the stories themselves. From the trip out with Reuben the cabdriver until Alex leaves in the same fashion, he turns the Village of St.Ives on it’s “arse” and gives us a front row seat. Recommended 4/5
Learning that our protagonist, Alexander Crawley as a member of the Aleister Crawley lineage, only increases one’s interest in reading this book. Known as a magician and trickster, Alex vacates to St. Ives holiday resort, granting him the most adventurous time off he’s every experienced. Being the “new king in town” he never has to announce himself, as everyone including street cats knows just how powerful he is. Set out to reap the benefits of his celebrity status he encounters several individuals including demon-like and provides them assignments on removing people who overstayed their welcome. His main objective is to collect money because “he who holds the cash, is king” and lives by it. I recommend anyone interested in watching a powerful man own the town with his mesmerizing and magical abilities to read this book.
This book has a conversational style where you almost feel like you hit the ground running as soon as you start reading. There are some grammatical errors I noticed right away but then I felt it lent to the very personal first-person conversational style. Alexander Crowley, allegedly the great grand child of the famous occultist Aleister Crowley, is the star of this novel. Don’t take that to mean that he is a virtuous leading character! Crowley, while on vacation in St. Ives, turns the town into his personal playground for debauchery. With the assistance of truly magical powers of hypnotic persuasion he is able to get a lot out of people!
There are MANY other forces at work in this town so Crowley doesn’t actually have full reign. Between monsters and demons and saints he will have his hands full. I love the scene where he is forced to trade out some of his deadly sins for virtues. Such a clever twist to the story. Creativity is abound in this fun, witty novel. With characters like Bucca Dhu and Bobby de Faux it’s clear this author has a big imagination!
This book was so fun. It had humor, sexiness, romance and fantastical elements to appeal to a wide range of readers. Thoroughly enjoyable!
Fans of adventure fantasy will find this book quite exhilarating with the book giving a feel of the locality, religions, myths, and traditions surrounding St Ives holiday resort. This book is one of the most hilarious books I’ve read in a while. The inimitable British spelling and tone Barr uses heightens the adventures and frolic the author shares in the remarks before the beginning of the book.
The plot and summary of the book are inviting with a well-written text rich in adventures that describes some strange things. The author’s sense of humor on every page will have you laughing throughout the book. Based on a smooth-talking character called Alexander Crowley, the individual adventures almost look like short stories on their own with each having a beginning and an end with well-drawn characters and stories set in tantalizing locations.
Alexander Crowley – A New King in Town takes place in the idyllic holiday destination of St Ives in Cornwall and concerns the exploits of the titular character and a host of others who he encounters. It’s a pacey, enjoyable read and a refreshing take on the done-to-death Dungeons and Dragons-type adventure novel. Its modern telling of age-old tropes will appeal to a multitude of readers too, I’m sure.
I especially liked the character of IA, a saint who can exchange sins for virtues and gets our decidedly irreverent protagonist anti-hero making amends for his misdeeds. Also, I can’t not love any story that references my all-time favourite album – The Scream by Siouxsie and the Banshees. Extra points to the author there.
All in all, this is a witty and well-told tale that sucks the reader into its world and by the end I’m sure you will wish to be immersed in that world again too. Here’s hoping there’s more of Alexander Crowley’s outings in the near future.
Set in a fictionalised St.Ives (the most south-westerly point of England), this is exactly as Barr describes it – ‘a boy’s own adventure story for the twenty first century’. With a twist. Part one being called ‘We’re All Going on a Summer Horrorday’ was enough for me to know this was going to be good! The central character, Alexander Crowley (related to the one and only Aleister Crowley, legendary occultist) is a Londoner and we hear the world as he speaks, Cockney Rhyming Slang and all, really bringing him to life from the page. The story incorporates demons and a cast of assorted supernatural characters, as well as gangsters, and has a very playful feel. I loved the character Booby de Faux – an absolute riot to read! Who’da thought there could be a Cornish Mafioso or Doc Marten-wearing saint carrying her wings concealed in an ever-present backpack? This book is such fun – very entertaining and accessible for young adult readers upwards.
A story with mystery, magical powers, scoundrels, tricks, twists and turns. Well written with nice storyline and plot. A fantasy fiction that is filled with a lot and where the author has made his research which only makes the story better.
Alexander is the hero of this story. He has some adventures that not all turns out well. But it is a fun and eventful read that caught me.
Recommendable to others that like fantasy fiction with an attitude.
When I first saw this book, I had doubts about it thinking it might be bland and hard to get into. Well, I was very wrong. I tell you now that I am so glad I read it because it was just so ridiculously humorous and with a cast that’s diverse, culled from all sorts of literature: religious, mythical, medieval, etc. It is the story of a protagonist by the name of Alexander Crowley who is the fictional grandson of the actual English occultist Aleister Crowley of Great Britain (more on him on Wikipedia.com) who comes to St. Ives one day, causing mischief and mayhem there. Accompanying him is a rather effeminate fellow hilariously nicknamed Boobs (excuse this term) who together they fight a demon, serve a pretty, religious saint, and seek to destroy a vampire. The story includes extremely funny scenes like the time when a prominent figure of St. Ives gets bitten by a rodent and the time when Alexander Crowley broadcasts the sexual affair of a landlord’s wife and another important figure of St. Ives. I tell you, these and many other bizarre, uncanny, and definitely foolish happenings in this book kept me reading on eventually finishing it in a short time, satisfied and greatly entertained.
I recommend this book to mature readers because of the sexual content and bad language it contains. There were times when I had to cringe at the book’s usage of terms like bestiality and the very explicit imagery of blood and violence but the humor and fun helped to make those forgettable. I think this book is a great way to start out 2019 as it was a very entertaining read and I felt like I was watching a 90s movie while I was engaged in its plot. Be sure to heat a tub of buttered popcorn in the microwave and fix yourself a cup of steaming coffee or tea to make this wonderful read extra fabulous! Have a wonderful 2019!
Alexander Crowley- A New King in Town by Don Barr could easily be one of the funniest books around. Our lead character Alex is a bit of a scallawag with real magical powers he has inherited from his great grandfather. In fact,he uses his powers so much,that he rips off cab drivers, putting them under a trance, then taking all their money. At least that is how the story begins, appropriately setting the stage for the fun that begins and continues throughout this rollicking novel. You will love the authenticity of the UK slang, giving this book a fun and tawdry tone. All of the characters are well drawn from Booby de Faux to Alex’s minder spirit saint and her black cat. A fine comedic tale that showcases one of the more original protagonists ever, this book is not to be missed. You will find yourself laughing page after page as you witness the adventures of Alex. Fine, deft writing, this book is not to be missed.
This is a great way to get lost in some magical fiction. If you like the Dresden Files you’d love this. The story follows Alex, a decedent of the renowned Aleister Crowley. We follow him through a few different (mis)adventures and he always seems to come out on top even if he doesn’t do so in the most honest of ways. The author does a great job of building dynamic characters in a rich setting. The story is great, the writing is sound (for the most part), and the characters made me smile more than once. This story sets itself apart than others like it by miles, and it was nice to read fiction that really tried to stand out without feeling forceful about it.
‘A New King in Town’ by Don Barr follows con artist Alexander Crowley, who is forced to go on the run after conning one person too many. The reason hi finds it so easy to take people for a ride, is that he has some magical abilities- he can put people under his spell and essentially take them for all that they have. Hiding out in Cornwall seemed like a good choice, but he soon finds himself back in peril, facing off against demons, mobsters, and a number of supernatural entities. An enjoyable read start to finish. Not the best fantasy book I’ve read but it still gets a solid 4 stars.
Author Don Barr describes himself as an ‘artist, landlocked surfer, army brat, only child and lover (of his dog at least!). A punk rocker attitude with a hatred for the pompous and all airs and graces. Born in the 60’s Not dead yet.’ And that serves as enough information to make the reader kick back and enjoy one of the most hilarious books of the year.
Written in that inimitable British tone and spelling that heightens the frolic and adventures, Don shares in some remarks before the book begins – ‘St Ives is my favourite place on the planet and hopefully I haven’t caused the locals or those that flock there each summer too much offence…This is a boy’s own adventure story for the twenty first century inspired by the long ago read and remembered comics, books and specially mags. I hope you enjoy my tale as much as I did.’
Sampling the style and characters of the book, we read ‘It was nice of the cabbie to ‘offer’ me a free gratis lift to Cornwall though. Mind you he didn’t really know too much about it as I had gazed deeply into his baby blues ‘Look into my eyes’ and all that hypno-babble did the trick, in fact, he didn’t say a dicky bird for three hundred boring miles. Mind you, that’s the way I like my cabbages. He was a smallish bald geezer, sweetish boat race, round wire-rimmed glasses, and carrying a few extra pounds. He reminded me a bit of Dr Crippen. Called himself Reuben, at least that’s what his name badge said. I guess you could say he was mesmerized, either way he did a sterling job and didn’t moan once as I worked my way through twenty smokes while he turned a sickly green pallor. I couldn’t help but keep looking at the ‘No Smoking’ sign on his glass partition. There’s always someone who wants to spoil the fun! I dare say his missus went ballistic when he finally got indoors a day late and smelling like an ashtray. I’m sure she’ll have had some Febreeze in the cupboard mind. It was probably her made him work the central London night-shift in the first place. Serves her right then I reckon, the greedy cow. Well, here we were in sunny St Ives, Cornwall. Boutique holiday destination for the more discerning, better earning, arty types some might say.’
The author’s plot summary invites us: ‘Set in St Ives the Cornish boutique holiday resort this fast paced adventure fantasy draws on the locality, traditions, religions and myths for its themes. Starring Alexander Crowley a smart arsed shoot from the hip trickster (Supposedly the Great Grandson of Aleister Crowley the 20th Century Occultist) who is on the run from his recent escapades. He decides to lay low in a holiday home borrowed from a dubious benefactor and his swashbuckling adventures throughout the summer draw on supernatural foundations and circumstances that are well researched and contain a modicum of reality. From the minute he enters the town our hero is pitched at odds with the local mobsters, demons and deities … a renowned and successful womaniser seems this time to be looking for a meaningful relationship amongst all the chaos.’
Well written and rich in adventures of the strangest sort with at least one belly laugh per page, this is the debut of one fine comedic writer!
I’m a big fan of fantasy fiction, but find that they tend to have similar themes, which can seem a bit dated, so I was excited when I read some reviews for ‘A New King in Town’ it looked like the kind of novel I had been looking for. This contemporary fantasy novel brought something new for me – it has such a riveting plot that was as unpredictable as it was brilliant, and a cast of unique and engaging characters. Thanks to author Don Barr, Cornwall has never seemed so interesting.
The story focuses on Alexander Crowley, a man who has a rather famous Grandfather Aleister Crowley, the renowned magician with a dark side. Alex has a touch of the magic to him too – he has real power, but he doesn’t exactly use them for the forces of good. He uses them to scam both people, and to deal with a number of supernatural creatures he seems to attract. He needs to get out of dodge for a while so decides to lay low in the resort of St. Ives in Cornwall, but adventure does like to follow him – chaos and excitement ensues. Great read.
The format of A New King in Town is really cool. I love the way that each chapter seems to be a self-contained short stories, which has the same eclectic characters running throughout. Not only was this piece of fantasy fiction exciting and interesting, it was also seriously funny. The main character Alexander Crowley – a morally questionable man with magical power of persuasion – often finds himself in trouble. Hiding himself away in Cornwall to avoid trouble catching up to him, he assumes that a little bit relaxation is coming. How wrong could he be? Hopefully, with the help of his spirit saint and an unusual cast of characters, he will survive his ‘vacation’. A New King in Town was just a really fun read, and I am definitely looking forward to reading more from Don Barr in the future.