TheJourney by Conrad Jones @ConradJones #BlogTour #BookReview @BOTBSPublicity

Good morning today I’m thrilled to be on the blog tour for The Journey by Conrad Jones. I read this book way back last year, but even now it’s a book that still haunts me. So today I’m re-sharing my review for The Journey, such a fabulous heart-breaking read. Read on for my thoughts.

The gripping story of a young boy and his family, driven from their home by war and indiscriminate violence. Like millions of others, they attempt the treacherous journey across their war-torn continent, trying to reach the safety of Europe.

The truth is, Europe doesn’t want them and thousands die every month at the hands of thieves and profiteering men to whom life is cheap. Kalu believes that he can lead his family to safety, he has planned for this. They have money, a plan and Kalu is, after all, the smartest man in Monguno.

The story is fast-paced, at times funny, at times heart-breaking but it will pull you along at 100 miles an hour. It will make you think, it will make you question your perceptions. Most of all it will make you ask, if your family was in peril, what would you do?

I am sat here flabbergasted after finishing The Journey, what a simply fabulous heart-breaking read this turned out to be, it’s a compelling story full of review emotion. I picked up The Journey and even after reading the book description I thought it would lean heavily towards being a crime thriller, but my god I was so wrong, It’s a story of Human resilience, and the incredible lengths people will go to protect their family. Although a fictional account of refugees, it never the less made for a haunting read and a very credible one at that.

The journey is a modern day tale of our times, and follows the harrowing story of ten year old Beb and his family who flee their village of Monuno after Boko Haram attack their village. Beb’s story is unfortunately a very credible one, it’s the reality that thousands of innocent people face every day. Conrad Jones describes scenes which are rich in detail, the suffering, the violence, the author doesn’t sugarcoat the atrocities carried out by Boko Haram, but neither does he use them for shock value.

The author has created a family whose characters engage you from the start, you can’t help but connect with Beb and his family and thanks to the incredible detailed descriptions you feel you are there alongside the family on their treacherous journey to reach Europe, you feel their desperation and uncertainty and their fear, you can’t help but urge this family on as they face the unknown. The Journey depicts the best and worse in human behaviour, it’s harrowing without a doubt, heartbreaking and yet amid the horrors there’s an underlying sense of hope for some. Even though I read The journey over a year ago it’s a book that my thoughts often return too. Highly recommend.

Buying links: Amazon UK 🇬🇧

Print Length: 196 pages

Publisher: (14 May 2018)

Conrad Jones a 52-year-old Author, living in Holyhead, Anglesey, which I class as my home, before starting a career as a trainee manger with McDonalds Restaurants in 1989. I worked in management at McDonalds Restaurants Ltd from 1989-2002, working my way up to Business Consultant (area manager) working in the corporate and franchised departments.

In March 1993 I was managing the Restaurant in Warrington`s Bridge St when two Irish Republican Army bombs exploded directly outside the store, resulting in the death of two young boys and many casualties. Along with hundreds of other people there that day I was deeply affected by the attack, which led to a long-term interest in the motivation and mind set of criminal gangs. I began to read anything crime related that I could get my hands on.

I link this experience with the desire to write books on the subject, which came much later due to an unusual set of circumstances. Because of that experience my early novels follow the adventures of an elite counter terrorist unit, The Terrorist Task Force, and their leader, John Tankersley, or `Tank`and they are the Soft Target Series, which have been described by a reviewer as ‘Reacher on steroids’.

I had no intentions of writing until 2007, when I set off on an 11-week tour of the USA. The Day before I boarded the plane, Madeleine Mcann disappeared and all through the holiday I followed the American news reports which had little or no information about her. I didn’t realise it at the time, but the terrible kidnap would inspire my book, The Child Taker years later. During that trip, I received news that my house had been burgled and my work van and equipment were stolen. That summer was the year when York and Tewksbury were flooded by a deluge and insurance companies were swamped with claims. They informed me that they couldn’t do anything for weeks and that returning home would be a wasted journey. Rendered unemployed on a beach in Clearwater, Florida, I decided to begin my first book, Soft Target. I have never stopped writing since. I have recently completed my 20th novel, The Journey, something that never would have happened but for that burglary and my experiences in Warrington.

As far as my favourite series ever, it has to be James Herbert’s, The Rats trilogy. The first book did for me what school books couldn’t. It fascinated me, triggered my imagination and gave me the hunger to want to read more. I waited years for the second book, The Lair, and Domain, the third book to come out and they were amazing. Domain is one of the best books I have ever read. In later years, Lee Child, especially the early books, has kept me hypnotised on my sunbed on holiday as has Michael Connelley and his Harry Bosch Series.

Social Media Links:

https://www.facebook.com/conradjonesauthorpage/

https://twitter.com/ConradJones

Sarah Hardy

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