I adore Jasper Fforde as an author, so it brings me much sadness to admit that while I really enjoyed this book, I thought I would love it more. I can’t even pin down exactly what it was, but something about this one just didn’t quite grab me in the same way as his othe4 work. Having said that I did still enjoy it and would recommend to others, but for me I wanted more.

Review published on Booklover Book Reviews website >> http://bookloverbookreviews.com/2018/10/early-riser-by-jasper-fforde-book-review.html

Imagine a world not dissimilar to our own but where (almost) the entire population hibernates throughout the winter - sounds pretty appealing right? What if there was a chance that you would die in your sleep? Or become a Nightwalker (aka zombie) and be reprogrammed to perform menial tasks, have your body chopped up and used for spare parts or even resorting to cannibalism in order to survive? Surviving winter is certainly no easy feat!

This is the world that Jasper Fford introduces us to in his new standalone novel “Early Riser”, an adventure unlike any other. The main character, Charlie Worthing, is an orphan living and working in the pool (orphanage) where he grew up. Tired of the same boring routine, on a whim Charles joins the Winter Consuls - a sort of police force that protects the populace during the winter.

Thrown into a whole new world Charlie manages to get himself trapped in Sector 12 where mysterious things keep happening. Forced to deal with Nighwalkers, Wintervolk who make people disappear but leave their clothing intact and perfectly folded, viral dreams that are killing people and what is going on at HiberTech? Not knowing who is friend or foe, Charlie must find a way to understand the meaning behind the weird hyper real dreams that he is not supposed be having and somehow survive unto Springtime to expose a secret that people will kill to keep.

Early Riser is full of the quirky humour and sense of adventure that has made Jasper Fford so popular. The book is a wild ride that will keep you guessing until the very end. If you are a fan of PC Peter Grant from the Ben Aaronovich novels you will love Charlie Worthing and this audacious blend of supernatural adventure.