Book review: ‘Vampire on the Orient Express’ comes alive on Amazon – Oklahoman.com

"Vampire on the Orient Express" by Shane Carrow (Amazon Kindle, 135 pages, available through Amazon.com)

I usually review books distributed by established publishers, in hardback or paperback format. But while attending a professional writers' conference over the summer, I learned that more and more books are being published without an established publisher. In other words, they are self-published.

You have probably heard about "Fifty Shades of Gray," by E.L. James, for example, or "The Martian," by Andy Weir. "The Shack," by William Paul Young," is another example of a self-published book. Then there are "Eragon," by Christopher Paolini, "Rich Dad Poor Dad," by Robert T. Kiyosaki, "The Celestine Prophecy," by James Redfield, and many, many more.

I have been reading more self-published books since the summer, and in many cases I can see why the established publishers might not have offered contracts to the authors. Spelling and grammar errors run rampant in many self-published efforts; plot holes, just plain bad writing and other obstacles to the average reader show up in other books of this kind.

But occasionally I come across a gem, and that's how I must describe Shane Carrow's "Vampire on the Orient Express."

Available only through Amazon, either on the Kindle or on another device that can run the Kindle app (I use an iPhone, for example), the book is a quick page-turner, well put together and interesting from beginning to end.

The year is 1914. Sam Carter, an American born in Colorado, is AWOL from the French Foreign Legion, hoping a ride on the Orient Express to Constantinople will be sufficient distance from France to save him from the harsh retribution given to a deserter.

Also riding the train is Lucas Avery, who says he works with the British Foreign Office (in other words, he's a diplomat) but he actually is a spy for His Majesty.

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Book review: 'Vampire on the Orient Express' comes alive on Amazon - Oklahoman.com

Reviewed and Recommended by Erik Baquero