BLOG TOUR: The Transcendent Tide (The Enceladons Trilogy) - Doug Johnstone

It’s been eighteen months since the Enceladons escaped the clutches of an American military determined to exterminate the peaceful alien creatures.

Lennox and Vonnie have been lying low in the Scottish Highlands, Ava has been caring for her young daughter Chloe, and Heather is adjusting to her new life with Sandy and the other Enceladons in the Arctic Ocean, off the coast of Greenland. But fate is about to bring them together again for one last battle.

When Lennox and Vonnie are visited by Karl Jensen, a Norwegian billionaire intent on making contact with the Encedalons again, they are wary of subjecting the aliens to further dangers. But when word arrives that Ava’s daughter has suffered an attack and might die without urgent help, they reluctantly make the trip to Greenland, where they enlist the vital help of local woman Niviaq.

It's not long before they’re drawn into a complex web of lies, deceit and death. What is Karl’s company really up to? Why are sea creatures attacking boats? Why is Sandy acting so strangely, and why are polar bears getting involved?

Profound, ambitious and moving, The Transcendent Tide is the epic conclusion to the Encedalons Trilogy, and a final showdown between the best and worst of humanity, the animal kingdom and the Encedalons. The future of life on earth will be changed forever, but not everyone will survive to see it...

 

What did I think?

Oh my goodness, I really didn't want this fantastic book to end so I was torn between gobbling up every word as if I hadn't read for months and savouring every single word so I could make it last longer.  The Transcendent Tide is the perfect ending to an epic and unforgettable trilogy.

You do need to read the books in order to get the most out of the incredibly powerful storyline and to fully understand the characters, which is why I felt so many different emotions whilst reading.  I was shocked, angered and upset as I lived and breathed every moment of this magnificent journey with Sandy, the Enceladons and their friends.

The writing is flawless and the plotting sublime as Doug Johnstone takes the reader on a memorable journey through the Arctic.  I felt like I needed my thermals on as I kept getting goosebumps as the vivid scenes were described.

Haunting, poignant and powerful, The Transcendent Tide is a highly original book and an outstanding finale to an epic trilogy.  It has a tentacle in so many genres that it will appeal to all readers and leave a lasting impression.  I can award nothing less than five stars for this amazing novel.

I received a digital ARC to read and review for the blog tour and this is my honest and unbiased opinion.

My rating:

Buy it from:

Orenda Books

UK.Bookshop.org

Amazon

About the author:

Doug Johnstone is the author of 18 previous novels, most recently Living Is a Problem (2024) and The Collapsing Wave (2024). The Big Chill (2020) was longlisted for Theakston Crime Novel of the Year, and Black Hearts was shortlisted for the same award. Three of his books, A Dark Matter (2020), Breakers (2019) and The Jump (2015), have been shortlisted for the McIlvanney Prize for Scottish Crime Novel of the Year.  

He’s taught creative writing and been writer in residence at various institutions over the last decade, and has been an arts journalist for over twenty years. Doug is a songwriter and musician with six albums and three EPs released, and he plays drums for the Fun Lovin’ Crime Writers. He’s also co-founder of the Scotland Writers Football Club, and has a PhD in nuclear physics. He lives in Edinburgh. 

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BLOG TOUR: The Collapsing Wave (The Enceladons Trilogy, Book 2) - Doug Johnstone

Six months since the earth-shattering events of The Space Between Us, the revelatory hope of the aliens’ visit has turned to dust and the creatures have disappeared into the water off Scotland’s west coast.

 

Teenager Lennox and grieving mother Heather are being held in New Broom, a makeshift US military base, the subject of experiments, alongside the Enceladons who have been captured by the authorities.

 

Ava, who has given birth, is awaiting the jury verdict at her trial for the murder of her husband. And MI7 agent Oscar Fellowes, who has been sidelined by the US military, is beginning to think he might be on the wrong side of history.

 

When alien Sandy makes contact, Lennox and Heather make a plan to escape with Ava. All three of them are heading for a profound confrontation between the worst of humanity and a possible brighter future, as the stakes get higher for the alien Enceladons and the entire human race…

 

Sequel to the bestselling The Space Between Us, The Collapsing Wave is an exquisite, epic first-contact novel, laced with peril and populated by unforgettable characters, and the awe-inspiring book we all need right now…

What did I think?

Sandy is back!!!!  The Collapsing Wave is one of my most eagerly anticipated sequels and not only does it not disappoint, it totally blew me away.  I thought book one, The Space Between Us, was exceptional but The Collapsing Wave is exquisite.  It's made me even more excited to see how Doug Johnstone follows this one with the final book in the trilogy.

It's so good to be back with Lennox, Heather and Ava again although they are all in a right pickle: Lennox and Heather are being held on an American military base in Scotland and Ava is on trial for the murder of her husband.  The Americans are capturing and experimenting on the aliens and it's both cruel and shocking.  If only Sandy, my favourite alien, could be contacted...

Oh my goodness, this book is simply breathtaking.  It's filled with so much action and suspense that I was on the edge of my seat and racing through the pages as fast as I possibly could.  The writing is vivid and expressive, creating multicoloured scenes in my mind as the story played out on the page.

For anyone who says they don't read science fiction, you haven't read Doug Johnstone's form of sci-fi.  It's written like a thriller with characters (both human and alien) that you completely root for and you almost forget that the Enceladons are from outer space.  I am really looking forward to reading the final book but, at the same time, I simply don't want this wonderful series to finish.

The Collapsing Wave is an absolute must read and I really can't recommend it highly enough.

I received a digital ARC to read and review for the blog tour and this is my honest and unbiased opinion.

My rating:

Buy it from:

UK.Bookshop.org

Amazon

About the author:

Doug Johnstone is the author of 16 previous novels, most recently The Opposite of Lonely (2023) and The Space Between Us (2023). The Big Chill (2020) was longlisted for Theakston Crime Novel of the Year, and Black Hearts was shortlisted for the same award. Three of his books, A Dark Matter (2020), Breakers (2019) and The Jump (2015), have been shortlisted for the McIlvanney Prize for Scottish Crime Novel of the Year. He’s taught creative writing and been writer in residence at various institutions over the last decade, and has been an arts journalist for over twenty years. Doug is a songwriter and musician with six albums and three EPs released, and he plays drums for the Fun Lovin’ Crime Writers. He’s also co-founder of the Scotland Writers Football Club, and has a PhD in nuclear physics.

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BLOG TOUR: The Space Between Us - Doug Johnstone

Lennox is a troubled teenager with no family. Ava is eight months pregnant and fleeing her abusive husband. Heather is a grieving mother and cancer sufferer. They don’t know each other, but when a meteor streaks over Edinburgh, all three suffer instant, catastrophic strokes...

…only to wake up the following day in hospital, miraculously recovered.

When news reaches them of an octopus-like creature washed up on the shore near where the meteor came to earth, Lennox senses that some extra-terrestrial force is at play. With the help of Ava, Heather and a journalist, Ewan, he rescues the creature they call 'Sandy' and goes on the run.

But they aren’t the only ones with an interest in the alien … close behind are Ava’s husband, the police and a government unit who wants to capture the creature, at all costs. And Sandy’s arrival may have implications beyond anything anyone could imagine…

 

What did I think?

I already know that Doug Johnstone is a talented author but his new novel, The Space Between Us, is absolutely outstanding.  I am completely speechless and I'm afraid that any review I write will not do it justice but I'll give it a go.

Three very different people are brought together when they all inexplicably recover from a severe stroke.  The universe isn't yet done with Lennox, Ava and Heather so when they hear reports of a cephalopod on a local beach, they feel compelled to rescue it.  Lennox names the mysterious creature Sandy and the bond between them is beautiful to behold.

The vivid imagery created by Doug Johnstone's words is stunning, it did actually take my breath away on several occasions.  The bursts of colour that exploded in my mind, simply by reading words on a page, felt so intense and magical that I will never forget it.  I absolutely loved Sandy; their innocence and intelligence reminded me a little of E.T. and their attempts to understand our crazy world were entertaining and amusing.

My thoughts have been well and truly provoked after reading this exceptional novel; it really makes you consider your place in the universe and realise how very insignificant we are.  I wouldn't normally read something that sounds so much like science fiction but I'm very glad that I did.  A highly recommended read and a well-deserved 5 stars.

I received a digital ARC to read and review for the blog tour and this is my honest and unbiased opinion.

My rating:

Buy it from:

UK.Bookshop.org

Amazon

About the author:

Doug Johnstone is the author of fourteen previous novels, most recently Black Hearts (2022). The Big Chill (2020) was longlisted for the Theakston Crime Novel of the Year and three of his books, A Dark Matter (2020), Breakers (2019) and The Jump (2015), have been shortlisted for the McIlvanney Prize for Scottish Crime Novel of the Year. He’s taught creative writing and been writer in residence at various institutions over the last decade, and has been an arts journalist for over twenty years. Doug is a songwriter and musician with six albums and three EPs released, and he plays drums for the Fun Lovin’ Crime Writers, a band of writers. He’s also co-founder of the Scotland Writers Football Club, and has a PhD in nuclear physics.

Follow Doug on Twitter @doug_johnstone

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