With Love and Hate At Its Core, Debut Novel, Journey To A Better Place, Redefines Revenge

On The Table Read, “the best book magazine in the UK“, new thriller novel, Journey To A Better Place, from debut author Brian Barnes explores darkness and vengeance.

Brian Barnes’ novel, Journey to the Better Place, shares a multi-layered plot that takes the reader from the streets of Sheffield to the boulevards of Venice and Paris, culminating in the hostile wilderness of the Colombian rainforest. 

As the old man, Tunja, prepares to meet his maker, he must seek vengeance on the man he holds responsible for the destruction of his life and family, and there can be only one way by which the score will be settled…

Journey To A Better Place

Published on 1st September 2022, Journey to the Better Place is an epic mystery/thriller from a debut author, that has revenge and darkness at its core.

Immersing the reader in a labyrinth of intrigue and subterfuge, this accomplished novel about a dying man who is desperate to secure revenge against the person who destroyed his world, will instantly appeal to those who enjoy adventure, horror and survival.  And with a haunting quality reminiscent of Carlos Ruiz Zafon’s modern classic, The Shadow of the Wind, readers will find it hard to put down.

Proving that it’s never too late to embrace a side hustle, and on the merits of this first novel, a stellar literary career awaits Brian Barnes.

Joshua and Jericho

From the moment he read the two names in the newspaper, he knew that the demons from his past had found him.  In the steaming jungle of Guatemala, Raymond Coulter had killed a man, and it had destroyed him.  But now, those two names had returned, dragging his darkest memories into his present life – was it a coincidence or, perhaps, a message? 

Whatever it was, the first step in a long journey of death and survival, of hatred and love, had been taken – and he was powerless to alter the course of his own destiny.  A moral dilemma on a global scale had to be confronted, the trail of murder had already begun. 

Addicted and controlled

Watching the man throw himself from the apartment window to a certain death on the concrete far below, she accepted that it was a necessary part of all this.  His death was not important to her, but the manner of it was crucial.  The wilful act of self-destruction had been the key factor, and it now meant their revenge could finally become a reality.   

But the old man’s visions had told him there was a problem – one man stood in the way of their pursuit of vengeance, and Lucia Cortez had to find him and then she would destroy him.  It didn’t matter who the man was; nothing and no-one would be allowed to prevent their revenge.  Then, and only then, her dying grandfather could start out on his Journey to the Better Place. 

Raymond and Lucia

Each plagued by the horrors of the past, each searching for the key to the future, but they are being followed by people who will stop at nothing to get what they want.  These killers are professional, and they will wait patiently for the right time, the right place – and then the death toll will be increased by two, and there will be no witnesses, they will leave nothing behind. 

Brian Barnes

This is the author’s debut novel, the realisation of a long-time dream.  Brian Barnes was born in Zimbabwe, his parents being members of the Royal Air Force at that time, and he now lives with his wife Lena on the East Yorkshire coast.

Find Journey To A Better Place now:

Published by Grosvenor House Publishing on 1^st September 2022, Journey to the Better Place is available in hardcover (£23.99) and paperback (£15.99) to pre-order on Amazon at https://amzn.to/3Av33sx and https://amzn.to/3pt3RI6

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