Review | Strange Ink by Gary Kemble

Fresh off a breakup from a long-term relationship, Harry Hendrick finds himself in a new house, alone and heartbroken. When he wakes up the night after his best friend’s stag party with a strange tattoo on his neck, he dismisses it as a bad mistake. But after more tattoos appear on his body, he decides to find their origin and the meaning behind them. As nightmares start plaguing his sleep and his life begins spiraling out of control, he has to look into his own past to find the truth.

He stared at the screen, not believing what he was seeing. That must’ve been from the night before. A drunken photo of someone else. But that was his bedroom. His neck. And on it, a tattoo.

First of all, shout out to that fantastic cover! There aren’t many horror books with white backgrounds that I can think of which is a shame. I think it’s gorgeous when contrasted with the dark images.

Now onto the book. While there are supernatural elements in Strange Ink, it’s not that kind of horror. It’s more a political thriller and the horror comes from people doing awful stuff. The main character, Harry, is a journalist whose career faltered during university after his scoop on a businessman’s shady dealings had to be retracted. He ends up working for a local newspaper, his job uninspiring and rote. That is until strange tattoos start appearing on his body and he has nightmares of a man he doesn’t know. When he digs into his situation, he uncovers terrible things.

I thought Harry is quite bland as a protagonist and doesn’t make for an exciting hero. He unfortunately spends a lot of time pining over his ex-girlfriend and fretting over the women in his life. The supporting characters stood out more for me. There’s his colleague and fellow journalist, Christine; Brian Swenson, the owner of a massive constructions company; Fred, a retiree keen on saving historical sites, Andrew Cardinal, the candidate for a new Prime Minister. The man Harry dreams of is also intriguing but I’ll let you discover him for yourself!

As an Australian-born reader I loved the Brisbane setting and Australian political scene. The book touches on heavy themes of war, corrupt soldiers, immigration, drug trafficking. I thought the themes are handled deftly and makes you care for the characters involved. There is a lot of creepy potential in the secrets of Harry’s tattoos but I didn’t feel the tension. I also expected more dark magic but it only appeared during brief moments. Overall, if you’re looking for a political thriller with a hint of the supernatural, this would be a good choice.

I received a copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. Strange Ink was previously published under the name Skin Deep.

About the author: Gary Kemble

Photo by Pagie Page