Serena’s Review: “Wolfsong”

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Book: “Wolfsong” by TJ Klune

Publishing Info: Tor, July 2023

Where Did I Get this Book: ARC from the publisher!

Where Can You Get this Book: WorldCat.org | Amazon | IndieBound

Book Description: Oxnard Matheson was twelve when his father taught him a Ox wasn’t worth anything and people would never understand him. Then his father left.

Ox was sixteen when the energetic Bennett family moved in next door, harboring a secret that would change him forever. The Bennetts are shapeshifters. They can transform into wolves at will. Drawn to their magic, loyalty, and enduring friendships, Ox feels a gulf between this extraordinary new world and the quiet life he’s known, but he finds an ally in Joe, the youngest Bennett boy.

Ox was twenty-three when murder came to town and tore a hole in his heart. Violence flared, tragedy split the pack, and Joe left town, leaving Ox behind. Three years later, the boy is back. Except now he’s a man – charming, handsome, but haunted – and Ox can no longer ignore the song that howls between them.

The beloved fantasy romance sensation by New York Times bestselling author TJ Klune, about love, loyalty, betrayal, and family.

Review: I was definitely excited when I saw that Tor was republishing this series by TJ Klune. For one thing, I think the colorful, vibrant colors of these new covers are much more in line with Klune’s style of storytelling than the grimdark covers on the originals. Further, I’ve enjoyed the books I’ve read by Klune in the past, and I’m always down for unique fantasy story featuring romance and werewolves!

Per the usual, I do enjoy Klune’s overall style of writing. I know that some struggle with what they perceive as an overly lyrical and flowery approach to word choice and sentence structure, but as a reader who often enjoys lyrical writing, this has always been a bonus for me. Are there times when it may approach the level of saccharine? Perhaps, but, at its core, this is also a romance novel, and I do think that if there is a place for this style of writing, the romance genre is most often where you find it.

I also liked the world that Klune presented here. I grew up in rural/small town northern Idaho, so I’m always partial to stories that take place in small towns. More often than not, paranormal romances take place in urban environments, so it’s always nice to see one set in different locations. I also liked that we see the entire story play out through Ox’s head, the human half of this love story. As I said just recently, I can’t express how relieved I am to open a book nowadays and NOT discover alternating POVs.

However, I did struggle with the romance at the heart of this story. We meet these characters veeerrrry young, and that age issue was really a hang up for me from the very start, as the book doesn’t shy away from the “fated pair” thing right from the start. And that just feels kind of icky with the very young versions of these characters. Beyond that, the age difference is not unsubstantial, especially during the period of time where one of them was 17 and the other several years old. I’ve heard people describe this book as “Twilight but Bella picks the werewolf” and in a lot of ways that is about right. But it’s also right in the unfortunate way: each book has some kind of icky age issues when you get right down to it.

Klune is a very popular author, and I know that this series was well-received its first go around. So I’m sure there are readers who will gobble this up! But if you’re a romance reader who struggles with large age gaps and some of the questionable sides of “mated for life” romance tropes, this one might not be for you.

Rating 7: For some, this will be right up their alley. For me, I couldn’t get past the age issues right from the start, even if it did improve as they aged.

Reader’s Advisory:

“Wolfsong” isn’t on any Goodreads lists, but it should be on Best Shapeshifter/Werewolf books.

Serena’s Review: “The Jasad Heir”

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Book: “The Jasad Heir” by Sara Hashem

Publishing Info: Orbit, July 2023

Where Did I Get this Book: ARC from the publisher!

Where Can You Get this Book: WorldCat.org |Amazon | IndieBound

Book Description: In this Egyptian-inspired debut fantasy, a fugitive queen strikes a deadly bargain with her greatest enemy and finds herself embroiled in a complex game that could resurrect her scorched kingdom or leave it in ashes forever.

Ten years ago, the kingdom of Jasad burned. Its magic outlawed; its royal family murdered down to the last child. At least, that’s what Sylvia wants people to believe.

The lost Heir of Jasad, Sylvia never wants to be found. She can’t think about how Nizahl’s armies laid waste to her kingdom and continue to hunt its people—not if she wants to stay alive. But when Arin, the Nizahl Heir, tracks a group of Jasadi rebels to her village, staying one step ahead of death gets trickier.

In a moment of anger Sylvia’s magic is exposed, capturing Arin’s attention. Now, to save her life, Sylvia will have to make a deal with her greatest enemy. If she helps him lure the rebels, she’ll escape persecution.

A deadly game begins. Sylvia can’t let Arin discover her identity even as hatred shifts into something more. Soon, Sylvia will have to choose between the life she wants and the one she left behind. The scorched kingdom is rising, and it needs a queen.

Review: I really wasn’t sure what I would be getting when I requested this book. On one hand, I was very intrigued by the “Egyptian-inspired” aspect of the story (more on that later). But on the other hand, much of what is described in the summary sounds very familiar. How many books have I read in the last few years where magic is outlawed and some heir to some throne somewhere is on the run only to be called upon to once again take up their crown? However, as I said recently, sometimes popular things are popular for a reason, and I was happy to be wrong with my initial concerns with this one! Indeed, I enjoyed it quite a bit!

First off, let’s get my little note about the inspiration for this book out of the way. Most likely this was a completely personal failing on my part, because I don’t think I know enough about Egyptian culture, religion, or history to truly appreciate the “inspired by” aspects of this story. Instead, I mostly fixated on the fact that there is a large river that is central to the geography of the various kingdoms which was obviously a stand-in for the Nile. I was able to recognize the near-personification of this river as a clear call-back to the relationship the regions surrounding the Nile had/have to that great waterway. But, other than that, I really felt like a lot of the Egyptian aspects were going over my head. Readers who are more familiar may get more out of these aspects of the story than I did. Honestly, if that line hadn’t been right there in the summary of the book, I don’t think I would have made the connection, even with the all-important river.

Even without perhaps fully appreciating these aspects of the story, I really enjoyed this book! Much of this comes down to how much I enjoyed the main character. Here was a truly flawed and complex individual who was also incredibly sympathetic and understandable. Her life has been one of horror, pain, and loneliness. Her memories are scattered and her ability to rely on or trust anyone but herself has been broken many times. Out of this rises a woman who knows that she makes selfish choices, but while she berates herself for this quality, much of the book is spent with her diligently examining why people make heroic choices, even in the face of horrible odds or against their better interest.

Beyond this, she was simply a fun character to spend time with. The dialogue was funny at times and heart-breaking at others. And, best of all, we got to see her in action in a number of bad-ass action set pieces. I also enjoyed her very slow-burn relationship with the man that should be her natural enemy. This was a true “slow burn” in the sense that months pass over the course of this story, and the characters truly do go through the ringer to slowly make their way towards understanding and caring for one another. This is exactly how you pull off this sort of relationship. Anything other than this meticulous and slow build simply reads as unrealistic between characters like these who have no reason to like or trust one another quickly. I also really liked the romantic hero, Arin, on his own. I do have a think for the quiet, meticulously powerful ones, and he checked a lot of boxes for my reading preferences.

There was also a lot put into the world-building and history of this world. And I’ll be honest, even halfway through, I was still struggling to keep straight exactly which gods were connected with which kingdoms, how the various cultures were different from one another, and how exactly this world was laid out. I read this book on my Kindle, so I do think this was one of those situations where having a map would have helped me quite a lot. Especially given the fixation on maps that Arin himself is referenced as having!

The story does end on a fairly substantial cliff hanger. And there are a lot of dangling mysteries to be had, not only about both of our main characters, but about what truly happened in the history of this world, both recent and long ago. But I think it’s well worth the torment, and any fans of detailed, fantasy worlds and compelling heroines should definitely check this one out!

Rating 9: What a wonder! A debut that is rich in world-building and lead by a fantastic, feisty heroine, Hashem checks all the boxes as a SFF author to keep your eyes on!

Reader’s Advisory:

“The Jasad Heir” isn’t on any Goodreads lists yet, but it should be on Egyptian Mythology.

Kate’s Review: “Camp Damascus”


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Book: “Camp Damascus” by Chuck Tingle

Publishing Info: Tor Nightfire, July 2023

Where Did I Get This Book: I received an eARC from NetGalley.

Where You Can Get This Book: WorldCat.org | Amazon | Indiebound

Book Description: A searing and earnest horror debut about the demons the queer community faces in America, the price of keeping secrets, and finding the courage to burn it all down.

They’ll scare you straight to hell.

Welcome to Neverton, Montana: home to a God-fearing community with a heart of gold.

Nestled high up in the mountains is Camp Damascus, the self-proclaimed “most effective” gay conversion camp in the country. Here, a life free from sin awaits. But the secret behind that success is anything but holy.

Review: Thank you to NetGalley for sending me an eARC of this novel!

I have been aware of Chuck Tingle for about ten years now, as he has been a huge Internet meme in and of himself for a number of reasons. The first is that Chuck Tingle is a pseudonym and the way he presents himself is almost assuredly (I don’t want to say assuredly, however) performance art to an amazing and endearing degree. The second is that up until now he is predominantly known for writing short story monster erotica, with titles like “Space Raptor Butt Invasion”, “Bisexual Mothman Mailman Makes A Special Delivery In Our Butts”, and “Absolutely No Thoughts of Pounding During My Fun Day With This Fun T-Rex Because I’m Aromantic and Asexual And That’s a Wonderfully Valid Way of Proving Love Is Real”(oh man, I LOVE this). I also have a memory of spending an evening hyperfocusing on scrolling his Twitter feed and laughing so hard I was crying. When I saw that Tingle was going to be writing two actual, full length, non-monster erotic horror novels, I was absolutely fascinated by the entire concept, and when I read the plot for “Camp Damascus” I knew that I needed to read it. Firstly because I’m always down for horror that plays on real life fears (in this case, conversion camps and fundamentalist Christianity), and secondly because what would a mainstream Chuck Tingle book look like?

“Camp Damascus” works on so many levels for me, the first of which being that lately LGBTQIA+ people are being maligned, vilified, and threatened by so called culture warriors and bigots, with more and more laws passing that target trans people and drag queens, and people losing their minds over the slightest hint of a rainbow on a mainstream product. The unfortunate and horrible truth is that places like Camp Damascus and the people who run it are, while perhaps not supernatural, causing harm to LGBTQIA+ children. It’s a book that calls out that hateful bullshit through metaphors and demonic imagery, and it is done in a way that is very scary, very earnest, and very affecting. Our protagonist Rose is a teenage girl living in the deeply fundamentalist community of Neverton, Montana, her family members of the Kingdom of the Pine Church, and she is living a life of true belief and pragmatism. But when she starts seeing images of a menacing demon, and starts coughing up bugs, and it is all connected to a hidden to the world (and in some ways herself) attraction, she starts to realize that there are parts of her life that have been suppressed and hidden from her, and that it ties back to the community conversion camp Camp Damascus. The demons in this book as described are unsettling and creepy, and Tingle has a few wonderfully described moments that freaked me all the way out just through the way he paints a tense picture to its snapping point. And there is, of course, the real life horrors of how queer people can be demonized by fundamentalist groups, and having it connect back to literal demons involved with a conversion camp just feels absolutely correct. Horror as religious trauma and bigotry isn’t something I expected from the guy who brought us “Taken by the Gay Unicorn Biker”, but it works incredibly well.

And the other thing that I really, really enjoyed about this book is Rose as a character, as not only is she queer, she is also autistic. As someone who is neurodivergent herself, I’m always eager to see characters who are ASD or ADHD or what have you, and I really liked the exploration Tingle does with her character as a very literal person with many curiosities who is living in a community that is VERY threatened by curiosity in general. Exploring a queer person living in this reality was a choice I liked, but it also made me think about what it would be like to live in this kind of community with a different neurotype and how challenging that would also be. I also really love how heartfelt Rose is, and how Tingle never lets her become too cynical, or worn down. She is determined to figure out what is going on with her, and once she does she is determined to make sure that the trauma she has experienced doesn’t happen to anyone else, making friends and connections with other people like her along the way. It shouldn’t surprise me that there is so much hope in this story, as Tingle has always exuded hope with his saying ‘love is real’, and it makes this battle cry against bigotry pulse with joy.

“Camp Damascus” is an impressive jump to the mainstream by Chuck Tingle, who is a horror writer I am going to be keeping my eye on.

Rating 9: Relevant, searing, and incredibly heartfelt, “Camp Damascus” is a solid and enjoyable mainstream horror review novel from Chuck Tingle.

Reader’s Advisory:

“Camp Damascus” is included on the Goodreads lists “Queer Horror”, and “Horror to Look Forward to in 2023”.

Serena’s Review: “Ebony Gate”

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Book: “Ebony Gate” by Julia Vee and Ken Bebelle

Publishing Info: Tor, July 2023

Where Did I Get this Book: ARC from the publisher!

Where Can You Get this Book: WorldCat.org |Amazon | IndieBound

Book Description: Emiko Soong belongs to one of the eight premier magical families of the world. But Emiko never needed any magic. Because she is the Blade of the Soong Clan. Or was. Until she’s drenched in blood in the middle of a market in China, surrounded by bodies and the scent of blood and human waste as a lethal perfume.

The Butcher of Beijing now lives a quiet life in San Francisco, importing antiques. But when a shinigami, a god of death itself, calls in a family blood debt, Emiko must recover the Ebony Gate that holds back the hungry ghosts of the Yomi underworld. Or forfeit her soul as the anchor.

What’s a retired assassin to do but save the City by the Bay from an army of the dead?

Review: I’ll be honest, I had no idea this was a modern day, urban fantasy novel until the moment I started reading it! I mean, it does mention San Francisco right there in the summary, so I really have no excuse. I think I just focused on the first paragraph and the overall feel of the cover art style. But I was definitely pleased when I did get it all straight in my head! I’m always on the look out for a good urban fantasy series, and this one definitely had a lot of unique ideas being presented right off that set it out to a good start.

While this book wasn’t the perfect fit I was hoping for, there was a lot to like, starting with the aspects that make it unique from other urban fantasy and paranormal novels. For one thing, I really enjoyed the use of San Francisco and China Town as the main location for the story. The location felt fresh and vibrant, and I loved how Chinese culture was woven throughout this aspect of the story. I particularly enjoyed how the various magical families had their own territories and would compete for power and wealth. This book has been marketed as a “female John Wick” story, and you could definitely see how this comparison could be made with this secretive, often violent, society operating within the borders of what we think is regular life.

There were also a lot of interesting magical elements to be found. In particular, the gates themselves and how access and use of them are managed. I also liked the choice to have Emiko herself not being a magic user, instead having to rely on her fighting abilities to make her way through this world. This was especially interesting for her having come from a supremely powerful magical family, and how this lack of magic has defined her life and choices. However, this did lead to times where I found myself becoming more interested in Emiko’s mother’s story than Emiko’s own.

And that speaks a bit to where the story started to come apart for me. Emiko is a pretty straight-forward urban fantasy heroine. I’m not sure quite why this is, but there is a bit of a standard to be found in urban fantasy and paranormal fiction where the leading character isn’t necessarily super complex with loads of depth or personality. And the same can be said about Emiko. Was she the worst? No. But was she particularly compelling on her own? Also, no. Much of the book is spent with her fixating on her own lack of magical abilities and her resistance to falling back into a life of killing (a resistance that is obviously futile as is seen within the first few chapters even). I kept hoping we would get a bit more from her, and it just didn’t come.

But my main struggle came with the style of writing itself. It’s a very straight-forward, “telling” sort of writing. In many ways, again, it does fit with the style of writing often found in urban fantasy/paranormal fiction. But here, I really did find some of it wanting. There was a very repetitive use of language and sentence structure that immediately hit me. Within the first few pages, there was a paragraph where the word “thug” was used to describe a group of people three times. On my kindle, this one word was literally stacked upon itself in three lines. Not only is this an unforgivable lack in creative vocabulary, but it speaks to the overly straight-forward approach to style and substance that the same word needed to be used three times in such quick succession to describe a scene and its action. From there, it really was hard to not be continuously distracted by the weak points of the writing itself. There were filler words dropped in everywhere, and an overall lack of any unique style or expression. Readers who really enjoy urban fantasy and paranormal fiction may be less bothered by this than I am, however, as there is a standard set in this subgenre for a fairly straight forward, “telling” sort of writing.

While I did struggle with this book, I am intrigued by the overall concept and world. Emiko also seems like a great character that can grow a lot in future books, even if all we got here was the very basic foundation for who she is. I will likely continue this series, just to see where it’s all going, and hopefully some of the writing wrinkles will smooth over in future books, as well.

Rating 7: A vibrant new urban fantasy world, if only held back by some weaknesses in the writing and a lack of overall depth to the main character.

Reader’s Advisory:

“Ebony Gate” isn’t on any Goodreads lists yet, but it should be on Urban Fantasy Books.

Kate’s Review: “Burn the Negative”

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Book: “Burn the Negative” by Josh Winning

Publishing Info: G.P. Putnam’s Sons, July 2023

Where Did I Get This Book: I received an eARC from NetGalley.

Where You Can Get This Book: WorldCat.org | Amazon | Indiebound

Book Description: Some remakes aren’t just a bad idea…they’re deadly.

Journalist Laura Warren is mid-flight to LA when she learns that the streaming series she’s about to report on is a remake of a ‘90s horror flick. A cursed ’90s horror flick. The one that she starred in—and has been running from her whole life.

As a child star, Laura was cast as the lead in The Guesthouse. She played Tammy Manners, the little girl with the terrifying gift to tell people how the Needle Man would kill them. But her big break was her last, as eight of her cast and crew mates died in mysterious ways, and the film became infamous—a cult classic of fictional horror that somehow summoned the real thing. Hoping to move on from all the negative press, Laura changed her name and her accent, dyed her hair, and moved across the Atlantic Ocean. But some scripts don’t want to stay buried.

Soon after landing, Laura finds a yellow dress just like the one she wore in the movie. Then the words “She’s here” scratched into the wall in an actor’s trailer. And then people working on the series start dying. It’s all happening again, Laura’s worst nightmare brought to life, and she finds herself on the run with her sister and a jaded psychic, hoping to find answers—and to stay out of the Needle Man’s lethal reach.

An homage to slasher films with a fresh take on the true price of fame, Burn the Negative is a twisty thriller best read with the lights on.

Review: Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an eARC of this novel!

We all know that of all the great horror film sub genres out there, I have a special place in my heart for a good old fashioned slasher film. I like the melodrama, I like the over the top nonsensical Savini-esque violence, I like the bursts of terror that come out in jump scares that then make me laugh in spite of myself. I also like weird real life strangeness, unexplained things or potential supernatural events. And when those two things come together, well that’s even better. So of course I was interested in “Burn the Negative”, a new horror slasher novel by Josh Winning about a cursed movie called “The Guesthouse” that is being revamped into a series called “It Feeds”, and how the old protagonist went into hiding to escape the notoriety only to be sucked back in. I mean that just screams “KATE, READ THIS!” And in a lot of ways it did everything that I wanted it to… Until it committed one of my most loathed sins of the slasher genre…

But let’s start with the positives! As there are a good amount! “Burn the Negative” is such a fun homage to not only slasher movies, but the lore around certain slasher movies that are supposedly ‘cursed’ films due to the terrible things that happened to various people involved in the productions. “It Feeds”/”The Guesthouse” has vibes akin to “Poltergeist” or “The Exorcist”, both horror movies that are beloved in the genre but have some really sad connections (“Poltergeist” especially: the actresses who played the daughters both died young, Dominque Dunne was murdered by her ex-boyfriend and Heather O’Rourke died of congenital stenosis). Everyone loves the idea of a cursed movie because of the high strangeness and lore of the unexplained, and “Burn the Negative” really runs with it. It also very much feels like a slasher movie, with lots of wacky deaths, a protagonist with secrets and a rough past, and a genuinely freaky “Needle Man” that has perhaps taken on a life of itself after being a horror movie villain whose actor was never actually publicly identified. I would absolutely watch this if it were a horror movie, and it was a quick and engaging read that had me hooked.

I also liked the other aspects of this plot, specifically those regarding Laura, the child star of the film who changed her name from Polly due to the notoriety, and her traumatic childhood as a child actress with an overbearing stage mom. Having this added layer to her character made her all the more easy to invest in, as man can this woman EVER catch a break? But it’s also something that feels like a real life horror to add to the supernatural ones, whether it’s the abuse that Laura/Polly endured from her zealous mother, or the way that it put a wedge between her and her younger sister Amy, or the way that adults involved with the film saw the difficulties she was having but ignored in favor of production, these things were almost more upsetting that The Needle Man.

But. BUT. We once again get a book that feels a need to do a final ‘gotcha’ kind of ending that yanks the carpet out from under the reader. And readers, we all know how I feel about such endings. I do appreciate that with a horror novel that is paying homage to/deconstructing slasher movie tropes and themes, the temptation to do a very slasher-y ending with a ‘but you were never REALLY safe’ is probably very, very present. But I’ve never liked stories that imply safety and release, only to make the antagonistic force come back for a ninth inning reappearance/victory. And I think that the reason it really cheesed my grits in this book is because there ARE a lot of other real life themes and metaphors like child exploitation, toxic parents, trauma, and self hate that it just felt especially galling to me. Sadly this was a situation where I was very ready to give this a pretty high rating, but the frustrating ending bumped it down a bit in my mind.

Hard pass on rugs being pulled out from under me. (source)

“Burn the Negative” is a clear love letter to slasher movies, and a fun take on the dark side of childhood fame and fortune. I wish it had stuck the landing a bit more. I’m interested in seeing what else Josh Winning has to offer horror literature, because there was a lot to like at the end of the day.

Rating 7: A fun homage to horror movies and a take on childhood fame and Hollywood pitfalls, though the ending was a bit hackneyed.

Reader’s Advisory:

“Burn the Negative” isn’t on any Goodreads lists yet, but I think it would fit in on “Slasher Horror Books”.

Joint Review: “Silver Nitrate”

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Book: “Silver Nitrate” by Silvia Moreno-Garcia

Publishing Info: Del Rey, July 2023

Where Did We Get This Book: We received eARCs from NetGalley and Edeweiss+!

Where You Can Get This Book: WorldCat.org | Amazon | Indiebound

Book Description: From the New York Times bestselling author of The Daughter of Doctor Moreau and Mexican Gothic comes a fabulous meld of Mexican horror movies and Nazi occultism: a dark thriller about the curse that haunts a legendary lost film–and awakens one woman’s hidden powers.

Montserrat has always been overlooked. She’s a talented sound editor, but she’s left out of the boys’ club running the film industry in ’90s Mexico City. And she’s all but invisible to her best friend, Tristán, a charming if faded soap opera star, though she’s been in love with him since childhood.

Then Tristán discovers his new neighbor is the cult horror director Abel Urueta, and the legendary auteur claims he can change their lives—even if his tale of a Nazi occultist imbuing magic into highly volatile silver nitrate stock sounds like sheer fantasy. The magic film was never finished, which is why, Urueta swears, his career vanished overnight. He is cursed.

Now the director wants Montserrat and Tristán to help him shoot the missing scene and lift the curse . . . but Montserrat soon notices a dark presence following her, and Tristán begins seeing the ghost of his ex-girlfriend.

As they work together to unravel the mystery of the film and the obscure occultist who once roamed their city, Montserrat and Tristán may find that sorcerers and magic are not only the stuff of movies.

Kate’s Thoughts

I always look forward to Silvia Moreno-Garcia’s new books, because I know that I am almost assuredly going to be a well done take on whatever genre she wants to tackle. We’ve seen horror, we’ve seen fantasy, we’ve seen noir, and romance. She really knows how to be a chameleon and jump from genre to genre, and “Silver Nitrate” is no exception. This time we have a little bit of magical realism, a little bit of historical fiction, and a little bit of good old fashioned occult horror. As well as the real life horrors of post WWII Nazis fleeing to Latin America. Man, that’s another thing I love about Moreno-Garcia; she deftly inserts historical context from a place I have little knowledge of into her stories, and I find it so, so fascinating every time.

“Silver Nitrate” is both an exploration of mystic occult intrigue as well as a history lesson in Mexican cinema. I really loved learning all of these historical tidbits about movie history in Mexico, and the film industry in general and the inner workings of it. I was having to go and look into some of her references (okay, many of her references), but that made the experience all the richer because I LOVE connecting historical dots and how it can really elevate a tale. And she always does it in a way that flows very well, never taking me out of the story too much (just enough to go on a tangent or two). The history of Mexican cinema was just such a fun angle to me, and I really enjoyed learning more and seeing that side of the story.

And as for the horror aspects of this story, Moreno-Garcia once again really evokes the creepy in her narrative. Whether it is strange imagery that Tristán is seeing after getting in too deep, or the idea of a cursed film in general, or the very real scares of the idea of Nazis using mysticism as a way to gain power, there are so many unsettling aspects of this book and Moreno-Garcia balances them all. She can do flat out horror, or building unease, and both parts on the horror spectrum fit in very well within the story.

Another delightful story from Silvia Moreno-Garcia! I love that we get new content by her pretty consistently, and I cannot wait to see what kind of genre hopping she takes on next!

Serena’s Thoughts

Another summer comes, another Silvia Moreno-Garcia book to joint review here on our blog! At this point, it’s well established how much we both enjoy this author. But one of the things I appreciate the most is how I can never anticipate what sort of story I will get from her next. Yes, she often incorporates fantasy and horror elements (hence both of our love of her work!), but the exact sort of story is always very different. Last summer found us reading a re-imaging of “The Island of Doctor Moreau.” And this summer we do a deep dive into the 90s and classic Mexican film history.

I’ll be honest, I know next to nothing about this topic, so I spent a large portion of this book with my phone open to Google, frantically researching the various directors and actors mentioned. But, as I said, this is one of the great joys of her work. I also went down several rabbit holes regarding Nazis and mysticism; always a fun time! I really liked how these two seemingly very disconnected topics were woven together so neatly. One thing that stood out to me on this read is the unique approach to fantasy and magic systems that this author takes. That is, she doesn’t worry about it much. Much of the magic in her books is used to enhance the overall tone of the book, with very little put into explaining to readers how exactly any of this works. She’s a perfect answer to the types of fantasy fans who insists that complex systems with clear rules, ala Brandon Sanderson, is the only way to portray magic.

I also really liked our main two characters. Their relationship, a friendship built over decades of knowing one another, was such a true depiction of this sort of rare person in one’s life. Someone who you understand so well that you, on one hand, can’t stand them, but on the other hand, love them more than life itself. I particularly liked the swapped nature of their personalities from the sort that we typically see, with Montserrat taking on the more aggressive, proactive role, with Tristan very much serving as the softer one of the two.

Overall, this was another excellent story by this author. See you all next summer (fingers crossed!), can’t wait to see what we’ll be reading next time!

Kate’s Rating 8: A fun combination of horror, history, and occultism.

Serena’s Rating 8: A fascinating mix of historical deep dives and truly creepy moments!

Reader’s Advisory:

“Silver Nitrate” is included on the Goodreads lists “Vintage Media in Dark Fiction”, and “Non-Caucasian Protagonists in Science Fiction, Fantasy, Horror, and Paranormal Romance”.

Serena’s Review: “Bonesmith”

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Book: “Bonesmith” by Nicki Pau Preto

Publishing Info: Margaret K. McElderry Books, July 2023

Where Did I Get this Book: ARC from the publisher!

Where Can You Get this Book: WorldCat.org | Amazon | IndieBound

Book Description: Gideon the Ninth meets the Game of Thrones White Walkers in this dark young adult fantasy about a disgraced ghost-fighting warrior who must journey into a haunted wasteland to rescue a kidnapped prince.

Ready your blade. Defeat the undead.

In the Dominions, the dead linger, violent and unpredictable, unless a bonesmith severs the ghost from its earthly remains. For bonesmith Wren, becoming a valkyr—a ghost-fighting warrior—is a chance to solidify her place in the noble House of Bone and impress her frequently absent father. But when sabotage causes Wren to fail her qualifying trial, she is banished to the Border Wall, the last line of defense against a wasteland called the Breach where the vicious dead roam unchecked.

Determined to reclaim her family’s respect, Wren gets her chance when a House of Gold prince is kidnapped and taken beyond the Wall. To prove she has what it takes to be a valkyr, Wren vows to cross the Breach and rescue the prince. But to do so, she’s forced into an uneasy alliance with one of the kidnappers—a fierce ironsmith called Julian from the exiled House of Iron, the very people who caused the Breach in the first place…and the House of Bone’s sworn enemy.

As they travel, Wren and Julian spend as much time fighting each other as they do the undead, but when they discover there’s more behind the kidnapping than either of them knew, they’ll need to work together to combat the real a dark alliance that is brewing between the living and the undead.

Review: While I haven’t yet gotten around to “Gideon the Ninth” (I knoooow, what’s my deal??), I have always loved fantasy books that deal with death/ghost magic and necromancy. Dark? Yes. But often that same darkness leads to a lot of delicious action and plot! “Sabriel” by Garth Nix was probably one of my first introductions to this particular subgenre of fantasy, and I’ve been a convert ever since! All of this to say, I knew the moment I saw the awesome cover for this one and read the description that this book would be right up my alley. And that it was!

So, I read and reviewed the first book in Preto’s first YA trilogy, “Crown of Feathers.” It…wasn’t my favorite. But I do love to discover that either an author has improved their style, or that the first go around was just a fluke disconnect in taste! Without having read the second two books in that trilogy, I can’t say whether I would have liked them more due to more confidence in the author’s style or what. What I can say, is that I absolutely loved this one and will be lining up for more as soon as possible!

This book had so many things that I liked. The world-building was interesting, with a history of magical “smithing” families who have different connections to substances like gold, iron, and, of course, bone. What’s more, their land is plagued by the fact that the dead will rise again if they are not put to rest by bone smiths. Such is our protagonist. Wren is everything I love in a heroine. She’s brave to the point of foolish, a bit selfish, but also has the skills to back up a lot of her talk. Naturally, her story is one of finding a balance between her more thoughtless tendencies to rush in without thought and the need to sometimes step back and wait. She also comes from a supremely dysfunctional family, and I loved the unravelling mysteries to be found in Wren’s past.

The pacing and plotting were also tight and fast-paced throughout the story. I picked it up and never wanted to put it down! There were some excellent action scenes, as well as some descriptions and perils that were verging on horror. I was able to guess a few of the twists, but there were also genuine surprises to be found in this story. What’s more, there were several moments where the story walked right up to a YA trope or pitfall, seemed to stare at it a bit, and then neatly sidestepped the issue that I was all geared up to hate. I love it when authors manage this!

I also really enjoyed the love interest and side characters. Julian was stoic, competent, and also had a lot to learn about his view of the world. More importantly, this author took advantage of a writing choice that I REALLY wish authors would utilize more often. The book is told from Wren’s perspective for 95% of the story. But sprinkled throughout, we have two or three chapters from Julian’s perspective, and even a few from the captured prince’s. Why don’t authors do this more often?? This choice was so much more effective than had the author tried to make this the ever-popular, and often unfortunate, alternating dual POV story. So rarely is there truly enough story to justify two equally balance POVs. Instead, you often have characters repeating things that were discussed or dealt with in the previous chapter. Or you have one compelling character who has a legitimate story arch and then….another character who’s just kind of there. Instead, Preto gave us a few needed glimpses behind the curtains that clued the reader (but not Wren) in on what was going on in the heads of both men, but didn’t cut into a story that was, at its heart, Wren’s own. It was a very restrained decision, and one that I think speaks very highly to the skills of the author to know what is (and isn’t) needed to make the story sing.

Overall, this was an excellent read. I had a blast reading it, and I think it has the sort of cross-over appeal that will make it great for both YA and adult fantasy fans!

Rating 9: Darkly brilliant, this story plops you down in a fantastical world chock full of wonder and horror. You probably wouldn’t want to live there, but man, it’s a blast to visit!

Reader’s Advisory:

“Bonesmith” isn’t on any Goodreads lists yet, but it should be on something like this list Popular Necromancy Books.

Serena’s Review: “Immortal Longings”

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Book: “Immortal Longings” by Chloe Gong

Publishing Info: Gallery / Saga Press, July 2023

Where Did I Get this Book: ARC from the publisher!

Where Can You Get this Book: WorldCat.org |Amazon | IndieBound

Book Description: Every year, thousands in the kingdom of Talin will flock to its capital twin cities, San-Er, where the palace hosts a set of games. For those confident enough in their ability to jump between bodies, competitors across San-Er fight to the death to win unimaginable riches.

Princess Calla Tuoleimi lurks in hiding. Five years ago, a massacre killed her parents and left the palace of Er empty…and she was the one who did it. Before King Kasa’s forces in San can catch her, she plans to finish the job and bring down the monarchy. Her reclusive uncle always greets the victor of the games, so if she wins, she gets her opportunity at last to kill him.

Enter Anton Makusa, an exiled aristocrat. His childhood love has lain in a coma since they were both ousted from the palace, and he’s deep in debt trying to keep her alive. Thankfully, he’s one of the best jumpers in the kingdom, flitting from body to body at will. His last chance at saving her is entering the games and winning.

Calla finds both an unexpected alliance with Anton and help from King Kasa’s adopted son, August, who wants to mend Talin’s ills. But the three of them have very different goals, even as Calla and Anton’s partnership spirals into something all-consuming. Before the games close, Calla must decide what she’s playing for—her lover or her kingdom.

Review: I was excited when I saw this book coming out from Chloe Gong. For one thing, the idea of a reimaging of Shakespeare’s “Antony and Cleopatra” into an epic fantasy story is incredibly appealing, right up the alley of my own particular preferences. But I was also interested to see what Gong had to offer in this, her adult fantasy debut. I know she’s an immensely popular YA fantasy author, but I’ve struggled to connect to her work in the past. However, I do recognize the overall strength of her writing, so if paired with a more adult approach to storytelling and a shift away from YA tropes, would I have better luck?

Alas, no. But before I get into what didn’t work, I want to, as always, focus on the things that do work. And one of them is the simple fact that if you have enjoyed Chloe Gong’s work in the past, you will definitely enjoy this book. Many of the aspects of her storytelling strengths are on equal show here. Her writing is solid. Her world-building is interesting. There are a lot of political through lines that weave in and out of the story. And the characters are multi-faceted, dramatic, and prone to on-again, off-again romances. If this all sounds like a backhanded compliment, it kind of is. Many of these things are also where I struggled with this author in her YA work. But the converse side of it is that this is all what’s made her incredibly popular as a writer, so can I fault her for giving her fans more of what they want, if packaged now in an “adult” fantasy novel? No, no I cannot.

But, all of that said, I didn’t particularly enjoy this book. In almost every aspect of the story telling I found myself becoming increasingly frustrated as the story went on. What starts out as interesting world-building quickly began to feel like unnecessary and a bit rambling paragraphs upon paragraphs of scene-setting. This is a long book, and I quickly began to feel the need to skim as I read along. Further, she introduces some interesting and unique fantasy elements early in the story, the ability to essentially take over the body of another while that person’s identity then goes dormant. But what seems to be an interesting concept quickly fell into confusion and doubt for me. How exactly does this world function with this sort of body-hopping? It’s never addressed really how this powerful and dangerous tool would affect literally every aspect of society. Further, there are some serious issues of consent when one person is in another’s body that are simply never addressed.

And look, I still liked the idea over all, but this is where I am going to expect more from you as an adult fantasy author than I might as someone writing YA. I’m a big proponent of not writing down to young adult audiences. But that said, there is a case to be made that an author be allowed a bit more lenience in the realm of plot-holes and detailed explanations for how aspects of their story work within a larger world or society when they are writing for teenage audiences. But if your book is marketed as adult fantasy, I am going to expect the author to have fully grappled with the ins and outs of the fantasy devices they are using, especially one as central as this “body swapping” is to this particular story.

Beyond this, I was very disappointed with the main characters. I’m beginning to get the feeling that Gong is either only capable or only willing to write the same sorts of characters in all of her books. Indeed, the central two characters in this book are almost identical (if aged up) copies of the main leads in her “These Violent Delights” duology. Again, if you enjoyed those characters there, you’ll probably like them again here. But that’s not what I was looking for when I picked up this book. Indeed, in the author’s interview at the end of my early review copy, Gong essentially admits to this repetition of story, saying that in this adult book she wanted to adapt the same enemies-to-lovers romance that she already did once in her YA duology but just amp it up to enemies-to-lovers-to-enemies-to-lovers, etc. Not only is this exactly the sort of romantic plotline and angst that most particularly drives me nuts, it’s disappointing to see Gong essentially decide to write the same exact dynamic and think that increasing the angst level is what will elevate it to adult fantasy.

Overall, I really struggled to enjoy this book. To me, it felt like Gong simply doubled down on her same old bag of tricks and called it adult fantasy. That said, I’ve adjusted my rating from what, for me, would have been a 6, to a 7 because I do think this book will appeal to a lot of fantasy readers. As I’ve now said ad nauseum, if you’ve liked Gong’s previous work, you’re sure to like this one, too, as it’s, largely, much of the same.

Rating 7: Fans of Gong’s previous books will be delighted to find that she’s stuck to her roots in this, her adult fantasy debut. Those looking for something fresh from this author, less so.

Reader’s Advisory:

“Immortal Longings” can be found on these Goodreads lists: Asian Folklore/Mythology/Influence and Upcoming 2023 SFF Books With Female Leads or Co-Leads.

Kate’s Review: “The Beast You Are: Stories”

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Book: “The Beast You Are: Stories” by Paul Tremblay

Publishing Info: William Morrow, July 2023

Where Did I Get This Book: I received an eARC from NetGalley.

Where You Can Get This Book: WorldCat.org | Amazon | Indiebound

Book Description: Paul Tremblay has won widespread acclaim for illuminating the dark horrors of the mind in novels and stories that push the boundaries of storytelling itself. The fifteen pieces in this brilliant collection, The Beast You Are, are all monsters of a kind, ready to loudly (and lovingly) smash through your head and into your heart.

In “The Dead Thing,” a middle-schooler struggles to deal with the aftermath of her parents’ substance addictions and split. One day, her little brother claims he found a shoebox with “the dead thing” inside. He won’t show it to her and he won’t let the box out of his sight. In “The Last Conversation,” a person wakes in a sterile, white room and begins to receive instructions via intercom from a woman named Anne. When they are finally allowed to leave the room to complete a task, what they find is as shocking as it is heartbreaking.

The title novella, “The Beast You Are,” is a mini epic in which the destinies and secrets of a village, a dog, and a cat are intertwined with a giant monster that returns to wreak havoc every thirty years.

A masterpiece of literary horror and psychological suspense, The Beast You Are is a fearlessly imagined collection from one of the most electrifying and innovative writers working today.

Review: Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an eARC of this collection!

It is always a good reading day when Paul Tremblay comes out with a new book, and my eyes are constantly peeled for a new title by him. I am so pleased that Tremblay is becoming more and more well known, what with the successful adaptation of his novel “The Cabin at the End of the World” hitting theaters this past winter. When I saw that he had a new book called “The Beast You Are” coming out, and that it was a short stories collection of previous works (as well as a novella), my usual nervousness about short stories didn’t even phase me. I trust Tremblay. And I was right to do so, because this is, on the whole, a good collection.

I will do the usual set up of talking about my three favorite stories, and then talk about the book as a whole.

“I Know You’re There”: This is one of the earliest stories in the collection, and it is almost certainly my favorite because of how ambiguous and heartbreaking it is. We follow Silas Chen as he works through the grief of losing his husband David to a sudden death, having found his body upon arriving home from work. As he tells the story to different people, aspects of if change, but one thing remains the same: Silas wasn’t sure if David’s dead body was staying completely still. There is a bittersweetness as well as an unease as we hear multiple iterations of Silas finding his dead husband, and the reader wonders if Silas is lying, or if his grief and sudden solitary life has led to him misremembering due to trauma, but the creepy descriptions of a body perhaps moving just a little bit, in various ways, when one’s back is turned, settled into my brain as I was reading it. As was the wonder about how grief makes it so that perhaps a departed loved one lingers in one way or another. Really unnerving, but also very emotional.

“The Blog at the End of the World”: We read a blog whose owner is talking about a mysterious disease that is making people drop dead, starting from what seems to be the end of the world and working backwards to earlier days when it’s just rumors and whispers, starting from the end and moving back towards the start. Tremblay wrote this one back in 2008, a good twelve years before COVID came into the picture and misinformation spread online like wildfire, so reading this was a bit surreal (and in the story notes he mentions it was surreal revisiting it now) because it almost predicted the way people would talk over each other, sow distrust, and disbelieve each other as things were falling apart around them. I loved the structure of this one, as it does read like a LiveJournal from the mid to late 2000s, and it was pretty neat getting the story told in this epistolary way (there is also a hilarious moment in the comments with a clear spam bot, man do I remember those days!).

“The Dead Thing”: An early teenage girl whose parents have split up due to substance abuse issues notices that her younger brother has come home clutching a box to his chest. When she asks what he has, he tells her that it’s just some dead thing but won’t show her. But something in the box is pulsing, and as he keeps it hidden and she becomes more and more curious, the thing begins to grow… This was one of the bleakest stories in the bunch, and honestly it kind of got to me in a not so good way, but I wanted to include it because 1) the stream of consciousness style really added to the reading experience, setting me on edge almost from the start and capturing the haphazard and spiraling situation at hand, and 2) I kept thinking about the 1980s remake of “The Blob” as I was reading. And that’s probably why it got to me because that movie just…. UGH. If you truly get to me (without triggering me, I should add, because that I DON’T like), I gotta give you props.

The collection as a whole is very broad and varied, with Tremblay doing straight up horror, to dark fantasy, to flash fiction, and beyond. What struck me the most about the stories is that a lot of them feel like they are pushing boundaries and looking to be experimental. There is the aforementioned “The Dead Thing” and its stream of consciousness narrator, or a meta pseudo-“Fangoria” column homage “The Postal Zone: The Possession Edition” that reads like it is the actual Fangoria magazine column ‘The Postal Zone’ (and was actually published in Fangoria, THE LAYERS OF THIS STORY). But the biggest experimentation was the lion’s share of the book, the titular novella “The Beast You Are”, in which Tremblay has created a new world with anthropomorphic animals who are going up against a monster that takes a sacrifice every thirty years. The way that Tremblay goes beyond the expected is what makes this book so interesting, and while some stories didn’t work as well for me as others did, I really did appreciate the way that he went outside the box.

“The Beast You Are” is a strong short stories collection that really shows off Paul Tremblay’s range. How great to see stories new and old gathered in one place, and to see the places the author is willing to go across so many tales.

Rating 8: Creative, bittersweet, experimental, and unsettling, “The Beast You Are” is a varied mix of stories by one of the most interesting horror authors writing today.

Reader’s Advisory:

“The Beast You Are” is included on the Goodreads list “Horror to Look Forward to in 2023”.

Serena’s Review: “The Curse of Saints”

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Book: “The Curse of Saints” by Kate Dramis

Publishing Info: Sourcebooks Casablanca, July 2023

Where Did I Get this Book: ARC from the publisher!

Where Can You Get this Book: WorldCat.org| Amazon | IndieBound

Book Description: As an elite spy and the Queen’s Third-in-Command, Aya has dedicated herself to a life of discipline and duty, using her gods-given abilities to keep dark magic from ever returning to the realm. Her oath ensures she will always act to protect those she fights alongside—including Will, the Queen’s Enforcer and Aya’s bitter rival.

Forced by circumstance to work together, Aya and Will struggle to come to an uneasy truce. But when tragedy strikes, Aya instinctively reacts, unleashing a power that hasn’t been seen in over 500 years. Shaken, she’s confronted with an impossible truth: one that threatens the precious grip she keeps on her control. One that forces her to work with Will to discover who—or what—she really is. And one that could turn her into a weapon in a war she doesn’t know how to win.

With Will at her side and untold power at her fingertips, Aya will have to decide: Has she been sent to save the realm she loves…or destroy it?

Review: I knew I wanted to read this book the moment I saw it (though, to be fair, I saw the UK cover which has an awesome golden wolf motif which I think is a much better fit than this cover, but oh well). The description itself is also right up my alley. Always love a good rivals/enemies-to-lovers story. Add on top of that a badass spy heroine who, whoops, discovers she has new powers and is more than she seems. Does this sound like a very tried and true plot description for fantasy stories, especially romantic fantasy? Yes, it does. Did this put me off in any way whatsoever? Absolutely not. Sometimes things are popular for the simple fact that they’re awesome, and that’s all I have to say on that.

Unfortunately, this book didn’t quite live up to my expectations. But there was still quite a lot to like about it. For one thing, I thought the world-building and history of this world was fascinating. Our main characters (the story was multi POV, which was something I wasn’t expecting and more on that later) each are born with powerful abilities. But due to a horrible war that required a terrible sacrifice years and years ago, magic users must always work for the protection and betterment of those around them and are never allowed to rule. I really enjoyed the slow reveal about how this particular history has influenced the various characters in this book, and how so many decisions are based around the fears of a similar power rising or a similar sacrifice being needed.

I also liked the action elements of the story, particularly in the beginning of the book when quite a lot happens in quick succession. We had a few early scenes where we see Aya’s skill as a spy master at work, and we also get some intense magic wolves action scenes. Which, of course, who doesn’t love magic wolves? Unfortunately, some of the strengths of this early section lead directly to some of my struggles with the rest of the book. For one thing, said magic wolves quickly disappear from the entire story, which left me wondering why they were included at all? I mean, they’re introduced as having bonds to Aya, Will, etc., and show up in several early scenes as important, unique creatures, and then they just…disappear for the rest of the book. You could literally take them out of this story and it would make zero difference to the overall plot.

Further, I was very disappointed to see Aya’s character quickly fall off her strong start as a master spy. After her magic flares up in unexpected ways, she seems to lose all sense of her original abilities. As the story continues, she and Will travel to a foreign court where they are supposed to be working to bring their allies onside for a brewing conflict. Aya, as a spy, should have invaluable abilities to bring to this mission. But, instead, she spends the entire time fretting about her powers and fighting with Will. Indeed, she blunders several times in ways that make no sense for a woman we are meant to believe is one of the top three advisors to her queen and a master of her craft.

This wasn’t helped by my increasing frustration with these fights between Aya and Will. Their rivalry and animosity starts off well enough, but as the story continued, it began to feel increasingly unbelievable and silly. Aya is a grown adult and a woman who, being a spy, should have an incredible read of people. So the number of times she flips back and forth from trusting Will to literally threatening to kill him (seriously, she does this flip flop at least 4 times over the course of the book, and, I can’t emphasize this enough, the “flop” side includes literal death threats/murder attempts even though she was trusting him just pages before) starts to become a serious detriment to my ability to respect her as a character.

For his part, I could never quite understand Will’s reasons for such extreme levels of secrecy. Once all of the truths are revealed, it’s never quite clear why he had to keep Aya so much in the dark to the point where he was almost intentionally making her hate and distrust him. So, yes, neither of these two characters really worked that well for me at various points. Which was made all the more frustrating because I think they each started off very strong and had a lot of potential!

Also, bizarrely, a third POV character and the sad hints of a love triangle showed up on the page about two thirds of the way into the book. This was honestly so abrupt a shift in the story that I had to flip forward a ways to confirm that yes, indeed, we were introducing a third POV and this wasn’t just an interlude. This was near the two thirds/half way point of the book, if I remember correctly, so it was just a really strange and abrupt shift. I didn’t have any problems with this third character on his own, but there was simply no recovering from the fact that his story started up so significantly behind the other two. We already were firmly in the heads of Aya and Will, and now here was this third character that was meant to compete with the two of them with his own chapters. It was an odd choice. I think it would have worked better had he been introduced right in the beginning alongside Aya and Will, thus creating an even playing field between the three. Or, honestly, left him out entirely. I’m not quite convinced that his POV really even added much to the story as a whole.

All of this said, I probably will continue with this series. The writing itself was strong, the world-building was intriguing, and even though I struggled with Aya and Will at times, I do feel that the author’s character work was pretty decent. I was frustrated with this particular story, but there seems to be a lot of room for growth and there were a few side characters who I would love to read more about in future books. If you’re a fan of romantic fantasy, especially if you enjoy angsty enemies-t0-lovers story arcs, this might be a good one for you!

Rating 7: While a bit wobbly on the character front, this romantic fantasy will likely still appeal to those looking for an interesting fantasy world and an angst-ridden love story!

Reader’s Advisory:

“The Curse of Saints” isn’t on many Goodreads lists, but it is on Best books of May, 2023 (the UK version was published in May).