Tag: 8 Rating

Kate’s Review: “Strange New Moons”

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Book: “Strange New Moons” by Stephen Kozeniewski (Ed.) & Kayleigh Dobbs (Ed.)

Publishing Info: French Press Publishing, January 2025

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

Where You Can Get This Book: Amazon

Book Description: You can hardly swing a dismembered deer carcass these days without hitting a “No vampires, no zombies, and no werewolves” sign on an anthology.

Well, to that we say “Pshaw!” And also, “Awooo!”

Because what readers really don’t like are dull werewolf stories. So, we tasked the horror community with writing the weirdest, wildest, most creative, utterly bonkers tails (ha!) of lycanthropic lunacy possible.

– a brutal, boneshattering peek at the kind of “dogfights” the super-wealthy watch to amuse themselves

– a story of two inquisitive city employees trying to find out who (or what!) keeps pooping on a local landmark

– a ride along with a delusional cop trying to prevent the total werewolf apocalypse. Werepocalypse!

Plus werewolf Frankenstein! And werewolves in space! This book is all gore and no bore. With a lineup running the gamut from brand, spanking new cubs to heavyweight timber alphas, you’d have to be the weakest elk in the herd not to slobber all over…

Review: Thank you to French Press Publishing for sending me an eARC of this novel!

I’m still a little bit shocked that werewolves haven’t had a huge horror moment lately the way that vampires and zombies have. And I fully admit that I am kind of a part of that lack of werewolf moment, as I’ve never really been huge into that sub-genre of horror (though lately I’ve enjoyed books like “Such Sharp Teeth” by Rachel Harrison, and “Bride” by Ali Hazelwood, which do have werewolves and some horror elements). Hell, I didn’t even get my butt to the movie theater to see the new “Wolf Man” even though it looked pretty decent. So when I was offered the anthology “Strange New Moons”, edited by authors Kayleigh Dobbs and Stephen Kozeniewski, I was game. Bring on the lycanthropes, I said!

Like most other short story collections, I am going to showcase my favorite three stories, and then review the collection as a whole.

“Vargsången” by Mary SanGiovanni: This was the first story in the collection, and it made it so that it started with a serious bang. A woman in an isolated cabin knows that there is some kind of predator outside her door on a snowy night. She wants to keep her sleeping children safe, but doesn’t know if she should confront the beast, or just hope that it goes away. I love the Scandinavian setting and mythology choices, and thought that it was suspenseful and relatable as a mother has to decide if she should risk drawing attention to a predator outside the door. This may have been my favorite story in the collection, as a matter of fact!

“That Time of the Month” by Kayleigh Dobbs: I’ve read Kayleigh Dobbs before and have always enjoyed her stories, and this one was one of the more humorous contributions to the collection, with a wry commentary to go with the lycanthropy. Every month in a community the men lock themselves up, tucked away from the full moon lest they find themselves in a dangerous situation. But one hapless husband has found himself out on the streets on the night that he is supposed to be safely tucked away… Dobbs sets up one scenario based on what we’ve expected from werewolf tropes in past stories, but subverts it in a clever and often quite humorous way. I found myself cackling a fair amount as I read this story. Horror humor done right!

“It’s All For The Best, Sweetie” by Rose Strickman: I’m a true sucker for any kind of fairy tale retelling, especially if it’s a bit dark, so “It’s All For The Best, Sweetie” was the other story that really stood out to me. Through letters from a grandmother to a granddaughter, we find the story of a woman who has trapped her granddaughter in her home, believing her to be a dangerous animal at heart. The epistolary format was really great, and it made for a very unreliable grandmother narrator as she writes her letters to Roja, becoming more unhinged by the minute. Or is it just clarity? Such a creepy and twisted “Red Riding Hood” reimagining.

As a collection I thought that it had a lot of variety across sub-genres, which is always nice to see, with a nice mix of traditionally scary, to surrealistic, to tongue in cheek humorous. The only author I had read in this group (at least I’m fairly certain of) is Kayleigh Dobbs, and I truly enjoyed reading so many of the works in this collection from authors I was unfamiliar with. And any stories that didn’t work as well for me were more due to the sub-genres themselves (like leaning more heavily Sci-Fi, for example), and that is more a reflection on my tastes as I could see fans of said sub-genres being very happy with what they find.

So overall I’m pleased that I read “Strange New Moons”. It’s always nice to see more werewolf fiction since it hasn’t had it’s moment in the moon as much as other monster horror has, and if you do like werewolves this collection will surely satisfy!

Rating 8: A fun and varied collection of werewolf stories crossing tone and genre!

Reader’s Advisory:

“Strange New Moons” isn’t on any Goodreads lists as of now, but would fit in on “Werewolf Books”.

Kate’s Review: “You Must Take Part in Revolution”

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Book: “You Must Take Part in Revolution: A Graphic Novel” by Melissa Chan & Badiucao (Ill.)

Publishing Info: Street Noise Books, March 2025

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

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

Book Description: From acclaimed journalist Melissa Chan and esteemed activist artist Badiucao comes a near-future graphic novel dystopia that explores technology, authoritarian government, and the lengths that one will go to in the fight for freedom.

Three idealistic youths, forever transformed by the real-world protests in Hong Kong in 2019, develop diverging beliefs about how to best fight against techno-authoritarian China. As conflict escalates and a nuclear disaster looms, is working with an increasingly fascist and non-democratic United States the answer? Andy, Maggie, and Olivia travel different paths toward transformative change, each confronting to what extent they will fight for freedom, and who they will become in doing so.

A powerful and important book about global totalitarian futures, and the costs of resistance.

Review: Thank you to Street Noise Books for sending me an eARC of this graphic novel!

When I was an undergrad at the U of MN, I had my first library job working in the Annex at Wilson Library. My duties included shelving books all throughout the library, as well as working the desk to pull materials like old journals, microfiche, and newspapers. One of my friends at the time was my coworker Hugo, who was an exchange student from Hong Kong. A few years after graduation he moved back home and we lost touch, but in the summer of 2020 he reached out during the George Floyd protests/the uprising to see how I was doing since he knew I was still living in the area. We chatted a bit, and he told me that he had been a part of the protests in Hong Kong in 2019, and gave some tips to pass on to others who were out protesting. It was interesting hearing him talk about all of that, as I certainly heard about it peripherally, but hearing about it first hand was jarring. I kept thinking about Hugo as I read Melissa Chan’s new graphic novel “You Must Take Part In Revolution”, as it has a start in 2019 Hong Kong, and then delves into a not so distant possible future where autocracy is rising across the world. So….. relevant reading to say the very least.

The first thing you need to know about this book is that it is GRIM. That isn’t meant to be a negative critique, because I think that any book talking about a totalitarian world needs to be grim on some level, and Chan feels no need to hold anything back in this possible future as China has cemented itself as an autocratic world power and a fascist United States starts to push against them in a bid for its own power. We follow three characters, all of whom bonded and became friends during the 2019 Hong Kong protests. We have Andy, who has been trying to keep his head down but has been helping resistance against the CCP in his own ways and finds himself recruited to a rebel paramilitary group . We have Maggie, who went to prison in 2019 for her part in a violent protest tactic that had severe consequences. And we have Olivia, who has some dark secrets that she is hiding after dropping off radar after the protests. One of the greatest strengths of this story is that all of these characters are well drawn out and have many layers, and while the reader could certainly have opinions and feelings about the actions they take, Chan is careful to not label any of them as doing something right or wrong, but all trying to survive in a world that is filled with horrors and complexities.

Both Chan and illustrator Badiucao have backgrounds that can lend first hand to the story being told, as Chan is a journalist and Badiucao is an activist, and their critiques of the autocratic and oppressive CCP are blistering, but they don’t stop there as the United States in this book is ALSO rather villainous. As both countries start to set their sights on Taiwan, and the fallout from that unwinds as the years pass, we see a very scary possibility that our own world could be headed in such a direction. I was chilled to the bone reading this book, and I feel like it is a must read for anyone who may be terrified about the state of things, and who are wanting to find their place in not only a new reality, but also within an urge to resist. That said, let’s go back to the grimness mentioned above. This book makes it VERY clear that there is a stark cost for anyone who wants to fight back. That isn’t to say it’s a condemnation of fighting back, because it is not at all. Chan and Badiucao are very clear that resistance against such things is necessary. But it also has no room for romanticism of revolution against a world of surveillance, greed, and corruption, and the pain and consequences are laid out in full honesty.

And finally the artwork. I was fully unfamiliar with Badiucao before reading this, though apparently he is known as Australia’s answer to Banksy. I really, REALLY liked his art style, as the visuals and unique and jarring and sharp in all the right ways for the story at hand. It brings in glimmers of humanity against a backdrop of oppression and despair.

(source: Street Noise Books)

It’s hard to stomach at times, but “You Must Participate In Revolution” is absolutely necessary reading for the times we are living in. I hope that we heed its warnings.

Rating 9: A stark warning for a possible dark future, “You Must Participate In Revolution” is a call for resistance to authoritarianism. Incredibly relevant reading.

Reader’s Advisory:

“You Must Take Part In Revolution” is included on the Goodreads list “Great Graphic Novels (Released In) 2025”.

Kate’s Review: “This Book Will Bury Me”

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Book: “This Book Will Bury Me” by Ashley Winstead

Publishing Info: Sourcebooks Landmark, March 2025

Where Did I Get This Book: I received an ARC of this novel from the publisher.

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

Book Description: From the bestselling author of In My Dreams I Hold a Knife and Midnight is the Darkest Hour comes a chilling, compulsive story of five amateur sleuths, whose hunt for an elusive killer catapults them into danger as the world watches.

It’s the most famous crime in modern history. But only she knows the true story.

After the unexpected death of her father, college student Jane Sharp longs for a distraction from her grief. She becomes obsessed with true crime, befriending armchair detectives who teach her how to hunt killers from afar. In this morbid internet underground, Jane finds friendship, purpose, and even glory…

So when news of the shocking deaths of three college girls in Delphine, Idaho takes the world by storm, and sleuths everywhere race to solve the crimes, Jane and her friends are determined to beat them. But the case turns out to be stranger than anyone expected. Details don’t add up, the police are cagey, and there seems to be more media hype and internet theorizing than actual evidence. When Jane and her sleuths take a step closer, they find that every answer only begs more questions. Something’s not adding up, and they begin to suspect their killer may be smarter and more prolific than any they’ve faced before. Placing themselves in the center of the story starts to feel more and more like walking into a trap…

Told one year after the astounding events that concluded the case and left the world reeling, when Jane has finally decided to break her silence about what really happened, she tells the true story of the Delphine Massacres. And what she has to confess will shock even the most seasoned true crime fans…

Review: Thank you to Sourcebooks Landmark for sending me an ARC of this novel!

I really loved Ashley Winstead’s previous novel “Midnight Is The Darkest Hour”, so much so that it made my top ten list the year it was published. I found it to be propulsive and addictive, and when I had the opportunity to read her newest book “This Book Will Bury Me” I knew that I had to take it. I was even more interested when I read the premise, as I thought that it sounded familiar, plot wise. I do enjoy thrillers that take inspiration from real life. But this one made me have to really do some introspection about that.

“This Book Will Bury Me” has a clever story structure, as it is a story within a story that has some unreliable narration and a design like it’s a tell all true crime memoir. We have Jane, a woman who, after being traumatized by her father’s sudden death when she was in her early twenties, latched onto a true crime forum and became an armchair sleuth with four other true crime aficionados. When she and this group break a case wide open, they get a lot of attention upon themselves, and then get pulled into a brutal multiple murder of some college students in Idaho (which is very clearly based on the Moscow Murders – I will talk about that in a bit). We are seeing things through the lens of a disgraced public figure trying to clear her name, which adds a mystery on top of other mysteries, and makes for a gripping narrative as we try to see if Jane and co can solve the mystery, and what happens to make them all so reviled after the fact. I found Jane to be a compelling narrator, because I found her to be incredibly sympathetic as well as incredibly maddening at times. Winstead did her due diligence of drawing out and fully backing up why Jane would have been so drawn into the world of internet crime solving, as she hasn’t had clear answers about the tragedy of her father’s natural, but incredibly traumatizing, death, and needs to find answers to other mysteries to compensate. Sure, I spotted a few twists before they were revealed, but I was having a fun enough time that it didn’t matter.

What also worked for me in this was how Winstead also takes a controversial topic like true crime, specifically internet sleuths and their assistance/meddling (depending on who you talk to) in real life cases with real life victims. Jane and her friends all seem to have the best intentions as they try to solve crimes, but it’s hard to deny that, good intentions or not, they let hubris, ego, and their own biases drive their investigations. It’s not exactly a farfetched problem given that there have been plenty of internet sleuths in real life who have put innocent people on blast and done horrific damage (I’m thinking of the Reddit Boston Marathon Bomber debacle, I’m thinking of that one TikTok woman who named a half assed theoretical suspect in the aforementioned/soon to be mentioned Moscow Murders and sent viral harassment their way ALL BASED ON TAROT READINGS, and more). I appreciated that Winstead didn’t set out to make Jane a nasty person, but a damaged person who makes some pretty big missteps, even if her intentions are pure. But it does raise a lot of questions about the people whose love of true crime goes a few steps further into actually trying to insert themselves into it, blurring the lines between a theoretical fascination and an active participant. I enjoyed that it wasn’t super black and white.

BUT. I will say that I was uncomfortable with how close and obviously ripped from the headlines this plot was to the Moscow Murders in Moscow, Idaho. Ripped from the headlines stories happen quite a bit in pop culture. “Law and Order”‘s entire franchise takes that premise and creates episodes from actual crimes that happen, for example. But I think that part of my issue here was that the initial student murders in this book felt like they were completely lifted from that specific crime, a crime that is still pretty raw and still hasn’t had true resolution or justice because the main suspect hasn’t even gone to trial yet. And I mean LIFTED. Like timelines, details of the house, details of the fallout, it felt like the first group of murdered college students in this book were carbon copies of what happened on King’s Road in 2022. Had there been some changes or tweaks it would have felt a bit better to me. For example, the second mass murder scene felt like it was inspired by Ted Bundy’s sorority house spree, but didn’t feel like I was just reading the spree with new names. On top of that, Bundy happened DECADES ago, and he was tried and convicted and executed, so the victims families had at least some sense of closure. That hasn’t happened for the families of the Moscow victims yet. So as it was it felt kind of ghoulish to me to be so close to the actrual details. Though perhaps there’s an argument to be made that it would still be ghoulish even if it had made the changes and tweaks. I guess it goes back to questions about true crime and exploitation. Which in turn may shadow the intent that I do feel like this book was going for.

SO, it’s a bit messy and complicated. As a thriller that kept me interested, I did enjoy “This Book Will Bury Me”. But, I hope that in the future authors who want to take inspiration from real victims and real crimes can make it feel a little less blatant, because if this one had done that it would have been a slam dunk. As it was, it felt murkier than I would have liked.

Rating 8: A gripping mystery with a dissection of true crime fandom gone too far, “This Book Will Bury Me” is another entertaining read from Ashley Winstead, though I am a little uneasy about how close it was to the inspiration.

Reader’s Advisory:

“This Book Will Bury Me” is included on the Goodreads list “2025 Mystery Thrillers True Crime”.

Kate’s Review: “Blood On Her Tongue”

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Book: “Blood On Her Tongue” by Johanna van Veen

Publishing Info: Poisoned Pen Press, March 2025

Where Did I Get This Book: I received an ARC from the publisher.

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

Book Description: The Netherlands, 1887. Lucy’s twin sister Sarah is unwell. She refuses to eat, mumbles nonsensically, and is increasingly obsessed with a centuries-old corpse recently discovered on her husband’s grand estate. The doctor has diagnosed her with temporary insanity caused by a fever of the brain. To protect her twin from a terrible fate in a lunatic asylum, Lucy must unravel the mystery surrounding her sister’s condition, but it’s clear her twin is hiding something. Then again, Lucy is harboring secrets of her own, too.

Then, the worst happens. Sarah’s behavior takes a turn for the strange. She becomes angry… and hungry. 

Lucy soon comes to suspect that something is trying to possess her beloved sister. Or is it madness? As Sarah changes before her very eyes, Lucy must reckon with the dark, monstrous truth, or risk losing her forever.

Review: Thank you to Poisoned Pen Press for sending me an ARC of this novel!

I gotta say, I love that we are kind of living in a horror lit vampire renaissance at the moment. We are getting a lot of really well done vampire stories as of late, with interesting and intriguing twists and perspectives, and “Blood On Her Tongue” by Johanna van Veen is a new tale to add to the list. I enjoyed van Veen’s previous novel “My Darling Dreadful Thing”, and when Poisoned Pen Press asked if I was interested to check this one out too I leapt at the chance. I love a Gothic story, I love a vampire story, and I couldn’t wait to see what van Veen had in store with this one. And it was overall a winner with twin sisters Sarah and Lucy, a bog body, and a nasty transformation of one twin while another has to decide if said transformation is a dealbreaker, especially with oppressive patriarchy making things all the more difficult.

The horror themes in this book were fairly unique blends of both folk horror (the idea of bog bodies being used in a supernatural way is SO great) and a take on vampirism vis a vis parasitism, and it all worked really well for me. I really enjoyed seeing the slow build up through Sarah’s deterioration, to letters that Lucy and Sarah have written each other, to Sarah’s notes in various books and research writings, and I thought that the pacing and the tension was taut and snappy. Lucy slowly realizing that her twin isn’t really her twin anymore was very nerve wracking and emotional, and van Veen isn’t afraid to have some really gnarly body horror moments as Sarah becomes more and more desiccated and monstrous in her appearance and behaviors. It’s also a more animalistic take on vampirism, bringing in some aspects of possession horror as well that blur the lines between the sub-genres and make them feel complementary to each other.

And while I was a bit flabbergasted at Lucy’s complete blind devotion to Sarah even when she was doing some REALLY crazy things (as mentioned above), I did think that van Veen did fantastic due diligence to make it fully believable that she would be terrified of Sarah being committed. As someone who used to work in a historic house with a narrative history that had a lot bleak tidbits regarding the way women were treated in a medical context, a lot of these aspects were believable and very disturbing. Whether it’s an aunt with a history of mental illness who suffered within an asylum, or the way that Sarah herself was treated as a menace when dealing with immense grief, or how Lucy and Sarah both are dismissed over and over again based solely on their genders (mostly by the men surrounding them), the way that Lucy wants to protect Sarah at all costs was wholly earned. It’s once again the real life horrors of misogyny and a lack of understanding of mental illness (and the approaches men took towards women who were suffering) that really gave this story a punch. God I wanted to throttle Sarah’s husband more and more as the story progressed. And it also raises some issues about Sarah’s transformation and the way that so many were trying to shove her away from everyone, and whether or not it was because they thought she was really dangerous, or because they thought she was becoming inconvenient.

“Blood On Her Tongue” is a savvy blend of folk horror, vampire horror, and the horrors of misogyny and ableism. I found it unnerving and deeply creepy.

Rating 8: Unsettling and angry, “Blood On Her Tongue” is a striking horror tale that has a lot to say about not only the supernatural, but also about misogyny and ableism for two sisters in the 19th Century.

Reader’s Advisory:

“Blood On Her Tongue” is included on the Goodreads list “Horror Books 2025”.

Kate’s Review: “The Unworthy”

This post may contain affiliate links for books we recommend.  Read the full disclosure here.

Book: “The Unworthy” by Agustina Bazterrica & Sarah Moses (Translator)

Publishing Info: Scribner, March 2025

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

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

Book Description: The long-awaited new novel from the author of global sensation Tender Is the Flesh: a thrilling work of literary horror about a woman cloistered in a secretive, violent religious order, while outside the world has fallen into chaos.

From her cell in a mysterious convent, a woman writes the story of her life in whatever she can find—discarded ink, dirt, and even her own blood. A lower member of the Sacred Sisterhood, deemed an unworthy, she dreams of ascending to the ranks of the Enlightened at the center of the convent and of pleasing the foreboding Superior Sister. Outside, the world is plagued by catastrophe—cities are submerged underwater, electricity and the internet are nonexistent, and bands of survivors fight and forage in a cruel, barren landscape. Inside, the narrator is controlled, punished, but safe.

But when a stranger makes her way past the convent walls, joining the ranks of the unworthy, she forces the narrator to consider her long-buried past—and what she may be overlooking about the Enlightened. As the two women grow closer, the narrator is increasingly haunted by questions about her own past, the environmental future, and her present life inside the convent. How did she get to the Sacred Sisterhood? Why can’t she remember her life before? And what really happens when a woman is chosen as one of the Enlightened?

A searing, dystopian tale about climate crisis, ideological extremism, and the tidal pull of our most violent, exploitative instincts, this is another unforgettable novel from a master of feminist horror.

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

Even though it was making the rounds when it came about a couple years ago, I never got around to reading “Tender Is The Flesh” by Agustina Bazterrica, a dystopian horror novel about a future where cannibalism is made legal and humans are bred for meat after the animals used for food are taken out by a virus. I heard that it was bleak and relentless, and I couldn’t quite bring myself to read it even though the metaphors sounded really interesting. But when I saw that she had a new horror novel out called “The Unworthy”, I decided to snap that one right up so that I could finally experience one of Bazterrica’s works. I thought that I prepared myself well, mentally, as hey, climate crisis and violent religious orders in horror? It’s not like those things deeply, deeply disturb me or anything, right?

Look, I know myself, I just lie to myself. (source)

This was my first time with a Bazterrica story and WOW. It was a ROUGH one, but not in a bad way. She takes on two horror sub-genres that stress me the hell out, eco/climate horror and religious horror, and combines them into a searing post-apocalyptic nightmare involving violence, chaos, zealotry, and, yes, feminine rage. Bazterrica doesn’t hold back from some really relentless and absolutely horrifying moments. There are so many content warnings I’d attach to this, between graphic depictions of violence to child death to mutilations and sexual violence, it’s fairly grim in the portrayal of a world devastated by climate change and a society that has basically collapsed, and the sociopaths that find ways to take advantage. Our nameless Narrator has been THROUGH it, and we see her story starting in the oppressive and zealous and violent convent, and eventually see how she got there as she writes out her story and comes to terms with everything that has happened to her. We also get hints into the corrupt and violent cult that she has found herself within, with her being a part of the ‘Unworthy’ class, who are submitted to hard labor, humiliation, and torture by the Superior Sister and the mysterious Him (a very creepy amped up take on carrying water for the patriarchy if I ever saw one). There are the Enlightened class that she hopes to join, though no one REALLY knows what that entails, just that it’s aspirational (though if you are like me and have a working knowledge of cults and tropes like this, you can guess that there are hidden, uh, costs). I loved the slow burn build up and how it was interspersed with not only Narrator’s past.

And then there were the genuinely beautiful things I found within this book, something I hadn’t expected as much when I picked it up given the plot and Bazterrica’s reputation. The first is just that the descriptions of things were gorgeous, and while this could be in part due to the translation by Sarah Moses, I get the sense that Bazterrica’s original text probably had this as well to show beauty within despairing. There was also the lovely connection between Narrator and newcomer Lucia, as Narrator hasn’t had a REAL connection since multiple losses she endured as the world as she knew it came crashing down. It’s also another great example of how high control groups and cults like the Sacred Sisterhood thrive on mistrust, paranoia, and the splintering of connections, and promising that only the group and its leadership can provide that, when it actuality community and connection to others is what can really bring people through the despairing and miserable times. And how community and connection is a threat. So many things I’ve been thinking about as of late just laying out on the pages here, in all it’s terrible and messy and scrappy hopeful glory.

“The Unworthy” is really, really tough, and has a lot of despair and misery. But it also has beauty, and showcases humanity in all of its highest highs and lowest lows. I quite enjoyed it, even if it made me feel really, really bad at times.

Rating 8: Relentless, horrifying, and at times rather gorgeous, “The Unworthy” is apocalyptic religious horror with an undercurrent of feminist rage.

Reader’s Advisory:

“The Unworthy” is included on the Goodreads list “Dystopian Womanhood”.

Joint Review: “The Bane Witch”

This post may contain affiliate links for books we recommend.  Read the full disclosure here.

Book: “The Bane Witch” by Ava Morgyn

Publishing Info: St. Martin’s Griffin, March 2025

Where Did We Get This Book: ARC from the publisher/Netgalley

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

Book Description: Piers Corbin has always had an affinity for poisonous things – plants and men. From the pokeweed berries she consumed at age five that led to the accidental death of a stranger, to the husband whose dark proclivities have become… concerning, poison has been at the heart of her story. But when she fakes her own death in an attempt to escape her volatile marriage and goes to stay with her estranged great aunt in the mountains, she realizes her predilection is more than a hunger – it’s a birthright. Piers comes from a long line of poison eaters – Bane Witches – women who ingest deadly plants and use their magic to rid the world of evil men. Piers sets out to earn her place in her family’s gritty but distinguished legacy, all while working at her Aunt Myrtle’s cafe and perpetuating a flirtation with the local, well-meaning sheriff to allay his suspicions on the body count she’s been leaving in her wake. But soon she catches the attention of someone else, a serial killer operating in the area. And that only means one thing – it’s time to feed. In Ava Morgyn’s dark, thrilling novel, The Bane Witch, a very little poison can do a world of good.

Serena’s Thoughts

There are a few go-to authors that Kate and I like to joint review, as we’ve both reliably enjoyed their books in the past. This author, I believe, is new to both of us! But we’ve both enjoyed “Practical Magic,” so with a comparable like that, plus the promise of a thriller-like mystery at its heart, we both thought this would be a good candidate to check out!

Unfortunately, for me, this was just ok. And part of that is the simple fact that it skewed further into the thriller genre and away from the fantasy genre than I typically prefer. So that’s nothing against the actual quality of that portion of the story (see Kate’s opinions there for a more reliable source on this genre!), but it does speak to the balance of this book. And I think for fantasy readers, specifically those looking for a read-alike for “Practical Magic,” this might feel like a bit of a let down. Instead, I think the “Gone Girl” reference made a lot more sense, and better fit, tonally, with what this book had to offer. Sure, the witchy stuff was definitely there, but the general plotting and themes fell much more in line, I think, with a thriller than with a typical fantasy story.

I also struggled to really enjoy Piers herself. In the beginning, she comes across as incredibly competent and thoughtful, as one would need to be to successfully pull of faking one’s own death. However, as the book continued, and especially towards the end, she began to make an increasing number of ridiculous decisions that just didn’t vibe with the sort of person we had first been introduced to. Her actions and various plot points felt jammed together in unnatural ways that served to push the story forwards in the direction the author wanted to go, but didn’t necessarily make sense on their own.

For me, this was just an ok read. I didn’t think the magical elements really lived up to my hopes, and I didn’t really connect with its thriller roots. I also struggled to enjoy Piers as a main character. However, readers how are more interested in the mystery and the serial killer angle might enjoy this more than I did!

Kate’s Review

Well, Serena knows me very well, because this one worked for me on many levels! Part of that was the mystery and thriller elements, to be sure, as I love a story with a serial killer and a woman who has to play a cat and mouse game with him. I also liked the suspense that builds up within the book as the story goes on, whether it’s due to the aforementioned killer that Piers is trying to track, albeit against her will, or the stress involving her abusive ex husband Henry and the cops on her tail after her faked death. Heck, I even liked the suspense regarding whether or not the other bane witches are going to accept Piers into their circle. I will say that as we got closer to the end, things went a little bit off the rails, which put a bit of a wrench in the pacing and how I connected to the story, but I thought that the plot itself was strong enough that I wasn’t too put off by it.

But what worked the most for me were the magical systems that Morgyn created for this book, as the idea of a witch being able to consume poison and transfer it to dangerous and deadly men to take them out is SO appealing to me as a horror reader who also loves witchy books. And I actually disagree with Serena a little bit, because I did get “Practical Magic” vibes from this, specifically the darker themes of that movie (I may not be speaking for the book, it’s been awhile since I’ve read it so lets just stick to the film) like violence against women, women taking their power into their own hands in dire circumstances, and the complicated relationships between families where estrangement and trauma is a very real wedge between people. So many of these things really click for me in my witch fiction, and I thought that Piers coming into her own as a dangerous but righteous bane witch was a fun and engaging arc (though I definitely agree that she does make some REALLY dumb decisions in the later third of the novel, no arguments there). And I always like witch stories that work outside the expected box, or outside of what we usually see in the sub-genre, and a bunch of mountain witches using poison magic was VERY fun and not something that I see as much.

Overall I found “The Bane Witch” to be a really entertaining witch tale, hitting all of the notes I had hoped it would.

Serena’s Rating 7: An interesting concept with the poison magic, but I struggled to connect to Piers and wanted more from the fantasy elements in the story.

Kate’s Rating 8: A fun and deliciously wicked witch tale with poison, empowerment, and a unique magical system. Add in a solid suspense vibe and it’s overall a winner.

Reader’s Advisory

“The Bane Witch” is included on the Goodreads lists Vampires and Werewolves and Witches…Oh My! and Poisonous Plant Fiction Titles.

Serena’s Review: “The Blood Orchid”

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Book: “The Blood Orchid” by Kylie Lee Baker

Publishing Info: HarperCollins, October 2024

Where Did I Get this Book: from the library!

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

Book Description: Since Zilan entered the world of royal alchemists, she has learned that alchemy comes at a price. She has lost loved ones in her search for broader justice against the evil Empress and all she wants now is to find some way to bring them back. Resurrection is her specialty, after all.

In search of the myth of Penglai Island, where it’s rumored life can be fully restored, Zilan starts a new adventure. But when old threats come back to haunt her and the path to Penglai Island means facing down unpredictable, sometimes dangerous, alchemists, she wonders just how high of a price she may be willing to pay.

Previously Reviewed: “The Blood Alchemist”

Review: It’s always nice to jump quickly from a first book in a duology straight into the second. And it was especially useful here, as “The Blood Alchemist” set up a fairly intricate world and complex magical system. Further, this book picks up directly after the events of the first, so I benefited from having those plot lines firmly in my head when I started up this one.

This book is largely made of up a quest by our main characters in search of the mythical Penglai Island, a place so powerful they hope it will solve the ongoing threat of the Empress. Through these explorations, the lore of this world was greatly expanded upon, introducing powerful new uses for alchemy, some to detrimental effect. We also got to spend more time in the limbo-esque afterlife, with Zilan desperately trying to cling to those she loves, both in the land of the living and the dead.

The pacing was quite action-packed, moving quickly from one dangerous alchemist to another. I really enjoyed these little side quests that were sprinkled throughout to tie together the larger quest. However, from a broader view, there were a few of these that felt rather convenient. Penglai Island has been lost (or rumored to not exist at all) for ages, and yet Zilan and co. seem to almost stumble into the answers they need by chance. As I was having so much fun with the story, this didn’t bother me overly much. But the convenience of some of these plotlines was a bit too obvious to completely ignore.

I also really enjoyed the characters, once again. Zilan, of course, was as excellent as always. However, if you had asked which characters I had least interest in spending prolonged time with in this book, I would have answered with her brother and her bully rival from alchemy classes. And well, what do you know? Those two end up being her primary travelling companions and each brought excellent flavor to the story! Through Wenshu, the author continued her excellent exploration of the complicated nature between siblings. Here, Wenshu and Zilan must deal with the repercussions of her choice at the end of the last book; that is, her decision to save Wenshu instead of Hong. A simple choice that reveals numerous insecurities and challenges on both sides. We also see a redemption arc for Zheng, the character I never knew I needed more of! In a surprising turn, this is the character that added the necessary comic relief to a book that, at times, could have been too tragic and dark.

Unfortunately, while the focus on Wenshu and Sheng was an unexpected high point, we didn’t see much of Hong in this book. On one hand, that makes sense. The guy is dead, after all. We get a few scenes sprinkled throughout as Zilan works to keep her hold on his spirit until she can revive him, but I still ended up missing the lovely dynamic we had between these two in the first book. By the end, I was happy with the way things resolved, but I do wish we had gotten a bit more here.

Overall, this was an excellent conclusion to the duology. The overall conflict was wrapped up in a truly creative and unique way, and one that felt earned with various pieces of the foundation being carefully laid here and in the previous book. If you’re looking for a well-written, well-rounded, unique YA fantasy duology, I highly recommend this one!

Rating 8: Expanded world-building, excellent side characters, and a satisfying conclusion! My romance-loving heart felt a bit deprived on the Hong front, but otherwise, this was a great read!

Reader’s Advisory:

“The Blood Orchid” can be found on this Goodreads list: Best books of October, 2024

Serena’s Review: “Swordheart

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Note: Some long-time readers may remember that I reviewed this book 2-3 years ago. Well, T. Kingfisher has seen a surge in popularity since and, as such, many of her back catalog titles are being re-published by Tor/Bramble with new covers and marketing. (I definitely now have to versions of this book, I loved it that much!) As Kingfisher is one of my favorite authors writing today, I wanted to re-surface this review with the updated cover for those who may not be in the know!

Book: “Swordheart” by T. Kingfisher

Publishing Info: Bramble, Feb. 2025

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

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

Book Description: Halla is a housekeeper who has suddenly inherited her great-uncle’s estate… and, unfortunately, his relatives. Sarkis is an immortal swordsman trapped in a prison of enchanted steel. When Halla draws the sword that imprisons him, Sarkis finds himself attempting to defend his new wielder against everything from bandits and roving inquisitors to her own in-laws… and the sword itself may prove to be the greatest threat of all.

Review: Once I discover a favorite author, it can only be expected that you’ll probably see a lot of reviews for them going forward. So as not to just run through them one after another, I’ve been trying to hold off on picking up a new Kingfisher novel until I feel like I’ve been in a bit of a slump. And, for whatever reason, many of my October books were a bit underwhelming. While this was a bummer, it gave me the only excuse I needed, so I immediately jumped back into the world of the Clockwork Boys with this standalone book.

You would think being left a grand estate and all the wealth and prestige that comes with that would be a blessing. But for Halla, the housekeeper turned unexpected heiress, it has lead to nothing but trouble. Hounded by the relatives of the deceased, Halla has all but given up hope of collecting on her inheritance. That is until, when trapped in a cluttered room in a mansion that should by rights belong to her, Halla draws a dusty old sword and finds…a swordsman as well? One who is enchanted to the sword and sworn to protect its wielder for the remainder of their life. But while Halla seems like an easy enough individual to protect, Sarkis, the swordsman, is in for a surprise.

I think it would be a bigger shock than anything if I read a book by this author that I didn’t enjoy. There are enough strengths in her general storytelling ability, her solid characters, and her witty dialogue that it’s hard to imagine a book that felt like a flop. There have been stories I’ve enjoyed more than others, however. So where does this one fit on that scale?

While much of the appeal of this book lay in the strength of the qualities I listed above, there were a few aspects of this story that I found particularly charming. For one thing, Halla is an “older” heroine, coming in with an age somewhere in her 30s. Kingfisher has used several older heroines like this to helm her books, and it’s something I always appreciate. Life and adventure doesn’t only come for twenty-somethings! And, indeed, we get more variety and life experience with an older lead who brings more baggage (both good and bad) to the story. Halla is an unlikely leading lady in that she starts the book out as a bewildered heiress who seems as if she may have been happier remaining a housekeeper for the rest of her life. What’s more, as the story progresses, her romance with Sarkis comes from the perspective of a woman who has already been married once and knows what’s what.

I also appreciated that this was one of the longer books I’ve read by this author. She tends to write books that come in between the 200-250 page count, just enough to be considered full novels instead of novellas, but noticeably shorter than the average fantasy novel out there. On one hands, this is a quality I love as there are so many massive fantasy tomes out there that not only don’t need to be the length they are (and are often worse for it) but the sheer amount of time it takes to read one lengthy novel necessarily limits how many one can get through. That said, I loved being able to settle in to this story a bit more than I have with past, shorter books by this author. I became highly invested in Halla’s journey towards self-worth and Sarkis’s work to restore the humanity he gave up when he became attached to the sword. We learn a lot about their personal histories, so it’s truly gratifying to see them come up against similar challenges here and make different choices.

That said, there came a point around the three quarters mark where I began to feel like the book was quite literally tracing the same road back and forth. This is played for good humorous affect, but the final go around did begin to feel a bit tedious as I began to wish that our characters could finally have something go right for them.

Overall, however, I really enjoyed this book. It was enjoyable and solid in all of the ways I’ve come to expect by this author, and I appreciated the increased page length to really soak in this particular world and these characters and their romance. Fans of this author or for those looking for a cozy fantasy novel, this is definitely a book for you!

Rating 8: Everything you could want from cozy fantasy fiction!

Reader’s Advisory:

“Swordheart” can be found on these Goodreads lists: CozySFF and Above 30 Romance Heroines.

Kate’s Review: “They Bloom At Night”

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Book: “They Bloom At Night” by Trang Thahn Tran

Publishing Info: Bloomsbury YA, March 2025

Where Did I Get This Book: I received an ARC from the publisher at ALAAC24.

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

Book Description: A red algae bloom has taken over Mercy, Louisiana. Ever since a devastating hurricane, mutated wildlife lurks in the water that rises by the day. But Mercy has always been a place where monsters walk in plain sight. Especially at its heart: The Cove, where Noon’s life was upended long before the storm at a party her older boyfriend insisted on.

Now, Noon is stuck navigating the submerged town with her mom, who believes their dead family has reincarnated as sea creatures. Alone with the pain of what happened that night at the cove, Noon buries the truth: she is not the right shape.

When Mercy’s predatory leader demands Noon and her mom capture the creature drowning residents, she reluctantly finds an ally in his deadly hunter of a daughter and friends old and new. As the next storm approaches, Noon must confront the past and decide if it’s time to answer the monster itching at her skin.

Review: Thank you to Bloomsbury YA for providing me with an ARC of this novel at ALAAC24!

It’s almost March, and yet I am here once again with an ARC I got at ALAAC last summer. I always find it funny when I still have a few lingering finds from the conference, especially since the next one is only four months away, but let me tell you this find was one I was really excited about. “They Bloom At Night” is the new YA horror novel by Trang Thahn Tran, and it was well worth the wait. Because like any good horror novel, it’s not the just horror stuff that brings the goods, it’s also the commentary about the world in which we are living.

Let’s look at the horror stuff first. Like in their previous novel “She Is A Haunting”, Tran brings rich perspectives to well loved horror sub-genres. This time it’s a combination of body horror as well as eco horror. The eco horror is the settling, as we are in a small town in Louisiana after a hurricane has ravaged it, with a toxic and mysterious algae bloom basically engulfing the waters that the town has depended on to survive. This kind of setting is unfortunately feeling more and more timely, and I thought it was a great place to make comment on the climate crisis and how it can have so many effects that some may not think of. After all, it’s not just mutated sea life and mysterious monsters that are a threat in this book, but a community teetering towards financial ruin and a corrupt self proclaimed leadership that has taken over as well. You feel the desperation in Mercy and the people who live there, and the added horrors of rumors of mutated sea creatures can only make it worse.

And as someone who has a hard time with body horror (I still haven’t seen “The Substance” even though it has so many accolades!), it was very well done, balancing out the nasty with the more fantastical. The descriptions of the mutations caused by the bloom had their moments of me thinking ‘oh YUCK’, which is exactly what I’d expect from body horror, and they could vary from being generally creepy to outright nasty. And hey, I’m never big on the nasty, but the creepy? I really loved the creepy here. Especially the caution about ignoring ‘the knocks’ at the door after dark. Good gracious. But if you like the nasty, never fear, because yeah, some really disgusting transformations happen in this book, especially for those who have been a little too exposed to the bloom, as body parts rot away, skins get sloughed off, or mutilations are put to the forefront. For our protagonist Noon, the body horror bits are slow and meticulous, starting with her hair turning white, but then becoming more and more alarming.

I also really enjoyed the dichotomy between the physical transformation that Noon is experiencing and the way that she is starting to realize that she is starting to shift her own ideas about who she is, whether it’s due to having to confront the trauma of being sexually assaulted, losing her father and brother, or realizing that she is still trying to suss out her own gender identity. It’s not like using the ideas of body horror as a metaphor for transformation of multiple kinds is new, but I thought that Tran really differentiated between some of the more disgusting elements (see above) and the more ethereal and liberating ones, even as Noon was turning into something else than she had been before, whether it’s because of her exposure to the bloom or her confronting the trauma and loss. It’s gratifying to see that this transformation, at least for Noon, could be depicted as a positive, and her journey to finally finding peace with herself in spite of the horrors that surround her. It made for a very emotional read, and I was very invested in her as a character, as well as the other ‘othered’ characters around her.

I really enjoyed “They Bloom At Night”.

Rating 8: A creepy and sometimes nasty combination of eco and body horror, “They Bloom At Night” is also an examination of trauma and gender identity against the backdrop of a ravaged climate.

Reader’s Advisory:

“They Bloom At Night” is included on the Goodreads lists “Trans and Nonbinary Fiction 2025”, and “Horror To Look Forward To in 2025”.

Serena’s Review: “But Not Too Bold”

This post may contain affiliate links for books we recommend.  Read the full disclosure here.

Book: “But Not Too Bold” by Hache Pueyo

Publishing Info: Tor, Feb. 2022

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

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

Book Description: The old keeper of the keys is dead, and the creature who ate her is the volatile Lady of the Capricious House⁠―Anatema, an enormous humanoid spider with a taste for laudanum and human brides.

Dália, the old keeper’s protégée, must take up her duties, locking and unlocking the little drawers in which Anatema keeps her memories. And if she can unravel the crime that led to her predecessor’s death, Dália might just be able to survive long enough to grow into her new role.

But there’s a gaping hole in Dália’s plan that she refuses to see: Anatema cannot resist a beautiful woman, and she eventually devours every single bride that crosses her path.

Review: At this point, I think it’s well-established that I am more than happy to explore some of the weirder corners of fantasy/horror stories. I mean, I loved “Asunder” and that was such a wild ride of world-building! Well, this one starts off weird, gets a bit weirder, and then ends in full weirdness. Starting with the premise, which is the idea that anyone would be willing to work in a house run by a giant spider who is more likely than not going to eat you some day. I’ll just get it out of the way now: if you focus too much on the realities behind whether or not anyone would sign on for the basic premise of this book, you’re probably not going to have a great time. But if you’re willing to go with it, there’s some very interesting storytelling to be had.

I’ll also say, if you have trouble with bugs or spiders, this isn’t the book for you. There is spider stuff everywhere, from people handling and eating tarantulas at any given moment, to the very detailed descriptions of Anatema and just how her human/spider bits meld together. I don’t particularly have a problem with bugs or spiders, so I found all of this to be on the pleasantly creepy side, rather than outright horror. That said, there was a particular erotic dream sequence that was…a lot. More, I found the general concept to be interesting: the ways that the human characters dealt with their day-to-day existence and the almost guaranteed gruesome end that was coming to them.

I also enjoyed the writing style and was impressed with the emotional punch that was packed into a story with such a short word-count, under 100 pages. I was a bit surprised by how central the romance was to the story. I went in with the impression that while there was a romantic subplot, the story itself would be more focused on the mystery. Well, it was the opposite, with the mystery taking up very little page time and the romance making up the rest. I didn’t quite buy into Dalia’s feelings for Anatema, but I do think that this book will find an audience with the monster romance lovers out there!

Overall, this was truly unique read. I’m not sure I can think of anything like it. The writing was incredibly strong throughout, and really, it’s going to come down to your tolerance/interest in spiders whether or not you have a good time with this one!

Rating 8: One of the more unique novellas I’ve read in a long time, deftly mixing horror, fantasy, and, somehow, romance, all into one small package!

Reader’s Advisory:

“But Not Too Bold” can be found on this Goodreads list: All the New Horror, Romantasy, and Other SFF Crossover Books Arriving in February 2025