The nitty-gritty: Four scientists undertake a dangerous mission to uncover the mysteries of a curious hole, in Christopher Paolini’s tense survival thriller. Sometimes going into a book with no expectations is a good thing, and that was my experience reading Fractal Noise, a prequel of sorts to Paolini’s To Sleep In a Sea of Stars. […]
The nitty-gritty: A dark and gritty look at a codependent relationship, with vampires. “At six o’clock, I break a teacup from the kitchenette against the wall and use a shard of porcelain to cut a second hole in my arm. I let it pool into a paper Dixie cup and tell Mom to come drink […]
The nitty-gritty: Another thrilling entry in David Walton’s series, Deadly Memory delivers fast-paced action—and dinosaurs. Dinosaurs. A deadly pandemic. A Thai Queen. An ancient extinction event. A group of dedicated scientists. What do all these things have in common? They are all elements in Deadly Memory, the exciting sequel to David Walton’s Living Memory. I […]
The nitty-gritty: Ai Jiang explores a couple of current hot topics—AI art and the human versus machine argument—in a short but engaging story that gives readers plenty to ponder. I Am AI is a short novelette that explores the pitfalls of AI generated art, a quite timely story in fact, since the headlines have been […]
The nitty-gritty: Atmospheric and eerie, All the Dead Lie Down is a nice mix of horror, coming-of-age and family secrets. It was the creepy, evocative cover of All the Dead Lie Down that caught my attention, and I have to say Kyrie McCauley’s story matches the cover perfectly. This was such an atmospheric story with […]
The nitty-gritty: Greek gods meet climate change in Priya Sharma’s latest, a short but memorable cautionary tale. A few years ago I had the pleasure of reading Priya Sharma’s Ormeshadow, a dark story about family secrets. So when she asked me to read Pomegranates, I didn’t even hesitate. This time, the author has written a […]
The nitty-gritty: A lively tale combining family drama and otherworldly fairies, I enjoyed Rowenna Miller’s writing style and her take on the fae. Coin in the door for a visitor welcome Bit of old leather for a welcome farewell –Traditional bargain The Fairy Bargains of Prospect Hill was a surprise in many ways. I expected […]
The nitty-gritty: Can a story about teen cannibals be fun? Why yes it can, in Kayla Cottingham’s latest, a fast-paced horror tale with humor and heart. “When my parents asked if I wanted a Mini Cooper for graduation, I didn’t think ahead to whether or not it would have enough trunk space to accommodate my […]
The nitty-gritty: Fonda Lee populates her latest story with mythological creatures, resulting in a thrilling, heartfelt story. Untethered Sky is quite a change from Fonda Lee’s Green Bone saga, but I was happy to see that her storytelling and writing are just as strong, even in such a short format. This is a story about […]
The nitty-gritty: An audacious idea, stellar writing, black humor galore and a well paced plot make Death Watch a “can’t miss” thriller. Sometimes I take a chance on an author or a publisher I’ve never worked with before, and sometimes it pays off big time. I had a blast with Death Watch, a high concept […]