The nitty-gritty: Monsters both supernatural and human populate the pages of this short but thrilling dark adventure tale. I always hear good things about Premee Mohamed’s books, but this is my first experience with her writing. Now I can see what all the fuss is about, because I loved everything about The Butcher of the […]
The nitty-gritty: Short but powerful, The Tusks of Extinction is an emotional journey through time and memory. “Damira was there again, listening to uncle Timur read to her. This was the gift of the mammoth mind, the elephant mind; to be where she was and elsewhere as well. To be in this present and yet […]
The nitty-gritty: More portals, more angst, and more adventures (and dinosaurs!) await readers in the ninth Wayward Children book. “We ask, again and again, why the doors take kids, and I think it’s a combination of things—kids are more flexible, they adjust better to things like ‘Oh hey, I’m a mermaid now’ or ‘Oh hey, […]
The nitty-gritty: Lina Rather combines cosmic horror and a fascinating historical time period in this engaging and uplifting tale. A Season of Monstrous Conceptions is an immersive story set in 1675 London with some wonderfully creepy cosmic horror elements. I loved Lina Rather’s Our Lady of Endless Worlds series, so I was curious to see […]
The nitty-gritty: Dreamy, evocative writing and emotional themes make this an intriguing tale, but I didn’t enjoy the ending at all. “There are two kinds of family,” his father says. “The kind you share genes with, and the kind you welcome into your heart.” Please note, spoilers about the dog ahead. I’m so sad that […]
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: A promising idea turned sour for me, as the relationship drama overwhelmed the fascinating wolf plot. Feed Them Silence has an intriguing premise: in the future, an interface has been developed that will link the minds of a human and a wolf, thus enabling humans to better understand a near extinct species. Sean […]
The nitty-gritty: A perplexing mystery and a second chance romance set the stage for this engaging science fiction series starter. This was such a lovely, gentle story with unique world building, and I really enjoyed it. If the description “cozy mystery set in space with a queer love story” gets your attention, then you will […]
The nitty-gritty: Surreal and heart-wrenching, The Crane Husband is a short but emotional tale of trauma and survival. “My mom was sleeping with a crane who was sometimes a man. Or a man who was sometimes a crane. My mom was sleeping with a person who hit her. Both of these things felt too awful—too […]
The nitty-gritty: Intricate world-building and sparkling dialog make The Keeper’s Six a must read for fans looking for a fantasy adventure on the lighter side. “A Keep knows its Keeper, and a Keeper knows their Keep. The two are bound by threads of unbreakable magic, a connection to the unnamable Source, one of the strongest […]