The Vanished Birds – Finding Your Family

Have you ever wanted to turn to a colleague and exclaim “wow, you’re a coward,” and have legitimate grounds to stand on? What if that colleague was a good friend who told you to read a book, and you stonewalled them forever because “you had better books to read than ones they already read?” Well,…

The Mountain In The Sea – Peak Performance

When I first read the synopsis for Ray Nayler’s debut novel, The Mountain In the Sea, I felt threatened. The description of the book felt pointedly aimed at me and my parasocial relationship with Adrian Tchaikovsky’s Children books. I didn’t exactly pass right over it, but I didn’t really engage with the possibility of reading…

The Void Ascendant – Fulfilling Prophecy

*Checks watch* yep, it’s still October, so I can’t help myself, it’s still spooky time, and there is nothing spookier than finishing a long anticipated trilogy. Well, there definitely are spookier things, but we’re talking books here. It’s hard to leave characters you’ve grown to love behind and see where their journeys end up. And…

The Dark Between The Trees – Grasping for Branches

Are you folks ready for another horror book review? No? Well too bad, I’m dragging you into the harrowing trees with me. This next book was marketed as a horror story for fans of The Descent and The Ritual, movies I particularly enjoy. I tried to avoid the high hopes, settling for a book that…

Sundial – Casting Time’s Shadows

It’s October babay! And that means I have to read horror and horror alone, because that’s just the way I am. Sundial, by Catriona Ward, is the first book up for review. Sundial enchanted me in ways both unexpected and expected. Ward’s latest novel is a clever and emotional ride through both gothic and serial…

A Taste of Gold and Iron – Smelts My Heart

I read Alexandra Rowland’s guest post over at The Fantasy Hive about “small magic,” and just knew I had to pick up A Taste of Gold and Iron. The post teased a plot about counterfeiting and money manipulation diving into the idea of magic users as an ecological niche that had my heart brimming with…

Molly Southbourne – Life After Death After Death After Death

I make it no secret that I love Tade Thompson’s work. Ever since the Rosewater Trilogy I’ve been hooked and eagerly anticipate any new releases with his name on them. However, I waited until The Legacy of Molly Southbourne was released before diving into his trilogy of horror novellas. I make it no secret that…

Chasm City – Not Splitting Hairs On This One

Revelation Space is a big series. Sure, it’s a trilogy, but it also has two related novels and a treasure trove of short stories. I’ve only scratched the surface on the shorter fiction by Alastair Reynolds, but the little I have read has been just as exciting as the sprawling epics. Now I’m writing this…