Michael Barnes

It's obvious. The first thing to note about McBride's debut 'a girl is a half formed thing' is its use of language, grammar, syntax or lack thereof, and punctuation. I have seen it described as 'stream-of-consciousness' and that is as good a descriptor/warning as any. Read as fragmented gasps and spurts and appears childlike at first reading. Usually starting a new book I try to read the first fifty pages in a one sitting to decide if I want to keep reading and for this novel I needed that to feel that I had a reasonable grasp of what was being conveyed. Even when I was more comfortable reading I never got passed a sense I was translating or deciphering the prose, rather than just reading as I do with other books. Not since Russell Hoban's Riddley Walker have I had to put in so much effort to read understand what I was reading.

It was also a hard read because of the harsh unforgiving treatment these children receive in an earlier Ireland that the catholic church held sway. The country described in the Pogues song 'thousands are sailing' "The land that makes us refugees, From fear of priests with empty plates, From guilt and weeping effigies".

Central through our unnamed narrator (spoiler the final line of the book is "My name is gone") is her brother three years older than her suffering from a brain tumour as infant whose brain has been damaged by the cancer and the surgery never to recover toa full life and then to die in his early twenties.

Our narrators life is also horrendous she is raped by her uncle. Even with her conflicted sexual response it is certainly rape, for she is only thirteen, which makes it paedophilia as well. Following this recounts sexual encounters as joyless and violent compulsion reminiscent of nothing so much as the self-harmers who cut themselves as a form of release from unbearable emotional stress. Throughout the novel angry Catholic virtue of her virago mother, expressed in speech rhythms that catch with uncanny accuracy the way that people actually talk.

The protagonist's end is heart rending in its inevitability. Summarised by Mark Byron Senior Lecturer, Department of English, University of Sydney "The narrator is dragged under by her failure to coalesce an identity sufficiently resilient to the burdens of her experience".

This was not a pleasant nor enjoyable read for me but a worthwhile one none the less.

I breezed through Aiden Thomas’ debut novel, Cemetery Boys in a day. Is eminently readable and a fast paced tale of trans identity and Latinx culture cultures I know little about so can not speak to the stories authenticity but the author is trans and Latinx at least he isn't appropriating another's culture or speaking for someone else voice.

From Kayti Burt at Den of geeks " The novel follows Yadriel, a trans boy determined to prove his gender to his traditional Latinx family, who all happen to be brujx, with the ability to see spirits. When Yadriel’s cousin is murdered, Yadriel decides to solve the mystery of what happened as a way to convince his family to accept his identity as a brujo. But when, instead of summoning the ghost of his cousin, Yadriel accidentally summons the ghost of (very cute) school “bad boy” Julian, who refuses to leave, Yadriel’s mission becomes much more complicated… especially once he realizes he might not want Julian to go".

I was delighted to discover the story continues in Espíritu which I have added to my to_be_read_ mastaba.

I haven't read any of Chuck Tingle's other 29 works listed on goodreads such 'Trans Wizard Harriet Porber And The Theater Of Love: An Adult Romance Novel', 'Pounded in the Butt by My Own Butt'. I first heard of him during the right wing nut job sad puppies campaign to 'de-diversify the science fiction awards' and nominated Tingle's 'Space Raptor Butt Invasion' thinking it would offend those who judge these prizes. Unsurprisingly narrow minded bigots don't know how most people think and many of the judges knew of Tingle and his work and were happy to nominate. Chuck Tingle himself played along followed up with 'Slammed In The Butt By My Hugo Award Nomination'.

"Set amidst the sprawling splendor of Montana, Camp Damascus immediately presents us with the first-person perspective of our protagonist, Rose, a devoutly religious twenty-year old who seems to live a heavenly life in the town of Neverton. Surrounded by loving friends and family, avoiding anything more dangerous than root beer and punny Jesus t-shirts, and set to be set-up with a heart-throb boyfriend, Rose has everything she could ever want, both spiritually and physically.

Obviously, since this is a horror novel, Rose might have to deal with some problems". Summary by Chris Kluwe at Lightspeed magazine.

I loved this book, the blend of Christian Mythology and Science come from the different world views of two of the main characters being a pivotal plot pot to resolving the story. The balancing of faith and scepticism in the second half of the book was well done. Whilst I don't think any of the major churches are going to be recommending it definitely carves out a space for those who truly believe but are still willing to question themselves.

Plus gotta love a resolution where folk are hoist by their own petard.

But if this novel is indicative of his writing sign me up for 'Turned Gay By The Existential Dread That I May Actually Be A Character In A Chuck Tingle Book'.

I could do a short review along the lines of 'people died' So it goes. Which trust me if you had read the book - would make sense. I understand it is a classic and certainly the non linear narrative fits the story within the story, and the aspects of meta narrative employed eg the author appearing in the story for 1969 would have been remarkable. It was a bookclub choice so I am grateful that it meant I have read another significant piece of modern western literature. I recall I watched the movie that was made of this and being more excited about the science fiction aspects.

I was introduced to Ilsa J. Bick's Ashes Trilogy by a couple of bookclubers (thanks Amanda and Greta) and it was a welcome suggestion. I am a fan of the zombie genre, looking over my books on Goodreads I have read fourteen zombie novels and series and this is certainly one of the first zombie novels in a series leaving me keen to launch straight into the second. That cliff hanger. The last time that happened was Mira grant's Feed and I have to wait a year before the next book dropped. This is much better since Shadows has been published (though it is currently on loan at my library).

Kirus reviews sums it up well "Splendidly paced apocalyptic zombie horror ends with a thrilling, terrifying cliffhanger and a number of unresolved mysteries"

"They think they’ve killed the last of us…

981 AD. The Viking King of Dublin is dead. His young widow, Gormflaith, has ambitions for her son–and herself–but Ireland is a dangerous place and kings tend not to stay kings for long. Gormflaith also has a secret. She is one of the Fomorians, an immortal race who can do fire-magic. She has kept her powers hidden at all costs, for there are other immortals in this world–like the Tuatha Dé Danann, a race of warriors who are sworn to kill Fomorians. Fódla is one of the Tuatha Dé Danann with the gift of healing. Her kind dwell hidden in a fortress, forbidden to live amongst the mortals. Fódla agrees to help her kin by going to spy on Brian Boru, a powerful man who aims to be High King of Ireland. She finds a land on the brink of war–a war she is desperate to stop. However, preventing the loss of mortal lives is not easy with Ireland in turmoil and the Fomorians now on the rise…"

If you enjoyed stories set in this period of history (the turn of the millennium) in this part of the world (Ireland) and welcome the low magic of Irish myths of Tuatha Dé Danann then this is a debut novel for you. The narrative unfolds alternating between two different women Gormflaith and Fódla Gormflaith, one of the last of the Fomorians, will do anything to ensure her mortal son stays king. Fódla, one of the Tuatha Dé Danann who hunt and kill Fomorians, will do anything to protect her sister’s son and its these characters who give the heart to the story.

I welcomed the assemblage of true historical events with the elements of myths. In an epilogue the author explains the names and events history records. She discuss why she couldn't write a literary history novel, or a fantasy novel but required both elements to drive her writing. She alludes to the fact that it would have been easier for her publisher to market if it was one or the other.

Hild by Nicola Griffith is still my go to book on the middle ages but I look forward to reading the rest of this trilogy.

I borrowed Ava Reid’s Fable for the End of the World before the prompts for my friend's reading challenge had been given so I was fortunate that it satisfied 'Read a book set in a dystopian future'

Because a dystopic future it is, where earth has all but succumbed to the ravages of climate change, Inesa and her younger brother Luka run a taxidermy shop to eke out a meager living in Esopus, the half-sunken village in which rainwater runs so high, they travel by raft from their shop to their home. Everyone in these marginal spaces outside the city (read the capital in Hunger games speak) are forced to choose between essentials such as food or electricity, or else they have to incur debt. Even saying “thank you” is a practice that has faded away because to be in debt of any sort is something that these people cannot endure. Should you fall too far into debt, the masked collectors come knocking, and they don’t just want money repaid. Unbeknownst to Inesa, her mother has accrued an enormous debt as she seeks to escape from the life she believes she is trapped in. When the Masks TM come, they come for Inesa, and it is revealed that her mother has put her up for the Lamb’s Gauntlet, the livestreamed spectacle in which the debtor is forced to flee from an assassin whose one mission is to kill the debtor: the lamb. Thrust into a race to escape death, Inesa finds herself relying on the survival skills taught by years of living in the irradiated wastes of her homeland and the help of her hunter brother, whose skill with a rifle might be the only thing standing between her and the rapidly closing assassin, Melinoë.

Mel has been trained and modified to be the ultimate living weapon. After undergoing mental calibration and physical alterations, she has been honed into a creature whose one purpose is to track and kill the sacrificial lambs in the Gauntlet. However, despite being known for her cold, ruthless nature, Mel is desperate for redemption in this Gauntlet, as her most recent hunt resulted in her breaking down for all the world to see on their screens and now haunts her with crippling flashbacks.

As Mel chases Inesa through the dangerous forests, heading North toward her believed potential salvation, both girls realize that they may not be all that different, and that the systems that have pitted them against each other might be worth fighting back against. A contemporary projection of today’s heavy-hitting topics, from climate change and capitalism to fascism and exploitation, all the while exploring what it is to be human, to hope, to sacrifice and to love.

The narrative takes the televised-competition-to-the-death premise of The Hunger Games and infuses it with even more modern context and triggers, all the while centering on a queer romance and exploring themes of love, humanity, self-worth and what it means to truly live in a world forcing you to only focus on survival.

The Author succeeds in making a story about each of these girls, rooting for them as they take on the system that rules over their world, not so different from our own. I found it a moving examination of what life and love can be when we are forced into instinctual survival, versus what can thrive when we not only survive, but attempt to truly live.

I fear the ending may leave some unsatisfied I found it an enduring testament to hope, however be warned the story doesn't conclude with a victory over the evils of capitalism.

Victoria Thomas at the Book Raven summaries the story thus

"In Mersailles, “Cinderella” is more than just a fairy tale: It’s the basis for a harsh monarch’s throttlehold on his kingdom.

Sophia is turning 16, the age at which young women must attend King Manford’s annual ball, at which they are scrutinized by and married off to male attendees. Any young woman who has not been claimed after her third ball is destined to spend the rest of her days engaged in hard labor. But being chosen can be its own curse in a society where domestic violence is common. Sophia is a beautiful Black girl in love with dark-haired Erin, one of her best friends. While racial diversity is a natural part of this world, the same acceptance does not exist for those who defy rigid gender norms: Anything other than heterosexual desire is strictly forbidden, and while Sophia wishes to escape as a couple, Erin is too fearful. After fleeing the ball, Sophia stumbles across Cinderella’s mausoleum, hidden in the woods. There she meets rebellious Constance, an attractive young red-haired woman with a very personal motivation for sabotaging the monarchy. As the two grew closer—and sparks fly—they discover secrets that could end Manford’s cruel reign. This promising debut deals with themes around rebellion and empowerment as well as the toll that rejecting the status quo can take on relationships. The atmospheric setting is a particular strength, and the twists and turns will keep readers in suspense".

Reading the book within 24 hours is a testimony to it readability and the retelling of fairy tales has become a genre in its own right. This also tells a story about how 'history' and record keeping is written by the winners. I liked how those aspects of the tale like 'the wicked step sisters and wicked step mother ' are shown to be constructions even down to the woodcuts used to create the images in the books. The twist involving the 'fairy godmother' was another positive addition to the narrative.

I shows young adults Sophia is 16 challenging a dystopic government based on historical lies leading to wide spread misogyny and brutally enforced heteronormative standards. YA fighting oppressive governments is a staple in publishing these days so why was Cinderella is Dead the target in a number of censorship challenges in schools throughout the United States, including but not limited to Granbury and San Antonio, Texas. It was removed from school libraries after Rep. Matt Krause (R ) published a list of books that he deemed would cause students "discomfort" for addressing sexuality and race.

So the protagonist Sophia and other characters are black, she is also gay, which seems to be the criteria for Representative Krause's complaint but I wonder if the focus on the mistreatment and disregard of women in this story which is central to why Sophia and Constance resist is another significant reason why those such as Rep Matt Krause who benefit from hegemonic masculinity would not want young people to read these narratives. (Honestly I don't think Rep Matt Krause thinks that much about literature and it relationship to culture given their attitiude to removing anything about history, writing, photographs which hint at anything that doesn't suit their world view.)

In a review for The National of Scotland, McLaughlin called the book "the perfect mix" of a dystopian world and a new take on a classic fairy tale so I will include it on the Dystopia challenge list though I have already begun to read my choice for that category which I had borrowed from the library before the challenge was finialised.

Sara Rauch over at Lamda Literary review sums it up better than I could thusly

"In E.K. Johnston’s new novel, That Inevitable Victorian Thing, world history doesn’t look the way we know it to today. There are some similarities, of course—as there are in all good speculative fiction—but it is the differences, the minor yet major tweaks, that define this new world. The biggest, from which the plot of this intriguing novel stems, is that Britain remained a super-power at the behest, and remarkably prescient forethought, of Queen Victoria I. This visionary new world is multicultural in a particular way: marriage matches are (most often) made by the omniscient Computer, transcending race and culture to pair couples by their genetic codes in an attempt to breed a stronger, more thoughtful empire. This situation has resulted in the kind of open and accepting society many people dream of. Biology (with love playing a somewhat more mysterious role) reigns supreme, resulting in a strong, united queendom (because, unlikely though it may seem to present-day readers sludging through the stew of misogyny, the monarchy hands down power via the first-born child, regardless of gender).

In this near-future world, Victoria-Margaret, a teenage girl and direct descendant of Queen Victoria I, is set to inherit the throne. But before she does, her parents have decided to give her one summer of freedom. Off she goes, “disguised” as Margaret of Sandwich, to Toronto, to stay with family friends and experience her “debut”: a teenage rite of passage, which, as in times past, signals a girl’s entrance into the marriage market, but not as in time’s past, is something all genders do. Margaret’s friend, Elizabeth, daughter of the Fleet Admiral of the Royal Canadian Navy, is in on the secret, and the two, though never particularly close up to this point, form a quick bond. On the night of their debut, Margaret and Elizabeth meet Helena Marcus, the daughter of one of the empire’s top geneticist. Helena has come down from New London by unexpected invitation, to debut in Toronto. Practical Helena, who from her childhood has expected to marry August Callaghan, a heir to a shipping conglomerate, accepts the invite out of duty, but upon meeting Margaret, very quickly begins to enjoy herself.

That Inevitable Victorian Thing takes a bit of time to catch—the first few chapters are focused on the large cast of (mostly female) characters and distinguishing between them can take some effort. The Computer’s dominance also requires getting used to: the fact that it borders on arranged marriage and begs questions of piety and fealty is softened by citizens’ acceptance and embrace of the system and offset by the occasional anecdote of marriages that blissfully exist outside of Computer influence. Quibbles aside, once this new world is adjusted to, the plot moves along at a nice pace. The Toronto and Canadian woods of the future are well rendered, and the open society is beguiling—citizens of this empire appear happy, well-adjusted, compliant. Perhaps this is because the book focuses mainly on the upper class and those that work for them. Or perhaps—and it seems entirely possible given the promise of the world Johnston has created—this is because everyone is, actually, content.

As the novel progresses, and Margaret and Helena’s friendship hurtles toward the inevitability of something more, That Inevitable Victorian Thing picks up a lot of steam. In parts, it carries some of the bright sweetness of Sarah Waters’ early books, and the deft manner in which it deals with its protagonists’ sexualities and gender identities is refreshing. Margaret, despite her remarkably privileged upbringing, remains grounded and level-headed throughout the confusion and trials of her summer “vacation,” and Helena, thrown off kilter by unexpected news about her identity, bears her own and others’ secrets with unending grace. Towards the last third of the novel, the plot twists can feel forced, and the main conflict resolves itself a bit quickly with a somewhat naïve pact—but it’s hard to object to young characters exhibiting intelligence, patience, and resilience, especially when their actions conclude with happiness and the continued well-being of the empire".

Defekt is the companion novel to Finna, which I enjoyed, so I was happy to read another story centering this weird and twisty furniture store. While Finna quickly leaves the store behind, entering parallel worlds, Defekt is firmly set at the store and I was excited to discover other absurdities this furniture store has to show us.

When I first met the character Derek in Finna, where we only get a very brief glimpse of him, I can’t say I thought I was ever going to like this character. The more curious I was about reading his very own story though, wondering if that could change. Turns out there is a lot more to Derek than one first thinks, like… a lot a lot.

Finna and Defekt are both very different yet also very much the same. At their core, both stories are about self discovery and self-reflection. Derek’s story was just extra special in that way and very much hitting the spot. I just loved how he learns his own potential, that he sees who he can be if he wants to, that there is a lot more in life for him. Through his clones who are all very different people, very different personalities and also genders, he gets a chance to really explorer his true inner self.

Like Finna, the sheer madcap oddness of Defekt provides a lot of entertainment while the subtext introduces questions of what it means to not fit in with everyone else, finding one’s own identity, and how a group of seemingly powerless entities (for lack of a better word) can stand up to a corporate behemoth.

As a university student most of my friends have sought furniture from the Swedish founded big box store IKEA, the endless maze of showrooms I find it easy to imagine that there are hidden passages that lead, not to a secret shortcut to an exit, but to another world entirely.

Nino Cipri’s Nebula Award-nominated novella Finna (2020) takes that concept adds to it a timely set of social concerns, ranging from gender identity to the evils of capitalism generally and low-wage retail jobs in particular and wormholes.

The story is that of Jules and Ava to coworkers who are trying to resolve what they are to each other after a breakup. Jules explains to Ava why they volunteered for task. "A soccer mom enlisted me to help harangue her husband into shelling out money for a new bathroom vanity. She managed to misgender me four times in two minutes,” Jules said. They bent down to pick up the books they’d knocked off the shelf. “Two different pronouns, completely ignored my nametag, eventually settled on calling me ‘the kid.’

During one exchange the LitenVärld manager Tricia, (described as “Midwestern manager-class haircut” with blond highlights (could anything indicate a “Karen” more clearly?), practiced plastic facial expressions, and an utter disregard for the wellbeing of the workers she manages" after barely trying and completely failing to address Jules by their preferred pronouns decries 'It's too difficult, I guess I'm just a grammar Nazi" leading A to wonder, "not for the first time, why anyone would so proudly declare themselves to be any kind of nazi". Good question Ava

The descriptions Ava gives for the different show room set ups conjured the images for me The Nihilist Bachelor Cube, Coked-out Divorcée, Parental Basement Dweller, Newly Retired Swinger, the goth spinster room and others.

But it’s the compassion that describes these two modern people badly treated and exploited by our society that seems to say a 'better world isn't possible, but a worse on is" when they finally face wy Ava broke up with Jules that tugged my heart.

"“Because I don’t trust you to come back!” Ava hissed. “You always do this. You ignore inconvenient realities like your girlfriend is fucked up in the head and there are giant spiders in other worlds! Then when the problems get too big to ignore, you run.” “ … You dumped me,” Jules said numbly. “Because you never would,” Ava answered. “I would have just woken up and you’d be gone.”

Contemporary horror done well.