Michael Barnes

This is a very harsh unforgiving horror novel and I cannot recommend it without knowing the person who wants to read it if I would suggest it. It’s a powerful and compelling piece of literature and I can see why Alison Rumfitt deserves all the praise for this her debut novel.

Tell Me I’m Worthless tells the story of two friends, Alice and Ila, in the aftermath of a night spent together in a haunted house. Alice is transgender, and Ila is a ‘gender critical’ feminist. That in itself provides a novel worth of complexity and social culture. The haunted house, Albion, is the core or the rising shadow of the particular brand of British fascism which is infecting the social fabric of the United Kingdom today.

Tell Me I’m Worthless is bleak, but the ending proves cathartic and even hopeful, reminding us that resistance to fascism is always possible.

If books can be described as windows or mirrors then for me this book falls into the windows category as I would have never chosen to read this book if it wasn't selected by the bookclub. I am pleased it was as I think its a brilliant work of literary fiction. I am happy to categorize it as that because of the literary touches such as some characters are referred to but are never given names: the colleague, the girlfriend (and before I could think its a gender thing0 the guy in the black Saab). The focus on a sports team but without encountering a game until a quarter of the way through the story.

I loved how all the book is all about the small town and hockey and how its all a matter of clichés: its all about the team, were are a hockey town, etc but also interrogates what those trite basis for your life end up meaning. The story focuses on the relationships to each other, some helpful, some negative (making your your son walk miles home through snow because he got lost at a market and was 5 minutes late returning to the car is a dick move Kevin's Dad) and how these can change. Also kudos for choosing to show just how shit the legal/police system is when it comes to rape. Author could have chosen to put a spin on it but no one I know or respect believes the police/legal system are anything but shit when it comes to this.

As I mentioned its a bookclub book so I won't record much here but it was a suprisingly engaging worthwhile read for me.

I leap into Bea Fitzgerald's next retelling of the Greek myths after finishing her telling of Hades and Persephone in GIRL, GODDESS, QUEEN. Her craft has developed further in the story of Helen (yes that Helen) and Cassandra during the war for Troy.

The joy I have in Bea Fitzgerald's work is the attention to the mythology which our culture draws on and her refocus on the women in these stories. Most of these myths are focus on the heroics of the males, almost like they are either created from hegemonic masculinity or to reinforce it.

The points of the narrative are those from them myth. Cassandra’s patron god, Apollo, offers to bestow upon her the gift of prophecy, plus all the power that comes with it, she gratefully accepts this wonderful opportunity. However, when she neglects to maintain her side of the agreement, she soon discovers just how far she has to fall! No one believes her visions, which are, strangely, only of a certain girl. An immensely beautiful girl, who is going to start a war!! Helen fled Sparta in the age old pursuit of love, which is proving to be much more – although that’s proving to be more evasive than she’d hoped! Leaving her home and family far behind, Helen now finds herself manoeuvring a rocky road through the politics and backstabbings of the Trojan court.

The return of the lost prince Paris, the golden apple, Aphrodite's gift of Helen, the war on troy, death of Achilles, the prophecies of Cassandra, the wooden horse and the fall of Troy are all there and I the different types of love described in the Greek myths (including the growing love between Cassandra and Helen) it was with a growing sense of dread as I know how this story ends. Fortunately this ending was much more satisfying than the mythology would permit.

Just as GIRL, GODDESS, QUEEN served a side discussion about gender roles (Hades as an artist/craftsman) THE END CROWNS ALL provides a welcome discussion about consent.

When Girl, Goddess, Queen was released there was another Hades & Persephone retelling published. A Touch of Darkness by Scarlett St. Clair, so clearly it’s the zeitgeist. This was also Bea Fitzgerald's debut and a glorious find it was.

My partner is a fan of the Chthonic myths and I was only halfway through my library copy before I went out and bought her a paper copy, I also purchased Bea Fitzgerald's The End Crowns All her retelling the myth of Cassandra.

Girl, Goddess, Queen follows Kore, later known as Persephone (a name meaning chaos bringer). The young girl escapes her fate of marriage by jumping into the Underworld, ruled by Hades. Hades and Persephone become relatable, witty young people trying to find their place in the world. We find out that there’s much more to Hades than the harsh way he portrays himself and that Persephone is no longer the helpless damsel we know her.

The YA story does not shy from portraying the culture of the Greek gods as misogynist, with the threat of violent rape a possibility which whilst not graphically portrayed in honestly conveyed necessary in any faithful reading of the Greek myths.

Similar to Jennifer Saint’s novels, you don’t have to have any knowledge of Greek mythology to enjoy this read. I had no idea what the original story was meant to be until I Googled it. However, I’d say there are definitely ways the author nods to the original story.

Much of the conflict comes from miscommunication between Hades and Persephone and in this case the trope is used well without it feeling silly. Hades and Persephone constantly avoid opening up about their feelings to each other, for fear that they’ll break the friendship they have.

The resolution is tried to the myth and provides a satisfying conclusion.

This authorized retelling of Shirley Jackson’s The Haunting of Hill House (1959). A Haunting on the Hill (HOTH) by Elizabeth Hand is a startlingly contemporary and frighteningly vivid take on one of the most well-known haunted house novels of the twentieth century. The Haunting of Hill House (THOHH) begins " No live organism can continue for long to exist sanely under conditions of absolute reality; even larks and katydids are supposed, by some, to dream. Hill House, not sane, stood by itself against its hills, holding darkness within; it had stood so for eighty years and might stand for eighty more. Within, walls continued upright, bricks met nearly, floors were firm, and doors were sensibly shut; silence lay steadily against the wood and stone of Hill House, and whatever walked there, walked alone".

Hill House is still not sane.

Kirus Reviews summaries thus "Looking to escape New York City in the wake of the pandemic, Holly Sherwin and her partner, Nisa Macari, enjoy exploring charming “little towns long since colonized by self-styled artists and artisans.” Holly, once a promising playwright, is now teaching English at a private school but has recently won a grant to produce the witchy play that may just revive her career. When she stumbles upon a creepy old mansion on an isolated hill, she knows she’s found the perfect place to hole up with the small cast for two weeks of intensive rehearsals. Never mind that the owner is shady; never mind that the one neighbor threatens her with a knife as she drives by; never mind that the caretakers refuse to spend the night, ever, in the house—Holly knows it’s going to galvanize her cast into the performances of their lives. When they all gather for a run-through of the script, she can feel the magic, the electricity in the air. But maybe the house’s energy reflects more than the power of her words; there are also unexplained bloodstains on a tablecloth, an unearthly field of cold by the nursery, and mysterious voices at night. Not to mention the horrible black hares that keep popping up. Are they real or imaginary? Yes, and yes. While the novel doesn’t draw any kind of straight line between Jackson’s characters and Hand’s, other than some “echoing” voices on a recording, clearly this novel is shaped around Jackson’s legacy, not only in the setting, but also in the characters, specifically the relationship between Holly and Nisa. What she offers, then, is not merely retelling or update, but almost palimpsest".

I confess I had to go back a reread some of THOHH while reading HOTH to appreciate what an outstanding achievement Hand has in, as it describes on the front of the novel 'return to the world of Shirley Jackson' her propulsive writing style with a clever ability to immerse the reader in her worlds. The short chapters and intense scenes were genuinely chilling. With retellings, the original always casts a long shadow—especially with a book like this—but not only was this compulsively readable, but it felt unique and appealing as its own novel, which is a challenging balance to strike.

Holly is a playwright turned private school teacher who has refused to give up on her ambitions of writing a standout drama. After she receives a grant to develop Witching Night her latest play. I was entranced by the play within the story based on a feminist retelling of an old play in which a woman was accused of being a witch and consequently murdered for it, has a lot of potential. The novel is scattered with the songs composed and in the novel hauntingly sung by her partner Nisa a singer-songwriter who has been adapting classic murder ballads for the play.

The propelling force of this text is the horror elements, which were genuinely disturbing and frightening. A Haunting on the Hill is the perfect blend of horror and literary fiction without being overlong or drawn out. The characters—one of which is inevitably Hill House—were perfectly complicated and their shifting allegiances/motivations made the novel that much more interesting.

Kylie Lee Baker’s a novelist whose Bat Eater and Other Names for Cora Zeng and The Scarlet Alchemist duology have been on my to be read tower for a while so I picked up her young adult fantasy debut novel as it was available in my local library.

Though the story is set in the 1890s, it has very little to do with the human world of the time: it follows a non-human protagonist dealing with the two supernatural worlds she inhabits due to her Reaper father and Shinigami mother, starting in England and then moving to Japan.

With inspiration from Japanese folklore and Shinto mythology, it’s largely about protagonist Ren’s quest to destroy three Yokai so that Izanami, the Goddess of Death, will accept her as a Shinigami. It’s also about her relationship with her younger brother—a Reaper who didn’t fit in well because of his unusually gentle soul—and a stranger she meets in Japan—a former Shinigami with a deformed foot, cast out for being physically imperfect. But most of all, The Keeper of Night is about Ren’s desire to belong, and what she’s willing to do to earn a place among the Shinigami after being rejected by the Reapers.

A engaging and well-paced tale that expresses much about this mythology and I am keen to read the conclusion in The Empress of Time.

It’s the wedding of the wifetime and if that pun was worthy of a heartfelt groan then this third and second last book in the Tomes & Tea series is probably just what you need. Whilst I think you could read this one alone I would recommend reading the earlier novels Can't Spell Treason Without Tea and A Pirate's Life for Tea as most of these characters have been introduced in these earlier novels.

Our protagonists Kianthe and Reyna are working on making their wedding memorable and its not just the whole town that they have befriended, but the pirates, dragons, Queensguard, a lost heir, family and old friends.

Can it still be considered cosy fantasy when the story will involve dethroning a queen? Also I hope the idea of a wedding sword catches on.

Thoroughly enjoyable if you enjoyed the two books but it ends on a cliff hanger and the final novel in the series Alchemy and a Cup of Tea due to be published later this year.

This was an outstanding recommendation that led me to Xueting Christine Ni work. On my engagement with Sinophagia I immediately bought Sinopticon her anthology Celebration of Chinese Science Fiction.

As with the best anthologies Sinophagia provides an introduction and content warnings for each story, then offers fourteen stories ranging greatly in length and theme. The stories span from the earliest 2002 (“Immortal Beauty” by Chu Xidao), to (“Night Climb” by Chi Hui). At the end of each piece, Ni has included thoughtful notes about both story and author and track the different sub genre's of horror covered in these stories, some common to western horror and others more unique to Chinese and Asian stories.

I have picked a few stories that really stuck with me, but I really could have chosen any of these stories and their excellent supporting notes by Ni.

The collection begins with The Girl in the Rain” by Hong Niangzi feeling like a western urban legend horror surrounding a university campus, and then getting into a blood-soaked narrative. Central is the three-person friendship between Jiang Ruohan, Luo Xi, and Shen Jie. Two of the three are in a romantic relationship, and things eventually take horrific turns—those turns being tied closely to the legends established at the outset. The notes describe it as Xiaoyuan Jingson (college horror) and it clearly reflects the stresses of university life, including the social elements.

“The Waking Dream” by Fan Zhou is a science fiction horror story in which technology has been developed to allow people to perform as part of a workforce in a virtual workplace while their bodies are sleeping. Shen Yue is one such worker, but in her case, the shared virtual workplace is littered with what seem to me very Chinese/Asian style monsters. As the story progresses, we learn more about the cost these work practices take and the what or more how she is seeing these. In the notes I discovered the author Fan Zhou writes under pseudonym and keeps her identity behind avatars which makes the story she tells even more impactful.

And due to my love of spicy food I couldn't neglect the Chuan Ge's the Ying Yang pot with its focus on hot pot and traditional magic which is used to trap a thoughtless male who wanted to take advantage. How one can find them­selves “locked” in marriage to the dead through the very act of dining – which food is consumed and how – leading to an unplanned ghost wedding inside a hotpot restaurant ensconced in a dimly lit street. Our protagonist discovers a dish that breaks the boundaries between the living and dead in a story full of food culture and twists. Try to read this one when you are about to go to lunch, preferably Sichuan hotpot.

“The Shanxiao” by Goodnight, Xiaoqing. In this odd story, it’s the damsel who saves the young man in distress, but all is not as it seems in this meta­fictional story with its readerly address: “What? You’re laughing at this tired old plot… yes, a lot of books tell this sort of story.” It disentangles embedded stories in reimagined tales.

Another enjoyable albeit haunting story is Zhou Dedong’s “Have You Heard of Ancient Glory”, which is a social horror about a haunted suburb. In varied perspectives, the narrative cleverly ex­plores the shifting burial practices in a crowded landscape.

She Cong Ge’s “Those Who Walk at Night, Walk with Ghosts” offers stories-within-a-story in a novelette-length tale that captures folklore and haunting across night walks in remote villages. Yimei Tangguo’s “The Ghost Wedding” spotlights the tragic custom of stolen brides and draws atten­tion to sexual abuse, imprisonment and poverty, while Su Min’s “Ti’Naang” is a Frankenstein-type story with a twist.

Cai Jun’s “Huangcun” is another novella that unfolds a pleasant yet ominous tale. It’s immersive in first-person voice, where an encounter with a strange girl on a cold, Shanghai night leads to a visit to her hometown in an ancient house haunted with familial spectres associated with a ghostly flute.

I was also gratified to realise that Ni had chosen a more female authors than many anthologies and a wide spread of writers with those early in the their careers and well established. Also writers with different experiences in publishing some traditionally based, some purely web based.

The book follows a group of six teens living in the same neighborhood since childhood: Leila, a would-be artist; Gael, a horror lover who has already directed a short film; Malachi, a black queer boy; Devon, twin sister to genius Drew; Drew, the skeptic, who attends private school, and Yaya, Devon’s longtime crush. Most of the friends are Black, with the exception of Leila.

Ever since the Scream franchise began subverting the tropes of horror films many contemporary YA horror choose to also subvert these obvious tropes. In this story which sees a demon (seemingly following the rules from a very poorly received movie 'Read Your Rites' (Box office revenues 10 million on a 12 million cost) stalking the teens.

These teens are trope savvy enough (especially Gael) to bait the demon and recognise the need for the 'final girl' to end the threat. But with the required third act twist and a satisfying reveal of who was the real monster it was a Karen sorry Kendra. I found it a breezy, satisfying addition to the genre.

Given I am reading the fourth book in the Dr. Greta Helsing series by Vivian Shaw then I must be enjoying the series and as much as I revelled in the first three this book only extends the pleasure as it continues the previous world building which saw the good doctor narrowly avoiding the end of the world in book three Grave Importance, the leaders of Heaven and Hell are struggling to collaborate according to the terms of their new treaty—especially because angels and demons are, quite literally, allergic to each other. Seeking a solution, the powers that be decide to see if the allergy persists on Earth by sending an angel and demon on a research trip, first stop: New York City. And what better chaperone than Dr. Greta Helsing, who happens to owe Hell a few favours of her own?

But there’s unrest in New York’s monster underworld and Greta and her team are about to land in the middle of it. Something is off in Heaven and on Earth, and Greta will have to figure out just what that is if she hopes to protect those she loves most.

The usual cast of characters from previous books, including Lord Ruthven, Sir Francis Varney, and Abraham Van Helsing, numerous supernaturals such as mummies, bog monsters, werewolves etc the Angels, archangels, lords of hell such as Samuel, and support from Dr Faust it is identifying these literary refences which make these books so much fun for me. Reminiscent of The Extraordinary Adventures of the Athena Club series by Theodora Goss.

I hope Vivian Shaw returns to this world in future works.

I first encountered August Clarke's writing as H.A. Clarke in their young adult contemporary witches Scapegracers trilogy described as The Craft meets Mean Girls—except more heartwarming and queer a found family trope, but with teen witches funnelling their angst into reckless magic.

So I was excited to read Metal from Heaven and it didn't disappoint.

I am unapologetic communist and this book carries revolutionary theory and action in full. It begins with an organized labor strike and protest during a surge of unionization efforts by workers in this nation. Told at that time from the point of view of a young (around 12/13) factory worker Marney Honeycutt. The eponymous metal from heaven – ichorite – is part of Marney’s body from in-utero exposure to the substance making her lustertouched and interacting with the metal on a primal level (handling it can induce violent attaches like an allergic reaction, but it also gives her a measure of control over it. Those calling for a better world, Marney’s family and community, are all murdered at the orders of Chauncey, the man who discovered how to utilise ichorite. Like all capitalists didn’t care about his workers; they protested; he had them killed. After escaping Marney embraced by bandits known as 'the Highwayman’s Choir' and their community of Fingerbluffs. We follow Marney as grows up; and eventually masquerades as a noble to get close to Chauncey’s daughter, with the goal of killing Chauncey. And – because where would the story be if they didn’t? – things get complicated.

The author in an interview said they had never seen stone butches in genre fiction, given that they are one, or was at the time when I wrote this book so they explored what lesbianism means in terms of class and how messy and gender-transgressive lesbian masculinity is and has been and will continue to be.

And make no mistake this book is full of dynamic fierce and masc/femme queer women and what a joy, it is glorious. Cailen at the Lesbrary describes it as thus 'Metal From Heaven is gender-fuckery and untamed queerness, labour politics and workers’ rights, anti-capitalist and gloriously anarchist. What the fuck is femininity weaves through the story, a bright, hot pink ribbon with razored edges. Pink, pink is everywhere: pink is the colour of gender-fuckery, as we see when Amon paints his face not blue for men or black for women, but pink; pink is what Marney sees when she uses her magic, the world smearing and shining around her. This is political fantasy – fiercely, unabashedly political – where there’s nothing on the menu but the rich, the rich and those who’ll betray everyone else to serve them'.

In that same interview I referenced above the author went on to talk about the Ichorite which is a major narrative point. The author said "… comes from my anxiety that fossil fuels are like corpses, a very literal dinosaur body. Imagine plastic and oil and everything we derive from said corpses being haunted, and how immense and profound the scale of that haunting would be. Simultaneously, I’m a Marx nerd. Marx writes about the commodity fetish as this capitalist delusion where we think we’re having relationships with objects instead of with each other. What would it mean if there was a substance that, in interacting with it, it becomes immediately clear that this is not the case? There’s a lot of goofy Marx interpolation in my worldbuilding. I think other Marx-heads will recognize what I’m playing with".

One Marx head to another all I can say I bravo.

The final fifth of the book speaks of the revolution in detail but from an omniscient but third person point of view but still in Marney's voice and it’s a glorious conclusion in the sweet hereafter.

I began Catching Teller Crow one evening and the next thing I knew I was finished it. Short stories in spite of their shortness can be every bit as filling and satisfying Catching Teller Crow (a joy to discover where the title comes from once you discover it in the story) is one such short story.

Nothing’s been the same for Beth Teller since she died. Her dad, a detective, is the only one who can see and hear her – and he’s drowning in grief. But now they have a mystery to solve together. Who is Isobel Catching, her story is in poetic style leading itself to ask if it's true or metaphor and realising its both.

This for me was the most revelatory how sibling-author team Ambelin and Ezekiel Kwaymullina could use these tools to tell this brief, sharp story around the mysteries that have emerged after an incident of arson and a suspicious death at a children’s home. It deftly examines racism, violence, terrible historic injustices and corruption within the police force. This is a book that shows trauma and survival. Stories are vital, and Catching Teller Crow highlights and champions the transformative and nourishing powers of storytelling.

I had read an enjoyed Ambelin Kwaymullina's young adult series that began with The Interrogation of Ashala Wolf and am keen to read more of her work.

The summary of Butter by Asako Yuzuki is hard for me as it is such a dense story of different characters who grow and develop and our understandings of them change and how they understand themselves change throughout this Japanese culturally specific but fiercely feminist novel that I either provide a one sentence "it's about a woman journalist who interviews an imprisoned female serial killer, there are lots of recipes and cooking" or "A bright yellow book that champions butter, based on a true crime story combining thriller with gourmet cooking and gender stereotypes" or perhaps a multi paragraph synopsis focused on the stories of each of the characters and their relationships who grow and understand themselves and others more deeply as the story unfolds.

Also while much is made of it being based on a true person " Kanae Kijima known as The Konkatsu Killer, is a Japanese fraudster and serial killer, convicted for poisoning three would-be husbands and suspected of four more, spanning from 2007 to 2009. She was given her nickname for her frequenting of "konkatsu" (marriage-hunting) websites, with her case also being called with similar names (ex. Konkatsu Killings Case) I think this is more just a jumping off point.

In providing an overview I compromised with Yu Sim at the Straits Times "a narrative around Manako Kajii, an imperious 35-year-old gourmand locked away behind bars. She had been found guilty of killing three lonely men, whom she seduced with her cooking and then made away with their money. Butter is an addictively weird culinary romp that somehow brings to mind BTS’ song of the same name (2022), which opens with the line “Smooth like butter/like a criminal undercover”. In the novel, the dairy product is the omnipresent ingredient across the dishes featured, which transports readers from Kajii’s blogged recipes to Michelin-starred restaurants to dingy ramen joints. Kajii insists on using quality butter in her recipes, likening the sensation of eating good butter to one of falling: “The body plummets, starting from the very tip of the tongue. She refuses to speak to the media, but this does not deter the hard-nosed weekly tabloid journalist Rika Machida. Eventually, the lines between work and friendship get blurred as Machida gets reeled into Kajii’s vortex. She even promises to act as Kajii’s proxy in eating what she cannot get behind bars, and then regaling her with luscious descriptions of the experiences".

It’s the well-drawn depths to these characters that kept me reading and the protagonist Rika changes as she learns to unlearn so much of the internalised misogyny in culture, It's her friend Reiko who she knew from high school who I really enjoyed following her discovery of self who begins by accusing Rika of losing objectivity with Manako Kajii only to fall for her tricks as well.

Note if you do plan to read this I found a fair chunk of the early part of the story slow. Rika’s initial lack of interest in food, paired with Kajii’s manipulative hatred of other women, makes neither of them a comfortable target for empathy. And Reiko is equally complex: a capable, smart woman who has lied to everyone in her life. I urge perseverance as this attributes are explored and provide a sharpness needed to heighten the taste of this story ( I assure you the temptation to fill this with food puns is almost overwhelming).

Also the book whilst filled with meals, is not filled with recipes rather it is hunger inducting because it tells the sensations and experience of these meals, there is a sequence where author has described a simple recipe of butter rice with soy sauce thoroughly that I began salivating.

J Murry at Readings describes it thus "These mouth-watering descriptions of sumptuous meals and thoughtful commentary on the constricting expectations placed on women. Food becomes the vessel for this commentary, as Rika’s austere, functional dinners make way for decadent, unashamed feasts as her worldview slowly shifts, plate by plate. Rika and Manako are both complex, layered characters that are a joy to watch Yuzuki steadily unpick over the course of the novel, revealing more with each tense conversation. The lively and varied supporting cast of characters plus a dash of humour and Butter is the perfect read for anyone who wants a darkly compelling novel about the vital importance of high-quality butter.

I myself cook with Lurpak but I am tempted to seek out even more sumptuous butter after reading this.

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.

I was impressed by Kamilah Cole's debut novel in this duology, and I am elated to say the conclusion is satisfyingly wraps the story and these characters tales.

Becky of Becky's Book Blog sums it up well ".. picks up almost directly after the ending of So Let Them Burn. Faron and Elara almost swapping positions, with Faron now being bonded to a Dragon and Elara now the maiden Empyrean. Cole’s decision to flip their roles added an extra dimension to the story, not only allowing for the emotional aspects after the ending of book one, but quite literally putting the sisters in each others shoes. Allowing them to feel the weight each has carried, understand better the stresses both they and their roles put them under. We now see Elara in the role of protector, not simply of Faron, but the entirety of San Irie. She’s in the spotlight more than she ever has been, and now dealing with people who don’t think she should be allowed power at all. And Faron, going from being someone loved and prayed too, to someone everyone believes a traitor. She really grew in this book, acknowledging just how she abused her powers, but also acknowledging her trauma and how the God’s used her at only 12 years old to be the face of a war. I’ll always love these characters for many reasons, but the main one being just how human Cole makes them feel. They each have their flaws, their wants and needs that might not be seen as favourable by those they are trying to help, but what Cole does expertly is make them so real to their ages and the experiences that they have gone through".

For a book with some many characters who have suffered the horrors of war and occupation each dealing or denying have to deal with the trauma and horror and responsibilities for decisions they have to make there is also a lot of suprising heart between these characters.

The plot itself in the second book is more fast-paced especially in the last third of the novel, though allowing for these more introspective character building moments. It is compulsively readable with suspense and tension through the roof. Cole also expands on the already rich world-building here, furthering the lore and landscape of this immersive world. It feels like we could discover plenty more stories. All of this culminates in a brilliant conclusion that is powerful and poignant. As you may expect, it is not clean-cut. The road ahead will be difficult and Cole does not shy away from that.

This Ends in Embers solidifies Cole as a name to watch in the YA fantasy genre with exquisite characterisation and a layered yet deeply compelling plot with plenty to say.