I stumbled into Seeing Dead Things on an author takeover on Facebook. The author linked a chapter preview for anyone who wanted to take a look. After reading just a few pages, there was absolutely no doubt that I was picking up a copy of my own!

There’s a big trigger warning for this one though. In the very first pages, Roxanne is struck by her husband, falls and hits her head. She ends up in the hospital without any idea (at first) of what happened. She also has a broken jaw that was wired together. Luckily, she has an amazing best friend who happens to be an amazing lawyer. She doesn’t stand for the abuse. She immediately files for a restraining order and a divorce, but it might be a difficult read for those who have experienced domestic violence.

The characters are what makes Seeing Dead Things so great. Some PNR characters are supposed to be older but have the social skills and emotional maturity of a 20-year-old. Roxie reads as 40. She’s experienced, but still faces a lot of uncertainties. She’s very relatable. The secondary characters are well-fleshed and equally enjoyable, even the ghosts

As far as the plot goes, it’s nothing new. The “I can suddenly see ghosts” has been done before, but again, the characters are what makes it. The ghosts helping her with her new ability and she in turn helping them was what made it unique. I especially love that there’s a ghost dog! I don’t want to give anything away where the puppers is concerned, but the dog and its owner is my favorite part of the whole thing. It’s sweet and sad and happy all rolled up into one.

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It's been a long time since a book has gotten under my skin but reading The Children God Forgot, I truly had a moment where I thought "This book is going to give me nightmares." This was a very strange book: deformed fetuses roaming for new wombs to call home, a fatberg blocking the sewer with glowing malformed children taking replacement body parts, and last, but certainly not least, a reanimated witch formed of smoke and vengeance. All of those things individually would be enough of a plotline to carry any horror novel, but together are the things that nightmares are made of.

Told in varying points of view, the plot on this one jumps around. You get just enough action to draw you in and wonder exactly what the hell is going on when it switches to another POV to pick up where it left off before. Typically, I hate this style of writing, but I will say in spite of that it kept my interest, especially when you have the scenes set as they are. There are occult vibes, police procedural, heavy body horror, and of course, the paranormal.

I do have to wonder though, as a woman, if this book weighs as heavily on male readers. I would imagine it doesn't. There's a particular horror in simply being a woman and having fears that are unique to the female persuasion alone. The fear of reproduction, of growing a life that is abominable instead of the perfect being it should be, and the fear of being violated. I struggle with that last word because what truly happens here, under other descriptions is rape. Not in the usual sense, but by one of the aborted creatures crawling or attempting to crawl inside another woman's uterus to continue to incubate. See what I mean by horrifying?

There are also some sociopolitical themes here that are played a bit heavy-handed. The entire novel could be a statement on abortion. Not only do you have the many-limbed but cherub-faced fetus being terminated before term, but there's the woman showing up to punish those who participated in the terminations stating that all life is sacred. I feel like this book should have been written decades ago when racism and homophobia were casual and women were written based on the size of their breasts.

I ended up very conflicted about this novel. In the beginning, it was extremely effective horror. It's definitely a horror that relies on the reader's revulsion over Somewhere in the middle, the momentum of the plot starting lagging. From that point on, it was a rush to the ending, curt and to the point, without a lot of explanation. This is one of those novels that is either going to leave you checking the sheets before getting in the bed or leave you apathetic but one thing is for certain, some of these scenes will continue to play in your head long after you've closed the book.


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Review featured in Unnerving Magazine Issue #15

Henry's latest gripping and tense release should appeal to horror and thriller fans alike. Her storytelling is simplistic and without frills while letting the remote location and isolation of the mountain speak the loudest. The heightened tension of the atmosphere swells as Mattie warily navigates her husband's ever-changing moods and intensified anger. Add in an enigmatic cryptid and three blundering college students trespassing on the carefully crafted secluded homestead Mattie's abusive husband has carved out and it's a well-plotted recipe for violence ending in disaster.

While the entirety of the book takes place within a few days, Mattie's physical and emotional isolation makes every second longer. Her husband's controlling behavior adds a tightrope of anxiety to the already oppressive pressure until it bursts, spewing forbidden knowledge of Mattie's previously unremembered life. Vast potential is waiting for her—if she can survive her husband, the beast, and the unmerciless weather long enough to get off the mountain. Having much of the creature's savagery happen "off-screen" compounded the suspense but could have been a missed opportunity to dip toes fully into horror. A blend of creature and psychological horror, Near the Bone formulates a human evil worth loathing and a feral creature that perhaps begs further understanding.

Review featured in Unnerving Magazine #15

Enmeshing horror with dark fantasy, Piper's collection of eighteen new and previously printed tales stretches across a diverse universe of styles and characters. Witches, monsters, elder gods, secret societies, and cosmic realities all find a new face under her tutelage. While often collections can be haphazard—an accumulation of bobs and bits that often aren't cohesive—it's Piper's characters that unify this collection. In each of these carefully molded stories, her characters are put in situations to experienced things distressingly poignant and ultimately metamorphic. They all share the underlying theme of becoming something not wholly unexpected, something that has been there all along waiting oh, so patiently to say "I exist".

Piper has been on my horror radar since the publication of The Possession of Natalie Glasgow and she continues to deliver narratives that have snapping jaws and a fiery soul at their core. Her writing is often lyrical, wrapping itself around you as you stop to ponder the greater meaning hidden inside each piece. A few favorites from the collection: "Feast for Small Pieces" brings about poetic undoing in that the parts could be greater than the whole; "We All Scream", where the quandary of which restroom to use becomes much more terrifying set to the tune of "Pop Goes the Weasel"; and "The Burning of Blueberries", the very core of Unfortunate Elements of My Anatomy, which must be experienced.

Investigation, Mediation, Vindication (I'm already tired of typing that) is comedic urban fantasy gold. The story follows private investigator hopeful John Smith, who has an unfortunate genealogy of a long line of John Smiths. Let's be honest; there's a lot of unfortunates about John Smith. He still lives with his parents, he hasn't had a girlfriend in years (might be due to #1), and he's just found himself caught up in a potential war between a noble vampire House and the demigod of nightmares. He's casually enjoying a local Comicon when he's attacked by crab people and kidnapped by vampires for his own good. As it turns out, in one night of drunken bad choices, John posted an ad stating that he was in the business of investigation, mediation, and vindication, and after a hit on all the mediators in San Diego, he's the only mediator left.

John is a fantastic character. He's nerdy, witty, twenty pounds out of shape, and way over his head. John has absolutely no magic or really any job skills for that matter. One moment he's trying to survive paying the rent on his business in the not-so-great side of town, the next he's trying not to be killed by the vampires and prevent San Diego from being sucked into a Hell dimension. Pretty much the only thing is he's got going for him is a big mouth that doesn't know when to shut up. He does, however, seem to have an innate ability to avoid vampire whammies, to the displeasure of the vampires.

There are a lot of secondary characters but they still manage to be unique for such a large cast. The snarky, vampire Juliette who wears Ramones t-shirts and nicknames John "little bird", thanks to his shower singing, is fantastic. However, the real character not to miss is the demigod of nightmares and terrors, Lord Beel-Kasan—who just happens to be a seven-foot-tall asparagus with coal for eyes, a carrot for a nose, and a magic marker drawn mouth—and goes by Bill. Yes, Bill (as if that's the weirdest thing admit that sentence). Thanks to John's immunity to supernatural mumbo jumbo, that's how Bill appears to him. Apparently, to others, he's enormously more frightening. Even without arms or legs, asparagus demigod Bill somehow steals the show.

From the chapter titles like "In Which Hell is Being Stuck Somewhere With the Wrong Person", to the fact that the war might be started over a classic Nintendo, humor is obviously the main driving force in this urban fantasy. Ridiculous and irreverent, it still manages funny without quickly nosediving into annoying. John is a huge nerd so a lot of the dialogue is low brow. For example, after being kidnapped by the vampires, his inner dialogue is trying to decide on names to call the vampires. He settles on "manpire" and "femmepire" and he's really proud of himself for coming up with the second. Sometimes the banter takes a bit too long for the sake of the joke, which drags the novel down a bit, but it definitely gets better the further into the plot it goes.

It's nice to have an urban fantasy series where the MC truly has no idea what he is doing. There are no magical abilities or black belts in martial arts. No weaponry expert or military background. Just a dorky smart-mouthed guy named John who has stumbled into the paranormal world.


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Blood is Thicker Than Lots of Stuff is book two in The Many Travails of John Smith, following Investigation, Mediation, Vindication. We pick up in John's life after his first mediation for the paranormal community went...well, he survived anyway, mostly unscathed. He's back in the PI business and even has a date! He did anyway until the vampires had to show up and ruin it for him. Truth be told, they didn't need to show up for it to be ruined; he's entirely capable of doing that himself. Something about still living in your parent's basement at 25 doesn't exactly lend itself to having a phenomenal dating life. He still has his PI business going for him and it's thriving—until werewolves start trying to kill him.

John has truly made some interesting life choices along the way. He always manages to end up right in the middle of the mess. Not that he's trying, mind you. It's truly a matter of happenstance and some drunken advertising that has landed him where he is. This time he's been hired by a husband to find out if the wife is cheating.

Spoiler

(She's not, but she is a werewolf, which in turn, gets him mediating a divorce dispute for the local werewolf pack.)

He's still out there giving it everything he's got and it turns out he's actually a pretty decent mediator despite getting in way over his head all the time.

Humor is still a big draw in this series. We've continued with the truly fun chapter titles "In Which ___". For example: Chapter 12, "In Which People Are Strange When You're a Stranger". The vegetable demigod Bill, who is so strangely charming, is absent but he has tasked John with the care of his ward, Jee Sun aka Tiny Flower, who manages to be both adorable and a diminutive terror. John's inner voice is still as quirky as ever and his outside voice is still spewing things that would much be better kept inside. Tullbane's casual writing style hasn't changed but Blood is Thicker Than Lots of Stuff gets darker than the previous book. John is still the average guy trying to feel his way through but the action kicks up a bit more leaning more towards typical UF fare while still avoiding second book syndrome.

I judge a lot of UF by whether you could pick up a book in the middle of a series and still understand what the heck is going on. The Many Travails of John Smith #2 passes muster. A good chunk of the opening is reintroducing characters and bringing the reader up to speed. That being said, the reader would get more enjoyment out of knowing the characters a bit more intimately and immersing in the worldbuilding gradually. This is a series that is going to go the distance so do yourself a favor and start from the beginning.


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The Dead Don't Drink at Lafitte's is the second book in the Sam Quinn series. Sam is the werewolf girlfriend of San Francisco's Master of the City and is living in the nocturne with his vamps while her place is under construction. As I too, like to live on the edge, I did not read book one, The Slaughtered Lamb Bookstore and Bar, before picking this one up. Vampires and werewolves are frequent guests in the cast of characters of urban fantasy. It's difficult to come up with something that hasn't been done before.

At first, this was a frustratingly slow read for me. While the author does a good job of giving you the backstory, it was challenging to be invested in the story. Sam simply was not a character that I felt strongly about and there wasn't enough action to keep my interest. Vampire politics take up a big chunk of the novel to start. It appears that vampires are bigots and begrudge that a smelly dog is now the girlfriend of their leader. There's enough unrest that the Master of New Orleans is attempting a coup on the nocturne. It was only after they go to New Orleans to answer that insult head-on, that the story really starts rolling.

Once there was a change in scenery, the entire feeling of the book shifts. I've never been to New Orleans, so I enjoyed experiencing it through Sam's eyes. It didn't feel like the tourist's view that you get a lot when a book is set there. More back alleys than Marti Gras. There's a whole new cast that enters into play in the Big Easy; ghosts and gorgons and alpha werewolves. Sam begins exploring her own talents as a necromancer, which includes influencing the dead. Clive even disappears in New Orleans for a while and can I just say I liked it better when he was gone! I might have even found myself rooting for a certain werewolf.

There's plenty of snarky dialogue, hilarious banter with Stheno, the gorgon, and lots of "off with their heads" moments. In spite of the supernaturally enhance abilities, Sam isn't the typical urban fantasy badass. She isn't filled with confidence and using her powers has an unfortunate downside. There are also some dark moments that include torture, slavery, and sexual assault. Yes, there's romance but as it's already established, it wasn't necessarily the main focus. The Wicche Glass Tavern—book three coming in October 2021—has a lot of potential if it can continue with the world building and character growth.

When I first read the blurb for All The Murmuring Bones, I thought "Gothic mermaids? Yes, please." However, the story that I got did not line up with the story I was expecting. There are three separate plotlines throughout. There's the history of the O'Malley family, the mystery of  Miren O'Malley's parentage, and last—but certainly, not least—a dash of the fantasy and the deal struck with the Mer. We get a taste of the former and the latter in the beginning as a third-person narrator matter-of-factly tells us just where the O'Malley's came from and where they have now landed. Generations of O'Malley's have had children and sacrificed them in exchange for wealth. 


"One for the house, one for the church, and one for the sea."

A once prosperous and highly regarded family, they now are down to Miren and her grandmother Aoife in a dilapidated shell of the once rich estate. Expected now to marry a very cruel man to rescue the estate, Miren yearns for her freedom and for answers and sets off to find them.

 

I'll admit I found the pacing a bit odd. The prologue immediately draws you in with its fairytale feel, then abruptly drops you into Miren's life where nothing is really happening. There are drips and drops of fantasy elements in the beginning like corpsewights seen by Miren on the way to town and a cursed blanket. Those elements kept me turning pages for more but honestly felt disconnected from the story. You almost forget at times the world-building isn't simply historical until the author casually mentions trolls or some other mythical creature.  Instead of immersing me into the story, these bits brought me out of it instead since I'd forgotten that this world had magic. 


Another unfortunate flaw is while the story is very character-driven, I didn't care enough for Miren to be interested in her escape and life on the road and almost DNF'd more than once. When the reader is supposed to care about the journey and less about the destination, it's difficult when the character is dull as dishwater. I wanted to see character growth but it never reached the pinnacle I expected.


There's no denying the gothic elements. There are not one but two decaying manors. Family secrets around every turn. There is beautiful prose throughout and some fantastic imagery. The author excels at lush descriptive language. There are so many moments of fairytale goodness but it's interspersed throughout and doesn't feel cohesive. However, the second half of the novel completely changed and has a entirely different feel. It's dark and enchanting and satisfied my dark fairytale-loving soul. 


If you want character-driven fiction, you'll probably love the journey with Miren. If you are reading this expecting a whole lot of mermaid fantasy action, I think you'll be disappointed. It's also touted as a very feminist novel but it almost goes to the other side. Men are vilified or disregarded, including a later romance for Miren. This is one of those reads that you'll feel strongly about. You're either going to love it or be bored to tears. 



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Review at Wicked Cool Flight

Midlife Demon Hunter is book three in The Forty Proof Series. Bree continues trying to iron out her problems, not to mention her love life. Her ex, Alan, has somehow managed to hack the shadow world and settle her with all his debt, something that no judge would have even agreed to without a little dark magic. She’s living in her gran’s house, but it’s owned by Crash now. She wants to get it back, but not without figuring how to undo Alan’s work. She’s still on the outskirts with the Hollows Group, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing since she still has her friends. She’s been hired by a goblin to keep something safe, there’s a demon in the house next door, and Bree’s attracted the attention of the council. You know, just another day in the life of “a mature, seasoned woman, who is all out of ducks to give”.

She still has a bit of a love triangle going on here. Corb is still in the picture though she’s not sure how much she should trust him. She’s even overheard that he might be completely playing her and Bree isn’t a fool. Her ex Alan has finally gotten his just desserts, but unfortunately, that just means that Bree is even more stuck with him than when they were married. Things have heated up with Crash. There’s a hot little shower scene and just in case, you prefer to skip, the author gives you this warning…

Now, just a warning, this is a moment where those of you with prudish tendencies might want to flip ahead a few pages. In fact, it might be best if you mosey along to the next chapter. I’ll wait for you to go. Go. Seriously.

And she does. Always nice to have an option for those who prefer their reads more on the urban fantasy than PNR side.

I’m honestly still stuck on who exactly I’m rooting for. Corb, definitely not. I think he’s just as sneaky and gross as her ex, even though he’s hot. Hot isn’t everything. Crash she still thinks is out of her league. She’s not exactly sure she can trust him either. It really seems like the only one she can trust is Robert and he’s dead, right? Her love life isn’t the only thing heating up. Her magic is really starting to snowball and Robert might just not be always stuck in skeleton form.

The plot essentially follows the formula of the first two. Things are fine, then there’s a supernatural problem, and Bree gets wrapped up in it. Her friends are there to help bail her out, thank goodness, but they end up with more questions than answers in the end. I don’t feel like there’s a ton of character development, but slowly and surely, Bree is figuring things out. She hasn’t gone from an unsure 40-something divorcee to badass woman overnight which I appreciate. It’s a slow climb to a confident magic-using life.

The Forty Proof Series just keeps getting better and better. It’s funny and action-packed and there are plenty of twists and turns to keep things interesting. I’m completely invested now. Check back soon for reviews of the rest of the series!

Review at Wicked Cool Flight

Boy, Bree has always managed to have trouble follow her around but this time she might not be able to talk her way out of this one. As we know from the last book, ex Alan is dead, but that doesn’t make him less of a huge tool. It might even make him more of one since Bree is stuck with him. And even dead, he’s still managing to cause trouble for her since the police think that SHE offed him. I mean, yeah, she’s definitely wanted to, but she didn’t do it. So who did? And where did her granny’s ghost go? You know the saying about the fan and what hits it? That’s Bree’s life in a nutshell.

I’m enjoying Bree coming into her own. It’s been a slow journey and she’s had some setbacks but at the end of the day, she puts on her big girl panties, pops some Advil, and gets to work. NOLA is bringing a lot of trouble. Necromancers and dark spellbooks. Wraiths and tonton macoutes aka zoms. Even though she doesn’t know what she’s doing most of the time, she forges ahead anyway.

"Gawd in heaven, all the fear had leaked out of me, leaving behind the kind of righteous indignation that only shows up after you turn forty. Trust me on that one, it’s a powerful blend."

She’s got a great group of friends around her and she’s learning that maybe she doesn’t have to shoulder the burden alone. Feish is hilarious in this one. She’s been reading romance novels and has some interesting new verbiage that she’s spouting. It’s funny and awkward all at once, like your parents trying to use teenage slang.

Bree’s love life continues to be a hot mess. There hasn’t been this big of a division since Team Jacob/Team Edward. Part of me will always root for Team Crash, because erm, hot fae blacksmith, hello!? He’s redeemed himself a little by being so sweet to Bree in this one. But then there’s that part of me that is ALL Team Robert. So what that he’s a skeleton most of the time? Bree’s magic is bringing him back in flesh and blood so heyyyy. We can’t count Robert out. I know people really get tired of the love triangle but the fact that we are on book four and will still don’t have an answer kinda gives me life. In spite of all this man candy, this isn’t a reverse harem. Some might be annoyed by the lack of hanky panky but I enjoy the action side of PWF since I’m an urban fantasy junkie at heart.

A lot of plot points get checked off in this one. We learn what Bree’s magic really is, and what really happened to her parents. All the pieces are falling into place finally but Midlife Ghost Hunter is an emotional roller coaster. Yes, there’s plenty of action, and there are some series, heart-wrenching moments as well. I can’t wait to continue the series. Is Bree ever going to choose? Argh!!!