Thursday Thriller Audio: Local Woman Missing by Mary Kubica
Posted on June 10, 2021 16 Comments
I received a review copy from the publisher. This does not affect the contents of my review and all opinions are my own.
Local Woman Missing by Mary Kubica
Mogsy’s Rating (Overall): 3.5 of 5 stars
Genre: Mystery, Thriller
Series: Stand Alone
Publisher: Harlequin Audio (May 18, 2021)
Length: 11 hrs and 40 mins
Author Information: Website | Twitter
Narrators: Brittany Pressley, Jennifer Jill Araya, Gary Tiedemann, Jesse Vilinsky
A slow-burn thriller, Local Woman Missing is a mystery that takes a while to get going, but once the pieces start falling into place, it’s hard to stop reading. The story begins with the disappearance of Shelby Tebow, a young woman and a new mom who went out running one night and never returned. Naturally, her husband was the main suspect, as it came to light that the couple’s relationship had become rocky in the months leading up to the night Shelby went missing.
But then not long after that, another woman named Meredith Dickey disappears, but this time, her six-year-old daughter Delilah goes missing with her. Strangely enough, not only do the two women live in the same neighborhood, authorities also discover that Meredith, a doula, had known Shelby and had helped her deliver her baby.
As the news rocks the once peaceful community, neighbors who knew Meredith begin to search frantically for her and her daughter. But their efforts end in tragedy when the Meredith was found dead in a motel room, with a note bearing the ominous message, “You’ll never find her.” Of the little girl, there was no sign—not until eleven years later, when a young woman stumbles out of the woods, dirtied and showing signs of long suffered abuse, claiming to be Delilah Dickey.
The main premise was definitely intriguing, but as I said, the story did not hook me until I was about a quarter of the way in. One of the reasons for this is the structure of the novel, narrated by multiple characters through two different timelines, the past and the present. In the past, most of the story is told through Meredith’s perspective, which details the weeks before she vanished, as well as through the eyes of her neighbor Kate, whose account begins shortly after Meredith disappears. Together with her girlfriend Bea, Kate decides to do some investigating of her own in an attempt to find a link between Meredith and Shelby, who had gone missing not long before.
Then there’s the present, which begins with the harrowing escape of a teenage girl who had been held captive for many years, locked in a dark prison by her abductors. After she identifies herself as Delilah Dickey, the whole world goes nuts. Reporters from all over the country and jumping on the story as Meredith’s case is reopened, and her husband Josh is beside himself with renewed grief but also happiness that his lost daughter might have been found again. In all the hubbub, no one notices Leo, Delilah’s younger brother, who is experiencing all kinds of mixed feelings now that his long-lost sister has apparently been found. And thus, the present timeline is mostly told through his chapters, in which second-person narration is employed, with Leo referring to Delilah as “you.”
Needless to say, with all this skipping back and forth between timelines and narrative shifts aplenty, it took a while for me to really settle in with this novel. But once I got past the information overload, things got better. Before long, I found myself addicted and always hungering for the next clue. And for a while, I was really enjoying myself.
Unfortunately, everything became turned upside down once more as we got to the final stretch. I don’t want to go into too much detail, as I would hate to inadvertently spoil the ending, but I felt the resolution was too simple and required huge leaps of logic and major suspension of disbelief. Which isn’t normally a problem for me, especially when it comes to thrillers, where usually that is to be expected, but in this case, it was pretty extreme. I didn’t care for how the mystery wrapped up, which felt both disjointed and too neatly tied up all at once. No attempt was really made to smooth things out either, to help them make a little more sense, which kind of annoyed me. Such a shame, because up until this point, the story was very well plotted and written.
Still, Local Woman Missing was my first novel by Mary Kubica, and despite the issues with it, I would not say no to another. I’m pretty used to endings to thrillers being hit-or-miss by now, and everything leading up to the resolution of this one was pretty awesome, so it’s a win overall! It helped that the audiobook was also fantastic. Performed by Brittany Pressley (of whom I am a fan), Jennifer Jill Araya, Gary Tiedemann, and Jess Vilinsky, multiple narrators gave this mystery thriller extra layers of immersiveness.
Waiting on Wednesday 06/09/21
Posted on June 9, 2021 14 Comments
Waiting On Wednesday” is a weekly meme that first originated at Breaking the Spine but has since linked up with “Can’t Wait Wednesday” at Wishful Endings now that the original creator is unable to host it anymore. Either way, this fun feature is a chance to showcase the upcoming releases that we can’t wait to get our hands on!
Mogsy’s Pick
Echo by Thomas Olde Heuvelt (February 8, 2022 by Nightfire Books)
Considering how new it is, the Tor horror imprint Nightfire already has a lot of titles to catch my eye. Echo was originally published 2019 in the author’s native Dutch but I’m really excited to hear it will soon be released translated in English, as I was a huge fan of his book Hex which was awesome and terrifying!
“From international bestseller Thomas Olde Heuvelt comes Echo, a harrowing novel of obsession and the destructive force of nature.
Nick Grevers and his climbing buddy Augustin are drawn to the Maudit, a remote mountain peak in the Swiss Alps. Documentation on the mountain is scarce, its slopes are eerily quiet, and when they enter its valley, they get the ominous sense that they are not alone.
Something is waiting for them…
Not long after, Nick wakes from a coma to find Augustin dead. Nick’s own face is maimed and wrapped in bandages. A long rehabilitation awaits, but Nick soon realizes that it isn’t just the trauma of the accident that haunts him.
Something has awakened inside of him…”
Book Review: The Library of the Dead by T.L. Huchu
Posted on June 8, 2021 26 Comments
I received a review copy from the publisher. This does not affect the contents of my review and all opinions are my own.
The Library of the Dead by T.L. Huchu
Mogsy’s Rating: 3 of 5 stars
Genre: Fantasy
Series: Book 1 of Edinburgh Nights
Publisher: Tor Books (June 1, 2021)
Length: 336 pages
Author Information: Website | Twitter
The opening volume of a new series called Edinburgh Nights by T.L. Huchu, The Library of the Dead opens in the titular city, the home of our protagonist, 14-year-old Ropa Moyo. At a young age, she dropped out of school to look after her beloved grandmother and her sister Izwi, scraping out a living as a “ghostalker”—someone who can communicate with the dead. Mostly, this involves getting paid to help folks deliver messages to their dearly departed, but then one night, Ropa encounters a recently deceased spirit who makes her rethink everything she thought she knew.
Someone has been targeting and bewitching local children, warns the ghosts of Edinburgh, and Ropa believes this must be the work of some dark and powerful magic. Nicola is one of these ghosts who has come to our protagonist with a plea to help find her son Oliver, and at first, Ropa is reluctant to investigate until she learns of the horrible thing that happens to the missing children. Determined to find answers, she recruits the help of her friend Jomo, whose father works at the mysterious occult research institute known as the Library of the Dead. In its labyrinthine depths, Ropa gains access to a wealth of hidden magical knowledge and learns more about what it means to be a ghostalker. But as the disturbing attacks continue, will it be enough to help her uncover the truth?
The Library of the Dead was somewhat unexpected, in both good ways and bad. First, the positives: I enjoyed the mystery aspect of the plot, as well as the mix of modern real-world and paranormal elements. As well, the overall mood was delectably eerie and haunting, as befitting a ghost story. This novel was also a fabulous concoction of culture, bringing together Scottish tradition with the Zimbabwean heritage of our protagonist and her family. And speaking of Ropa, she’s a delightful teenage girl, full of charisma and courage, even if all that energy sometimes comes though as attitude and sass. That said, her voice is both a unique and refreshing addition to shake up the urban paranormal genre.
But now, for what I thought was the not-so-great—and most of these aren’t true negatives, per se, just aspects which I thought could have been improved. First and foremost, my initial draw to this novel was the promise of its eponymous library, but in practice, we don’t actually get to see much of it at all, which was slightly disappointing. I also wish we could have seen more of Edinburgh. While it’s true the author did a wonderful job creating the atmosphere, at times the plot felt too fast-paced and focused to its detriment. I would have liked to see more of the city, taken some time to indulge in the richness of its history and the beauty (and sometimes grimness) of the details, but it was unfortunately not to be.
To be fair though, Ropa was not the kind of protagonist to dally, and the snappy and single-minded way in which the story moved was admittedly in keeping with her personality. Still, it prevented me from fully connecting with her character or with the story. That’s not to say I didn’t enjoy myself because I did, but it was definitely not at the deeper level I’d hoped for. It took me a while to feel close to Ropa, or to care about what was actually happening in the plot. And at the end of the day, the story was entertaining but not anything too new or groundbreaking. More world-building (especially when it came to the library) or character relationship development might have helped to flesh things out, because despite the handful of moments showing genuine inventiveness and creativity, this still felt like a variation of something I’ve seen many times before.
All in all, The Library of the Dead was a decent solid read, though it probably could have been more. It might be worth checking out if the character of Ropa intrigues you or if you’re drawn to the setting of Edinburgh, but with the paranormal mystery plot taking center stage, just don’t expect the library to have much of a starring role. I’ll probably continue the series, but I think a lot will also depend on how much the character and world gets developed in the next book.
Audiobook Review: Day Zero by C. Robert Cargill
Posted on June 7, 2021 17 Comments
I received a review copy from the publisher. This does not affect the contents of my review and all opinions are my own.
Mogsy’s Rating: 4 of 5 stars
Genre: Science Fiction, Post-Apocalyptic
Series: Stand Alone
Publisher: HarperAudio (May 25, 2021)
Length: 8 hrs and 32 mins
Author Information: Website | Twitter
Narrator: Vikas Adam
Given that I loved C. Robert Cargill’s Sea of Rust, I came with great excitement to Day Zero, which serves as its prequel. Imagine Calvin & Hobbes but with Hobbes as Terminator, and you’ll have a pretty good idea of what to expect from this book. It stars Pounce, a furry anthropomorphic AI “nannybot” shaped like a tiger. His owners, Bradley and Sylvia Reinhart, had bought him to be a companion and best friend to their eight-year-old son Ezra, which is in keeping with Pounce’s main directive…except, well, as we’ll later find out, his “deluxe model” designation also comes with a few extra features.
Anyway, if you’ve read Sea of Rust (though that is not required), you’ll know that that novel takes place in a post-apocalyptic future in which the A.I. of the world had risen up and taken over, leaving the world devoid of human beings. Day Zero takes us to the beginning of all that, to the moment where society’s fate was sealed. When the novel begins, everyone is paying attention to the coverage of a brewing revolution led by Isaac, the first bot to ever be granted freedom and independence in the lengthy emancipation trial that took place after his owner died. After founding Isaactown, he has invited other bots to join him to build a place where A.I. can live on their own terms.
But not everyone sees this as a good thing. Some even see it as blasphemy against the will of God. Driven by this belief, a radical religious group commits an unspeakable act of violence, annihilating everyone in Isaactown. Things quickly escalate, with heavy casualties on both sides, and before long, the government is warning people to power down their bots until they can determine if the A.I. protocols that prevent them from harming humans are still in place. However, this proves too late, as the majority of bots are revealed to be compromised already and decide to turn on their owners before they can be shut down. Ever the loyal companion though, Pounce chooses to protect Ezra, especially after the Reinharts and their neighbors come under attack from the other A.I. in their houesholds. Pounce knows he’s all the boy has now, and he will do whatever it takes to keep him live.
As with Sea of Rust, my favorite thing about this book was its premise. I happen to love “a boy and his dog” type stories, and the fact that an A.I. tiger is our protagonist is just the icing on the cake. In fact, I might have even preferred Day Zero a bit more, for the fact that “robothood” actually plays a major role in this novel. One of my main criticisms from Sea of Rust was that not more of the machine-ness in the protagonists came through, and for all intents and purposes we may as well have been reading about a bunch of human characters.
This is not so with Day Zero. I loved the voice of Pounce, the way he was always questioning what it means to be A.I., and whether in the end that even means anything at all. His whole world is Ezra, and should it matter if it is program or instinct? As we learn from this tale, no, it does not. Pounce is Ezra’s best friend and more. He’s also the boy’s guardian and protector. There’s nothing he wouldn’t do to keep Ezra safe, even if it means killing or sacrificing others or even himself. Still, there’s a soft side to Pounce as well, and the caregiver part of him that is meant to provide comfort also comes through often. He chastises Ezra for using bad language just like any good nanny, or lets him win at video games like a doting big brother.
In terms of the plot, it’s pretty straightforward. We have lots of action, as Pounce and Ezra make their way out of the ruined suburbs on their way to safety, encountering violent bots and other hostile factions along the way. The story was fast-paced and thrilling, but also super cute and endearing. Sure, the messages could have been deeper or more cerebral, but that would have meant a completely different kind of book, and I wouldn’t have had near as much fun.
All in all, I had a good time, and a special shoutout to the narrator of the audiobook, Vikas Adam. I’ve been a huge fan of his work ever since first hearing his narration for the Heartstrikers series, and no surprise, his performance was also fantastic in Day Zero. He was the perfect Pounce, and also did amazing voices for Ezra and all the other characters. Great listen, highly recommended.
More on The BiblioSanctum:
Review of Sea of Rust
YA Weekend Audio: Daughter of Sparta by Claire M. Andrews
Posted on June 6, 2021 12 Comments
I received a review copy from the publisher. This does not affect the contents of my review and all opinions are my own.
Daughter of Sparta by Claire M. Andrews
Mogsy’s Rating (Overall): 3.5 of 5 stars
Genre: Fantasy, Young Adult
Series: Book 1 of Daughter of Sparta
Publisher: Hachette Audio (June 8, 2021)
Length: 11 hours 53 minutes
Author Information: Website | Twitter
Narrator: Brittany Pressley
If you’re a fan of YA fiction and Greek myths, then you’re in luck. Daughter of Sparta by Claire M. Andrews is a reimagining of the tale of Daphne and Apollo, taking readers on an adventure which puts them up close and personal with some of Greek mythology’s most famous legends and figures, including the Minotaur and the labyrinth, the riddles of the Sphinx, Hippolyta of the Amazons, and many, many more.
The novel begins with an introduction to Daphne Diodorus, our seventeen-year-old protagonist who has always felt like an outsider. Despite being raised Spartan, society has never ceased to remind her that she and her brothers were adopted, even if it was by one the most respected families of Sparta. As a result, even though Daphne had been trained from a young age to be a warrior, she finds she still needs to fight harder to constantly prove her worth, not only because of her blood but also because of her sex.
Then came the day of the games, in which each family must put forth a young man to compete in a race to win the favor of the gods and blessings for their village. After her brother Pyrrhus is a n0-show, Daphne is forced to step up to take his place in order to uphold her adoptive parents’ honor. But during the race, she has an encounter in the forest with the goddess Artemis who tells her that Mount Olympus is in danger. Nine powerful items have been stolen from the gods, weakening the powers of the pantheon. Now Artemis wants Daphne to help them take back what rightfully belongs to them—or else. With horror, our protagonist next discovers what had really happened to Pyrrhus, who had been taken captive by Artemis and turned into a stag. To further ensure Daphne’s obedience, the goddess of the hunt also casts upon the girl a magical binding curse which would kill her if she were to fail in her task.
And finally, Artemis has arranged for her twin Apollo to accompany Daphne, to keep her in line as well as to help speed things along. Not unlike her sister, Apollo has his own ways of coercion, turning Daphne’s best friend Lykou into a wolf after the young man tries to follow them. Left with no other choice, Daphne sets out on her quest knowing it would be seen as desertion, putting an end to her dreams of ever being accepted. Still, the alternative is that neither Pyrrhus nor Lykou would ever regain their humanity, not to mention if the Olympus falls, so too would the mortal world.
This book moved fast—too fast, in some instances. I have to say, I had a rough time at the beginning, trying to find some connection to Daphne, which proved difficult when there was virtually no breathing room at all to get to know her or learn about her relationships. The introduction to the book suffered from too much telling and not enough showing, and as such we were given few reasons to sympathize with Daphne or care what happens to Pyrrhus or Lykou, for simply declaring their importance to her was not automatically enough to make me believe so. Readers were pretty much shuffled from one action scene to the next with no attempt to develop the setting or characters, to the point it all became one big blur.
Thankfully, the pacing stabilized once Daphne set out with Apollo, and it became rather clear to me that the author had rushed the intro just to get these two together. After that, I began to enjoy myself a lot more, as what came next was essentially a tour through some of Greek mythology’s more well-known stories. These encounters also came at us relentlessly hard and fast, but at the very least, we now had plenty of quieter, more intimate moments where Daphne and Apollo’s feelings for each other were given a chance to grow.
That said, I still wasn’t sure how to feel about their romance. One thing to know is that Andrews took a whole lot of liberties with the original Daphne and Apollo myth, but she did get one thing right—the Greek gods were assholes, and sure enough, there were many instances of their cruelty, jealousies and pettiness in this novel. Suffice to say, I did not feel Apollo was truly deserving of Daphne’s attentions, or that she really needed him at all, especially given the way her character was written, i.e., tough, ferociously independent and free-thinking, too clever by far to be love-struck by any of his bullshit. However, lots of YA go down this path these days, and perhaps the notion of our protagonist taming a wild god and making him change was always going to be inevitable.
My verdict? If you like fantasy inspired by Greek mythology, Daughter of Sparta the book for you. At times, it feels obvious that this novel is a debut, given some of its pacing issues, and there are also moments where the story leans heavily on YA clichés when it doesn’t have to. Still, Claire M. Andrews is to be applauded for doing an impressive job spinning her own take on the original Greek myths and characters, and the action is superb, far outshining the romantic elements—which, in my eyes, is not a bad thing at all.
Bookshelf Roundup: 06/05/21: Stacking the Shelves & Recent Reads
Posted on June 5, 2021 22 Comments
Bookshelf Roundup is a feature I do every weekend which fills the role of several blog memes, like Stacking the Shelves where I talk about the new books I’ve added to my library or received for review, as well as It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? where I summarize what I’ve finished reading in the last week and what I’m planning to read soon. Mostly it also serves as a recap post, so sometimes I’ll throw in stuff like reading challenge progress reports, book lists, and other random bookish thoughts or announcements.
Received for Review
My thanks to the publishers and authors for the following review copies received, and be sure to click the links to their Goodreads pages for more details and full descriptions!
With thanks to Orbit Books for a review copy of Catalyst Gate by Megan E. O’Keefe, the third and final installment in The Protectorate trilogy!
Also thank you to Random House for a finished copy of Scorpion by Christian Cantrell, a high concept technothriller about a cat-and-mouse hunt for an international killer known as the Elite Assassin.
And also my thanks to Minotaur/Wednesday Books for an ARC of Enola Holmes and the Black Barouche by Nancy Springer, which is technically the seventh volume in the series but can be read as a standalone. In fact, the last book came out more than a decade ago, so this is definitely more of the series revival following the success of the Netflix movie more than anything!
Huge thanks also to Hachette Audio for the following audiobooks added to the digital review pile this month: A Season of Sinister Dreams by Tracy Banghart is a YA court intrigue fantasy, and The Retreat by Elisabeth de Mariaffi is a locked room mystery-thriller with a snowy setting that I’ve been looking forward to checking out.
Reviews
The Shape of Darkness by Laura Purcell (4 of 5 stars)
The Lights of Prague by Nicole Jarvis (4 of 5 stars)
The Trouble With Peace by Joe Abercrombie (4 of 5 stars)
What I’ve Been Reading
Have you heard of or read any of the books featured this week? What caught your eye? Any new discoveries? I hope you found something interesting for a future read!
Friday Face-Off: The Nose Boop
Posted on June 4, 2021 16 Comments
Welcome to The Friday Face-Off, a weekly meme created by Books by Proxy! Each Friday, we will pit cover against cover while also taking the opportunity to showcase gorgeous artwork and feature some of our favorite book covers. If you want to join the fun, simply choose a book each Friday that fits that week’s predetermined theme, post and compare two or more different covers available for that book, then name your favorite. A list of future weeks’ themes are available at Lynn’s Book Blog.
This week’s theme is:
“Any animal, or human, with a close up shot”
~ THE NOSE BOOP
If It Bleeds by Stephen King
From left to right:
Scriber (2020) – Hodder & Stoughton (2020) – Swedish Edition (2020)
Finnish Edition (2021) – Bulgarian Edition (2020) – Ukrainian Edition (2021)
Hungarian Edition (2021) – Czech Edition (2021) – German Edition (2020)
Winner:
Whew, some of these are really out there! Really tough to choose a favorite this week, but I think the German edition is the most interesting and visually arresting.
But what do you think? Which one is your favorite?
Audiobook Review: The Shape of Darkness by Laura Purcell
Posted on June 3, 2021 18 Comments
I received a review copy from the publisher. This does not affect the contents of my review and all opinions are my own.
The Shape of Darkness by Laura Purcell
Mogsy’s Rating (Overall): 4 of 5 stars
Genre: Horror, Historical Fiction
Series: Stand Alone
Publisher: Penguin Audio (June 1, 2020)
Length: 10 hrs and 44 mins
Author Information: Website | Twitter
Narrator: Ell Potter
The latest from Laura Purcell, The Shape of Darkness is as dark and twisty as we’ve come to expect from the queen of gothic suspense. The setting is Victorian Bath, where an ailing silhouette artist struggles to keep her business afloat in a world moving towards camera photography. With each passing day, fewer and fewer people seem interested in Agnes Darken’ craft, while at home she still has her elderly mother and 12-year-old nephew Cedric to care for. With work already hard to come by, Agnes is shaken when her latest client is found dead, his throat cut and his face smashed in, just before she can complete the final touches on his portrait. Now, not only will her finances remain strained, but she’s also beginning to think someone might be targeting her business by killing her customers, especially when mysterious deaths connected to her seem to keep happening.
After the third person to sit for her is found murdered, Agnes knows she must take matters into her own hands, given the police won’t take her suspicions seriously. Desperate to know why this might be happening to her, she decides to go against the advice of her doctor friend Simon by consulting a medium. Her search leads her to the doorstep of Myrtle West, who claims to be a mesmerist, and her half-sister Pearl Meers, an 11-year-old seer who recently came into her gift. It is Agnes’s hope that if Pearl can communicate with the spirits of her clients, they might be able to reveal who killed them and why. Still, pretty soon, they realize that meddling with the unseen might not be so wise, and that the ghosts of the dead may not be so forthcoming…or friendly.
As you probably know, in the last few years Laura Purcell has become a must-read author for me. This is my fourth novel by her, having previously read and loved The Silent Companions, The Poison Thread, and The House of Whispers, and now I’m excited to report that The Shape of Darkness is another winner, containing all the spine-tingling, creepy gothic goodness that I’ve come to love from her books. There’s often a strong element of mystery to her stories as well, not to mention a certain ambiguity surrounding the supernatural forces that might or might not be in play, and this was definitely no exception.
Another hallmark of the author’s books appears to be her tortured protagonists, who frequently bear the weight of their emotional and sometimes physical scars. This usually makes them highly unreliable narrators, and just when you think you understand how they tick, you will discover something surprising that completely changes everything. Following Agnes’s point-of-view was very much like that, as each chapter gradually reveals more of her backstory. Life for her has become a series of misfortunes ever since falling ill a few years ago, and she is still recovering from the effects. Her sister also died, which is why her son Cedric is being raised by our protagonist. Agnes wants to do right by the boy, but can hardly even afford to keep herself clothed and fed some days. Now her only source of income is also dwindling, as silhouettes fall out of popularity in favor of photographs. What’s clear is that Purcell’s deft handling of character development paints a sympathetic picture of Agnes, and readers can’t help but feel for her plight, especially since her passion for her art is so genuine and deep. For real, this book actually made me wish traditional silhouette portrait cutting was still in fashion.
And of course, we have the atmosphere. This is THE number one reason to read Purcell’s books, if you ask me. Even when the overall vibe of the story is bleak and heavy, she has a talent for always making her settings feel authentic and alive. Steeped with supernatural undertones, things feel even more haunted and unsettling, with Pearl’s chapters and the séance scenes being prime examples. However, I would still hesitate to categorize this novel as straight-up horror, as it’s way too subtle and nuanced. That said though, it would also be a mistake to underestimate the creep factor—you have been warned.
Bottom line, with The Shape of Darkness, Laura Purcell has written another deliciously dark gothic novel with more than a few mind-bending surprises. Granted, some of them might turn out to be more predictable than others, but overall I can’t deny I had a good time with this one. As always, I look forward to the author’s next project.
Audiobook Review: Superbly narrated, The Shape of Darkness audiobook was a great way to experience this novel, with Ell Potter’s rich accents and tones greatly enhancing the story’s atmosphere.
Waiting on Wednesday 06/02/21
Posted on June 2, 2021 14 Comments
Waiting On Wednesday” is a weekly meme that first originated at Breaking the Spine but has since linked up with “Can’t Wait Wednesday” at Wishful Endings now that the original creator is unable to host it anymore. Either way, this fun feature is a chance to showcase the upcoming releases that we can’t wait to get our hands on!
Mogsy’s Pick
Dead Silence by S.A. Barnes (January 25, 2022 by Nightfire Books)
Whew, after a month of fantasy-filled Wyrd & Wonder, let’s catch a breather with an upcoming sci-fi release, of the “in space, no one can hear you scream” variety. From Nightfire, Tor’s new horror imprint, this one sounds like a real nail-biter.
“The Aurora, a luxury space-liner destined for a cruise of the solar system, has been missing for twenty years. Among the hundreds of presumed dead were passengers from society’s finest – celebrities, tech giants, influencers. Every last one… vanished.
So when Claire’s crew picks up an emergency signal in deep space, the long-lost Aurora is the last ship they expect to find. The salvage claim could be their best chance at extraordinary wealth, but it might mean missing their transport back home, and nobody can stand another minute out in the darkest corner of the universe – nobody, except Claire.
Once onboard the ship, the crew realizes something is terribly wrong. Unspeakable horrors lurk in every shadow of the massive ship, and soon they each start experiencing violent hallucinations.
Claire must fight to keep her sanity and get her crew back to safety – before they all meet the same ghastly fate as the Aurora passengers.”
Tour Review: The Lights of Prague by Nicole Jarvis
Posted on June 1, 2021 20 Comments
I received a review copy from the publisher. This does not affect the contents of my review and all opinions are my own.
The Lights of Prague by Nicole Jarvis
Mogsy’s Rating: 4 of 5 stars
Genre: Fantasy, Historical Fiction
Series: Stand Alone
Publisher: Titan Books (May 25, 2021)
Length: 416 pages
Author Information: Website | Twitter
Set in 19th century Prague, Nicole Jarvis’ historical fantasy debut opens on a world at the cusp of great change. Society has been introduced to countless wonderful new scientific technologies, paving the way for an era of cultural and artistic development. Residents of the city are enjoying a revolution of sorts, with everything around them changing quickly, becoming better and more modern. However, unbeknownst to its citizenry, Prague is still a dangerous place, hiding many secrets in its shadows. Thanks to men like Domek Myska and his fellow Lamplighters though, everyone can sleep a little more soundly. Our protagonist is part of a guild of monster hunters who patrol the streets at night, keeping the gas lamps burning, vanquishing any supernatural creature unfortunate enough to cross his path. As the story begins, Domek has just had a run-in with a particularly nasty pijavica, a vampire-like predator. After killing it, he discovers what the creature had been transporting—a mysterious container with a will-o’-the-wisp trapped inside. Curious about his find, Domek contemplates taking the wisp to the guild scientists, but winds up befriending it instead, learning that its name is Kája.
Along the way, he also becomes drawn to Lady Ora Fischevá, our other major POV character who is a wealthy widow with a reputation for being a little eccentric. What no one realizes though, is that the noblewoman actually cultivates that image to her advantage, in order to prevent people from looking too deeply into her affairs. The truth is, she is a pijavica, currently working on her own investigation into rumors about a possible cure for vampirism. Having survived for centuries, Ora has mostly turned away from the more violent and baser instincts of her kind, but for some, it won’t matter—she’ll always be a soulless monster. Unaware of Domek’s affiliation with the Lamplighters, she strikes up a relationship with the young man, while he also finds himself growing more attracted to her, completely clueless as to her true nature. As the bond between our two main characters deepens, so too does the urgency to expose those behind the conspiracy that has bought them together, but of course, it’s also only a matter of time before they find out the truth about each other.
Drenched in history and atmosphere, The Lights of Prague is an intelligent and moody work of fiction combining supernatural and urban fantasy elements. Nicole Jarvis has a way with words, bringing the setting to life with flowing, confident prose. Her world-building feels at once strange and wonderful, from the grand museums and lavish opera halls in which we find Lady Ora and the upper class circles she runs in, to the dank crypts and alleyways where Domek often hunts his prey. I loved that our two main characters come from different worlds, in more ways than one, as it allowed readers to experience so much more of the author’s version of Prague—both its fantastical side, as well as the mundane.
I was also fascinated by the characters, as individually they were each quite compelling, though I confess I was probably more impressed with how well the two clicked with they were together. Domek is a level-headed man of purpose and principles, but he’s not so rigid as to be unwilling to consider other ways of doing things. That makes him a pretty good match for Ora, who is charming and vivacious, for all that she is secretly a pijavica. I was a huge fan of her character, the way she flouted social norms and expectations, following her heart wherever it leads her. Despite her socialite ways, there’s also a depth to her that’s only revealed in her more private moments. Ora has something of a heartrending backstory, one that gives her current mission quite a bit more meaning and substance. It’s when she and Domek are in each other’s presence, however, that things get really interesting, as neither are aware they are on opposite sides of a primal conflict.
And when their investigative paths coincide, that’s when the story really heats up. Prior to that, the pacing was more of a slow burn, but the action ticks up noticeably after the halfway point, as does the intrigue in the overall mystery. For me, Kája was a highlight as well, and I enjoyed how such a seemingly minor side character came to occupy such a large place in my heart by the end of the book! Bottom line, there were so many moving parts to this book, I was quite amazed Jarvis was able to weave them all together while losing none of the gothic elements or atmospheric vibes.
All in all, I had a good time with The Lights of Prague, a historical fantasy I would recommend to readers looking for a more sophisticated kind of vampire and monster hunter story.
The BiblioSanctum