Waiting on Wednesday 04/14/21
Posted on April 14, 2021 17 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
Revelator by Daryl Gregory (August 31, 2021 by Knopf Publishing Group)
Looks like 2021 will be a big year for Daryl Gregory, but seeing as his last novel was Spoonbenders in 2017, I’m not complaining. I love his books!
“In 1933, nine-year-old Stella is left in the care of her grandmother, Motty, in the backwoods of Tennessee. These remote hills of the Smoky Mountains are home to dangerous secrets, and soon after she arrives, Stella wanders into a dark cavern where she encounters the family’s personal god, an entity known as the Ghostdaddy.
Years later, after a tragic incident that caused her to flee, Stella–now a professional bootlegger–returns for Motty’s funeral, and to check on the mysterious ten-year-old girl named Sunny that Motty adopted. Sunny appears innocent enough, but she is more powerful than Stella could imagine–and she’s a direct link to Stella’s buried past and her family’s destructive faith.
Haunting and wholly engrossing, summoning mesmerizing voices and giving shape to the dark, Revelator is a southern gothic tale for the ages.”
Book Review: All The Murmuring Bones by A.G. Slatter
Posted on April 13, 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.
All The Murmuring Bones by A.G. Slatter
Mogsy’s Rating: 4 of 5 stars
Genre: Fantasy
Series: Stand Alone
Publisher: Titan Books (March 9, 2021)
Length: 368 pages
Author Information: Website
I have several of Angela Slatter’s books on my shelves, but this might be the first full length novel I’ve read by her, and what a wonderful surprise it was! All the Murmuring Bones is an enchanting tale of hidden magic, of dark secrets and mysterious creatures of the sea, and at the center of it all is a fiercely independent young woman who uses her wits and resources to go on a journey of soul searching.
Set in the 19th century on the Irish coast, the story follows protagonist Miren who is last of the “true” O’Malleys, an old family which has long held sway over the local community. But even as their wealth has dwindled over the years and their ancestral home of Hob’s Hallow stands in near ruins, the O’Malley name still much power and influence. For this reason, Miren’s grandmother Aoife has arranged a marriage for her in the hopes of restoring the family’s fortunes. However, while her intended Aidan is a wealthy man, he is also from an offshoot of the family who has always lusted after the O’Malley name and estate, so for him the union will be nothing more than another business transaction.
In a twist of fate though, Miren soon discovers a secret revealed in a collection of her late grandfather’s old letters. Growing up, she’d always been told her parents died when she was a baby, which was why she was raised by her grandparents. But now, she has reason to believe her mother and father are still alive, living at a place called Blackwater. No one knows where that might be, but Miren is determined to find it and confront her parents on why they gave her up. Besides, she has no desire to lose her freedom or to stay at Hob’s Hallow—especially once she realizes the awful bargain her ancestors had struck to ensure the O’Malley’s prosperity, and that Aoife wants to Miren and Aidan follow in their footsteps. With the sudden death of her grandmother, Miren realizes she has no reason left to stay, and so she makes her daring escape.
What follows is a beautifully written tale, with as much adventure as there is danger. Slatter’s prose is flowing and practically flawless, descriptive yet also tinged with a thread of our protagonist’s wry sense of humor. For this reason, while the story frequently edges into darker territory, it still maintained an easy air that prevented the mood from becoming too heavy (and kept me glued to the page). Of course, it helped too that Miren was such a strong and likeable lead, and the injustices of the circumstances she faced made it easy to feel invested in her quest and cheer her on through her struggles.
On top of that, the author does a superb job at setting the scene, creating a vibrant setting populated by mythical creatures like kelpies, ghosts, merfolk, and more. In fact, the world-building is surprisingly well-developed, considering her delicate approach to the paranormal—not with a heavy hand, but giving just enough to give the reader a sense that these elements are as real to the protagonist as the world she lives in. It’s a kind of magic one can feel working from the very first page.
Miren herself is a character that feels very relatable. Although she is resourceful and intelligent, she’s not the most level-headed, her emotions often running close to the surface. Strong feelings are quick to flare up in her, which sometimes leads her to act impulsively, landing her in or out of trouble depending on the situation. The people she meets are also delightful, even the shady scoundrels and ne’er do wells. Truth be told, it kept things interesting, not knowing how Miren would react to the many random surprises or obstacles she encounters along the way, and these unknown wonders also served to drive home the fairy tale inspiration behind her journey.
All told, I found this novel captivating. Slatter knows how to hook the reader, and All the Murmuring Bones certainly held my attention rapt with its indomitable protagonist, artful storytelling, and rich atmosphere.
Book Review: The Light of the Midnight Stars by Rena Rossner
Posted on April 12, 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 Light of the Midnight Stars by Rena Rossner
Mogsy’s Rating: 3.5 of 5 stars
Genre: Fantasy
Series: Stand Alone
Publisher: Redhook (April 13, 2021)
Length: 432 pages
Author Information: Website | Twitter
Rena Rossner’s debut The Sisters of the Winter Wood was an enchanting read for me, and so when I heard that her sophomore novel will be another historical fantasy and folkloric myth blend, I’d hoped that it would work the same magic. And for the most part, it did! That said, there was also an overwhelming amount of information to take in, and I think that might have had a lot to do with my initial struggle to connect with the story and characters.
The Light of the Midnight Stars follows the lives of three sisters growing up with their rabbi father in the Hungarian village of Trnava. As descendants of King Solomon, their family is well respected by the Jewish community, and the girls are each gifted with a magical ability—Hannah, who has the power to heal and make things grow; Sarah, who can command fire and make things burn; and Levana, who can read the secrets of the stars. However, as superstition runs rampant throughout the rest of the village, bringing religious persecution and fear of witchcraft, the sisters don’t dare to make their abilities known.
But then a mysterious black mist descends upon Trnava, causing people to fall deathly ill. Despite her misgivings, Hannah, the oldest sister, makes a bold decision to use her healing, setting off a tragic chain of events leading to her own heartbreak and the upheaval of the town’s Jewish population. After fleeing Trnava, the rabbi and his family find themselves settling in a new place, protecting themselves by hiding their true faith and identities. Emotionally damaged and traumatized though, the sisters have a long journey ahead of them until they can feel whole and ready to live and love again.
Like I said, there is a lot happening here, and what I’ve provided above is just an extremely truncated synopsis. While the deluge of information made the early parts of the novel slow to take off, I still found myself captivated by many points and took to certain aspects of the story right away. As with The Sisters of the Winter Wood, I was impressed with how Rossner combined magic, myth, and history from her interest and experiences with her own Jewish ancestry. Central to the book is the theme of religious belief and identity, and I feel the author did a wonderful job exploring these topics through the eyes of the three sisters, who are each unique in their own way. Subsequently, they also dealt with their individual conflicts by following their own heart’s desires and motivations, developing along their own paths. As such, it is probably no surprise that characterization was superb.
That said, when it comes to books with an information overload at the beginning, my experience is that things typically tend to ease off as the story progresses, gradually dispelling any feelings of confusion or of being swamped. Except, I don’t know if I really got that with this. In part, this was due to the structure of the novel, which cycled between the sisters’ POVs while weaving in the odd interlude. The tricky part comes, however, as some of these chapters are presented differently, as journal entries or in verse, etc., and the frequent injection of side stories and folktales. In fact, the act of storytelling is a very important concept, a key part of the book’s premise and the myriad legends and historical narratives that inspired its foundations. In a way, this does explain how some mythological motifs would pop up again and again, echoing throughout the characters’ past and present. It’s a clear nod to the importance of the oral tradition in preserving heritage and culture, especially where religious parables and folktales are concerned.
Still, that doesn’t mean the format was all that conducive to the reading experience, or that it made things any easier to understand. The plot doesn’t follow a conventional roadmap, and despite this providing the book with a distinct feel, there were nonetheless sections I found somewhat convoluted and difficult to follow.
In sum, I’m going to reiterate a few of the same conclusions I drew for my review The Sisters of the Winter Wood, because I think a lot of it applies here as well. The Light of the Midnight Stars is beautifully written, but it is also less plot focused, emphasizing the characters and their relationships instead. That along with the irregular structure and flow of the novel means that it’s probably not going to be for everyone, but it’s worth checking out if the story’s description along with its inspiration from Jewish culture and Eastern European history interests you.
YA Weekend: The Stolen Kingdom by Jillian Boehme
Posted on April 11, 2021 10 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 Stolen Kingdom by Jillian Boehme
Mogsy’s Rating: 3 of 5 stars
Genre: Fantasy, Young Adult
Series: Stand Alone
Publisher: Tor Teen (March 2, 2021)
Length: 320 pages
Author Information: Website | Twitter
What I didn’t realize until after I finished The Stolen Kingdom, is that I’d actually read another book by Jillian Boehme, Stormrise. Looking back at my review of it, it appears I found the story enjoyable enough but…well, forgettable. Ultimately, I think this was the problem here as well.
In the kingdom of Perin Faye, magic belongs to the crown, and long ago the royal Thungrave Kings made a pact with dark powers that has now caused widespread suffering throughout the once prosperous land. The hard times have also led to unrest and murmurings of rebellion among the people. Maralyth Graylaern, the daughter of a humble vintner, has had to work longer and harder ever since the death of her mother, and even though their wines are famous for their quality, the family always seem to be struggling to make enough money to keep their business running. Of course, it also doesn’t help that most of their profits go towards paying the king’s exorbitant taxes.
However, Maralyth has a secret. As a child, she discovered she had a magical ability to control the growth of plants, which she has since used to ripen the vineyard’s grapes for years despite being warned by her mother never to reveal her powers. Eventually, she gets found out, precipitating her abduction by a nobleman who recognizes the significance of her magic. Apparently, it is a sign that Maralyth is descended from the Dallowyn bloodline, who are the legitimate rulers to the throne, making her the rightful heir. To install her as queen, they must help her infiltrate the court so that she can get close enough to assassinate the current royal family and seize power.
What Maralyth didn’t expect though, was Alac Thungrave, the king’s second son and reluctant prince. Unlike his father and older brother, he has no desire to rule, and does not much care for using magic. He is immediately drawn to Maralyth, who has disguised herself as the ward of a visiting noble. Not surprisingly, the feeling is mutual, though it does complicate Maralyth’s plans as the attraction between them deepens.
There are good ideas in this book. Readers who enjoy fantasy plots involving power struggles and court intrigue will feel right at home, and for extra drama, there’s also a hearty helping of forbidden romance. But for all that, the story feels rather bland, and I think one reason for this is the author’s reluctance to test the limits or push the envelope of YA fantasy. While the concepts present are solid, their execution left much to be desired. Nothing here really felt all that fresh or innovative, and I feel like I have read many books like it before.
The characterization was also mediocre, though I found both Maralyth and Alac likeable enough. However, they were also underdeveloped, and for me to feel invested in a romance, typically it would require a lot more personality and emotional depth. As such, while the conflicts driving each of them were intriguing and kept me reading, the chemistry between them just wasn’t there.
I felt similarly about the world-building. There were genuine flashes of awesomeness here and there, but it was very unbalanced. I liked the magic, the history, the political connections and the relationship ties, but it seemed Boehme would focus most of her attention on certain aspects and neglect to flesh out others, so the resulting experience was patchy and inconsistent.
Quite honestly, I don’t know what could have been done differently, though I often found myself wishing the author had gone further with her ideas. Perhaps that would have made the story more memorable, but as it is, The Stolen Kingdom will do in a pinch if you’re looking for a quick YA standalone fantasy. Still, even though the paint-by-numbers plot with its cursory romance was entertaining while it lasted, I have my doubts it will stay with me for very long.
Bookshelf Roundup: 04/10/21: Stacking the Shelves & Recent Reads
Posted on April 10, 2021 30 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 Saga Press for an ARC of Firebreak by Nicole Kornher-Stace, yet another sci-fi dystopian with a gaming angle–which means yup, I wants this precious! The story centers on a pair of women gamers and friends working together to expose a terrible secret in the popular VR game run by a corporation that controls every aspect of their lives. Very excited to sink my teeth into this one.
Also thank you to Titan Books for a review copy of Birds of Paradise by Oliver K. Langmead. Earlier this week I was honored to be a part of the blog tour for this book, featuring a guest post that the author kindly wrote for us. In case you missed it, you can check it out here!
My thanks also to Tor Books for a finished copy of The Helm of Midnight by Marina Lostetter. I am intrigued by the description of this being a “Silence of the Lambs meets Mistborn” fantasy-thriller about a city stalked by a serial killer. Sounds like my kind of story!
In this week’s digital haul, I received a listening copy of Malice by Heather Walter, with thanks to Random House Audio. From the kind folks at HarperAudio, I was also thrilled to snag an ALC of The Galaxy, and the Ground Within by Becky Chambers! Words cannot describe how excited I am to start listening. And from the team at Nightfire, Tor Book’s new horror imprint, I received a NetGalley widget of The Last House on Needless Street by Catriona Ward. Of their new titles releasing this fall, this is the one I’m probably most excited about!
Reviews
Near the Bone by Christina Henry (3.5 of 5 stars)
Every Last Fear by Alex Finlay (3.5 of 5 stars)
Her Dark Lies by J.T. Ellison (3 of 5 stars)
Guest Posts
“A Decade of Drafting” by Oliver K. Langmead
What I’ve Been Playing
It was my birthday earlier this week and my husband got me a Playstation 5 (though it was actually I who helped him secure one from a retailer drop after he was having no luck…I have lightning fast fingers 😉 ) which means I have been diving back into console gaming. While I did also pick up a couple PS5 releases including Marvel’s Spider-man: Miles Morales and Sackboy: A Big Adventure, those are games my kids like to watch me play/play co-op with me, so I decided to fire up something from my massive PS4 backlog instead.
Ghost of Tsushima is an action-adventure game set in feudal Japan during the first Mongol invasion, and you play a samurai on a quest to protect your island and its people. I’m not very far into it yet, but already the story is incredible and the PS5 patch makes everything look so good and play so smoothly.
The other game I’ve been dabbling in is the enhanced PS5 edition of Spirit of the North, an indie game I picked up for its chill gameplay and beautiful visuals. You play an adorable red fox journeying across a vast world inspired by Nordic folklore, finding connections with ancient spirts and solving puzzles. I find I’m really enjoying the game right now, simply because it’s such a relaxing experience. It’s also got a gorgeous soundtrack.
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! Let me know what you plan on checking out. Until next time, see you next Roundup!
Friday Face-Off: Cartoon or Graphic
Posted on April 9, 2021 14 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:
~ a CARTOONISH/GRAPHIC cover
Mogsy’s Pick:
Heroine Complex Series by Sarah Kuhn
I’m doing something different today, and instead of going for a traditional face-off, I’ll be featuring all the covers for the Heroine Complex series. I really did not care for the first book so I never continued, but I’ve always loved these covers for their graphic novel art style!
I think they’re all pretty cool! Do you have a favorite?
Thursday Thriller Audio: Every Last Fear by Alex Finlay
Posted on April 8, 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.
Every Last Fear by Alex Finlay
Mogsy’s Rating (Overall): 3.5 of 5 stars
Genre: Mystery, Thriller
Series: Stand Alone
Publisher: Macmillan Audio (March 2, 2021)
Length: 10 hrs and 57 mins
Author Information: Website
Narrators: Cady McClain, Jon Lindstrom
Describing Every Last Fear as a mystery action thriller would be accurate, but also overly simplistic. At the center of this novel is the tragic tale of the Pine family. Years ago, when he was still a senior in high school, eldest son Danny Pine was sentenced to life in prison for the murder of his girlfriend Charlotte—a crime his parents are convinced he did not commit. However, despite their efforts to have him released and even a popular true crime documentary suggesting that it was a wrongful conviction, it seems like Danny will stay behind bars for a very long time, and it is slowly tearing the Pines apart.
But for Matt, the second son, the matter is a lot more complicated. For unlike the rest of his family, he isn’t convinced that Danny is innocent. The night Charlotte died, he witnessed something he’s never told anyone else—something that makes him believe that it was his older brother who killed her. Now a student at NYU, Matt has a difficult relationship with his family. So when his mom, dad, sister and little brother took off for an impromptu vacation to Mexico, he didn’t occur to him to question it—until one night, upon returning to his dorm room after a party, he receives the devastating news: all four of them had been found dead from an apparent gas leak in their hotel cottage. Everything points to it being an accident, but Matt has the feeling the FBI and State Department aren’t telling him everything.
Gradually, the full story unfolds through the POVs of several characters, and via past and present timelines. As the book opens, Matt has just received the news of the deaths and is reeling from the shock and grief. We follow him to Mexico to retrieve the bodies, while back in the States, FBI Agent Sarah Keller attempts to determine how the Pines really died, and why. Danny Pine had made headlines all those years for killing Charlotte, and now this. It can’t all be a coincidence, can it? Threaded through Matt and Keller’s narratives are also the POVs of Matt’s parents, Evan and Olivia, as well as his teenage sister, Maggie. Their perspectives make up the “past” timeline, detailing the events that led them to Mexico in the first place. Evan Pine has never stopped trying to prove Danny’s innocence, and ever since Maggie became old enough, she has joined him in this quest. After receiving a mysterious lead that they believe will get Danny exonerated, the Pines throw together a hastily planned tip to Tulum, thus sealing their fates.
Every Last Fear is a mystery first and foremost, but it also contains elements of an international or political thriller. It is also the story of a family’s tragedy, and I must say reading this novel weighed very heavily on my heart, knowing that half the characters I was following were already dead. Evan, Olivia, and Maggie’s POVs definitely made their flashback chapters feel more poignant, and I was especially heartbroken about Maggie, at the loss of this bright, enthusiastic and mature young woman and all of her vibrant potential.
At the same time, I believe it’s this back-and-forth between past and present that made this story work as well as it did. Taking full advantage of this format, the author doles out information bit by bit, using impeccable timing to coordinate significant developments between the two timelines. Events in the past and present gradually layered on top of each other, with clues being slipped in between, until they eventually build up to the finale where all answers are revealed.
In fact, I probably would have given Every Last Fear a higher rating, except that I predicted a major part of the ending. I get it; it’s a careful balancing act, trying to reveal just enough for the plot to make sense without giving too much away, and maybe I just got lucky by stumbling upon a couple hints that I felt were too obvious, but of course your mileage may vary. On the whole, the writing is engaging and the storytelling is admirably well-paced and tight, and I think most thriller fans will find great enjoyment out of this novel.
Audiobook Comments: Impressive performances by narrators Cady McClain and Jon Lindstrom, who gave life to the characters and made me think this book would make an excellent movie!
Waiting on Wednesday 04/07/21
Posted on April 7, 2021 11 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
The Orphan Witch by Paige Crutcher (October 5, 2021 by St. Martin’s Press)
Funny how I just recently finished Her Dark Lies because not long afterwards I came upon this nomscious blurb by J.T. Ellison for an intriguing witchy fantasy novel that sounds like it has a lot of potential.
“Mystical, magical, and wildly original…If Alice Hoffman and Sara Addison Allen had a witchy love child, she would be Paige Crutcher. Do not miss this beautifully realized debut!”— JT Ellison, New York Times bestselling author of Her Dark Lies on The Orphan Witch.
A deeper magic. A stronger curse. A family lost…and found.
Persephone May has been alone her entire life. Abandoned as an infant and dragged through the foster care system, she wants nothing more than to belong somewhere. To someone. However, Persephone is as strange as she is lonely. Unexplainable things happen when she’s around—changes in weather, inanimate objects taking flight—and those who seek to bring her into their family quickly cast her out. To cope, she never gets attached, never makes friends. And she certainly never dates. Working odd jobs and always keeping her suitcases half-packed, Persephone is used to moving around, leaving one town for another when curiosity over her eccentric behavior inevitably draws unwanted attention.
After an accidental and very public display of power, Persephone knows it’s time to move on once again. It’s lucky, then, when she receives an email from the one friend she’s managed to keep, inviting her to the elusive Wile Isle. The timing couldn’t be more perfect. However, upon arrival, Persephone quickly discovers that Wile is no ordinary island. In fact, it just might hold the very things she’s been searching for her entire life.
Answers. Family. Home.
And some things she did not want. Like 100-year-old curses and an even older family feud. With the clock running out, love might be the magic that saves them all.”
Guest Post: “A Decade of Drafting” by Oliver K. Langmead
Posted on April 6, 2021 6 Comments
Today, we’re excited to welcome author Oliver K. Langmead to the BiblioSanctum as part of a blog tour to celebrate the release of Birds of Paradise, his new fantasy novel described as American Gods meets His Dark Materials in the Garden of Eden. A rich narrative exploring the themes of humanity and nature, the book is published by Titan Books and is now available wherever books are sold. We hope you’ll enjoy Oliver’s guest post describing his drafting process for the novel (which every aspiring reader should check out!) and be sure to also visit the other stops on the tour!
A DECADE OF DRAFTING
by Oliver K. Langmead
Sometimes, it takes a long time to write a book.
I wanted to write this article for those of you busy writing your first book. Maybe you’re a bit unsure about it. Maybe you have a brilliant idea, but feel out of depth trying to execute it. Maybe you’ve attracted some compliments from agents, but the book you have just isn’t quite there, and you’re not sure how to carry on. I want to tell you that perseverance is worth it – that there is a way forward, and the rewards are worth carrying on for.
In the end, it took me more than a decade to finish Birds of Paradise.
This isn’t to say that I spent all ten years writing the book. But I did, during that decade, write four complete drafts of the book, beginning to end, starting from scratch each time. And at the end of that decade, I had a manuscript I finally felt satisfied with, and which was worth publication. With each iteration, I became a better author.
In 2009, I started writing a book called Eden Rose. It was a fractured, colourful explosion of writing, filled with so many competing narratives and strange characters that, to this day, I still go back to it and harvest it for ideas. Of course, it was completely unpublishable. I sent it out to agents with no idea of its worth, and a couple were kind enough to send me a little praise back for the book’s idea – Adam, the first man, alive today and gathering together lost pieces of Eden. The book itself was a mess, but the idea was good.
Just that little bit of praise was enough for me to want to try again.
In 2012, I stripped away all of the chaotic extra ideas filling the book, and wrote a complete second draft while doing a Masters in Creative Writing at the University of Dundee. It was a rewarding experience – doing so while taking expert feedback. This time, the finished manuscript was in a good enough state that a couple of agents requested a complete read-through. And this time, the feedback was more detailed: the idea was fabulous, but the execution was falling just a little short. The book still felt fractured.
The next draft, in 2014, was a step backwards – but a lot of writing involves learning from mistakes, and this would prove to be a particularly informative learning experience. I decided to try an experiment, and wrote a complete new manuscript in a month, incorporating the feedback I had been given on the previous draft. The result was a rushed, frantic mess of a book, with none of the nuance that had caught the eyes of agents before.
Frustrated, but not discouraged, I put the idea aside for a while, and wrote some different books. Books that would end up being my first and second published – Dark Star and Metronome.
In 2016, I finally returned to Eden Rose – renaming it Birds of Paradise – and after all those years of drafting, all those books written, published and unpublished, I finally felt ready to write a manuscript worthy of its idea. In the end, it took me another three careful years of writing – crafting each scene to be the best that it could be – but the result was worth every minute.
It is with deep satisfaction that Birds of Paradise is being published this week – picked up by one of my favourite publishers, no less. And I can tell you exactly what each of the previous drafts, from as far back as 2009, did for it. Which is why I feel safe in saying – trust me: a little perseverance can go a long way. If you’re getting positive feedback, but your book just isn’t quite there yet, take a step back and reassess.
Success might be the next manuscript you write.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Oliver K. Langmead is an author and poet based in Glasgow. His long-form poem, Dark Star, featured in the Guardian’s Best Books of 2015. Oliver is currently a doctoral candidate at the University of Glasgow, where he is researching terraforming and ecological philosophy, and in late 2018 he undertook a writing residency at the European Space Agency’s Astronaut Centre in Cologne, writing about astronauts and people who work with astronauts. You can find him on twitter @oliverklangmead
Audiobook Review: Near the Bone by Christina Henry
Posted on April 5, 2021 22 Comments
I received a review copy from the publisher. This does not affect the contents of my review and all opinions are my own.
Near the Bone by Christina Henry
Mogsy’s Rating: 3.5 of 5 stars
Genre: Horror
Series: Stand Alone
Publisher: Penguin Audio (April 13, 2021)
Length: 8 hrs and 39 mins
Author Information: Website | Twitter
Narrator: Lisa Flanagan
Are you hankering for something scary, but can’t decide whether you want a survival horror, creature feature, or a bloody slasher? Believe it or not, Near the Bone has elements from all of these to satisfy any mood, and what’s certain is that Christina Henry had only one goal in mind when writing this book: to put her readers constantly on edge.
Our protagonist is Mattie, a young woman who lives on the mountain with her husband, William. For as long as she can remember, it has only been the two of them, eking out a meager existence from the wintry woods surrounding their tiny cabin. For one thing, William goes to great lengths to ensure they aren’t disturbed, warning off anyone who gets close to their property. Mattie herself is forbidden from talking to anyone or straying too far from the cabin. In fact, she is not allowed any outside contact at all. Her whole world revolves around serving William, cooking and cleaning for him, and to one day bear him the sons he so wants. But no matter what Mattie does, she can’t seem to please him. And whenever William is disappointed, he gets nasty with his insults and beats her mercilessly.
One day, Mattie is out checking the traps when she comes across the carcass of a fox that has been brutally ripped apart, as well as the nearby tracks of some mysterious creature—tracks that are much too large to have been made by any known predator. Determined to hunt and kill it, William goes into town for supplies, leaving Mattie at the cabin alone when two college students show up at the door, claiming to be cryptozoology enthusiasts. They’ve heard tell of a monster up in these mountains and are on a mission to seek it out. Horrified, Mattie tries to stop them, telling them they’re in way over their heads. Whatever this creature is, it’s dangerous and unnatural. However, rather than heed her warnings, one of the strangers seem more curious about Mattie, asserting that he’s seen her before. But that shouldn’t be possible, since Mattie can’t recall the last time she’s been in the presence of another person other than her husband. All she knows is that the students must leave. She doesn’t know what would be worse—that the young men would run afoul of the bloodthirsty creature, or if William found out they had been at to his home and had spoken to her.
The author wastes no time setting up the scene for a helter-skelter race for survival as Mattie and her new companions attempt to escape a nightmare scenario with threats coming at them from every direction. First there’s William, an enraged and fanatical madman armed to the teeth and who won’t hesitate to murder them all to prevent Mattie from leaving him. And then there’s the monster, a frighteningly intelligent creature capable of evil and great violence, which has its sights set on the humans who had invaded its home. All of this is set to the backdrop of the cold and forbidding mountainside, miles from civilization with no cell coverage. Our hapless characters are tired, injured, and ill-equipped for the weather and terrain, in no condition to fight off anything—human or supernatural—that’s hunting them.
There’s also a traumatic backstory for Mattie, involving kidnapping, child abuse, and domestic violence that might make this book a tough read for some. Heartbreaking as well were her constant feelings of terror and anxiety, from the years of intimidation and pain William had inflicted upon her. If I’m being honest, I personally found this thread surrounding our protagonist and her past to be far more mysterious, upsetting and horrific than any of the parts featuring the monster. Henry pulls no punches when it comes detailing the awfulness of Mattie’s existence, though it’s not done in a way that feels overly gratuitous—just keeping things real.
In fact, the story actually loses much of its grip on me in the later parts, as Mattie attempts to make her escape from the mountain with the college students. Here, the book takes on more of the tone of a teen slasher flick featuring helpless, naïve kids who are cluelessly stumbling around the woods trying to evade an axe murderer. While it was still suspenseful, the plot does become more pedestrian at this point, with over-the-top scenes of blood and gore as well as tacky unrealistic dialogue by characters that undermined what should have been a downright terrifying scenario.
Ultimately, it was undoubtedly the smaller, subtler moments of horror in this book that were more effective, and which resonated more powerfully with me. For this reason, I was also not as bothered by the vagueness of the ending, since I felt it was appropriate that some of the mystery be preserved, but I can also understand why some might be frustrated by the lack of answers or explanation of the creature. Overall, Near the Bone can’t be rightly called a popcorn or “light” read since it contains an abundance of overly dark and disturbing themes, though it does go by rather quickly, and there’s certainly enough to give one a quick shot of fright if a no-frills, fast-paced horror is what you’re in the mood for.
The BiblioSanctum 