Tag: Paranormal Fiction

Ghost Eaters by Clay McLeod Chapman

Posted on December 6, 2022 by - Book Review

Erin is haunted, and it is by choice.

If that seems rather innocuous to you, then you have yet to dive into Clay McLeod Chapman’s latest gem: Ghost Eaters.

Stripping the romanticism and fantastical glamour out of the concept of interactions with the supernatural, and, instead, diving right into every worst part of addition, loss, despair, and not the best kind of self-discovery.

Ghost Eaters is about desperation, and, while the irony of not being able to put down a drug-centric book was not lost on me, it is not a pretty tale.

The story centers around Erin, a girl with a few dreams, and some lofty plans to get her life where she wants it to be. The problem with Erin is that she is enthralled by her college ex: Silas. Silas is a dreamer, an addict, and a wandering soul. Silas, however, holds heavy influence over Erin, and — possibly more importantly — their mutual friend Tobias.

Slight spoiler alert: Silas dies, and then the insanity begins.

In her grief in trying to figure out just how she can find some closure with his death, Erin will do just about anything to close the book on Silas. Enter Tobias and Ghost: a drug that Silas and Tobias had been “working on” to see the dead.

Let’s just say things get worse from there.

One of the things that I love about Mr. Chapman’s stories is something that actually somewhat annoys me with many other authors: things are not tidy. Much like real life, not all storylines are cleanly wrapped up in a bow, and, for me, this really gives his worlds a more realistic tint. With Ghost Eaters this approach really focuses the madness and decent into Erin’s chaotic spiral. I have described this book to friends as “Haunted Trainspotting,” and I feel that there is a kinship in the portrayals of addiction that are compelling as well as repellent.

Progressing through Ghost Eaters made more more and more itchy. Yeah, it’s that visceral.

I enjoyed the worldbuilding in this novel because it rides a fine line between being placed in the very concrete space of Richmond, Virginia, while also straddling a liminal space of filth and madness.

Yes, it’s horror, but it is also social commentary, and one of the best damn books you could pick up this year. As usual, Mr. Chapman’s mind has spun up a world that I’d rather not live in, but I sure as hell enjoyed visiting it.

The Witch Haven (The Witch Haven #1) by Sasha Peyton Smith

Posted on September 7, 2022 by - Book Review

Apparently, I’ve been very drawn to witchy historical fiction over the past couple of years, and The Witch Haven has been an absolute treat to read. Set in 1911 New York City, this is the tale of Frances Hollowell; a young girl mourning the recent loss of her brother while trying to scrape by a meager existence as a seamstress.

Then the whirlwind begins.

Fending off a drunken attack, Frances’ sewing scissors end up in the man’s neck, killing him. The thing is, Frances has no idea how those scissors got there.

In the midst of being interrogated by the police for murder, two mysterious women show up in an ambulance to announce that Frances is gravely ill and needs to be whisked away to the Haxahaven Sanitarium: a clever ruse concealing a school for witches.

Thrust into a shocking new life, Frances begins learning the basics of domestic magic, but also begins to learn that there are other magicks out there: even one that may allow her to bring back her murdered brother.

The rest I will leave to the reader because it moves quite quickly, and there are many surprises along the way.

Ms. Smith really knows how to set the tone of a story. I often find it hard, especially in the intro of a multi-book series, to get into a smooth rhythm of character introduction, world introduction, and character/story progression. The Witch Haven, however, flowed quite well into a steady beat of what was going on and where it was going. I think the manner in which Frances was learning what was happening around her at the same time as the reader really lent itself to this endeavor.

In fleshing out the world of The Witch Haven, Ms. Smith did a very nice job introducing a wide variety of girls from very different walks of life as Frances becomes more and more familiar with Haxahaven. In this, as well, Ms. Smith builds a very strong sisterhood that, to me, will become the foundation of the subsequent books. Frances’ strong-willed personality really helps push the story in directions that become more and more thrilling, and opportunities for her to really build her magical knowledge.

Book two is slated to release in October 2022, and I’m really looking forward to seeing how much more Frances develops as a young witch.

Empire of the Vampire by Jay Kristoff

Posted on September 10, 2021 by - Book Review

** This book was provided to me by NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review **

I’ve been a big fan of Mr. Kristoff for quite some time, but this one really knocks it out of the park. Empire of the Vampire has received a ton of hype over the past year, and sometimes that can backfire, but, boy howdy, this is a novel that absolutely delivers.

Our main character, Gabriel de León, is a Silversaint in a time and place where the sun has basically been blocked out for twenty-seven years, and the ruling houses of vampires have risen up and basically carved up the world into their kingdoms. What’s a Silversaint you ask? A Silversaint is the result of the union between a vampire sire and a human woman. The sons that result (there are only sons) inherit a bit of vampiric power from their undead fathers; as well as a degree of their bloodlust.

Now Gabriel has been captured by the creatures he has vowed to destroy, and the bulk of the story is him telling his life’s history to a vampire historian.

Empire of the Vampire has all of the Kristoff halmarks. Sex? Check. Violence? Check. Incredibly witty banter peppered liberally with crude jokes? Also, check.

There is an undeniable comparison to Anne Rice’s Interview with the Vampire, just from the way the narrative is presented, but this gem of a novel is wholly unique. Mr. Kristoff is no stranger to the anti-hero, but de León may be his finest masterpiece to date. At some moments the reader feels very sorry for this peasant’s son: hell, there are even moments when he seems kind and tender; but there is also a nihilistic and destructive side to Gabriel that will often make the reader reconsider their opinion of him. Hell, as I was going through it, I just was hoping that we’d figure out why he seems so incredibly jaded.

In building the setting of Empire of the Vampire, Mr. Kristoff absolutely goes all out. We have divided and conquered kingdoms with rich histories, the creation and deep lore several religions, magick and power systems to go with each tradition and House, and a vast landscape that the reader can actually see, feel, hear and even smell. This is a craft that Mr. Kristoff is very well-versed in, and he’s definitely used the finest tools in his toolbox to execute this one.

This is definitely a book that wraps you up in a rollicking story mixed with enough fervor, blasphemy, faith and action to keep a reader seriously engaged while furious page flipping is going on.

This novel is going to be on lists and winning awards very shortly. Don’t miss it.

The Atlas Six (The Atlas, #1) by Olivie Blake

Posted on August 4, 2021 by - Book Review

The Atlas Six (The Atlas Series Book 1) by [Olivie Blake, Little Chmura]

Holy crap, I really didn’t expect a read like this one. The premise was very intriguing and right up my alley, so I decided to take the dive.

The Alexandrian Society, a secretive group tasked with maintaining the lost/forgotten knowledge of previous civilizations, and library to the most powerful magicians in the world, have an annual initiation where they bring in six of the most talented magicians from all over the planet to act as custodians for the library while they learn and grow.

At the end of the period of time of this caretaking, one initiate will be eliminated and five will go on to be full members of the Society.

Magic, competition, ego, intrigue? I’m all in.

Then it gets really damn interesting. The first candidates we meet are Elizabeth “Libby” Rhodes and Nicolàs “Nico” de Varona. This unique pair attends New York University of Magical Arts together, and are the fiercest of rivals. To say that they snipe at each other constantly is and understatement. When both are selected by Atlas Blakely to take part in the initiation, that kicks things up another notch. At this point, I knew I was in for a serious ride.

Next, Atlas selects Reina Mori, Parissa Kamali, Tristan Caine, and Callum Nova. Much like Libby and Nico, each is a magician of extreme talent. Unlike Libby and Nico, this three have been away from academia and are very secretive about their skills and abilities.

As the story unfolds we learn a hell of a lot more about each of the characters, the mission of The Society, its enemies and shortcomings. Each of the initiates gets more and more wrapped up in what their time at The Society means to them and to their group as a whole.

Let’s just say things get incredibly mental.

I honestly can’t go more into it without giving away anything. I will say that I read the last two chapters three times to fully wrap my head around what happened. Yeah, it’s one of those books.

To call Ms. Blake an artist is understating things. The Atlas Six draws you in and wraps you up in such a web of personality and intrigue. It is a true gem of world-building without even really having to build a world. The setting is very uniform, but the landscape and setting for this novel is really the characters themselves, and, boy howdy, there is such a rich variety of terrain. This is definitely one of those stories where I basically got knocked on my ass and had to sit there for a while re-assessing how I think about literary characters.

It’s just so hard to describe how this book affects its readers, but it will definitely affect you. I’ve read some amazing things this Summer, but I think I’m definitely going to have to crown The Atlas Six as my “don’t miss it” for Summer 2021.

Ring Shout by P. Djèlí Clark

Posted on February 13, 2021 by - Book Review

I’ve been hearing about this novella through various outlets for a few months, and it sat on my stack longer than I would have preferred for a “short” piece of fiction.

Normally, I take breaks from “big” story undertakings to cleanse my palette with something easy to consume. Ring Shout is far from easy to consume.

Set in 1922 Macon, Georgia, the story opens with our main character, Maryse Boudreaux sitting atop a cotton warehouse in downtown with her two comrades-in-arms and best friends, Chef and Sadie. The trio is watching a Fourth of July Klan march proceed below them whilst planning out a special surprise for a pack of Klu Kluxes.

In this particular tale of alt-history and horror, Klu Kluxes are fantastic beasts of immense strength and hate who hunt down black citizens with animalistic fervor. Sadie and her friends hunt them.

As Ring Shout progresses, we learn that — as in many tales of good versus evil — there is a new resurgence in Klan evil that is rising up surrounding a new showing of G.W. Griffith’s The Birth of a Nation that is getting ready to be shown at Stone Mountain, and Sadie’s group aims to disrupt and stop it.

Diving deep into the mystical, it appears that Griffith created the film to entrance a nation of white people into spreading more and more Klan hate, but Sadie has her own brand of mystical support to help stop it.

As social commentary, Ring Shout is pretty damn powerful. Rather than make light of the highly overt racism that was paraded around in the early to mid 20th century, the situations and stories help create a more rational picture of the mistrust and animosity that existed between the races.

As a horror story, the novella hits all the suspenseful highlights. There are mysterious monsters, Lovecraftian otherworldly overlords, and a whole lot of cultural lore and tradition. The monsters are made all that more terrifying by the ideologies they represent, and the “big bad” is about as terrifying as it gets.

I was often reminded of Matt Ruff’s Lovecraft Country as I was making my way through this one. While there is a lot of the same themes and tone, there are decided differences, in my mind, that make Ring Shout a more raw experience.

Whether you are a fan of horror or not, Ring Shout should definitely be on your reading list.

Tragic Fools (Children of Ankh #5) by Kim Cormack

Posted on January 4, 2021 by - Book Review

** This book was provided to me by NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review **

Tragic Fools (Children of Ankh Series Book 5) by [Kim Cormack]

One reading peeve of mine is being dropped into the middle of a multi-book series without having read the previous books. I tend to read a lot of series, so I approach each one with a “will this stand on its own” approach. Sadly, most of the time the answer is a resounding no.

Ms. Cormack, however, has taken a very might swing at it with Tragic Fools.

I was drawn to this book by a quick blurb describing paranormal abilities, immortals, and colorful mishaps: all things I thoroughly enjoy. What I did not expect was almost slapstick irreverence and enough bawdy ribaldry to make a vicar blush.

Granted, I do not (yet) have a full understanding of what the various Clans in the Children of Ankh’s endgame is supposed to be, but damn I enjoyed the widely mixed variety of characters and situations. Throughout the constant death, emerging powers and nigh constant demon slaying, the reader can really get a feel for this totally misfit band of Ankh immortals and how they approach the tasks they are given. Do they do things right and/or efficiently? I would guess never. Are they entertaining and enticing as hell? Absolutely.

Quite honestly, I cannot wait to read the other books in the series. The childish humor and amazingly well thought out paranormal aspects of the various situations that Ankh gets themselves into have made me a fan. Plus, I’m not hooked in on seeing if the newbies can get through Testing.