Review: She who became the Sun
The style of how Parker-Chan writes all of this is vivid, immersive and striking. She uses a variety of imagery and metaphors that describe individuals, gestures, actions and maneuvers that bring the writing to life. Everywhere, the text is rich in detail.
Book Review: Vampires of El Norte
I enjoyed reading Vampires of El Norte. The young lovers’ misunderstandings feel natural, not artificially belabored, and the problems they’re dealing with, of trying to negotiate societal and familial expectations and demands to find some degrees of choice, are depicted with understanding, compassion, and warmth. The monsters are scary, the action scenes are exciting, the love story is sweet, and I found the conclusion very satisfying.
Book Review: Creatures of Passage by Morowa Yejidé
From its opening pages, the surreal atmosphere of Morowa Yejidé’s exceptional, otherworldly novel Creatures of Passage envelops readers in a hazy pairing of familiarity and disorientation.
Book Review: Witchmark, by C.L. Polk
In C.L. Polk’s Witchmark, an Edwardian world-next-door fantasy universe is the setting for the story of an on-the-run doctor scion from a noble family, hiding his magical gifts, and getting wrapped firmly in the coils of intrigue, politics and romance. Miles Singer is a Doctor working in an out of the way hospital, hiding in an unlikely place to run away from his past. A veteran himself, his medical skills gained during his time in a recent war now concluding have transferred to a post-war career helping fellow veterans. His past, however, is why he is working in an impoverished hospital for low wages, living hand-to-mouth in a Tenderloin, and scratching out a living.
Month of Joy: The Order of the Air by Trish Matson
Last month, I reread the five existing books of The Order of the Air series by Melissa Scott and Jo Graham. These are some of my favorite comfort reads. Parts of these period adventure-fantasies are very cozy, but aside from the wonderful characters’ mutual support, love, and humor, there are also some tense and exciting action sequences, with almost ordinary people teaming up to resist evil and try to make the world better.
Book Review: The Dark Days Club by Alison Goodman
If you ever thought Jane Austen needed more demon hunting, The Dark Days Club by Alison Goodman is the book for you. In Regency London, Lady Helen Wrexhall is preparing for her presentation to the queen. Her parents died under mysterious circumstances no one talks about except to mention the shame Lady Helen’s mother brought to the family. This means that Lady Helen must be a paragon in order to avoid the stain of such an association and marry well. Which makes it very inconvenient when she starts to manifest unusual abilities. Having grown up being able to read the tiniest signs of emotion in people’s faces, she starts to find herself filled with a restless energy. When one of her family’s housemaids goes missing, Lady Helen sets out to investigate. She finds herself drawn into a shadowy side of the world she never knew existed and to the Earl of Carleston. Through him she learns the truth of her abilities and must choose between her duty to her country and her desire to lead a normal life.
