What Never Happened by Rachel Howzell Hall

Title: What Never Happened

Series: n/a
Author: Rachel Howzell Hall
Source/Format: NetGalley; eARC
More Details: Mystery; Thriller
Publisher/Publication Date: Thomas & Mercer; August 1, 2023

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Synopsis from Goodreads...

It’s murder in paradise as a woman uncovers a host of secrets off the rocky California coast in a gripping novel of suspense by New York Times bestselling author Rachel Howzell Hall.

Colette “Coco” Weber has relocated to her Catalina Island home, where, twenty years before, she was the sole survivor of a deadly home invasion. All Coco wants is to see her aunt Gwen, get as far away from her ex as possible, and get back to her craft—writing obituaries. Thankfully, her college best friend, Maddy, owns the local paper and has a job sure to keep Coco busy, considering the number of elderly folks who are dying on the island. But as Coco learns more about these deaths, she quickly realizes that the circumstances surrounding them are remarkably similar…and not natural. Then Coco receives a sinister threat in the mail: her own obituary. As Coco begins to draw connections between a serial killer’s crimes and her own family tragedy, she fears that the secrets on Catalina Island might be too deep to survive. Because whoever is watching her is hell-bent on finally putting her past to rest.

It’s been a while since I picked up a book that was purely a thriller without any fantasy elements, alternative worlds, or a historical setting (for context, the last mystery I read was a cozy called Four Parties and a Funeral). So I was very excited to be approved for an eARC of Rachel Howzell Hall’s latest thriller.

What Never Happened is set on the idyllic Catalina Island, off the coast of California, and begins in 2020—so right around the time of the beginning of lockdowns and social distancing. In the context of the story, however, the place lost some of its charm and took on an eerie atmosphere. It was repeated that it was safe and secure, but I often found myself questioning who exactly that applied to. After all, the location carried a lot of history for the main character, Colette “Coco” Weber. From the death of her family (mother, father, and brother), to friends who came with caveats, and even to the aunt (Gwen) who she had a complicated and sometimes tense relationship with. But, she had a need to get away from her troubles—job issues, an ex-husband. Put together, those aspects kick started the story, and I quickly got invested in learning more about characters and unraveling the mystery of what was happening to longtime residents of the island—and how that correlated with what happened twenty years prior to the beginning of the story.

The middle is where I had a little trouble with the story. Don’t get me wrong, there was a good pace and it was interesting enough to keep me turning the pages. However, I got a little frustrated by the way Colette kept almost denying the clues that she’d uncovered. I kept waiting and waiting for her to make the same connections I had already made, but it didn’t happen until very late in the story. However, the more I thought about it while writing this review, I realized there was her response to fear and her tendency to run from her problems rather than confront them. When I factored that in I was willing to overlook some of my frustration—personal taste and whatnot—because the bone chilling twists at the end were very good ones. Once the action got going it kept going, and the penultimate resolution brought all the plotlines together in a way that turned out to be incredibly satisfying to read.

So, at the end of the day, What Never Happened was a good thriller. I know Hall has other books, and I would be interested in potentially checking those out too.

 

About the author....

RACHEL HOWZELL HALL l is the critically acclaimed author and Los Angeles Times Book Prize finalist for And Now She’s Gone, which was also nominated for the Lefty-, Barry-, Shamus- and Anthony Awards and the Audible Originals bestseller How It Ends. A New York Times bestselling author of The Good Sister with James Patterson, Rachel is an Anthony-, International Thriller Writers- and Lefty Award nominee and the author of They All Fall Down, Land of Shadows, Skies of Ash, Trail of Echoes and City of Saviors in the Detective Elouise Norton series. Her next thriller, These Toxic Things, out in September 2021, recently received a starred review from Publishers Weekly, calling the novel ‘cleverly-plotted’ and ‘a refreshing take on the serial killer theme.’ Rachel is a former member of the board of directors for Mystery Writers of America and has been a featured writer on NPR’s acclaimed Crime in the City series and the National Endowment for the Arts weekly podcast; she has also served as a mentor in Pitch Wars and the Association of Writers Programs. Rachel lives in Los Angeles with her husband and daughter. For more information, visit www.rachelhowzell.com

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Disclaimer: this copy of the book was provided by the publisher (Thomas & Mercer) via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review, thank you! 

Silver Nitrate by Silvia Moreno-Garcia

Title: Silver Nitrate
Series: n/a
Author: Silvia Moreno-Garcia
Source/Format: NetGalley; eARC
More Details: Fantasy; Historical Fiction; Mystery
Publisher/Publication Date: Del Rey; July 18, 2023

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Synopsis from Goodreads...

From the New York Times bestselling author of The Daughter of Doctor Moreau and Mexican Gothic comes a fabulous meld of Mexican horror movies and Nazi occultism: a dark thriller about the curse that haunts a legendary lost film--and awakens one woman's hidden powers.

Montserrat has always been overlooked. She’s a talented sound editor, but she’s left out of the boys’ club running the film industry in ’90s Mexico City. And she’s all but invisible to her best friend, Tristán, a charming if faded soap opera star, though she’s been in love with him since childhood. Then Tristán discovers his new neighbor is the cult horror director Abel Urueta, and the legendary auteur claims he can change their lives—even if his tale of a Nazi occultist imbuing magic into highly volatile silver nitrate stock sounds like sheer fantasy. The magic film was never finished, which is why, Urueta swears, his career vanished overnight. He is cursed. Now the director wants Montserrat and Tristán to help him shoot the missing scene and lift the curse . . . but Montserrat soon notices a dark presence following her, and Tristán begins seeing the ghost of his ex-girlfriend. As they work together to unravel the mystery of the film and the obscure occultist who once roamed their city, Montserrat and Tristán may find that sorcerers and magic are not only the stuff of movies.

Silvia Moreno-Garcia is a favorite author over here on my end of Our Thoughts Precisely. I’ve read a handful of her books: Gods of Jade and Shadow, Mexican Gothic, Velvet Was the Night, The Daughter of Doctor Moreau, and The Return of the Sorceress. Earlier this year, I was lucky enough to nab an eARC of her latest novel from NetGalley. I couldn’t read it right away, because there were other ARCs that were ahead of it. However, once it was June, it was the first one on my list.

Silver Nitrate promised to be thrilling and dark, and full of curses and magic. What I got was an incredibly immersive story that was exactly the right amount of horror, fantasy, and historical fiction. Set in Mexico City in the 90s, it had a focus on films and occultism. There were pop culture references, but there was a particular emphasis on the work of a fictional director named Abel Urueta and one of his movies. However, the aforementioned film wasn’t just any. It was incomplete, and it came with its own particularly troubled infamy—and a dangerous mystery that spanned decades.

I liked how Moreno-Garcia approached this aspect of the story: the historical details and how they influenced the fantasy ones. The occultism was an important part of the overall magic, but that was combined with commentary about prejudice and the cherry-picking—the twisting and claiming—of knowledge and traditions from other people. Creating an ensemble of bone-chilling antagonists that were menacing shadows across much of the story, producing some of the eeriest moments of Silver Nitrate.

This book also had wonderfully complicated characters, but that’s something that—after reading now six novels—I know this author does well (and it’s something I look forward to). The POVs consisted of Tristán, a soap opera star who sought an opportunity to revive his career, and Montserrat, a sound editor frustrated with the film industry. There were decades of history between the two, spanning back to their childhood. They knew each other and their respective habits. Their relationship—though complicated and not without its hiccups—felt organic and real, and it was something I truly loved about this book.

At the end of the day, Silver Nitrate is another exceptional novel from Silvia Moreno-Garcia. Among the ones I’ve read, it’s one of my top-favorites to date.

 

About the author....

Silvia Moreno-Garcia is the author of several novels, including Mexican Gothic, Gods of Jade and Shadow and The Daughter of Doctor Moreau. She has also edited a number of anthologies, including the World Fantasy Award-winning She Walks in Shadows (a.k.a. Cthulhu's Daughters). Mexican by birth, Canadian by inclination.

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Disclaimer: this copy of the book was provided by the publisher (Del Rey) via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review, thank you! 

The Book of Gems by Fran Wilde

Title: The Book of Gems

Series: Gemworld #3
Author: Fran Wilde
Source/Format: NetGalley; eARC
More Details: Fantasy; Novella
Publisher/Publication Date: Tor.com; June 20, 2023

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Synopsis from Goodreads...

Some truths are shatterproof...

It’s been centuries since the Jeweled Valley and its magical gems were destroyed. In the republics that rose from its ashes, scientists craft synthetic jewels to heat homes, power gadgetry, and wage war. Dr. Devina Brunai is one of these scientists. She also is the only person who believes true gems still exist. The recent unearthing of the Palace of Gems gives her the perfect opportunity to find them and prove her naysayers wrong. Her chance is snatched away at the last moment when her mentor steals her research and wins the trip for himself. Soon, his messages from the field transform into bizarre ramblings about a book, a Prince, and an enemy borne of the dark. Now Dev must enter the Valley, find her mentor, and save her research before they, like gems, become relics of a time long forgotten.

I’m not familiar with the other two books in this series, but I was instantly intrigued by the premise of Fran Wilde’s The Book of Gems.

The Book of Gems was a story about greed, theft, and academic rivalry intertwined with the active history of the “Jeweled Valley.” This was a solid adventure story with plenty of cool world building to keep me interested from the first page to the last. I liked how the gem-based magic system was approached as a science and an avenue of study (a source of relics), particularly from the perspective of Devina (Dev) Brunai. She was a character who reminded me of Emily Wilde from Emily Wilde’s Encyclopaedia of Faeries, in that Dev was an academic who struggled to have her skill and work recognized. Like Emily, there was an overall pervading feeling of being stifled. And I liked the way the author portrayed Dev’s frustration as well as her conflicted feelings: wanting to find her mentor but also wanting retribution and to reclaim her stolen research.

There was much more to the story than that, and I enjoyed how the different clues came together in a way that offered a satisfying conclusion.

Overall, The Book of Gems was a quick read, but I had a lot of fun with this novella.

About the author....

Fran Wilde writes award-winning speculative fiction and fantasy. She can also tie a number of sailing knots, set gemstones, and program digital minions. She reads too much and is a friend of the Oxford comma. Her short stories appear in Asimov's, Beneath Ceaseless Skies, Shimmer, Uncanny, and Tor.com. Fran's debut novel, Updraft, was nominated for a 2015 Nebula Award, won the 2015 Andre Norton Award for Best Young Adult SFF and the 2016 Compton Crook award for Best First Novel, and was nominated for a 2016 Dragon Award for Best Young Adult Science Fiction or Fantasy.

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Disclaimer: this copy of the book was provided by the publisher (Tor.com) via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review, thank you! 

The Thorns Remain by J.J.A. Harwood

Title: The Thorns Remain

Series: n/a
Author: J.J.A. Harwood
Source/Format: NetGalley; eARC
More Details: Historical Fantasy
Publisher/Publication Date: Harper360 & Magpie; May 2, 2023

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Synopsis from Goodreads...

A dance with the fae will change everything

1919. In a highland village forgotten by the world, harvest season is over and the young who remain after war and flu have ravaged the village will soon head south to make something of themselves. Moira Jean and her friends head to the forest for a last night of laughter before parting ways. Moira Jean is being left behind. She had plans to leave once – but her lover died in France and with him, her future. The friends light a fire, sing and dance. But with every twirl about the flames, strange new dancers thread between them, music streaming from the trees. The fae are here. Suddenly Moira Jean finds herself all alone, her friends spirited away. The iron medal of her lost love, pinned to her dress, protected her from magic. For the Fae feel forgotten too. Lead by the darkly handsome Lord of the Fae, they are out to make themselves known once more. Moira Jean must enter into a bargain with the Lord to save her friends – and fast, for the longer one spends with the Fae, the less like themselves they are upon return. If Moira Jean cannot save her friends before Beltine, they will be lost forever…

Completely bewitching, threaded with Highland charm and sparkling with dark romance, this is a fairytale that will carry you away.

I was looking for more stories in the same vein as A River Enchanted and The Fire Endless by Rebecca Ross, which happened to be two of my favorite books from 2022 and all-around an excellent duology full of magic and folklore. So I was intrigued by the way The Thorns Remain was described by its synopsis.

This book wasn’t exactly what I was looking to read at the time, and I found the story to just be fine. And though the synopsis claims that it’s “sparkling with dark romance,” it didn’t really feel very romantic, even as the story was heading toward its conclusion. Instead, Moira Jean’s story was more about manipulation, grief, and co-dependency. Where even the fantasy/folklore aspects kind of served the purpose of highlighting the way her life had stopped moving after a death left her grief stricken and prone to lamenting wistfully for the past. In that regard, the story did work. And Harwood really delved into the themes by presenting a situation where being surrounded by the familiar was almost like a curse in itself. And the relationships Moira Jean still had left (especially with her neighbors), was more often than not marred by a feeling of transaction—particularly with the endless amounts of monotonous and increasingly difficult work being fostered on her. It wasn’t healthy and carried its own bitter cost. And at several points though, I wanted Moira Jean to be angrier for herself, and it took a long time for her to finally admit what she really wanted.

Regarding The Thorns Remain having a romantic subplot—as hinted about in its synopsis—it didn’t really work for me. However, if you look at the story instead as a melancholic character study, it can be appreciated for its exploration of toxic relationships.

About the author....

JJA Harwood is an author, editor and blogger. She grew up in Norfolk, read History at the University of Warwick and eventually found her way to London, which is still something of a shock for somebody used to so many fields. When not writing, she can be found learning languages, cooking with more enthusiasm than skill, wandering off into clearly haunted houses and making friends with stray cats. THE SHADOW IN THE GLASS is her debut novel.

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Disclaimer: this copy of the book was provided by the publisher (Harper360 & Magpie) via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review, thank you! 

Breakup from Hell by Ann Dávila Cardinal

Title: Breakup from Hell

Series: n/a
Author: Ann Dávila Cardinal
Source/Format: NetGalley; eARC
More Details: Young Adult; Contemporary Fantasy
Publisher/Publication Date: Harperteen; January 3, 2023

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Synopsis from Goodreads...

Miguela Angeles is tired. Tired of her abuela keeping secrets, especially about her heritage. Tired of her small Vermont town and hanging out at the same places with the same friends she’s known forever. So when another boring Sunday trip to church turns into a run-in with Sam, a mysterious hottie in town on vacation, Mica seizes the opportunity to get closer to him. It’s not long before she is under Sam’s spell and doing things she’s never done before, like winning all her martial arts sparring matches—and lying to her favorite people. The more time Mica spends with Sam, the more weird things start to happen, too. Like terrifying-visions-of-the-world-ending weird. Mica’s gut instincts keep telling her something is off, yet Sam is the most exciting guy she’s ever met. But when Mica discovers his family’s roots, she realizes that instead of being in the typical high school relationship, she’s living in a horror novel. She has to leave Sam, but will ending their relationship also bring an end to everything she knows and everyone she loves? Clever, hilarious, and steeped in supernatural suspense, Breakup From Hell will keep you hooked until the last page.

It’s been a while since I picked up a YA novel, but I was interested in Ann Davila Cardinal’s Breakup from Hell.

The synopsis was a hook, but, once I started reading it, I instantly liked Miguela (Mica) Angeles’s characterization. She loved her grandmother and her group of friends, even when she was at odds with them. But, it was clear as day to me that she also felt stifled by what she viewed as a monotonous life—same friends, same town, same everything. She basically wished for change, and boy did she get it in what was probably the worst way.

There was a substantial amount of religious themes present throughout Breakup from Hell. For example, the characters quoted scripture and Mica attended a religious school. However, when angels, saints, demons, and hell are involved, I pretty much expect it.

The quick pace of the story allowed for the paranormal and horror aspects to show up on page fairly early, and the events unfolded one after another. It was basically instantaneous—and it wasn’t much of a mystery for me either—because the synopsis is pretty clear as to what the story was about. I didn’t mind the predictability though, because I liked the explanation the author provided for why it was happening. And, ultimately, I was very entertained by Breakup from Hell.

About the author....

Ann is a novelist and Director of Recruitment for Vermont College of Fine Arts (VCFA). She has a B.A. in Latino Studies from Norwich University, an M.A. in sociology from UI&U and an MFA in Writing from VCFA. She also helped create VCFA’s winter Writing residency in Puerto Rico. Ann’s first novel, Sister Chicas was released from New American Library in 2006. Her next novel, a horror YA work titled Five Midnights, was released by Tor Teen on June 4, 2019. Her stories have appeared in several anthologies, including A Cup of Comfort for Mothers and Sons (2005) and Women Writing the Weird (2012) and she contributed to the Encyclopedia Latina: History, Culture, And Society in the United States edited by Ilan Stavans. Her essays have appeared in American Scholar, Vermont Woman, AARP, and Latina Magazines. Ann lives in Vermont, needle-felts tiny reading creatures, and cycles four seasons a year.

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Disclaimer: this copy of the book was provided by the publisher (Harperteen) via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review, thank you! 

A Fire Endless by Rebecca Ross

Title: A Fire Endless

Series: Elements of Cadence #2
Author: Rebecca Ross
Source/Format: NetGalley; eARC
More Details: Fantasy
Publisher/Publication Date: Harper Voyager; December 6, 2022

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Synopsis from Goodreads...

In the stunning conclusion to the Elements of Cadence duology, A Fire Endless finds the delicate balance between the human and faerie realm threatened by Bane, the spirit of the North Wind, whose defeat can only come through fire, song, and heart-rending sacrifice.

East and West. Humans and Spirits. Breccans and Tamerlaines. The Isle of Cadence has always held itself and its residents in a tenuous balance. But now Bane, the spirit of the North Wind, has pushed everyone and everything in his path off-kilter in a bid to claim dominion over all. In the West, Adaira struggles to adjust to the more brutal, bitter ways of life among the Breccans. Striving to find her place in the clan, she swiftly realizes that it just might be the last role she desires to hold. And while magic blooms effortlessly for the Breccans in the west, the spirits continue to suffer beneath Bane's harsh power, felt in every gust of wind. In the East, Jack is adrift without Adaira until he sings to the ember-weak fire spirits, acquiring a dangerous mission he never expected. One that is destined to lead him westward. Likewise, Torin and Sidra are consumed by a new mystery as sickness spreads first amongst the crops, and then to the people of the Tamerlaine clan. While Sidra desperately searches for a cure, Torin dares to strike a bargain with the spirits--a precarious folly anytime, but especially now as the days grow darker. With the island falling further out of balance, humans and spirits alike will need to join together to face Bane, and Jack's gift with the harp will be called upon once more. Yet no one can challenge the North Wind without paying a terrible price, and the sacrifice required this time may be more than Jack, Adaira, Torin, and Sidra can bear to pay.

**Note: There will be minor spoilers for A River Enchanted.**

I was thoroughly charmed by A River Enchanted, which was released early in 2022. And while it ended at a good place—with the main mystery and conflict solved, and resolutions offered for the emotional arcs—it was still open-ended, which left plenty of avenues the story could take. So, I was very excited to get an ARC of A Fire Endless, the final book in the Elements of Cadence duology. And I have to admit, it was so much fun being back in this world with Jack, Adaira (Cora), Sidra, Torin, and a host of other characters.

This duology has always had a slower pace, but the world was filled with detail. It was the kind of story that I wanted to linger with a little longer, to make sure I didn’t miss anything.

The island of Cadence was still swimming in magic and conflict—both between the limitations imposed by the clan line, the inter-clan relations, as well as trouble with the spirits. Cadence was out of balance, which was a reoccurring theme that finally got its due page time.

With the big reveal at the end of A River Enchanted—with Adaira’s true parentage and departure from the east—as well as events early in A Fire Endless, the main cast was scattered. They had such a good dynamic that I was sad to see it happen, but it also demonstrated the emotional toll left by the wake of what had already happened and what was presently occurring. The stakes were high in this race against time, and their individual ends of the story were still connected by the continued conflict. And with the latest threat—a strange blight with no treatment, sickening the land and people both—it was work together or fall, because something had to change (the proverbial straw that broke the camel’s back had arrived).

I was impressed by the way Ross handled all the plot points. It was a complicated story, but all of it came together at the end. So, A Fire Endless was an exciting read and a satisfying conclusion to this duology.

About the author....

Rebecca Ross writes fantasy novels for teens and adults. She lives in the Appalachian foothills of Northeast Georgia with her husband, their lively Australian Shepherd, and an endless pile of books. THE QUEEN'S RISING, THE QUEEN'S RESISTANCE, SISTERS OF SWORD & SONG, and DREAMS LIE BENEATH are her titles for young adult readers. A RIVER ENCHANTED is her adult fantasy debut, publishing February 15, 2022 with a sequel to follow. When not writing, she can be found reading or in her garden, where she grows wildflowers and story ideas. Find her on Instagram @beccajross or online at www.rebeccarossauthor.com.

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Disclaimer: this copy of the book was provided by the publisher (Harper Voyager) via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review, thank you! 

Four Parties and a Funeral by Maria DiRico

Title: Four Parties and a Funeral

Series: Catering Hall Mystery #4
Author: Maria DiRico
Source/Format: NetGalley; eARC
More Details: Cozy Mystery
Publisher/Publication Date: Kensington; March 28, 2023

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Synopsis from Goodreads...

Agatha Award-winning author Maria DiRico returns with the fourth book in the Catering Hall Mystery Series, starring Mia Carina who is coming to grips with being back in Astoria, Queens, and running her Italian-American family's catering hall, Belle View Banquet Manor but a TV casting call is about to put murder in the spotlight . . .

The June events schedule at Belle View is busting out all over--proms, graduations, and of course, weddings. There are unexpected bookings too, including a casting call for the pilot of Dons of Ditmars Boulevard. But soon, Mia's fears about the cheesy reality show are confirmed . . .Belle View quickly becomes the site of a sea of wanna-be goombahs and phony girlfriends, and some of Mia's friends insist on getting in on the action. The production company owner and his executive producer ex-wife--who's also very minor British royalty--have assembled a motley crew that does as much infighting and backstabbing as the on-screen "talent." Even so, it's a shock when a dead body is found in the pool house of a local mansion rented by the show . . .Murder might boost the ratings. But Mia intends to make sure the killer gets jail time, not airtime . . .

One of the cozy mysteries I was anticipating this year was Maria DiRico’s Four Parties and a Funeral. It’s the follow-up to It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like Murder, which was one of my favorite reads of 2021. That book…I adored the characters, the mystery was engrossing, and, generally, I had a great time with it. And, so far, its sequel is one of my favorite reads of 2023.

Four Parties and a Funeral picks up after the events of It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like Murder. The holidays are over, it’s June, and the familiar cast and crew of Belle View (a catering hall)—Mia, Shane, Ravello, Cammie, and others—are busy. However, they quickly get embroiled in the over-the-top hijinks of reality show filming with a side of murder. I liked the way the story gradually built up to the mystery as well as the actual introduction of the crime. It was seamless. By then, there were a handful of characters who had the potential to be a suspect, because the situation was, for the most part, tense and competitive—especially between the cast of the show as well as the production team behind the camera. Added to all of that, the book also delved into the various relationships between the usual cast, giving each one some time to develop further. And I was pleased by how those aspects were sprinkled throughout the story, heightening the emotional stakes alongside the present danger.

Maria DiRico really delivered with another witty and entertaining story—full of the same charm, family drama, and sleuthing as its predecessor.

About the author....

Maria DiRico (the pen name of award-winning author Ellen Byron) was born in Queens, New York, and raised in Queens and Westchester County. She is first-generation Italian American on her mother’s side. On her father’s side, her grandfather was a low-level Jewish mobster who disappeared in 1933 under mysterious circumstances. While growing up in Queens, Maria/Ellen's cousins ran the Astoria Manor and Grand Bay Marina catering halls.

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Disclaimer: this copy of the book was provided by the publisher (Kensington) via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review, thank you! 

Clock Striker Volume 1 by Issaka Galadima and Frederick L. Jones

Title: Clock Striker

Series: n/a
Author & Illustrator: Issaka Galadima; Frederick L. Jones 
Source/Format: NetGalley; eARC
More Details: Manga; Fantasy
Publisher/Publication Date: Rockport Publishers/ Quarto Publishing; February 7, 2023

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Synopsis from Goodreads...

Cast dreams of being a SMITH, and though she’s rather handy with her tools, no one in her small town ever realizes their dreams. Besides, these legendary warrior engineers haven’t been seen in years and were never known for having female members. Fortunately, Cast meets one surviving member named Ms. Philomena Clock, who agrees to take her on as her apprentice, or striker. Now Cast is thrust into one deadly adventure after another! From cybernetic desperadoes to technology thieves and more, Cast has to use her mind and her remodeled robotics-lab prosthetic hand, which offers unfathomable offensive power in the form of scientific experiments. Need lightning? Cast can generate it from her hand! Cast’s mentor seeks to uncover an ominous mystery that explains what happened to the SMITHS and shines a light on a hidden power that may be within Cast herself. Can Cast become a new member of the SMITHS? More importantly, can Cast survive the process to become a SMITH? 

My second read of the year was Issaka Galadima and Frederick L. Jones’ Clock Striker. I saw this manga on Netgalley, and I was instantly intrigued by it.

The opening felt very on-brand for the genre, but I also enjoyed the backstory that was provided in the subsequent chapters afterwards. It was appropriately called the “Origin Arc.” And it clearly illustrated the type of character Cast was, as well as serving as a foundation for what led her to the situation in the first chapter. The characters—Cast, her brother, Fender, their mother, and people from their community—were easily endearing.

The following arc felt like another beginning, which turned out just as engrossing as the first. I easily got invested in the story, particularly with the mystery surrounding the current state of the Smiths.

Clock Striker also felt timely, because of the issues and themes. Even though it was under fantastical circumstances—with technology that on one hand was seemingly based on science and engineering, but it also behaved like magic—there was a frank realness to the story. This was particularly illustrated through the first arc of volume one, which hinted toward a link between the Smiths and the decline of a certain industry. The results were a struggling town and crooks targeting the vulnerable.

The visual storytelling was excellent, and I liked the character designs. There was also plenty of action mixed in with a few lighter scenes. Ultimately, however, it ends on a cliffhanger. That being said, I still had a lot of fun reading Clock Striker. 

Disclaimer: this copy of the book was provided by the publisher (Rockport Publishers/ Quarto Publishing) via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review, thank you! 

Emily Wilde's Encyclopaedia of Faeries by Heather Fawcett

Title: Emily Wilde's Encyclopaedia of Faeries

Series: Emily Wilde #1
Author: Heather Fawcett
Source/Format: NetGalley; eARC
More Details: Historical Fantasy; Romance
Publisher/Publication Date: Del Rey Books; January 10, 2023

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Synopsis from Goodreads...

A curmudgeonly professor journeys to a small town in the far north to study faerie folklore and discovers dark fae magic, friendship, and love, in this heartwarming and enchanting fantasy.

Cambridge professor Emily Wilde is good at many things: She is the foremost expert on the study of faeries. She is a genius scholar and a meticulous researcher who is writing the world's first encyclopaedia of faerie lore. But Emily Wilde is not good at people. She could never make small talk at a party--or even get invited to one. And she prefers the company of her books, her dog, Shadow, and the Fair Folk to other people. So when she arrives in the hardscrabble village of Hrafnsvik, Emily has no intention of befriending the gruff townsfolk. Nor does she care to spend time with another new arrival: her dashing and insufferably handsome academic rival Wendell Bambleby, who manages to charm the townsfolk, get in the middle of Emily's research, and utterly confound and frustrate her. But as Emily gets closer and closer to uncovering the secrets of the Hidden Ones--the most elusive of all faeries--lurking in the shadowy forest outside the town, she also finds herself on the trail of another mystery: Who is Wendell Bambleby, and what does he really want? To find the answer, she'll have to unlock the greatest mystery of all--her own heart.

One of my most anticipated releases of January 2023 was Heather Fawcett’s Emily Wilde’s Encyclopaedia of Faeries. I was instantly intrigued by the synopsis and couldn’t wait to start reading it.

This story was delightful and written as if recounted in the titular character’s journal. It was a little like the Veronica Speedwell books crossed with The Invisible Library series. But, instead of a mystery or crime, there was a focus on faeries, folklore, and research. After all, the point of the story was Emily Wilde’s attempt to gather more material for her encyclopedia. Set during winter and its approach, and focused on the area in and around a village called Hrafnsvik.

I enjoyed the academic aspect about Emily Wilde’s Encyclopaedia of Faeries. There was a lot of effort put in to building the field the characters worked within, and the many footnotes added an extra layer of detail.

Emily Wilde was a thorny and analytical character who was serious about her research, which offset Wendell Brambleby’s eccentric (and suspicious) charms and penchant for avoiding actual work. For much of the story, Wendell is seen from Emily’s perspective, and, while she might be against the idea of him interrupting her trip and thus her research, the two had an undeniable chemistry. They were two characters who understood each other, and their verbal sparring (and Emily’s sometimes dry observations and methods of seeking information) ensured there was never a dull moment. It was so entertaining, and I loved every second of it.

As for the romance, it was on the lighter side. It definitely felt like the beginning of something.

Emily Wilde’s Encyclopaedia of Faeries is a new favorite.

About the author....

Heather Fawcett is a Canadian author of books for adults, kids, and teens, including the Even the Darkest Stars series, Ember and the Ice Dragons, The Language of Ghosts, Emily Wilde’s Encyclopaedia of Faeries, and more. Her books have been translated into more than ten languages and somehow all include dragons in one form or another. She has a Master’s degree in English Literature and a Bachelor’s in Archaeology. She lives on Vancouver Island.

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Disclaimer: this copy of the book was provided by the publisher (Del Rey Books) via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review, thank you! 

The Keeper's Six by Kate Elliott

Title: The Keepers Six

Series: n/a
Author: Kate Elliott
Source/Format: NetGalley; eARC
More Details: Fantasy
Publisher/Publication Date: Tor.com; January 17, 2023

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Synopsis from Goodreads...

There are terrors that dwell in the space between worlds.

It’s been a year since Esther set foot in the Beyond, the alien landscape stretching between worlds, crossing boundaries of space and time. She and her magical travelling party, her Hex, haven’t spoken since the Concilium banned them from the Beyond. But when she wakes in the middle of the night to her son’s cry for help, the members of her Hex are the only ones she can trust to help her bring him back from wherever he has been taken. Esther will have to risk everything to find him. Undercover and hidden from the Concilium, she and her Hex will be tested by dragon lords, a darkness so dense it can suffocate, and the bones of an old crime come back to haunt her.

I was intrigued by the summary for The Keeper’s Six by Kate Elliott, particularly Esther Greene’s quest to save her abducted son. Overall, I liked the story. The writing had a certain flow to it, which made reading the novella easy. The story just wasn’t what I thought it was going to be.

The Keeper’s Six had a great start though. I liked that the story featured a Hex—essentially a motley crew—who had gone their separate ways, and were reunited. And the opening chapters had all the tension I expected as the scenario unfolded. Esther’s anxious inner-monologue and attempts to view the situation in an analytical light—to find as many clues as possible—were fantastic. However, an early reveal sort of removed some of that nail-biting tension from the narrative. And the story took a turn that I was, ultimately, lukewarm toward in the end.

The world building and setting were by far one of my favorite aspects about The Keeper’s Six. It was complicated, and it had all the hallmarks of a sprawling portal fantasy world. The particular rules about the Beyond provided a rigid structure the characters were knowledgeable about and followed to the best of their ability, while also supplying enough environmental obstacles and some not-so-friendly dangers to fulfil the promise of action made by the summary. It was the kind of setting I want to linger with, to catch all the details it had to offer. It was so fascinating, and by the end I wanted more time with it, since the story was bursting with references to prior incidents that had occurred there.

Overall, I liked the Keeper’s Six.

About the author....

As a child in rural Oregon, Kate Elliott made up stories because she longed to escape to a world of lurid adventure fiction. She now writes fantasy, steampunk, and science fiction, often with a romantic edge. She currently lives in Hawaii, where she paddles outrigger canoes and spoils her schnauzer.

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Disclaimer: this copy of the book was provided by the publisher (Tor.com) via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review, thank you!