The Pale House Devil by Richard Kadrey
My Five Word TL:DR Review : Snappy, Lovecraftian Style Horror Story
Okay, I’m a maniac. I was so enamoured by the description and the cover for Richard Kadrey’s Pale House Devil that I hadn’t noticed it was a novella – and you may know that short stories and collections don’t really work for me. Well, on this occasion my atrocious grabby hands were on my side because I enjoyed this. Of course I wanted more, but this has the feel of a taster almost, like Kadrey is extending feelers to see how his duo of killers for hire are received. These two are great, and they picked up an addition along the way, a naive young woman who they automatically took to and wanted to help, which promises to give a really well rounded element to the story. Seriously, I want more. I hope that this is the start of a series.
Why this worked for me.
The writing is good. And, given the length here it’s very efficient. There’s no filler, just essentials, but the author manages with the minimum of fuss to breathe life into his characters.
Speaking of characters, I’ve described Ford and Neuland as hired killers. My first thoughts were that they’d be difficult to like, but, they have a code of sorts and don’t fulfil contracts where they smell a rat – in fact this is the reason they find themselves in a spot of bother as the story begins and find themselves shunned from their normal community. Now, Ford and Neuland are not your average pair. Ford is land of the living, Neuland is undead, a Marcheur (not a dodo!) The two find themselves moving further afield in the hope that things will calm down eventually and their little breach will blow over and this eventually takes them to the remote family mansion of Shepherd Mansfield who wants his ancestral mansion ridding of the monster currently residing there.
This particular ‘job’ is brought to them courtesy of Tilda, granddaughter to Mansfield, a young woman trapped by circumstances.
I won’t say too much more about the plot.
In other news – I really liked that the cosmic creature living in the Mansfield family mansion has its own POV. Strangely enough, Kadrey manages to make you feel sorry for this creature. It’s out of time and place and possibly would be a small fish in a big pond in it’s own world so landing in our strange world, where ‘soft’ humans make tasty snacks it suddenly finds itself a big fish instead – plus there’s something of a twist which makes you have sympathy for this eating machine.
Ultimately. Fast paced, darkly humorous and twisted. Fingers crossed that this little sampler expands into a huge tentacled beast.
I received a copy through Netgalley, courtesy of the publisher, for which my thanks. The above is my own opinion.
My rating 3.5 (rounded to 4) of 5 stars
Can’t Wait Wednesday : The Warm Hands of Ghosts by Katherine Arden
11 October 2023
Filed under Book Reviews
Tags: Can't Wait Wednesda, Katherine Arden, The Warm Hands of Ghosts, Wishful Endings
“Waiting On Wednesday” is a weekly meme that was originally created by Breaking the Spine. Unfortunately Breaking the Spine are no longer hosting so I’m now linking my posts up to Wishful Endings Can’t Wait Wednesday. Don’t forget to stop over, link up and check out what books everyone else is waiting for. If you want to take part, basically, every Wednesday, we highlight a book that we’re really looking forward to. This week my book is: The Warm Hands of Ghosts by Katherine Arden. I’m so excited for this book. Here’s the cover and description:
During the Great War, a combat nurse searches for her brother, believed dead in the trenches despite eerie signs that suggest otherwise, in this hauntingly beautiful historical novel with a speculative twist from the New York Times bestselling author of The Bear and the Nightingale
January 1918. Laura Iven was a revered field nurse until she was wounded and discharged from the medical corps, leaving behind a brother still fighting in Flanders. Now home in Halifax, Canada, she receives word of Freddie’s death in combat, along with his personal effects—but something doesn’t make sense. Determined to uncover the truth, Laura returns to Belgium as a volunteer at a private hospital. Soon after arriving, she hears whispers about haunted trenches, and a strange hotelier whose wine gives soldiers the gift of oblivion. Could Freddie have escaped the battlefield, only to fall prey to something—or someone—else?
November 1917. Freddie Iven awakens after an explosion to find himself trapped in an overturned pillbox with a wounded enemy soldier, a German by the name of Hans Winter. Against all odds, the two men form an alliance and succeed in clawing their way out. Unable to bear the thought of returning to the killing fields, especially on opposite sides, they take refuge with a mysterious man who seems to have the power to make the hellscape of the trenches disappear.
As shells rain down on Flanders, and ghosts move among those yet living, Laura’s and Freddie’s deepest traumas are reawakened. Now they must decide whether their world is worth salvaging—or better left behind entirely.
Expected publication date: February 2024
A Sword of Bronze and Ashes by Anna Smith Spark
10 October 2023
Filed under Book Reviews
Tags: A Sword of Bronze and Ashes, Anna Smith Spark
My Five Word TL:DR Review : A Refreshingly Unique Fantasy Voice
You know what, I’ve really been struggling with this review. When I was reading this book I didn’t totally gel with the story, BUT, I love Anna Smith Spark’s writing style. She has the most refreshingly unique voice that I can recall reading for a long time. It’s like a stream of consciousness that encompasses everything from the mundaneness of ordinary day life to the fantastical ghost children that worked and died in a former mine. I mean, literally, I love her prose and I can’t say enough good things about it. This is an author that should be soaring over the stars and moon, her writing makes my eyes fill with tears and even when I’m not exactly loving the story she still fills me with emotion. The pen is truly mightier than the sword.
Having said that I didn’t totally get along with the story, now that I’ve been wringing my hands, and over thinking things, as I generally tend to do, this has given me a new appreciation for the content. I think, on reflection, this is a story that I probably need to revisit – and this of course is the conundrum of the book reviewer – how often do we return to a good book? It’s criminal really. But, to get to the point, I have found myself a whole new appreciation for some of the concepts at play here. We have a female MC who totally steps out of the norm. A middle age farmer’s wife, and mother to three children. Gravity has started to take it’s toll on her body, she isn’t superfit or drop dead gorgeous, sometimes she breaks wind! Oh the horror. Anyway, Kandra has put her past behind her and this is something that will slowly be revealed during the course of the story, because Kandra has a totally unexpected past, especially given the way she now lives. She’s striven to forget the past and as you read you’ll discover why. Unfortunately, the past refuses to lay buried forever and soon enough evil seeks her out.
This story feels like it’s seeped in folklore, the type of story that would have been told around a campfire and passed down from one generation to the next growing in strength and becoming more fantastical as the years pass. There are great warriors who ride out to vanquish untold foes, armour shining, swords blazing, horses racing gloriously into the fray.
Speaking of beautiful prose, don’t let this lull you into the false notion that this story is all rainbows and unicorns because it is DARK this author is not known as the Queen of Grimdark without reason. And this is dark in a heart wrenching way – so be warned. No hand holding here.
I realise I haven’t really said very much about the story. To be fair I think readers need to discover this with fresh eyes and without preconceived ideas. All I can say, with this author in mind, is expect the unexpected.
In short, whilst this story maybe didn’t quite hypnotise me the way I initially wanted (and I will say that I had unreasonably high expectations given my love for Empires of Dust), it was fascinating nonetheless, beautifully written and quite frankly groundbreaking in the way it puts tropes on their heads and basically says ‘like it or do not’. An auto read author for me.
I received a copy through the publisher courtesy of Netgalley, for which my thanks. The above is my own opinion.
My rating 3.5 of 5 stars (rounded to 4 stars because the style is simply stunning, words that I want to gobble up)
However Many Must Die by Phil Williams
My Five Word TL:DR Review : Private Ryan meets Frodo Baggins
Okay – that’s not essentially correct because this has a WW1 feel rather than WW2 but even so it has those vibes. A small band of elite soldiers, moving deep into enemy territory on a covert mission in a world where monsters can be both human and other. This is an epic quest, the result of which could either save or break the world as our characters now know it. A small Band of Sisters trying to save the world from darkness.
I really enjoyed this. It’s a step away from the urban fantasy world of Ordshaw that Williams usually writes from but as with his other work the characters really shine through and are, for me, what makes this read so enjoyable. Military fantasy isn’t usually the type of book that I would naturally err towards so I was pleased at how well this worked for me.
The world – known as the Rocc. Currently experiencing global conflict primarily between the Drail Empire and the unified countries that came together to prevent the Drail’s quest for domination. Everything about this gave me WW1 vibes which in many respects made it easy to visualise – but, here there be giants and goblins, barkmen and Grekkels. So, tread carefully, Not only must our characters infiltrate way beyond the enemy lines but they also need to be ever vigilant – there are many strange critters in the wilderness.
We actually follow characters from both camps. On the one side we have the Blood Scouts and on the other the Dread Corps. From the Blood Scouts we follow Wild Wish as she rises through the ranks, her cheerful presence giving the rest of her companions hope. This is an engaging bunch of characters with a found family feel. From the Dread Corps we meet up with Maringdale, an officer of the Purification who has the ability to use magic in a way that allows her to be aware of a person’s intentions. The Purification is much as it sounds. I would call it military police but this particularly unit has significant power and is generally feared, nobody wants to be investigated by them. Maringdale is particularly ambitious. She wants to prove her worth and has visions of the ‘all male’ Dread Corps embracing her and her talents, to this end, and to prove herself she is determined to find the Blood Scouts.
This is an impressive story filled with creativity and heart. It does take a little while to get under your skin, there are a number of characters to become familiar with not to mention different races and the overall knowledge of the conflict, but once you get into the flow and find your favourites it takes on a new life of it’s own. The stakes are raised and the ending has a dramatic finale reminiscent of old war films with heros and sacrifices aplenty and a tense scene on a speeding train.
Overall, this is a complex, thrilling and emotional read and given the ending I can’t wait to see where the author takes us next. Not to be missed if you enjoy military style drama set in a fantasy world with plenty of emotion and strong characters. Reminiscent of old movies such as The Dirty Dozen, Kelly’s Heroes and Von Ryan’s Express mashed into a fantasy world where the wilderness is a very dangerous place – well, put bluntly, it would be folly to miss this series.
I received a copy courtesy of the author, for which my thanks. The above is my own opinion.
My rating 4.5 of 5 stars
Booking Ahead/Weekly Wrap Up
8 October 2023
Filed under Book Reviews
Tags: Booking Ahead, Caffeinated Reviewer, Weekly wrap up
I’m trying to get back into the habit of doing a round-up of the week just completed and also take a look at my plans for the forthcoming week. I rather got out of the habit of doing so but I would like to reinstate this type of post as I feel it keeps me on track. So, I’m linking up to The Sunday Post over at Kimberly’s Caffeinated Reviewer. Without further ado:
Books read this week:
This week I managed to complete and review Once a Monster by Robert Dinsdale which really worked it’s magic on me. I also completed one of three SPFBO semi finalists chosen by my partners in the competition – spoiler alert – I really enjoyed it and will be reviewing it soon. And I made a good start on my next book, The Pale House Devil by Richard Kadrey which is very promising.
Next Week’s Reads:
Complete Pale House Devil and then I have choices. Maybe a Haunting on the Hill by Elizabeth Hand – which I confess I am excited to pick up or maybe some creep factor provided by Edenville by Sam Rebelein.
Reviews Posted:
- Once a Monster by Robert Dinsdale
- All The Dangerous Things by Stacy Willingham
- However Many Must Die by Phil Williams
- A Sword of Bronze and Ashes by Anna Smith Spark
- 1 x SPFBO
Books and travelling with Lynn 