Under the Naga Tail by Mae Bunseng Taing and James Taing; The God of Naziland The Fuhrer's Master Book One by Elyse Hoffman

 

Under the Naga Tail by Mae Bunseng Taing and James Taing 

Under the Naga Tail is a poignant and stirring account of Mae Bunseng Taing’s childhood and young adulthood in Cambodia during the reign of the Khmer Rouge.

The Khmer Rouge was a Communist movement led by Pol Pot that won the Cambodian Civil War, seized the capital of Phnom Penh and overthrew the Khmer Republic in 1975. Their reign was autocratic, totalitarian, and repressive. Many deaths happened as a result of social engineering projects, widespread famine from failed collectivization and self-sufficiency programs, the murder of political opponents, racist emphasis to maintain Cambodian national superiority, and genocide of Cambodian minorities. It ended when Vietnamese forces invaded Cambodia in December 1978 and Pol Pot was toppled the following month. 

Taing recalls his youth as a time of being sheltered and ignorant from the changes soon to occur. He writes about being amazed about the Apollo 11 Moon Landing despite school curriculum describing the United States as an enemy. His family store often welcomed soldiers as customers, and the occasional straggler from military desertion. Sometimes adults whispered about battles and revolutions in the capital but as a child, he paid it no mind.

The sad part was Taing recalls that the Khmer Rouge revolution was something that the people of his village were hoping for. Hindsight would tell them otherwise but at the time, they didn't know that. They thought that finally the people would have a voice in their government, the rural villages would be represented, and the old structure would fall. 

It's a terrifying echo as the Taing Family welcome the military with a parade of heroes only to have those same soldiers order them to leave their homes in a forced evacuation.They once looked upon the Khmer Rouge as freedom fighters against the monarchy that once held power over them. Instead, they exchanged one group of dictators for another.

Among the more traumatic moments are the times in which the forced evacuations resulted in separations from family members by death, detainment, or just simply trailing behind and losing sight of each other. Taing recalls one woman weeping when she couldn't find her son who was with her in line but then disappeared. Taing heard stories about a Chinese couple taking in a Cambodian child but were not verified. 

A few times Taing himself was separated from siblings, nieces, and nephews, and his father. He wouldn't reunite with many of them until years later and his strong loving father was reduced to a broken old man.

There are many pages and chapters which focus on the hard physical labor that Taing and his family endured in the collective farms. It was excruciating, painful, back breaking labor that served no real purpose except as a means of torture. They were also subjected to physical, mental, and sexual torture and abuse by soldiers and a regime that considered them as less than human. It was a traumatic time that left scars on Taing's mind, body, and heart for decades.

The main theme of the book is endurance. Taing’s endurance through such adversity can be seen throughout the book especially when he escapes through the jungle rather than be tortured and abused any longer. He spent a lot of time living off the land, using landmarks to figure out his location, and brokering alliances with other escapees who would rather die quickly in the jungle than slowly under captivity.

 Even after the Khmer Rouge was defeated, he and other refugees faced suspicion, prejudice, and poverty while in exile in other countries like Thailand. In some ways their situation wasn't too different except they weren't living under a dictatorship. That strength and endurance carried Taing and his family from Cambodia, to Thailand, to the United States where they settled into a new life.

Taing eventually settled in Connecticut where he ran a house painting business for over 30 years, married, and fathered children of his own. He eventually reunited with his father, siblings, and many members of his extended family. His son, James, inspired by his father's past, served as co-author of this book.

This book is a testament to Taing's strength and endurance surviving under a dictatorship, escaping it, and building a new life in another country. 

The God of Naziland The Fuhrer's Master Book One by Elyse Hoffman 

This is going to be a hard book to review.

In Elyse Hoffman’s Aliza in Naziland, Aliza, a young Holocaust survivor, was chosen by Ha-Satan to control one particular Zone in Hell, Zone N-1 which Adolf Hitler, Heinrich Himmler, Reinhard Heydrich, Josef Goebbels, and Hermann Goering reside. Aliza got a sadistic delight out of torturing the human monsters that ruined her life and destroyed millions of others. However there were lines that she wouldn't cross and when they were, she asked herself if she was seeking justice or revenge and if she had become the same monster that she once despised.

The follow up looks at the residents of Zone N-1 particularly Hitler and Heydrich and follows their afterlife of physical and emotional turmoil having all eternity to come to terms with what they did in life. As compared to its predecessor which was set shortly after the Holocaust ended, The God of Naziland is set in modern day and Zone N-1 has been through 612 Masters. Hitler and his fellow Nazis prepare for the next one and are in for a few surprises. #613 or Gottchen (“Little God”), as they call her, is unlike the other Zone Masters. The former Nazis weigh their confusion, suspicion, and ambitions for what they can do through this young girl.

This book is hard to review because it does something that might be controversial. It humanizes the Nazis without excusing or defending their actions in life. I cannot overstate how difficult a task that must be for any author, let alone someone like Hoffman who has written several WWII/Holocaust Historical Fiction novels that combined with Jewish folklore such as the aforementioned Aliza and The Book of Uriel.

To explore and fully understand a dictatorship and why it happened and the guilt and justice during the aftermath, it's important to understand the people who perpetrated it. Here Hoffman does it extraordinarily well.

She does it not by justifying them by any means but exploring their feelings about this young Master who is so different from her predecessors. She is  7 when most are teenagers to adult age. She also stumbled upon the summoning book that sends the Master to Ha-Satan unlike previous masters like Aliza who Ha-Satan purposely singled out and communicated with before giving them the book.

Gottchen’s accidental discovery is different but not fully explained why. There are a couple of possibilities why this happened. One could be because of her age, Ha-Satan thought that she wouldn't understand the responsibility or be able to weigh the consequences because she was too young. (The questions of why he let her do it at all, didn't keep it from her, and find a more suitable age-appropriate Master is unanswered.)

Another possibility is the time period on Earth. Unlike the previous book, it is set in modern day, not the mid-20th century. Aliza’s hatred for the Nazis was still fresh and the trauma was still recent and real. Gottchen only knows about the Nazis from history books so she has no personal feelings towards them that can be manipulated. Ha-Satan might have just figured that anyone will do.

There is another possibility that makes perfect sense once we learn about Gottchen's backstory. She is filled with hatred but not for the Nazis. Without going into the details, her life on Earth is one of abuse, neglect, and betrayal from adults that she thought that she could trust. Perhaps Ha-Satan recognized that anger and powerlessness and realized that she can transfer that hatred onto the Nazis. 

Oddly enough it is that trauma that influences how she actually treats them by not doing anything to them at all. She knows what it's like to feel small and vulnerable so she doesn't take advantage of it. 

In a strange way, it also explains why she gets along with the Nazis. Any person in any place, even Nazis in Hell, are far better than the people that she left behind. Her abuse from home is what is at the forefront of her mind and Hitler and co’s actions are faded into a history in which she knows of second hand.

The fascinating aspect is that Gottchen's kindness puts the Nazis more on edge than if she was cruel. Heydrich in particular suspects ulterior motives and is waiting for her to reveal a more duplicitous nature to the point of paranoia. He does this even though he bonds with the young girl to the point of learning about her past.

 Heydrich observes Gottchen closely, searches for her motives or clues about her real character, and hopes for a blind spot or moment of weakness that he can exploit. This almost predatory behavior puts a dark edge on his seemingly endearing moments with the girl. 

Hitler also has a unique position. He is traumatized by a recent encounter with a Master in which he experienced the Holocaust first hand. That memory is still in his mind so even though he acts like his anti-Semitic self, there is a small part of himself that remembers that punishment and the life that he could have lived. It's also worth mentioning that he tells the other Nazis that he is only befriending the girl so she can be swayed to their thinking and take their views to the mortal world.

In fact that's what makes this book a hard one to like. For all of the torture and the eternal suffering, the Nazis are still irredeemable. They never acknowledge that they were wrong in life or that they created an evil genocide. The closest that they come to is when Heydrich defends Gottchen from some of his allies.

 It is a half-hearted attempt that he doesn't realize that the system that he helped create was the problem, not the personal attacks on this one girl. Instead he and the other Nazis hide behind their usual excuses. They want to create a better Germany. It's what they were raised to believe. That they, except Hitler, were following orders. Blah blah blah. 

It's understandable that Hoffman would do this and not give the Nazis a redemption story. Let's not make sinners out of saints, especially the worst ones. But it makes for tedious reading to read from the points of view of characters who made those choices in life and have to face the consequences in death without realizing why those consequences are so important. Perhaps it might have been better to use Gottchen's point of view though it wouldn't have been as much of a writer's challenge. 

 Since this is the first book in this particular series The Fuhrer's Master, it makes one wonder how far Hoffman will go with writing about the Nazis. Will she make them more hateful? Continue the middle ground in making them understandable but not empathetic? That can only be stretched so far. Or will Elyse Hoffman do the impossible? Will she redeem the irredeemable and should she?

Fairy Tale by AK Nevermore, The Perfect Bitch (The Perfect Fate Book 3) by Tom Kane, Our Own Authors by Brian Baleno

Fairy Tale by AK Nevermore 

 AK Nevermore’s Fairy Tale is a suspenseful enchanting tale that gives us a fairy tale in a bleak postmodern urban setting.

Charlie Peel is having a rough time since she has been dumped and lost her job. She is not interested in the claims from the mysterious Nikodem “Nikos” Wisniewski who believes that she fits his grandmother's psychic visions of a wila, or a fairy. Nikos abducts Charlie and entices her to be his fiancee despite their growing attachment towards each other and her curiosity wondering whether his claims of her being a fairy are true.

This short novel favors dark energy and atmosphere over fantastic moments. It creates a strange but effective amalgam of crime thriller and dark fantasy.

The book starts out gritty and harsh like a typical dark urban contemporary thriller featuring two characters at their most frustrated and vulnerable. Charlie is feeling disenchanted by her lost job and break up. She is a woman ready to explode. Nikos tries to do his assignment and cover his tracks. He is aware of his family’s powerful legacy breathing down on him and that he has to live up to their expectations.

Nikos’ family’s control over his actions and Charlie’s fierce despair foreshadow the eventual violence. In fact when Nikos takes Charlie, it reads like a psychological thriller about a stalker or serial killer taking his victim to a remote location. His plan of her posing as his fiancee while Charlie cowers because he has the decapitated head of his previous hunting assignment has a dark comic edge to it. 

The fantasy aspects begin when Nikos recognizes Charlie’s fairy lineage through psychic impressions. They are somewhat subdued since we don’t actually see Charlie use magic or even fully believe that she is a fairy. She just knows that she’s in a Gothic situation surrounded by a potentially dangerous family with unspoken powers, both natural and supernatural. She knows that she has to play their game for now to survive.

But within Charlie lies the unspoken possibility that if she is a wila, then the Wisniewskis are permitting someone made of potent and dangerous magic, a dour outlook on life, and anger at the world including at the man and family holding her against her will into their lives. They could be turning her into the very demon that they are afraid of.

The first story creates suspense by atmosphere. The second could potentially destroy that atmosphere when Charlie discovers the powers that have been lurking inside her and takes it out on her treacherous captors and the desolate world surrounding her. 

The Perfect Bitch (The Perfect Fate Book 3) by Tom Kane

Tom Kane’s book, The Perfect Bitch is a Gothic Historical Paranormal Horror about a movie star whose obsession with fame, youth, and beauty becomes a horror.

Lovella Benjamin is a movie star from the 1930’s-40’s known for her glamor and difficult reputation, both of which earn her the moniker “The Perfect Bitch.” As she ages, she is anxious about her fading career and rivals. Her ambition reached the attention of a stranger, David Garland who has an enticing offer for her.

This book combines early Gothic works like Faust and The Picture of Dorian Gray with the remote allure of Old Hollywood. While the horror elements are eerie, the majority of the book is a character study of Lovella. Her personality including arrogance, fears, and insecurities is fully displayed.

When we first meet Lovella, she is 17 and already aware of how attractive she is and how she can control besotted men with just a look and a hair flip. However, what they don’t realize is that Bella is no ingenue. She is cunning, brilliant, and ruthless. It is quickly shown in the first pages when she turns the casting couch on its head in front of an associate producer. She reveals that she can not only play the Hollywood Shuffle but succeed at it too.

Lovella is a perfect actress because she is willing to play the part on and off the screen. She subjects herself to painful treatments, excessive beauty care regiments, diets, diction lessons, and especially a fake biographical profile to hide who she really is. It’s routine for all actresses but for an actress who is already receptive to deceit and manipulation, it confirms that she’s in the right place. Like other notorious bad girls in the past like Vanity Fair’s Becky Sharp, she doesn’t defy the society around her, she embodies the society around her. She is the worst qualities of Hollywood wrapped up in human form.

Lovella’s complicated journey is probably why the book focuses more on her than the creepy paranormal stuff that happens to her. She is an eerie forceful presence of her own that can challenge any demon, sorcerer, or otherworldly being. She blackmails a former associate when he wants to destroy evidence implicating her. She steals close ups and spotlights from a rival. She starts a whispering campaign against an actor that she is attracted to when told that his presence is interfering with her popularity. She schemes to end the career of a young upstart. She uses a romance for publicity then strings her lover along for years afterwards. 

Lovella’s dominance has an almost supernatural aura on its own that goes beyond earthly means. She has an almost clairvoyant sense and potent energy that knows when and how to wound an adversary while keeping her career, beauty, and fame intact. She herself is sometimes the demonic presence in her book. 

When supernatural events start to happen. It’s not surprising. Instead it’s inevitable. Lovella is not so much being drawn in by circumstances that she can’t explain and is frightened of but welcomed by a presence that understands her and thinks of her as one of their own. The dark twisted otherworldly happenings are reflections of her own dark, twisted, and human soul. 

Our Own Authors by Brian Baleno (coming soon)

Ghost Walk by Melissa Bowersock, Thorn of Plimouth by Catherine Hughes, Walking Out of This World by Stephan Ford

 

Ghost Walk (A Lacey Fitzpatrick and Sam Firecloud Mystery Book 1) by Melissa Bowersock 

Ghost Walk is the first book in Melissa Bowersock’s Lacey Fitzpatrick and Sam Firecloud Mysteries, an, at the time of this review, 49 volume Paranormal Mystery series about cop turned private investigator Lacey Fitzpatrick and her partner Sam Firecloud, a clairvoyant. Throughout the series, the two face human killers but also ghosts, demons, shapeshifters, witches, curses, vampires, zombies, and every other supernatural creature. Not bad for a series that began in 2017. 

The first volume, Ghost Walk is a creepy graphic mystery with strong character development and eerie passages that joins the natural world with the supernatural. It sets the stage with the duo meeting for the first time and having their first brush with the paranormal world.

Former LAPD detective Lacey Fitzpatrick learns that one of her former cases has been reopened. The burial site in which the unidentified Fairfax Stalker might have left his victims is found. Obsessed with the unsolved case, Lacey approaches the crime scene at the same time as Sam Firecloud. The clairvoyant uses his abilities to refer to names of victims that only Lacey and her colleagues knew. Lacey is intrigued and seizes the opportunity to reopen the Fairfax Stalker case and investigate a potentially haunted house with Sam’s assistance.

Unlike other books on the series, this volume is slight with the paranormal aspects. Mostly they are found through Sam’s visions and psychic information which are creepy enough. He sees the violent acts and hears the names in his head. In one chapter, he reveals the emotional and mental toll the vision takes on him and how it is overwhelming to constantly and unwittingly see and hear acts of violence. 

As a divorced father of two, Sam is aware that his gift has been a barrier in his previous marriage. Also, he has terrified his kids without meaning to. It is a gift that he has been given but at times it comes with a high price tag. Sam is trying to use his gift to make others’ lives better even if it makes himself uncomfortable and lonely.

This book cleverly flips the script in the skeptic/believer dynamic made popular by Fox Mulder and Dana Scully in the X Files. Lacey doesn’t necessarily believe in Sam’s visions but she is interested in pursuing this lead anyway. She is at a point where conventional means, deductive reasoning, eyewitness testimony, psychological profiling, DNA testing doesn’t work. She is willing to follow Sam’s visions because she has literally run out of normal options. Even a strange otherworldly lead is better than no lead at all.

Lacey is not in any position to counter the leads anyway. A scandal caused by her ex resulted in his arrest and imprisonment and her resignation from the LAPD. Because of this, she had been drifting along trying to figure out what she wants to do now that she has lost her purpose in life.

 The Fairfax Stalker case reignites that purpose to protect innocent lives, punish the guilty, and deliver justice to those who deserve it. It also reminds Lacey of the bureaucracy involved in police work and gives her other possibilities in law enforcement perhaps as a private investigator.

This is an eerie creepy Paranormal Mystery that gives two leads that are worth rooting for as they enter into the darkness of the unknown. 

Thorn of Plimouth by Catherine Hughes 

I received a free copy of this book through Betafide. 

Thorn of Plimouth (sic) by Catherine Hughes is an effective Historical Fiction novel about a woman accused of witchcraft in the Pilgrim community of Plymouth Rock.

Rachel, a midwife and healer, is on board The Fortune. She is among the many European immigrants who follow The Mayflower to live in the Puritan colony at Plymouth Rock. Rachel's obstreperous nature, Welsh upbringing, and knowledge of herbology makes her a target of suspicion on board. The suspicion increases after they land and a series of troubles results in public accusations against Rachel.

In many ways, this book is similar to one that I read last year, The Healer's Daughter by Myriana Merkovic which was also about a woman emigrating to 17th century North America, South Carolina this time, and is accused of witchcraft. It was one of my favorite books and was third in my list of Fantasy novels for that year. ( Sense of Home: The Land of the Great Lakes by N.Z. Kaminsky and Isemene and The Voice by Juniper Calle were the top two.) 

There are similarities between Thorn in Plimouth and The Healer's Daughter. Full disclosure, an argument about abortifacients is repeated almost word for word in both books. Some of their accusers echo each other including a haughty young girl and a hypocritical community leader using the trial to cover up their own lustful, vengeful, and avaricious deeds. Though those are no doubt based on the real accusers of the Salem Witch Trials who were largely young girls claiming to be afflicted and community leaders who used the trials to settle old scores. But the focus and tone of the two novels are very different.

The Healer's Daughter is a Historical Fantasy. It asks the question what if a person accused of witchcraft actually had those powers but weren't from Satan but instead an inherited gift from a polytheistic religion that worshiped the Goddess. It is a character study of a woman, Naida Galene, who is an outsider because of her beliefs, so she isolates herself into the woods to live in nature and communicate with her ancestors freely. The focus was on the protagonist.

This book’s primary focus is on setting both time and place. It is a more realistic Historical Fiction where Rachel does not have any special abilities but still invites scorn, gossip, and suspicion simply by her presence. It is an indictment against the religious paranoia that brewed and profited from the scapegoating.

This book captures the claustrophobic Puritan setting and how an outsider like Rachel functions within it. Their rigid Biblical interpretation causes them to cast doubts on a woman who has a dragon keepsake as a reminder of her half-Welsh heritage, red hair, buoyant ability to swim, and sharp tongue. All of these physical characteristics cause eyes to narrow and puzzled expressions turned towards Rachel's direction. To them, she looks and acts like a witch that their Puritan elders taught them to fear. 

Despite this, Rachel uses her natural kindness to help people even as they gossip and note unusual activity. She uses her healer and midwife abilities to treat sick people and in one stirring chapter deliver a baby on board The Fortune.

In Plymouth, Rachel is surrounded by attackers with very few defenders. They are anxious and fearful in a new place where survival and adaptability are not sure things. Puritanism discourages any sort of individuality or elaboration and holds a rigid outlook towards indigenous people and anyone who does not follow their views. 

The paranoia is made stronger by a few circumstances in which Rachel is at the center, particularly the death of a newborn that she delivered and a prank that resulted in her getting lost in the woods. She is rescued and aided by Keme of the Pauquunaukit tribe. 

The local Pokanoket tribe might have helped the Pilgrims during the time of famine (First Thanksgiving, remember?). However, many Puritans still fear the various tribes and equate them and Rachel with those fears and their own anxiety and paranoia about the Devil. Even when others come to her aid such as Pilgrim Governor William Bradford, the voices of the accusers are far louder and more active. 

That paranoia leads to Rachel's public ostracism, eventual trial, and eventual exile. A vibrant kind woman who used her training to help people around her becomes a pariah because of their rigid religious standards and is swallowed and destroyed by their own fears.

Walking Out of This World by Stephan Ford 

This review is a summary. The entire review is on LitPick.

Walking Out of This World is a predictable but comforting allegory about people caught up in the battle of good and evil personified by two peculiar beings.

While participating in one of their long walks, members of the Far and Fast Walks Society (FFWS) encounter Miles Miteby, a kind but eccentric stranger. He leads them to his enchanting home village where many of their issues are resolved. Unfortunately Miles isn't the only mysterious person watching them. There is also Lucifix who leads them down a torturous miserable path of their own making.

It's pretty easy to guess who Miles and Lucifix are and what they are supposed to represent to the human characters. However, Walking Out of This World has plenty of interesting characters, settings, and plot points that capture the Reader's interest. 

By far the most intriguing concepts are Miteby Arms (Miles’ home) and The Other Realm (Lucifix’s), Neither of them are ever called Heaven and Hell but it’s clear that’s what they are supposed to be.Miteby Arms is depicted as a quaint remote village that encourages connection and togetherness while The Other Realm is a hellacious urban nightmare that thrives on isolation and fear. The rewards of Miteby Arms and punishments of The Other Realm reveal much about the protagonists' characteristics and personalities.

The book is filled with characters being close to what they wanted and longed for but are then punished by their own follies and frailties. Miles and Lucifix represent the best and worst of the human experience. 

The Shattered Moonstone (Brightstar Manor Series #1) by Patience D. Schoene; Spotlight Stolen By Witty Sarcastic Tone and Gabby Gargoyles

 The Shattered Moonstone (Brightstar Manor Series #1) by Patience D. Schoene; Spotlight Stolen By Witty Sarcastic Tone and Gabby Gargoyles

By Julie Sara Porter 

Bookworm Reviews 

This review can also be found on Reedsy Discovery.

Spoilers: Patience D. Schoene’s The Shattered Moonstone, the first book in The Brightstar Manor Series, has all of the positive traits of an excellent Dark Contemporary Fantasy. However, two things elevate this book from good to extremely great. They are the sharp witty sarcastic tone that comments on and subverts the dark energy of the plot and setting and two brilliant supporting characters that steal the spotlight from their bemused protagonist.

Tamsin Greer, a private investigator has inherited Brightstar Manor in the town of Port Townsend from her deceased Uncle Sullivan. As she settles into her new home and befriends the twin caretakers, Jolvaan and Margarith, a pair of bubbly gargoyles, Tamsin discovers old secrets, hidden magic, and sinister fantastic creatures who have a few scores to settle with the Manor and its current inhabit.

This book has an ominous atmosphere and a neophyte protagonist who needs to be shown the ropes of this odd place. It operates on old fairy tale codes which exist solely in the magical world.

There are sinister creatures, such as demons and vampires, that live within and surround the house. They all have their own histories, standards, and guidelines on how to address them, ask for and grant favors, and sometimes fight against. It's enough to confuse a person and yet it's how this society operates and keeps the darkness from consuming everything.

The dark ominous tone of the setting is contrasted with a sharp sardonic wit that the narration carries throughout. The tonal division keeps the meta commentary fresh and prevents the book from getting lost in its own Gothic horror. 

Sometimes characters call events ahead of when they occur. Tamsin herself knows that she is caught up in a paranormal mystery and reacts like a person who was taught her whole life that monsters weren't real. Now she not only believes in them but has to accept that they live around her like the strangest HOA ever.

The chapters also add to the overall humor with titles such as “Gargoyles Don't Gossip (They Observe),” “Tin Foil, But Make it Fashion,” “Eight Hundred Years of Side-Eye,” and “Don't Take That Tone With Me, I'm Granite.” They are like episode titles for a sitcom from Hell.

The titles alert the reader that while there are genuine shocks and eerie plot points, the book keeps them at an emotional distance. The meta tone injects fear with a playful understanding that subverts and makes light of the plot’s events.

Another breath of fresh air is the appearance of gargoyles, Jolvaan and Margarith. I like to think that gargoyles have become prominent creatures in Fantasy Fiction because many authors, like myself, grew up with and were heavily influenced and inspired by the Disney animated series, Gargoyles.  

To see these characters who were once on the outside fringe of magical creatures gain prominence and establish themselves as defenders and protectors of households, demonic intimidating figures in appearance, and loyal and devoted caretakers is a credit to a pop culture item that still holds up well in terms of animation, storytelling, and characterization. The animated series still continues to resonate even 30+ years later in subsequent works like this one.

In this case Jolvaan and Margarith are a witty addition to this cast and steal just about every moment they are in, drawing attention away from the somewhat generic protagonist, Tamsin and are certainly far more interesting than the bland potential love interest, Naya. The gargoyle gals are a strange combination of dedicated defenders of the homestead and everybody's favorite wine aunts.

They act as plucky comic relief and providers of ancient wisdom. In one chapter, they are cleaning the house singing their own version of Salt N’ Pepa’s “Push It.” (“Clean it real good!”) In another, they offer exposition information on Tamsin’s uncle and his bargains with certain demon houses. In another, they are threatening a demonic intruder with all of their strength if they ever come anywhere near their girl, Tamsin again. 

They may be funny but remember they have sharp talons, fangs, and demonic appearances for a reason. They are also dangerous to an enemy and are not to be trifled with if crossed. They will just make themselves look fabulous and have a witty retort while doing it.

As characters Jolvaan and Margarith embody what a book like The Shattered Moonstone is. A Dark Fantasy Novel with a sharp edge that merges with the ominous energy and becomes its own commentary. 

The Price of Loyalty: Serving Adela of Blois by Malve Von Hassell; An Era in Anddemar by Maureen B. Roberts; The Orphans of Absolution The Hollow Dark Chronicles by Remi A. Rodriguez Brignoni

The Price of Safety: Serving Adela of Blois by Malve Von Hassell 

This review is a summary. The entire review is on LitPick 

 The Price of Loyalty: Serving Adela of Blois is a sublime look at the early Medieval Era during the time of the Norman Conquest and the First Crusades. It is rich in character particularly in its two protagonists Princess Adela of Normandy and Countess of Blois and Cerdic of Wessex, a knight sworn to serve her.

The book sees her through her brothers’ rebellion, the Crusades, her marriage to Count Stephen-Henry of Blois, motherhood, and her family's legacy. It is also told from the perspective of Cedric of Wessex, a knight and childhood friend of Adela’s but has complicated feelings for her despite their marriages to other people.

The two become friends by sharing outsider status. Cerdic is removed from his home in Wessex and Adela subverts her family's expectations. Adela and Cerdic develop a bond of friendship that lasts through constant changes particularly when Adela's brother rebels against her father and Cerdic is trained to fight him.

Adulthood transforms their friendship into a platonic romance. Their relationship never becomes physical but it's clear that they are among the most important people in one another's lives. Even though they marry two decent characters the kind Stephen-Henry and the strong willed Gisella, they still retain their closeness.

The book goes out of its way to not only make Adela and Cerdic decent characters, but also their spouses as well. Because Von Hassell portrays Adela, Cerdic, and their spouses in decent lights, the marriages and Adela and Cerdic’s bond does not resort to love triangle tropes. Adela and Cerdic stay faithful to their spouses and don't give into their passions. 

In the struggle between the political and the personal, Adela and Cerdic choose the political. That doesn't mean that they don't love each other. It just means that their bond includes their spouses, children, homes, lands, positions, values, and self-respect.

An Era in Anddemar by Maureen B. Roberts 

This is a summary. The full review is on Reader Views 

Maureen B. Roberts’ An Era in Andemarr is the best kind of science fiction novel. The extensive world building, rich characters, and involved plot provide a dream-like almost immersive experience inside a new literary universe. 

The Greying is entering the Andemarr Galaxy. This strange combination of natural disaster and viral pandemic leaves nothing but dull gray indifference, suffering, and despair from anyone that comes in contact with it and will turn a once vibrant galaxy into a hollow empty shell and quite possibly spread to other galaxies. It's up to the dark knight Sir Jaide, the shapemage Jessiah, and a group of scientists that find themselves in this strange galaxy far far away from their home, to combat and fight against it. 

An Era in Andemarr is a feast for the eyes to read and the brain to create mental pictures. The Andemarr Galaxy itself is a masterclass in Science Fiction world building. The setting combines space opera with fairy land. The descriptions of various planets with different sky colors,the presence of several moons in the sky, glimmering lakes, plants present only in their worlds, and figures like sprites, melusines, and hippogriffs zipping in and out of the landscapes capture the imagination.

The Greying is set up not as a physical antagonist or a villain but as something that is both natural and psychological. It is similar to The Nothing in The Neverending Story, an abstract concept that destroys the universe because of its mere presence and stands as a metaphor for the issues that exist in fictional and real life.

Many of the characters are able to counter the Greying by their individuality, emotional connections, determination, and love for the world around them. Sir Jaide is extremely protective of his loved ones, particularly his lover Vidar Quain (Queen of Vidar) Starwing. They are the very definition of soulmates who love and respect each other. Starwing navigates the wide monarchical and political landscape, while Jaide goes on missions and operates one on one with those who are personally affected by The Greying.

Jessiah is a more scholarly academic contrast to Sir Jaide’s physically active approach. He is able to reveal an inner strength and endurance as he faces this intergalactic crisis and his growing powers that are augmented in this strange new environment.

An Era in Andemarr is the type of science fiction novel that invites the reader inside and makes them feel like they want to spend a longer time than an era in there.

Orphans of Absolution (The Hollow Dark Chronicles) by Remi A. Rodriguez Brignoni 

Orphans of Absolution by Remi A. Rodriguez Brignoni deftly combines Westerns and Paranormal Horror to create a chilling graphic novel of the creatures that can be found in the Old West. 

Twins Francis and Randall O’Dowell are the sole survivors when Father Mercer, a violent minister, murdered their entire family. Now they wander the Southwest, particularly the Arizona Territory hunting demons and other supernatural creatures for a bounty. However, they are on the lookout for their real target, Father Mercer.

The book is a veritable tour into Southwestern myths, legends, and ghost stories. The twins encounter a town in which children have been captured by La Llorona, the notorious ghost that lures children to drowning deaths. The results of a town filled with missing children in a time where early death was all too frequent is heart wrenching and motivates Francis and Randall on their search. 

They also encounter shapeshifters that sometimes fool the twins by looking or sounding like people that they knew. There are various moments when the twins are out in the isolated desert where suddenly they might hear their deceased mother’s voice or catch the form of a former lover out of the corner of their eye. It is terrifying to imagine a creature that not only knows their entire history but is willing to use it as a weapon against them.

Even when characters are potentially benevolent, there is a dark sinister aura that hints that they might not be trustworthy. A mysterious man known only as Crow appears and disappears to give them solid hints and advice about their missions but also maliciously puts them in dangerous situations.

What also makes this book more ominous is the setting. This is set primarily in the desert regions where the landscape is the same for miles. Where the nearest help could be in the next town or county for all anyone knows. Where the mind often plays tricks on the unwary who are lulled into a false sense of sameness and security.Where a mysterious moving shadow could be an animal, a violent person, or something else entirely. Brignoni takes full advantage of the haunted Old West.

The creatures and settings aren’t the only things that are haunted. Randall and Francis are too. They only live for the hunt and have foregone any hopes of romance, family, or settling down while there are dark supernatural spirits out there. They both have histories of relationships that ended prematurely, something that their antagonists take full advantage of. They are also haunted by their family’s graphic death and wake up with memories of blood, bodies, and the minister's sinister presence.

Because of their status as nomadic orphans, all Randall and Francis have in the world are each other. If anything challenges that union, whether it's human or supernatural, that challenge is outright rejected. They have no lives beyond the hunt and each other. It’s an unhealthy codependent relationship that is at times possessive and controlling (though the jury is out over who is controlling whom). But Randall and Francis have a shared understanding, language, and destiny that only they can understand. They have seen death as children and now have to face it every day as adults.

Orphans of Absolution is a graphic chilling Horror Western that combines the barren landscape and the lone gunslingers of one genre with the nightmares and twists of another. This combination presents strange but effective absolute results.

Sympathy for The Devil (The Ballad of Fallen Angels) by Alex Stevens; Please Allow Me To Introduce Him, A Man of Blood and Death

 Sympathy for The Devil (The Ballad of Fallen Angels) by Alex Stevens; Please Allow Me To Introduce Him, A Man of Blood and Death

By Julie Sara Porter 

Bookworm Reviews

Spoilers: With apologies to Mick Jagger and Keith Richards there was no other way to begin this review.

Alex Stevens’ Sympathy for the Devil walks a very strange and distinct line by being both literal action and metaphorical dark fantasy, a Paranormal Military Thriller if you will. It's about a man whose family is Death in both a military ops sense and a Grim Reaper sense.

Tyler Graveson is the adopted son of Lee Graveson, who leads a powerful ruthless army and trained Tyler and his younger adopted son, Jack to join. Tyler inherits an ancient sword called The Black Muramasa that has a thirst for blood and controls the wielder. As they shed blood, they become intertwined with the weapon. The Murasmasa's presence and a promotion to be one of the Four Horsemen cause Tyler to be haunted by visions of violence and betrayal. He realizes that he has to confront his family's legacy and fight his own demons within.

The most interesting thing about this book is the strange dichotomy between Military Thriller and Dark Fantasy. I am of two minds at this approach. On the one hand the writing is uneven as Stevens tries to do one thing and then another when it could have been an easier read to choose one specific path.

On the other hand, it actually works because Stevens goes all in on this double writing. Every chapter and passage presents two different possibilities for the Graveson family that gives them both a real and fantastic approach.

The Gravesons are written as either a family of immortal demons heralding death through curses and magic swords or a rigid and uncompromising military human family that delivers death by bombs, guns, and strategy. The fascinating thing is Stevens suggests that they can go either way: a realistic human family that brings death by their actions or a demonic family that brings death by their presence.

When Lee commands Tyler to follow orders, he is acting as both a stern general in front of his troops and Satan, or another God of Death, lecturing his Army of Dark Demons. When Tyler weighs his father's orders, he is doing it as both a junior lieutenant not wanting to obey unjust orders and a demon son not wanting to add to the centuries of curses and bloodlust. When Jack is added to the family, he is both a wide eyed cadet and a newly dead being shown the ropes.

In fact one of the strongest relationships in the book, the heart of the book, and fills both narratives is the relationship between Tyler and Jack. Tyler is used to his upbringing by Lee and follows orders until he sees the training through another's eyes. 

This innocence in Tyler is slowly disappearing. The use of The Black Muramasa and the Horsemen's responsibilities consume him. He is becoming as ruthless and addicted to spreading Death as his father and the other demons around him. Jack is the only counter to that addiction. 

Through Jack, Tyler sees the young rookie that once existed within him. The one who questioned everything, had doubts, and wasn't afraid to challenge the authority over him. Jack opens a brotherly almost paternal instinct in Tyler that wants to protect him from the family's destructive nature.

 Tyler wants to preserve the life that exists within Jack before he is consumed by death like him and Lee.

The Quest for Freedom (The Conquest Trilogy Book 1) by Matthew Devitt; Action Oriented Witty Slave Rebellion Fantasy Hints Darker Things to Come

 The Quest for Freedom (The Conquest Trilogy Book 1) by Matthew Devitt; Action Oriented Witty Slave Rebellion Fantasy Hints Darker Things to Come

By Julie Sara Porter 

Bookworm Reviews 

Spoilers: On the surface, Matthew Devitt’s The Quest for Freedom, the first book in The Conquest Trilogy can be taken at face value. A human slave getting tired of mistreatment leads a rebellion against his oppressors. They alert others and armies grow larger and rebellion spreads. One faction of slave owners is toppled leading to victories to come and freedom is on the horizon.

It's a familiar trope and it works well here but there are hints that this is a much more subversive take with more nuanced themes and darker motives than are originally believed.

The plot is set in Affer, a rigid world of species divisions with angels, elves, demons, damned, hybrids, and humans. Once the dominant species, humans have been overpowered by the others. Humans were wiped out and the survivors were forced into slavery. 473 years later, Fletcher Rush decided that he had enough of this mistreatment so he, his best friend Ji, and some new acquaintances band together to rebel against their otherworldly masters. Unfortunately, the other races also have plans of their own.

This series has some interesting touches in world building particularly with the hierarchy among the species. It goes angels, demons, damned, hybrid, elves and humans. It's the kind of structure in which various characters are fighting to retain their status or move upwards. 

Angels behave with indifference and disdain among the lesser races. Demons dominate the lesser species, particularly the humans which they delight in torturing and enslaving. They also probably wouldn't mind taking the highest spot ahead of the angels. The elves are right above humans which does not make them companions with the exception of a few characters willing to go along with the human rebellion.

This structure reminds me of a quote from the book, Little Little by M.E. Kerr. “The fellow on top often does not pick on the one on the ground. They look down at the one on the rung right under them. The one on the lowest rung looks down at the one on the ground.” 

This is at play when we see species look down on others right below them instead of realizing that the whole system is corrupt. It also emphasizes the uphill battle that the humans have to not only rebel against their immediate conquerors but the ones above them to the angels. It's like the smallest doll in a matryoshka/nesting doll set trying to take out the other dolls to become the largest.

Despite being about slave rebellion and containing the dismantling of a series of various higher castes, there is a detached tone to the novel that tries to find humor, mostly dark humor, in this situation. Dare I say it, at times it comes across as light hearted or rather satirical particularly with its lead protagonists, Fletcher and Ji.

Fletcher and Ji act more like a comedy team than rebellion leaders. They are constantly bickering back and forth by mocking each other's actions or doing meta commentary on the plot development. (Ji: I guess you'll just have to wait and witness my unrivaled fighting process for yourself. Fletcher: Damn, I'm sure our enemies are already shaking in fear with those sword skills.)

The humor with the characters' dialogue is reminiscent of satire found in works like M*A*S*H. They are using humor as a means to deflect from the dark situation that they are in. It's a way of retaining their friendship and humanity in the face of what will be an ongoing war with plenty of violence and death.

However, there might be another reason. It may not be just satire within the characters' current incarceration, it may take a more subversive tone that implies there are darker intentions at play.

I wouldn't be surprised if the tone changes in future volumes. The lighter a series begins, the darker it ends.

Fletcher gives some stirring speeches about fighting for freedom which are compelling but also potentially fanatic. There are moments where Fletcher's plans put several people in danger and he is called out about this. Ji and other allies question methods and sometimes the results make the questions completely justified. However these conflicts are hand waved or remain unresolved for now.

Now it could just be Fletcher is a clueless rookie who doesn't know what he's doing but his actions could lead to nefarious motivations. He may have ulterior motives that are less concerned with freeing human slaves and more interested in moving humans back to the top. He might not want to dismantle the hierarchy but reshuffle it. 

Most of this is speculation so it might not pan out, but it is based on my experience reading similar books and some of Fletcher’s questionable tactics. So for now it's more fact than theory. Let's just say that it wouldn't surprise me if the series takes a darker, more sinister turn. We might see the makings of a hero but we may also see him live long enough to become the villain.

Life Into Death And Other Stories About The Two Gods Who Balance The Earth by E.S. Sibbald; The Hidden Raphael's Banker The Art and Finance Mystery Series Book 1 by Alessandra Oddi Baglioni; Labyrinth of Shadows (The Witch's Rebirth Part 1) by Michaela Riley

 Life Into Death And Other Stories About The Two Gods Who Balance The Earth by E.S. Sibbald; The Hidden Raphael's Banker (The Art and Finance Mystery Series Book 1) by Alessandra Oddi Baglioni; Labyrinth of Shadows (The Witch's Rebirth Part 1) by Michaela Riley 

By Julie Sara Porter 

Bookworm Reviews 

Spoilers:

Life Into Death And Other Stories About The Two Gods Who Balance The Earth by E.S. Sibbald

E.S. Sibbald’s Fantasy short novel, Life Into Death and Other Stories About Two Gods Who Balance the Earth is a lyrical, visceral, and powerful meditation on life and death. These two transitions are personified by a pair of gods who are on opposite sides, banter, vie, and love one another. 

They are present in the literal beginning. In the primordial sea, Life watches single celled organisms form and reproduce. Death appears when one stops moving. They are together at the end when after environmental and nuclear disasters have taken their toll, Life and Death stand in a global wide wasteland where nothing can ever be born or grow. If nothing can live, then nothing can ever die. So Life and Death just fade from existence. The book combines their first meeting, their last reunion, and many of the times in between to give us the full experience of this odd but loving immortal couple. 

Life and Death naturally are a study in contrasts. The first paragraphs of the book remind us that Life is in the bright places of the world while Death is in the shadows. Life exists in the birth of babies, the growth of plants, and in the forests, seas and skies. Death exists in street corners, graveyards, hospital beds, mausoleums, and in the dark corner of the human mind. Life is loved and praised while Death is feared and sometimes hated.

 Both are beautiful, powerful, awe inspiring, and are everywhere in everything and everybody. They are genderless and can take many forms, children, animals, soldiers, elderly people, men, women, married couples, single celled organisms but they always recognize each other. They are drawn together so it is no surprise that their coexistence transforms over the eons into a partnership, to a flirtation, to a friendship, to a romance, to an undying love for each other. It’s a union developed from years of observing each other watching the global experience. 

Many of the most compelling chapters occur as the duo observe mortals in many situations. They see soldiers on the battlefield killing one another, then sees soldiers on different sides calling for a Christmas Day truce during WWI (true story by the way). They participate in a Pride March when same-sex marriage becomes legal in the U.S. Death despairs over having to take a suicidal young woman and silently cheers when Life interferes giving her extra years. They see families sharing love, craftspeople and artists proud of their work, adventurers seeking another thrill, parents holding their children for the first time, and people closing their eyes for the last. 

Each experience leaves their marks on Life and Death and exposes their deeper emotions and vulnerabilities. It is no wonder that they express their love for each other as they see humans do the same. It would be impossible to dwell among mortals and not be emotionally affected by their transience and their desires to find meaning in the short time in which they are given. They try to find out who they are. Life and Death don’t have to.They just are. But that doesn’t mean that they can’t feel, can’t connect, and can’t love. 

In exploring the most important transitions of life and death, Life Into Death tells Readers about what happens at the beginning and the end. But it also tells us that what we do in between is what gives us meaning and existence. They make us alive. 

The Hidden Raphael's Banker (The Art and Finance Mystery Series Book 1) by Alessandra Oddi Baglioni;

Alessandra Oddi Baglioni’s The Hidden Raphael's Banker is a continuation to her Historical Fiction short novel, The Red Wedding. Instead of a family history about a Renaissance era family scheming and conniving against other families and each other, it's a modern Mystery Thriller with a wide conspiracy involving a painting once commissioned by said Renaissance era family.

In The Red Wedding, we learn that Atalanta Baglioni commissioned Raphael to paint a portrait of Jesus’ Deposition as an act of contrition after family members were killed during the wedding of her cousin Astor Baglioni and his wife Lavinia Colonna Orsini. This book continues the story of what happened to that painting. 

Architect and art aficionado, George Lacroix is in Rome at the Borghese Museum. He sees the painting and becomes fascinated by its origins and history. While researching the history of the Baglioni Family, the painting, and its previous owners, George stumbles across a conspiracy that reveals other motives connected to the painting. 

This book is an intricate thriller in which art and history provide clues and hints leading to modern day events. What in The Red Wedding was a simple act of repentance and memorial to those lost, in this volume became symbolic of the institutions that hold real power through politics, finance, culture, business, philanthropy, and leadership. In a meta moment, George uses Baglioni’s own previous book, The Red Wedding, for research, complete with passages lifted from the book. 

 It sounds bizarre that this painting would lead to such a conspiracy. But the commission was made by a very influential Renaissance-era family that was involved in high circles including The Pope and had rivalries with other families like the Medicis and the Borgias. It makes sense that they would be involved with some secret inner circles. It also makes sense that these circles would have a ripple effect into modern day with despots in suits that prefer to do their power grabs by spreading money around and remaining hidden rather than poison or stab someone at a wedding.  

There are genuine moments of suspense during George’s investigation. He meets betrayal from people who he thought that he could trust. He becomes romantically involved or is enamored with a couple of women who have their own agendas. There are many global agents who want to keep this discovery hidden and aren’t above killing to get it done.

By far the most enigmatic character is Colomba. At first she appears to be a tour guide who gives George information about The Deposition then disappears. Her story becomes more complicated when George learns that there is nobody employed at the Borghese with her name and appearance. George also encounters her other times on the streets, inside museums, and other places. She acts as a guide or guardian angel who helps George.

 Sometimes Columba provides information, warns George of danger, or keeps him away from pursuers. It’s also interesting to note that there is a similar character in The Red Wedding who also provides a similar function. This suggests that the current Columba is a ghost of the former Columba and is atoning for the death and destruction that happened in the Renaissance by preventing it from happening again. 

The Hidden Raphael’s Banker is for those who like their adventure thrillers to be widespread with conspiracies that tie history with current events, are led by brilliant experts in their field, and excite readers while making them think.

Labyrinth of Shadows The Witch's Return Part 1 by Michaela Riley 

Michaela Riley’s Historical Fantasy Labyrinth of Shadows (The Witch's Rebirth) is a rich, enchanting, and complex novel about a witch that is reincarnated over the centuries.

The Witch is a very powerful being. While there are other witches, this specific figure, The Witch, is said to be the most powerful. She has been reborn countless times. In 1590 Copenhagen she is Anna facing a witch trial in which she is to be burned at the stake. In 478, she seduces young Prince Clovis of the Franks to tell him that he will lead his armies into victory. 

The majority of this book is set in the 5th Century when Mairead, a Druid High Priestess conducts a Samhain ritual to rid her tribe of Armaeus, the most feared Daemon in the entire realm. During the ritual, she discovers an abandoned baby and takes her in. The baby, named Merona, is the current incarnation of The Witch and is destined to fight and hopefully defeat Armaeus. She shows flashes of insight from her former lives but she also has to receive training. To do that Merona must be taught by Murdach, Mairead’s friend.

This book has an abundance of witch lore weaved into the narrative. Those who have an interest in folklore and legends of witches and their origins will be fascinated with the references. Mairead and her Druids follow ancient rites and rituals

Mairead’s authority was high during a time period which still respected Druids and the Ancient Celtic traditions that they represented even as they were also aware of the transition towards Christianity that was on its way. This is a society that is firmly holding onto the old ways, even as new ones are starting to gain influence. 

An interesting twist to this book is the appearance of Armaeus and his goal. Instead of being an instrument of Satan or dark magic, he is an instrument of the evil in humanity. He encourages the Witch Trials to attack women who could fight against him and fan the flames of human prejudice. It’s interesting that the Christians who claim to be fighting Satan end up serving someone just as powerful and dangerous. But hatred often clouds judgement. People can’t always tell who their enemies really are as long as they use the right words and hate who they hate. Merona certainly has her work cut out for her. 

Some of the most fascinating chapters occur during Murdach’s training of Merona that increases her knowledge and abilities. The flashes of intuition from other lives become stronger and more concrete as she explores past lives. She also explores future lives like her time as Anna, to give herself foresight and precognition and begins to recognize patterns of people and situations that keep reoccurring. She recognizes that she, Murdach, and Armaeus have a history that stretches through time. 

Meronia also has to expand her magical abilities. Murdoch takes her on a series of tests to train her in elemental magic. She faces trials of earth, air, fire, and water to channel her abilities and control the elements. The training takes several years and many revelations before Merona is considered powerful enough to fight Armaeus.

The final test is for Merona to go to the Labyrinth of Shadows where she has to encounter her fears, face her biggest challenges, and discover her inner power. It is a challenging trial, the kind in which one could emerge as an insane threat or an extremely potent witch. 

Sanity Test by K.E. Adamus and Fate's Last Melody by Vanessa Smith

 

Sanity Test by K.E. Adamus 

This review is a summary. The main review is on LitPick.

Sanity Test is a short but very disturbing look at two very troubled, conflicted, and potentially delusional men

This is a series of emails between Hubert Kawka and Wlodzimierz Pawski. Their emails reveal a great deal about their characters and perspectives through the emails. 

It appears that Kawka is a mentally ill patient in a psychiatric hospital and Pawski is his primary carer, but as the emails continue they become more frantic and questionable. The reader starts to wonder who is sane and who isn’t and who exactly these characters are in relation to each other.

Kawka straddles between childlike impulsivity and frightening sociopathic behavior. Through his emails, he describes a series of dramatic means to get Pawski's attention. He harbors an unhealthy fixation to an unhealthy obsessive degree and is gaslighting the other man. 

However, Pawski’s emails also raise concern. He is more emotional and threatening from the initial emails. This is definitely a potential sign that things are not what they seem and adds to the overall uncertainty that we can’t trust either of these men.

As Pawski becomes more unstable, Kawka becomes more reasonable which leaves the reader with questions about who is real, who is fictional, who is sane, who is insane, and who we can trust. The book gives us no real answers and leaves the reader to make their own conclusions to understand this strange and disturbing duo, 

Fate's Last Melody by Vanessa Smith 

This review is a summary. The main review is on LitPick.

Fate's Last Melody has a strong sense of setting and tone by depicting Hell with all of its overall darkness, graphic violence, scares, and ominous energy coming out from every corner. There is a sense of abandonment, hopelessness, and desolation that exists primarily throughout the book. 

Melody is a woman who is abducted during a night on the town with some friends and a potential boyfriend. Her abductor is not a human psychopath. He is a demon named Nyx who takes her to Hell, where she learns that she is the daughter of one of the Fates from Greek Mythology. Melody has to find her way through Hell and learn how to use her inherited powers of seeing and changing other's Destinies before she meets The King of Hell who has his own agenda involving Melody. 

Melody’s first view of Hell is a dark desolate place shrouded in shadows. The descriptions aggravate the senses and the landscape shapes itself to torture those suffering. Needless to say, it's not a pleasant experience.

Smith makes her version of Hell a composite of different mythologies most notably Abrahamic religions and Hellenic Mythology. Hell is led by The King of Hell who is so vaguely described that he could be either Lucifer or Hades, so it could go either way. The Judeo-Christian influence is shown primarily through the 7 Deadly Sins while the Greco-Roman aspects are revealed mostly through the presence of the Fates and the Titans.

There is an overall feeling of helplessness and abandonment until the end when Melody and other characters are inspired to fight against The King of Hell. But there are some potential questions about the actions that were taken to do this which suggests that Hell might end up with another dictator, one who will also torture others for eternity, inflict pain, and control others.

Dance of Demons (Poison and Opium Book 1)by Alyssa Lauseng; Japanese Inspired Setting, Labyrinthine Plot, and Diametrical Duo Accentuate Dark Fantasy

 

Dance of Demons (Poison and Opium Book 1)by Alyssa Lauseng; Japanese Inspired Setting, Labyrinthine Plot, and Diametrical Duo Accentuate Dark Fantasy 

By Julie Sara Porter 

Bookworm Reviews 

 Spoilers: Alyssa Lauseng’s Fantasy novel, Dance of Demons has a lot of positive attributes that keep it fresh and unique in a subgenre that can get repetitive with its tropes. It has a magnificent detailed setting inspired by Japanese culture, a labyrinthine plot that engages the Reader with its multiple perspectives and points of view, and it has deutragonists that are diverse in background and worldviews but make a convincing team and are on their way to becoming a charming gay couple. 

In the land of Okara during the time of the Ghiatian Empire, Daisuke, a young slave boy, seizes an opportunity to escape to freedom.  When a military recruiter arrives, Daisuke enlists and heads to Perena where he tries to adjust to a foot soldier’s life. Meanwhile Obito, a member of the Omnito, Imperial Intelligence, is stricken by a devastating loss when Itsuki, his partner in work and life, dies after they uncover a potential conspiracy involving members of Obito’s wealthy and influential family. Obito is partnerless and wouldn’t you know there is a young ex-slave and soldier who rose through the ranks to become an Omnito and is looking for a partner himself. Meanwhile, Lady Shadow, an enigmatic cult leader bonds with Kanashimi, a ruthless demon, to search for magical talismans which will empower her to defeat the Emperor.

One of the most outstanding attributes is Lauseng’s attention to the Japanese inspired setting. Many Epic Fantasies still have their toes in a Eurocentric old world and use European, largely Celtic and Norse, inspired Medieval settings and characters. After a while it gets old, cliched, repetitive, and even slightly xenophobic when authors rely on these tropes. Within the past 40 or so years thanks to the rise of diversity, there are finally Science Fiction and Fantasy novels that aren’t solely bound to European history and literature. Afrofuturism for example is inspired by lore, history, and aesthetics from African countries such as works by Octavia Butler and Nnedi Okorafor. There are many otaku fans of manga and anime all over the world that produce Asian inspired speculative fiction, one of the most prominent being Avatar: the Last Airbender. 

Dance of Demons is set in a fictional world but it is greatly inspired by Japanese culture. The social hierarchy is based on the Feudal era with its imperial court and divine influence of the Emperor. There is a rigid structure which is practically impossible to break from but not unheard of. The Empeor’s rule is total and somewhat suffocating. The imperial court lives an opulent existence that is far away from the people down below so it’s very easy for corrupt officials and abusive slavers to gain prominence and power.

Their deities have names like Hikari (light) and Kuro (black) though have a remote standoffish approach to the mortals underneath, not unlike the human rulers. Characters like Daisuke even question their existence. Then you have those like Lady Shadow that are fanatic in their devotion.

Everything from costuming, art, culture, food, ceremonies, names, and mythology adheres to this certain time and place. While there is no known connection to Earth like in most Epic Fantasy novels, one could be led to believe that a team of Japanese astronauts may have found their way to Perena and took their history and culture with them so their descendents followed that progression. Lauseng is able to simultaneously capture a specific Earth culture and build a fictional world around it.  

The plot is wound by various characters and their motivations. Chief among them are the motives of Lady Shadow. She is an intriguing character driven to near insanity and obsession by power and a desire to rid her world of the Emperor. Her drive to destroy the Emperor comes from a specific place of abuse, degradation, and powerlessness. We get hints of the ruined girl that became the unhinged woman.

Lady Shadow is controlled by Kanashimi but still has enough foresight and manipulation to sway human forces in her favor. This isn’t a case where the demon has more power and is in complete control. It’s more like he has a worthy partner that is his match in cunning and ruthless efficiency plus the ability to gain allies and conspirators in a variety of places. 

There are conspiracies within conspiracies and sometimes it’s hard to find out who is allied with who and how wide these forces are. It becomes clear that Daisuke and Obito are being swayed by forces outside themselves. No matter where they turn, they may end up as pawns in someone else’s design. 

Daisuke and Obito are commendable protagonists as individuals and as a duo. Because of his slave background, Daisuke gains an angry negative view of the world. This view is channeled by his fighting skills that he learned from the military and he brings a street tough don’t mess with me attitude to the Omnito as a spy and assassin. One that suspects everyone but is able to excel in self defense and defense of his colleagues. He is able to discern ulterior motives and has the discipline to know when to fight and when not to. 

Obito is his diametric counterpart in background and experience but similar in goals and motives in making himself an independent mark. Through his family, he had the material goods that Daisuke did not but he is no stranger to being abused and dominated by others. Various family members connive and conspire against one another so Obito doesn’t feel safe around them. 

Unlike Daisuke, Obito keeps his emotions inward and shows an air of quiet indifference. His real emotions for Itsuki are only felt when alone. He is aware of the higher political games that Daisuke is not. He has those airs of suspicion but is strategic and analytical about when he addresses and uses them. 

Like many partnerships, Obito and Daisuke bring out each other’s better qualities. Obito is able to do his part to educate Daisuke in poison making and also in political structure to make him a consummate spy and assassin, while Daisuke frees the emotions that boil up inside Obito so he can actually act on them and become a protective fighting force. The two emerge as partners, best friends, and dance towards an intimate closer relationship.

Dance of Demons is a perfect dance of detail, intrigue, and richness that will please any Fantasy fan. 

Reaping By Numbers: A Dead-End Job by Nicole Givens Kurtz; Fun and Interesting Take on The Grim Reaper

 Reaping By Numbers: A Dead-End Job by Nicole Givens Kurtz; Fun and Interesting Take on The Grim Reaper 

By Julie Sara Porter 

Bookworm Reviews 

Spoilers: Nicole Givens Kurtz knows how to write mysteries set in unique settings or populated with unique characters. Her novel, Glitches and Stitches is set in the future where AI is so omnipresent that people have a hard time separating the orga from the mecha which complicates a murder investigation. Kill Three Birds is a murder mystery set in a world of anthropomorphic birds. Her latest Reaping By Numbers also has an interesting premise in which a murder is investigated by none other than the Grim Reaper, well a Grim Reaper anyway.

Note, I said a Grim Reaper, as in plural more than one. Kurtz’s take on Reapers is that it is a job like any other. They are mostly human but are led by demons who work for the original Grim Reaper, also known as G. They don't kill people or cause them to die so much as they are there at the point of death and escort them in the transition between life and lifelessness. 

Patrice Williams is one such Reaper. Her reaping skills come naturally because they are inherited from her father who was an excellent Reaper in his day. Her latest assignment puts her right in the middle of a murder investigation, a turf war between various demonic factions, a meddlesome angel, and demonic possession. Patrice has to use all of her skills particularly when her own family is involved, especially her niece, Brianna, whose body inadvertently becomes the vessel of a very angry and violent demon.

In a strange way, Reaping By Numbers is the complete opposite of my previous book, Secrets at The Aviary Inn by Maryann Clarke. Secrets explores an ordinary conflict of a woman researching her family history but gives it some enchanting touches in setting and character that almost makes it seem like a Contemporary Fantasy. Reaping By Numbers takes an otherworldly fantastic situation of reapers guiding people after death and finds a dark humor by exploring the ordinary mundanity of the situation. 

Patrice clocks in and out like everyone else, does her shift, takes her breaks, deals with co-workers and supervisors, some encouraging and others obnoxious, collects her earnings, and goes home. Okay she's dealing with the recently deceased but so do morgue attendants and funeral home workers. What's so strange about that? Alright, her bosses are demons that emerged from the darkest pits of Hell but aren't all of our bosses? Yes, she has to face some very unpleasant encounters with dark magic, soul sucking spirits, wrathful ghosts, and avenging angels but no job is perfect. The benefits are great, particularly when you are alive to enjoy them. 

The way that her family is portrayed is that of a loving supportive foundation but are divided on various issues. Patrice's father is proud that his daughter is following in his footsteps. He is very encouraging as they talk shop though he also sternly warns her about some of the more dangerous aspects of the job. 

Not all of her family is supportive, particularly her religious mother and intrusive sister. Her mother is concerned that her daughter is consorting with demons. Her sister is trying to live a normal life with her pastor husband and children and feels that Patrice's profession could bring unwanted trouble within their family circle. Her worst fears come true when her daughter is possessed by demons.

Brianna's possession is a central plot point in this book. Kurtz conveys the anguish and fear that her family has, particularly Patrice who has to actively remove the demon while dealing with her own guilt and uncertainty about her chosen path. Patrice's dialogue with Brianna is the strongest emotional core especially when the young girl shows some potential to be a Reaper herself. 

Reaping By Numbers conveys a lot of dark humor but a lot of emotions in this book about a woman who considers hanging out with the dead as just another day at work.