Ten Sleep by Nicholas Belardes

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


[My thanks to NetGalley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.]

As a Wyoming native (though no longer resident), I was intrigued by the premise of this modern weird Western. A 20-something woman, adrift after dropping out of the U. of Wyoming (yes, I'm an alumna) and getting left by her girlfriend, takes up a friend's offer to work on a 10-day cattle drive outside the small town of Ten Sleep. Unfortunately, the drive leads into a canyon haunted by centuries of bloodletting, and hungry for more.

The Wyoming setting and characters of this novel rang true for me. Greta Molina, the main protagonist, is both flawed and deeply sympathetic. Her complex family history, though not always relevant to the plot, gives her something to hang onto when things start getting strange -- as they do very quickly. Unfortunately, it also blinds her to the considerably darker family circumstances of the friend who hired her. Generational curse, anyone?

The narrative proceeds through each night/sleep of the drive at a deliberate, often nerve-wracking pace. Sections of straight narrative are interspersed with scenes focused on animals, birds, or other entities -- scenes which don't always seem to follow from the section before. Most do eventually tie into the main plot, but a few never did for me. Greta is also riding with a headful of memories and anxieties, which may explain why she went on this drive in the first place, but do not necessarily move the story forward. When the dénouement comes, however, it's fast-paced and relentlessly bloody. In the wilderness, Belardes seems to be saying, we die like any other animal.

Ten Sleep is ambitious, imaginative horror with perhaps too many things going on at once. In addition to the family curse aspect, it incorporates historical horror, cosmic horror, eco-horror, supernatural horror, and more than I ever wanted to know about taxidermy. This makes for a creepy but scattered reading experience, as there are simply too many pieces to fit into this nasty little puzzle. It held my attention throughout, though -- and I can truly say I've never read anything quite like it.

Recommended for slow burn horror fans with a fascination for the weird West, and a certain amount of stamina.



View all my reviews

I suspect I wasn't the ideal reader for this collection. Although I'm somewhat familiar with Kiernan's work -- I've read one novel, one novella, and a handful of their short stories -- I'm not a devoted fan. This particular collection has a deeply personal feel. Each of its twenty-five stories offers an afterword, explanatory or autobiographical or both. The vast majority first appeared in Sirenia Digest, a subscription-only ezine Kiernan produces.

Kiernan's brand of weird fiction is nearly impossible to describe. It's decidedly literary, atmosphere-forward, and influenced by their work in paleontology. There's a subtle (or sometimes not so subtle) vein of Lovecraft running through it, though it never approaches pastiche. This collection included a handful of what I would consider Lovecraftian stories, including one set in his Dreamlands. Quite a few others read more like SF, embracing themes of first contact or the discovery of alien artifacts. One or two were solidly climate fiction.

Although disturbing and well-crafted, however, many of the stories in this collection didn't seem to end in any conventional sense. I counted ten of the twenty-five as having distinct (often horrific) conclusions. The others read more like vignettes, either from the start or fluctuating between structured fiction and vignette throughout the reading experience. As someone accustomed to more conventional genre fiction, I found this frustrating -- even though I kept right on reading, pulled along by the disquieting effect of Kiernan's prose.

A few of Kiernan's themes also became somewhat repetitive. Dreams and dream retellings, visits to psychiatrists, and the miseries of freelance journalism all came in for possibly more than their share of attention. The deep ocean was also a frequent theme, but this is a bit more common in Lovecraft-influenced writing.

In the end, I wound up elevating my three-star rating to four stars solely on the strength of the writing itself, and on its eerily immersive quality. I suspect that Kiernan's more dedicated fans will find this collection a solid five star experience. My thanks to NetGalley and Subterranean Press for providing me with an ARC.
-

The Bewitching by Silvia Moreno-Garcia

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Dark academia, multicultural witchcraft, and straight-up supernatural horror make a satisfying blend in Sylvia Moreno-Garcia's most recent foray into the shadows. As with many of her novels, this one is mostly a slow burn. The plotline stretches across three time periods -- 1908, 1934, & 1998 -- in both Mexico and New England.

Alba, a young Mexican woman (whose family may be cursed) in 1908, is the great-grandmother of Minerva, a 1998 graduate student -- who is in turn doing her thesis on Beatrice/Betty, a pioneering female writer of weird tales in 1934. When Minerva's research reveals Betty's own brush with the unexplained, she finds herself threatened by dangers both supernatural and otherwise. Her great-grandmother left her with a few valuable tips about witchcraft, but can the folk beliefs of rural Mexico possibly apply to the traditions of old New England? And if they do, will Minerva be able to access her own power in time?

It takes a while for the three separate story lines to intertwine completely, although each is compelling in its own right. Fortunately, Moreno-Garcia includes the appropriate date with each chapter. She also seasons the dark academia sections with intriguing book titles, some of which I may need to look up later. They feel very real, as do the practices and descriptions of rural Mexican witches. There's always something interesting to learn in Moreno-Garcia's novels, and this one is no exception.

The conclusion of The Bewitching owes as much to thriller-style pacing as it does to horror, and may wind things up a bit too neatly for some readers. I tend to prefer clarity, however, and was gratified that the author took time to tuck in loose ends. There is also an informative Afterword, detailing some of the more autobiographical aspects of this novel. Recommended for anyone who enjoys dark academia with intelligent heroines, or folk horror with a Mexican/South American flavor.

My thanks to NetGalley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.




View all my reviews

A Conventional Boy by Charles Stross

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Consisting of a novella, two novelettes, and a concluding Afterword, A Conventional Boy is a somewhat brief ( 211 pp. in my hardback) but highly entertaining series of sidetracks through the Laundry Files universe. The novella which gives the book its title details the adventures of Derek Reilly, a once-teenage Dungeon Master wrongly imprisoned by the Laundry a few decades back, during the Satanic D&D Panic. All Derek really wants to do is to escape for one weekend, to attend a local gaming convention . . . but it gets weirder than that, of course. A lot weirder. Derek's successful escape attempt brings him into the crosshairs of an actual group of cultists using the convention for their own eldritch purposes. This, in turn, brings in other members of the Laundry (some of whom sounded familiar to me), and chaos rolls on.

The two novelettes (at least one of which I've run into before in electronic form) are both Bob Howard adventures. Again, these are sidetracks rather than essential bits of the Laundry universe -- but regular readers will enjoy the extra details they offer. The Afterword is mainly an explanation of the D&D Satanic Panic of the 1980s, and how it happened to inspire this book. It's helpful to be familiar with tabletop role-playing games, though I suspect quite a lot of Stross readers (including myself) are.





View all my reviews

Dark Fire by C.J. Sansom

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Another meaty, detail-rich Tudor mystery for Sansom's somewhat unusual detective: a hunchbacked lawyer more comfortable with property cases than murder most foul. This time around, it's a double investigation set during the waning days of Thomas Cromwell's career in service to Henry VIII. Reluctantly assisting Cromwell, Matthew Shardlake must investigate the disappearance of a formula for Greek Fire -- while also attempting to save the life of a young woman accused of murdering her cousin. What could possibly go wrong?

As it turns out, nearly everything. Sansom was a master at combining deep historical information with nonstop anxiety and frequent action scenes, & Dark Fire does not disappoint. Those particularly interested in or informed about this period in Tudor England will probably be even more anxious than the average reader. A brief (5 minutes' listening time) but comprehensive historical endnote helps separate fact from fiction, which I also found useful.

Highly recommended for anyone who enjoys English historical mysteries, & isn't afraid of extensive detail.



View all my reviews

When We Were Real by Daryl Gregory

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


[My thanks to NetGalley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.]

When We Were Real is near-near-future SF, or possibly present-day SF in any one of a number of realities. The concept -- we are all living in a simulation, and were made aware of this seven years ago -- is intriguing. A varied cast of characters are on a bus tour organized by Canterbury Trails (two nuns this time, Chaucer lovers!), visiting a series of Impossibles left behind by whoever is actually running the simulation. These sites are all violations of the laws of nature, physics, or both, and the pilgrims themselves are pretty messed up to begin with.

The author's omniscient point of view allows him to shift from character to character, generally one character per chapter, as the story moves forward. This works well most of the time, though it took me a while to get everyone straightened out and keep track of whose personal plotlines were intersecting. The Impossibles themselves (beginning with a Frozen Tornado and progressing in orders of weirdness to the Zipper) are the most obviously sfnal bits of the book. The hard-science explanations of why they're Impossible do tend to bog down the narrative a bit, however

Gregory is a terminally witty writer, and I found myself highlighting numerous lines as I clicked through the chapters. The plot situations become increasingly bizarre, occasionally at the expense of clarity. If you're a fan of surreal, consciously literary work, this isn't likely to bother you. If you're accustomed to more conventionally linear texts, it may.

There's plenty to think about here, and more than enough action (physical and emotional) to keep the pages turning/clicking. The last couple of chapters, however, were a real disappointment to me. Although most plot entanglements get untangled, at least one does so in a brutally random manner. The resolution draws upon several possible endings -- which makes sense within the context of "reality" as a simulation, but leaves a last impression of vagueness. I'd call this a solid four-star read for those seeking SF-flavored Literature -- but for mainstream SF readers like myself, possibly a three.




View all my reviews

[Thanks to NetGalley for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review. ]

Looking for post-apocalypse adventure with less bleakness and more inspired world-building? Cary Groner's The Way may be your ticket. Set in the American Southwest some years after a cascade of disasters called the Mayhem, this near-future road novel follows a man on a life-changing mission from New Mexico to California. Accompanied by an aging Maine Coon cat and a resourceful raven (both of whom he can apparently communicate with), Will Collins travels in the shell of an F-150 pulled by two mules. Though well-equipped with supplies and trail savvy, he struggles with his Buddhist vow to lead a harmless life -- even as both critters and human hunters keep trying to kill him.

Will's backstory as the last surviving resident of a Colorado dharma center lends a unique flavor to this novel -- questions of right conduct being rare in post-apocalyptic fiction -- but occasionally slows down the narrative. For this reader, at least, there were times when his spiritual detours were hard to follow. These never descend to the level of preachiness, however, and the pressure of his human pursuers soon gets things moving again.

As science fiction goes, The Way is definitely on the softer side without becoming squishy. The scientific aspects of Disease X (which ultimately created the Mayhem) are well worked out, and the post-human landscape Will and his companions travel through is frighteningly believable. Character remains at the heart of this novel, however. Will is haunted by the memory of a love he believes long dead, writing her letters he "sends" by placing them in his campfires. Excerpts from these provide the reader with more snippets of background, though not all are immediately relevant.

Though it offers plenty of action and a few moments of flinch-inducing violence, The Way may not appeal to those seeking a hardcore post-apocalypse read. Others may find its combination of scientific speculation, spirituality, and literary touches exactly what they were looking for -- even if they didn't know it when they picked up the book. Recommended.

An Academy for Liars by Alexis Henderson

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


This thoroughly adult piece of dark academia -- no teen wizards, no monsters other than human ones --enhances its Southern Gothic setting with an intriguing magic system variant. Rather than casting spells, students at Drayton College study to refine their powers of persuasion. Far more than personal charm, persuasion is an innate (yet trainable) ability to force one's will upon other entities, from rats to classmates to time itself. Those who wield it pay a heavy price, however -- and many of Drayton's residents are damaged to begin with.

Recruited from a life spiraling toward self-destruction, Lennon Carter struggles at first with both her studies and her relationships. After a short lifetime of choosing controlling men, she winds up falling for her advisor -- a plot point some readers will have trouble with, as I did -- and running afoul of a violent male classmate. Both relationships examine just what power does to those who wield it -- and whether "good" people can truly use persuasion effectively.

Lennon, however, must do more than use her talents effectively. Like all proper dark academic institutions, Drayton has a secret. As Lennon improves her control and discovers her unique persuasive skills, she is drawn deeper into the web of half-truths and betrayals that protect this secret -- and, eventually, the survival of Drayton itself. Her own survival is secondary.

At times, this novel felt over-packed. There's a lot of backstory -- sometimes delivered at multiple-page length --and interpersonal machinations early on, though most will turn out to be significant. There is possibly too much emphasis on style (androgynous names, tattoos galore), and way too many clove cigarettes. As the plot cranks up, however, none of this matters. Alexis Henderson knows her way around eldritch action, and the suspense keeps twisting until the end.

An Academy for Liars is on the morally grayer side of its subgenre. Persuasion isn't a pretty gift, and there's a good bit of gore along the way. Readers seeking an edgier experience, however, should be well satisfied.

My thanks to NetGalley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.





View all my reviews

The Seventh Veil of Salome by Silvia Moreno-Garcia

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


[Thanks to NetGalley for providing me with an advance e-copy in exchange for an honest review.]

The lives of three young women -- two residing in 1950s film-mad Los Angeles, one inhabiting a Biblical past -- intertwine in this noir thriller with distinct feminist undertones. When Mexican newcomer Vera Larios is chosen to portray Salome in a major studio's sword & sandals epic, she runs afoul of Nancy Hartley, an experienced bit player with a racist streak and a nasty temper. Nancy had expected the role for herself, and her ego is far larger than Vera's. Through no fault of her own, Vera also collects a second enemy when she refuses to submit to her leading man's entitled advances.

Interspersed with the stories of both actresses are glimpses of the court life of Salome herself. The tone of these is more than a bit Technicolor. Salome has two aspiring suitors, a lecherous uncle, and a passion for the doomed prophet Jokanaan, but her interior life still manages to mirror Vera's and Nancy's. As all three young women hurtle toward fates hinted at (but never disclosed) from the beginning of the novel, the reader is left wondering who, if anyone, will be left standing.

And most likely guessing wrong.

A note about culture: although racism and sexism are not the plot's main emphasis, Moreno-Garcia's view of 1955 L.A. is in no way sanitized. Nancy's vicious comments about her rival receive far less criticism than they might today, and both Nancy and Vera must cope with men unable to see past their measurements. In true Salome style, Nancy at least manages to weaponize her situation.

This novel is painstakingly researched, with author's comments at the end for those of us who geek out on such things, yet Moreno-Garcia's research never gets in the way of illusion. Above all, The Seventh Veil of Salome is pure dark entertainment. I was expecting to miss the author's usual speculative / supernatural touches, but I never did. I was too busy clicking pages, breath held for the finale.





View all my reviews

A Spy Among Friends: Kim Philby and the Great Betrayal by Ben Macintyre

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


This is one of those books I'd have never gotten through as a big thick hardback, but I thoroughly enjoyed the Audible version. I'd been meaning to read/listen to something about the Cambridge spy ring for years, but this book showed up on Audible some months back & it offered an afterword by John Le Carre. That sold me!

The narrator for this one is plummy & understated, adding to the feel of a somewhat leisurely, detailed, ultimately very sad story of how One of Our Own Sort could have possibly spied for Moscow. I don't have the expertise to say whether Macintyre has all his research correct, but it seemed comprehensive without ever becoming tedious. I now feel as though I understand at least a bit about one of the most infamous incidents in postwar British intelligence.

Recommended for intelligence fans with terminal Anglophilia.




View all my reviews