Hellloo

So Autumn is well and truly upon us as the wind and rain howl and the nights get longer! But fear not because recharged from my time at a convention I have books to advance tempt you with!

Firstly a few books out now I’ve not yet got to reviewing

The Green Man’s Challenge by Juliet McKenna – from Wizards Tree Press £15 paperback £4.99 Kindle eBook

 A while back, Daniel Mackmain’s life took an unexpected turn. Now the Green Man expects him to resolve clashes between those dwelling unseen in wild places and the ordinary people who have no idea what’s out there. Dan’s father is human and his mother’s a dryad, so he sees what’s happening in both these worlds.

Once upon a time, giants walked this land. So says everyone from Geoffrey of Monmouth to William Blake. This ancient threat is stirring in the Wiltshire twilight, up on the chalk downs. Can Dan meet this new challenge when he can only find half-forgotten fairy tales to guide him? Will the other local supernatural inhabitants see him – or the giant – as friend or foe?

A modern fantasy rooted in the ancient myths and folklore of the British Isles.

One of the most interesting series I’ve still not got around to reading (but prepare my lovelies for that to change soon) a tale of a man who gets involved with various creatures attached to folklore. A very popular series now sees giants added to the mix.

 When Things Get Dark edited by Ellen Datlow - - from Titan Books £17.99 hardcover £6.99 Kindle eBook

 A chilling anthology in tribute to the genius of Shirley Jackson, collecting today's best horror writers. Featuring Joyce Carol Oates, Josh Malerman, Paul Tremblay, Richard Kadrey, Stephen Graham Jones, Elizabeth Hand and more.

A collection of new and exclusive short stories inspired by, and in tribute to, Shirley Jackson.

Shirley Jackson is a seminal writer of horror and mystery fiction, whose legacy resonates globally today. Chilling, human, poignant and strange, her stories have inspired a generation of writers and readers.

This anthology, edited by legendary horror editor Ellen Datlow, will bring together today’s leading horror writers to offer their own personal tribute to the work of Shirley Jackson.

Shirley Jackson has cast a shadow on weird and eerie horror fiction for decades and in this collection the excellent Ellen Datlow has assembled a collection of authors to create stories that capture Jackson’s essence. An impressive collection of names such as Cassandra Khaw, Carmen Maria Machado, Paul Tremblay and Jeffery Ford plus many more give their best shot. Reading this at the moment it is very very good.

 

The Annual Migration of Clouds by Premee Mohamed – from ECW Press - £10.99 paperback £6.64 Kindle eBook

 The world is nothing like it once was: climate disasters have wracked the continent, causing food shortages, ending industry, and leaving little behind. Then came Cad, mysterious mind-altering fungi that invade the bodies of the now scattered citizenry. Reid, a young woman who carries this parasite, has been given a chance to get away — to move to one of the last remnants of pre-disaster society — but she can’t bring herself to abandon her mother and the community that relies on her. When she’s offered a coveted place on a dangerous and profitable mission, she jumps at the opportunity to set her family up for life, but how can Reid ask people to put their trust in her when she can’t even trust her own mind?

With keen insight and biting prose, Premee Mohamed delivers a deeply personal tale in this post-apocalyptic hopepunk novella that reflects on the meaning of community and asks what we owe to those who have lifted us up.

As the author so far responsible for my favourite read of the year a tale of climate change, fungi and hope has to appeal. I am very ready for reading this soon

Great British Horror 6 - Ars Gratia Sanguis edited by Steve J Shaw - Out now from Black Shuck Books - £11.99 paperback £1.99 ebook

Great British Horror 6 continues the annual series showcasing the best in modern British horror. Every year, the series features ten British authors, plus one international guest contributor, telling tales of this sceptered isle.

A fine collection of horror authors is assembled here from Stephen Volk, Muriel Gray, Sarah Lotz and Helen Grant. Its the right time of year to read and I’ll report back soon. I am a kind tempter

 

The Devil Makes Three by Tori Bovalino – out Now from Titan Books - £8.99 paperback

 When Tess and Eliot stumble upon an ancient book hidden in a secret tunnel beneath the school library, they accidentally release a devil from his book-bound prison, and he’ll stop at nothing to stay free. He’ll manipulate all the ink in the library books to do his bidding, he’ll murder in the stacks, and he’ll bleed into every inch of Tess’ life until his freedom is permanent. Forced to work together, Tess and Eliot have to find a way to re-trap the devil before he kills everyone they know and love, including, increasingly, each other. And compared to what the devil has in store for them, school stress suddenly doesn’t seem so bad after all.

Devils and Books - I can relate. But this sounds my kind of fun too!

 

Now how about what comes out soon?

 

A Clockwork River by JS Emery – out 7/10 from Head of Zeus - £18.99 hardcover

 A sister searches for her missing brother as a new power rises amid the splendour and the squalor of a once great city.

Time is running out for the Clockwork River.

Lower Rhumbsford is a city far removed from its glory days. On the banks of the great river Rhumb, its founding fathers channelled the river's mighty flow into a subterranean labyrinth of pipes, valves and sluices, a feat of hydraulic prowess that would come to power an empire. But a thousand years have passed since then, and something is wrong: the pipes are leaking, the valves stuck, the sluices silted and the once torrential Rhumb has been reduced to a sluggish trickle.

The fortunes of the Locke family, descendants of the city's most celebrated engineer, are similarly reduced. In a once fashionable quarter of the once great city, siblings Samuel and Briony Locke distract themselves: Sam tends to his vast lock collection instead of finishing his engineering thesis; facing the prospect of a disagreeable marriage, Briony occupies herself with alchemical experiments.

One night Samuel leaves the house carrying five of his most precious locks and doesn't come back. As she searches for her brother, Briony will be drawn into a web of ancestral secrets and imperial intrigues as a ruthless new power arises. If brother and sister are to be reunited, they will need the help of a tight-lipped house spirit, a convict gang, a tribe of troglodytes, an association of antiques enthusiasts, a travelling theatrical troupe, the Ladies Whist Club, the Deep State, and a lovesick mouse.

Sounds a bit steampunky and I do like a mystery to solve so let’s see what happens.

 

Unexpected Places to Fall From, Unexpected Places to Land by Malcolm Devlin – Out 14th October from Unsung Stories £9.99 paperback from author

 In the exact same moment, all possible versions of Prentis O’Rourke will cease to exist. By accident, by malice, by conflict, by illness – Prentis will not simply die. He will go extinct. These are the stories of the journeys we take and the journeys we wish we’d taken.

Malcolm Devlin’s second short story collection ranges from science fiction to folk horror as Prentis O’Rourke’s demise echoes across the dimensions. Scientists, artists, ex-nuns, taxi drivers, time travellers and aliens – the same people living varied lives in subtly different worlds. Something unprecedented will happen, and it will colour them all.

Crossing multiple realities, countless versions of ourselves, and shifting backwards and forwards through time, these are stories of forking paths and unexpected destinations – of flying and falling and getting up to try again. 

Acclaimed author Malcolm Devlin delivers a second collection of short stories crossing multiple realities and w will meet a host of stories. My first experience of Devlin and I will report back soon but Unsung for me have never failed to deliver a fascinating book yet.

Lakesedge by Lyndall Clipstone – Out 12/10 from Titan Books – £8.99 paperback £5.59 kindle eBook

 There are monsters in the world.

Violeta Graceling has spent her life in an isolated cottage, trying to protect herself and her beloved younger brother Arien from their adoptive mother’s twisted cruelty. A cruelty driven by the mysterious shadows that unwillingly spill from Arien’s hands, spelling dark magic and an even darker underworld.

To escape means taking a position at the haunted estate of Rowan Sylvanan―the so-called “Monster of Lakesedge”―who comes seeking Arien's dark magic. The monster who, it is whispered, stalks the halls of his manor and the shores of the blackened, cursed lake. Yet as Violeta investigates Lakesedge's tragic history, she discovers that its prickly, standoffish lord is far from a monster, but an orphaned boy not much older than she is. As their friendship blossoms, Violeta learns the tragic truth of Rowan's curse and his fateful bargain with the Lord Under. To save Lakesedge, she must make a bargain of her own with the fiendish being who rules over the world Below.

Another interesting sounding story and it’s the time of spooky gothic so definitely will be reading this soon

 

Nothing But Blackened Teeth by Cassandra Khaw – Out 19/10 from Titan Books - £9.99 paperback £6.99 kindle eBook
A Heian-era mansion stands abandoned, its foundations resting on the bones of a bride and its walls packed with the remains of the girls sacrificed to keep her company.

It’s the perfect venue for a group of thrill-seeking friends, brought back together to celebrate a wedding.

A night of food, drinks, and games quickly spirals into a nightmare as secrets get dragged out and relationships are tested.

But the house has secrets too. Lurking in the shadows is the ghost bride with a black smile and a hungry heart.

And she gets lonely down there in the dirt.

A seriously great author who if you’ve yet to read you must soon correct. A remarkable cover matches what sounds a grisly haunted house tale!

 

If you have any to add please use the comments.