Publisher - Absinthe Books

Published - Out Now

Price - £18.99 hardback £2.99 ebook

Fain has inherited Ocean View, a boarding house in Hove Harbour from her late mother, who’s still hanging around to offer advice where needed and generally keep an eye on the place – when magic of a different sort starts to rear its head within her home, Fain, her mother and friends old and new must band together to protect Ocean View, and each other.

I really enjoy contemporary fantasy stories because they put the magic into the everyday life we live in. The idea thatif you enter the right wardrobe the magic awaits; that monsters do live amongst us and we allone day may get an adventure. Boring old reality will finally get a much needed magical kick-start. In M R Carey’s highly entertaining fantasy tale The Last Night At The Star Dome Lounge we get an excellently told tale where a not so simple B&B becomes the final battleground for two magical forces.

Fain runs a large B&B in the quiet Hove Harbour. Just four regular inhabitants amongst the other travellers who use the place. All living simple but interesting lives; trading bad jokes and sometimes telling fortunes. Oh and sometimes Fain speaks to her mother’s spirit. That is just all pretty normal right? But then the B&B regulars find themselves in new rooms of the house; being offered their heart’s desires and they all feel they were about to be trapped. A new guest who has always been there makes her appearance and Fain falls hard for her. Finally a powerful magician is on the hunt and warns Fain if he does not get what he wants then her home will be destroyed.

Carey in this novella demonstrates a great use of storytelling. Initially we meet the B&B inhabitants and in some very sharp snapshots we get to understand their characters and foibles. Its a peculiarly British B&B not exactly where we tend to think of as the standard locations for a fantasy tale. We do meet Fain and this young woman who lives a standard routine then we see throwing a knife at a wall all the time just add a little sign of danger; and knowing she is talking to the ghost f her mother (whose ashes are on the fireplace) immediately show that for this world magic is real. I really liked how Carey in just a few odd sentences establishes that while this world is like our own it is one where magic is real and often those who wield it get persecuted by the authorities (although not in Hove Harbour where the B&B resides). Even before the main plot starts the whole set-up is interesting you want to know more about these people.

When the B&B starts exhibiting new rooms that appear to each resident when they’re alone we get our first taste of the fantastic letting rip. The temptations all appear initially surreal and then Carey subtly changes perspectives on the scene to offer dangers lurking around. A jokey scene suddenly moves into something a lot more dangerous and I loved how skilfully these transitions take place. Its a good mystery to add to the plot and I like the way a simple B&B suddenly becomes a weirder and more dangerous place.

This leads to the final act where we get an enigmatic young woman named Mina who Fain starts a relationship with and suddenly everyone knows she has been here a long time; plus a malevolent magician claiming to act on behalf of the authorities who arrives in the B&B looking for someone. He is not afraid to use magic to intimidate and he ends up a wily and dangerous antagonist - the ones we always love to hate. What really impressed me was how all the seeds Carey planted in this tale come together from Fain’s parents backstories, the guests’ unique skills and the magical forces within the tale to create a memorable final act. Carey is a very visual storyteller and the way these scenes get brought to life is powerful and really pulls you into the scenes. The explanations for what is going on have echoes of ancient myths and fairy-tales that give the story depth and a sense of a final confrontation to come which itself requires brain more than brawn.

The Last Night At The Star Dome Lounge (the title will make sense later on in the story I promise) is a very entertaining and brilliantly told tale that is hugely enjoyable and also really will make you appreciate how the story gets constructed as well. A fascinating world, characters plus a B&B await you and it is well worth a stay.