Best Novella and Best Debut Round-ups
And so, I reach the end of the categories I’ll be reviewing for this year’s Subjective Chaos and it has been a lot of fun as always. Let’s round up my thoughts on the last set of categories. Best Debut and Best Novella.
Best Debut
A mixed bag for me this time
A Song of Wraiths and Ruin by Roseanne A Brown – I found this tale was a little too exposition driven and played it a bit too predictable in terms of YA fornat. It quickly lost me
The Scapegracers by Hannah Abigail Clarke – This feels like The Craft meets Gideon the Ninth. But for me the dialogue and wish to appear so hip and modern made it never feel a very genuine world and the style overrode the substance.
Raybearer by Jordan Ifueko – started quite well with an unusual world and set up but soon again got lost in so much exposition to explain things that quickly lost a sense of wonder.
Cemetery Boys by Aiden Thomas – a lovely sweet tale of ghosts and love with a trans and gay character finding each other but it did do exactly what I was expecting it to.
Legendborn by Tracy Deonn - a fascinating tale of modern and old worlds with Arthurian Legend and magic from Africa with plenty of surprises and a great trio of lead characters.
The Year of the Witching by Alexis Henderson – a really interesting mix of fantasy and horror with a post apocalyptic world, religious sects and demons all fighting for power. I really enjoyed this tale’s approach.
Best Novella
Upright Women Wanted by Sarah Gailey – I had hope for a tale of rebellious librarians in the wild west but it didn’t really feel like it went anywhere and safely lost my attention
The Four Profound Weaves by R B Lemberg — a wonderfully strange tale that creates it own myths and cultures and talks about change and stasis in a really wonderful and surprising way. I loved this one a lot.
Ring Shout by P Djeli Clark — historical fantasy but this tale of bootleggers dealing with a demonic Ku Klux Klan has a very smart approach and a wonderful hero’s journey to go on
The Empress of Salt and Fortune by Nghi Vo — A fascinating tale that tells an epic story in miniature and uses various object to tell the real story of a famous Empress. Surprising and very very smart.
Riot Baby by Tochi Onyebuchi — I really enjoyed this story’s look at recent history in America and where it may be heading. Police brutality and a corrupt racist system are explored with a woman coming into her own amazing powers. Sparkling and honest.
Sweet Harmony by Claire North — a nasty but very perceptive Black Mirror style horror story exploring our obsession with perfection and as always capitalism’s desire to exploit us for profit. Terrifyingly plausible.
And so very soon voting and a final round begins!
