Yo.

I’m back from migraine cycle breaker meds which sometimes make it very difficult for me to settle my brain down and thus, make it very hard for me to read. I did get a lot of art done so if you’re interested in that, I’ll have a decent sized shop drop coming sometime this week (there’s a link at the top of the page). There will be some special seasonal goodies included, as well as something very silly but, in my personal opinion, extremely funny, as well.

Right. Enough of the self-promo, let’s talk about a couple of books other excellent writers have prepared for us with October release dates.

The Sister’s Curse by Nicola Slovinic (Berkley, 10/21)

Welcome back to Bayern County, where detectives exorcise the demons of serial killer fathers who worship the old gods by bringing other murderers to justice.

Anna has her work cut out for her this time, trying to catch an apparently ephemeral being seeking revenge upon the men who killed her when they were all teenagers by drowning their children. The case is complicated by the fact one of the men is the minster to a mega-church who preaches the subjugation of women and girls and a refusal to accept medical treatment, obscuring the facts and making it difficult, sometimes impossible, for Anna to speak to the witnesses who need her most.

While I enjoyed the first installment of this series, this second book is a huge step forward in terms of narrative and character development, creep factor, and the balance of paranormal danger and the vile nature of far too much of humanity. I liked the fact that Anna, while never completely free of her father’s influence, was able to step away from that being the driving factor behind all of her decision making and her on-the-job choices, that she had the opportunity to explore her own nature free of genetic imperative. The fact that we were given glimpses of Anna’s mother and her choice to be cruel also means that we have seen both the nature and nurture aspects of this complicated woman’s upbringing and understand exactly how much she has had to overcome to become someone who’s first instinct is to help, to provide shelter, to save a life rather than to take it. I think it was also important to see Nick become a bit more cynical, to move toward the understanding that good intentions aren’t always enough - he and Anna will need to meet in the middle if they’re going to survive as a couple and while it’s always sad to see a golden retriever subdued, it’s also necessary if he’s going to survive in Anna’s world or the world at large.

The story was much tighter this time around, and found more direct routes from one place to another, which upped both the suspense, because I didn’t have time to drop threads or for my attention to wander, and enhanced to horror aspect of the novel by stacking the creepy bits and, thus, giving the whole story an air of the uncanny. And as to the question of who was worse: the ghosts or the perpetrators? Always an interesting question and always something to meditate on after the end of a novel like this one.

Looking forward to the next.

The Sister’s Curse: https://bookshop.org/a/56337/9780593639757

The Everlasting by Alix Harrow (Tor, 10/28)

Oh, this book, this book, this book. I don’t even know how to say what I want to say about it. It’s definitely going to be in my top 5 of the year and it may even end up wrestling with Lucky Seed for the #1 spot. It’s possible they’ll share because they are so absolutely unalike I don’t think there’s actually a way to compare them in any meaningful way.

First of all, first of all, this book is written in first person addressing the second person and who even does that? Who does that and who could possible pull that off? Harrow and maybe one other person I can think of. And, and, the POV switches back and forth between the two main characters, Owen and Una, and at no point was I confused about which one of them was, “I,” and which one of them was, “you.” Masterful. Insane and masterful and just… fuck.

The Everlasting also, also, time loops. Multiple time loops and you all know how I feel about time loops and these time loops were absolute perfection and every single of them was necessary and every single one of them broke my cold, black heart but, hhhrrrrrngh, I was not planning on fully reinstalling my humanity until at least 2028 but now here we are and I have to live with it.

These two, these two, Owen and Una… they’re just… everyone should be loved the way they love one another. Everyone should know the absolute devotion that would lead a person to endure what they endure for one another and be willing to make and admit mistakes and start again, never over, and to not only die for one another but to live for one another. To know that you are walking into the (sometimes literal) fire and do it anyway or not do it even if you desperately want to… gah.

Words.

I have so many and I don’t know what to do with all of them.

The Everlasting changed me in a fundamental way. I’m not entirely sure what that way is yet but I know it did. I’ll let you know when I figure it out.

The Everlasting: https://bookshop.org/a/56337/9781250799081

Lucky Seed: https://bookshop.org/a/56337/9780778387862

Should be back to normal volume next time. Talk soon.