Official Author Website
Order the book HERE

OFFICIAL BOOK BLURB: The King is dead, the Greatcoats have been disbanded, and Falcio Val Mond and his fellow magistrates Kest and Brasti have been reduced to working as bodyguards for a nobleman who refuses to pay them. Things could be worse, of course. Their employer could be lying dead on the floor while they are forced to watch the killer plant evidence framing them for the murder. Oh wait, that’s exactly what’s happening… 

Now a royal conspiracy is about to unfold in the most corrupt city in the world. A carefully orchestrated series of murders that began with the overthrow of an idealistic young king will end with the death of an orphaned girl and the ruin of everything that Falcio, Kest, and Brasti have fought for. But if the trio want to foil the conspiracy, save the girl, and reunite the Greatcoats, they’ll have to do it with nothing but the tattered coats on their backs and the swords in their hands, because these days every noble is a tyrant, every knight is a thug, and the only thing you can really trust is a traitor’s blade.

OVERVIEW/ANALYSIS (Liviu): After an okayish start on the light side that gave a taste of the picaresque aspect of the novel, Traitor's Blade started getting darker and more interesting so it quickly pulled me in. By its end, the book turned out to be an excellent read - powerful narrative and many twists and turns of which some major ones are clear from long before, but they are still very entertaining.

Highly imaginative world building which has a little "iffiness" factor true as some things happen too quickly and of course our heroes escape quite a few deathly situations in sometimes unlikely ways, but that doesn't really matter given the rest of the goodies of the novel. Also for once a realistic view of "knights", chivalry and a medieval like society that reads real - brutal, no illusions, no mercy, the powerful oppressing the less powerful and those oppressing the weak.

Narrated in alternate present and past by Falcio val Mond, former First Cantor of the Greatcoats - both Cantor and Greatcoat have definite meanings here - who now a few years after his king's death when the high nobility rebelled against his reforms and King Paelis refused to allow a civil war and ordered Falcio to surrender his highly trained Greatcoats in return for amnesty, surrender that has the survivors now called traitors, tries to keep his last promise to the king and find the treasures the king has scattered throughout the realm and use them to restore a semblance of justice as opposed to the unending brutality of the nobility.

While a great fighter and having a highly developed sense of justice and morality, Falcio is not the sharpest intellect around, so he and his two companions, first sword Kest and first archer Brasti, kind of bumble in and out of mortal peril, are outwitted and manipulated at every turn by nefarious schemers, but in true picaresque fashion, manage to survive despite the odds.

Here is Falcio after killing a renowned knight in a quick battle:

 'I looked out at the night sky and the stars that winked at us as if they were all in on some great joke. ‘Five years ago, after the Ducal Army took Castle Aramor, they killed our King and hauled his corpse up to the top of the castle. They mounted his head on a pike. Some men cheered, some men looked away.’ I took another swig of my wine. ‘And some men just laughed.'

‘So Lynniac was there, was he?’

‘Lynniac was there,’ I said. ‘Commander of a division of Knights. I didn’t recognise him at first, but when he was pointing that crossbow at me and he started laughing …’

Feltock bit the inside of his cheek. Then he said, ‘And you think you remember everyone who was there that day?’ I thought about it for a moment. ‘Not everyone,’ I replied. Feltock was looking at me intently, trying to see if I knew, if I did remember. More trouble than it will be worth, I thought, but I was a little drunk and a little tired so I said, ‘But since you’re asking, yes, General Feltock, I remember you.’

Feltock’s eyes went wide for a moment, but then he gave a bitter laugh. ‘Not “General”,’ he said. ‘Not for a few years now.’

We drank some more in silence. ‘So,’ he said, uncrossing his legs with a crack. ‘Are you gonna come for me next, boy?’

I sighed. ‘No.’ ‘Why not? I was there, wasn’t I? I was one of those what took down your King, wasn’t I? So what’s the difference between me and Lynniac?’

‘You didn’t laugh.’

He just looked at me for a while and then said, ‘Huh.’ Then he stood up and started walking back to the wagons. 

‘Why “Captain” Feltock?’ I asked when he was a few paces away. ‘Why aren’t you a general any more?’ 

Feltock turned and gave me a sour grin. He tossed the rest of his wineskin back to me. ‘Because, boy, when they put the King’s head on that pole, I forgot to laugh.’

In the episodes taking place in the past, we see Falcio's journey from boy to young and happily married farmer, to man on a vengeance quest, to justiciar in the king's elite Greatcoats, to his last order in the name of the king and the slow revelations of that thread are added to the mix well indeed.

Magic is subtle here and nobody is necessarily as he or she seems, while the main characters - villains and heroes of both genders - are in the best fantasy tradition. A great ending which promises much more and a series that already by its first volume vaulted to the top level, so I really want more.

Overall Traitor's Blade is the first "new" fantasy of 2014 that met and even exceeded my expectations and for the reasons above takes its place in my top 25 of the year to date.

ANALYSIS (Mihir): This was a debut, which came to my attention via Liviu, he had mentioned on Goodreads how much he was enjoying this classical sword & sorcery tale. Once I got hold a review copy, I dove in with high expectations and was rewarded for the most part.

The story begins with our sole narrator Falcio val Mond, First Cantor of the Greatcoats, and his two fellow greatcoats, Brasti, an expert archer, and Kest, the best blade among the Greatcoats. The tale begins when the order of the Greatcoats has been thoroughly disgraced. Forced to lay aside their arms by their King’s orders and watch his execution soon afterwards, has given the order a new name of Trattari or Tatter-Coats. The Dukes were the ones who engineered this coup but the biggest fall was taken by Falcio’s order. When we meet our three remaining Greatcoats, things seem dire as they have just witnessed murder but due to certain magical ministrations are painted as the murderers. Fleeing with their lives and martial reputations intact, our trio will have to uncover this new mystery as well solve the tasks given to each of them by their deceased king.

All in all, things are looking dastardly and that’s where the fun comes in for the reader. Falcio as a narrator is an engaging one as he reminisces of his past life before joining the order. We witness his personal accolades as well the event that lead him to meet King Paelis and later on to the formation of the Greatcoats as well. These flashbacks are nicely ensconced within the present wherein our Greatcoat trio are traipsing through the kingdom of Cristia trying to find the murderer and absolve themselves of the murder charge.

This was an absolute delightful read, combining the charm of the Three Musketeers story along with the twists and turn found in the best of sword and sorcery. Beginning with the pace of the story, which will keep readers engaged as well as the plot twists that will keep them hooked. The author has made this story a very relatable one via his protagonist Falcio who is an everyman hero. Facing rather horrible odds, he and his friends try to stick to their honorable ideals but are occasionally forced to walk the morally gray path. The author makes sure that the heroes are very sympathetic by giving them horrible scenarios and making the villains as evil as possible. After reading a lot of grimdark as well as morally ambivalent fantasy, Traitor's Blade as a debut left me delighted as soon as I finished it.

For readers who are looking for a fun read, Traitor's Blade hit the spot nicely. Not to say that there's no gruesomeness or darkness to the tale. The author does manage to portray a very grim picture for our heroes and makes the story take a few bleak turns. However not every situation is completely explained in regards to the story such as the Ducal insurrection as well as the villains' main plan. I'm hoping further clarification will be provided in the sequel but as far as stories go, this one kept me pretty intrigued with its plot and characters.

CONCLUSION: For all those who enjoy fantasy stories with a light-hearted feel to it, this debut is something that you must take a look at. Combining action and light hearted banter in a simplistic manner; Traitor's Blade is a debut that hearkens back to days of epic fantasy when grimdark hadn't become so widespread.

Official Author Website  
Order “Nice Dragons Finish Last” HERE
Read the first three chapters HERE 
Read Fantasy Book Critic's review of "The Spirit Thief" 
Read Fantasy Book Critic's review of “The Spirit Rebellion” 
Read Fantasy Book Critic's review of “The Spirit Eater” & “Spirit’s Oath” 
Read Fantasy Book Critic's review of “The Spirit War” 
Read Fantasy Book Critic's review of "Spirit's End"
Read Fantasy Book Critic's review of "Fortune's Pawn"
Read Fantasy Book Critic's review of "Honor's Knight"
Read Fantasy Book Critic's review of "Heaven's Queen"
Read Fantasy Book Critic's Interview with Rachel Aaron
Read Eli Monpress series completion interview with Rachel Aaron
Read Fantasy Book Critic's Interview with Rachel Bach

AUTHOR INFORMATION: Rachel Aaron lives in Athens, Georgia with her family. She has graduated from University of Georgia with a B.A. in English Literature. She has been an avid reader since her childhood and now has an ever-growing collection to show for it. She loves gaming, Manga comics & reality TV police shows. She also posts regularly on her blog about publishing, books and several other intriguing things.

OFFICIAL BOOK BLURB: As the smallest dragon in the Heartstriker clan, Julius survives by a simple code: stay quiet, don’t cause trouble, and keep out of the way of bigger dragons. But this meek behavior doesn’t cut it in a family of ambitious predators, and his mother, Bethesda the Heartstriker, has finally reached the end of her patience.

Now, sealed in human form and banished to the DFZ--a vertical metropolis built on the ruins of Old Detroit--Julius has one month to prove to his mother that he can be a ruthless dragon or lose his true shape forever. But in a city of modern mages and vengeful spirits where dragons are seen as monsters to be exterminated, he’s going to need some serious help to survive this test.

He only hopes that humans are more trustworthy than dragons.

CLASSIFICATION: The Heartstriker series is an action-packed urban fantasy series with a strong dose of comedy, post-apocalyptic SF themes and dragons.

FORMAT/INFO: Nice Dragons Finish Last is 315 pages long divided over eighteen numbered chapters with a prologue and an epilogue. Narration is in the third person via Julius Heartstriker, Chelsie Heartstriker, Marci Novalli, Svena White Witch, Estella the Northern Star, and Bixby. This is the first volume of the Heartstriker series.

July 15, 2014 will mark the e-book publication of Nice Dragons Finish Last and it will be self-published by the author. Cover art and design is by Anna Steinbauer.

ANALYSIS: Once Rachel Aaron mentioned this book to me in one of our email correspondence, I begged pleaded with her to let me read it in its draft form. To my joy, she agreed and I was able to read it a year ago. To say I was pleased with the book would be an understatement. But first I was curious as to why she was going the self-publishing route and she wonderfully explains this decision in this blogpost over at Civilian Reader. Go take a read or otherwise wait for my interview with her to know more about it.

Now on to the book, from the blurb, one can surmise that this is an urban fantasy, but here's what's slightly different about it. Rachel Aaron brilliantly weaves some post apocalyptic and SF threads into the story while also making sure that it has magic and dragons in it. The plot begins with our protagonist Julius Heartstriker, who is a very undragon-like dragon. Due to his lackadaisical nature & apparent un-interest at dragon activities/ambition, he gets banished by his mother Bethesda into the DFZ or Detroit Free Zone. He's supposed to prove that he's fit to be called a spawn of the Heartstriker clan and has less than a month to prove it or else it's curtains for him. Oh and also he stuck in his human form for his Detroit jaunt and can’t avail of his dragon form or powers as well.

That’s the first hook; secondly we have Marci Novalli, a Thaumaturgic mage who is running away from her past in Las Vegas for reasons revealed later in the story. The main point is what happens when their paths cross and how much drama occurs in the DFZ? There are also a bunch of other characters who will strike the reader’s attention like Bob who is Julius’ elder brother and the Heartstriker clan seer. Not to mention he seems wacky and is a constant source of comedy at Julius’ expense whenever he appears on the page. The other siblings introduced are Ian, Chelsie and Justin and they are terrific and scary in their own way. Another funny thing about the Heartstrikers is that Bethesda names her clutches alphabetically so not only is Julius literally the runt but also in the story everyone does their best to remind him of that.

The world settings are a curious mix of urban fantasy, science fiction and apocalyptic dystopia. Take for example; the world is such because a comet caused magic to return in 2035 and since then spirits have taken over several parts of the world. One such persona is Algonquin, the Lady of the Great Lakes, who unleashed a tidal wave and destroyed Detroit. In its place she has built the Detroit Free Zone (DFZ) that is a unique mix of magic and unbridled capitalism wherein dragons are forbidden to enter and humans find themselves to be quite low on the Lady’s interests. But DFZ has flourished beyond imagination and led the world in the unique combination of magic & business coming together like none other. This situation of a city state within a country is very similar to Hong Kong and China circa pre-1997.

There are many more details that I'm glossing over and I’m hoping the readers discover in their own reading, but suffice to say for all lovers of urban fantasy, this book will be a welcome addition to their shelves. Rachel Aaron brings her charismatic humor and superb characterization to this story while also developing a very unique world (urban fantasy wise).  She gives us a story that will have you rooting for Julius and his "friend" within a few pages of their introduction. Beginning with Julius and Marci who are both quite adorable in their interactions with each other. They reminded me a lot of Barry & Felicity from Arrow. Both Julius and Marci are focal points of the story and they carry the plot forward with Julius’ mission to become more dragon-like and Marci’s mystery of running away from Las Vegas. 

The things I also loved were the side characters especially Bob and his prophecies and Chelsie with her stoic ways. There's also the world building, which only hints at certain things and as the series progresses, more revelations are sure to arise. I can’t wait to read more about the Dragon clans and the intricacies that surround the Heartstrikers. There’s also the world that has been affected by magic. I would love to see the author explore other world parts like Las Vegas, China, Europe, etc. Another plus point is the wonderful cover which I believe would look fantastic in physical form.

Also the plot twists and pace are neatly done and will have you flipping pages to see how it all ends for Julius, Marci and the other characters introduced. What I absolutely enjoyed was how much fun was infused within the story, similar to the first couple of Eli Monpress titles wherein the story presented us with funny characters and a curious world. And as the story progressed, the world became stranger and wider. I believe there might be something similar brewing here as well. The only drawbacks for me about this story are that the wider world implications of the reappearance of magic haven’t been quite discussed or shown but with the comic angle of the story, they might not quite be clarified entirely.

CONCLUSION: Nice Dragons Finish Last is a hilarious story about a dragon who is locked into his human form and will have to learn to trust his dragon instincts to survive in a world wherein his kind is hated and hunted. Be sure to keep an eye out for this book, as Rachel Aaron is back in prime form with this comedic urban fantasy series.

Tomorrow And Tomorrow is Tom Sweterlitsch’s debut that combines post-apocalyptic themes with cyberpunk and crime noir to give readers a unique thrilling read. Putnam books and Fantasy Book Critic are giving away a hardcover copy of “Tomorrow And Tomorrow” to One Lucky Winner!!! 

To enter, please send an email to fbcgiveaway@gmail.com with your Name, Mailing Address, and the subject: Tomorrow. Giveaway has ENDED and was open to participants in USA & CANADA ONLY.

Thank you for entering and Good Luck!

GIVEAWAY RULES:
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For me, the most interesting parts of stories and worlds are the portions most often left unseen. This is what The Buried Life is about. It’s the foundation of the city of Recoletta and the characters who inhabit it.

Recoletta is a city built on secrets—it exists beneath the ruin of a world that was destroyed generations ago, and its history has been happily forgotten by most of the people who live there. Casual corruption, back-room deals, and false fronts are the order of the day. Just as the city underground is covered by a layer of ornamental buildings, so the residents hide their scheming with tact and decorum.

The characters on the bottom rungs of the social hierarchy often make the keenest observers of these tensions. Stories about grand maneuverings and political machinations often focus on characters in positions of status and authority because they’re the ones with agency. I wanted to tell a story about what happens in the margins. Some characters must stoop to trickery and deceit because their own meager power turns out to be hollow. Others must tread carefully because they never had any power to begin with.

The Buried Life is a story about people trying to understand and survive a period of monumental change, but it’s also about the shifts within the city.

Recoletta exists at an indeterminate point in the future, centuries after a world-shaking catastrophe. It’s post-post-apocalyptic—it’s what springs up after society has long since crumbled and rebuilt again. Starting with those fractured building blocks, it was fun to try to piece them together, extrapolate forward several hundred years, and imagine how they might settle over time.

For example, they might leave large gaps between the social strata. If survival in the early days depended on rigid adherence to specific roles and duties, that might persist as class structure. The individuals at the top would have had the most useful skills and would have come from a broad mix of white-collar and blue-collar professions, including medicine, engineering, mining, metalworking, and plumbing. In many cases, they would have performed high-level and supervisory roles while those with less-useful skills got their hands dirty digging fresh tunnels. As a result, Recolettans at the top of the food chain are known as “whitenails.”

Similarly, habits and fashions would adapt to suit the circumstances. By the time of the events of The Buried Life, living underground is a matter of custom rather than one of necessity, but it has nevertheless reshaped notions of propriety and good taste. The most disreputable members of society are the surface-dwellers whose agriculture feeds the city. Most Recolettans have never traveled outside their city, and some of the most status-conscious avoid the surface roads altogether.

All of the what-ifs make for a fun intellectual exercise, but a setting is nothing without a story and characters that shape and are shaped by the environment. So it’s no surprise that the story of The Buried Life is about uncovering Recoletta’s secrets and upsetting its delicate and centuries-old balance. The central characters are the ones positioned close enough to the heart of the conflict to see the cracks form and watch the structure crumble. As for what they do after the dust settles, that’s the story of Cities and Thrones…

Official Author Website
Pre-order The Buried Life HERE

AUTHOR INFORMATION: Carrie Patel was born and raised in Houston, Texas. An avid traveller, she also studied abroad in Granada, Spain and Buenos Aires, Argentina. She acquired her bachelor’s and master’s degrees at Texas A&M University and previously worked at Ernst & Young for two years. She currently works as a narrative designer and resides in Irvine, California.

NOTE: Netherworld Capital City art by Jesse Van Dijk. Author picture and book covers courtesy of the author.

Official K.A. Stewart Website 
Order A Snake In The Grass HERE
Read Fantasy Book Critic’s Review of “A Wolf At The Door” 
Read Fantasy Book Critic’s Review of “A Devil In The Details” 
Read Fantasy Book Critic’s Review of “A Shot In The Dark” 
Read Fantasy Book Critic Interview with K.A. Stewart
Read "El Chupacabra" (short story) by K.A. Stewart 

AUTHOR INFORMATION: Kari A. Stewart has a BA in English with an emphasis in Literature from William Jewell College. She lives in Missouri with her family and is the author of the Jesse James Dawson series.

OFFICIAL BOOK BLURB: Jesse James Dawson never wanted to find himself in the middle of a demonic war. However, with the addition of 275 extra souls to his life, he’s got a target painted on his back in the most literal sense. With his apprentice, Estéban Perez, in tow, he heads to Mexico where the boy’s mother, a powerful bruja, will hopefully be able to extract the souls without harm to any party involved.

Champions for generations, the Perez family knows all there is to know about magic and taking out demons. But, like every family, there is drama bubbling beneath the surface. Add to that an ancient evil that has been waiting for just this chance, and of course, things are all going straight to Hell.

FORMAT/INFO: A Snake In The Grass is 284 pages long divided over eighteen chapters. Narration is in the first-person, exclusively via Jesse James Dawson. The plot is self-contained, but contains a few spoilers for anyone who has not read the previous three titles.

July 8, 2014 marked the Mass Market Paperback & ebook publication of A Snake In The Grass and it was self-published by the author. Cover art & design is provided by Robin Ludwig.

ANALYSIS: After reading the third volume of the Jesse James Dawson series, I was excited about the direction of the series. However to mine & everyone’s disappointment, the publishers choose not to continue with the series & left the author in a slight lurch. The author though courageously promised that she would continue the series and hopefully self-publish the rest of the books (which at the moment is looking to be two books more). 

Which brings us to the fourth volume titled A Snake In The Grass. It begins within a few weeks of the events in Los Angeles as Jesse is back in Kansas City & mighty conflicted about sharing his body with the 275 other souls. This soul addition has wrought havoc with his body’s status psychologically (to a minor degree) & physiologically (majorly). Not sure with what to do & being a target for demons, he decides to go away to Mexico with his protégé Estéban to visit Carlotta Perez who herself is a Bruja & try to extract the souls without any harm coming to either parties. Joining him as his entourage are Svetlana & Terrance who add to the magical firepower along with physical strength.

What he doesn’t count upon is facing problems from the familial elements in Estéban’s life. An older cousin has some resentments about Estéban taking up the family machete and might be getting a little other-worldly support as well. It falls upon Jesse and gang to figure what truly is at stake and who’s puling the actual strings in Mexico.

As far as middle volume titles go, there a re a lot of issues for the author to overcome. The back story most importantly, how much to reveal and how much to make it a standalone. With this volume, the author makes it more of a standalone nature and we get a story that focuses more on Estéban and his family in Mexico. For some that will be a plus, for those looking more of Jesse, you’ll get him but with a side of Mexicana. For those following the previous titles, we know that there’s been a lot of underground dealing with Axel in the middle. This book almost gives us all the clues as to what is truly happening and also reveals the major big bad for the future big books.

As compared to the previous two books, the action and mystery are a bit toned down as this book mainly deals with family issues. Not that it should be boring, if handled correctly, it can be quite nail biting. That sadly is not the case over here, in the first quarter of the book, the pace of the book is on the slower side as the readers are introduced to the life down south and the Perez familia is introduced. What helps is Jesse being his quippy self along with a huge dry side of Svetlana who while being deadly is a constant source of dry, dark humor whenever she appears on the pages. The book’s humor content does not take a back seat and that was a huge positive. With the series getting darker with each volume, it often helps that the author manages to level the grim nature via the protagonist’s quips as well as certain sardonic characters.

Another wildly entertaining character who makes a cameo debut is Henry & I can’t wait to read more of Jesse’s and Henry’s interactions. With Jesse being the sole narrator, its very hard to get a proper view of the other characters and in this book, I would have enjoyed a look into Estéban’s mind as there are several things that occur that become bothersome and only so much can be attributed to teenage immaturity. While we don’t get much insight into his thoughts, his actions and the explanation provided do offer some succor. But again I believe this issue could have been neatly sidestepped with simply allowing Estéban his own POV.

Overall this is a good fourth entry and kudos to the author for continuing this series for us fans. Lastly another positive factor is the cover art and design which is very much inline with those of its predecessors published by ROC. In this regards, the author has to be commended for giving us OCD fans (who would like the covers to match) a freaking fantastic look to her first self-published effort. Now the only things that didn’t work for me were the slow pace in the start, Axel's negligible presence and that we didn’t get an all too-clear reveal about the events that have happened before. While the slow pace does impede the read in the first quarter, once the plot picks up the reader will be flipping pages constantly to see how it ends. The reveal which occurs only to the characters, I would have liked to know but I trust the author & will eagerly await the fifth volume to see what happens next.

CONCLUSION: A Snake In The Grass is a commendable self-published effort from Kari Stewart, not only does it match the look of the previous titles externally, for those awaiting Jesse, Axel and the rest of the gang. You won’t be disappointed with the direction being taken & now I believe the final two volumes await, wherein there will be a glorious and bitter battle.

In CALIFORNIA BONES, the first book in my new urban fantasy trilogy, wizards get their powers by ingesting the remains of extinct magical creatures, such as griffins and dragons and basilisks and hydras. The La Brea Tar Pits in Los Angeles are a particularly rich resource of these valuable bones, and powerful osteomancers use their magic to rule the kingdom of Southern California.

There’s a type of fantasy where you change one thing, where the world is just like our own, except vampires exist, for example, and the ways in which the world is different are known to only a few. Or else everyone knows things are different but life isn’t drastically altered for most people. In CALIFORNIA BONES I wanted to take a different approach. I wanted to really mess things up.

The first thing I did was get rid of the cars and freeways. It’s a simple but drastic change that immediately signals we’re in a different world. Because LA without cars is like New York without tall buildings. To replace them, I reached back into some of Los Angeles’ goofy, charming history and lifted real estate developer Abbot Kinney’s Venice canals and expanded them across Southern California. Instead of roads and freeways and bridges, we have canals and flumeways and locks. Instead of cars we have boats, and instead of trucks we have barges and tugs.

The rationale I came up with is William Mulholland, the historical head of what would become the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power, is the Southern California kingdom’s century-old chief hydromancer, and the water transportation system forms a sprawling mandala of magical power fueled by the energy of circulating ocean water. Mulholland is both partner and rival to the Hierarch, the realm’s ruling osteomancer, each of them dependent upon the other to maintain control of the realm.

Another tried-and-true method of making the familiar strange is exaggerating what’s already there. In reality, places like Beverly Hills are surrounded by invisible walls defined by wealth and status. A poor person can walk Rodeo Drive, but they won’t be treated as though they belong there. Hell, there are places in LA where I expect to get tazed just on principle. When I walk through the doors of some shops in Beverly Hills I don’t hear a bell but rather a recording of someone saying, “Ew.” I literalized the metaphor of this wall in CALIFORNIA BONES and created the Golden Wall, a physical barrier with gates and guards surrounding the wealthier parts of town.

Los Angeles is the kind of place where material history is treated without much regard. A lot of history gets bulldozed or transformed beyond recognition. One trick I pulled in CALIFORNIA BONES was resurrecting what’s been lost. I brought back Pacific Ocean Park, an amusement park built on a pier in Santa Monica. It featured such attractions as the Mystery Island Banana Train, the Flight to Mars, the House of Tomorrow, and King Neptune’s Courtyard. The day Pacific Ocean Park opened in 1958, it drew more visitors than Disneyland. Eventually, it fell into disrepair and succumbed to fires and crumbled away. I have vague childhood memories of seeing some of the ruins, but I don’t know if these memories are real or imagined, and it’s that tenuous grasp on reality that makes Pacific Ocean Park such a magical place for me.

So I brought back Pacific Ocean Park, and I expanded the Venice canals, and I built a wall around Beverly Hills, and I changed dozens of other things and invented things and left some things completely as they are, because I wanted my fictional version of Los Angeles to be as strange and threatening and wonderful and magical as any fictional world I could create. I wanted readers familiar with LA to enjoy the games of “Spot What’s Different” and “Spot What’s the Same.” And I wanted all readers, including those who don’t know LA, or aren’t particularly interested in LA, to experience the same pleasures of an interesting setting that they would in any fantasy story.

Official Author Website
California Bones Website
Order California Bones HERE
Watch John Scalzi interview Greg Van Eekhout about the book & its locations

AUTHOR INFORMATION: Greg Van Eekhout was born and brought up in Los Angeles. He's of Dutch & Indonesian descent and has spent almost all of his life in the western half of the USA. He has also previously worked as a political fundraiser, a comic book store clerk, a bookseller, a bookstore assistant manager, an educational multimedia developer, and a college teacher (of English and of multimedia development). He currently is located in San Diego & loves the beaches.

NOTE: William Mulholland picture courtesy of Stan Walker. 

Reviewers and publishers are ALWAYS talking about “fresh faces in horror,” touting dozens of writers as the “new best thing ever.” It can get a little confusing. Our time is limited, right? We can't read everything. Which authors are worth our time? Even accounting for different tastes, it can be tough to cut past the hyperbole and actually find those new authors worth reading.

Who am I to tell you all this? Certainly no great voice in the genre. I've experienced a certain measure of success, but not enough to make any of what I say gospel, by any means. In the end, I'm just a guy who loves reading maybe even more than writing, and that's about it. So, without further ado, let's look at five “must-read” contemporary writers in the horror genre.

Mary Sangiovanni: Mary is probably one of the best non-Lovecraftian scribes of cosmic horror working in the field today. She builds wonderful atmosphere and tension, and her characters are three-dimensional, people you really care about. She knows how to tug on the heart-strings, and she knows how to invoke that creeping dread. Thrall boasts some of the most inventive world-building in cosmic horror that I've seen.

Ronald Malfi: It would be wrong to compare Ron to either Stephen King, Peter Straub or Robert McCammon, because he has his own voice, but I'm tempted, because of two things: 1. He crafts flawed characters that remind us very much of ourselves, and 2. He takes horror tropes and makes them his own. Floating Staircase was a wonderfully written, emotional, remarkable twist on the “haunted author” trope. The Narrows is the best non-vampire vampire novel I've read in years. The Fall of Never is HIS gothic novel. Plus, he shows some serious literary chops in Passenger, one of the most surprising and gut-wrenching things I've read in awhile.

Rio Youers: It may be more accurate to consider Rio's work “darkly speculative” rather than straight out HORROR, but it really doesn't matter, because he's simply one of the best new speculative writers, regardless of what label you peg him with. A fine craftsman who doesn't lean on overused tropes, Rio is always ready to take his readers for a ride they'll never forget. Whether he's telling a chilling coming-of-age story in Mama Fish or offering us a haunting glimpse of the sunset years in Old Man Scratch, Rio tells stories that defy easy categorization. Plus, Westlake Soul made me cry. Nuff said.

Norman Prentiss: Again, comparing Norman Prentiss to someone like Charles Grant does him a grave disservice. Norman has his own voice, his own identity. But for my money, he's the best thing going today in the sub genre of “quiet horror.” Invisible Fences is one of the subtlest stories I've read in years. On Four Legs in The Morning is a smartly, cleverly woven together quartet of stories reminiscent of Grant's Oxrun Station. For the quiet, creeping chill, Norman is your ticket.

Johnathan Janz: Johnathan Janz has done some excellent work since landing with Samhain Horror. Imagine mixing the Gothic sensibilities of Shirley Jackson's The Haunting of Hill House with the late Richard Matheson's Hell House, and adding a pinch of Ed Lee's unflinching narrative, and you've got Johnathan Janz. I'm only familiar with his “house” novels: The Sorrows, The Darkest Lullaby and House of Skin, but those were excellent, and Janz has become very prolific, quickly becoming one of Samhain's top producers.

Should I say something about my work, now? Okay. My newest book, Devourer of Souls, is being published by Ragnarok Publishing. It contains two linked novellas, Sophan and The Man in Yellow. Both take place in or near my fictional haunted Adirondack town, Clifton Heights, which was introduced in my short fiction collection, Things Slip Through, published by Crystal Lake in November, 2013. Both stories are weird and strange, I hope entertaining and, at the root, about people. I hope you'll check it out, and if you do, hope you enjoy.

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AUTHOR INFORMATION: Kevin Lucia is a Submissions Reader for Cemetery Dance Magazine and his podcast "Horror 101" is featured monthly on Tales to Terrify. His short fiction has appeared in several anthologies. He’s currently finishing his Creative Writing Masters Degree at Binghamton University, he teaches high school English and lives in Castle Creek, New York with his wife and children. His first short story collection, Things Slip Through was published November 2013.

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Read Fantasy Book Critic's review of Blood Song
Read the first chapter (Verniers' account) here

AUTHOR INFORMATION: Anthony Ryan is a pseudonym used by the author as his previous day job prevented him from using his real identity. The has an academic background in history, works fulltime as a researcher and currently lives in London. 

OFFICIAL BOOK BLURB: “The blood-song rose with an unexpected tune, a warm hum mingling recognition with an impression of safety. He had a sense it was welcoming him home.”

Vaelin Al Sorna, warrior of the Sixth Order, called Darkblade, called Hope Killer. The greatest warrior of his day, and witness to the greatest defeat of his nation: King Janus’s vision of a Greater Unified Realm drowned in the blood of brave men fighting for a cause Vaelin alone knows was forged from a lie. Sick at heart, he comes home, determined to kill no more. Named Tower Lord of the Northern Reaches by King Janus’s grateful heir, he can perhaps find peace in a colder, more remote land far from the intrigues of a troubled Realm.

But those gifted with the blood-song are never destined to live a quiet life. Many died in King Janus’s wars, but many survived, and Vaelin is a target, not just for those seeking revenge but for those who know what he can do. The Faith has been sundered, and many have no doubt who their leader should be. The new King is weak, but his sister is strong. The blood-song is powerful, rich in warning and guidance in times of trouble, but is only a fraction of the power available to others who understand more of its mysteries.

Something moves against the Realm, something that commands mighty forces, and Vaelin will find to his great regret that when faced with annihilation, even the most reluctant hand must eventually draw a sword.

FORMAT/INFO: Tower Lord is 608 pages long divided five sections, each of which open with a Verniers account and numbered chapters. This pattern is very similar to that of the first book. Narration is in the third-person, via Vaelin Al Sorna, Reva, Frentis, and Princess Lyrna. The book also feature maps of the unified realm, the Alipran and Volarian empire. There are two appendices for the Dramatis Personae as well as the game of Warrior’s Bluff. Tower Lord is the second volume of The Raven’s Shadow trilogy.

July 1, 2014 marks the North American Hardcover and e-book publication of Tower Lord via Ace Books. The UK version (see below) will be published on July 3, 2014 by Orbit Books UK.

ANALYSIS: Tower Lord is a book that I’ve been waiting for since 2012. Anthony Ryan really announced himself in spectacular fashion with his self-publication success, which then translated into a traditional publishing contract. Two years later, a lot of fans are waiting to see if he can repeat and build upon his success with Tower Lord. In my review for Blood Song, at the end I had written "give this book a read if you want to read a story that’s closest to those written by David Gemmell." With Tower Lord, he not only proves that in spades by giving the readers a siege situation similar to that in Legend and also many more memorable events and characters. There will be mild spoilers in the review below so be wary before you start.

Let's begin with the story, in Tower Lord, we get three new POV characters besides Vaelin who was the sole narrator in Blood Song. Another funny aspect of the story is that this book also follows the same narrative format as Blood Song wherein the events begin in the near past and interspersed between five current accounts of the royal Alpiran chronicler Verniers Alishe Someren. As to why the story is set in such a format and what is Verniers doing will be up to the fans to RAFO. Safe to say it's quite shocking to meet Verniers who finds himself in quite stunning conditions.

We find Vaelin Al Sorna back to the Unified realm and seeks to find his relatives who might be still surviving. The second POV character is Reva a young woman with tremendous martial skills who seeks revenge on Vaelin for a past crime. She's not an Asraelian and seeks his death single-handedly, who she is and why she hates Vaelin is spoiler material and so I won’t comment on it. Safe to say for people wanting to know her identity can take guesses and I might just give you tell if you are correct or not in the comments section below. The other two POV characters are Princess Lyrna & Frentis. I, as a fan was expecting them to be POV characters and enjoyed getting to know their thoughts.

This book also magnifies the world situation by showcasing the continent east of the Alpiran & Unified realms, namely the Volarian Empire. The story begins by detailing an attack on the unified realms from many fronts. Vaelin is faced with a new responsibility when he's made Tower Lord of the Northern Reaches by King Malcius. He has to ride north and take charge which he does but not with some reluctance. Reva’s track has us focusing on how she came to hate Vaelin so much and how she tracks him to face him for a duel. Last when we met Frentis, he was aboard a strange ship heading off to lands unknown. We find him now as an Alpiran slave who’s fighting to stay alive. Lastly we also get to explore the Northern Reaches as Princess Lyrna tries to find accord with the realm’s northern neighbors.

That’s all I’m going to say about the plot contents, as what happens in the story is that realm truly faces an invasion that boggles the mind. I can see why the author choose to expand the POV list as this story would have been impossible to cover from just a singular POV. Another highlight of this book is that nearly every character that made a major & minor impression in its predeceasing title is back in this one (except the dead ones). We get to see all of them & experience different shades to them; this was an extremely pleasurable to read. A couple of mysteries from Blood Song, namely who attacked Vaelin in the Test Of the Wild as well as who was behind it get clarified. Many other bigger revelations also abound like what truly happened to Vaelin when he was an Alpiran captive. Who is the Witch’s bastard and who are his allies? There’s also a fascinating exploration of the Seventh order and the magic system espoused in this trilogy.

Secondly going on to the characterization, Anthony Ryan shines brighter in his sophomore effort by giving us many brilliant characters. Besides Vaelin, Reva, Frentis and Princess Lyrna get the POV turn and I loved how different the characters were from what we read in Vaelin’s thoughts. Princess Lyrna was the character that was the most intriguing to me and in this book, she gets to shine truly. There’s also the brothers (Caenis, Sollis, the order aspect, etc) who we have met before and now have acquired different roles. You’ll be surprised to see many of them and how they feel about Vaelin.  There are also some characters who make an appearance under a different name & it will be fun if you can spot them. Many of those who complained about Frentis’ cockney accent will be glad to know that it isn’t a problem in this sequel. Infact I would say he becomes a terror worthy of Vaelin’s status. The author also expands the readers on to the world by focusing on the realm and giving us fascinating insights into the various types of people and faiths that abound. This light is also shone upon the Alpiran as well as the Volarian culture.

Lastly the pace and action sequences are amplified across all the four POV sections, we get to see our favorite characters face odds that they have never thought of and the fun is reading how it all ends. Previously I talked about the siege-like conditions similar to Legend. The author displays his skills and gives us a fascinating account in to the siege via Verniers and then through the actual characters. This dual approach creates some confusion but it’s done in a way that will leave you with a smile in the end. Coming back to my original statement of this book being similar to Legend, David Gemmell's epic debut. We get a siege wherein legends are forged and this was the highlight of the story. And how does the author manage to top off such an exciting read, he cruelly ends the story with a chapter that hearkens back to the shocker that was the epilogue in A Storm Of Swords. This climatic chapter ends on such a note that you might not want to wait a whole year for Queen Of Fire.

There's so much more I want to gush about this book but I think I've said enough. Regarding the negatives about this title, the only thing I can think is that the story has kind of a slow start with all POV chapters. It takes only a while for the pace to pick up but once it does, the chapters fly by on to a rousing action-packed finale that is memorable. Your mileage may vary but this is the only drawback in an otherwise superb sequel.

CONCLUSION: This book easily is the best heroic epic fantasy of 2014 (bettering the high of City Of Stairs which is yet to be released) and now all other books will have to excel to overcome it. Tower Lord is a loud proclamation that Anthony Ryan is David Gemmell’s natural successor and epic fantasy’s best British talent.

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OVERVIEW/ANALYSIS: XOM-B by Jeremy Robinson is quite a story; I was intrigued by its blurb and cover which promised a fascinating crossover between I, Robot & The Walking Dead. Safe to say the author managed to surprise me with his plot and the way the story ended.

XOM-B opens by introducing us to what are later revealed to be events such as “the Awakening” similar to the Civil Rights movement of the 60s. Set in the tumultuous events set between 2052 to 2054, this small prologue while seeming confusing is of grand importance in the latter half of the story. The first chapter introduces to our protagonist Freeman and is set in 2074. Freeman is a person who can’t remember much about his past and according to his memory, he seems to be only sixteen days old. His protector Heap is a quiet sort not offering much but doing his best to help him survive the wasteland that is Earth. Certain events that occur in the first chapter lead Freeman onto a rather decrepit part of their location wherein he meets Luscious and Jimbo who are rather surprised by him and his appearance.

The story then races forward as we find out what exactly happened to the world? Who is Freeman? What is pursuing him? This storyline is an incredible mash up and I can’t reveal more without spoiling the story. Firstly a warning, in nearly the first hundred chapters, most readers will feel an acute vertigo of sorts wherein the author drops you along with Freeman into the story. We don’t know much about what has happened and what is currently happening. Stick with the story and there’s a huge payback from the middle wherein we get clues about what is the current nature of the world and how it all comes together.

The storyline is a classic quest story but with such subversion of tropes that you will definitely enjoy the ride planned by the author. Characterization is bit dicey as we only get a singular first person POV from Freeman & therefore the worldview and understanding is limited. There isn’t that many characters introduced but all of them have a big part to play as well as big secrets to reveal. The pace is definitely top-notch as the reader is shunted quickly along the plot and from twist to twist. The story forces the reader to look out for small clues along the way as well as understand the world from Freeman’s limited understanding.

A thing that bugged me about the storyline was that because of the tight POV focus we never get to truly see the world developed within or seen through another POV. This definitely robs the story of some of its sheen. I would have enjoyed knowing more of the world but it isn’t too much of a deterrent.

CONCLUSION: This is a brilliant exploration of the zombie apocalypse story angle but with robots as well as humans, Jeremy Robinson indeed proves that he’s one of the rising stars of the SFF genre. Be sure to check out XOM-B if you want to read a story about zombies of a kind that you have never read before.