kevin
Recommendations

What a fantastic 'Weird West', magic, action, adventure tale!

This carefully constructed alternative Western story is populated with interesting, but not always likeable, characters. The magic is strange and unpredictable, and is very much part of the world, not added on top.

While a YA fantasy, the book never shies away from addressing the very real violence and horror of genocide.

Yes, The Fisherman is a little Lovecraftian, with its ancient gods, cultists, and watery... things. But it has much more going for it. The Fisherman is a work of beauty that Lovecraft never came close to.

You grieve with Abe as he tries to pick up the pieces. You worry about what Dan will do... and when he'll break. You wonder which story you are actually reading and who is telling it.

Another beautiful read by S.E. Robertson!

I'm really enjoying this slice-of-life fantasy genre I've only just learned about. The Healers' Home gives us a more stable setting, some new drama as past-acquaintances re-appear, and work to do as Agna and Keifon try and fit in to their new lives.

Family expectations, awkward commitments and trying relationships flesh out this wonderful book.

I absolutely loved this book!

Recommended in @paracactus' 'Slice-of-Life Fantasy' list, it provides a place to go, a world to just sit in and enjoy.

Like the contemplative and cozy parts of The Steerswoman series, Jaran, and The Guy of Gisborne books, you simply get lost in the subtly portrayed world.

A fantasy setting without the usual tropes or stereotypes. A fantasy book to love.

There's weird fiction, then there's Chuck Wendig weird fiction.

In this sequel to The Blue Blazes, our gangland enforcer with a heart of gold, Mookie Pearl, must save his daughter and the whole world from the schemes of demons, demi-gods and more weird stuff before it all ends.

Call it a Chuckpocalypse, or even Wendigeddon!

Loads of fun and a must read for any Chuck Wendig fan.

What a great short read!

Can't wait to get started on Simon's other novellas.

An amazing instalment in the Steerswoman fantasy series.

We're back to the Inner Lands now and we're learning more and more about this world and what's going on.

In this book, we finally see what wizards can do. And the steerswoman and the Outlander take the fight straight to their door.

If you enjoy excellent world-building and puzzling plots, start reading The Steerswoman series. Now!

The Last Words of Madeleine Anderson by Helen Kitson is a post-modern tale of friendship and fate, where the truth is only a simulacrum of itself. It's probably literary, but it's far more accessible than that suggests.

This is a truly accessible modern classic that should be winning all the awards.

It's tense while cozy. It's suspenseful while relaxed.

And it's very, very good.

A very different book to the previous two in the series.

The Lost Steersman takes a different turn about half-way through, where the scope and scale of the world and its inhabitants undergoes another astonishing twist.

I got a definite Jane Goodall vibe from this book. Our understanding of the steerswomen grows in this wonderful instalment in a fantastic and surprising series. Loved it!

What a fantastic, quick, witty, deep, and deeply promising tale!

Promising a world of wonder in longer books to follow.

Can't wait to read more by the author.

The amazing second book in what is, so far, an outstanding fantasy series.

The Outskirter's Secret expands on the concepts in the first book, but takes us out of the relative safety of the Inner Lands and into the wilderness of the Outskirts.

I can't believe I've only just started reading this series and am already on the third book.

Still a MUST READ.

I don't normally like the whole zombie genre.

But what Crowley has done with his undead POV, uprising, mutiny, sea monster, revolutionary, thoughtful treatise on life (then death and then more life) tale is absolutely stunning.

Took a bit of effort to get going, but it's definitely worth sticking with it. A great addition to the New Weird.

Nate Crowley's book put me off scampi for months!

An amazing fantasy tale that slowly unfolds to reveal a surprising twist.

At first, all seems familiar. You recognise the world of wizards and the ranger-like steerswomen. But, just like the steerswomen themselves, the more you learn, the more sense you begin to make of this world. Something isn't quite right.

Rosemary Kirstein has me hooked! I've already started the next book in the series.

This wonderfully crafted novella was my introduction to Aliette's work, and what a first impression!

The story references Conan Doyle's Holmes and Watson while showing the utmost respect to the work. You could almost call it a wonderful sci-fi character analysis of A Study in Scarlet.

A beautiful science fiction tale. And a must read for any fans of science fiction or Sherlock Holmes.

I was intrigued by the promise of a living fantasy world, instead of the usual "I was there three thousand years ago, Gandalf. And look, we're still using swords!"

A world where characters have lives, likes and concerns. Where technologies and discoveries change over time. This is epic fantasy that covers the passage of time in a meaningful way.

A fantastic series.

What a fantastic book!

Gorgeously illustrated. I loved the limited use of colour to introduce a new character and their different ideas.

At the end the artist describes how they always run to topics on creativity when they're lost in their own creative journey. This book speaks to craftspeople everywhere.

A stunning find I was lucky to come across at the ShortBox Comics Fair.

The Town is a fucking rollercoaster of a ride.

This Australian horror is written in a kind of jarring prose. The story is brilliant, terrifying, and utterly refuses to share its secrets with you.

On finishing this book, I promise that the first words out of your mouth will be "WHAT THE FUCK!".

Reminds me of books by China Miéville, John Langan, and Michael Marshall Smith.

Get it now!

A. J. Fitzwater has written a beautiful, hopeful, light-filled and joyous book!

This mosaic title filled with anthropomorphic rodents, sea creatures, mer folk and... cats, will more than make you smile. With a swashbuckling capybara pirate captain and chinchilla kraken-communicating ship's mate adventuring with their pure hearts to... bearded islands...? You'll never want this adventure to end!

What a fantastic book!

A brilliant story and introduction to Appalachian communities.

Kate is an unlikely, but enthusiastic protagonist who has had enough of being messed about, and is out to learn from her grandmother, a witch.

Lots of fun, really tense and exciting. Another occult thriller with heart that you just won't want to put down!

Virginia teases the twist right from the off. But The Year We Lived is so finely written and enchanting that you lose yourself in the world and simply enjoy it, forgetting about this possible twist.

You'll quickly relax and let the sun-dappled fens, the reeds, woods, the description of the Hall and its inhabitants wash over you and pull you like a slow current into its 11th Century setting.