Outlandish

Jo Clement. Bloodaxe Books. (80p) ISBN 9781780376141

Outlandish

Outlandish

I saw this when it came into the shop and loved the photograph on the cover by Tim Walker, took a while before I bought a copy though as I had a little diet from buying.

Once I got it though I roared through my first read, stunned by the poetry and it’s very intimate look at the life and history of travelling communities.

The poem that initially hit me was “Inheritance” but in my case there were rubies in the ring, took me right back to my granddad and memories of the wake.

I read the collection for a second time as I was travelling through the North East on a sunny day, Darlington to Newcastle to Whitley Bay to Tynemouth, a lot of it read on trains and on the beach. It fit with the sense of place and people that Jo Clement was talking about and really got under my skin.

But the third reading is always the best, a quiet house, the rhythm, pace, and language become familiar, then it is time to read aloud, to sing the passion, sorrows, fears, and memory to the world and it was then that the real depth of Jo’s words could sit in my soul.

This was especially so with “Playing Cards” which became for me the words I kept going back to, wanting to find more in them, and really fearing for the future as we see more and more repression and criminalisation of behaviour that is deemed “not appropriate”.

A brave and memorable collection that really needs wider recognition, it need to be given to those who make decisions and look no further than labels and a history of the unknown and prejudice, to not fear the ousider.


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Chilling with Ghosts

Insha Fitzpatrick, Lilla Bölecz. Quirk Books. (128p) ISBN 9781683693451

Chilling with Ghosts

Chilling with Ghosts

Late last year I read “Hanging With Vampires” which is coming out at the end of this March (2023) and thought it was a fun and informative little book about the supernatural.

Written in a chatty, breezy style hits approaches the idea of ghosts in a way that acknowledges all the different sides of the debate, real or not.

Like the first in the series it also explores different cultures view on ghosts and on how people were buried and treated after they died.

It also looks at fiction and how ghosts are portrayed in the mass media and historically, but one of the most important parts of what the book talks about is dealing with loss and grief and that these htings do happen and their natural as are your feelings.

It’s very light on content but it has fun little snippets about how to make slime and different recipes throughout.

Overall a nice quick read and introduction to the idea of ghosts.

I was given this book by NetGalley in exchange for and honest review.


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Jayben and the Golden Torch

Thomas Leeds. Hachette Children’s Group. (288p) ISBN 9781444968637

Jayben and the Golden Torch

Jayben and the Golden Torch

Another that I fancied the brief description on NetGalley and glad I persevered through a bout of brain fog to finish.

This sees Ben/Jayben switching between Earth World and Elf World and discovering that he is the ninth and final Dreamer, and he has a great destiny to fulfil to set the balance of the worlds right once again, but in the Elf World he has no memories of who he is or what he has to do.

Worse still there is a fake Dreamer who is after him and his power, throw in an acid-spitting witch who can duplicate things, agents who can see his purple aura, and an array of fantastical creatures out to stop him you can see how this might be a wee bit difficult.

Jayben though is not alone and gathers a group of friends, all with different skills and from different elf clans and not only does he discover his own inner strength but the strength of friendship and trust.

Loved the world building and strange creatures that inhabit the world and was kept on edge throughout the book as to what was going to happen next, laugh out loud at times and really sad at others.

It was also a warm and honest look at a child who has seizures and how they felt and how they made him feel and I’m sure this will be developed further in the next book. The best part of this is that it didn’t feel tacked on and felt as though it was part of the main theme of memory and what we all take for granted and how that would feel if taken away.

Overall a great magical adventure with great potential.

I received this from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.


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Missing You

Phellip Willian, illus. Melissa Garabeli, trans. Fabio Ramos. Oni Press. (120p) ISBN 9781637152072

Missing You

Missing You

I picked this up at the same time as Tiny Fox and Great Boar without realising what either were about I was just drawn in by the wonderful art on the covers.

I also didn’t realise at the time that both were from Oni Press.

Reading a second book about family, loss, grief, and growth in as many days may have been a bit too much, but these were so well presented and thought out that it really wasn’t.

Missing You is about a young family who have lost their mother/wife and in the case of grandma, daughter.

As the young family are driving through a forest they come across an injured fawn which they take home and into their hearts to fill that gap.

Lion (the fawn) also grows and has their own thoughts and desires which don’t always mesh with those of the family and it is this tension which comes to a head that drives the conclusion of the story.

The art work throughout uses a soft, almost pastel palette for most of the book, except there are some dark and threatening passages that are enhanced by the appropriate palette.

Sweet, humorous, and supportive. Well written and drawn and suitable for a larger age range than to 8-12 suggested.

I received this from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.


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Tiny Fox and Great Boar: Dawn

Berenika Kolomycka. Oni Press. (64p) ISBN 9781637152058

Tiny Fox and Great Boar: Dawn

Tiny Fox and Great Boar: Dawn

My head has been in the bin recently and again I’ve been unable to read so thought let’s read an illustrated book and I like the cover art for this one so went here first.

I wasn’t disappointed as the art work throughout the book is stunningly beautiful and kept track with the tone of the book throughout, getting darker or lighter as needed.

The story is about two friends, tiny fox and great boar, continuing to explore the world and generally having a great time of it all, frolicking through forests and plains until they come upon a marsh.

In it they make a new friend with the nymph form of a mayfly who is looking forward to becoming a mayfly, but fox and boar don’t fully understand the lifecycle of a mayfly.

This book explores the meaning of death, loss, grief, and growth in a straightforward yet beautiful manner.

It shows that life is different for all of us and we should celebrate each others lives whilst realising we will miss them and that though we may be left behind the memories of others will always be there.

Warm and uplifting whilst also being truthful about death.


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Teddy’s Midnight Adventure

Yoko Mori, trans. Cathy Hinaro. Pushkin Press. (32p) ISBN 9781782694014

Teddy’s Midnight Adventure

Teddy’s Midnight Adventure

Received this from Immy at Bounce Marketing and I’m so glad I asked for it.

From start to finish it is entrancing, such a sweet little story about a young girl and teddy’s adventure to find his missing eye.

Such a simple little story but portrayed so well.

The palette the artist uses is simple but works with the rhythm of the story, using greyscale pencil work throughout the story with a red accent, but as they near the end of the quest the whole scene takes on a brighter tone with far more red in it.

This may be due to the cultural tradition of red being a colour of hope, strength, and peace. Also being a colour associated with scaring away evil spirits.

I love how each page is absolutely full and your eye can travel around the pictures finding lovely details and it is a beautiful story of friendship overcoming difficulties.

One of my favourite details was the bracket fungus on the tree!


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The Luminaries

Susan Dennard. Daphne Press. (288p) ISBN 9781837840007

The Luminaries

The Luminaries

Another book I received from NetGalley at the end of last year, thinking I’d dip my toe back into Teen/YA once more.

This sees us following a secret society protecting the world from forest spirits nightmares! This intrigued me from the start and I was pulled into the world immediately.

It is also a wonderful invention that explains all the worlds different mythical creatures and why they appear at night, with each regions spirit developing their own nightmares as they grow older but all starting out with the same basic ones.

Each night sees a different branch of the family go into the forest to hunt the nightmares, one for each night and they are named after the night they hunt on, our main character is Winnie Wednesday, but she doesn’t hunt as her family are outcasts.

The story is a fast-paced and thrilling adventure with so many twists and turn going on that it is sometimes hard to follow, I’m sure there are plenty of red herrings peppering the story as I’m thinking a couple of things about possible directions for the story to go in the next books, but I bet some of those are false trails.

We have some of the usual tropes, outsider protagonist, broody handsome boy, popular beautiful girl. All used to be friends but were forced apart… this is done well though and is really lending to the feel of possibilities and false trails.

Overall a great two day read, absolutely loved the cover, watch out for ghost-deer in your travels and hope that book 2 comes sometime quickly.


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Godkiller

Hannah Kaner. HarperCollins. (304p) ISBN 9780008521462

Godkiller

Godkiller

I’d been put off fantasy for quite a while now as the stories seemed to use all the same old tropes without exploring them or challenging them, and a lot of them just felt the same story.

So it was with some nervousness that I started reading Godkiller, but I needn’t have been nervous as this is head and shoulders the best fantasy I’ve read for years and has refreshed my interest in the genre.

A compelling cast of characters with the three main ones fleshing out nicely as the story develops, but Hannah doesn’t stint on making all the smaller characters memorable with some great traits to make them stand out from the crowd.

Wonderful world building really helped to immerse me into the storyline and get invested in what was going on with the world and characters. All the little touches like pilgrim coins, the town over the waterfall, shadow demons, and so many more for once didn’t detract from the story but gave it spice.

I absolutely loved the premise of gods feeding off the desires and wishes of people, growing from small gods, from a genius loci to a wild and unmanageable powerful god with many followers and shrines, there was a fun look at this by Terry Pratchett in Small Gods, but this is far darker than that story.

The arc of the first in the series was so satisfying with secrets coming out at just the right moments to keep you utterly invested in the story. The little twists, little hooks for further investigation in the next instalments, and the emotional development of the three main characters was so well handled.

I am so looking forward to the next in the series.

I was given a review copy of this book on NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.


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The Wildstorm Curse

Eve Wersocki Morris. Hachette Children’s. (320p) ISBN 9781444963342

The Wildstorm Curse

The Wildstorm Curse

My first children’s book of the year does mean I’ve been a wee bit remise in reading my NetGalley books.

But what a first book of the year, full of adventure and magic, the magic and power of words and adventures that only friends can get up to.

Wildstorm Curse sees a youth theatre troupe trying to put on a play that was written four hundred years ago by a witch!

Only all is not what it seems, and there are twists and turns aplenty which kept me on the edge of my seat several times, especially one major one!

We see Kallie Tamm making friends and battling not only the ancient evil that has been recently awakened but also her own inner demons. Kallie makes some great friends and discoveries throughout this adventure.

There are some really creepy bits in this story, especially The Enchanted and what could become of them if the big bad isn’t stopped. But for me the core of this book is the message of self-belief and that with good friends we can overcome so much

It was so good that I almost missed going back to the bookshop floor as I was nearing the end I was so invested in the outcome.

I received this from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.


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What Writers Read

edited by Pandora Sykes. Bloomsbury Publishing. (208p) ISBN 9781526657480
What Writers Read

What Writers Read

As soon as I saw this I knew I was going to love it and I was right, a collection of essays from some of my favourite writers, talking about some of my favourite books.

Not only this all the profits go to the National Literary Trust who work toward ending literacy inequality, so if you want a good read that also help a good cause this is the book for you.

This year for me is a year of short stories, poetry, and essays so the format of this book is perfect, 35 short essays from writers on their favourite books, with the last essay by Fatima Bhutto being the one I agree with wholeheartedly! Who can choose just one book as a favourite, all the others would just get so jealous and each book I’ve read has helped develop me into who I am now equally.

Though saying this there are some excellent choices by the various authors especially when their reasoning is taken into account; Catch-22 from William Boyd, Caleb Azumah Nelson with NW, Kit de Waal choosing The Thing About December.

These insights into an authors life through their favourite books and how that developed their own personality and practice speaks to the strength of books as agents of change and development, especially when the book gives a voice that has never been heard before and explains that niggle that has just been sitting at the back of your head.

This was going to be a book I read one chapter a night but once I started I just had to finish.


If you want to help and support this blog and my other projects (Indie Publishers and Indie Bookshops) you could become a Patreon which would help pay for my hosting, domain names, streaming services, and the occasional bag of popcorn to eat while watching films.

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