I’m sharing another instalment of my Mini Review Mondays, the most recent of which was last week. In case you haven’t seen any of my previous posts, I do ‘mini’ reviews of books that I’ve previously read and am now ready to share my full thoughts about.
First up, I’d like to talk about Night of the Living Queers. Thank you to Wednesday Books for sending me an eARC in exchange for an honest review.
Night of the Living Queers is a YA horror anthology that explores a night when anything is possible exclusively featuring queer authors of color putting fresh spins on classic horror tropes and tales.
No matter its name or occasion, Halloween is more than a Hallmark holiday, it’s a symbol of transformation. NIGHT OF THE LIVING QUEERS is a YA horror anthology that explores how Halloween can be more than just candies and frights, but a night where anything is possible. Each short story will be told through the lens of a different BIPOC teen and the Halloween night that changes their lives forever. Creative, creepy, and queer, this collection will bring fresh terror, heart, and humor to young adult literature.
Contributors include editors Alex Brown and Shelly Page, Kalynn Bayron, Ryan Douglass, Sara Farizan, Maya Gittelman, Kosoko Jackson, Em Liu, Vanessa Montalban, Ayida Shonibar, Tara Sim, Trang Thanh Tran, and Rebecca Kim Wells.
Publication Date: 29th August
TW: murder, death, bullying, seizure, grief, parental death, blood, gore, fatal car crash, microaggressions, vomiting, animal death, possession, hate crime, needle imagery, toxic friendship, codependency, chronic pain, homophobia, homophobic slurs, domestic abuse, graphic animal cruelty, transphobia, suicidal ideation, intrusive thoughts
My Thoughts:
Night of the Living Queers is an awesome YA horror anthology that exclusively features queer authors of colour putting fresh takes on classic horror tropes and tales, allowing for new spins on these archetypes.
The entire concept of this anthology is so incredible to me. Horror is a space dominated by tropes and a long history of exoticisation and exclusion, so to see these queer authors of colour reclaim the space and put their own stamp on it is amazing. In particular, some of them wove in discussion around these intersectional identities into the very fabric of their stories, while some left it as naturalised representation. Both methods were impactful.
Anthologies are always slightly tricky to review, as their content is so varied. So when I say this was a very consistent and consistently great anthology at that, I mean it as some of the highest praise I will give an anthology. Every author delivered some solid scares and plenty I was left pondering over after the end of their story. I would happily read more of each of these fleshed out worlds, whether they involved some impressive world-building or were quieter, more intimate and character-focused snapshots.
However, you always have favourite stories. Here, my standouts were Guested by Rebecca Kim Wells; The Three Phases of Ghost Hunting by Alex Brown; Nine Stops by Trang Thanh Tran and Save Me from Myself by Ayida Shonibar. These all had excellent twists and turns and characters that really left their mark on me. I have already ear-marked these as authors to watch, if I did not already have them on my radar.
Night of the Living Queers is a thoroughly enjoyable, entertaining and solid anthology perfect for the spooky season, as the night grows cold and the shadows loom large.
Next up, I’d like to talk about Secrets Never Die by Vincent Ralph. Thank you to Wednesday Books for sending me an eARC in exchange for an honest review.
Every year Sam Hall and his friends hold funerals for their secrets in an abandoned hut in the woods that they call the Dark Place. But this year, their secrets are coming back from the dead…to terrorize them.
Sam is a former child star whose career went up in flames – literally. And no one, not even his best friend knows why. His friends each hold a secret pertaining to the night. A secret they would all like buried.
Now someone from the past is blackmailing them with their dangerous secrets. Sam isn’t sure who he can trust, who’s watching him – or how far he’s willing to go to bury the past once and for all.
When you’re alone in the dark, some things won’t stay hidden.
Publication Date:
TW: death, fire, murder, accidents, parental abuse, narcissism
My Thoughts:
Secrets Never Die is a shining example of the types of YA thrillers with grit under their nails and an ability to tap into that darkness lurking in the shadows.
Vincent Ralph is up there in my list of underrated YA thriller writers. His books are always so well plotted, with excellent twists and turns and a deep investment in their central characters. Are You Watching? and Lock the Doors are stellar stories, with twisty and atmospheric plots and a real investment in their authentic and flawed teenage protagonists. Secrets Never Die is no exception, with a plot that had me gasping and racing through the pages until the early hours.
Sam Hall is a fantastic protagonist – a former child star with a somewhat chequered past. He is so genuine and loving, but also entrapped by his own guilt and secrets. Around him is a varied cast of different teenage types, elevated through careful character development over the course of the book. Most of the twists are devastating precisely because you find yourself so deeply invested in these three-dimensional characters.
The way Ralph weaves in the glimmering entrancement of fame, particularly in relation to children, is incredible here. It is like the ultimate high to enjoy those fifteen seconds. However, the ramifications of this are severe. The yoke of fame still hangs heavy around Sam, especially with a certain major incident. For him, the Dark Place allows a form of escape and cathartic release. Here, your darkest secrets can be unleashed and freed from your mind. So when it is twisted and corrupted, all bets are off.
Secrets Never Die is another carpet-pull of a beauty from Vincent Ralph – an eagle-eyed and fiendishly detailed gem within the YA thriller genre.
Finally, I’d like to delve into Herc by Phoenicia Rogerson. Thank you to HQ for sending me an eARC in exchange for an honest review.
This should be the story of Hercules: his twelve labours, his endless adventures…everyone’s favourite hero, right?
Well, it’s not.
This is the story of everyone else:
Alcmene: Herc’s mother (She has knives everywhere)
Hylas: Herc’s first friend (They were more than friends)
Megara: Herc’s wife (She’ll tell you about their marriage)
Eurystheus: Oversaw Herc’s labours (He never asked for the job)
His friends, his enemies, his wives, his children, his lovers, his rivals, his gods, his victims.
It’s time to hear their stories.
Told with humour and heart, Herc gives voice to the silenced characters, in this feminist, queer (and sometimes shocking) retelling of classic Hercules myth.
Publication Date: 31st August
TW: death, murder, violence, warfare, child murder, gore, grief
My Thoughts:
Herc is an astonishing book. This is an incredible, often darkly humorous and impeccably crafted work of art.
This is one of my favourite Greek mythology retellings I have read for a while. It paints such a complex picture of an idolised figure, showing him as hero and destroyer. You are taken through every aspect of his life, but through the voices of those often found at the margins of his story. There are those he loved, killed, destroyed. They are often just incremental mentions in his story, but his actions had huge ramifications for theirs. It is the original edition of the whole superhero destroys the city but from the perspective of a civilian trying to live their life narrative. Rogerson’s endlessly fascinating narrative choices allow all voices to be heard and imbues them with heart, soul and character. I was not expecting the elements of humour to be woven in here, but they really landed for me. Though some of them are bleak and dark humour, I loved them.
Rogerson keeps the ethics murky, not shying away from the years of blood staining his hands, but also shows glimmers of love and humanity beneath the heroic veneer. This book tears apart putting anyone on a pedestal and romanticised narrative of heroism. It is just people, and those more powerful than people, and they are messy, flawed and often heinous. There are few purely good things here. Part of that is the incredibly polarised environment of survival at all costs, but part of that is an innate greediness and a definite element of toxic masculinity. Within this narrative, there is a huge pushback against that toxic masculinity, with elements of feminism and queer pride woven into the story. That kind of undermining traditional expectations of a heroic narrative is sublime.
Herc is everything you would not expect from your traditional heroic narrative. It flips the script in all the best ways, as I always love to see from my favourite mythological retellings.
A Short Book Lover 
I am so happy you loved Night of the Living Queers! Can’t wait to read it. And I am thrilled to hear Herc is one of your favourite Greek myth retellings! It is high on my list
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Thank you and yes, they’re both excellent reads!
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