I’m sharing my first Mini Review Monday of September, the most recent of these previously was last week. In case you haven’t seen any of this series before, 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 All Hallow’s Eve. Thank you to Titan Books for sending me an eARC in exchange for an honest review.
Hugo Award winning editor and horror legend Ellen Datlow presents this chilling horror anthology of 19 original short stories from a world-class line-up of the masters of horror, delving into the histories and traditions of the spookiest season of the year.
Halloween, Samhain, Dia de los Muertos-festivals across the world where we can commune with those we have lost, when spirits can cross over, and when the boundary between the living and the dead is far, far too thin.
A young boy encounters a woman with an ancient and terrifying link to the holiday, a group of college students attend a Halloween party to die for, and a troubled girl exploits a local urban legend to try and turn her life around.
From America to New Zealand via the rural Romanian wilderness, this anthology explores our worldwide obsession with the spookiest season of the year, when the veil is lifted and the spirits come alive. Featuring 19 original stories from bestselling and award-winning masters of the genre, and from Hugo, World Fantasy, Locus, Bram Stoker and Shirley Jackson award-winning editor and horror legend Ellen Datlow, this anthology invites you to carve a pumpkin, light the lanterns and welcome in trick or treaters from across the world.
Publication Date: 8th September
CW: murder, death, suicide, bullying, animal cruelty, gore, car accident, death of a loved one, child death, violence
My Thoughts:
All Hallow’s Eve is the perfect short story collection to pick up as the nights draw closer and shadows might just be lurking in the darkness.
I love a themed short story collection and this focuses on that time where the veil between life and death seems thinnest. In the UK, this is the time of Halloween, but I loved how this collection showed a difference in celebration around the world, tapping into the history and different cultures of this time around the world. Overall this was a well-curated collection with a mix of superstar names and new-to-me authors that I was delighted to discover.
Anthologies are always a bit trickier to review, as they can be so subjective and celebrate a mix of styles. This format has to be punchy and deliver a chilling story with an interesting concept in such a short space of time. What I like to do is focus on my favourite stories from the collection. These are in no particular order!
Good Kids by Rich Larson was one I enjoyed with a brilliantly sinister feel and an ending that stayed with me. Treats by Clay McLeod Chapman had a gorgeous depiction of grief and plenty of ambiguity as the story moves towards an inevitable tragedy. Unsuprisingly, I thoroughly enjoyed The Devil’s New Year by Stephen Graham Jones and how it takes the familiar trope and gives it a new spin. Or So The Story Goes by Christopher Golden had a wonderful way of interweaving the folklore and giving you an excellent sting in the tale.
The Kuker by Alma Katsu was another story about grief that explored it through an interesting lens and unexpected angle. The Hungry Grass by Siobhan Carroll was a brilliant period piece that explores a familiar creature in a new light and pays homage to the greats. Finally, The Thinning of the Veil by Jeffrey Ford is a twisty gem of a story that is elbow-deep in blood.
I love it when a short story collection adds a whole load of new authors to my TBR and I can pick up more of their work. All Hallow’s Eve would be perfect to read with Out There Screaming, which would make for a great double feature in the build-up to Halloween.
Next up, I’d like to talk about And Then We Screamed by Holly Bourne. Thank you to Usborne for sending me an eARC in exchange for an honest review.
Clover wishes something would happen in her boring high school – so she can spend more time with her crush Brody, covering it for the school newspaper. But she never wished for this…
When cheerleader Abigail starts screaming in the middle of an exam, people laugh. But as more girls start breaking into uncontrollable screaming fits, it’s clear something is seriously wrong. The authorities don’t have a clue what’s happening – so it’s up to Clover and Brody to investigate. What they discover is a darkness beneath the perfect veneer of Maple Lakes – and it is spreading fast.
Publication Date: 10th September
CW: gaslighting, hounding, manipulation, sexism, misogyny, sexual assault, rape, harassment
My Thoughts:
And Then We Screamed is a shiver-inducing book that screams with frustration and rage.
Holly Bourne was one of the authors that got me into Young Adult fiction to start with and introduced me to some feminist concepts, which kickstarted a passion and plenty more reading & learning. I think her work is so important for young adults to pick up and she never patronises her audience. These are topics that affect them and we need to recognise that we need to talk about them rather than shying away. That bravery and timeliness is on full display here. It is a palpably angry book that attacks the system that diminishes these girls, their suffering and tries to silence their screams. They are treated as outcasts with the screams spreading like an infection, but also as a spectacle for the entertainment of the masses. The press attention is extremely invasive, especially when you consider that these are teenage girls. I kept drawing parallels to the mass hysteria caused in the witch hunts, especially as fictionalised in The Crucible. This throughline feels deliberate with the setting and the way that women are treated, highlighting how little has actually changed through time.
The central focus of the story is on this screaming epidemic that breaks out mysteriously and Clover trying to understand why it started, how to stop it and where it might strike yet. Bourne’s description of the scenes where the screams break out are genuinely unsettling, leaning into horror in the language used and atmosphere created. You get caught up in the paranoia of this small town as things escalate. Clover comes across plenty of secrets that those in power would rather keep buried and there is that weirdness of having to continue life as normal while the completely unknown is happening all around you. How Bourne resolves this is brilliant. It is plausible, works within the world she has established and feels like a satisfying explanation. There are a lot of important topics being discussed within it and I appreciated that the copy of the book I read included resources for anyone affected to seek further support.
And Then We Screamed is a welcome return from a well-established voice in YA fiction that you should be listening to.
I’d also like to talk about Ink and Shadows by Lauren Willmore. Thank you to Tempest for sending me an eARC in exchange for an honest review.
All students offered a place at St Augustines University will get an elite education, but only a chosen few will be invited to join The Society of Ink and Shadows: the elusive group dedicated to practising the occult arts.
Having struggled to fit into university life, Eve is overjoyed when this invitation is extended her way. But when a fellow society member is maliciously attacked, setting off a series of deadly incidents across the campus, she soon learns that there’s a price to pay for being part of such an exclusive circle.
As society members are picked off one by one, Eve must race to unmask the killer before she becomes the next victim. But can she trust her new friends, or is there a traitor among them?
Publication Date: 10th September
CW: death, murder, violence, drowning, grief, PTSD, missing, injury
My Thoughts:
Ink and Shadows is the Dark Academia YA mystery you need to pick up this season. It has those perfect autumnal vibes with darkness creeping in.
This is a great mystery with plenty of rabbit holes for readers to go down. Willmore weaves a tangled story with interesting twists and unexpected reveals. You cannot trust anything or anyone. Willmore plays with expected tropes of the genre, paying homage but also subverting them in fun ways. This society has plenty they would rather stayed in the shadows and I enjoyed how this thread evolved. Dark Academia can often explore issues around power structures within society and class is definitely a factor in much of this story’s events. There is also a discussion around the role of true crime, with Eve conducting her own investigation and a podcast coming into play that is also looking into exactly what happened. Willmore looks at the way this can be exploited for entertainment but also play an important role in unearthing information at times.
The message Willmore is ultimately delivering here is brilliant, timely and impactful. Without giving anything away, it lands so well because the characterisation has been thoughtfully built over the course of the story. These people feel three-dimensional and believable, with interesting dynamics that grow and change. At the centre of it all is Eve. She is smart, perceptive and feeling utterly alone in this elite institution. The invitation to The Society of Ink offers a beacon of hope, so when death rears its head, she is committed to finding out exactly what happened and why. There are other elements motivating her here too, which are gradually revealed but I thought were sensitively handled and builds to an emotional conclusion. The trajectory Eve goes on is excellent with great character development and you can feel her get caught up in this web of secrets and lies.
Ink and Shadows combines a compelling murder mystery with brilliantly Gothic atmosphere and thought-provoking themes at the heart of the story.
Finally, I’d like to delve into The Dragon and the Dove by Catherine Doyle. Thank you to SimonYA for sending me an eARC in exchange for an honest review.
As the age of saints threatens a turn to the darkest of causes, Sera and Ransom must conquer their personal demons in order to extinguish the one in their midst in the epic conclusion to Doyle’s bestselling romantasy.
The age of Kings has ended. The age of Saints has risen. Now love, like war, demands its sacrifice.
Sera and Ransom, their love stronger than ever, face a common enemy. But as the self-proclaimed People’s Saint rallies the realm to his dark cause, their volatile powers pull them apart once more.
Sera’s blazing Saint-maker gift comes at a terrible cost and threatens to consume her. Ransom, newly sainted and bound to nightmarish shadows, is on the brink of despair. What are they willing to lose? For the kingdom, for their friends, and for each other…
Publication Date: 10th September
CW: murder, death, gore, violence, injury, war, grief, PTSD, traumatic flashbacks, blood
My Thoughts:
The Dragon and the Dove concludes the story kickstarted by the sumptuous and swoon-worthy The Dagger and the Flame.
The stakes have never been higher for Ransom and Sera as their story hurtles towards the end. This scrappy cast of characters has the fate of their world in their hands. A real shining star of this series has been the characterisation and the way Doyle crafts that found family trope. These are ultimately teenagers or young adults that have been placed in the most diabolical of situations and the weight of what they have to do hangs heavy on them. I liked how we explored that more here, with grief as a key theme and Doyle does not hold back. There are even more shocking moments with one especially cruel moment shattering my heart. It has always been a series about power and sacrifice so prepare accordingly as you enter the final chapter.
Doyle knows how to craft an enjoyable trilogy. Each story has unlocked more of the wider picture with additional world-building and introducing these new players in the game. This is no exception as Doyle reveals a few more intriguing details here. The magic system has always been so interesting in this series, but there is a history and wider lore that we have previously been unaware of. The tension is palpable and creates this relentless feeling that kept the pages flowing. You just have to know how it will all come together as we reach the ultimate clash. I enjoyed how it built towards this epic final battle with some fascinating twists and turns along the way.
The Dragon and the Dove brings this romantasy trilogy to an epic conclusion full of love and heartbreak in equal measure. These characters have stolen a sliver of my heart.
A Short Book Lover 