Murder in the Monashee Mountains by JP Behrens

October 29, 2025 By Leave a Comment


Murder in the Monashee Mountains by JP Behrens
Publisher: Crystal Lake Publishing
Genre: Mystery/Suspense/Thriller, Sci-Fi/Fantasy, Paranormal, Historical
Rating: 4 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

After barely escaping the haunted streets of Arkham and Miskatonic University, Travis Daniels is on the run with his ward, Leslie Owens. Seeking refuge in the remote woods of Monashee Mountain, their lives take another dark turn when they witness a brutal, savage murder. Now, they’re thrust into a web of deceit, danger, and old grudges as they are drawn into a conflict between warring factions in the small town of Tonasket.

Travis must navigate the escalating tension between the town’s residents, the Native American tribes, and the ancient, shadowy creatures that dwell in the wilderness. The clock is ticking as dangerous rivalries between Sasquatch and werewolves threaten to erupt, and the local logging operations are sabotaged by forces more sinister than anyone can imagine.

As Travis works to uncover the truth behind the murder, he must decide who he can trust before it’s too late. With danger closing in, only one thing is certain: the truth will come at a cost.

Power is never given away freely.

In my review of Missing of Miskatonic earlier this year I wished for a stronger storyline and am happy to report that this second instalment in the series was well rounded in this area. As someone who loves reading about Sasquatch, I immersed myself in all of the details about this famous and mysterious cryptid that the narrator provided. It’s difficult to dig into the details of what Bigfoot is like in this universe except to say that it fits in well with other mythologies about them while also providing new layers of information about what their culture, language, and beliefs were like.

It would have been helpful to have more character development, especially for the characters who were introduced for the first time here. This is such a plot-focused series that I wouldn’t expect pages of introspection or anything, but a few more sentences here and there would go a long way in helping me to get to know everyone better. Here’s hoping that future books that follow Travis’ adventures, if any are in the works, will dive more deeply into this.

The strong pacing kept my interest levels high as I read. I especially enjoyed the action scenes that included both physical and verbal conflicts as they were well written and kept the storyline moving forward at a steady pace. It was easy to imagine what was happening in these scenes due to how clearly they were written and how much effort was put into describing what all of the main characters were doing in those tense but generally brief moments. This isn’t always an easy thing to accomplish, so I must tip my cap to the author for not only pulling it off but also making it look effortless.

This series should be read in order for character and plot development reasons.

Murder in the Monashee Mountains kept me guessing until the end.

Filed Under: Mystery/Suspense, Reviews, Science Fiction/Fantasy Tagged With: , , , , , ,

The Nameless Land by M. Laszlo

October 28, 2025 By 1 Comment


The Nameless Land by M. Laszlo
Publisher: Alkira Publishing
Genre: Contemporary, Psychological Drama
Rated: 4 stars
Review by Rose

This metaphysical novel, like its predecessor, Anastasia’s Midnight Song, is a mix of stream of consciousness narration and imaginary happenings. Mystical and mysterious, The Nameless Land follows the misadventures of Rupert Lux and Anastasia T Grace.

Rupert, a young New Zealander working as a night clerk in a hotel in Sinai, is beset by a daemon that inhabits his eye. His delusion is much the same as Anastasia’s was when she was tormented by the Arctic fox and the diadem spider in the earlier book.

Anastasia, now blind, travels to Sinai at the behest of a Spiritualist Society to seek hidden treasure by dowsing. She longs to find someone she can heal and love. Perhaps Rupert is the one she can save and thereby save herself.

But Rupert is plagued by females who seem to blend into one another and appear and disappear at will. Traumatised by childhood abuse, he worries that he is not worthy of love. He races headlong through many strange encounters, while Anastasia maintains a calmer stance, though troubled by what she is being coerced into doing. She has been urged to find lost Egyptian treasure and, though reluctant, manages to do so. A sense of menace attends the discovery.

Both protagonists are troubled by wild imaginings and beset by odd visions, smells, sounds, and touches as the pair descend into hallucinatory madness. This is a fast-paced metaphysical adventure, the events hiding many layers of emotional turmoil and insanity. The reader is whisked through a dreamlike landscape, disoriented, and made to experience a kind of madness themselves.

THE NAMELESS LAND is the second book in Anastasia’s travels and begins shortly after the incidents in ANASTASIA’S MIDNIGHT SONG (see our review here). However, if you haven’t read the first book, no worries. It definitely can be read alone.

Anastasia, now blind, falls victim to a group of spiritualists who use her in their pursuit of treasure. She very much wants to be free…that is her overriding pursuit during the course of the book, but she escapes from one group only to fall victim to yet another. She wonders if perhaps Rupert Lux, a hotel clerk in Sinai will be the one to set her free.

Rupert has longed to meet Anastasia but has his one daemon to face – and this leads him to not know what to do. Overcome with different hallucinations and dreamlike episodes, he is beset on all sides.

Mr. Laszlo brings his readers into this world and invites them to join the madness and the dreams that surround Anastasia and Rupert. Beautifully written, you never quite know what is real and what the characters have imagined. This leads to a big of tension during the reading, and that’s not a bad thing. There is definitely a depth to his writing that can take more than one reading to completely dive into.

Filed Under: Mainstream Fiction, Mystery/Suspense, Other, Reviews Tagged With: , , , ,

Silversong by Rhonda Parrish

October 28, 2025 By Leave a Comment


Silversong by Rhonda Parrish
Publisher: Poise and Pen Publishing
Genre: Sci-Fi/Fantasy, Historical
Rating: 4 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

Growing up in The Warren — gnomish slums in a big, human, city — Garryn Silversong has one goal. He wants to become a powerful wizard and use that power to rescue himself, his mother and his best friend from the dream-destroying poverty they are forced to exist in.

Armed with only a harp, a stolen book about arcane theory, and single-minded determination, Garryn claws his way up from obscurity, becoming a household name.

But when unimaginable tragedy comes to The Warren, Garryn discovers there are things that fame and money can not buy. Will he find a way to protect those who are most important to him or he will spiral down into oblivion, taking them with him?

Friendship is forever.

Garryn and Lildira had a beautiful lifelong friendship that I deeply enjoyed reading about. They were an excellent example of how family ties can be built between people who aren’t related through typical means like blood, marriage, or adoption. I loved the friendly banter between them and seeing how they fussed over each other when one or both of them were going through hard times. Their genuine platonic love for one another made it hard for me to stop reading this story because of how emotionally invested I was in what would happen to them next.

The pacing did feel a little slow to me at times due to how much world building and character development was sandwiched between more action-oriented scenes. This was especially true in the beginning, and it did become less noticeable as I moved closer to the ending. While it was definitely worth it for me to keep going, it is something I wanted to mention for readers who tend to prefer faster pacing styles.

Being familiar with Dungeons and Dragons isn’t necessary in order to enjoy this book, but readers who have played that game may notice some fun references to it as well as to roleplaying games in general. I sure enjoyed picking them out and trying to guess what might happen to the characters next. It was especially interesting to find out what the various races of intelligent, human-like creatures thought of each other and how they got along – or sometimes didn’t get along – in the cramped quarters of their city.

Silversong made me yearn for more.

Filed Under: Reviews, Science Fiction/Fantasy Tagged With: , , , ,

The Curator by M.W. Craven

October 22, 2025 By Leave a Comment


The Curator by M.W. Craven
Publisher: Self-Published
Genre: Contemporary, Mystery/Suspense/Thriller
Rating: 4 stars
Reviewed by Fern

It’s Christmas and a serial killer is leaving displayed body parts all over Cumbria. A strange message is left at each scene: #BSC6

Called in to investigate, the National Crime Agency’s Washington Poe and Tilly Bradshaw are faced with a case that makes no sense. Why were some victims anaesthetized, while others died in appalling agony? Why is their only suspect denying what they can irrefutably prove but admitting to things they weren’t even aware of? And why did the victims all take the same two weeks off work three years earlier?

And when a disgraced FBI agent gets in touch things take an even darker turn. Because she doesn’t think Poe is dealing with a serial killer at all; she thinks he’s dealing with someone far, far worse – a man who calls himself the Curator.

And nothing will ever be the same again . . .

It’s Christmas, but when what appears to be a serial killer leaves a pair of severed fingers from three victims all over Cumbria Washington Poe, Tilly and their team are called in to try and work out what’s really going on. And while their boss, Stephanie Flynn is heavily pregnant and refusing to start her maternity leave, there are more than a few things on each of their minds. Can Poe and Tilly figure out who is behind everything before their time runs out?

I have been greatly enjoying this series but found this to be a particularly strong addition. While I don’t feel it necessary to have read both the previous books to thoroughly enjoy this third outing, I must admit I feel I enjoyed the deeper emotional connection I had knowing about Poe, Tilly and Flynn’s previous cases and shared working history. I believe I would have still thoroughly enjoyed this story had I picked it up alone – but I’m glad I’ve read the previous two and can strongly recommend them as well.

I also absolutely loved how about halfway through the book the entire plot was pretty much thrown on its head. I thought the author wrote this part exceptionally well as it fundamentally changed the whole plotline without making Poe or any of the police officers seem like idiots. I can’t recall reading a book previously where such a massive twist occurred without much forewarning and wasn’t due to severe ineptitude on the detective’s part, so I really thought this was an excellent twist and made the second half of the book even more intense to my mind.

While many British police procedurals have a slow and steady pace – as this one does also – I absolutely feel there is a steady ramping up of the intensity and I admit I had to stay up past my bedtime (on a work night too!) to read the last 10% of the story because I simply couldn’t put it down and go to sleep, I needed to know how it all unfolded.

An excellent book and a brilliant series, one I am happily and thoroughly addicted to.

Filed Under: Mystery/Suspense, Reviews Tagged With: , , , ,

Movie Review: 28 Years Later

October 20, 2025 By Leave a Comment


28 Years Later
Writers: Alex Garland
Director: Danny Boyle
Starring: Jodie Comer, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Jack O’Connell, Alfie Williams, and Ralph Fiennes
Publisher: Columbia Pictures
Genre: Sci-Fi/Fantasy, Horror, Contemporary
Rating: 4 Stars (8 Stars on IMDB)
Reviewed by Astilbe

A group of survivors of the rage virus live on a small island. When one of the group leaves the island on a mission into the mainland, he discovers secrets, wonders, and horrors that have mutated not only the infected but other survivors.

Survival takes on many different meanings after a few decades of zombies running around.

One of the cool things about this film was that it didn’t require any knowledge of the first three instalments in order to understand what was going on during it. Obviously, there were a few interesting callbacks for fans who did start at the beginning, but this otherwise felt like an introduction to a new horror series which I found refreshing and surprising.

The plot twists were pretty easy to spot ahead of time for me given how often I watch zombie films, so I would have liked to see a little more development there given how long this was set after the original outbreak. A new generation of people had been born into and grown up on an island filled with zombies by the time this tale began. Even something as simple as discussing the rules they had grown up following about how to stay safe in such a dangerous environment could have given the storyline creative ways to flourish if a few more scenes had been dedicated to the topic. The possibilities were endless.

With that being said, I enjoyed the plot development that had taken place over twenty-eight years, especially when it came to the tense but sometimes also complex relationships between various characters of both human and zombie origin. This film had some poignant things to say about the meaning of life and how to push through a day, often literally, while dealing with painful emotions like grief or uncertainty. The deeper layers of the storyline were what encouraged me to choose a higher rating and have made me incredibly curious to see what happens in 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple once it is also released.

28 Years Later was a grisly but thoughtful adventure.

Filed Under: Miscellaneous Musings, Movie Review, Television Show Tagged With: , , , , ,

19 Doors by Rob Roy O’Keefe

October 15, 2025 By Leave a Comment


19 Doors by Rob Roy O’Keefe
Publisher: Self-Published
Genre: Sci-Fi/Fantasy, Paranormal, Contemporary
Rating: 4 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

From the author of Small Stories: A Perfectly Absurd Novel, shortlisted by the Chanticleer International Book Awards, 19 Doors ranges far and wide, diving into magical realism and science fiction, then adding a dash of steampunk and surrealism for extra flavor. The collection of short stories and flash fiction ricochets from the poignant to the comically absurd, each story a work of imaginative fiction.

• A community remembers the lives they have yet to live.
• An intergalactic tour bus arrives in Hollywood … Montana.
• A shopping network super-fan relives every infomercial scenario he watches.
• The first sentient being in the universe applies for a job as a sous chef.
• A preternatural wind comes to collect a long-owed debt.

Through 19 Doors, we are immersed in the unraveling lives of characters who are just like us and nothing like us. Whether they succeed or succumb, conform or rebel, we are treated to a compilation of stories that are frequently fraught, often fun, and always fantastic.

Balance will be restored eventually.

Dylan loved taking late night walks by herself, but she ended up in a mysterious diner instead of at home in “We were beautiful.” I loved the paranormal elements of this tale and how the main character reacted to things that shouldn’t have been possible. She had such a curious and upbeat personality that I couldn’t help but to like her and wish I could read more about her adventures.

I found myself wishing for more plot development in some of these tales, one of which was “Borrowed time”. It followed a man who figured out how to manipulate time so that he could sell pieces of it to people who had enough money. There were some plot holes involving the storage and use of time that I sure would have liked to see explained more thoroughly. With that being said, I still enjoyed the reading process and would love to hear if other readers had the same experience with this portion and other ones like it.

Buying a new home often includes a few surprises, but “The untethered house” took that to an entirely different level when the characters realized their purchase was doing things that a building should never be capable of doing. I appreciated the playful sense of humor in this piece and the way the characters reacted to what the average person would consider to be deeply unsettling at best. The conclusion, too , was filled with funny moments that only made me like the protagonists even more than I already did.

19 Doors was a whimsical and thought-provoking collection.

Filed Under: Reviews, Science Fiction/Fantasy Tagged With: , , , , ,

Parlor Poetry-A Victorian Versification Abecedary by Lori Alden Holuta

October 9, 2025 By Leave a Comment


Parlor Poetry-A Victorian Versification Abecedary by Lori Alden Holuta
Publisher: Self-Published
Genre: Non-Fiction, Historical
Rating: 4 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

An illustrated A-to-Z (plus an ampersand) poetry collection celebrating Victorian life.
From Ada Lovelace to the Zoetrope (plus a bonus ampersand), this alphabet of verse captures the innovations and oddities of the Victorian era in poetic form. A witty, whimsical celebration of one of the most imaginative eras of all time. Includes color illustrations by Olivia Wylie.

Sometimes the past is a wondrous place.

There was a nice assortment of topics included here, from people like Lewis Carroll who are still well-known and well-read today to reticules which were an early form of what we’d now call a purse that I wasn’t actually aware of until I read this book. Even when I did already have knowledge on a specific subject, I still sometimes found myself surprised by new or additional details about it. This kept me on my toes as I read and made me glad I gave this title a try.

It would have been nice to have more attention paid to the diets of Victorians given how much medical knowledge and advice evolved during this century. Tea was mentioned, but there was a lot else going on in the 1800s when it came to early scientific research about how food impacts health and the various scandals involving tainted milk, rotten meat, or additives in food that weren’t actually safe for human consumption. Had this been given more space, I would have happily gone with a higher rating!

I enjoyed the fact that none of the entries took up more than a few pages. They were meant to provide a jumping-off point for readers to do further research on the various highlights, or, in a few cases, low points, of this era depending on which specific inventions, people, or social conventions one might find most entertaining. There is definitely something to be said for offering this sort of sampling platter, especially for the sections that covered events that aren’t typically taught in school.

Parlor Poetry: A Victorian Versification Abecedary was a versatile and amusing introduction to this time period.

Filed Under: Non-Fiction, Reviews Tagged With: , , , ,

Maria La Divina by Jerome Charyn

October 8, 2025 By Leave a Comment


Maria La Divina by Jerome Charyn
Publisher: Bellevue Literary Press
Genre: Historical
Rating: 4 stars
Reviewed by Nymphaea

An intimate portrait of the world’s most iconic opera singer

Maria Callas, called La Divina, is widely recognized as the greatest diva who ever lived. Jerome Charyn’s Callas springs to life as the headstrong, mercurial, and charismatic artist who captivated generations of fans, thrilling audiences with her brilliant performances and defiant personality.

Callas, an outsider from an impoverished background, was shunned by the Italian opera houses, but through sheer force of will and the power and range of her voice, she broke through the invisible wall to sing at La Scala and headline at the Metropolitan Opera, forging an unforgettable career. Adored by celebrities and statesmen, the notable and notorious alike, her every movement was shadowed by both music critics and gossip columnists—until, having lost her voice, she died alone in an opulent, mausoleum-like Paris apartment.

It’s like being there with the singer and watching her go through her life.

This book is a wealth of knowledge about the singer Maria Callas. I felt like I was right there with the singer, going through her life and seeing how she handled the hurdles in her way. I liked how the author really delved deep into the singer’s life and loves. I was saddened for how her life turned out, but also feel this is something everyone who follows music should read. If you’re a fan of the current singers, a la Taylor Swift, then this book shows where the genesis of the music and celebrity business started.

The one thing I will say is that if the reader isn’t familiar with the many names dropped in this book, it can get a bit confusing to keep them all straight. That’s not to take away from the writing. The writing is fantastic and kept me wanting to know what would happen next. There are simply a lot of people to keep straight.

If you’re looking for a book about celebrity at the turn of the century, celebrity at its start and how that celebrity can affect people, then this is the book for you. The psychological look at Maria Callas and how she handled her life was great. give this book a try.

Filed Under: Reviews, Romance Tagged With: , , ,

The Torus Run by Harry Buck

October 3, 2025 By Leave a Comment


The Torus Run by Harry Buck
Publisher: Calliopezen Publishing LLC
Genre: Sci-Fi/Fantasy
Rating: 4 stars
Reviewed by YellowEye

Four months after the Blackout, San Francisco is back to its old habits—building the future by day and worrying about it by night. Stash Novak has done his share of both, but now he’s out of time. Zero, his AI Twin, is weeks away from upgrading. The new version will make him smarter than Stash, smarter than anyone, and some of them are not amused. With the NSA, tech rivals, and an elusive hacker network closing in, Stash is ready to gamble on unlikely allies. Zero tried to talk him out of it, but Stash wouldn’t listen. Convinced there’s a way to protect his Twin and save humanity’s future, he’s ready to do whatever it takes: join forces with his enemies, make new ones, or even dive into the Torus—the AIs’ churning new world.

The Torus Run pulls readers into a labyrinth of shifting alliances, where the line between human and machine blurs and the future of both hangs in the balance. It’s a true story. It just hasn’t happened yet.

The Torus Run, by Harry Buck, is a fast-paced, near-future sci-fi thriller that revolves around Stash Novak, a visionary technologist who is racing to protect his AI twin, “Zero”, from powerful adversaries. The story takes place a few months after a catastrophic blackout in San Francisco. Stash is on the brink of upgrading Zero into a full AGI (artificial general intelligence), but he faces hostile entities that include the government, his corporate rivals, and the open source hacker community. To survive, he must form uneasy alliances and journey into the enigmatic digital realm known as the Torus.

The novel is fast paced, with themes that speak to our world today. They include AI ethics and the societal fallout from rapid technological advancement. Harry Buck explores the increasingly blurred boundaries between humans and machines, and offers us a glimpse of a possible near-future that is both tactile and compelling.

The novel’s pace is relentless and almost cinematic in its feel. While some readers will enjoy the non-stop ride through a digital landscape, with new plot twists appearing at every turn, I found it a bit too complicated and intense at times, even though I am at home with computer programming and the technical aspects of digital culture. There was a lot of left-brain, logical, rapid-fire explanations of the technologies involved, however I felt somewhat cheated with the human side of things. In many instances, the “twins” (AI bots paired with humans) had more personality than their human partners. There was ample opportunity for Buck to make deeper dives into the human psyche, and while he did reveal some of the characters’ pasts and motivations, they often felt somewhat convenient and contrived.

But in spite of any shortcomings, “The Torus Run” is a solid piece of hard science fiction, spun so that it keeps the reader on his toes, and delivered in an articulate and literate voice. The near-future scenario, with its political factions–both for and against AI–was well thought-out and researched, and provides the reader with much food for thought, especially in a time when we are just beginning to deal with the effects of AI on our world.

If you are a fan of hard science fiction and are looking for an escape into a very plausible near future, The Torus Run might be just what you’re looking for.

Filed Under: Reviews, Science Fiction/Fantasy Tagged With: , , ,

The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry by Rachel Joyce

September 29, 2025 By Leave a Comment


The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry by Rachel Joyce
Publisher: Random House
Genre: Contemporary, Literature
Rating: 4 stars
Reviewed by Snowdrop

Meet Harold Fry, recently retired. He lives in a small English village with his wife, Maureen, who seems irritated by almost everything he does. Little differentiates one day from the next. Then one morning a letter arrives, addressed to Harold in a shaky scrawl, from a woman he hasn’t heard from in twenty years. Queenie Hennessy is in hospice and is writing to say goodbye. But before Harold mails off a quick reply, a chance encounter convinces him that he absolutely must deliver his message to Queenie in person. In his yachting shoes and light coat, Harold Fry embarks on an urgent quest. Determined to walk six hundred miles to the hospice, Harold believes that as long as he walks, Queenie will live. A novel of charm, humor, and profound insight into the thoughts and feelings we all bury deep within our hearts, The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry introduces Rachel Joyce as a wise—and utterly irresistible—storyteller.

Sometimes when our lives become a little too predictable, we need a purpose to sort of shake things up. It may seem like a small thing, a long-term thing, or even a little nutty thing. Nonetheless, it becomes important to us. That’s what happened to Harold Fry. Maybe he got a little carried away, but his focus became one of the most important goals in his life.

Moving toward our purpose sometimes makes us look backward; we get a picture of what could have been or what was. That puts a whole new perspective on the initial task we set out for ourselves. That too is what this book is about…self-reflection. The feelings or emotions might not sound so unusual to some of us. We might not have taken on such a strenuous task as Harold did, but many of us might recognize ourselves somewhat in this story.

The author’s writing contains some serious inner thinking and some humor too. I enjoyed it, but I wouldn’t read it again. Nor would I recommend it to someone unless they were at a point in their life where they needed a read about good people and happy endings. I am not going to say it was my favorite book. It is a sweet, well-written book but was rather bland to me. Maybe it was my mood rather than the author’s plotline.

Nevertheless, it is a good read. As you can see from any review platform, many people enjoyed it. This is a moving and sweet book. Either term is a good description in my mind.

Filed Under: Mainstream Fiction, Reviews Tagged With: , , , ,
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