Review: The Fabled Earth

The Fabled Earth by Kimberly Brock
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Narrated by Cassandra Campbell
Presented by Harper Collins Focus

A sprawling, tangled weave of lives and stories.

I enjoyed it, but I did tune out a couple of times.

This is a historical fiction that follows three different women in two different times - Cleo in 1932, then again in 1959 alongside Frances and Audrey. They've all found themselves on Cumberland Island for different reasons, but their paths inextricably intertwine.

I enjoyed the flicking between times, and meeting Cleo at two very different points in life. It was fascinating to see how the times and events had changed her, and our first meeting left quite an impact that echoed well throughout the story.

Frances and Audrey were equally interesting characters, though admittedly not quite as fascinating to me.

There's a mystery and dead boys looming over everything, so there's a drive to get to the bottom of things there and work out what happened. Once it was solved, however, I felt the story dragged on a little. I think part of that may be because I tuned out a little, so had no burning desire to see what became of everyone afterwards.

The narration was decent and eloquent, but never particularly inspiring. The characters sounded similar, and nothing in the narration really stood out for me. It was okay, but I think it was part of the reason I found myself tuning out.

With that in mind, I think this would make a really excellent physical read. I think there's a lot of substance in the details here, so reading physically would really draw out that pleasure.

For fans of historical fiction, this is an excellent read. The characters are well rounded, and the writing will thoroughly drag you in. The fables were a little lacking for my tastes, but the story was entertaining enough to survive it and I found myself getting caught up in events easily.

With thanks to NetGalley for an ARC

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Review: Leave the Girls Behind

Leave the Girls Behind by Jacqueline Bublitz
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Thought-provoking, but a little too jumbled to hit as hard as it could have.

Another novel that focuses on the women behind crime, this book follows Ruth as she investigates the three women that may be connected to the murder of her friend 19 years ago.

I did enjoy the angle and I really love the way this author considers the impact of murder from multiple angles. There's some interesting insight here into the women vs women mentality that is so common in today's society, and I really enjoyed turning those thoughts over. Ruth is not a perfect heroine - her thoughts are flawed and coloured by her own traumas, and so it was interesting to try and read between the lines of what she was saying and doing.

That said, involving the other women did make this feel rather complicated, and it was hard to keep the stories straight. There seemed to be a lot of questionable coincidence, and I lost the thread a few times.

The writing was wonderful and lyrical, with some beautiful phrases and a powerful atmosphere, particularly where we met Rose. I did enjoy losing myself in the language, even if the story felt a little stilted.

I felt the idea was really clever and the themes important, but I think ultimately it was too much to keep straight. It was beautifully written for what it was, but I feel the important parts got lost a little bit in an over-complicated story.

Not quite the follow-up I'd hoped for after the standout debut, Before You Knew My Name but still some solid ideas here with beautiful writing. Worth a shot for the crime fans looking for something a little deeper.

With thanks to NetGalley for an ARC

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Review: The Dead Cat Tail Assassins

The Dead Cat Tail Assassins by P. Djèlí Clark
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Narrated by Lynnette R Freeman
Presented by RB Media

A really fun read enhanced once again by Freeman's narration.

This is my first from this author but certainly won't be my last. It had a perfect blend of action, fantasy, and wit, and Eveen is tough and sassy but not obnoxiously so. Exactly the kind of blend I like.

The story follows our assassin, Eveen, when she's tasked with a kill she finds she can't carry out. It's one of the unbreakable rules, though, so trouble will inevitably follow if she doesn't commit the crime.

I don't quite know what I was expecting from this one, but it certainly wasn't what I got. This was funny and fast, and strayed into some interesting corners. The characters were delightful and I liked the variety.

The narration was fantastic, just as it was with the last book I listened to with this narrator (The Poisons We Drink - Review Here). I love the way she brings the story to life and infuses characters with personality flawlessly. She gives these characters their own unique voices so brilliantly that if you told me this was narrated by multiple people, I'd believe you. I didn't think I'd ever be the kind of person to choose a book based on narrator but you can bet I'll be looking for anything this woman does from now on.

Admittedly, with this being audio I did zone out a little more than I would have liked, but I'd happily listen to it again - it was just that fun.

Solid story, fun characters and superior narration. Happy to recommend this one to fantasy lovers and audio fans!

With thanks to NetGalley for an audio ARC

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Review: Death on Gokumon Island

Death on Gokumon Island by Seishi Yokomizo
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Not quite as fast as the first, but equally addictive.

Book Two in the series, this sees Kindaichi returned from war, and traveling to Gokumon Island to share news of the death of his comrade with the man's family. The information he keeps to himself, though, is that the man's dying words requested Kindaichi go to the island to save his sisters from murder.

A noticeably thicker story than the first, this has a lot more detail leading up to perpetration of the crime(s). Clearly a product of its time, the story takes a little time to reflect on war and its consequences. However this is first and foremost a detective story and the author never forgets that.

The pacing was a little slower, but once the first crime happens there's a pretty puzzle to solve with many clues (and red herrings) to consider. There's an extensive cast of characters, all with their own quirks, and Kindaichi himself is loveably strange.

I really enjoy this series, and Kindaichi is a great character. He's smart and makes some clever deductions, but he's not without his flaws and he's not always greeted with open arms.

The story has plenty to think over, and will keep you guessing. Another fantastic installment in the series.

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Review: Goth

Goth by Otsuichi
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Oooh this was really fun! Lots of dark twists.

It's a book of short stories all tied together by the two main characters, who constantly find themselves entangled in the happenings of the many serial killers in their town.

Morino is the weirdo 'Goth' that our unnamed male narrator strikes up a friendship with - they're both fascinated by the morbid, so are drawn to one another. As the stories progress, you can see the dynamic is a little different than first expected, and it's quite fun to see things gradually become clearer.

The stories themselves are fantastically twisted and macabre. Some are partially narrated by the perpetrators, too, which is a special treat. The storytelling is done in such a way that the twists sneak up on you and in most cases had me exclaiming out loud - I felt tricked, and absolutely delighted by it.

I did pick this up after reading a comment from another reader stating it was the 'goriest book they'd ever read', so based on that I was a little disappointed, but otherwise this is a fantastically disturbing novel.

Highly recommend for horror fans, particularly for its unusual format and clever turns of phrase.

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Review: Houses of the Unholy

Houses of the Unholy by Ed Brubaker
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This was decent and the art was PERFECT but I just wanted MORE.

In the Satanic Panic era, a woman goes on the run with an FBI agent, but her past is catching up fast.

The story is short - too short. There's so much in this that I wanted to explore further and in more detail but there just wasn't time. This was fast-paced and chose action over exposition. Not a bad thing, as it keeps things interesting and dynamic, but I loved the story of it so much and I wanted to really lose myself in it.

This era of history fascinates me, so it was cool to get a story set amongst it all. The protagonist is a badass but she's not without her issues. I liked the team up of her and the cop, too - they worked well together. Some of the other characters were easy to loathe, but they also raised some interesting points amongst their villainy, so it was beautifully muddied waters. Plenty to think about, and a hint as to why the Satanic Panic took off like it did.

The artwork is just incredible - such a great use of colour, in particular, which is something I really like from this duo. The art always complements the story well, and that was no different here.

Another hit from Brubaker and Phillips - I'll definitely be sussing the hardcover in person when it releases!

With thanks to NetGalley for a digital ARC

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