kizzykat

Arthur Oakes is a reader, a dreamer, and a student at Rackham College, Maine, renowned for its frosty winters, exceptional library, and beautiful buildings. But his idyll—and burgeoning romance with Gwen Underfoot—is shattered when a local drug dealer and her partner corner him into one of the worst crimes he can imagine: stealing rare books from the college library.

Trapped and desperate, Arthur turns to his closest friends for comfort and help. Together they dream up a wild, fantastical scheme to free Arthur from the cruel trap in which he finds himself. Wealthy, irrepressible Colin Wren suggests using the unnerving Crane journal (bound in the skin of its author) to summon a dragon to do their bidding. The others—brave, beautiful Alison Shiner; the battling twins Donna and Donovan McBride; and brainy, bold Gwen—don’t hesitate to join Colin in an effort to smash reality and bring a creature of the impossible into our world.

But there’s nothing simple about dealing with dragons, and their pact to save Arthur becomes a terrifying bargain in which the six must choose a new sacrifice for King Sorrow every year—or become his next meal.

Never make a pact with a dragon, as our intrepid six find to their sorrow. As the years go by, more and more is taken from them until their only recourse is to turn and fight back. But how do you do that when your nemesis seems to know your every move? King Sorrow is definitely not your run of the mill dragon. Actually, he’s like no dragon I’ve ever read about.

I came love Arthur and Gwen, their love both binding them together and tearing them apart; Alison and Van (Donovan,) who want from each other what the other can’t give. Donna and Colin are the outliers, their emotions hidden with anger or indifference. Yet the reader can’t help but be drawn to these fascinating yet flawed people. Perhaps it’s those flaws that make them so fascinating.

And I loved the Easter eggs, so many of them harking back to his father’s works. I’m sure I’ll be returning to this book for a second ride.

Goodreads 63

Frightening Cover
1. Blood of the Children by Alan Rodgers
2. King Sorrow by Joe Hill

denise posting in

dw_news

Hello, friends! It's about to be December again, and you know what that means: the fact I am posting this actually before December 1 means

karzilla reminded me about the existence of linear time again. Wait, no -- well, yes, but also -- okay, look, let me back up and start again: it's almost December, and that means it's time for our annual December holiday points bonus.

The standard explanation: For the entire month of December, all orders made in the Shop of points and paid time, either for you or as a gift for a friend, will have 10% of your completed cart total sent to you in points when you finish the transaction. For instance, if you buy an order of 12 months of paid time for $35 (350 points), you'll get 35 points when the order is complete, to use on a future purchase.

( The fine print and much more behind this cut! )

Thank you, in short, for being the best possible users any social media site could possibly ever hope for. I'm probably in danger of crossing the Sappiness Line if I haven't already, but you all make everything worth it.

On behalf of Mark, Jen, Robby, and our team of awesome volunteers, and to each and every one of you, whether you've been with us on this wild ride since the beginning or just signed up last week, I'm wishing you all a very happy set of end-of-year holidays, whichever ones you celebrate, and hoping for all of you that your 2026 is full of kindness, determination, empathy, and a hell of a lot more luck than we've all had lately. Let's go.

gilda_elise

Finally! All the Repairman Jack short fiction – many hard to find, one nigh impossible – collected for the first time. QUICK FIXES includes: “A Day in the Life” “The Last Rakosh” “Home Repairs” “The Long Way Home” “The Wringer” “Interlude at Duane’s” “Do-Gooder” “Piney Power” plus author introductions to each story.

I was first introduced to Repairman Jack through the Adversary Cycle books, in which he appeared in The Tomb, the fourth book in the series. I thought him an interesting enough character, though I much preferred the stories that centered around Glaeken. But somehow or other, the Repairman Jack character took over.

I never did understand that. Because his background is something of a mystery, he’s somewhat two dimensional.

After reading this anthology, I’m even more puzzled. The stories are often filled with violence, with people being killed or maimed. And while Jack is supposed to be the good guy, he’s really not that much better than those he goes after. He’s judge and executioner rolled into one. The stories are pretty much the same; he’s hired to go after whoever is threatening his client. Most of the time they end up dead.

There were a couple of stories I liked, The Last Rakosh, (probably because it ties into the Adversary Cycle,) being my favorite. But they weren’t enough to change my mind about the book.

I do so hope the novels are better, that there’s more substance to them, because I have about a dozen of them.

( Mount TBR 2025 Book Links 1-45 )

46. A Path Where No Man Thought: Nuclear Winter and Its Implications by Carl Sagan
47. 20th Century Ghosts by Joe Hill
48. Curfew by Phil Rickman
49. The King's Justice by Stephen R. Donaldson
50. Virgin by F. Paul Wilson
51. The Ancients by John Larison
52. Children of Memory (Children of Time 3) by Adrian Tchaikovsky
53. Claude’s Christmas Adventure by Sophie Pembroke
54. The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon by Stephen King
55. The Beautiful Ones by Silvia Moreno-Garcia
56. Quick Fixes: Tales of Repairman Jack by F. Paul Wilson

gilda_elise

They are the Beautiful Ones, Loisail’s most notable socialites, and this spring is Nina’s chance to join their ranks, courtesy of her well-connected cousin and his calculating wife. But the Grand Season has just begun, and already Nina’s debut has gone disastrously awry. She has always struggled to control her telekinesis—neighbors call her the Witch of Oldhouse—and the haphazard manifestations of her powers make her the subject of malicious gossip.

When entertainer Hector Auvray arrives to town, Nina is dazzled. A telekinetic like her, he has traveled the world performing his talents for admiring audiences. He sees Nina not as a witch, but ripe with potential to master her power under his tutelage. With Hector’s help, Nina’s talent blossoms, as does her love for him.

But great romances are for fairytales, and Hector is hiding a truth from Nina — and himself — that threatens to end their courtship before it truly begins. The Beautiful Ones is a charming tale of love and betrayal, and the struggle between conformity and passion, set in a world where scandal is a razor-sharp weapon.

Moreno-Garcia seems to have moved away from horror, but she still manages to enchant me with her stories. Her characters always have depth and substance, their lives filled with passion.

Here we have both innocence and jaded worldliness; deep love and a need to own. There is Nina, just beginning to explore the world, and her cousin’s scheming wife, Valerie. Unbeknownst to Nina, they are locked in a battle where there can be only one winner.

I especially liked the addition of the telekinesis, seen more as a source of shame rather than a power to be coveted. Placed in a romantic setting, with an evil nemesis to be reckoned with, the book is a truly lovely read.

S	M	T	W	T	F	S
1	2	3	4	5	6	7
8	9	10	11	12	13	14
15	16	17	18	19	20	21
22	23	24	25	26	27	28
29	30	31

Reading

King Sorrow by Joe Hill

Look! I remembered to post before December started this year!

Quick Fixes: Tales of Repairman Jack by F. Paul Wilson

The Beautiful Ones by Silvia Moreno-Garcia

Profile

December 2024

Most Popular Tags

Page Summary

Style Credit

Expand Cut Tags