Another slow month, as I only finished three books.
1. I‘ve been a fan of his shorter fiction for a while, but A Child Alone With Strangers was the first novel I’ve read by Philip Fracassi and it was certainly a winner. Part crime story, part supernatural / ghost story, and part creature feature, Fracassi seemlessly melds all these facets into one believable and engrossing story. One of my favorite reads this year and highly recommended. 5 / 5
2. Black Wings VII edited by ST Joshi was one of weaker volumes in the series. There were good stories by the old reliables Donald Burleson and Ann Schwader, but most of the rest of the stories were pretty forgettable. 3 / 5
3. Into the Wild Green Yonder by Peter Crowther and Tim Lebbon. An expecting couple move into their new house, which comes with a large and rather unruly garden (yard) area. Soon after, the husband goes to check out the garden, and the garden is more than what it seems to be. I was expecting more of an adventure story, but ITWGY was actually more of a meta physical mindfuck story, which tends to not be my thing. It wasn’t a bad story, but I’ve read better from both authors over the years. 3 / 5
B
1. I‘ve been a fan of his shorter fiction for a while, but A Child Alone With Strangers was the first novel I’ve read by Philip Fracassi and it was certainly a winner. Part crime story, part supernatural / ghost story, and part creature feature, Fracassi seemlessly melds all these facets into one believable and engrossing story. One of my favorite reads this year and highly recommended. 5 / 5
2. Black Wings VII edited by ST Joshi was one of weaker volumes in the series. There were good stories by the old reliables Donald Burleson and Ann Schwader, but most of the rest of the stories were pretty forgettable. 3 / 5
3. Into the Wild Green Yonder by Peter Crowther and Tim Lebbon. An expecting couple move into their new house, which comes with a large and rather unruly garden (yard) area. Soon after, the husband goes to check out the garden, and the garden is more than what it seems to be. I was expecting more of an adventure story, but ITWGY was actually more of a meta physical mindfuck story, which tends to not be my thing. It wasn’t a bad story, but I’ve read better from both authors over the years. 3 / 5
B