Book Review: Welcome to Night Vale

I was a blank slate before reading WELCOME TO NIGHT VALE by Joseph Fink and Jeffrey Cranor, and only had a passing familiarity with the podcast of the same name. In a way, I'm glad, because the spooky, trippy mystery had a deeper impact unhindered by expectation. The authors have created podcasts and live shows about the city where nothing and everything can happen, but it takes a steady hand to go from 30 minutes of blowing your mind to stepping up the intensity in a novel. 

The book centers on Jackie, a pawn store manager who's been nineteen forever, and Diane, a single mom who works in an office and has a shape-changing teenage son. Jackie can't remember her own mother or the house where she grew up, and Diane is trying to keep her son, Josh, from finding his dad. In a town where the Community Dog Park is patrolled by hooded figures, the City Council eats people who rebel and everyone's terrified of the librarians, the ladies' problems seem small, but they're all connected no matter how random everything seems. There's also the problem of a man in a tan jacket who everyone has seen, but no one can remember.

WELCOME TO NIGHT VALE does the best thing a fantasy book can possibly do: it makes you wonder about the very existence of our reality and occasionally our sanity. The book can be creepy without showing gore, funny without being slapstick, and heartfelt without being sappy. It's a fun read, especially if you open it at midnight and let yourself enjoy the ride.

First Friday AW Review: Three Days to Dead by Kelly Meding

Ever worry about waking up dead some morning? It happened to Evy Stone, and she’s not pleased. She has 72 hours to figure out how she died, why she died, and who’s behind it. Good thing she has friends to rely on. Okay, acquaintances. And maybe a few dangerous strangers.

THREE DAYS TO DEAD by Kelly Meding is a pinball machine of a novel, knocking the reader upside the head and in a new direction with every plot twist. Action fills every corner as Evy fights supernatural forces inside and out, turning a city’s underworld of vampires, goblins, trolls and gargoyles on its flaming, slashed ear. The plot is so tight and tense that I finally let out a breath I didn’t know I was holding when Evy and her companion find a quiet haven to recuperate for a few hours. There’s literally no rest for the wicked or the innocent, however, and the final battle is so sharply written, I could see the fight scenes clearly in my mind.

This book is no light, fluffy fantasy read, but you’ll want to hang on while Kelly Meding slams you into every bell until your world tilts.

THREE DAYS TO DEAD is published by Dell Books and is available at Amazon. It’s the first in the Dreg City series. AS LIE THE DEAD (Book 2) is out in paperback, and ANOTHER KIND OF DEAD (Book 3) will be released this summer.

First Friday AW Book Review: A Reaper's Tale by Adam Slade

Today I’m introducing a new feature on my blog: on the first Friday of every month, I’ll review a book written by a fellow Absolute Write member. (Not familiar with Absolute Write? It’s an incredible writing forum for newbies and professionals of every imaginable genre. Check it out!)

And now, the First Friday AW Book Review.

When chatter about a book invokes the mantle of Pratchett I get all pointy, and not in the good way. In my eyes, writing humorous fantasy means you have a lot to live up to, so I was excited and a little worried when I purchased A REAPER’S TALE by Adam Slade. My concerns were unfounded, because Slade does an excellent job with the main character of Mal, a Grim Reaper with a rogue’s eye for bad girls and a wickedly British sense of humor. Mal’s task is to point souls along to their final reward, but when a reap goes awry and a soul becomes stuck inside him, the adventure begins.

The characters are vivid and well-developed. Mal’s circle of friends and colleagues, from his cat to a 1,000-year-old demon with a very dedicated boyfriend, are unusual and multi-faceted. I never wondered about a demon’s personal life before I read this, and I appreciated Slade’s deft touch with it. The settings and characters are reminiscent of Spider Robinson’s early work, including the secret bar filled with supernatural irregulars hiding behind the façade of a local pub. Mal’s humor and his views on death and humanity do remind me of Pratchett’s satire, but this isn’t the same Death you know from Discworld, not unless you caught him in his early, awkward years. Even though influences from the great fantasy humorists can be felt, this is a new world and the reader will have a blast racing through it with Mal and his unhappy cargo.

A REAPER’S TALE also spends some time in the Great Beyond, where we discover that angels and devils have a breakroom (sometimes the same one) and eternal love and regret can really be a pain in the ass. With soul-grabbing mercenaries, unexpected allies and a final judgment system only slightly better than the DMV, Slade takes the reader on a fast and funny ride. I was sad to let these characters go, and I hope the author returns to Mal’s world again and again. If you’re looking for a great read to slap onto that nice, shiny e-book reader, pick this one.

A REAPER’S TALE by Adam Slade is available through Lyrical Press and on Amazon.