Review: The Scribe’s Vault by Emma L Adams

I read this book as a judge for SFINCS4. However, these are my own views and do not necessarily reflect those of the judging team as a whole.

The Book:

Vaster Golt, teenage criminal living on the grimy streets of the city of Nizwel, has spent years committing petty crimes for his owner and master, Svolger, under threat of the revelation of his most dangerous secret.

When he and fellow thief Gedwen are sent to raid the contents of a noble family’s vault, they find a powerful resource hidden inside that might help them free themselves from servitude… and a Scribe, a wielder of powerful runes who is none too happy to find a pair of teenage thieves stealing from their home.

But Vaster and Gedwen aren’t ordinary criminals. They have gifts of their own, ones their master has been cultivating for a purpose that goes far beyond simple robberies. As the pair begin to unravel the schemes that have ensnared their lives, they find out the lengths to which Svolger is willing to go to prevent them from becoming masters of their own fates.

My Thoughts:

This is a solid fantasy novella with lots of adventure and a magic system based around runes. 

As fantasy novellas go this one is fairly typical of the genre – you know what you’re going to get and it doesn’t disappoint. It’s a short read but clearly a prequel to a longer series, introducing the characters of Vaster and Gedwen and setting things up for their adventures ahead. There are also many unanswered questions – what exactly is the Forest of Stones everyone is so worried about? I guess all this will be revealed in later books. However, I would have liked to see more of the worldbuilding and character development in this novella. 

All in all an enjoyable read. It was a simple but well told tale, typical of the genre and one which fans of fantasy will enjoy.

Review: The End of Time by Karyne Norton

I read this book as a judge for SFINCS4. However, these are my own views and do not necessarily reflect those of the judging team as a whole.

The Book:

The world is ending in five years, and humanity's solution is a mass exodus to the past. What could go wrong?

Renee's job for Serendipity is simple: she relocates families to the past so they don't die when the asteroid hits Earth in five years. On top of a paycheck, she earns her own time travel slot to escape the end of the world. Everyone wins.

But then Beckham shows up in her office, claiming she sent him from the past to find her. On top of that, he wants her help taking Serendipity down. As much as she likes the idea of sticking it to some of her bosses, she also really likes the idea of being alive after the Earth is destroyed.

But as Beckham spills more secrets about the dangers of time travel, Renee is forced to decide between securing her own happy ending and preserving thousands of others.

My Thoughts:

This is a very decent speculative thriller novella which would appeal to fans of authors such as John Maars.

The concept is really interesting and Renee is an engaging character. The resulting tangle of multiple timestreams and hopping across between them was well thought out and a lot of fun to read. The author has clearly thought about all the problems and paradoxes time travel can cause and has woven these issues into a compelling storyline. Time travel stories can be difficult to do well, but this one really works.

My only gripe is that I would perhaps have liked to feel more chemistry between Renee and Beckham, as this was a major plot point. 

But that aside, this book was great fun to read and I enjoyed it very much.

Review: The Mystery of the Bitten Peach by Cecilia Tan

I read this book as a judge for SFINCS4. However, these are my own views and do not necessarily reflect those of the judging team as a whole.

The Book:

Meet Mei, a young Chinese American who has discovered she has the mystical ability to transport herself anywhere that is spiritually "China"-including Chinatowns around the world and different eras of Chinese history. As an adoptive child of the diaspora, Mei was raised in America with no knowledge of Chinese folklore or fairy tales, but when an antiques dealer friend needs help retrieving a mythic artifact-a jade carving of a peach that represented same-sex love in ancient China-she's game to give it a try.

Her quest sends Mei not only into the past, but on a journey of self-discovery.

My Thoughts:

This is a beautifully written book, compelling and immersive on many different levels. A beautiful blend of history and folklore, and a treatise into the many facets of love. I also found it a fascinating insight into American culture from the perspective of a Chinese diaspora. I loved this book very much. I was thoroughly immersed in this world and swept away.

Mei is an engaging and interesting character, at times flawed which makes her very relatable and very human. Mei’s relationships with family, friends and lovers are particularly well drawn and at times powerful and poignant. One scene in particular between Mei and her mother almost made me cry.

The structure of the novel with parallel timelines as well as time travel is really well executed. We move easily between Mei’s past and present, as well as her various forays across time and place, from Chinatowns in different cities all the way back to Imperial China itself. A real testament to the skill of the author. One small niggle though, a plot hole that was never really closed. A time travel paradox that I really hoped would be explained away. But it wasn’t, and felt unresolved. I can’t really say any more about this though because I don’t want to give away any spoilers

But don’t let that stop you!!! I absolutely loved this book and I’m sure you will too.

SFINCS4 is about to begin.

SFINCS4 - otherwise known as the Speculative Fiction Indie Novella Championship is about to open for entries and I'm delighted to share that I've been selected to head up one of the judging teams.

We are Team KRACKenS.

If you look at the bar above you will see that we have a dedicated page where you will be able to find our team updates as the competition progresses. 

I'm really looking forward to reading loads of amazing novellas. 

Check out the competition HERE.

Review: A Procession of Ashes by AM Blackmere

The Book:

Piacenza, Italy. The Year of Our Lord, 1349.

Father Matteo has shepherded a dying flock through plague and lime, but nothing in his missals prepared him for the Brotherhood of Broken Flesh—a ragged procession of flagellants who turn suffering into scripture.

When their leader, Fra Aureliano, raises a living Psalm and the faithful begin to speak its geometry in flesh, devotion itself takes on a fevered life.

Beside him stands Tommaso Bellini, an empiric physician tracing the hidden pattern between faith and decay. Together they seek to silence a Psalm that should never have been sung—and learn that belief, once awakened, does not easily sleep again.

My Thoughts:

This is a wonderful, if somewhat disturbing novella, set against the backdrop of plague riddled medieval Europe. It makes for a chilling read, the horror aspect visceral, both the earthly and the supernatural aspects being equally grim for the unfortunate inhabitants of this world.

The writing is exquisite and the research that has gone into this work is extensive and fascinating. AM Blackemere also talks about some of this history over on his Substack, which is well worth checking out if you want to know more about the historical background to this story. There is also an Authors note at the front which I found fascinating and worked well to set the context which forms the backdrop of this tale.

I can’t help but be drawn to the people of that time, who lived through the plague as it tore apart their communities and changed their world for ever. This tale does not shy away from the horrors and trauma they faced, and the added horror which this tale envisages only serves to make it all feel so much more real.

This is an excellent and compelling novella. Not one for the fainthearted. But I’m definitely going to read more of this author’s work.

Review: Hostile Contact by Nick Snape

The Book:

Finn is a troubled war-hero, overseen by an unyielding Commanding Officer while dragging his group of rookies through basic training. When an alien incursion lands in the middle of a patrol exercise, wielding powerful weapons and alien armour far beyond their own, he is forced to lead the remnants of Delta Squad in a desperate struggle for survival.

Utilising light-reflecting camouflage, the aliens go on the rampage, killing indiscriminately and capturing Finn’s CO before going on the hunt. Outgunned, and with the world’s armed forces helpless to act after a second incursion drops, Delta set out on a desperate rescue mission, only for the aliens to reveal a weapon that could change modern-day warfare forever.

Finding themselves in a battle for Earth's future, Delta Squad discover the aliens are more than they seem, and that alien technology can be just as deadly in the hands of humanity when they unearth a deadly secret ‒ the Weapons of Choice.

My Throughts:

As you’ve probably noticed I’m a big fan of Nick Snape’s books. They vary quite a lot, from fantasy to hard SF, and this one is the first in a series of military SF.

This book was a great read. A full on military romp. The actions barely stops for a breath as Finn finds himself and his squadron in an unprecedented situation, being caught up in the midst of an alien invasion.

This is the first in a series of military SF books and I enjoyed it immensely. It will be fun to see how the rest of the series pans out.

So if you like your SciFi hard and military, and action that leaves you breathless, then this could be the book for you.

Review: Icebreaker by Stephen William Hannah

The Book:

Inside their walls, the people are safe from exposure to the unnamed horror that broke the world long ago; but now Bear, the last scientist in Forgehead, takes a case that threatens to throw that safety into question. Someone has been terminally exposed to the phenomenon, despite never having ventured outside the walls. This has only happened once before - to Bear's father.

With the safety of Forgehead in question, and an opportunity to finally discover what happened to his father, Bear must leave the safety of the walls to unravel the mysteries left behind by the pre-cataclysm world; a task that will require him to join the Interloper Initiative, the team who crew the gigantic Crawler landships, the only vehicles that can roam the world outside the walls in relative safety. "Icebreaker" is the first entry in the Interloper Trilogy, a tale of horror and science charting the last days of a dying world, and humanity's endeavour to survive.

My Thoughts:

This is quality post apocalyptic science fiction, set in a future frozen Scotland - which gives it extra points from me!

We first meet Bear as he tries to investigate the case of a boy who has been terminally exposed to the mysterious Phenomenon. I was immediately drawn into the plight of these people, their future society on the verge of collapse, the unspeakable closing in on them.

Bear joins the team of Icebreaker, a giant crawling landship, and this is where things really get interesting. I loved the characters that we meet here, as well as the whole idea of the landships. There’s a lot of action, but also a lot of humanity, and Bear is a fascinating character who I really want to win!

Icebreaker is an excellent story. The concept is original, the characters memorable and the perilous world they live in is strangely compelling. Icebreaker is the first in a trilogy and I’m sufficiently hooked to want to read on, to see how everything evolves, and perhaps learn the truth behind what has happened to the world. At yet Icebreaker is a fully rounded story in itself, leaving just enough unanswered questions. The perfect balance.

A very good and enjoyable book which deserves to be noticed.