Tag: #summerreads

The Haunting of Hecate Cavendish

~ Lisa Helm ~ Leave a comment

By Paula Brackston

Ok, I LOVED this book. I loved the setting, I loved the atmosphere, I loved the characters, and I especially loved the writing. 
The novel takes place in England in the late 1880s, and Hecate goes to work at Hereford Cathedral to assist the librarian in sorting and caring for the cathedral’s extensive collection of books. Upon her arrival, Hecate soon discovers she can communicate with ghosts, and the Hereford Cathedral is riddled with ghosts! Hecate shares her gift with her father, who (being a scholarly man himself, somewhat knowledgeable in archaeology and the occult) is incredibly supportive of his daughter. 
All is well in the village until suddenly a murder occurs, and then another and then….
Hecate learns through her communication with the ghosts and her study of artefacts buried deep in the cathedral walls that a dark force has been unearthed and is beginning to wreak havoc upon the villagers. 
This novel has magic and mystery. It is a ghost story with fantastical creatures. The plot is detailed and intriguing, and the characters are engaging and interesting. Most of all, Brackston is a skilled writer with beautifully crafted prose.
It is always a treat to find a novel that not only entertains its readers with a compelling plot but can also serve as a mentor text for word choice and sentence structure. 
There is now a second novel in this series, called The Cathedral of Lost Souls, which will be published in November that I CANNOT wait to read.

Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin’s Press for the copy.

The Dark Library

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by Mary Anne Evans

Don’t you absolutely love the cover of this novel?

Our setting is in the University town of Bentham on Hudson, right in the middle of the Second World War. Our initiating incident is the apparent suicide of  Dean Jamison, who jumps from a tower at the university. Coincidentally, it is immediately after he meets with Estella (or E as she prefers to be called). Obviously, his death appears suspicious,  I mean, to those who worked closely with him, he didn’t seem depressed or desperate, condescending and patriarchal, sure, but if anything, overly controlling. Our protagonist, E, is naturally stunned by the dean’s sudden death. Still, it’s not like she’ll miss him, even though he was a colleague and ‘friend’ of her late father (himself a professor) he was never supportive of E’s position as professor of literature, for example, not giving her the title of professor,(because she was only holding the position until the ‘rightful’ instructors returned from war), and relegating her to the smallest, most obscure office on campus. Luckily, E’s closest friends also work at the university, Margorie and Leontine.

So Dean Jamison’s death immediately creates suspense, because if it, secrets are revealed and we soon learn that E’s father is entwined in treacherous political dealings. Which is somewhat surprising to E It’s not like she adored her father. E lives a rather solitary life with only the family’s housekeeper Annie as “family”. Before her post as professor, Estella had led a somewhat everyday life as a High School teacher until she was summoned home by Annie because her mother had disappeared and her father had taken ill.

The Dark Library is quite a little mystery. It is deftly written in that one of the central mysteries is solved about halfway through the novel (a rather central mystery in that it serves in developing E’s character and furthering the secondary plot). The second mystery that serves to answer all of our unanswered questions. 

A mystery, a romance, with tinges of historical content, this novel is a wonderful addition to your summer TBR list. It also makes for an engaging addition to any High School library. Thank you to Poisoned Pen Press and Netgalley for the copy.

The Wretched and Undone

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By J. E. Weiner

My favourite genre lately has been Victorian Gothic. However, I have also enjoyed a good Southern Gothic novel on occasion, and The Wretched and Undone is another I can add to my list.

Polish Immigrants Marcin and Agnieska Anderwald make their way to Texas to build a new life. The frontier obviously is not for the weak, and sure enough, the Anderwald family suffers hardship of war, poverty and death. Marcin eventually has to leave Agnieska and the children on the homestead and travel to Camp Verde to make money using his carpentry skills, abandoning his emotionally fragile wife in the meantime. At Camp Verde, Marcin is indirectly responsible for the death of a soldier who causes a vengeful ghost who promises to haunt the Alderson family over generations.

This novel isn’t just filled with spirits and vengefulness; it also features an array of fascinating characters, including two camel handlers from Egypt and a muster of peacocks and peahens whose cacophonous cries serve as wards against threat. 

I enjoyed the plot and characters presented in this novel, and Weiner’s writing craft is engaging and masterful.

Trigger warnings of drowning of a child, hangings, and torture. 

Thank you to HTF Publishing and Netgalley for the copy.

We Do Not Part

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by Han Kang

The only other novel I’ve read by Han Kang was The Vegetarian, and I knew then that Kang was an author like no other. Using lyrical, poetic language rife with symbolism and metaphor, Kang takes deep political and historical issues and persuades us to think deeply about the human condition. The plot of  We Do Not Part is quite simple; our main character, Kyungha, receives an urgent text from her friend Inseon. Insean has suffered an injury and is being treated in a hospital in Seoul. Inseon tasks Kyungha to go to her home on Jeju Island to care for her bird, which has lost its mate and cannot live longer than a few days in isolation. 
Getting to Jeju Island is quite a task in and of itself; not only does Kyungha suffer debilitating migraines, but she now has to deal with incredibly unreliable remote transportation, blizzards, and hunger. Also, Jeju Island isn’t an island; it has a traumatic history where a massacre of tens of thousands of islanders had been slaughtered by anti-communist troops. This novel weaves from reality to surrealism, a ghost story, a psychological study, and a discovery of self.
This novel would make an amazing novel study for high school students. Not only would it serve as a mentor text, but it would also serve as a master class in writing. The themes it possesses would make for deep and meaningful class discussions.
Look at this beautifully descriptive quote: 
“Snow falls. On my forehead and cheeks. On my upper lip, the groove above it. It is not cold. It is only as heavy as feathers, as the finest tip of a paintbrush. Has my skin frozen over? Is my face covered in snow as it would be if I were dead? But my eyelids must not have grown cold. Only the snowflakes clinging to them are.”

Thank you to Random House and Netgalley for the copy.

My Friends

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By Fredrik Backman

Louisa, a foster kid, now homeless, is about to turn 18. Since the tragic death of her only friend, Fish, Louisa has nothing dear to her heart other than a postcard picture of a painting called ‘The One of the Sea’ by artist CJat (later we learn the artist’s real name is KimKim). This painting, a symbol of hope and beauty, becomes a central motif in the novel. Breaking into the gallery where the real painting is to be sold, Louisa is found out and attempts to run away from the guards. She unexpectedly and literally runs into a homeless man who coincidentally happens to be the artist himself. Now, it all sounds too coincidental to be true. Still, Backman writes in such a way that turns coincidence into serendipity. Flashback 25 years, and we learn the genesis of the painting. We are enmeshed in the lives of the author and the three friends who all needed to rely on each other to survive the trauma and heartaches of their childhoods. Joar is the protector. A Child of an incredibly abusive father yet a gentle, loving mother, Joar. And, of course, Ted, who endures the death of his father after a prolonged sickness. Ali is a young girl with a single father with a nomadic lifestyle. Each of these young people was lucky enough to have found each other at a time when they were suffering from traumatic childhoods.
The novel is structured, alternating between two time periods. In the present day, we follow Louisa as she meets Ted, now an adult, and begins to unravel the story behind her beloved painting. The second timeline, set decades earlier, immerses us in the lives of ‘the friends.’ 
I loved several elements of this book; I especially loved the idea of people who, when they find someone who is “one of us” (an artistic, sensitive soul), will do anything to protect and encourage them to flourish not only in their craft but in life itself. I also love that even though this novel is rife with trigger warnings (suicide, abuse, neglect), the characters are portrayed as pure-hearted, loyal and warriors against their specific demons.
This novel’s primary theme is friendship and how true friendship survives trauma, conflict, and time.

Thank you to Atria Books and Netgalley for the copy.

Dreadful

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by Caitlin Rozakis

This book reminded me much of Susanna Clarke’s Clarke’s Piranesi, except lighter and less literary. Its premise also reminded me a bit of Gordon Korman’s Korman’s Restart. We’ve got a protagonist who has no sense of who or where he is and has to try to survive a number of obstacles (both death-defying and personal) in the quest to find out his reality.
Our protagonist wakes up and finds himself beaten and bruised in a destroyed lab, an imprisoned princess, and the threat of the Dreadful Lord Gravrax. He has lost all sense of memory and identity; however, he soon finds out (with insightful guidance from the princess) that he, unfortunately, is the Dreadful Lord himself.
The novel’s humour and tone helped me through the times when the plot was slow. This is a fun, lighthearted, and, at times, humorous fairytale-esque novel that successfully discusses the themes of identity, appearance, and the importance of memory in defining oneself.

Thank you to Netgalley and Titan Books for the copy!

Devouring Tomorrow

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This anthology of speculative fiction is an impactful text to use not only in English but in Biology as well. Each story, written by Canadian authors, centres around the future and what would happen if the world experienced a food shortage. The stories talk of the repercussions of human behaviour on the environment and the perspective that we might have to resort to feeding the human race (yes, a couple of the stories talk of “synthetic cannibalism”. I found each of these stories immensely thought-provoking, and several were hugely disturbing because of their “I could see this happening” realism. The potential for dynamic Socratic Discussion around the themes of EVERY one of these stories is immense. 

With Canadian authors, speculative fiction, and timely themes, this anthology offers a rich ground for deep, stimulating discussions about the consequences of humans’ impact on the environment and the morality of unequal resource distribution.

Trigger warnings: language (for a few stories) and disturbing content…however, it varies per story.

Sunrise On the Reaping

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by Suzanne Collins

Years ago, I was a fan of the Hunger Games series, and I read the first book aloud to my ninth-grade class. They naturally loved it. I was delighted to find out that Collins has now written a prequel from Haymitch’s point of view. 

Written in first person, we, the reader, get to know Haymitch personally. The novel unfolds on Haymitch’s 16th birthday, the day of the Reaping. Despite his numerous entries to secure food and supplies for his family, Haymitch has avoided being chosen. We delve into the intricacies of the Haymitch family, his ties with the Everdeen family, his fears, his wit, and most importantly, his love for Lenore Dove.

As we all know, Haymitch is, in fact, chosen to represent District 12 for the Hungar Games, even though the circumstances under which he is chosen are questionable. 

Of course, the novel’s main action occurs in the Arena for the Hunger Games. Due to specific meetings and acquaintances, Haymitch’s task in the Arena isn’t just to survive; it is to sabotage the Game in the hopes of bringing down the Hunger Games and, ultimately, President Snow.

This novel, in line with the Hunger Games series, is intense and fast-paced. I found it intriguing to unravel the layers of Haymitch’s character and understand the roots of his eventual struggles with substance abuse. Suzanne Collins’ incorporation of verses from Edgar Alan Poe’s poem “The Raven” creates a perfect opportunity for teachers to discuss patterns and connections between the two pieces of literature. The poem’s verses beautifully mirror Haymitch’s feelings towards Lenore and his trauma in the Games, particularly in the final chapter.

Collins also employs nursery rhymes and the lyrics from The Hanging Tree to help support themes.

Trigger warnings: extreme brutality, murder and death.

The River Has Roots

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by Amal El-Mohtar

“There was a time when grammar was wild-when it shifted shapes and unleashed new forms out of old. Grammar like gramarye, like grimoire. What is magic but a change in the word…but that is the nature of grammar-it is always tense, like an instrument, aching for release, longing to transform present into past into future into will. (pg. 1-3)

The Hawthorn sisters, Esther and Ysabel, live in the small village of Thistleford located on the edge of “the beautiful county of Acadia, the beautiful land- the land beyond; antiquity”  in other words, the beautiful land of Faerie. The sisters have 2  jobs: the first is to weave beautiful willow baskets, and the second most important is to sing to the willows. You see, “when they sang together, you could feel grammar in the air”. Ester, the eldest, is being pursued by the bachelor Mr. Pollard, who “always had the beseeching expression of a whining dog; his hand, bafflingly, were always somehow both cold and moist”…needless to say, Esther is in no way interested. Instead, her heart belongs to Rin (a beautiful nonbinary character). Rin is Fae; Rin is beautiful, loving, brave, and adoring. However, Ester is in a dilemma; although she loves Rin, she vows to never break the bond she has with her sister Ysabel. She loves her sister beyond life itself, and their bond is intricately woven together, not just because they are sisters but because of the magical bond created by the grammar when they sing.

When a violent incident occurs and tragedy strikes, Esther has to choose between living in the world of Faerie with her love and staying in human form or living in the land of humans in the form of a swan. Will the bond between the sisters survive the conflict that ensues? 

This novel is a treasure trove for literary analysis. Its symbols, including the river Liss, the Willows, Mr Pollard, and the land of Faerie, are rich and complex, offering ample material for exploration. The novel’s prose, too, is a delight, best savored when read slowly and contemplatively, much like a piece of poetic verse.

This novel is also beautifully published, interspersed with what looks like linocut artwork by artist Kathleen Neeley, enchanting and folkloric.

If you loved How To Lose the Time War, co-written by El-Mohtar you love this novel.

The Amalfi Curse

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by Sarah Penner

Haven Ambrose has found her way to Positano, Italy, to lead a team of archaeologists in researching sunken wrecks off the Amalfi Coast, a place rich in history filled with folklore of curses and witches. But Haven isn’t there to study history folklore or besides her research, Haven has a second more personal reason for participation in this expedition, before her father’s death, he, as a renowned nautical archaeologist himself died he made her promise to return to his last dive site where he believed he had found a lost trove of rare gemstones.  No one on Haven’s expedition team knows this; if they did, they would be sure to claim them for their own. 
Upon her arrival, Haven is immediately drawn into a mysterious incident: a yacht is ensnared in a whirlpool, collapses, and vanishes beneath the waves, taking most of the crew with it. Could this tragedy be linked to the fabled Amalfi Curse?
Now, for the second timeline, there is indeed a second timeline that occurs more than 200 years before Haven’s arrival. This is Mari’s story. In Positano, the women are stregheria- sea witches who protect their village from pirates, specifically the infamous Mazza brothers. Mari is the most powerful strega, and she is integral to the success of the protection spell. The only problem is that she longs to escape her home and run away with her American sea-faring lover to live a life away from the unpredictable sea. 
The two timelines are masterfully interwoven, keeping me engrossed and endearing me to both female protagonists. Yet, the portrayal of the female community and the potency of the stregheria truly captivated me. This novel had me delving into Italian folklore, sea witches, Positano, and the Amalfi Coast, sparking a desire to visit these places.
I wish a few plot points were fleshed out a bit more, and I would have appreciated a bit more backstory for a couple of the characters.
The Amalfi Curse is a perfect novel for your summer reading list.

Thank you to Netgalley and Park Row Books for the copy!

Blood on Her Tongue

~ Lisa Helm ~ 2 Comments

by Johanna Van Veen

This is the second novel I’ve read by Johanna Van Veen, and it just confirmed to me that she is, in fact, one of my favourite authors. I do not naturally gravitate to horror, but when I have, it is usually to authors such as her. Before you read this novel, be sure to read the forward; it does prepare the reader for what lies ahead. Yes, it is creepy, yes, it is bloody, but it’s also a whole lot of fun. This novel will keep you entertained from start to finish. In fact I was so intrigued that I read it in a day!

Set in what I believe to be the Victorian era, Lucy receives a very unsettling letter from her twin, Sarah. Sarah’s letter is incoherent, pleading, and desperate, and her handwriting is beyond agitated.

Sarah’s letter was soon followed by her husband’s letter, requesting Lucy come to Sarah’s assistance.

Lucy isn’t completely surprised by this; madness, after all, does run in the family.

When Lucy arrives, in an effort to discover the cause of her sister’s madness, she begins to read Sarah’s journals. These journals aren’t just a person’s recollection of the day’s thoughts and events; they are also scholarly in nature. It seems a body has been found on the property, but not any body, a Bog Woman wonderfully preserved centuries after her demise. Sarah’s obsession over the Bog Woman seems to have ignited her madness, so much so that we, the readers, start to believe that she may, in fact, be possessed by the Bog Woman’s spirit because soon Sarah ceases to be Sarah as Lucy has known her to be.

As with most Victorian stories, the male characters are far from appealing. For instance, Sarah’s husband is dismissive, condescending, and extremely narcissistic, which makes him an unsympathetic character. However, Van Veen does not paint the sisters as sympathetic characters either, but the characterization did get me rooting for them at the end.

This novel is highly atmospheric. It is gruesome, suspenseful, and quite humorous at times (to the expense of a couple of characters). I enjoy Johanna Van Veen so much because, despite the heavy themes, the plot is gruesome fun. If you are not a fan of body horror, maybe stay away from this one, but if you enjoy a good, gruesome, spooky tale, you’ll definitely enjoy Blood on Her Tongue. 

Thank you to Netgalley and Poisoned Pen Press for the copy.

A Letter to the Luminous Deep

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by Sylvie Cathrall

CRUMPLED DRAFT OF LETTER WRITTEN BY HENEREY CLEL, 1002 

My dear E., 

I have thought of nothing else but you and your letter over the past day or so, and I do not intend to start thinking of anything else anytime soon” (pg 257, as well as the back cover)

This novel is an absolute enchantment. It weaves together the genres of Science Fiction, Romance, and Mystery with Victorian overtones in a way that will leave you longing for a time when people narrated their lives through beautifully written letters, or “Automative Post Missives” as they are called in this story. I had the pleasure of both reading and listening to this novel, and I must say, the Audible Book is one of the best multinarrator recitations I’ve ever experienced.

What is the plot? Well, Sophy  (a deep sea scientist/explorer) has lost her sister…her sister E has inexplicitly disappeared. E was a recluse of sorts, finding contentment in her underwater home, that is, until something curious occurs, so curious in fact that she seeks answers. The only way a recluse like E can find answers is to write to someone who may be an expert in such curiosities, Henerey. Charmingly enough, E and Henerey fall in love through their correspondence. When both E and Henerey vanish suddenly, Sophy and Henery’s brother Vyerin begin to work together (through letters, of course) to solve the mystery of their missing siblings. 

The novel comprises not only the letters of E, Henerey, Sophy and Vyerin but also a smattering of letters of other quirky yet charming characters. 

Not only is the plot of this novel intricate and mesmerising but so is the writing. This novel would make the most amazing mentor text for a junior and senior high classroom for a number of reasons: it would teach descriptive writing and how it creates mood and atmosphere as well as characterisation (through tone and word use). 

Teaching figurative language (some letters are incredibly poetic) as well as vocabulary.

Teaching narrative storytelling as well as letter writing ( a lost art, I am sure)

I mean, just read this passage: 

“ I should mention that the water felt different from the lovely sea to which I am accustomed. It seemed to ooze around me- warm and slippery, as though it had thickened like a custard. The sensory unpleasantness of the water, however, could not dim its visual splendour. Despite the imposing darkness, the water possessed a kind of luminescence: an odd purple and green and grey glimmer like the last moments of a sunset” (pg. 239).

 This novel has the potential to inspire readers to write more beautifully. The descriptive passages, such as the ones I’ve shared, can serve as excellent examples for aspiring writers to emulate. I long to write this beautifully!

A beautiful book. I loved it. AND it sets itself up for a sequel!!!! Yay!!

Thank you to Netgalley and Orbit Press for the copy.

The Bookseller’s Wife

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Book 1 of Chiswell Street Series
by Jane Davis


Dorcus Turton comes from a family whose name historically holds power and respect. However, as the only surviving heir, her life has been challenging. Upon the death of her mother, her father started a downward struggle of alcoholism and gambling debt. Dorcus runs a girls’ school out of their home and takes up some seamstress tasks, but she can still not stave off the debt collectors, so she resorts to taking in renters. James Lackington and his wife turn out to be more than just renters; they are a wonderful addition to Dorcus’s life, with their kindness and generosity and their tremendous love of reading and books, something with which Dorcus strongly identifies. The Lackington’s dream is to become booksellers, and with the help of Dorcus and her father, their dream soon comes to fruition. Of course, tragedy strikes in the form of sickness, death and heartbreak, and Dorcus’s life drastically changes, but will it be for the better?
I really liked this book….up until the last third. The author went from a wonderful exploration of a resilient woman’s life during Georgian London to a focus on the politics of the time. The political atmosphere of the time is, of course, essential to character choice and the advancement of the plot. I just wished it was more woven into the plot instead of reading like a textbook. I was also a little disappointed in the book’s ending; it seemed rather abrupt, but then I realized that this book is the first in a series. So now I know that this isn’t the end of Dorcus’s story.

Thank you to Rossdale Print Productions and Netgalley for the free copy.