A fun, imaginative story collection with solid horror and writing.
A collection of spooky short stories centered on classic Halloween themes.
In Bills’ newest book of short fiction, the prolific author and expert on all things Texas returns with 13 tales that frighten and entertain. The subjects range from the ghosts of Vietnam vets killed in action to half-nude fortune cookie prognosticators and murderous, insane former judges. In the title story, an otherwise normal suburban father, Bryan Nichols, finds himself despondent at his neighborhood’s lack of enthusiasm for Halloween, especially considering his neighbor—who also happens to be the father of his childhood best friend who was killed in Operation Desert Storm—used to be well-known for his life-size (and lifelike) spooky lawn figures. Soon, Bryan discovers these statues are actually the ghosts of former townspeople. The reader wonders if Bryan will soon join them in the afterlife. Next, Bills switches gears to the tale of a woman with a second sight who dispenses prescient wisdom through fortune cookies at a Chinese restaurant. When a reporter comes knocking, the two fall into a brief love affair spurred by her insistence that the world will end any moment. The stories shine most brightly in their shorter form, such as “The Judge,” a well-crafted tale in which a young police officer begins interrogating a man who murdered his own wife, only to quickly realize that he has seen this man before, and he holds a dark secret from the officer’s childhood.
Paths cross and recross over time in this collection, and Bills does well to amplify the inherent friction between competing lives in a small (or even large) town. While certain pieces verge on the saccharine—a common pitfall in any work dealing with love and loss, as horror fiction often does—the general sense while reading is that Bills is a confident, competent storyteller with tales to spin and the requisite command of language to keep readers turning pages. The author does well, too, to capture the essence and nostalgia of Halloween from the outset: “As I walked, I felt like a kid again, fourteen, ten—eight. I smiled and laughed. Halloween had always been our night.” While some pieces drag a bit and could have used a lighter hand (“Nature Calls” slows the pace, for example) readers will garner enough thrills and chills to keep moving through the entirety of Bills’ collection. The blurbs at the beginning of each story are an odd touch that probably could have been eschewed, but otherwise, Bills displays an innate sense for the reader’s experience, in particular by dropping in just enough backstory for each cast member to give the necessary context for the emotional freight to be delivered without bogging down plot with extraneous personal history. Readers looking for a spooky Halloween ride without gore overflowing from its pages will find a lot to enjoy here.
A fun, imaginative story collection with solid horror and writing.Pub Date: Oct. 4, 2024
ISBN: 9781957529431
Page Count: 272
Publisher: Fawkes Press
Review Posted Online: Dec. 2, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2025
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
Though it falters a bit under its own weight, this series still has plenty of fight left.
In this long-awaited fifth installment of Shannon’s Bone Season series, the threat to the clairvoyant community spreads like a plague across Europe.
After extending her fight against the Republic of Scion to Paris, Paige Mahoney, leader of London’s clairvoyant underworld and a spy for the resistance movement, finds herself further outside her comfort zone when she wakes up in a foreign place with no recollection of getting there. More disturbing than her last definitive memory, in which her ally-turned-lover Arcturus seems to betray her, is that her dreamscape—the very soul of her clairvoyance—has been altered, as if there’s a veil shrouding both her memories and abilities. Paige manages to escape and learns she’s been missing and presumed dead for six months. Even more shocking is that she’s somehow outside of Scion’s borders, in the free world where clairvoyants are accepted citizens. She gets in touch with other resistance fighters and journeys to Italy to reconnect with the Domino Programme intelligence network. In stark contrast to the potential of life in the free world is the reality that Scion continues to stretch its influence, with Norway recently falling and Italy a likely next target. Paige is enlisted to discover how Scion is bending free-world political leaders to its will, but before Paige can commit to her mission, she has her own mystery to solve: Where in the world is Arcturus? Paige’s loyalty to Arcturus is tested as she decides how much to trust in their connection and how much information to reveal to the Domino Programme about the Rephaite—the race of immortals from the Netherworld, Arcturus’ people—and their connection to the founding of Scion, as well as the presence of clairvoyant abilities on Earth. While the book is impressively multilayered, the matter-of-fact way in which details from the past are sprinkled throughout will have readers constantly flipping to the glossary. As the series’ scope and the implications of the war against Scion expand, Shannon’s narrative style reads more action-thriller than fantasy. Paige’s powers as a dreamwalker are rarely used here, but when clairvoyance is at play, the story shines.
Though it falters a bit under its own weight, this series still has plenty of fight left.Pub Date: Feb. 25, 2025
ISBN: 9781639733965
Page Count: 576
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Review Posted Online: Dec. 12, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2025
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A unique story of transcendent love.
An aimless young musician meets the girl of his dreams only to have his newfound happiness threatened by several inexplicable—and possibly supernatural—events.
The story opens as Leeds Gabriel meets with a detective while his girlfriend, Layla, is restrained in a room one flight above them. Through the interview, readers learn that Leeds was wasting both his time and his musical talent playing backup for a small-town wedding troupe called Garrett’s Band when he spied Layla dancing her heart out to their mediocre music at a wedding. When Leeds approaches Layla, their connection is both instant and intense. A blissful courtship follows, but then Leeds makes the mistake of posting a picture of himself with Layla on social media. A former girlfriend–turned-stalker wastes no time in finding and attacking Layla. Layla spends months recovering in a hospital, and it seems the girl Leeds fell for might be forever changed. Gone is her special spark, her quirkiness, and the connection that had entranced Leeds months before. In a last-ditch effort to save their relationship, he brings Layla back to the bed-and-breakfast where they first met. When they get there, though, Leeds meets Willow, another guest, and finds himself drawn to her in spite of himself. As events unfold, it becomes clear that Willow will either be the key to saving Leeds’ relationship with Layla or the catalyst that finally extinguishes the last shreds of their epic romance. Told entirely from Leeds’ point of view, the author’s first foray into paranormal romance does not disappoint. Peppered with elements of mystery, psychological thriller, and contemporary romance, the novel explores questions about how quickly true love can develop, as well as the conflicts that can imperil even the strongest connections. Despite a limited cast of characters and very few setting changes, the narrative manages to remain both fast-paced and engaging. The conclusion leaves a few too many loose ends, but the chemistry between the characters and unexpected twists throughout make for a satisfying read.
A unique story of transcendent love.Pub Date: Dec. 8, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-5420-0017-8
Page Count: 301
Publisher: Montlake Romance
Review Posted Online: Sept. 15, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 2020
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