A blueprint for the next evolutionary step in genre-hybridized fiction.
A mentally unstable former artist sees colors invisible on the normal spectrum and is plagued by ghosts in Hincker’s novel, the second in a series.
Once considered the most talented young artist in Skysill Beach—an art colony / tourist trap on the Southern California coast populated by artists who work with ultraviolet light—Gale is now an alcoholic who can barely hold down his job authenticating real paintings from forgeries because of his bad attitude, almost constant state of inebriation, and his frequent seizures, which he calls “storms.” When Gale is approached by a wealthy art collector and tasked with traveling to Los Angeles to have a potentially invaluable canvas authenticated—a painting that was allegedly done in 1492 by an Italian artist who painted with “higher colors”—Gale leaves the confines of Skysill Beach for the first time in his life and quickly realizes that the ghost (of a woman who died by suicide) who has been haunting him, his sexually charged relationship with a psychic, and his mysterious past are all entangled in a grand-scale conspiracy that includes the end of time itself. An intriguing premise, deeply developed characters, masterful worldbuilding, an impressively intricate storyline, and some bombshell plot twists at the novel’s end make this a virtually unputdownable read. Gale’s self-deprecating, razor-sharp wit (“…my strengths are introspection and getting drunk…”) gives the story an added layer of literary appeal. At the height of an intense scene in which antagonistic characters meet, Hincker throws in this great line: “For a second no one spoke because it would’ve wasted the stare down.” Though the various narrative elements, when considered separately, aren’t exactly groundbreaking, cumulatively the storyline has a wonderfully fresh and innovative feel.
A blueprint for the next evolutionary step in genre-hybridized fiction.Pub Date: Aug. 14, 2023
ISBN: 9798987630174
Page Count: 334
Publisher: Self
Review Posted Online: Dec. 1, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2024
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A dark and twisty look at just how far one woman is willing to go to find inspiration.
A struggling writer finds an unexpected muse when a mysterious man shows up at her cabin.
Petra Rose used to pump out a bestselling book every six months, but then the adaptation happened—that is, the disastrous film adaptation of her most famous book. The movie changed the book’s storyline so egregiously that fans couldn’t forgive her, and the ensuing harassment sent Petra into hiding and gave her a serious case of writer’s block. Petra’s one hope is her solo writing retreat at a remote cabin, where she can escape the distractions of real life and focus on her next book, a story about a woman having an affair with a cop. When officer Nathaniel Saint shows up at her cabin door, inspiration comes flooding back. Much like the character from Petra’s book, Saint is married, and he’s willing to be Petra’s muse, helping her get into her characters’ heads. Petra’s book is practically writing itself, but is the game she’s playing a little too dangerous? Does she know when to stop—and, more importantly, is Saint willing to stop? Hoover is no stranger to controversial movie adaptations and internet backlash, but she clarifies in a note to readers that she’s “just a writer writing about a writer” and that no further connections to her own life are contained in these pages—which is a good thing, because the book takes some horrifying twists and turns. Petra finds herself inexplicably attracted to Saint, even as she describes him as “such an asshole,” and her feelings for him veer between love and hate. The novel serves as a meta commentary on the dark romance genre—as Petra puts it, “Even though, as readers, we wouldn’t want to live out some of the fantasies we read about, it doesn’t mean we don’t enjoy reading those things.”
A dark and twisty look at just how far one woman is willing to go to find inspiration.Pub Date: Jan. 13, 2026
ISBN: 9781662539374
Page Count: -
Publisher: Montlake
Review Posted Online: Sept. 27, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2025
Amateurish, with a twist savvy readers will see coming from a mile away.
A woman accused of shooting her husband six times in the face refuses to speak.
"Alicia Berenson was thirty-three years old when she killed her husband. They had been married for seven years. They were both artists—Alicia was a painter, and Gabriel was a well-known fashion photographer." Michaelides' debut is narrated in the voice of psychotherapist Theo Faber, who applies for a job at the institution where Alicia is incarcerated because he's fascinated with her case and believes he will be able to get her to talk. The narration of the increasingly unrealistic events that follow is interwoven with excerpts from Alicia's diary. Ah, yes, the old interwoven diary trick. When you read Alicia's diary you'll conclude the woman could well have been a novelist instead of a painter because it contains page after page of detailed dialogue, scenes, and conversations quite unlike those in any journal you've ever seen. " 'What's the matter?' 'I can't talk about it on the phone, I need to see you.' 'It's just—I'm not sure I can make it up to Cambridge at the minute.' 'I'll come to you. This afternoon. Okay?' Something in Paul's voice made me agree without thinking about it. He sounded desperate. 'Okay. Are you sure you can't tell me about it now?' 'I'll see you later.' Paul hung up." Wouldn't all this appear in a diary as "Paul wouldn't tell me what was wrong"? An even more improbable entry is the one that pins the tail on the killer. While much of the book is clumsy, contrived, and silly, it is while reading passages of the diary that one may actually find oneself laughing out loud.
Amateurish, with a twist savvy readers will see coming from a mile away.Pub Date: Feb. 5, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-250-30169-7
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Celadon Books
Review Posted Online: Nov. 3, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2018
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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