An ardently Southern fantasy thriller perfect for those looking for different kinds of heroes.
In this novel, a country sheriff, his eclectic family, and a boisterous deputy find themselves cast as the protectors of a centaur who appears in Kentucky’s horse country.
The wail of a dying panther in the woods behind their property is a dark portent for the Tolls. Sheriff Marshall Toll; his photographer son, Lucas; and their dopey but lovable 94-pound dog, Wayne Newton, investigate but find only questions about whether it was a human or beast who managed to fell the vicious creature. In a stall among their horses, an unexpected answer surfaces in the form of an injured centaur, her equine features joined with a haunting human beauty that reminds Marshall of his dead wife. To further complicate matters, the centaur is pregnant and being pursued by a perverse and murderous member of her own kind. Nicknamed Sugar by the family’s Southern matriarch, Grandma Eve, the centaur pulls her new caregivers close around her, aided by Lucas’ childhood friend, the beautiful yet rowdy Claire Lewis, a sheriff’s deputy. But Claire’s help brings complications: her washout ex-fiance, Lyle Gorris, who wants to expose Sugar to the world at the Kentucky Derby for fame and riches. Oravec’s entry into the low-fantasy genre uses the timeless, distinctive atmosphere of the rural South and Kentucky horse country—a world of TV reruns, aging farms, and Derby culture—to seamlessly integrate a Greek myth in a way that feels wondrous but not anachronistic. The centaur’s caretakers are the best kind of heroes—oddballs—Marshall’s country manliness a stark contrast to his son’s artistic sensitivity, with the men at the whim of the somehow both lively and lethargic Grandma Eve, who at one point bakes the centaur a pie. The attraction between Lucas and Claire adds humor and romance, their teasing laced with numerous pop-culture references. The novel occasionally leans a little too hard on stereotypes, such as uninteresting characterizations of foreigners or Claire’s self-doubts tied to her failure to have children. That said, the book is superb at ramping up the suspense and consistent in its insightful central theme, expressed early on by Claire, that those “who don’t belong generally don’t stray too far.”
An ardently Southern fantasy thriller perfect for those looking for different kinds of heroes.Pub Date: July 1, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-7339185-0-3
Page Count: 292
Publisher: BLOODLINE PUBLISHERS
Review Posted Online: June 26, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2020
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
Even when King is not at his best, he’s still good.
Two killers are on the loose. Can they be stopped?
In this ambitious mystery, the prolific and popular King tells the story of a serial murderer who pledges, in a note to Buckeye City police, to kill “13 innocents and 1 guilty,” in order, we eventually learn, to avenge the death of a man who was framed and convicted for possession of child pornography and then killed in prison. At the same time, the author weaves in the efforts of another would-be murderer, a member of a violently abortion-opposing church who has been stalking a popular feminist author and women’s rights activist on a publicity tour. To tell these twin tales of murders done and intended, King summons some familiar characters, including private investigator Holly Gibney, whom readers may recall from previous novels. Gibney is enlisted to help Buckeye City police detective Izzy Jaynes try to identify and stop the serial killer, who has been murdering random unlucky citizens with chilling efficiency. She’s also been hired as a bodyguard for author and activist Kate McKay and her young assistant. The author succeeds in grabbing the reader’s interest and holding it throughout this page-turning tale of terror, which reads like a big-screen thriller. The action is well paced, the settings are vividly drawn, and King’s choice to focus on the real and deadly dangers of extremist thought is admirable. But the book is hamstrung by cliched characters, hackneyed dialogue (both spoken and internal), and motives that feel both convoluted and overly simplistic. King shines brightest when he gets to the heart of our darkest fears and desires, but here the dangers seem a bit cerebral. In his warning letter to the police, the serial killer wonders if his cryptic rationale to murder will make sense to others, concluding, “It does to me, and that is enough.” Is it enough? In another writer’s work, it might not be, but in King’s skilled hands, it probably is.
Even when King is not at his best, he’s still good.Pub Date: May 27, 2025
ISBN: 9781668089330
Page Count: 448
Publisher: Scribner
Review Posted Online: Feb. 1, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2025
An enjoyable visit with an old character, but not one of Ware’s strongest.
Travel writer Lo Blacklock is back. Ten years after the events of The Woman in Cabin 10 (2016), she's attending the opening of a lavish Swiss hotel when, once again, a mystery intervenes.
A decade after she almost died on a luxury cruise and ended up exposing a murder plot, travel journalist Laura “Lo” Blacklock is trying to get back into the business post-Covid-19 and post–maternity leave. When she's invited to an exclusive hotel launch by the Leidmann Group on the shores of Switzerland’s gorgeous Lake Geneva, her supportive husband, Judah, insists that she should go, and her old boss, Rowan, says that if Lo can score an interview with the reclusive Marcus Leidmann, she’ll publish it in the Financial Times. Leaving Judah and the kids at home in New York, Lo is surprised by a last-minute upgrade to first class, which kicks off her trip in style. The hotel is appropriately awe-inspiring in both scenic location and effortless luxury, and Lo starts to put the memories of last trip’s trauma behind her, thinking that maybe she can just enjoy the experience this time. But then, at dinner, she's surprised to see at least three guests who were also on that original cruise, and when she finds a mysterious note in her room saying "Please come to suite 11 as soon as possible," she gets another shock. To quote William Faulkner, she realizes that “the past is never dead,” and soon Lo is careening across Europe on her way to England, only to find herself embroiled in another murder. The back half of the novel offers her the opportunity to continue her amateur sleuthing, and while she avoids much of the physical danger that plagued her on the cruise a decade ago, she is in very real legal trouble. This is the prolific Ware’s first sequel, and it's fun to spend time with Lo again, as she's both savvy and kindhearted. Unfortunately, the mystery is not as atmospheric and gripping as usual for Ware, though even a lesser Ruth Ware thriller is still worth reading.
An enjoyable visit with an old character, but not one of Ware’s strongest.Pub Date: July 8, 2025
ISBN: 9781668025628
Page Count: 400
Publisher: Scout Press/Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: April 4, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2025
© Copyright 2025 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
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