Cold Fire by Cate ElliotPub Date: September 26, 2011
[This is book two of the Spiritwalker Trilogy. I have not read book one, but it sounds like a great series. Let me know if you've read it.]
Cat Barahal and her beloved cousin Bee think they have reached a safe place to shelter. But the Cold Mages who are conspiring to take them prisoner are closing in. The warlord who hopes to conquer all Europa is convinced their destiny is to aid him, whether they want to or not. And the man Cat was forced to marry is back, as vainly arrogant and annoyingly handsome as ever.
Worst of all, as Hallows' Night approaches, powers hidden deep within the spirit world are rising. Cat must seek allies against these threats and figure out who to trust, for if she makes the wrong choices, she'll lose everything.
Only one thing is certain. When Hallows' Night comes the Wild Hunt will ride - and it feeds on mortal blood.
A Monster's Corner edited by Christopher GoldenPub Date: September 27, 2011
[I'm a fan of Christopher Golden, and the author list is fantastic.]
An all original anthology from some of todays hottest supernatural writers, featuring stories of monster's from the monster's point of view.
In most stories we get the perspective of the hero, the ordinary, the everyman, but we are all the hero of our own tale, and so it must be true for legions of monsters, from Lucifer to Mordred, from child-thieving fairies to Frankenstein's monster and the Wicked Witch of the West. From our point of view, they may very well be horrible, terrifying monstrosities, but of course they won’t see themselves in the same light, and their point of view is what concerns us in these tales. Demons and goblins, dark gods and aliens, creatures of myth and legend, lurkers in darkness and beasts in human clothing…these are the subjects of The Monster’s Corner. With contributions by Lauren Groff, Chelsea Cain, Simon R. Green, Sharyn McCrumb, Kelley Armstrong, David Liss, Kevin J. Anderson, Jonathan Maberry, and many others.
A Thief in the Night by David ChandlerPub Date: September 27, 2011
[David Chandler is actually David Wellington (Zombie Island) writing fantasy. This is book two of the Ancient Blades trilogy. Again, let me know if you have read book one. I'm curious to hear what you thought.]
Circumstance made him a criminal. Destiny may make him a hero.
As a thief, Malden is unparalleled in the Free City of Ness, and happy there. But by saving the life of the knight Croy, Malden has bound himself to an ancient, noble brotherhood . . . and he now possesses one of only seven Ancient Blades capable of destroying demons.
Malden fears accompanying Croy and the barbarian MÖrget on their quest to dispatch a foul creature of nightmare . . . nor does he want to disturb the vengeful dead. But with an assassin on his heels, the young cutpurse is left with no choice. And there is the comely sorceress, Cythera, to consider— promised to Croy but in love with Malden—not to mention the fabulous treasure rumored to be hidden in the depths of the demon’s lair . . .
Darkness Falling by Peter CrowtherPub Date: September 27, 2011
[This is going to be my next read!]
First, the flash. A glare of light, just before dawn, followed by utter darkness. A vast blanketing nothingness that covered the whole Earth.
Then, the disappearances. Friends and strangers alike, swallowed by the darkness… and then returned, altered, changed.
For the people of Jesman's Bend, it feels like the end of the world. But this is only the very start.
Abarat: Absolute Midnight by Clive BarkerPub Date: September 27, 2011
[I have this Clive Barker stash in my closet. This week it's kind of making me feel like a jerk because I still haven't read any of them!]
“I know that many of you here have waited years for this Hour,” Mater Motley said, using that voice that, though it was barely conversational in volume, was somehow heard everywhere. “The waiting is over. Tomorrow there will be no dawn. Only midnight, absolute and eternal.”
And so begins a new chapter in the epic story of sixteen-year-old Candy Quackenbush and her journeys through the world of the Abarat, where every hour is an island in one eternal day, and nothing is as it seems.
Candy travels through the Abarat from island to island and across the sea with an unlikely band of friends: the escaped prisoner Malingo the Geshrat, the quarrelsome John Brothers, who all share the same body but never the same opinion, and the many other colorful characters they meet along the way.
The problem is that trouble finds Candy wherever she goes. And soon she discovers a secret plot, masterminded by the diabolical Mater Motley, who is obsessed with becoming Empress of the Islands. Her method is simple. She will darken the skies, putting out the suns, moons, and stars. She will bring absolute midnight.
House of Fear: An Anthology of Haunted House Stories edited by Jonathan OliverPub Date: September 27, 2011
[I'm overloaded with anthologies, and all I can think is... I need this!]
The tread on the landing outside the door, when you know you are the only one in the house. The wind whistling through the eves, carrying the voices of the dead. The figure glimpsed briefly through the cracked window of a derelict house.
Editor Jonathan Oliver brings horror home with a collection of haunted house stories by some of the finest writers working in the horror genre, including Joe R. Lansdale, Sarah Pinborough, Lisa Tuttle, Christopher Priest, Adam L. G. Nevill, Nicholas Royle, Chaz Brenchley, Christopher Fowler, Gary Kilworth, Weston Ochse, Eric Brown, Tim Lebbon, Nina Allan, Stephen Volk, Paul Meloy and more.
The Pattern Scars by Caitlin SweetPub Date: September 30, 2011
[Currently reading this and loving it so far. Will review soon!]
Nola is born into poverty in Sarsenay City. When her mother realizes that Nola has the gift of Othersight and can foretell the future, she sells her to a brothel seer, who teaches the girl to harness her gift. As she grows up, she embraces her new life, and even finds a small circle of friends. All too soon, her world is again turned upside down when one of them is murdered. When a handsome, young Otherseer from the castle promises to teach her, she eagerly embraces the prospects of luxury beyond what she can imagine and safety from a killer who stalks girls by night. Little does she know that he will soon draw her into a web of murder, treachery, and obsessive desire that will threaten the people and land she holds dear, and that she will soon learn the harshest of lessons: that being able to predict the future has nothing to do with being able to prevent it.
Floating Staircase by Ronald MalfiPub Date: October 1, 2011
[Oooh, sounds good!]
Following the success of his latest novel, Travis Glasgow and his wife Jodie buy their first house in the seemingly idyllic western Maryland town of Westlake. At first, everything is picture perfect—from the beautiful lake behind the house to the rebirth of the friendship between Travis and his brother, Adam, who lives nearby. Travis also begins to overcome the darkness of his childhood and the guilt he’s harbored since his younger brother’s death—a tragic drowning veiled in mystery that has plagued Travis since he was 13. Soon, though, the new house begins to lose its allure. Strange noises wake Travis at night, and his dreams are plagued by ghosts. Barely glimpsed shapes flit through the darkened hallways, but strangest of all is the bizarre set of wooden stairs that rises cryptically out of the lake behind the house. Travis becomes drawn to the structure, but the more he investigates, the more he uncovers the house’s violent and tragic past, and the more he learns that some secrets cannot be buried forever.
Z: Zombies Stories by J.M. LassenPub Date: October 1, 2011
[Zombies. Not sick of 'em yet.]
When the zombie apocalypse comes, it's not just those crusty old folks who will struggle against the undead, it's young people. What happens when you come of age during the zombie apocalypse? Z: Zombie Stories has the answer to that question.
