Frasier Armitage | FanFiAddict https://fanfiaddict.com A gaggle of nerds talking about Fantasy, Science Fiction, and everything in-between. They also occasionally write reviews about said books. 2x Stabby Award-Nominated and home to the Stabby Award-Winning TBRCon. Fri, 27 Jun 2025 16:35:53 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.8.1 https://fanfiaddict.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/cropped-FFA-Logo-icon-32x32.png Frasier Armitage | FanFiAddict https://fanfiaddict.com 32 32 Cover Feature: A River From The Sky (#2 of the Natural Engines duology) by Ai Jiang https://fanfiaddict.com/cover-feature-a-river-from-the-sky-2-of-the-natural-engines-duology-by-ai-jiang/ https://fanfiaddict.com/cover-feature-a-river-from-the-sky-2-of-the-natural-engines-duology-by-ai-jiang/#respond Fri, 27 Jun 2025 16:35:48 +0000 https://fanfiaddict.com/?p=103112

Today, the Fantasy Hive released the cover for Ai Jiang’s sequel to A Palace Near The Wind, and it is STUNNING!

According to Titan Books, A River From The Sky is a “powerful, beautifully told novella [that] explores the bonds of family, the pain of leaving all you have known behind, and the terrible price of our industrial future.”

It sounds like the perfect thematic counterpart to A Palace Near The Wind, which combined family ties and loyalties with an ecological twist.

One of the things I love about this cover is the growth of Lufeng between books one and two. Take a look at both covers together and you’ll see what I mean.

As you can see, Lufeng has gone from facing away with her eyes almost closed to looking straight ahead with eyes wide open. Her hair is more wild. Her expression more fierce. The artist, Nat Mack, has brilliantly captured a story between these two covers that matches the progression of Lufeng’s journey. And don’t even get me started on how cool the fish and clouds are!

I apologise in advance to your wallets, but if the cover hasn’t already made you instantly click the pre-order button, then the blurb Titan Books have released for it definitely will:

Fleeing from the bone palace and crashing into the waters below its steep walls, Lufeng and her siblings reach Gear, with its huge deadly water wheels, where their sister Sangshu is waiting for them. In the chaos of the enormous waves, within moments they’re snatched away and taken into rebel territory, where they learn more of the deadly experiments Zinc has wreaked upon the people.

Loyal to Copper now, Sangshu herself is a victim of Zinc’s experiments. Desperate to find her family, she races through Gear to Engine, ruthless Zinc’s industrial heartland, where she burns with a desire to fix her own mistakes and those of others and find a way to save her world.

Amazing, right? For those of you who like the stats, here they are:

Title: A River From The Sky (book #2 in the Natural Engines)

Publisher: Titan Books

Publication Date: 26th April 2026

Cover Artist/Designer: Nat Mack (@missnatmack)

Pre-order Link: https://titanbooks.com/72039-natural-engines-a-river-from-the-sky/

Ai Jiang is a master storyteller who has already given us something special with A Palace Near The Wind. Check out my review here. I can’t wait to find out what happens next!

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Review: The Triggernometry Series by Stark Holborn https://fanfiaddict.com/review-the-triggernometry-series-by-stark-holborn/ https://fanfiaddict.com/review-the-triggernometry-series-by-stark-holborn/#respond Sat, 21 Jun 2025 18:53:05 +0000 https://fanfiaddict.com/?p=102694

Synopsis

In a Wild West where mathematics is outlawed, mathematicians are the deadliest gunslingers. Mad Malago Browne just wants a peaceful life, but when she’s forced to take up her protractor, she’ll ride against the Capitol to exact justice and return freedom to the West.

Review

Let’s get the obvious out of the way, shall we? Triggernometry is an exceptional pun. Who in their right mind doesn’t wish they’d thought of that!

What may seem like a bit of a joke — making history’s mathematicians the bad boys and cowboys of the Wild West — is treated with such sincerity across the series that you can’t help but wonder why nobody has equated mathematicians with gunslingers before. Of course they’d be able to calculate the most efficient way of killing people based on an almost superhuman understanding of principles that underpin the world! If you doubt that maths can be cool, this trilogy of novellas will change your mind. Guaranteed. 

Let’s take them one at a time so I can show my working, and then you can see why I’ve reached the conclusion that this series is a must-read for any fan of the weird west. 

Book #1 — Triggernometry

The first novella introduces us to some amazing characters in what is, ostensibly, a train robbery heist. Mad Malago Browne is pulled into Pierre de Fermat’s scheme to rob a train of all its gold and cripple the Capitol (a government hell-bent on keeping mathematics outlawed).

The world building is second to none. You’ll find it so compelling that you won’t even realise it’s over until the final page. It’s propulsive and action packed, but rooted in character. There’s nothing gimmicky about this. It’s a soulful look at a weird west that takes you outside the box, but leaves you in relatable terrain. I was so impressed by the pacing and the twists and turns.

You know how the strongest liquor is poured out in the smallest shots? That’s what this book is — it’s a shot of whiskey for the imagination. Outstanding stuff. 

Book #2 — Advanced Triggernometry  

What could make The Magnificent Seven cooler? The answer is: If they were  all mathematicians. This is very much a case of The Mathnificent Seven, and I’m only the tiniest bit disappointed that this wasn’t the title of the book!

It makes for a worthy follow-up to Triggernometry. It expands the world even further. It opens us up to new characters and to new looks at familiar faces. A town needs a hero, and who better than Mad Malago Browne to reluctantly leave her schoolteaching life and get back in the saddle for the sake of justice?

A sequel should make everything about the first story cooler. That’s exactly what this book does. It’s got vibes coming out of its grizzled pores. And it features the best take on Archimedes I’ve ever seen. 

Book #3 — Triggernometry Finals

In the final conundrum, who better to face off against a mathematician than another mathematician? The stakes in this third instalment have never been higher. But what I especially loved about it were its themes. 

In the first two instalments, the themes aren’t really riding front and centre. The conceit of the world and the plight of the characters is what hooks you. But in this book, I was riveted by the way the story explored concepts like culpability and value. What is a life worth? What responsibility does knowledge place upon a person? Can you calculate the price of freedom? There are so many variables that are explored here, and I loved how deep it went, as well as the questions it left me thinking about. 

This is a searching, satisfying ending that will haunt you long after you’ve finished reading. It’s got all the trademark humour and coolness that carry on through from book one, and it’ll make you desperate to see a big screen adaptation of the series. But it’s also the perfect reflection of what this whole series is about — a story that equates to being more than the sum of its parts.  


Togethernometry

Taken all together, these three books will delight you in every conceivable way. They’ll make you smile with their clever use of compasses and protractors as deadly instruments of death, but in the back of your mind, make you feel invincible for having them in your pencil case. After all, we remember thinking how lethal they were in our high school maths lessons, right? And yet, peer a little deeper and you’ll see warnings that hint at a future where learning is criminal, where knowledge is outlawed in favour of rhetoric, and where the bad guys aim to limit freedoms while the baddest rebels are the geeks in spectacles. 

All this works on a surface level (“hey, wasn’t it cool when she used that protractor as a throwing star?”), remains accessible (“owch, I hurt myself on my compass again!”), and reaches a deeper truth in the social commentary it makes about the world we live in right now (“when was the last time I calculated anything for myself without being told what to do or how to do it?”). That’s why it’ll delight you in every way — because it searches through you on every level. This makes it feel full and rich and fun and frenetic and earnest and enlightening and just plain awesome. 

You’ll come away from this series feeling cleverer. You’ll resonate with the characters who are forced into the mold that society shapes them into. You’ll laugh. You’ll cry. You’ll think. You’ll feel. And the action scenes are next level turn-of-the-century stuff that read like John Wick walked into a stationary shop.

Full disclosure — I read all of these in one sitting from beginning to end, and could’ve kept going. That’s how good they are! 

You won’t find a more solid trilogy of weird west novellas anywhere. The atmosphere and tone is second to none. The setting is as authentic a western as you’ll read in fiction, and the characters are so vivid that they’ll make you want to cosplay. 

Simply put, the Triggernometry Series is an absolute masterpiece. Full marks. Congratulations, Stark Holborn, you’ve just gone to the top of the class.

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Review: Exodus — The Archimedes Engine (Book #1 of the Archimedes Engine Duology) by Peter F. Hamilton https://fanfiaddict.com/review-exodus-the-archimedes-engine-book-1-of-the-archimedes-engine-duology-by-peter-f-hamilton/ https://fanfiaddict.com/review-exodus-the-archimedes-engine-book-1-of-the-archimedes-engine-duology-by-peter-f-hamilton/#respond Thu, 05 Jun 2025 20:47:17 +0000 https://fanfiaddict.com/?p=100806

Synopsis 

Forty thousand years ago, humanity fled a dying Earth. They travelled into space on arkships and found a new home.

When the first arkship arrived, it signalled for the others to follow. Those from that first ship evolved into Celestials, establishing themselves as rulers over mankind’s new home. 

Now, as new arkships arrive, people must choose whether to submit to the rule of the Celestials, or fight for freedom.

Finn hasn’t arrived on an arkship. He was born under the rule of the Celestials, and is a dreamer who yearns for the freedom to travel space for himself one day. When another arkship from Earth — previously thought lost — arrives unexpectedly, Finn sees his chance to embrace a greater destiny and journey into the vast unknowns of distant space. 

Review

‘Exodus’ is an epic introduction to a huge universe, skilfully keeping you grounded while expanding its scope to ever-increasingly colossal levels. It’s a space opera that enhances Hamilton’s reputation as a titan of the genre, and serves as a masterclass in how to make sci-fi BIG! 

Before the story begins, the book’s opening sections thoroughly catalogue all the main characters and provide a timeline of events of what happened after Earth was abandoned. It’s a LOT and I worried I might struggle to take it all in, but as soon as the narrative got going, I found myself pulled straight into the Exodus worlds. In fact, the main thing that might dissuade you from picking up the book is its sheer breadth. It’s a chonker. And in terms of audio (FYI I listened to the audiobook), it comes in at a whopping 33 hours. But as soon as you make a start, the novel hooks you immediately and keeps you listening/reading. So don’t be put off by its size. After all, they say bigger is better, and sci-fi doesn’t come any bigger than this.

Across a mega 928 pages, the story unfolds through the perspectives of several main characters living in various parts of society. Their stories cleverly interlink to reveal a bigger picture — but I’ll get to that more in a little bit. First, let me give you a flavour of what it feels like to inhabit the worlds of this universe. To do that, context matters. So here’s some context that sets everything up. 

The story is set in a future where mankind has taken to space in arkships to find more habitable planets. Some ships succeed in finding habitable worlds and send out a ‘green world beacon’ to the rest of the fleet. But, thanks to time dilation, the new arkships arrive to find society in a much more advanced state than what they’d expected. 

When the last arkship gets to the Centauri cluster, new human arrivals take in the lay of the land. As a reader, you share their shocked reaction at what they discover — that those who arrived on the first arkship have evolved into ‘celestial beings’, and have enslaved other humans as well as genetically engineered races. The various branches of Celestials each have their own special abilities, depending on the way each set of scientists focused their work. 

Tobias is the leader of the newly arrived arkship ‘Diligent’, and he begins to shift the status quo for humans — who are not allowed to own property. He feels an undercurrent of dissatisfaction among them, despite everyone having somewhere to live, work to do, and food on the table. Who really wants to spend all their time farming just to send it off-planet so the Celestials can eat it?

Finn is our link to the Uranic race. He’s had a privileged upbringing and enjoys a high status within his world, yet wants to throw it all away to fly across the stars and seek his own path as a traveller. Finn helps Tobias and those of the ‘Diligent’ navigate the complicated order of things, stopping them from breaking the rules before they’ve even got started. Ellie is Tobias’ granddaughter, and theres a love interest between Finn and Ellie that runs constantly through the book — it anchors Finn’s character development. It’s always entertaining to spend time with Finn as he’s such a loveable rogue. 

The narrative of Terrance Wilson-Fletcher, a member of the police on Santa Rosa (where Finn is from) gives you an insight into the political undercurrents that are going on amongst the different branches of the Celestials. He does undercover work and gets called to meet with a security chief, where he experiences for himself what life is like on a celestial planet — really out of this world. The Celestials’ technology makes getting away with anything pretty impossible, yet there’s a time delay between what happens on other planets and the Celestials finding out about it. Every plan they make (based on information they get from informants) feeds into a bigger purpose. 

While each section of the narrative is interesting to read on its own and you get pretty invested in finding out what happens, slowly, slowly you begin to realise the bigger plot that lies underneath it all. When multiple strands finally come together, it comes over as very clever and enhances the enjoyability of the book no end. It’s so much fun to see the web being woven in front of your eyes. 

When the book ended, I felt keen to know when the next one will be ready! I was really excited to discover Peter F Hamilton was asked to write the book to promote a new video game set in the same universe. I have to say, having read the book, I’m eager to see what the game is like! 

In terms of the audiobook performance, John Lee had a very commanding voice that is easy to listen to, and he made the 33 hours fly by. Once I’d finished listening to it, I had a few days of feeling like I was forgetting to do something. I can’t talk about the book without hearing his voice in my head! 

Overall, ‘Exodus’ is an engine of invention and speculation that reaches as high as it aims. It’s both complex and immersive, and makes for an ideal escape from our boring old Earth, leaving you with plenty to chew over. I can’t wait to see where it takes us next. 


Ebook, Hardback, and Audiobook are available now.

Paperback to be released on June 19th, 2025

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Review: Rose/House by Arkady Martine https://fanfiaddict.com/review-rose-house-by-arkady-martine/ https://fanfiaddict.com/review-rose-house-by-arkady-martine/#respond Sat, 03 May 2025 09:45:53 +0000 https://fanfiaddict.com/?p=97163

Synopsis

Basit Deniau’s houses were haunted to begin with.

A house embedded with an artificial intelligence is a common thing: a house that is an artificial intelligence, infused in every load-bearing beam and fine marble tile with a thinking creature that is not human? That is something else altogether. But now Deniau’s been dead a year, and Rose House is locked up tight, as commanded by the architect’s will.

Dr. Selene Gisil, a former protégé, is the sole person permitted to come into Rose House once a year. Now, there is a dead person in Rose House. It is not Basit Deniau, and it is not Dr. Gisil. It is someone else. But Rose House won’t communicate any further.

No one can get inside Rose House, except Dr. Gisil. Dr. Gisil was not in North America when Rose House called in the death. But someone did. And someone died there.

And someone may be there still.

Review

Rose/House renovates the haunted house genre with a sci-fi spin. It’s familiar yet fresh, and modernises old-school horror with speculative ideas to dizzying effect. It’s a total blast of first-class creepy sci-fi thrills from beginning to end.

Arkady Martine has released some of the most acclaimed space operas of recent times, but Rose/House is a departure from her previous novels. For a start, it’s novella length, meaning there are fewer pages to peruse. And secondly, it’s a sci-fi horror mystery. So how does it hold up compared to her political space operas? Does it reach the same heights? Short answer: yes. And here’s why.

Instead of crossing worlds and inventing entire histories of civilisations, Rose/House is centred on a single location — the smart-house of an eccentric architect whose AI has seemingly gone rogue. The claustrophobic nature of a single location narrows everything, meaning there’s less room to spread galaxies across a page. This instantly puts you on edge as a reader. There’s a sense of dread that a single location brings which perfectly suits the genre. However, within the house, there are plenty of opportunities for exploration, and the world-building is so focussed that you feel just as absorbed and immersed as you would on another world. There are enough moments of exposition to stretch the boundaries of the house (extending into the past beyond it) that allow you to trace the history of this creepy mansion, rooting you with enough context to make the house feel alive. Which is good, because it is! (Or is it…?)

The character of the AI that powers the house belongs right up there with the classics like HAL, Skynet, and that autopilot wheel from Wall-E. Rose House itself has such a distinct personality that their presence can feel, appropriately, oppressive. There’s an alien, inhuman quality to the house, reflecting the unusual sensibilities of its creator. 

And in terms of genius creators, the architect behind this elaborate house is every bit as iconic as you’d hope for. The protagonist (Dr. Selene Gisil) is a former pupil of theirs, and the admiration for the kind of artistry that goes into designing beautiful buildings, and the statements communicated by the placement of a few walls, are written so beautifully that it reads like a tribute to the power of art itself. Which is exactly where the tension comes in, because it’s another layer to the mystery you’re trying to solve. What mystery, I hear you ask?

Well, the AI has reported that a dead body lies inside the house. The problem is that the house will only admit one person — Dr. Selene Gisil. So how did another person get in there, let alone be killed? This conundrum means you’re reading a locked room mystery where the strongest suspect is the house itself.

The only solution is for the protagonist to enter the house and find out what’s happened. She’s not a detective or a natural sleuth. She’s a designer of buildings, equipped to see the beauty of the house, not the horrors hidden within it. And once she’s trapped inside, the creepiness just keeps ramping up, cycling through the gears to breathtaking effect. If you like your thrills with a good dose of chills, the atmosphere is going to make you feel right at home.

I don’t want to spoil any of the secrets of the book, but here’s one you need to know — Arkady Martine has entered a genre she’s passionate about, and her love for art and architecture is imbued into the fabric of this book, so that although it’s essentially a horror story, it’s also a love letter. You’re guaranteed to get goosebumps, either from the chilling nature of the prose or the passion it’s been written with.

Overall, this is a novella that — like the house itself — works on multiple levels. You’ve got mystery, suspense, speculation, and a fresh look at the place of art in our ever-changing world. I loved the sci-fi aspects, the locked room elements, and especially the way the AI was written. Arkady Martine has done it again, and proven she’s not just a master of space opera, but a master of every space she cares to enter. Open the door to this house and hold your breath for what lies inside. It’s very much worth a visit.

Rose/House was initially released in 2023, but was given a new lease of life in the UK recently. To find out more about the book, why not check out the discussion I had with Arkady about it below.

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Review: The Naming Song by Jedediah Berry https://fanfiaddict.com/review-the-naming-song-by-jedediah-berry/ https://fanfiaddict.com/review-the-naming-song-by-jedediah-berry/#respond Fri, 02 May 2025 06:34:41 +0000 https://fanfiaddict.com/?p=97143

Synopsis

In a world where words are power, there is nothing more dangerous than an unnamed thing.

When something fell from the something tree, all the words went away. And the world changed.

Monsters slipped from dreams. The land began to shift and ghosts wandered the world in trances. Only with the rise of the named and their committees―Maps, Ghosts, Dreams, and Names―could humanity stand against the terrors of the nameless wilds. Now, they build borders, shackle ghosts and hunt monsters. The nameless are to be fought, and feared.

One unnamed courier of the names committee travels aboard the Number Twelve train, assigning names to the people and things that need them. Her position on the train grants her safety in a world that otherwise fears her. But when she accidentally pulls a monster from a dream, and attacks by the nameless rock the Number Twelve, she is forced to flee. Accompanied by a patchwork ghost, a fretful monster, and a nameless animal who prowls the borders between realities, she sets out to look for her long-lost sister.

Her search for the truth of her own life opens the door to a revolutionary future―for the words she carries will reshape the world.

Review 

The Naming Song is literary fantasy at its finest. It’s a beautiful ode to the power of words, packed with meaning — a ballad not to be missed. 

I went into this story with high hopes. As a writer, I’m a logophile. I love language and I’m fascinated by the depth that a single sentence can plunge. Words give substance and purpose and shape to our lives. So to spend time in the world of The Naming Song, where words are divined and spoken into existence, and each new word has the magical ability to literally reshape reality — it spoke to everything I love about the wonder of storytelling. 

The protagonist is a speaker of words. When she’s given a new word, it’s her job to journey with it so that she can speak it at the right time. Once she’s spoken it into existence, the concept and meaning that belongs to that word will enter the world with it, and reality reforms to incorporate it — the world is literally changed with each new word that’s added to it. What a profound and stunning magic system! It’s philosophically rich and fascinating to read. I loved seeing the world build around me as new words emerged. And I especially loved how rich it felt, and how layers were progressively added as the language of the book expanded with each new spoken word.

In terms of characters, the protagonist is endearing and multi-faceted. She’s an outsider, not quite conforming to the system that keeps everything named. But there’s a reluctance about her rebellion that lends her a measure of naivety. In other words, she’s easy to root for and totally deserving of top billing. This is very much her story, and I loved seeing her grow as the journey progressed.

The plot is patiently revealed, and the book is stronger for it. This isn’t one of those novels that you tear through at breakneck speed. This is a book you want to slow down with and really absorb. One of the things that stood out to me most was the focus on atmosphere and style rather than twists and turns. You’ll vibe with it, and the lyrical and literary sensibilities of this almost-folk tale are the aspects that’ll grip you hardest and keep you reading.

As it’s divided into sections, there’s a clear progression to each part of the story that signals the main advancement of the plot. The different sections take us from life aboard a train to a travelling circus show to a race-against-time style heist, and ultimately, to a battle for the soul of the world. There are plenty of payoffs along the way, and the slow burn of its build is handsomely rewarded.

Themes are explored with elegance and fearlessness, whether that’s in a dream made real or the threat of an unnamed thing. There are some words that help you hold on, and other words that help you let go. It isn’t just in books that a simple utterance can change a world, and the way this resonates in the climax is a marvel. The ultimate twist, and the biggest change that is seen in the story — an accidental word that can never be unspoken — packs a punch with every bit of heft you’d hope for, and then some.

Sub-plots are also rich in allegory. For example, the way ghosts are used as fuel highlights the forced labours of a second class. Or the systems of control over what we’re allowed to name could represent the limits imposed on free speech by those who seek to consolidate their authority. There’s a sense of social commentary and a touching against our reality that lies hidden beneath the surface, and it’s refreshing to see such a vibrant sense of speculation in a fantasy tale. While this isn’t the focus of the narrative, it will definitely leave you thinking, whereas the main thrust of the book will leave you feeling. In this way, secondary characters form the perfect complement to primary ones, and allow for plenty of scope when it comes to the reach and ambition of this fable.

I fell in love with The Naming Song for the way it celebrates the language of our lives. Words bind us together and give shape to our futures. They give us meaning. They give us stories. They give us truth. And The Naming Song is the truest kind of fantasy there is — a book that takes the magic of words and makes it real. It is literally amazing.

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Review: The Bloodstained Doll by John Everson https://fanfiaddict.com/review-the-bloodstained-doll-by-john-everson/ https://fanfiaddict.com/review-the-bloodstained-doll-by-john-everson/#respond Thu, 10 Apr 2025 09:44:15 +0000 https://fanfiaddict.com/?p=94044

Synopsis

When her Mum dies unexpectedly, Allyson thinks her world has hit rock bottom — until she goes to live with her estranged Uncle Otto at his country mansion in Germany. The gardener and the housekeeper make her feel anything but welcome, and her cousin Martin gives her the creeps. Then, after a child’s empty casket is unearthed in the backyard during a violent storm, people close to her uncle start turning up dead. And a man with ice-blue eyes seems to be following Allyson.

As the noose tightens and murders draw closer to the mansion, Allyson and her new boyfriend discover a dark, long-hidden truth and realise that nobody is safe. Their lives will be at stake if they don’t learn the twisted reason why each broken body is decorated with a bloodstained doll.

Review 

As far as homages to the Giallo genre go, you won’t find a more authentic one than The Bloodstained Doll. It’s a creepy slasher that plays out in your mind like the classic Italian movies of the 1970s. 

John Everson is best known for writing horror. But when he turns his hand to this particular brand of gruesome mystery thriller, he really goes all in. You’ve got to admire the gusto that he puts into what is, admittedly, a niche genre, and his passion for it really pays off.

What is a Giallo story? It’s a psychological-slasher-thriller reminiscent of the movies of Mario Bava and Dario Argento, containing stylised violence, a particular visual flair, and harping back to the Italian paperbacks of the 1920s and 1930s with their distinctive yellow covers. If you can picture a faceless killer sporting black leather gloves poised with their knife over the flesh of a beautiful woman, then you’ve got the atmosphere of what a Giallo story should feel like.

This is exactly what The Bloodstained Doll is all about — creating that atmosphere. It feels familiar because it’s supposed to. It follows the tropes because it needs to. That’s the whole point of it. These types of stories had a heyday, but fans will always crave new content, and John Everson has decided to give it to them.

The story itself hinges on the killer’s trademark — scattering a broken a doll over their victims. The conceit works on a surface level to draw you in, and provides a really impactful visual, and if that’s enough to satisfy you, then this book will go down easy. But if you crave a little more substance from your killers, then you may find it a tad difficult to swallow.

It all kicks off when an empty coffin is unearthed during a storm. The protagonist —Allyson — is a young girl who’s grieving the loss of her mother and goes to stay at a gothic mansion with her extended family. They’re all a bunch of creeps, which is necessary because the killer is most likely among them. The reason for this is that the deaths all surround the empty coffin, the missing remains, and the secrets they hold.

In terms of mysteries, it’s pretty straightforward. But this isn’t designed to be a head-scratcher. The appeal of the story is all about the aesthetics and the atmosphere, and in this regard, it’s an utter triumph. Did I guess who the killer was? Yes. Did I figure out the big secret in advance? Also yes. Does it matter? Not at all. You don’t go into this book for the twists and turns — you go in for the style. 

There’s an indulgence about the way this unabashedly hits almost every beat you’d expect from a Giallo homage, and for fans of the genre, it’s one to be relished. There are a couple of sub-plots that are well worth their time on the page — one being a romance element, and the other being a conspiratorial blackmail. It all adds up to a climax of reveals that plunges Allyson into deeper trouble, all the way to a typically bloody final confrontation.

This book could have been very different. It could have delved more into Allyson’s grief at having just lost her Mum. It could have been a richer coming-of-age drama as she navigates life independently in a new country. But it’s all the better for steering clear of too much emotional heft. Sometimes, all you want from a piece of entertainment is for it to be slick, stylish, and suspenseful. And if you’re in that zone, you can’t go wrong with this.

The Bloodstained Doll may not be a perfect mystery, but it’s the perfect take on a modern Giallo B-movie in book form. If you prefer style over substance and you’re ready for a slasher with gothic creepiness, then get ready for a book that slays.

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Review: City Of All Seasons by Aliya Whiteley and Oliver K. Langmead https://fanfiaddict.com/review-city-of-all-seasons-by-aliya-whiteley-and-oliver-k-langmead/ https://fanfiaddict.com/review-city-of-all-seasons-by-aliya-whiteley-and-oliver-k-langmead/#respond Mon, 17 Mar 2025 13:26:14 +0000 https://fanfiaddict.com/?p=91890

Synopsis

Welcome to Esther Pike’s Fairharbour — a city stuck in constant summer, its walls crumbling in the heat, its oppressive sunlight a relentless presence. 

Welcome to Jamie Pike’s Fairharbour — a city stuck in perpetual winter, its windows and doorways bricked shut to keep out the freezing cold, its residents striving to survive in the arctic conditions.

Winter and Summer alike, both have fallen under the yoke of oppressive powers that have taken control after the cataclysm. 

But both Fairharbours were once a single, united city. And in certain places, at certain times, one side can catch a glimpse of the other. As Jamie and Esther find a way to communicate across the divide, they set out to solve the mystery of what split their city in two, and what, if anything, might repair their fractured worlds. 

Review

City Of All Seasons is even better than the forecasters could have predicted. It’s thoughtful, unique, genre-busting, and mesmerising — one of those books that creeps under your skin and stays with you. The partnership of Whiteley and Langmead is truly inspired, and I hope they’ll keep writing together for many more seasons to come.

This was my most anticipated book of 2025, and I’m happy to report that it didn’t disappoint. As a fan of both authors, I expected that this genius pairing would result in something special, absorbing, inventive, and timeless. Tick, tick, tick, and tick. It lived up to its promise, and existing fans are going to be left feeling satisfied. 

The story revolves around two cousins — Jamie and Esther — and the chapters go back and forth between them. An event in Fairharbour’s recent past has split the city in two, and a supposed weather-bomb has fixed the season so the climate never changes. Jamie lives in the city of Fairharbour during a perpetual winter. Esther lives in Fairharbour during an eternal summer. In Jamie’s Fairharbour, Esther has gone missing and nobody knows where. Similarly, in Esther’s Fairharbour, many of the city’s inhabitants are missing. Neither place has any clue that the other exists. Same space, different places. 

The juxtaposition between the two versions of Fairharbour and how they’ve acclimatised to this meteorological phenomenon makes the central concept easy to wrap your head around, and adds to the separation and distance between Jamie and Esther. If I’ve made any of that sound confusing, then don’t worry — it isn’t. The way this concept has been translated onto the page makes it simple, and it’s a testament to the talent of both writers that they’ve made such an outlandish conceit so accessible.

Also, side note: the weather in the UK is famously miserable. And it makes total sense to a UK reader that Whiteley and Langmead would come up with the idea weaponising the weather!

In terms of characters, Jamie and Esther are a joy to know. I was pulled into their lives from the first page. I felt like I was in their cities with them. They share a history, and a family, and all that goes with it. As they begin to see points and places where Fairharbour may allow for some intersection between Summer and Winter, I felt their desire to unite acutely. When they begin passing items back and forth between each other, it reminded me of The Lake House — where communication is limited to this peculiar phenomenon that neither of them can explain, but the how of it all is irrelevant. All that matters is that it’s happening. 

I remember the first time I watched Memento, and part of the fun was trying to guess at what would happen to stitch the scenes together, as I’d already been given a preview of what was to come. In the same way, there’s fun to be had in knowing what item has been left for Jamie or Esther to discover, and to see how they stumble across it, and whether they can work out its meaning. Having that advanced knowledge adds to the experience of the book, rather than takes away from it, and I loved that aspect of the structure.

When it comes to two cities sharing spaces, comparisons with The City And The City are inevitable, but you couldn’t get two more different books. Miéville crafted a dark and pacy neo-noir where every character accepted two places inhabiting the same space as normal. Here, nobody even realises the other city exists. It’s not action-packed and the mystery isn’t placed front and centre. This is a quiet, character-driven, charming book that has a slice-of-life vibe about what it’s like to live with an endless winter or summer.

That’s not to say there isn’t plenty of intrigue. You’ll ask questions as the plot progresses, such as why these cities are kept secret from each other, or what caused the division between them, and how does it factor into the family at the heart of the novel. There’s even a mysterious death to solve. These questions propel you to keep reading, but the story deliberately paints them into the background, veering away from plot to focus more on the characters and their individual lives — their search for resolutions to their own situations rather than some greater conspiracy — and this technique of ‘undercover intrigue’ adds a beguiling aspect to the flavour of the prose. 

In terms of prose, I would be remiss if I didn’t mention how sumptuous this is on a sentence level. What a beautiful book to read. I wanted to slow down and soak up the way it was so elegantly crafted. The two styles of Whiteley and Langmead blend seamlessly to create a gorgeous gem that gleams with every word. There’s plenty of their trademark allegory on show and it lands with a powerful kind of subtlety, giving impressive layers to the world and characters. 

One final observation on world-building — I dare you to read this book and not enjoy picturing the two versions of Fairharbour! There’s a sub-plot that involves a filmmaker, and it’s apt in a lot of ways, one of them being that Summer and Winter are described with such clarity that the world becomes cinematic, and the images you’re left with are impactful and enduring.

Ultimately, City Of All Seasons is a story about family, about connection and disconnection, about longing and finding, and about the secrets that shape our world. It’s a weird, meditative look at the places around us and within us, and the power that belongs to the bridge of reconciliation. Give yourself time to indulge in this vivid, speculative literary treat, and you’ll feel all the more appreciative for the future, and the coming of spring. 


Release date: April 29th, 2025

Published by Titan Books

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Review: A Palace Near The Wind (Book #1 of the Natural Engines Duology) by Ai Jiang https://fanfiaddict.com/review-a-palace-near-the-wind-book-1-of-the-natural-engines-duology-by-ai-jiang/ https://fanfiaddict.com/review-a-palace-near-the-wind-book-1-of-the-natural-engines-duology-by-ai-jiang/#respond Sat, 25 Jan 2025 15:59:20 +0000 https://fanfiaddict.com/?p=87822
Rating: 10/10

Synopsis

The Feng people have bark faces, carved limbs, arms of braided branches, and hair of needle threads. Bound by duty and tradition, Liu Lufeng, the eldest princess of the Feng royalty, is the next bride to the human king. The negotiation of bridewealth is the only way to stop the expansion of the humans so that the Feng can keep their lands, people, and culture intact. As the eldest, Lufeng should be the next in line to lead the people of Feng, and in the past, that made her sisters disposable. Thankful that her youngest sister, Chuiliu, is too young for a sacrificial marriage, she steps in with plans to kill the king and finally stop the marriages. 

But when she starts to uncover the truth about her peoples’ origins and realises Chuiliu will never be safe from the humans, she must learn to let go of duty and tradition, choose her allies carefully, and risk the unknown in order to free her family and shape her own fate. 

Review

Ai Jiang is one of the most inventive and unique voices in SFF. Her stories are thought-provoking and wildly entertaining. Her exquisite prose oozes poignancy. She somehow manages to write fiercely original concepts in an accessible way, and there’s an eerie comfort to her style. She’s carving out quite the niche, and I’m delighted to confirm that A Palace Near The Wind only intensifies her reputation as an unmissable storyteller. 

I’m a huge fan of Chinese period dramas. The lush production design, patient approach to plotting, perfectly timed rug-pulls, and intense focus on character usually adds up to a really great watch. This novella has all the best aspects of a c-drama. For the vast majority of the book, I was imagining it as episodes of a new show set in a palace where political intrigue and vying for the throne is done in the shadows. Except, the thing that really sets this story apart is that the princess at the heart of it all is made of wood.

Liu Lufeng is a princess from a race of trees, forced to marry a human king to protect and preserve her people. She has all the trappings of a Pinocchio-type character, and wants to free her nation from the strings of oppression that are holding them down. The Feng people are treated more like puppets than people, and the concept acts as a fascinating take on colonialism, nationalism, and identity. It’s also a really impressive allegory for how humans treat the environment, watching how these anthropomorphic trees are commodified by the nobility. 

The character-work is stunning. The way Ai Jiang has breathed life into a woman made of bark is so impressive to see. Fantasy fans will crave more world-building to explain the long history of the Feng tree-people, but this story’s not about the cool world on show. It’s about the people in it. And the laser-focus on Liu Lufeng and her family means that details about the Feng nation are carved in hints and implications rather than paragraphs of exposition. It’s refreshing and brave to see a fantasy world depicted in this way, and it helps to keep the intrigue on the characters and their journey to the palace, rather than the palace itself. 

In terms of the story, the royal wedding marks a turning point for Liu Lufeng, and for the entire world. It’s brilliant to see how this bride-to-be responds to the different imperial court machinations, and to the twists and turns thrown her way. The stakes are always personal for Lufeng, and this woman made of bark grows so authentically through the story that it’s a delight to see her overcome her own prejudices and perceptions, and to witness her become so much more than what the world tries to force her to be.

There’s a compulsive quality to the book. I finished it in a single sitting, and would happily have kept going for more. The timing of each big reveal is expertly done — it really was impossible to look away. Just when you think you’ve got a handle of what’s going on behind the scenes, something will come along to reshape the picture you’re building, and it makes for a satisfying experience.

A Palace Near The Wind is very much like a tree. It’s quiet, but powerful. On the outside, it’s beautifully rendered, but it also reaches deep below the surface, and the seeds it plants will grow inside your heart. 

This is c-drama-esque fantasy done right, and I cannot wait for the sequel to this unique and stylish duology. 


A Palace Near The Wind will be released by Titan Books on April 8th, 2025

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Cover Reveal: Triggernometry Finals (Book 3 of the Triggernometry Series) by Stark Holborn https://fanfiaddict.com/cover-reveal-triggernometry-finals-book-3-of-the-triggernometry-series-by-stark-holborn/ https://fanfiaddict.com/cover-reveal-triggernometry-finals-book-3-of-the-triggernometry-series-by-stark-holborn/#respond Thu, 23 Jan 2025 09:00:00 +0000 https://fanfiaddict.com/?p=87616 Stark Holborn is queen of the weird west. She wrapped up the Factus Sequence last year, authored the entire Nunslinger series, and has been entertaining us with her wildly imaginative Triggernometry books where she pits history’s greatest mathematicians against a brutal western setting.

Now, she’s concluding her Triggernometry trilogy with the third book — Triggernometry Finals. And I have the pleasure of sharing the cover with you! Want to know more? Well, I’ve got you covered . . . Literally.

Blurb

“A little knowledge can be dangerous, but a lot of it can be deadly. We learned that the hard way.”

Professor “Mad” Malago Browne – thief, killer, and one of the most wanted outlaws in the Western States – is trying to forget her bloody past and fight back against the tyranny of the Capitol, one maths lesson at a time.

The only problem? Gold talks and mathmos everywhere are listening, selling their skills – and each other – to the enemy for the price of freedom. There’s only one person with the power to stop them: Browne’s old mentor, Carl “the Cannon” Gauss.

But when tragedy strikes, it’s up to Browne and a rag tag faculty of numerates and renegades to do the impossible: unite the mathmos and bring the fight to the Capitol’s door, one last time.

Little do they know the eleventh hour might arrive sooner than they think . . .

Triggernometry Finals is the third and final instalment in the Triggernometry series, mixing the grit of the western with a cast of mathematicians from across history to create a unique and explosive adventure.

And now, for the big reveal! Here’s the cover…

Isn’t it gorgeous! I love the covers of the Triggernometry books. They have that old wanted poster vibe that matches so well with the weird west setting. If you haven’t caught up with the story so far, you’ve still got a little time before this third instalment arrives to cram in some final revision.

Here are the links where you can find Triggernometry Finals on Goodreads and Amazon. It’ll be released on February 4th, 2025 by Rattlesnake Books.

Huge thanks to Stark for sharing this exceptional cover in advance of the release. Now, giddy up and get it on your TBR!

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Frasier’s Favourites of 2024 https://fanfiaddict.com/frasiers-favourites-of-2024/ https://fanfiaddict.com/frasiers-favourites-of-2024/#respond Wed, 01 Jan 2025 21:00:00 +0000 https://fanfiaddict.com/?p=85971

2024 has been a monster year for SFF. From indie fungalpunk-noir (like Mushroom Blues by Adrian M. Gibson) to brand new epic fantasy series (The Gods Below by Andrea M. Gibson) to time-loop romances (A Quantum Love Story by Mike Chen) to fantasy-creature-compendium-encyclopaedias (Loreland Bestiaries by Hope Christofferson) and innovative weird fiction that I still can’t fully describe (Three Eight One by Aliya Whiteley), it’s been jam-packed with incredible books that I’ve adored. Figuring out my favourites of the year has melted my brain a little, but after a lot of eeny-meeny-miny-moe, I’ve somehow whittled it down, and here are my top five books from 2024.

Ninth Life by Stark Holborn

Quite simply one of the best books I’ve ever read. 

Review: https://fanfiaddict.com/review-ninth-life-book-3-of-the-factus-sequence-by-stark-holborn/

We Are All Ghosts In The Forest by Lorraine Wilson

A folkloric masterwork that changes the landscape of what sci-fi can be. 

Review: https://fanfiaddict.com/review-we-are-all-ghosts-in-the-forest-by-lorraine-wilson/

Interstellar Megachef by Lavanya Lakshminarayan 

Pure space-baking fun. 

Review: https://fanfiaddict.com/review-interstellar-megachef-book-1-of-the-flavour-hacker-duology-by-lavanya-lakshminarayan/

All This And More by Peng Shepherd

Time twisting Choose Your Own Adventure for grown ups. 

Review: https://fanfiaddict.com/review-all-this-and-more-by-peng-shepherd/

Daughter Of Calamity by Rosalie M. Lin

Superb historical fantasy genre-blending from an emerging talent. 

Review: https://fanfiaddict.com/review-daughter-of-calamity-by-rosalie-m-lin/


Congratulations to every single SFF writer who released a book in 2024. It’s been amazing to see such a variety across the genres. You are all my heroes.

I can’t wait to see what 2025 holds for us!

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