KIN by Snorri Kristjansson

Everyone loves a family reunion. He can deny it all he likes, but everyone knows Viking warlord Unnthor Reginsson brought home a great chest of gold when he retired from the longboats and settled down with Hildigunnur in a remote valley. Now, in the summer of 970, adopted daughter Helga is awaiting the arrival of her unknown siblings: dark, dangerous Karl, lithe, clever Jorunn, gentle Aslak, henpecked by his shrewish wife, and the giant Bjorn, made bitter by Volund, his idiot son. And they’re Read more […]

Rotherweird by Andrew Caldecott

The town of Rotherweird stands alone – there are no guidebooks, despite the fascinating and diverse architectural styles cramming the narrow streets, the avant garde science and offbeat customs. Cast adrift from the rest of England by Elizabeth I, Rotherweird’s independence is subject to one disturbing condition: nobody, but nobody, studies the town or its history. For beneath the enchanting surface lurks a secret so dark that it must never be rediscovered, still less reused. But secrets Read more […]

Traitor’s Blade by Sebastien de Castell

Falcio is the first Cantor of the Greatcoats. Trained in the fighting arts and the laws of Tristia, the Greatcoats are travelling Magisters upholding King’s Law. They are heroes. Or at least they were, until they stood aside while the Dukes took the kingdom, and impaled their King’s head on a spike. Now Tristia is on the verge of collapse and the barbarians are sniffing at the borders. The Dukes bring chaos to the land, while the Greatcoats are scattered far and wide, reviled as traitors, Read more […]

Your Resting Place by David Towsey
David Towsey , Horror , Jo Fletcher Books / December 22, 2015

Rumours of the Drowned Woman are rife. She hunts down wanted men but never collects on the bounty. Some say she can’t be killed, not in the usual ways. The Drowned Woman is looking for one man in particular: he killed her husband and stole her daughter. Her family has been wronged. There will be a reckoning. I’ve made no secret about the fact that I’ve really enjoyed this series. I’ve been suffering from the terrible/wonderful situation where I long to read the last book, but know Read more […]

Your Servants and Your People by David Towsey
David Towsey , Horror , Jo Fletcher Books / December 15, 2014

Your Servants and Your People is a direct sequel to Your Brother’s Blood. With that in mind it is entirely possible that this review may contain some minor spoilers if you haven’t read book one in the series. Warning done, onwards… Seven years after Thomas returned as a Walkin’, the McDermott family are looking for a new life and Thomas has set his heart on starting a farmstead near the remote outpost of Fort Wilson. But the teachings of J.S. Barkley are not so easily forsaken – there Read more […]

Murder by Sarah Pinborough

Please note Murder is a direct sequel to Mayhem. It is entirely possible that this review may contain spoilers if you have not read the first book in this duology. Dr Thomas Bond, Police Surgeon, is still recovering from the events of the previous year when Jack the Ripper haunted the streets of London – and a more malign enemy hid in his shadow. Bond and the others who worked on the gruesome case are still stalked by its legacies, both psychological and tangible. But now the bodies of children Read more […]

The Unquiet House by Alison Littlewood

Mire House is dreary, dark, cold and infested with midges. But when Emma Dean inherits it from a distant relation, she immediately feels a sense of belonging. It isn’t long before Charlie Mitchell, grandson of the original owner, appears claiming that he wants to seek out his family. But Emma suspects he’s more interested in the house than his long-lost relations.  And when she starts seeing ghostly figures, Emma begins to wonder: is Charlie trying to scare her away, or are there darker secrets Read more […]

The Language of Dying by Sarah Pinborough
Fantasy , Jo Fletcher Books , Sarah Pinborough / December 5, 2013

The eagle-eyed amongst you will have probably noticed that I’ve reviewed The Language of Dying before. I read the PS Publishing edition and utterly adored it. The novella is being re-released by Jo Fletcher Books today and as it is so bloomin’ good I thought someone else’s opinion might be worth exploring.  Over to @MadNad for her thoughts… Tonight is a special, terrible night. A woman sits at her father’s bedside watching the clock tick away the last hours of his life. Her brothers and Read more […]

Your Brother’s Blood by David Towsey
David Towsey , Horror , Jo Fletcher Books / August 27, 2013

Thomas is thirty-two. He comes from the small town of Barkley. He has a wife there, Sarah, and a child, Mary; good solid names from the Good Book. And he is on his way home from the war, where he has been serving as a conscripted soldier. Thomas is also dead – he is one of the Walkin’. And Barkley does not suffer the wicked to live. I often hear the cry “Oh no, not another zombie novel”. Now I’ll be the first to admit that there has been a glut of books over the last couple of years featuring Read more […]

The Glass Republic by Tom Pollock
Fantasy , Jo Fletcher Books , Tom Pollock / July 31, 2013

It is possible, though frankly improbable, that some may not be aware that The Glass Republic is a direct sequel to The City’s Son. Note well then this dire warning, herein may lie spoilers for those who have not as yet read book one. Proceed at your own peril. Pen’s life is all about secrets: the secret of the city’s spirits, deities and monsters her best friend Beth discovered, living just beyond the notice of modern Londoners; the secret of how she got the intricate scars that disfigure her Read more […]

Swords of Good Men by Snorri Kristjansson

 Ulfar Thormodsson has spent two years travelling as envoy and bodyguard to his high-born cousin. They have one last stop – the walled town of Stenvik – before they can finally go home. Audun Arngrimsson works his forge and lives a secretive, solitary life. No one knows about his past, and he’d like to keep it that way. But the Old Gods have other ideas. The factions within Stenvik are about to come to blows, but a far bigger battle is approaching: a young king is bringing the White Christ Read more […]