Synopsis In these eighteen stories, Emma E. Murray navigates uncharted waters of love, lust, and loss, descending into that most darkest of the human (and inhuman) heart.Amidst the spiral and churn, you will hear frighteningly realistic tales of parental regret, the death of innocence, carnal yearning, and creeping evil, among other voices of the damned. […]
About Ed Crocker
Review: Cruel is the Light by Sophie Clark
A demon-strably good book Synopsis A bloody war between demons and the Vatican has waged for more than a century, with two elite soldiers now at its center: Selene Alleva, a high-ranking exorcist running from a dark family legacy, and orphan Jules Lacroix, recruited by the Vatican and unrivalled on the battlefield. When their paths […]
Review: Our Own Unique Affliction by Scott J Moses
Immortality sucks Synopsis Our Own Unique Affliction is the story of Alice Ann, a dejected immortal who longs for her life in the sun. Navigating guilt, loss, family, meaning, murder, and all that comes with the curse of living forever. An existential, bleak, quiet until it’s not, hallucination on duality, rife with fangs, empathy, blood, […]
Ed’s Most Anticipated Reads of 2025 (Horror Edition)
For the SFF edition, see here! For more thoughts on new book releases and other weird stuff, subscribe to my Substack newsletter GET CROCKED here (first one drops Jan 6th) When the Wolf Comes Home Nat Cassidy(Tor Nightfire [US], Titan [UK]) With the memorably intense Mary followed by the brilliantly creepy urban horror of Nestlings […]
Review: The Envoys of War (The Envoys of Chaos #1) by Dave Lawson
War! What is it Good For? Lots of witty banter Synopsis Don’t kill the messengers. As a bodyguard for the King’s Envoys, Gen is content with her life of traveling, drinking wine, and hitting things with her sword. It’s the perfect job. Until the King sends her and her friend Cordyn into war-torn enemy territory […]
Ed’s Most Anticipated Reads of 2025 (SFF Edition)
The Last Contract of Isako by Fonda Lee The Green Bone Saga by Fonda Lee is the high watermark of modern fantasy, as well as helping the “emotional damage” meme continue to thrive, and so any new series by her must be welcomed with appropriate parades and hysteria. But the fact that her next Orbit […]
Review: Casual by Koji A. Dae
Smart Casual Synopsis Valya’s neural implant is amazing. Its game-like app, CASUAL, has managed her depression and anxiety, stabilized her mood, and helped the infertile Valya get pregnant. But new laws forbid her from using the device when she’s sole caregiver for her infant. Her gaslighting ex won’t help her, and she can’t afford a […]
Review: New York Minute by Stephen Aryan
So good he named it once Synopsis A noir story, set in an alternate New York City. After years of being a cop, and now a private investigator, there’s little that surprises Cole Blackstone. But when someone working for Karl Dolman, the most notorious crime boss in the city asks for his help, Cole is […]
Review: Rise of the Mages (Age of Ire Book 1) by Scott Drakeford
Drakeford rises to the occasion Synopsis A young warrior and his improbable band of allies face impossible odds as they seek to rescue his brother from the servants of the Fallen God. Emrael Ire is a student of war with lofty ambitions, despite being so poor his boots are more hole than leather. He and […]
The Last to Drown by Lorraine Wilson
Drown your Sorrows Synopsis People from this house go down to the sea at night, and drown. Tinna cannot remember the last words she said to her husband. Three whole months of her memories were stolen in the crash that killed him and left her scarred and suffering from chronic pain. Adrift and struggling to […]
Review: A Promise of Blood (Amefyre #2) by R A Sandpiper
Death becomes her Synopsis Suri survived the fallout of Queen Lera’s ceremony, but now finds herself deep in unfamiliar territory—the City of the Damned. The City’s deadly ruler, Kol, believes she’s the key to breaking the curse upon the desert wasteland. Suri just wants to save her brother and forge her own destiny away from […]
Review: Reawakening – A Collection of Short Stories in the Seer of York Universe by Alethea Lyons
Some new York… Synopsis After centuries of suppression, the magic of England is Reawakening Return to the world of The Seer of York with this collection of new tales set in the aftermath of The Hiding. Harper, Grace, Saqib, Heresy, and AJ bond as a team and as a family to save innocents, supernatural and […]