Narrowing down my favourite reads to ten was fun and not at all deeply traumatising
This year has been a mildly seismic one in my reading tastes (think an earthquake which knocks a few books off your shelf and then quits while it’s ahead) which, as you may notice from this list, are mainly centred in the SFF and horror genres.
In fantasy, I’ve continued my trend of reading more indie fantasy than the traditionally published kind. Although a couple of trad blinders still appear on this list, I expect my indie-focused trend to continue even more next year as trad fantasy continues its shift away from my preferred genres (adult dark or epic fantasy) to romantasy, cosy, Young Adult, etc.
In horror, this has been a memorable year for me as small indie press horror has continued to show its increasing quality; although only one indie press horror appears in my top 10 (plus one self pub horror) if you expand it to my top 20 as I almost did before I checked my evil villain alter-ego you’d see a few more creep in there. Traditionally published horror remains in its new-modern prime though; picking just two was incredibly hard.
Finally I’d like to give a quick shout-out apology to sci-fi, which has not got much of a look in compared to fantasy for me this year (at least the brand new variety, I read a lot of old sci-fi), but that’s what New Years’ resolutions you have no intention of keeping are for, right?
Anyway, to the top ten (in no particular order):
Looking Glass Sound
by Catriona Ward
My super brief synopsis: A teenager’s holiday friendship is affected by a series of murders and he spends the rest of his life trying to find out the real truth about it and attempting to write the definitive book on it – with some competition.
Why I love it: Rating authors is, of course, an entirely subjective pursuit, but calling Catriona Ward the best writer in horror in the world today is as close to objectivity as I ever dare come because I challenge anyone to think of a flawless run to compare with her five novels. Each one you wonder how she will top; each time she rises to new heights. Though her last effort Sundial is probably still my favourite, it’s hard to deny that in literary terms this is Ward’s undisputed masterpiece; this would have a Booker Prize to its name in a world free of ugly literary genre snobbery.
Like all Ward’s novels this is a twisty maze of twisty twists (did I mention there were twists?) but again, like much of her previous work, she plays not just with your expectations but with the narrative format itself; this book is more meta than a Zuckerberg cloning factory. It’s ultimately, perhaps, about writers and the power of their stories; as one of her characters notes, “Writers are monsters. We eat everything we see”. The consequence of that eating is played out in mesmerising, haunting kaleidoscopes throughout this book. Another character keeps repeating the mantra: “Fucked up will you set free”. They may as well have been speaking about reading Ward.
If it was a drink it would be: A claret (or red Bordeaux if you’re not English); the king of wines: endlessly layered, grows over time, nothing else really like it in the world, just when you think you know all it’s secrets it hits you with the final finish/twist. (okay I took that way too seriously)
For a full review and links to buy the book see:
Charlie Battison’s superlative FanFiAddict review here:
Josh Hanson’s equally awesome one here:
Sea of Souls
by N C Scrimgeour
My super brief synopsis: In a seafaring country plagued by sea monsters, ship captain Isla Blackwood allies with the selkie enemy and discovers the truth about her human brethren.
Why I love it: Following her acclaimed indie sci-fi trilogy with a foray into fantasy, N C Scrimgeour struck absolute gold first time here. This dark folklore fantasy creates a world obviously based on Scottish culture and legends but makes it compellingly real. Not content with her applause-worthy worldbuilding, she adds sumptuous, elegantly descriptive prose, deliciously dark and terrifying atmosphere and sea creatures (I’m a sucker for a sea monster). But her ace in the hole (or selkie in the water) is her addictive characterisation, which propels you through the classic enemies-to-friends plot that has never felt so satisfying or enjoyable. Sea of Souls is everything exciting about new indie authors; a fantasy star is born.
If it was a drink it would be: I’m not winning any points for originality but how could I not say a scotch whisky? Preferably a really peaty one that would have you savouring every drop while a selkie sneaks up behind you and rips your throat out.
For a full review and links to buy check out:
My FanFiAddict review here
Tyranny of Faith
by Richard Swan
My super brief synopsis: The conspiracy to destroy the Sovan Empire from within reaches new heights as lawman Vonvalt and his not so merry band go to hell and back to try and stop it all falling down.
Why I love it: Richard Swan has practically created his own fantasy sub-genre with the Empire of the Wolf series: jurisprudential fantasy. Nestled amongst the thrilling continent-wide attempts to investigate and stop a religious militia from destroying an Empire within are themes of law, politics, and ethics rarely examined with such gusto in the genre. In this book Swan balances so many things on his plate that by all rights it should come crashing down around him like a plate-happy Greek wedding, but somehow the cosmic horror, the murder investigation, the political analogies, the deontological examinations and the battle scenes all mesh together, giving us one of the great modern fantasy epics. The careful reader will spot in all this one of the great fantasy moments of the decade: an admission by main character Vonvalt that turns the entire foundations of his raison d’etre on his head; showing that for all his flashy jurisprudential ponderings it is perhaps his superlative character work that Swan will ultimately be known for.
If it was a drink it would be: A German pilsner, obviously. I had to think for about zero seconds for that one. Throw in some extra hops to chew over.
DreamScape
by Antonia Rachel Ward
My super brief synopsis: The virtual world of DreamScape is dying and now illegal, but when Wren Silver’s sister goes missing in it, she must brave its terrors and find out the mind-bending truth behind it.
Why I love it: This was sold to me as a cyberpunk gothic horror tale about a creepy virtual reality world gone wrong and it is indeed that – Ward’s genre-savvy, vivid imagination that was on display in her novella Attack of the Killer Tumbleweeds (also out this year) is once again on display here – but what I didn’t expect was one of the year’s great (albeit mildly toxic) love triangles between a ballerina and her ex Rock star lover and her new perfect husband. Ward writes the dark side of relationships so compellingly that it fuses perfectly with her total control of the sci-fi/gothic aspects of this bizarre world, to create a tale of narcissism and the desire for hero worship which hits on all levels. With her first full length novel, Ward has announced herself as one of the most exciting voices in British speculative/horror fiction today.
If it was a drink it would be: A shot of pure absinthe; drink enough and you’ll be seeing your own virtual world pretty quickly.
For a full review and links to buy check out:
My FanFiAddict review here:
Black River Orchard
by Chuck Wendig
My super brief synopsis: Residents of a town discover new apples in the orchard which have a distinctive effect on both them and the town.
Why I love it: Horror master Chuck Wendig has been feted for a while now, but with Black River Orchard he has ascended to new heights, as demonstrated by the (for once) accurate blurb on my hardcover which states “Move over King”. It may be obvious, but this really does feel like a King book in some ways: sort of like Salem’s Lot meets Needful Things, or to be more accurate, Hateful Things, as one of the many blisteringly brilliant things about this book is how Wendig uses his intriguing apple conceit to show us the dark underbelly of society, weaving in some pretty strong socio-political subtext.
But don’t be too fooled by the King comparison, as in many ways this is a different and – dare I say it – better beast; I like Wendig’s very different prose more than King’s in many ways, and unlike King this is a big book but you’d never know it – the pace is blistering; it flies by before you’ve eaten an apple (or ten, let’s not be silly). It’s full of glorious depravity and terror and gore amongst all the strong thematic stuff, and Wendig’s character-driven writing is something to behold. This is remarkable stuff that has surely elevated Wendig to the top of the horror world along with the likes of Catriona Ward. It’s (golden) delicious (sorry).
If it was a drink it would be: To absolutely no-one’s surprise this is an extremely pleasant dry cider but with some intriguing notes of something deadly and dangerous that might corrupt you/give you a hangover the next day.
For a full review and links to buy check out:
Anna Dupre’s apple pun-heavy FanFiAddict review here:
The Anatomy of Fear
An Anthology
My Super brief synopsis: The subject is fear, the genre is horror-fantasy, and the writers are the cream of the indie fantasy crop.
Why I love it: I love horror and I love fantasy, so unsurprisingly an anthology of fantasy writers taking on horror appealed to me like a champagne enema. Given the brilliant list of indie fantasy authors included, it should be no surprise that this is one of the consistently brilliant anthologies I’ve ever read, but what really took me by surprise was the imaginative way that they tackled the blending of genres. Some went for old-fashioned horror tales with a fantasy worldbuilding flourish, others took proper fantasy settings and injected a dose of horror into them, and one even just did a story in her existing fantasy world with wonderful results. I had my favourites, sure, but the fact that every single story could well be someone else’s standout shows just how much this collection was mission achieved. A real landmark for anthologies.
If it was a drink it would be: Obviously a cocktail of several ingredients, and obviously one of those ingredients has to be blood red, and so (googles cocktails) it’s the Dracula’s Blood cocktail of course: rum, peach schnapps, black cherry juice, and Grenadine. Don’t call me if you pass out.
For a full review and links to buy check out:
Perilous Times
By Thomas D Lee
My super brief synopsis: Knights of the Round Table re-awake in a dystopian climate-ravaged British future to save these sceptred isles from its dictators and the return of King Arthur.
Why I like it: With his debut, Thomas D Lee has crafted an Arthurian tale for the ages here, weaving together Pratchett-style witticisms and absurdity, a searing indictment of a scarily plausible dystopian climate future (minus the dragons, but at this point who knows) and a brilliant example of the cross-British spirit of solidarity. Lee plays adroitly with the Arthurian myths in a socially nuanced way, including the uniquely tortured black knight Kay (the colour of his skin being meaningful in the mythic context while not defining his character) but it’s his character work with the initially villainous Lancelot that really stands out – I’m not crying, you’re crying. Oh and there’s a shroom-obsessed Merlin and fairies in ice-cream vans. A mad smorgasbord of comedic, thoughtful brilliance that has introduced a major fantasy voice to the stage.
If it was a drink it would be: It’s got to be a beer with centuries-old British heritage right? Probably a welsh one. With a dragon on its label. Make sure you’re drinking it in an eerily abandoned pub with a horse outside and all-knowing barkeep (read the book).
For a full review check out:
My old blog review here (it was the last one I did before joining FanFiAddict, good times).
A Moonlit Path of Madness
by Catherine McCarthy
My super brief synopsis: After her mentally ill mother dies, Grace moves to the family home in Wales… but the ghosts of the past won’t let up and something is wrong with the moon-shaped clock…
Why I like it: In my review for this book earlier this year I asked “Is this the year of Catherine McCarthy?” given that the critically acclaimed horror writer has published three books this year. One of these, the cosmic folk horror Mosaic, I’ve just finished reading, and it almost crept onto this list, but it’s the gothic creepiness of A Moonlit Path of Madness that has ultimately won the day. McCarthy’s mix of standard gothic chills with her own unique atmosphere and slow, tense build up makes this a read that sits in your brain for weeks afterwards like a toddler that refuses to come out of the bath. And that ending… McCarthy’s books are puzzle pieces with firework finales, and this is one for the ages.
If it was a drink it would be: It’s got to be a seaweed-infused gin from the welsh coast – this exists, look it up – the perfect accompaniment to a Welsh seaside Gothic chiller.
For a full review and links to buy check out:
The Hunter’s Lament
By Steve Pannett
My super brief synopsis: Bounty Hunter Bitter Sweet has the toughest task of his career yet when he and his motley crew must track down a prince who has escaped his invaded lands.
Why I like it: A grimdark tale of a bounty hunter and his crew chasing the biggest score of their lives in a world of invading armies, rival teams and creepy magic users… we’ve seen this before, right? But in Steve Pannet’s indie fantasy debut, we get an unexpected emotional core as gloriously named Bitter Sweet considers the cost of his actions and the pain of losing his (maybe) friends. Pannett is a gripping storyteller who understands the power of a good plot, but he also gives us the year’s most heroic death, incredible fight scenes and emotion that sneaks up on you like a killer in the night. What a debut.
If it was a drink it would be: If I didn’t choose a bitter ale I would be arrested for the crime of missing a (not so) great pun; let’s make it a surprisingly sweet one to double down on that.
For a full review and links to buy check out:
My FanFiAddict review here:
The Ungrateful Dead
by Adam Simcox
My super brief synopsis: There’s a ghost revolution on Earth, a fascist takeover in purgatory and some crazy scientist has made a bridge to both… will the Dying Squad survive this one?
Why I love it: Arguably the most ambitious genre trilogy of the last few years concluded this year as Adam Simcox completed his globe and afterlife trotting tale of The Dying Squad, a team of investigators based in purgatory who investigate crimes on Earth. What began as essentially a crime story with a ghostly twist in the first book quickly ballooned into a gobsmacking, jaw-dropping and other mouth related action cross-genre behemoth, including horror (serial killers, extremely creepy rotting amnesiac ghosts) sci-fi (scientists using tech to bridge our world to the afterlife), fantasy (the battle to build a utopia in purgatory), action (samurai fights in Tokyo!) and mystery (just what does a boy trapped by Nazis have to do with a legendary punk band?). The fact that Simcox bridges this all together is nothing short of a miracle to compare with the discovery of an afterlife itself, and the fact he does it all with a brilliant feel for witty, uniquely British dialogue and a grounded sense of the (literal) punk and the anarchic makes this trilogy the ultimate evidence of the power of cross genre and balls to the wall brilliant writing. What a way to close.
If it was a drink it would be: The kind of craft beer produced in a low-key Manchester brewery by an ex-punk who’s thrown his drug habit away for a hipster beard and an award-winning hops recipe.
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