Writer and Editor C.B. Calsing/ G.G. Royale

Premee Mohamed’s “And What Can We Offer You Tonight” is an ambitious, speculative-fiction novella. The main character, Jewel, is a prostitute in a very good house, but her situation goes horribly wrong when, first, one of her friends is murdered by a client. This friend then comes back to life to find revenge for her own murder. Then, another friend is mutilated by his own client. When Jewel and her dead friend go after the attacker, Jewel puts her own comfortable existence at risk.  Novellas are hard to write because they often must cut corners on one element or another: lack of characterization, lack of exposition, lack of narrative drive... Limiting the world-building to mostly inside the brothel walls and using a first-person perspective helped with that. I would like more background regarding Jewel and the world in which she exists. How did she get where she was? Why did the world become what it is? What magic exists to bring people back from the dead? The narrator, Elana Dunkelma

In a world where leviathans rise from the ocean, march across land, and threaten civilization, Din and his boss, Detective Ana Dolabra, must find a devious killer whose murders are putting the world even more at risk.  Robert Jackson Bennett’s “The Tainted Cup” is a masterpiece of world-building. Told in the classic mystery style of the first-person narrative from the perspective of the detective’s assistant, this book has the tropes of Doyle and Christie that you want, but in a fantasy setting rich in complicated detail. I enjoyed how different everyone was, the science/magic of the grafts people receive to enhance their skills, and the looming threat that a giant beast from the sea could destroy the town at any moment.   I loved this book. I savored it. I’d wake up in the middle of the night and read, not so that I could fall back to sleep, but to see what would happen next. Looking back over my reviews of 2023, I’d have to say this is easily in my top three. I recommend “The Tainted

“A Kingdom This Cursed and Empty” is book two in Stacia Stark’s Kingdom of Lies series.  Prisca, a hybrid, and Lorian, an elf, have been thrown together in a battle against a nefarious human king who uses other people’s magic to keep him young and in power. His reign of over four hundred years must come to an end, but exactly how can they bring that about?  This is standard fantasy with some very spicy scenes thrown in. I usually don’t read erotic romance to review, since it’s my job to edit said genre, but I do enjoy a fantasy adventure, so I took a crack at this one. Having not read the first book in the series, I was a bit lost at the beginning. This series does have the feel of one really big book that was split into three parts, so you can’t skip the prequels. I eventually figured out what was going on and afterward enjoyed the ride. I look forward to the next book in the series.  I like it when a book has multiple first-person perspectives (the direction a lot of romance is takin

I listened to the first book of this series, "Daughter of the Salt King" in June of last year. I realized I didn't post the review here, though. I've put it at the end so you can see my feelings on that as well. A.S. Thornton’s “Son of the Salt Chaser,” the sequel to “Daughter of the Salt King,” is a fantasy romance that draws on the lore and motifs of the Middle East.  Saalim, the genie Emel loves, has become human, and with this transformation, has forgotten their shared past. Now Emel is a refugee, following him to this city by the sea. She hopes she can rekindle their relationship, but his betrothal to a girl from the other side of the ocean may make that difficult. Instead, Emel finds comfort with Kas. But all is not as it seems, and Emel and Saalim slowly uncover secrets and information that will change their futures.  Like the first book, this is a very solid fantasy romance with lovely world-building and wonderful settings. I really enjoyed the developing rela

Hunter H. White’s “Treasures of the Lochs” was a fun, fast-paced read that anyone who liked “National Treasure” will enjoy.   You know the trope: a less-than-perfect son, Carter Porter, is dealing with a mystery surrounding his recently deceased father. Between Carter’s drinking, divorce, deaths of his daughter and father, and an attack on the historical site he was supposed to be guarding, Carter is having a bad run. It gets even worse when his car share driver is shot to death. When a mysterious letter arrives with the promise of a first-class ticket to Scotland, Carter takes it without thinking. In Scotland, inn worker Hassie Douglass is dealing with her own loss: her grandfather’s terminal lung-cancer diagnosis. When she finds some gold coins on the edge of Loch Ness, she believes they’ll help get her father better care. Instead she is drawn into a plot to find and steal a centuries’ old treasure meant to help the Jacobites put a Stuart king on the English throne. She and Carter, a

Rande Goodwin’s “The Witchfinder’s Serpent” is a fun, contemporary witch’s tale appropriately set in New England. The cast of characters and tropey plot are perfect for fans of Halloween-season movies and shows like “Hocus Pocus” or “Sleepy Hollow.”  After Nate and his little brother lose their father to cancer, a mysterious aunt takes them in, moving them into her large, Connecticut house. Things seem normal as the two boys start at new schools and begin making friends. But when Nate's brother steals his aunt’s key to the mysterious locked room, things start to go very wrong, very fast.  I enjoyed the mix of high school drama and Stephen-King-like macabre description in this story. Parts are not for the faint of heart, but I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend this to teen readers who love horror with a splash of romance. The narrator, Nick Mondelli, did a fine job (even with the female character voices) and added the right amount of emotion and tension to the story.  I am looking forw

William Friend’s "Let Him In” is quite possibly one of the creepiest slow-burns I’ve read in a long time. Told from shifting perspectives, it has the reader constantly questioning what exactly is happening and who is to blame.   Widower Alfie is trying to raise his twin daughters after their mother’s odd and tragic death. Of course they are going through some stuff processing their grief. And luckily, their mother’s twin, Julia, is a psychiatrist who is more than capable of treating them. When an imaginary friend joins the girls, Julia dismisses it at a as coping mechanism at first. Then the imaginary friend, Black Mamba, starts causing problems. Is Julia going to be able to help the girls with their psychological issues, or is something deeper and darker afoot?  Twins, an old manor house, a mysterious death... “Let Him In” gives us plenty of tropes we know and love from the horror genre. This is more than just a plain rehashing of old ideas, however. The tropes work to draw the r

I thoroughly enjoyed Nancy Gardner’s “Dream Stalker.” It’s an entertaining cozy mystery with a touch of the paranormal.  Lily Scott is an herbalist who’s gone through some rough patches. Her husband has died, and her daughter has just been released from prison after stabbing an abusive boyfriend. On top of that, Lily witnesses the suicide of her childhood friend, Kitty. But there seems to be more to the death than first appears. Lily must use her special ability, entering other people’s dreams to see their repressed memories, in order to solve a mystery that encompasses the town of Salem, Massachusetts.  There were quite a few twists and turns in this story, with plenty of red herrings as well. The setting of Salem around Halloween had me wishing for cooler temperatures and fall festivities. I enjoyed many of the secondary characters, though a few of them could have been fleshed out a touch more. The narrator, Karen Krause, gave me Bernadette Peters vibes, which I loved. I completely b

“The Horror at Pleasant Brook” by Kevin Lucia is a trope-filled, small-town horror with plenty of gore.  Pleasant Brook is a hamlet in the Adirondacks with a constable and a few businesses. Only a handful of people have ever left the small town, and when they do, they tend to return. When one of these wayward residents comes back to find a creepy mask in an abandoned house, quiet life in the small town quickly unravels. Fighting the slowly growing evil is a teenager who conveniently knows a lot about horror plots, the town librarian, and the constable. To the reader, it is obvious this force is woefully inadequate, and we must wonder if Pleasant Brook can be saved at all.  This book took me a long time to finish. I had a hard time getting back into it every time I picked it up. I enjoyed the construction of the evil. It was an interesting take on a new monster, integrating Celtic mythology and maybe a little alien invasion. My main complaint is the same as a few of the other reviewers:

Delas Heras’s “The Nine Lives of Bianca Moon” is a book perfect for any fan of hard-boiled detective novels, but who wishes those novels were populated by cats and dogs instead of gumshoes and dames. Also, the book possesses a light-hearted paranormal element that adds a new twist to the genre.  Junior Detective Morton Digby, a border collie, and his partner, a Scottish terrier, are trying to solve the murder of one journalist, Flint Lockford: an Irish Wolfhound. Bianca Moon, Flint’s cat girlfriend, is also trying to track down the killer. Cats have nine lives in this story, getting resurrected wherever they were born each time they are killed. Bianca’s investigation doesn’t go so well, and there’s a question whether she’ll get out of it alive. On the other side of the veil, recently deceased Flint Lockford is trying to adjust to life after death while finding his killer and protecting his girlfriend. I mean, “fiancée.”  This was a fun, quick listen. It follows almost all the tropes yo

Lucy Holden’s “Woven in Darkness” is an epic fantasy with some really interesting world-building. Zaria is a slave with no memory of her childhood. One day, she and some other children simply appear mysteriously along with bags of gold that fill annually to pay for their care. Her childhood is rough, working in a brothel, but she does have caring adults and she gets to attend school to learn to read and write. When the bags of gold fail to magically fill one year, Zaria must try to keep her family together while gaining her freedom before she can be sold. Harken, the Savage King, comes to her aid but not without strings attached. As they work together to achieve both their goals, their relationship grows.  This book had a lot going for it. Some of the world-building elements were hard to get a handle on at first, but they became clearer as the narrative progressed. Because the story was told in first-person perspective, it would feel unnatural to give too much exposition as a third-per

Who doesn’t love a horror novel that begins with a cursed archeological expedition? That and other tropes make Eric LaRocca’s “Everything the Darkness Eats” a satisfying read for most horror fans.  Before I go any further, however, this book does need some trigger warnings. Most notably for me, rape and hate crimes. Both are pretty graphic. Other reviewers had a hard time getting through the book as a result.  In this story, we follow multiple perspectives of people living around a rural New England town. Several citizens have gone missing. A mysterious, dashing man who drives a Rolls Royce and claims to sell funeral plots is involved, as is a widower who has a spirit around his neck and a police detective who has been the victim of a hate crime. In different ways, they attempt to bring an end to the paranormal threat facing the town.  This story, narrated well by Andre Santana, draws on a lot of tropes that will remind readers of Joe Hill and Stephen King: the car, the manor house, an

Kaitlyn Davis’s “The Raven and the Dove” is the first book in what is sure to be an epic fantasy romance series. Mistaken identities, prophecies, and mysterious plots all play a role in the drama. In a world where the goods grant people living on floating islands the wings of birds, but magic is forbidden, Lyana and her brother enter the annual courtship rituals of the royalty. Lyana thinks she has chosen one prince but finds out she has ended up with his half-brother instead. She and her best friend, Cassie, follow him to his land for the impending nuptials. There are other plots at work, however, and the ending is not the wedded bliss anticipated by Lyana and her betrothed.  Narrated nicely by Sarah Sampino, this fantasy was an entertaining listen. The world-building was intriguing, and I look forward to learning more about the mechanics of magic versus the power of the gods as interpreted by the different cultures in the world. The love triangle between Lyana, Rafe, and Lysander was

“The House of Roots and Ruin” is Erin A. Craig’s follow-up to “The House of Salt and Sorrow.” Years after the setting of the first book, the narrative follows the youngest Thaumas sister, Verity. She’s recently learned a secret about herself and decides to flee home and strike out on her own. The opportunity comes in the commission to paint a young ducal heir on the far side of the country. Verity takes the job without consulting with her older sister. The duke, his wife, and his son (the subject of her painting) welcome her into their lush home. Verity is happy at first, but she begins to uncover secrets in the house that suggest something more sinister is going on. While her relationship with the duke’s son progresses beyond painter and subject, Verity learns she’s part of the plot and must decide to who to trust. This was a thoroughly entertaining sequel to “The House of Roots of Ruin.” It starts a little more froufrou with flowers and pink candles, but the gothic qualities catch up

As I’ve mentioned before in my reviews, I love a good adaption of the great works of fiction from our literary past. I’ll link at the bottom to a couple of other reviews that fall into this category. “Unnatural Creatures” by Kris Waldherr is inspired by and closely follows the action of Mary Shelley’s “Frankenstein.” Instead of coming from the point of view of Victor or the creature, it is told from the three women involved in his life: mother Caroline, adopted “cousin” and betrothed Elizabeth, and the maid Justine.  The story is told in three parts, each one focused on one of the women, but also shifting on occasion. Each woman is haunted by the creature at some point, often blamed as a trick of the eye in the dark, a misidentified shadow, or a dream. If you’ve read “Frankenstein,” you’re going to know much of what goes on; we just get it here in a different perspective...until the end. The author takes some exciting liberties there, and it’s worth getting to the finish line to find o

Ah, yes. What’s better than an atmospheric, trope-filled romance that’s also a horror novel? Not much! In this, Kyrie McCauley’s “All the Dead Lie Down” delivers, both with its macabre content and its happily-ever-after (don’t ever take that away from my romances!).  Marin has recently lost her mother and has few prospects. Is this a Regency or Victorian romance? Nope, set in the present day. When a horror novelist she admires hires her as the summer nanny for her two young daughters, Marin takes the position at forlorn and remote Lovelace House. The children’s father has also recently passed. From the beginning, Marin is tested by the mother, the children’s cruel pranks, and the strange nature of the house. When the eldest daughter returns unexpectedly from her summer studies, however, Marin finds it too difficult to leave the strange property. Even though, with Evie’s arrival, things get even stranger. Together, the two must protect the young wards, navigate Mother’s odd behaviors, a

In “The Ghosts of Thorwald Place” by Helen Power, the protagonist is brutally murdered in the opening pages. The reader then follows her exploration of the building she is tethered to as she tries to determine who killed her and how to free herself from the threat of another, sinister being also lurking in the halls of the luxury condo building. Rachel, the main character, has a disturbing past, but as, in ghost form, she gets to know the other residents of the building, she realizes she is not the only one.  This was a fun horror mystery with so many twists and subplots, I was kept guessing until the end. I enjoyed the mix of ghost story, first-person narrative, and diary entries to give the background. Because our narrator was left in the dark regarding some things about her own life, the revelations seemed to work for both reader and main character, and I did not feel as if she was deliberately unreliable. This novel was thoroughly entertaining, and the narrator, Rachel Fulginiti, d

The Salt Grows Heavy by Cassandra Khaw is a strange book. In a pastiche of Frankenstein and The Little Mermaid and Lord of the Flies, we are given an odd, often gruesome travelogue that ends sooner than expected. After fleeing a plague—in fact, the mermaid’s children eating everyone in the kingdom—the silent mermaid and a cobbled-together plague doctor find themselves in a frozen village filled with children who regularly kill each other, only to be resurrected by a trio of masked doctors called the saints. These doctors are, in fact, the ones responsible for creating the plague doctor, and this gives our characters mixed feelings. When more information is revealed, and the purpose of the children uncovered, the mermaid must decide whether to flee or remain beside her loyal doctor as they do what they think is right. The set-up of this story had me thinking we’d be following these two characters for a while, but their travels come to an abrupt stop in the snowy woods when they witne

I am a huge fan of vintage horror films of the sixties and seventies, so I was immediately drawn to Silver Nitrate by Silvia Moreno-Garcia. This is the third book of hers I have read, and I have yet to be disappointed. Montserrat is a sound editor in 1990s Mexico City who has grown tired and frustrated by her position at an old boys’ club studio. When her best friend, Tristan, moves into a new building and realizes one of his neighbors is horror director Abel Urueta, Montserrat takes it as a chance to diversify: researching a bit for television about Abel’s last, forgotten film. But the curious research project takes on a new tone when the film’s strange history and cast of characters come into play. Soon, Montserrat and Tristan find themselves embroiled in a decades-old plot involving the occult, flammable film, and possible immortality. I am hard to scare these days, having consumed a lot of horror fiction and film. But there was a scene in this book that got me. I won’t go into de

Tween, vampire-obsessed me would have devoured Shelley Wilson’s Blood Born . I would have loved having age-appropriate vampire novels with a touch of romance then, and I was highly entertained by it now, even if I’m not part of the target demographic. When Emma is turned into a vampire, her world is turned upside down. Her grandmother is kidnapped, a mysterious woman shows up on her doorstep promising to help her, and she meets a male vampire she has an instant attraction toward. All of this is hard to process for the loner who has always been haunted by a darkness she can’t quite explain. Now she needs to fight her own family, whom she’s only just learned about, to save her grandmother and her new-found friends at the Haven, a place for vampire half-breeds. Unfortunately, the vampire who changed her does not have Emma’s best interests in mind, and conflicting prophesies offer little guidance. This is clearly the first in a series, as the ending is a bit of a cliffhanger. The plot has

Here is the cover artwork for the next anthology in which one of my stories, "Beneath the Ironwoods," appears. It is set for a May release!

Caryn Larrinaga’s Mouse Trap is a quick, quiet horror read that will leave its audience satisfied and relieved.  Dakota’s family has suffered...a lot. Her parents had dreamed of fostering and adopting many children, but when their youngest of three dies tragically in the family home, those dreams die with him. Years later, Dakota, the middle child, returns to the family home to help bury her agoraphobic older brother, Lennox. Lennox had promised to protect her from the force she was sure killed her little brother. But now that Lennox is dead, who will look out for Dakota? And is it her grief haunting her or something darker, more nefarious?  This was a solid story with a satisfying ending that leaves the reader hopeful. The lightness at the end, however, does not permeate the story throughout, and there is plenty of tension to the otherwise quiet, not-very-gory plot. It’s one of those stories where you’re never quite sure whether the protagonist’s suffering is coming from within or wit

Hailey Piper’s No Gods for Drowning is a lesson in world-building and how to make a trope-filled murder mystery new and awesome. I found parallels between her work and China Mieville’s, one of my favorite writers. I would love to see more of Piper’s writing in this world. The plot seems simple at first: something of a ritualistic serial killer is stalking a city, just as the city prepares for its catastrophic rainy season. On top of that, the gods, who used to walk among the people, disappeared ten years previous, and no one really knows why. A cast of characters including a flood fighter, a detective, and two descendants of the missing gods are thrown together in this setting, and both enemy and ally must work together to save their homes. Elements of fantasy, noir, and horror meld together in Piper’s narrative, making for a book unlike any I’ve read in many years. The closest parallel I can draw is Perdido Street Station, but it’s not as odd as that, so if anything it’s more acces

Caitlin Marceau’s This Is Where We Talk Things Out is a quick, tropey horror read suitable for fans of Stephen King and other classic horror authors. Miller has had a fraught relationship with her mother. Nevertheless, she agrees to go on a girls’ trip to a cabin in the woods...during a snowstorm. The tension quickly escalates when Miller recognizes the furniture, clothing, and accessories in the cabin are from her childhood home. Her mother, Sylvie, has recreated it almost perfectly. Thinking her mom is having trouble coping with Miller’s father’s death, Miller tries to make the most of the time with her mom. But one thing leads to another, and Miller realizes before long that there is more at work here. Can she get out and save herself?  A little bit Misery , a little bit “A Rose for Emily” (hope that’s not too much of a spoiler), This Is Where We Talk Things Out is a strong novella that had me gritting my teeth and wincing in sympathetic pain. Though a bit predictable, the story’s