klward

What, another year passed? But there's still so much to read! I am somewhat under my usual tally of both books and short stories this time round, due to various upheavals: there are things I definitely should have read that I simply have not been able to. But I have read some truly excellent stuff, even if an unusual proportion were parts of series. As usual, this list is made primarily for my own reference and represents nothing more than my own opinion.

Novels

Gideon the Ninth (the Locked Tomb #1), Tamsyn Muir, Tor.com, September

Why yes, my tenebral overlord, this is the funniest, most thrilling and ingenious narrative I've read in a long time. There is no way such an insane mix of genres, tones and characters should work and yet it does, triumphantly.

The Poison Court : a story of Erisin, Amanda Downum, Kindle, February

Set in the same world as the Necromancer Chronicles, following characters and concerns introduced in The Bone City and Kingdoms of Dust, this gorgeously decadent volume can be read either as a continuation (lacking Iseult Iskander, to be sure) or as an introduction to Downum's realm. Fantasy doesn't come any darker or more luscious.

The Boneweaver's Orchard, Sarah Read, Trepidatio Publishing, February

A first novel that smashes it out of the park. Truly gothic, classic in form and tone, but an undercurrent of subtle rebellion makes it absolutely fresh as well. Dripping in atmosphere, beautifully written, solidly plotted – need I go on?

Snake City (Lark Case Files #4), Christian Read, Shooting Star Press, April

“Not every day you see an undead cage fighter hold your ex-girlfriend’s kid.” This series is a rare find, an intelligent romp with real bite to its magic, featuring the irreducible characters of Lark and Bettina (she's the cage fighter). And this time, there are Egyptian gods to contend with. I'll never look at a canopic jar in quite the same way again.

The Year of the Fruitcake, Gillian Polack, IFWG Publishing Australia, August

In my review, I called this a challenging book to read. It is, and the sheer anger of it is confronting. But it is also one of the most interestingly, intricately structured texts of the annum. A mythic book, in the sense that it makes the actions of everyday life embody conflict among the gods - in this case, alien anthropologists.

Short Stories

“The Girl and the House”, Marie Ness, Nightmare Magazine #79, April.

Did I mention rebellious gothic? Short, sharp and so, so clever.


"The Book of Last Words", Greg Chapman, This Sublime Darkness, Things In The Well Press, October

A prison guard overseeing the execution of a notorious serial killer notices a man in the crowd, A man he has seen before. Sharp as tacks, creepy as hell, perfectly integrated.

“The Bleeding Maze – A Visitor's Guide”, Kurt Fawvur, Nightmare Magazine #83, August

Yes, it's all a metaphor and a pretty clear one. But increasingly these days, I'm finding clarity a virtue and this is nicely done. I do like me some labyrinth.

“Before Dominica”, Cat Sparks, Kaleidotrope, Autumn

In a post-everything Sydney, one woman finally reaches her limit. Change may come of it or nothing at all, but the whole disaster of the future is brilliantly encapsulated in one relationship. Taut, impassioned and full of piquant detail.

“No Other Life”, Isabel Cañas, Nightmare Magazine #82, July

A vampire and her intended victim, both refugees from the Spanish reconquista, form a relationship in sixteenth century Constantinople. What more could a refugee from the nineties desire?

Novelettes

“For He Can Creep”, Siobhan Carroll, Tor.com, July

That the eighteenth century poet Christopher Smart was confined to a lunatic asylum during the composition of his Jubilate Agno is quite true. That he had as companion a cat named Jeoffry who found his way into the poem – indeed, it's the only part most people ever read – is also true. This delightful tale makes the poet's battle with Satan literal and the intervention by Jeoffry especially poignant. Contains a dangerous wig and the unforgettable battlecry, “I AM THE NIGHTHUNTER MOPPET!”

Novellas

To Be Devoured, Sarah Tantlinger, Unnerving, July

If you're going to go mad, go mad with vultures.

Into Bones Like Oil, Kaaron Warren, Meerkat Press, November

A small masterwork, with subtleties of meaning and atmosphere that slide off the page and into the reader like the ghosts that enter the Angelsea.

Non-Fiction

Monster, She Wrote: The Women Who Pioneered Horror and Speculative Fiction, Lisa Kröger & Melanie R. Anderson, Quirk Books, September

The history of horror fiction from the seventeenth century to date, through the biographies and bibliographies of female authors. Lively, intriguing, bound to set you flipping through the contents of old anthologies, and the cartoony illustrations are wonderful.

Most Shameless Historical Pastiche – Sixteen Ways To Defend a Walled City, K. J. Parker, Orbit Books, April.

Did I mention Constantinople? If you can tolerate the protagonist, it's all quite ingenious.

Most Likely to Impact Upon Future Holiday Plans – Blood Ink (Lilith #2), Dana Fredsti, Titan Books, April

In which the protagonist has a really, really good time in New Orleans before the demons show up.

Most Bizarrely Appropriate Metaphor – the Fruitcake