june
Marie received the contributor copies of her new novella, Resurrection Blues (above) published by Black Shuck Books, last month (above and below).
You can pick up yours here, here, or at your retailer of choice.
Marie and Paul also received their absolutely gorgeous hardback contributor copies of The Secret Romantic’s Book of Magic out from Titan Books at the end of the month. Check out the photos above and below…
Waterstones listed the publication as one of the ‘Best Books to Look Out For in June’ (below). You can read the full list here.
Reactor Magazine (below) included it in their rundown, adding, ‘Lost lovers return for a second chance – but what are their motives? Academic rivals compete for a prestigious position, but their sizzling chemistry might get in the way. A monster slayer posing as an unwitting sacrifice meets an intriguingly moral prince. From relationships caught in disparate timelines to ghostly ballrooms and dragons that need rescuing from princesses, this anthology gives you an inventive new spin on all your favorite tropes, and much more that you’ve never seen before.’ You can read their list here.
Barnes & Noble posted an extract from Katherine Arden’s story in the book, ‘Rosebud’ (below you’ll find Katherine posing with her own copy), which you can read here.
Another couple of great reviews have appeared, firstly The Whispering of the Pages (below) in their 4 ½ star write-up commented: ‘I enjoyed this book a lot more than I thought I would. I love short stories, so it was really great to take a break from novels and just have some stories to read. I’m not the biggest romantasy fan, though I do find myself reading a lot of them, but I feel like the format of short stories really worked for me. There wasn’t a load of sex scenes, which I find rather dull and the focus seemed to be more on the plot than the romance so it didn’t feel as drawn out as most romances do to me. Overall, it was really good. Most of the stories I enjoyed. My favourite was A.C. Wise’s “Slay the Princess, Save the Dragon”, which was a really funny enemies to lovers with a strong save the magical creatures message. I also loved “Designated Virgin Sacrifice” by Kelley Armstrong. Both these stories I felt did something a bit different with the genre and had fun twists. I loved seeing brand new stories from some of my favourite authors and would definitely read another of these anthologies.’ You can read the whole thing here.
And this one on Instagram, from @emma_bookaholic (below) who said: ‘These are all new to me authors so this was perfect to read and get an insight into their writing! I had heard of some of the authors but not read them but now will look out for them on the bookshelves! I really enjoyed these short stories and the whirlwind romances and the falling in love is perfect for the mood reader in me! It’s a quick read, quick-fire stories getting straight to the point and a great way to read new to you authors. I will enjoy re-reading this again soon!’
And below you’ll find the latest roundup of NetGalley 5* and 4* reviews, along with more contributors posting with the book: Angela ‘AG’ Slatter; AC Wise; Kelly Andrew; Megan Bannen; and Kamilah Cole.
‘Romantasy is the current big thing in BookTok and Bookstagram. This collection of 12 romantasy stories is a great way to dip a toe into the world of romantasy for those who are afraid to begin and the perfect way to find new authors for those who have already fallen in love with the genre. The stories range from taking place in fantasy worlds to historical worlds filled with familiar names, to anywhere your imagination can take you. The stories themselves also span a broad range of plots and characters. Whatever it is that you want to read can be found in this anthology. I find it difficult to summarize shorter stories but they are all excellent.’ (Lauren K)
‘What an incredible sampling of various romantasy authors! Some of them I’ve read before, some are brand new to me. Of course, I loved every single Sapphic story that was in this collection, but the M/F romances were good too.’ (Jasmine S)
‘As romantasy continues to grow exponentially and I find myself tiring of the copy-and-paste books coming out in this genre, the opportunity to read a book of short stories around this was interesting. Because, despite its popularity and my subsequent jaded approach to it, romantasy in theory combines my two great loves: fantasy and romance. I knew from the author names I recognised on the list, this was not the mainstream romantasy being churned out. I knew this would be different. And I was spot on. Each story was unique, subversive in some way, and combined the elements of fantasy and romance delectably. Yes, some were stronger than others, but overall, the quality in this collection was strong and the enjoyment I got was HIGH. I’ve not much been one for short stories before, but I thoroughly enjoyed leaping from each tale, discovering new worlds, spells, curses, and kingdoms. I think my honourable mention has to go to “Until December”, because it was pure perfection and scratches my brain juuuust right. Overall, a wonderful collection of wildly different stories that centre love, fantastical realms, and adventure in a way that, for me, is what romantasy should be about.’ (Ella R)
‘What a delightful read this was. I truly believe that anyone could find something to love in this anthology. The stories cover a wide variety of plots, themes, and overall vibes all within the romantasy/fantasy romance genres. For me, the clear standout stories were “Slay the Princess, Free the Dragon”, “Designated Virgin Sacrifice”, and “Until December”, but each story I think offered something for a different type of fantasy/romance reader.’ (Jessica M)
‘This is a book of 12 romantic fantasies, including some written by my favorite authors. It’s also an excellent resource for readers who want to try out new-to-them fantasy authors – I found several more writers I intend to follow. My favorite stories were “Rosebud”, “Until December”, and “The Dubious Ladies of Mirador”.’ (Pam R)
‘This was such a delight to read, and I had the hardest time choosing a favourite among such incredible writers. Short stories always deeply impress me as it can be so hard to establish a truly good story in such a short amount of time. While I don’t think every story in this collection wowed me, a few of them absolutely did and would get me to recommend this book to others based on them alone. My ultimate favourite was “The King’s Witch” by Tasha Suri. I adore her writing already, but the story she was able to weave so quickly and complexly really captured my attention and my heart. I love how much detail was put into the world building and the relationship feels very fleshed out. There was so much love between Lark and Silver that I was aching for more by the end.
A few of my other faves: Kelley Armstrong’s “Designated Virgin Sacrifice”, I’ve never read anything by this author (criminal, I know) and I loved the twists and mystery element to her story. I wasn’t expecting it and it made for a very fun read. “Slay the Princess, Free the Dragon” by AC Wise and “The Larkspur” by Megan Bannen were both so fun to read and some of my favourite relationships in the collection. I don’t think a single story disappointed me at all.’ (Reviewer 1045350)
‘What a treat this anthology was. I spent a wonderful time with my favourite authors and met two new – also now my favourites. They were not simply short stories (technically I may even call each a novella), they were each different worlds. Olivie Blake was as usual, amazing. I love how she makes me imagine her actually talking. It was witty, full of humor-sarcasm combined and rich in descriptions. Tasha Suri’s story was dynamic, yet following the pace of other stories. Which was my favourite? As it depends on the mood I was in while reading, I guess this time I enjoyed “Second Class Magic” by Kamilah Cole. I cannot thank enough for the time I enjoyed while reading… Hope more compilations/anthologies are published.’ (Elif U)
‘Ever since I first heard about this book, and saw the list of authors I was buzzing! I really enjoyed each one, a massive mix of styles and subsections of the romantasy genre. Each of the short stories within the book had compelling characters which managed to draw you in quickly – enough that I kept becoming frustrated when each chapter was over! Still, it’s allowed me to discover some new authors to delve more into, for which I’m very grateful! Additionally, it was nice that there were many queer, specifically multiple wlw, stories included.’ (Chloe A)
‘This is a FABULOUS anthology. I normally read anthologies in small bites with lots of time between each story, but this one I devoured in less than 48 hours! There’s a lot of variety in the 12 stories; I really liked 10 out of the 12, and there were fun elements in the other stories, too – I’m sure other readers will name those as their favorites. It feels too difficult to break down “favorite” stories, but I sooo enjoyed this whole book, and it led me to look up two new-to-me authors – Kamilah Cole and Kelly Andrew – to read their full books as I enjoyed their stories so much. (And of course I’ve already read and loved novels from many of the other authors whose stories I loved here!).’ (Stephanie B)
‘The Secret Romantic’s Book of Magic is a delightful collection of romantasy stories from power-house authors like Olivie Blake, Katherine Arden and more. Each story is unique and yet they all have the same focus on building a wonderfully magical, and occasionally dangerous, world with complex and compelling characters. It’s hard to write a good short story, but I think that there’s something for everyone in this anthology. One of the things I liked was the variety of writing styles. A few authors, like Kelly Andrew and A.G. Slatter, were particular standouts. I have read a few of their books before and reading their short stories just made me want to explore more of their work. I also managed to find a new author to explore – Eliza Chan. If you can come out of a story collection wanting to read more of a specific genre or author, I think that it’s a win!’ (Emily B)
‘This is a wonderful collection of stories written by some of my most read authors. It combines romance with fantasy and depicts the most wanted tropes – enemies to lovers, marriage of convenience, academic rivals etc. The stories in their short form create tension and burn which surprised me for their short content. My favourite was “Designated Virgin Sacrifice” and “The Dubious Women of Mirador”. There was also Sapphic, LGBTQIA representation. It was good to see an anthology of fantasy written by women.’ (Alice B)
‘The Secret Romantic’s Book of Magic is filled with everything I love about romantasy: enemies to lovers, rivals with chemistry, magical marriages, and second chances. Each of the 12 stories brings something different, even a few sapphic romances! but “Until December” by Kelly Andrew was my absolute favorite. I haven’t stopped thinking about it since, and now I’m on a mission to find more books that are similar!’ (Allenna W)
Out soon,you can order here, here, here, here, here, here, here, or here.
Sticking with anthologies, contributors such as De Elizabeth and MK Lobb have been sharing graphics for the forthcoming Dark Academia anthology edited by Marie and Paul, These Dreaming Spires – also from Titan Books – out in September (above and below).
You can pre-order that book here and here.
Black Gate have reviewed Paul and Marie’s Beyond & Within: Folk Horror, out now in paperback from Flame Tree. Here’s what they had to say: ‘Folk Horror is one of those terms that’s never quite fashionable or unfashionable. To me there’s only either good or bad horror fiction, and that’s what really matters to the readers. This anthology – part of the Beyond & Within series from Flame Tree Publishing – fortunately is very good, regardless of labels. So kudos to the editors (excellent horror writers themselves) for assembling such an amount of creepy and entertaining material. To be precise the book includes two little poems and fifteen stories. “The Well” by John Connolly is an outstanding, creepy tale about the unsettling events taking place during an archeological dig. “Rabbitheart” by Jen Williams is a disturbing story revolving around a weird small creature caught in a rabbit snare, rescued by a young girl and finally welcomed by her family.
If there is a veritable example of “folk” horror this would be “The Original Occupant” by Adam LG Nevill, exploring the events surrounding the mysterious disappearance of a Briton in the Swedish country. Benjamin Spada provides the truly excellent “The Great White,” featuring Cole West (the main character in the author’s Black Spear novels), teaming with an old friend to destroy a malevolent Wendigo. “Good Boy” by Alison Littlewood is about a peculiar “dog” whose presence brings about disease and destruction. The other contributors to the volume are Lee Murray, Katie Young, Stephen Volk, HR Laurence, B Zelkovich, Helen Grant , Kathryn Healy, V Castro, Cavan Scott, Christina Sng.’
You can read the whole thing here, and buy the book here or here.
may
The big news this month is the release of Marie’s brand new novella, Resurrection Blues (above), published by Black Shuck Books. This from the official PR for the book:
‘Resurrection Blues started with a dream about a harmonica; one that produces a beautiful sound – and calls the dead back to listen, just as the flute did in the tale of The Pied Piper. It’s no secret that I love a ghost story, so after that it didn’t take long for the other elements to come together.
Marcus plays in a band at a club, every night, to a disaffected audience that takes very little notice of the music. When he sees the harmonica in a store window, he has to have it, and is delighted when he finds the audience starts to really take notice of the band each night. Things are looking up. Pretty soon, he realises it’s more than that – scattered in amongst the audience are ghosts that appear when he starts to play the new harmonica. One night, it brings his mother back – and she has a warning for him. If he keeps playing, he’ll raise a monster, the ghost of a murderer, and it’ll come for him as it did his own father. Marcus must revisit his past to find the key to destroying his nemesis, and in doing so free the ghosts the creature has enslaved since its own passing.’
Author of The Intruders, Michael Marshall Smith called it: ‘Rich and uncanny, melancholy yet uplifting, a tale of redemption and renewal that – like the blues itself – manages to feel both fresh-minted and as old as time.’
And you can grab yours here, here, or here.
The first reviews for Marie and Paul’s anthology, The Secret Romantic’s Book of Magic from Titan Books have been rolling in, starting with this glowing 5* one from The Big Bearded Bookseller: ‘I knew I had to get a copy of this as soon as I saw it, I even know where it’s going to go in the shop as soon as it’s released! An anthology of 12 short stories from some of the best writers in Romantasy at the moment, what could go wrong? Nothing, that’s the answer, absolutely nothing! I’ve got to admit I stormed through these stories as each was perfect in itself making the book as a whole irresistible. I loved them all; the twists of traditional tales, forays into worlds known and unknown, enemies to lovers, all of it. This is the perfect book to have and dip into now and again, as each short story deserves attention, but you could, like me, consume it all in two sittings looking forward to going back to savour the stories once again. I think my favourites must be: “The Larkspur”, “The King’s Witch”, and “San’t Marten’s Book of Mild Melancholy”, though this is really splitting hairs as I enjoyed them all. I’m really hoping the finished product has pink sprayed edges and a keyhole cut in the dust cover as going full on is what this book really deserves.’
For the full thing, click here.
Photo credit: Claire Arnett
In addition to this, the book’s been getting some 5 and 4* reviews on Netgalley, which we’ve rounded up for you, along with photos people have been posting:
‘This was such a great compilation book filled with a great mix of authors combining both romance and fantasy into a great variety of stories. This was the first I’ve seen of romance and a bit of supernatural so that was a really fun aspect.’ (Librarian 1081599)
Photo credit: @alaina.wyl
‘I loved this! It had a lot of different authors such as Olivie Blake (who I adore) and had a mix of romance, paranormal and fantasy stories. I love books like this whether you are unable to have time to sit down to read a full story or in a reading slump, that you can dip in and out of but still have the satisfaction of reading a great story! It was such an easy book to read and I thoroughly recommend.’ (Isabella S)
Photo credit: @niamh_reads_
‘This is a truly fantastic anthology of short stories for Romantasy fans. As with all collections like this some were more to my taste than others, but every story was well written and original. Among my favourites were Kelley Armstrong’s “Designated Virgin Sacrifice”, about a girl who decides to step up and slay the world’s monsters, it’s a sweet story with an excellent twist, and A.C. Wise’s cute urban love story “Slay the Princess, Save the Dragon”. By far the standout for me was Kelly Andrew’s beautiful time travel love story, “Until December”. She was a new author to me and I will definitely be looking at her other work. Overall, this book is the one that I am going to recommend when someone has just devoured Fourth Wing and A Court of Thorns and Roses and is wondering what to read next because they will find their next favourite Romantasy author here.’ (Claire M)
Photo credit: Katherine Arden
The hardback is out next month, but you can pre-order the book here, here, here, here, here, here, here, or here.
Meanwhile Concatenation have posted another terrific review of Beyond & Within: Folk Horror. Here’s what Ian Hunter had to say: ‘Flame Tree Publishing certainly know how to put a book together and this – a horror anthology called Folk Horror from their “Beyond & Within” imprint – is a beautiful looking book. Consisting of a vivid green and gold foil cover, which is slightly “far out”, almost evoking some sort of cosmic horror…
But what of the contents? First, we start with an introduction on Folk Horror by editors Kane and O’Regan looking at the origin of the term. Interestingly they bring up three films which crystalised the idea of folk horror that were released in the late 1960s and early 1970s, namely Witchfinder General, The Wicker Man and Blood on Satan’s Claw, collectively known as “The Unholy Trinity”… Following the introduction we get 17 contributions, one of which is a prose poem, and a poem by Linda D. Addison called “Ghost Land of Giants” to end proceedings, which as a poet and poetry editor is nice to see. Jen Williams’ “Rabbitheart” concerns a young woman who rescues a boy caught in a rabbit trap and soon wishes she hasn’t. There is much creepy fun to be had in this anthology so I won’t go through every story in detail, but as you would expect those contributing stories often draw on their surroundings or local knowledge, so it is with Lee Murray who sets her story “Summer Bonus” on a farm in New Zealand where there are jobs to be done by two newcomers. Like many of the stories here, the story is clever, subtle and has a cracker of an ending.
Likewise, horror-master, Stephen Volk, has his story “Blessed Mary” taking place in Wales in time for some Christmas celebrations which soon worm their way into the minds of those who have returned home. Scottish writer Helen Grant’s “The Third Curse” tells of a bargain between humans and the Sithichean who live in the fairy pools, but who will get the best out of the bargain? Other stories concern the forces of nature; deals with the devil, or perhaps something worse than the devil; creatures from myth, and creatures that look familiar, but aren’t; wedding ceremonies with sinister undertones; and even tale set in a post-apocalyptic world where the old ways are re-embraced. Kane and O’Regan should be congratulated for the high standard throughout their curated anthology and Folk Horror manages to be just as good inside those “trippy” covers as the covers themselves.’
You can read the full thing here, and buy the book here or here.
APRIL
After a month off (during which the whole site changed servers) we’re back with more news, starting with Marie and Paul’s next anthology The Secret Romantic's Book of Magic from Titan Books being available on NetGalley! (above). To request yours just go here.
In addition to this, gorgeous physical ARCs landed at both the publishers’ HQ and with Marie and Paul (above and below).
The hardback is out over the summer, but you can pre-order the book here, here, here, here, here, here, here, or here.
Marie and Paul also received their stunning copies of the French version of Twice Cursed, published by 404 Editions – who translated the original Cursed (above and below).
Marie and Paul visited the London Book Fair in March at Olympia as well, which was busy but productive (below) and gave them the chance to visit some of their publishers.
Marie and Paul were there primarily to take part in Flame Tree’s Myth & Fiction podcast, where they talked about their editing work – especially on Beyond & Within: Folk Horror and the forthcoming Witchcraft (below).
Also from Flame Tree is the forthcoming anthology in that series Beyond & Within – This Way Lies Madness edited by Lee Murray and Dave Jeffery, which features a brand new story from Marie called ‘There’s a Ghost in my House’. To find out more about this and who else is in the book, just click here.
february
More book cover reveals to kick off this month, as Titan announced Marie & Paul’s follow-up to In These Hallowed Halls, These Dreaming Spires (above). The cover was seen by over 25,000 people on socials in less than a day, so we’re guessing it went down well!
Also announced was the list of authors included this time: Olivie Blake, Genevieve Cogman, De Elizabeth, Faridah Abíké-Íyímídé, Ariel Djanikian, Elspeth Wilson, M.K. Lobb, Kit Mayquist, Jamison Shea, Kate Alice Marshall, Erica Waters and Taylor Grothe.
The new term starts in September, but to request an ARC just click here. Or you can pre-order the book here and here.
Over on Instagram, contributor Megan Bannen shared a short extract from her story ‘The Larkspur’ in The Secret Romantic’s Book of Magic (above). You can pre-order that one here, here, here, here, here, here, here, or here.
As reported by the British Science Fiction Association, a glowing review of Marie & Paul’s anthology from Flame Tree, Beyond & Within: Folk Horror, has appeared on the Concatenation site.
Here’s what Arthur Chappell had to say: ‘Some story/poetry anthologies bear a mix of good, bad and middle-ground work, but this superb collection was 100% gems all the way for me, so with seventeen works to choose from, I can only really highlight a few. Some certainly stretch the definition of folk horror, and prove to be more general fantasy realm works. H.R. Laurence’s “The Marsh Widow’s Bargain”, for example, deals with a woman seeking revenge on a swamp dwelling shaman-necromancer. Everyone involved is fully aware of dark magic, so there is no sense of collision between ancient pagan beliefs or legends with modern Christian, or secular thinking.
A more traditional take and my favourite story in the collection is Jen Williams’s “Rabbitheart”. It centres on a quiet remote rural community where a young farm girl ensnares a child in a rabbit-trap. She brings the strange boy home to help nurse him back to health, and as he grows and heals, her family begin to decay and wither but she and they seem powerless to prevent the changes taking place. There are echoes of Lovecraft’s The Colour Out Of Space (1927) to this genuinely creepy tale. B. Zelkovich also has a fairie encounter with a woman beguiled into an erotic longing for a beautiful forest woman who takes her horse away into the misty realms and begins transforming her too, though her desires make her cease caring what is lost. Helen Grant has another take on such realms with a story showing multiple riffs on the legend of Tír n’Aill. Of the men drawn to an elf-land of plenty, unaware that for each day that passes there, many years pass in ours, leading to shock, and sudden ageing on return to what we might naively call the real World…
Some stories, like John Connolly’s “The Well”, would not be out of place in Edwardian anthologies alongside works by M.R. James. In Lee Murray’s “Summer Bonus”, two friends visit a New Zealand beach village where there is an unusual seaweed the community seem quite guarded towards… How the situation plays out is truly unexpected and chilling. One of the best twist endings I have seen in many years. Alison Littlewood’s “Good Boy” is about a dog who is anything but good. A man takes care of it from discovering it as a puppy despite seeing a neighbour kill its demonic mother… A varied range of often genuinely scary tales, all of the highest quality. A very handsomely presented hardback edition too.’
You can read the full thing here.
January
In the run-up to the big day last month, lots of people were posting their pictures of Marie and Paul’s anthology from Titan Books, Death Comes at Christmas, like @noirreadsandknits @lovetoread42 @shelf_ishly_lit @moremysteryplease and @thebookpear (above and below).
It was also spotted in bookstores around the world, including Switzerland and Germany below (photos courtesy Fabienne Schwizer and Helen Fields).
Marie and Paul were busy doing more publicity for the book as well, including an interview on the US based Sirius XM Nemo radio show with a reach of about 2 million, they went on author Cavan Scott’s substack talking about their Perfect Sunday – see Marie’s here – plus they talked to Horror Tree here, all below.
While Town & Country magazine included Death Comes at Christmas in their ’21 Coziest Holiday Mysteries to Read This Festive Season’ alongside books by Agatha Christie, Janice Hallett and Louise Penny here.
The book also continued being reviewed, including by the Peterborough Telegraph (below), who gave it 8/10 and said: ‘Here’s an 18-story anthology of murderous tidings from top crime writers taking slay rides with locked room mysteries, whodunnits and festive season tinsel-wrapped twists. Top contributors include Sarah Hilary, Liz Mistry, Claire McGowan, Belinda Bauer and Vaseem Khan - so, no turkeys!’
Colin Steele of the Canberra City News (below) said: ‘It opens with the CL Taylor story, “How to Commit Murder in a Bookshop”, which Taylor says was inspired by a Christmas party she attended at Waterstones bookshop in Swindon… The second story, “Christmas Yet To Come” by Helen Fields, spins off the characters Charles Dickens created in A Christmas Carol. It begins on Christmas Eve 1899 when Marley, the nephew of Jacob Marley, who had inherited his wealth, is walking through the corridors of the Marley Memorial Workhouse… Vaseem Khan, the award-winning author of the Malabar House series, sees in “Indian Winter”, his main character Persis, India’s first female police detective, collaborating once more with Archie, an English forensic scientist. This time they are investigating and ultimately solving an intriguing locked room murder in a Bombay mansion on Christmas Day, 1950…And in Liz Mistry’s “Secret Santa”, in which the Christmas office party has a deadly outcome.’
The Cozy Owlet (below) had this to say: ‘A benefit of a short story collection like this one is that it doesn’t have to stick to one definition of “festive”. Authors can – and do – apply their own interpretation of crime at the holidays. The result is a delightfully diverse set of stories, from the creepy to the warm. You’ve got the Dickensian setting, and a historical Indian one. There are stories set in Victorian England and at an office Secret Santa. There are the snowed-in villages that turn dangerous, and the hotel Christmas crimes. And of course there’s the requisite bookshop crime story, almost required in this kind of collection. The stories are also ordered in a way that maximizes this feeling of diversity, bouncing from setting to setting, vibe to vibe. I personally love warm, cozy Christmas, and this ordering helped me get through the darkness of the thrillers. Knowing a cozy or heartwarming story would soon follow made it easier to sink into the creepier stories. If you’re a fan of modern crime writing, there is likely at least one short story here that will tickle your fancy.’
Read the full thing here.
Mat Coward over at Morning Star (below), said: ‘Crime stories have been a fixture at Christmas for well over a century now, and Death Comes At Christmas (Titan, £19.99), edited by Marie O’Regan and Paul Kane, is one of the best anthologies of its type I can remember. There’s not a single weak entry among the 18 pieces by as many authors, and several real winners, with a good variety of tone and type, from locked rooms reminiscent of the Golden Age to forensic techs wearing bloodstained paper suits. I won’t try and pick out highlights, for fear of slighting the others, except to say that Alexandra Benedict deserves a Best Punning Title prize for “The Midnight Mass Murderer”.’
Finally, @travels.along.my.bookshelf called it: ‘A fabulous festive collection of short stories featuring a gathering of great writers and all in the tradition of Christmas crime. There’s something for everyone here.’ Steve Beresford said: ‘This is a great anthology of festive short stories, from locked-room mysteries to whodunits. All very Christmassy & murdery. Superb stuff!’ @thestucumminsreads stated: ‘I absolutely loved this book! I enjoyed every single story. There is quite a mix of themes, time periods, styles, and subject matters.’ And Lee Allen over on Goodreads offered: ‘From stories in the style of Golden Age classics to gritty modern thrillers, set in the snowy English countryside to the heat of Bombay, India, we are treated to a delightfully gripping mix of brutal crimes and complex puzzles, with flourishes of comedy, romance and creepy chills, all with a sprinkling of seasonal fun…Overall, this is a collection of well-written, thrilling tales, many in the tradition of much-loved and classic Christmas tales and mysteries, and a fantastic showcase of writers from the world of modern crime fiction, each tale an enjoyable slice of Yuletide magic. Highly recommended reading for these cold nights as we count down to Christmas.’ (All below)
You can still keep the spirit alive and grab your copy here!
Following on from last month’s news, here’s the exclusive cover reveal for the 404 Editions French version of Marie and Paul’s anthology Twice Cursed (above and below). We’re sure you’ll agree it looks stunning!
You can still pick up the UK edition here, however.
A future anthology now, and a callout for stories has been posted for Marie and Paul’s follow up to Beyond & Within – Folk Horror from Flame Tree: Witchcraft! You can read the guidelines here, but hurry, because you don't have long...
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