Showing posts with label dark fantasy. Show all posts
Showing posts with label dark fantasy. Show all posts
Friday, July 24, 2026
Tuesday, July 14, 2026
The Write Reads Blog Tour Spotlight: The Wraith Returns by Paul G. Zareith
Alien vampires, trapped in a time warp, find themselves being hunted by an immortal assassin of their own creation.
Guided by the will of the erased tree god, a warrior who should have never existed emerges in a world he no longer recognizes.
A Centurion races against time to save her brother from a dying world, but the only man who could unlock the cosmic prison was buried alive two hundred years ago.
An exiled alien prince plots to reclaim his throne, but in his path stands an enemy whose actions threaten the future of the entire Sultenate.
An ambitious researcher is willing to stake the lives of millions to become the next great power.
A celestial reconciler is ready to wipe out entire civilizations to restore space-time continuity.
Who will survive? And at what cost...
Discover in this grimdark epic saga.
Monday, September 29, 2025
BBNYA2024 Blog Tour Spotlight ~ 2nd Place Finalist ~ A Necromancer Called Gam Gam by Adam Holcombe
A grandmotherly necromancer seeking resolution for her past with the help of her loyal entourage: an undead cat and a spectral knight.
A girl on the run from the Eternal Empire for the mysterious power she possesses.
When a chance encounter pulls them together, Gam Gam will do what it takes to protect Mina from the rogue sergeant hounding her–including raising the dead. As long as they're dressed for the occasion.
Friday, September 26, 2025
Tuesday, September 16, 2025
The Write Reads Blog Tour Book Spotlight ~ The Tortured Kingdom by Bryan Asher
After a comet strikes the continent of Yohme, it's left in shambles. Nations lay in rubble, magic has been corrupted, and a plague has turned most of the inhabitants into flesh-eating, undead, ghouls.
Traveling this apocalyptic landscape is Evan, a bounty hunter taking missions to survive. However, his latest quest to capture a thief leads to more than he bargained for. After uncovering an ancient map, he forms a party to hunt the sacred treasure inside the most formidable dungeon.
Once inside, they'll have to overcome the trials of a god to reach it, and they're not the only ones searching.
Friday, May 9, 2025
Tuesday, April 29, 2025
TWR Ultimate Blog Tour Book Review: Eerie Exhibits by Victoria Williamson
Five unnerving tales of the weird and uncanny from award-winning author Victoria Williamson.
A room full of screaming butterflies.
An unsettling smile on the face of a carved sarcophagus.
A painting that draws its viewer into the disturbing past.
A stuffed bear that growls in the dead of night.
And a shell that whispers more sinister sounds than the sigh of the sea…
Dare you cross the threshold of the old Museum and view its eerie exhibits?
Wednesday, November 20, 2024
BBNYA2024 Semi-Finalist Spotlight ~ The Half Killed by Quenby Olson
Dorothea Hawes has no wish to renew contact with what lies beyond the veil. After an attempt to take her own life, she has retired into seclusion, but as the wounds on her body heal, she is drawn back into a world she wants nothing more than to avoid.
She is sought out by Julian Chissick, a former man of God who wants her help in discovering who is behind the gruesome murder of a young woman. But the manner of death is all too familiar to Dorothea, and she begins to fear that something even more terrible is about to unleash itself on London.
And so Dorothea risks her life and her sanity in order to save people who are oblivious to the threat that hovers over them. It is a task that forces her into a confrontation with her own lurid past, and tests her ability to shape events frighteningly beyond her control.
Saturday, August 17, 2024
Thursday, April 11, 2024
The Sandman ~ Audiobook
Hailed by the Los Angeles Times Magazine as “the greatest epic in the history of comic books”, The Sandman changed the game with its dark, literary world of fantasy and horror - creating a global, cultural phenomenon in the process. At long last, Audible and DC present the first-ever audio production of the New York Times best-selling series written by acclaimed storyteller Neil Gaiman (who also serves as co-executive producer). Adapted and directed by multi-award-winner (and frequent Gaiman collaborator) Dirk Maggs, and performed by an ensemble cast with James McAvoy (It, Parts One and Two, X-Men: First Class, Split) in the title role, this first installment of a multi-part original audio series will transport you to a world that re-writes the rules of audio entertainment the way that The Sandman originally re-defined the graphic novel.
When The Sandman, also known as Lord Morpheus - the immortal king of dreams, stories and the imagination - is pulled from his realm and imprisoned on Earth by a nefarious cult, he languishes for decades before finally escaping. Once free, he must retrieve the three “tools” that will restore his power and help him to rebuild his dominion, which has deteriorated in his absence. As the multi-threaded story unspools, The Sandman descends into Hell to confront Lucifer (Michael Sheen), chases rogue nightmares who have escaped his realm, and crosses paths with an array of characters from DC comic books, ancient myths, and real-world history, including: Inmates of Gotham City's Arkham Asylum, Doctor Destiny, the muse Calliope, the three Fates, William Shakespeare (Arthur Darvill), and many more.
A powerhouse supporting cast helps translate this masterwork into a sonic experience worthy of its legacy, including Riz Ahmed, Kat Dennings, Taron Egerton, Samantha Morton, Bebe Neuwirth, Andy Serkis, and more. Setting the stage for their performance is an unprecedented cinematic soundscape featuring an original musical score by British Academy Award winner James Hannigan. Fans will especially revel in a new twist for the audio adaptation: Neil Gaiman himself serves as the narrator. Follow him as he leads listeners along a winding path of myths, imagination and, often, terror. Even in your wildest dreams, you’ve never heard anything like this.
Friday, March 29, 2024
Tuesday, March 12, 2024
Something Wicked This Way Comes ~ Audiobook
This abridged audio drama performed by a full cast is “probably Bradbury’s best work” (Stephen King)! When an odd carnival arrives in their town just before Halloween, two boys discover its dark and sinister side…
“By the pricking of my thumbs … something wicked this way comes.”
Ray Bradbury has dramatized his literary classic, Something Wicked This Way Comes, into this first-class audio drama, produced by the Colonial Radio Theatre on the Air, complete with a full cast, sound effects, and original music.
“Cooger and Dark’s Pandemonium Shadow Show” comes to Greentown, Illinois, one week before Halloween. Two boys, Jim Nightshade and Will Halloway, soon discover the evil of this carnival, which promises to make your every wish and dream come true. But with those wishes and dreams comes a price that must be paid. Behind the mirrors and the mazes is the nightmare of a lifetime.
Few American novels written in the twentieth century have endured in the heart and memory as has Ray Bradbury’s unparalleled literary classic Something Wicked This Way Comes. For those who still dream and remember, for those yet to experience the hypnotic power of its dark poetry, step inside. The show is about to begin.
Friday, March 1, 2024
Wednesday, February 14, 2024
BBNYA2023 Blog Tour ~ 15th Place Finalist ~ Sorrow's Forest
At twelve years old, Mackie King had done something no one had ever done before: he had snuck into the forest, where Queen Sorrow reigned and had unintentionally stolen one of her devils while she slept in a death-like sleep.
In as little as an hour, the devil named himself Blue, fit almost seamlessly into the Kings’ life, and the Township of Lakeview.
Now, Mackie and Blue are grown, Queen Sorrow has awakened, and she wants her devil back.
In a fit of uncontrolled rage and desperateness, she snatches any that match Blue’s likeness. When their identities are revealed, she ruthlessly casts the bodies aside. Each murder is met with the town’s hopeless ignorance. A dark enchantment is sweeping over the land, dulling the minds of the townspeople to the supernatural violence.
Mackie has always been resourceful, but it will take every bit of ingenuity he and Blue have to thwart Queen Sorrow and her minions, save the town, and free themselves from the shadow of the bittering forest.
Friday, November 17, 2023
BBNYA 2023 Spotlight ~ The Blood of Crows
Ren is a thief and a con-man. You want something stolen, big or small, he'll get it. No matter how well it's protected. All while being the only person in the city without any magical knack.
There's just one rule: He doesn't kill people.
Murder is rare in the walled city of Lenmar, thanks to the magic-eating Inquisitors that can sniff out and track any individual by their particular knack. So, when a serial killer starts killing the nobility leaving no trace for the Inquisitors to follow, Ren becomes the prime, and only suspect.
All Ren wants to do is stop a serial killer, clear his name, and protect the people he cares about.
To do that, he’ll have to pull one more high-stakes heist— And steal the proof he needs from the very people who want to catch him.
Saturday, November 11, 2023
BBNYA 2023 Spotlight ~ Starlight Jewel
The human city of Minalav is renowned for its lavish balls, where nobles bring wealth from distant lands to the Starlight Palace, to be romanced—and robbed—by the half-human hybrids who live below the city. The wealthy guests leave without their treasure, and with no memory of their evening—except the unforgettable feelings that bring them back, season after season. But the magic of Minalav is built on dark secrets and lies.
Axly, a hybrid assassin and seductress-thief, will do anything to protect her human half-brother. The path of blood and chaos she carves will tip the precious balance of Minalav, and the world around it.
Friday, March 24, 2023
Wednesday, March 22, 2023
BBNYA2022 Blog Tour ~ Bloodlaced
Kanjin hardly view their servants as human. Even less so when they are different.
Asagi is different. Both a man and a woman.
In the wake of his failure to protect a boy he saw as a son from their abusive master, Asagi is sold into the house of a young nobleman, Mahiro, who is the opposite of everything Asagi has ever known—gentle, kind, and generous.
Mahiro bonds with Asagi and their friendship blooms into a deep and profound love. But when Asagi is poisoned out of jealousy, Mahiro reveals himself to be youkai, a demon who feeds on blood, and he has no choice but to turn Asagi to save their life.
Asagi awakes reborn, strong, and eternally youthful. But the price for Asagi’s new life is high.
The blood of the innocent. Just as Asagi’s trust in Mahiro falters, the boy he failed to protect, now a man, reappears.
New master, same threat.
With both a literal and proverbial monster at the door, Asagi must decide what it means to be human to protect what they love most.
Tuesday, June 7, 2022
Merchants of Knowledge and Magic
On one of the many planes of the Pentagonal Dominion, priestess Calinthe trades in information, collecting valuable secrets for her demonic employer. Calinthe has a secret of her own: she’s intersex, making her a target for the matriarchal slavers of the Ophidian Plane whose territory she must cross in her search for hidden knowledge. But thanks to her friend Zakuro’s illusions, Calinthe presents as a woman- a comfortable, if furtive, existence in a world determined to bring her to heel.
But when, instead of a mere secret, the priestess uncovers an incalculably powerful artifact, Calinthe finds herself in a high-stakes negotiation with the same matriarchs who sought to enslave her. On the table: Calinthe’s discovery, a charm powerful enough to transform a mortal into a god… against a secret so deadly it could quell all life on every plane of the dominion. If Calinthe plays her cards perfectly, she and Zakuro could escape Ophidia wealthier than either of them ever dreamed possible.
But if she plays them wrong…
…she’ll learn slavery in her pursuers’ hands is a fate far worse than death.
Monday, May 23, 2022
2020 BBNYA Book Round Up
Here's my list of reviews for BBNYA's first year of finalists and the winner. Plus three extra I wanted to continue reading but they didn't make it to the final round.
I read The Gilded King (4th place) and The Devil's Apprentice (9th place) for The Write Reads Tours before they were entered in BBNYA 2020. I included my tour reviews for those because I did not re-read for the BBNYA tours.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)