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Book Review: The Invention of Ghosts by Gwendolyn Kiste

The Invention of Ghosts

The Invention Of Ghosts by Gwendolyn Kiste

Nightscape Press, 2019

Available: Chapbook, pre-order direct from Nightscape Press

Yes, this is a chapbook. Yes, it’s something you can finish reading in an hour or so. But this is something special, something worth investing in and savoring the story from one of the best new writers of the decade.

Just like Kiste’s collection and her stunning debut, The Rust Maidens, The Invention of Ghosts is a reading experience that seldom occurs. Kiste’s writing is what makes the stories transcend most of what the genre holds these days: the author is that special.

The less said. the better about this story.  It reminded me a bit of both The Haunting of Hill House and Ghost Story, a mix between Shirley Jackson and Peter Straub. Yet, Gwendolyn Kiste is her own person, and her style deftly dances between the words, carving out sentences that alternate between razors and velvet.

Everly is fascinated with the occult and all things ghostly. She’s a bit eccentric, odd, different, and cool. Kiste seduces the reader with her second person point of view, speaking to her friend who may or may not be dead, in a manner that evokes the best of Gillian Flynn and Nathan Ballingrud. The main character searches for the answers to a mystery she might already know, something others don’t want her to explore. The adventure of her missing childhood friend and college roommate who followed her passion for the occult consumes her, digging a rabbit hole for Everly to escape into, bury her sanity, or seek salvation. It’s a trip that begs exploration.

In addition to supporting a great author, forty percent of the proceeds from the sale of this chapbook goes to the National Aviary in Pittsburgh, which houses over 150 species of birds from around the world, many of them endangered. Help a great cause while reading something special.

Posted on November 21, 2019 by , Reply

Graphic Novel Review: Bitter Root, Volume One: Family Business by David F. Walker, Chuck Brown, and Sanford Greene, illustrated by Rico Renzi and Sanford Greene

Bitter Root, Volume One: Family Business by David F. Walker, Chuck Brown, and Sanford Greene, illustrated by Rico Renzi and Sanford Greene

Image Comics, 2019

ISBN-13: 9781534312128

Available:  Paperback, Kindle, comiXology

 

The Sangerye family combats monsters called Jinoo, people who have been infected by hate. However, a deadly tragedy struck the family, and the survivors can’t agree whether to kill or cure the monsters. With a new breed of monster stalking the streets of 1920s Harlem, the Sangeryes need to come to terms with their feud and face their new foe, or watch all of humanity lose the fight.

The characters in Bitter Root are fantastic. Ma Etta, the matriarch of the family, is a badass, protective of her family and not afraid to defend them. Berg is a poetic and gentle giant who can wield a wicked staff. Blink is a strong-willed, brave woman who desires to take a more active role in the family’s monster hunting. Cullen seems to be in training and is struggling to get his footing. Then there is Ford. He is most definitely a loner, and has his own deadly ideas of how to deal with the Jinoo.

There are so many great scenes in this book, which is a fast paced #OwnVoices read. The reader is thrown into the action when Sweet Pickin’ Jazz Club is attacked by an unseen monster. The next night sees one sect of the Sangerye family attacked by monsters, and Ma Etta telling Blink she can’t go out to help her Cullen and Berg fight a great horned beast. Blink proves herself by using a staff to beat the crap out of the monster. She is by far my favorite character in Bitter Root.

I recommend this highly for anyone looking for a great supernatural #OwnVoices graphic novel. The story is full of monster fighting, family politics, social commentary, and racists and KKK members getting their asses kicked.

Volume 1 collects Bitter Root issues 1 through 5. Also included are essays about the origin of the story, Afrofuturism, the tradition of rootwork, and more. Interspersed between the essays are variant covers and fan art.

Highly recommended

Reviewed by Lizzy Walker

Posted on November 21, 2019 by , Reply

Book Review: Hellbender by Josh Craven

Hellbender by Josh Craven

Raygun Books, 2019

ISBN-13: 9781951494018

Available:  Paperback

It is the summer of 1946. Veterans are returning from the War. Bobby Graywood loves baseball, his job as batboy for the local team the Green Sox, and Addie Vogel, even though she doesn’t know it. He’s an ordinary, awkward teenager, other than his Affliction. Whenever he makes skin-to-skin contact with anyone, he experiences their memories, past or future. As a result, he wears his gloves as often as he can to avoid touching anyone. One fateful day, the new pastor in town, Newton Hellbender, asks that he helps with the laying on of hands, complete with speaking in tongues. He requests that Bobby remove his gloves to better aid in the blessing. He does so reluctantly, and accidentally makes contact with an elderly woman whose memory reveals Hellbender’s true nature. Suffice it to say he is not the Servant of the Lord he purports to be. There is plenty of voodoo, small town politics, intrigue, and baseball games that drive this story to its end.

I do need to make potential readers aware of sensitive topics that require a content warning. This also requires a spoiler warning, as some of this will give key parts of the plot away. Randall Goode, Hellbender’s assistant, is a child molester. We see this through Bobby’s Affliction, which is disturbing on multiple levels. Bobby experiences all of the things in his visions as the person he touches. In one case, he is inside Randall’s mind as he is violating a young boy. I very nearly stopped reading at this point. I had to put it away for a few days before I could pick it up again. Later, Bobby almost falls victim to this abhorrent character. Racism is another sensitive topic regarding Jubal Moss, a Cajun veteran who makes the Green Sox roster. Jubal speaks with a Louisiana Creole dialect, and faces bigots on and off the baseball team. I became frustrated when he, the central Black character, is killed by Hellbender. Another victim of rape in the story is Bobby’s unrequited love, Addie. We do not see her rape occur, but it is implied.

All that being said, it is not a bad story. It is fast-paced, and there is so much going on that keeps the reader interested. However, be warned if you pick this up.

Contains: body horror, child molestation, racial slurs, racism, rape

 

Reviewed by Lizzy Walker

Posted on November 17, 2019 by , Reply
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