The Geek Vibes Nation Book Round-Up
V.E. Schwab's Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil tells the tale of a trio of vampires whose lives have become intertwined over hundreds of years. A gothic tragedy spanning from 1500s Spain to Victorian England to modern-day Boston, Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil explores the darker side of vampirism—the loneliness, the everlasting hunger, and the pain. It's a story about hurt people hurting people, the trauma of everlasting life, and that blurry line that separates humans and monsters; a story about the ways one's humanity can erode over a lifetime—however many years that lifetime may span.
Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil is a tricky book to talk about because it's a book best experienced as unspoiled as possible. So, it's a sapphic gothic tragedy that's perfect for fans of Carmilla and its ilk. It's a story about the injustices of society, and how the trauma these women experience from those injustices shapes them—for good or for ill. Schwab's poetic prose and penchant for deep, complicated characters make reading this centuries-spanning tome a breeze. She hooks you from the very first chapter and keeps you coming back, page after page, as she draws you ever deeper into the lives of Sabine, Charlotte, and Alice.
Schwab expertly weaves the stories of these three women together in an epic, heartbreaking tapestry; all at once surprising and immensely satisfying. The pacing is slow but deliberate, and though it takes a while for things to really get moving, patience is rewarded. It's just one of those stories where things slowly start clicking into place the further in you get, and it's just so satisfying seeing those pieces come together. It's monstrous, heartbreaking, and wholly breathtaking, a masterpiece through and through. (9.5/10)
Available June 10th from Tor Books in Hardcover, eBook, and Audiobook formats. Death at the White Hart by Chris Chibnall
A horrific murder shakes a small town to its core in Chris Chibnall's engrossingly captivating Death at the White Hart . When local pub owner Jim Tiernan is found tied to a chair with a pair of antlers fixed to his head, the village of Fleetcombe descends into chaos as tension and suspicion take over the town. Can Detective Nicola Bridge and her partner, Harry Ward, unravel the strands of this macabre mystery? Or are the secrets long buried beneath the village of Fleetcombe about to come roaring to the surface? Fans of Chibnall's acclaimed series Broadchurch are sure to find some familiar vibes in his debut novel and, as such, all of Chibnall's strengths and weaknesses are on full display.
Chibnall once again transports us to a small, idyllic village in the English countryside, where hidden secrets and deep tension boil just underneath the surface of this seemingly happy villa. Fleetcombe feels like a place you could walk into right now, populated by a cast of characters who feel like real people, complete with complex inner lives and deep connections with each other. But the mystery itself kind of takes a back seat to the world-building and character development. It's a mystery novel, to be sure. But really, it offers more of a glimpse at the unraveling of a small community in the wake of a horrific murder—much like Broadchurch .
That being said, however, Chibnall crafts an absolute page-turner of a novel, endlessly thrilling and so captivating you won't want to put it down for a second. While the mystery itself is a bit ho-hum, the world Chibnall builds around it is so enthralling you can't help losing yourself in the world. At times, it does feel like he's taken the structure of a six-part television drama and sort of crammed it into a 300-page novel, complete with the kinds of short, transitional scenes you often see in crime dramas. But somehow, it all works exceedingly well. An excellent summer read through and through. (8/10) Deadpool vs. Deathstroke: Ultimate Deathmatch
Available June 10 from Pamela Dorman Books/Penguin Random House in Hardcover, eBook, and Audiobook formats. The Bones Beneath My Skin by TJ Klune
In The Bones Beneath My Skin, TJ Klune takes readers on a thrilling cross-country road trip as the most unusual of families fights for survival. When Nate Cartwright arrives at his late parents' abandoned cabin, in search of enough peace and quietude to rebuild his life, he discovers a conspiracy that could rock the foundations of the world. For hiding inside his old family cabin is an ex-Marine named Alex and the most unusual child Nate's ever met—a little girl named Artemis Darth Vader who, some might say, is out of this world. As mysterious government agents try to recapture the missing Art, it's up to Nate and Alex to keep her safe from those who would do her wrong. But can they return Art to her home before it's too late?
Fans of Klune's other novels, like Somewhere Beyond the Sea, Under the Whispering Door, and In the Lives of Puppets will immediately pick up on all the found family vibes here and the notion of two queer men fighting for their families against all odds. It's a book about outcasts finding solace, embracing that inner spark that makes all of us human, and fighting for what you love dearest. It's a weird little book, complete with some very Stranger Things meets Close Encounters of the Third Kind vibes and a little kid who might just be a bit too precocious—though your mileage there may vary. It takes a bit of time to really get moving, but once it does, Klune takes his readers on a road trip across America, incorporating a handful of conspiracy theories that wouldn't feel out of place in a '90s drama like The X-Files .
But for what it is, The Bones Beneath My Skin is a very sweet read. Klune's gift for fully formed characters is on full display here—particularly within Nate and Alex's touch-and-go dynamic. It's an action movie with the heart of a road trip comedy wrapped tightly in Klune's trademark blanket of warm, cozy feelings. Though it feels a bit edgier than the likes of The Cerulean Chronicles or Under the Whispering Door , it still feels quintessentially TJ Klune through and through. If you can get past the uneven pacing, complete with its rushed ending, then you'll find yourself in for quite a treat here. (8/10)
Available February 4 from Tor Books in Hardcover, eBook, and Audiobook formats.
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And was it my fault she was so upset that night that she drank a lot more champagne than she should have? A car smashes into Diana's. Definitely. In the aftermath, officers pull Diana's bloody and glass-ridden body from the driver's seat. They lie her by the side of the road, rolling her onto her side, where she takes a single labored breath. Outrageous streams on BritBox, with new episodes dropping every Wednesday. New Release Radar: New Books Coming Out on July 1 Diana lives in Vancouver, BC, Canada, where she invests her time and energy in teaching, writing, parenting, and indulging her love of all Trek and a myriad of other fandoms. She is a lifelong fan of smart sci-fi and fantasy media, an upstanding citizen of the United Federation of Planets, and a supporter of AFC Richmond 'til she dies. Her guilty pleasures include female-led procedurals, old-school sitcoms, and Bluey. She teaches, knits, and dreams big. You can also find her writing at The Televixen, Women at Warp, TV Fanatic, and TV Goodness.
