Fiction
Whispers in the Red Dust
Once upon a time Dr. Anya Petrova squinted at the Martian sunrise, the thin atmosphere turning the horizon a pale, bruised purple. Ten years. Ten years since she'd left the vibrant blue of Earth for the rusty red of Mars. Back then, she'd been filled with a fierce pioneer spirit, the first botanist on a fledgling colony. Now, a creeping loneliness gnawed at her.
By ANNA CORAL2 years ago in BookClub
Daughter of the Desert Moon
Once upon a time the desert wind whispered secrets through the gnarled branches of the old mesquite tree. Elara, perched on a lower limb, hugged her shawl tighter, its worn fabric offering scant protection against the chill of the approaching night. Below, the parched earth stretched into an endless expanse, dotted with the silhouettes of cacti reaching skeletal fingers towards the dying sun. Hunger gnawed at her belly, a constant companion these past few days.
By ANNA CORAL2 years ago in BookClub
Rachel Reviews: Tigers in Red Weather by Liza Klaussmann
I am guilty of judging a book by its cover, I will admit. And what a cover this book has with its beautiful women and its vintage feel and its art deco lettering, and of course the bright, bright red which ties in with the book's title.
By Rachel Deeming2 years ago in BookClub
"The Ghost Tree": A Classic Coming-of-Age Horror Novel
Missing dead girls. A monster in the woods. Witches and curses. Visions of murders. Small town secrets. I don’t usually buy books at a bookstore without reading reviews, but as a horror fan the story’s elements and premise led me to believe I’d enjoy this novel. And my first impression proved to be right.
By J. S. Wong2 years ago in BookClub
Book Review: The Theatre of Glass and Shadows by Anne Corlett
Sometimes the greatest spectacle hides the darkest secrets . . . In an alternate London, the city's Theatre District is a walled area south of the river where an immersive production - the Show - has been running for centuries, growing ever bigger, more sprawling and lavish. The Show is open to anyone who can afford a ticket but the District itself is a closed world; even the police have no jurisdiction within its walls. Juliet's mother died when she was a baby. Brought up by her emotionally distant father and even more distant stepmother, she has never felt wanted. It's only when her father passes away that Juliet - now nineteen - learns her birth was registered in the District. Desperate to belong somewhere at last, she travels to London where she hopes to unearth the truth about her identity, her mother's death and her father's years of silence - and claim her birthright. But in the District, there is only one central truth: the Show must go on. And in a world where illusions abound, and powerful men control the narrative, Juliet has no idea of just how far some will go to ensure certain stories are never told . . . For fans of The Miniaturist and The Doll Factory, The Theatre of Glass and Shadows is a place where nothing is as it seems.
By Marie Sinadjan2 years ago in BookClub
Book Review: Snowblooded by Emma Sterner-Radley
Valour and Petrichor are esteemed members of the Order of Axsten, an assassin’s guild tasked with keeping order in the rough city of Vinterstock. Plucked from the streets as children and raised to compete for their guild’s approval, Valour uses her brawn to survive, while Petrichor strives to be a gentleman assassin. When they’re given their biggest job yet—to kill Brandquist, the mysterious leader of the city's illegal magic trade—it’s a recipe for disaster. If they can quell their rivalry long enough, the reward will be enough to settle their debts with the Order and start new lives. If this job wasn’t dangerous enough, Valour is saddled with protecting the aristocrat, Ingrid Rytterdahl. Valour finds her dangerously attractive, but Petrichor can’t wait to be rid of them both. He begrudgingly accepts Ingrid’s knowledge and connections as they navigate the city’s criminal underbelly in pursuit of Brandquist. As secrets bubble to the surface, the duo must outwit the thugs on their tail, keep Ingrid alive, and—hardest of all—work together without murdering each other.
By Marie Sinadjan2 years ago in BookClub
Why You Definitely Can't Survive a Nuclear Winter
The world looked totally different after the atomic war - a place, where people just wiped out and where nature reclaimed its rights over the remnants of once proud civilization: ruins were the only trace of the former order of things. A few moments later, Mason became a witness of the catastrophic sight of a radioactive canyon, where the only thing that was left was a ruined world unable to rise from ashes of an atomic bomb.
By Amine Oubih2 years ago in BookClub
I Quit.... Content Warning.
And She Died. Yes, She is No More. The only thing left with me is “regret of not reading the last line of her letter so initially” that could save her life by me. Writing what you feel is folded by two things of our life, firstly, if we started untrusting people the only option left with us with is writing what we feel or such things which we couldn’t share with anyone due to fear of our close ones traits on us or either being a joke in front of world, same things happen with me her as well. Secondly, happen with her….Be in the story…
By Kiran Bajulge2 years ago in BookClub
Book Review: In the Lives of Puppets by T.J. Klune
In a strange little home built into the branches of a grove of trees, live three robots—fatherly inventor android Giovanni Lawson, a pleasantly sadistic nurse machine, and a small vacuum desperate for love and attention. Victor Lawson, a human, lives there too. They’re a family, hidden and safe. The day Vic salvages and repairs an unfamiliar android labelled “HAP,” he learns of a shared dark past between Hap and Gio–a past spent hunting humans. When Hap unwittingly alerts robots from Gio’s former life to their whereabouts, the family is no longer hidden and safe. Gio is captured and taken back to his old laboratory in the City of Electric Dreams. So together, the rest of Vic’s assembled family must journey across an unforgiving and otherworldly country to rescue Gio from decommission, or worse, reprogramming. Along the way to save Gio, amid conflicted feelings of betrayal and affection for Hap, Vic must decide for himself: Can he accept love with strings attached?
By Marie Sinadjan2 years ago in BookClub
