@bookstodon Notable book releases in the U.S. for October 31, 2023. 🎃👻📚
Nestlings, Nat Cassidy. [So many horror tropes rolled into one. Multiple evils, including maybe the baby? Amazing how many signs of creeping horror one overlooks just to accept a great apartment in Manhattan.]
The Reformatory, Tananarive Due [Reminiscent of The Nickel Boys. This protagonist can see dead people from the past, but the greater horror might be the race-driven violence of the present.]
Courage to Dream: Tales of Hope in the Holocaust, Neal Shusterman. [Graphic novel illustrated by Andrés Vera Martínez, depicting Jewish folklore, cultural traditions, and spirit of resilience under unspeakable horrors.]
A Season of Monstrous Conceptions, Lina Rather. [What if you took Eldritch horror, threw in historical mistrust of midwives along with the usual quest for magic, power, and cosmological destruction?]
The Paleontologist. Luke Dumas. [A Gothic Mystery set in a Museum of Natural History? Yes, please!]
The Totally True Story of Gracie Byrne, Shannon Takaoka. [A heartwarming story with a sensitive take on the "What if you could write a new reality for yourself?" question. Examination of memory, experience, and the responsibility we have for each other's stories.]
Blood Sisters, Vanessa Lillie. [Haunting story about the horrors of both past and present missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls. The investigation led by a Cherokee archaeologist.]
What The River Knows, Isabel Ibanez. [This novel contains several genres: historical fiction, fantasy, mystery, romance, seasoned with Egyptology and ancient magic.]
The Berry Pickers, Amanda Peters. [An emotional exploration of family, secrets, loss, and grief.]
Good Comics for Bad People: An Extra Fabulous Collection, Vol 1, Zach M. Stafford. [Nathan Pyle, of Strange Planet fame, says that this is very funny, weird, and expressive.]
The Glutton, A.K. Blakemore. [Lightly based on the historical figure "The Great Tarare," this is a wild card on the list: a disturbing tale of appetites of all kinds, circa the French Revolution. I'm told that the writing, particularly in the setting of scenes, is exceptional.]
White Holes, Carlo Rovelli (Nonfiction). [Theoretical physics is my jam. You can't get out of a Black Hole, and you can't get into a White Hole (though matter can escape), but both might have played a role in providing everything that eventually became you.]
There was one book out today about which I could find no reviews or ratings, so who knows? I Call Myself Iris, Frank Paolino, Jr. [YA Sci-fi Fantasy about an AI helper bot who goes a little too far in trying to be of assistance.]
Also, I couldn't find much on The Buffalo Butcher by Robert Brighton (modern-day Jack the Ripper story), or The Oracle Chronicles Midlife Olympians Boxset: Books 1-3 (modern day dude gets summoned by the Greek gods) , by T.J. Deschamps. I'm leaning toward the second one, but that's just a guess.
There are an unusual number of books which almost made the list this week.
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