Astounding YA Dark Fantasy whodunit

Slipstream is a YA Sci-fi/Dark Fantasy thriller that opens with a gruesome murder of a young pregnant Asian heiress. When the authorities arrive, they find her sliced open and the baby gone. A necklace retrieved from the body turns out to be a high-tech amulet. The eccentric engraver who crafted it was a founding member of the defunct Pacific Rim Rapturits. It turns out the dead woman is his daughter and the half-sister of Detective Connor, who is working the case. Years pass with no breaks in the case until Connor learns that the baby lived, and her name is Raven. 

 

 

Alice Godwin uses Dark Fantasy as the canvas on which she paints this fantasy whodunit with the flare of a noir thriller. The opening chapter delivers just enough backstory to generate questions that frame the plot that unfolds in fractured pieces from varying points of view that fit together like a Japanese puzzle box. 

 

When the reader meets Raven, she is 16, lives in a post-apoplectic high-tech world where ecopods drive below the streets through a cobweb of underground freeways and some live in eco-tech housing and artificial closed ecological systems. Yet, Raven's world still suffers from inequality and injustice as power and wealth control lives and enrich the already-rich minority. 

 

Raven isn’t among the rich. She’s a gifted young lady with remote viewing skills, being reared by the carnies. Her visions fill her with dread, but she finds solace in a place called the Ghostlands where the whisperings of the web and electromagnetic humming that surround everything no longer haunt her. Here her head is silent. Here she enters a free-fall state into silver streams where things are tranquil and perfect–until Ceriful, a being from another reality crosses boundaries and brings the slipstream in his wake. Raven’s essence flows into it. He needs Raven to restore his realm. But, if she does, what does it mean for her world?

 

Book Recommendation

I recommend this book to those looking for their next fantasy mystery read. Filled with suspense, foreshadowing, and flashbacks, it delivers a surprise ending. Whether you’re interested in cozies or noir fiction, I’m sure this magical mystery will glue you to the edge of your seat. The opening chapters had a disjointed feel as scenes jumped to differing points of view and made for a slow start, but I realized those early chapters laid the foundation I needed to unlock the puzzle of this dark fantasy mystery. People who enjoy books like Beyond the Black Door by A.M. Stickland will find this book to their liking. I give it four stars and look forward to book 2.

 

As BookHookup, I am a long-time book reviewer, and I received Slipstream as a free review copy and have not been compensated for reviewing or recommending it. This review is posted in collaboration with #Black Phoenix Book Tours. Some links in this post are affiliate links. We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to amazon.com and affiliate sites.

 

  

About the Author Alice Godwin

Raised in the most southern of Australian cities, Hobart (Nipaluna), capital of the heart-shaped island of Tasmania (Lutruwita), gateway to the Southern Ocean and Antarctica. Impacted by the mystical land of her childhood, Alice can recall days of climbing through Eden-like forests and around glacial waterfalls, where mystical ravens and colorful parrots flew through the Antarctic Beech forests, adding to her sense of wonder in the world around her.

 

Her family were European exiles from various countries from Turkey to Lithuania. She is the first mother in four generations to give birth to her children in the same country she was born in. Her first job was in the Editorial Library of The Mercury newspaper in Hobart before joining the chaotic, colourful world of fashion in a design studio off Chapel Street in South Yarra, Melbourne. Eventually she headed further north to Sydney and some interesting years working at the Museum of Contemporary Art situated between the iconic Harbour Bridge and the Opera House on Circular Quay.

 

Around this time she began writing and her first short story was shortlisted in the Northern Territory awards and printed in their anthology ‘Extra-Territorial’ and so she continued, stopping briefly for a few years when her two sons took her on other adventures. She has had forty short stories published in magazines, anthologies, and literary journals in Australia, USA and UK. She won the Australian Horror Writers Assoc short story of the year (2008), Wyvern Publications UK YA short story competition and has been shortlisted for the Irish Aeon Award.

 

Alice Godwin’s Social Media

http://www.alicegodwin.com/

https://www.instagram.com/mermaiddreams88/

https://www.facebook.com/AliceGodwinAuthor/

Hague Publishing’s Social Media

https://haguepublishing.com/blog/

https://www.facebook.com/HaguePublishing

Fast paced near-future science fiction romance

Terraworks by Richelle Manteufel carries the reader into TerraWorks, a fast-paced, virtual roleplay gaming-world crafted with great visuals. The cyberpunk vibe of this world melds with fantasy/sci-fi elements to create protagonist, Ean Lightcross, a half-elf avatar who lives her virtual life at breakneck speed as a skyboarder willing to ignore the rules of skycraft to get out of a fix or win a race. Her hecidecimal sidekick (Hex) warns such disobedience to the TerraWorks code of skycraft must be reported, but Ean trusts her instincts and takes risks that often prove to her benefit. She has her eyes set on winning the SkyRate Grand Championship race against the undefeated fay sorcerer, Gale Emodicus.

 

For fun, she takes a break and goes to a Spectral Tyrants concert. Her curiosity piques when she sees the lead singer’s rare avatar type. A skeleton. Skeleton avatars are not a good choice for combat among gamers, but they make exceptional mages and sorcerers. Most players don’t have the patience needed to improve skills as a skeleton. His rarity intrigues Ean, and she moves for a closer look at the skeleman, Elias Mage. She gets caught up in the music. Her fists clench in passion as she watches his every move. After the concert they meet at a vending machine, and as the saying goes, the rest is history. What starts as a friendship quickly transforms into something more, but what are the chances of a romantic relationship forged in virtual reality making it? Ean and Eli fall in love, but have never met in the real world. It’s more than a crush. They have real feelings, hopes and dreams, but what can the future hold for them. At first, they keep their relationship secret, but the  compelling question for the reader is: who are they in real life?

Richelle Manteufel does a magnificent job of immersing the reader in a virtual world that feels believable while totally different from real-world reality. She engages the senses and intellect while altering factors that can be omitted or stretched. I don’t want to say too much because I want readers to experience it for themselves. And the use of avatars as main characters brings the romantic relationship to a new dimension. A whole new level of hidden identity romance. 

This fast paced near-future science fiction combines gaming concepts with popular fantasy tropes. If you enjoyed Arena by Holly Jennings, I think you'll enjoy this book. I give it a strong four stars and recommend it to gaming enthusiasts, romance fans, metalheads, and of course, sci-fi and fantasy fans. TerraWorks is book 1 in the Terraworks series, and I look forward to Helios (book 2) in the future. 

As BookHookup, I am a long-time book reviewer, and I received TerraWorks as a free review copy and have not been compensated for reviewing or recommending it. Some links in this post are affiliate links. We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to amazon.com and affiliate sites.

Emotional roller coaster YA coming of age journey

 Climb Harder by Phil Barker is the second book in the Ashley Davis series. While this book can stand on its own, I recommend reading the first book in the series as well to appreciate the richness and depth of the characters. The story of Climb Harder picks up where the first book left off. Teenager, Ashley Davies leaves the small-town life of Abbeydale for the first time in her life and flies to Sydney for the climbing competition that will determine the direction of the rest of her life. While in Sydney she is scheduled to stay with her estranged dad, Wyatt. He walked away from her family when she was four, following a climbing accident that left her older brother, Cameron, wheelchair-bound. With no real memories of him, her nerves are on edge.

 

 

She lands in Sydney on a chilly July day. Wyatt is not what she expected. His hunched posture throws her and when she looks into his eyes she sees a tired man, but his flecked hazel eyes match her own and a connection is made. She steps up and hugs his thin frame and breathes in his scent of tobacco, dust, and chalk. At that moment, she feels safe.

 

In his home, she studies a wall of photos. In them, she sees her brother Cameron before his accident as a lead climbing champion in the under-15 division. A rush of responsibility and pride elates her. When she takes a closer look at the championship photo, she notes a web of spidery hairlines revealing the picture had been smashed and shattered in the past. This is a masterful harbinger of foreboding that leaves the reader wondering if Ashley is safe. She thinks she can take care of herself, but can she? Does she need to?

 

Climb Harder introduces a new main character in Jessica Marsden who shares the role of protagonist in this story. She is a native Australian who lives with her dad and autistic younger brother, Bradley. Life is tough for them financially and emotionally since the loss of their mother. Jessica portrays a hardboiled side to the outside world, but when she is thrust into the climbing competition after the first-choice climber breaks her arm, she learns of the cash prize that can help her family. She sets her sights on winning the competition.

 

Author Phil Barker does a great job developing both characters creating a dichotomy. Both girls want to win, and work hard, leaving the reader with two, strong young females skilled in climbing. Both deserve to win. The stakes are high for both.  

 

When I read The Climb (The Ashley Davies Trilogy Book 1), I expected a coming-of-age story but the author delivered more. It was a story of healing and growth. Climb Harder mirrors these elements times two. Barker captures the emotional turmoil and rationality motivating these teens in their roller-coaster journey to become a champion. In the process, Ashley discovers it means more than she realized. Phil Barker is one of the best authors I’ve read this year. His action-packed writing is filled with imperfect characters that grow and heal through emotional and physical struggles and decision making. I give this book 5 stars and recommend it to fans of books like I Was Born for This by Alice Oseman or Someday We’ll Find It by Jennifer Wilson.

As BookHookup, I am a long-time book reviewer and I received Climb Harder as a free review copy and have not been compensated for reviewing or recommending it. This review is posted in collaboration with #Blackberry Book Tours. Some links in this post are affiliate links. We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to amazon.com and affiliate sites. 

 

About author Philip Barker

Young adult literary fiction author Philip Barker believes it is important to do something every day that scares you, even if it’s only a little bit; it means you are pushing yourself to experience new things. Through his writing, he aspires to provide his young readers a different perspective, to put emotions into words so that they can hopefully feel a way that they normally wouldn’t, or even wouldn’t want to.

Philip realized in high school that he wanted to be a writer when he discovered that books have the capacity to make him think outside of the established way that was taught to him growing up in the suburbs of Sydney, Australia. He likes to ground his stories in reality and relate them to personal experiences. It is his opinion that life itself is amazing and story-worthy, and there are so many interesting people in the world, all things that he can harvest great writing from.

Philip believes a great story is one that has relatable and interesting characters. Everyone lives interesting lives, and getting to know people is the fun part, even with fictional characters. Having them leave their comfort zones becomes fascinating and often hilarious. To Philip, everyone has a story to tell, and he hopes his young readers learn from his own story that life is complicated and things occur that can often be out of their control. But how they overcome obstacles is what’s important and committing oneself to something with a goal and purpose, like rock climbing, can help ground you.  

When he isn’t writing thought-provoking fiction stories for young adults, Philip enjoys rock climbing, gardening, and watching B Grade movies. His wife, siblings, mother, and in-laws provided positive support and courage for his books and in his life. He lives in the Blue Mountains near Sydney, NSW, Australia with his wife, two dachshunds, Alfie and George, and a rabbit named Abby. Climb was his debut novel and first in the series.

Author’s Social Media Links:

abbeydalecollective.com/

instagram.com/abbeydalecollective/

facebook.com/AbbeydaleCollective