Category: A-B Page 1 of 23

Authors A-B

Reposting Just Cuz: HC Chats with Adrian M. Gibson about Jeff VanderMeer

On August 18, 2026

In HC Chats, JCM Berne, Miscellany, News/Misc., The Hybrid Helix

If you’ve been on Bookish Social Medial at all in the 6+ months, I’m willing to bet you’ve seen the name Adrian Gibson or at least the cover of Mushroom Blues. You may also know him from the podcast he hosts with M.J. Kuhn, SFF Addicts. Last week, Adrian was gracious enough to struggle with StreamYard (and it was in a mood) in order that we could sit down and talk about Jeff VanderMeer–an author that I’ve been intimidated to pick up and try, but who has been instrumental in Gibson’s career. I walked away excited to try VanderMeer, and I had a good time in general. I hope you watch this and walk away thinking the same.

As I said, StreamYard wasn’t happy, so the video freezes a couple of times on both of us, but the audio is fine.

Adrian M. Gibson Links:

Twitter ~ Instagram ~ Website ~ Newsletter ~ Amazon ~ Goodreads

Are you a Reader of Things and want to chat with me about an author/series/something other than promoting your own work (which we will do, just not primarily)? I’d love to keep trying this, but I’m not ready to start pestering people about it. So please let me know.

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Eyes of Empire by JCM Berne: Failing the Heck Out of His Whole Noninterference Plan (and others, too)

By HCNewton

On July 27, 2026

In Fiction, JCM Berne, Science Fiction, Self-Published Authors Appreciation Week, The Hybrid Helix

Eyes of Empire

by JCM Berne

DETAILS:
Series: Hybrid Helix, Turn 5
Publisher: The Gnost House
Publication Date: September 3, 2024
Format: Hardcover
Length: 399 pg.
Read Date: July 1-4, 2026

The native’s body was humanoid, but its head was catlike. Something like a tiger. Or a lion. Whiskers; eyes with black pupils and sclera of gold; white fur around the muzzle; long, sharp teeth. Definitely a carnivore.

Tiger? Lion? Liger? I’m fighting a liger-headed alien. My mother warned me I’d have days like this. Don’t leave Earth, she said. You’ll end up fighting liger-headed aliens on distant planets where they don’t even have breathable air or working totlets.

What’s Eyes of Empire About?

I feel very much like our friend Inigo: “Let me explain… No, there is too much. Let me sum up.” How Berne fit all this in to 399 pages without it feeling rushed or anything I don’t know.
bullet The station Repentant is acting stranger than usual…and that’s not good.
bullet The il’Drach Empire has wiped out most of the population of a planet—the refugees are on their way to Wistful, who doesn’t have enough room for them all—and some are in a very medically fragile state.
bullet While Ben and Marion try to deal with the immediate problems (keeping them alive), Rohan needs to find a place for them to live in the long-term
bullet Hyperion is mixed up in the wiping out of the planet, and Rohan just might have to do something about that.
bullet The il’Drach are checking to see if they need to do any more clean-up work in the area related to Hyperion.
bullet The Hybrid that decided to stick around on Wistful is having a hard time acclimating.
bullet Another wormhole opened up to another system with a couple of very funky planets. One of which supports life, and Rohan goes off to make first contact.
bullet That first contact is with a feline-human race, and first contact could’ve gone better. Which leads to Rohan having someone else to help acclimate to life on Wistful (and among more species than she believed existed in the universe)

Why did I pick this up? Why did I keep reading?

“The bad news, however, is about as bad as you could possibly imagine.”

“What? That’s impossible, I have a powerful imagination. It’s not as if you contaminated their culture and doomed the planet, right?”

Rohan shrugged.

Wei Li’s eyes widened. “Oh my.”

Ben frowned. “Really?”

Ang’s jaw dropped. “My Katya-le’s people?”

Rohan sighed. “I’m going to fix things. I will.

“I’m just not sure how.”

I picked it up because it’s a Hybrid Helix novel. I love these things. Yes, it took me too long to get back to it, because I was enforcing my “no moving on until you write about the previous book” rule—and I kept putting that one off. Now that I’ve read this, I’ve got the next book slotted for September (unless my August isn’t as crazy as I think it’ll be).

I kept reading for two reasons: 1. It’s a Hybrid Helix novel. I love these things. 2. What Berne is doing with Rohan in these pages—and setting him up to do for the next arc of the series—is fascinating. Also, the new characters/species/planets are so cool that I wanted to learn more about them. Lastly, I really enjoyed what Berne’s doing with our established secondary characters in general and how he’s mixing the new characters in with them.

Vaguely Spoiler-y Section Ahead, Feel Free to Skip to Next Section

Rohan’s Realizes That He’s Not John Rambo

(I’m referring the movie version, not the book version. Although, he’s clearly not that, either)

I just wanted a quiet life. Tow ships, drink tequila. Maybe find a girlfriend. Now people are trusting in me. Counting on me.

In every First Blood movie sequel, the beginning is the same—John Rambo has found somewhere quiet, away from society, where he can meditate, do some simple tasks as work, and live at peace. Something interrupts that (frequently, but not always, related to Col. Trautman) and he has to go shoot, stab, and manhandle whoever this particular movie’s enemy are.

This is really Rohan’s goal when we meet him, and it looks like it’s working (well, except for that in medias res opening to Wistful Ascending). And it’s continually his goal throughout the series. But things keep happening to interrupt that: a wormhole opens up and drops a new race on his doorstep and he has to work to keep them safe; giant monsters are coming out of the ocean to wreak havoc and destruction and he has to go help out; a nasty space vampire is running amok on Wistful and he needs to stop it; etc. It’s not quite as explodey as (and quite a bit more articulate than) Rambo’s adventures, but the outline is similar.

Each time Rohan intervenes, he takes on more and more responsibility for those around him. Unlike Rambo, who just leaves everyone else behind to get away from the world. Okay, I’m done talking about Rambo, let’s focus on Rohan.

At the same time, Rohan’s doing things to improve his power, to gain a better handle on it, so that he doesn’t have to tap into his anger (that will then be hard to control), to use it in combat-like situations.

He’s presented in this book with an opportunity—if not a responsibility—to choose another way. A way that means he won’t only be a tow-chief anymore. That he’ll embrace greater responsibility in the systems around Wistful (and connected to them by wormhole).

This really marks a step forward for the series and will set our Hybrid in a new direction for a while.

So, what did I think about Eyes of Empire?

Dr. Simivar poked at one of his still-open wounds. “Ouch.”

“Another hour in the tank and you’ll be ready to get dressed and walk around. If you can, try to avoid any significant exertion for another eight hours. Let someone else do the fighting for a while.”

“I’ll try. How will I know if I moved around too much, or too soon?”

She shrugged. “Check your feet.”

“My feet?”

“Yes. If there are puddles of blood gathering around them, you’ve done too much. Come back and we’ll get you stitched back together.”

While reading this, I remembered that I was close to the end of the first arc of the Hybrid Helix—but I wasn’t sure if that was this book or the next (and why bother looking that up when I could just keep reading?). In the last few chapters (maybe 50-100 pages) it sure felt like a conclusion of sorts was on the horizon, and even better—it felt earned, deserved, and organic. This isn’t a case of Berne deciding to change things up and forcing it on the series. Berne says this has been his plan all along, but Carlton Cuse and Damon Lindelof have rendered me incapable of trusting writers when they say things like that.

Anyway, it was a very satisfying way to take this book and series—I’m looking forward to seeing what the next arc looks like.

This is filled with all the trademark Berne flourishes—great action, great banter, interesting musical recommendations, crazy new alien creatures. Sure, the “cat people” are not that revolutionary—but their culture is (and Rohan’s misunderstanding of it was pretty amusing). And the fauna on their planet…ugh. I want to talk about it, but I don’t want to ruin anyone’s exposure to it. But they could be my favorite thing introduced in this series since we met the Ursans. I’ve been talking about the bigger arcs, and deeper things going on in the series for most of this post, but I shouldn’t neglect to say that this is just a fun read. Whatever else Berne does, that is preeminent in his books.

We also meet a disturbing new representative of the il’Drach Empire. Each time I think the Empire is as distasteful and horrible as it can be, Berne finds a new and interesting way to prove that I’m wrong. Okay, okay, they have their whole “for the greater good” justification—or really, “the lesser of two evils” justification. But, I’m not entirely certain that I buy it. I’m thinking there has to be a better way. Another way. I expect that within the next 17 books, we’re going to find out what that way is.

Really, there’s no reason (unless you’re following stupid self-imposed rules) to not grab this book if you’re into super-hero fiction, space opera, witty dialogue (internal or otherwise), and/or good fun.

Self-Published Authors Appreciation Week circle logo and the Irresponsible Reader Pilcrow in front of an open book

Image by OpenIcons from Pixabay
The 2026 Self-Published Authors Appreciation Week Logo was made by Witty and Sarcastic Book Club

Towel Day ’26: Scattered Thoughts about Reading The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy Trilogy

By HCNewton

On May 25, 2026

In A-B, Authors, Calendar Items, Douglas Adams, Fiction, News/Misc., Science Fiction, The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

(updated and revised this 5/25/26)

I’ve been trying for a few years now to come up with a tribute to Adams. This isn’t quite what I had in mind, but it’s a start. In my mind, this is a work in progress (a multiple-year project), but I’m posting it anyway. Next year’s version will be better—or at least more complete.

Some time in 7th or 8th grade (I believe), I was at a friend’s house, and his brother let us try his copy of the text-based Hitchhiker’s Guide game, and we were no good at it at all. Really, it was embarrassing. However, his brother had a copy of the first novel, and we all figured that the novel held the keys we needed for success with the game (alas, it did not help us one whit). My friends all decided that I’d be the one to read the book and come back in a few days as an expert.

I fell in love with the book almost instantly, and I quickly forgot about the game. Adams’ irreverent style rocked my world—could people actually get away with saying some of these things? His skewed take on the world, his style, his humor…and a depressed robot, too! It was truly love at first read. As I recall, I started re-reading it as soon as I finished it—the only time in my life I’ve done that sort of thing.

Also, I finally understood that song, “Marvin, I Love You,” that I kept hearing on Dr. Demento.

It was one of those experiences that, looking back, I can say shaped my reading and thinking for the rest of my life (make of that what you will). Were my life the subject of a Doctor Who or Legends of Tomorrow episode, it’d be one of those immutable fixed points. I got my hands on the next three books as quickly as I could (the idea of a four-volume trilogy was one of the funniest ideas I’d encountered up to that point in my life), and devoured them. I do know that I didn’t understand all of the humor, several of the references shot past me at the speed of light, and I couldn’t appreciate everything that was being satirized. But what I did understand, I thought was brilliant. Not only did I find it funny, the series taught me about comedy—how to construct a joke, how to twist it in ways a reader wouldn’t always expect, and when not to twist but to go for the obviously funny idea. The trilogy also helped me to learn to see the absurdity in life.

One of the big lessons that HHGTTG taught me was something I didn’t realize for quite some time- I noticed and talked about it, but I didn’t really realize what was going on. Whether in the game, the novel, the TV show, or the radio show (my local library getting those tapes was a revelation)–Adams took several key scenes and put them in different order, almost completely intact (although with some different jokes sometimes). Each time he did that, it was to play to the strength of the various media. I learned later that he did this for a couple of other versions, and then the movie. When it comes to story–you can keep the big items and play with them to get them to serve your aim, without doing any real damage to the core of your story/point. Like I said, it took a while for me to get the vocabulary to describe that–or to spend any time thinking about it beyond, “hey, that’s cool how he did that.” It’s just one of those things that stuck deep in my mind.

Outside of one family member–HHGTTG was my first exposure to an atheist. I mean, I knew they existed–the way I knew Australia existed. I’d read about it in books, maybe seen it on a TV show or something (hey, I was a kid from a small town in Southern Idaho in the 80s). But here was a guy wearing that on his sleeve–but he made a joke about it. Well, he made a few jokes–several by the end of the trilogy (including at least one that undercut them all). I didn’t threaten my young faith or rattle me, it was more of a “huh, so that’s what they’re like.” Nothing scary, just silly. I also have to say–again, sheltered kid from Idaho pre-Internet–that one of those jokes involved someone getting killed at a zebra crossing. It wasn’t until a few reads in that I started to wonder if that was actually a thing, and not another of his Adams’ jokes about a special road crossing for those particular animals. It was a learning experience for me in many ways.

Years later, when the final volume (by Adams) was released, I’d already cemented what I thought about the books from these frequent re-reads. I’m not sure that Mostly Harmless changed things much (except for making me think for the first time that maybe I didn’t want him to write more in this series). His non-Hitchhiker’s work illustrated that he was capable of making you see things in a new light–either with a smile or a sense of regret—even when he wasn’t writing the trilogy, even when he was writing non-fiction. It was never the setting or the genre—it was Adams.

But here on Towel Day—as with most of the time I talk about Adams (but I need to change that), it comes down to where I started—the Trilogy. I read the books (particularly the first) so many times that I can quote significant portions of them, and frequently do so without noticing that I’m doing that. I have (at this time) two literary-inspired tattoos, one of which is the planet logo* featured on the original US covers. In essence, I’m saying that Adams and the series that made him famous have had an outsized influence on my life and are probably my biggest enduring fandom. If carrying around a (massively useful) piece of cloth for a day in some small way honors his memory? Sure, I’m in.

So, Happy Towel Day, You Hoopy Froods.

* I didn’t know it at the time, but Adams didn’t like that guy. Whoops.

Towel Day ’26: Do You Know Where Your Towel Is?

By HCNewton

On May 25, 2026

In A-B, Authors, Calendar Items, Douglas Adams, Fiction, News/Misc., Science Fiction, The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

(updated and revised this 5/25/26)

The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy has a few things to say on the subject of towels.

A towel, it says, is about the most massively useful thing an interstellar hitchhiker can have. Partly it has great practical value. You can wrap it around you for warmth as you bound across the cold moons of Jaglan Beta; you can lie on it on the brilliant marble-sanded beaches of Santraginus V, inhaling the heady sea vapors; you can sleep under it beneath the stars which shine so redly on the desert world of Kakrafoon; use it to sail a miniraft down the slow heavy River Moth; wet it for use in hand-to-hand-combat; wrap it round your head to ward off noxious fumes or avoid the gaze of the Ravenous Bugblatter Beast of Traal (such a mind-bogglingly stupid animal, it assumes that if you can’t see it, it can’t see you); you can wave your towel in emergencies as a distress signal, and of course dry yourself off with it if it still seems to be clean enough.

More importantly, a towel has immense psychological value. For some reason, if a strag (strag: non-hitch hiker) discovers that a hitch hiker has his towel with him, he will automatically assume that he is also in possession of a toothbrush, face flannel, soap, tin of biscuits, flask, compass, map, ball of string, gnat spray, wet weather gear, space suit etc., etc. Furthermore, the strag will then happily lend the hitch hiker any of these or a dozen other items that the hitch hiker might accidentally have “lost”. What the strag will think is that any man who can hitch the length and breadth of the galaxy, rough it, slum it, struggle against terrible odds, win through, and still knows where his towel is is clearly a man to be reckoned with.

Hence a phrase that has passed into hitchhiking slang, as in “Hey, you sass that hoopy Ford Prefect? There’s a frood who really knows where his towel is.” (Sass: know, be aware of, meet, have sex with; hoopy: really together guy; frood: really amazingly together guy.)

Towel Day, for the few who don’t know, is the annual celebration of Douglas Adams’ life and work. It was first held two weeks after his death, fans were to carry a towel with them for the day to use as a talking point to encourage those who have never read HHGTTG to do so, or to just converse with someone about Adams. Adams is one of that handful of authors that I can’t imagine I’d be the same without having encountered/read/re-read/re-re-re-re-read, and so I do my best to pay a little tribute to him each year, even if it’s just carrying around a towel. TowelDay.org is the best collection of resources on the day.

In commemoration of this date, here’s most of what I’ve written about Adams. I’ve struggled to come up with new material to share for Towel Day over the years, mostly sticking with updating and revising existing posts. And, this year is no exception. A few years back, I did a re-read of all of Adams’ (completed) fiction. For reasons beyond my ken (or recollection), I didn’t get around to blogging about the Dirk Gently books, but I did do the Hitchhiker’s Trilogy:
The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy
The Restaurant at the End of the Universe
Life, The Universe and Everything
So Long, and Thanks For All The Fish
Mostly Harmless
I had a thing or two to say about the 40th Anniversary of The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy
I took a look at the 42nd Anniversary Illustrated Edition of The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy

I should also point to a posts I wrote about Douglas Adams’ London by Yvette Keller and 42: The Wildly Improbable Ideas of Douglas Adams edited by Kevin Jon Davies—both are great ways of filling out one’s understanding of Adams and his work. I have to mention the one book that Adams/Hitchhiker’s aficionado needs to read is Don’t Panic by Neil Gaiman, David K. Dickson and MJ Simpson.

If you’re more in the mood for a podcast, I’d suggest The Waterstones Podcast How We Made: The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy—I’ve listened to several podcast episodes about this book, and generally roll my eyes at them. But this is just fantastic. Were it available, I’d listen to a Peter Jackson-length version of the episode.

I’ve only been able to get one of my sons into Adams, he’s the taller, thinner one in the picture from a few several years ago.

I’m trying to pass this on to the next generation as well. Here’s his son, the Grand-critter, from 2 years ago:

You really need to check out this comic from Sheldon Comics—part of the Anatomy of Authors series: The Anatomy of Douglas Adams.

Lit in a Nutshell gives this quick explanation of The Hitchiiker’s Guide:

One of my favorite posts there is this pretty cool video, shot on the ISS by astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti.

Even better—here’s an appearance by Douglas Adams himself from the old Letterman show—I’m so glad someone preserved this:

Love the anecdote (Also, I want this tie.)

Out Law by Jim Butcher: A Brief Case Sheds New Light on Harry’s Past

By HCNewton

On May 12, 2026

In A-B, Fiction, Harry Dresden, Jim Butcher, Urban Fantasy

Out Law

by Jim Butcher

DETAILS:
Series: The Dresden Files, #18.75
Publisher: Podium Publishing
Publication Date: May 05, 2026
Format: Paperback
Length: 194 pg.
Read Date: May 5, 2026

Marcone is an asshole.

And I was furious.

But some part of me realized that I would not have been so angry if he didn’t have a point in there somewhere. And I was past the point in my life where I would let my anger direct my reactions.

You know. Mostly.

What’s Out Law About?

Shortly after Twelve Months (or parallel to the last chapter or so), Johnny Marcone shows up at Dresden’s castle to call in a favor. He wants Dresden to help one of his “employees” to go straight.

Dresden knows it can’t be that easy—Marcone isn’t going to square their debts for honorable reasons (he wouldn’t believe that before the revelation in Battle Ground, and there’s no way he will believe that now). But it seems that this man is sincere in his desire to live a “straight” life, and Harry’s not going to walk away from someone trying to turn over a new leaf.

So…Harry’s in, and finds ways to help extricate this man on legal, criminal, and magical fronts. While keeping an eye open for clue’s into Marcone’s real motivation.

So, what did I think about Out Law?

“Kid, there’s plenty of evil out there. No-kidding, black-hat, malicious-as-Maleficent evil. You don’t run into it every day. Most people can’t get there. Most people don’t run into it in a lifetime. But it’s real, and there’s no mistaking it when you find it. Whatever this Creature was, it was the genuine article. I mean, it hit a dog and everything.”

At this point, it’d take a real dud for me to complain about a Butcher novella—I think that’s clear. But I’m not seeing a lot to quibble with here regardless.

This is a direct sequel to The Law, featuring many characters from it. It also feeds into the overall arc of the series—particularly to Changes. For that alone, it’s worth the read. Seeing Felix and Bear in action again helps solidify them in the series post-Twelve Months (we even get a glimpse of the Spice Goyles).

It was satisfying—some good lines, some great actions, and a solid conclusion. Not much more to ask for from a novella. Fans will not want to pass this up.

This post contains an affiliate link. If you purchase from it, I will get a small commission at no additional cost to you. As always, the opinions expressed are my own.
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PUB DAY REPOST: Paranormal Payback edited by Jim Butcher and Kerrie L. Hughes: Revenge and Magic

By HCNewton

On April 14, 2026

In Harry Dresden, Jane Yellowrock/Soulwood, Jim Butcher, The Hollows (Rachel Morgan), Urban Fantasy

Paranormal Payback

by Jim Butcher and Kerrie L. Hughes

DETAILS:
Publisher: Ace
Publication Date: April 14, 2026
Format: eARC
Length: 352 pg.
Read Date: April 1-8, 2026

What’s Paranormal Payback?

This is a collection of twelve Urban Fantasy short stories revolving around the idea of revenge.

I’m not sure what else to say, honestly—after a pair of great introductions by the editors (I mean, really—can we get a collection of essays from Butcher?), we dive in with a Goodman Gray story by Jim Butcher. And boy—did I have fun with that. I don’t want to distract Butcher from The Cinder Spires or The Dresden Files, but man, I’d love a handful of novels featuring this character.

From there, we get stories of witches (of several varieties), ghosts, vampires, ghosts and witches, talking donkeys, and more.

So, what did I think about Paranormal Payback?

Without going into each story—which I briefly considered—it’s hard to really talk about this book in any sort of depth.

This is the second collection from these editors that featured a story from R.R. Virdi’s The Grave Report series—and now I know that I need to read more. I’m curious enough to track down Isla Jewell’s romcom series. Tanya Huff, Faith Hunter, Jennifer Blackstream, and Kevin Hearne all brought their A-game.

The only story that didn’t work for me was from Kim Harrison. But that’s just me—most readers will be fine with it. It’s a prologue to a story arc from her Hollows series that I utterly didn’t care of (and frankly was annoyed by more than I was left ambivalent), so it was almost impossible for her to entertain me with. I did understand that motive for the revenge story here—and found it amusing—but that was it.

But Maurice Broaddus’ “Black Bond” was the star of this batch. You’ve got a tale of friendship, social commentary (sadly needed), and ghosts. There’s some fun to it—and plenty that’s not fun. I want to keep talking about it, but I don’t want to ruin it for you.

Not a disappointment in the bunch (unless you go in with a prejudice like I did). Urban Fantasy readers are sure to have a good time—especially if you’re a fan of the authors/series involved. If not? You may find a new author or series or three to follow.

Disclaimer: I received this eARC from Berkley Publishing Group via NetGalley in exchange for this post, which contains my honest opinion—thanks to both for this.

Paranormal Payback edited by Jim Butcher and Kerrie L. Hughes: Revenge and Magic

By HCNewton

On April 13, 2026

In Harry Dresden, Jane Yellowrock/Soulwood, Jim Butcher, The Hollows (Rachel Morgan), Urban Fantasy

Paranormal Payback

by Jim Butcher and Kerrie L. Hughes

DETAILS:
Publisher: Ace
Publication Date: April 14, 2026
Format: eARC
Length: 352 pg.
Read Date: April 1-8, 2026

What’s Paranormal Payback?

This is a collection of twelve Urban Fantasy short stories revolving around the idea of revenge.

From there, we get stories of witches (of several varieties), ghosts, vampires, ghosts and witches, talking donkeys, and more.

So, what did I think about Paranormal Payback?

Without going into each story—which I briefly considered—it’s hard to really talk about this book in any sort of depth.

Disclaimer: I received this eARC from Berkley Publishing Group via NetGalley in exchange for this post, which contains my honest opinion—thanks to both for this.

REPOSTING JUST CUZ: Heroic Hearts ed. by Jim Butcher and Kerrie L. Hughes: Street-wise Herculeses to fight the rising odds

By HCNewton

On April 10, 2026

In Alpha & Omega, Fiction, Harry Dresden, Iron Druid Chronicles, Jim Butcher, Kevin Hearne, Patricia Briggs, Urban Fantasy

Heroic Hearts

edited by Jim Butcher and Kerrie Huges

DETAILS:
Publisher: Ace
Publication Date: May 3, 2022
Format: Paperback
Length: 345 pg.
Read Date: May 18-19, 2022

Heroes have fascinated humanity since we started telling stories. They became even more fascinating when we started writing the stories down—and achieved the status previously reserved for pantheons of deities when we started putting them on the big screen. Heroes have become big business.

But heroes, real heroes, aren’t titans or icons.

Real heroes are standing behind cash registers, starting cold trucks, getting kids out of bed. They’re the everyday humans who happen to be standing there when something bad happens, and when there is a sudden need for skill, courage, or intelligence. They’re the regular people in irregular circumstances who find themselves considering others first and standing up to do whatever needs to be done.

What’s Heroic Hearts About?

In her Foreword, Kellie Hughes describes this as

a collection of hopeful stories about courage, bravery, codes to live by, and people you can trust.

Who doesn’t love a hero story? Here we have twelve stories from a dozen UF authors all approaching this idea in their own distinctive ways. Some are stand-alones, some are parts of a series.

Authors I’m Not That Familiar With (if at all)

It’s the rare anthology that will be full of only authors you know well—half the point of one of these is to be exposed to someone new so you can decide if you want to read more by them.

Charlaine Harris wrote the only story I didn’t appreciate in this collection, I just couldn’t get into it. That’s likely something to do with my mood/what I ate today/something else. Most days, I simply wouldn’t have cared—I don’t think it’s in me to really like this one.

I thought the rest of the stories were entertaining and well-executed, but a few are going to get me to keep an eye out for authors/series. Chloe Neill’s “Silverspell” tempted me to check out the rest of that series, these are characters and a world I could spend more time with. Jennifer Brozek’s “The Necessity of Pragmatic Magic” was great—ditto for “Grave Gambles” by R.R. Virdi.

“Troll Life” by Hughes was just wonderful. It’s everything you want in a short story—we’re given a well-developed world, a handful of strong and interesting characters, a good plot, and it just made me smile throughout.

Authors I’m Very Familiar With

Kevin Hearne, Patricia Briggs, and Jim Butcher are what brought me to this collection. I’ve read everything I can by them, so that’s not surprising, right?

We meet up with Atticus, Starbuck, and Oberon in Australia, looking into the cause of a massive forest fire, in “Fire Hazard.” It’s told from Oberon’s point of view, which makes it a sure-fire win. I’ll read just about anything in Oberon’s voice—and this story demonstrates why. It’s funny and action-packed. Some of the best lines in the book are in this story, too.

I wasn’t that interested in “Dating Terrors,” by Patricia Briggs based on the idea. “Asil on a blind date” just doesn’t draw me in—sure, I’m curious about Asil’s activities, so I wanted to read it. But the concept didn’t grab me. That lasted only a few pages—now I want to see more about Asil’s date and her friends. Preferably with Asil around, but that’s not necessary. I should’ve known Briggs would hook me by the end, and come into it with better expectations.

This brings us to the story the book opens with (but I saved until the end), Jim Butcher’s “Little Things.” This happens days after Battle Ground, as the city (and its wizard defender) is trying to recover from those events. The “Little Things” this story focused on are Major General Toot-Toot Minimus, his forces, Lacuna, and Mister. When a threat to the castle slips by the guards and other defenses, these heroes have to rise to the challenge. It’s deceptively fun, light, and breezy. But it’s Butcher, you know he won’t let you off that easy. Dresden in the shadow of Battle Ground? The emotional core of this story isn’t small. The story made my day…I’ve got nothing negative to say about it.

So, what did I think about Heroic Hearts?

This is a strong collection of Urban Fantasy stories, with a little something for everyone. Anything I didn’t mention above was fine—they’re all written well, but some characters/stories aren’t for everyone, and that would describe the few I didn’t talk about. Every story was worth the time (except for that thing by Harris, I just didn’t see why that was written—and I wouldn’t be shocked to hear that most readers of the book will think I’m nuts for that).

This probably would’ve gotten a warm 3 Stars from me, if not for the Briggs and Butcher stories. I enjoyed almost all of these stories, and really only disliked one. But wow, those two were just outstanding. Nothing that made me as happy as those two did is going to get less than 4.

Even if you’re new to the genre or are only a fan of one or two of the authors, I expect you’ll find yourself enjoying most, if not all, of the book. Pick it up.

4 Stars

This post contains an affiliate link. If you purchase from it, I will get a small commission at no additional cost to you. As always, opinions expressed are my own.

REPOSTING JUST CUZ: Shadowed Souls edited by Jim Butcher, Kerrie L. Hughes

By HCNewton

On April 10, 2026

In Harry Dresden, Jim Butcher

Shadowed Souls

edited by Jim Butcher, Kerrie L. Hughes
Series: The Dresden Files, #14.5; InCryptid, #531; Simon Canderous, #0.5 (I’m guessing) ; and some others that I don’t have a tag for right now
Paperback, 330 pg.
Roc, 2016
Read: January 10, 2017

This is a collection of stories

based on the idea that good and evil are just two aspects of a complicated and very human story . . . [with plots that] play with the concept and invite the reader to explore the edges of their own darkness.

Eleven of the best Urban Fantasy authors working today contributed to this book, each bringing their worlds to life from that basis.

I’m not going to talk about each story, just about those from authors I talk a lot about here — I don’t have the time and energy to talk about Kevin J. Anderson, Kat Richardson, Tanya Huff or the others. If for no other reason, I feel like I should read more of these series/characters/authors before talking about them — many of whom are on my “Try Out Sometime” list.

We, like the book, have to start with “Cold Case” by Jim Butcher. Harry’s former apprentice, Molly, gets to shine in this story. This is one of her first tasks in her new role as Winter Lady — in Alaska, fittingly enough. There’s a large amount of on-the-job training going on for her — more than she bargains for, really. We also get to spend some time with Warden Carlos Martinez — been too long since we saw him. Perfect mix of action, humor and atmosphere — we also get a good idea what’s in store for poor ol’ Molly.

We got to meet another member of the Price family in Seanan McGuire’s “Sleepover”. Elsie Harrington is a half-succubus cousin to Verity, Alex and Antimony. Their presence is felt in the story, but other than a couple of name-drops, they don’t factor into things, it’s just in that series’ universe. Elsie’s watching Antimony in a roller derby match and finds herself kidnapped. Not for any nefarious reasons — just because some people needed her help and are bad at asking for favors. Elsie has a very Price-like voice and outlook on life, but she’s got her own way of doing things. I really enjoyed this — even if the ending felt abrupt.

Anton Strout got to revisit the series that gave him his start in “Solus,” which featured Simon Canderous as a rookie DEA Agent dealing with a haunted house. His partner/mentor, Connor Christos, has almost no use for him at this point and seems to have no interest at all in working with him/training him. Maybe I’m not remembering the character as clearly as I thought, but I thought I liked him as a person more. Still, this was early enough in the relationship that it was probably the right way to deal with it. Other than happening before I was ready for it, I really enjoyed the conclusion of this story. In short, “Solus” was good, it reminded me why I liked the series and why I miss it.

My one complaint about all these stories (save for “Cold Case”), was that they were too short. It’s not just Strout and McGuire. In all the stories, just as things started to get going, they resolved. I’m not saying I wanted a collection of novellas, but another 5-10 pages each, maybe?

Yeah, like all collections, you’re going to get some that just don’t work for a particular reader, and others that are going to get a reader pumped – and maybe one that’ll make you wonder why you bothered. Your lists of each will be different from mine — but there’ll be more than enough of the good ones to make it worth your while. You may even find a new series/author to check out.

—–

3 Stars

2017 Library Love Challenge

A Few Scattered Thoughts on Twelve Months by Jim Butcher from an Unabashed Fanboy

By HCNewton

On March 18, 2026

In A-B, Fiction, Harry Dresden, Jim Butcher, Urban Fantasy

Twelve Months

by Jim Butcher

DETAILS:
Series: The Dresden Files, #18
Publisher: Ace
Publication Date: January 20, 2026
Format: Hardcover
Length: 463 pg.
Read Date: January 20-22, 2026

So at this point, if you haven’t read Twelve Months, there are only a few reasons to explain it: You’re not a Harry Dresden fan; You’re a new Harry Dresden fan and haven’t gotten far enough yet; You’re still on a library wait list; you’re waiting for the paperback and are trying to avoid spoilers. If any of those are true, I’m not going to convince you to read it. And I’m okay with that. I still want to talk about it some. Spoilers for everything before this book.

If I tried to write a full post about this book, I wouldn’t finish. There’s just too much to say, so I’m going to fall back to one of my bullet point lists of things that I’d like to fully develop, but I know that I can’t. I’m most likely missing 6-12 things from this, too. I really have so much I want to talk about when it comes to this book. I just loved the whole experience I had with it.

bullet The book focuses on a grieving Harry—not just grieving Murph. But for all the damage, death, and destruction wreaked on Chicago. Also, the…you know, everything that’s happened in the 17 books before this. It’s raw, it hits you hard. And it is just what this series needed.
bullet This novel also gives a lot of the fans who are still trying to deal with Karrin’s death with the chance to do so with help from Harry. I still don’t want to think of the next few books being Murphy-free, but I’m better about it now.
bullet I didn’t expect to see Fitz return from Ghost Story. When I re-read or listen to Ghost Story, I enjoy him and wonder what happens to him after it—but I promptly forget him. Now that he’s back for the long haul, I’m more than happy to see that. Watching the way that Harry is working with him in ways he didn’t with Molly is interesting—a good sign of character growth (also just a reflection that Molly and Fitz are different).
bullet We got far, far more new characters to the series than I expected. Especially characters that look like they’re going to be around for a while. Better than the number is the quality of the characters.
bullet Of those, my favorite has to be the Valkyrie, Bear. She’s a mighty warrior. She’s wise and oddly emotionally aware. And she’s just fun. I can’t wait to see her and Thomas go into action side-by-side. It’s going to be fun.
bullet I should say something about how powerful the depiction of grief and (the beginnings of) dealing with it were.
bullet Yes, the new characters were great. But the established ones? Even better—Bob, Waldo, Mouse, Sanya, even Daniel Carpenter…I’d missed these guys (yeah, I just finished going through the series again a couple of months ago—but still, I’d missed them). And Will? Will should get a post unto himself.
bullet I’ve long enjoyed Lara as a semi-antagonist, a mostly-trustworthy ally (when they’re forced to work together), but now? I’m on the verge of actually liking her as a character. I’m a little uncomfortable with that. I also trust that I’ll get over that.
bullet I didn’t expect we’d learn so much about the origin of the White Court—and I really didn’t expect it to be anything like what it was.
bullet Part of me feels that the Thomas story arc in this book (and going back to Peace Talks) might have been a little too easy. I don’t know if I could defend that point outside of bullet points like this, but that’s my gut.
bullet I should say something more about how powerful the depiction of grief and (the beginnings of) dealing with it were.
bullet Everything with Maggie just melted my heart. I love this girl like she’s real.
bullet Everything with Molly was almost as good—there was no way to predict that Harry’s padawan would end up anything like she did (so far). I would’ve liked to see her involved some more in Harry’s adventures, but I see how that’s not possible all the time (and might make things less of a challenge for him, so it’s good that she’s not)
bullet There’s a major scene where Harry does some of the biggest and most complicated magic we’ve seen in this series—and wow. Butcher nailed that so well.
bullet In that aftermath, the way that Mab and Mother Winter interact with each other and with Harry? I got chills.
bullet I really want to stress how powerful the depiction of grief and (the beginnings of) dealing with it were.
bullet That said, I laughed a lot and hard throughout this book (right before or right after I got choked up, usually). I cheered so hard at things, too.

Simply put, this is the best thing that Butcher has written. I mean, I’ve spent almost two decades expecting to love a Jim Butcher novel (and have only been let down twice), but Twelve Months has impacted me in ways I didn’t expect. I’m just beyond impressed with this.