Author: Joseph Pietris

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Epeolatry Book Review: The Parliament by Aimee Pokwatka

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​Title: The Parliament
Author: Aimee Pokwatka
Genre: Horror
Publisher: Tordotcom
Date: 16th January, 2024

Synopsis: The Birds meets The Princess Bride in this tale of friendship, responsibility, and the primal force of nature.
“Murder owls are extreme,” Jude said. “What’s more extreme than murder owls?”
Madigan Purdy is stuck in her hometown library.
When tens of thousands of owls descend on the building, rending and tearing at anyone foolish enough to step outside, Mad is tasked with keeping her students safe, and distracted, while they seek a solution to their dilemma.
Perhaps they’ll find the inspiration they seek in her favorite childhood book, The Silent Queen….
With food and fresh water in low supply, the denizens of the library will have to find a way out, and soon, but the owls don’t seem to be in a hurry to leave…
The Parliament is a story of grief and missed opportunities, but also of courage and hope.
And of extremely sharp beaks.
At the Publisher’s request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.

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Epeolatry Book Review: Madness from the Sea: The Dreamlands by Jonathon T. Cross

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​Title: Madness from the Sea: The Dreamlands
Author: Jonathon T Cross
Genre: Occult Horror
Publisher: Independent
Date: 6th September, 2024

Synopsis: Finn came of age knowing nothing of the world that once was. Cthulhu was released prior to Finn’s birth, and madness has since loomed over humanity. 
Although Cthulhu never left R’lyeh, his call continues to lure victims by the boatload.
On every continent, societies prepare their young against Cthulhu’s telepathic reach. Teaching them to resist the allure of R’lyeh, lest they be swayed to their doom.
Bad dreams and monsters under the bed are no longer scoffed at, they are active threats to humanity’s survival.
No one is exempt, no location is beyond reach, not even the depths of one’s mind are off-limits.
The frailty of humankind has never been on grander display.

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Epeolatry Book Review: The Songbird & the Heart of Stone by Carissa Broadbent

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​Title: The Songbird & the Heart of Stone
Author: Carissa Broadbent
Genre: Fantasy
Publisher: Bramble
Date: 19th November, 2024

Synopsis: Mische lost everything when she was forcibly Turned into a vampire–her home, her humanity, and most devastating of all, the love of the sun god to whom she had devoted her life. Now, sentenced to death for murdering the vampire prince who Turned her, redemption feels impossible.

But when Mische is saved by Asar, the bastard prince of the House of Shadow with a past as brutal as his scars, she’s forced into a mission worse than execution: a journey to the underworld to resurrect the god of death himself.

Yet, Mische’s punishment may be the key to her salvation. In a secret meeting, her sun god commands her to help Asar in his mission, only to betray him… by killing the god of death.

Mische and Asar must travel the treacherous path to the underworld, facing trials, beasts, and the vengeful ghosts of their pasts. But most dangerous of all is the alluring call of the darkness–and her forbidden attraction to Asar, a burgeoning bond that risks invoking the wrath of gods.

As her betrayal looms, the underworld closes in and angry gods grow restless. Mische will be forced to choose between the redemption of the sun or the damnation of the darkness.

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Epeolatry Book Review: Consequential by T.C. Parker

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Our reviews may contain affiliate links. If you purchase something through the links in this article we may receive a small commission or referral fee. This happens without any additional cost to you.

Title: Consequential
Author: T.C. Parker
Genre: Fantasy Mystery
Publisher: Nefarious Bat Press
Publication Date: 7th October, 2024
Synopsis: Fresh from her recent foray into crime-solving, demonic fallen god (and would-be detective) Sunny is back from Coventry – with a debt still owed to the murderous ghost of Lady Godiva, and now a giant mythical pig in need of babysitting on her to-do list.
What she needs, more than anything, is a nice hot bath and an episode of Poirot.
Fate, unfortunately, has other plans. As does her newest human ally, Jonas.
Plans that will lead Sunny down a conspiracy-riddled rabbit-hole of murder, mutilation and moral philosophy – and give her a brand-new reason to dust off her fedora and go chasing after the perp…

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Epeolatry Book Review: The Thirteenth Child by Erin A. Craig

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Title: The Thirteenth Child
Author: Erin A. Craig
Genre: YA Dark Fantasy
Publisher: Delacorte Press
Publication Date: 24th September, 2024

Synopsis:Hazel Trépas has always known she wasn’t like the rest of her siblings. A thirteenth child, promised away to one of the gods, she spends her childhood waiting for her godfather—Merrick, the Dreaded End—to arrive.
When he does, he lays out exactly how he’s planned Hazel’s future. She will become a great healer, known throughout the kingdom for her precision and skill. To aid her endeavors, Merrick blesses Hazel with a gift, the ability to instantly deduce the exact cure needed to treat the sick.
But all gifts come with a price. Hazel can see when Death has claimed a patient—when all hope is gone—and is tasked to end their suffering, permanently. Haunted by the ghosts of those she’s killed, Hazel longs to run. But destiny brings her to the royal court, where she meets Leo, a rakish prince with a disdain for everything and everyone. And it’s where Hazel faces her biggest dilemma yet—to save the life of a king marked to die. Hazel knows what she is meant to do and knows what her heart is urging her toward, but what will happen if she goes against the will of Death?
From the astonishing mind of Erin A. Craig comes the breathtaking fairy tale retelling readers have been waiting for— what does a life well-lived mean, and how do we justify the impossible choices we make for the ones we love? The Thirteenth Child is a must-read for fans of dark fairy tales, romantasy, and epic fantasy alike.

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Epeolatry Book Review: Asunder by Kerstin Hall

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Title: Asunder
Author: Kerstin Hall
Genre: fantasy
Publisher: tordotcom
Publication Date: 20th August, 2024

Synopsis: Karys Eska is a deathspeaker, locked into an irrevocable compact with Sabaster, a terrifying eldritch being―three-faced, hundred-winged, unforgiving―who has granted her the ability to communicate with the newly departed. She pays the rent by using her abilities to investigate suspicious deaths around the troubled city she calls home. When a job goes sideways and connects her to a dying stranger with some very dangerous secrets, her entire world is upended.

Ferain is willing to pay a ludicrous sum of money for her help. To save him, Karys inadvertently binds him to her shadow, an act that may doom them both. If they want to survive, they will need to learn to trust one another. Together, they must journey to the heart of a faded empire, all the while haunted by arcane horrors, and the unquiet ghosts of their pasts.

And all too soon, Karys knows her debts will come due.

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Epeolatry Book Review: Once More Round the Sun by Dave Musson

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Title: Once More Round the Sun: A Year of Dark Stories
Author: Dave Musson
Genre: horror
Publisher: Always Darkest Media
Publication Date: 13th August, 2024

Synopsis: Welcome to Kingsworth, why not stay a while?
The sleepy Warwickshire town of Kingsworth in the middle of England is, without doubt, a nice place to visit. There’s a castle, great schools, and lots of green space to enjoy.
But, like most nice places to visit, if you scratch the surface, you’ll find something a little darker. You know the kind of thing; unsettling stories that locals love to tell outsiders with the sole purpose of getting under their skin. Kingsworth is no different…there’s plenty to discover among its streets and homes that the local tourist board wouldn’t want you to hear about.
Whether it’s the mystery of the supernatural podcaster who vanished without a trace, the tragic tale of the local girl who got lost in the woods one Halloween, or the horrible fate that was waiting for a widow who just wanted to visit her husband’s grave, there’s more to Kingsworth than meets the eye. Oh, and what exactly happened to all those preschoolers that chilly afternoon?
Come along to Kingsworth and find out for yourself. In fact, why not spend a year here? There’s lots for you to uncover, a story for every month of the year in act, so join your tour guide Dave Musson and go Once More Round the Sun with him.

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Epeolatry Book Review: Unexploded Remnants by Elaine Gallagher

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Title: Unexploded Remnants
Author: Elaine Gallagher
Genre: Sci-fi, Sci-fi Adventure
Publisher: Tordotcom
Publication Date: 25th June, 2024

Synopsis: An A.I. wages war on a future it doesn’t understand.
Alice is the last human. Street-smart and bad-ass.
After discovering what appears to be an A.I. personality in an antique data core, Alice decides to locate its home somewhere in the stargate network. At the very least, she wants to lay him to rest because, as it turns out, she’s stumbled upon the sentient control unit of a deadly ancient weapon system.
Convincing the ghost of a raging warrior that the war is over is about as hard as it sounds, which is to say, it’s near-impossible. But, if Alice fails and the control unit falls into the wrong hands, the balance of power her side of the Milky Way could fall apart. As Alice ports throughout the known universe seeking answers and aid she will be faced with impossible choice after impossible choice and the growing might of an unstoppable foe.

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