Me on Taproot

Title: Taproot
Author: Keezy Young
Release Date: September 26, 2017
Publisher: Lion Forge

Blue is having a hard time moving on. He's in love with his best friend. He's also dead. Luckily, Hamal can see ghosts, leaving Blue free to haunt him to his heart's content. But something eerie is happening in town, leaving the local afterlife unsettled, and when Blue realizes Hamal's strange ability may be putting him in danger, Blue has to find a way to protect him, even if it means... leaving him.

Taproot is a sweet and sad story about two people, one a ghost caught in-between life and death and one a friendly gardener. Both have secrets, but only one could spell disaster.

Blue is a ghost, which makes things a little hard, but it's all good for the most part. He can still wander around through town, and there are other ghosts he can talk to and hang out with. There's lots of opportunities for people watching. And there's Hamal, who strangely enough can see ghosts. So it's not too lonely. But it's not the same. Because he can't touch anything. And there are rumours going around about a creepy dead forest pulling some of the local ghosts to it. Hamal works in a flower shop. He's a helpful and friendly guy, maybe a little shy at times, and he loves his job. And he can see ghosts, which is something he's been able to do since he was a kid so they don't scare him. They can actually be rather friendly. Like Blue. He likes spending time with Blue, but sometimes things can get awkward. As close as they are, Blue's still dead. Maybe it's time for Hamal to make more friends. Alive friends.

I rather enjoy Young's art style here. The different buildings that make up the city. The different characters, the wide range of skin colours and body types. The colours fit well with the story, lots of greens and blues, and then the lack of colour in the strange forest, just black and grey and white. I also liked their facial expressions, Hamal's curious face and Blue's big smile.

I remember reading this as a webcomic, so I'm happy to see it published and expanded at the end (from what I remember). It's a sweet story about friendship and death, about secrets and how we want to both keep them to ourselves and say them out loud before we burst. Because sometimes we wait too long before saying something important to someone we care about. I would recommend this to readers looking for more standalone graphic novels with older protagonists, those in their teens or 20's and later.

(I downloaded an e-galley of this title from Lion Forge through NetGalley.)

Me on This Week's Book Week (282)

This Week's Book Week is rather similar to Stacking the Shelves hosted by Tynga's Reviews only with far more rambling and a less witty title. ;)

Hi all! It'm crossing my fingers that the brisk fall weather will hold out, that the rain will stay away for longer.

Sorry about the lack of rambling and pics this week. Maybe net week! :)

Reviews going up this week will feature Taproot by Keezy Young (Tuesday) and Last Star Burning by Caitlin Sangster (Friday). :)

Bought/borrowed/received:
The Cruel Prince by Holly Black (e-galley)
The Fallen Kingdom by Elizabeth May (borrowed from the library)

Me on The Tea Dragon Society

Title: The Tea Dragon Society
Author/artist: Katie O'Neill
Release Date: October 18, 2017
Publisher: Oni Press

After discovering a lost tea dragon in the marketplace, Greta learns about the dying art form of tea dragon care-taking from the kind tea shop owners, Hesekiel and Erik. As she befriends them and their shy ward, Minette, Greta sees how the craft enriches their lives—and eventually her own.

The Tea Dragon Society is all kinds of sweetness and whimsy. It's a kind, gentle story about a young girl discovering an almost lost art and the new friends it brings her while also wondering about her own future.

Greta is a sweet and friendly girl, following her mother's footsteps and training under her to become a blacksmith. But are those skills really useful anymore? Adventurers and magicians are becoming things of the past, and Greta's feeling unsure. While she is interested, while she wants to continue, she wonders if it's okay to keep blacksmithing if so few have any use of what she could create. But then one day she discovers a bullied and scared tea dragon in town.

The artwork is wonderful, a little similar to O'Neill's previous graphic novel Princess Princess but different enough that it holds its own. The mixture of bright and pastel colours, the near-constant appearance of vines and flowers in the backgrounds. The big smile of Greta's, along with that charming little fang. The waterfall-like flow of Minette's hair, as dreamy as her own expression when she struggles to remember. The different body types of the tea dragons, from long and slim Jasmine to plump and drowsy Chamomile. And the different body types of the characters, from Greta's mom being so tall and sort of muscular to Erik, battered and scarred from years of adventuring, moving around in a wheelchair.

An overall message or theme here is that, with Greta's blacksmithing apprenticeship and the art of making tea from tea dragons, history and knowledge is something to be cherished, to be continued as the world becomes more modern. There is still something to learn by heating metal in fire, by striking it with a hammer. Something to learn in taking it slow, in memories good and bad. There's still magic in old things, in slowly creating and nurturing. And there's so much diversity in this book, different races and body types and sexuality. This feels very much like the beginning of something, and I so hope that there will be more from O'Neill set in this enchanting fantasy world of tea dragons. It's definitely something I would recommend to all ages, especially kids looking for something kind and magical.

(I downloaded an e-galley of this title from Oni Press through NetGalley.)

Blog Tour: Timekeeper

Hello there! Welcome to today's tour stop for the paperback release of Tara Sim's wonderful Timekeeper!

Title: Timekeeper
Author: Tara Sim
Release Date: October 31, 2017 (paperback copy)
Publisher: Sky Pony Press
Canadian distributor: Thomas Allen & Son

Two o'clock was missing.

In an alternate Victorian world controlled by clock towers, a damaged clock can fracture time—and a destroyed one can stop it completely.

It's a truth that seventeen-year-old clock mechanic Danny Hart knows all too well; his father has been trapped in a Stopped town east of London for three years. Though Danny is a prodigy who can repair not only clockwork, but the very fabric of time, his fixation with staging a rescue is quickly becoming a concern to his superiors.

And so they assign him to Enfield, a town where the tower seems to be forever plagued with problems. Danny's new apprentice both annoys and intrigues him, and though the boy is eager to work, he maintains a secretive distance. Danny soon discovers why: he is the tower's clock spirit, a mythical being that oversees Enfield's time. Though the boys are drawn together by their loneliness, Danny knows falling in love with a clock spirit is forbidden, and means risking everything he's fought to achieve.

But when a series of bombings at nearby towers threaten to Stop more cities, Danny must race to prevent Enfield from becoming the next target or he'll not only lose his father, but the boy he loves, forever.

The stunning first novel in a new trilogy by debut author Tara Sim, Timekeeper is perfect for fans of Cassandra Clare and Victoria Schwab.

Get Your Copy Today! Indigo - Amazon.ca - Amazon.com

As this is a tour for Timekeeper's paperback release, it's a good chance to remember some of the nice things I said last year when the hardcover came out. For those interested, the full review can be found here.

Timekeeper is intriguing, enthralling, mysterious, and more than a little somber. It's a story about lonely souls and missing hours, of hope and love and selfishness... I was intrigued by the world-building here, by the need for advancement in clock mechanisms because of the changes to time. Because of time being something slightly tangible, something that can be reined in and controlled... I also liked how the author altered other parts of history, like this world's views of homosexuality. Danny isn't ridiculed or hated, but it's the default of most he comes across that, when they ask if he's seeing anyone, they assume he'd date a girl... As I read this I was struck by a sweet, melancholy tone that carried me along, rising and falling as Danny worked on the clock tower in Enfield and uncovered more and more behind the bombings and the Stopped towns. At times I chuckled and at times I wanted to cry. There were some interesting pokes and prods at a deeper mystery going on, one Danny brushes up against near the end, so I'm curious as to where the second book will go and what will be revealed.

To celebrate Timekeeper's paperback release, here's an excerpt from the eagerly anticipated (and not just by me!) sequel, Chainbreaker!

Daphne remained silent. She was painfully aware of standing between these two men—two sides of a war, two sides of her birth. There was a strangeness to her skin just then, as if it weren’t actually hers. She wanted to scratch at it, see if it would flake off and reveal something truer. Something in-between, something like a mark, that would determine what to say, what to think, what she was.

Also to celebrate, Thomas Allen & Son is holding a giveaway, the prize being a paperback copy of Timekeeper! Quick note that this giveaway is Canada only and ends on October 31. The full rules can be found in the widget.

Click here to enter!

Tara Sim can typically be found wandering the wilds of the Bay Area in California. When she’s not
chasing cats or lurking in bookstores, she writes books about magic, clocks, and explosives. Timekeeper is her debut novel. Follow her on Twitter at @EachStarAWorld, and check out her website for fun Timekeeper extras!

Tara's website - Twitter - Facebook - Instagram - Goodreads

Thanks so so much to Thomas Allen & Son for arranging the blog tour and the giveaway. And thank you so much to Tara Sim for the sweetness that is Danny and Colton and Timekeeper. :)

Me on Waiting on Wednesday (352)

Waiting on Wednesday is a bunch of weekly fun hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine. :)

Title: The Radical Element
Editor: Jessica Spotswood
Release Date: March 13, 2018
Publisher: Candlewick Press

From Goodreads:

In an anthology of revolution and resistance, a sisterhood of YA writers shines a light on a century and a half of heroines on the margins and in the intersections.

To respect yourself, to love yourself—should not have to be a radical decision. And yet it remains as challenging for an American girl to make today as it was in 1927 on the steps of the Supreme Court. It's a decision that must be faced whether you're balancing on the tightrope of neurodivergence, finding your way as a second-generation immigrant, or facing down American racism even while loving America. And it's the only decision when you've weighed society's expectations and found them wanting. In The Radical Element, twelve of the most talented writers working in young adult literature today tell the stories of the girls of all colors and creeds standing up for themselves and their beliefs—whether that means secretly learning Hebrew in early Savannah, using the family magic to pass as white in 1920s Hollywood, or singing in a feminist punk band in 1980s Boston. And they're asking you to join them.

I rather liked the first of Jessica Spotswood's anthologies, A Tyranny of Petticoats, and so I'm curious about this one.

Me on This Week's Book Week (281)

This Week's Book Week is rather similar to Stacking the Shelves hosted by Tynga's Reviews only with far more rambling and a less witty title. ;)

Hello all! Not much to talk about this week. It's been dreary and rainy and so fall-like here. Maybe next week I'll have something to talk about.

Reviews going up this week will feature a blog tour stop for the paperback release of Tara Sim's Timekeeper (Wednesday) and The Tea Dragon Society by Katie O'Neill (Friday). :)

Bought/borrowed/received:
A Line in the Dark by Malinda Lo (e-book borrowed from the library)

Me on Lumberjanes: Unicorn Power!

Title: Lumberjanes: Unicorn Power!
Author: Mariko Tamaki
Illustrator: Brooke A. Allen
Release Date: October 10, 2017
Publisher: Amulet Books (Abrams imprint)

Welcome to Miss Qiunzella Thiskwin Penniquiqul Thistle Crumpet's Camp for Hardcore Lady Types. The five scouts of Roanoke cabin—Jo, April, Molly, Mal, and Ripley—love their summers at camp. They get to hang out with their best friends, earn Lumberjane scout badges, annoy their no-nonsense counselor Jen... and go on supernatural adventures. That last one? A pretty normal occurrence at Miss Qiunzella's, where the woods contain endless mysteries. Today is no exception. When challenge-loving April leads the girls on a hike up the TALLEST mountain they've ever seen, things don't go quite as planned. For one, they didn't expect to trespass into the lands of the ancient Cloud People, and did anyone happen to read those ominous signs some unknown person posted at the bottom of the mountain? Also, unicorns.

Lumberjanes: Unicorn Power! is an adventure of epic proportions, because when can you have more fun if not at camp with your best friends wandering through the woods, investigating mysteries, and finding supernatural creatures grazing in fields?

This book is about everyone of cabin Roanoke. Jo, April, Molly, Mal, and Ripley. Even Jen and her near-constant worrying if the girls are really paying attention to what she wants them to do. But in little ways it's a bit more about April. It's April who often leads them on adventures, plotting and planning beforehand. It's April who doesn't stop, won't stop, and keeps moving. And it's April who leads them here, first looking for different types of plants and then up a mountain. It's all well and good to lead, to plot and plan, but sometimes you have to stop and think. You have to stop and ask your friends if they're all okay with climbing up a strange mountain.

Having read some of the comics, I think this is a great companion for young readers. It's quick and fun and messy like their comic adventures with a little more character insight and background than you'll get from a character's conflicted expression. Here in book form, the girls' thoughts and feelings are more accessible. And I fell in love with new character Barney, the genderqueer/non-binary camper who's new to the Lumberjanes. The illustrations by Brooke A. Allen were great, a wonderful reminder of the comic art and a great break in the prose. I would certainly recommend this to middle grade readers of the Lumberjanes comics.

(I received an e-galley of this title to review from Amulet Books through NetGalley.)

Me on Waiting on Wednesday (351)

Waiting on Wednesday is a bunch of weekly fun hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine. :)

Title: Obsidio
Authors: Amie Kaufman & Jay Kristoff
Release Date: March 13, 2018
Publisher: Knopf Books for Young Readers (Random House imprint)

From Goodreads:

Kady, Ezra, Hanna, and Nik narrowly escaped with their lives from the attacks on Heimdall station and now find themselves crammed with 2,000 refugees on the container ship, Mao. With the jump station destroyed and their resources scarce, the only option is to return to Kerenza—but who knows what they'll find seven months after the invasion? 

Meanwhile, Kady's cousin, Asha, survived the initial BeiTech assault and has joined Kerenza's ragtag underground resistance. When Rhys—an old flame from Asha's past—reappears on Kerenza, the two find themselves on opposite sides of the conflict. 

With time running out, a final battle will be waged on land and in space, heroes will fall, and hearts will be broken.

Yesssssssss. I've been vocal in how much I love this series. It's different and weird and complicated and epic and deadly and I want to know how it all ends while having it not end. Because it's so good.

Me on Cucumber Quest 1: The Doughnut Kingdom

Title: Cucumber Quest Volume 1: The Doughnut Kingdom
Author: Gigi D.G.
Release Date: October 10, 2017
Publisher: First Second (Macmillan imprint)

What happens when an evil queen gets her hands on an ancient force of destruction? World domination, obviously. The seven kingdoms of Dreamside need a legendary hero. Instead, they'll have to settle for Cucumber, a nerdy magician who just wants to go to school. As destiny would have it, he and his way more heroic sister, Almond, must now seek the Dream Sword, the only weapon powerful enough to defeat Queen Cordelia's Nightmare Knight. Can these bunny siblings really save the world in its darkest hour? Sure, why not?

Cucumber Quest Volume 1: The Doughnut Kingdom is the beginning of a fun but dangerous adventure to save the seven kingdoms of the world from an evil plot.

Cucumber is kind and quiet, ready to head off to school to learn as much as he can. But then he gets dragged into a plan to save the land from an evil queen. Why? Just because he's a boy? Why can't his sister Almond, who's desperate to become a knight righting wrongs and defeating evil, do it? Because she's a girl? Unfortunately, they're surrounded by adults who don't listen, and so both of them end up on a mission to save the world from an evil queen and her dreams of destruction.

The artwork is rather cute and fun, lots of bright colours. And lots of food puns with everyone's colouring and clothing being related to the food that makes up their name. Cucumber in green, Almond in brown, Sir Carrot in orange, and so forth. With everyone being some kind of bunny person, it makes it all rather fun and sweet to look at.

This certainly feels like the beginning of a journey for Cucumber and Almond, the start of a standard epic quest. And there are also jabs made at standard epic quests, like Cucumber being told to 'be a man' and him questioning why and Almond being told she has to be protected because she's the little sister, to show how those standard epic quests were often sexist and utterly ridiculous. It takes those clichés and flips them, tosses them aside. Little sisters can be knights. Knights can be afraid and run when they're desperately needed. It asks questions about why things are done in certain ways, why it has to be older brothers that protect, and goes about in different directions. But it feels very much like a beginning. There's a lot of establishing going on. I would definitely recommend this to middle grade readers, to kids looking for a new epic quest graphic novel with fun characters and without a lot of violence.

(I received an e-galley of this title to review from First Second Books through NetGalley.)

Me on This Week's Book Week (280)

This Week's Book Week is rather similar to Stacking the Shelves hosted by Tynga's Reviews only with far more rambling and a less witty title. ;)

Hi! The cold I had last week is still lingering, it's been a while since I've been so sick and it stuck around for a couple of weeks. I'll be resting a bit more and hopefully catching up on my reading over the weekend.

Reviews going up this week will feature Cucumber Quest Volume 1: The Doughnut Kingdom by Gigi D.G. (Tuesday) and Lumberjanes: Unicorn Power! by Mariko Tamaki & Brooke Allen (Friday). :)

Bought/borrowed/received:
Retribution Rails by Erin Bowman (ARC from Raincoast Books)
Girls Made of Snow and Glass by Melissa Bashardoust (ARC from Raincoast Books)
Forest of a Thousand Lanterns by Julie C. Dao (e-book borrowed from the library)
An Enchantment of Ravens by Margaret Rogerson (e-book borrowed from the library)

Me on All the Crooked Saints

Title: All the Crooked Saints
Author: Maggie Stiefvater
Release Date: October 10, 2017
Publisher: Scholastic Press

Any visitor to Bicho Raro, Colorado is likely to find a landscape of dark saints, forbidden love, scientific dreams, miracle-mad owls, estranged affections, one or two orphans, and a sky full of watchful desert stars. At the heart of this place you will find the Soria family, who all have the ability to perform unusual miracles. And at the heart of this family are three cousins longing to change its future: Beatriz, the girl without feelings, who wants only to be free to examine her thoughts; Daniel, the Saint of Bicho Raro, who performs miracles for everyone but himself; and Joaquin, who spends his nights running a renegade radio station under the name Diablo Diablo. They are all looking for a miracle. But the miracles of Bicho Raro are never quite what you expect.

All the Crooked Saints is a heavy book, full of the weight of all the characters and what makes them up. Their wants and their fears. Their secrets. The important things left unspoken.

It's hard to describe this book, like it is whenever I read a Maggie Stiefvater book. This seems so much like a book about people and their interpersonal relationships as opposed to a magical realism story about people and their interpersonal relationships. The magical realism is still there, the priest with a coyote's head and the twins tied together by a large snake, but to me it felt weighted down by the characters and their decisions. After The Raven Cycle, a series I found to be full of magic coursing through winds and whispers and trees, this felt far different. Slow. Heavy with shadow. Unfortunately for me, for my reading tastes, I didn't enjoy it as much as her previous books, but I imagine others might feel different.

(I received an advance copy of this title from Scholastic Canada.)

Me on Waiting on Wednesday (350)

Waiting on Wednesday is a bunch of weekly fun hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine. :)

Title: Blood Water Paint
Author: Joy McCullough
Release Date: March 6, 2018
Publisher: Dutton Books for Young Readers (Penguin imprint)

From Goodreads:

A stunning debut novel based on the true story of the iconic painter, Artemisia Gentileschi.

Her mother died when she was twelve, and suddenly Artemisia Gentileschi had a stark choice: a life as a nun in a convent or a life grinding pigment for her father's paint.

She chose paint.

By the time she was seventeen, Artemisia did more than grind pigment. She was one of Rome's most talented painters, even if no one knew her name. But Rome in 1610 was a city where men took what they wanted from women, and in the aftermath of rape Artemisia faced another terrible choice: a life of silence or a life of truth, no matter the cost.

He will not consume
my every thought.
I am a painter.
I will paint.

Joy McCullough's bold novel in verse is a portrait of an artist as a young woman, filled with the soaring highs of creative inspiration and the devastating setbacks of a system built to break her. McCullough weaves Artemisia's heartbreaking story with the stories of the ancient heroines, Susanna and Judith, who become not only the subjects of two of Artemisia's most famous paintings but sources of strength as she battles to paint a woman's timeless truth in the face of unspeakable and all-too-familiar violence.

I will show you
what a woman can do.

This definitely seems like one of those will absolutely wreck you books. It'll leave me a blubbering mess, but I want to read it. :)

Me on This Darkness Mine

Title: This Darkness Mine
Author: Mindy McGinnis
Release Date: October 10, 2017
Publisher: Katherine Tegen Books (HarperCollins imprint)

Sasha Stone knows her place—first-chair clarinet, top of her class, and at the side of her oxford-wearing boyfriend. She's worked her entire life to ensure that her path to Oberlin Conservatory as a star musician is perfectly paved. But suddenly there's a fork in the road, in the shape of Isaac Harver. Her body shifts toward him when he walks by, her skin misses his touch even though she's never known it, and she relishes the smell of him—smoke, beer, and trouble—all the things she's avoided to get where she is. Even worse, every time he's near Sasha, her heart stops, literally. Why does he know her so well—too well—and she doesn't know him at all? Sasha discovers that her by-the-book life began by ending another's: the twin sister she absorbed in the womb. But that doesn't explain the gaps of missing time in her practice schedule or the memories she has of things she certainly never did with Isaac. As Sasha loses her much-cherished control, her life—and heart—become more entangled with Isaac. Armed with the knowledge that her heart might not be hers alone, Sasha must decide what she's willing to do—and who she's willing to hurt—to take it back.

This Darkness Mine is dark, eerie, and twisted. It's an exploration of character, a look at what makes us us, how the pieces that make us up form us. But what if something inside our bodies wasn't ours to begin with?

Sasha is intelligent and gifted, she's methodical. A little cold, a little manipulative and calculating, but she knows what she wants. Friends who accept her as she is. A boyfriend who won't pressure her too much but knows what to do and what to say. A straight path to Oberlin and being a star clarinet player. Her future is ahead of her, bright and waiting. Until Issac Harver's name appears in her phone, in her text messages. Until he starts bringing up some rather personal details about her that no one should know. Until her heart stops beating, revealing a dark secret. Leaving Sasha with the knowledge that her heart might not actually be hers.

This felt very much like a psychological thriller kind of horror story. There's a lot to wonder about Sasha, her heart, and her lost twin. Were the messages and the moments with Issac really with her twin? Or was it all Sasha, looking for an escape after years of forcing herself to be prim and proper and hopefully successful? There's a lot about Sasha's mental state that I wondered about. The story as a whole didn't necessarily unfold the way I thought it would, but I would recommend this to those interested in creepy psychological thrillers.

(I downloaded an e-galley of this title from HarperCollins through Edelweiss.)

Me on This Week's Book Week (279)

This Week's Book Week is rather similar to Stacking the Shelves hosted by Tynga's Reviews only with far more rambling and a less witty title. ;)

Hi there! It's been a cool-ish but sunny fall so far, but it looks like there'll be a bit of rain coming.

I'm so sorry that there wasn't a review up on Friday. I was laid up with a pretty bad head cold this week, all stuffed up and drowsy and useless, so I couldn't get though any books read or get any posts written. But I'm getting better and reviews will be back up starting on Tuesday.

Reviews going up this week will feature This Darkness Mine by Mindy McGinnis (Tuesday) and All the Crooked Saints by Maggie Stiefvater (Friday). :)

Bought/borrowed/received:

Renegades by Marissa Meyer (ARC from Raincoast Books)
Last Star Burning by Caitlin Sangster (e-galley from Simon & Schuster through NetGalley)

Me on Berserker

Title: Berserker
Author: Emmy Laybourne
Release Date: October 10, 2017
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends (Macmillan imprint)

Her brother Stieg swears their powers are a gift from the old gods, but Hanne Hemstad knows she is truly cursed. It's not Stieg's fault that their father is dead, their mother has left, and their brother Knut has been accused of a crime he didn't commit. No, the fault lies with Hanne and her inability to control her murderous "gift"--she is a Berserker. When someone she loves is threatened, she flies into a killing state. The siblings must leave Norway for the American frontier or risk being brought to justice. Aided by a young cowboy who agrees to be their guide, Hanne and her siblings use their powers to survive the perilous trail, where blizzards, wild animals, and vicious bounty hunters await.

Berserker is a fast-paced journey towards hope and away from sorrow. It's a story of rage and death and fear, a story about a girl afraid to embrace the dangerous power that lives inside her. But to save her family, she'll have to harness that power.

Hanne is quiet, stoic. Strong. Protective of her family. She's also the holder of an ancient gift passed down from the god-king Odin through families, like her father and brothers are. Hanne is a Berserker, destined to fly into an unstoppable rage if any she cares about are threatened and will stop at nothing until those who wish harm are dead. But all she sees is a murderer, a monster. She wishes she'd never been given this gift. Until some drunk men appear, threatening her father, and Hanne's gift takes over once again. Now she and her siblings are on the run, tagging onto her brother Stieg's plan to leave Norway for America. But the gifts of families like Hanne's are desired by others, those who would seek to use them for their own purposes, and all siblings must be cautious for many reasons.

This is a bit of a short book but it does pack a punch. There's Hanne's inner struggles, her strained relationship with her sister Sissel, the culture shock and discoveries they make once the 4 siblings make land in America, and the inclusion of guide and cowboy Owen Bennett, a young man with a secret in his past and hope for the future. If he can only make a little money. I would certainly recommend this to readers looking for more standalone stories, those wanting something a little different in the late 1800's American West. Those wanting a contained story about a young woman who struggles so hard with what lurks inside of her, a young woman whose mind is at war with her instincts.

(I received an advance copy of this title from Raincoast Books.)