Harrow County, Vol. 1: Countless Haints by Cullen Bunn
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
A fun, fast-moving setup to what I expect will be a highly enjoyable series, COUNTLESS HAINTS combines writer Cullen Bunn’s masterful use of atmosphere and setting with artist Tyler Crook’s vibrant watercolor illustrations to create something truly compelling. The haints are scary in their otherworldliness, and Emmy is a complex, conflicted heroine you can root for. Bring on the next volume!
Survivor Song by Paul Tremblay
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Paul Tremblay steps away from the ambiguous, maybe-supernatural horror novels he’s been writing over the past few years to present a realistic tale of survival amid a scientifically-based epidemic. SURVIVOR SONG’s plot is very straightforward — our characters must get from point A to point B before the infection takes hold of one of them — but Tremblay’s novels are rarely about the plot. Although it’s clear the author has done the research necessary to posit how exactly this new form of rabies operates and what its effects on humans and local animals would be, the focus is squarely upon our two protagonists, Ramola and Natalie. Their deep, long-lasting friendship is at the forefront of everything that happens.
Although the novel was released during the pandemic of 2020, it was written the year before, and yet it is remarkably prescient. An ineffective government response, a dwindling supply of PPE for health care workers, armed right-wing militias fueled by online conspiracy theories, he gets it all shockingly right. It’s just another example of Tremblay’s deep understanding of people. When the worst happens, some rise to the occasion while others sink to their lowest selves.
Tremblay excels most at writing deeply humane novels about realistic, authentic characters facing extreme situations — something he has in common with Peter Straub, in my opinion — and SURVIVOR SONG is one of the best examples of this I’ve read. Fast-paced, suspenseful, and poignant, SURVIVOR SONG is a must read.
Entangled Life: How Fungi Make Our Worlds, Change Our Minds & Shape Our Futures by Merlin Sheldrake
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Absolutely mind-blowing! There’s so much about fungi I didn’t know lurking beneath the surface (ha ha) that each page held eye-opening revelations for me. So much of mycelial behavior remains unknown to us, but the radical and startling idea of nonhuman intelligence permeates the book. Fungi have no brains or centralized neural networks, and yet they cultivate, they harvest, they communicate, and in some extreme cases, they control the lives of creatures around them in zombie-like fashion. Sheldrake’s prose is conversational and limned with the joy of discovery, but perhaps most importantly, it is accessible to laypeople. ENTANGLED LIFE is a fast, illuminating, awe-inspiring read that will have you looking at the mushrooms in your salad in a whole new way.
Lovecraft Country by Matt Ruff
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Matt Ruff’s very enjoyable, very satisfying novel follows two families: the Braithwhites, a wealthy White family of sorcerers from New England, and the Turners, a working-class Black family from Chicago who are inextricably caught in the machinations of the Braithwhites due to their shared history. Ruff’s characters are remarkable and indelible. I’m a big fan of Montrose and Hippolyta in particular, although I found Ruby’s story perhaps the most touching. However, what sets LOVECRAFT COUNTRY apart from any other novel about the African American experience in 1950s America, where the dangers of Jim Crow and sundown towns await, are the homages to pulp fiction throughout. The science fiction and horror tropes Ruff employs — not all of which stem from Lovecraft, despite the novel’s title — are put to breathtaking new use, injecting new vitality into concepts most genre readers have long been familiar with. However, I don’t want to give anything away in this review. LOVECRAFT COUNTRY is a road trip, both for the characters and the reader, and the pleasure of the journey lies in the discoveries that await them and you. Highly recommended.
