The Salt Grows Heavy by Cassandra Khaw

Book Summary

Myths are full of lies. This is not one of them.

Fleeing the downfall of an empire, a mermaid and her plague doctor companion escape in the eerie shadows of a wintery forest.

Amongst the bark and snow they are drawn into ancient games for ageless children - a murderous hunt of blood and sacrifice - deep in the wood, where three who call themselves 'saints' rule over them all like gods.

Trapped in a feverish nightmare of masked monsters, stitches and surgeons, and needle teeth, the mermaid must embrace all of her cruelty and hungers to free the children.

This book was disturbing from the start. It throws you in to the middle of the story, which is a bit disconcerting at first, however you soon realise that what happened before doesn't really matter too much for this current narrative.

I'm not sure I can say I exactly enjoyed the whole thing, but I was drawn in and intrigued. I wanted to know what would happen to the mermaid and the plague doctor, and if they would save the children from those awful 'saints'. As a novella, I think it was the perfect length for me. Very vivid and sometimes grisly, a little too florid for my usual taste, but the main characters were fascinating and I couldn't help liking them despite the violence in everything they do. It was somehow relaxing to have a main character that truly doesn't care much about anything (at least at the start) and is untroubled with that without any pretence. Definitely recommend for fans of gothic, gruesome horror.

I've created a spicy, salty adaptation of a classic cocktail. For the Bloody Mermaid you need the following: 60ml vodka, 120ml tomato juice, 8 drops hot sauce, 4 dashes worcester sauce, a few grinds of fresh black pepper, 1/2 teaspoon of celery salt, 1/4 teaspoon salt, flakes of roasted seaweed.

Rim a tall glass with celery salt and seaweed. Put the rest of the salt and seaweed along with everything else in a shaker with ice and shake or stir, then pour into the glass with more ice. Garnish with a celery stick.

Mr Stoker and the Vampires of the Lyceum

by Matthew Gibson

Today I'm taking part in the blog tour for this intriguing book. I have an extract to share with you all which definitely piqued my interest! First here's a bit about the book and then you can get stuck in. And make sure you don't forget the cocktail at the end 🍸

Book Summary

London, September 1888. Jack the Ripper roams the streets. A scream rings out from beneath the stage of the Lyceum Theatre…

A young ‘actress’ has been attacked, suffering peculiar bite wounds to her neck; an event that announces a series of strange, vampiric happenings, and thrusts an unwitting Bram Stoker – acting manager of the Lyceum and aspiring author – into the limelight, and the action.

Perplexed hereon by the unsettling behaviour of ‘the Guv’nor’, the brilliant but mercurial actor, Henry Irving, and Irving’s acclaimed leading lady, Ellen Terry, Stoker soon starts suspecting the worst. And then, another attack reveals a vicious Prussian baron, returned to London as a vampire seeking revenge…

Alive with Gothic intrigue, reversal and surprise, Mr Stoker will keep the reader enthralled and confounded until its final, shocking scene – indeed, until its very last word.

Extract

‘Bram, there was one more thing I wanted to ask you.’ Stoker felt a stab of fear: would his brother return to questioning him about his trip to the druggist?

He looked at George, and then, with as much calm as he could muster, replied, ‘Please, by all means, little brother.’

‘Well, it’s maybe more to ask your advice about something – and I’m sorry, but it’s a bit of a long story.’

‘Go on,’ replied Stoker, signalling that they should both sit back down.

‘Well, a very odd thing happened to me some few days ago – Thursday before last, in fact. It was about eight o’clock in the evening, and already dark. The surgery was closed, and I was on the ground floor, checking stock; not something I normally do myself, but my nurse and assistant surgeon had both gone home and, to be frank, it doesn’t hurt if I attend to these things myself occasionally.’

‘I should imagine not,’ replied Stoker, relieved to hear that his own activities were to escape George’s further investigations.

‘I heard a rustling sound, like the feet of a small animal, so looked up to see whether some cat or rat were there. Then, from behind me, I heard a cough, making me nearly jump out of my skin. I turned round to see a man. He was immensely tall, with a full head of hair – completely grey – and a pale, lined face with an aquiline nose. He was wearing what looked like some form of evening dress under a black cape. “How the devil did you get in?” I spluttered, and he replied, quite coolly, “Please, Dr Stoker, don’t be angry. Your door was unlocked, and so I came in.” While his English was excellent, he was not, I thought, a native Englishman, as his accent and intonation were clearly Slavic; I could tell that from my time as a surgeon in the army – when I was stationed in Danzig. “Well, you must leave immediately!” I shouted. The man did not budge, however, and just looked at me mockingly. I went to move him on, but he gripped me with prodigious strength and held me as I stood. “Please, Dr Stoker,” he repeated, “I have only come for one of your famous vapour pipes. I will gladly pay you for it.” And then, with his free hand, he removed some gold sovereigns from his trouser pocket and let them fall onto the floor. I looked into his black eyes, curiously restless and mobile, and wondered what he would do next. And then he let go of me, as suddenly as he had taken hold of me, so I walked briskly to the cabinet behind my desk where I keep a few of my vapour contraptions. Once there, I heard the clank of metal and turned to see the man prising open the locked medical chest where I keep my phials of blood.’

‘Phials of blood?’ queried Stoker with some astonishment.

‘That’s right,’ replied George, ‘blood.’

To make a Cold Blooded cocktail, muddle some rosemary in the base of a shaker, add 45ml Grand Marnier, 60ml cranberry juice, 15ml lemon juice and 15ml sugar syrup and ice. Shake well then strain into an ice filled rocks glass and garnish with a sprig of rosemary.

 Spotlight on...
Toby and the Silver Blood Witches by Sally Doherty

Today's spotlight is on the winner of BBNYA 2022. Find it on Goodreads here. BBNYA is a yearly competition where book bloggers from all over the world read and score books written by indie authors, ending with 15 finalists and one overall winner.  If you are an author and wish to learn more about the BBNYA competition, you can visit the official website or Twitter. BBNYA is brought to you in association with the @Foliosociety (if you love beautiful books, you NEED to check out their website!) and the book blogger support group @The_WriteReads.

Book Summary

A sinister plot. A hidden city in the sky. A boy with an impossible choice.

Twelve year old Toby has little time for friends or football since his mum fell ill. All he wants is to stay at home and keep an eye on her.

But mysterious things are happening beyond his garden hedge. Who is the figure at the window behind the barbed wire fence? And why is there a strange woman in his attic with a broken broom and bothersome pet bat?

Toby becomes entangled in an adventure of flying dogs, sparking hiccups and dangerous escapes. An innocent, young witch has been captured by a secretive organisation which will stop at nothing to find out how magic works. Toby must rescue her and time is running out.

Author Bio

Sally Doherty lives in leafy Surrey with her husband and three-legged (but speedy) rescue dog. After studying French and German at university, she worked for a year in London before unexpectedly falling ill with M.E. Being stuck at home and often in bed for sixteen years, however, has lit a cauldron of stories bubbling inside her imagination.

Sally’s debut book and the first in a trilogy, TOBY AND THE SILVER BLOOD WITCHES, was a finalist for The Wishing Shelf Awards 2021 and shortlisted for both The Selfies and The Rubery Book Awards 2022.

Find her website and newsletter: www.sallydohertyauthor.com here, also on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.

The Case of the Lighthouse Intruder by Kereen Getten

Book Summary

Fayson has always wanted to be a detective. When her cousins recruit her to their top-secret gang on the island one summer, her dreams seem to be coming true. But the Greatest Gang of All Time don't live up to their name, and keep getting distracted from missions by things like food, falling asleep and a fair bit of squabbling!

Guided by her favourite mystery novels, Fayson takes charge and tries to track down clues about the strange shadow that has been appearing in the island's lighthouse. With tensions stirring within the gang, can she use all her smarts to solve the case?

As far as Fayson is concerned, she has loads of friends! All the characters in her favourite books are real enough to her, but her mother doesn't agree and sends her off for a holiday with the dreaded cousins. There she finally gets a real mystery to solve, just like in her favourite books.

This was really fun to read and there was lots of humour in the book. I was excited to get to the bit with lemon drops (a few arrived with my copy of the book... apparently I'm very easy to bribe!) and I loved the description of broccoli as a tiny tree.

It was interesting to read the group dynamics of the kids on the island, and Fayson having to learn to deal with all the different personalities. People aren't all as she expects them to be, and I expect there will be more developments in the future books in the series.

I've made an Island Breeze to sip on while imagining myself on Lighthouse Island in Jamaica. Shake the following ingredients with ice, 60ml coconut rum, 75ml cranberry juice and 45ml pink grapefruit juice. Strain into a tall, ice filled glass. Lovely and refreshing!

 Spotlight on...
Pawnshop of Stolen Dreams by Victoria Williamson

Today's spotlight is on a truly magical sounding book which was released just last month. And the cover is so beautifully dreamy too, I'm so looking forward to reading it! Find it on Goodreads here.

Book Summary

In a strange little village called Witchetty Hollow, eleven-year-old Florizel is the first to run into the curious visitors who've come to open a brand new Daydream Delicatessen and sack-baby factory.

At first, it seems the daydream confection and cheap sack children are the best things that could have happened to the poor folk of the Hollow - after all, who has the money to rent their child from Storkhouse Services these days? But after a few weeks, Florizel starts to notice something odd happening to the adults of the town. First, they seem dreamy, then they lose all interest in their jobs and families. Soon they're trading all their worldly goods in the newly-opened Pawnshop for money to buy daydreams. With no money for rent payments, the children of Witchetty Hollow are being reclaimed by Storkhouse Services at an alarming rate. Florizel needs to act.

Author Bio

Victoria Williamson grew up in Glasgow, Scotland, and has worked as an educator in a number of different countries, including as an English teacher in China, a secondary science teacher in Cameroon, and a teacher trainer in Malawi.

As well as degrees in Physics and Mandarin Chinese, she has completed a Masters degree in Special Needs in Education. In the UK she works as a primary school special needs teacher, working with children with a range of additional support needs including Autistic Spectrum Disorder, Down Syndrome, physical disabilities and behavioural problems.

She is currently working as a full time writer of Middle Grade and YA contemporary fiction, science fiction and fantasy, with a focus on creating diverse characters reflecting the many cultural backgrounds and special needs of the children she has worked with, and building inclusive worlds where all children can see a reflection of themselves in heroic roles.

Victoria’s experiences teaching young children in a school with many families seeking asylum inspired her debut novel, The Fox Girl and the White Gazelle, an uplifting tale of redemption and unlikely friendship between Glaswegian bully Caylin and Syrian refugee Reema.

Twenty percent of her author royalties for The Fox Girl and the White Gazelle are donated to the Scottish Refugee Council.

You can find out more about Victoria's books, school visits and upcoming events on her website: strangelymagical.com