Cover art for “As the Earth Dreams: Black Canadian Speculative Stories”. A blue-red stereoscopic image of a fly appears on a black background.
I read “As the Earth Dreams: Black Canadian Speculative Stories”, an anthology edited by Terese Mason Pierre.
I enjoyed this, and was particularly impressed by “Peak Day” by Suyi Davies Okungbowa and “The Hole in the Middle of the World” by Chinelo Onwualu.
Canadian authors, remember to register your books for the PLR program by May 1! For the first time, you are no longer required to mail things in—you can do it online.
Cover art for “Brownstone” by Samuel Teer & Mar Julia. A massively oversized figure of a young girl with wavy dark hair reclines against a Brooklyn brownstone, as if it were a desk. The colour scheme is muted earth tones.
I read “Brownstone” by Samuel Teer & Mar Julia. In this YA coming of age graphic novel, a young teenager spends the summer with the Guatemalan father she never knew, renovating a Brooklyn brownstone and connecting with her heritage.
I loved it!
Cover art for “The Space Cat” by Nnedi Okorafor and Tana Ford. Against a vividly blue night scape, an oriental cat with blue eyes is draped over the title words.
I read “The Space Cat” by Nnedi Okorafor and Tana Ford.
This middle grade graphic novel features the adventures of Periwinkle the cat in space and in Nigeria. Fun with gorgeous art work!
Not yet: I’ve picked up a copy and plan to read it in March 😊
Cover art for Benjamin Stevenson’s “Everyone on This Train is a Suspect”. Against a red background, a stylized silhouette of a train sits on a railroad. Silhouetted motifs of a knife, sword, bottle of poison, axe, and pistol also appear.
I read Benjamin Stevenson’s “Everyone on This Train is a Suspect”, the second in the Ernest Cunningham series. “Everyone in My Family Has Killed Someone” did not work for me, but this one hit much better! I went with the flow, rather than trying to beat the narrator to the end, which may have helped
Cover art for Heather Fawcett’s “Agnes Aubert’s Mystical Cat Shelter”. Within an art nouveau frame, about a dozen cats frolic on bookshelves, among a variety of books and curios.The colour scheme is predominantly tan and brown, with touches of blue, purple, and burgundy.
Heather Fawcett’s “Agnes Aubert’s Mystical Cat Shelter” was released today and I was lucky enough to read it in advance via NetGalley. I fell in love with the cover immediately and knew I’d enjoy the cats and Fawcett’s characters. But I was surprised how well the setting in 1920s Montreal worked! ❤️
Cover art for Rachel Gillig’s “One Dark Window”. A small female figure in red stands on a bridge between two imposing towers and smoke billows around her. The misty background is rendered in shades of teal and the corners of the image are filigreed in gold. The tagline of the book is MAIDEN. MONSTER. MARTYR.
I read Rachel Gillig’s “One Dark Window” and I enjoyed it. It is richly atmospheric with a unique card-based magic system. Each Tarot-like card has paired gifts and curses and the story revolves around a quest to reunite the cards into one deck. This is the first volume of the Shepherd King duology.
Cover art of the audiobook edition of Mariana Enrìquez’s “Somebody is Walking on Your Grave”. A magenta angel robed in bright blue is draped over a tombstone reading ‘my cemetery journeys’.
I read the audiobook of Mariana Enrìquez’s “Somebody is Walking on Your Grave: My Cemetery Journeys”. It is a collection of travel essays focused on visits to cemeteries around the world. I enjoyed it and recommend it 😊
Cover art for Libby Page’s “This Book Made Me Think of You”. A stylized stack of books appears on a bright teal background, with each word of the title on a different spine. The vibe is very cozy!
I read Libby Page’s “This Book Made Me Think of You” in advance via NetGalley. A young widow is gifted a year’s worth of books from her late husband and rediscovers her love of reading.
I love a book about the power of books and I found this story warm and comforting 🥰
Cover art for Molly O’Neill’s “Nightshade and Oak”. Against a plant-covered background, two women are pictured, one head up and one head down, like a playing card.
Molly O’Neill’s “Nightshade and Oak” came out earlier this week and I read it in advance via NetGalley. Mallt, a goddess of death, is accidentally turned human by a wayward spell and teams up with Boudicca’s warrior daughter to attempt to restore her power. I loved the setting and use of mythology.
Cover art for Charlotte Bond’s “The Fireborne Blade”. A tall woman in light armour holds a sword in her hands, parallel to the ground. Behind her, a white dragon—much larger than her—is curled in a stony cave.
I was blown away by Charlotte Bond’s fantasy novella “The Fireborne Blade”. I chose it from a list of recent titles featuring lady knights and was very impressed by the rich world building and incredible plot. I enjoyed the way current events and flashbacks are interspersed with historical accounts.
Cover art for Toshikazu Kawaguchi’s “Before the Coffee Gets Cold”. The top of the cover is a textured teal, with the bottom white. In the foreground, there are a café table set with coffee cups and a lamp, two chairs, and a black cat. (There is no cat in the story.)
I read Toshikazu Kawaguchi’s “Before the Coffee Gets Cold”.
In four connected stories, people get the chance to time travel for the time it takes to drink a cup of coffee.
The first story in particular did not land for me. The others were better, but this will not be a favourite.
Cover art for Antonia Hodgson’s “The Raven Scholar”. A silver line drawing of a raven appears on a purple background.
My first book of 2026 is Antonia Hodgson’s “The Raven Scholar”.
The socially isolated High Scholar must unexpectedly take part in a competition to select the next emperor, while she investigates the murder of the original Raven champion.
I was blown away by the world-building and character work!
Peaceful Yukon
Ted Harrison
1993
I lost my cat to cancer earlier this month and have the intermittent sads (from things like clearing out her toys and scratching posts). One of my older neighbours with the sweetest little dog has been letting me pet and make a fuss of their dog whenever we cross paths. Sometimes, that’s community ❤️
New story day!
"Phantom View" is about a son caretaking for his father, and discovering a blurry person in all their family photos that he has no memory of. The same figure is in all his dad's paintings--and the figure may be in the house with them right now.
Cover art for Jim C. Hines’ “Slayers of Old”. An older figure with a cane is pictured from the torso down, with a dark shirt, mustard pants, brown shoes, and a white belt. An eldritch black cat with tentacles and multiple eyes weaves between the figure’s feet.
I read Jim C. Hines’ “Slayers of Old” in advance via NetGalley. It will be published tomorrow in time for spooky season! If you are of the Buffy generation, this tale of three retired paranormal hunters will appeal to you! 😀
Vital information: the book is coming out soon, on October 7th: westminster.bookmarkreads.ca/item/-Az7-_I...
A murky green and blue cover from KJ Charles. Two male figures in the foreground are overshadowed by gothic architecture in the background
I was *so* ready for spooky season! I read KJ Charles’ “All of Us Murderers” in advance via NetGalley and sold it over lunch to Collections Management: “I started it after work last night and I’m 75% done”. A gothic mystery featuring a 2SLGBTQIA+ POV character with ADHD. I finished it over lunch 😊
It will differ slightly between provinces, but here’s information on the Ontario rollout as a sample: www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...
Tangerine Sunset
Nicki Ault
2020
Cover art for Heather Fawcett’s “Agnes Aubert’s Mystical Cat Shelter”. An art deco inspired array of cats and books on shelves, rendered in blues, tans, browns, and burgundy. There are an exceptional number of cats 🥰
I want to *live* in the cover of Heather Fawcett’s February 2026 release “Agnes Aubert’s Mystical Cat Shelter”.
And if you enjoyed the first, the second — Nobody’s Baby — is up for pre-order! On a spaceship for adults, a wild baby appears and horrifies everyone. Who made it? What do we do with it? Is there murder involved (spoiler: yes). Like Alien, but make it cozy! us.macmillan.com/books/978125...
The words "An instant USA Today and Indie bestseller" arch over a picture of my novella "Automatic Noodle," with a picture of a robot hand holding biang biang noodles in chopsticks, done in rainbow colors. There is a faint flower pattern in the background of the picture.
Holy crap -- Automatic Noodle is an instant USA Today and Indie bestseller! Thank you so much, humans and robots, for reading this li'l book and making it soar. Now go eat something! Or get your noodle swag at automaticnoodle.website
My favourite twist? The creature we only *think* is paranormal… 😀
Cover art for Premee Mohamed’s “The Annual Migration of Clouds”. A black and white bird—possibly a magpie?—has its wings partially spread, on a warm cream background.
I read Premee Mohamed’s post-apocalyptic novella “The Annual Migration of Clouds” for my in-person book club.
A deep and poetic consideration of climate change, set in Alberta.
Cover art for “Automatic Noodle” by Annalee Newitz. A giant robot hand uses chopsticks to hold up thick noodles, while various smaller robots are clustered around a building. The colours are day-glo bright.
I read Annalee Newitz’s “Automatic Noodle” in advance via NetGalley.
A robot team reboot in post apocalyptic San Fran to discover that their ghost kitchen has been shuttered.
Deciding to restart the restaurant with significantly better food, their success is threatened by a robophobic campaign.
Cover art for Barbara Truelove’s “Of Monsters and Mainframes”. On a black background flecked with stars, an enormous fanged mouth rendered in rainbow colours. A spaceship wends its way through the fangs.
I read “Of Monsters and Mainframes” by Barbara Truelove.
The AI spaceship Demeter awakes approaching her destination and discovers all her passengers are dead.
This ridiculously delightful romp features unknown vampires, werewolves, and other paranormal creatures in a science fiction world.
Cover art for “Shorted” by Alex Irvine. In the lower right corner, a human figure in pink and purple moved through a wood, while in the upper half, drones attack a city.
I read “Shorted” by Alex Irvine, a novelette recently published on Reactor.
A social media influencer in a near-future dystopia seeks to solve his own murder.
reactormag.com/shorted-alex...
