A credible approximation of a 19th-century diary that deftly blends history and horror.
A perilous 19th-century voyage to the wilds of Alaska awakens a subterranean terror.
This lively work of historical horror opens in 1866 when President Andrew Johnson assigns Interior Department Field Director Jack Calsin to survey the Alaskan territory that the U.S. is about to purchase from Russia. Johnson hopes it will bolster his chances in the upcoming election if the survey finds evidence of gold and other valuable resources. In Jack’s first-person account, trouble begins when one of the ship’s main boilers explodes, killing crew members. From then on, the catastrophes mount—fatal illnesses, a destructive storm, and a disastrous landing on Alaska’s coast. Even as Jack is given a brief respite to marvel at the abundant wildlife, plentiful ore deposits, and rugged beauty of the surroundings, the author ups the suspense with the threat of something deadly looming. “A creature,” says a tribal shaman, “who hunts during the anger of the big wind and frozen water!” (Although short at 80 pages, the 19th-century setting of this illustrated tale and the wonders and terrors Jack observes during his ill-fated trip are reminiscent of the Jules Verne 1871 classic, Journey to the Center of the Earth.) Marich knowledgeably weaves the historical into the fantastical with references to Johnson’s role in the fraught post–Reconstruction Era, the bitterness of the ship’s crew (comprised of former Union soldiers) over Johnson’s leniency toward the Southern rebels, and the torment of the ship’s doctor, haunted by graphic memories of the dead and maimed on the Civil War battlefields. Touched upon here, too, is a sense of what life was like onboard a three-masted ship with coal-burning boilers. Scattered throughout are full-page illustrations of some of the story’s dramatic scenes roughly executed by the author in what appears to be charcoal, sepia, and colored pencil. A sequel is planned.
A credible approximation of a 19th-century diary that deftly blends history and horror.Pub Date: April 25, 2022
ISBN: 9780965449151
Page Count: 80
Publisher: Marlet House Productions
Review Posted Online: May 17, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2023
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
An affecting portrait of a prickly woman.
A lifetime’s worth of letters combine to portray a singular character.
Sybil Van Antwerp, a cantankerous but exceedingly well-mannered septuagenarian, is the titular correspondent in Evans’ debut novel. Sybil has retired from a beloved job as chief clerk to a judge with whom she had previously been in private legal practice. She is the divorced mother of two living adult children and one who died when he was 8. She is a reader of novels, a gardener, and a keen observer of human nature. But the most distinguishing thing about Sybil is her lifelong practice of letter writing. As advancing vision problems threaten Sybil’s carefully constructed way of life—in which letters take the place of personal contact and engagement—she must reckon with unaddressed issues from her past that threaten the house of cards (letters, really) she has built around herself. Sybil’s relationships are gradually revealed in the series of letters sent to and received from, among others, her brother, sister-in-law, children, former work associates, and, intriguingly, literary icons including Joan Didion and Larry McMurtry. Perhaps most affecting is the series of missives Sybil writes but never mails to a shadowy figure from her past. Thoughtful musings on the value and immortal quality of letters and the written word populate one of Sybil’s notes to a young correspondent while other messages are laugh-out-loud funny, tinged with her characteristic blunt tartness. Evans has created a brusque and quirky yet endearing main character with no shortage of opinions and advice for others but who fails to excavate the knotty difficulties of her own life. As Sybil grows into a delayed self-awareness, her letters serve as a chronicle of fitful growth.
An affecting portrait of a prickly woman.Pub Date: May 6, 2025
ISBN: 9780593798430
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Crown
Review Posted Online: Feb. 15, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2025
A dark and twisty look at just how far one woman is willing to go to find inspiration.
A struggling writer finds an unexpected muse when a mysterious man shows up at her cabin.
Petra Rose used to pump out a bestselling book every six months, but then the adaptation happened—that is, the disastrous film adaptation of her most famous book. The movie changed the book’s storyline so egregiously that fans couldn’t forgive her, and the ensuing harassment sent Petra into hiding and gave her a serious case of writer’s block. Petra’s one hope is her solo writing retreat at a remote cabin, where she can escape the distractions of real life and focus on her next book, a story about a woman having an affair with a cop. When officer Nathaniel Saint shows up at her cabin door, inspiration comes flooding back. Much like the character from Petra’s book, Saint is married, and he’s willing to be Petra’s muse, helping her get into her characters’ heads. Petra’s book is practically writing itself, but is the game she’s playing a little too dangerous? Does she know when to stop—and, more importantly, is Saint willing to stop? Hoover is no stranger to controversial movie adaptations and internet backlash, but she clarifies in a note to readers that she’s “just a writer writing about a writer” and that no further connections to her own life are contained in these pages—which is a good thing, because the book takes some horrifying twists and turns. Petra finds herself inexplicably attracted to Saint, even as she describes him as “such an asshole,” and her feelings for him veer between love and hate. The novel serves as a meta commentary on the dark romance genre—as Petra puts it, “Even though, as readers, we wouldn’t want to live out some of the fantasies we read about, it doesn’t mean we don’t enjoy reading those things.”
A dark and twisty look at just how far one woman is willing to go to find inspiration.Pub Date: Jan. 13, 2026
ISBN: 9781662539374
Page Count: -
Publisher: Montlake
Review Posted Online: Sept. 27, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2025
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