Cinderwich

[Cinderwich is] catnip for readers who like a Southern (rural Tennessee) setting, hunting clues in libraries, bumping into locals who may or may not know the truth (and may or may not be burying bodies in the dead of night), and a set of sisters who, as Priest notes, stepped right out of central casting from The Addams Family. Reader, I was hooked from the moment I read about the long-missing Ellen Thrush and I’m certain that you will be, too. ~Locus Magazine

[Starred review] A little folk horror and a hefty dose of emotional drama drive Priest’s slim latest… Listeners who love this book will be drawn to Kate and Judith’s complicated relationship, which [audio narrator Traci] Odom raises to new levels. Verdict: Crisp scholarly dryness pairs perfectly with barely contained drama and a potent smidge of urban legend horror. ~Library Journal Audio Review

The Drowning House

[Starred review] Award-winning, critically acclaimed author Cherie Priest darkens the horizon with a deliciously moody summer beach read, beautifully blending atmosphere and suspense to conjure a homecoming gone wrong… One stormy night on Marrowstone Island, a sinister house washes up on the beach, elderly Mrs. Culpepper keels over, and her grandson, Simon, disappears after messaging his childhood friend Melissa that his grandmother died of fright. Melissa and their other old friend, Leo, head to Marrowstone to look for Simon, only to find that a long-buried horror is awakening, and they are the only ones who can stop it.

Smartly paced, with plenty of action, this genre-bending novel moves between past summers of the trio as kids and teens and the present as Melissa and Leo navigate their uneasy friendship, search for the man they both love, and try to stop the apocalypse. ~Booklist, STARRED REVIEW

During a stormy night on an island off the coast of Washington, an elderly woman sees that a house has washed up on the beach. She recognizes it from her nightmares, and seeing it scares her to death. When Melissa tries to return a late-night message from the woman’s grandson and caregiver Simon, a police officer answers his phone because Simon is nowhere to be found. This creepy open introduces an unforgettable place where Simon, Melissa, and Leo first met in 1985, spending their summers together. The narrative moves back and forth between those many summers and the present, building on the characters, their relationships, and the odd occurrences that happen around them. Back on the island, Melissa and Leo, mostly estranged now but desperate to find Simon, work together to decipher dangerous secrets. The stakes are high, and these two old friends might be the island’s only hope. VERDICT Priest (Cinderwich) is popular with library audiences from teen to adult, and her latest will appeal to both. A great suspenseful and twisty story, reminiscent of Hex by Thomas Olde Heuvelt, The Twisted Ones by T. Kingfisher, and The Winter People by Jennifer McMahon. ~Library Journal

Flight Risk

This second entry in the Booking Agents series (following Grave Reservations, 2021) finds Seattle psychic consultant and travel agent Leda Foley gleefully tackling her first missing-persons case. Dan Matarese is concerned about his sister, Robin Reddick, who disappeared after accepting a large landscaping deposit. Matarese doesn’t think she’s taken the cash and ducked out on her philandering husband, Paul. But even then she wouldn’t ghost Dan and her son, Jeff. The stars align to pair Leda with Seattle homicide detective Grady Merritt when his dog, Cairo, finds Paul in a Mount Rainier park. Making sense of Paul’s disgusted son, his suspicious brother-in-law, his jealous TA, and his latest predatory affair promises an intense investigation until Leda’s psychic flashes lead to a break that snaps both cases closed. Quirky Leda and ever-patient Grady share a warm, hilarious rapport as they unravel this pair of well-constructed mysteries, and Priest offers an engaging ode to her hometown. Pure frothy fun. ~Booklist

Priest’s second ‘Booking Agents’ novel (after Grave Reservations) has psychic travel agent Leda Foley ready to solve another mystery (or two). When she is asked to help a man find his missing sister, Leda jumps at the chance to use her (sometimes inconsistent) psychic abilities on a paying gig. The man’s sister was last seen leaving in a vintage orange car with a large amount of cash from her landscaping clients. He believes the police are not doing enough because of the well-known fact of her philandering husband and their shaky marriage. In the meantime, Grady Merritt, Seattle PD, has inadvertently become involved in a case that involves body parts—most notably, a leg, which was retrieved from the mouth of his dog, Cairo. After DNA tests reveal that ‘Mr. Leg’ belongs to Leda’s missing woman’s husband, the cases become entangled, and the unlikely duo set out to decipher the clues. VERDICT: This lighthearted mystery with its travel agent/psychic and her occasional, unofficial partner is a good choice for cozy mystery lovers, animal lovers, and fans of the author. Recommended. ~Library Journal

At the start of Priest’s lively sequel to 2021’s Grave Reservations, Det. Grady Merritt of the Seattle PD and his teenage daughter, Molly, are searching Mount Rainier for their lost dog, Cairo, when Cairo appears with a human leg in its mouth. Where did the leg come from? And where’s the rest of the person? From Cairo’s poop, Molly recovers a man’s wedding ring, which Grady brings to psychic Leda Foley to test for possible clues. Meanwhile, Leda is looking into the case of a local landscaper who disappeared from a construction site several weeks before and whom nobody reported missing. Though resolving the two cases begins slowly, Leda and Grady eventually discover links between the two and, with the help of some “woo-woo stuff” from Leda, the investigations proceed in surprising and ultimately highly satisfying directions. The dynamic between Generation-X Leda and the staid Grady, a widower, is friendly and realistic. After overcoming his initial skepticism having been overcome, Grady has faith in Leda’s ability to make connections that prove key to solving the conundrums they face. Readers will be eager to see whether anything beyond a collegiality develops between them in their next adventure. Agent: Stacia Decker, Dunow, Carlson, & Lerner. (Nov.) ~Publishers Weekly

Grave Reservations

After years in the fantasy and horror genre trenches, Cherie Priest decided she needed to immerse herself in lighter fare. The result is the delightful Grave Reservations, the first in what I hope is a new series featuring Leda Foley, a travel agent at Foley’s Far-Fetched Flights of Fancy, whose spotty psychic powers help her to solve crimes.

That Leda ventures into amateur sleuth territory is the result of serendipity, specifically her impulsive last-minute decision to rebook a client on a different flight. When the original plane goes down in flames on the tarmac, that client, the Seattle police detective Grady Merritt, demands some answers.

“I changed your flight because I did know something was wrong — but I swear to you, I didn’t know what it was,” she tells him. “I might’ve been vibing off the cosmic certainty of the plane crashing.” Merritt is savvy enough to realize Leda’s abilities could be useful (off the books, natch) for a double-murder investigation that is proving nettlesome, especially when it links to a tragedy in Leda’s past.

The key pleasure in “Grave Reservations” is Leda’s company, whether she’s hanging out with her best friend Niki or giving “klairvoyant karaoke” performances at a local bar. Priest layers the humor and camaraderie with unexpectedly moving scenes of Leda haunted by old grief. As she discovers, the line between what’s lost and what can’t be sensed by others turns out to be gossamer-thin. ~The New York Times

This frothy blend of paranormal cozy and off-the-books police procedural from Priest (The Toll) stars travel agent Leda Foley, the owner of Foley’s Far-Fetched Flights of Fancy in Seattle, Wash., who also moonlights at a local bar, where she divines meaningful songs for the customers by means of psychometry. Her life changes when she acts on an overwhelming urge to change the flight plan of a client, Det. Grady Merritt of the Seattle PD. Her decision saves his life and leads Grady to hire her out of his own pocket to help him with a cold case….Readers will hope this is the start of a series. ~Publishers Weekly

Grave Reservations, a detective romp with a supernatural twist, shows Priest stretching in a new direction. Where her previous work tended toward the spooky and moody, Grave Reservations is brisk and fun without being so lightweight it simply floats away. It’s the perfect book for a harrowing week/month/year because it only wants to entertain you. … Not only is the book itself great fun, so is seeing this side of what Priest can do. ~Locus Magazine

Priest, the Locus Award–winning author of Boneshaker, is known for writing horror and steampunk. Her witty mystery has a likable amateur sleuth and a strong supporting cast. For fans of Wendall Thomas’s offbeat travel agent Cyd Redondo.  —Library Journal

For mystery readers looking for an entertaining read with a character who is off the beaten path, Grave Reservations will be a pleasing entry. ~New York Journal of Books

Light and irreverent, but with more serious themes, including grief and responsibility, this is an excellent series starter for Priest’s fans as well as new readers. Suggest to those who enjoyed Mia Manansala’s Arsenic and Adobo(2021). ~Booklist

[A] cast of quirky characters and quick pacing make this a delightful read I couldn’t put down… I have no reservations saying that Grave Reservations was a hit! ~Apex Magazine

A travel agent with somewhat psychic abilities and a Seattle detective are the unlikely pair at the center of Cherie Priest’s charming, engaging mystery, in which the duo take on a cold case with personal ties. Oh, and they also get help from the regulars at psychics night at the karaoke bar. Grave Reservations has a quirky, winning quality that will win over mystery readers. ~Crimereads.com

…Levity and karaoke might sound like odd matches for a murder investigation, but it works – the more somber moments are kept buoyant by the levity, even as they lend depth and dimension to both the story and the characters. The stakes feel real; but it doesn’t keep the book from being a very real antidote to dealing with the real world. Grave Reservations is still an escape for the reader, but one that doesn’t attempt to gloss over the realities of life; one that will call them out and offer you something better for a while. …Grave Reservations is full of the little touches that take a book from good to great. Readers are in for an absolute treat, with a mystery as endearing as it is intriguing. ~Mystery and Suspense Magazine

Cherie Priest’s work never fails to delight. Grave Reservations is chock full of fun characters, action and sparky, spunky humor. Leda Foley and Niki Nelson are terrific creations who hopefully will appear again soon. ~AuthorLink

Holy Terror

[Starred Review] This outstanding collection of 14 stories and one poem from Priest (The Toll) should get this gifted, versatile author the wider acknowledgment her significant talent merits. Each entry combines evocative prose and imaginative reinventions of classic tropes. “The Catastrophe Box” showcases Priest’s skill at drawing readers in with ominous understatement (“It began when my wife returned from London with a wooden box and a nervous aspect, both of which unsettled me deeply”). The ensuing tale is a clever fictionalization of a real case probed by psychic investigator Harry Price (1881–1948) involving an Englishwoman who persuaded her followers that she was pregnant with the Second Coming of Jesus Christ. Priest is also adept at conjuring cosmic horror while eschewing mustiness, clunky writing, or clichés, as evidenced by “The October Devotion” and “Bad Sushi.” The latter is a standout, with an unusual lead—septuagenarian sushi chef Baku—standing between humanity and disaster. These masterful tales will wow readers. Agent: Stacia Decker, Dunow, Carlson & Lerner Literary. (Jan.) ~Publishers Weekly

 The Toll

[Starred Review] Priest (The Family Plot) spins a small, swampy urban legend into a riveting, swelteringly atmospheric story that questions just how far the residents of a Southern town will go to forget, or appease, a past they cannot bear to confront. Cameron Spratford has lived with his elderly cousins Claire and Daisy in Staywater, Ga., since his parents abandoned him there as a toddler. Although everyone in Staywater encourages Cam to leave, he is content to remain — until Titus Bell arrives. Titus and his wife, Melanie, are traveling through the Okefenokee Swamp when they arrive at a strange, one-lane bridge. Sometime later, Titus wakes up in the middle of the road, alone. He makes his way to Staywater and, while awaiting news of Melanie, begins to shake the secrets of the town loose. Cameron gradually discovers the truth about the bridge outside Staywater, the role Claire and Daisy played in bringing peace there once, and what they are willing to do to keep Cameron safe. Priest keeps the supernatural elements grounded by developing nuanced characters who feel as though they could walk off the page. Moody and mysterious, this gothic tale touches the heart even as it wraps chilly fingers around the spine.(July) ~Publishers Weekly

Every thirteen years, someone in Staywater, Georgia, disappears. Sometimes huge groups of people would be mysteriously swallowed up by the Okefenokee Swamp, and locals chalked it up to flash floods. Some even whispered about a serial killer. Cousins Daisy and Claire, though, knew there was a creature in the swamp that fed off the souls of the living, and in 1966, they did something about it. They lured the supernatural beast out of the swamp and killed it – but that wasn’t enough to keep its ghost from feeding. In the present day, a tourist disappears, and the missing woman’s husband begins digging for answers, slowly unfolding the mystery of Staywater as he talks to locals. Daisy and Claire are too old to fight, but they arm him with what they know and he sets off for the swamp to save his wife. Priest (The Family Plot, 2016) takes readers on a truly unsettling gothic journey through a rural town haunted by ghosts and secrets, leaving readers suspicious of every character along the way. ~Booklist

Cherie Priest is perhaps our premier living writer of Southern Gothic horror, and her forthcoming standalone, The Toll, is a delightfully chilling small town tale, with prose so tactile you’ll feel the humidity sending beads of sweat down your neck. When a woman disappears on State Road 177, the residents of nearby Staywater are immediately placed on high alert. This isn’t the first disappearance on that stretch of pavement—every thirteen years, like clockwork, a bridge appears on the road through the swamp, and something emerges from the water below to collect its toll…. If you’re looking for a summer read featuring swamp monsters, haunted bar stools, a creepy doll museum, a town populated with charmed weirdos, and two absolutely badass old ladies, well, welcome to Staywater. ~Tor.com

The Agony House

[Starred Review] Following up on their successful collaboration in I am Princess X (2016), Priest and O’Connor neatly weave together the history of comic books and contemporary concerns about gentrification in this eerie ghost story set in a ramshackle house that’s as much a character as the people living in it. Denise, her mom, and stepdad have just moved into an nearly destroyed, once-beautiful house in New Orleans, and almost right away, Denise starts noticing odd things. First, they’re harmless, if creepy, but later, unexplained, dangerous accidents happen as they renovate the house. But the comic book manuscript Denise finds carefully hidden in the attic (pages of which appear throughout the novel) is the key to source of the poltergeists. Meanwhile, Denise’s neighbors are uneasy about outsiders capitalizing on cheap property in New Orleans, and Priest does a great job of skillfully including the important conversations Denise and her family have with their new community. At its heart, though, this is a ghost story, and Priest excels at building palpable atmosphere: Denise’s parents’ anxiety about their shoestring budget, the sweltering New Orleans summer heat, the disrepair of the house (“soggy plaster fell from the studs like wet cake”), and the increasingly terrifying haunting. Dynamic characters and a surprising mystery round out this sharp, satisfying, and engrossingly spooky story. ~Booklist

A white family’s attempts to renovate a storm-wracked Victorian New Orleans house are complicated by bitterly contending ghosts. The resident spirits aren’t particularly reticent either, readily manifesting not only to 17-year-old Denise and her newlywed mother and stepfather, but to visiting neighbors as well—as a whiff of perfume, creeping shadows, a falling ceiling, and other ominous portents. But rather than being a stereotypical screamer, Denise has much in common (characterwise, at least) with intrepid, gun-toting Lucida Might, girl crime fighter and star of a 1950s manuscript comic Denise finds in the attic. Priest (Brimstone, 2017, etc.) ably weaves contemporary issues and a feminist strand into this fantasy as, while briskly fending off ghostly visitations and searching out clues to the house’s violent past, Denise makes new friends and encounters pushback from some St. Roch neighbors rightfully leery of white gentrifiers. Highlighted by a wonderfully melodramatic climax, the author brings her plotlines to upbeat resolutions with a thrilling discovery, a revelation about the comic’s author, and a degree of general community acceptance of Denise and her family. Nearly every character’s race, white or black, is carefully but unobtrusively specified. O’Connor (The Altered History of Willow Sparks, 2018) inserts multiple pages from the comic and atmospheric stand-alone illustrations all printed in haint blue. Conflicts, ectoplasmic and otherwise, laid to rest in a deliciously creepy setting. ~Kirkus

When 17-year-old Denise’s parents move her to New Orleans, planning to fix up an old house and turn it into a bed-and-breakfast, accidents start occurring and Denise quickly realizes that the house is haunted. The classic haunted house story gets an update with a story line involving a 1950’s era comic book featuring a female hero that is atypical for its time. Scenes from the comic book, which are sporadically interspersed into the narrative, add visual variety to the story and intensify the mood. Each small horror within the house builds to a large climax and a twist ending as Denise uses the comics to solve a mystery. Readers will empathize with Denise’s financial troubles as she and her family struggle to pay for food when all their money goes into the house. The issue of gentrification, particularly in a Hurricane Katrina–affected New Orleans, is woven in, though at times didactically. Text messages (including some dated teen textspeak), emails, and ghost whispers are printed in blue in order to stand out and match the comics’ color palette. VERDICT The format of this ghost story is inviting and while never truly horrifying, younger YA readers will be satisfied with the chills provided. ~School Library Journal

This is as classic a haunted house story as they come, but Priest judiciously selects from the standard list of tropes to fashion it into a tale that stands on its own merits. A mysterious death in the house decades ago? Check: Joe Vaughn, Golden Age comic-book creator, is not resting in peace. Ghost hunting friend? Check. Clues culled from old letters and articles in a university archive? Check. A wholesome, up-standing love interest? Check. But…Nobody-will-believe-me tension? No. Everybody hears these ghosts, and it doesn’t help. Stepfamily drama? No. They all pull together, and that doesn’t help either. Wise Black community elders spouting warning and insight? No. The neighbors know the place is haunted and mainly want gossip and a tour. O’Connor contributes sections of the fictional Vaughn’s unpublished pre-Code comic (discovered in the attic, of course) that parallel the contemporary horrors occurring in the house in the text. This is no visual gimmick, but an effective narrative device that helps reveal how the self-censorship of the comic industry brought two individuals into lethal conflict. Teens who read Pam Smy’s similarly formatted Thornhill (BCCB 07/17) with shivery pleasure will be equally pleased with this haunting. ~The Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books

This time [Priest] goes full creepy with a haunted house story set in New Orleans that also manages to throw in a hefty dose of the history of comic books and some thoughtful consideration of the issue of gentrification. Combined with Tara O’Connor’s illustrations, The Agony House blends ghostly visitations with classic mystery solving and serious social commentary to give readers a smart and surprisingly topical read. Kudos to Priest for crafting a supernatural mystery that blends classic crime-solving with a thoroughly modern sensibility. The inclusion of sections with the actual pages from the Lucinda Might comic book, courtesy Tara O’Connor’s outstanding illustrations, was also a brilliant decision. The Agony House is a fast-paced read that tackles significant social issues while never deviating from its horror roots. This is how you give perceptive readers a good time: you don’t write down to them, you dish out the thrills and chills in a narrative that also makes some insightful assessment of how we live along the way. We need more of this in MG and YA fantasy, much much more. ~Locus Magazine

Brimstone

[Starred Review] In this pitch-perfect penny dreadful, Priest (The Family Plot) evokes the strangeness and charm of early-19th-century Florida and the fortitude of two spectacular protagonists. Alice Dartle, making a daring bid for freedom from her family home in Norfolk, Va., dreams of a man surrounded by fire. She journeys to join a community of Spiritualists in Cassadaga, Fla. where she hopes to learn how to control her natural psychic abilities. Tomás Cordero is a war veteran who’s just returned home to Ybor City, Fla., where he’s plagued by uncanny fires that seem determined to destroy all he loves. The two are brought together by powers beyond their understanding, which they must face armed only with universal love and compassion. Priest wields a brilliant command of the delightful and the frightening in this enchanting tale. Though spooky and dangerous events abound, each less logical than the last, she holds tightly to the theme that these events are rooted in human will. The detailed extrapolation of Spiritualist beliefs into reality makes the story even more terrifying than if it had a supernatural villain driving the chaos. The conclusion is both uplifting and satisfying, a fitting reward for the protagonists, who have each sought only to give help and love to those in need. (Apr.) ~Publishers Weekly

Brimstone is a spellbinding historical fantasy that ignites empathy…Cherie Priest is a deft storyteller in any genre, and history really does come alive when she puts pen to paper. Brimstone, in particular, will appeal to those who enjoy a bit of strange history to go along with their magic. ~Barnes and Noble’s sci-fi and fantasy blog.

[4 Stars] Priest has a knack for writing likable, well-rounded characters and putting them through some unpleasant, creepy events. The bourbon-loving, easily flustered psychic Alice might be the author’s most purely endearing protagonist yet, and Tomas, the stricken but resolute tailor, is tremendously easy to root for as well. The depictions of the various fires and some other events are vivid and at times wince-inducing. While the immediate narrative here is wrapped up nicely, readers may wish for some return trips to this version of Cassadaga, FL. ~Romantic Times

Priest (Boneshaker, 2009) offers a textured period piece set in the spiritualist camp of Cassadaga, Florida, in 1920. Alice Dartle is a powerful but untrained medium who has left Virginia in hopes of education in Cassadaga. She dreams of a man who turns out to be Tomás Cordero, a Cuban-American veteran in a distant town, who has been experiencing unexplained fires—both in dreams and in real life—which he fervently hopes are messages from his dead wife. Unfortunately, more sinister forces are at work. An ancient and malevolent spirit may be using Tomás for its own ends, putting all Cassadaga at risk. Alice and Tomás must work with a strong supporting cast of characters to address the threat. Priest weaves intriguing historical detail throughout this slowly intensifying tale of darkness, fire, and the power of human connection. Recommended for fans of Joe Hill, otherworldly suspense, and stories with a strong sense of place and history. ~Booklist

Cherie Priest is perhaps best known for her Hugo- and Nebula-nominated Clockwork Century series—a bombastic steampunk explosion of alternate history America, air pirates, and zombie epidemics. It’s fun with a capital F. It’s also a far cry from her latest novel, Brimstone, which trades airships for clairvoyants and chihuahuas, and the threat of toxic gas for more personal demons. It’s not a departure for Priest, as it piggybacks off of Priest’s unrelated 2016 novel, The Family Plot—a similarly haunting portrait of Americana—but it is another feather in her cap, as she continues to prove herself one of the most versatile writers of American speculative fiction. … With its unique mix of Americana, post-war themes, likeable characters, and swift plot, Brimstone is easy to recommend. ~Tor.com

Full of charm and care, with light-hearted fun woven gently into compassionate renderings of sorrow and loss, Brimstone is equal parts affectionate romp and affecting story — not least because, given the state of the world, it’s good to read books in which hate is scarier than ghosts, love is stronger than hate, and witches simply refuse to burn. ~NPR Book Reviews

Brimstone is a wonderful and scary story from Cherie Priest which combines themes of history, love, and destruction. Alice is a young woman who is a clairvoyant. … I love how this book captures time and place, and how it realistically embraces a protagonist and supporting characters of color. It is not a romance, but it deals with themes of different kinds of love and hints at a romance in Alice’s future. The creepy parts are very creepy and everything ties together seamlessly. As the owner of a small, timid dog, I particularly loved the depiction of the dog that Tomás reluctantly finds himself in charge of. Tomás has been grieving his wife so intensely that he can’t open his heart even to his closest friends, but over time he says, “I do not know how I lived so long without a dog.” The dog gives Tomás something to protect, and Tomás gives Alice someone to protect, and both find that the act of caring for another being forces them to grow. It’s an evocative, sweet, empowering story despite the horror the protagonists face. ~Smart Bitches, Trashy Books

The Family Plot

[Starred (and Boxed!) Review] When Dahlia Dutton’s father sends her and a small crew to salvage a house near Lookout Mountain, Tenn., she finds that what you don’t know can hurt you in Priest’s spectacular modern haunted-house story. Dahlia is no stranger to ghosts, whether she’s being emotionally haunted by a failed marriage or by the metaphorical spirits that linger in old buildings. The concept of home salvage disturbing ghosts is brilliant, and while common elements of haunted house stories are certainly present (a mysterious owner with family secrets, locked rooms, unnatural storms, etc.), Priest (Boneshaker) handles them with tremendous skill, putting the pieces together to keep the reader guessing and more than a little scared. The characters are given a compelling reason to stay (the family business will fail if this job falls through) and their interpersonal dynamics humanize them, making them more than just cannon fodder as the hauntings increase in severity. Priest has written an excellent modern house story from start to finish. Agent: Jennifer Jackson, Donald Maass Literary. (Sept.) ~Publishers Weekly

[Starred Review] In Priest’s gothic haunted-house story, workers at failing architectural salvage company are given a once-in-a-lifetime chance to reverse their fortunes, if they can survive the ghosts plaguing the property. DahliaDutton, the daughter of Music City Salvage’s owner, loves old houses. She’s still sore over losing her own beautifully restored home in her divorce. Once Dahlia arrives at the grand, well-preserved Withrow estate in the Tennessee mountains, she wishes she could save it; instead, she and her crew—her estranged cousin Bobby; his lovable son, Gabe; and salvage rookie Brad—have mere days to rescue the valuables before demolition. To save money, they sleep on-site, when the mansion’s romantic charm turns menacing. Strange occurrences and spectral sightings increase as the crew dismantles the house, exposing the Withrow family’s secrets. Priest spices up a standard haunting with an irresistible premise focused on the “hidden treasure” aspect of salvage work. Careful character building accentuates the novel’s slow build, so by the time the salvagers are in real danger, they feel like real people, too. Despite lulls in pacing, the final scenes are terrifying. Highly recommended for fans of contemporary ghost stories. ~Booklist

Chapelwood

Most of the reviews of Cherie Priest’s new-ish Maplecroft and its just-released quasi-sequel Chapelwood focus on what her world borrows from H.P. Lovecraft. Those reviews are totally right. There are a lot of tentacles and creeping dread in these two titles. They are loving tributes to Cthulhu and all that dread lord has wrought.

But that’s only the surface, which becomes especially clear in the newer of the two books. Chapelwood is set several decades after the events of Maplecroft (and said events involved a certain Lizzie Borden and her axe, among other things) but the two stories don’t have to be read together to be understood – despite sharing some characters and their created world. Now we’re in early 1920s Birmingham AL, where a recent spate of axe murders has caught the attention of Inspector Simon Wolf, who is dragged from the chilly Northeast to the South because an old friend is one of the victims. Ms Borden – now known as Lizbeth Andrew – gets involved, too, and this mismatched elder-god-fighting team try to get to the bottom of things and, incidentally, save all of humanity from a horrifying fate…

…Add to that smart subtext a young, female protagonist who is more than capable of rescuing herself, thank you very much, plus an ending that doesn’t fit the expected beats of a climactic ending but is incredibly satisfying – and Chapelwood becomes much more than a Lovecraft knock-off. It is wholly and wonderfully itself. ~Locus Magazine December 2015

Chapelwood is devious, twisted and beautifully written. Cherie Priest is one of our very best authors of the fantastic. Brava! ~Jonathan Maberry, New York Times bestselling author of Ghostwalkers and Predator One

Priest doesn’t shy away from violence, but it’s not what drives her brand of horror. The woman can do atmosphere. She can do menacing. She can do creepy. She’s one of the best writers in the horror/dark fantasy genre working today. ~Adventures Fantastic

[4-1/2 stars] In Chapelwood, Priest manages the very difficult task of jumping decades ahead — with a cast winnowed by the events of the previous novel in the series and the passing of years — and writing an equally gripping Lovecraftian thriller where our heroes are nearing or at retirement age and are pitched fully out of their normal settings. In some ways, this book is even scarier than the first, with their monstrous opponents coming to almost total power through good old-fashioned prejudice and hate; it feels very much like Borden, Wolf and their few allies are the last decent people in town. It’s a shame this feels like it must be the end of the series because readers will want more adventures with Borden and Wolf. ~Romantic Times

Setting this slow but effective second Lizzie Borden/H.P. Lovecraft mashup in the 1920s, three decades after the events of Maplecroft, Priest emphasizes Lovecraft’s storytelling elements of mathematics, spiritualism, the dubious cultural values of the early-20th-century American Deep South, and mind-shatteringly monstrous beings. The convergence of the actions of members of the congregation of the titular Chapelwood Estate, a church with a “patriotic Southern bent,” and a series of axe-murders (initially drawing little attention, due to the ethnicity and occupations of the victims), compel Inspector Simon Wolf and Lizbeth Andrew (formerly Borden) to visit Birmingham, Ala. Ruth Stephenson, a 20-year-old medium, is an unwitting linchpin in the plans of those who strive to control cosmic balances, one of a select few residents of Birmingham to make a stand against the corruption of their community. Multiple narrators slow the already sedate pace, but that contributes to the story’s atmosphere of inexorable menace, as does the grim history Priest draws on. Agent: Jennifer Jackson, Donald Maass Literary Agency. (Sept.) ~Publishers Weekly

I Am Princess X

[Starred Review] Back in fifth grade, best friends May and Libby created Princess X, a katana-wielding heroine who wears Converse sneakers with her ball gown. Ever since Libby and her mother died in a freak accident, May’s life has been as gray as her Seattle home—until the 16-year-old spots a Princess X sticker in a store window, leading her to a Princess X webcomic that suggests that Libby might still be alive. With the help of Trick, a hacker-for-hire, May follows the trail that Princess X’s near-mythic narrative leaves for her, which incorporates Seattle landmarks like the Fremont Troll and characters like the dangerous Needle Man and the mysterious, helpful Jackdaw. Illustrations from the Princess X comic—skillfully rendered by Ciesemier and printed in purple—add greatly to this techno-thriller’s tension. Fresh and contemporary, this hybrid novel/comic packs a lot of plot in a relatively short book, but its strongest suit may be Priest’s keen understanding of the chasmic gap between the way teens and adults engage in the landscape of the Internet. Ages 12–up. ~Publishers Weekly

[Starred Review] …An excellent book with loads of cross-genre and cross-format appeal. Highly recommended. ~School Library Review

[Starred Review] Priest’s YA debut is an engrossing cyberthriller packed with a puzzling mystery, crackerjack detective work, and an eerie, atmospheric sense of place. The unembellished style is a perfect match for the noir-lite tone, and May and Trick, whose banter crackles with energy, rival any team of gumshoes out there. Teens who roll their eyes at adults out of touch with Internet culture will eat this up. ~Booklist

[Starred Review] In a clever innovation, Priest seamlessly integrates Kali Ciesemier’s comics within the prose narrative. Each new episode of Princess X reveals further clues and a terrifying reality for their creator. Ciesemier’s portrait of Princess X achieves a sense of both anxiety and bravery. Priest demonstrates that creative teamwork of the kind shared by Libby and May leads to an intimate knowledge of one’s collaborator. ~Shelf Awareness

Jacaranda

[4 stars] Priest continues to be an effective crafter of dread and tension…The characters here are vivid and interesting enough that hopefully this particular adventure isn’t the last we hear from them, or of the survivors, at least. ~Romantic Times Book Reviews

While other novels in Priest’s Clockwork Century series have dabbled in supernatural elements, Jacaranda is the first to go full bore and embrace the supernatural. It leaves behind much of the steampunk and pseudoscientific trappings that characterize the series, offering a cursed hotel and perils less tangible than sap-poisoned rotters and Civil War profiteers… A welcome new wrinkle in an established series, Jacaranda shows there’s plenty of life left in the Clockwork Century universe. ~San Francisco Book Review

This gripping postscript to Priest’s Clockwork Century series (which officially concluded with Fiddlehead) takes readers to the titular Galveston, Tex., haunted hotel, in an alternate 1895 seasoned with ghosts and gears. Father Rios is a former gunslinger cursed with second sight and a dark past. When Sister Eileen contacts him about the dozens who have died in the hotel, he visits ahead of an impending hurricane and soon witnesses the horrors firsthand. The hotel’s guests all have dark secrets, and the violence with which the hotel disposes of them is all the more horrifying as it takes place off-page, leaving only the aftermath for the characters to discover. Priest is hardly covering new ground, but the American steampunk setting gives the classic evil haunted house a nice new coat of paint. Rios is a great protagonist, full of conflicts and doubts, and he drives the tale well. While the story stands on its own, it also provides some melancholy closure for fans of Priest’s earlier books. Agent: Jennifer Jackson, Donald Maass Agency. (Feb.) ~Publishers Weekly

In Jacaranda, set in Cherie Priest’s alternate version of late 1800s America – the one she set up in Boneshaker and has dipped back into successfully several times since – there is a hotel on Galveston Island that seems to be murdering its guests. Sister Eileen Callahan, who is not quite as human as she appears, asks for help from a padre and a Ranger, each of whom turns up on the Jacaranda’s doorstep a few days before a massive hurricane. What then unspools is a locked room horror mystery that has a little bit of The Shining and a little more Tarantino mixed in. Of course, it also has a lot of Priest herself, who is channeling her earlier Four and Twenty Blackbirds voice for a deliciously creepy turn in Jacaranda. Those who love a short spook or are Clockwork Century completists (or both, which might be a pretty big intersection on the Venn diagram) will love what Priest has done here. ~Locus Magazine

Unsettling and creepy, Jacaranda, Cherie Priest’s latest novella in the Clockwork Century series, is a classic take upon a horror staple. This work is an outlier in her established universe of alt-hist steampunk zombie Civil War adventures, but fulfills its promise as a quick, chilling read. ~Tor.com

Maplecroft

Maplecroft triumphs on virtually every level, and the seamless positioning of fact with macabre fiction is spot on. Regardless of your propensity towards Lovecraftian horror stories, if you enjoy superior writing and well fleshed out characters, you are going to enjoy this novel. ~LitStack.com

Maplecroft is at its most basic level really fun. I love the imagery of its evil creatures, the idea of Lizzie Borden going around with an axe destroying soul-sucking things because she wants to protect her town and her sister. And I loved her romantic relationship with Nance …. Maplecroft is also really good at depicting the slow, all-encompassing horror of the events surrounding and immediately following the Borden crimes in a cool mixture of horror, mystery and female characters’ badassery. ~Kirkus Reviews

Without giving too much away, I will say this—Maplecroft is a towering literary achievement. It’s a macabre masterwork. In terms of narrative intensity and abominable atmospherics, it’s comparable to anything Edgar Allan Poe or H.P. Lovecraft ever released. ~Paul Goat Allen, of B&N.com et. al.

[Rated 4-1/2 stars] Priest takes the epistolary format H.P. Lovecraft was fond of and uses it to far better effect, both in terms of characterization and horror. Her protagonists (Lizzie, her sister, her lover Nance O’Neil and the friendly Dr. Seabury) are extremely well drawn even as the nerve and mind-shredding events of 1895 drive them apart. Priest skillfully makes the menace around them specific and concrete while also remaining shadowy and unknowable, achieving maximum impact. Putting real historical characters in genre settings is an idea that’s seemed tired for a while, but this novel shows how compelling it can still be in the right hands…The people of Fall River are fairly certain that Lizzie Borden murdered her father and stepmother with an axe. What only Lizzie and her consumptive sister, Emma, know is that she did so in self-defense. Something had changed their parents and it’s starting to change others, warping bodies and minds, resulting in a spate of atrocities and strange creatures prowling the grounds of Maplecroft, their estate, at night. Something from the sea. Something that won’t stop until it finally gets out. ~Romantic Times

Part alternate history, part horror, Maplecroft is sure to be one of the season’s creepiest reads. ~Kirkus, where it was named a Top Pick for Speculative Fiction.

Are you ready for a world where Cthulhu meets Lizzie Borden? Yes, as in “gave her mother forty whacks” Lizzie Borden. If you can wrap your head around that concept, then you’re ready for the spook-fest that is Maplecroft by Cherie Priest. It’s a tale of the supernatural, the weird, and the dark things that come from the depths of the sea. For someone like me who was already convinced that going into the ocean equals death, this book was extra scary but also reassuring. Weird, right? But I feel better than ever about my decision to not put a toe in the ocean. ~Amy Ratcliffe, for The Nerdist.com

Maplecroft will be the best damn Cthulhu novel you’ve read in ages […] A warning, though. Once I started reading Maplecroft, I was basically glued to my chair until I was finished. So be prepared to lose an afternoon to this book – and to gnash your teeth waiting for the sequel to arrive (yes – it’s the first in the “Borden Dispatches” series). Whether you’re a weird fiction fan, or love true crime history, this book is a major treat. ~Annalee Newitz, at i09.com

[Starred Review] Lizbeth “Lizzie” Andrew Borden wields her axe against Lovecraftian entities in this terrifying and powerful series launch by fan favorite Priest (the Clockwork Century series). Two years after Lizzie infamously slew her mother and stepfather, she and her consumptive, scholarly older sister, Emma, remain in their hometown of Fall River, Mass., in an isolated and modified home called Maplecroft. Lizzie spends countless hours in her basement laboratory, trying to understand what transformed the Bordens into horrifying creatures, while protecting and caring for Emma and conducting a love affair with actress Nance O’Neil. Then Emma, who poses as “Dr. E.A. Jackson” to contribute to the men-only world of science, sends a biological sample to colleague Phillip Zollicoffer at Miskatonic University, with terrible consequences. Readers will be intrigued by the weird monsters and 19th-century science, but the story is really carried by the characters’ emotional dynamics, especially those between the Borden sisters. (Sept.) ~Publishers Weekly

What if Lizzie Borden actually did kill her father and stepmother with an axe, but she had a really good reason? Lizzie and her sister, Emma, still live in Fall River, MA, ostracized despite Lizzie’s acquittal years earlier. The townspeople don’t know that Lizzie might be their only defense against ocean creatures who can possess their souls and change their bodies. This clever premise combines genuine horror and a legendary historical character for an entertaining read. As in the best horror, the exact nature of the threat is left a little vague, allowing the reader’s imagination to fill in the details. ~Library Journal

Priest excels at exploring some of our deepest, darkest fears by weaving together a realistic setting and historic events with a frightening, visceral supernatural element. […] The marvelous Maplecroft receives this reviewer’s highest recommendation. ~BittenByBooks.com

A gothic tour de force by a writer at the peak of her powers. ~Fantasy Literature

For lovers of the gothic and macabre, Maplecroft is an unflinchingly grotesque glare into the maws of madness. Blood and viscera spatter readers in a miasmic mix of retched and revolting. This should surprise no one coming from Priest, who is fresh off a series centered on toxic steampunk zombies. Maplecroft is loftier, aspiring to the mountains of madness from whose peaks unfathomable insanity rains down. Succeeding to the summit is a superb work which wields both mastery over the classic forms of Lovecraft and Stoker, and the keenly honed blade of modern sensibilities. ~Chuck Francisco at Mania.com

Maplecroft is dark and lyrical, haunting and brined in blood. It is as sharp as Lizzie Borden’s axe — and Borden herself is a horror heroine bar none. Cherie Priest is our new queen of darkness, folks. Time to kneel before her, lest she take our heads. ~Chuck Wendig, author of Blackbirds and The Blue Blazes.

Cherie Priest has long been a favorite author of mine, but with Maplecroft she has outdone herself. Grim, impeccably written, and deliciously disturbing, it’s nothing less than a Gothic masterpiece, and represents Priest at the height of her power. Easily my favorite novel of the year so far. ~ Kealan Patrick Burke, Bram Stoker Award-winning author of The Turtle Boy, and Kin.

Cherie Priest is supremely gifted and Maplecroft is a remarkable novel, simultaneously beautiful and grotesque. It is at once a dark historical fantasy with roots buried deep in real-life horror and a supernatural thriller mixing Victorian drama and Lovecraftian myth. You won’t be able to put it down! ~ Christopher Golden, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Snowblind

With Maplecroft, Cherie Priest delivers her most terrifying vision yet — a genuinely scary, deliciously claustrophobic, and dreadfully captivating historical thriller with both heart and cosmic horror. A mesmerizing, absolute must-read! ~ Brian Keene, Best-selling author of The Rising and Ghoul