Fifteen Thousand Pieces delves into the struggles faced by the incredible people who provided support in the aftermath of the September 1998 crash of Swissair Flight 111. The book focuses on the life and career of Dr. John Butt, the Nova Scotia medical examiner overseeing the recovery and identification of the 229 individuals who perished in the tragedy. Following two timelines—from John’s teen years within his tense family home, and the investigation after the crash—the story unfolds with unflinching detail.

I expected this book to be a difficult read, but was surprised by its honesty, humility, and the compassion I felt for John’s personal struggles.

Set in a rural New England town, Everything the Darkness Eats blends the allure of supernatural forces alongside the shock of bigotry. Ghost is haunted by a small spirit of unknown origin that feeds off of his despair. Malik struggles to find acceptance after moving to the area to help investigate a string of disappearances. And Heart is searching for an assistant to help him unlock the power of a god who is trapped inside his basement.

Tensions rise and shocks accumulate in his dreadful novel where nothing is quite as it seems.

A Head Full of Ghosts is a Bram Stoker Award winning novel about an eight-year-old girl named Merry (Meredith), who is struggling to make sense of unsettling changes affecting her older sister Marjorie. The story is divided into three parts, and each section includes one chapter set 15 years in the future where adult Merry is being interviewed about what happened to Marjorie, one chapter from internet blogger and horror fan Karen Brisette who dissects the reality televisions series made about the supposed possession, and the events as they unfold told from the perspective of eight-year-old Merry.

Merry knows something is off with her sister but has hope that things will return to the way they were. Their mother believes Marjorie is mentally ill and struggles to support her daughter’s increasing health expenses as the sole earner in the four-person household. However, their father comes to believe that Marjorie is possessed by a demon or evil entity, and enlists the assistance of their local priest, Father Wanderly, to assess the situation, and get approval to perform an exorcism.

Chaos ensues when a reality television film crew begins documenting Marjorie’s decline.

Yellowface is a satirical literary novel that features an unlikeable lead. June Hayward is not the novelist she feels she deserves to be. Her dissatisfaction with her lack of book sales, interviews, and popularity are emphasized (in her own mind) when in the presence of her friend Athena Liu; an Asian-American “literary darling” that June met while attending Yale.

The book opens with Athena’s death. She asphyxiates on pancakes while the pair are celebrating Athena’s most recent success. Following this, June appropriates “The Last Front” the (only) typewritten drafted copy of Athena’s latest novel, with the intention of editing and finalizing it for Athena. However, June conceals the existence of the manuscript until it is complete, and then passes it off as her own work to her editor.

What follows is blatant plagiarism, cultural appropriation, racism, lies, harassment, and Twitter.

Babel is a profound piece of historical fiction set in 1830s England, about Robin, a young man of Chinese and English ancestry, removed from his homeland at the age of 11 and groomed for education at Oxford University’s – Royal Institute of Translation; in a world where linguistic cognition and “silver working” can accomplish magical (or repulsive) things for the benefit of the English empire.

It transitions from being informative and educational about the time period, to uncomfortable and unsettling when the characters encounter discrimination as they navigate an environment that desires their polyglot skills, while simultaneously demanding their unquestioning obedience; even when faced with decisions that make them feel like they are betraying their origins and ancestry.

This is the first book I’ve read by R.F. Kuang. I chose this over The Poppy War trilogy in order to get a sense of Kuang’s writing style before diving into a series. Her education and interest in history, literature, and translation, are strongly reflected in this novel. The rich detail creates an immersive, slow burn narrative that I really enjoyed.

The Magicians starts as a magical school, urban fantasy, before morphing into an adventurous portal fantasy, while maintaining a strong message about mental health, human imperfection, and what it means to belong. Magic seems to be prevalent among people who are dissatisfied with themselves and/or their lives, but while magic grants power and prestige to those who master it, it isn’t presented as a perfect solution to everyday problems.

Phantom is an astonishingly inventive and captivating piece of fanfiction. Based off of the character Erik from the French novel Le Fantôme de l’Opéra by Gaston Leroux, Phantom tells the story of a child born with a facial disfigurement and genius level intellect; who, after being shunned and confined due to his otherness, becomes driven by power and perfectionism. Erik matures into a masked spectre that demands respect and who kills indiscriminately.

It is a heartbreaking tragedy, and a unfortunate allegory of the many ways that love can be withheld, manipulated, and misunderstood.

It is not a love story.