TOP PICKS – June 2024
Welcome to this month’s Top Picks!
Every month, we’re going to share with you our favourite reads of the month. We’ve rounded up our contributors and asked them each to recommend just one favourite read of the month.
A big thank you to Nils for coming up with this feature, and our contributors for taking part!
Let’s find out what the team has read this month…
Nils: The Mime Order by Samantha Shannon
I only read two books this month but my favourite of them by far was The Mime Order by Samantha Shannon. This is the sequel to The Bone Season and it picks up immediately where book one left off. Isn’t it so satisfying when books do that? So this time around we delve into the seedy criminal underworld of Clairvoyants as Paige returns to her role as a mollisher for Jaxon Hall, a man who is as shady as they come. There are plenty of betrayals, duels, revelations and a fight to win the Rose Crown. I flew through every page of this thrilling story. My review will come during Women in SFF.
Kat: The Gray House by Mariam Petrosyan
It’s been a really slow reading month for me and the only fantasy book that’s standing out to me is The Gray House by Mariam Petrosyan and I haven’t even finished it yet! It’s a mostly plotless exploration of a residential school for disabled kids where the kids run rampant and form their own rules, clans, traditions, and nicknames within the loose boundaries of the adults’ supervision. My favourite thing about it so far is the way that disability is handled – every character has a disability, some are even nicknamed for them, but they are never described or depicted as being ‘lesser than’ because of this. The characters are explored in great depth and their quirks and mannerisms are celebrated. I will definitely be writing a full review once I finally finish the audiobook!
Hil: Wheel of Fate by A.K. Faulkner
Right at the end of May, Wheel of Fate by A.K.Faulkner was released and ohhhhhh myyyyy, it’s unrelenting! Book ten in the Inheritance series should be all kittens and ribbons as Laurence and Quentin plan their wedding. Instead it’s spider webs and no-good choices as they get sucked into plots and machinations put into play before they were even born. As the philosopher said, the mills of the gods grind slowly, but they grind small. Laurence is about to find out exactly how small. I had to put the book in the fridge for a few bits because it was just. so. nerve-wracking. Cannot recommend this series highly enough; A K. is in their groove and it’s breath-taking.
Jonathan: Lanark by Alasdair Gray
Lots of good stuff this month. Gretchen Felker-Martin’s Cuckoo is a modern horror classic, Julia Armfield’s Private Rites is a thought-provoking and discombobulating work of climate fiction. However I’m defaulting to an old favourite – I reread Alasdair Gray’s wonderful, unclassifiable modern fantasy literature masterpiece Lanark. Split between fantasy and realist sections, set in the imaginary city of Unthank and post-war Glasgow, both of which are surrealist reflections of hell, it’s beautifully written and, though it came out in the 1980s, its approach to genre and metafiction still feels incredibly modern.
Cat: Mistress of Lies by KM Enright
This year is so full of good books, narrowing them down is such a challenge! June had some DNFs (which always has me feeling bad) but also some real 5-star amazing reads that I want to rave about!
This month, I think it’s Mistress of Lies by KM Enright. A truly original vampire tale, the story takes it time with worldbuilding and social commentary while focusing on compelling characters that I absolutely rooted for (including some ‘Nooooooo!’ moments). Also it has a love-triangle that turns into healthy, consenting polyamory instead of just maintaining perpetual tension. I am ALL about that! Told by a Filipino author with a unique voice who is clearly unafraid when pushing the boundaries of traditional storytelling, this is clever, beautiful and deeply engrossing. Sequel please!
Beth: Dreadful by Caitlin Rozakis
I’ve had a great reading month; it’s been a little calmer than May, with no DNFs, so I feel like I’m back in my groove. I’ve read two fantasy books this month; the first was a sequel I’ve been super excited about – Shadowstitch by Cari Thomas continues the story of dark family curses and a secret underground world of magic in London started in Threadneedle. Although not the paciest of books, I loved being in this world so much, Thomas really does pack it with magic.
However, my Top Pick of the month had to be the debut novel from Caitlin Rozakis, Dreadful. In fact, this is one of my top reads of the year. What we have on our hands here is a dark wizard Dread Lord who has woken up without their memories. He’s in the middle of a particularly sticky situation with some rival wizards, but has had a complete personality replacement, and needs to find a new way in his previously evil life. This really filled that Legends and Lattes hole I’ve had since finishing that one; the story is nothing like L&L in terms of plot, but the comparison resonated in that we have a protagonist desperately trying to make a change in their life and forge a new path going forward.
What was your favourite read of the month? Share with us in the comments!
