Speculative fiction at its finest, The Algo envisions a world where optimisation is everything. The algorithm calculates the perfect ambience, routes, posture, everything. All people have to do is obey and after all, why wouldn’t you? Decision fatigue is a real thing. Citizens are measured by their optimisation scores and the higher the score, the…
Unfortunately, I can’t recommend it. Although the poems were fun to read and the illustrations were just as nice as in the prequel.
Same as last year: Queer Pride is this month, so we’ll be doing something queer-related, but will add an additional prompt:
The Disaster Gay Detective Agency (try saying that three times fast) is a crime novel drenched in LGBTQ+ representation and I am psyched. The four main characters are a black lesbian, a non binary character, a trans man and a twink. The whole book absolutely lives up to the title and is a riot, start…
The Merge is a psychological horror novel with a cosmic twist, sprinkled with real astrological practices. At least, that’s what their blurb says. It follows the story of Jarvis, a PhD student who is overworked, struggling with rising debt and has medical issues. I’ll be honest, I found the book unpolished but with potential. It…
Publish date: 28th April 2026 For my review of J Penner’s previous book, A Fellowship of Bakers and Magic, see here. Death Meets Cute is a cosy fantasy revolving around Iris Weyward, an ‘evil’ witch and her recently-revived-through-necromancy orc bodyguard, Talon. The story starts with Iris striking out on her own after too much sibling…
Might not fit April in particular, but hey, we don’t need monthly celebrations each challenge. So, …:
Release date: Tuesday 17th March 2026 Wayward Souls is a gothic, supernatural tale set in Ireland, revolving around the daughter of Professor Moriarty and the granddaughter of Jonathan Harker. It is the second in the series, after Wayward Beasts. In this installation, the ladies team up with the son of Van Helsing (also called Van…
It’s a sweet little story about a missing puzzle piece used as an analogy for adopting a baby into a big family.
Gained a new perspective on a topic I previously avoided and disliked. The abstract illustrations are very nice too with an interesting art style.
