The Mermaid Mask is an indie, mystery, point and click by SFB Games. It features a distinct art style, gripping storyline and unique puzzles. From their press release: ‘In the pitch-black waters beyond a long-abandoned fishing town, the enigmatic Captain Magnus Mortuga (rumoured to be everything from an immortal time-traveller to a cursed vampire) has…
Publish date: 7th July 2026 A short, sad spiral into the grief of losing a family member. ‘The Weight of One Pomegranate’ is a book that sits with you during the dark moments. The timing, for me, was serendipitous. Unintentionally, I read this on the anniversary of my father’s passing and as such, my experience…
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…
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…
Heroes of Might and Magic: Olden Era is a turn-based strategy game by Ubisoft. This one is designed as a prequel to the original series and sets my nostalgia sensors tingling. For those of you who weren’t gaming in the 90s, this series defined an era and this particular game has taken the series back…
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…
Palia is a cosy MMORPG where you can craft, cook, build your base and romance some quirky alien characters. So far, I’ve put in 176 hour and I’m not bored which is a great sign. The best part of the game is that community is really supportive and people do help when you need specific…
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…
Publish date: Tuesday 7th April 2026 Devil of the Deep is a swashbuckling, mermaid fantasy which dives into cult behaviour, trust themes and complex relationships. Found family and betrayal feature heavily throughout. My first encounter with this book was the long list of trigger warnings: Graphic violence, execution, child death, child abuse, implied paedophilia, transphobia,…
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…
