Zombie Abbey (2018) Written By: Lauren Baratz-Logsted Genre: Young Adult Horror Pages: 352 (Kindle) Publisher: Entangled Teen Disclaimer: I received this ARC from the publisher with the understanding I’d give it an honest review. Why I Chose It: I’m not really into zombies when it comes to dramatic horror, a la The Walking Dead. That […]

They might not be raindrops on roses or whiskers on kittens, but that doesn’t mean that we love them any less. Welcome back to My Favorite Things, the weekly column where we grab someone in speculative circles to gab about the greatest in geek. This week, we sit down with Allan C. R. Cornelius, who […]

Indie publishing (also known as self-publishing) has been around for quite a long time, and with the introduction of ebooks and print-on-demand, it is a legitimate and growing industry. Being an indie means wearing a lot of hats and shifting among different roles, all necessary to the overall job of being an authorprenuer. Last month, […]

I’ve mentioned before, I really enjoy Nicole Givens Kurtz‘s work. When the opportunity came up to get an early look at her newest book, I jumped at it! The cover is gorgeous, and the plot summary had me ready to dive into this new world! Kill Three Birds (2020) Written by: Nicole Givens Kurtz Genre: […]

It’s the end of the week and the beginning of higanbana season! Every September in Japan, the beautiful spider lilies bloom in droves. These flowers are also called the Flowers of the Other Shore, and the Other Shore lies beyond the River Sanzu, a river of the dead. Many cultures all over the globe affiliate […]

The High Unholy Days of October continue with The Kasturi/Files at Speculative Chic, now with a spanking new movie for Day 9! Plus, of course, cocktail and book pairings. Today we’re covering the ’90s horror classic, Candyman. Gemma Files: It makes total sense to me that Jordan Peele (Get Out, Us) is spearheading the less-a-reboot-than-a-sequel […]

When I originally watched IT: Chapter One in theaters, I had some mixed reactions. Yet, in the intervening years, IT became something resembling a favorite. So I was a little wary when friends of mine saw IT: Chapter Two on opening weekend and gave it a shrug as a review, with the added explanation of, […]

A Clash of Kings (2000) Written By: George R.R. Martin Narrated by: Roy Dotrice Genre: Epic Fantasy Length: 37 h 18 m (Audiobook) Series: A Song of Ice and Fire, Book 2 Publisher: Random House Audio via Audible The premise: A comet the color of blood and flame cuts across the sky. And from the ancient citadel […]

In our quest for urban fantasy, we have hitherto journeyed only through the realm of fairy and its migration into the cities of Minneapolis and Newford. But how did we arrive in St. Louis? Well, the master of the city, Jean-Claude, invited us, we gave consent, and followed him and his lover, Anita Blake down […]

July 6, 2020 They might not be raindrops on roses or whiskers on kittens, but that doesn’t mean that we love them any less. Welcome back to My Favorite Things, the weekly column where we grab someone in speculative circles to gab about the greatest in geek. This week, we sit down with Bishop O’Connell, […]

November 9, 2016 The Chimes (2016) Written by: Anna Smaill Genre: Fantasy/Literary Fantasy Pages: 304 (hardcover) 265 (epub) Publisher: Quercus Why I Chose It: When the call went out to read the World Fantasy Award nominees, I selected The Chimes based on its premise: an entire society full people with a severe memory disorder. For reasons […]

July 20, 2017 Penric and the Shaman (2016) Written by: Lois McMaster Bujold Pages: 160 (Kindle) Publisher: Spectrum Literary Agency, Inc Why I chose it: I’ve read (and adored) Bujold’s Sharing Knife series and have been wanting to read more of her work. When this Penric novella was offered as a Hugo reading, I took […]

Speculative Chic is fairly new, but contributors Lane Robins and Carey M. Ballard already had plans to attend Worldcon (aka MidAmericon II), held from August 17-21 in Kansas City, Missouri. They share their thoughts, experiences, and advice below. What did we expect of the con? Lane: I attended primarily as a vacation, so I expected […]

I’d always thought that dressing up as Sailor Venus would be fun. We had a lot of the same traits — long, blonde(ish) hair, a love of food, a desire to destroy bad guys, etc. But aside from Halloween, there wasn’t any point. It wasn’t until years later that I learned about conventions and the […]