Halloween Hotlist
Genre-bending and not easily pigeonholed, here are some of CanLit's most exciting new offerings—from the all-too-human evils to the monstrous and macabre.
BY JEFFREY DUPUIS
Blood Atonement by S.M. Freedman
Dundurn Press
Blood Atonement, the story of cult survivors dying under mysterious circumstances, is a well-paced, haunting thriller that sucks readers in. S. M. Freedman continues her hot streak of novels where trauma has left her characters fractured and struggling with foes both internal and external.
The book follows the parallel stories of Grace, the survivor of a polygamous cult in rural BC who now struggles with dissociative identity disorder, and Beau, the RCMP detective investigating strange deaths of Grace’s fellow survivors. Freedman’s masterful handling of plot, description and characters makesBlood Atonementa must-read for mystery and thriller fans.
Queer Little Nightmares, edited by David Ly and Daniel Zomparelli
Arsenal Pulp Pres
There is nothing more haunting than horror born out of desire, longing, and alienation—which Queer Little Nightmareshas plenty of. This collection sinks its claws into the reader and gets deep under the skin. Tension is piled on, one layer atop another, in many of these pieces, the supernatural on top of hiding one’s true self. An all-star lineup of some of the country’s top talents weave tales of fear and wonder that make this essential reading for fans of both horror and fantastic literary fiction.
For those who haven’t associated poetry with horror writing since discovering Poe’s “The Raven” in grade school, this collection reminds readers of the chilling potential of verse. Some of the brightest stars in contemporary Canadian poetry plumb the darkest depths in this anthology, including Jane Shi, Kai Cheng Thom, and Victoria Mbabazi. Queer Little Nightmares balances poetry and fiction, with terrifying tales by an all-star lineup of brilliant writers including Cicely Belle Blain, Andrew Wilmot, Amber Dawn, Anuja Varghese, jaye simpson, and Eddy Boudel Tan.
Possessed by Jowita Bydlowska
Dundurn Press
Between Possessed and her story “Mother” being collected in Best Canadian Short Stories (Biblioasis Press), Fall 2022 reminds the CanLit landscape that Bydlowska is one of the most interesting voices in Canadian fiction writing today. Beautifully-written and haunting, Possessed smuggles readers over the border of desire into obsession. The mixing of gothic qualities with Bydlowska's well-honed literary sensibilities work especially well.
Possessed follows Josephine as she navigates her unfulfilling relationships with her lover Victor and her mother, then spirals into sexual obsession with Sebastian. Touches of the supernatural are woven throughout the book, until the veil between the spirit world and our own becomes thin enough to pass from one to the other. Books this engaging, that take you on such a twisted, dark, and yet rewarding journey, are hard to come by.
Radioland by Matt Cahill
Wolsak and Wynn
Matt Cahill’s second novel, Radioland, blends trauma and magic with the hustle of living in a world of increasing inequality. The book presents us two POV characters: Kris, a struggling musician, and Jill, a woman with legitimate and mysterious psychic powers. Cahill explores two kinds of isolation with his characters, both of whom struggle with both their pasts and their futures.
Set in Toronto’s west end, Cahill’s prose captures the tone and rhythm of the city. Radioland is one of those books so grounded in a place and time that it should later be studied just to understand the region in which it was set.
Layers of tension coalesce and rise while solitude is explored and real, human connections are forged. There are few novels that you can compare to Radioland and few authors who could pull it off with the skill of Cahill.
Eve’s Rib by C.S. O’Cinneide
Dundurn Press
Eve’s Rib begs the question of what is scarier, supernatural forces or raising a teenager? C.S. O’Cinneide’s latest page-turner is a departure from the hardboiled crime fiction of her Candace Starr series, but you can catch a nod to her foul-mouthed assassin in this latest work. Eve’s Rib is a domestic thriller with the threat of the supernatural dangling over the story like the sword of Damocles, thanks to a Faustian bargain the titular character alludes to in the prologue.
The strength of this book, rather than the flash of magic and witchcraft, is the family at its centre. Eve’s marriage to Richard is on the rocks due as much to past trauma as anything otherworldly, and her strained relationship with her daughter Abbey threatens to blow up their fragile domesticity. O’Cinneide sprinkles of familiar sinister traits in her characterization of Abbey, reminiscent of the sociopathic schoolgirl in her story “Bad Habits” (see Quarantine Reviewissue #5), while taking her readers into unfamiliar territory.
Eve’s Rib is an ultimately satisfying, fast-paced thriller that explores the layers of darkness within each of us, dark forces notwithstanding. Fans of O’Cinneide’s previous supernatural thriller, Petra’s Ghost, will find themselves at home here, as will fans of Shirley Jackson. O'Cinneide demonstrates great versatility with this book, and it will be exciting to see what subject matter or genre she sets her sights on next.