The books Southern indie booksellers are recommending to readers everywhere!

Dark Fantasy

Furyborn by Claire Legrand

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Furyborn by Claire Legrand
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This book is full of my favorite kind of character- strong, stubborn, and super-flawed. Told alternately, Furyborn is about two women separated by time but full of magic, fury and secrets and a connection that becomes clearer as the story unfolds. The wait for the next book in the series is going to be torture, but I’ll endure!

Furyborn by Claire Legrand, (List Price: $18.99, Sourcebooks Fire, 9781492656623, May 2018)

Reviewed by Kate Towery, Fountain Bookstore in Richmond, Virginia

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The Thirteenth Child by Erin A. Craig

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The Thirteenth Child by Erin A. Craig
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Craig’s newest novel is about a young girl, claimed by a god and forced into the role of a healer. She grows to love most of the job, as well as her GODfather. However, when she’s brought to the Kong to cure a strange, new disease, she finds herself embroiled in a strange plot where she’ll be lucky to escape with her life. Craig’s retelling of the Grimm Brother’s story Godfather Death is a page-turner that kept me up long after my bedtime!

The Thirteenth Child by Erin A. Craig, (List Price: $20.99, Delacorte Press, 9780593482582, September 2024)

Reviewed by Jennifer Jones, Bookmiser in Marietta, Georgia

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Wisteria by Adalyn Grace

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Wisteria by Adalyn Grace
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A beautiful conclusion to a stunning young adult series that will leave you craving more of the story after the ending. This book shows what it means to truly wait and look for the one you love even if it takes centuries, but knowing that one day they will find you again. Their marriage starts off rocky, to say the least, with Blythe having tricked Fate into marrying her and not her cousin, who he thought was his long-lost love: Life. As things unfold and Blythe begins seeing memories she has no knowledge of having made, she begins to question who she really is and if there is more to her than what was once a strong-willed, sick girl. Fate begins to see that if he is stuck being with Blythe for the rest of her mortal life, he might as well make the best of it and not keep fighting her on everything, but soon discovers that he may actually be developing feelings for her and feels connected to her on an even deeper level. Will the two be able to work together and over come their fears in time to save Blythe’s life, again, or will history be repeating itself all over again leaving Fate with a fresh broken heart, and Blythe lost once again to the hands of Death?

Wisteria by Adalyn Grace, (List Price: $19.99, Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, 9780316569385, August 2024)

Reviewed by Kelli Dynia, Copperfish Books in Punta Gorda, Florida

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The Hunger and the Dusk, Vol. 1 by G. Willow Wilson

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The Hunger and the Dusk, Vol. 1 by G. Willow Wilson
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I am truly obsessed! This story takes place in a world where humans and orcs are enemies, but when a long-forgotten entity known as the Vangol returns from across the seas, humankind and orc-kind must form alliances if they hope to survive what’s ahead. Can humans and orcs see past their painful histories and prejudices? I CANNOT WAIT TO FIND OUT!

The Hunger and the Dusk, Vol. 1 by G. Willow Wilson, (List Price: $21.99, IDW Publishing, 9798887240824, June 2024)

Reviewed by Morgan DePerno, Bookmarks in Winston-Salem, North Carolina

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Beneath These Cursed Stars by Lexi Ryan

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Beneath These Cursed Stars by Lexi Ryan
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Lexi Ryan knows how to ramp up the tension and keep you guessing. I absolutely loved being back in the Fae world from These Hollow Vows again! (Which I do recommend reading before diving into this book. Not that you have to, but it does offer insights that otherwise might get missed or feel confusing while reading this book). Beneath These Cursed Stars centers around Brie’s sister Jas (Jasalyn) and a new character, Felicity (who took me a little longer to feel invested in, but now I’m hooked). It took no time at all for me to jump right back into this world, and I was thrilled to experience it from a whole new perspective. Jasalyn’s story is heartbreaking and traumatizing; the loss of hope and representation of PTSD throughout was done well and had me either holding my breath or crying at certain parts. I will say this book really took off right at the very end. That CLIFFHANGER! My word. Lexi Ryan what are you doing to us?! But now, I obviously can’t wait to read the next book.

Beneath These Cursed Stars by Lexi Ryan, (List Price: $19.99, HarperTeen, 9780063311909, July 2024)

Reviewed by Brianne Wik, Main Street Books in , North Carolina

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The Ballad of Never After by Stephanie Garber

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The Ballad of Never After by Stephanie Garber
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I loved Once Upon A Broken Heart and was very excited to receive a review copy of The Ballad of Never After. Stephanie Garber has done an amazing job of bringing fairy tales to life along with the curses intertwined within them. Garber didn’t just bring one story to life but a story within a story, within another story. Fairy tales are not all gold and glitter, and you see this more so in The Ballad of Never After. You fall in love with all the characters, whether they are “good” or “bad.” I really hope there is a third book in this series, and I am impatiently waiting for it.

The Ballad of Never After by Stephanie Garber, (List Price: $13.99, Flatiron Books, 9781250268433, March 2024)

Reviewed by Mandy Harris, Angel Wings Bookstore in Summerville, North Carolina

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Where the Dark Stands Still by A. B. Poranek

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Where the Dark Stands Still by A. B. Poranek
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Meet the darker, gothier little sister of Uprooted and The Bear and the Nightingale—with a hint of Howl’s Moving Castle! Rooted in Polish folklore and set in a wickedly magical wood full of dangers and wonders alike, this grim yet romantic young adult fantasy marks the debut of a writer to watch.

Where the Dark Stands StillWhere the Dark Stands Still by A. B. Poranek, (List Price: $19.99, Margaret K. McElderry Books, 9781665936477, February 2024)

Reviewed by Megan Bell, Underground Books in Carrollton, Georgia

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Spotlight On: Unholy Terrors by Lyndall Clipstone

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Lyndall Clipstone, photo credit the author

I’ve always loved to write, and storytelling is an enormous part of how I make sense of my emotions. Especially as a young adult, a time in my life where I felt quite adrift, immersing myself into books and writing provided so much solace. I love the endlessness of possibilities with speculative fiction, and how I can use things like magic, or monsters, or body horror as a lens through which to examine the real world.
― Lyndall Clipstone, Interview, Geeks Out

Unholy Terrors by Lyndall Clipstone

What booksellers are saying about Unholy Terrors

  • A Monsterous boy and a fierce girl, Clipstone delivers another beautiful YA gothic fantasy. From the moment we first cross through the bone wall with Evie, to traveling through the moorland with Ravel, and facing down the Thousandfold. Clipstone takes us on a journey that feels like a Studio Ghibli film crossed with a horror movie. A gripping family legacy that makes you question everything that happens to Evie, is it fate that Evie and Ravel journey together or is it a curse? A curse that has Haunted Evie since before she was born.
      ― Cass W, The Country Bookshop in Southern Pines, NC | Buy from The Country Book Shop

  • Clipstone’s Unholy Terrors takes us to a Wuthering Heights-esque setting, wildly beautiful in its ruin, and drops us off with only the honey and ash prose we fell in love with in her Lake’s Edge duology to guard our hearts and souls against the monsters of truth and generational loyalty that howl in the Thousandfold. A beautiful and haunting read for fans of transforming girls and kissable monsters.
      ― Candice Conner from The Haunted Book Shop in Mobile, AL | Buy from The Haunted Book Shop

  • Unholy Terrors is the perfect gothic romance fantasy for all your October spooky season needs. For fans of Crimson Peak and Labyrinth and every dark, haunted thing that deserves to be kissed and killed and brought back again. For the ghastly, and the horrifying, and still beautiful despite it all. Unholy Terrors is perfect, full stop.
      ― Caitlyn Vanorder from Bookmarks in Winston-Salem, NC | Buy from Bookmarks

About Lyndall Clipstone

Lyndall Clipstone writes about monsters and the girls who like to kiss them. A former youth librarian who grew up running wild in the Barossa Ranges of South Australia, she currently lives in Adelaide, where she tends her own indoor secret garden. She has a bachelors in creative writing and a graduate diploma in library and information management. She is the author of Lakesedge and Forestfall.

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Starling House by Alix E. Harrow

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Starling Houseby Alix E. Harrow
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As someone who has always been a little too soft for the world, nothing delights me more than living vicariously through fierce and hard as nail protagonists like Opal. Opal is fighting every day to make sure her brother doesn’t go without in the town of Eden. Despite barely having time to think, Opal begins to dream of Starling House, the Secret that no one talks about, and even though she knows better, she finds herself at the front door. Arthur is going to be the last warden of the Starling House, taking its legacy of monsters and magic down with him. He’s determined to be so until Opal breaks down the walls around his heart with her knock at Starling House’s door. This is a story of two people who are less than beautiful that smile with crooked teeth and black eyes, and I didn’t want it to end.

Starling House by Alix E. Harrow, (List Price: $28.99, Tor Books, 9781250799050, October 2023)

Reviewed by Katlin Kerrison, Story on the Square in McDonough, Georgia

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The Forest Grimm by Kathryn Purdie

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The Forest Grimm by Kathryn Purdie
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Since I started this book I have been completely hooked. I am a big fan of Bon Crier’s Moon Duology but this one has taken first place as enrapturing, fantastical and captivating for me. I LOVE these characters and the way in which it spins off of fairytales. The spin on the fairytales are so unique. I absolutely love the use and importance of Red Rampion and how it ties into the fairytale retellings. I also love the plot in this book, how it tells not only a journey of a group of friends but a growth of the friends and how they have to deal with truth, loss, pain and hardship. I already CANNOT wait to find out what happens next and how they will (hopefully) break the Curse of the Grimm Forest. I could go on and on about this book but mostly I’ll just say, if you aren’t planning on reading this you are missing out on the journey of a life time and the most unique retelling of the classic fairytales I have ever heard of.

The Forest Grimm by Kathryn Purdie, (List Price: 20, Wednesday Books, 9781250873002, September 2023)

Reviewed by Charlotte Beck, Main Street Reads in Summerville, South Carolina

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Unholy Terrors by Lyndall Clipstone

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Unholy Terrors by Lyndall Clipstone
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Clipstone’s Unholy Terrors takes us to a Wuthering Heights-esque setting, wildly beautiful in its ruin, and drops us off with only the honey and ash prose we fell in love with in her Lake’s Edge duology to guard our hearts and souls against the monsters of truth and generational loyalty that howl in the Thousandfold. A beautiful and haunting read for fans of transforming girls and kissable monsters.

Unholy Terrors by Lyndall Clipstone, (List Price: $19.99, Henry Holt and Co., 9781250887733, January 2023)

Reviewed by Candice Conner, The Haunted Book Shop in Mobile, Alabama

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Curious Tides by Pascale Lacelle

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Curious Tides by Pascale Lacelle
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Curious Tides centers a lush magic system unlike anything I’ve seen before. The celestial lore was beautifully crafted, and Lacelle’s prose is as captivating as a high tide. I deeply appreciated the subtle LGBTQIA rep and the care with which each interpersonal entanglement was treated. I’ve no doubt that Curious Tides will become a staple in the dark academia/fantasy niche, and I cannot wait for the sequel.

Curious Tides by Pascale Lacelle, (List Price: 21.99, Margaret K. McElderry Books, 9781665939270, October 2023)

Reviewed by Isabel Agajanian, Oxford Exchange in Tampa, Florida

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Bonesmith by Nicki Pau Preto

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Bonesmith by Nicki Pau Preto
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Wren wants nothing more than to be a valkyr, a highly trained warrior who protects reapyrs as they make sure the dead stay dead. But when a betrayal sabotages her qualifying trial, Wren finds herself disgraced and shunned with only one chance to redeem herself: rescue a prince from a wasteland of the dead. Harrowing and thrilling, with a richly imagined world and magic system, Bonesmith is the start of a duology that should be at the top of every fantasy fan’s reading list.

Bonesmith by Nicki Pau Preto, (List Price: 21.99, Margaret K. McElderry Books, 9781665910590, July 2023)

Reviewed by Charlie Williams, Square Books in Oxford, Mississippi

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The Third Daughter by Adrienne Tooley

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The Third Daughter by Adrienne Tooley
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Elodie was going to be queen, until her youngest sister was born. The third daughter of a third daughter has been prophesied as the second coming of their deity. But there’s tension between the crown and the church, and Elodie, wanting to save her kingdom, accidentally puts her sister into an eternal sleep. The apothecary who sells her the potion, Sabine, is the only one who can help Elodie save her sister and the country, and the two set off to do just that. But while Sabine and Elodie grow closer, secrets have a way of coming out, and all is not as it seems among the clergy. An emotional adventure full of court intrigue that’s sure to appeal to fans of other YA royal reads like Three Dark Crowns and Dance of Thieves.

The Third Daughter by Adrienne Tooley, (List Price: 18.99, Christy Ottaviano Books, 9780316465694, July 2023)

Reviewed by Melissa Oates, Fiction Addiction in Greenville, South Carolina

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The Salt Grows Heavy by Cassandra Khaw

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The Salt Grows Heavy by Cassandra Khaw
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After her deadly daughters devour their father’s kingdom, the mermaid princess knows she is too soft to return to the ocean’s depths. Adrift, she decides to travel with the kingdom’s plague doctor, the only person who saw what a monster she truly was even bedecked in sugar and froth in her role of a princess. Together, they journey north into a village of children and saints and discover beauty and horror in equal measure. As always, Khaw writes beautiful, elegant prose of graphic scenes of bodies being taken apart and, sometimes, devoured. Her writing is top-notch and the ending is sweet, without being saccharine, as the monsters in this story stay true to their vicious nature. Highly recommended!

The Salt Grows Heavy by Cassandra Khaw, (List Price: 21.99, Tor Nightfire, 9781250830913, May 2023)

Reviewed by Kelly McLeod, The Haunted Book Shop in Mobile, Alabama

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