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Can’t-Wait Wednesday: Getting Witchy with Dawson, Golden, and Hendrix

Can’t-Wait Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted here to spotlight and discuss the books we’re excited about that we have yet to read. Generally they’re books that have yet to be released. Find out more here.

A trio of choices this week to celebrate the spooky season, all featuring witches, witchcraft, covens, and curses.

Human Rites

by Juno Dawson
Contemporary Fantasy
384 pages, Paperback
July 17, 2025 by HarperVoyager

With Her Majesty’s Royal Coven in shambles and the fate of the world hanging in the balance, the sisterhood of friends and witches must find a new way of putting together the pieces if (wo)mankind is to stand a chance, in this final chapter to Juno’s  “irresistible” series (Lana Harper)

Niamh, Ciara, Leonie, Elle and Theo. Five very different witches with one thing in common: they were unwittingly chosen by the dangerously charming Lucifer, the demon king of desire, to fulfil a dark prophecy: Satanis will rise and the daughters of Gaia will fall.

The coven is reunited—but broken. Niamh is back from the dead…but she hasn’t come back alone. Elle mourns a son she never had. Ciara languishes in a prison for witches, and Leonie reels from a very unexpected surprise.

Meanwhile, Lucifer offers fledgling witch Theo a deal: if she helps him, her coven—her family—will be spared. But the magic he asks for will take her out of London—out of time, entirely.

The final confrontation between good and evil in the spectacular conclusion to the saga of Her Majesty’s Royal Coven.

The Night Birds

by Christopher Golden
Horror
304 pages, Hardcover
May 6, 2025 by St. Martin’s Press

The next gripping, atmospheric horror novel from NYT bestselling author Christopher Golden, set in a deteriorated, half-sunken freighter ship off the coast of Galveston, TX.

Charlie Book and Ruby Cahill have history. After their love ended in heartbreak, they never expected to see each other again, but when terror enters Ruby’s life, Charlie Book is the only safe harbor she can believe in.

In his work for the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, Book has been living aboard and studying the Christabel, a 19th century freighter that lies half-sunken in Gulf waters, just off the shore of Galveston. Over many years, a massive forest of mangrove trees has grown up through the deck of the ship, creating a startlingly beautiful enigma Book calls the Floating Forest, full of birds, crabs, and snakes. Though a powerful storm churns through the Gulf, Book intends to sleep on board as usual.

But when he arrives at the dock, preparing to motor out to the Christabel, he’s stunned to find Ruby there waiting for him. And Ruby’s not alone. With her are a mysterious, terrified woman named Johanna and an infant child. They need Book to hide them safely aboard the Christabel while they’re on the run, only it isn’t the police who are after them. It’s the coven of witches Johanna has fled, stealing away the helpless infant for whom they had hideous plans…or so Johanna claims.

It’s lunacy. Book wants nothing to do with it. But after the way he and Ruby ended things, and the unspoken pain between them, he can’t refuse. Yet even as he brings them out to the ruined ship and its floating forest, back in Galveston there are shadowed figures out in the storm, sniffing the air like bloodhounds. And despite the worsening wind and rain, the night birds are flying, scouring the coastline as if searching for their prey.

Witchcraft for Wayward Girls

by Grady Hendrix
Adult, Horror
496 pages, Hardcover
January 14, 2025 by Berkley

There’s power in a book…

They call them wayward girls. Loose girls. Girls who grew up too fast. And they’re sent to Wellwood House in St. Augustine, Florida, where unwed mothers are hidden by their families to have their babies in secret, to give them up for adoption, and most important of all, to forget any of it ever happened.

Fifteen-year-old Fern arrives at the home in the sweltering summer of 1970, pregnant, terrified and alone. Under the watchful eye of the stern Miss Wellwood, she meets a dozen other girls in the same predicament. There’s Rose, a hippie who insists she’s going to find a way to keep her baby and escape to a commune. And Zinnia, a budding musician who plans to marry her baby’s father. And Holly, a wisp of a girl, barely fourteen, mute and pregnant by no-one-knows-who.

Everything the girls eat, every moment of their waking day, and everything they’re allowed to talk about is strictly controlled by adults who claim they know what’s best for them. Then Fern meets a librarian who gives her an occult book about witchcraft, and power is in the hands of the girls for the first time in their lives. But power can destroy as easily as it creates, and it’s never given freely. There’s always a price to be paid…and it’s usually paid in blood.

In Witchcraft for Wayward Girls, the author of How to Sell a Haunted House and The Final Girl Support Group delivers another searing, completely original novel and further cements his status as a “horror master” (NPR).

Becoming Part of the Halloween Harem at Nikki’s Halloween Party by Lyka Bloom

Title: Halloween Harem: Nikki’s Halloween Party
Author: Lyka Bloom
Publication Date: October 27, 2023
Genres: Erotica
Protagonist Gender: Various

It’s hard to believe, but I’ve been reading (and loving) Lyka Bloom’s work for a decade now, starting with her Inferno series and her Institute tales. For some bizarre reason, it’s been a couple of years since I last had the opportunity to immerse myself in her imagination, so when I decided to do a week of Halloween reads, I knew she had to be a part of it.

The fun bit about Halloween Harem: Nikki’s Halloween Party is that it’s not only a Lyka Bloom story, but also something of a tribute to another feminization legend, Nikki Crescent – who serves as our host for the evening, welcoming the four young out-of-place guests and bargaining away their innocence.

This is one of those stories that are hard to review, because revealing too much would ruin all the fun, but not touching on some of the most delicious aspects would be a crime. The sense of danger and mystery to the story – which Lyka establishes almost immediately – is a perfect pairing to the erotic thrills that arise. There’s an anxiety to the story that gives way to curiosity, before becoming a guilty pleasure.

Given the names involved, it’s safe to acknowledge that there is most definitely some gender-bending involved here, but it’s wider and deeper than readers may expect, affecting the boys and the girls in ways that challenge roles and expectations while giving in to innermost desires. The themes of power and freedom are explored beautifully, making the bargaining all the darker . . . and sweeter.

Nikki’s Halloween Party is a fabulous tale of fear, fantasy, futa, femboys, and feminization, perfect for the season. It ends a bit too soon for my tastes, but sometimes there’s something to be said for leaving the party before it fades.

Rating:

My sincere thanks to the author for sending me an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Loving The Gargoyle in the College by Alina Riley

Title: The Gargoyle in the College
Author: Alina Riley
Publication Date: October 21, 2024
Genres: Paranormal Romance
Protagonist Gender: Female

Laura is a college freshman who prefers her own company to the stress of socializing but, wanting to fit in, she decides to accept the invitation of her classmates – and regrets it. While out that night, the students begin hazing the statue of a gargoyle that stands in the middle of the road, climbing all over it, kicking at it, and spraying it with shaving cream. Feeling sorry for it, she comes back later to clean it up . . . and makes an impression.

So much so that, when someone tried to rob her a few nights later, the gargoyle comes to her rescue, literally swooping her off her feet and carrying her to safety!

Yes, in this, the first of Alina Riley’s The Gargoyle Next Door series, the gargoyles around us are very real, assigned to secretly watch over and protect their territory. They’re not generally supposed to show themselves to humans, but Gisett is curious about the young human woman and the kindness she’s shown him.

What follows is a wonderful opposites-attract story where neither is sure what’s right of them to want, to desire, or to crave, and where worries about role and purpose keep interfering with personality. It’s a slow-burn romance that develops the characters beautifully, making you believe that a massive stone gargoyle could be soft enough to love. Their banter is fun and flirtatious, and there’s a wealth of little mythological world-building details embedded in the story to make you believe in this world.

The Gargoyle in the College is a fabulous read, perfect for the softer side of the season, with just enough spooks and scares to lead us to a HEA. The sex, when it comes, is passionate and fun, with some kinky little details that enable cross-species intimacy. Having already read the second book, with its castle, orcs, fae, and gargoyle, I can promise you there’s so much more of this world to discover, and more romances to be enjoyed.

Rating:

My sincere thanks to the author for sending me an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Beware the The Housewife’s Ghost with John Dylena

Title: The Housewife’s Ghost
Author: John Dylena
Publication Date: October 27, 2022
Genres: Paranormal Erotica
Protagonist Gender: Male

It’s hard to believe, but I’ve been reading John (Sasha) Dylena for a decade now, and I’ve seen them do erotica in contemporary, science fiction, epic fantasy, and horror settings – and do them all very well.

As it opens, The Housewife’s Ghost seems like a pretty generic story. A young couple buys a new home and the husband takes advantage of a generous severance package to spend some time converting the basement into his man cave. The only problem is, the previous owner left a ton of boxes down there, which means he has quite a task ahead of them. He decides to look through a few boxes, idly dreaming of finding a priceless antique, but all he finds is women’s clothing.

And then, out of the corner of his eye, he notices the spectral figure. Understandably unsettled, he flees the basement, but it’s as if once touched by the supernatural, he can’t quite shake it off. He begins seeing things, hearing things, and dreaming things – feminine things that he can’t explain – and then he finds himself face-to-face with the home’s resident ghost, Dolores.

If you’re at all familiar with Dylena’s work, then you know some degree of gender exploration is ahead, but the how and why of it here is fabulous. It’s a ghost story and an erotic story all in one, a story of . . . well, not domination and forced feminization, but encouragement, bargaining, and experimentation, and supernatural sharing.

The story here lies as much in the consequences as the causes, and while the HEA may not appeal to all readers, it’s a perfectly spooky one for the season.

Rating:

My sincere thanks to the author for sending me an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

The Sunday Post: Stacking the Shelves

The Sunday Post (Caffeinated Reviewer) and Stacking The Shelves (Reading Reality) are both blog memes about sharing the books we’re adding to the shelves and sharing news of the week ahead.

New Purchases

Last weekend was the World Fantasy Convention 2024 in Niagara Falls, NY, and in addition to attending some panels and getting a stack of books signed, I also came away with some exciting new additions. The most exciting reads in my swag bag were:

Lacrimosa of Dana by Anna KashinaBury Your Gays by Chuck TingleInterstellar Goth Princess Blues by Lynn EricsonNecrobane by Daniel M. Ford

While I was there, I also picked up some new books from authors attending the convention – and, of course, got them signed!

Alahndra by Christopher Lee WeiherDragonesque & Submerged, edited by Joshua PalmatierDaughters of Awen by Summer HanfordFor Review

On the review front, just the one new addition this week -a digital ARC of Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil, which (believe it or not) will be my first V. E. Schwab read.

Currently Reading

Finally, as for what I’m currently reading, I’m slowly making my way through When the Moon Hatched by Sarah A. Parker (interesting, but it hasn’t quite grabbed me yet), and thoroughly enjoying Bride of the Shadow King by Sylvia Mercedes (which, in all fairness, had me at the unicorns with flaming horns).

Getting Wicked & Spicy With Ruan Willow

Title: Wicked & Spicy Tales
Author: Ruan Willow
Publication Date: May 24, 2024 by Pink Infinity Publishing LLC
Genres: Paranormal Erotica
Protagonist Gender: Female

I have had the very great pleasure of working with Ruan Willow for the last 3 years, and I love how she can so effortlessly slip from taboo romance and hotwife erotica to romantasy and erotic horror. It all comes down to her characters, who are so genuine and so likable, that they really draw you into the story.

The first two Wicked & Spicy Tales stories are kind of a warm-up, playing more on the spicy side, starting with The Sex Wizards Halloween Party Orgy – a story of freaks and wannabees, of roleplay and wish fulfillment, where the darkness isn’t readily apparent until it’s too late to reconsider. The Genie’s Wish follows that up with the tale of a witchy coffee shop owner who seduces and bewitches those customers, and it’s not just a pun to say she casts a sexy spell over the reader.

Where Ruan leads us into the realm of the wicked is with Boobs and Pizza Everywhere but not a Drop to Eat, a Twilight Zone-inspired story about a lake said to create the ultimate fantasy for anyone who immerses themselves in its water – but as is often the case, not all wishes come true as we might wish. The tease here, the temptation, is so deliciously cruel that it 100% counts as a guilty pleasure.

Pleasured by Satan keeps us firmly bound within the realm of the wicked, opening with a man who wakes in a strange bed with a beautiful woman named Satan. This story is about desires rather than wishes, but it still explores the dangers of getting precisely what you deserve. Ruan does such a stupendous job of teasing with this one, really playing with the theme of wanting to touch, before dropping a killer twist on the final page.

Although best known for HEA/HFN stories, her Wicked & Spicy Tales collection is much darker, wicked and spicy (as the title suggests), with twist endings that will linger with you.

Rating:

My sincere thanks to the author for sending me an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

The Castle by Steli Simeonova: Dark Sensory Erotica

Title: The Castle
Author: Steli Simeonova
Publication Date: August 13, 2024
Genres: Dark Erotica
Protagonist Gender: Female

Over the last 6 months, Steli Simeonova has quickly become one of my favorite people to work with. Her work has style, imagination, and a sense of otherworldliness to it that’s just stunning. I wanted to review The Cheater (spicy horror) as my Halloween pick, but that’s not coming out until February, so I thought I’d go with The Castle (dark erotica), since it’s something you can read today!

Not only is our narrator a visually impaired woman, which puts a whole new sensory spin on the story, but she gets aroused by fear, seeking out ever more exciting and extreme ways in which to test her fears – and stoke her arousal. Having already skydived and swam with sharks, she decides that the haunted castle of Shattenburg will be her next adventure.

If you’ve ever experienced a haunted house, then you know what it’s like to stumble around in the dark, hearing and feeling the scare actors around you, but imagine if your entire world was shadows . . . and the castle is rumored to be genuinely haunted . . . and you’re still being hunted even after the tour is over. It’s a story of creaks and squeaks, the slight movement of air, the feel of leather and lace, and hearts beating fast. And it all takes place in an old castle full of locked doors, narrow staircases, and ominously stark furniture.

Steli offers us two POVs here, so we get to experience the hunted and the hunter, allowing us to experience the combined sensations, and to appreciate their absence in the hunted. If you’ve ever read her work before, then you know you’ll be caught before long, and the dangerous thrill of anxious sex with a mystery lover. It’s all consensual, but also has the feel of something more dubious, and that sweetly dark spot is where the heart of the story lives.

Rating:

My sincere thanks to the author for sending me an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Red Sonja: Consumed by Gail Simone Hits the Sword & Sorcery Sweet Spot

Title: Red Sonja: Consumed
Author: Gail Simone
Publication Date: November 19, 2024 by Orbit
Genres: Fantasy
Protagonist Gender: Female

Back in high school, I devoured every sword & sorcery saga I could get my hands on, including Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser, Elric of Melniboné, Jirel of Joiry, Conan the Cimmerian, and (in comic book form), Red Sonja. I was a huge fan of her Marvel Comics run, and liked what I’d read of what I’d seen in Dynamite Comics, so I was excited to hear that Gail Simone would be the one to bring her to the page.

That said, I saw some rather negative (and surprising) reviews of Red Sonja: Consumed, so I entered into it with no little trepidation. Having devoured it over the course of a weekend, I can happily say this is the novel that the character has always deserved, as if Simone found some lost manuscript of the late Robert E. Howard and just finessed it for modern readers.

This is vintage sword & sorcery, complete with action, adventure, magic, and monsters. It’s violent and ugly at times, more concerned with survival than hope, and often disturbingly mad. It’s pulp fantasy with a bit more of a soul/conscience than we may have seen decades ago, but what makes it memorable is just how carefully Simone imbues the story with depth. She doesn’t shove contemporary morals or ideals in your face, doesn’t have her heroine make any grand statements about progress or equality, but instead sprinkles with book with subtle details, including the notes and articles from historians that open each chapter, that serve as a sort of internal commentary.

Some readers have described Red Sonja as one-dimensional and stereotypical, but nothing could be further from the truth. She’s a damaged woman, scarred by childhood trauma, who is wandering the world in search of meaning. She’s neither superhuman nor supernatural, and yet that vulnerability is something those same readers have chafed against. Others have complained she’s oversexualized, but this is an example of where Simone has so carefully shifted the telling. Yes, she’s scantily dressed, and some characters do objectify her, but you’re not going to find references to her breast size, heaving bosom, tight butt, or anything else that you may be imagining as you read.

Narratively, I’ve seen complaints about multiple POVs and shifts in narrative which, to be fair, are more hallmarks of epic fantasy than sword & sorcery, but I found they expanded the story and gave it depth – especially in the case of the villain and the monsters – and actually counter the complaints of readers who felt Red Sonja’s POV wasn’t engaging enough early on. Honestly, I feel as if some readers went into it with certain expectations, and abandoned it halfway through, because my experience was nothing but positive.

Red Sonja: Consumed felt familiar where I needed it to, new and fresh where I wanted it to, and surprising in so many exciting ways. A welcome addition to both the sword & sorcery and kick-ass heroine shelves.

Rating:

My sincere thanks to the publisher for sending me an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Weekend Freebies – Queer Fantasy & Romance,

Well, if it’s another weekend, then it must be time to bend our hearts and minds around preparing for the week ahead, and how better to do that than with some Weekend Freebies!

Every weekend I search through the free titles on Amazon, looking for those that might interest visitors to the ruins. Even if you don’t have a Kindle, you can still download the titles through one of Amazon’s free reading applications.

Please do be sure to check the price before downloading anything, as most freebies are limited time offers, and some are specific to certain regions.

Enjoy!

Can’t-Wait Wednesday: The Warbler by Sarah Beth Durst (urban fantasy)

Can’t-Wait Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted here to spotlight and discuss the books we’re excited about that we have yet to read. Generally they’re books that have yet to be released. Find out more here.

My choice for this week is the story of a young woman who fears that if she puts down roots, a family curse will turn her into a tree!

The Warbler

by Sarah Beth Durst
Adult, Fantasy
335 pages, Paperback
March 1, 2025 by Lake Union Publishing

From the author of The Lies Among Us comes a magical tale about mothers and daughters, choices and consequences, and the real meaning of home when every place feels like a cage.

Ten months. That’s the longest Elisa has stayed anyplace, constantly propelled by her fear that if she puts down roots, a family curse will turn her into a tree.

But she’s grown tired of flitting from town to town and in and out of relationships. When she discovers a small town in Massachusetts where mysterious forces make it impossible for the residents to leave, she hopes she can change her fate.

As Elisa learns about the town’s history, she understands more about the women in her family, who seem doomed to never get what they want. Now she believes she’s stuck, too—is that a patch of bark on her arm? But her neighbor’s collection of pet birds sings secrets that Elisa can almost understand—secrets she must unravel in order to be truly alive.

Goodreads

Curious about what you’ve been missing? Read my previous reviews of Sarah’s work HERE.