10-19-25 — Christina Critiques

DYING IN THE DYING LANDS

By: John Baltisberger

Release: 10/6/25

Page count: 88

KU: No            Hoopla: No

Synopsis: A collection of seventeen short stories, back in Mork Borg, starring backers of the project.

First line: “My name is Kevin Welch and I … am immortal.”

Favorite line: “… and we both know you could have killed me shortly after… you chose not to. You chose weakness. Every death I have ever caused is on your head. Including yours.”

Thoughts: Imagine Gotrek and Felix’s short stories by William King but shorter and with characters named after people you may know. There are some amazing shorts I really wish were longer - Bridget D. Brave’s short for example. I could have read three hundred more of that story alone. If you like tidbits of killer literature mixed with a bloody good time - this is your book.

Rating: 5/5

Other recommendations: ABHORRENT TRILOGY, UNCLEAN VERSES

Find it here: https://a.co/d/g4hMUA8

HWA POETRY SHOWCASE

Edited by: Maxwell I. Gold

Release: 10/7/25

Page count: 109

KU: No          Hoopla: No

Synopsis: An anthology of poetry that will make you remember why you love the English language.

First line: “I Wore a Girl” by R.J. Joseph - “I wore a girl once just to see/ if her skin fit better than mine./ It did.”

Favorite lines: “False Prophet” by Tiffany Michelle Brown - “… That reeked of my extinction and your exaltation.”

“I Don’t Like That We Have Two Heartbeats” by Caitlin Marceau - “I don’t like that I can’t taste your words on my tongue.”

“Pretty Little Things” by Julia Jackson - “My lips will wear a smile/ Match the ear-to-ear shaped I traced.”

“Summer’s Gone” by Azzura Nox - “The sweetest symphony is your funeral dirge.”

Thoughts: Gold knows talent (as he is one of the best modern poets) but the keen eye he exhibits in this anthology - pure jealousy. Within the anthology you will find known and unknown authors, but let me tell you they won’t be unknown for long. The amount of annotations and highlighting - I might as well have highlighted the entire anthology. Every poem is honest, raw, and dripping with cruel realities. By far, the best poetry anthology of the year.

Rating: 5/5

Find it here: https://a.co/d/cXvVBra

THE REST STOP 2

By: Eric Butler

Release: 10/17/25

Page count:

KU: Yes       Hoopla: No

Synopsis: A mother is on the trail of her missing child but will she end up on a missing person’s poster before she can find them?

First line: “Water splashed down on Jeff, shocking him awake.”

Favorite line: “It’s not like I need a dick transplant.”

Thoughts: What is it about hillbillies and torturing people that just does it for me as a reader? (That’s rhetorical and meant more for my therapist.) And then add in that it’s an Eric Butler story? Please, say less and take more of my money. A few of the scenes may be the most brutal he has written to date. An absolute must read for Halloween season and beyond. Yet another banger by Butler.

Rating: 5/5

Other recommendations: THE REST STOP 2, THE POPE LICK MASSACRE

Find it here: https://a.co/d/dVSOb9k

WONDERLAND BOOK NOMINEES

REALITY BUT MORE FUN

By: Madeleine Swann

Release: 3/19/24

Page count: 193

KU: No              Hoopla: No

Synopsis: Two sisters must figure out what is reality and what isn’t in a whore that isn’t what it seems.

First line: “Gibbs hopped out of the car.”

Favorite line: “Samir wasn’t sure that offering a tea break after a traumatic incident was enough to be called king, but this was capitalism.”

Thoughts: Madeleine Swann should be protected at all costs! What a brain! What creativity! Even though the world she built wasn’t exactly reliable, I wanted to stay forever. The ability she exhibited to confuse the characters as much as the reader? Brilliant! I have more Swann to read and you should too - but start with this one.

Rating: 5/5

Other recommendations: FORTUNE BOX, THE VINE THAT ATE THE STARLET

Find it here: https://a.co/d/5FoIRxU

BOOKER PRIZE SHORTLIST

THE REST OF OUR LIVES

By: Ben Markovits

Release: 12/30/25

Page count: 239

KU: No         Hoopla: No

Synopsis: A man in the middle of a life full of mundane events decides to just drive to see old friends - the opposite way of his wife and home - in search of answers that may not come.

First line: “When our son was twelve years old, my wife had an affair with a guy called Zach Zirsky, whom she knew from the synagogue.

Favorite line: “You spend your life as a guy getting slammed for objectifying women, and then you have a daughter and you’re supposed to stand back and let her spend however long she wants in front of the bathroom mirror, basically turning herself into an object.

Thoughts: Are you middle aged with a crumbling marriage and kids leaving the nest? Then you may relate a bit too much to this novel. Markovits somehow makes the most boring character on the planet one of the most relatable I have ever read. There’s something about not caring about life that makes one embrace it all the more when the time comes. This one is hard to explain but such an easy, fascinating read. I definitely understand why this is shortlisted, it’s going to be tough to beat.

Rating: 5/5

Other recommendations: EITHER SIDE OF WINTER, YOU DON’T HAVE TO LIVE LIKE THIS

Pre-order it here: https://a.co/d/avRqmVO