A Southern Gothic Ghost Tale

I'm in the mood for some horror. Alas it is not in the immediate review cards (although I am reading a paranormal cozy with ghosts at the moment). Actually, I'm chomping at the bit to dive into the new Christopher Ransom. Strangely enough, it's only been released in the UK (and seemingly no plans for a US release so far), but I did get the newsletter email from Ransom and sprung for it at Book Depository. It arrived on my doorstep today and is waiting patiently on my bedside table with Adam Neville's Apartment 16.

In the meantime, I thought I'd dig another past rec from the reading closet. This time, it's Cherie Priest's gothic debut, Four and Twenty Blackbirds.

After my trip to Charleston in December, I tackled Cherie Priest's backlist with great expectations. So far, she's lived up to them completely (and I've no doubt she will continue to, because she's fab!). It was her steampunk release, Boneshaker, that did it for me.

To be totally honest, I'd actually bought Four and Twenty Blackbirds much earlier, but my book hoarding habit is one that results in some long awaited TBR titles. One of these days, when I'm rich (or retired), I'll find time to read everything twice over! Those'll be the days, right? 'Til then, I'll peck away at the stacks as I fast as my tired eyes can read them. I've got the two follow ups to Four and Twenty in the pile right now -- and trust me, you'll want to have them on hand for when you finish the first Eden Moore installment, too. Four and Twenty Blackbirds is a truly stellar and creepy ghost story.

Eden Moore has long been able to see things that others can't. She's haunted in every sense of the word. Secrets surround her as do the ghosts of her past. The specters of three sisters have followed Eden since early childhood. Mae, Willa, and Luanna have been dead for decades, but their story is one that Eden will need to untangle if she is to survive what is to come: When Eden was younger, her cousin became convinced that she was a wicked spirit returned from the grave, one that needed to be snubbed out as quickly as possible. Eden escaped his first attempt, but now he's back and her only hope lies in the history of her ancestors.

Cherie Priest has a truly amazing talent as a storyteller. So far I've been completely enthralled by her settings and her characters. She's yet another addition to the ever growing "Must Have" list and I really can't wait to see what she does next (actually, I know she's doing more with the Boneshaker world next -- yay!). She's quite possibly addicting. Not only that, but Four and Twenty gave me chills! Not too many horror stories do that for me these days, and I relish every single one that does.