Killer angels, 1950s Hollywood intrigue, the power of deep work, haunted pirate ships and more. Check out my recommended reads from the past month!

(Previous Bibliofiles)

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Fiction

The Seventh Veil of Salome by Silvia Moreno-Garcia

Two women vie for the same starring role and the same lovers in a 1950s swords and sandal Hollywood production. The Seventh Veil is a complex dark romance that turns its camera lens on issues of race, gender and socioeconomic status, all while building to an inevitable clash. Rich with intrigue and historical detail, it’s one of Moreno-Garcia’s best books yet.

Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/199927990-the-seventh-veil-of-salome

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Genre Fiction

Grey by Ian Rogers

The last human soul has been stolen, which means the end of humanity is near. The angels seem powerless to do anything about it. So who do you turn to when the angels aren’t up to the job? Grey, a dangerous soul caught in Limbo somewhere between Heaven and Hell. Think John Wick pulled into a battle between God and the Devil, and you’ll have an idea where this novella will take you.

Link: https://www.ian-rogers.com/grey/

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Hunt for the Grey Lady by Chris Willrich

I’m always delighted to see a new Chris Willrich tale, and “To Hunt the Grey Lady” in Beneath Ceaseless Skies is no exception. An enchanting story of a pirate captain’s attempt to capture the elusive ship Grey Lady, it features magic sea battles, enigmatic krakens, a sentient ship or two, some very complicated relationships and utterly fantastic prose. I read this one in pretty much one sitting but it’s so rich and layered that I can’t wait to read it again.

Link: https://www.beneath-ceaseless-skies.com/stories/to-hunt-the-grey-lady/

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Five Views of the Planet Tartarus by Rachel K. Jones

Only 600 words or so, but what a payoff.

Link: https://www.lightspeedmagazine.com/fiction/five-views-of-the-planet-tartarus/

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Nine Tenths of the Law by KJ Parker

KJ Parker is one of my favourite living fantasy writers because his tales are so unlike any other fantasy stories out there. They often feature unlikely protagonists — clerks, engineers, battlefield salvage experts and the like — and are less traditional three-act structure and more elaborate twists and double-crosses, followed by more twists. “Nine Tenths of the Law” is no different and stars a lawyer possessed by a demon who helps possess others so they can carry out various crimes. What happens when one of his clients double-crosses him? Ah, well, that’s why you’ll want to read the story.

Link: https://www.beneath-ceaseless-skies.com/stories/nine-tenths-of-the-law/

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Unfinished Basement by A.R. Capetta

In a housing market where every place is haunted by ghosts, what happens when a couple move into a home that has ghosts but is somehow worse? A delightfully weird and unsettling story by A. R. Capetta.

Link: https://www.sundaymorningtransport.com/p/unfinished-basement

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Non-fiction

Deep Work by Cal Newport

We live in a world of constant interruption and distraction — emails, status notifications, TikTok trends, news alerts, you name it. Is it any wonder then that we’re all perpetually stressed and feeling as if we can never catch up on all our work? So what’s the antidote? Newport argues it’s deep work – finding ways to turn off all those distractions and focus deeply on one thing at a time. It’s the only way to do something meaningful, Newport suggests, and our only true path to fulfillment in a world that fragments our attention so ruthlessly that we often lose our very sense of self.

Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25744928-deep-work

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The Jack David Master Class: What it Takes to Survive Fifty Years as an Independent Bookseller

Canadian publishing: A house of cards where banks call in loans at the worst times, distributors collapse, printers print books on promises to pay — and a single title can mean the difference between bankruptcy or living to publish for another season.

Link: https://shush.substack.com/p/the-jack-david-master-class

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Live Like an Artist – The Why by Shawna Lemay

“In the end though, it always come back to the why. If you can make delight the why of your art making process, if you can delight in the work of it, this helps make everything make sense. If you can remember that you get to do this, in whatever slivers of time you’ve made work for yourself, that helps. If you can remember that this is what makes a good life, a rich life, this helps. If you can go on being curious and delighting in these things you make, and create a few sparks and delight others, that’s a bit of gravy, isn’t it?”

Link: http://transactionswithbeauty.com/home/thewhy

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Against Rereading by Oscar Schwartz

As a lifelong rereader, I am offended by the very existence of this essay. So much so that I read it twice.

Link: https://www.theparisreview.org/blog/2024/09/04/against-rereading