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It’s almost the end of 2023, and we’ve got a lot of news over here at CamCat Books!

New Releases:

Girl Among Crows by Brendon Vayo, out 11/7/2023

“Brendon Vayo has crafted a pagan potboiler that is equal parts mystical and mysterious, profane and profound, blissfully existing at the intersection of horror and whodunnits.” —Clay McLeod Chapman, author of Ghost Eaters

“Fans of Gillian Flynn will love Girl Among Crows . . . Brendon Vayo’s debut thriller is eerie, mysterious, and addicting.” —Brooke L. French, author of Inhuman Acts and The Carolina Variant

“Brendon Vayo’s Girl Among Crows is an eerie page turner rich with Norse Mythology, cult rituals, and creepy twists to rival Stephen King, Shirley Jackson and Stephen Graham Jones.” —MQ Webb, author of When You’re Dying and How to Spot a Psychopath

“This fresh, artful thriller, as genuinely frightening a novel as you’ll read all year, darts smoothly between the decades as not one but two mysteries unfurl like stairways into darkness. Intelligent, original, audacious—and scary.” —A. J. Finn, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Woman in the Window

“Brendon Vayo’s heroine in Girl Among Crows is as relatable as she is enigmatic. A woman who seeks to right the wrongs of history while unraveling her own family secrets, Daphne Gauge soars triumphantly from these pages right into the reader’s heart.” —Rudy Ruiz, award-winning author of The Resurrection of Fulgencio Ramirez and Valley of Shadows

“Vayo’s gripping debut . . . is an entertaining thriller that will keep even seasoned horror fans guessing.” —Publishers Weekly

King Me by J. A. Crawford, out 11/14/2023

“Crawford’s gleeful skewering of obsessive fandom and gift for action sequences make this twisty, frothy whodunit whiz by. Readers will impatiently await the next installment.” —Publishers Weekly

“VERDICT: Highly recommended for listeners who want a madcap mixture of Stephanie Plum, Veronica Mars, and Magnum, P.I.” —Library Journal, audio starred review

Bladestay by Jackie Johnson, out 11/28/2023

“A brutal, suspenseful, and surprising read with an unforgettable protagonist.” —School Library Journal, starred review

“Deeply beautiful and tragic, Bladestay brings together dark family secrets, a love story, and one hell of a strong female lead searching for the truth at every cost. Utterly riveting from beginning to end.” —Demetra Brodsky, ITW and Black-Eyed Susan Award-nominated author of Last Girls

“From shootouts to romance, this breathtaking new Western will transport you back in time. An unforgettable adventure.” —Gwen Cole, award-winning author of Cold Summer

“Riveting and transporting, Bladestay is a western frontier tale for a new age. With a tough, witty heroine against a villain like no other, this cast of characters is unforgettable from page one—eclipsed only by its breakneck pace.” —Lindsey Duga, author of Roaring

“A scheming female antihero goes undercover as a man to survive the hostile takeover of her small hometown in this raucous 19th-century Western.” —Kirkus Reviews

The Oxygen Farmer by Colin Holmes, out 12/5/2023

“A cantankerous octogenarian astronaut finds himself in over his head when he accidentally stumbles across a deadly secret hidden on the surface of the moon . . . An action-packed thriller perfect for fans of Andy Weir and Jack McDevitt.” —Kirkus Reviews

“VERDICT With a fascinating fictional scenario that connects history with the future, Holmes once again tackles conspiracy, subterfuge, and murder, but he takes it out of this world in his latest novel. Readers who enjoy Andy Weir’s novels, books like The Manchurian Candidate and 2001: A Space Odyssey, and TV shows such as Babylon 5 will want to put this one on their to-read lists.” —Library Journal

“This space mystery is a page-turner rooted in its convincing and compelling protagonists and their well-written relationships . . . Sf fans will enjoy this rich novel full of good world building, mysterious space intrigue, and dry humor.” —Booklist

Out in Paperback:

The Darker the Skies by Bryan Prosek

“Prosek’s greatest strength is his worldbuilding: Everything, from minute technical details to villainous plots spanning multiple decades and galaxies, comes across as meticulously planned . . . the ambitious scope of the plot and a tantalizing cliffhanger ending promise exciting prospects for a third book . . . A solid space adventure for fans of the genre’s classics.” —Kirkus Reviews

Armadas in the Mist by Christian Klaver

“[T]hose who enjoy epic fantasy will find much to enjoy here . . . Sweeping and intricate. ” —Kirkus Reviews, on Justice at Sea

“Original, carefully crafted, and impressively entertaining from first page to last . . . an extraordinary and unreservedly recommended addition to Middle School, High School, and community library YA Fantasy Fiction collections. ” —Midwest Book Review, on Shadows Over London

New on the Podcast:

Our latest Writing Challenge episode is out on CamCat Unwrapped now! Four of our Sci-Fi/Fantasy authors, Brenna Raney (The Meister of Decimen City), Kathleen Hannon (The Confession of Hemingway Jones), Dana Claire (Hunterland), and Elizabeth Chatsworth (The Brass Queen) came onto the podcast to collaborate on a short story!

Also on CamCat Unwrapped we have our newest author interview, K. L. Murphy, author of Her Sister’s Death! You can find the episode on your preferred podcast network, as well as numerous author interviews and audiobook excerpts.

CamCat Trade Reviews

Kirkus Reviews reviewed Kill Call by Jeff Wooten: “A riveting thriller that explores morally gray areas.” 

Publishers Weekly reviewed Kill Call by Jeff Wooten: “ [In] Wooten’s high-concept debut thriller . . . the pulse-pounding suspense of Hanna’s seemingly inevitable death paired with her and Jude’s brewing chemistry drive this taut and edgy read.”

Publishers Weekly reviewed Girl Among Crows by Brendon Vayo: “Vayo’s gripping debut . . . is an entertaining thriller that will keep even seasoned horror fans guessing.”

Library Journal reviewed the audiobook for Girl Among Crows by Brendon Vayo: “VERDICT: A captivating listen, just the thing for thriller readers seeking supernatural scares. The twists come fast, and the characters’ decisions lead to brutal consequences. Share with fans of Stephen King and Riley Sager."

Foreword Reviews reviewed Bone Pendant Girls by Terry S. Friedman: “Full of paranormal twists, Bone Pendant Girls is a supernatural thriller about trust and acceptance.”

Midwest Book Review reviewed Ladies’ Day by Lisa Williams Kline: “An original, deftly crafted, inherently memorable novel from start to finish . . .”

Library Journal gave a starred review to the audiobook of King Me by J. A. Crawford: “VERDICT: Highly recommended for listeners who want a madcap mixture of Stephanie Plum, Veronica Mars, and Magnum, P.I.”

Library Journal gave a starred review to Lest She Forget by Lisa Malice: “VERDICT: A fresh and surprising psychological thriller from a promising new author. Share with fans of Paula Hawkins and Clare Mackintosh.”

Library Journal reviewed the audiobook for Ghost Tamer by Meredith R. Lyons: “VERDICT: A paranormal thriller that offers thrills and chills in addition to a touching exploration of grief, love, and moving on.”

Library Journal reviewed the audiobook for The Darkness Surrounds Us by Gail Lukasik: “VERDICT: This atmospheric, evocatively narrated audio will captivate fans of gothic mysteries in the vein of Rhiannon Ward’s The Quickening.”

Library Journal reviewed the audiobook for Phantom by Helen Power: “[N]arrators Rachel Fulginiti and Eunice Wong skillfully give voice to the cast of questionable characters, adding atmosphere and tension to the story.”

CamCat Publicity News

• Without a Shadow by H. J. Reynolds had a cover reveal with Storygram Tours.
• Space Holes: First Transmission by B. R. Louis had a cover reveal with Locus.
• Alexander James, author of The Woodkin, wrote this essay for CrimeReads.
• Hidden Rooms by Kate Michaelson, When I Was Alice by Jennifer Murgia, Calypso Down by James Lindholm, and The Summer of Love and Death by Marcy McCreary had a cover reveal on Bookshop.org.
• Grand Tour: The Brass Queen II by Elizabeth Chatsworth, Dust Spells by Andrea Lynn, The Building That Wasn't by Abigail Miles, and The Mechanics of Memory by Audrey Lee had a cover reveal with Bookshop.org.
• Bladestay by Jackie Johnson is on tour with Rockstar Book Tours.
• The Oxygen Farmer by Colin Holmes is on tour with Suzy Approved Tours.
• Lest She Forget by Lisa Malice is on tour with Partners in Crime Tours.
• Jackie Johnson, the author of Bladestay, had an interview with The Nerd Daily.
• The Oxygen Farmer by Colin Holmes was included in tor.com's list of All the New Science Fiction Books Arriving in December.