Ghost Girls and Rabbits - Cassondra Windwalker

Flush with the victory of winning the election as Alaska's first Athabaskan Senator, Noni Begay wakes to find herself buried alive. When her coffin lid opens, though, it's not to rescue but to six years of captivity, betrayed by the one person she trusted most. Escape will require not only all her strength but all the strength and stories of the ancestors she had until now imagined were only a useful device, an accessory she wore to win votes and social media followers.

Mary Nelson's only daughter, Ryska, went missing ten years ago, with no one but her mother to search for her. Having used up every favor and chit she has, Mary is willing to risk everything on one last ploy to save her daughter from the monsters-even if she has to become one herself.

A chilling psychological horror novel excoriating the epidemic of missing and murdered indigenous women and girls in North America, Ghost Girls and Rabbits is an unforgettable read perfect for fans of Scandinavian noir and literary horror, told by two fractured minds in the trappings of myths truer than mirrors.

What did I think?

I love reading Cassondra Windwalker's books as you just never know what to expect and Ghost Girls and Rabbits is no exceptions.  It was a bit like falling down the rabbit hole as I didn't know what on earth was going on at first but it all becomes clear as you read on.

Mary Nelson will do anything to keep her missing daughter's face at the front of people's minds and she has a very cunning plan to do just that when Senator Noni Begay goes missing.  It is no surprise that Mary's mental health has taken a beating and I'm surprised she managed to function as well as she did for so long.  

It's a very claustrophobic story that is beautifully written both from the captive and the captor's points of view.  The scenery also plays a part as it's set mainly in an isolated cabin in Alaska and the snow feels very menacing and traitorous as it shows up every footprint.  

Inspired by missing Alaskan native women, Ghost Girls and Rabbits is an incredibly poignant and powerful book.  Cassondra Windwalker's prose is lyrical and poetic as she takes the reader deep into the minds of her main characters.  It's an unforgettable and important book that I highly recommend.

Many thanks to the author for sending me a digital ARC to read and review; this is my honest and unbiased opinion.

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What Hides in the Cupboards - Cassondra Windwalker

Following a traumatic accident, ceramic artist Hesper Dunn trades life in Chicago for the enchanted deserts of New Mexico. But not all is quaint, and it’s far from what it seems. There’s a mystery buried deep in the heart of her new home.

Love, guilt, and grief demand that Hesper remain within the haunted pueblo. To free herself, she must free the trapped spirits…but the creatures lurking in the shadows are not what they appear. Hesper dares to wade through the murky fog of tragedy to uncover the truth. A truth that will be harder to handle than she ever dared imagine.

 

What did I think?

I've been a fan of Cassondra Windwalker's writing since I read her unforgettable novel, Idle Hands, so I was delighted to get the chance to read an early copy of her latest novel, What Hides in the Cupboards.  

You never know what to expect with a Cassondra Windwalker novel so I am purposefully keeping my review brief to avoid spoilers.  You know from the cover that this is going to be a creepy novel but it's so very clever and also unexpectedly moving.

I loved the main character, Hesper and really felt her pain as she struggles to deal with her own demons as well as the spooky young boy who haunts her new house.  I was completely riveted as I raced through the pages to uncover who or what the boy is and I had an actual gasp out loud and a lump in my throat at the end.

The writing is absolutely exquisite and I often had to stop reading for just a moment to fully appreciate the breathtaking perfection of the words.  It's a book that both creeped me out and broke my heart - I loved it!    

Many thanks to Cassondra Windwalker for sending me a digital ARC to read and review; this is my honest and unbiased opinion.

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Love Like a Cephalopod - Cassondra Windwalker

To death and to the dragon born.

Being an executioner for the state is exhausting, but after a lifetime of dispatching the criminal and the inconvenient, fifty-eight-year-old Grenda finds it does have its compensations. Her cat-sized dragon Bjartur and the dragon eggs she tends are all the friends and family she needs. Completely cut off from the outside world, she happily accepts the luxuries owed her status – including a pet octopus named Morrigan – without the faintest twinge of conscience or doubt.

All that changes when she encounters the most unexpected nemesis: a young refugee girl whom Grenda is incapable of executing. Against her will, Grenda finds herself shifting from killer to caretaker, risking her life to defy the state she’s never questioned and help young Allora to freedom. Everything Grenda thinks she knows about her world, her life, and even her own identity cascades out of her control—including the dragon-bond she holds dearer than life itself.

 

What did I think?

Fantasy is not my usual genre but I was so impressed by Cassondra Windwalker's unforgettable novel Idle Hands that I leapt at the chance to read an early copy of Love Like a Cephalopod and wow, I was not disappointed.  

The writing is exquisite and the characters and scenery are brought to life so vividly that I could easily conjure their images in my mind.  The beautiful purple shades of octopus Morrigan's tank and the glittering green scales of Bjartur the dragon as well as the gooey melting cheese that Grenda loves so much.

I loved Grenda, the cheese-loving older protagonist whose life (if you can call it that) revolved around her work as an executioner for the state.  She works, she eats, she sleeps, she works and doesn't question it until she is unable to execute a young girl which completely tips the scales of Grenda's work/life balance.

As much as I loved Grenda, I also loved her dragon Bjartur who is really an extension of Grenda, as the pair imprinted when Grenda was a young girl.  The care they take over nurturing the dragon eggs in their care is very moving and it actually brought a lump to my throat at the end.

For me to love a book that belongs to a genre I don't normally read it has to be extraordinary and I absolutely loved Love Like a Cephalopod.  At only 211 pages long, I could have read so much more about this fantasy world but it might have been a bit daunting for new fantasy readers like me if it had been the traditional epic length of a fantasy novel.

Love Like a Cephalopod is a beautiful, moving and entertaining novel that held my interest from start to finish.  I loved it and could easily read it again right now to revisit and re-experience this highly imaginative and stunning fantasy world.  Cassondra Windwalker is a hugely talented hidden gem of an author and I highly recommend this extraordinary novel.

Many thanks to the publisher Bayou Wolf Press for sending me a digital ARC to read and review; this is my honest and unbiased opinion.

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