Bitten by Amanda Pillar

Bitten by Amanda Pillar is the second novel set in the Graced universe. I have previously reviewed the other novel, Graced, and one of the novellas, Captive. Although Bitten is set after Graced, they can be read in any order and the novellas aren't necessary to follow the stories in the novels.

The city of Pinton has never been safe…and now a serial killer is on the loose.

Doctor Alice Reive is the city’s coroner, and she’s determined to help find the murderer. Enlisting the assistance of the Honorable Dante Kipling and city guard Elle Brown, they race to track down the killer, before another victim dies.

Hannah Romanov – Dante’s missing twin sister – has spent hundreds of years living on an isolated mountain. But her quiet life is thrown into chaos after she discovers a baby left in the wilds to die. Hannah will do anything to ensure the infant’s survival, even if it means travelling to the worst place in the world for her – Pinton.

Bitten is a little bit of a lot of things. It has some romance in it (basically all of the key characters get paired off) but isn't a capital-R romance novel. There are murders to solve and a serial killer to catch, but it's not exactly a mystery novel or a police procedural either, despite one of the characters being a coroner. Really it's the story of a group people and how their lives intertwine during a certain period of time, which happens to also involve some murders. Because of all that, it doesn't follow any well-worn genre beats but the story threads all come together towards the end, which was the part I enjoyed most.

Being set in the same universe, the main characters from Graced do make an appearance but reading the earlier book isn't necessary for understanding Bitten. The only issue I can see with reading them out of order is being "spoiled" for who pairs off with whom in Graced, but from memory it was pretty obvious and not supposed to be a surprise. Also, there is definitely a heavier focus on the new characters introduced in Bitten, and I generally enjoyed reading their stories the most — particularly Alice the coroner, Hannah the Graced vampire and Byrne and werebear — even when I wasn't sure how they were going to intersect. They all had interesting pasts which tied the story together nicely.

I would recommend this books to fans of vampires, werepeople (not just werewolves) and magic/psychic powers. Also to fans of urban fantasy, particularly the kind set in a low-tech future.

4 / 5 stars

First published: January 2016, self-published
Series: Graced Series book 2 of 2 so far
Format read: eARC
Source: Review copy from author
Disclaimer: Amanda is a friend but I have tried to not let this influence the content of this review.
Challenges: Australian Women Writers Challenge

Captive by Amanda Pillar

Captive by Amanda Pillar is a novella set in the Graced universe, but at a much earlier period of story history. Although a few character names might be familiar, the two stories stand completely alone. If anything, Captive fills in some of the "historical" backstory that didn't fit into Graced, while telling its own story.

Vampires, werewolves, and the Graced are at war with their human creators, and humanity is losing. But one girl might hold the key to salvation. Held captive with her fellow humans by alpha Wolfgang and his pack of weres, Laney secretly inches ever closer to breaking were and vampire blood dependency forever.

But Laney doesn’t have long. Their numbers decimated by plague, humans are being kidnapped and reduced to livestock. And when Laney and her sister are kidnapped by a neighboring vampire clan notorious for its “farming” of humans, their only hope lies in Wolf – who doesn’t know the shocking secret Laney has gone to great lengths to conceal.

With their lives and the future of humanity in the balance, can Laney and Wolf learn to trust each other before their races cease to exist?

I enjoyed Captive quite a bit. I would go so far as to say I enjoyed the start of the novella more than I enjoyed Graced. This is probably partly because the main character is a scientist and I am biased. Where Graced was set seemingly very long after the apocalypse, so to speak, that resulted from the creation of vampires and werewolves and the subsequent wars, Captive is set much closer to that time period (but still after it).

The main(est) character, Laney, is a geneticist who had been working on "cures" for the vampire need for human blood and the werewolf need for human liver. Not, to be clear, changing their species back to human, just removing their need to farm humans. Having originally been part of a werewolf, er, farm, Laney, her sister and their fellow humans are captured by vampires in a raid. Their main goal is to survive until a way out presents itself. Unbeknownst to them, other characters are also working on rescuing them from the vampires.

I mentioned earlier that I particularly enjoyed the start of Captive. It would be more accurate to say that I enjoyed almost all of Captive but I found the ending rather abrupt. The main plot arc of escaping the vampires is resolved, but a lot of romantic (and other, spoilery) subplots are introduced near the end and I don't think this novella was long enough to give them enough space to properly develop. The time jumps at the end, to get to the second last chapter and the epilogue, didn't really help on that front. I think it would have been more enjoyable had the last portion of the book been longer. I certainly wouldn't've minded reading more of it.

Overall I liked Captive, even if I would have preferred more of it. I would recommend it to fans of Graced, but want to stress again that both stories stand alone quite well. I will certainly be reading any other novellas or novels Pillar writes set in the same world. This was almost a 4-star read, but I took off half a star for the abruptness of the ending.

3.5 / 5 stars

First published: February 2016, Momentum
Series: Same universe as Graced but with different characters and set much earlier
Format read: eARC
Source: Publisher via NetGalley 
Disclaimer: The author is a friend but I have endeavoured to write an impartial review
Challenges: Australian Women Writers Challenge

Graced by Amanda Pillar

Graced by Amanda Pillar is the author's début novel, although she has edited several anthologies (such as Ishtar) and had several short stories published. I also interviewed her last year as part of the Snapshot. Graced is secondary world urban/pre-industrial fantasy with vampires, werewolves and magic — Graced — humans.

City Guard Elle Brown has one goal in life: to protect her kid sister, Emmie. Falling in love–and with a werewolf at that–was never part of the deal.

Life, however, doesn't always go to plan, and when Elle meets Clay, everything she thought about her world is thrown into turmoil. Everything, that is, but protecting Emmie, who is Graced with teal-colored eyes and an unknown power that could change their very existence. But being different is dangerous in their home city of Pinton, and it's Elle's very own differences that capture the attention of the Honorable Dante Kipling, a vampire with a bone-deep fascination for a special type of human.

Dante is convinced that humans with eye colors other than brown are unique, but he has no proof. The answers may exist in the enigmatic hazel eyes of Elle Brown, and he's determined to uncover their secrets no matter the cost...or the lives lost.

Graced is a very character-driven book. There are four point of view characters not leaving much room for anything other than their interacting story lines. The physical setting, which as I said is pre-industrial, is mostly a background sketch in front of which the characters do their thing. The social setting, however is more fleshed out. We get a good idea of social hierarchy, especially as imposed by different magical traits. For example, the main city is more or less run by aristocratic vampires, aristocratic humans also exist and the poorest people, especially those that fall into debt, end up as slaves to the vampires.

There are also humans with magical powers called the Graced. The type of magical ability is dictated by eye colour, with brown being no power and other colours having telepathy, telekinesis and so forth. Elle, my favourite of the main characters, comes from a Graced family but has no particular power herself, being half brown. Her significantly younger sister, however, has a new eye colour and Elle feels it's her responsibility to look after her and not let her get pulled into their grandmother's suspect machinations. Elle can't stop herself being pulled into her grandmother's plans, however, and ends up on an undercover mission with an unreliable vampire.

Dante, aforementioned unreliable vampire, is a unique character about whom I have mixed feelings. At first it looks like he's being positioned as the bad guy, but he ends up being a sympathetic character, more or less. He's asexual but also painted as odd for other reasons. Other characters call him a sociopath at least once, but I don't think that's medically/psychologically accurate. He doesn't understand other people and behaves unpredictably himself because of it.

The other two characters are Clay, Elle's hot werewolf love interest, and Anton, an ordinary human aristocrat who gets tangled up with Dante (who in turn gets tangled up with Elle, bringing all the characters together).

If you enjoy strongly character-driven stories or like urban fantasy then I highly recommend Graced. If you like the setting to be a character in its own right this one might not quite be for you. This book is self-contained, but the ending is left open for a possible (but not mandatory) sequel.

4 / 5 stars

First published: February 2015, Momentum Books
Series: Maybe? Book one if it is.
Format read: eARC
Source: Publisher via NetGalley
Disclaimer: The author is a friend, but I have nevertheless endeavoured to write an unbiased review
Challenges: Australian Women Writers' Challenge

Snapshot 2014: Amanda Pillar

Amanda Pillar is an awarding winning editor and speculative fiction author who lives in Victoria, Australia. She has had numerous short stories published and has co-edited the fiction anthologies Voices (2008), Grants Pass (2009), The Phantom Queen Awakes (2010), Scenes from the Second Storey (2010), Ishtar (2011) and Damnation and Dames (2012). Her first solo collection was published by Ticonderoga Publications, titled Bloodstones (2012).

In her 'free time', she works as an archaeologist.

You’ve just had a short story come out in the Kisses by Clockwork anthology edited by Liz Grzyb and short stories appearing in several other venues. In terms of writing, do you see yourself primarily as a short story writer or are there other forms you’re also working on or hoping to try out?

When I first starting writing, I only wrote novels. A few years – and a few rejections– later, I transferred over to short stories and have primarily written those for the past seven or so years. In the past couple of years, however, I began writing long fiction again. It’s a nice change, but I find it hard to swap between styles.


You’ve edited several anthologies in the past. What are your favourite aspects of the whole editing process?
I think one of my favourite parts is seeing the anthology come together; selecting those stories that seem to have really understood what I was imagining – and sometimes what I couldn’t imagine, but had to be shown. My other favourite part is working with authors, trying to help them get the best out of their stories and watching how they work and what they do.


What projects are next on the cards for you?

I’m planning the sequel to the Bloodstones anthology, tentatively titled Bloodlines. I can’t say too much more, as we’re still nailing down the guidelines. 


What Australian works have you loved recently?

Always a tough question! So many good books – by so many friends! Do I have to pick one?



Have recent changes in the publishing industry influenced the way you work? What do you think you will be publishing/writing/reading in five years from now?

As for me, since I primarily work with independent press, it hasn’t changed too much. I do see a shift towards e-publishing, but people still like to have physical books.

Five years from now, I hope I will still be working on anthologies, and I would love to see a novel of mine in print, but we’ll have to wait and see what the publishing gods have to say about that!

 ~

This interview was conducted as part of the 2014 Snapshot of Australian Speculative Fiction. We’ll be blogging interviews from 28 July to 10 August and archiving them at SF Signal. You can read interviews at:

http://tsanasreads.blogspot.se/search/label/2014snapshot (here)
http://fablecroft.com.au/tag/2014snapshot
http://kathrynlinge.livejournal.com/tag/2014snapshot
http://bookonaut.blogspot.com.au/search/label/2014snapshot
http://www.davidmcdonaldspage.com/tag/2014snapshot/
http://tansyrr.com/tansywp/tag/2014snapshot/
http://randomalex.net/tag/2014snapshot/
http://jasonnahrung.com/tag/2014snapshot/
http://stephaniegunn.com/tag/2014snapshot/
http://helenstubbs.wordpress.com/tag/2014snapshot/
http://ventureadlaxre.wordpress.com/tag/2014snapshot/
http://mayakitten.livejournal.com/tag/2014snapshot/
http://benpayne.wordpress.com/tag/2014snapshot/ 
http://www.merwood.com.au/worldsend/tag/2014snapshot
http://crankynick.livejournal.com/tag/2014snapshot

Ishtar edited by Amanda Pillar and KV Taylor

Ishtar, edited by Amanda Pillar and KV Taylor, is a collection of three novellas about the Assyrian and Babylonian goddess of love and war, Ishtar. The three novellas cover the past, the present and the future and together tell an overarching story of Ishtar's trail through thousands of years of humanity. Overall, I was impressed at how well the three novellas hung together and told a cohesive overarching story.


"The Five Loves of Ishtar" by Kaaron Warren is a story spanning thousands of years in the Mesopotamian region. Told from the perspectives of a series of Ishtar's washerwomen — each the daughter of Ishtar's previous washerwoman — it focuses partly on the men in Ishtar's life and partly on life generally at that time. From a god to Gilgamesh to kings, Ishtar's loves are broad and at times it seems her life revolves around them. At times war is her central concern and her army.

I liked the younger Ishtar, before she grew quite so jaded and belligerent, when she was still unsure of herself and cared at least a little about others (which is an ironic statement if you read the story). It was interesting to watch her and her concerns change through the eyes of a succession of servants.

What I also found interesting was how this story served to showcase the broadness of Warren's writing abilities. "The Five Loves of Ishtar" is very different to her other work that I've read; not only vastly different in setting to Through Splintered Walls and Slights, but also different in tone, theme and types of characters. It makes me excited to see what sort of writing I will encounter from her next.

"And the Dead Shall Outnumber the Living" by Deborah Biancotti is similar in tone and setting (modern Sydney) to the stories in Bad Power but with Ishtar, rather than superheroes, of course. It follows Adreienne, a detective given an unusual set of homicides to investigate. Of course we know the supernatural origins of the bodies — since Ishtar has to show up at some point — but it was still a compelling story. I enjoyed watching Adreienne slowly uncover the truth. The extra characterisation Biancotti throws in, particularly around Adreienne's sister, was a nice touch that added depth to the story.

Interestingly enough, it was this story that convinced me to classify the collection as horror. Going in I was definitely expecting fantasy and dark fantasy elements, but when Warren's story wasn't as horrifying as some of her other work I assumed the collection overall might not quite count as horror. It does.

"The Sleeping and the Dead" by Cat Sparks is a post-apocalyptic tale set in a world with not much left in it other than sand. Doctor Anna is the protagonist and works at a fertility clinic in a desert with only strange death and sex worshipping nuns for company. There don't seem to be many men left in the world and when a few stumble upon the clinic, Anna and the nuns set out to find their leader.

My favourite aspect of this story was all the allusions to earlier events, particularly to Ishtar's roots. It relies on knowledge of the previous stories more than one would expect from an ordinary collection, but in this context it works beautifully. I enjoyed having more of an idea of what was going on than Anna did most of the time, and watching her come towards her own realisations.

~

Overall, this is a strong collection. I like what Morrigan (the publisher) have been doing with themed collections (see also Grants Pass and The Phantom Queen) and I think Ishtar is an excellent example of how communal story-telling can work to great effect. I recommend Ishtar to fans of dark fantasy and horror.

4 / 5 stars

First published: 2011, Gilgamesh Press (an imprint of Morrigan Books)
Format read: ebook on my Kobo and iPad (yay for not DRM)
Source: Purchased from Smashwords
Challenges: Australian Women Writers Challenge, Australian Horror Reading Challenge