This review is based on an eARC (Advance Reading Copy) provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. The Summer War will be released on September 16, 2025. I haven’t read much of Naomi Novik, but I’ve liked what I’ve read, and given that I’m always looking to try novellas from… Continue reading Fantasy Novella Review: The Summer War by Naomi Novik
I’d been following Jon Bois on Twitter for quite a while before the publication of 17776, and I’d greatly enjoyed the first few chapters before beginning to suspect that it was too long to finish in a single sitting. I set it down and forgot about it for years. But when a Not a Book… Continue reading Weird Internet Sci-fi Review: 17776 and 20020 by Jon Bois
Despite an impressive collection of genre awards, Amal El-Mohtar had not published a solo work longer than a novelette until this year. So perhaps it’s no surprise that her first solo novella would be one of those books with hype levels that were off-the-charts. It was only a matter of time before I got to… Continue reading Fantasy Novella Review: The River Has Roots by Amal El-Mohtar
This is my fifth year reading and ranking every finalist for the Hugo Awards for the Best Novel, Best Novella, Best Novelette, and Best Short Story in the previous year of sci-fi and fantasy. After starting with Best Novel last week, it’s time to dive into Best Novella today. Novella is often my least favorite… Continue reading 2025 Hugo Awards Ballot: Best Novella
T. Kingfisher is having a moment in genre fandom. Two consecutive Hugo Award wins have given her honors in five separate categories, and she’s made the shortlist in two categories in 2025. I’ve already reviewed the Best Novel finalist A Sorceress Comes to Call, and today I’ll be looking at Best Novella finalist What Feasts… Continue reading Horror Novella Review: What Feasts at Night by T. Kingfisher
Aliette de Bodard is a favorite in Hugo circles, but while I’ve read three of her previously shortlisted works, she’s an author that’s never really clicked with me. When the short standalone space fantasy Navigational Entanglements hit the Hugo shortlist for Best Novella, I had the opportunity for my fourth try. And while I still… Continue reading Science Fantasy Novel Review: Navigational Entanglements by Aliette de Bodard
I’ve read a handful of Sofia Samatar’s short fictions, and while they seem to be highly praised in the genre community, none to this point had really stuck with me. So it was with some apprehension that I approached my first of her novellas, the Hugo finalist The Practice, the Horizon, and the Chain. But… Continue reading Sci-fi/Fantasy Novella Review: The Practice, the Horizon, and the Chain by Sofia Samatar
I’d missed The Annual Migration of Clouds when it came out, but after really enjoying Premee Mohamed’s The Butcher of the Forest and seeing the 2024 release of Clouds sequel We Speak Through the Mountain, I thought it was worth circling back and reading the pair together. We Speak Through the Mountain is a direct… Continue reading Sci-fi Novella Review: The Annual Migration of Clouds and We Speak Through the Mountain by Premee Mohamed
This review is based on an eARC (Advance Reading Copy) provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. ChloroPhilia will be released on January 14, 2025. I had read a short story or two by Cristina Jurado a couple years ago, and while I was a bit wary that she can lean… Continue reading Sci-fi Novella Review: ChloroPhilia by Cristina Jurado
I’ve read quite a few quest novellas this year and generally haven’t fallen in love with any of them—not surprising, as I’m just not a huge fan of the quest plot structure—but after a few friends highly recommended Premee Mohamed’s novella The Butcher of the Forest, I decided to try another one, and I’m very… Continue reading Fantasy Novella Review: The Butcher of the Forest by Premee Mohamed
