2 Books Like The Book of Perilous Dishes

A fellow once stated, “I never let anyone rent space inside my head.” Any avid reader knows that is poor advice. Indeed, one should readily allow Tom Hoffman to ‘let’ daily headspace with his marvelously entertaining novel, Miss Bristol Rents A Room. Billed as “an epic historical fantasy,” this brilliantly executed morsel of wonderment will light up that special reading nook inside one’s brain. The intriguing orange-headed femme fatale adorning the cover of Mr. Hoffman’s latest foray into imaginative adventure is the infamous Miss Bristol — the primary motivation for leasing some temporary reading space. Why is she dressed from “The Gilded Age?” Why is she standing on a modern street? Why is she firing what appears to be a Martian ray gun? To repeat: this entertainment is an epic historical fantasy.

Tom Hoffman is well known for his beguiling characters, their wild adventures, and hilarious repartees. Miss Bristol is… show more.

One approaches a book like The Dreadful Dawn by Colleen A. Parkinson with varying degrees of trepidation, including the enticing subject matter—the promise of an end-of-the-world zombie apocalypse—and the cautious apprehension of all those movies and streaming series that have engraved their unyielding expectations and clichéd certainties into our skulls, not to mention the books on which they are based. However, those initial concerns are easily and quickly put to rest upon surrendering to this author’s skillful writing and narrative skills. The dystopian elements of Parkinson’s engaging immersion into civilizational collapse are familiar in a weirdly comfortable way—we recognize the territory—but her characters are unique, irresistible, fascinating, and unforgettable, and the reader becomes entirely invested in their personal destinies. Beware the power of this fictional seduction, however, for Ms. Parkinson is unflinching in her dispensation of providence and fate.

A key component of Colleen A. Parkinson’s compelling novel, The Dreadful… show more.