Unspeakable edited by Celine Frohn Book Tour
Title: Unspeakable
Editor: Celine Frohn
Publisher: Nyx Publishing
Publication date: 28 February 2020
Genres: Adult, Speculative Fiction, Paranormal/Supernatural, Gothic
Cover Artist & Cover Designer: Jenni Coutts & Charlie Bramald
Book Synopsis
"Unspeakable contains eighteen Gothic tales with uncanny twists and characters that creep under your skin. Its stories feature sapphic ghosts, terrifying creatures of the sea, and haunted houses concealing their own secrets. Whether you’re looking for your non-binary knight in shining armour or a poly family to murder with, Unspeakable showcases the best contemporary Gothic queer short fiction. Even dark tales deserve their time in the sun."
My Thoughts
Welcome to my stop on the book tour of Unspeakable with Caffeine Book Tours! The full tour schedule can be found here. There's also a giveaway with this book! Make sure to enter below!
This anthology was such an excellent read! It's rare that I enjoy an anthology as a whole because there's inevitably one or two of the stories that I don't enjoy. But this one was absolutely fantastic. There is such a wide range of identities from story to story, plus a lot of sapphic stories which I feel we always need more of! Since this book declares itself a gothic anthology, I was sure that I was mostly in for creepy and dark stories with a less than happy ending. And while there were those stories, there was actually so much queer joy in these stories it was such a pleasant surprise and one of the reasons I rated it five stars.
Along with the wide range of identities in this book, there was such a wide range of settings as well. When someone says "gothic" you imagine castles, vampires, and dark stormy nights... or at least I do. But the settings were so wide and diverse and a lot of the authors in this really pushed the bounds of what most people would consider gothic and I loved this aspect as well. There were the traditional haunted houses, but there was also a rodeo in east Texas, a seaside village, and one that spanned the whole entire globe. This really was a uniquely rich collection of stories.
I would most definitely recommend this book if you're in the mood for some queer short stories that feature a diverse cast of monsters and hauntings. This really was a wonderful read!
I received a digital copy of this book from Caffeine Book Tours and the editor as part of my participation in their tour.
Representation: trans, gay, lesbian, non-binary, ace
Content Warnings: LISTED BY STORY BELOW
Let Down by Claire Hamilton Russell: imprisonment, non-consensual sex
Moonlight by Ally Kölzow: death of loved one
An Account of Service at Meryll Point, as recollected and set down by C.L.: societal transphobia (narrator is accepting, however)
The White Door by Lindsay King-Miller: violence, murder
Doctor Barlowe’s Mirror by Avery Kit Malone: none
Laguna and the Engkanto by Katalina Watt: death of parent
The Moon in the Glass by Jude Reid: murder, hallucinations
Brideprice by S.T. Gibson: mention of sexual assault, murder, blood-drinking
Lure of the Abyss by Jenna MacDonald: some people get eaten by a sea monster
Hearteater by Eliza Temple: mild gore
Quicksilver Prometheus by Katie Young: hallucinations, mention of death of children
Homesick by Sam Hirst: none
Rodeo by Ryann Fletcher: homophobia, domestic violence, murder
Lady of Letters; or, the Twenty-First Century Homunculus by Heather Valentine: cheating
Taylor Hall by Jen Glifort: panphobia (challenged), body dysmorphia
The Ruin by E. Saxey: threat of the apocalypse
The Dream Eater by Anna Moon: illness of loved one
Leadbitter House by Mason Hawthorne: body horror
Giveaway
Part of this tour includes a giveaway of a copy of Unspeakable!
Prize: One (1) paperback copy of Unspeakable
One (1) winner
Open to INTL
Ends on 14 December 2020 (Philippine time)