Doreen Sheridan

Professional book critic, amateur cellist, full-time polymath. Occasional game designer, perpetual game enthusiast. Mom of 3. Arsenal till I die. I like a good story. My other mystery reviews can be found here: https://www.criminalelement.com/author/dvaleris/

Most commented posts

  1. Deathless (Leningrad Diptych #1) by Catherynne M. Valente — 12 comments
  2. A Memory Called Empire (Teixcalaan #1) by Arkady Martine — 10 comments
  3. Sweet Tea by Piper Huguley — 7 comments
  4. I Was Told There’d Be Cake by Sloane Crosley — 6 comments
  5. Busting Vegas by Ben Mezrich — 5 comments

Author's posts

Creepshow Vol 3 edited by Ben Abernathy

Given my literary consumption of recent years, I’m genuinely wondering whether I ought to pivot away from my usual mental palate cleansers of classic/cozy crime in favor of horror anthologies like this one! This volume certainly acted like a much needed reset on my brain, serving up short, sharp and entirely self-sufficient diversions to give …

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Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2025/08/20/creepshow-vol-3-edited-by-ben-abernathy/

Reissue Recap!

I received four books recently that are all coming out in a new format today, with a fifth publishing next week. What better way to celebrate all five than with an exclusive round-up column! The first is the sequel to a crime debut I super loved for its investigator protagonist. Charlotte Vassell’s The In Crowd …

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Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2025/08/19/reissue-recap/

Tantalizing Tales — August 2025 — Part Three

Hello, dear readers! It is midway through August and publishers are already pivoting hard to horror, as is tradition. Tho I gotta tell you, the pivot does feel a little more comforting than usual this year, given the state of the world and the ways in which horror stories are oftentimes just how the mind …

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Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2025/08/15/tantalizing-tales-august-2025-part-three/

How To Spot A Magical Woodland Creature by Sarah Glenn Marsh & Lilla Bolecz

Wahey, I’m back to my regularly scheduled review programming! And what lovelier way to return than with a gorgeously illustrated children’s book that artfully blends science with fantasy, for a delightfully whimsical read. This field guide to enchanted creatures starts with several very important caveats to young readers, in a way that absolutely aligns with …

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Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2025/08/13/how-to-spot-a-magical-woodland-creature-by-sarah-glenn-marsh-lilla-bolecz/

Salvagia by Tim Chawaga (EXCERPT)

Hello, readers! Today we have an excerpt from a thrilling work of speculative fiction that falls under the cli(mate change)-fi heading, as a near-future scavenger finds herself embroiled in the murder of a powerful corporate figure. Triss Mackey is flying just under the radar, exploiting a government loophole that lets her live quietly aboard her …

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Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2025/08/12/salvagia-by-tim-chawaga-excerpt/

Tantalizing Tales — August 2025 — Part Two

Hello, readers! I am having a bit of a ghastly day health-wise but am super looking forward to climbing back into bed soon, preferably with a good book! Top of my list is Elaine U Cho’s Teo’s Durumi, the heart-pounding conclusion to the exciting Korean space opera duology she began with her debut novel Ocean’s …

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Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2025/08/08/tantalizing-tales-august-2025-part-two/

My Favorite Thing Is Monsters, Vol. 2 by Emil Ferris

This graphic novel took Emil Ferris something like seven years to write and draw, and it was honestly worth every minute. My only quibble with it is the idea that it somehow serves as a conclusion. Sure, it solves the murder, presented in the first volume, of who killed Anka. But the emotions are still …

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Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2025/08/07/my-favorite-thing-is-monsters-vol-2-by-emil-ferris/

Psychopomp by Maria Dong

I fell head over heels in love with Maria Dong’s genre-bending debut Liar, Dreamer, Thief, so when Ms Dong herself reached out asking if I’d like a copy of her follow-up novel, the more sci-fi Psychopomp, I was absolutely gasping to say yes. Psychopomp has lots of the same themes that LDT did, tho set …

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Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2025/08/06/psychopomp-by-maria-dong/

Monstress Vol 9: The Possessed by Marjorie M Liu & Sana Takeda

Would I read this comic if it weren’t for the fact that it’s nominated for a Hugo almost every year? Absolutely not. Tho apparently it was not nominated last year (I’ve heard that Vol 8 was Not Great) and I skipped the Hugos the year before, so missed reading the last two books. Not that …

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Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2025/08/05/monstress-vol-9-the-possessed-by-marjorie-m-liu-sana-takeda/

Tantalizing Tales — August 2025 — Part One

Happy August, readers! My schedule has already been thrown into a tizzy, but I’m hoping that things smooth out a little bit before back to school and the start of the Arsenal season later this month. In the meantime, let’s look at some awesome shorter books coming out this week — I love a short …

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Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2025/08/04/tantalizing-tales-august-2025-part-one/