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A Season of Monstrous Conceptions
A Season of Monstrous Conceptions | Lina Rather
3 posts | 3 read | 1 to read
An eldritch historical fantasy of midwifery, monstrosity, and the rending of the world, for fans of The Essex Serpent and The Death of Jane Lawrence. "An entrancing and transformative queer tale of cosmic horror."—Caitlin Starling "A blood sacrifice of a novel."—Meg Elison In 17th-century London, unnatural babies are being born, with eyes made for the dark and webbed digits suited to the sea. Sarah Davis is intimately familiar with such strangeness—having hidden her uncanny nature all her life and fled to London under suspicious circumstances, Sarah starts over as a midwife’s apprentice to a member of the illegal Worshipful Company of Midwives, hoping to carve out for herself an independent life. But with each new unnatural birth, the fear in London grows of the Devil's work. When the wealthy Lady Wren hires her to see her through her pregnancy, Sarah quickly becomes a favorite of her husband, the famous architect Lord Christopher Wren, whose interest in the uncanny borders on obsession. Sarah soon finds herself caught in a web of magic and intrigue created by those who want to use her power for themselves, and whose pursuits threaten to unmake the earth itself. At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.
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Coueriamb
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Pickpick

A fun little historical… supernatural thriller? I guess?
It hits all the right beats and while that did make it predictable, it was still an enjoyable read.

Take that with a grain of salt however- I like my fantasy and scifi on the short story / magical realism side of things.

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TorieStorieS
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Pickpick

This novella featuring a midwife with a past and secrets of her own is set in a 17th century London where babies around the world are suddenly being born with monstrous adaptations, many not able to survive. Sarah works to help solve this imbalance in this lushly descriptive story. It reminded me a bit of SWEET TOOTH and a bit of CARNIVAL ROW in some ways. I wanted even more from the story- a solid audio performance too!

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Books_et_al
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Mehso-so

#netgalley
I don‘t read horror - which for me this is - but after reading this author‘s nuns in space novellas I thought I‘d give it a go.
Sarah has a checkered past that forced her to leave the country and start a new life in 1600s London. Mrs June takes her in as a midwife‘s apprentice - she sees in her what Sarah has tried to hide - her power.
Pretty gruesome in parts but if you like horror it could be a pick.
Published by Tor - Oct 2023.

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