Jigsaw Youth by Tiffany Scandal is one of my favorite reads of 2015 – though whether this is a collection of stories sharing one character, or a jigsaw novel, is uncertain. I’d call it the latter. It was published early in 2015 by Ladybox Books, a new imprint of Broken River Books.

Most often here, I read and talk about and write Weird and Horror fiction, and this isn’t either of those things, but I think the emotional intensity and darkness of will appeal to many fans of those genres. This is good, gritty stuff.

On Goodreads I wrote:
Raw, visceral and sensitive stories that form a jigsaw novel. Tough and unrefined in the best sense. Definitely recommended.

Jigsaw Youth on GoodReads

Jigsaw Youth on Amazon

One of my “2015 Favorite Reads” in the Novel category was Skullcrack City by Jeremy Robert Johnson, published by Lazy Fascist Press. It’s a wild, crazy energized ride.

On Goodreads I said:
Very impressively crazy head-spinning genre-busting tale of banking and drugs and brains. Jeremy Robert Johnson’s got some mighty strong writing muscles.

Skullcrack City on Goodreads

Skullcrack City on Amazon

Skullcrack City on LazyFascist.com

One of my “2015 Favorite Reads” in the Novels category is A Head Full of Ghosts by Paul Tremblay. I might have recommended this book more often and more widely than anything else last year. I only realize now, looking back, I never wrote even a basic review. Luckily, the book succeeded based on strong word of mouth, and didn’t need my review.

In case you haven’t already heard, A Head Full of Ghosts is a family-focused story that could be summarized as “The Exorcist in the era of reality television.” Of course that doesn’t nearly do it justice. More accurately it examines the effect on the family of Marjorie Barrett, a teenage girl who may be either possessed, or just acting out due to severe mental health difficulties. The interaction between Marjorie and her little sister Merry is so real, sometimes sweet, sometimes mutually antagonistic, and occasionally terrifying.

Of all my favorite reads of 2015, this is one of the few I’d confidently recommend to any kind of reader.

A Head Full of Ghosts on Goodreads

A Head Full of Ghosts on Amazon

One of my “2015 Favorite Reads” in the Novel category was Robert Levy’s The Glittering World. I stumbled upon this book when I met Robert at ReaderCon and he (or his publisher?) had the clever idea to hand out a tiny little pamphlet-sized booklet containing the first chapter of the novel. When I got to the airport, that brief sample was enough to hook me on the characters, their history and the setup. I bought the Kindle version of the book as soon as I found my seat on the plane, and read most of it on the flight home.

I ended up recommending this book to many people, and everybody I know who read it has enjoyed it like I did. The Glittering World seems to be one of those rare “can’t miss” recommendations, enjoyed by all and disliked by none.

On Goodreads I said:
A very engaging, character-focused story that hooked me right from the beginning. There are four main characters — Blue, Jason, Elisa and Gabriel — and about a quarter of the book follows the perspective of each. The Glittering World is the first thing I’ve read by Robert Levy, and I enjoyed it so much I’ll definitely seek out his work in the future.

The Glittering World on Goodreads

The Glittering World on Amazon

Sing Me Your Scars by Damien Angelica Walters is one of my “2015 Favorite Reads” in the Collections category. This one came out early in 2015, released by Apex Books.

For the past several years, the stories of Damien Angelica Walters have been appearing steadily in all the best magazines and many prominent anthologies. I’ve sought out as many of these as I could find as they appeared, but it’s great to have so many collected together. Once a writer’s work is lined up like this, story after story, finally to be read back to back, their concerns and obsessions become clarified. Here, the reader can’t help but recognize the power, emotion and elegance of which Walters is capable.

On the strength of this work, I’m really looking forward to Paper Tigers, the novel Walters has coming out this month from Dark House Press.

On Goodreads, I wrote:
A very fine collection, beautifully written, harrowing and painful. Damien Angelica Walters is one of my favorite writers.

Sing Me Your Scars on GoodReads

Sing Me Your Scars on Amazon