Author Archives: Barbara Howe

The Queen’s Man

Posted on 10 March 2023 by Barbara Howe

December 1192. Twenty-year-old Justin de Quincy, unacknowledged bastard son of a bishop, is on the road to London in search of gainful employment when he interrupts a violent robbery in progress. The robbers flee, scared off by the approach of … Continue reading →

Posted in Historical Mysteries | Leave a comment

When the Tiger Came Down the Mountain

Posted on 17 February 2023 by Barbara Howe

I was as captivated by When the Tiger Came Down the Mountain, the second novella in the Singing Hills Cycle by American writer Nghi Vo, as I was by the first book, The Empress of Salt and Fortune. Like that … Continue reading →

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Never Pick Up Hitchhikers

Posted on 27 January 2023 by Barbara Howe

On his way to the British town of New Braybourne, where he is supposed to be studying art, twenty-year-old William (Willie) Banks hitchhikes to save money, instead of taking the train. (This story is set in the 1970s, when hitchhiking … Continue reading →

Posted in Mysteries | Leave a comment

Quiet in Her Bones

Posted on 13 January 2023 by Barbara Howe

 Ten years ago, Nina Parvati Rai vanished without a trace, taking with her a quarter of a million dollars in cash. Her disappearance was assumed to be an act of defiance: a bored socialite’s revenge on her wealthy, controlling husband. … Continue reading →

Posted in Kiwi author, Mysteries, New Zealand | Leave a comment

2023 Preview

Posted on 30 December 2022 by Barbara Howe

I love mysteries, fantasies, and science fiction, so what could be better than a good murder mystery in a fantasy or science fiction setting? There are a number of those in my TBR pile, so it’s not surprising they figure … Continue reading →

Posted in A Writer's Life, Speculative fiction | Leave a comment

2022 Recap

Posted on 16 December 2022 by Barbara Howe

I started off this year with a post about the half-dozen books on the top of my TBR pile, and was only happy with one of them (When the Tiger Came Down the Mountain). What about the others? I loved … Continue reading →

Posted in A Writer's Life, Fantasy, Kiwi author, LGBTQIA+, Mysteries, Science Fiction | Leave a comment

The Rogue and the Peasant

Posted on 2 December 2022 by Barbara Howe

Esme is destined to be a queen. At least, that’s what her mother has always said, and Esme doesn’t doubt her, despite living like a peasant in a small village all her life, where she plays—and fights—with the miller’s children, … Continue reading →

Posted in Fairy Tales, Kiwi author | 1 Comment

Middle Distance: Long Stories of Aotearoa New Zealand

Posted on 19 November 2022 by Barbara Howe

Middle Distance: Long Stories of Aotearoa New Zealand is a recent anthology of stories around 10,000 words each, shorter than a novella but longer than the typical short story. For me, these long stories (novelettes?) were a nice change of … Continue reading →

Posted in Kiwi author, LGBTQIA+, New Zealand, Short stories, Speculative fiction | Leave a comment

Aftermath

Posted on 5 November 2022 by Barbara Howe

Aftermath: Stories of Survival in Aotearoa New Zealand is a collection of about two dozen stories, poems, and images, set in post-apocalyptic New Zealand. The disasters represented range from the quite possible (catastrophic climate change, nuclear war, earthquakes, pandemics, …) … Continue reading →

Posted in Kiwi author, New Zealand, Short stories, Speculative fiction | Leave a comment

Sanctuary

Posted on 21 October 2022 by Barbara Howe

The refuge in Sanctuary, by New Zealand author Andi C Buchanan, is a many-roomed house dating from the 17th century. Once a mansion, it is now in a state of disrepair, tended to by residents with inadequate funds for its … Continue reading →

Posted in Fantasy, LGBTQIA+ | Leave a comment