A.G. Carpenter

2021 REREAD
It's so thrilling when a book is every bit as good as you remember yet still feels suspenseful even though you know the outcome. A. G. Carpenter's language is lush with atmosphere in a way that brings gothic horror to mind but with a different, more modern environment. It's akin to what Anne Rice does but less highfalutin and more earthy.

There's a lot to love about this book, but in particular, how poor people are portrayed is important to me. Having grown up in poverty, I'm sensitive to this. To how often they are shown as unworthy, as deserving their suffering by those who are too entitled to acknowledge that so much of what they have is unearned or rooted in unearned privilege. To how often, the well-intended who are so disconnected from the realities of poverty that they don't even realize that their "poor" character is in fact middle class with access to resources that the poor would never have. Carpenter does an excellent job with this. I remember the things she writes about her impoverished characters, if not the exact same experience, one akin or evoking the same emotional responses. She writes it so well that my own memories resurface to resonate with her story. It makes me suspect that the author has known genuine poverty herself.

One serious criticism though, I've been to Waffle Houses in every state that has them. Waffle House doesn't sell pancakes. Nothing yanks me out of book faster than somebody ordering pancakes at a Waffle House.

ORIGINAL REVIEW
From start to finish, this novella trilogy is magnificent. Not only is it all well-written, but the characters are true to life. It is both fast-paced and emotionally honest. I cannot wait to continue my journey of exploring all this author has to offer.

CONTENT ADVISORY: child abuse, child death

Reviews of each novella are below:

Of Lips and Tongue 5 Stars
I read most of this on the bus ride to work this morning, and I spent all day resenting the fact that I wasn't finishing it. I squeezed in a bit more on the commute to my second job, and finally tonight I finished.

It was enthralling from the start. The first chapter had me with eyes wide open and jaw agape. Definite page-turner for me. The female protagonist was magnificent! She is credible, emotionally true, and speaks with an authentic modern Southern voice. There's a bit of romance in it, but it's brief and everything is so well enough done that I wasn't even bothered by it. (True story y'all. She wrote romantic stuff that didn't make me recoil.)

To my coworkers, I'd like to apologize in advance for the fact that I'm going to be a bit of a bitch tomorrow. You see, I have the other two books already, so I won't be getting enough sleep tonight.

Of Shade and Soul 4 Stars
A strong continuation of the story started in Of Lips and Tongue. As with the first novella, it comes to a close, completing the arc of the story within, yet it also leaves a tantalizing path for the story to come. I liked this one slightly less, but that has more to do with it focusing more on my second favorite character than my favorite than any change in quality.

A great read for lovers of paranormal thrillers, witches, and police procedurals.

Of Flesh and Bone 5 Stars
This final entry in the Touch series is wonderful. The over-arching storyline of the trilogy is completed, yet I'm left longing for more of this universe and of Delaney Green. A.G. Carpenter also moved beyond genre fiction with this one into meaningful social commentary with her moving exploration of gender experience that started in Of Shade and Soul. This one made me cry.

I received a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an honest review, but I later purchased a physical copy of my own accord.… (mehr)