History That Never Was

Home of Dawn Vogel: Writer, Historian, Geek

Review of Brambles by Intisar Khanani

| June 22, 2022

Brambles: A Thorn Short Story by Intisar Khanani (Purple Monkey Press, 2020) serves as a prequel story to Khanani’s Dauntless Path series of fairy tale inspired fantasy books. This story gives the background for Princess Alyrra, explaining just how she has come to earn her family’s wrath and disdain. Coming into this story prior to […]

Review of The Devil Walks in Blood by David Green

| June 15, 2022

The Devil Walks in Blood by David Green (Eerie River Publishing, 2021) combines the first two books in this supernatural private investigator series into a single volume, giving the reader a fuller picture of the fascinating world and characters. Nick Halloran died while on a case, but the intervention of a passerby made sure he […]

What I’m Reading, Watching, and Listening To, June 2022 Edition

| June 8, 2022

Reading: A mix of books for reviews, Stephen Fry’s poetry book, and marketing books. Lots to juggle and process! Watching: We burned through season 2 of Sanditon recently, as well as the first part of season 4 of Stranger Things. Listening to: New albums from Oneus and Psy, plus a new group on Psy’s label, TNX, who […]

Review of Night of the Raven, Dawn of the Dove by Rati Mehrotra

| June 1, 2022

Rati Mehrotra’s Night of the Raven, Dawn of the Dove (Wednesday Books, 2022) is a gorgeously crafted story of a young woman learning the truth of her background and family while also discovering important things about herself and those she loves. Katyani, the protagonist, has been bound to the Queen of Chandela for as long as […]

TV Recommendation: Our Flag Means Death

| May 25, 2022

I think it’s safe to say at this point that if a project has Taika Waititi’s name attached to it, it will be a hit in our household. His latest show, Our Flag Means Death, is no exception. We didn’t jump on watching it right away only because we were working through other shows. But once […]

Review of Lost in the Archives by E. Saxey

| May 11, 2022

Lost in the Archives by E. Saxey (Lethe Press, 2022) is a collection of the author’s short stories, many of which have been previously published. The stories include several in historic settings with speculative elements, as well as modern and future settings, all rendered with exquisite characterization and inventive plot elements. Some of the stories […]

Review of Ghost Pirate Gambit by Jessie Kwak

| April 20, 2022

Ghost Pirate Gambit is the first book in Jessie Kwak’s Nanshe Chronicles, named after the ship her protagonists travel on. This new series is a prequel of sorts to Kwak’s first Durga System book, Starfall, with a strong focus on the interpersonal relationships of the crew and others onboard the Nanshe, as well as the […]

What I’m Reading, Watching, and Listening To, Mid-April 2022 Edition

| April 13, 2022

Reading: Continuing to work my way through books for review and Stephen Fry’s The Ode Less Travelled. Watching: Moon Knight is now running weekly episodes, so we’re watching that, even though I know basically nothing about the character. I would watch Oscar Isaac read the phone book, especially if he’s playing around with accents while he does. […]

Review of Shad Hadid and the Alchemists of Alexandria by George Jreije

| March 30, 2022

Shad Hadid and the Alchemists of Alexandria by George Jreije (Harper Collins, 2022) is an exciting and fast-paced book for kids of all ages who love magic, baking, and suspense! Shad Hadid and his Teta are the remaining members of their family in Portland, Maine, having immigrated from Lebanon. While Shad goes to school and […]

Review of Wistful Ascending by JCM Berne

| March 23, 2022

Wistful Ascending, the first book in the Hybrid Helix series by JCM Berne (The Gnost House, 2020), is an action-packed sci-fi/superhero novel with a fantastic cast of characters and plenty of plot twists to keep you guessing! Rohan is a Hybrid, the offspring of a human and an alien race called the il’Drach. That alien […]