WWW.PUBLISHERSWEEKLY.COM 51Review_FICTION
innovation, and Nick’s fresh eyes breathe
life into the legend. Atwood’s lively tale is
sure to appeal to lovers of mythology and
folklore. (Dec.)
The Screaming Skull
Rick Ferguson. Phabulousity Press, $14.99
trade paper (476p) ISBN 978-1-7325662-1-7
Ferguson’s wildly original debut, the
first in the Chronicles of Elberon series,
plays fast and loose with literary convention
in a self-aware whirlwind of epic fantasy
tropes and absurdist humor. Elberon, a
foulmouthed 64-year-old former adven-
turer, is now King of the Tradewind Isles
and finds himself caught between two
prophecies of the future: one in which he
lives another 65 years in deteriorating
health and
another in
which the
world ends at
the hands of
one of his
former compa-
triots on the
day of his 65th
birthday. Both
strike him as
horrific. The
nonlinear narrative jumps between the
present and Elberon’s checkered past,
recounting his rise to power and loopy
adventures through the Multiverse, armed
with a screaming skull that may be one
of the magical Phylaxes of Koschei the
Deathless, a figure compared to “Sauron,
Voldemort, Lord Foul, Thulsa Doom, or
Vladimir Putin.” Ferguson pays irrev-
erent homage to classic fantasies,
mythology, and video games throughout
as Elberon’s adventuring party grows
and he rises to power. Ferguson’s biting
wit, over-the-top plot, and relentless
meta commentary will have readers
laughing and groaning in equal measure.
(Self-published.)
Romance/Erotica
Hunting for a Highlander
Lynsay Sands. Avon, $7.99 mass market
(384p) ISBN 978-0-06-285537-4
The middling eighth historical romance
in Sands’s Highland Brides series (after The
Wrong Highlander) relies heavily on good-
will built in previous installments without
offering much new. Geordie Buchanan,
one of the three remaining unmarried
Buchanan brothers, returns to his family
home to find the keep awash with eligible
women who’ve come hoping to catch the
eye of him and his single brothers. When
one potential bride, Lady Dwyn Innes,
climbs a tree to escape the catty machina-
tions of the others, Geordie rescues her from
the branches and becomes enamored of
the lowland lady. As the pair grows closer,
Dwyn continues to need rescuing and
Geordie vows to protect her in every way
possible. The plot shifts dramatically
halfway through, introducing a one-
dimensional villain who brings unnecessary
drama. Geordie and Dwyn have few dis-
tinguishing characteristics beyond their
lust for one another, and Sand’s always
excellent depiction of clan loyalties cannot
overcome the story’s weaknesses. Existing
fans will enjoy the cameos from other
Buchanan couples, but newcomers will
want to start earlier in the series. Agent:
Jenny Bent, Bent Literary Agency. (Feb.)Meet Me on Love Lane
Nina Bocci. Touchstone, $16 trade paper
(296p) ISBN 978-1-9821-0204-3
In the feel-good second installment of
Bocci’s Hopeless Romantics series (after
On the Corner of Love and Hate) a tepid love
triangle takes a backseat to the plucky
heroine as she learns to love herself. At age
10, Charlotte Bishop was torn from Hope
Lake, Pa., by her parents’ bitter divorce.
Two decades later, she moves back to the
quaint town her mother despised. Her
father and grandmother, Gigi, welcome
her with open arms, as does her childhood
friend, Henry, now a high school teacher,
and the town’s handsome new doctor, Max.
As Charlotte rediscovers her home town,
she begins a relationship with Max, but
their dates are frequently interrupted by
medical emergencies, and she can’t deny
the pull she feels toward Henry, though
she remembers very little of their early
connection. The love interests feel oddly
flat, but the idyllic setting is vividly
rendered and Charlotte’s personal
growth as she builds a home for herself is
handled with compassion. Readers will
enjoy this sweet, fluffy tale that sits
squarely at the intersection of romance
and women’s fiction. Agent: KimberlyBrower, Brower Literary & Management.
(Dec.)★ Regretting You
Colleen Hoover. Montlake Romance, $14.95
trade paper (404p) ISBN 978-1-5420-1642-1
Betrayals, secrets, and shifting family
loyalties keep the pages turning in this
excellent contemporary from Hoover (All
Your Perfects). Morgan Grant’s relationship
with her
16-year-old
daughter, Clara,
is precarious.
Clara, weary of
her mother’s
overprotective
tendencies,
relies on her
Aunt Jenny as a
confidant.
When both
Jenny and Morgan’s husband, Chris, die
in a car crash, things become even more
strained between the mother and daughter,
as a confused and grieving Morgan con-
tends with the discovery of a betrayal by
Chris while trying to prevent Clara from
learning the truth about her father and
fighting feelings for Jenny’s baby daddy.
Flashbacks to Morgan as a teenager reveal
parallels between her and her daughter,
adding depth to their relationship. Hoover
expertly conveys complex character
dynamics while avoiding sappiness and
finding room for insight and love in the
midst of tragedy. Though there is a
romance, the real love story here is between
Morgan and Clara. This is Hoover at her
very best. Agent: Jane Dystel, Dystel &
Goderich Agency. (Dec.)Restless Rancher
Jennifer Ryan. Avon, $7.99 mass market
(384p) ISBN 978-0-06-285190-1
Ryan delights with the sizzling second
installment of her contemporary Wild
Rose Ranch series (after Dirty Little Secret).
Feisty accountant Sonya Tucker was raised
in the Wild Rose Ranch brothel in Nevada,
and after one of her friends from the Wild
Rose uses money from the brothel to invest
in Austin Hubbard’s Montana ranch, she
hires Sonya to help out. Austin inherited
the ranch from his grandfather, causing an
insurmountable rift with his ruthless father,
Walter, who wants the ranch for himself.