I know Steve, well, I online know him. We occasionally correspond on twitter. I set out this month to read four of his books (this being the first ). Up to this point I had only read three of his books - Dim The Sun and The Night Crawls In (two collections of shorter fiction and drabbles) and Wagon Buddy (a horror novelette).

This was a break from what I have come to know as Steve's writing, and from other reviews it seems this is true. Piece of Me is less horror and more fantasy. The thing that struck me more than anything with this book was the worldbuilding. The ability to pull this icy, snow covered, mountainous dark world out of the depths of his mind and plop it here on the paper for my enjoyment astonishes me.

I had no idea this was more of a fantasy piece going in, and it takes a while for you to get to the point where that becomes set in stone. We start with Kari. She is living in a cabin in a very remote wooded and cold location. This could be our world, it could be just a dystopian or post-apocalyptic setting. You don't really know. There are night beasts that are dangerous and to be avoided at all costs, but they are getting more active in the day. The night beasts are unlike any normal earthly animals, but the story still felt real world to me. I don't know - I guess I thought pollution or government testing or something. I guess what I am saying is that it felt fantastic without being overly fantastical. Does that make sense?

Kari sets out on a quest to find her husband and son that went missing on a hunt a decade ago. Along the way we meet characters that firmly place us into the worlds and realms of fantasy. Ultimately, we are led down a course to discover how much Kari is willing to risk, how much will she give up, to see her husband and son again.

It's a fantastic cold tale of loss, loneliness, pain and what one would do to feel "family" again.

All that said, it's the world that stuck with me. This vast place that we have only seen a small portion of. There is one part in the book where we run across a riveting scene trekking through a mountain. You don't get much of it, just a glimpse. At the end you find that we are going back there in our next quest to this world. 

Rating: 3.5 Stars

Link to purchase: 
Bookshop Amazon UK Amazon US

Review by Well Read Beard

Twitter: @WellReadBeard

I was provided a copy of this book by the author for review consideration. 

YouTube:           https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O76YyM7N-6A&t=31s