Review: Incarnate

Incarnate by Alma Katsu (expected publication: Sept 22, 2026)
My rating: 5 of 5 stars ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Incarnate asks the questions: "How far would you go to become famous and popular?" and "What price are you willing to pay?" 

Dorothy Wagner, a frequent target of bullies while in middle school, has always been something of a loner. Intelligent, but insecure about her body image. Socially shy, but longing to fit in.

After graduating from college, Dorothy lands a job with a ground-breaking visual effects studio.  She devises a plan to secretly leverage the company's superior software tools to create an artificial persona, Isabella, who can be everything Dorothy is not, hoping to turn her creation into a social media superstar and gain popularity and fame by proxy. Thinking she has nothing to lose and that it's probably a scam, she accepts an offer from an anonymous stranger, who promises to help her get what she wants. Dorothy soon learns the painful price of success, and discovers the dark lengths that she will go to in order to protect her secrets. 

Incarnate is a riveting, dark tale of our time. As artificial intelligence runs rampant and social media sensations rise and fall, Alma Katsu has captured the devastating impact and horrific consequences these can have in the lives of those who fall victim to their glamour. 

 

Incarnate can be seen as a cautionary tale about the addictive and toxic side of social media, the lasting impact of bullying, and the growing spread of AI-generated content and personas. 

Thanks to G.P. Putnam's Sons for providing an eARC of #Incarnate for review via #Netgalley.

Review: The End of the World As We Know It: New Tales of Stephen King's The Stand

The End of the World As We Know It: New Tales of Stephen King's The Stand by Christopher Golden
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I recently finished THE END OF THE WORLD AS WE KNOW IT: NEW TALES OF STEPHEN KING'S THE STAND and have to say that I really enjoyed the anthology. I liked some stories better than others but I wasn't disappointed by any of them. For me it was like sharing memories and stories with people I didn't know, even though they grew up in the same neighborhood I did, or went to the same school as me.

Each author delivers a story that contains familiar elements, but brings a unique perspective to the characters, events and aftermath that King first introduced in The Stand. Co-editors Christopher Golden and Brian Keene did a masterful job of pulling these different voices together to create a compelling collection.

Some of my favorites from the book:
LENORA by Jonathan Janz - a wonderful story of loss, redemption and survival that breaks your heart before healing it.

MOVING DAY by Richard Chizmar - I absolutely LOVED the way he not only crafted a new story but also skillfully wove in details from Stephen King original tale.

MAKE YOUR OWN WAY by Alma Katsu - a tale of loss, discovery, resilience and hope, and is the perfect story to wrap up the first section.

GRAND JUNCTION by Chuck Wendig - a story of choices: love or fear; trust or betrayal; hope or despair.

HE'S A RIGHTEOUS MAN by Ronald Malfi - how do you survive when there seems to be no hope? The residents of one small town think they've found their answer, although not everyone agrees. I did not see the ending coming!

THE MOSQUE AT THE END OF THE WORLD by Usman T. Malik - one of several stories in the collection that doesn't take place in the United States. A fantastic tale of the aftermath of Captain Trips on other parts of the world, where local customs, legends and beliefs have their own power.

ABAGAIL'S GETHSEMANE by Wayne Brady and Maurice Broaddus - tells the story of the youthful Abagail Freemantle growing up in Hemingford Home, Nebraska, intermixed with the tale of her time spent "in the wilderness" of Colorado seeking repentance for her sins of pride and arrogance.

THE DEVIL'S CHILDREN by Sarah Langan - explores whether the superflu survivors have really learned any lessons from the experience, and offers an unexpected glimmer of hope for the world.

THE UNFORTUNATE CONVALESCENCE OF THE SUPERLAWYER by Nat Cassidy - a fun read with references/"Easter eggs" to other works by King (including the short story NIGHT SURF), and a possible explanation for the shelter provided to some of the characters in THE STAND.

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