I’ve been extolling the virtues of Slatter’s work for several years now. She is one of the best contemporary fantasists writing at the moment (a claim I’ve also made several times). 

Very few authors produce the quality that Slatter delivers on an annual basis. Her novels, empowered by strong female characters, are paced to within an inch of their lives. They sparkle with magic, imbued with imagination, passion and life. There’s not a cynical bone to be found. That’s not to say they’re twee. As she does with The Crimson Road, Slatter is more than happy to deal out the darkness and violence. Good people die in a Slatter novel.

If you’re unfamiliar with Slatter’s work or the Sourdough Universe, you could start here with The Crimson Road, which centres on the Leech Lords, Slatter’s analogue for vampires. But unlike the previous Sourdough books, The Crimson Road does draw on previous characters and continuity, and while Slatter elegantly keeps first-time readers in the loop, reading the novel will be a much richer experience if you’ve read the previous Sourdough novels, starting with All The Murmuring Bones.*

I promise that “catching up” with the Sourdough Universe is not an onerous task. You’re gonna love it if you give it a go and you’re predisposed to secondary world fantasy, though it’s not a prerequisite. Fuck it. Even if you all do is read social realist fiction, and you find anything speculative nauseating, you should still read Slatter because she’s that damn good.

[If you want to know more about The Crimson Road, read my Locus review in the February edition. That’s also the month the book is published].

*There are also several collections and a couple of novellas. They are also very much worth your time.