Dorian Maffei

Still very important imo!

📢 I'll be closing to submissions on October 15th (most likely for the remainder of 2025)! Get your subs in before then! 📢

PW Children's Bookshelf announcement that has author Dami Salako's portrait on the left and a deal description that reads: "Mara Delgado-Sanchez at Tor Books has bought The Sun Has a Shadow and a second untitled book by Dami Salako. In this Nigerian-inspired YA fantasy set in a world plagued by perpetual darkness and shadow-monsters, a boy must guide the last remaining phoenix-rider on a perilous journey to save their kingdom. Publication is scheduled for winter 2027; Dorian Maffei at Kimberley Cameron & Associates negotiated the deal for world English rights."

Huge congrats to @damiwriteshere.bsky.social! 🎉 I'm so thrilled that readers will have the opportunity to be swept up in this story as much as I was. The opening line completely grabbed me by the heart and never let go: "The wind spoke the language of the dead."😍

2027 can't come soon enough!

MISTRESS OF BONES hardcover on a table at Barnes & Noble surrounded by other fantasy books such as Yuli by S. Jae-Jones, Dream by the Shadows by Logan Karlie, and By Invitation Only by Alexandra Brown Chang among others.

MISTRESS OF BONES hardcover on display at a bookstore shelf right next to Vampire Academy, which I've read like 1232131 times, and yes, this coincidence makes me grin like a book gremlin.

I have been in drafting cave and now in editing cave and discord cave (which is a very dangerous cave to be in considering I'm supposed to be doing the second item on the list, lol) but here's some photos from friends who spotted MISTRESS OF BONES in the wild! 😍 (have you?! Send me the pics!!!)

8 Folklore-Inspired Horror Novels That Will Make Your Skin Crawl - Electric Literature Prejudice, misogyny, and colonial violence are the real terror in these books that will make your blood run cold

Folk horrors that will crawl beneath your skin and make your blood run cold. (@daphnefama.bsky.social)

And here's 363C! Jessikah chatted with Daphne Fama about HOUSE OF MONSTROUS WOMEN, which mixes Gothic and folk horror during the Marcos regime in the 1980’s Philippines. Make sure this one is on your TBR list. @daphnefama.bsky.social @prhlibrary.bsky.social

turnthepage.blubrry.net/2025/08/14/t...

The cover of THE PAYBACK GIRLS has pink lockers with a spray-painted red heart dripping down them and "THE PAYBACK GIRLS" stenciled in it

So great to see Alex Travis' THE PAYBACK GIRLS at the top of this list of 14 Teen-Approved Books to Add to Your Own Teen's TBR Pile by Parents magazine! www.parents.com/teen-approve...

House of Monstrous Women by Daphne Fama: Haunting and Visceral - Duncans Books and More A young woman is drawn into a dangerous game after being invited to the mazelike home of her childhood friend, a rumored witch, in this gothic horror set in 1986 Philippines. In this game, there’s one...

Check out my review of House of Monstrous Women by Daphne Fama @duncansbooks.bsky.social @penguinbooksusa.bsky.social @daphnefama.bsky.social #houseofmonstrouswomen #horror #gothic #folklore #Philippines #sapphic #family #sacrifice #Haunting #bookreview
www.duncansbooksandmore.com/house-of-mon...

A necromancer on a mission to steal her sister back from Death. Add in god-bone dreams, divine politics, & a dangerously charming Emissary of Death & you’ve got a dark #fantasy with teeth!

💀Think The Bone Season x An Enchantment of Ravens, but darker. #books @mzmauthor.bsky.social #bookreview #reas

🫶!!! Love this book so much!

ENDS TOMORROW!!!

The book cover for HOUSE OF MONSTROUS WOMEN. The title is in big bold letters surrounded by purple banyan trees and a girl in pink in the middle.

Happy book birthday to HOUSE OF MONSTROUS WOMEN by @daphnefama.bsky.social! Gothic horror fans are in for such a treat—it’s full of Filipino history and folklore, a labyrinthine mansion, a dangerous game with sinister consequences, atmospheric prose, and SO MUCH MORE! 😈

Sley House Presents Episode #157: House of Monstrous Women with Daphne Fama. Episode is available on all major podcast platforms, like Spotify or Apple podcasts.

We've got a new interview out now featuring @daphnefama.bsky.social and her novel HOUSE OF MONSTROUS WOMEN! Come join to hear us talk about generational conflict, how the history of the Philippines fits into the book's story, and more!

Find us at Sley House Presents on all your podcast platforms!

House of Monstrous Women releases today.

It's a story of oppression, liberation, sacrifice, and hope that refuses to be extinguished.

I am beyond lucky to have written this story and even luckier to share it with all of you. From the bottom of my heart:

Thank you.

I’m so thrilled to be working with @lexi-smith-mcnick.bsky.social! Her “sapphic werewolf cowgirls hunting for cursed treasure in the Wild West” YA blew me away! Lexi’s work is the full package—spooky, fun, adventurous, moving, and enchanting!💗

I'm officially an agented author!!
The #querying process was rough, but it ended with an agent who "gets" my weird stories! Thanks @dorianmaffei.bsky.social for being amazing ❤️

Must-Have Monday #249 - Every Book a Doorway Bone raiders, Korean vampires, and Filipino gothics!

This Must-Have Monday I have EIGHTEEN new releases to ft! Incl

🐕surviving inside a portal with a (very!) good dog by @ilonaandrews.bsky.social!
🌺Filipino gothic??? yes please! with @daphnefama.bsky.social!
👁️absurdist horror = statistician vs nothing from @chucktingle.bsky.social!

buff.ly/kRO7cUL

August 2025 Reads for the Rest of Us The best feminist books written by women, Black, brown, AAPI, LGBTQ, Native, disabled, trans, nonbinary writers in August 2025.

Where to find the best August books by women, femme, feminist, queer, trans, Black, Brown, and Native writers?? My latest for @msmagazine.com, of course!

August 2025 Reads for the Rest of Us msmagazine.com/2025/08/01/b...

All the New Horror Books Coming in August 2025 August 2025’s new horror books, featuring titles from Hailey Piper, Ania Ahlborn, Gretchen Felker-Martin, Rachel Eve Moulton, Chuck Tingle, Isabel Cañas, Nuzo Onoh, and more!

the august horror list is live, feat. new books from @johnlangan.bsky.social @scumbelievable.bsky.social @haileypiperfights.bsky.social @patrickbarb.bsky.social @isabelcanas.bsky.social @lindsaykingmiller.bsky.social @daphnefama.bsky.social @steelhester.bsky.social @chucktingle.bsky.social & more!

Love to hear it! You’re in for a treat! 😍

Penguin Michael Joseph has announced Slasher Summer, a 'love letter to horror fans everywhere' by E L Chen

www.bookbrunch.co.uk/page/article... (£)

EL Chen’s Slasher Summer goes to Penguin Michael Joseph Penguin Michael Joseph has acquired a “gripping” horror novel, Slasher Summer, from EL Chen.

Penguin Michael Joseph has acquired a “gripping” horror novel, Slasher Summer, from EL Chen 👇

Who's ready for a fun horror romp?! SLASHER SUMMER by E.L. Chen is coming to bookstores summer 2026 and I CAN'T WAIT! 🪓😈

Snoopy dance! So excited I can finally announce this. Forget hot girl summer, get ready for SLASHER SUMMER in 2026! 1/

YouTube video by Sound & Fury Book Reviews The House of Monstrous Women - Book Review

A wonderful example of how to do modern Gothic horror. A great balance of creepy, visceral scenes and deeper themes. And I learned about Filipino history too!

@daphnefama.bsky.social

#TheHouseofMonstrousWomen #BookReview #booksky #📚💙 #horror #gothichorror

youtu.be/IJUkBleaIoY

All the New Young Adult SFF Books Arriving in August 2025 - Reactor Princesses, high school students, necromancers, and ballerinas all appear in August's new young adult releases!

You'll find desperate necromancers, haunting poems, draconic royalty, and ancient ghosts in this month's YA new releases. Here's a roundup of all the science fiction, fantasy, and genre young adult books of August 2025!

reactormag.com/new-young-ad...

a cartoon drawing of spongebob wearing a hat and tie with his mouth open Alt: Spongebob SquarePants nervously biting his nails with his eyes wide open.

I miiiight have news to share soon.

All the New Horror, Romantasy, and Other SFF Crossover Books Arriving in August 2025 - Reactor Archivists, pharmacists, warriors, princesses, assassins—there's just too much too list in the 46 new crossover titles for August.

Clear your schedule: There are 46 horror, romantasy, and other SFF crossover books coming out in August 2025!! Check out the list here or I'm covering you in bugs:

reactormag.com/new-sff-cros...

Day 2 of Filipino Folklore Aswang Aswang is an umbrella term that refers to a myriad of monsters, from vampire-like creatures to shapeshifting witches. Nearly all types of aswang have an insatiable desire for human blood, viscera, corpses, or unborn babies. Beautiful women, old widowed women, and women who practice healing have frequently been accused of being aswang. Particularly when Spanish colonizers began spreading Catholicism.

The most common forms for a shapeshifting aswang to take is a black dog or pig. It's at night that aswangs typically chase their hunger, seeking out blood and gore. Aswang have a variety of abilities. Common ones are flight, a heightened sense for pregnancy or blood, moving without a sound and leaving no shadow, mimicking voices (including babies crying), and paralyzing their victims.

Make no mistake, being an aswang is a curse. And there are a number of ways you can become one. In the Visayas, the aswang curse is passed through bloodlines. Usually from mother to daughter. The curse can also be transferred on a dying aswang's deathbed. They must spit out a black object, which can be a stone or egg, into the chosen successor's mouth. This item carries the curse. It may be warm and alive. But you can also choose to become an aswang by conducting a ritual and eating human flesh.

Love Filipino folklore? Grab House of Monstrous Women on August 12

Day 2 of Filipino folklore in celebration of House of Monstrous Women coming out in 6 days! I love making these. Today's feature is the monstrous aswang, which has haunted the Philippines for centuries...

An image of a skull and catholic relic. Day 1 of Filipino Folklore. Paktol. Paktol, which means "to knock on someone's head" in Cebuano, is a type of skull sorcery. The skull must come from an unbaptized person (ideally a child), because they haven't seen god and rest in limbo. Oftentimes the skull is stolen from graves or inherited from an elder sorcerer. It's the spirit connected to the unbaptized skull that is called upon to harm or kill its target.

Branches of specific tree, like the Malaysian persimmon and Philippine hackberry, are put in a triangle formation around the skull. Seven branches on each side. Three wooden wedges and the victim's name written on paper are tied to the skull with black cloth. Offerings to the spirits are placed nearby. Usually incense, liquor, and food.

Once the skull is prepared, the ritual can begin. The ideal time is on Friday at 12 noon or at 8 PM, when night is about to fall. The sorcerer will then call out the name bound to the skull or some other dark entity and begins the invocation. "You are no longer among the living. You are of the dead. I command you, go to the person whose name is written here and kill them." The sorcerer then strikes the wooden wedges beneath the cloth while commanding the spirit to kill. The victim will soon suffer headaches and escalating illness. If no counter-magic is used, they will die in a few weeks.

Love Filipino folklore? Grab House of Monstrous Women on August 12.

House of Monstrous Women releases in 7 days!! To celebrate, I'll be posting some of my favorite folklore in the Philippines. Today's feature is paktol, a black sorcery used to kill its target. (1/4)