I'll be honest with you. I didn't like They Mostly Came at Night. Parts of it were great, but, overall, it just didn't work for me. As a result, I decided not to read more Yarnsworld novels.

Obviously, things changed. Why? Well, last year I read two anthologies - Lost Lore and The Art of War - and in both cases, Benedict Patrick's short stories were among my favorites ones.

Additionally, I'm keen on r/fantasy Book Bingo Challenge and one of 2018 squares is Novel Featuring a Protagonist Who is a Writer, Artist or Musician.

In other words, I had no choice. I simply had to give Where the Waters Turn Black a try. The main character is an artist - ocarina player. The story is inspired by the myths and legends of South Pacific island cultures, and that's a plus as it's not the kind of setting we see often in fantasy books.

The story focuses on Kaimana, a young ocarina player, who discovers the lair of a taniwha (a dangerous, predatory being). She feels this encounter may finally allow her Knack to spark and create ocarina masterpiece. Unfortunately, things go off the rail really fast. Kaimana is cast away from her troupe, god of war wants to kill Taniwha. A girl and a monster will have to learn to trust each other in order to survive.

While the plot isn't particularly complex, it remains enjoyable and well paced. It reads a bit like a folktale and it's the story's main strength. I enjoy this kind of storytelling a lot. For me, it's the story about finding your place in life and the importance of true friendship. Kaimana and Rakau relationship was a bit predictable but also real and touching. Some level of predictability is fine when the story manages to emotionally engage me and it did.

The setting is unusual and exotic - the Crescent Atoll is a remote string of tropical islands inhabited by humans, monsters, and gods. Gods of the Attol aren't loving and caring - they're mostly cruel, vain and callous. We learn about them through short chapters retelling some of the myths and legends.

Characters were easily relatable and, mostly, likable. Kaimana is part of a traveling group of performers. She has the knack but hasn’t reached her full potential yet. When she meets Taniwha her first motivation is egoistical - she wants to create an ocarina masterpiece that will make her famous. With time, though, she makes a lot of difficult choices that will change her life and values forever. I liked her and related to her. She's a bit of an outsider, but she has the heart in the right place.

Also, she's a good buddy of a mythical monster and I have a soft spot for human-familiar relationships. Rakau is a giant monster able to wreak havoc and bring mayhem, but with Kaimana, he behaves like a playful puppy. Yam was funny. Attol gods were portrayed with broad strokes, but we clearly see the differences between them and their respective characters.

I guess my only character-related issue was Eloni - she's just mean and envious and, basically, there's not much more to her. As one of the story "villains" she felt very flat.

Overall, I'm glad I read this book. It was short, tight and wildly entertaining.

TL;DR - Human girl and giant monster, best friends on the run. Exciting stuff.

After Benedict’s previous work They Mostly Come Out At Night I was left wanting..wanting more of his work. Fortunately for me and you the author hasn’t kept us waiting long..phew.

We are back in the wonderfully dark and exciting world the author has created full of gods and monsters that will send shivers down small children’s backs.

I loved this book. It feels like a fairytale.. but not the Disney kind.. the true kind.. think The Brothers Grimm. Myths told to scare the little ones come to life and change the life of one person in particular..Kaimana.

From the opening sentence I knew I would enjoy this – “There’s a monster in the village” and this author has a real knack for creating the weird and wonderful that switches on my brain giving me the blissful feeling of using my imagination to see this world myself.

The tale is fast paced..would have liked it slowed down a bit so I could really enjoy the world and people the author has created but saying that the author has fit in a lot of content into less than 230 pages.

So you’ll want to know a bit about the book..

First off one thing I really loved about the author’s previous work and this one is how he separates the chapters with little tales, myths, folklore from the world he’s created. I’ve not read anything like it before and it really shows off the author’s imagination to the fullest.

Kaimana is part of a traveling group of performers. She has the knack but hasn’t reached her full potential yet. When the group heads back to her former home this is a chance to see her parents but she’s kind of an outsider in her own home since she didn’t follow in the family footsteps.

This feeling of being an outsider is what I think draws her to go searching the woods when she’s told a monster is lurking..she just doesn’t think of the consequences .

After disturbing the creature the travelling group are asked to leave and they head out to their next destination.. little do they know the taniwha has become connected to Kaimana.

Kaimana is certain this connection is what is needed for her to become a legend..to create a song that will be shared for generations.

Along the way on this adventure we meet gods..good and bad..and more monsters. We even see the Magpie King make an appearance :).

I won’t spoil the overall plot for you but this was another well written tale from a strong author that you should definitely keep your eye on.

The tale is one of friendship & loyalty and the fantasy edge really makes this one hell of an interesting book to read.

Another plus for me is that the book is written in such a way that even though it’s connected with the previous tale you don’t have to have read that book first, you can read them in any order.. Although I’d strongly suggest you read it at some point..Damn it was good.

I can’t wait to see what Benedict comes up with next!

So psyched to have finally gotten around to this one. Once again Patrick nails it. So inventive and harrowing. Love our heroes. They really come to life.

I don't hand out five star ratings often. Even though I enjoyed They Mostly Come Out at Night quite a bit, it felt a little unpolished at times. That's not the case here at all. Where the Waters Turn Black is a great fantasy/adventure story and I love the unique setting it takes place in. I would definitely recommend it to any fantasy fans, especially those that enjoy mythology and folklore.

I'll be honest and say I'm disapointed. They mostly come out at night was a flawed book. Mostly because of the borderline incel protagonist. But except that I really enjoyed the story and dark fairytale aspect. I was hoping this book would be a improvement since the first one was the authors first book.
It wasn't.
The main character is self centered a big part of the book. And quite boring. The knacks return to little effect and all characters feel bland and recongisable as archetypes from the previous books. The storys feel like storys from the region inspireing this book, but they don't connect in as nice a way as the previous one.
There was one chapter I liked that brought back some mystery. But except that it was quite bland.
Not offensive but a bland taste in the mold of the previous books flawed gem.

I finished this story days ago....I am still thinking of Kamina's journey and it has permanently changed me and my views. As a woman, I was inspired and empowered and Kaimana will now forever be my favorite character. This is a story of unwavering love and trust but also one of breaking ceilings. Kaimana went against the wishes of her family and friends to follow her passions and faced hardships and heartbreak but grew as a character and hero. The theme was all about going against the grain and making difficult decisions and though it is fiction, it is raw. Initially, I was sort of bummed that it did not continue with the characters of the first book but now I could not care less. I do look forward to further stories of the magpie king, but I am also eagerly awaiting future adventures of Kaimana and Rakau.