Hello friend. Happy Friday and welcome to the first Indie Recommends Indie post of 2025! Today features author Millie Abecassis, author of the Dark Sapphi Fantasy novel, Daughters of the Blue Moon. Millie is the co-founder of the Small Spec Book Awards that recognizes and promotes independent and small press authors writing exceptional speculative fiction. She has many awesome books to recommend. Let’s dive in! 🙂
Welcome to Armed with A Book, Millie! Please tell me and my readers about yourself!
Thanks for having me, Kriti! I’m a writer of adult sci-fi, fantasy, and horror with three forthcoming novellas that will be published by small presses in 2025-2026. I was born and raised in France and moved to California 10 years ago, where I still live and work. As a writer, I love science fantasy, fairy tale retellings, and fantasy horror. As a reader, I have eclectic tastes and will read pretty much anything that has a speculative, horrific, or historical bend. When I’m not reading or writing, you can find me playing video games, caring for my cats, or helping the writing community in any way I can.
Do you primarily read indie books or big publishers books as well?
About 70% of the books I read are published by big publishers, 25% are published by small publishers, and 5% are self-published. With the first edition of the SSBA around the corner, I’m sure the percentage of small press books I read will increase drastically.
Author’s Indie Recommendations
Polyphemus by Zachary Ashford
Horror, Paranormal
First published in 2023 by DarkLit, reedited in 2024 by Encyclopocalypse Publications
Standalone
Synopsis: When lead vocalist of Polyphemus Stephen Oaks’s near-fatal on-stage overdose leaves them under pressure from their label, the band’s remaining members must find a new vocalist, pick up the pieces and forge on without him.
Unfortunately, he’s fresh from rehab and desperate to reunite with his old band, In fact he’s so desperate that he’ll bargain with dark forces and sacrifice everything – and anyone!
After the final encore is played and the house lights come down, there is no telling who will remain or who they’ll be in allegiance to. For Polyphemus, obsession costs far more than mere murder.
I simply couldn’t put this book down. Despite its 300+ pages, I read it in less than 24 hours. I loved it so much that when Encyclopocalypse Publications re-released the book and offered a hard cover edition, I immediately preordered it.
This is not a book for everyone. If you’ve never read horror and dislike dark, graphic books featuring disturbing elements, you may want to pass on this one. The list of trigger warnings is long like my arm, but if you’re into horror, stories centered around music bands, metal, and demonic pacts, this is for you.
The book follows Stephen Oak’s obsession with returning to his band and leading it to world-wide success, but doesn’t focus solely on his point of view. We follow the other members of the band, as well as the characters leading Stephen to making a very unwise pact with a supernatural entity that will bring everyone and everything down to satisfy its own hidden agenda. The questions I kept asking myself while reading were: will the entity win? Will it keep its promise? Or not? How will Stephen and others deal with it? What will Stephen do next? Will he keep focused on his goal, or realize how insane the situation has become?
I won’t spoil the ending of course, but ready yourself for a wild ride!
Kosa by John Durgin
Horror, Fairy Tale Retelling
First published in 2024 by DarkLit, then self-published later by the author
Standalone
In a secluded mansion hidden away from the outside world, young Kosa lives under the strict and overpowering rule of her enigmatic mother. For Kosa, the rules set by Mother are the guiding principles of her life, shaping her beliefs and actions. She has been sheltered from the truth about the world beyond the confines of their home, conditioned to fear the darkness and malevolence that supposedly lurks outside.
However, as Kosa grows older, she begins to question the reality she has been presented with. Doubts eat away at her, fueled by a deep-rooted curiosity and a burgeoning sense of independence.
But Kosa possesses a mysterious and powerful ability that Mother desperately needs to sustain her own existence. Mother, a figure shrouded in shadows and secrets, will stop at nothing to ensure that Kosa’s power remains potent and under her control. The sinister grasp that Mother has on Kosa becomes increasingly suffocating as she tightens her grip, isolating Kosa further from the truth that exists beyond their home.
In this dark and captivating tale, Kosa’s journey unravels the intricacies of control, the strength of one’s convictions, and the true nature of the world beyond the shadows. The choices she makes will not only determine her fate but also influence the fate of those around her.
I love fairy tale retellings. I enjoy horror. What’s not to love in a horrific, contemporary retelling of Rapunzel? This book has an unusual structure that still worked well for me. The first third of the story follow Kosa’s parents and their encounter with Mother, the evil witch that will cause their doom. The last two third follow Kosa, their daughter, as she’s raised by Mother like a modern Rapunzel. This section also introduces new characters who will cross path with Mother and Kosa, leading the latter to question her reality and her loyalty to Mother.
I enjoyed the fluidity of the writing, the sense of setting created by Durgin, his characterization of the main and secondary characters. Mother is a villain I loved to hate while rooting for Kosa and the secondary characters finding themselves tangled (pun intended) with her fate.
It’s a coming-of-age story that should delight all amateurs of horror, supernatural, and fairy tale retellings.
Oceansong by C.W. Rose
Contemporary Romantasy
Published 2024 at Hey Hey Books
First book in a duology (reads well as a standalone!)
Fish are mysteriously disappearing, starving the people in Angie Song’s Alaskan hometown. Angie, an aspiring marine biologist and dock worker, enthusiastically joins the hunt to find out where the fish are gathering. When her family and the villagers discover that merfolk are responsible, they vow to destroy every last one. In the midst of the conflict, Angie faces off with a merman and fails to pull the trigger.
Inquisitive Mer-Prince Kaden is just as snarky as Angie, but he’s willing to talk and stop the brutal massacring of his people. The two form a cautious alliance to broker peace between the humans and mer before any more of them die.
As tensions clash between the two races fighting to control the sea’s resources, Angie and Kaden’s forbidden relationship ignites. And as she learns about the mer’s mysterious world and the reason why the fish are gone, Angie starts to question who the true monster is, and where her loyalties lie. Taking the wrong side means choosing between family and her job, or the man she’s fallen for and the merfolk she’s come to respect-or losing it all.
While I’m not particularly fond of mermaid stories or paranormal romance, I was intrigued by the Alaskan setting and the book’s premise: a Romeo and Juliet retelling, but replace the Montagues and the Capulets by humans and mer fighting for food and territory in contemporary Alaska (and make it a romance instead of a tragedy!).
Once you suspend your disbelief in such a war going unnoticed beyond the Alaskan town where this is happening, you can enjoy a lovely romance and story where the stakes keep getting higher with each page you read. The book became darker than I expected in the second half (there’s a war going on, after all) but C.W. Rose managed to keep me engaged in the story. I also enjoyed that her mermaids weren’t shapeshifters able to walk on land, and that she kept them as a separate species, which meant keeping the challenges of a human/mer relationship intact.
The worldbuilding is simple yet rich and enjoyable, making this book an excellent choice for readers who aren’t so much in fantasy with complex magic systems or secondary worlds.
Ashtorne by April Yates
Gothic Fiction, Historical Fiction, Sapphic Romance
Published 2022 by Ghost Orchid Press
Standalone
In the aftermath of WWI, Adelaide Frost is on the run from a family who do not understand her. Hoping to do some good, she signs up to become a nurse at Ashthorne, a manor house newly designated as a convalescence home for injured soldiers. She quickly falls in love with the owner’s daughter, Evelyn, who hides a warm heart beneath a chilly exterior. But Evelyn has her suspicions about what’s really happening at the hospital, and as Adelaide helps her investigate, it soon becomes apparent that there are more inhabitants residing at Ashthorne than first thought.
A romantic Gothic treat perfect for fans of Sarah Waters and The Haunting of Bly Manor, Ashthorne is the debut novella by Derbyshire author April Yates, who was inspired to tell this story by the Ice Age art carved into the walls of local caves.
Another debut that blew me away by how good it is.
I love gothic fiction. Historical fiction. Sapphic romance. Mystery. The supernatural. Dysfunctional families. If you love these elements too, then Ashtorne is for you. Adelaide and Evelyn, the two protagonists, have an amazing dynamic and I enjoyed following their burgeoning romance and their investigation into the odd events taking place at Ashtorne. The worldbuilding and plot are rich to the point that I had forgotten this book is a novella and not a full-length novel when I looked into books to recommend. The secondary characters are also well written and memorable.
This novella truly captures the essence of gothic horror and gothic fiction in general, making it one of my favorite indie reads that I strongly recommend. My only regret is that it wasn’t longer, not because it felt rushed (not at all), but because I wanted more!
Resisters by Chris Campeau
Horror, Psychological Thriller
Published 2024 with Anuci Press
Standalone
January 1998. Record levels of freezing rain blanket eastern Ontario in a smothering sheet of ice.
After days without power, cities and townships declare a state of emergency. Most folks find refuge in shelters, but some resist the call to leave—like 42-year-old Jeremy Skitter, whose countryside home is his only defence against an unfavourable world. But as his obsessive thoughts escalate, Skit finds himself less prepared than he thought, and up against something far more paralyzing than Mother Nature.
A wintery version of Psycho meets The Fog, Resisters explores who we become when what haunts us won’t loosen its grip.
Resisters is a brilliantly claustrophobic novella set during the 1998 ice storm in Ontario.
I enjoyed the blend of horror and psychological thriller where we are never sure if what is happening only exists in the protagonist’s mind or is real and caused by supernatural entities. Skit makes an unreliable yet very likable character whose story I enjoyed following from beginning to end.
Campeau’s writing is vivid, well grounded in the protagonist’s mind and views of the world, and never boring. Each flashback serves a purpose and helps understand why Skit is acting this way during the storm, connecting the past and the present in an engaging way.
A must-read for all fans of ghost stories, psychological thrillers, and huis-clos settings. (Also, how can you resist such a creative and pretty cover?)
What Did Not Die by Ruth Anna Evans
Horror, Supernatural
Self-published in 2021, reedited in 2023 with a new cover
Standalone
Jordan Sharp has been writing for the local newspaper for two years. But when a sinister ghost-child emerges from a suspicious house fire and brings to life her darkest memories, she finds herself in the middle of the story. After a life of isolating herself from others, Jordan needs to reach out for help. And there’s a handsome, sympathetic firefighter just waiting for her to ask. But as people around her start falling victim to the deadly haunting, is it worth putting him at risk? And can Jordan resolve her troubled past before it’s too late?
This debut novella from Ruth Anna Evans is a creepy-as-hell ghost story with relatable characters and an ending you won’t see coming and won’t soon forget.
A captivating ghost story that I read in one sitting! I still can’t believe this was Ruth Anna Evans’s debut. This is a fast-paced story with great characterization, life-or-death stakes for its protagonist Jordan and the people around her, and a creepy, claustrophobic atmosphere. There is a bit of romance in it, but don’t get too attached: it’s a horror novel at heart and the emotional rollercoaster is real. Nobody is safe and you’d better remember it when reading this book. The strength of the book is its intensity: as soon as things start to get bad for Jordan, she won’t get a break until the end.
The ending is a bit abrupt, but I still enjoyed the ride, and would recommend this novella to anybody who enjoy ghost stories and the creepy/evil child trope, with a hint of psychological thriller and trauma exploration.
Author’s Book Spotlight
Daughters of the Blue Moon
Dark Fantasy, Fairy Tale Retelling, Sapphic Fantasy
Published 2025 at Anuci Press (2/25/2025)
Carmine, a seasoned huntress, has been protected from wolves by a powerful spell tattooed on her back for years. But one day, the magic fails, and she narrowly escapes a violent encounter with a furious she-wolf that was determined to kill her.
As she recovers from her injuries, she experiences eerie dreams of a singing wolf. Though the dreams could be harmless, the singing wolf looks exactly like the she-wolf that almost took her life. Scarier, the dreams remind Carmine of those she had when she was younger, before a talking wolf tricked and almost devoured her in the waking world.
Soon Carmine realizes the spell her grandmother put on her back isn’t what it seems to be, and her family knows more about herself than she does.
A sapphic and dark retelling of Little Red Riding Hood, Daughters of the Blue Moon is a tale about retaking ownership of your own body and destiny.
Readers who enjoyed T. Kingfisher’s Thornhedge and Silvia Moreno-Garcia’s The Lover would like this book.
People can request an e-ARC here. My publisher and I will also have paperback review copies available later. The book is available for paperback preorders on my publisher’s website here. It will be available on other platforms in January. People are welcome to join my newsletter to follow my writing and book releases. I’m also active on Bluesky! Other links:
Website: https://millieabecassis.com/
Instagram: @millie_abks
Thanks for hanging out with us today! Did you add any books to your TBR today based on this post or did you see any you have already read? Tell us in the comments!
Learn more about Small Spec Book Awards from the founders here and check out the nominees.
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