A review by eseide
A Halo of Mushrooms by Andrew Hiller

4.0

Fascinating, original, imaginative book.

I usually don’t search out fantasy-genre, but something about that title just drew me in. And I’m so glad I gave this a chance.

The first half really had me captivated: Derik, an alien anti-hero who stumbles onto Earth with a loose grasp of English sentence structure and social mores, searching for a job so that he can blend in and hide from his intergalactic pursuers. He gets a job at a bakery, creating other-worldly creations that make him impossible to keep a secret. Derik and his two new friends, Imani and Lara, have to find a place for the Wonder he holds to take root and grow before those who would kill the Wonder get his hands on his precious cargo. The fantastical smells and tastes in the bakery, and the effect of the umami cloud pastries created by Derik, were tantalizing.

The second half was more chase-and-run thriller, which was fun, but with a different pace than the first half. I got lost a few times as to why the bad guys were after the good guys, and the backstory left me somewhat confused, but I just went with it and enjoyed the story. It’s probably more the fault of the reader than the author here, as I tend to read quickly when things are exciting!

This is a wild foodie urban sci-fi fantasy adventure. Reminded me of “Fringe,” and that’s quite high praise indeed.