Author name: Roger Hyttinen

Hidden Gems – Underrated Urban Fantasy Novels You Should Absolutely Read (Because Magic Deserves Better PR)

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handsome young man 18-24 reading a book book

Let me tell you something kind of embarrassing.

Years ago, I went on a total urban fantasy binge. We’re talking full-on hermit mode: blackout curtains, microwave burritos, and me mumbling spells under my breath like I was preparing for battle at the local Walgreens. It started innocently with The Dresden Files, then Mercy Thompson, then Kate Daniels, and before I knew it, I’d devoured all the Big Names™ and hit the dreaded “recommendation fatigue” wall.

You know that wall. You’ve read the heavy hitters. You’ve seen the same five series recommended in every single listicle. And then suddenly you’re wandering the genre wilderness, thinking, Where is all the weird, niche, juicy stuff hiding?

So I started digging. Hard. And oh boy—there’s gold in those shadows.

1. The Rook by Daniel O’Malley

Okay, so this one did get a Starz adaptation (that absolutely butchered the source material—don’t get me started), but somehow people still overlook the book itself, and I will not stand for that.

The Rook is what you get if you dropped Jason Bourne into a supernatural MI6 and gave him a dry British sense of humor. The story kicks off with Myfanwy Thomas waking up in a park surrounded by dead bodies and no memory of who she is—except for a note in her pocket… from herself. From there, it spirals into a secret government agency, sentient mold, psychic ducks (seriously), and body-hopping villains.

It’s witty, weird, clever as hell, and criminally underrated.

2. Midnight Riot (aka Rivers of London) by Ben Aaronovitch

This one technically has a cult following in the UK, but in the States, it barely gets mentioned in urban fantasy convos, and that’s a crime. It’s basically Harry Potter grew up, joined the London police force, and started dealing with magical crimes involving jazz vampires, river gods, and supernatural graffiti.

The dry wit is sharp, the world-building is layered and historically rich, and Peter Grant—the biracial, magic-apprentice-cop protagonist—is one of the most relatable leads I’ve ever read. Also, there are ghosts. And they’re _not_friendly.

3. Borderline by Mishell Baker

Now this one messed me up in the best way.

Borderline follows Millie, a young woman with borderline personality disorder (yep, that’s where the title comes from), who’s recruited into a secret organization that polices interactions between Hollywood and a parallel realm of fairies. Think The Magicians meets The Devil Wears Prada, with a heavy dose of mental health realism and some brutally honest commentary on the disability community.

What I love is that the story doesn’t flinch. Millie is raw, flawed, angry—and also brilliant, funny, and unapologetically herself. The blend of mental health and urban fantasy isn’t something I’ve seen done this well elsewhere.

4. The Arcadia Project Series (Just read all three)

Following Borderline, do yourself a favor and read the rest of the series. It escalates in ways that are bananas in the best way. No spoilers, but the Fae politics go deep, and there’s a scene in the final book involving a film set, a tear in the fabric of reality, and a flying fish that I still think about way too often.

5. City of Stairs by Robert Jackson Bennett

Okay okay, this one leans a little more “weird magical spy thriller” than traditional urban fantasy, but it feels urban. There’s a dead god, a city where reality bends around buried divine laws, and a cranky, badass bureaucrat named Shara Thivani who investigates a murder that might unravel, well, everything.

There’s something deeply satisfying about how grounded this book feels despite the epicness. Plus, it asks big philosophical questions—about faith, memory, and colonialism—without ever getting preachy. Also: knife fights. Glorious, grimy knife fights.

Why This Matters (To Me, Anyway)

I think urban fantasy sometimes gets pigeonholed. People expect broody vampires and sarcastic detectives (don’t get me wrong—I love both), but there’s so much more lurking in the shadows. Mental health. Queer identities. Neurodivergent protagonists. Diverse mythology. Weird sidekicks with questionable hygiene.

Finding these books felt like cracking open secret doors in a genre I thought I’d already explored. They reminded me that urban fantasy doesn’t have to be formulaic. It can be sharp, unpolished, hilarious, raw—just like the cities it’s meant to reflect.

So if you’re like me and you’ve hit that genre wall, these are the books I’d shove into your hands. Some are funny, some are sad, some are just straight-up bizarre—but all of them deserve more love than they’ve gotten.

Go find your next favorite obsession. Just, uh, maybe clear your weekend first. You’re not gonna want to put them down.

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The Day I Got Tired of My Own Excuses

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“Your life does not get better by chance, it gets better by change.” – Jim Rohn

Let me tell you a story.

A few years ago, I found myself staring at the blinking cursor on a half-finished novel. Again. Same cursor, same blinking, same doubt. It wasn’t just a writing rut—I was in a full-blown life rut. You know the kind: every day starts to feel like a photocopy of the last. Wake up, scroll on my phone longer than I should, eat the same breakfast (oatmeal with just enough cinnamon to pretend it’s interesting), and convince myself that tomorrow I’d finally get my act together.

Except tomorrow kept standing me up.

And then one morning, while mindlessly scrolling through a rabbit hole of “motivational” quotes—because that’s what you do when you don’t want to actually do anything—I came across this Jim Rohn quote: “Your life does not get better by chance, it gets better by change.”

Now normally, I roll my eyes at stuff like that. Too tidy. Too Pinterest. But that one? That one smacked me in the face like a cold wind through a broken window. Because it called me out. No cosmic lottery was coming to save me. No magical inspiration fairy was going to whisper the ending of my novel into my ear while I watched YouTube. I had to change something.

That Nagging Need for Comfort

Here’s the thing: change is awful. At least at first.

Comfort zones are like old sweatpants—fraying, stained, maybe a little smelly, but so familiar. I was clinging to habits that made me feel temporarily safe but were slowly smothering my long-term happiness. I told myself I was “waiting for the right time.” Spoiler alert: the right time is just code for “never.”

But I started small.

I got up thirty minutes earlier. Not to be one of those annoying “5AM Miracle Morning” people, but just to carve out time to write before the world could interrupt. I swapped doomscrolling for journaling. I even said “yes” to a Zumba class, which was both terrifying and weirdly fun. (Still can’t shimmy properly, but hey, points for effort.)

The Sneaky Power of Small Shifts

Something interesting happened once I started changing tiny things: I began to trust myself again.

When you keep breaking promises to yourself—like I’ll start the novel next week or I’ll finally leave that toxic job after the holidays—your self-confidence quietly erodes. You stop believing your own voice.

But when I stuck to a single promise, even something as basic as “I will write 200 words today,” I felt a tiny flicker of pride. I wasn’t waiting for inspiration. I was showing up for myself.

Those flickers grew. One small change led to another. It was less about overhauling my life and more about tweaking the dials. I didn’t need to burn everything down—I just needed to stop sleepwalking through it.

What This Quote Actually Means (To Me)

Jim Rohn’s quote isn’t telling us to hustle harder or become productivity cyborgs. It’s a wake-up call. It’s a reminder that hoping things will improve is not the same as choosing to improve them.

It’s not about chasing some glamorous ideal. For me, it was about reclaiming a little agency. About saying: Okay, I may not control everything, but I can control something.

If You’re Still Stuck…

If you’re reading this and thinking, Yeah, but I don’t even know where to start, I get it. Truly. That space between wanting to change and knowing how is foggy and frustrating.

Start messy. Start unsure. Start with something you’ve already been thinking about for way too long. Rearrange your furniture. Unfollow someone who drains your energy. Sign up for that class that scares you a little.

Just don’t sit there waiting for your life to magically glow up on its own. That’s not how it works. Or if it is, I’ve never seen the memo.

The part where I get all reflective…

When I think about that version of myself who felt stuck and tired and weirdly hollow, I don’t feel shame anymore. I feel gratitude. Because he finally did something. Not huge. Not dramatic. Just something.

And that’s when life started to feel better—not by chance, but by change.

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Weekly Roundup for August 2, 2025

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Weekly Roundup 2.

It’s officially the dog days of summer, which means the air feels like soup, the ice cream melts faster than you can lick it, and my motivation to do anything outside drops to about zero. I hope your summer’s treating you well—preferably with shade, a cold drink, and maybe a breeze that doesn’t feel like it came straight out of an oven. Me? I’ve been holed up inside, working away on two big things: my soon-to-be-open online store and my detective noir series. Both are chugging along nicely, and I’m starting to feel that “almost there” excitement. I think we’re looking at maybe another week or two before the store officially opens its virtual doors. You’ll be able to snag all my books there—ebooks, paperbacks, and large print paperbacks (because squinting is overrated). Hardcovers might make an appearance in the future, but I want to poke around a bit more to see if that’s actually worth it before I take the plunge.

Anyway, wherever you are, I hope you get a little joy this week—whether that’s from finishing a great book, discovering a new snack obsession, or just finding the perfect patch of shade.

If you don’t always get a chance to come to the blog and see what’s happening, why not subscribe to my newsletter? I’ll include links to all my recent blog posts in one place so you can pick and choose which articles to read. You can subscribe to it HERE

Catch you next time!

Some Things I Thought Were Worth Sharing

My writer friends may find this article about how to write witty characters of interest: https://www.helpingwritersbecomeauthors.com/the-secret-to-writing-witty-characters-without-trying-so-hard/

Helpful article by Johnny B. Truant on how authors can take back their power https://writersinthestormblog.com/2025/06/author-take-back-your-power/

This new gay mystery on Netflix sound ‘saucy’! If ‘Big Little Lies’ was set in MAGA country, you’d get this soapy gay mystery https://www.queerty.com/if-big-little-lies-were-set-in-maga-country-youd-get-this-soapy-gay-mystery-20250721/

My author friends may find this article by Lori Ostlund about ‘finding endings’ of value: https://lithub.com/lori-ostlund-on-finding-endings/

Experiencing beautiful romantic drama “Before We Forget” and Q&A with filmmaker Juan Pablo Di Pace https://greginhollywood.com/experiencing-beautiful-romantic-drama-before-we-forget-and-qa-with-filmmaker-juan-pablo-di-pace-247094

My writer friends may find this of interest: The 3 Components that Keep Your Story in Balance https://writersinthestormblog.com/2025/06/it-turns-out-walking-and-writing-have-things-in-common/

Ozzy Osbourne Remembered As Fierce LGBTQ Ally https://www.starobserver.com.au/news/celebrity-news/ozzy-osbourne-remembered-as-fierce-lgbtq-ally/237723

Fun Queerty article: My middle-aged gay superpower? I don’t care anymore if you like me https://www.queerty.com/my-middle-aged-gay-superpower-i-dont-care-if-you-like-me-20250722/

An article for my author friends: AITA For Sabotaging My Own Writing Before Even Starting? https://lithub.com/am-i-the-asshole-for-sabotaging-my-own-writing-before-even-starting/

This horror/comedy LGBT slasher TV series sounds compelling https://www.queerty.com/a-slasher-whodunit-tv-series-set-at-a-clothing-optional-gay-resort-count-us-in-20250722/

My writer friends may find this of value: I’m Obsessed: On the Importance of Getting Lost in Your Writing https://lithub.com/im-obsessed-on-the-importance-of-getting-lost-in-your-writing/

Photography eye-candy: Historical Photos From Around The World That Each Tell An Interesting Story https://www.boredpanda.com/world-photographs-100-years-ago-msn/

I forgot that Hoult was in this film (huge fan of his — thought he was amazing in Superman): https://www.queerty.com/that-time-nicholas-hoult-was-the-ultimate-chaotic-bisexual-in-british-drama-skins-20250715/ That time Nicholas Hoult was the ultimate “chaotic bisexual” in British drama ‘Skins’

This looks really intriguing: https://www.queerty.com/a-steamy-gay-belgian-series-offers-something-sorely-missing-on-american-tv-right-now-20250716/ A steamy gay Belgian series offers something sorely missing on American TV right now

5 films about queer resistance to inspire you for the fight ahead https://www.washingtonblade.com/2024/11/23/queer-resistance-films/

Prince Norian’s life is shattered in an instant—attacked by a werewolf under a dark sorcerer’s command, he’s thrust into a world he never knew existed. Desperate for a cure, he journeys to the hidden village of Norbury, seeking the legendary Queen of Werewolves.

Instead, he finds Kalen—a mysterious Beta whose very presence ignites something primal within him. As Norian learns to control the wolf inside, he discovers he’s not just any lycanthrope—he’s an Alpha, destined to lead. But with great power comes an impossible choice.

When the evil sorcerer Vadok murders Norian’s father and seizes the throne, Norian must decide: Will he claim his cure and reclaim his human kingdom, or embrace his true nature and fight alongside his destined mate?

With a pack of fierce lycans at his back and the full moon rising, Norian faces his greatest battle yet. But some enemies are closer than he knows, and some secrets run deeper than blood.

In a world where magic and destiny collide, love might be the most dangerous gamble of all.

Weekly Roundup for August 2, 2025 Read Post »

My Favorite Writing Music for Urban Fantasy Fight Scenes

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Cool young extremely handsome hispanic guy listening to mucic while typing

Or: Why Drum & Bass Makes My Demons Punch Harder

The first time I realized music could actually fuel a fight scene I was writing, I was sitting in my usual corner booth at a coffee shop—half-buzzed on espresso, procrastinating like a pro. My protagonist, a snarky necromancer with a grudge, was supposed to be battling an eldritch creature in an alleyway drenched in rain and neon light. But I couldn’t get it right. Everything felt flat, like a clunky stage play with swords made of cardboard.

Out of frustration, I yanked in my earbuds and hit shuffle on a playlist I’d made for cardio workouts. The opening notes of The Prodigy’s “Invaders Must Die” blasted into my skull—and suddenly, the fight came alive.

And I mean alive.

The Vibe Matters

Urban fantasy is a genre soaked in adrenaline and shadows. You’ve got werewolves scrapping behind nightclubs, witches slinging hexes in subway tunnels, vampires in pinstripe suits pulling knives in back alleys. It’s gritty, fast-paced, a little unhinged—and the music you use to write those scenes? It needs to match that energy.

For me, it’s all about rhythm. That pulse. That driving, relentless beat that makes you clench your jaw and type like your keyboard owes you money. It’s less about melody and more about momentum.

My Top Picks (That Totally Slap)

Let’s talk specifics. These are my go-tos when the fists (or fireballs) start flying:

1. Drum & Bass / Dark Electronica
Artists like Noisia, Pendulum, Sub Focus, and Black Sun Empire. These tracks are tight, aggressive, and make me feel like someone’s about to crash through a window any second now. The rapid-fire percussion is perfect for tracking blows, dodges, and magical chaos.

Favorite tracks:

  • “Stigma” – Noisia
  • “Tarantula” – Pendulum
  • “Timewarp” – Sub Focus

2. Industrial Rock
When I need a grittier, more grounded fight—think brass knuckles in a dive bar or a werewolf-on-vampire showdown—I turn to Nine Inch Nails, Celldweller, or Marilyn Manson’s earlier stuff. There’s something visceral about distorted guitars and electronic growls that just works.

Favorite tracks:

  • “The Way You Like It” – Adema
  • “Switchback” – Celldweller
  • “Wish” – Nine Inch Nails

3. Cinematic / Trailer Music
Sometimes I need the drama turned up to eleven. You know, when the world is literally cracking open and the hero is unleashing some forbidden spell. That’s when I dive into the overly dramatic, brass-heavy world of Two Steps From Hell, Audiomachine, or Epic Score.

Favorite tracks:

  • “Heart of Courage” – Two Steps From Hell (cliché? maybe. effective? absolutely.)
  • “Blood and Stone” – Audiomachine
  • “I Am the Storm” – Ramin Djawadi (Game of Thrones, but still counts)

The Mood Shifter

Here’s the wild part: the right track not only makes the scene flow better, it changes me. I sit differently. I breathe faster. My typing speeds up like I’m trying to win a race. I stop second-guessing myself and just go. It’s like music unlocks the primal part of my brain that knows how to write a brawl better than my thinking mind ever could.

Also, I’ve scared my cat more than once by shouting “DUCK!” at my screen mid-write. So, bonus points for immersion.

Honorable Mentions: Because Not Every Fight Is a Bloodbath

Sometimes you need something less in-your-face. Like if the fight’s more psychological—an underground chess match with telepaths—or stylish, like a sword duel on a rooftop. That’s when I pull out:

  • Woodkid – moody and majestic
  • Carpenter Brut – synthwave with a sharp edge
  • UNSECRET – cinematic with a modern twist

So Yeah…

Writing fight scenes used to stress me out. I’d overthink every blow, every reaction, trying to choreograph it like a Hollywood stunt coordinator. But once I let the music lead the rhythm, everything changed. Now, I build a playlist before I write the scene. I match the tempo to the tone, hit play, and let my fingers go feral.

So yeah. Music isn’t just background noise—it’s my fight choreographer, my pacing coach, and, on some days, the only thing that keeps me from giving up and switching to writing soft-baked vampire romance instead.

Which… might also need a playlist.

But that’s another blog post.

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Things That Go Bump (and Why We’re Weirdly Obsessed With Them)

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photorealistic image of handsome young man with ghosts

…The Psychology Behind Why We Love Ghost Stories

I still remember the first time I scared the absolute crap out of myself with a ghost story.

I was maybe seven or eight, tucked under a blanket fort with a flashlight and a battered copy of Mystery of the Witches’ Bridge. You know the one—the one with those sketchy ink illustrations that look like they crawled straight out of a haunted fever dream. I got to one part and something about that story made my skin crawl so badly I didn’t sleep for two nights. It was also about that time that I read “The Ghosts” by Antonia Barber which had the same effect on me.  I found it spine-tinglingly scary and had to start sleeping with a nightlight.

And yet… I went back for more. I always do.

So what’s that about? Why do we love ghost stories when they make us flinch at our own shadow or check behind the shower curtain at midnight like total weirdos?

Let’s dig into it.

Fear Without the Fallout

Psychologists say that part of the thrill comes from something called benign masochism—that sweet spot where we enjoy fear because it’s controlled. When you read a ghost story or watch a paranormal movie, your brain lights up like it’s under attack… but your body knows you’re safe on your couch with snacks.

Basically, it’s fear in a fun-sized wrapper (though Poltergeist was more fear than fun).

I think of it like a haunted house you walk through on purpose. You get the rush of adrenaline, the spike in heart rate, but there’s no actual demon dragging you into the basement. (Hopefully.)

It’s the same reason we scream during The Conjuring but then immediately rewatch it with friends, pointing out the moments we jumped. We like to feel brave. Or at least pretend we are.

Ghosts as Emotional Mirrors

But ghost stories aren’t just about thrills and chills. A lot of them are secretly about grief, guilt, or unfinished business.

Think about The Sixth Sense. It’s not just a ghost story—it’s a story about loneliness, about communication, about helping people find closure. Cole sees dead people, sure, but what hits me harder is how broken the living people are.

Same with The Haunting of Hill House (the Netflix version, not the old black-and-white one—though that one’s got its charm too). The Bent-Neck Lady? That twist crushed me. That entire series was basically a psychological study in family trauma dressed up in creepy ghosts and jump scares.

We love ghost stories because they haunt us emotionally. They take things we’ve buried—loss, shame, regret—and give them form. They make us look at them.

Telling Stories Around the Fire

There’s also something communal about ghost stories. They’ve been around forever. Like, literally forever.

Even ancient Mesopotamian texts mention spirits who wander the Earth. Every culture has its version of the ghost story—La Llorona in Latin America, the yūrei in Japan, the White Lady in Europe. Ghosts are the world’s oldest campfire gossip.

I grew up hearing about Resurrection Mary, the hitchhiking ghost from Chicago. My cousin swore she saw her once near Archer Avenue. Of course, she also swore she saw Bigfoot in Indiana, so take that with a salt lick.

But that’s part of it—ghost stories create shared experiences. Whether we’re watching a movie together, listening to a podcast like Lore, or swapping creepy tales on Reddit at 2AM, they give us a reason to connect (and maybe keep the lights on a little longer).

Safe Spaces for the Unexplainable

I think ghost stories also give us space to talk about the unknown without needing to solve it.

We live in a hyper-rational, hyper-scientific world. If something creaks in the house, we Google “HVAC noises at night” instead of just saying, “Welp, it’s haunted again.” But ghost stories let us suspend that rational voice. They give us permission to believe in something bigger, stranger, less tidy.

Even if we don’t believe in ghosts (I’m still undecided, personally), we’re drawn to the possibility of something more.

The Last Little Haunt

So yeah, I still love ghost stories (not surprising, given that I write them as well). Not just the heart-racing kind, but the ones that sneak up on you emotionally—the ones that leave you unsettled long after the credits roll.

There’s something oddly comforting about being scared in a safe way. Something satisfying about facing the unknown, even if it’s through the eyes of a fictional character holding a flickering lantern in some creaky Victorian house.

And honestly? I think a little haunting now and then keeps life interesting.

Things That Go Bump (and Why We’re Weirdly Obsessed With Them) Read Post »

Filling the Void: Why Hobbies Matter More Than We Realize

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Young 18 to 25 year old attractive handsome man on motorcycle

Last September, everything changed for me. One minute I was out living my life on two wheels—spending my days riding through winding mountain roads and chasing sunsets, feeling the hum of the engine under me like a second heartbeat—and the next, I was laid up in a hospital bed trying to wrap my head around what life was going to look like without motorcycles in it.

And let me tell you, that was not an easy pill to swallow.

The Loss of a Passion

For years, motorcycling wasn’t just a hobby. It was the hobby. Every summer, I carved out a couple of weeks to hit the open road. I’d toss my gear on the back, map out a loose itinerary, and just… go. That kind of freedom is hard to explain unless you’ve experienced it—there’s a rhythm to it, a meditative quality. It clears your head in ways yoga never quite managed to do for me (though, full respect to anyone who can hold crow pose without face-planting).

But since the accident and the two surgeries that followed, motorcycling has been benched. Permanently. And suddenly I found myself facing this weird, echoing silence where there used to be something loud and exhilarating. It’s not just the absence of the bike itself, but the routine, the identity, the escape. It felt like a part of me got shelved.

All Work and No Play…

So what do you do when your primary outlet vanishes overnight? For me, the default was to throw myself into writing. And I’ve actually been cranking out more words than I have in years. That part’s been great—don’t get me wrong—but it also tipped my balance way too far in the direction of “doing stuff that feels productive.” Which is fine, until you realize you’ve become the human equivalent of a colorless spreadsheet.

I kept thinking of that old quote—“All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy.” Except now it’s Roger. A very focused, slightly twitchy, occasionally insomniac Roger.

Rediscovering the “Just Because” Things

I used to play the piano. Not concert-hall level or anything—more like “where is that horrid noise coming from?” level. But it’s been sitting there collecting dust ever since the accident. Same with my camera. I don’t even know if the battery’s charged.

It’s funny how the things we enjoy for no particular reason at all—the just-for-me things—are the first to get pushed aside when life gets hard. And yet, those are often the things that make life feel full. Writing has been good for my sense of purpose, but hobbies… hobbies are good for the soul.

Why Hobbies Matter (Even If You Think You Don’t Have Time)

Here’s the thing: hobbies are not a luxury. They’re a necessity. They give our brains a break, shake us out of our usual routines, and remind us that we’re allowed to experience joy for its own sake. There doesn’t need to be a goal or a deadline or an output. You don’t need to monetize it or post it to Instagram. You can literally paint stick figures in watercolor and call it art. That counts.

Hobbies also help us process grief and loss in sneaky, roundabout ways. They create new paths when old ones have been blocked. For me, writing helped bridge that gap. But now I’m realizing it’s time to start widening that bridge. Maybe I’ll pick out a new song to learn on the piano this week. Maybe I’ll finally take that walk with my camera, just to see what catches my eye. It doesn’t have to be perfect. It just has to be something.

A Little More Play, Please

If you’re like me and you’ve been stuck in “productive mode” for too long, I’m gently nudging you—no, strongly encouraging you—to carve out a little time for something that doesn’t require an end result. Start a puzzle. Build a model spaceship. Dance in your kitchen like you’re the understudy in a Broadway musical no one asked for.

Just do something that reminds you how it feels to have fun.

And hey, if you’ve made it this far—yes, I’m finally using section headings! Several people (you know who you are) told me my posts were a bit of a chore to read without them. So here we are. Chopped it up. Gave your eyeballs a break. You’re welcome.

Let me know in the comments what hobbies are getting you through. Or what you’re hoping to pick back up. Misery may love company, but honestly? So does creativity.

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