Welcome to Litsy!

It was ok, but not great.

In the mood for a creepy, haunted house novella.

#snowflake #snowflakes #papersnowflakes

I realize that not every story needs to give me a complete backstory, but being utterly confused the majority of the time isn‘t a good idea either…I *really* wanted to love this. The premise is great, I enjoyed her writing style, it was just a little too silly for me. I dunno. Maybe I‘ll try it again someday when I can appreciate it more?

This was fucking weird and dark! Quite short, just like a little snapshot of some people who call each other friends but seem to hate each other staying in a haunted Heian mansion in Japan and things going very wrong very quick. Very meta in terms of its use of the horror genre. Sharp writing, particularly the creepy, gross, and/or macabre metaphors, like when Khaw describes someone's words hanging out of their mouth like a body on a noose.

Nothing But Blackened Teeth by Cassandra Khaw is a dark and twisted tale of friendship, secrets, and resentment that all comes to a head on location of an elopement at a haunted mansion.

This is a book that you could read cover to cover in one sitting, or go slow to really steep in the inky darkness. As I have zero self control, I read right straight through. Phew.

https://www.ericarobynreads.com/book-review-nothing-but-blackened-teeth/

I am in awe.. this is my first Litsy swap ever and it was so much fun !! Thank you enormously to @HotMessJess for my gorgeous #BWS package!! It made me so giddy! And thank you to @sprainedbrain for organizing the swap! I am so grateful for the thought and effort that was put into this package. Blessed Samhain and Happy Halloween πŸ‘» πŸ§‘πŸ–€πŸ”�

Previously, Iβ€˜ve only read one short story by this author, These Deathless Bones, which left an impressionβ€”I remember it still. In comparison, this one is completely forgettable; this one, with its clichΓ© plot, its whiny characters and their petty little dramasβ€”like a #horor B-Movie that isnβ€˜t even funnyβ€”I couldnβ€˜t care less about. Just one more case where the premise and a gorgeous cover had fooled me.

What a disappointment.

1.5/5

I went into this one with very low expectations (the reviews aren‘t great) and I think that helped me somewhat enjoy it. It definitely was creepy and kind of sad. However it did feel really rushed and could have been really good with some more character development and more attention given to description. πŸŒŸπŸŒŸπŸ’« #scarathlon2022 #teamslaughter

Listened to this on audio. Was a quick read, but even though it‘s a novella, I still found it to be rushed. #bookspinbingo #scarathlon #TeamMonsterMash #31by31 #littenlisten #spookoween2022

Just a Saturday in October at Barnes and Noble!

Short and frightening -- I mean, just look at that cover! 😱

#scream #scarathlondailyprompts #teamslaughter

I wanted to like this book so badly. The characters were so annoying I was hoping they‘d all die. There‘s 4th wall breaks that were supposed to be funny or quirky but they were just awkward and weird. Wouldn‘t recommend at all. #TeamMonsterMash #Scarathlon

Luna says β€œwhat even is that?”

Nothing for Day 2 #Scarathlondailyprompts so posting another from Day 1.

#Scarathlon #Black #TeamSlaughter

@Clwojick

A quick haunted house horror novel about five friends staying in a Japanese mansion rumored to be the final resting place of a lonely, jilted bride who longs for company. Perfect for October.

Happy spooky season y‘all πŸŽƒ

This horror story mixed with Japanese folklore is so eerily evocative and beautifully written it feels like poetry, but after awhile it‘s almost too much alliteration, individually excellent but taken together it‘s a lot. That said, I did enjoy this creepy novella with the premise of a small destination wedding in a haunted mansion.

This is a gorgeous, quick read with decadent prose. I‘m a bit ambivalent about the ending, but honestly I‘m never quite satisfied with how horror stories end so that‘s probably a personal problem.

Almost DNF‘ed this book. 5 friends want to celebrate a wedding in a haunted mansion. It‘s foundation rests on bones of a bride who is waiting for her groom. The walls are full of remains from sacrificed girls to keep her company. What could go wrong?
Not scary, story is jumpy, and keep google close by. Lots of Japanese words with no translations or footnotes to explain their meanings.

Strategically placed on-sale-with-cafe-purchase at the B&N Starbucks register. Why yes. Yes I will.

Starting off my spooky season reads with this quick tale!

Just a quick read before Spooky season!

I was glad I read this novella on my Kindle so that I could quickly look up Japanese words I was unfamiliar with. I enjoyed going down the research rabbit hole into fascinating history and legends. I found this book to be genuinely scary and I appreciate the fact that most of the characters were likeably unlikeable. I liked the author's writing style a lot and I hope she writes more.

#20in4 2nd book read @Andrew65

Needed something short at the time.. and boy was this cringey and predictable

The story itself was good, the characters were all horrible, the ending was ok, but the cover was amazing. I feel like this could have been a great atmospheric horror book but fell flat as a novella. ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Aw man I really wanted to like this book but it was just way too short to connect with the lore and characters.

Definitely in the mood for some horror

How Jasper likes to wake up and cuddle dad!
I feel like I missed half the story by not understanding the Japanese "creatures" they kept mentioning. Lack of depth and clarity of understanding ruined the enjoyment. I'm sure if you knew the culture, this would make much more sense. I also couldn't connect with the characters- they kept pointing out how they were tropes in a horror story and basically enacted these roles which made them very 2D.

I did really like the book, but I wish it were a bit longer to explain more of the background elements and spirits of the story.

🍁 Nothing but Blackened Teeth ⭐⭐⭐
🍁 The Bone Collector [Jeffery Deaver]
🍁 My friend - she just knows how to cheer me up.

Want to play?
@Karisa @BookNAround @kwmg40

thanks for the tag @Eggs
#WondrousWednesday

I really enjoyed the concept of this book but I felt it was too short to do the story justice. There were also parts of this book that confused me since it seemed like there were some paragraphs that jumped to different scenes. I‘d like to have seen this as a longer horror novel but it was interesting.

Gripping!! Couldn't put it down. And that face! 😱 My neice was very distressed that she didn't have eyes, lol.

Book 49🎧 3⭐️

Definitely a creepy listen! But it was short (only 2.5hrs) and I wanted a bit more, some more backstory and history.

A house built with bones instead of wood? A wedding elopement? This can‘t end wellβ€¦πŸ˜¬πŸ¦΄πŸͺ΅

(2021) After seeing mixed reviews for this, I figured to give it a pass, but then saw it was nominated for a Bram Stoker Award, so why not?

The criticisms are valid. The characters are dislikable and bickery. The prose does sometimes get in its own way. And still it worked for me. I found it atmospheric and creepy. Yes there are too many similes but some are really good. Yay for the magic of tempered expectations!

This felt like a really strong first draft in a writing exercise. The idea is good. There were some unique lines and fun, spooky guest appearances from Japanese folklore.

It was worth reading, but…. The dialogue. Oof.

#khaw #cassandrakhaw #horror #ghost #ghoststory #folklore #yokai #mirrormirror

This one didn‘t work for me, unfortunately. The premise was SO good! And I love the cover art. But I got annoyed by the juvenile bickering of the characters. The group of 5 all seemed to have slept with one another at some point, and that baggage was the source of tension and immature arguments throughout the story. So much potential that didn‘t materialize imo. It was, at times, inconsistently spooky. I listened to this on #audio.

2.5⭐/5⭐ This book wasn't for me... Points for the amazing cover art though!

This has so much potential but was actually terrible 😩

The unlikable characters, over the top descriptions (really not needed).

The story could have been amazing, however this was pure junk.

The only thing going for it is the cool cover πŸ˜΅β€πŸ’«

I really liked this creepy little book! Horrible people doing stupid stuff in a haunted mansion, but with creative storytelling and poetic language. Even for the really gross parts. πŸ˜–

⭐️⭐️⭐️1/2

It doesn't condescend by spoon-feeding Japanese folklore, and it waltzes between whimsy and tension; overall, this is a simple and eerie ghost story.

I really really didn't like this book.. at all. I was so ready to be scared and not be able to sleep and I was SO. LET. DOWN. It was not scary in the slightest, and the story was told very weirdly. Almost like someone made poetry then tried to add dialogue, if that makes sense? This book is not long at all, and everyday I was dreading having to finish it. 0/5 stars sadly.

Some cool books in this month's Abominable Book Club box! πŸ‘»

I've been wanting to read the tagged book, so that worked out great.

Anyone read The Bad Place by Dean Koontz? Or Black Static, I'm unsure what that even is right now. πŸ˜„

I love the pink shiny ghost sticker! 😍

Super creepy audiobook

Even with the bad reviews I wanted to give this one a chance because it sounded so good. I think where this struggles is as a novella I feel like it should have focused more on the ghost story and not the melodrama of the unlikeable characters. The language was also a big turn off. #pop22 #popsugar #abookyoucanreadinonesitting

some #japanesehorror for my 2.40 hour flight. #bookclub #vacation

I don‘t know how I feel about this. I guess I was expecting something different. The characters were flat and the writing was unclear at times. The plot seemed to be going one way but ultimately doesn‘t make sense. Seemed like it couldn‘t decide what to be, a ghost story or a comment on horror movie tropes. The whole story was just meh.Loved the idea and use of Japanese mythology, but fell flat otherwise. #bookspinbingo @TheAromaofBooks

My #WorstOf21
Nothing But Blackened Teeth - Really disliked this! My pick for worst of the year. Waste of a great story idea.

BAILED-
The Flight Attendant - πŸ‘ŽπŸ»book; ❀️ TV show.
Bitter Orange - boring.
Hiding in the Bathroom - not what I was hoping for.
The Only Good Indians - ❀️ the story, but... there was way too much basketball and motorcycles. I‘ve read a few of his books and love his stories, but not his writing style. #unpopularopinion

Got to the Barnes & Noble 50% off sale before the snow got too intense and picked up these beauties! Made great use of my Christmas gift card before coming back for games and cocoa. πŸ“šβ˜•β„

#bookhaul #wimtergames2021 #mistletoemaniacs

⭐️ The only good thing about this book is the cover! What a disappointment. The only horror in this book was the atrocious writing.

3.5 stars. The story didn't quite do it for me. It just didn't grab me. It was a bit creepy so probably worth the read if you're looking for something short, weird, creepy title & has rad cover art.