pickI really enjoyed 'The Ghostwriter.' It has a captivating storyline. Olivia returns to her father's home of Ojai. Her career in tatters. This book might be what brings her back to her life, professionally and personally. All she has to do is write whether her father killed his sister and brother like many believe. The catch is he has Lewy Body Dementia, and fact and fiction are intertwined. 5 stars.
pick'The Bachelorette Party' is Camilla Sten's first book written directly in English. It has a lot of suspense and atmosphere. Tessa has alterior motive for attendinding her friend's bachelorette party. She investigates the disappearance of four girls from the same island as the party. However, members of the party have their own secrets to hide. There is a dual timeline. I enjoyed the prose and imagery of the book. 4 stars. Thank you, NetGalley
pick'Death on the Island' has been described as an Icelandic noir crossed with an Agatha Christie locked room mystery. While it did not seem noir to me, it had all the hallmarks of a locked room mystery. Motives abound for both of the murders, and they are well thought out. There wasn't really a calling together of the suspects like in an Agatha Christie. However, the book had its own unique way of describing the murders at the end. 4 stars.
pickLove, loss, power, and grief are the themes of 'Of Earthly Delights.' It's an ultimate love story that goes beyond death, but are the choices made along the way just or just selfish.? This story was told in a heartbreaking way with language and imagery as lush as the very flowers of the Wish Garden. I fell in love with Rose and Hart and didn't want their story to end. Maybe it hasn't. 4.5 stars.
Thank you, NetGalley.
so-soI really wanted to like 'The Manor of Dreams' more than I did. The haunting elements and the descriptions were visually stunning. I just couldn't get into some of the characters. I had a hard time reading about Lucille's plot to destroy the Deng family. I'd rather have more of the haunting and supernatural elements. 3 stars.
'When Devils Sing' is great supernatural thriller. Whether it is the cultist behavior of the locals, or making deals with the Devil, Kaur's beautiful imagery never wavers. The novel centers on four teens looking into the disappearance of another friend, which occurs as a strange brood of cicadas erupts from the ground after lying dormant for 13 years. Friendships and loyalty are tested as the search continues. 5 stars.
Thanks, NetGalley!
pickWhile 'The Man Made of Smoke' wasn't my favorite book by North, it still had tons of suspense and a feeling of dread. Dan returns home after his father dies of an apparent suicide. He soon discovers things aren't as they seem and may tie into a strange interaction that he had as a boy with a potential serial killer. The mercurial nature that can appear between fathers and sons was also explored. All in all, a well-done thriller. 4 stars.
pick'Anima Rising' is darker than most Christopher Moore novels and even has an author's note with trigger warnings. It centers around the discovery of the bride of Frankenstein's monster, known as Judith within the book. Even though there is dark subject matter, humor, both light and dark, shines through. There are also historical figures, such as Gustav Klimt, Freud, and Jung. Hitler even makes an appearance. 4.5 stars.
pick'We Live Here Now' provides a different type of haunting. I won't give away the twist at the end, but there definitely is one. The book was atmospheric and tense throughout. I think this might be my favorite book by Pinborough. There is dual narration that works well. A male narrator for the MMC, and a female for FMC. 4 stars.
Thanks to NetGalley and MacMillan Audio for the ARC.
pickWhat if you walked into the woods one day and came out as something else? Anastasia disappeared in the woods for several days. When she came back out, she was no longer human, but part of a plant species. She never wavered in the belief. Now, years later, the aliens make contact and are about to invade. What follows is nature vs. nurture, found family adventure. For even if Anastasia isn't human, she feels a need to protect her friends. 4.5 stars.
pick'Aftertaste' was a beautiful, bittersweet novel. Our memories are one of the things that make us alive. Food is also a memory. Certain tastes and times stick with you, making you who are. Lavelle incorporated love and loss through his aftertastes so well that it was quite the feat. I loved the characters and the imagery throughout. I will live in my memory for awhile. 5 stars.
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Finished # WickedWords with 2 books: 'A Letter From the Lonesome Shore' and 'Aftertaste.'
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'Parents Weekend' was an interesting thriller. At parents' dinner for a college event, five students never arrive and seemed to have disappeared. Initially, taking the case is Agent Keller. I liked her no-nonsense approach. There were multiple points of view within the story. Secrets were discovered in all the families as the investigation continued. Short chapters added to the suspense. The narrator handled all of the voices well. 4 stars.
pickWhen I first picked up 'Deadstream,' I thought I knew what I was in for: a techno slasher, maybe with a little camp thrown in. I was wrong on many accounts. It's a reimaging of a ghost story. A place where people are so obsessed with viewer counts that they live on beyond the grave. It's also about friendship, both irl and online. Throughout the book, a chat stream was utilized to provide other opinions and to carry the story along. 4.5 stars.
pickThis novel shocked and terrified me, but not in the ways you may think. I knew there was was racism towards Asians during the major COVID outbreak. However, I was not aware of the extent. It reminds me about the state our country is in now. Where fear hides, often racism follows.
The book was beautifully written, even the gory horror scenes. I also enjoyed the voice of the narrator. 5 stars. Thank you NetGalley!
pickI enjoyed the Shivers Collection from Amazon. In each story, something isn't quite 'right' with reality, whether it is a vindictive tree or a haunting for example. The story by Catriona Ward is my favorite in the collection. I also like how each story takes less than a hour to read, perfect to fit in here and there during the day. 4 stars.
pick'Eat the Ones You Love' is a bizarre novel, but in a good way. The shopping mall where Shell just got a job is closing. What she doesn't know is this affects more the workers. There's a carnivorous, sentient plant hiding within the walls and floors, who wants nothing more than to eat someone. Baby, the plant, is one of my favorite voices in the audiobook. Relationships of various kinds are spotlghted throughout the novel. 4 stars
pickCreepypasta meets found family in 'The Staircase in the Woods.' The heart of the story rests in the trope of found family and what happens when a friend disappears. The book is reminiscent of early King. The characters are well fleshed out and developed. I enjoyed the creepiness of the staircase in both timelines: when they were teenagers and 20 years later. 5 stars.
Thank you, NetGalley. It comes out April 29th.
pick'The Shadow Girls' was an excellent thriller that held me captivated through the end. The action takes place at a ballet academy. There are two timelines: present during Anna's fall and what happens after, and the months leading up to the fall. There are also multiple points of view. I enjoyed the drama found at the ballet school and in the girls' personal lives.
5 stars. Comes out April 22nd. Thank you NetGalley for the ARC.
pick‘One Dark Summer‘ is a great psychological thriller. There are quite a few twists throughout the book. Though I figured most of it out, it was still a fun read. Shorter chapters added to the suspense. 4 stars
pick'Red Runs the Witch's Thread' is very intense for its short length. There's a dual timelime. In 1696, Christian Shaw is a young girl who believes herself bewitched by a group of people. In 1722, she is now grown up and a widow, haunted by the choices she made as a child. I liked the trope of who the true monster(s) were in the book. The blending of reality and an unstable mental state was done very well.
4 stars.
pick'What Remains of Teague House' was a good mystery/family drama novel. It started off slowly, but finished fast. I also enjoyed the family tensions. I give this book a solid 4 star rating.
pickThis was a wonderful cozy fantasy. A human baker without any magic is entered in a magical bake off. Along the way, she meets Theo, Tanya, Doli, and Jez, who all become her found family. It is a book of taking chances on friendship, family, and love. 4 stars.
pick'Boys With Sharp Teeth' is a YA dark academia novel. Marin disguises herself as Jamie Vane to find out who murdered her cousin. The novel was well-written with some beautiful passages. However, I found it hard to engage at points. One of the main themes is the darkness within, how much of herself is Marin willing to give to find Sam's killer(s). 4 stars.
This book is not for the faint of heart, so heed the content warnings. It also has aspects of kink, so if that bothers you, you might want to stay away. However, if you like books about cults, this one has it all. The FMC sometimes makes decisions based on her psychiatric history that might have you screaming, “Don't do that!“ However, it's a good psychological thriller. 4 stars
pick'The Thrashers' is a solid YA horror novel. The novel follows the aftermath of a teen's suicide. Some believe the social group known as The Thrashers is responsible. It nicely straddles the boundary between reality and ghostly revenge until the very end of the book. I had an issue with the end, but it wasn't that grave. The narration was great as well.
4 stars. Thank you, NetGalley, for the ARC.
pick'The Deathly Grimm' concludes the duology started in 'The Forest Grimm.' Clara and Axel return to the forest in the hopes of getting rid of the curse, once and for all. Another set of darker fairy tales are found within the forest. Once again, love, trust and loyalty battle evil and win. 4 stars.
pick'The Sirens' by Emilia Hart focuses on the bonds of sisterhood. I really enjoyed the relationships between Jess and Lucy and between Mary and Eliza. While these women were separated by centuries, they share commonality in the love they shared. I also enjoyed the siren folklore of Comber Bay. A solid work of women's fiction. This is the first book I read by Hart, but it won't be my last. 4 stars.
pickI've been a Tanya Huff fan since the early nineties. This book was no exception. It's a blend of cozy and eldritch horror. These two genres shouldn't work together, yet they do. There are even laugh-outloud scenes. The horror, when it occurs, is described spine-tingling well. I hope to see more cozy horror books in the future. 5 stars.
pick'A Curse for the Homesick' is an excellent book on love and loss. A woman flees a cursed island only for love to bring her back time and time again. It is also about loss, for those taken by the curse and their victims. In the end if love isn't worth risking it all for, then what else is there? Throughout the book, the ring of certain passages blew me away. I enjoyed the narration as well. 5 stars.
pick'We Become Ravens' was a fun read. I especially enjoyed the dynamic that grew between Valdemar and Evangeline, the narrator. There was a lot of spice in this novel., but I thought it was well-handled. Another fun part were the allusions to Edgar Allan Poe. Whether it was character names or allusions to a short story like 'The Tell-Tale Heart,' they tested my knowledge of Poe. At the end, there was also a nice revenge strategy. 4 stars.
pickI thoroughly enjoyed Barnes' 'Cold Eternity.' She somehow manages to make a huge ship feel claustrophobic. The horror was on-point and very atmospheric. There was a feeling of dread throughout the novel. The narrator was great as well. 5 stars.
pickI was riveted throughout 'I Would Die for You' by Sandie Jones. I both listened to and read this ARC. It was excellent in both formats. It all has to do with how past mistakes affect the future and how secrets can't remain buried. There are so many twists and turns that I'll leave the reader to discover on their own. The last bombshell happening on the final lines of the book. 4.5 stars
pickI love a good archeological tale, and this one is no exception. Rabbit Ward is a chrono-archeologist, a time traveling archeologist. He goes back to Constantinople to search for a lost menorah. He had previously sought it out, and a colleague was lost in time. I liked the no-nonsense, yet descriptive style of writing. Themes of grief and redemption were found in the novel. A solid, though sometimes confusing novel. Thanks to NetGalley.
pickThe Orphange by the Lake was a really good mystery. In it, a private investigator sets out to find a missing girl. I liked the characters of Hazel and Kenny best, but the villians weren't cookie cutters either. The pacing was good, but could have moved a little faster before the climax. There was suspense throughout the book. The ending hit hard and fast. I'm happy that there will hopefully be a second book. 4.5 stars.
pickClara, Axel, and Hennie head into The Forest Grimm to find their lost villagers and a missing grimoire. They find much more. Some of the villagers have become fairy tale archetypes like Cinderella and Rapunzel. I like that Clara had a disability (scoliosis), yet still manages to achieve her goals. However, the reader is beat over the head about her back issues with every tumble she takes. The romance was sweet and of a PG13 variety. 4 stars.
pick'Once Was Willem' is an epic dark medieval fantasy. There is the juxtaposition of who the real monsters are: the monsters or the villagers. As such, there are aspects of found family in this as well. There is dry humor to be found also. It keeps things from being totally tragic. It is a tale of good versus evil, and so much more. 5 stars.
pickCritchley has written a rich gothic tale in 'The Undoing of Violet Claybourne.' While there are no supernatural elements, there is a feeling dread and foreboding throughout the novel. The novel follows Gillian and the Claybourne sisters, and what Gilly is willing to do to fit in. The novel is very atmospheric, especially when considering the mansion and grounds. 5 stars.
pickThey Bloom at Night is a very good horror novel. In it, Noon and Covey start to look into the mutated fish and disappearances that haunt their village. There is a lot of Vietnamese folklore. Trigger warnings for body horror and the effects of sexual assault. Family plays a role especially in the way some decisions are forced upon us while we look to make our own way. 4.5 stars.
