I ended up reading something like 17 books in October which really surprised me and I am hoping it continues into the New Year.
Human Remains by Peter Milligan 4.5 Stars – Western graphic novels don’t tend to work for me but I read one last month and it was good despite being a little confusing in places so I was hopeful for Human Remains. The opening to Human Remains was interesting as we are introduced to an Earth which has been invaded by creatures that kill people when they display emotions but it only does it in public places meaning they are safe within their homes. We see how this start when we meet our protagonists, Dax and Bisa as they are getting married and the creature invades but they survive. We also learn that the creature whatever it is ignores people under the age of 5 so children are safe from it but everyone else has had to learn to reign in all their emotions to the point where some people just can’t contain it any longer and willingly accept death in order to express themselves.
Flight 171 by Amy Christine Parker 5 Stars – I didn’t really know anything about this book before requesting it but the premise of a horror like final destination with an equally creepy supernatural, paranormal element seemed really appropriate for the spooky season. The opening to the novel was definitely creepy as we are introduced to Devon Marsh as she heads on a senior ski trip five months after her twin, Emily was killed in a hit and run. Devon since then has been actively trying to become Emily even dressing like her, hanging out with her friends and denying who she was before. She also seems to have issues with a boy named Jack, her former boyfriend after she accused him of being the person who killed Emily and she still believes that even though she doesn’t have any proof and she is working hard to get it believing that will be the only way for her to get closure. As they board the plane and take off it is filled with same anxiety in the opening of Final Destination which is also referenced in the first few chapters.
Pretty Dead Queens by Alexa Donne 3.5 Stars – The opening to Pretty Dead Queens wasn’t that interesting but it does introduced you to what I assume is the main cast of characters. We are introduced to Cecelia Ellis who is moving from LA to California to live with her grandmother, Maura after the death of her mother since her father isn’t in the picture. Initially we are just following Cecelia as she tries to settle into this new place and her new school, Seaview High while dealing with her grief. It doesn’t help that Maura is a famous mystery author and the star of the town, but she does immediately fall in with the popular crowd by accident after being helped by Bronte and learns that one of her grandmother’s books is based on a real murder that happened in the town back when Maura would have been attending the school and that was the death of the prom queen. This seems like it is going to deal with murders in the present day a bit like One of Us is Lying but with more Nancy Drew elements rather than blackmail.
Ace of Shades by Amanda Foody 4.25 Stars – I have read Daughter of the Burning City by Amanda Foody in the past and really enjoyed it but the opening of Aces of Shades was really confusing in comparison. We are introduced to Enne Salta who is looking for her adoptive mother, Lourdes who is missing, in a letter Lourdes said she would be dead if she didn’t return in two months but Enne refused to believe that and heads to New Reynes, the so-called City of Sin to find Levi Glaisyer who Lourdes mentioned in a letter might be able to help her. Enne comes off as the typical spoilt, rich kid and looks down on Levi for being a con man but accepts his help in tracking down Lourdes who he believes is dead. However, there are a lot of confusing elements like the currency, which is volts, the magic system called talents which people inherit from their parents, so Enne’s blood talent is dance and her split talent is math which makes no sense whatsoever. Then we also have to consider the Revolution which overthrew the Mizers, people whose talents were seen as being more magical than practical and Lourdes sympathised with this cause and the return of the Mizers which is why Levi thinks she is dead.
Stealing Greenwich by Brittany Geragotelis 5 Stars – The opening to the novel was interesting as we are introduced to Frankie whose father is one of the most infamous thief in modern history as he is begin caught and arrested which means she is being shipped off to live with her Uncle Scotty, who is also a police officer. The novel is told in journal entries which Frankie has to write for her mandatory therapy since she has been involved with a lot of her father’s heists and she isn’t happy about her current situation. Seeing Frankie meet her uncle for the first time in close to five years was awkward as you can imagine but we can also see how much her father’s lifestyle choices have impacted the way Frankie thinks and acts which isn’t right for a girl of her age. Her uncle Scotty is also shocked to see how much Frankie is like her father and how much he has influenced her and how much work he is going to have to do in order to undo some of the learning behaviours that Frankie has and this is going to be an interesting journey.
Going Wild by Brittany Geragotelis 5 Stars – After the ending of Stealing Greenwich I think these books are going to be a self-contained story with possibly some overlapping story arcs but I couldn’t wait to get into Going Wild. The opening to Going Wild sets up the heist for this book which is going to focus around exotic animals which is a theme from the first book. Frankie and Ollie are volunteering over the winter break at an animal shelter called The Farm run by Kayla and one day a boa constrictor is brought in which is an animal not native to that part of America and could have only been brought in through illegal smuggling. Kayla also lets slip that when Miles was arrested they found a tiger on his property which was turned over to a big cat reserve not far away. We can see the wheels turning in Frankie’s mind when Kayla tells them that she believes that the people smuggling in the animals also live in the area as it would make sense for them to receive the animals and sell them off to rich people living in Greenwich.
No Admissions by Brittany Geragotelis 4.5 Stars – After reading and loving Stealing Greenwich and Going Wild I had no idea what to expect from No Admissions but I didn’t want this series to end as I was loving it so much but I couldn’t wait to see what Frankie and Ollie would get up to next. When we re-join Frankie and Ollie they are living their normal lives until they learn that Ollie’s friend, June has had something very important to her stolen. June is competing in an invention contest to gain a scholarship to an elite high school and her hard drive containing her invention was stolen and the contest is only a day away so Ollie and Frankie naturally decide they are going to get it back for her but it isn’t going to be that simple since there are several people at the school in the competition meaning any one of them is a suspect.
Textrovert by Lindsey Summers 2.75 Stars – I was immediately concerned picking up Textrovert because it is a Wattpad book which can never be good. I read fanfics on Wattpad back in the day and I can’t even go on the site now because it just makes me cringe. We are introduced to Keeley and her twin, Zach while they are at a fair where Keeley ends up losing her phone but finding it again before her brother heads off with the car. That night she gets a phone call from a boy named, Talon explaining they picked up each other’s phones by accident and they decide to deal with it the next day. However, Zach gets in trouble for driving drunk because Keeley wouldn’t answer his messages or calls and she realises Talon ignored them. She immediately messages him and even though he suggests the idea of forwarding each other’s messages and calls she initially rejects it because she was angry with Talon for now reason. I wouldn’t answer mystery phone calls from someone else’s phone even if I had it by mistake. Despite this Keeley tries to get Talon to agree but he is a jerk about it and they end up throwing down the gauntlet waiting for the other to break which was cringe worthy to read.
Not Working by Lisa Owens DNF – The opening to Not Working was both interesting and very confusing since it is told almost in a stream of consciousness style with the visual formatting of a poetry collection which took some getting used to. We are following Claire Flannery who quit her job to find her real passion but she has no idea what that could be or how to go about finding out what that is, while she is job hunting she begins thinking about her life and looks at the best and worst parts of herself, her life and her relationships with others. Her relationship with her boyfriend, Luke, is the most confusing part since there are moments where they seem genuinely happy together but there are other like when she mentions having a child that he shuts her down completely or when they are at party and she’s openly flirty with another man which he comments on and she completely ignores. Her family relationships also aren’t the best as she regularly talks to her mother but doesn’t enjoy it and at one function after too much to drink she ends up making a comment which others interpret as Claire saying her grandfather did something inappropriate to her which isn’t received well.
The Steep & Thorny Way by Cat Winters 5 Stars – The Steep & Thorny Way is a retelling of Hamlet set in 1920’s prohibition America following a mixed race main character, Hanalee Denney. Hanalee’s father, Hank was killed in a car accident almost two years before the story begins and Joe Adder, the boy convicted of his murder has been released. Hanalee speaks with Joe and he claims that her father seemed fine until Doctor Clyde Koning turned up and her father died, however, Clyde is now her stepfather as he married her mother Greta, just over a year after her father died. Joe’s story fits with Hanalee’s existing doubts about Clyde but he also claims that Clyde has connections to the KKK which is worrying for her and coupled with the fact several people including her best friend, Fleur claim to have seen her father’s ghost has Hanalee wondering whether it was an accident at all. Obviously this fits pretty closely with the story it is based off so I am hoping that it isn’t a direct retelling and that there are some twists along the way otherwise this is going to be a little boring.
Frostblood by Elly Blake 5 Stars – The opening of Frostblood was interesting as we are introduced to Ruby Otrera, who is a Fireblood. In this world the Kingdom is run by the Frost King making Ruby’s very existence a crime that her mother has been trying to hide but Ruby has little control over her fire powers. Since the death of her grandmother and mentor she is been trying to control her fire without guidance and everything seems fine until soldiers enter their remote mountainside village looking for Ruby. They eventually find her and want to kill her but her mother steps in getting killed in the process before the soldiers burn the village and cart Ruby off to prison where she remains for months being psychologically tortured by them. However, one night two Frostblood, one a man named Arcus and the other a monk come to her asking for her help in taking down the King in exchange for her freedom and she agrees. The pair take Ruby to the Abbey where she is given a bath and medical treatment but she has issues since she hasn’t had time to grieve for her mother since being arrested.
The Stars in Their Eyes by Kristy Gardner 3 Stars – The opening to The Stars in Their Eyes was interesting and confusing at the same time since it jumps between the past and present without much warning. Despite that we are introduced to our protagonist, Calay in the present when she is injured and her girlfriend, Tess is missing and she wants to find her. In the past we learn of an event called the Change, which as far as I can tell involves aliens coming to Earth and killing a lot of people. Tess and Calay have managed to survive for months it seems, although we don’t know this for sure and now something has separated them. Calay isn’t in the best of shapes to be finding Tess and avoiding dying at the same time which is highlighted when she has to jump off the roof a building to prevent being caught and killed by the military. Right now, nothing makes much sense but I am hoping I will understand more as the novel progresses.
Savage Indulgence by Shayla Raquel 5 Stars – I am a lover of short story for horror especially when they are darker and gorier so I was excited to pick up Savage Indulgence which seems like a Hannibal type short story around a cannibalistic dinner host named Joyce. Obviously, this review isn’t going to be long considering the story itself is only 53 pages long but I will do my best. This story is about Joyce, a 60-something woman who is a cannibal preparing for a dinner party much like Hannibal Lecter. Joyce is throwing the dinner party for Patrick, Beth, Ken and Michelle but Michelle has to cancel at the last minute leaving Joyce with only three guests all of which she is planning to kill and eat.
Under Her Skin by Toni Miller 2.5 Stars – Now I am not a big poetry fan, I don’t read a lot of it and what I have read in the past hasn’t been too amazing with the exception of Amanda Lovelace’s first collection. However, this is dark, horror poetry collection so it appeals to more of what I like to read, I am hoping I get on better with this collection than I have with others. Out of the opening poems, one really stood out to me and that was WE by Morgan Sylvia which really highlighted both the gorier elements of this collection and the feminist stand that a lot of these poems take. The language that Sylvia uses really conjures some grotesque imagery to mind but the words on the page are hauntingly beautiful and lyrical. While I still don’t believe that poetry is going to be something that I will honestly pick up on my own but I do find some to beautiful in concept and execution but there just doesn’t seem to be enough substance for me.
An Evening of Romantic Lovemaking by Ben Slotky DNF – All I knew about this before getting into it was we are following a stand-up comedian/terrorist as they perform to an audience that may or may not actually be there which had me intrigued and at only 120 pages long I knew I had to pick it up. The writing style of the novel took a minute to get used to as it is almost stream of consciousness as it is just the protagonist narrating everything he is doing. He is unnamed right now but we do learn he is 46, and in just a few days’ time he is going to be both divorced and bankrupt, he also has six children with his soon to be ex-wife. Due to this it seems like he has taken hostages in the theatre (I believe) he owns or used to own while performing for them but this performance is more about him ranting about the state of his life right now. The question of whether the audience is real remains but we do know he has a gun in his possession and he does make mention of bombs being in the building but we do have to question the mental state of the protagonist and how much of what is happening is real and what is happening in his head.
The Prince and the Witch by L. A. Thompson 4 Stars – The synopsis and opening of The Prince and the Witch made it seem like a genderbent retelling of Sleeping Beauty as we are introduced to Prince Edward, the only child of the King and Queen of Arthura who was cursed by her grandmother when he was a child resulting in a slow decline of his health and it will kill him by his 17th birthday. Due to this his father banished the witches and their magic from the Kingdom despite the fact that only a witch can make the medicine which is keeping Edward alive. As his 17th birthday is in less than a month and his father shows no signs of finding a witch to help Edward, he ends up leaving the place and heading to the Venatys Mountains to find a witch for himself. We are also introduced to Abbey who from the age of six has known she was a witch, she uses her magic growing up to provide for her family when the harvests are poor but keeps her magic hidden knowing she will be taken before the King is anyone finds out. This does happen one day and Abbey is forced to flee into the Venatys Mountains the same place that Edward is heading and I know they are going to cross paths are some point.
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