Thank you NetGalley and Joffe Books for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Overall Rating: 2 Stars
Sisters Daisy and Alice recently lostThank you NetGalley and Joffe Books for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Overall Rating: 2 Stars
Sisters Daisy and Alice recently lost their mother to a mysterious murder that occurred in their own home and are brought to live with Yvonne Castle, their estranged grandmother whom they have never met. Their father Vince Spencer is a suspect in the murder, but the police can't prove it and he wants his daughters back. The Grandmother won't let this happen, over her dead body.
Each chapter is opened with the name of who's point of view it will be from, alternating between the Father and the Grandmother. Each character is very distinct and well formed, but are overall predictable. The side characters such as police or social workers end up forgettable, even during moments where they are heavily involved, which leads to important moments in the story becoming confusing and less impactful.
The concept of this book was incredibly interesting and I was so excited to read it since it was marketed as an "unpredictable psychological thriller with a jaw-dropping twist," but I personally did not get that feeling from this book at all. This felt more like a family drama disguised as a murder mystery. The first half of the book was very slow, building up more about the Grandmother's and the Father's very different home lives rather than unraveling a thrilling mystery. The second half of the book is where the story definitely picks up, but all of the twists and "shocking" moments happen a breath apart giving the reader very little time for anything to sink in or be shocked by. I am unfortunately not at all surprised by the answer to the actual murder mystery, and the way it was revealed was a let down, only to be followed up by another twist that felt somewhat unrelated and unnecessary to the story.
The first half of the book was very slow to start, and the second half brought too much new information too quickly. I would've like to see another round of editing to shorten the beginning section of the book, and in exchange add more time unraveling all the twists and turns that happen towards the end, as that's where this book started to shine. Unfortunately in the end, the twists did not make me drop my jaw....more
Thank you NetGalley and G.P. Putnam's Sons for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Overall Rating: 5 Stars
This was one of those books thThank you NetGalley and G.P. Putnam's Sons for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Overall Rating: 5 Stars
This was one of those books that I really had to let stew in my brain for a while before I could write this review. As of writing this, it's been about a month since I finished William, but I am still sure I'd like to give it 5 stars. In fact, it may be one of my favorite horror novels read to date, and I'd love to come back to it again in a few years to reread it.
William is half-formed robot AI. It is a fully functioning artificial intelligence that Henry, an agoraphobic engineer, has spent days and days working on behind the locked attic doors. Henry's wife Lily decides to invite some coworkers over to finally see the house, which has been upgraded with smart security systems while still maintaining the charm to match the rest of the neighborhood. It's also their first time meeting Henry, who in turn introduces them to William. It doesn't take long before William harms Lily, and Henry immediately shuts him down. Soon after the security system locks every door and window, and the group is seemingly haunted by William's "spirit."
The story begins to play out similar to how you'd expect an October PG13 horror film to go; it's Halloween night, the protagonists are locked in a haunted house, and demons/spirits are suspected. That alone makes it an enjoyable read as Mason Coile does an excellent job setting the tone. What sets William aside from the rest is the story that's told in between the lines. It isn't JUST about an "evil" AI or a "haunted" house. It's about an engineer who can't bear to step more than a few inches out the door, his pregnant wife who feels uncomfortable stepping foot in the nursery he built for them, a marriage that's on such thin ice they don't even sleep in the same room or have any pictures together. William has a lot going for it, in a short amount of pages that's easy to digest.
William lives up to the genre of psychological horror, but it leans much more towards the psych side than horror. The entire time reading I was speculating what might happen, how it might end, and at every turn I was pleasantly surprised to be wrong. The ending completely took me by surprise. Since this is a spoiler free review I can't say much, but it has me wanting to reread this book someday so I can see all the little things that I missed. If you're looking for a psychological horror novel that's on the shorter side, definitely give William a read. ...more
Thank you NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Overall Rating: 4 Stars
Lady Macbeth has thThank you NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Overall Rating: 4 Stars
Lady Macbeth has the power to induce madness in men, coerce them to do anything she requests just by meeting their gaze. She is to be wed to a lord of Scotland, a man so brutish she did not imagine he had occult secrets of his own, following prophecies to ensure his rise in power. Together they are powerful, but separately she is even more so.
Lady Macbeth by Ava Reid is a reimagining of the classic story Macbeth by Shakespeare. I want to preface this review by saying I have never read or watched any rendition of the classic Macbeth story, so this was my first experience.
I'd like to start with the cons of the book first, I really loved this story but there are only a few things I feel negatively about. The story starts out very slow, a lot of time is spent inside Roscille's (Lady Macbeth's) inner monologue thinking back to her home life and worrying about the changes that will be brought about in her new home in Scotland. It took around 60-70 pages for me to really feel engaged in the story, which is a bit long for me personally.
She speaks to and thinks of Hawise her handmaiden very often and very fondly, only for her to be cast aside very soon into the story and it feels like she is only brought up throughout the rest of the book to express a certain level of Roscille's sadness or worries. Maybe this is evident in the original Macbeth story somehow that makes it make more sense, but Hawise's part of the story on its own felt very hollow.
Aside from those two things, I truly loved reading Lady Macbeth. It is a story of a woman coming to realize the power that she has despite how the society around her holds her back. She is forced and told that she was created only to fit the mold that the men around her make, she is to do what her husband says and only for his benefit, and despite the hardships she faces she aims to defy that fate. She is constantly struggling between trying to be Roscille, a strong woman who wants to pave her own way, and Lady Macbeth, a tool of destruction set inside Macbeth's hand.
For those who have read Macbeth prior to picking up this book, she is still Lady Macbeth, but the path she paves is much different and I think you would still enjoy this book. As someone who didn't read Macbeth, I can also safely say that you do not need to have read it to enjoy this reimagining....more
Thank you NetGalley and BDA Publishing for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Overall Rating: 4.5 Stars
The Madness takes you on a wild Thank you NetGalley and BDA Publishing for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Overall Rating: 4.5 Stars
The Madness takes you on a wild ride through stories and poems from multiple POVs to tell a story of exactly what you expect: madness. This book jumps from the POV of a narrator writing the book through a transcriber, to seemingly unrelated stories, to tied in poems, to even more genres of writing. It all flows together incredibly well, each character standing well on their own in separate-but-woven-together tales.
This isn't the first book I've read that uses multi-POV separated stories, but it is by far my favorite to date. The changes in formatting, the jumps between different types of literary prose, it encapsulates the idea of Madness perfectly, and still makes perfect sense to the reader by the end. I would've only wished the book were longer, I enjoyed reading each story so much, but maybe that's because as they say: "The Madness is highly contagious."...more
Thank you NetGalley and Swann + Bedlam for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Overall Rating: 3.5 Stars
Dead Endings is a collection of Thank you NetGalley and Swann + Bedlam for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Overall Rating: 3.5 Stars
Dead Endings is a collection of short stories that all share one theme: death. Each story explores the topic in their own way involving the occult. No story overstayed its welcome, but each were long enough to convey what it wanted to convey. Often in short stories, not as much detail is able to be given to the characters involved. The first story was the longest, and also my favorite since it gave just the tiniest bit more depth to the characters compared to the other stories in the collection.
As the reader you aren't given much of an idea of how each character looks, just a feel for their personality, which for me made it a little harder to picture the scenes. With that being said, the gruesome descriptions of the horrors taking place in each story were well written and gave me the chills I was looking for in the horror genre. As told in the summary, "These stories are not merely they are steeped in the pure essence of darkness and evil and are sure to leave an indelible mark on the psyche of their readers." While I typically look for more character depth in the horror I read, I won't be forgetting these stories, especially the first story of Mama....more
Thank you NetGalley and Chad Lester for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Overall Rating: 3.5 Stars
Titan's Tears shows us the pros andThank you NetGalley and Chad Lester for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Overall Rating: 3.5 Stars
Titan's Tears shows us the pros and cons that can come with a technologically advanced future. It takes place in a dystopian reality where robots are taking the place of workers and human organs can be grown in a matter of minutes. All three protagonists give the reader a different view of the bizarre ways of the world, from Seth being declared obsolete in the workplace to Juno's "Forever Kitten" that seemingly doesn't age.
The buildup was a bit slow, some major events not occurring until more than halfway through the book, but otherwise I really enjoyed the pacing. It gives you plenty of time to learn about and care about each character. I was DEEPLY invested in Belle & Juno's relationship; in one of the first few chapters Belle mentions how much she loves to work with children and always wanted to be a teacher, and that is perfectly conveyed through her interactions with Juno. The author did a good job of show don't tell, but there were a lot of repeated phrases such as nervousness being portrayed by characters "wringing their hands together" multiple times, and I would've liked more variety in that regard.
At times I was confused by the narrator asking rhetorical questions as if they were asked by the character in their own head which didn't make a lot of sense in a third person POV, but I don't think it took away from the overall impact of the story which is where this book shines. It subverted my expectations, and ended in a way that left a bit up to interpretation while still tying up the important loose ends. It's not a story I will be forgetting anytime soon, and one I genuinely enjoyed. I hope to read more books from this author in the future....more
Thank you NetGalley and Avon and Harper Voyager for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Overall Rating: 4.5 Stars
Lore Alemeyu is born anThank you NetGalley and Avon and Harper Voyager for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Overall Rating: 4.5 Stars
Lore Alemeyu is born and raised as a human in the Fae land of Alytheria. Trapped in a small town surrounded by a deadly forest, Lore dreams of a life with magic and freedom, and to one day get back to the humans' home. In a strange turn of events, she is whisked away to a Fae Lord's castle to search an enchanted library that no Fae may enter.
There are many characters you come to know and love within Lore of the Wilds, but at its core this book is about Lore herself. Lore goes on an exciting adventure in the Fae lands, away from her small human town. She has a distinct strong willed personality, but we as the reader never forget about the anxiety and fear she feels in all of these unknown and dangerous places. She is written "human" in a way that is incredibly relatable, I've felt like I've been in many similar situations as Lore was throughout this story; without the magic, of course. She learns and grows so much as a character, taking risks even when they're dangerous and even when she's terrified. Those risks grow with each arc, eventually doing something so dangerous yet cunning you can't help but feel proud and a sense that "if Lore can do that, I could too!"
I did have a few issues with the book.
First, Lore of the Wilds is very much written in a way that FEELS like a YA novel, but there is a spicy scene or two. I love some spice in books personally, but it didn't feel like it belonged here and I actually would have preferred it to just be a YA novel. There is a few curse words thrown here and there, but they are so few and far between it also felt out of place.
Second, I didn't really enjoy Asher as a character. This might be personal preference, but his involvement in the story felt a little forced. He is stationed as Lore's personal guard, and is weirdly nice to her sometimes which has her questioning why exactly he's nice to her since he is a Fae and she is a human. As the reader, I wasn't really wondering WHY he was being nice to her, I was wondering WHEN he would tell her why.
Last but not least, I truly wish this book was longer. No, really! Even with the issues I had with it, I genuinely enjoyed my time in this world. I think there were moments that could've been touched upon for longer that I don't think were bad because they were short, but it would've been enjoyable to read more about it. Overall, I loved Lore of the wilds and I am so excited for book #2....more
Thank you NetGalley and Pushkin Press for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
In the heart of Tokyo at the beginning of the Meiji era, dThank you NetGalley and Pushkin Press for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
In the heart of Tokyo at the beginning of the Meiji era, detectives Kazuki and Kawaji of the Imperial Prosecuting Office set out to investigate a series of seemingly impossible murders. Within a friendly rivalry, Kazuki has the upper hand on many investigations with help of his foreign Miko, Esmeralda that helps him put together "whodunnit."
During a time of reform and restoration, the Japanese government is still putting itself back together again, leaving plenty of room for corruption to slip through the cracks. The first "arc" as I will call it, follows a lax group of rasotsu going about their day-to-day business which includes extorting money wherever they can. The remainder of the story mainly follows Kawaji during his investigations, and while learning about each rasotsu was relevant, it didn't seem to be important until quite a number of chapters pass. After the first investigation is kicked off however, I was hooked.
Each method of murder was entirely unique and definitely felt "impossible" as described by Kawaji, but ultimately made so much sense. The writing is very clever in giving the reader only as much information as was available to the detectives without necessarily pushing you towards a solution. As the reader you could take your time to figure out how the murder was possible before the big reveal, which I think is the best way for a mystery novel to be; not obvious, but solvable. I was very excited to learn I was correct in a few of them!
Throughout the book, I did become a bit attached to Kawaji, and I wish there were a little more depth to the personalities of all of the characters. A lot of time is spent discussing the political state of Japan, and while I understand that is integral to what is happening in the story, I do wish more time was spent on the characters as well. It is important to note that several characters, including Kawaji himself, are real people in history, so I do understand that there is only so much creative liberty that can be taken.
I have one final note, but it's important for me to mention that this is not something I let influence my star rating as it is a nitpick with the translation. Many Japanese words are kept, likely to preserve their exact meaning, however there are no foot notes or glossary in the back of the edition I was provided. I do hope one of the two things are added, and again I did not let this influence my rating, and I still highly recommend The Meiji Guillotine Murders to those who have no experience with the Japanese language as it's story narrative is entirely worth it....more
Loading...
