The Sundial by Shirley Jackson
If this had been shorter. I am sure I would have loved it. But it just went on and on and it took me most of last night and this morning to get through. I loved the plot, and even the opening by Victor LaValle. But the whole book just wanders and then eventually we get to what I consider an odd and open-ended ending. At least I had a chance to read this while I had candles burning nearby. “The Sundial” with an introduction […]
Halloween Carnival Volume 1 by Brian James Freeman
All in all, the stories work and are 5 star reads. There is just one that felt a bit unfinished and honestly way too goofy to be in this collection. But this is a nice little appetizer if you want to read something to get you in the Halloween mood. “Strange Candy” by Robert McCammon (5 stars)-What to say. This man can write anything and even if not all of them work for me, he can still get you in the feels. I loved this […]
The New Evil by R.L. Stine
Bless. There’s a point in this book when you want to shake Corky, Debra, and Kimmy. And I just shook my head. But honestly though, most of the book works. I do love that when I think of Christmas these days, my first thought goes to crazed killers though. Reading R.L. Stine as a teen will do that to you. This is the fourth book in the Fear Street Cheerleaders series. Just a continuation of the prior installments with Corky and her friends trying to […]
The Suffering by Rin Chupeco
The second book in “The Girl from the Well” series was solid. I think the end dragged a bit and honestly the ending didn’t really work for me. I think I would have preferred if Chupeco had gone another way. Once we read about one ritual that a strong priest or priestess could do, I kind of saw the ending coming a mile away. That said I loved the overall plot of Tark and Okiku returning to Japan to save Kagura well as fight against […]
Lone Women by Victor LaValle
Please note that I received this book via NetGalley. This did not affect my rating or review. How does Victor LaValle do this! I am mad at myself for gulping this book down, but I could not slow myself. At one point I had to say go slower, go slower, you are getting to the end, and I was not able to slow down. I needed a great horror book and LaValle per usual delivers. The characters are so damn good. The writing is lyrical. […]
Melmoth by Sarah Perry
So this was a 3.5 star read that I rounded up to 4 stars. I didn’t care for the Essex Serpent at all and worried I wouldn’t like this book, but I thought Perry did a good job with this. She took her own spin on Melmoth the Wanderer Novel by Charles Maturin. Just like with that book, Perry pushes the Gothic elements all the while telling several stories within the main story. I thought the writing for the most part was spot-on. I loved […]
