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mikaelcatz's review
2.0
Blame It on the Pumpkin is a collection of fiction, nonfiction and verse centered around pumpkins and Halloween. Mostly scares. I downloaded this book off Netgalley as an avid Halloween lover, who gets their kicks from doing every Autumn and Halloween activities as much as possible. I was looking forward to this collection due to its cover and summary.
However, this left me feeling underwhelmed. The first piece was a non-fiction essay about how pumpkins a grown and the work that goes into taking the seeds and eventually turning them into jack-o-lanterns! It was a very interesting essay to read and im sure it's knowledge that not many people care to know about.
Unfortunately, the rest of the collection went downhill from there. The next piece was a small poem about a man being hunted by a werewolf. It was short and to the point but that did not do the work any favors. It read very middle grade in terms of how unsubtle the narrative was, it almost felt like reading a comic book but not in a good way.
Onwards I started and got half way through a story about Penny and her friends, a girl who takes her friends and Halloween spirit to a maze and festival in an unknown mysterious town. On the way, they encounter strange happenings but trudge forward in hopes of having a good scare.
This story had its roots. I was interested in the story because it was more original and had enough mystery to it to continue reading. But the writing isn't great. The writing style is very choppy and doesn't feel distinct despite the idea being innovative. The beginning was fun however as they were driving to this town and encountered some horrible things, the quality of the story faltered in favor. It was all very dramatic in terms of drama and intrigue, but the non-flowery writing was a letdown. I stopped reading this piece because I couldn't stand to read on, despite wanting to know what happened next. The story had no heart or narrative and for that it was left as choppy and unenjoyable.
Very unfortunate.
However, this left me feeling underwhelmed. The first piece was a non-fiction essay about how pumpkins a grown and the work that goes into taking the seeds and eventually turning them into jack-o-lanterns! It was a very interesting essay to read and im sure it's knowledge that not many people care to know about.
Unfortunately, the rest of the collection went downhill from there. The next piece was a small poem about a man being hunted by a werewolf. It was short and to the point but that did not do the work any favors. It read very middle grade in terms of how unsubtle the narrative was, it almost felt like reading a comic book but not in a good way.
Onwards I started and got half way through a story about Penny and her friends, a girl who takes her friends and Halloween spirit to a maze and festival in an unknown mysterious town. On the way, they encounter strange happenings but trudge forward in hopes of having a good scare.
This story had its roots. I was interested in the story because it was more original and had enough mystery to it to continue reading. But the writing isn't great. The writing style is very choppy and doesn't feel distinct despite the idea being innovative. The beginning was fun however as they were driving to this town and encountered some horrible things, the quality of the story faltered in favor. It was all very dramatic in terms of drama and intrigue, but the non-flowery writing was a letdown. I stopped reading this piece because I couldn't stand to read on, despite wanting to know what happened next. The story had no heart or narrative and for that it was left as choppy and unenjoyable.
Very unfortunate.
thatrainbowbrownie's review
2.25
I received an advanced readers copy through Netgalley for an honest review.
Trigger warning; self harm
Overall, the book was more or less a let down. Riddled with pacing issues and grammar and spelling mistakes, the book fell very short. I was expecting ghoulish tales with some fright. But, most of the stories were out of touch or not interesting in the slightest. One of the stories (Alone on Halloween) used multiple instances of self harm as it’s shock factor where the character felt like he was going to do something else so he tied himself down. Another story that was sold as a séance on Halloween night turned into a the characters being in the center of the FBI (or what ever they were) and a criminal organization (i don’t know why this was included. Other stories, like Nasty Old B!tch had a good premise but the execution fell very flat. This story also included self harm as she was planning on killing her self.
With all this said, two stories stood out, Pumpkin Hollow and Trick or Treat: Once Upon a Hunter's Moon. Both of these stories were able to create a good atmosphere in such a sort time. I do hope to see more from the authors that wrote these two stories and they are the reason that this book the raising it did. With better stories surrounding them, the book could have honestly been a 3-4 star read.
Trigger warning; self harm
With all this said, two stories stood out, Pumpkin Hollow and Trick or Treat: Once Upon a Hunter's Moon. Both of these stories were able to create a good atmosphere in such a sort time. I do hope to see more from the authors that wrote these two stories and they are the reason that this book the raising it did. With better stories surrounding them, the book could have honestly been a 3-4 star read.
jodine's review
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
3.0
"And silhouetted against the crimson smiles, four dark featureless fighures waited. The carved eyes smoldered like nocturnal creatures."
This is a shot story collection of horror stories all centered around pumpkins. While I enjoyed most of the stories there was two that I completely skipped out on because of the poor writing. The story "Alone on Halloween" really creeped me out, I also really liked the story "Pumpkin Hollow" about the mysterious Halloween town that suddenly appears. I read this two weeks before Halloween which really helped get into that cosy fall mood.
Genre: horror, supernatural. thriller, magical realism
TW: death, blood, sexual assault, self harm, injury
This is a shot story collection of horror stories all centered around pumpkins. While I enjoyed most of the stories there was two that I completely skipped out on because of the poor writing. The story "Alone on Halloween" really creeped me out, I also really liked the story "Pumpkin Hollow" about the mysterious Halloween town that suddenly appears. I read this two weeks before Halloween which really helped get into that cosy fall mood.
Genre: horror, supernatural. thriller, magical realism
TW: death, blood, sexual assault, self harm, injury
Content Warnings
Graphic: Self harm and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Sexual assault, Body shaming, Body horror, and Sexual content
tashiea's review
3.0
DNF'd @ approx. 15% - Review will be brief
Rating: 3/5 Stars simply because this isn't bad, it's just mislabeled.
Thank you to NetGalley and DreamPunk Press for letting me read this ebook before release. Unfortunately I think there is some miscommunication about the book. I read the first three short stories in the book.
I was first just confused because it was labeled a horror anthology... but the first story was nonfiction? There was nothing scary about it. It was a guide to making a jack o' lantern. Like... legitimately.
Second story was a short flash fiction piece. It was okay. I don't like flash fiction so it didn't do much for me. I have no complaints, it wasn't bad at all.
Third story was when I realized this wasn't going to work out. I am most definitely not the target audience for this book. The writing is very middle grade but the topics are more young adult, so I'd like to shelf it in-between the two. The writing was very simplistic and it just didn't read like adult horror to me. It wasn't bad, it just wasn't the right read for me. I might give this to my teenage brother instead, but I just think this can't be labeled adult.
For example, "'Annie here.' 'I know.' The other woman sounded puzzled. 'Wait. How did you...' 'Caller ID.' 'Oh, yeah I'd forgotten about that." It doesn't read like adult characters, and it doesn't read like adult writing. It felt like watching middle schoolers interact. Not women and men.
In the end, I don't have anything bad to say about the book, I don't have anything good to say either, it's just not for me.
Rating System:
★ - Avoid at all costs. Don't even look at it.
★★ - I would recommend for people not to read it.
★★★ - It was okay. I might recommend for certain people.
★★★★ - I'd recommend it to most people.
★★★★★ - I'd literally gift this to someone. Must read.
Rating: 3/5 Stars simply because this isn't bad, it's just mislabeled.
Thank you to NetGalley and DreamPunk Press for letting me read this ebook before release. Unfortunately I think there is some miscommunication about the book. I read the first three short stories in the book.
I was first just confused because it was labeled a horror anthology... but the first story was nonfiction? There was nothing scary about it. It was a guide to making a jack o' lantern. Like... legitimately.
Second story was a short flash fiction piece. It was okay. I don't like flash fiction so it didn't do much for me. I have no complaints, it wasn't bad at all.
Third story was when I realized this wasn't going to work out. I am most definitely not the target audience for this book. The writing is very middle grade but the topics are more young adult, so I'd like to shelf it in-between the two. The writing was very simplistic and it just didn't read like adult horror to me. It wasn't bad, it just wasn't the right read for me. I might give this to my teenage brother instead, but I just think this can't be labeled adult.
For example, "'Annie here.' 'I know.' The other woman sounded puzzled. 'Wait. How did you...' 'Caller ID.' 'Oh, yeah I'd forgotten about that." It doesn't read like adult characters, and it doesn't read like adult writing. It felt like watching middle schoolers interact. Not women and men.
In the end, I don't have anything bad to say about the book, I don't have anything good to say either, it's just not for me.
Rating System:
Spoiler
★ - Avoid at all costs. Don't even look at it.
★★ - I would recommend for people not to read it.
★★★ - It was okay. I might recommend for certain people.
★★★★ - I'd recommend it to most people.
★★★★★ - I'd literally gift this to someone. Must read.
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