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aflogive's reviews
14 reviews
Stolen Tongues by Felix Blackwell
Did not finish book.
Did not finish book.
I loved the beginning. The tense, mysterious experiences of the main characters genuinely creeped me out, especially in the first chapter, but unfortunately the repetition of these same haunts pulled me out about halfway through the book. It just couldn’t keep my attention and with so many other books on my TBR list I decided not to finish this one. This one wasn’t for me, but it’s definitely for someone else!
The Liminal Zone by Junji Ito
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
4.75
White Horse by Erika T. Wurth
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Penpal by Dathan Auerbach
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Stalking, Child death, Animal death, Car accident, Death, Grief, Adult/minor relationship, Injury/Injury detail, Pedophilia, Dementia, Murder, Violence, and Medical trauma
Minor: Kidnapping
The Cloisters by Katy Hays
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.25
Krampus: The Yule Lord by Brom
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
#thighgap by Chandler Morrison
dark
emotional
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Eating disorder, Body shaming, Body horror, and Gore
Moderate: Vomit
Just Like Mother by Anne Heltzel
challenging
dark
mysterious
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Anxieties around motherhood creep into horror from many different angles. Nightmares about birth, for example, appear in horror literature and films such as ROSEMARY'S BABY and THE BROOD. Newer novels like THE PUSH and BABY TEETH, and films like THE BAD SEED, highlight the fear of raising manipulative, sociopathic children. Even stories like PSYCHO, CARRIE, and MOMMY DEAREST feature monstrous mothers as the main focus. One concept not yet thoroughly explored appears in Anne Heltzel's upcoming book, JUST LIKE MOTHER, where the societal pressures to pursue motherhood serve as the primary horror and manifest in the form of a literal cult.
Mauve and her cousin, Andrea, grew up as close as sisters until the cult that raised them collapsed. After this separates the cousins, Mauve tries to build a new life in New York City as an editor, but, due to her traumatic past, continues to distance herself from friends, family, and romantic partners. Two decades later, a DNA search reunites Mauve and Andrea, pulling the two closer to each other and their shared past.
Suddenly spending more time at her cousin's remote mansion in the Catskills, Mauve becomes immersed in Andrea's life, meeting her pregnant friends and learning more about the fertility tech company that made her rich. Motherhood falls in the center of everything, and Mauve— single and without intentions of changing that anytime soon—begins feeling isolated from the life she built back in the city. Soon, Andrea's life and devotion to motherhood starts to consume Mauve who must look to her past to break free from her current nightmare.
JUST LIKE MOTHER gives us a unique type of horror with a page-turning plot. I heard Heltzel's social message loud and clear, finding myself engaged by her creative, critical, and creepy expression of motherhood as a cult. The book pretty directly calls attention to the harm caused by the exclusionary, essentialist ideology that often grounds the view that only motherhood gives women their power or that womanhood equals motherhood, which I had never seen in horror fiction before reading this book. This message combined with uncanny AI babies, feelings of confinement, and the presence of cults makes for a gripping take on the horrors of motherhood as a concept rather than only its tangible, messy realities.
I do wish we learned more about the cult that raised Mauve and Andrea, but understand that giving us deeper descriptions of it would probably impede the forward-movement of the plot. I also wanted more scenes with creepy babies, but again, I think I'm just greedy for a good scare.
In summary, readers who want a new twist on the horrors of motherhood with social commentary will get that all in a fast-paced package with JUST LIKE MOTHER. But, as a heads up, this book focuses heavily on pregnancy and infertility so if you are sensitive to these topics you may want to pass.
Big thank you to netgalley and tor nightfire for the electronic advanced reviewer copy! Keep an eye out for JUST LIKE MOTHER, scheduled to release on May 17, 2022.
The Headsman by Cristina Mîrzoi
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Set in a world somewhere between fairy tale and dark, modern drama, Cristina Mîrzoi's short story collection THE HEADSMAN pulls you into the intertwining narratives of eleven morally ambiguous villagers. In a similar form to THE CANTERBURY TALES, each story tells of a different character and their place within grim events that occur throughout their village.
We learn about a witch, a flower girl, a young fool, a merchant, a "big" man, a duke, a mother, a maid, a servant boy, a martyr, and finally a headsman who ties the threads of love, loss, loneliness, and justice together. With masterful storytelling, Mîrzoi guides the reader between enchantment and disenchantment, of alluring magic and the dread of secrets withheld, in this compelling, 41-page collection.
As a reader of folklore and fairy tales, I loved spending time in the world of THE HEADSMAN. The time period feels vaguely medieval and reminiscent of fantastical legends filled with nobles, witches, fae folk, and fairy queens. Mîrzoi also strikes an excellent balance between concise and lyrical writing, allowing readers to dwell within beautiful descriptions of lilacs and overgrown cemeteries while simultaneously pushing the story forward. Intentionally-placed words reveal enough information about the characters as well that, even with a short page count, I felt genuinely invested in their entwined fates.
The compact prose does require a vigilant reader, so if you're someone who likes to skip around or speed through text you may be at risk of getting lost. But if you prefer to savor the poetic language of gothic fairy tales, I highly recommend picking up THE HEADSMAN for a quick, well-crafted read!
Sundial by Catriona Ward
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
After reading Catriona Ward’s last novel, THE LAST HOUSE ON NEEDLESS STREET (2021), I made a point to keep a steadfast eye open for any of her upcoming books. Fortunately for me and other fans of her work, a new release from Ward was announced for early this year. Ward has received high praise from acclaimed horror authors and reviewers alike, and with very good reason. The author’s twisting, high-tension psychological horror keeps the pages turning, and her intricately thought-out characters elicit a mosaic of emotions that’s difficult to articulate (in a good way). With her newest novel, SUNDIAL (2022), you get both of these qualities in spades.
SUNDIAL follows Rob, a wife and mother of two daughters, looking to escape her dark past by leading a normal life in the suburbs. When she discovers a familiar darkness in her oldest daughter Callie that includes playing with animal bones and whispering to unseen friends, Rob decides to return to her childhood home—Sundial—deep in the Mojave Desert. Rob and Callie journey into the desert together, both carrying their own secrets and unsure of what terrifying decisions lie before them. But whatever decisions they make, Rob and Callie share the same hope of protecting their family.
Ward masterfully builds suspense in this book. Once I started reading, it nearly hurt to tear myself away even for a short break. From the start you know something bad will happen very soon, but don’t know exactly when, how, or who will cause it. Each character seems to constantly teeter on the edge of violence with such subtlety that you feel like no one and nothing can be trusted, even your own gut. And the kids. One moment you think the pressure has died down, but by the next chapter you get the sense that everything is actually about to burst. This feeling of imminent danger, combined with the stark setting of the desert, creates a terrifying landscape that will pull you in.
As a fair warning, the tightly-wound tension that builds throughout the book does loosen a bit during some of Rob’s flashback scenes, which might feel like slow-reading to those who prefer fast-paced plots. But, I promise it’s worth sticking through it until the end. The details revealed in Rob’s flashbacks answer a lot of the lingering questions raised throughout the story, help us to better understand Rob’s past, and are so compellingly bizarre that, honestly, some may find them more interesting than the action-packed moments.
Like THE LAST HOUSE ON NEEDLESS STREET, we also get characters that elicit feelings of both tenderness and unease. In SUNDIAL, Ward uses alternating points of view to share the thoughts of both Rob and Callie as they venture into the desert. Through their internal monologues, Rob’s storytelling, and Callie’s conversations with her “pale” friends, we learn that they don’t trust each other but only because they desperately want to protect their family. Alternating viewpoints may not be everyone’s style, and may feel disorienting at times, but for those who don’t mind it, Ward’s use of first person narration reveals chilling details you wouldn’t know otherwise.
It’s difficult to offer too much of a synopsis or deep dive into this book, although it’s tempting since there’s so much to unpack. But revealing anything more risks too many spoilers, and I do not want to take away from anyone’s weird, winding journey into SUNDIAL. Ultimately, this book reflects on the concept of motherhood, redemption for personal and generational pasts, and the question of how far you would go to protect your family. If you’re interested in these themes and enjoy psychological horror with complex family histories, creepy kids, and strange, isolated settings as well as feeling completely uncertain about whether or not you should trust any of the characters, SUNDIAL makes for an engrossingly disturbing addition to your to-read pile from a noteworthy author.
Thank you to Tor Nightfire and NetGalley for an advanced reader copy of this book!
SUNDIAL follows Rob, a wife and mother of two daughters, looking to escape her dark past by leading a normal life in the suburbs. When she discovers a familiar darkness in her oldest daughter Callie that includes playing with animal bones and whispering to unseen friends, Rob decides to return to her childhood home—Sundial—deep in the Mojave Desert. Rob and Callie journey into the desert together, both carrying their own secrets and unsure of what terrifying decisions lie before them. But whatever decisions they make, Rob and Callie share the same hope of protecting their family.
Ward masterfully builds suspense in this book. Once I started reading, it nearly hurt to tear myself away even for a short break. From the start you know something bad will happen very soon, but don’t know exactly when, how, or who will cause it. Each character seems to constantly teeter on the edge of violence with such subtlety that you feel like no one and nothing can be trusted, even your own gut. And the kids. One moment you think the pressure has died down, but by the next chapter you get the sense that everything is actually about to burst. This feeling of imminent danger, combined with the stark setting of the desert, creates a terrifying landscape that will pull you in.
As a fair warning, the tightly-wound tension that builds throughout the book does loosen a bit during some of Rob’s flashback scenes, which might feel like slow-reading to those who prefer fast-paced plots. But, I promise it’s worth sticking through it until the end. The details revealed in Rob’s flashbacks answer a lot of the lingering questions raised throughout the story, help us to better understand Rob’s past, and are so compellingly bizarre that, honestly, some may find them more interesting than the action-packed moments.
Like THE LAST HOUSE ON NEEDLESS STREET, we also get characters that elicit feelings of both tenderness and unease. In SUNDIAL, Ward uses alternating points of view to share the thoughts of both Rob and Callie as they venture into the desert. Through their internal monologues, Rob’s storytelling, and Callie’s conversations with her “pale” friends, we learn that they don’t trust each other but only because they desperately want to protect their family. Alternating viewpoints may not be everyone’s style, and may feel disorienting at times, but for those who don’t mind it, Ward’s use of first person narration reveals chilling details you wouldn’t know otherwise.
It’s difficult to offer too much of a synopsis or deep dive into this book, although it’s tempting since there’s so much to unpack. But revealing anything more risks too many spoilers, and I do not want to take away from anyone’s weird, winding journey into SUNDIAL. Ultimately, this book reflects on the concept of motherhood, redemption for personal and generational pasts, and the question of how far you would go to protect your family. If you’re interested in these themes and enjoy psychological horror with complex family histories, creepy kids, and strange, isolated settings as well as feeling completely uncertain about whether or not you should trust any of the characters, SUNDIAL makes for an engrossingly disturbing addition to your to-read pile from a noteworthy author.
Thank you to Tor Nightfire and NetGalley for an advanced reader copy of this book!