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archaicrobin's reviews
625 reviews
I Found Puppets Living In My Apartment Walls by Ben Farthing
adventurous
funny
mysterious
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.0
I Found Puppets Living in My Apartment walls was recommended to me alot. I was so excited for my library to get this novella I started it right away and was very disappointed.
I loved how weird and out there this book was, and the concept was creepy but the execution was poor in my opinion. The characters, especially Brittany, were underdeveloped and didn’t feel like real people. The characters were uninteresting and I did not feel connected or worried for any of them, which is always a let down for me.
Along with the boring and lifeless characters the plot really didn’t make any sense to me. I could see where the author tried to explain what was happening, and how the puppets came to life but it fell very short. Black magic, ok that’s how so get over it was the explanation and the ending left so much unexplained I honestly would have trouble explaining this to anyone.
While I found the book mediocre I still enjoyed the weirdness of it, which is why I gave it 2 stars and not 1. I will also read another novella by Farthing to give his writing another chance. Would I recommend this? If you’re looking for a short read that’s pretty weird and don’t mind the faults I’d say give it a try.
I loved how weird and out there this book was, and the concept was creepy but the execution was poor in my opinion. The characters, especially Brittany, were underdeveloped and didn’t feel like real people. The characters were uninteresting and I did not feel connected or worried for any of them, which is always a let down for me.
Along with the boring and lifeless characters the plot really didn’t make any sense to me. I could see where the author tried to explain what was happening, and how the puppets came to life but it fell very short. Black magic, ok that’s how so get over it was the explanation and the ending left so much unexplained I honestly would have trouble explaining this to anyone.
While I found the book mediocre I still enjoyed the weirdness of it, which is why I gave it 2 stars and not 1. I will also read another novella by Farthing to give his writing another chance. Would I recommend this? If you’re looking for a short read that’s pretty weird and don’t mind the faults I’d say give it a try.
Rest Stop by Nat Cassidy
adventurous
challenging
dark
funny
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
This novella is wild, gruesome, and the epitome of being in the wrong place at the wrong time. Abe stops at strange gas station on his way to visit his grandmother and finds himself suddenly part of a serial killer’s rampage. Rest stop was horrifying and so weird.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Confinement, Death, Gore, Torture, Violence, Blood, and Injury/Injury detail
The Winter People by Jennifer McMahon
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
This is the third book by McMahon I’ve read and so far she never disappoints. A fast paced thriller with multiple timelines and multiple strong female leads all trying to solve the same mystery. I love this author’s skill in weaving supernatural with thriller and it’s always hard to put her books down. If you’re looking for a spooky winter thriller with some mystery elements I’d recommend this one!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Child death, Confinement, Gore, Miscarriage, Blood, Grief, and Murder
The Twisted Ones by T. Kingfisher
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
1.0
I usually enjoy T. Kingfisher's lighthearted horror but something about this one just missed the mark.
The premise sounded so interesting, a woman going to clear out her mean grandma’s hoarded out house in the middle of the woods all alone with no one but a dog? Sounded great!
Unfortunately, it was not great. The main character feels like a self insert by the author and I found her to be boring, dull, and dumb. I listened to the audiobook for this one and the narrator read everything with this snarky, sarcastic, smart ass tone that made listening to this book a true test of my patience.
Our dull main character, Mouse, meets her neighbor who is named Foxy…..and together they start to investigate the weird occurrences in the woods.
This story did not make a lot of sense to me and was very boring. I had to listen at 2x speed just to finish this one I honestly can’t think of one thing I enjoyed. This is not a good book, but is it the worst thing over ever read? No. I’m so glad this isn’t the first book by Kingfisher I read, and I recommend checking out her other books and skipping this one.
The premise sounded so interesting, a woman going to clear out her mean grandma’s hoarded out house in the middle of the woods all alone with no one but a dog? Sounded great!
Unfortunately, it was not great. The main character feels like a self insert by the author and I found her to be boring, dull, and dumb. I listened to the audiobook for this one and the narrator read everything with this snarky, sarcastic, smart ass tone that made listening to this book a true test of my patience.
Our dull main character, Mouse, meets her neighbor who is named Foxy…..and together they start to investigate the weird occurrences in the woods.
This story did not make a lot of sense to me and was very boring. I had to listen at 2x speed just to finish this one I honestly can’t think of one thing I enjoyed. This is not a good book, but is it the worst thing over ever read? No. I’m so glad this isn’t the first book by Kingfisher I read, and I recommend checking out her other books and skipping this one.
Between Two Fires by Christopher Buehlman
adventurous
dark
funny
reflective
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I had high hopes for this medieval horror book mostly due to all the praise this one has received, but unfortunately Between Two Fires fell short for me.
The writing style is abrupt and brash which suits the story and the setting, but it does make connecting with the characters at first a little hard, or at least it was for me. I found it hard to feel attached to anyone until more than halfway too the book and at that point it’s too late.
The story itself is interesting and my favorite part was all the crazy demons they encounter but something was missing for me. Between Two Fires is a well written story and you can tell the writer is knowledgeable but I was never intrigued enough to want to pick this one up. I honestly don’t understand all the hype behind this novel. It’s fine, but not great.
The writing style is abrupt and brash which suits the story and the setting, but it does make connecting with the characters at first a little hard, or at least it was for me. I found it hard to feel attached to anyone until more than halfway too the book and at that point it’s too late.
The story itself is interesting and my favorite part was all the crazy demons they encounter but something was missing for me. Between Two Fires is a well written story and you can tell the writer is knowledgeable but I was never intrigued enough to want to pick this one up. I honestly don’t understand all the hype behind this novel. It’s fine, but not great.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Chronic illness, Confinement, Death, Gore, Homophobia, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexism, Torture, Violence, Blood, Excrement, Vomit, Grief, Cannibalism, Death of parent, Murder, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
The Pumpkin Spice Café by Laurie Gilmore
Did not finish book. Stopped at 45%.
Did not finish book. Stopped at 45%.
Was looking a cute feel good romance but this one just did not hit the mark. The characters aren’t interesting and honestly are a little annoying. They instantly are in love and the author tries to go for this slow burn but it doesn’t work because the characters are so dull and both had insta love. Romance isn’t my genre but I do like to read them every now and then between heavier books, but I try to find novels that at least have lovable characters or an interesting plot.
The boring characters were made worse by the non existent plot where the only conflict is the two characters getting cock-blocked every five minutes. This was a huge miss for me…
The boring characters were made worse by the non existent plot where the only conflict is the two characters getting cock-blocked every five minutes. This was a huge miss for me…
We Used to Live Here by Marcus Kliewer
challenging
dark
mysterious
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
3.0
A twisty and out there horror novel about a family that call definitely overstays their welcome. I had no idea where this one was going and even after finishing it I’m still contemplating what happened. This is for those that like their horror subtle and slow, with a twist of psychological and otherworldly entities. This one was hard for me to rate, I think I need to sit with it more. Would recommend to fans of House of Leaves and other speculative horror fiction.
The Sanctuary by Gustavo Eduardo Abrevaya
challenging
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
A surrealist horror-crime novel centered around a film maker and his wife who stumble upon the wrong town at the wrong time. This is a hard one to rate because it really is just so weird, the characters are strange and the writing is surrealist to the point it was hard for me to get into.
Not to mention the main character Alvaro is a sexist and talks about his wife like a trophy piece the entire time….
I can see what the point was and what the author was going for but this fell flat for me.
Not to mention the main character Alvaro is a sexist and talks about his wife like a trophy piece the entire time….
I can see what the point was and what the author was going for but this fell flat for me.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Gun violence, Misogyny, Sexism, Violence, Religious bigotry, and Murder
Minor: Rape and Sexual assault
The Reformatory by Tananarive Due
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
fast-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? It's complicated
5.0
The Reformatory is one of the best books I’ve read this year and one of Due’s best, which is hard tos ay because all of her books are phenomenal.
Steeped in history and her own personal family trauma is a tale of a young boy in the south sent to a horrific “school” for boys and his journey to find freedom with help from the spirits who refuse to leave without justice.
This story is heart wrenching and horrifying, made all the more painful because it’s based on a real place where real boys were tortured, raped, abused and murdered. I highly recommend looking at triggers before starting this one just to be safe, because it’s brutal. While spirits and the supernatural are paramount to this story, the true terror is in the lack of humanity and completely disgusting and historically true displays of racism.
This story was phenomenal but so hard to get through, there were several times I had to put this down and just decompress because it weighed so heavy on my heart. Books like this are some of the most importantly literature in my eyes, especially at a time right now where racism and bigotry are being paraded around as political candidates.
10/10 everyone should read if you can handle it. I will be thinking about Robert, his family, the boys left behind, and the message of this novel for a very long time.
Steeped in history and her own personal family trauma is a tale of a young boy in the south sent to a horrific “school” for boys and his journey to find freedom with help from the spirits who refuse to leave without justice.
This story is heart wrenching and horrifying, made all the more painful because it’s based on a real place where real boys were tortured, raped, abused and murdered. I highly recommend looking at triggers before starting this one just to be safe, because it’s brutal. While spirits and the supernatural are paramount to this story, the true terror is in the lack of humanity and completely disgusting and historically true displays of racism.
This story was phenomenal but so hard to get through, there were several times I had to put this down and just decompress because it weighed so heavy on my heart. Books like this are some of the most importantly literature in my eyes, especially at a time right now where racism and bigotry are being paraded around as political candidates.
10/10 everyone should read if you can handle it. I will be thinking about Robert, his family, the boys left behind, and the message of this novel for a very long time.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gore, Gun violence, Hate crime, Homophobia, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexual violence, Slavery, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Police brutality, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
The Honeys by Ryan La Sala
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
sad
slow-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
3.0
This book is WILD. It starts off very fast paced and I was immediately enthralled but then unfortunately you hit the middle portion which long, boring, and a little lost in my opinion. I think if the middle portion of this book was tighter I would have given this one a higher score but I really enjoyed the beginning and end of this one!
A cult horror fantasy with some gruesome scenes and interesting characters. If you can make it past the middle portion of this one it’s definitely worth it!
A cult horror fantasy with some gruesome scenes and interesting characters. If you can make it past the middle portion of this one it’s definitely worth it!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Bullying, Death, Gore, Violence, Grief, Gaslighting, and Dysphoria