dr_dr_olshakes's reviews
120 reviews

Patricia Wants to Cuddle by Samantha Allen

adventurous dark funny mysterious fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

I was flying high on this book until I saw that we were 93% in and we had only just gotten started.

How are you going to introduce me to a gaggle of elder lesbians protecting their island and a she-King Kong they named Patricia and then just end your book?? They are the most interesting part!

 

I was pleasantly surprised at how gruesome we got, and I love a good creature feature more than almost anything, and this was so close to being amazing. I was excited for characters and relationships to develop, I was digging the writing style and voice and then...the book ended. Bummer. 

Ring Shout by P. Djèlí Clark

dark emotional tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

First and foremost, I think most of my dislike of this book came from the audiobook narrator, who just loved chewing the scenery. The character would go from sobbing to laughing to sarcasm to witticism in like two lines of dialogue and it felt over dramatized.

The other issue is the ending character conflict. The climax hinges on what choice Maryse will make...but there was never any doubt she would side with Butcher Clyde. Zero chance. And it removed all the stakes.

Pros: I LOVED the eldritch horror of it all. That fucking slapped. I have a profound love for when eyes become mouths and the horrors become unfathomable and the gore is goopy. Big fan of all that.

So in conclusion, the climax needed some reworking, the narrator needs to chill, but love me some eldritch goop.

Witches by Brenda Lozano
Did not finish book.

Perhaps the least interesting way to write incredibly interesting characters. I tried to listen to this by imagining it was Abuelita telling me history, but even that couldn't carry me through. DNF at 66%

My Sister, the Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite

dark fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.75

Eh. At least it went fast.

Into the Planet: My Life as a Cave Diver by Jill Heinerth

adventurous emotional reflective fast-paced

3.5

Loved reading about the variety of cave exploring experiences, and appreciated the perspective of being a woman diver. I felt inspired to seek out more natural experiences, and it made me wonder what my own limits are. 

Craft Companion: knitting Sophie scarf with indigenous collective merino wool

Lakewood by Megan Giddings

emotional mysterious reflective slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.75

I may give this a higher rating when I'm no longer as frustrated, but man am I frustrated. 

From the very first experiment, Lena knows this is a bad, and racist, operation and that it will be bad for her. And then she spends the whole novel having the exact same thoughts, rationalizations, and feelings as she did on page, like 50. "These experiments are bad for me, but my mom is sick. These experiments are driven by racism, but my mom is sick."  I get that she's trapped, and manipulated, etc etc. But if that's all you're going to do with your story, make it a novella, hit the same actionless and bleak ending, and call it a day.

Also, as an exploration of racism, and particularly racism and government experiments, consider going a little deeper than "it happened, is still happening, and that's bad." 

Man, what a frustrating read. 

The Southern Book Club's Guide to Slaying Vampires by Grady Hendrix

challenging dark emotional funny tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

My third Grady Hendrix read, following Final Girls' and Exorcism, and I loved it! Hendrix really has this terrific ability to have his books be both somehow jaunty and witty and then slide smoothly into awful, terrible, gross, scary. I loved Patricia, and I loved her book club. I really liked how hard Patricia had to work to make her friends believe her, and then believe her again. I was expecting a sort of girl-gang team up that you get in books like this, but instead Patricia has to fight tooth and nail for them to even just hear her out. It was a great dynamic and really underscored the threat.

There's a lot of terrific horror in this book (the blanket scene and the rat scene stand out), but truly the absolute worst moment was when Patricia and the book club are blindsided by their husband's. The way that these men humiliate their wives, force apologies out of them, and force these women to break their bonds with each other, was by far the most terrifying and horrific scene in the book.

My only major complaint is the thing that makes the time skip happens. I don't understand what it was meant to be, if not the obvious, and the book insists it wasn't the obvious. I don't know. Either way, it was super jarring and while I understand its purpose, and don't even mind if it was the obvious, I needed it to be built up better and have more time with it.

Overall, Grady Hendrix continues to be one of my favorite contemporary horror authors and I look forward to reading more!

The Ogress and the Orphans by Kelly Barnhill

emotional funny hopeful reflective slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Charming, and heartfelt, and witty in that fairy tale way. An easy five. I am once again rewarded for stepping outside the horror genre. Also, a really nice exploration of Trumpian politics. 

White Horse by Erika T. Wurth

emotional mysterious reflective sad fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.75

I was going to give this three stars but the ending was just...so expected, and so trite, and just.....I don't know, too wrapped up in a neat bow and sappy. Idk. Also... I'm not sure the author knew Kari was an alcoholic. Drug use is heavily discussed, as is alcoholism, and critiqued, and recovery is talked about, and relapsing. But I'm genuinely unsure if the author knows Kari is an alcoholic. The author definitely doesn't know they wrote a lesbian.

Anyway, cool premise, glad I read it, wish I had better things to say.

Echo by Thomas Olde Heuvelt
Did not finish book. Stopped at 47%.

Like several other readers state...it's just too long, with too little. As a horror fan, the prologue, premise, and even some of the execution, are quite compelling. I was excited by the unique take on possession, and in Sam's development and relationship with Nick. 
But it's just too long. I found myself editing as I listened. What could be cut? Streamlined? Shortened, or even expanded upon. And it's miserable to be doing that only 35% on, let alone still be doing it at nearly 50%. I was listening at 1.75 in an effort to get through this, but there are better books worth more of my time.