extramedium's reviews
241 reviews

Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury

dark mysterious tense slow-paced

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

3.5

All This Could Be Different by Sarah Thankam Mathews

emotional reflective slow-paced

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

3.0

Didn’t really know what to make of this, not much to say narratively and there was a chance to really build on some of the ideas/actions presented but the author didn’t take full advantage of that opportunity IMO. it felt like a “things happening” novel more than an actual narrative story. The characters were diverse and interesting with their own strengths and weaknesses presented front and center. The whole thing felt very realistic and though I wasn’t sure how it would conclude, I was pretty okay with how it did. I’m always appreciative of books that are content to just let the story end how it needs to, not everyone gets a happy ending and not everything gets a solid conclusion. The book was slow until the middle point but I was glad I stuck with it. 

The Master and Margarita by Mikhail Bulgakov

adventurous challenging dark mysterious tense slow-paced

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

3.0

Liked the premise and there were parts that I thoroughly enjoyed, but I also felt like I was skipping through parts to get done faster. Felt like a stream of consciousness at times. 

The Island of Dr. Moreau by H.G. Wells

adventurous challenging mysterious 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? No

3.0

Not my favorite HG Wells novel, interesting premise that leans heavily on the ethics of humanity’s relationship with nature. Bit of a bore at times. 

In the Night Wood by Dale Bailey

challenging dark mysterious tense slow-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

3.0

Annihilation by Jeff VanderMeer

challenging dark mysterious sad tense slow-paced

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

3.0

Hemlock Island by Kelley Armstrong

dark mysterious tense 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

4.0

I liked this one quite a bit, the atmosphere, the pacing, the characters all help build this novel to a finale that I was pleased with. Weirdly, the second “humans battling with ancient forces” novel I read this year and the conclusion was significantly more believable and well-executed than the first novel. A pretty quick read that was enthralling from start to finish. 

Things Have Gotten Worse Since We Last Spoke by Eric LaRocca

challenging dark mysterious tense fast-paced

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

3.5

My Best Friend's Exorcism by Grady Hendrix

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

4.0

Old Country by Matt Query, Harrison Query

adventurous dark mysterious tense fast-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

3.5

Liked the premise, would have loved to see more depth to the seasonal spirit manifestations as they felt rushed or shallow at times. Would have also liked to see the story play out over a longer period of time. Sasha and harry accept for a moment that they’re stuck on the land forever but then are able to “rid” themselves of the spirit by the end of the first year there while people for thousands of years were unable to do so. Maybe the ambiguous ending sets up for the spirit coming back with a bigger vengeance (akin to the ending of the Autumn season) but it’s almost too ambiguous. 


Harry was generally unlikable and sasha was basically a non-factor in her own right. It reads like a movie novelization, maybe this will work better in the upcoming tv adaptation. 

There are some legitimately scary scenes of the book, especially during the summer and autumn seasons, but there didn’t seem to be a lot of weight to it. 

Would recommend this as a solid spooky season read but it could be fleshed out more IMO. Wonder how the nosleep story compares.

ETA: skimmed the NoSleep story and the novel’s ending is actually better than the original one unfortunately. You think the ending of the book is rushed, the Reddit post is moreso.  Many of the concepts are the same, there were some parts that worked better in the book (Dan’s character for one) and some that didn’t (Joe is even less of a factor). Lotta good ideas but severely lacking in execution.