fleurhoplof's reviews
71 reviews

Skyward by Brandon Sanderson

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adventurous emotional funny inspiring lighthearted mysterious reflective 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

4.75

The Haunted Forest Tour by James A. Moore, Jeff Strand

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adventurous mysterious tense medium-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? Yes

3.0

I had high hopes for this novel, with its exciting premise and promising cover. While I was a little taken aback by the explanation given for the appearance of the forest and its inhabitants, what I really disliked - and that's not too strong a word - was the constant misogyny, which is impossible to escape since it appears as much in the description of the women's bodies as in their insipid personalities. Please do better, the horror community deserves better.

Cabbage by C. S. Fritz

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dark inspiring reflective sad 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

5.0

"Cabbage" by C.S. Fritz could be placed somewhere between the witch's vegetable patch in "Rapunzel", Roman Polanski's "Rosemary's Baby", the plants born from Vendredi's sperm in Michel Tournier's "Vendredi ou la vie sauvage" or the legend that children come from cabbages. "Cabbage", a dark and poetic fairy tale, will appeal to those who have read "Helpmeet" by Naben Ruthnum.

Thomas, Rosemary's husband, has only one desire: to make his wife Rosemary, who is suffering from pancreatic cancer, happy. To this end, he tends a magnificent vegetable garden where he plants his favourite flowers as well as cabbages. When he breaks a vial of blood on the vegetable, it seems to magically grant wishes.
This is a subtle tale of loss and mourning, but also of life itself and its many transformations. The writing is poetic and gripping, and makes me want to read more of the author's work.

Although I wasn't always captivated by the quotes between the chapters, I loved the cover as much as the Spotify playlist!

Thank you to NetGalley and Albatross Book Co. for this wonderful discovery!

A definitive 5/5 !

Wings of Sorrow by Yolanda Sfetsos

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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? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

If you enjoyed "The Twisted ones" by T. Kingfisher, "Locke & Key" by Joe Hill, "Wylding Hall" by Elizabeth Hand or "The Beauty" by Aliya Whiteley, then you will certainly enjoy reading "Wings of Sorrow" by Yolanda Sfetsos.

"Wings of Sorrow" pays tribute to the classics of the Gothic novel by reusing some of its best-known tropes, from the deadly presence of birds, to sleepwalking, tableaux vivants and forbidden rooms. The constant nods to the classics of goth counterculture (Neil Gaiman, Tim Burton) and gothic literature make for enjoyable reading.

Thera and her husband Hector return from their honeymoon to tidy up late Aunt Anthea's house, a mysterious place Thera knows she once lived in, even though she has no recollection. The more the days go by, the more she loses her footing, and her husband, a teacher but above all a writer, feels an irresistible attraction to the house. As the story unfolds, the house closes in on its occupants like a wolf's trap, a metaphor for the curse of the Karras women, of which Thera seems to be the latest victim.

"Wings of Sorrow" is all about atmosphere. It's not for the twists and turns, of which there are not many, that you should immerse yourself in this book, but rather for its atmosphere, which I would have liked to discover even more, and of which the sumptuous cover, somewhere between nightmare and hallucination, gives us a foretaste. Perhaps the novel would have deserved to be longer, to give us the full benefit of the mysteries of this "House on the Edge of the World", as well as the protagonist's hallucinatory quest. I'm left wanting more on a number of aspects that are skimmed over, despite their prominent place in the story: the myth that runs through the heart of the plot (and whose interpretation given by Anthea is far from traditional), the female curse and feminist rage, the fear of repeating family mistakes, the supernatural hold that manifests itself as sexual frenzy.

The ending is very satisfying!

Thank you very much to Netgalley and DarkLit Books publisher for the ARC, in exchange for an genuine review.

3,5/5

Hollow by Mike Salt

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challenging dark tense medium-paced