"Don't be afraid."

I hadn't read anything by Triana before, but I'd heard so many good things about #GoneToSeeTheRiverMan that I was excited to jump into this one. I love it when terrible things happen in majestic woods.

But this was kind of a struggle.

It felt like most of the book was an explanation of the story. I never got lost in the words because we were constantly pulled out of it to be told something irrelevant.

I also found the...for lack of a better word, gender politics off-putting. Perhaps there was meant to be a message in the way the women were all very concerned with their appearances and the men were fully caught in lust and toxic masculinity, but I missed it.

And then there's my mystery pet peeve. The Scooby Doo style of reveals where you, the reader, never really has enough information to figure anything out. Knowledge is given to you too late, in info-dumps or exposition via dialogue between characters who don't need to be telling each other these things.

YMMV. Maybe this just wasn't for me. I'm still going to read more Triana. The story here was good and I've heard some of the issues I had are uncharacteristic for his writing.

🍂🍂
2/5 sweater weather breezes smelling of doom and bad omens.

Our Black Hearts Beat As One by Brian Asman

Go to review page

dark tense medium-paced

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

3.0

Michael Mallory is doing great. He's the lead singer of a moderately successful band, cool apartment, and great girlfriend. Until his girlfriend abruptly breaks up with him. Unemotional, already packed to leave, and without any fanfare at all. Like nothing they had mattered to her at all. He's left heartbroken--no, heartexploded--and bleeding all over his whole life. He can't stop thinking about her and the life they should have had. He starts to blow up everything around him. Until a strange red rover demon thing in a drain tunnel leads him to an increasingly depressing part of town no one seems to know about. An unseen woman offers him whatever he wants in exchange for three stories. But, like all horror stories that grant wishes, it isn't exactly as advertised.

I was so set to give this book five stars. I absolutely loved "Man, Fuck This House." Magic and musicians are some of my favorite things. There are so many beautiful pieces here, but they don't fit together quite right.

Like "It Follows", this book doesn't quite take place in our world. It's an interesting concept and I love the imagery and hints we get about the cosmology, but many times, it left me feeling like I was floating just outside of understanding. I kept trying to google things that don't exist. I get that, perhaps, this was to put us in the same position Michael, an unbeliever, is in, but he never seemed very curious about anything or asked the questions I wanted him to.

The stakes seem a little...wishy washy? We don't really see much of Michael prior to the breakup with Kara, then he's distressingly depressed and obsessed, then he's a dick, then... there's just not too much character development. I loved Keegan and Donnie, but we don't get to see much of them, even when it really seems like we should. Gabrogian seems to mostly come out of nowhere and confuses the nature of the world further by being...whatever the fuck he is.

Which brings me to the stories. NGL, I love this framing device, but it was a bit whiplashy for me. I feel like having stories within stories is a great way to flex writing muscles and really lean into some other voices and styles, but none of that really happens. And the stories themselves are just kind of banal. Except for Gabrogian's. I honestly could not tell you what exactly is going on there.  

And, as for the ending... I don't like it. I won't spoil anything here, but I just felt like it was all too perfect.  

It's not a bad book. It's short and fun and has some absolutely killer imagery. Plus Donnie and Keegan. Absolutely pick it up if you feel so compelled, but know it's a bit more of a popcorn story than anything truly scary or deep.

Shoutout to @netgalley for the #ARC!

Halloween Season by Lucy A. Snyder

Go to review page

Did not finish book. Stopped at 60%.

The book felt more middle grade than I expected. It was fine and the stories were cute. I just have a long tbr and wasn't having as much fun as I'd hoped.

Who Haunts You by Mark Wheaton

Go to review page

dark tense medium-paced

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

2.0

👻 #WhoHauntsYou
🪦 by Mark Wheaton
🎧 narrated by Annalee Scott

After a fellow student dies stranhely, Bex, a neurodivergent high schooler, gets hyperfocused on solving the mystery.

Bex herself is often ignored or infantalized by her family. She's an odd MC choice because she's not actually very connected to anyone in the story. Her status as an outsider could be interesting, but it's never very utilized.

The mystery is compelling, but the reader is never given quite enough information to solve it. By the end of the book when the villain is unmasked, it has the same feeling as when Velma would explain all the behind the scenes things that happened off camera that would have helped us solve the crime with them.

I was not confused by the twisting realities, but they were confusing. It seemed like an unnecessary complication.

Overall, I was fully invested in this story until the end when it all started fraying apart. Its kind of fun and quick and the audiobook narrator is good.

👻👻
2/3 fictitious ghosts

Thanks to #netgalley for giving me the opportunity to listen to this!

Downpour by Christopher Hawkins

Go to review page

dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-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? It's complicated

5.0

There was this interview I listened to with Tom Petty where the interviewer asked him about the meaning of one of his songs. I don't remember exactly what he said, but it amounted to something like, "It's about what I said it was about in the song. If I could have said it differently, I would have." Maybe it was Tom Waits? Some Tom. I digress.⁠
⁠
The point is, I've been sitting on this review for a bit because I love this book. I don't know what I can say about it that could convey anything useful because it's all already there.⁠
⁠
Scott lives in his old, crumbling childhood home with his family. He and his wife are...strained. It's hot. And they don't have enough money. And then the rain comes. It is not the cleansing, watering rain the failing farm needs. It's something else. Something that will change absolutely everything it touches.⁠
⁠
I've seen comparisons to The Mist, and I can see it, but I think Pet Sematary or literally any Paul Tremblay book is better. There is a dread that seeps in and grows. Even as eldritch madness takes hold, the decisions the characters makes seem realistic and reasonable--to them, at least. As the #reader, I can see their options falling away. I'm watching as their ability to make good choices diminishes. It's like watching a flood. Or looking at an old photograph and knowing what happened after the shutter clicked was bad.⁠
⁠
Horror with heart is my favorite thing and this one has a lot. Broken, yes, but so much. Huge thanks to @netgalley for the eARC. The book will release on October 3rd, 2023.⁠
⁠
⛈️⛈️⛈️⛈️⛈️⁠
5/5 strange little storm clouds⁠

Penpal by Dathan Auerbach

Go to review page

dark sad slow-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? No

2.0

The ending of this book brings everything together in a horrifying and heartbreaking way, but the build up didn't quite do it for me.

I know this was originally written in parts on the #nosleep subreddit and it does show. I wish there had been a few more passes to make this feel more like a cohesive novel.

I also think I maybe don't really love reading about kindergartners. I enjoyed the book more when the characters were older.

CW: It seems like something bad happens to a cat.

2/5 creepy polaroids

Clown in a Cornfield by Adam Cesare

Go to review page

dark tense medium-paced

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

5.0

I put off reading this despite all the good things I heard because of the title. It seemed like it would be the kind of campy I don't really like. I did myself dirty.

This book is just really good. The writing is solid, the characters are layered and realistic, and the camp is spot on perfect. It reads fast and easy, almost more like watching a movie. It has a message without being overly preachy. And it has my favorite kind of love triangle.

More...

luck13rabbit's reviews 74 reviews

luck13rabbit's reviews
74 reviews