luck13rabbit's reviews
74 reviews

The Lost Apothecary by Sarah Penner
Did not finish book. Stopped at 21%.

There are pieces of this book I like a lot, but I think the writing style is turning me off. It feels like there's a lot of effort put into making me think Caroline is really very interesting and quirky, but she's not. It tells me how much of a passion she has for history, but she doesn't seem to know simple things and her curiosity about the bottle she finds is so easily squashed. The apothecary timeline is more interesting, but it's still not quite grabbing me. Nella feels too flatly done with everything and Eliza feels a bit too bubbly and innocent.

The Spite House by Johnny Compton

dark mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

A haunting, pun intended, book about how ghosts and stories are made. A story about generational trauma, how history matters, and how hope is the hardest, most beautiful thing to hold.

One of the things that really stood out to me was how much no one really wanted to hurt anyone else, but they did anyway. By omitting facts, by not just asking for help, and by thinking their desperation made their plight or lives more important in the moment. It hammered home how easy it is to get caught up in the feelings of the moment without thinking things through. 

And Eric is just fantastic. Brilliant horror lead who keeps his cool in the face of many reality breaking moments.

Tell Me I'm Worthless by Alison Rumfitt

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense slow-paced

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

3.5

There were parts of this book I liked so much. I wish it had been a little more metaphor and a little less obvious and preachy, but at the same time, I don't think that's bad. This is definitely a book some people need, and I'm so glad it exists. I just like my social commentary with more ghosts.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Deadnaming, Drug use, Homophobia, Rape, Self harm, Toxic relationship, Transphobia, Blood, Antisemitism, Toxic friendship, and Dysphoria

Merciless Waters by Rae Knowles

adventurous dark emotional mysterious medium-paced

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

5.0

This is such a lovely, dark dairy tale. Just beautiful. Reading it is like draping yourself in heavy velvet and listening to a storm.

Below by Laurel Hightower

adventurous dark emotional mysterious 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

5.0

I took my kid on a road trip once. it was supposed to be short. just a four hour drive. but we got caught in a winter storm on the way. it ended up taking twelve hours. I remember constantly looking down at my GPS and doing math. "I'm supposed to be on this road for twenty miles. it's only supposed to be fifteen minutes, but I have to go slow. an hour. just one hour of this road. just one hour."

I would repeat that myself over and over silently to keep calm. I couldn't pull off anywhere. I just had to keep going. and keep telling my kid everything was going to be okay.

this book is like that fear. you can't stop. you can't go back. you just have to keep moving forward. even if you don't want to. even if you just want to go home. even when you want someone else to be in charge.

just. keep. moving.

absolutely horrifying. the best scary Alice retelling I've ever read, even if it wasn't meant to be that.

100 Things to Do in a Forest by Jennifer Davis

2.0

Tuesday Mooney Talks to Ghosts by Kate Racculia

adventurous hopeful mysterious 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? It's complicated

4.5

Hide by Kiersten White

adventurous dark emotional hopeful 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? It's complicated

5.0

Home Before Dark by Riley Sager

dark emotional 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? It's complicated

3.0

The story was good and full of some twists and turns, but I just read How to Sell a Haunted House by Grady Hendrix right before it and couldn't help think that everything was handled better in that book, especially the writing of the female characters. Sager writes his female characters like a man writing women. 

How to Sell a Haunted House by Grady Hendrix

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

5.0

This book is really everything I love about ghost stories. Past baggage as a metaphor for the present, generational trauma, and parallels to real problems.