mysteriouslytiff's reviews
9 reviews

American Ghoul by Michelle McGill-Vargas
Did not finish book. Stopped at 70%.

The flashback style was unnecessary, and the protagonist being a vampire servant wasn't interesting. It would've been more fun, if they had been a vampire themselves or vampire hunter.

The Last Session by Julia Bartz

dark emotional informative mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

2.0

I received an ARC of this book from Atria Books and NetGalley. It had an interesting concept, but it was delivered in an incoherent and underwhelming way. When it came to the psychological side, too many characters were unreliable from mental illness/addiction or deceit, causing the story to be too difficult to follow and the investigation to be too overshadowed by trauma. As for the thriller side, the locked room element wasn't evenly present throughout the story. It was briefly introduced in the prologue and then didn't return until the final stretch, leaving the atmosphere mostly dulled to a general sense of isolation. Overall, I appreciated the author incorporating their therapist background with the topics and dynamics explored. However, the pacing and characters unfortunately made everything confusing, tedious, and frustrating to read. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Sexual assault, Violence, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Sexual harassment

Minor: Suicide attempt

All Because of You: A Novel by Lissa Lovik
Did not finish book. Stopped at 30%.

The stalker's POV is too boring. The sense of danger would've felt more present from the victim's POV.

Swipe by R. G. Belsky, Bonnie Traymore
Did not finish book. Stopped at 29%.

It seemed more like a romance than a thriller, the pacing was slow despite having alternating POVS, and the characters weren't described distinctly enough.

Kill Show by Daniel Sweren-Becker

dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced

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

5.0

The Creepening of Dogwood House by Eden Royce

dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-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

Out of Body by Nia Davenport
Did not finish book. Stopped at 49%.

The body swapping element made the story feel unnecessarily complicated. Regular identity theft would've worked better for the contemporary, real-world setting. Body swapping as identity theft would've worked better in a sci-fi setting. Also, the characters weren't interesting.

The No-Brainer's Guide to Decomposition by Adrianna Cuevas

dark emotional informative mysterious sad tense fast-paced

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

4.5

The Perfect Marriage by Jeneva Rose
Did not finish book. Stopped at 17%.

The story wasn't thrilling enough.