natalie_and_company's reviews
337 reviews

Get a Life, Chloe Brown by Talia Hibbert

3.0

Not going to lie, some of the dialogue in this was too cheesy for me. And I hated the smut, it made me cringe. Outside of that I really enjoyed the pacing of the story, the flow and progression of characters, and the cute parts.

I do love the disability rep in here though, I think it's a great recommendation for others for that reason.

Everyone in My Family Has Killed Someone by Benjamin Stevenson

4.0

A classic whodunit format really twisted to fit the author's intentions, especially with the frequent 4th wall breaks. This book has a great winter setting, turning up the intensity of everything a few notches.

The large cast of characters was handled well, and I was extremely surprised to see that the themes of this book so heavily dealt with anti-police issues. The police in this book repeatedly harm this family, in a way that really shows manipulation of power very well. The uncovering of the monsters people become when manipulated by people in power is well represented. This book was genuinely sad at moments, this book also got me grossed out more than some other actually gorey books have before.

An extremely enjoyable book with enough surprise twists that at least one of them should get you. A couple definitely got me.

The Last House on Needless Street by Catriona Ward

3.75

I thought this book ended up being really well done. In the beginning of the book there are many red herrings that can make the book come off as something that it is not. I know it is done on purpose so I don't think I can criticize it, although it did slow down the pacing of the book.

I think the ideas pondered about are very subversive and thought-provoking in a great way. You can see what the natural inclination for guessing the "bad guy" is and because of that, you can very clearly see the point that Catriona Ward is trying to make about the readers expectations of evil people.

I think it was great, just not my personal favorite style of writing, hence the rating.

The Lying Game by Ruth Ware

3.5

It was fine. I enjoyed the characters and it was enjoyable to read throughout but I guessed the twist less than half way through the book. All of the events play out exactly as you would expect them to except for one minor twist that changes things only slightly, but does not in the end make that much of a difference or impact.

Taaqtumi: An Anthology of Arctic Horror Stories by Thomas Anguti Johnston, Cara Bryant, Gayle Kabloona, Ann R. Loverock, K.C. Carthew, Repo Kempt, Jay Bulckaert, Rachel Qitsualik-Tinsley, Aviaq Johnston, Richard Van Camp, Sean Qitsualik-Tinsley

4.0

I really loved this. I do think it is a little deflating that my least favorite story is also the longest one in the entire collection, It was just a little too science fiction for my horror tastes. But the execution of every story is so succinct and clean. The imagery in every story is so clear to me. As someone who is often dissatisfied with open endings, these stories were exposed just enough to feel great satisfaction in my understanding of each of them. There was just enough uncovered while still staying entirely horrific and mysterious. 

A Far Wilder Magic by Allison Saft

3.5

This book does great in the beginning. It gets right into and sets the stakes high from the get go. It's very immediately immersive and the details of the setting and ambiance are well done. Unfortunately it doesn't really follow through on all of it's promises. I think the romance is sweet, but the book tries to present you with a big and fantastical world and it feel likes with every page that progresses that world is less and less vibrant. It is pushed further and further into the background so that the main couple can spend more time interacting. There is so much folklore that is woven into the introduction of this that it makes you think that will be an essential part of the resolution but it is not. So many questions posed at the beginning are forgotten in the end and replaced with a very simple and mundane happy ever after. 

We Used to Live Here by Marcus Kliewer

2.0

I'm so mad at all of you who made this book sound like House of Leaves. House of Leaves is terrifying because it repeatedly peals back layers of questions, answering them and still presenting you with a terrifying feeling. This book did not resolve anything !! What was the purpose of the stalker guy in the house? What was the purpose of the weird motel? What would have happened if the main character had walked down the hallway in her neighbor's house? 

I wanted to like this so badly, I am a huge fan of books that utilize space in its story but by the end of this I was left with a bunch of puzzle pieces that didn't fit together. It started off really great. The premise and the building blocks used to begin this story are amazing. But it really runs out of steam by the end. It becomes convoluted and in the end you feel that so much of all the elements that made it scary were just thrown in there and unnecessary. 

I really hope there is a second one. I think if there was I could reevaluate my feelings on this but it just feels so unfinished. 

First Lie Wins by Ashley Elston

4.5

This book is just so fun. It is not the usual, "ah there' a murder we gotta go solve it" mystery. There is so much dimension to the suspense here. The plot is so enthralling because it goes outside the usual mystery/thriller stereotypes. The main character here is genuinely smart, we are not just told that she is, we see her actively being brilliant throughout the book and I really enjoyed that. The book has so many ups and downs it really takes you for a ride. There is not just one climax but a series of progressively intense reveals that bring you to the end or the mystery. The way the layers and events are built on top of each other is very well done and the meshing of the past and the present does great at building the main character's personality, story, and history. That was why I was so bummed when the book ended with the main character doing what I felt was out of character.

The reason this was not a five was because [this main character spent the entire book talking about the downsides of the work that she does, and how much harm that the industry she has worked for has done, only to submit to working in that industry at the end of the book. (view spoiler) To me it was very much like she girlbossed too close to the sun. She was really powerful and strong and surprisingly kind and clever and then at the end she's like, yeah but I'm not going to do anything differently for the greater good. 

Horror Movie by Paul Tremblay

2.5

Despite it being tiny, this book takes forever to get into its stride. Many parts in the rising action are irrelevant or unnecessary. Like the time where the main character spent an entire 2 minutes talking about an old job that never had any relevance to the story. Once the story was going it was enjoyable, I think the audiobook does not do the unusual format any favors. Still, the plot is enough to carry along the reader until the end when it lost me in its final scenes. I think the plot line about the past is very intriguing but once the story was brought to its final moments in the present it really lost me with where it took the main character. Before the ending things made sense, there was reason and meaning behind the horror and I could see the points the author was trying to make with his story. but the way the last part was written almost throws all of that way for me. To me it felt like his editor was like, "we need an ambiguous ending," and he just threw one together. 

*SPOILERS*

I really felt like the fact that Valentina survived and the moment where Valentina takes the Thin Kid home and puts her under the bed makes very little sense. Then when the Thin Kid Grown Up turns into the actual monster like out of nowhere???? I feel like if there had been more build-up throughout the story of the thin kid actually evolving into a monster it would have been different, the story was so focused on the horrific-ness of humanity that when it was revealed to be a monster all along I felt it really cheapened it's points. 

The Reappearance of Rachel Price by Holly Jackson

3.5

The beginning of this book is very slow. It truly frontloads so much information. Assumedly in order to throw you off the scent. Some chapters definitely feel dragged out, I didn't need an entire 10 minute chapter about stealing a cell phone. Some parts could have been condensed down for sure, and if they had been condensed I think the actual impactful parts of the books would have had a little more room to breathe.

Despite this, the payoff at the end of this is pretty great. Holly Jackson did a good job and showing all the pieces in a way that made it difficult to put them all together until she really wanted you to. Fun by the end, but could have used just a bit more editing.