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petalpineink's reviews
117 reviews
The Dread Penny Society: The Complete Penny Dreadful Collection by Sarah M. Eden
3.75
The fun I had with these stories!
This compilation of stories was exactly what I needed. Each story follows the style of an old penny dreadful story - a glimpse of a story based on something wicked, mysterious, or downright supernatural. To name a few of my favorites in the collection, “The Lady and the Highwayman” follows a heroine caught up in the efforts to stop a mysterious monster looming over the town after being pestered yet intrigued by the local highwayman. “The Gentleman and the Thief” follows a town recluse and his childhood friend as they try to uncover the mystery of items going missing in his manor. And “The Merchant and the Rogue” follows a sweets shopkeeper and another roguish shop owner as they attempt to stop the local squire from using his status to squander all the shops in town.I found myself most drawn to the works of Mr. King, but I others as well.
If you’re in the mood for a short read filled with whimsical, old timey versions of horror, and of course some light romance, these stories are for you! I found myself glued to what would happened next and giddy with emotion as the characters found romance.
Thank you NetGalley and Shadow Mountain Publishing for an ARC of this compilation.
This compilation of stories was exactly what I needed. Each story follows the style of an old penny dreadful story - a glimpse of a story based on something wicked, mysterious, or downright supernatural. To name a few of my favorites in the collection, “The Lady and the Highwayman” follows a heroine caught up in the efforts to stop a mysterious monster looming over the town after being pestered yet intrigued by the local highwayman. “The Gentleman and the Thief” follows a town recluse and his childhood friend as they try to uncover the mystery of items going missing in his manor. And “The Merchant and the Rogue” follows a sweets shopkeeper and another roguish shop owner as they attempt to stop the local squire from using his status to squander all the shops in town.I found myself most drawn to the works of Mr. King, but I others as well.
If you’re in the mood for a short read filled with whimsical, old timey versions of horror, and of course some light romance, these stories are for you! I found myself glued to what would happened next and giddy with emotion as the characters found romance.
Thank you NetGalley and Shadow Mountain Publishing for an ARC of this compilation.
The Dark Between The Trees by Fiona Barnett
dark
mysterious
2.0
The promise of this story had so much potential, but it just didn’t deliver for me.
This story focuses on two alternating perspectives - one of a military unit lost in the for in the 1600s and another of a modern day group of women seeking to discover the history of the lost military group. This story sets you up to expect dark twists and monstrous beings as both groups discover the fatal mysteries of the woods. It seemed to me to have a feel crossed between Annihilation, though not science fiction, and The Blair Witch Project. However I quickly discovered that while the set up of the story gave these vibes, the execution just didn’t keep me interested or deliver enough mystery and excitement for my liking.
To be honest, I didn’t find much of this story to be memorable. I found that the scenes describing the monster and the hardships and horrors the characters experience tended to speed through too quickly and not give enough detail to really give them the scare they ought to have delivered. And I felt the deterioration of some of the characters relationships, especially the women in modern time, occurred to quick. By the end I felt both that the horror aspect of a dark woods was sped over and therefore this read was not all too memorable for me. The ending just didn’t wow me either to elevate the rest of the issues I had with it.
Overall, I really wanted to like this book based on its premise, but it was not a book written for me after all.
Thanks NetGalley and Revellion for an ARC of this book.
This story focuses on two alternating perspectives - one of a military unit lost in the for in the 1600s and another of a modern day group of women seeking to discover the history of the lost military group. This story sets you up to expect dark twists and monstrous beings as both groups discover the fatal mysteries of the woods. It seemed to me to have a feel crossed between Annihilation, though not science fiction, and The Blair Witch Project. However I quickly discovered that while the set up of the story gave these vibes, the execution just didn’t keep me interested or deliver enough mystery and excitement for my liking.
To be honest, I didn’t find much of this story to be memorable. I found that the scenes describing the monster and the hardships and horrors the characters experience tended to speed through too quickly and not give enough detail to really give them the scare they ought to have delivered. And I felt the deterioration of some of the characters relationships, especially the women in modern time, occurred to quick. By the end I felt both that the horror aspect of a dark woods was sped over and therefore this read was not all too memorable for me. The ending just didn’t wow me either to elevate the rest of the issues I had with it.
Overall, I really wanted to like this book based on its premise, but it was not a book written for me after all.
Thanks NetGalley and Revellion for an ARC of this book.
Two Twisted Crowns by Rachel Gillig
5.0
I just— I have no words. Just incredible.
Update: Now that I have pulled myself together after finishing this read, I cannot recommend this duology enough. One of my all time favorite reads.
As the author address in their acknowledgments, a sequel is not an easy thing to do. It is not easy to do incredibly well when the first book was already so perfect. And it is certainly not way to do knowing that it is the closing chapter of a story and of characters you have become so attached to. But this sequel nailed it. It took me much longer to read than it should have simply because I did not want it to ever end, so I figured I would just draw it out indefinitely.
This second book not only delved into the story where the first book left off, bur it also gave us a much deeper insight into characters from the first book - some of whom i was desperately wanting to know more about after the first bool and others that i didn't know I needed more of until I experienced them. Ione, Elm, the Nightmare. Just incredible character building.
If you have not read this duology by Rachel Gillig yet, then move it to the top of your TBR pile! I cannot wait to dive into this world again with a reread.
Thank you NetGalley and Orbit Books for an ARC of this masterpiece.
Update: Now that I have pulled myself together after finishing this read, I cannot recommend this duology enough. One of my all time favorite reads.
As the author address in their acknowledgments, a sequel is not an easy thing to do. It is not easy to do incredibly well when the first book was already so perfect. And it is certainly not way to do knowing that it is the closing chapter of a story and of characters you have become so attached to. But this sequel nailed it. It took me much longer to read than it should have simply because I did not want it to ever end, so I figured I would just draw it out indefinitely.
This second book not only delved into the story where the first book left off, bur it also gave us a much deeper insight into characters from the first book - some of whom i was desperately wanting to know more about after the first bool and others that i didn't know I needed more of until I experienced them. Ione, Elm, the Nightmare. Just incredible character building.
If you have not read this duology by Rachel Gillig yet, then move it to the top of your TBR pile! I cannot wait to dive into this world again with a reread.
Thank you NetGalley and Orbit Books for an ARC of this masterpiece.