Month: March 2024

Serena’s Review: “Dark Water Daughter”

This post may contain affiliate links for books we recommend.  Read the full disclosure here.

Book: “Dark Water Daughter” by H.M. Long

Publishing Info: Titan Books, July 2023

Where Did I Get this Book: Netgalley!

Where Can You Get this Book: WorldCat.org | Amazon | IndieBound

Book Description: Mary Firth is a Stormsinger: a woman whose voice can still hurricanes and shatter armadas. Faced with servitude to pirate lord Silvanus Lirr, Mary offers her skills to his arch-rival in exchange for protection – and, more importantly, his help sending Lirr to a watery grave. But her new ally has a vendetta of his own, and Mary’s dreams are dark and full of ghistings, spectral creatures who inhabit the ancient forests of her homeland and the figureheads of ships.

Samuel Rosser is a disgraced naval officer serving aboard The Hart, an infamous privateer commissioned to bring Lirr to justice. He will stop at nothing to capture Lirr, restore his good name and reclaim the only thing that stands between himself and madness: a talisman stolen by Mary.

Finally, driven into the eternal ice at the limits of their world, Mary and Samuel must choose their loyalties and battle forces older and more powerful than the pirates who would make them slaves.

Review: I’ve been wanting to get back to H.M. Long’s books for a while now, and even had this mentally slotted as one to review last summer when it came out. Obviously, that didn’t happen. But better late than never! And as the sequel is scheduled to drop this coming July, I can even say I’m getting this review out of the way several months in advance! We’ll see if I can be timely about getting to that one! Though, given how much I enjoyed this book, I think think the chances are high!

I feel like there was a very brief blip where pirate fantasy stories were trending, around when Adrienne Young wrote her “Fable” duology. But it didn’t quite take off in the same way we’ve seen with other incredibly popular trends (the vampire one currently is a good example, where every third book you see will be a vampire book in some way or another). It’s too bad though, as I think that pirate stories or even just sea-fairing adventure stories are a perfect match for a lot of classic fantasy fiction. They both often involve quests of some sort that move from location to location; there are often larger parties of characters who all have their own motivations and loyalties; and, of course, lots of fight scenes! Long was able to hone in on all of these elements perfectly in this book.

For the fantasy elements, I really liked the world we have here. Not only is Mary’s weather singing ability super interesting on its own, but I enjoyed the way this kind of ability was worked into the organization of this society and the history behind how Stormsingers have historically been treated. Especially for a very nautical group of countries, we can easily see how Stormsingers would be in the sort of demand they are, as well as how their abilities could be exploited by those around them. Beyond the Stormsinging, however, there were a lot of other excellent fantasy elements. I feel like we only scratched the surface of Samuel’s own abilities, with some big swings coming towards the end of the book (I’m especially excited to see where his story goes in the next book). And on top of all of this, we have the ghistlings. These beings felt like a bit of an after thought in both the book summary and in the beginning of the story, but man, that was a bait and switch! There were some truly shocking twists and turns in this arena throughout the book.

I also really enjoyed Mary and Samuel as characters. Each had a rich and compelling back story that was slowly revealed, and I particularly enjoyed the extreme slow burn of their growing relationship. We’re talking slooooowww. After reading a bunch of romantasy books recently, I very much appreciated the return to fantasy where there is a romance, but it is definitely a subplot to not only the greater plot but also to the individual character arcs. As an aside, I had a moment reading this book where I realized I may have been reading a bit too much romantasy recently when the villain was first introduced and I found myself wondering if he was being introduced as a second spoke in a developing love triangle (there is a bare whiff of a love triangle, to be fair, but not with this character.) Sometimes villains are just villains, Serena! Once I re-oriented myself to the real world of most fantasy fiction, I appreciated just how villainous this character really was, and how clearly everyone around him saw this fact.

I also really enjoyed the many various side characters we met. There were several different ships with their own crews and captains that wove in and out of this story, and I enjoyed how all of these moving parts worked together to build to the ultimate show-down. There were some great twists and turns with these side characters as well, with swapping loyalties and a shifting scope of who were the good guys and bad guys at any given moment. It all felt very “Pirates of the Caribbean” in the best way.

I loved this book! It managed to balance so many things all at once without dropping a single plate. There was action, there was danger, there was loyalty and betrayal, love and friendship, and, of course, a large dose of magic in a creative secondary world. After reading this book, I can fairly confidently move Long into my “must read” category for fantasy authors currently writing. If you enjoy fantasy adventures, and especially pirate stories, definitely check this one out!

Rating 9: A perfect combination of a high stakes pirate adventure and a fantasy-fueled quest of discovery. I couldn’t put it down!

Reader’s Advisory:

“Dark Water Daughter” can be found on these Goodreads lists: Nautical Fantasy and Gunpowder Fantasy.

Kate’s Review: “Dead Girls Walking”

This post may contain affiliate links for books we recommend.  Read the full disclosure here.

Book: “Dead Girls Walking” by Sami Ellis

Publishing Info: Amulet Books, March 2024

Where Did I Get This Book: I received an eARC from NetGalley.

Where You Can Get This Book: WorldCat.org | Amazon | Indiebound

Book Description: A shocking, spine-chilling YA horror slasher about a girl searching for her dead mother’s body at the summer camp that was once her serial killer father’s home—perfect for fans of Friday the 13th and White Smoke.

Temple Baker knows that evil runs in her blood. Her father is the North Point Killer, an infamous serial killer known for how he marked each of his victims with a brand. He was convicted for murdering 20 people and was the talk of countless true crime blogs for years. Some say he was possessed by a demon. Some say that they never found all his victims. Some say that even though he’s now behind bars, people are still dying in the woods. Despite everything though, Temple never believed that her dad killed her mom. But when he confesses to that crime while on death row, she has no choice but to return to his old hunting grounds to try see if she can find a body and prove it.

Turns out, the farm that was once her father’s hunting grounds and her home has been turned into an overnight camp for queer, horror-obsessed girls. So Temple poses as a camp counselor to go digging in the woods. While she’s not used to hanging out with girls her own age and feels ambivalent at best about these true crime enthusiasts, she tries her best to fit in and keep her true identity hidden.

But when a girl turns up dead in the woods, she fears that one of her father’s “fans” might be mimicking his crimes. As Temple tries to uncover the truth and keep the campers safe, she comes to realize that there may be something stranger and more sinister at work—and that her father may not have been the only monster in these woods.

Review: Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an eARC of this novel!

There are a number of known truths in my world, and one of those truths is that if you make a reference to “Friday the 13th” in relation to another movie plot or story, I’m going to be automatically interested. I have a special place in my heart for Jason Voorhees and those pretty not great but super campy and gory slasher movies, so much so that my Terror Tuesday friend group is slowly working our way through the movie series as group member Michael had never seen any of them. Because of my love, when I was browsing NetGalley for upcoming horror novels, I was immediately intrigued by “Dead Girls Walking” by Sami Ellis. It not only dropped “Friday the 13th” in its description, but also “White Smoke” by Tiffany D. Jackson, one of my favorite horror authors. These two things and a very eye catching cover made me pretty excited to read this book. Which means I was a bit bummed when it didn’t quite rise to the occasion.

But as always I will start with the good! I will say right off that this harkens less to “Friday the 13th” (outside of the summer camp setting) and more to the original “Evil Dead” when it comes to the scares. Which is a-okay with me, because I love both of those franchises but “Evil Dead” isn’t seen nearly as much when it comes to general cultural references to gory slasher and horror films, whereas I feel like even those who don’t know horror are familiar with Jason Voorhees at least in passing. Ellis knows how to craft a horror casualty that feels like it’s coming from a gory slasher movie, and I could definitely visualize those moments in all their bloody glory.

I do love a gorefest at times. (source)

I also really liked how Ellis has paid something of an homage to a sub-genre that is, very often and certainly during its heydey, a very white, cis, and straight playing field, and has subverted it by featuring queer Black girls. At the center of that is Temple, our protagonist whose father has been convicted of being a serial killer, and whose hunting ground was her family property which has now been transformed into a summer camp. Temple gets the job of a counselor in hopes of finally finding her mother’s body, and her prickliness and hidden identity is a clashing point for the campers. Temple herself is a character I liked a lot, because even though she is probably seen as pretty unlikable, her trauma, family history, and inability to process makes that prickly personality completely understandable. And while a lot of the other campers weren’t super well fleshed out, there were a few that I thought had a lot of good character development and background foundation (the one that really comes to mind is Yaya, a queer teenager who is also a devout Christian and knows that the two things can be reconciled). It’s just refreshing seeing a cast of characters that buck the narrow trends of the genre.

But there were a few hiccups that didn’t work for me. The first is that there were some aspects of the plot that felt a little undercooked, and at times confusing. I felt like I really understood Temple and her motivations, but when it came to the lore of her family history, the land that the murders/camp was on, and her parents and their own motivators and even their trains of thought, these things felt brushed over, or in some ways a bit unclear. I know that slasher movies don’t really need that much motivation beyond ‘slasher A has motivation B and kills horny teenagers’, but even in those that have stood the test of time we have a very clear motivation set. Even the aforementioned closer analog “The Evil Dead” compensates for a very loosey goosey motivation by leaning into slapstick humor in the second two of the trilogy (and doesn’t make Ash Williams much more than a poor sap with quippy lines and a constitution that can endure buckets of blood and a chainsaw hand). With Temple being so well rounded, I had hoped that her adversary would be well rounded too, but it felt lacking. Add in a bit of a pacing issue and it knocked points off from the overall read. All of this said, I am not the target audience for this book, and while these things didn’t work for me, I know that I would ABSOLUTELY be recommending this book to my teenage patrons who like their horror on the gory side.

I will be interested in seeing what Sami Ellis does with her next novel. “Dead Girls Walking” was brimming with lots of horror goodness in spite of some missteps here and there, and I hope she keeps bring her perspective to the genre.

Rating 6: I liked the cast of characters and some of the gory bits, but the plot was a little confusing and the background felt a bit off at times.

Reader’s Advisory:

“Dead Girls Walking” is included on the Goodreads lists “Queer Horror”, and “Summer Camp Horror”.

Serena’s Review: “Mountains Made of Glass”

This post may contain affiliate links for books we recommend.  Read the full disclosure here.

Book: “Mountain Made of Glass” by Scarlett St. Clair

Publishing Info: Sourcebooks Bloom Books, March 2023

Where Did I Get this Book: from the publisher!

Where Can You Get this Book: WorldCat.org | Amazon | IndieBound

Book Description: All Gesela’s life, her home village of Elk has been cursed. And it isn’t a single curse—it is one after another, each to be broken by a villager, each with devastating consequences. When Elk’s well goes dry, it is Gesela’s turn to save her town by killing the toad that lives at the bottom. Except… the toad is not a toad at all. He is an Elven prince under a curse of his own, and upon his death, his brothers come for Gesela, seeking retribution.

As punishment, the princes banish Gesela to live with their seventh brother, the one they call the beast. Gesela expects to be the prisoner of a hideous monster, but the beast turns out to be exquisitely beautiful, and rather than lock her in a cell, he offers Gesela a deal. If she can guess his true name in seven days, she can go free.

Gesela agrees, but there is a hidden catch—she must speak his name with love in order to free him, too.

But can either of them learn to love in time?

Review: Scarlett St. Clair is a powerhouse of a romantasy writer. She’s prolific and beloved, and I hadn’t read anything by her up to this point. So I was excited to check this book out when I was approached by the publisher for a potential review. I won’t lie, I was especially excited to check out a novella and one that is pulling from various fairytales. I best know St. Clair through references to her “Hades and Persephone” series, and that’s a tough one to get right, so I felt more confident with a fairytale re-telling as an initial entry point to this author’s work.

After now reading this book, I feel like I’m just as unclear on whether or not St. Clair’s books are for me or not. That said, I can now easily understand the appeal for many romantasy fans. Let’s start with that part. Right away, the style of writing appealed to me. There was a nice balance between quick pacing and descriptive prose. The author had clearly read a bunch of fairytales and had no problem capturing the correct tone, writing a story that felt both whimsical and beautiful at times, and violent and disturbing at others. I especially liked just how many fairytale sources were all drawn upon to craft this story. The author even included a note with more details on all of the points of inspiration she pulled upon when writing this book, which I found fascinating.

I also really enjoyed the dialogue and much of the inner monologues we saw from both the hero and the heroine. And while I enjoyed Gesela, Casamir’s chapters turned out to be the most fun. There were a bunch of side characters with whom he interacted, and I loved the ridiculousness of their scenes attempting to point out to their great Fae lord just how inept his attempts at wooing Gesala really were. There was also a captured fairytale prince whose own story veered off into some truly surprising directions.

However, almost from the very start, I struggled with the balance being struck here between plot and spicy scenes. In that…there really was no balance and it was predominantly the latter. No judgement, of course, to readers who are happy with books that lean more in this direction, but for me, I still have fairly high expectations as far as plot goes for my romantasy books. I still want a story, you see. And while yes, there was one here, it was sometimes hard to keep sight of it through all of the insta-lust we had going on.

I was especially put off when, during the very first scene between Gesala and Casamir, we have Gesala completely losing her wits and falling into immediate lust over this complete stranger. And not just “oh, he’s good looking” lust, we’re talking “let’s jump in bed now!” lust. From there, I felt like there were numerous moments where any of the tension or build to the actual love story were undercut by these moments of straight spice. And at a certain point, it became so comical how often Gesala was ending up in contrived situations where she was naked that I started counting. Which really isn’t what I want from a story: to be so distracted by some sort of silliness that I start counting.

I’m not quite sure where to go from here. Reading between all of the spicy scenes, there was a lot to like about this book. I thought the characterization was great, the dialogue was witty and often hilarious, and the fairytale inspiration was spot on. I just didn’t like how much the spicy scenes seemed to overshadow any actual story that was being drawn. The author’s note said she plans on writing stories for all of the other Fae brothers, so maybe I’ll check out the next one of those and go from there. That said, if you enjoy romantasy books with insta-lust/lots of spice, this may be for you. But if you’re looking for more story or plotting to hold things together, this one is on the weaker side.

Rating 7: A bit of a hit or miss reading experience, I really enjoyed the story we had here, but unfortunately the plot often fell to the wayside in lieu of romance scenes.

Reader’s Advisory:

“Mountains Made of Glass” can be found on these Goodreads lists: Romantasy for Adults and Epic High Fantasy/Romance/Mythology in 2023

Kate’s Review: “The Angel of Indian Lake”

This post may contain affiliate links for books we recommend.  Read the full disclosure here.

Book: “The Angel of Indian Lake” by Stephen Graham Jones

Publishing Info: S&S/ Saga Press, March 2024

Where Did I Get This Book: I received an eARC from the publisher via NetGalley.

Where You Can Get This Book: WorldCat.org | Amazon | Indiebound

Book Description: The final installment in the most lauded trilogy in the history of horror novels picks up four years after Don’t Fear the Reaper as Jade returns to Proofrock, Idaho, to build a life after the years of sacrifice—only to find the Lake Witch is waiting for her in New York Times bestselling author Stephen Graham Jones’s finale.

It’s been four years in prison since Jade Daniels last saw her hometown of Proofrock, Idaho, the day she took the fall, protecting her friend Letha and her family from incrimination. Since then, her reputation, and the town, have changed dramatically. There’s a lot of unfinished business in Proofrock, from serial killer cultists to the rich trying to buy Western authenticity. But there’s one aspect of Proofrock no one wants to confront…until Jade comes back to town. The curse of the Lake Witch is waiting, and now is the time for the final stand.

New York Times bestselling author Stephen Graham Jones has crafted an epic horror trilogy of generational trauma from the Indigenous to the townies rooted in the mountains of Idaho. It is a story of the American west written in blood.

Review: Thank you to Saga Press for sending me an eARC of this via NetGalley!

When I first picked up “My Heart Is a Chainsaw” by Stephen Graham Jones, I didn’t really know what to expect, but I thought that it would at the very least be a fun meta horror story with an abundance of references to the genre I love most. And it was. BUT, it was also the start of a trilogy that would expand upon and defy conventions of the slasher genre while still showing complete adoration for it. And we have now come to the end of Proofrock, and the end of Jade Daniels, final girl for the ages, with “The Angel of Indian Lake”. By the time I had it in my hands on my Kindle, I was very, VERY excited to start it, but also nervous. Was Stephen Graham Jones going to stick the landing of this series? What a fool I was for questioning him. Because “The Angel of Indian Lake” is a worthy end to a love letter to slashers and their final girls everywhere.

Jade can officially join the exalted ranks of Laurie, Sidney, Nancy, and Sally when all is said and done. (source)

Jade Daniels remains the MVP of not only this trilogy, but one of Jones’s best characters of all, and it was so great seeing her character arc from the beginning of the trilogy up until and through this book. I love how she has persevered, how she is still a HUGE weirdo in her own way, how she is still scrappy but vulnerable and goes beyond the expected qualities of a heroine in a slasher film. In “The Angel of Indian Lake” she is trying to live a normal life as a teacher, she is going to therapy, she is acting as a godmother to her best friend Letha’s daughter Adie. But Proofrock’s demons keep pulling her back in, and as a whole new cycle of horrific murders, as well as a new gentrification cycle, AS WELL AS A FOREST FIRE, threatens the town, Jade, once again, has to step up. And this time you can tell how weary she is, even if she is always going to go forth and fight.

In terms of the horror action, there is a LOT in this book, almost like there are just so many slasher beats and meta themes that are all fighting to come through. There are cursed objects, decapitations, the return of previous killers, things rising from the lake that are long thought dead. Like I said, it’s a LOT, and it can skew towards chaotic, but it’s done in a way that feels like a wink and nudge to the way that the end of a trilogy (before the reboot or requel, of course) needs to pull out all the stops to keep a fan on their toes. My head was spinning a bit, partly because of all the curves and twists, partly because Jones’s writing style can be steeped in more literary styles that I like but have a harder time parsing through for whatever reason. But it’s also very enjoyable and worth the parsing out.

And, of course, the horror references. I’m repeating myself a bit here as in each and every “Indian Lake” book there are so many references to slasher films and horror tales in general, and “The Angel of Indian Lake” keeps that tradition going. I like to think that I am more versed than the average horror fan in the genre, but man, Jones always puts me to shame while also filling me with awe, not only with the flat out reference points that Jade alludes to, but also with the story devices and character choices and moments that ALSO made references. But in this final entry to the trilogy, many of the references feel almost bittersweet as Jade has to face so many demons, be they supernatural beasties wreaking havoc in the town, or the trauma and despair that she has had to face over and over again, only to keep on fighting while not quite accepting that she, too, is worthy of the final girl title. Jones knows what he is doing with his genre choices, and Jade is a final girl inside and out, and even beyond what that generally means in the broader trope. It’s just so meaningful, how he ties it all together.

“The Angel of Indian Lake” is a gory and emotional final tale for Jade and the town of Proofrock. I don’t generally get choked up during slasher stories, but Stephen Graham Jones has put so much heart into this I was absolutely crying by the end. What an accomplishment this trilogy is.

Rating 9: A complex and multilayered end to a trilogy that is a Valentine to a sub-genre that isn’t known for complexity, “The Angel of Indian Lake” brings Jade Daniels full circle, and redefines what it means to be a ‘Final Girl’.

Reader’s Advisory:

“The Angel of Indian Lake” isn’t included on many Goodreads lists yet, but it would fit in on “Slasher Fiction”.

Not Just Books: March 2024

While we do love us some books, believe it not, we do have a life outside of reading. So to highlight our other pop culture interests, on the last Monday of each month, we each will highlight three other “happenings” from the last month. Big events on favorite TV shows, new movies we’ve watched, old movies we’ve “discovered,” etc. Pretty much whatever we found of particular interest outside of the book world during the last month. Share your own favorite things in the comments!

Serena’s Picks

Movie: “Dune: Part Two”

I had to patiently wait for a night that we had the boys off at their grandparents, but I did finally get to see this one! It was always going to be a priority to see it in the theater, and boy, am I glad that I did! I loved it so much! Not only were the visuals and soundtrack amazing (well worth the ticket price), but every single actor was knocking it out of the park. Frankly, it was a relief to finally come across a good movie again. I feel like too many of the recently released films have all felt like cardboard cut-outs of stories, with nothing really new to say. But this felt like a return to excellence. In many ways, these first “Dune” movies have reminded me of the LOTR trilogy, both being sets of films where it truly feels like everyone involved really cared about the story they were telling and you could see that in every little detail. Definitely check this one out, especially in the theater if it’s feasible for you!

Apple TV+ Movie: “Greyhound”

Apparently, my husband and I have embraced middle age a bit early, in that somehow we’ve found ourselves watching a number of WWII movies and shows back-to-back. I haven’t joined a “WWII” bookclub yet, so I think I’m holding complete middle-age-dom at bay, but…it’s getting dicey. Mostly, I wanted to watch this one purely because of Tom Hanks. There are certain actors who just sell you on pretty much any story, and Hanks is that actor for many of us! The story was also exciting and nerve-wracking, focusing on one of the many perilous crossings of troops across the Atlantic during the war. It’s impressive how much tension could be built simply by staring out across an empty ocean, worrying about submarines. If you enjoy wartime movies, this is definitely one to check out.

Kate’s Picks

TV Show: “Shōgun”

I first read the epic historical fiction novel “Shōgun” the summer after my freshman year of college, and I was OBSESSED with it. I loved the melodrama, I loved the sweeping descriptions, I loved the way that it evoked a time and place I was wholly unfamiliar with. So when I saw that FX had a new show coming out based on the book, I wondered how it would translate. And let me tell you, “Shōgun” the show is phenomenal. The story takes place in 1600 Japan, when an English Pilot named Blackthorne and his crew run aground in Japan, which at this point was very isolationist outside of doing trading with Portugal and the Jesuits. There he meets Toranaga, a daimyo who is trying keep his power while his rivals threaten his life and stature, as well as Mariko, a cunning woman samurai who is trying to prove her loyalty to Toranaga. Toranaga soon realizes that this ‘barbarian’ may be a great asset. The show is gorgeous, it has a great cast, and my favorite thing about it is that while the book is very centered on Blackthorne and a Western lens, the show has instead centered Toranaga, Mariko, and the other Japanese characters. I am once again obsessed, and have my husband along for the ride this time.

Podcast: “Oh, That’s Just My Autism”

So for the past few years my family has been on something of a neurodivergence journey, as my daughter has been receiving educational services and occupational therapy for potential ASD and we are slowly getting our ducks in a row to seek out a medical evaluation and diagnosis. While working through all of this I’ve been noticing my own neurodivergence (ADHD) more, and have also been considering getting my own evaluation for ASD the more I’ve learned (and the more I’ve seen similar behaviors and traits in myself). I’ve been reading up on various things, but I also found a chill (and in many ways SUPER relatable) podcast called “Oh, That’s Just My Autism”. It’s hosted by Melissa, a woman who received her ASD/ADHD diagnosis in her early 40s, and who put together a podcast to kind of parse through that process and the way she has processed her diagnoses. She tackles subjects like anxiety, parenting as a neurodivergent person, rejection sensitivity, and going on a self discovery journey later in life that can take you by surprise. It’s easy to digest and I relate to it pretty well, so it’s been a fun listen.

Joint Pick

Documentary: “Love Has Won: The Cult of Mother God”

I blame Kate for this. Once again, she pulled me into watching another horrific cult show (ok, I’m a pretty willing victim). This one pulls no punches, hitting viewers over the head with the horrific end of “Mother God” right in the first few minutes of the story. I won’t spoil it for you, but I’ll never look at Christmas lights the same way again. But, overall, this was another fascinating documentary that had us both glued to the screen. It was like a car crash that we couldn’t stop staring at! There are a few versions of this story out there, so you have choices, but if you enjoy documentaries about crazy cults, this is definitely one to add to the list. Just don’t be eating dinner during the first episode, as I was.

Kate’s Review: “Bury the Lead”

This post may contain affiliate links for books we recommend.  Read the full disclosure here.

Book: “Bury the Lead” by Kate Hilton & Elizabeth Renzetti

Publishing Info: Spiderline, March 2024

Where Did I Get This Book: I received an eARC from Zg Stories

Where You Can Get This Book: WorldCat.org | Amazon | Indiebound

Book Description: A big-city journalist joins the staff of a small-town paper in cottage country and finds a community full of secrets … and murder. Cat Conway has recently returned to Port Ellis to work as a reporter at the Quill & Packet . She’s fled the tattered remains of her high-profile career and bad divorce for the holiday town of her childhood, famous for its butter tarts, theatre, and a century-old feud. One of Cat’s first assignments is to interview legendary actor Eliot Fraser, the lead in the theatre’s season opener of Inherit the Wind . When Eliot ends up dead onstage on opening night, the curtain rises on the sleepy town’s secrets. The suspects include the actor whose career Eliot ruined, the ex-wife he betrayed, the women he abused, and even the baker he wronged. With the attention of the world on Port Ellis, this story could be Cat’s chance to restore her reputation. But the police think she’s a suspect, and the murderer wants to kill the story―and her too. Can Cat solve the mystery before she loses her job or becomes the next victim of a killer with a theatrical bent for vengeance?

Review: Thank you Zg Stories for sending me an eARC and an ARC of this novel!

Well, I think that it’s time that I just admit to myself that I am going to be the resident cozy mystery reviewer on this blog, because at this point I have three or four series that I am actively seeking out and following and reviewing on here. Perhaps it’s a bit of a contrast given my usual focus on the darker elements of genres, but you know what, I’m going to own it. I contain multitudes!! After all, when “Bury the Lead” by Kate Hilton and Elizabeth Renzetti ended up in my inbox, I was drawn to it. A cozy mystery that has a reporter of small town newspaper as the lead, who has to investigate the on stage death of a famous but ultimately abusive leading man, well that just catches my eye. I am wholly on board with becoming the resident cozy mystery reviewer, and “Bury the Lead” is the start of what will hopefully be another series I can follow. Because I enjoyed it!

At the heart of any good cozy mystery is a relatable and enjoyable protagonist, and in “Bury the Lead” we have Cat Conway, a reporter for a small town newspaper who is trying to pick up the pieces of multiple fallouts from her life. If it’s not the divorce she has had to endure from her nasty ex husband, it’s the recent loss of an illustrious journalism job, and she is now rebuilding as best she can in a small town. Cat is a great main character to follow, because she has a lot of baggage that she is carrying with her, and being able to break the story on what happened to Eliot Fraser would certainly get her reputation (and self perception) back on track. I liked her rough edges, I liked she snark and her glimmers of pain and resentment, and I liked that her complications never bogged her down. I also liked that she was an ‘older’ protagonist, as while that’s not exactly a novel thing when it comes to cozy mysteries, as someone who is approaching 40 herself, seeing women in books be able to be in an older age bracket and still have the spotlight is always a treat. I was very invested in Cat and would definitely read more books about her should this series continue.

The mystery itself is well done, and crafted in a way that laid out clues at a good pace and had plenty of means, motives, and opportunities for a large swath of suspects. Like many cozy mysteries, Hilton and Renzetti have a charming community that serves as a setting, and a charming cast of characters, some of whom will probably be seen as the series continues, and others who make for solid villains. As Cat investigates for her story we meet the people at the newspaper, as well as plenty of people who may have wanted Fraser dead for some pretty legitimate (and in some cases upsetting) reasons. I found myself guessing for awhile as to what the solution was going to be, and even though I solved it a bit before I was supposed to, I still greatly enjoyed the ride and found the plot well thought out and presented. And hey, I love the idea of the main ‘hook’ (as so many cozy mysteries have hooks) being a small town newspaper with a sometimes quirky but always intrepid set of reporters, with Cat leading the way.

“Bury the Lead” is an enjoyable cozy mystery to add to my ever growing series list that I intend to follow forward. I’m still very amused that cozy mysteries ended up in my lap on the blog, but with books like this they are an enjoyable beat to have.

Rating 8: A well conceived plot with a comfy setting and a charming cast of characters makes “Bury the Lead” another cozy mystery series I intend to keep my eyes on.

Reader’s Advisory:

“Bury the Lead” isn’t on many specific Goodreads lists as of yet, but it would fit in on “Cozy Crimes”.

Serena’s Review: “The Last Bloodcarver”

This post may contain affiliate links for books we recommend.  Read the full disclosure here.

Book: “The Last Bloodcarver” by Vanessa Le

Publishing Info: Roaring Brook Press, March 2024

Where Did I Get this Book: NetGalley

Where Can You Get this Book: WorldCat.org | Amazon | IndieBound

Book Description: Nhika is a bloodcarver. A cold-hearted, ruthless being who can alter human biology with just a touch. In the industrial city of Theumas, she is seen not as a healer, but a monster that kills for pleasure.

When Nhika is caught using her bloodcarving abilities during a sham medical appointment, she’s captured by underground thugs and sold to an aristocratic family to heal the last witness of their father’s murder.

But as Nhika delves deeper into their investigation amidst the glitz of Theumas’ wealthiest district, she begins to notice parallels between this job and her own dark past. And when she meets an alluring yet entitled physician’s aide, Ven Kochin, she’s forced to question the true intent behind this murder. In a society that outcasts her, Kochin seems drawn to her…though he takes every chance he gets to push her out of his opulent world.

When Nhika discovers that Kochin is not who he claims to be, and that there is an evil dwelling in Theumas that runs much deeper than the murder of one man, she must decide where her heart, and her allegiance, truly lie. And – if she’s willing to become the dreaded bloodcarver Theumas fears to save herself and the ones she’s vowed to protect.

Review: I feel like there’s been a lot of exciting new Asian fantasy stories coming out this spring, and this one was definitely high on my TBR list, as I’m even less familiar with Vietnamese mythology than Chinese, Japanes, or Korean. The cover art is also very unique and intriguing, and I thought the main character’s magical trait of manipulating human biology had a lot of promise. I also love murder mysteries, so I was excited to see how well these two genres would be blended together. And, well, it was all pretty good!

What first stood out to me was the lush and descriptive style of writing the author employed. The story starts out fairly quickly as far as plot and pacing go, but I was still able to picture the details of this world and character. This felt like a fully realized, fully peopled fantasy world, complete with a culture that felt distinctive and elaborate. Of course, central to the story were Nhika’s bloodcarving abilities, and this detailed style of writing helped to truly flesh out how this power worked. Many fantasy stories devolve to fairly simplistic explanations of their magical elements, but here I felt like we were given a true insiders-look into Nhika’s magic. This felt important as it helped the reader understand why an ability that could be so useful to humanity could also be seen as something to fear and hate.

I also really liked Nhika’s character and the arc she has in this book. Through her eyes, we see the experiences of a diaspora character, a young woman who finds herself in a world that no longer feels like her own. Even more interesting, her experiences as an outsider who does not fit within this world were mirrored in the other main character Kochin who experiences a similar disconnect. But while this disconnection and “out-of-place-ness” might be similar between them, their experiences and views of how they fit (or don’t fit) within this world are very different.

That said, this is one of those rare circumstances where I feel like the story might have been better without any romance at all. I liked both of these characters, but frankly, by the time the romance really started to amp up, I’d forgotten that was even the direction it was heading. These two were very definitely enemies for much of the time, so the change of tone when it came, did feel a bit strange. It was also rather sudden, not feeling nearly as developed as many of the other aspects of the story.

Overall, this was a great debut novel! I had some quibbles here and there with the way the romance was developed, but the writing and world-building were strong and promise of great things to come from this author in the future!

Rating 8: Rich and vivid worldbuilding combined with a compelling vision of the diaspora experience created a fantastic debut all around!

Reader’s Advisory:

“The Last Bloodcarver” can be found on these Goodreads lists: Around The World 2024 – Asia Continent and Asian SSF.

Kate’s Review: “A Dowry of Blood”

This post may contain affiliate links for books we recommend.  Read the full disclosure here.

Book: “A Dowry of Blood” by S.T. Gibson

Publishing Info: Redhook, October 2022

Where Did I Get This Book: I own it.

Where You Can Get This Book: WorldCat.org | Amazon | Indiebound

Book Description: S.T. Gibson’s sensational novel is the darkly seductive tale of Dracula’s first bride, Constanta.

This is my last love letter to you, though some would call it a confession. . .

Saved from the brink of death by a mysterious stranger, Constanta is transformed from a medieval peasant into a bride fit for an undying king. But when Dracula draws a cunning aristocrat and a starving artist into his web of passion and deceit, Constanta realizes that her beloved is capable of terrible things.

Finding comfort in the arms of her rival consorts, she begins to unravel their husband’s dark secrets. With the lives of everyone she loves on the line, Constanta will have to choose between her own freedom and her love for her husband. But bonds forged by blood can only be broken by death.

Review: Earlier this month I reviewed the book “Thirst” by Marina Yuszczuk, a sapphic historical horror tale in which a woman in modern day Buenos Aires is caught up with a woman vampire who has been around for centuries. I made mention of thinking about the “Buffy” characters Darla and Drusilla as I read, and mused that I wish there had been a prequel book about Darla and Drusilla galavanting around Europe with Angelus and Spike being a sexual foursome together. Well, the synchronicity of the Universe kicked in a bit, because shortly after that review was written up, I picked up “A Dowry of Blood” by S.T. Gibson, which had been ALL OVER my social media feeds from various horror influencers. I bought it on a whim with a birthday book gift certificate from my sister, not sure of what to expect. And then when I began reading, I nearly fell out of my chair. Because as the story went on, it was clear that it was going to scratch that Darla/Angelus/Drusilla/Spike itch and all the nasty complications that come with it.

You should have made it clear they were all sleeping together, you cowards!!! (source)

“A Dowry of Blood” is from the perspective of Constanta, a medieval peasant woman turned bride of Dracula after the Count discovers her near death and changes her into a vampire. It’s Constanta finding a newfound supernatural power and an exciting life with her husband, but also finding his dark and manipulative side as he takes on more romantic companions and manipulates them all into loyalty and servitude. I’ve read a few “Dracula” retellings or spin off remixes, but I had never read one from the perspective of his Brides, and this one is such a dark yet also empowering read. Constanta’s story is one of a woman who finds herself in a bad and toxic relationship, and who has to go through the process of understanding it, accepting it, and extricating herself from it, while also feeling a loyalty to her fellow companions, Magdalena and Alexi. The three of them coming together to lean on each other, while trying to figure out how to remove themselves from Dracula, is a nail biter the closer we get to the eventual showdown, and while Gibson basically lays out the outcome from the jump, the suspense is still there.

I hesitate to call this story a romance, as it can be bleak and unsettling seeing how Dracula can hold such abusive power over Constanta, Magdalena, and Alexi, but at the same time there are shades of romanticism between the Brides (and Husband) as they bond, commiserate, and eventually strive for more. There is certainly intimacy, and I loved seeing the relationships between Constanta, Magdalena, and Alexi grow and evolve and strengthen. Watching Constanta evolve and shift and start to find her own power, even against the vampire that she feels she owes everything to, is at times difficult given the content, but is also a story that feels inherently like an unshackling of abusive chains. Hell, even just seeing Constanta go from a dying peasant to a vengeful vampire, who takes out the men who killed her family and tried to kill her, starts this off on an empowering note and shows that Constanta has it in her, even when she is under Dracula’s spell, or at least under his gaslighting, his manipulations, and his abusive tendencies. Looking back at my up-page comparisons to pop culture, maybe it would be more accurate to say this reads like Darla leaving The Master behind and choosing her lovers over him. Regardless, it’s satisfying as hell.

BUT, that said, there are also some really sumptuous and erotic moments in this book when it comes to Constanta exploring her burgeoning sexuality and intimacy with not only her husband, but also the other spouses. Much like Coppola’s “Bram Stoker’s Dracula”, “A Dowry of Blood” does have a bit of a romantic undercurrent about it in spite of the horror and the more toxic thematics. There are so many descriptors and so many beats that make it feel like an indulgence of beauty and decadence (especially if you take into account the epilogue/novella that is included in the edition I have, “An Encore of Roses”. That one was just full on sexy and spicy, and I HIGHLY RECOMMEND SEEKING IT OUT REGARDLESS), while also keeping the tension and the horror there . It also has a lot of really knowing nods to the source material itself, giving these characters a complicated backstory while also harkening to moments from Stoker’s vampire novel without dwelling or relying too much upon them.

“A Dowry of Blood” was a really enjoyable and bloody good read. I love historical vampire horror, and I love it when an author can bring in romantic elements that feel real, scary, and also tender. If Gibson wrote more stories about this group of vampires, I’d absolutely read them.

Rating 9: Erotic, empowering, indulgent, and bloody as hell, “A Dowry of Blood” is a sweeping and entertaining vampire novel that finds the darkness in an abusive situation, while also finding the light in actual love and support and tenderness.

Reader’s Advisory:

“A Dowry of Blood” is included on the Goodreads lists “Bisexual Vampire Books”, and “Classic Retellings and Spinoffs: Monster Mash”.

Serena’s Review: “The Encanto’s Daughter”

This post may contain affiliate links for books we recommend.  Read the full disclosure here.

Book: “The Encanto’s Daughter” by Melissa de la Cruz

Publishing Info: G.P. Putnam’s Sons Books for Young Readers, March 2024

Where Did I Get this Book: NetGalley

Where Can You Get this Book: WorldCat.org | Amazon | IndieBound

Book Description: A young woman claims the throne of a realm inspired by Filipino mythology in this YA romantic fantasy, the first in an enchanting new duet by #1 New York Times bestselling author Melissa de la Cruz.

MJ Rodriguez has spent her life hiding in the human world, keeping a heavy secret. She’s half-encanto. As the only child of King Vivencio of the Sirena Court, she’s also next in line for the throne. And now, upon her estranged father’s sudden death, MJ must claim her place as rightful heir.

In wondrous Biringan, the road to the throne is paved with thorns. Without a reigning monarch, the realm has spiraled into disarray. MJ has to win over a backstabbing council that objects to a half-human ruler. And when it looks like her father’s passing wasn’t natural but possibly inflicted by a curse, she must hunt down the sorceress behind this merciless magic.

In a bind, MJ forges an unlikely alliance with the striking Sir Lucas of the feared Sigbin Court, and soon, she loses her heart to the mysterious knight. But with peril looming over Biringan, the princess must decide if she can both open herself to love and carry the weight of the crown.

Review: So, I’m going to just say this up front: I mistook this author for another “Melissa” author when I initially requested this book on NetGalley. I’ve only read one other book by de la Cruz, and to say it wasn’t a favorite is probably an over-statement. I think it might be one of my lowest rated books on the blog, actually. That said, even after I realized, I still wanted to give this one a shot. Over the last year or so, I can think of a few examples where I’ve really loved books by authors who didn’t work for me the first time around. So, who knows? This could have been another situation where, with a new project, my mind could be changed.

All of that nice intro just to find out…nope, turns out everything that I disliked about the first de la Cruz book was more a feature of her writing than a bug. Ah, well, worth the shot I guess! But, as always, let’s talk a bit at first about the things that did work for me. Really, not much did. But I can see more where things would work for other readers whose tastes differ from mine. I did like the elements that were drawn from Filipino mythology (I especially appreciated the author’s note about this), and I wish there had been even more of these elements included on the whole. By the end, I still felt like we’d only scratched the surface of what could have been a rich fantasy tapestry. I also think that many of the choices made with regards to characterization and plot will appeal more to younger YA readers, so they may find more to like in this book than I did.

But for me, this was really a disaster of a read. Both the characters and the plot felt like cardboard cut outs of the most stereotypical elements of storytelling that on could cobble together. From the ridiculousness of the “magical royal school” setting, to the plot quickly devolving from MJ taking seriously her task to learn to take the throne in only a month’s time to instead partaking in juvenile bickering and drama. And to people these scenes, we have all of the stereotypes you can imagine: quirky best friend? Check. Mysterious romantic interest? Check. Hot girl that the main girl must hate? Check. This last one was most disappointing to see. I vaguely remember having problems with this in the other book by de la Cruz I read, this propensity to making the main female character seem special by degrading the other women around her. It was distasteful then, and it’s pretty depressing to still see it popping up here in YA fiction years later.

Beyond this, it felt like the book didn’t know what it wanted to be. You have, of course, the boarding school aspect. But the story also has elements of a fantasy thriller and then a murder mystery is introduced. And yet, even with all of these elements, I found myself so, so bored while reading this. Not being able to connect to any of the characters is always an uphill battle as far as engagement with a book goes, but it also felt like the pacing of this one was simply very slow. It felt like nothing was really happening for large chunks of the story. And as it went, it was easy to guess exactly where every plot line was going which sucked any tension out of the experience. And then we get to the end and what do we get? A cliffhanger!

I really disliked this book. The writing felt limited, the plotting was questionable, and the characterization could be reduced to stereotypes. All of that said, I know this author is popular with a lot of readers, so if you’re a fan of her previous books, take all of this with a massive grain of salt. Also, if you’re very dedicated to checking out a book that draws from Filipino mythology this might be worth a shot, though, I have to say, I feel like there have to be better examples out there than this. Overall, while I’m glad I gave this author another shot in the service of not having fixed opinions of an author based on one reading experience, after finishing this one, I’ll think I’ll call it quits.

Rating 5: At best it doesn’t stand out from the pack of other YA fantasy stories, and at worst, it’s a muddled mess of stereotypes and predictable plot lines.

Reader’s Advisory:

“The Encanto’s Daughter” can be found on this Goodreads list: Asian YA/NA Books 2024:

Kate’s Review: “Worm”

This post may contain affiliate links for books we recommend.  Read the full disclosure here.

Book: “Worm” by Edel Rodriguez

Publishing Info: Metropolitan Books, November 2023

Where Did I Get This Book: The library!

Where You Can Get This Book: WorldCat.org | Amazon | Indiebound

Book Description: From “America’s illustrator in chief” ( Fast Company ), a graphic memoir of a childhood in Cuba, coming to America on the Mariel boatlift, and a defense of democracy, here and there.

When Edel was nine, Fidel Castro announced his surprising decision to let 125,000 traitors of the revolution, or “worms,” leave the country. The faltering economy and Edel’s family’s vocal discomfort with government surveillance had made their daily lives on a farm outside Havana precarious, and they secretly planned to leave. But before that happened, a dozen soldiers confiscated their home and property and imprisoned them in a detention center near the port of Mariel, where they were held with dissidents and criminals before being marched to a flotilla that miraculously deposited them, overnight, in Florida.

Worm tells a story of a boyhood in the midst of the Cold War, a family’s displacement in exile, and their longing for those they left behind. It also recounts the coming-of-age of an artist and activist, who, witnessing American’s turn from democracy to extremism, struggles to differentiate his adoptive country from the dictatorship he fled. Confronting questions of patriotism and the liminal nature of belonging, Edel Rodriguez ultimately celebrates the immigrants, maligned and overlooked, who guard and invigorate American freedom.

Review: Every once in awhile my Mom will send me a link to an article through the New York Times that has a review of a book that she thinks that would interest me. More often than not I’ve already read it or it was at least on my radar, but sometimes she will send one my way that is totally novel. In this case it was “Worm: A Cuban American Odyssey” by Edel Rodriguez. Perhaps you know of Rodriguez as an artist, specifically the artist behind the viral and infamous Trump artwork that has been on the likes of Der Spiegel and Time Magazine. Rodriguez felt it important to call out Trump on his dangerous and totalitarian tendencies, something he recognized even during the 2016 Primaries when a Trump Presidency was seen as merely a fantasy (we all know how that went). Rodriguez knows this because his family fled Cuba in the 1980s, after his family was being watched, surveilled, and threatened by the Government. “Worm: A Cuban American Odyssey” is that story, as well as story about life in a totalitarian regime, and how even a country that seems filled with idealism can fall into that trap.

Rodriguez combines modern Cuban history, starting with the Cuban Revolution, and moves through it until the 80s, tracking his family’s experience living under Castro in the town of El Gabriel. His father was a photographer while his mother stayed at home, but joined up with the local CDR, a group that was made up of Cuban citizens that would essentially ‘keep an eye’ on the community for any anti-regime activities or sentiments. Edel and his sister grew up with a meager education, and with parents who were constantly worried about watching what they said or did, all while trying to keep their family alive under pretty poor conditions due to poverty and corruption. We follow Edel through various childhood anecdotes and experiences, from the mundane involving friends and family, to the disturbing (such as the time Edel contracted a parasite that went through his legs, and the local hospital didn’t have enough medicine to treat him). As times become more dire as Edel grows older, his family make the choice to leave when Fidel allowed anyone who wanted to leave to leave so long as they could find a boat (and so long as they weren’t killed in the process whether it be by the Government or their own communities, who saw them as traitors and ‘worms’). It’s a deeply harrowing and emotional memoir, and as someone who knows very little about the Cuban Revolution and had certain ideas about Cuban immigration in my mind, this was pretty educational and eye opening (little did I know that the Cuban Immigrant community has MANY reasons to leave, not just because they were Batista loyalists). It also tracks the story of what adjusting to America was like for the family, not only through the eyes of Edel, but also through the eyes of his parents, who came with nothing and had to find their way to provide for their children in a wholly new environment. His parents are so well depicted in all of their complexities, and Rodriguez also touches a bit on how the traumas of escaping this kind of life can spill over into a new life with new challenges.

But this isn’t only a memoir about escaping a totalitarian regime: it is also a warning about the rise of totalitarianism through the eyes of someone who lived it, and how romanticizing or ignoring it is so, so dangerous. Rodriguez doesn’t only take those who romanticize Castro’s Cuba to task, he also REALLY digs into the way that America is embracing their own totalitarian tendencies, as Trump became President and his stink has infected so many other people (or perhaps just let them let their own stink loose). The connections that he draws between the life his family fled and how it all has to start somewhere is bleak and really alarming, and the way he compares the lies of January 6th and the Unite the Right Rally and other far right rage and venom to the violence he saw back home is really, really stark. And we’d best pay attention.

And the artwork is just astounding. It’s visceral and surreal in some ways, but always knows how to cut to the bone. In mostly blacks, whites, greens, and reds, it has a unique and signature style that is reminiscent of Rodriguez’s political works, but which still feels very personal. There is a LOT of text in this book, it almost feels like more of a memoir with an artistic backdrop on each page, but it never feels overwhelming and is still very easy to read.

(source: Metropolitan Books)

“Worm” is a fantastic memoir with an artistic and emotional edge. It’s so important to learn history, especially from those who lived it, and to remember that just because things feel abstract or like they couldn’t happen in your own life, that there will always be people to tell you that you may be wrong. Edel Rodriguez is here to do that.

Rating 9: A harrowing and deeply personal memoir about fleeing totalitarianism, and the looming threat of it in a new home, “Worm” is a fantastic graphic memoir from an outspoken artist.

Reader’s Advisory:

“Worm” is included on the Goodreads lists “NPR’s Books We Love 2023: Favorite Comics and Graphic Novels”, and “Memoirs Published in Year: 2023”.