Month: October 2024

Serena’s Review: “Tomb of the Sun King”

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Book: “Tomb of the Sun King” by Jacquelyn Benson

Publishing Info: Crimson Fox Publishing, October 2024

Where Did I Get this Book: Netgalley!

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

Book Description: Archivist and suffragette Ellie Mallory always dreamed of putting her scholarly skills to work in the ancient sands of Egypt. She never imagined she would be doing so in order to save an object of legendary power from a batch of ruthless villains. Racing baddies to an arcanum of Biblical proportions is only one of Ellie’s problems. Her hopelessly academic and perpetually mortified step-brother, Dr. Neil Fairfax, is about to learn that she’s been gallivanting around the globe with his danger-magnet best friend, Adam Bates—the roguish surveyor for whom Ellie harbors increasingly complicated feelings. Add the petite and terrifyingly fearless Constance Tyrrell to the mix, and Ellie either has a crack team of artifact-saving experts to hand… or a recipe for disaster. Together, they’ll need to follow a trail of three-thousand-year-old clues from the necropolis of Saqqara to the temples of Luxor and beyond, where the ruined capital of a heretic pharaoh hides a secret with the potential to upend history. To keep an earth-shattering magic from falling into the wrong hands, Ellie will need to pull out all the stops—even if that means resorting to fisticuffs, ignoring proper archaeological processes… and facing a terrible choice between doing what she knows is right or breaking her own heart.

Previously Reviewed: “Empire of Shadows”

Review: I really enjoyed the first book in this series and was super excited when I realize that the second one was slated to be released only a few months later! While I love fantasy and romantasy, I do feel like I’ve been running into more and more books recently that feel like carbon copies of one another with a rather paint-by-numbers approach to characterization and plot. In this way, this historical adventure series has felt like a breath of fresh air!

While I remember comparing the first book to the 90s movie “The Mummy,” I have to say that this one really leaned into that vibe by relocating our characters to Egypt itself. And, of course, curses and other such hijinks immediately ensued! Like the first book, I enjoyed the detailed work that went into some of the historical and cultural aspects of the story. While Egyptian history and mythology is more widely taught here in the U.S., than the ancient cultures of South America that were explored in the first book, there is always still room to explore just how pernicious much of the early archeology that took place there truly was. It wasn’t the primary focus, but the story did a good job of highlighting just how corrupt much of the process became, straying far from scientific and educational purposes.

However, at its heart, this book was full of adventure and the continued build of the slow-burn romance between the two main characters. One of my criticisms of the first book was the pacing of the story, especially in the first quarter. Here, the book is better served for having our two main characters already travelling together, allowing the story to set off at a break neck pace and never really let up!

Ellie and Adam also continued to be excellent main characters, and their developing love story is just as sweet in this second go-around. As they are both fairly stable characters, as far as it goes, I was pleased to see the book introduce a few side characters, namely Ellie’s friend Constance and her brother (and Adam’s friend) Neil. While Ellie and Adam are the foundational core of the story, these two additional characters added a bit more zing to the affair. For their part, the villains remained fairly one-dimensional and straight-forward, but I think this choice worked in conjunction with the overall tone of lighthearted adventure that makes up this book.

There were a few word choices that began to bother me as I read, however, feeling a bit too modern for the book. While I know the word “guy” was around at this time, it began to feel overused and a bit anachronistic at times. I don’t know for sure, but from reading other books written around this time period, I just don’t think it was used nearly as casually or as often as we see it in the modern time. Perhaps I just got hyper fixated on it, but I couldn’t stop noticing how often men were being described as “that guy over there” and the like.

Overall, however, I really enjoyed this book! Everything that I enjoyed from the first book was back again here, and I think the story settled into its pacing a bit better this go around. Fans of the first book should definitely check this one out. And if you’re in the mood for a read that feels unique from much of what is currently being produced, definitely give this one a go!

Rating 8: In many ways, Ellie Mallory feels like Amelia Peabody’s natural successor, and I’m living for it!

Reader’s Advisory:

“Tomb of the Sun King” isn’t on any Goodreads lists, but it should be on Popular Indiana Jones Esque Books.

Serena’s Review: “The Bloodless Princes”

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Book: “The Bloodless Princes” by Charlotte Bond

Publishing Info: Tordotcom, October 2024

Where Did I Get this Book: ARC from the publisher!

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

Book Description: It seemed the afterlife was bustling.

Cursed by the previous practitioner in her new role, and following an… incident… with a supremely powerful dragon, High Mage Saralene visits the afterlife with a boon to beg of the Bloodless Princes who run the underworld.

But Saralene and her most trusted advisor/champion/companion, Sir Maddileh, will soon discover that there’s only so much research to be done by studying the old tales, though perhaps there’s enough truth in them to make a start.

Saralene will need more than just her wits to leave the underworld, alive. And Maddileh will need more than just her Fireborne Blade.

A story of love and respect that endures beyond death. And of dragons, because we all love a dragon!

Previously Reviewed: “The Fireborne Blade”

Review: I read and enjoyed the first novella in this series, so it was mostly a given that I would check out this next entry. That said, I definitely would have picked this one up based on the cover alone. I mean, for heaven’s sake, one of the lead characters is cuddling some sort of magical cat creature! So, without further ado, let’s dive into the review.

This was a romp of a ride! It’s a short little adventure tale that packs in a lot of action and lore within a limited page count. While I enjoyed the dragon lore we got in the first entry (and could have wished for a bit more of it here), I also liked the shift into a more Greek-inspired tale. Adventures through the land of the underworld are always a good time, and this one tied in nicely with some of the events and reveals at the end of the first book.

Like the first book, I enjoyed the way the author played around with storytelling format, imbedding numerous folktales throughout the story through different perspectives. And, like the first book, I was surprised to find that some of these entries were almost my favorite parts of the entire book! Not that I don’t enjoy our main characters and their story, but given the short length of the story, there’s isn’t a lot of complicated character arcs to be found there. Which isn’t bad, but it also means that I wasn’t heavily invested in them either. I enjoyed following their tale, but I also enjoyed simply learning more about this world. And, of course, I loved the cat dragon. Was it perhaps a bit of a bone throne to fantasy-lovers? Sure. Did I mind it at all? No, no I did not.

Overall, this was a fun duology. It didn’t break any barriers within the genre, but it was also the sort of beach read fantasy that I think will appeal to many readers who want to escape on a fun adventure but not commit to a massive tome. Fans of the first book will likely enjoy this one, and I definitely recommend this duology to all fantasy readers looking for a fast-paced adventure tale following two fantastic leading ladies!

Rating 8: Adventure, romance, and a dragon cat, what more can you want?

Kate’s Review: “American Rapture”

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Book: “American Rapture” by C.J. Leede

Publishing Info: Tor Nightfire, October 2024

Where Did I Get This Book: I received an ARC from the publisher at ALAAC24.

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

Book Description: A virus is spreading across America, transforming the infected and making them feral with lust. Sophie, a good Catholic girl, must traverse the hellscape of the midwest to try to find her family while the world around her burns. Along the way she discovers there are far worse fates than dying a virgin.

Review: Thank you to Tor Nightfire for providing me with an ARC at ALAAC24!

Now that we are no longer in the fully acute stage of the COVID pandemic (not saying we are out of the woods yet, necessarily, as we are just getting out of another big wave here in Minnesota), I am far more able to read end of the world/disease based horror than I was four (or even three) years ago. So when I had to option to get a copy of “American Rapture” by C.J. Leede, an end of the world horror tale about a disease that makes its infected wholly uninhibited and wanting to have sex, and a Catholic teenager trying to survive, I was all in and excited to read it. And it takes place in Wisconsin! Sure, I’m a Minnesota girl, and while I too enjoy a good hearted border battle with our Eastern neighbors, I do really like Wisconsin for a lot of reasons, so that was a bonus.

As an apocalypse story I found “American Rapture” to be a unique take on a sub genre I have enjoyed for a very long time. I will say that I’m not wholly sure as to why I was thinking that the premise was going to be kinda fun when a disease that completely breaks down all inhibitions of an infected person and makes them only want to have sex with anything and anyone at ANY cost is the name of the game (in my defense, there is a tagline that uses the phrase ‘coming’ in a cheeky way and I thought that signaled light heartedness. IT IS NOT, be warned). But I really did enjoy this premise because it made for very intense horror moments as teenager Sophie is trying to survive and find her brother as the world around her crumbles to disease and danger. It felt a bit like the George Romero’s “The Crazies”, and I mean that in the very best way. I also liked how Sophie is wandering through Wisconsin and finding fellow survivors to cling to and lean on, as found family tropes in apocalypse stories always tug at my heartstrings and are one of the things I love most about the sub genre, and Leede really nails the tone, which in turn just raises the stakes even more.

But what made this book stand out even more to me was the fact that one of the major themes within its pages and story was that of religious trauma and religious fundamentalism and its damaging effects on its followers and also greater society. When we meet Sophie she is very clearly very attached to her upbringing and a true believer, though her faith has started to show cracks due to her twin Noah being sent away for being gay even before the outbreak has occurred. We are in her head basically the whole time and we get to see how her doubts and her anxieties about her faith have driven her to this point, and how the horrors that are unfolding are causing even more of a crisis within herself even as she tries to detach herself from the upbringing that has damaged her. Add in some wholly understandable PTSD responses as she interacts with fellow survivors while also trying to come to terms with her repressed upbringing AND the violence surrounding her and it is a wallop of a character arc. And even more chilling (and a bit too real given the way that just a couple weeks ago militias were out to get hurricane aid workers) is how religious fundamentalists from her community have taken up against relief and scientific efforts to try and stop the diseases from spreading, going so far as to commit violence like arson, torture, and murder all in the name of their faith. Leede doesn’t really hold back on the violence, both physical and psychological, and it elevated the horror levels to higher and more disturbing heights.

And with that in mind, I definitely want to make clear that this book has some pretty heavy content warnings attached to it, from religious trauma/abuse to animal death to sexual assault and sexual violence to child death. I didn’t feel like any of it was done in poor taste, but its still good to be mindful.

“American Rapture” is sure to stand the test of time as a new classic in apocalypse horror. I found it gut wrenching and tense, but also in some ways hopeful. I definitely need to check out more stuff by C.J. Leede.

Rating 9: Harrowing, terrifying, too real, and raw. “American Rapture” is a new classic in the end of the world horror sub genre!

Reader’s Advisory:

“American Rapture” is included on the Goodreads list “Horror to Look Forward to in 2024”.

Serena’s Review: “The Stars are Dying”

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Book: “The Stars are Dying” by Chloe Penaranda

Publishing Info: Bramble, October 2024

Where Did I Get this Book: ARC from the publisher!

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

Book Description: In a world abandoned by the celestial guardians and left to suffer a tyrant king’s reign, all Astraea knows is safety in seclusion. With fragmented memories of only five years of her life, she’s determined to discover more about her past, even if that means fleeing the cruel arms that hold her safe from the wicked vampires rumored to roam the land.

But when Astraea stumbles upon the mysterious Nyte, she soon realizes determination alone isn’t enough to guard her heart. He lingers like the darkness that expands between the stars, and soon she discovers her captor’s wicked means of control weren’t based on a lie to keep her under locks after all. In her desperation, Astraea accepts Nyte’s help before she can decide if she might have sold her allegiance to one of the bloodthirsty beings the people of her world fear.

Once their bargain is struck, Astraea’s chance to escape comes in the form of accompanying her best friend Cassia to the King’s Central. There on royal territory it’s the centenary of the Libertatem, a succession of trials hosted by the king in which five human lands compete for a cycle of safety from the vampires seeking blood, claiming souls, and savaging after dark. So when tragedy strikes, Astraea must decide if taking the place of a murdered participant for the safety of her kingdom is a ruse is worth dying for, or if protection—and the answers to her past—really are her strongest desires.

Review: I was definitely excited when I saw that this book had been picked up by a traditional publisher, Bramble. I’ve had some good luck with Bramble’s choices (Carissa Broadbent is a new fave by far!), and there was a lot of positive hype around this book, including it being picked by a book box I subscribe to that also has been hitting it out of the park recently. So, with many good signs pointing to a great reading experience, I eagerly dove in once I received my ARC copy!

Unfortunately, all of these positive indicators let me down a bit. But even though the book didn’t work for me, I can see why it has the hype that it does. There is a lot of strong potential here, especially given currently popular tropes and read-alike authors whose names get thrown around a lot as comparisons. The writing would also veer wildly, but when it was at its peak, it could by lyrical and whimsical in a way that I think appeals to a lot of romantasy fans.

It’s also notable that one of my primary gripes with this book has to do with its use of a character type/arc that I’ve read in another book recently that managed to pull it off where this one did not. I didn’t review “When the Moon Hatched” on the blog, but I read it last spring and was, frankly, a bit surprised by how much I liked it. I don’t think it’s much of a spoiler, but the main character’s arc revolves around her identity and who she may have been in a long-lost life. It’s a tricky concept to write, but that book managed to pull it off where this one took a very similar approach and failed. I think the difference all comes down to the execution of this main character and the type of personality/role they are assigned within the story. In WtMH, we had a main character who was action-oriented, violent, a sheer force of nature. The slow reveal of her past is one that is actively pushed against; she has a complete personality and history as it is, and much of her story is trying to reconcile who she is know with who others see her as.

Here, we have…not that. I do think this book set itself up for a much harder challenge by making the main character a victim of abuse as well. This sets her up to be an incredibly passive, withdrawn character for much of the book. Yes, I understand that the author is trying to show the ways in which learned helplessness is a survival technique, but for the story itself, it leaves readers following a character who feels profoundly uncurious and unmotivated to engage with the mysteries swirling around her. Things are ostensibly happening (there was a lot of “plot? what plot?” throughout the first three quarters of this book), but she is such a passive character, that it was incredibly frustrating to feel stuck in the wake of her inaction and seeming uninterest.

I also felt like there was zero chemistry between her and the romantic lead. Again, we have a character here who is aware of her past, so the book neatly side steps the need to create the bond between them. Instead, readers are simply told it’s there. It’s almost like insta-love in that way. Sure, we’re meant to understand that these two have a bond that was established before, but as we never saw it and see no work to re-establish it in a natural way here, it instead feels the same as insta-love: unearned and lacking any true foundation built up on page.

And while there were moments of strength in the writing, I did struggle with it more often than not. Right from the start, I found myself having to re-read pages to try to piece together what the author was trying to convey. Just because words sound beautiful together, doesn’t mean they actually make any sense to read. What am I meant to be picturing? The plotting and pacing also left much to be desired. Due to the passive main character and the lack of any real action, the book feels like a slog to get through for much of the first half. Things do pick up towards the end. But even here, I was incredibly frustrated by what we were given, or, more notably, not given. Almost none of the mysteries surrounding our main character were revealed. I still know next to nothing about who she was five years ago and how she got back.

Overall, this was a fairly frustrating read. I do plan on giving the second book a go as I have already requested it, but this book did set that one up for a steep climb to any sort of enjoyment. Perhaps readers who enjoy more passive main characters in romance novels may enjoy this, but as it stands, I think there are better examples of this sort of story out there. We’ll see how the second book wraps things up I guess!

Rating 7: While there was potential in the basic premise, the passive main character was difficult to follow and the insta-love romance frustrating to read.

Reader’s Advisory:

“The Stars Are Dying” isn’t on any Goodreads lists, but it should be on October 2024 Most Anticipated Romance Releases.

Kate’s Review: “Beneath The Trees Where Nobody Sees”

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

Book: “Beneath the Trees Where Nobody Sees” by Patrick Horvath

Publishing Info: IDW, September 2024

Where Did I Get This Book: I own it.

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

Book Description: Live, laugh, shed blood. Dexter meets Richard Scarry’s Busy, Busy Town in this twisted debut graphic novel!

Don’t. Murder. The locals.

This is small-town serial killer, upstanding citizen, and adorable brown bear Samantha Strong’s cardinal rule. After all, there’s a sea of perfectly ripe potential victims in the big city just beyond the forest, and when you’ve worked as hard as Sam to build a cozy life and a thriving business in a community surrounded by friendly fellow animal folk, warm decor, and the aroma of cedar trees and freshly baked apple pie…the last thing you want is to disturb the peace.

So you can imagine her indignation when one of Woodbrook’s own meets a grisly, mysterious demise—and you wouldn’t blame her for doing anything it takes to hunt down her rival before the town self-destructs and Sheriff Patterson starts (literally) barking up the wrong tree.

Cute critters aren’t immune to crime in this original graphic novel debut by writer-artist Patrick Horvath.

Review: When I was a child one of my favorite toys was a doll house for a set of “Maple Town” toys. For those who are not late Gen X/Elder Millenials, “Maple Town” was a Japanese anime for kids that ran on Nick Jr. I didn’t have cable as a kid, but my grandparents did, and every once in awhile I’d catch an episode here or there, but I LOVED my toy set that involved Patty and Ricky Rabbit and Bobby Bear even without consistent exposure to the show. I hadn’t thought about “Maple Town” in years….. And then I saw the cover and snippets from “Beneath the Trees Where Nobody Sees” by Patrick Horvath. And my IMMEDIATE thought was ‘oh my God it’s ‘Maple Town’ if ‘Maple Town’ was about a serial killer!’ Which obviously meant that I NEEDED TO READ IT.

Me to myself as I threw it in my online shopping cart (source).

As far as a mystery thriller goes with a shady as hell protagonist, “Beneath The Trees Where Nobody Sees” is top notch, with small town secrets and an anti-heroine who is whip smart and incredibly unnerving. We follow Samantha Bear a small town woman with a good job at the hardware store, some community connections, a love for her small town…. and a drive for brutally murdering unsuspecting people in the Big City that is far away and untouched by her happy life with her neighbors. But when someone starts killing people in Woodbrook, not only does it make Samantha cagey that someone will perhaps find her out during the investigation, it also just pisses her off that the town she loves and has spared is being targeted by a serial killer as sadistic as she is. So we follow Samantha as she conducts and investigation to help her community and keep her own nose clean. That’s just so fun in a nasty kind of way, and Horvath really sets up a well plotted mystery that is only enriched by Samantha, who is simultaneously the very worst but also SO easy to root for. I really enjoyed the pace of her investigation, and the cast of characters who act as suspects and victims made for some well done surprises, as well as well done shocks (and sad moments. A couple really great characters don’t fare so well!). And for the most part the reveals made sense while not feeling obvious, as well as some well placed red herrings that don’t feel cheap or frustrating. It really does read like a “Dexter” arc, as referenced in the description, with Samantha making a great dual detective/villainess.

The mystery itself is pretty well done, but what REALLY makes this book stand out (unsurprisingly so) is the fact that all of the characters are cutesy forest animals that have been drawn in adorable anthropomorphized fashions. It is such a strange dichotomy watching these delightful creatures doing pretty horrifying things, as this book is VIOLENT, but man it really adds to the appeal because it’s so creative. There are also some pretty fun meta bits, one in particular with Samantha being the woods and meeting a bear that is just like a bear a human would meet in the woods. So seeing this serial killer teddy bear-esque bear interact with a more realistic bear was just kinda fun. I MEAN HECK, the whole idea of these cute forest animals being in this situation in GENERAL is fun! What a concept! I brings an already solid serial killer thriller up a few levels.

And Horvath’s graphics are just…. My God. They are visceral and so cute and gory and charming and it’s a bizarre combination that works wonders.

(source: IDW)

“Beneath the Trees Where Nobody Sees” is one of the most unique graphic novel experiences I’ve had this year. If you like serial killer stories, and completely precious animals, this is sure to delight.

Rating 9: Twisted and unnerving but also super fun and somehow kind of adorable in its own ways, “Beneath the Trees Where Nobody Sees” is a bloody thriller with cutesy forest animals doing terrible things.

Reader’s Advisory:

“Beneath the Trees Where Nobody Sees” isn’t on any Goodreads lists as of now, but if you like the “Dexter” series or really any stories that follow a charismatic killer, this will probably click with you.

Book Club Review: “Attachments”

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

We are part of a group of librarian friends who have had an ongoing book club running for the last several years. Each “season” (we’re nerds) we pick a theme and each of us chooses a book within that theme for us all to read. This June we celebrated our 10 year anniversary of book club. So in celebration of that milestone, we are re-visiting authors we read way back in those first few years of our book club. For this blog, we will post a joint review of each book we read for book club. We’ll also post the next book coming up in book club. So feel free to read along with us or use our book selections and questions in your own book club!

Book: “Attachments” by Rainbow Rowell

Publishing Info: Dutton, April 2011

Where Did We Get This Book: The library!

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

Repeat Author: Rainbow Rowell

Book Description: “Hi, I’m the guy who reads your e-mail, and also, I love you…”

Beth Fremont and Jennifer Scribner-Snyder know that somebody is monitoring their work e-mail. (Everybody in the newsroom knows. It’s company policy.) But they can’t quite bring themselves to take it seriously. They go on sending each other endless and endlessly hilarious e-mails, discussing every aspect of their personal lives.

Meanwhile, Lincoln O’Neill can’t believe this is his job now—reading other people’s e-mail. When he applied to be “internet security officer,” he pictured himself building firewalls and crushing hackers—not writing up a report every time a sports reporter forwards a dirty joke.

When Lincoln comes across Beth’s and Jennifer’s messages, he knows he should turn them in. But he can’t help being entertained—and captivated—by their stories.

By the time Lincoln realizes he’s falling for Beth, it’s way too late to introduce himself. What would he say . . . ?

Kate’s Thoughts

This was one of the book club choices that I was most intrigued by this cycle, as I have read a fair number of Rainbow Rowell stuff, but I haven’t read any of her adult novels (“Fangirl” may fall into this? I think I was told it was New Adult when I read it for grad school). So going in to read not only and adult one, but also her first novel, was interesting to say the least! I also found it to be VERY of the time it came out, while still having some enjoyable things that held up in the modern day.

For one I really liked the email banter between Beth and Jennifer, as I have had work friendships like this where we just bullshit all day to offset the drudgery of being on the clock (admittedly my experience with this was working on the floor of a museum and finding other floor staff to chat with). Rowell has always had a zippy charm in her dialogue, and I really believed that Beth and Jennifer were best friends and work besties to boot. There were plenty of laugh out loud moments for me with these two, as well as some really well done bits of pathos in regards to Jennifer’s pregnancy journey as it has its ups and downs (definitely know there’s a content warning in this regarding miscarriage). If this book had been all about their friendship laid out in epistolary form, I’d have been wholly sold.

However, this is a romance novel, and when it comes to our male romantic interest Lincoln I just didn’t click with him as well. I’m not going to say that he’s a Joe Goldberg type like some people do, as I really don’t see his inadvertent stalking as malicious or devious, but it was interesting seeing it play out as cute when nowadays we are a little more sensitive to these kinds of things (I also would be a huge hypocrite to call it out as I absolutely LOVE “You’ve Got Mail” and Tom Hanks is kind of doing this to Meg Ryan in that movie). But my biggest gripe was just that I didn’t find Lincoln super interesting, as he falls into a lot of well worn tropes now, like the fact that he’s a HUGE CINNAMON ROLL NERD while also being INCREDIBLY ADONIS HOT. I also think that I needed a bit more direct interaction between Beth and Lincoln to really feel like the pay off at the end was real.

All in all, “Attachments” was fine. It was a quick read and it was a fun book club discussion!

Serena’s Thoughts

My experience reading Rainbow Rowell is pretty much identical to Kate’s. I believe we were both first introduced to the author in library school and then both proceeded to be assigned and read the same two books from her. I enjoyed them both, for the most part, but they also fall well outside my usual reading preferences, so I’ve never returned to the author. That being the case, I was excited that this was a bookclub pick which essentially forced my hand on the matter!

I also agree with much of Kate’s assessment, however. I, too, was much more invested in the female relationships and the themes of friendship, grief, and support that were explored throughout the story. Not only was the dialogue between them hilarious, but through their relationship, the story dives into the deeper elements of the story. Dialogue has always been a strong suit of Rowell’s, so perhaps this was no surprise. But it was a nice reminder of what I enjoyed most about her other books!

Like Kate, however, I was less invested in the romance. Which was a bit of a problem, as the book is first and foremost a love story. I, too, struggled to truly buy Lincoln as a character. Much of his characterization seemed to directly contradict itself. On one hand, he was presented as this nerdy guy who lived at home. But on the other hand, he’s this super hot guy who comes across as very charming. Obviously, nerdy guys can be attractive as well, but the entire premise of the book seemed to rely on the fact that he’s existed on the periphery of people’s lives, going unnoticed. Which…I just find hard to buy.

Nothing about this book was outright bad, but it did feel very average throughout most of it. I found myself struggling to want to finish it and simply not that invested in the romance at its heart. Part of this could just be the fact that I don’t typically enjoy contemporary romcoms, however, so take my review with a grain of salt!

Kate’s Rating 6: It’s cute enough and I liked the banter between Beth and Jennifer, but I wasn’t as invested in Lincoln and the romance didn’t really click for me.

Serena’s Rating 6: Same, same. There were bright moments, but it’s hard to truly rate a romance highly when you didn’t really care about the love story itself.

Book Club Questions:

  1. How did you relate to the time period setting of this book, as it takes place during Y2K? If you remember this time, what were you doing on New Year’s Eve before 2000?
  2. What were your thoughts on the romance between Lincoln and Beth? Did it work for you? Why or why not?
  3. What did you think about the two different writing styles, one being epistolary the other being more traditional narration?
  4. What were your thoughts on Jennifer’s pregnancy storyline?
  5. How do you think this story would change if it were taking place in the 2020s?

Reader’s Advisory

“Attachments” is included on the Goodreads lists “Internet Rom Coms”, and “Nerdy Guys Are Hot!”.

Next Book Club Pick: “Spells for Forgetting” by Adrienne Young

Serena’s Review: “Nightstrider”

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

Book: “Nightstrider” by Sophia Slade

Publishing Info: Orbit, September 2024

Where Did I Get this Book: Netgalley!

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

Book Description: Wren is a  a deadly manifestation of the frightening dreams of humans. She is forever bound to the insidious Para Warwick, the only night creature who can cross the boundary between the dream and waking realms. When she fails to retrieve information on a weapon that could finally end Warwick’s reign and is severely punished, she makes a snap decision to aid the growing rebellion in finding it. Here, she meets Alaric, another nightmare hell-bent on atoning for his sins. Though wildly suspicious of one another, they form a tentative pact to take down Warwick once and for all. 

The waking world is no better off. Prince Caine Fallon, Warwick’s ignorant human son, prepares to wed Ila Enevoldson, the young queen from a neighboring kingdom. But Ila is more than she She is a weaver, a protector of the ancient Boundary that separates the realms, and she has lost a precious weapon entrusted to her. She will do anything to retrieve it, including agreeing to an engagement with the son of her sworn enemy.  

When Caine catches Ila opening a portal to the dream realm and follows her through, he finds himself in a universe stranger than he could have imagined, where his father is more monstrous than he could have fathomed. Their destinies collide with those of the two lethal nightmares, and they are forced to band together to stop the vicious dictator—and prevent the very fabric of reality from unravelling. 

Review: I’ve been looking forward to this book ever since I saw that it was picked up by Orbit. The premise sounded incredibly creative, and while I could see the potential for “too many POVs” syndrome, there are also plenty of examples of books where that’s not a failing but instead a bonus. So, ever hopeful, I picked this one up right away when I received my copy!

And, for the most part, there was a lot to like in this one! The first thing that stood out was the unique world-building. I feel like I’ve read similar fantasy stories that play around with the concept of dream worlds populated by living personifications of dreams, but this one more fully fleshed that idea out. In many ways, it operates similarly to the human world, full of social hierarchies based on power structures (in this case, power mostly comes in the form of physical strength and violence). And within this struggling world, there are those who are fighting against the tyrant that rules over them and the powerful nightmares he has created and surrounds himself with.

Then, in a truly interesting contrast, the book switches to the human world where that exact same tyrant rules as well. However, in this world, he is seen as a human man who has human children, who, similarly to the nightmares of the other realm, he rules over with an iron fist. It’s such an interesting concept, to have two so completely different worlds, but both not only facing similar oppression, but plagued with the same powerful man in both. I also enjoyed the change in dynamics between the worlds. In the human world, we have the POV of Para Warwick’s human son, Caine, so the book explores that family dynamic. In the nightmare world, Wren is Warwick’s right-hand nightmare, the doom he sends out to do his bidding. Both have similar close ties to this powerful, dangerous man, but there were also notable differences that the book explores.

And these are only two of the for POVs we get. While I did struggle to enjoy all four equally, I think the author made a wise decision of essentially pairing them up early in the book. Two of them are introduced in the human world and quickly fall within each other’s orbit (through the oldie-but-goodies arranged marriage trope) while the other two are nightmares in the fantasy world who come together in their joint mission to take down Warwick. All four had their own strengths, though I will say that I felt like Caine had the least to do in this book. Much of his story is simply being the “naïve one” who is first learning about the details of these different worlds. Similarly, Alaric didn’t have much as far as a true plot line. He is introduced as a resistance fighter, but the moment he meets Wren, she essentially takes over this role. However, both Wren and Ila are given more chapters as well, so this probably affected this feeling of imbalance.

The pacing is fairly steady throughout, with action scenes coming hot and heavy pretty much from start to finish. This did lead to a bit of clunkiness in the writing itself, with some scenes and character left with little description, leaving me feeling a bit stranded in an ill-defined setting. A bit more editing and fleshing out in the descriptive aspects would have elevated this one to a higher level. However, the dialogue was snappy and clearly a strength of this author’s. Fans of multi-POV fantasy novels with a focus on adventure as well as romance should give this one a shot!

Rating 8: With snappy dialogue, swoon-worthy romance, and a creative new fantasy world, this is a debut well-worth checking out!

Serena’s Review: “Monstrous Nights”

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Book: “Monstrous Nights” by Genoveva Dimova

Publishing Info: Tor Books, October 2024

Where Did I Get this Book: NetGalley!

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

Book Description: With her magic reclaimed and her role in the community of Chernograd restored, Kosara’s life should finally be back to normal—but, of course, things can’t possibly be that simple.

She is now in possession of twelve witch’s shadows, which belonged to a series of young, magically powerful women lured into the deadly marriage with the Zmey that Kosara only narrowly escaped as a young woman. Holding them may grant her unprecedented power, but that doesn’t mean they’re always willing to do her bidding.

Across the wall in Belograd, Asen chases the only lead on his latest case, one of several unsolved witch murders, even against the orders of his direct superior and the mayor. He’s convinced the smuggling kingpin Konstantin Karaivanov is behind them, and follows his trail to an underground monster auction—which leads him right back to Chernograd.

There, sinister events follow one after snow falls in midsummer, a witch with two shadows is found dead, monsters that should only appear during the Foul Days have been sighted, and cracks appear in the sky that only Kosara seems able to see. The barrier between worlds thins… and Kosara can’t help but feel her actions are the cause.

Previously Reviewed: “Foul Days”

Review: I’ve been eagerly awaiting this one ever since June when “Foul Days” took me completely by surprise with its excellence! Luckily, that book wrapped up enough that this wasn’t an excruciating wait. And even more luckily, this was one of those rare fast turn-around situations where the sequel came out almost on the heels of the first book! So, did this one live up to the highs that was the first in the duology? Let’s find out!

For the most part, I think this one turned out to be an excellent sequel and follow-up to that first book. I rated “Foul Days” a 10 which is a pretty hard number to follow, and this one got just about as close as you can get. Everything I enjoyed about the first book was back in spades, and I enjoyed some of the new challenges that our characters faced, especially with the brief looks we got into the struggles of these two cities/cultures that had been so long divided now suddenly brought together. And, importantly, while I appreciated these brief touches on subjects like immigration, culture clash, and the general fear of the other, I also liked that the author simply dropped these scenes into the book without letting them take over the story. Instead, the reader is presented with these brief looks that may feel familiar, even if they are happening in a fantasy setting, and left readers to draw their own conclusion. But these are largely events simmering in the background of what remains a very “fantasy adventure” story.

I really enjoyed Kosara’s story and the direction it took in this second entry. Now in possession of not one, but many shadows (the source of a witch’s magic) she is one of the most powerful women in the city. However, these shadows come with their own histories and baggage, being all that remains of the tragic wives and victims of the Zmey, and they don’t lie on Kosara’s shoulders lightly. Through flashbacks into these women’s lives, the book further fleshes out the history of the Zmey and the true terror that he was. Through these characters as well as through further exploration of the Baba Yaga-like character we met in the first book, we get a more detailed history of how the Zmey came to be who he was and, potentially, enlighten a pathway to his ultimate defeat.

I also enjoyed the Kosara’s personal journey. In the first book, we saw her struggle to trust others or to accept help. And here, we largely see the same. Yes, she has learned to trust a bit more, but now with her added power, she feels even more responsibility to solve the cities’ problems all on her own without endangering those she cares about. In this way, Asen was a perfect foil to Kosara’s struggles, serving as contented helper, showing up when he was needed whether she wanted him there or not. I also enjoyed the continued slow-burn romance between these two. As I said in the first book, this is the perfect balance of romance for me: sweet, slow, and a solid second-place to the primary plot.

However, this book marks a distinct shift from the first book in one way: we had chapters from Asen’s perspective. Surprising no one who reads this blog, this did bring it down a bit for me. Mostly because it felt very clear throughout much of the book that there simply wasn’t enough plot (either action itself or important themes explored) that was specific to this character. As I said earlier, this was still very much Kosara’s story. While Asen had a few specific plot angles, they had the distinct feeling of being almost a “side quest” to the larger story. There, but not overly necessary. And, as happens far too often, I don’t feel as if the peak into Asen’s head actually helped the love story, as it removed the necessity to actually show the romance developing, which is the best part and sorely missed when author’s go this route! That said, these chapters were still well written and Asen is an excellent character, so this falls mostly into a personal preference category (with some niggling questions about whether these chapters negatively affected the pacing and plotting with unnecessary subplots.)

Overall, however, this was an incredible sequel! It expanded the lore and history of the world, continued to build out the sweet romance at its heart, and placed due priority on the amazing characters who lead the way, especially Kosara herself. I highly recommend this duology to all fantasy fans, especially those who enjoy original fairytale stories!

Rating 9: A new author to keep an eye on, perfect for fans of Margaret Rogerson and Naomi Novik!

Reader’s Advisory:

“Monstrous Nights” can be found on these Goodreads lists: Eastern European Fantasy and 2024 SFF Books with Female Leads or Co-Leads.

Kate’s Review: “This Cursed House”

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Book: “This Cursed House” by Del Sandeen

Publishing Info: Berkley, October 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: In this Southern gothic horror debut, a young Black woman abandons her life in 1960s Chicago for a position with a mysterious family in New Orleans, only to discover the dark truth. They’re under a curse, and they think she can break it.

In the fall of 1962, twenty-seven-year-old Jemma Barker is desperate to escape her life in Chicago—and the spirits she has always been able to see. When she receives an unexpected job offer from the Duchon family in New Orleans, she accepts, thinking it is her chance to start over. 

But Jemma discovers that the Duchon family isn’t what it seems. Light enough to pass as white, the Black family members look down on brown-skinned Jemma. Their tenuous hold on reality extends to all the members of their eccentric clan, from haughty grandmother Honorine to beautiful yet inscrutable cousin Fosette. And soon the shocking truth comes The Duchons are under a curse. And they think Jemma has the power to break it.

As Jemma wrestles with the gift she’s run from all her life, she unravels deeper and more disturbing secrets about the mysterious Duchons. Secrets that stretch back over a century. Secrets that bind her to their fate if she fails.

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

Who doesn’t love a good ghost story? I know that I do, even when it isn’t October (though a good ghost story in October is just icing on an already spooky cake). I am always looking out for ghost stories, and “This Cursed House” by Del Sandeen has been on my radar for a long while now because of this. And now it’s finally time to dive in. But this isn’t just any ghost story. One of the haunting things in this tale is the spectre of American racism.

As a horror story involving a Gothic aesthetic and some scary ghosts as well as a family curse, this book is solid and well done. I liked following Jemma, a Black woman from Chicago going to work for a wealthy family in New Orleans, as she realizes that the job she was hired to do isn’t at all what the mysterious and odd Duchon Family wants her to do. Jemma can see spirits, a gift she has had and suppressed her entire life, and when she gets to the Duchon’s estate the ghosts really start to show themselves. I really liked the slow build dread of the spirits, as well as some of the more heartbreaking encounters that Jemma has with some of them, showing a wide array of reasons these ghosts are lingering. I also enjoyed the Gothic vibes, the isolation made pretty literal as we find that the Duchons are trapped on the estate due to a family curse, the same one that seems to cause a family member to die ever year on the same day. I don’t want to spoil much here because the surprises and reveals need to be revealed when Sandeen is ready, but I will say that the twists and turns and origins of the curse kept me guessing. And given the setting and themes this is very much a Southern Gothic tale, and it’s a very well done one that feels in the same vein as “The Reformatory” with its grotesque antagonists and sense of foreboding with roots tied to trauma and a dark history not only of a cursed family, but of the American South itself.

But what really cemented this story’s strength were the themes about race, identity, and racism in the Jim Crow South and how that malevolence poisons all kinds of people’s thoughts and minds. The Duchon Family is a white passing Black family that sees itself as above darker Black people like Jemma, and who help uphold the systems and abuses in place because they directly benefit from it, even hurting their own family because of it. Sandeen approaches these characters in very nuanced ways without letting any of the more deplorable ones off the hook, finding explanations for their behavior while never excusing it. It makes for a very difficult read at times as the Duchons treat Jemma absolutely terribly, as well as other Black characters with darker skin from microaggressions to straight up violence. It elevates the already strong family drama to even higher heights, and I found these very real horrors of racism, colorism, and racial violence to be very effective and very upsetting.

“This Cursed House” is a solid Southern Gothic horror tale, one that really got under my skin. I highly recommend it for horror fans, and really anyone who wants a disturbing tale for the Halloween season.

Rating 8: A haunting and biting, “This Cursed House” is a Southern Gothic, a haunted house story, and an examination of identity, self loathing, and racism.

Reader’s Advisory:

“This Cursed House” is included on the Goodreads list “October 2024 Horror”.

Serena’s Review: “How to Help a Hungry Werewolf”

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Book: “How to Help a Hungry Werewolf” by Charlotte Stein

Publishing Info: St. Martin’s Griffin, October 2024

Where Did I Get this Book: ARC from the publisher!

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

Book Description: What We Do in the Shadows with the small town feels of Gilmore Girls in this swoon-worthy romance that will leave readers delightfully cozy and hungry for more.

When Cassandra Camberwell returns to her hometown of Hollow Brook to clear out her late grandmother’s ramshackle old house, the last thing she expects is Seth Brubaker on her doorstep. Her former best friend was responsible for the worst moment of her high school life, and she can’t imagine he wants to do anything but torment her all over again.

Until she unearths the real reason this annoyingly gorgeous beast of a man keeps hanging around: he’s an actual werewolf, who’s certain she’s the witch that will ease his suffering. But Cassie just isn’t sure if she can trust him again. So Seth offers a pact: he’ll teach her all about her undiscovered magic, and she will brew the potions he needs. No feelings, no funny business, just a witch and a werewolf striking a deal.

Totally doable. Until they get hit with a do-or-die mating bond. And now the heat is rising, in between fights with formers bullies and encounters with talking raccoons. They just have to not give in. Unless giving in just might be the very thing they never knew they always wanted.

Review: While October is Kate’s month with her yearly “Horrorpalooza,” if the right options present themselves, I like to get in on the themed action and read some Halloween books myself! Of course, these often skew towards the fantastical and the romantic rather than, you know, all the actual horror. That being the case, I was excited when the publisher contacted me about a potential review for this book. Judging by the title and the adorable cover alone, I thought this would perfectly fit my more laid back Halloween vibes during the month of October!

This book was a bit of a strange read, in that I really enjoyed the first half of the story, but then as it moved into the second part, I found myself beginning to struggle more. But to start with the positives, the story starts out on a strong foot. This is very much a cozy fantasy story in that there is a distinct tone to the storytelling. Nothing is ever discussed in too serious of a manner and much of the dialogue is quite quippy and silly. There is a very stylistic approach to the storytelling, and it’s the kind of thing that will either work for readers right from the start or it will annoy them. For the most part, I was happy to go with it and did find much of it humorous. I made the wise decision early in the story to firmly slot the romantic interest into the “himbo/golden-retriever-esque” character archetype, which helped with my expectations throughout.

That being the case, however, I do wish the book had balanced some of the more light-hearted moments out with some seriousness. While the Seth was funny, I also wished we had some more sincere moments from him. And, as the story progressed, I increasingly began to struggle with the dialogue/character decisions we were getting as contrasted with the actual age of these characters.

We are meant to believe these two are adults well into their twenties. But too often the manner of their speech and the quality of their observations fell firmly into the teenage category. Towards the middle, the romantic conflict began to take an incredibly silly turn, with Cassie misinterpreting Seth’s actions and reactions to a truly ridiculous degree. I get that this was meant to delay their reconciliation, but it began to become silly to the point of frustrating very quickly. Her thought process (and his as well, from what we could see) fell firmly within the juvenile category and was simply not believable as coming from a mature woman.

I also understand that this is the type of cozy fantasy story where the magic system, such as it is, is very broad and undefined. Which is fine, that’s not the point of this type of story. However, Cassie also began to feel incredibly over-powered fairly early on which did take out some of the conflict in the last act of the story.

All of this said, I believe this is the beginning of a series, and I’m fairly certain we meet the next two main characters in this book, both of whom I’m definitely interested in following. So while I felt a bit let down by the end of this book, I’m definitely interested in checking out the next one. Fans of cozy fantasy romance should probably give this one a shot, though the overall quippy tone may be hit and miss for some readers.

Rating 7: A bit bogged down by the quippy tone and immature main characters, but still a fun enough read for the most part.

Reader’s Advisory:

“How to Help a Hungry Werewolf” can be found on these Goodreads lists: A Dash of Spice: Autumn Romance Reads and Witch Romance