Kate’s Review: “Beyond the Bounds of Infinity”

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Book: “Beyond the Bounds of Infinity: An Anthology of Diverse Horror” by Vaughn A. Jackson (Ed.) & Stephanie Pearre (Ed.)

Publishing Info: Raw Dog Screaming Press, July 2024

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

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

Book Description: Welcome to a world of horror viewed through a kaleidoscope lens. Embark on a journey to untangle the writhing tendrils of human terror in a dimension where the possible and impossible blend-an unstable realm where comfort can be found in the coldest pits, and dark gods feast upon the sweetest suffering-where infernal sounds birth silent letters that drift along midnight shores and the unexplained lurks beneath crumbling urban structures. Step over the edge of what you think you know, and find yourself…Beyond the Bounds of Infinity!

Featuring stories by L. Marie Wood, S.A. Cosby, Jessica McHugh, and Mary SanGiovanni-alongside newer voices like Cassius Kilroy, Jessica L. Sparrow, and Vicky Velvet-Beyond the Bounds of Infinity offers a collection of weird fiction and cosmic horror stories that are diverse down to the cellular level. From Taíno folk horror to the horror of identity in a world that just doesn’t understand, from cozy to apocalyptic, and everything in between, let these authors show you what fear really is, and what it means to them.

Review: Thank you to Stephanie Pearre for sending me an eARC of this collection!

I don’t really collection many things, but one thing that I DO collect is hardcover annotated classic novels. I have about seven as of now, from “Dracula” to “Anne of Green Gables” to “The Hobbit” and more. One that I have that is a bit of an outlier is “The Annotated Lovecraft”, as I haven’t actually READ anything by H.P. Lovecraft, but wanted yet another Annotated tome for my shelves. One of the reasons I haven’t checked it out, in spite of his works being SO formative for horror, especially Cosmic horror, is because of what a bigot he was. Because of this, I’ve stayed away and relied on the cultural zeitgeist to be informed about Cthulhu and the Old Ones and all that. So when I was approached by Stephanie Pearre to read “Beyond the Bounds of Infinity: An Anthology of Diverse Horror”, I thought this was the perfect chance to finally dive into a bunch of Cosmic horror tales, written specifically by Own Voices authors whose works reclaim a sub-genre jump started by a bigot.

As I always do with short stories collections, I will review my three favorite stories, and then review the collection as a whole.

“Effigies of Monstrous Things” by Pedro Iniguez: While there are PLENTY of horrifying stories in this collection, I think this was the one that really cut to the bone for me. A single father living in poverty is working on trying to solve the mold problem in his apartment complex in a neighborhood where children are going missing. When he stumbles into a crawlspace and finds a terrible effigy, he realizes that mold may be the least of his problems. This one was not only a deeply upsetting tale involving decay and death, it was also an insightful take on poverty, microaggressions, racism, and how some populations are easier targets for violence or inaction because of their marginalized status. This one really made me shudder.

“A Dampened Embrace” by Christopher Hann: If any of the stories had a hook right from the jump in this collection, it was this one, as it describes a mother dying, then her body being dug up under mysterious circumstances. A son is mourning his mother’s death, while also grappling with a family legacy of worshiping a deity at the cost of so much. Now he tries to figure out what is next, when inevitability may be the only outcome. This one was an interesting blend of generational trauma, family loyalty, and the way that children can suffer at the hands of well meaning parents, and it had moments of beauty as well as moments of despair.

“24 Points” by S.A. Cosby: This is honestly just a good reminder that I need to read S.A. Cosby’s novels, as I have been meaning to but haven’t done so yet. Because wow, this one was so, so utterly unnerving! Three hunters, a boy and his father and his uncle, go into the woods looking for a deer, and see the biggest deer that they have ever seen. But when the uncle shoots it, it becomes quite clear that they should have left it well enough alone. I felt that ultimately this story was more of a folk horror tale than cosmic, but there were definitely things that overlapped between sub-genres that worked well. And that ending! DANG. I won’t spoil anything, but DANG. I think this one may have been my favorite.

As a whole collection, “Beyond the Bounds of Infinity” has some real stand outs, and some stories that didn’t connect as well for me. But I did really appreciate the wide swath of topics, perspectives, and levels of horror that were within its pages. As I mentioned above I am not someone who is super versed in Cosmic horror, but I really got a good sense of the sub-genre and its beats from this book. And what a great way to reclaim a sub-genre that was in many ways created by and still defined by a bigoted creep like Lovecraft. I love seeing people that he would have looked down upon (to say the least) saying that they have every right to have their place at the Cosmic horror table, and how it shows that horror, be it this sub-genre or ANY sub-genre, has room for everyone.

“Beyond the Bounds of Infinity” is a must for Cosmic horror fans, old and new alike. I feel like I got a crash course in a sub-genre I’m not as familiar with, and I enjoyed the ride.

Rating 8: A compelling collection of Cosmic horror from many different perspectives, “Beyond the Bounds of Infinity” is a good intro to a sub-genre that has lots of room for new voices.

Reader’s Advisory:

“Beyond the Bounds of Infinity” is included on the Goodreads list “Cosmic Horror That’s Not Lovecraft”.

Serena’s Review: “This Ravenous Fate”

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Book: “This Ravenous Fate” by Hayley Dennings

Publishing Info: Sourcebooks Fire, August 2024

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

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

Book Description: It’s 1926 and reapers, the once-human vampires with a terrifying affliction, are on the rise in New York. But the Saint family’s thriving reaper-hunting enterprise holds reign over the city, giving them more power than even the organized criminals who run the nightclubs. Eighteen year-old Elise Saint, home after five years in Paris, is the reluctant heir to the empire. Only one thing weighs heavier on Elise’s mind than her family obligations: the knowledge that the Harlem reapers want her dead.

Layla Quinn is a young reaper haunted by her past. Though reapers have existed in America for three centuries, created by New World atrocities and cruel experiments, Layla became one just five years ago. The night she was turned, she lost her parents, the protection of the Saints, and her humanity, and she’ll never forget how Elise Saint betrayed her.

But some reapers are inexplicably turning part human again, leaving a wake of mysterious and brutal killings. When Layla is framed for one of these attacks, the Saint patriarch offers her a deal she can’t refuse: to work with Elise to investigate how these murders might be linked to shocking rumors of a reaper cure. Once close friends, now bitter enemies, Elise and Layla explore the city’s underworld, confronting their intense feelings for one another and uncovering the sinister truths about a growing threat to reapers and humans alike.

Review: One of the most fun parts of reading historical fiction is the broad swath of time periods and places one has to pick from! There’s almost always something new, with different places and times presenting a plethora of unique story opportunities. So now you have a book that not only explores 1920s New York City but pairs it with a lesbian vampire romance? Sounds super weird and super interesting!

While this wasn’t a perfect read for me, it still was a pretty good one! First of all, the setting didn’t let me down. I loved exploring this time period and its version of New York City, with its dark alleys contrasted with its vibrant night life. The author definitely succeeded in creating a sense of space with its specific vibe and culture. While I think a bit more could have been done with the world-building on the fantastical side, the author seems to effortlessly capture the essence of a large city.

Part of this comes down to her lyrical style of writing. I loved the turns of phrase and varied word choice the author used in crafting this book. If nothing else, this is a beautiful book to read on its own merits as a written product. I often find that a more lyrical approach to writing often results in a bit of a slower paced story, and so we have here. But like my experience with most books written in this style, I was happy to settle in and enjoy the ride, even if it wasn’t the most action packed at times.

I also enjoyed the characters, for the most part. However, Layla was doing much of the work here. I found her to be an interesting character, a young woman who had gone through much in her short life and was rising to meet the challenges placed before her. Elise was the more complicated one. Part of this is built into her character: she’s lived a very priveleged life and is in the midst of still trying to earn the love of an abusive parental figure. Both of these elements, while interesting, did leave her in the unfortunate position of being a very frustrating character to follow. It would be frustrating how little she recognized her own privilege at one point, and then infuriating not to see her stand up to the abuse in her life, even when she’s beginning to fully understand it. That said, these are complicated issues to write about, and there’s really no believable way to do it that wouldn’t run into the growing pain frustrations we dealt with here.

The romance between these two was also only ok. Unfortunately, I feel like the style of writing struggled most with clunky dialogue, and this impacted my ability to really invest in the love story between these two. On paper, this love story should have been right up my alley, but for some reason, it failed to really land for me.

Overall, this was a pretty fun read. I think it almost succeeds more as a historical book than a fantasy, as I feel like the style of writing was at its peak when it was describing the city of New York in this time period. The lore of the reapers, while interesting, didn’t feel quite fully fleshed out. I also thought some of the mystery aspects were quite predictable, with the villainous characters presenting very obviously as such. If you enjoyed historical fiction and aren’t burnt out on the resurgence of vampire fantasy, than this one might be worth checking out!

Rating 8: The lyrical style of writing is at its best when creating this fascinating version of the underworld of New York City in the 1920s!

Reader’s Advisory:

“This Ravenous Fate” can be found on these Goodreads lists: Queer Books Set in the 1920s and Queer Vampire books

Kate’s Review: “Letters to the Purple Satin Killer”


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Book: “Letters to the Purple Satin Killer” by Joshua Chaplinksy

Publishing Info: CLASH Books, August 2024

Where Did I Get This Book: I received an ARC from the author.

Where You Can Get This Book: Amazon | Indiebound

Book Description: Jonas Williker is considered one of the most sadistic serial murderers of the modern era. This epistolary novel explores the aftermath of his arrest and the psychological trauma of those who lived through it. The Pennsylvania native brutalized his way into the zeitgeist during the early part of the new millennium, leaving a trail of corpses across five states before his eventual arrest. All told, Williker was responsible for the rape and murder of 23 women, and is suspected in the deaths of dozens more. His calling card—a torn piece of fabric found on or inside the bodies of his victims—helped popularize his now ubiquitous nickname. The Purple Satin Killer. 

In the years following his arrest, Jonas Williker received hundreds of letters in prison. Collected here, these letters offer a unique glimpse into a depraved mind through a human lens, including contributions from family, the bereaved, and self-professed “fans.” They represent a chilling portrait of the American psyche, skewering a media obsessed culture where murderers are celebrities to revere. What you learn about the man from these letters will shock you, but not as much as what you learn about yourself.

Review: Thank you to Joshua Chaplinsky for sending me an ARC of this novel!

Even though I am deeply fascinated by true crime and have been since I was a child, I will absolutely admit that it can very easily shift from morbid curiosity to bad taste, especially when perpetrators are given a state of celebrity or put on a pedestal. A recent example of this was when Charles Manson died a few years ago and Voodoo Donuts decided it was a good idea to make one of their special donuts commemorate him (I will say that this meant our at the time trivia team had the BEST team name that night, as our name included the phrase ‘a tasteful Charles Manson Memorial Donut’). Spoiler alert, Voodoo got a lot of much deserved pushback because WHAT THE HELL? There are always going to be people who make murderers into folk heroes and romanticize them, and “Letters to the Purple Satin Killer” by Joshua Chaplinsky is an incredibly dark horror novel that puts that concept at center stage, as the reader reads a number of letters written to a sadistic serial killer from loved ones, enemies, and, yes, fans. When Chaplinsky reached out to me about this book I was nervous, but also INCREDIBLY intrigued, as it sounded brutal, but like it had some serious potential.

I’ll be pretty forthcoming out the gate here, this book has a lot of content warnings attached to it. It has some pretty visceral descriptions of violence in it, so absolutely tread forth with caution. If you don’t like violence, this is probably a good one to skip, because Chaplinsky doesn’t hold back too much, especially during the opening ‘foreward’ that describes the crimes of Jonas Williker.

Where do I even begin with this? I suppose as good a place as any is the structure of this book, written like a true crime paperback that collects letters sent to serial killer Jonas Williker while he is in custody for dozens of brutal murders. The letters range from his mother, to a cop who unwittingly let him get away after a routine stop and has been haunted by it ever since, to obsessed fangirls ranging from porn stars to lonely women to old friends and so many more. We never get any letters from Jonas’s perspective, but honestly, I was okay with that because we absolutely get to know him and what a monster he is through the letters and words of others, as well as getting to know all of these people who have been in his life both before and after the murders. It’s also a great choice to not center the serial killer and instead look at the people who are writing him letters and their motivations, and I really felt like I got the motivations of most of them.

The letters range from the depressing, to the darkly humorous, to the unsettling, and while sometimes the satirical elements were really coming out, I also know that it’s not TOO farfetched given that a lot of the inspirations of these strange characters aren’t too off from actual people who glommed on to actual serial killers. Hell, Ted Bundy (a lot of Williker’s story, crimes, trial, and prison time, harkens to Bundy), Richard Ramirez, and the aforementioned Charles Manson all had their lady friends that sought them out AFTER their crimes were well known, so I felt that that tracked pretty well. There are also the poignant and sad ones, as Jonas’s mother writes him diligently, as does an ex girlfriend who had NO idea what he was capable of and is deeply messed up because of it. And then there are the really creepy bits, like the slow reveal that, due to Jonas’s notoriety, there is a copycat killer on the loose, sending strange postcards within the letter collections that pop up eerily. There is also the mysterious anonymous penpal who is claiming that she is the victim that Jonas wasn’t able to kill, and how her trauma of being the only one left has her unraveling the longer Jonas is imprisoned as she struggles with survivor guilt. Her letters were both heartbreaking as well as very, very scary as she loses more and more control as Jonas’s execution date comes ever closer. I thought that the voices all seemed pretty unique, which was a huge feat given that Chaplinksy has dozens of characters here. It’s also interesting getting to see Jonas’s whole story through these letters, as we follow him from arrest to death row, and it’s such a compelling device that kept me reading IN SPITE OF the really rough stuff in this book.

It’s also a great send up of this weird obsession some people have with violence and serial killers, and the different ways that people try to attach themselves to people like Jonas. One of the more effective ones involved Evangelicals trying to reach out to ‘save’ him, hoping to use this monster who violently murdered many women as an example to get their religious message across. This is, again, something that happened with Ted Bundy, as he was supposedly born again in prison (though I am pretty certain that he did it not because he actually believed in Jesus as his lord and savior, but because he could troll people while also perhaps getting some leniency. Which he didn’t). And in Jonas’s case, none of that matters to those who are trying to use him as an example, all that matters is that he is a shining example of their own agenda. There are also momentary references to political figures that Jonas had connections to before his murders came to light that are now DESPERATE to keep their good names away from his, panicking in letters trying to distance themselves. Some may find that unbelievable, but it totally worked for me. There’s also just the idea of people trying to attach themselves to a serial killer solely because of the infamy, a true testament to true crime obsession and the lingering spectre of American violence run amok. Since it’s satire it can be over the top, but it always felt like it was grounded in this grim reality.

“Letters to the Purple Satin Killer” is chilling and unrelenting, a character study and a study of culture. It’s a rough read, but I found it fascinating and very effective.

Rating 9: Deeply disturbing and yet very on point about the darker sides of true crime and celebrity, “Letters to the Purple Satin Killer” is not for the faint of heart, but pretty darn insightful about a culture obsessed with violence.

Reader’s Advisory:

“Letters to the Purple Satin Killer” isn’t on any Goodreads lists as of now, but it would fit in on “Best Serial Killer Books”.

Serena’s Review: “Down Comes the Night”

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Book: “Down Comes the Night” by Allison Saft

Publishing Info: Wednesday Books, October 2021

Where Did I Get this Book: NetGalley!

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

Book Description: He saw the darkness in her magic. She saw the magic in his darkness.

Wren Southerland’s reckless use of magic has cost her everything: she’s been dismissed from the Queen’s Guard and separated from her best friend–the girl she loves. So when a letter arrives from a reclusive lord, asking Wren to come to his estate, Colwick Hall, to cure his servant from a mysterious illness, she seizes her chance to redeem herself.

The mansion is crumbling, icy winds haunt the caved-in halls, and her eccentric host forbids her from leaving her room after dark. Worse, Wren’s patient isn’t a servant at all but Hal Cavendish, the infamous Reaper of Vesria and her kingdom’s sworn enemy. Hal also came to Colwick Hall for redemption, but the secrets in the estate may lead to both of their deaths.

With sinister forces at work, Wren and Hal realize they’ll have to join together if they have any hope of saving their kingdoms. But as Wren circles closer to the nefarious truth behind Hal’s illness, they realize they have no escape from the monsters within the mansion. All they have is each other, and a startling desire that could be their downfall.

Review: This is one of those funny books that made its way up my TBR list in a unique way. In that, I’ve now read and very much enjoyed two different books by Saft in the past, and then the other day while I was going through my backlog of NetGalley requests to find a new read, low and behold, there was a (several years old) book I’d requested from the very same author! It’s also clear that this might not be that unique of a situation, as the publisher has now re-released this book with this updated cover. Funny how that goes, when an author releases one or more books before they finally strike upon one that opens readers’ eyes to their potential, and then bam! That back catalog of book suddenly seems well worth a second look! A very similar thing happened with Syvia Moreno Garcia after she published “Mexican Gothic.” Of course, I was a fan before it was cool! 😉 Anyways, on to the review for this book.

I really enjoyed this one! Of course, it had a lot of things I like going for it from the start: a sympathetic leading lady, strong female friendships, creepy gothic vibes, and a lovely slow-burn romance. Let’s start with the main character! I really appreciated the overall arc that Wren travels over the course of the book. In the start, we see her struggling against the judgements and expectations of those around her, people she loves and respects, all of whom are telling her that her sympathy and emotional decision making are weaknesses that must be suppressed. As the story continues, we see Wren push back against this, slowly beginning to reclaim the power of her own sensitivities and instinctual kindness. But it’s not a straightforward journey, and I appreciated the “two steps forward, one step backward” nature of her story. It’s not an easy thing to throw off the expectations of those you admire and to instead choose to follow your own path, and we see Wren struggle more than once to follow through on what she knows to be right, in her heart.

While it took a bit to get there, I loved the time we spent in the gothic-inspire manor. It had all of the slow-build dread and lingering horror that one looks for in a haunted house. Saft’s lyrical style of writing shone particularly strongly in these depictions, and there were scenes and settings here that truly gave me the shivers. And, of course, on top of that we have enigmatic lord of the house, with all of his secrets to be slowly revealed. I did feel like some of these secrets and mysteries were perhaps a bit easy to guess, but it’s one of those cases where the conventions of this sort of story betray it a bit, as far as these reveals go. Even if the reader has their suspicions, the experience of the gothic story makes up for some of the predictability.

I also really enjoyed the relationships in this book. Of course, the love story is the primary focus, and this was as sweet and lovely as you could wish for. There were even a few bumps in the road that I hadn’t fully anticipated which helped to add a greater level of depth to a relationship that could have become a bit too straight-forward. However, the more complex relationships came in the form of Wren’s best friend (and first love interest) and the Queen, Wren’s aunt. Through these female relationships, the book explores the challenges of close relationships, the ways in which those we care about can hurt us and misunderstand us more than anyone else. And, of course, likewise. The Queen, in particular, was an interesting character, because for much of the story, she’s almost cartoonishly horrible to Wren. So I was pleased to see a greater level of depth brought to her later in the book.

I will say, however, that now having read three books by this author, it does seem to me that she struggles with pacing towards the end of books. Like “A Fragile Enchantment,” the final third of this book is a roller-coaster ride of building conflict, a seeming resolution, only to lead directly into another conflict. It’s hard to put my finger on exactly what the problem is, but there’s something off with the pacing and the reader’s ability to feel like the story is building to a true climax. Instead, you keep getting these mini climactic moments, not knowing which is meant to be the true one. It’s too bad, because the first parts of this book (and the others from Saft where I’ve struggled with a similar problem) are well-paced. It’s specifically an issue with the endings.

That said, I did enjoy how it all wrapped up, and the overall experience was good. Fans of this author, or those looking for a “cozy/gothic” fantasy story should definitely give this one a go!

Rating 8: Saft continues to impress with her incredible female leads and her swoon-worthy romances!

Reader’s Advisory:

“Down Comes the Night” isn’t on many Goodreads lists, but it is on Books with “Night” in the title.

Kate’s Review: “Ghost Camera”

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Book: “Ghost Camera” by Darcy Coates

Publishing Info: Poisoned Pen Press, July 2024

Where Did I Get This Book: I received an ARC from the publisher as well as an eARC from NetGalley.

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

Book Description: When Jenine finds an abandoned polaroid camera, she playfully snaps a photo without a second thought. But there’s something wrong with the a ghostly figure stands in the background, watching her. Fixated on her. Moving one step closer with every picture she takes.

Desperate, Jenine shares her secret with her best friend, Bree. Together they realize the camera captures unsettling impressions of the dead. But now the ghosts seem to be following the two friends. And with each new photo taken, a terrible danger grows ever clearer…

DISCOVER CHILLING NEW BONUS STORIES:

A woman survives a plane crash in a remote arctic tundra, accompanied only by a stranger who seems fixated on something moving through the blinding snow. A house stands empty. Hungry. Waiting for the children drawn to it like moths to a flame. A woman finds a shoebox filled with old VHS tapes. They have a note “Don’t watch. You’ll regret it.” And more!

Review: Thank you to Poisoned Pen Press and NetGalley for sending me an ARC and an eARC of this novel!

While I have no doubt been enjoying Darcy Coates more ‘horror lite’ titles in “The Gravekeeper” Series recently, I am also always amped when she has some more intense horror stuff coming out. Because of this I was VERY excited to see the book “Ghost Camera” fall across my path. What I didn’t realize at first was that this book is actually a re-release of her novella “Ghost Camera” AND a collection of other short/shorter stories on top of it. Which was a-okay by me, because that means its’ just more Darcy Coates tales of terror to read through and be totally freaked out by. All of this sounds great. And man, it was really fun getting back into her freakier work.

As usual, I’m going to highlight my three favorite stories from the collection, and then review it as a whole.

“Ghost Camera”: This is the titular story in the collection, and one of the longest ones as well (and had previously been published on its own as a novella). Jenine finds a retro Polaroid camera in an old lighthouse, and decides that she is going to play with it a bit. But when she looks at the pictures, she sees what appear to be ghosts coming closer and closer to her. She reaches out to her friend Bree for help in investigating, but they soon realize that she’s in grave danger. I love how this one builds up, with creeping ghosts getting more and more hungry and desperate with every photo taken. Coates really shows off her descriptive skills in this one, as the ghosts are SO goddamn scary in my minds eye.

“The Run to Broken House Ridge Lighthouse”: I love an urban legend that has a ghoulish twist, and this story is very much like one you’d tell around a campfire. A group of young adults are hanging out on a beach, and decide to test a local ghost story about racing a ghost to the lighthouse. This one is quick and pretty unrelenting in its building dread, and I really liked the urban legend of Cami Alan and what happens if you lose the race to the top of the lighthouse. It feels like the kind of local haunting tale you would find in any community with a dark history, and it made for an effective horror story. And once again, man, that imagery. I feel like Cami Alan is another spectre that is going to stick with me long after the read is over. I think this was quite possibly my favorite in the collection.

“Untamed Things”: I gotta say, I’m glad I wasn’t reading this one while on my flight to San Diego, because, spoiler alert kinda, it starts with a pretty gnarly plane crash. But Coates does something I didn’t expect here, and instead of a straight up horror tale I found this one to be more dark fantasy with a lot of hope sprinkled into it. When the plane she is on crashes, leaving her stranded on a desolate mountain, Ana is terrified and completely alone. When another passenger named Chloe suddenly appears and says that they are going to get out of this together, Ana is surprised but relieved. But as they try to traverse across the mountain to the front of the plane, Chloe lets Ana know that they are being followed. And what’s following them isn’t of this world. This one had a really high tension almost from the jump, and as Ana and Chloe were trying to escape whatever it was that was chasing them, I was on edge not only because of the obvious danger, but also because of how Coates slowly reveals some tricks and twists. It’s an interesting take on certain phenomena experienced by survivors in highly dangerous situations. I really, really loved it.

As a whole this is a stellar collection that has a lot of variety in length, theme and fright levels. While some of the stories didn’t connect as much to me, overall I really thought that they show a huge range, and also really show that Coates has no interest in pulling punches when it comes to nightmare fuel she wants to heap onto her readers. Coates is consistently scary for me when she writes stories like this. The woman has range!

“Ghost Camera” is a fun collection of horror tales. I recommend it to anyone who likes a good scare, but also keep it in mind for any scary reading you want to do for the ever creeping towards us Halloween Season! There’s something for everyone in this book!

Rating 8: Another triumphant work by Darcy Coates, this time gathering some spooky and truly scary stories in a horror collection that kept me on edge.

Reader’s Advisory:

“Ghost Camera” isn’t on any Goodreads lists as of yet, but it would fit in on “Spooky Short Story Collections”.

Not Just Books: July 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:

TV Show: “Top Chef: Wisconsin”

First of all, as a Minnesotan, I have to register my outrage that this show chose to film in Wisconsin instead of here. Look, Wisconsin is fine. But we have a much bigger metro area and thus a much bigger food scene and what the heck, “Top Chef??” Ok, now that that’s out of my system. It was still fun watching this season travel around many places I’ve been to in Wisconsin. The first half of the season started out with some rough cooking errors, but the cast was all great and I enjoyed this season of the show overall! I was particularly impressed with how well Kristen filled Padma’s shoes as the new host. Really loved her sometimes brutal reviews of some of the dishes!

Video Game: “Dragon Age: Inquisition”

I have vague memories of maybe including this one on this same list years and years ago. But as I never made it more than a few hours into the game, I think it’s worth listing again as now I’m actually, you know, making real progress on this game. Mostly my butt was kicked into gear because, after a 10-year wait, the next installment in this series is finally releasing later this fall. And there’s only so many times I can re-play “Baldur’s Gate 3.” Or is there…Either way, now that I’ve actually gotten further in this game, I’m really enjoying it. Is there perhaps too much supply gathering? Yes. But am I there mostly for the romance options anyways? Also, yes.

TV Show: “Clarkson’s Farm”

Yes, this is a reality TV show about farming. Even typing that out sounds boring. But, the “British-ness” of it all is probably the main appeal. It’s amazing how invested you find yourself in the ins and outs of sheep management, why a tractor can be TOO big, and the detailed mathematics of crop seeding. Fascinating stuff, huh? But, honestly, much of the fun is watching Clarkson stumble around in an area of work that he is unfamiliar with while his much younger farm hand becomes increasingly irate about his antics. If you want to watch a show that’s nothing like anything else, this one is a fun time.

Kate’s Picks

TV Show: “Cobra Kai”

There was a pretty long delay between the fifth season of “Cobra Kai” and the final sixth season, as the writers and SAG-AFTRA strikes last year delayed production for it (as it did for many shows). But the wait is finally over!!… Kind of!! I say kind of because “Cobra Kai’s final season has begun, in that it dropped the first five episodes this path month, with two more drops in the coming months. So we’re a third of the way through, and I have very few complaints. I’m just excited that the scrappy karate kids at Miyagi-Do/Eagle Fang are back and hoping to win the international Sekai Taikai karate tournament. I’ve even MORE excited that Johnny Lawrence is back on my screen, as I am still head over heels in love with his glam metal obsessed himbo self. Sure, it still falls back into some repetitive storytelling, but everyone is SO charming and it’s such an earnest show in so many ways I just have to love it.

Video Game: “Stardew Valley”

OKAY LOOK, I am fully aware that this is probably the third time I’ve posted about this game, but I fell back into “Stardew” a bit this month for a couple of reasons. One reason is that a friend of mine fell back into it and, being so easily influenced, I decided to give it another go as well. Another is that I had a pretty bad mental health episode at the end of June into early July, and I needed a nice and relaxing thing to take on as self care in my down time when things felt too much in the aftermath. And a final reason is that I decided that I wanted to try a new path for my character instead of the one I always take. So this time my farmer is romancing the town jock/himbo Alex instead of Goth weirdo Sebastian. And honestly, I can’t deny my love for a himbo. It’s been fun! And I now know the ins and outs and am getting a lot done at a quicker pace. And maybe that huge update will finally come to Switch soon? Maybe?

Film: “Twisters”

I am a huge fan of the original “Twister”, as I saw it in the theater and have loved it ever since. So I was amight skeptical when I found out that decades later they were making a standalone sequel. I mean, it’s hard to live up to the expectations from the original! But Terror Tuesday decided to do a field trip to go see “Twisters” (after watching the original of course), and it was actually pretty fun. Former Ph.D candidate in meteorology Kate has given up on chasing and studying tornados ever since tragedy completely turned her world upside down, but when she’s approached by old friend and former colleague Javi to come back into the field and help out his tech firm, she feels like she has to say yes. When they go to Oklahoma to try and gather data from an outbreak of tornados, they meet up with social media influencer Tyler, who uses tornados for clicks. It definitely doesn’t live up to the original, but it was an enjoyable night out to the movies. Worth seeing in on screen.

Serena’s Review: “The Perils of Lady Catherine de Bourgh”

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Book: “The Perils of Lady Catherine de Bourgh” b y Claudia Gray

Publishing Info: Vintage, June 2024

Where Did I Get this Book: Edelweiss!

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

Book Description: The third book in the Mr. Darcy & Miss Tilney Mystery series, which finds the amateur sleuths facing their most daunting challenge preventing the murder of the imperious Lady Catherine de Bourgh.

Someone is trying to kill Lady Catherine de Bourgh. Esteemed aunt of Mr. Fitzwilliam Darcy, generous patroness of Mr. William Collins, a woman of rank who rules over the estate of Rosings Park with an unimpeachable sense of propriety—who would dare ? Lady Catherine summons her grand-nephew, Mr. Jonathan Darcy, and his investigative companion, Miss Juliet Tilney, to find out.

After a year apart, Jonathan and Juliet are thrilled to be reunited, even if the circumstances—finding whoever has thus far sabotaged Lady Catherine’s carriage, shot at her, and nearly pushed her down the stairs—are less than ideal. Also less than their respective fathers, Mr. Fitzwilliam Darcy and Mr. Henry Tilney, have accompanied the young detectives to Rosings, and the two men do not interact with the same felicity enjoyed by their children.

With attempts against Lady Catherine escalating, and no one among the list of prime suspects seemingly capable of committing all of the attacks, the pressure on Jonathan and Juliet mounts—even as more gentle feelings between the two of them begin to bloom. The race is now on to provoke two one from the attempted murderer before it is too late—and one, perhaps, of love.

Previously Reviewed: “The Murder of Mr. Wickham” and “The Late Mrs. Willoughby”

Review: I’ve been eagerly awaiting the next installment in this mystery series pretty much from the second I put down the previous book! It’s always a bit of a question mark when an author produces a fantastic first book in a series. But nothing compares to the relief of finishing the second one with the reassurance that it wasn’t a one off thing! No, Claudia Gray is just that talented! It also takes a lot of the low-key dread out of waiting for the next book. Yes, I’ve been impatient, but I knew when it finally arrived, it would be well worth the wait! And how right I was!

As I’ve said, I very much enjoyed the first two books in the series. But while I still rated the book previous to this one highly, it was a bit held back by the Austen characters involved in the mystery. I love “Sense and Sensibility,” but Elinor is the obvious draw, with Marianne coming in a distinct second. On top of that, Mr. Willoughby is so despicable a character the he’s the sort of villain that you don’t so much “love to hate” but just straight up hate. And then in the original, we never even meet Mrs. Willoughby. All of this to say, while that book was good, it was a bit hampered by the fact that the mystery revolved around a cast of characters who fall a bit further down on my list of preferred Austen characters.

Not so with this one! People often think only of Elizabeth and Darcy when they think of the brilliance that is “Pride and Prejudice.” But Gray is here to remind us of the phenomenal comedic characters that fill out that story, creating a mystery that revolves around the people who make up the Rosings Park household. As the title would suggest, we get a heavy dose of Catherine de Bourgh and her…particular approach to being the target of attempted murder (scorn, sometimes even at the fact that the would-be-murderer has been so incompetent as to not even be successful!).

We also get a better look into the Collins’s family. Mr. Collins, of course, is hilarious, as is witnessing Miss Tilney’s skepticism that his adoration of Catherine de Bourgh has to be exaggerated, as no one could truly be that profuse in their exhortations of some like Catherine. Even more interesting, however, was the extended look we get into Mrs. Collins, Elizabeth’s old friend. This is obviously not the focus of the story, but there was a lot of interesting character work done with even the few chapters that really dive into Mrs. Collins and her psychology. I also enjoyed seeing more of Lady Catherine’s daughter, Miss de Bourgh, as well as her husband, Colonel Fiztwilliam. Again, with very little page time, I was impressed with how well Gray explored this sort of relationship, the kind where marriage comes first, love second, and even then, it is only slowly understood.

I also continue to be impressed by how masterfully Gray manages to depict what have to be intimidating characters to write, like Darcy and Elizabeth. But not only do they read as perfectly inline with the originals, but I loved see them put in the same scene with other Austen characters and, essentially, watching what happens. For example, we see Mr. Darcy and Mr. Tilney (two beloved heroes in their own right) immediately butt heads. With the former thinking the latter isn’t a serious person, and the latter thinking the former is a bit of a prig. It’s just so perfect! Of course this is how these two would react to one another!

And now I’ve written an incredibly long review without even touching on our main characters, Miss Tilney and Jonathan Darcy. But, of course, this is because they remain excellent. I will say that I was pleased to see them progress a bit more in this book. They’ve spent a fairly significant amount of time now misunderstanding the other’s interest, and I was becoming a bit worried that this would be drawn out too long. But instead, it’s handled well while still not resolving the entire situation. Specifically, I liked the exploration of Darcy’s struggles to put up a “more dignified” front in his hopes to “convince” Miss Tilney that he was a viable romantic interest. It was an interesting look into the mindset up a character with what seems to be low key autism.

Overall, I loved this book! It built on what had been previously established with regards to our main characters’ relationship, while also making neat use of a large cast of beloved (belovedly ridiculous!) characters. I can’t recommend this series enough to other Austen fans!

Rating 9: Simply fantastic, a masterful example of how to take classic characters and retain all that makes them great while also plopping them down in wholly novel places and situations to see what happens!

Reader’s Advisory:

“The Perils of Lady Catherine de Bourgh” is on this Goodreads list: Austen Retellings.

Serena’s Review: “Long Live Evil”

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Book: “Long Live Evil” by Sarah Rees Brennan

Publishing Info: Orbit, July 2024

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

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

Book Description: When her whole life collapsed, Rae still had books. Dying, she seizes a second chance at living: a magical bargain that lets her enter the world of her favourite fantasy series.

She wakes in a castle on the edge of a hellish chasm, in a kingdom on the brink of war. Home to dangerous monsters, scheming courtiers and her favourite fictional character: the Once and Forever Emperor. He’s impossibly alluring, as only fiction can be. And in this fantasy world, she discovers she’s not the heroine, but the villainess in the Emperor’s tale.

So be it. The wicked are better dressed, with better one-liners, even if they’re doomed to bad ends. She assembles the wildly disparate villains of the story under her evil leadership, plotting to change their fate. But as the body count rises and the Emperor’s fury increases, it seems Rae and her allies may not survive to see the final page.

This adult epic fantasy debut from Sarah Rees Brennan puts the reader in the villain’s shoes, for an adventure that is both ‘brilliant’ (Holly Black) and ‘supremely satisfying’ (Leigh Bardugo). Expect a rogue’s gallery of villains including an axe wielding maid, a shining knight with dark moods, a homicidal bodyguard, and a playboy spymaster with a golden heart and a filthy reputation.

Review: It’s been a few years now, but I last read and reviewed this author when she wrote a YA mystery/fantasy trilogy. While that trilogy took a bit of a turn towards the worse as it went on, I remember distinctly enjoying the first book. So I was excited to see Brennan now dipping her toes into adult fantasy, knowing that I’ve enjoyed her books in the past and that part of my struggles before had to do with the “YA”-ness of it all. (This isn’t a general dig at YA; heaven knows I enjoy young adult literature as well. But sometimes it seems as if authors dumb down the stories when they’re writing for younger audiences, and this is my vague memory of what happened in “The Lynburn Legacy” trilogy.)

Regular readers may have noticed that I’ve been in a bit of a rut recently with my reviews, with several stuck in the “7 rating” zone. Well, the good news it that this one didn’t come in at a “7.” Bad news is that it came in at a “6.” But let’s start, as usual, with some good things. I’ll be honest, my experience of this book was fairly negative, but I will say that I liked the overall idea of the story. Not only is the idea of jumping into the pages of one’s favorite book a concept that almost all readers imagine, but pairing the fantastical aspects of that alongside the more serious nature of the main characters struggles with a terminal illness should have been the perfect balance to form a well-rounded reading experience.

Unfortunately, the entire thing falls apart in terms of execution. Pacing, characterization, plotting as far as late-game reveals that were easy to predict, it all was fairly weak. To go in order, the pacing was off from the start. For a book with such an exciting concept at its heart, the story begins with a strong sense of overall drag. While the information provided in this section is crucial to understanding the context for the story, including the introduction of the beloved book at the heart of the story and our main character’s motivations for choosing to travel there, it’s all laid out in such a clinical fashion as to be incredibly skim-worthy. It was then jarring to switch to a much more action-packed pace once Rae enters the book. But then, again, the story seem to become a slog during the middle, with Rae spending much of her time doing very little indeed. Frankly, given this entire set-up, it’s almost impressive that the story managed to become as dull as it did during this portion. It did pick up again towards the end, but that wasn’t enough to save the reading experience.

There was also an early disconnect between the tone and characterization that we are given in the first few chapters in the “real world” vs. what we experience when Rae travels to the land of the book. Yes, the “real world” must deal with some heavy topics regarding Rae’s illness, and I wouldn’t have a problem with this more subdued tone on its own. The problem lies in the complete, sudden 180 the book takes once she enters the book. We’ve spent a few chapters now with a fairly dour Rae, a young woman who is struggling with the shift her world has taken and with her relationship with her sister. But then within seconds of her taking on her role as the evil stepsister in the book, we have one quip after another. It’s just bizarre, and not in a good way. Yes, she’s in a fantastical realm, but she’s still the same person at her core. However, as it reads, this is a completely different person who just cracks jokes all of the time and has never even heard of the word “cancer.”

I also did not enjoy the comedy aspects of the story. And as that was a fairly major portion of the book, this was also a big problem for my read. Now, to be fair, campy humor is really never my thing. I don’t enjoy campy/corny movies, books, or really anything. So readers who do enjoy this style of humor may have an entirely different experience. But even with that aside, I felt like much of the humor here didn’t land. It felt very try-hard, and I had to catch myself during several eye-rolls.

This was a pretty big disappointment for me. Especially because I had been anticipating it quite a lot. I’ve enjoyed the author in the past, and I was very much hoping for a better version of what I had hoped Django Wexler’s book “How to Become a Dark Lord and Die Trying” would be. While I will say this one is probably more approachable to the general audience than that one, I still ended up having many of the same problems with it. The characters were flat, the comedy wasn’t funny, and the story itself was straight-forward and predictable. Perhaps if you very much enjoy campy humor this one will be for you. But, as a whole, I can’t recommend it.

Rating 6: It’s hard to recover if your comedic book isn’t funny; add on top of that poor pacing and weak characterization, and you ended up with a bit of a struggle book.

Reader’s Advisory:

“Long Live Evil” isn’t on any relevant Goodreads lists, but it should be on Oh the Villainy!–Evil Geniuses, Super Villains and Overlords.

Kate’s Review: “Crumbs”

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Book: “Crumbs” by Danie Stirling

Publishing Info: Clarion Books, July 2022

Where Did I Get This Book: The library!

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

Book Description: Falling in love just got sweeter in this charming, romantic YA graphic novel from WEBTOON, the #1 digital comic platform. Ray, a young seer struggling with her powers, discovers first love and friendship in her town’s magic bakery.

In a very special town, there’s an even more unusual bakery with a selection of baked treats hand-crafted to help your dreams come true. For Ray, a quiet young woman with special powers of her own, the order is always the same: a hot tea with a delicious side of romance.

When Ray meets Laurie, the kind barista who aspires to be a professional musician, she gets a real taste of love for the first time. But even with a spark of magic, romance isn’t so simple. Both Ray and Laurie are chasing their own dreams and even when Ray starts to see the future, she can’t predict her fate with Laurie.

Based on the beloved webcomic from WEBTOON, this sweet coming-of-age story of friendship and first love comes to life in graphic novel format with gorgeous illustrations and exclusive content.

Review: I had seen “Crumbs” by Danie Stirling here and there on my various book related social media accounts, mostly Goodreads. The cover kept showing up and I had to look into it because it was, admittedly, super cute, and by the time I did check it out I was pretty convinced that I should read it. What’s not to like, after all? I like graphic novels, the magical elements sounded cute and serene, and I like a nice feel good romance. And besides, I feel like I’m suffering from massive existential dread in my day to day life, so something fluffy and sweet could be welcome. So I checked it out from the library and gave it a go. To mixed results.

I will say that this book is admittedly very sweet and cozy. I do like that there seems to be a sudden rise in more cozy fantasy novels, with titles like “Legends and Lattes” and “The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches” being pretty well liked by audiences, as sometimes you just need a charming and sweet story and you want it to have fantasy elements to boot. I did find “Crumbs” to be a very easy going read, and I liked the light fantasy tidbits like the magical bakery, the phones with little spirits acting as Siris, and even the hinted at broader magical government system and how even THAT can be a bit of a can of worms. I would absolutely LOVE to spend time at Marigold’s bakery, eating cakes and drinking coffees with various spells and charms cast upon them to help the consumer with things like self confidence and romance (but not in a boundary breaking or violating way). I also really liked that our protagonist Ray is a Seer, but not in the usual sense, in that she can only see things that are happening in the present and are existing in the now. So while she can’t, say, predict a giant storm that is going to be coming in a week’s time, she can see that at this moment there is a rainstorm happening miles away. Usually we think of seers in fantasy as being strictly dabbling in the future, so having it be in the now is SO interesting to me. This of course grows and shifts as Ray hones her powers during her time working for the Grand Council, which helps keep society in place and acts as governing body of sorts, and I enjoyed the ins and outs of it.

But I think that there is a clear flip side to this, and that is the fact that it’s almost TOO cozy and twee when it comes to the romance arc between Ray and her boyfriend Laurie. It starts cute and sweet enough, as Laurie is the barista at her aunt Marigold’s bakery and Ray is a regular customer, going there once a week for tea and a romance pastry, and seeing them tentatively begin a relationship was tender and felt pretty realistic in a number of ways. But I think that what was less interesting to me was that their conflicts, while pretty realistic as well, just didn’t feel very high stakes to me, and therefore felt kind of boring. I don’t need there to be a huge melodramatic problem that leans towards full on dysfunction or toxicity. But at the same time, I really don’t find myself super invested when the problems are about mild trust issues (that we don’t REALLY explore beyond one moment) and someone who is too much of a people pleaser. I can understand that there are people who aren’t comfortable with any kind of high stakes unhealthiness being portrayed in a relationship, but man, I do kind of want a little more conflict in my fiction, because for me fiction is about being able to explore those things in a safe way BECAUSE it is fiction. I know that this is personal preference, and that there are almost certainly people out here who will really love this aspect of the book. But it didn’t gel with me.

Finally, I really liked the artwork. It fits the tone of the story, and I always love seeing how food is drawn in graphic novels because it’s fun to see how tantalizing it can be.

(source: Clarion Books)

“Crumbs” didn’t work for me an all levels, but I definitely know there are people who like cozy fantasy and gentle stories about romance and relationships that will enjoy it.

Rating 5: It’s a sweet and gentle romance with some hints of magical creativity, but “Crumbs” didn’t invest me too much in the central characters and their maneuvering through a relationship.

Reader’s Advisory:

“Crumbs” is included on the Goodreads lists “Cozy Fantasy Romance Reads”, and “Food Themed Romance Comics”.

Serena’s Review: “Castle of the Cursed”

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Book: “Castle of the Cursed” by Romina Garber

Publishing Info: Wednesday Books, July 2024

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

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

Book Description: After a mysterious attack claims the lives of her parents, all Estela has left is her determination to solve the case. Suffering from survivor’s guilt so intense that she might be losing her grip on reality, she accepts an invitation to live overseas with an estranged aunt at their ancestral Spanish castle, la Sombra.

Beneath its gothic façade, la Sombra harbors a trove of family secrets, and Estela begins to suspect her parents’ deaths may be linked to their past. Her investigation takes a supernatural turn when she crosses paths with a silver-eyed boy only she can see. Estela worries Sebastián is a hallucination, but he claims he’s been trapped in the castle. They grudgingly team up to find answers and as their investigation ignites, so does a romance, mistrust twined with every caress.

As the mysteries pile up, it feels to Estela like everyone in the tiny town of Oscuro is lying and that whoever was behind the attack has followed her to Spain. The deeper she ventures into la Sombra’s secrets, the more certain she becomes that the suspect she’s chasing has already found her . . . and they’re closer than she ever realized.

Review: One of my favorite subgenres recently has been gothic fantasy. There have simply been so many good ones of late that I almost have gotten to the point where I just expect them all to be amazing, simply by definition. I was also intrigued by the promise of a murder (?) mystery regarding the loss of Estela’s parents. And while I knew that a romance would be involved, and often I like a good romantic subplot, unfortunately the loves story brought it all down for me.

But let’s start with some positives! Of the three primary aspects of the story (gothic, mystery, romance) the gothic portion of the story fares the best. Once Estela gets to the estate, the author’s style of writing seemed to come more to life, effectively building tension and creating an atmosphere of barely-concealed horror. Second to the gothic aspects, the mystery was also compelling, especially in the beginning of the book when Estela is first beginning to realize that there is more going on here than a random, tragic accident. Once certain elements were introduced, I did feel like the big twist was a bit predictable, but on its own, I think this was a creative turn to the story. I wasn’t expecting the book to go quite so far into the fantastical as this one went, and for the most part, much of this was successful.

Unfortunately, the romance really killed it for me. A large part of this comes down to the fact that much of the story takes place over a very compressed number of days. I always struggle with love stories that develop this quickly; I can’t quite turn of my own skepticism over it all. That’s not to say, however, that a fast love story never works, but I do think it takes a very solid hand on characterization overall to pull it off. And here, neither Estela nor Sebastian were up to it. Both felt very flat, especially in their interactions with one another. Estela’s original arc, her struggles with the guilt of surviving the deaths of her parents, had a lot of potential. But the minute the love story started up, she seemed to lose much of this inner character work. And, again, this all happens rapidly, so it was difficult to believe in the sincerity of these emotions.

I also don’t want to get into spoilers with regards to some of the major twists in the end. But, essentially, I felt like the explanation for the resolution to the final conflict to be fairly ridiculous. It pretty much required the reader to disregard everything we’d seen from Estela up to this point and pretend that she was a very different character than she was. One of the things that I appreciated initially with this character was the struggles that she continued suffer through in the beginning of the story. But as the story went on, because the character became so consumed by the romance, we didn’t see the necessary growth to justify the things we were being told about her in the end. In fact, only a few pages before the fact, the character behaves in a manner that directly contradicts what we are later told is a crucial trait she contains!

Overall, I was a bit disappointed by this read. After a promising start, the story quickly began to fall flat and the characters were unable to hold my interest. The writing was strong enough and particularly shone with regards to the gothic/horror elements of the story. But the romance was uninspiring and dull, and as that ended up taking up a large chunk of the story, that killed it for me a bit. That said, romance is an incredibly subjective element of storytelling, so other readers may enjoy this one more than me!

Rating 7: While the gothic/horror elements were interesting, the characters and the love story failed to capture my imagination.

Reader’s Advisory:

“Castle of the Cursed” can be found on these Goodreads lists: YA Gothic and Ladies of Horror and Dark Fiction Writing.