Another Take: Winter 2023

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Don’t just take it from us, other readers like these books, too! And we have decided that we would like to showcase other reviewers and bloggers that have their own thoughts and feelings about books that we have loved. Here are a few of the books we’ve enjoyed recently and what other bloggers have to say about them.

“The Poison Season” by Mara Rutherford

Leelo has spent her entire life on Endla, coexisting with the bloodthirsty Forest and respecting the poisonous lake that protects her island from outsiders who seek to destroy it. But as much as Leelo cares for her community, she struggles to accept that her younger brother will be exiled by his next birthday, unless he gains the magic of enchanted song so vital to Endla.

When Leelo sees a young outsider on the verge of drowning in the lake, she knows exactly what she’s supposed to do. But in a moment that will change everything, Leelo betrays her family, her best friend, and Endla by making an unthinkable choice.

Discovery could lead to devastating consequences for both Leelo and the outsider, Jaren, but as they grow closer, Leelo realizes that not all danger comes from beyond the lake—and they can only survive if Leelo is willing to question the very fabric of her society, her people, and herself.

Serena’s Review (8 Rating)

One Book More (4 Stars)

The BiblieoSanctum (4 Stars)

Dark Dispatch

“Emily Wilde’s Encyclopaedia of Faeries” by Heather Fawcett

Cambridge professor Emily Wilde is good at many things: She is the foremost expert on the study of faeries. She is a genius scholar and a meticulous researcher who is writing the world’s first encyclopaedia of faerie lore. But Emily Wilde is not good at people. She could never make small talk at a party–or even get invited to one. And she prefers the company of her books, her dog, Shadow, and the Fair Folk to other people.

So when she arrives in the hardscrabble village of Hrafnsvik, Emily has no intention of befriending the gruff townsfolk. Nor does she care to spend time with another new arrival: her dashing and insufferably handsome academic rival Wendell Bambleby, who manages to charm the townsfolk, get in the middle of Emily’s research, and utterly confound and frustrate her.

But as Emily gets closer and closer to uncovering the secrets of the Hidden Ones–the most elusive of all faeries–lurking in the shadowy forest outside the town, she also finds herself on the trail of another mystery: Who is Wendell Bambleby, and what does he really want? To find the answer, she’ll have to unlock the greatest mystery of all–her own heart.

Serena’s Review (9 Rating)

Smart Bitches Trashy Books

Your Words My Ink (4 Stars)

Books, Bones, & Buffy (5 Stars)

“The Last Tale of the Flower Bride” by Roshani Chokshi

Once upon a time, a man who believed in fairy tales married a beautiful, mysterious woman named Indigo Maxwell-Casteñada. He was a scholar of myths. She was heiress to a fortune. They exchanged gifts and stories and believed they would live happily ever after–and in exchange for her love, Indigo extracted a promise: that her bridegroom would never pry into her past.

But when Indigo learns that her estranged aunt is dying and the couple is forced to return to her childhood home, the House of Dreams, the bridegroom will soon find himself unable to resist. For within the crumbling manor’s extravagant rooms and musty halls, there lurks the shadow of another girl: Azure, Indigo’s dearest childhood friend who suddenly disappeared. As the house slowly reveals his wife’s secrets, the bridegroom will be forced to choose between reality and fantasy, even if doing so threatens to destroy their marriage . . . or their lives.

Serena’s Review (8 Rating)

Becky’s Book Blog

Tea Leaf Reads (4 Stars)

Coffee Killed the Bookworm (4 Stars)

“Don’t Fear the Reaper” by Stephen Graham Jones

December 12th, 2019, Jade returns to the rural lake town of Proofrock the same day as convicted Indigenous serial killer Dark Mill South escapes into town to complete his revenge killings, in this riveting sequel to My Heart Is a Chainsaw from New York Times bestselling author, Stephen Graham Jones.

Four years after her tumultuous senior year, Jade Daniels is released from prison right before Christmas when her conviction is overturned. But life beyond bars takes a dangerous turn as soon as she returns to Proofrock. Convicted Serial Killer, Dark Mill South, seeking revenge for thirty-eight Dakota men hanged in 1862, escapes from his prison transfer due to a blizzard, just outside of Proofrock, Idaho.

Dark Mill South’s Reunion Tour began on December 12th, 2019, a Thursday.

Thirty-six hours and twenty bodies later, on Friday the 13th, it would be over.

Don’t Fear the Reaper is the page-turning sequel to My Heart Is a Chainsaw from New York Times bestselling author Stephen Graham Jones.

Kate’s Review (9 Rating)

Books, Bones, and Buffy (4 Stars)

The Inkblotters (A+)

The Bibliosanctum (4.5/5 Stars)

“The Black Queen” by Jumata Emill

Nova Albright, the first Black homecoming queen at Lovett High, is dead. Murdered the night of her coronation, her body found the next morning in the old slave cemetery she spent her weekends rehabilitating. Tinsley McArthur was supposed to be queen. Not only is she beautiful, wealthy, and white, it’s her legacy—her grandmother, her mother, and even her sister wore the crown before her. Everyone in Lovett knows Tinsley would do anything to carry on the McArthur tradition.

No one is more certain of that than Duchess Simmons, Nova’s best friend. Duchess’s father is the first Black police captain in Lovett. For Duchess, Nova’s crown was more than just a win for Nova. It was a win for all the Black kids. Now her best friend is dead, and her father won’t fact the fact that the main suspect is right in front of him. Duchess is convinced that Tinsley killed Nova—and that Tinsley is privileged enough to think she can get away with it. But Duchess’s father seems to be doing what he always does: fall behind the blue line. Which means that the white girl is going to walk.

Duchess is determined to prove Tinsley’s guilt. And to do that, she’ll have to get close to her. But Tinsley has an agenda, too.

Everyone loved Nova. And sometimes, love is exactly what gets you killed.

Kate’s Review (8 Rating)

Lace and Dagger Books (4/5 Stars)

Utopia State of Mind

“How To Sell a Haunted House” by Grady Hendrix

When Louise finds out her parents have died, she dreads going home. She doesn’t want to leave her daughter with her ex and fly to Charleston. She doesn’t want to deal with her family home, stuffed to the rafters with the remnants of her father’s academic career and her mother’s lifelong obsession with puppets and dolls. She doesn’t want to learn how to live without the two people who knew and loved her best in the world.

Most of all, she doesn’t want to deal with her brother, Mark, who never left their hometown, gets fired from one job after another, and resents her success. Unfortunately, she’ll need his help to get the house ready for sale because it’ll take more than some new paint on the walls and clearing out a lifetime of memories to get this place on the market.

But some houses don’t want to be sold, and their home has other plans for both of them…

Kate’s Review (9 Rating)

The Lit Bitch (4 Stars)

Run Along The Shelves

Caffeinated Reviewer (4 Cups)

Serena’s Review: “Emperor of Ruin”

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

Book: “Emperor of Ruin” by Django Wexler

Publishing Info: Orbit, February 2023

Where Did I Get this Book: from the publisher!

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

Book Description: The last surviving Chosen, Ashok has finally risen up and taken control of The Twilight Order. He promises equality and prosperity, but Gyre and Maya know the truth. Only death follows in Ashok’s wake. To take him down, Gyre will have to unite old allies—from all across The Splinter Kingdoms and the depths of Deepfire. And Maya will have to seek out a legendary weapon hidden in the mountains that could turn the tide in their battle for freedom.

Previously Reviewed: “Ashes of the Sun” and “Blood of the Chosen”

Review: I’ve really been enjoying this trilogy so far. It’s not really a surprise, however, as I’ve been on record as a fan of Wexler’s work for quite some time. But there has also been a lot to like specifically about this series. It’s been a wild romp of a ride with two characters who are both sympathetic and wonderfully flawed individuals. I’ve gone back and forth between loving them both and then wanting to smack them each upside the head. But here we are at last with the final book in the trilogy. Will my beloved, broken, estranged siblings finally get their acts together in time to save the world? Let’s find out!

A Chosen has finally returned to the world and with him comes great change. While many see the return of a fabled god-like being, Gyre and Maya know first-hand that Ashok is no one’s savior. Indeed, his monstrous exterior barely hints at the darkness within. Now, not knowing what horrors Ashok has cooked up over his centuries’ long exile, Maya and Gyre must race to not only piece together the mysteries of the past, but cobble together a resistance that can save their world. But even if they succeed, each most grapple with the fact that the world that emerges will look nothing like the one that will now be left behind. And will there be a place for a mythical thief and revolutionary? Or for a powerful, near-Chosen herself?

So, I’ll just get right to it. I think this was my favorite book of the trilogy! In hindsight, maybe I shouldn’t be surprised by this fact. Thinking back on my reactions to the first books, I realize that many of my minor frustrations dealt with the growing pains through which our two main characters were constantly struggling. They’d each keep coming out with these perspectives that were either incredibly naive or supremely narrow-minded, and, at times, it drove me bonkers! So, is it really any wonder then that when we get to the final book, presumably where our two main characters do in fact get their acts in order and temper their instincts, I’m suddenly all in? And don’t let this say anything about the quality of the first two books. Indeed, without those character moments where Maya and Gyre were frustrating and short-sited, we’d never get the true payoff that we see here when each has to come fully into the roles they have chosen for themselves. Roles that are much more nuanced and full of compromise than their former selves could have ever imagined.

But while my sudden increase in appreciation for these two characters may come as no shock, this trilogy also had a lot of surprises in store that I truly wasn’t suspecting. The end of the second book sets up Ashok as your rather typical “big bad” who will come and lay waste to the world unless the ragtag group of resistance fighters come together and dramatically hold him off. And yes, that all did happen, too. But what surprised me was the addition of a third character perspective that layered on an entire new story on top of the one that I thought we had been developing. When I started this book, I’d have said I had a pretty clear understanding of the history and world that had been developed. All that was left was for the grand confrontation. But nope! There was almost more world-building and history in this book alone than in the first books together, and I gobbled it all up! Truly, there were some excellent surprises and twists that I think will please all fans of this series so far.

I also really liked the use of the ever-growing cast of characters. I particularly liked the role that Kit played. Not only do we see her abilities with her constructs used to their full creative powers, but the character was once again allowed to be a fully-fledged character, instead of only the quippy, raunchy, side-kick she’d kind of become in the second book. There were also a few twists towards the end with her that I was particularly happy about, especially with regards to her complicated relationship with Gyre.

There were, however, a few hiccups in pacing that came in the beginning of the story, I felt. There were a few quests and and extra missions that began to feel…well…extra. Not that they weren’t necessary for getting crucial pieces of information or crucial characters all together, but I did struggle a bit with the pacing in the first half of the book due to these various side stories. But once I got to the halfway mark, things picked up and never stopped until the end.

Overall, I really loved this conclusion to the book. Not only did it follow through on the grand confrontations that had been set-up in the first two books, but it added so many new layers to the world and extra twists to the story that it ended up being the best book in the trilogy. I highly recommend this book to fans of the first two books. And now that the trilogy is done, complete with a stellar conclusion, I can universally recommend the series as a whole to practically all science fiction/fantasy fans, especially those who enjoy lots of action in their stories.

Rating 9: Not content to rest on any laurels, this book rose above and beyond the numerous promises made in the first two books to deliver a conclusion that is as epic and enjoyable as the best SFF out there today!

Reader’s Advisory:

“Emperor of Ruin” isn’t on any Goodreads lists yet, but it should be on Can’t Wait Sci-Fi/Fantasy of 2023.

Kate’s Review: “Aliens: Vasquez”


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Book: “Aliens: Vasquez” by V. Castro

Publishing Info: Titan Books, November 2022

Where Did I Get This Book: The library!

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

Book Description: A groundbreaking Latinx Aliens novel by a rising star Latina author, featuring the fan-favorite character PFC Jenette Vasquez from the hit movie Aliens and the family she is forced to leave behind.

For the very first time, the canonical background of the breakout Aliens hero Jenette Vasquez, as well as the story of the children she was forced to leave behind as written by the rising Latina horror star V. Castro (Queen of the Cicadas).

Even before the doomed mission to Hadley’s Hope on LV-426, Jenette Vasquez had to fight to survive. Born to an immigrant family with a long military tradition, she looked up to the stars, but life pulled her back down to Earth—first into a street gang, then prison. The Colonial Marines proved to be Vasquez’s way out—a way that forced her to give up her twin children. Raised by Jenette’s sister, those children, Leticia and Ramon, had to discover their own ways to survive. Leticia by following her mother’s path into the military, Ramon into the corporate hierarchy of Weyland-Yutani. Their paths would converge on an unnamed planet which some see as a potential utopia, while others would use it for highly secretive research. Regardless of whatever humans might have planned for it, however, Xenomorphs will turn it into a living hell.

Review: Depending on the day and my mood, it’s a toss up between whether “Alien” or “Aliens” is my favorite film in the franchise (admittedly, I don’t really acknowledge any of the other films in the “Alien” universe because I don’t like any of them). They are such different movies in tone and theme and genre. But the one I revisit the most often is “Aliens”, as I do love the rag tag Colonial Marines who find themselves in a REALLY bad situation with a corrupt company, an traumatized expert, and a LOT of hungry and bloodthirsty Xenomorphs. One of the stand out marines is Vasquez, a tough as nails no nonsense brawler soldier who is one of the only women on the team. I love Vasquez as a character. One of the problems with Vasquez is that she is a Latina woman who is portrayed by a non-Latina in brownface. So when I saw that V. Castro, one of my favorite horror authors writing right now, was going to give Vasquez an origin story and explore her legacy in a new Sci-Fi horror novel, I was THRILLED. If there is any author who can reclaim the character of Jenette Vasquez, Castro is the one who can do it, as her horror stories have a Latine lens and perspective, AND she knows how to craft a gross and balls to the wall horror story. So I dove into “Aliens: Vasquez” with high hopes.

Haaa, look at Hicks in the background just amused as heck. (source)

“Aliens: Vasquez” is not only a deeper look into Jenette’s backstory, but it is also an exploration of her legacy after her death on LV-426 at the Hadley’s Hope Colony vis a vis the lives of her twin children Leticia and Ramón. I loved that Castro decided to go this route, as while the backstory for Jenette is great (more on that in a bit), there is only so much to work with there. So to think of it as the whole Vasquez legacy works very well. For Jenette, we see her upbringing in a close knit family that has a share of tragedy involving disease, poverty, and societal racism. Eventually she is charged with a crime she didn’t commit thanks to a corrupt cop, and has to choose between prison and military service. To make matters more upsetting, she eventually finds herself pregnant while enlisted, and is told that she can either abort, or have the babies and give them up never to be seen again, and both scenarios end with her forced sterilization. Given what he know about American history (and very RECENT history too) with government forced sterilization of non-white disenfranchised people, this is all very chilling. I loved seeing Vasquez go from somewhat ambitious teenager to hardened Marine, and seeing the various injustices that got her there.

But then there are the twins, Leticia and Ramón Vasquez, and that is the real heart of the story. We get to see these twins as they are raised by their loving aunt with no memory of their mother, and how this loss sets them on two very different paths. For Leticia, she wants to follow in her mother’s footsteps and joins up with the Marines, hoping to prove herself a worthy warrior not only for her mother, but for their family’s tradition of women fighters. For Ramón, it means gathering enough power that he will never feel powerless again. We mostly follow Leticia, and I felt like I got to know her better, but what we do get to know about Ramón is well conceived and feels very realistic. I thought that the twins paths were very on point for the overall tale, and also for the “Alien” themes, as while Leticia becomes a commando like other badass women in the franchise, Ramón ends up working at Weyland-Yutani, the corporation whose greed and thirst for power is what gets everyone into the Xenomorph mess in the first place. Let’s just say that it’s up to its old tricks, and Ramón feels a lot like Paul Reiser. I liked seeing them have to come together when things with the Xenomorphs go wrong. Because, of course, it goes wrong.

And let’s talk Xenomorphs. You need to have a solid focus on the Xenomorphs and all the action and body horror nastiness that comes with them, and I think, for the most part, Castro achieves this. There are the required ‘Weyland-Yutani just can’t leave it alone!’ themes, just as there are the really gross parasitic moments of chest bursters, but there are new ideas like what if someone tried to cross breed Xenomorphs with other creatures to create other kinds of horrible bioweapons? It’s disgusting and unsettling as hell, and it felt very in character and in universe. My only qualm was that I almost felt like, when it all comes together with the research, the Xenomorphs, and the twins colliding, it almost wasn’t enough action and climax. That isn’t to say that things earlier should have been scrapped or cut. I would argue that this book should have been longer to explore this confrontation between Xenomorphs, a marine, and an enabler as it all comes to a head. Especially when that marine and enabler are twins.

Overall, this is a very worthy addition to the “Alien” universe and I thought that it was a great reclamation of a character that is well loved in a movie fandom. Fans of “Aliens”, you should read this.

Rating 8: A fun exploration of a fan favorite character that moves her beyond Hollywood dated stereotypes, “Aliens: Vasquez” feels right at home in the “Alien” franchise.

Reader’s Advisory:

“Aliens: Vasquez” isn’t included on any Goodreads lists yet, but it would fit in on “Alien Books & Tie-Ins”, and “Latinx Horror/Fantasy”.

Serena’s Review: “The Scarlet Circus”

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

Book: “The Scarlet Circus” by Jane Yolen

Publishing Info: Tachyon Publications, February 2023

Where Did I Get this Book: Edelweiss+

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

Book Description: “The Scarlet Circus,” the fourth volume in Yolen’s award-winning short fiction series brings you passionate treasures and unexpected transformations. This bewitching assemblage, with an original introduction from Brandon Sanderson, is an ideal read for anyone who appreciates witty, compelling, and classic romantic fantasy.

Review: Jane Yolen is a powerhouse in the fantasy genre. She’s written over 400 novels, short stories, poems, and essays. Beyond that, her work has claimed numerous awards over the many decades she’s been writing, not least of which include a Caldecott Medal and numerous Nebula Awards. Such is the case that she’s one of those authors whose backlist is so intimidating that no matter how many books of hers I read, whenever I pick up a recent one, I’m immediately struck with a sense of guilt for not having gotten to more! So I was happy to see that she was releasing a short story collection this year (with a focus on romance, just in time for Valentine’s Day!), as that seemed like an easy, bite-size re-entry point to an author who deserves much more space on this blog.

This is a short story collection, so there’s really no point in including a summary paragraph. I also won’t be going over every single story in this collection. But I will say right here that I’d struggle to rank these stories or try to include any as “least favorites.” So right here at the top, this is a general recommendation for this collection, and any fans of fantasy short stories should definitely check this one out.

The collection covers a wide swatch of fantasy genres, including fairytale retellings (“Alice in Wonderland”), reimaginings of popular tales (like King Auther and “Romeo and Juliet”), time travel, and even a clever take on the footnotes of an essay that has disappeared after being written in invisible ink. Interspersed with all of these tales, Yolen has included her own poetry. While I do think that her prose is stronger than her poems, these were also nice breaks between the stories, and will likely appeal to those who like a bit more variety in their reading experience.

I did have a few favorites, however. While all of the stories focus on love in one way or another (some with happy endings, other with tragic), I did particularly like one of the later stories in the collection, “The Sea Man,” that focuses more on the love of family. The story follows a sea captain who discover the titular sea man. Though their connection is brief, the story explores the deep understanding of family and love that can cross all boundaries, including ones as simple as language to the more complicated kind that delve into the fantastical.

I also really liked “Dark Seed, Dark Stone,” a story that takes place in ancient Britain, focusing on the Picts and their in-fighting. After the death of her father, the shield of the King, Bridei, a young woman wishes to take upon herself that same role. But, of course, her skills with a spear and shield could never compete with the other warriors. Instead, she earns her place through sheer bravery and the ability to take on a threat in a unique way. Again, the love story is a very small part of this story, but I thought it was an interesting new look into this time period and Bridei himself.

Lastly, I really enjoyed “Dragonfield,” a more straight-forward, action-packed fantasy story. As the title suggests, it follows the tale of a brave young woman, a reluctant hero, and their fight to save their town from a rampaging dragon. While this story wasn’t doing anything particularly shocking, it was the sort of solid, familiar fantasy story that I think most authors work years to complete. And here, Yolen seems to whip it out as if it’s nothing. The simplicity of the story itself instead highlights her vast skills at amusing narration and the creation of interesting and sympathetic characters, even with a very limited format.

As I said, this is a thoroughly enjoyable collection of stories. It’s a must read for all fantasy short story fans, and I think it is an excellent choice if you’re looking for a unique take on a love story this Valentine’s season.

Rating 9: Yolen expertly weaves together a tapestry of romance, with the weft made of magic and the warp made of humanity’s joys and tragedies.

Reader’s Advisory:

“The Scarlet Circus” isn’t on any Goodreads lists yet, but it should be on Best Fantasy Short Story Collections.

Kate’s Review: “Exiles”

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

Book: “Exiles” by Jane Harper

Publishing Info: Flatiron Books, January 2023

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

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

Book Description: At a busy festival site on a warm spring night, a baby lies alone in her pram, her mother vanishing into the crowds.

A year on, Kim Gillespie’s absence casts a long shadow as her friends and loved ones gather deep in the heart of South Australian wine country to welcome a new addition to the family.

Joining the celebrations is federal investigator Aaron Falk. But as he soaks up life in the lush valley, he begins to suspect this tight-knit group may be more fractured than it seems.

Between Falk’s closest friend, a missing mother, and a woman he’s drawn to, dark questions linger as long-ago truths begin to emerge.

An outstanding novel, a brilliant mystery and a heart-pounding read from the author of The Dry, Force of Nature, The Lost Man and The Survivors.

Review: Thank you to NetGalley for sending me an eARC of this book!

I will admit that I was a bit shocked when I started to read the description and promotional bits about “Exiles” by Jane Harper and it was referred to as the last Aaron Falk Mystery. I think that part of it is that I’m so used to long running series that end up twenty plus books deep (Hello, Temperance Brennan Series), that when a series that has such critical acclaim and a devoted audience decides to end only a few books in my knee jerk reaction is ‘why?!’ But if this indeed the end, “Exiles” is a great way to say goodbye to a detective that I didn’t realize I would miss until he was leaving.

“Exiles” is a missing person story, with Harper’s investigator Aaron Falk at the helm even though he isn’t really there in a professional capacity. When his friend Raco’s brother’s ex Kim goes missing, and stays missing for a year, Falk finds himself being pulled into the question of what happened to Kim, who may have seen her the night she disappeared during a small town festival and left her baby alone in a carriage in a sea of people, and who may know something that isn’t being said. I liked that Falk was more drawn into this final mystery not because of his profession, but because of his loyalty to Raco, and the connection he has to a family that hasn’t gotten a lot of answers. I also liked Aaron slowly getting to know a family friend named Gwen, and starting to realize that perhaps he wants a more quiet life with people that he cares about surrounding him. It’s funny because it’s not like Falk is a character that I am absolutely obsessed with, and I feel like he is a bit of a conduit to tell other broader stories, but I liked his journey in this one and how it ultimately shakes out for him.

The mystery itself it fairly straight forward, and while I kind of had a good gut feeling as to what had happened, I liked the slow and steady pace Harper took with it. Her mysteries always feel in complete control, and never feel like they tread towards melodrama or the like. I enjoyed seeing Falk have to piece together not only the mystery of what happened to Kim the night she disappeared, but also what other circumstances and moments in her life may have played a part in her ultimate disappearance. But I also liked the additional, potential connection to another unsolved crime in the community, in which a man was the victim of a hit and run (and it just so happens that Gwen is that man’s widow). Harper is deliberate and very quiet in her mystery weaving, but it all comes together very well.

And finally, I just like the way that Harper writes the people in this story. I got a good sense for everyone, whether it’s old familiar characters or brand new ones. They all feel like well rounded people, and while some may be hiding things or may be serving as narrative misdirections they all fit in well and aren’t completely obvious as to how they all fit into the broader mystery at hand. She just knows how to create a believable community and cast.

“Exiles” is an introspective and quiet but engaging mystery. If this is, indeed, the last book with Aaron Falk, I’m glad that his trilogy ended on a high note.

Rating 8: A solid mystery, an enjoyable cast, and a nice swan song for a literary detective!

Reader’s Advisory:

“Exiles” is included on the Goodreads list “Most Anticipated Reads of 2023”.

Book Club Review: “This Poison Heart”

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. Our current theme is retellings and reimagings.  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: “This Poison Heart” by Kalynn Bayron

Publishing Info: Bloomsbury YA, June 2021

Where Did We Get This Book: The library!

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

Retelling/Reimagining: “The Secret Garden”

Book Description: Briseis has a gift: she can grow plants from tiny seeds to rich blooms with a single touch.

When Briseis’s aunt dies and wills her a dilapidated estate in rural New York, Bri and her parents decide to leave Brooklyn behind for the summer. Hopefully there, surrounded by plants and flowers, Bri will finally learn to control her gift. But their new home is sinister in ways they could never have imagined–it comes with a specific set of instructions, an old-school apothecary, and a walled garden filled with the deadliest botanicals in the world that can only be entered by those who share Bri’s unique family lineage.

When strangers begin to arrive on their doorstep, asking for tinctures and elixirs, Bri learns she has a surprising talent for creating them. One of the visitors is Marie, a mysterious young woman who Bri befriends, only to find that Marie is keeping dark secrets about the history of the estate and its surrounding community. There is more to Bri’s sudden inheritance than she could have imagined, and she is determined to uncover it . . . until a nefarious group comes after her in search of a rare and dangerous immortality elixir. Up against a centuries-old curse and the deadliest plant on earth, Bri must harness her gift to protect herself and her family.

From the bestselling author of Cinderella Is Dead comes another inspiring and deeply compelling story about a young woman with the power to conquer the dark forces descending around her.

Kate’s Thoughts

When we decided on reimaginings/retellings for our Book Club theme for this new cycle, I jumped into a number of lists trying to figure out what I was going to choose. I wanted to avoid titles that people may have already read, and I wanted to try and find one that would be a more modern take on a classic that was steeped in Western literature. So when I stumbled upon “This Poison Heart” by Kalynn Bayron and that it involved a Black teenage girl with Poison Ivy-esque powers that was based on “The Secret Garden” I was very intrigued. I hadn’t read the book in its entirety, but I was obsessed with the early 90s movie and thought that this was a fun choice. And while it absolutely has some good moments and fun aspects to it, I think that I was let down a bit by this retelling.

First I will talk about the good! I love the concept of a teenage girl who has magical powers that make plants drawn to her, and make her immune to poisonous plants while she can make plants thrive. I really enjoyed the ways that Briseis has to grapple with these powers, and how this kind of magical reality could cause serious problems (what with trees uprooting around you trying to get closer to her and how these issues could affect relationships). I also enjoyed that, when Greek mythology connections start to come through, that Bayron wants to re-examine the character of Medea, the villainous witch that killed her children to get back at her husband Jason. I really love it when there are new takes on old myths like that, especially ones that deconstruct evil women and give them more depth, complexity, and tragedy in their own right. But that kind of leads up to my big issue with this book being called a “Secret Garden” retelling. It doesn’t really feel like that, outside of a mysterious garden on a newly inherited estate. The other themes didn’t feel present, and it did shift a bit more towards Greek Mythology as the story went on. I just think that it takes more than a mysterious garden to be a retelling of the story (that said, I LOVE poison gardens so that was pretty cool).

So while I did like certain parts of “This Poison Heart”, as a retelling it wasn’t as successful as I would have liked it to be. As a fantasy YA novel without that connection it works just fine.

Serena’s Thoughts

I second all of Kate’s thoughts! I, too, really loved the 90s version of “The Secret Garden” and very much enjoyed the book, as well. So I definitely went in to this re-telling with a lot expectations, not only about the themes that would be covered (loneliness, found family, etc.) but also which characters would show up and how they would be reinterpreted. I’ve got to say, by the time I realized there was no Colin equivalent, I was getting pretty bummed.

As Kate said, about halfway through the book the story takes a massive swerve into Greek mythology. I’m on the record as loving “Circe,” so I definitely don’t have anything against this theme. It was more the fact that I had been sold on one story (one I really hadn’t seen before, a retelling of “The Secret Garden”) and ended up reading a very different one (a Greek mythology story, which, frankly, is getting a bit played out recently.)

The characters were also a mixed bag for me. I really liked Briseis herself, and I thought the ways that her plant powers affected her life were interesting and creative. I also really liked that her moms played very active roles in the story, rather than just mysteriously disappearing as is so often the case in YA fiction. But other than that, I struggled. For one thing, I didn’t like the love interest. The romance ticked off two of my pet peeves: one for instalove and two for semi-creepy age discrepancies. Look, we can’t sit here on a high horse and give Edward Cullen all of this flack for being so much older than Bella and then let this romance off the hook just because is f/f. At least, I can’t.

Overall, I didn’t love this book. The first half of it I thought was pretty intriguing and was setting up an interesting story. But halfway through it takes a massive swerve, and I spent the rest of the book dreaming of what could have been.

Kate’s Rating 6: I liked Briseis’s powers and I liked the reinterpretation of a Greek mythology villainess, but this didn’t really feel like a “Secret Garden” retelling.

Serena’s Rating 6: While it had a few redeeming qualities, especially in the first half, I could never get beyond the fact that I’d been sold one thing and was reading something completely different.

Book Club Questions:

  1. How familiar are you with “The Secret Garden”? Did you feel like this was a successful reimagining?
  2. What were your thoughts on the Greek Mythology elements of the story?
  3. Did you like the magical aspects of the story? Did you feel like the magical systems were well thought out?
  4. What did you think of Rhinebeck as a small town setting?
  5. Did any characters stand out to you in particular?
  6. Do you think you will continue on in the series?

Reader’s Advisory

“This Poison Heart” is included on the Goodreads lists “Popsugar 2023 #14: A Modern Retelling of a Classic”, and “Alex’s Sapphic Masterlist”.

Next Book Club Pick: “The Witch’s Heart” by Genevieve Gornichec

Serena’s Review: “The Last Tale of the Flower Bride”

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Book: “The Last Tale of the Flower Bride” by Roshani Chokshi

Publishing Info: William Morrow & Company, February 2023

Where Did I Get this Book: Edelweiss+

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

Book Description: Once upon a time, a man who believed in fairy tales married a beautiful, mysterious woman named Indigo Maxwell-Casteñada. He was a scholar of myths. She was heiress to a fortune. They exchanged gifts and stories and believed they would live happily ever after–and in exchange for her love, Indigo extracted a promise: that her bridegroom would never pry into her past.

But when Indigo learns that her estranged aunt is dying and the couple is forced to return to her childhood home, the House of Dreams, the bridegroom will soon find himself unable to resist. For within the crumbling manor’s extravagant rooms and musty halls, there lurks the shadow of another girl: Azure, Indigo’s dearest childhood friend who suddenly disappeared. As the house slowly reveals his wife’s secrets, the bridegroom will be forced to choose between reality and fantasy, even if doing so threatens to destroy their marriage . . . or their lives.

Review: Roshani Chokshi is that bewildering kind of author whose work I can sometimes really enjoy, while at other times, I’ll pick up a book from her, DNF it quickly, and swear off her work entirely. Until, that is, the next time she sucks me in with a compelling-looking title (usually within a year of said “swearing off”). That being the case, when I saw that this was going to be the February Adult Fairyloot pick, I knew I wanted to get my hands on a copy early, to know which category it would fall under before deciding whether or not to pause my subscription that month. Well, let me just say now, I will decidedly NOT be pausing this month’s box.

A man and a woman meet. They both love fairytales and myths, so much so that each, to different extents and through different means, have made stories the central part of their lives. Through this bond they fall in love and marry. But, like so many tales, there are secrets hidden within this love story, for the husband has promised never to look into his beautiful bride’s past. So when they are called back to her ancestral home, and he finds himself wandering its mysterious corridors and seeing the leavings of not just the little girl his wife had been when she last lived here, but the tracings of another…he begins to understand the perils of the promise he gave his one true love.

Man, there was a lot to like about this book. At its heart, this is a story about family trauma and the ugly side of love and the belief in fairytales. It’s a story of sisters, though they were born to different families. It’s a story of stories within stories, and how people can use stories as an escape from the ugly reality in which they live. But also how those stories, if fed, can gobble you up if you’re not careful.

The book is broken up into two POVS, the unnamed “Bridgroom” who is telling the modern story and then flashback to Indigo’s childhood, told through the perspective of Azure, her childhood friend who disappeared after graduating highschool. While I did like the Bridegroom’s chapters, particularly the slow reveal about his past and his own missing sibling, his were definitely the weaker chapters of the entire book. We must also mention here that the book is highly marketed as a story about a troubled marriage, centering the tale around the Bridegroom’s discovery of the secrets in his wife’s past. But I don’t think that’s an accurate description of the book at all. As far as actual time goes, the Bridegroom’s arc of discovering his wife has secrets, to breaking his promise not to look into her past, to having to grapple with his new reality all takes place over a very short period of time. This is not a “troubled marriage” book, as the “trouble” is simply the resolution of the primary storyline of this book: the truth of two friends, Indigo and Azure.

And it’s here that the story truly lives and dies, with Indigo and Azure, two childhood friends that grow up in this mysterious and magical house. I was blown away by this tale, particularly the careful handling of many complicated, damaged relationships and how various traumas can weave in and out of one another, creating co-dependencies galore. It was all laid out so carefully, and told in such beautiful language, that it was not only easy to see how Azure was entangled, but it was difficult as a reader not to become equally enamored and ensnared. The darkness reveals itself in layers, like a spider at the center of a web, drawing you closer and closer.

I can’t go in too many details, as I think this is a book best experienced on its own. I will say that there were still moments where Chokshi’s flowery writing jarred me out of the story (mostly with the over-use of similes that I don’t think make any sense). But I’ll also concede that I found her writing to be incredibly elevated here, and I was pleased to see that she didn’t fall into the trap of over-using this sort of flowery language, as I’ve found in the past with her YA work.

Lastly, I’ll note that I did have some confusion trying to place this book within a genre. Was it set completely in this world, where magic is just a myth and the fantastical was an allegory all along? Or were there truly bits of magic at work here? On one hand, I think this question is part of the point of the story, and I appreciate that, and I think it succeeded in that way. But on the other hand, there were a few practicalities that I simply couldn’t wrap my head around. Was I supposed to attribute these disconnects with magic? Or were they legitimate plot holes? I’m not quite sure.

Overall, I was incredibly impressed by this novel. I think it tackled some very challenging themes in a fantastic way, and its main characters, Indigo and Azure, were dynamic, heart-breaking, and nuanced. Fans of gothic fantasy, in particular, are sure to enjoy this book!

Rating 8: With its lush prose and slow-burn sense of foreboding, the reader will be drawn in to a magical world where beauty and pain, love and darkness reside side by side.

Reader’s Advisory:

“The Last Tale of the Flower Bride” can be found on these Goodreads lists: Most Anticipated Adult Fantasy, 2023 and Here comes the………bride.

Kate’s Review: “The Spite House”

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Book: “The Spite House” by Johnny Compton

Publishing Info: Tor Nightfire, February 2023

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

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

Book Description: Eric Ross is on the run from a mysterious past with his two daughters in tow. Having left his wife, his house, his whole life behind in Maryland, he’s desperate for money–it’s not easy to find safe work when you can’t provide references, you can’t stay in one place for long, and you’re paranoid that your past is creeping back up on you.

When he comes across the strange ad for the Masson House in Degener, Texas, Eric thinks they may have finally caught a lucky break. The Masson property, notorious for being one of the most haunted places in Texas, needs a caretaker of sorts. The owner is looking for proof of paranormal activity. All they need to do is stay in the house and keep a detailed record of everything that happens there. Provided the house’s horrors don’t drive them all mad, like the caretakers before them.

The job calls to Eric, not just because there’s a huge payout if they can make it through, but because he wants to explore the secrets of the spite house. If it is indeed haunted, maybe it’ll help him understand the uncanny power that clings to his family, driving them from town to town, making them afraid to stop running. A terrifying Gothic thriller about grief and death and the depths of a father’s love, Johnny Compton’s The Spite House is a stunning debut by a horror master in the making.

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

I love seeing what other horror reviewers and horror minded people are all abuzz about. It’s a nice way to get the fingers on the pulse, and while I’ve had success and failings when it comes to following these trends, I really do like to try and cast a wide net for titles on various social media and online platforms. This is how I came upon Johnny Compton’s “The Spite House”, a debut horror novel about a strange and haunted house that a family moves into. The owner has secrets, but so does the family, consisting of Eric and his daughters Dess and Stacy. All of this combined with the hype made me pretty excited for this book. But I can solidly say that this one was pretty mixed for me.

But I will start with what worked first! Compton really knows how to amp up the suspense factor in this book, in two different ways. The first way is the obvious suspense, which is about the haunted Spite House. I loved some of the really freaky ghost moments in this book, whether it was described imagery inside and outside of the house (spectres through windows, hell yes), and the way that our characters, be it Eric or Dess or whomever, would be in a darkened area in the house and would have a moment that would just make my blood run cold. I love a well done haunted house story, and man oh man does this book have some really well done haunted house moments. The other less obvious suspenseful angle was the mystery as to why Eric, Dess, and Stacy are on the run and trying to be incognito. All the reader knows is that they are driving cross country, trying to stay under the radar, and worried that they are going to be spotted or noticed. Compton takes his time to carefully reveal what is going on here. And let me tell you, when we DID find out what it was? My mind was blown. Part of me was like ‘is this a little too out of left field?’ But the louder part of me was like ‘no, shut up, you love this’. And I did.

But this does kind of segue into the aspects that didn’t work as well for me. The first issue is the pacing of this book. I kind of mentioned above that the reveal of why Eric and his kids are running just blew my mind. And it did. Like, I really liked it. BUT, by the time we got to it, we were a good three fourths into the book, with a lot of teasing and drawing out leading up to it. I appreciate holding cards to the vest, but sometimes curiosity can turn to frustration and impatience. And then things kind of got into a whirlwind right before the end, followed by a bit of a drawn out post-climax. Along with that, there are a lot of perspectives in this book. Some of them we get to see multiple times, which makes sense, we absolutely need to get into Eric’s head, and Dess and Stacy’s heads. But there were also the perspectives of some side characters that we only spent the minimal amount of time with, and it didn’t feel necessary, really. If anything it contributed to the lagging pace.

The above said, overall I thought that “The Spite House” had some really strong bits. I definitely want to see what else Johnny Compton comes out with, because the horror moments are unnerving as all get out.

Rating 6: Eerie and unnerving, “The Spite House” is a tense haunted house story. The pacing could have picked up a bit and the number of perspectives get a bit overdone, but the pay off is mostly worth it.

Reader’s Advisory:

“The Spite House” is included on the Goodreads list “2023 Gothic”.

Serena’s Review: “Arch-Conspirator”

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Book: “Arch-Conspirator” by Veronica Roth

Publishing Info: Tor Books, February 2023

Where Did I Get this Book: Edelweiss+

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

Book Description: Outside the last city on Earth, the planet is a wasteland. Without the Archive, where the genes of the dead are stored, humanity will end.

Passing into the Archive should be cause for celebration, but Antigone’s parents were murdered, leaving her father’s throne vacant. As her militant uncle Kreon rises to claim it, all Antigone feels is rage. When he welcomes her and her siblings into his mansion, Antigone sees it for what it really is: a gilded cage, where she is a captive as well as a guest.

But her uncle will soon learn that no cage is unbreakable. And neither is he.

Review: Roth has become a must-read author for me recently. The last few books I’ve read from her have all surprised me with their ability to push the boundaries of their genres and leave me thinking about their stories and themes days later. So I was excited when I saw that she was releasing a dystopia/science fiction version of “Antigone,” knowing that whatever I was in for, it was something I wouldn’t want to miss.

The earth is a radiated hellscape, and humanity has been reduced to one, struggling city where just the effort of avoiding extinction takes up the priorities of almost every aspect of society. Antigone’s parents hoped for more, for themselves, for their children, and for their world. But instead they were met with a violent coup, and now Antigone and her siblings have grown up in the household of Kreon, their power-hungry uncle. As she has grown, so, too, has Antigone’s anger. And when her uncle pushes his power past what can be born, Antigone finds herself facing a world that badly needs to be shaken.

Like many others, I read “Antigone” back in high school and really haven’t thought much more about it since. I do remember lots of tragedy and death all around just so one man could learn the lesson of not being a stubborn ass. Or something like that, at least. So I was curious to see how close to the original Roth stuck with this adaptation and how she would reconstruct a classical Greek story into a science fiction dystopia.

And I think the answers are that while she sticks fairly close to the original story, her abilities to write dystopian fiction should never be doubted, because she found very clever ways of adapting this ancient tale within futuristic and creative trappings all while exploring modern themes of power, science, and religion. Most especially, she finds a very unique way of adapting the central premise of the original story (Antigone attempting to perform banned funeral rites for her dead brother and being punished for this) into something that would raise the stakes of the entire situation. Here, these funeral rites hold much more power and import than as simple ritual acts. I don’t want to get into too many details about the world-building, but suffice it to say, it was a very clever interpretation, I thought.

Roth utilizes a multi-POV tactic with telling this story. While we do get more chapters from Antigone’s perspective than anyone else’s, we also see through her brother’s eyes, her sisters, Kreon’s son (with whom Antigone has an arranged marriage), Kreon’s wife, and even Kreon himself. I really enjoyed what all of these perspectives brought to the story. But as much of the tale is focused on the role that women play in this world and the kinds of power that they wield even while their options are so limited, I found Kreon’s wife and Antigone’s sister to have some of the more powerful sections (other than Antigone herself). Given how short this novella is, I was impressed by how well Roth fleshed out these themes in ways that will strike true to readers.

I also liked the way that the science fiction elements were used. There were a few things that left me questioning if I thought too hard about the mechanics of it all, but for the most part, I was so thoroughly invested in the story itself that I didn’t get too bogged down in these details. I also liked that while Roth remained true to the story as a whole, her story ends with both the necessary tragedy but also a sense of hope. I think this hope is necessary to any good dystopian story, and Roth neatly balances it while not loosing the sense of the original story. Fans of dystopian stories as well as retellings of tales that aren’t fairytales will likely enjoy this book.

Rating 8: Full of tragedy and hope, Roth uses the lens of a classic tale to shine a light on the power of women and the individual.

Reader’s Advisory:

“Arch-Conspirator” can be found on these Goodreads lists: Antigones and Can’t Wait Sci-Fi/Fantasy of 2023

Kate’s Review: “Don’t Fear the Reaper”

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Book: “Don’t Fear the Reaper” by Stephen Graham Jones

Publishing Info: Gallery/Saga Press, February 2023

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

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

Book Description: December 12th, 2019, Jade returns to the rural lake town of Proofrock the same day as convicted Indigenous serial killer Dark Mill South escapes into town to complete his revenge killings, in this riveting sequel to My Heart Is a Chainsaw from New York Times bestselling author, Stephen Graham Jones.

Four years after her tumultuous senior year, Jade Daniels is released from prison right before Christmas when her conviction is overturned. But life beyond bars takes a dangerous turn as soon as she returns to Proofrock. Convicted Serial Killer, Dark Mill South, seeking revenge for thirty-eight Dakota men hanged in 1862, escapes from his prison transfer due to a blizzard, just outside of Proofrock, Idaho.

Dark Mill South’s Reunion Tour began on December 12th, 2019, a Thursday.

Thirty-six hours and twenty bodies later, on Friday the 13th, it would be over.

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

Let me tell you what kind of a human disaster I am. I get so hyped about things that I love, or things that I’m really excited about. But then I get almost bogged down in the anticipation, and if I don’t dive in right away (and if there is a long out deadline or no deadline at all, thanks ADHD), I will probably freeze on it, even if I’m looking forward to it. Enter “Don’t Fear the Reaper” by Stephen Graham Jones, the second book in his Lake Witch Trilogy. I loved “My Heart Is a Chainsaw”, the slasher love letter that had the lovely, funny, and plucky but somewhat tragic Jade Daniels as a protagonist. It was a top 3 read for me in 2021. So when I was approved for “Don’t Fear the Reaper”, I celebrated, overjoyed that I got it…. And then it sat on my Kindle for months. I was so excited I just froze up. I was just so excited I didn’t know what to do with myself. But I did eventually get to it. And my horror loving heart was, once again, blown away by how much Stephen Graham Jones knows this genres, and how well he can make it his own while still paying homage to those who came before. Jade Daniels, I missed you. I’m glad you’re back for more.

You’re doing awesome, Jade!

It’s so good to see Jade again. Though she would prefer to be called Jennifer. In “Don’t Fear the Reaper”, Jade has left prison after having her wrongful conviction in the wake of the “Independence Day Massacre” overturned, and is coming home just wanting to survive and put all of that behind her. Including her love for slashers and the genre. A downtrodden final girl returning in movie two is pretty standard (Sidney Prescott went full morose quasi-Goth for “Scream 2”, after all), and Jade/Jennifer has every reason to be weary given that the system failed her and she’s untrusted by most. Seeing Jade/Jennifer try to suppress her vast knowledge and, in some ways, nature is heartbreaking, and watching her gain more confidence in her knowledge, ability, and destiny is a really satisfying journey for her. And it’s a hoot watching her reunite with Letha, the girl she though was the final girl in “My Heart is a Chainsaw”, and seeing how she, too, has become a horror movie expert in hopes of staying alive. The way they play off each other with this shared passion and knowledge is a treat, and watching them try to piece together their situation as well as the slasher at hand is fun as well as suspenseful. And seeing Letha again, now as a resilient albeit traumatized young mother, was also wonderful. I’m so glad she and Jade/Jennifer got to properly team up.

I could rave about Jade/Jennifer and her amazingness for days. But I also really want to talk about our primary antagonist this time around Dark Mill South. What a perfect idea for a slasher villain (with a little bit of a point to his rage). The origin of his original motive, the Dakota 38 Execution on Boxing Day in Mankato, Minnesota in 1862, is a horrific moment in Minnesota history, and as someone who worked at the historic site Fort Snelling (which served as a prison and the site of a concentration camp for 1000+ Dakota, mostly women, children, and the elderly in the aftermath of the US-Dakota War), I was quite familiar with this moment. I used to teach it to visitors who would come to the Fort, and was almost always saddened/incensed to see that most people were more interested in watching the musket and cannon drills than grappling with some very dark and complex history. I think that for Dark Mill South to be enraged because of this event, and to be revenge killing in the name of it, was a very good literary choice. Lord knows there have been slasher killers who have a point in their rage, that can spill over into a gory conclusion for bystanders, and Dark Mill South feels a lot like that. It adds weight and subverts this ‘he’s not wrong he’s just an asshole’ trope you see in some slasher killers (Jason Voorhees being my favorite of this subtype), as well as subverting other expectations of a named slasher killer. [And if you want more information about the Dakota 38 + 2 and the U.S. Dakota War, the Minnesota Historical Society has some pretty good info, as does Indian Country Today, as does an article about an annual ride to commemorate the prisoners from Minnesota Public Radio. Please read about it. Don’t be like the indifferent visitors I saw every shift.]

And finally, Jones’s reverence for the horror genre, specifically slashers, is once again on full display in this book. There is SO much meta-analysis of the genre, so many references, it’s a true feast for fans of all things horror. I loved seeing the chapter titles, I loved the idea of not only Jade but also now Letha looking to the slashers for guidance, I loved seeing some of my favorites mentioned (Hello “Happy Death Day”!) as well as some not as popular films given a shout out. Jones’s love for slashers is infectious. It’s so fun to hunt for the Easter eggs. And we even have a new voice that is deconstructing slasher tropes between certain chapters. The identity is a secret, so no spoilers here. But I liked that Jones found a way to do it again, even with Jade/Jennifer out of commission. Oh, and there is still a lot of horror movie-esque gore to be had on these pages.

This was well worth the wait. “Don’t Fear the Reaper” is a complex and gory sequel to a complex and gory predecessor, and I now wait on pins and needles to see how Jones brings it all together in the final installment. Long live Jade.

Rating 9: A riveting, scary, and emotional horror tale that both pays homage to and re-writes the rules of slasher stories, “Don’t Fear the Reaper” is a much welcomed return to Proofrock, Idaho, and a wonderful reunion with Jade.

Reader’s Advisory:

“Don’t Fear the Reaper” is included on the Goodreads lists “Slasher Horror Books”, and “Book Riot 2022 #19: Read A Horror Novel by a BIPOC Author”.