Tag: historical fiction

Kate’s Review: “All of Us Murderers”

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Book: “All of Us Murderers” by K.J. Charles

Publishing Info: Poisoned Pen Press, October 2025

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

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

Book Description: The lush Gothic drama of Crimson Peak meets the murderous intrigue of Knives Out with an LGBTQIA+ love story to die for from award-winning author KJ Charles.

WHO WILL SURVIVE LACKADAY HOUSE?

When Zeb Wyckham is summoned to a wealthy relative’s remote Gothic manor, he is horrified to find all the people he least wants to see in the world: his estranged brother, his sneering cousin, and his bitter ex-lover Gideon Grey. Things couldn’t possibly get worse.

Then the master of the house announces the true purpose of the gathering: he intends to leave the vast family fortune to whoever marries his young ward, setting off a violent scramble for her hand. Zeb wants no part of his greedy family―but when he tries to leave, the way is barred. The walls of Lackaday House are high, and the gates firmly locked. As the Dartmoor mists roll in, there’s no way out. And something unnatural may be watching them from the house’s shadowy depths…

Fear and paranoia ramping ever-higher, Zeb has nowhere to turn but to the man who once held his heart. As the gaslight flickers and terror takes hold, can two warring lovers reunite, uncover the murderous mysteries of Lackaday House―and live to tell the tale?

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

It’s still pretty hot here in Minnesota (THIS SHOULD NOT BE HAPPENING IN LATE SEPTEMBER!), but I’m definitely settling in and eager for the cooler temps, the longer nights, and the overall coziness of Fall to finally set in. And while October is dedicated to all horror reads when it comes to my reviews (Horrorpalooza 2025 starts on Thursday!), I do have a great historical mystery to put on your Autumn reading lists to talk about! I had seen “All of Us Murderers” by K.J. Charles floating around, the retro cover really catching my eye, and I was definitely interested in it when Poisoned Pen Press reached out with a request for me to take a look at it. What’s not to love? It’s Gothic! It’s Queer! It’s a SUPER VINTAGE COVER DESIGN! I was excited to dive in, and man, it did not disappoint!

I really do enjoy a Gothic thriller (well, Gothic anything), and “All of Us Murders” pretty much had my attention from the start and didn’t let go until the end. The premise is pretty straight forward: The Wyckham Family has a powerful but notorious history, and when Zeb Wyckham is called to the family estate for a meeting with his immediate and extended family, as well as his ex-lover Gideon, who is now working for head of family Wynn Wyckham who called the meeting. Wynn tells them all that he’s shifting the inheritance around and that they only way to get the money is to marry his young ward Georgina, and then the bitterness and dysfunction of the family is put to the test when he won’t let them leave and a fog rolls in. Then people start dying. It’s locked door, it’s Gothic, it’s family dysfunction, and EVERYONE IS A SUSPECT! Charles really set the scene in a way that was gripping, and as Zeb and Gideon try to figure out what is going on (is it a family curse? is someone plotting against everyone else?), the mystery deepens and the twists keep coming. I’m usually someone who can parse through red herrings and misdirections when it comes to thrillers, at least a little bit, but in this book I had a really hard time guessing where it was all going, and I was absolutely delighted by that. I also love how an isolated house surrounded by fog and a family filled with vipers just makes for that much more of a heightened stake for Zeb and Gideon, who may be in serious danger.

And on top of the really well done Gothic mystery, we also have a pretty sweet romance at the center of the book! Zeb and Gideon are just so likable, their chemistry is off the charts and I love how they aren’t perfect in their love for each other, but they also aren’t melodramatic or constantly being torn away from each other for merely dramatic purposes. Gideon is a very steady and pragmatic (and oh so patient) character, and he is a great foil for the somewhat scattered and anxious Zeb (also, side note, I LOVE seeing ADHD representation in books and Charles did a good job with Zeb, keeping it within the time frame’s understanding while also completely nailing it), and I was SO rooting for them basically from the jump. I love a solid and sexy romance in a mystery like this, it’s just so moody in the best way and I loved Zeb and Gideon.

“All of Us Murderers” is a fun and atmospheric Gothic mystery that kept me guessing up until the end. I could just feel the fog and melancholy of the moors as I was reading it, and it’s a moody read just in time for Autumn.

Rating 9: A stellar mystery, a lush Gothic setting, and a steamy romance combine to make a delightful thriller with a nasty family that may be cursed at the center.

Reader’s Advisory:

“All of Us Murderers” is included on the Goodreads list “A History or Historical Fiction Book”.

Kate’s Review: “The Possession of Alba Díaz”

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Book: “The Possession of Alba Díaz” by Isabel Cañas

Publishing Info: Berkley, August 2025

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

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

Book Description: When a demonic presence awakens deep in a Mexican silver mine, the young woman it seizes must turn to the one man she shouldn’t trust… from bestselling author Isabel Cañas.

In 1765, plague sweeps through Zacatecas. Alba flees with her wealthy merchant parents and fiancé, Carlos, to his family’s isolated mine for refuge. But safety proves fleeting as other dangers soon bare their teeth: Alba begins suffering from strange hallucinations, sleepwalking, and violent convulsions. She senses something cold lurking beneath her skin. Something angry. Something wrong.

Elías, haunted by a troubled past, came to the New World to make his fortune and escape his family’s legacy of greed. Alba, as his cousin’s betrothed, is none of his business. Which is of course why he can’t help but notice her every time she enters a room or the growing tension between them… and why he notices her deteriorate when the demon’s thirst for blood grows stronger.

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

There are a few authors that when I see that they have a new book coming out I know it’s a must read. It spans across genres for me, and one of those authors is Isabel Cañas. She has written a haunted house story and a vampire story, both combined with a historical fiction setting in Mexico with some easy to root for romances to boot. Clearly when I saw she had a new book coming out, “The Possession of Alba Díaz”, I knew that I could probably expect those other two things along with a demonic possession backbone. Which was a okay by me, because she hasn’t let me down yet!

I really loved this book. I mean, I have basically loved all of Isabel Cañas’s books so it’s not a surprise. But as someone who doesn’t really care for possession horror, this one REALLY worked for me because Cañas thinks outside the box, which is exactly how I DO like possession horror. While it’s true that Alba is being victimized by a demon that has infiltrated her body and her consciousness, it is pretty clear as the story goes on that demons aren’t the biggest worries for a woman living in Mexico in the late 1700s, as there’s violent misogyny, a lack of any kind of self determination, and the horrors of the colonialism of Spain and the Catholic Church that prove to be far more pressing. I always appreciate it when historical stories in Latin America call out the horrors of the Spanish Conquest and the reverberations it had for the Indigenous groups that lived there before, and “The Possession of Alba Díaz” has ambitious priests and the threats of the Inquisition lurking all around our heroine who not only has a demon inside of her, but dares to want to have control of her life and independence from subservience. We also have hints as to what her fiancé would get out of this, and more hints about other ways that the Church has a cloud over a community of Indigenous people in ways that aren’t as obvious. It’s a fantastic re-examination of a genre that for so long has lauded the institution of the Catholic Church as the heroes of the story, and I’m so glad that more and more horror authors are approaching the tropes in new ways.

But I also really loved the love story between Alba and Elías, the outsider alchemist who people are wary of because of a dark past and perhaps some strange connections to non-traditional practices. Is it a little bit of a whirlwind insta love kind of romance? Yeah, for sure. But even so, I liked having both of their perspectives in the narrative so we could see a building passion between them as he wants to try to help her and she starts to realize that perhaps she CAN make room for romance in her hopes of finding a marriage match that won’t leave her abused or utterly powerless. There are also some moments that are pretty smolder-y, as while we don’t really get to see a lot of the smolder (after all, there are more pressing matters at hand), the build up and the chemistry between these two characters are palpable. Cañas really knows how to make me prioritize a romantic pairing even when demonic possession as religious oppression are nipping at said pairing’s heels.

“The Possession of Alba Díaz” is another winner from Isabel Cañas! She is three for three for me now, and I cannot wait to see where she goes next!

Rating 9: A possession story that sets its sights on not just the horrors of a demon within, but of colonialism and misogyny as well, “The Possession of Alba Díaz” is another historical horror gem from Isabel Cañas!

Reader’s Advisory:

“The Possession of Alba Díaz” is included on the Goodreads lists “Mexican Gothic”, and “Horror to Look Forward To in 2025”.

Kate’s Review: “With A Vengeance”

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Book: “With A Vengeance” by Riley Sager

Publishing Info: Dutton, June 2025

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

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

Book Description: One train. No stops. A deadly game of survival and revenge.

In 1942, six people destroyed Anna Matheson’s family. Twelve years later, she’s ready for retribution.

Under false pretenses, Anna has lured those responsible for her family’s downfall onto a luxury train from Philadelphia to Chicago, an overnight journey of fourteen hours. Her goal? Confront the people who’ve wronged her, get them to confess their crimes, and deliver them into the hands of authorities waiting at the end of the line. Justice will at last be served.

But Anna’s plan is quickly derailed by the murder of one of the passengers. As the train barrels through the night, it becomes clear that someone else on board is enacting their own form of revenge—and that they won’t stop until everyone else is dead.

With time running out before the train reaches its destination, Anna is forced to hunt the killer in their midst while protecting the people she hates the most. In order to destroy her enemies, she must first save them—even though it means putting her own life at risk.

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

For me, summer has some guarantees that I can always count on, and one of those things is a new Riley Sager book. I’ve been reading a Riley Sager book every summer for the past eight years, starting with “Final Girls” and going with a new book every year from there. It’s just a staple of the season to me. And because of this it was obvious that I was going to read his newest novel “With A Vengeance”. It’s just what summer brings. I know that Sager has his fans and his detractors, but I haven’t had a bad experience with any of his books, finding all of them at the very least entertaining and ultimately good reads. That is, until now.

Hey, eight out of nine ain’t bad, right? (source)

But first the good. I an always respect and author who wants to switch things up in their writing, and “With A Vengeance” is a huge tone shift for Sager, as the sub-genre is an Agatha Christie-esque locked door mystery and the time period if post-WWII 1950s America. It’s a huge shift from his previous works, and I definitely applaud him taking this risk. I also think that he has the bare bone foundation of a solid locked room mystery, with a dubious cast of characters who could all be suspects, and with a pretty well thought out motivation at the heart of Anna wanting revenge for her brother’s and father’s deaths and her ruined life, as well as having pretty clear reasons for many of the conspirators that sought to take her father down. Sager has a solid set up here, I can’t deny that.

But the execution was off. There were so many twists and turns that were supposed to be interesting and scandalous, but they were either predictable, or they just felt like they were too many things going on at once. We’d have one solution, only to have another new solution, only to backtrack on ANOTHER solution, with a few obvious red herrings thrown in that didn’t really work. By the time we got to the third or fourth shocking twist, I was pretty much over it, and I was just ready for the train to pull into the station so that it could all be over and done with. On top of that, while I thought that the characters had believable motivations to want to set up Anna’s father to take a pretty horrendous fall, I didn’t feel like I got to know ANY of them beyond their villainy (with one possible exception I won’t spoil here, but their reasoning was at least humanizing to the character which made them a bit more interesting), or their need for revenge in Anna’s case. Anna also didn’t do much for mer, as her rage and desire to get her vengeance was understandble, but there wasn’t much else to her, which made her less interesting and made her less likable because of it. I know that Sager can be pretty hit or miss for lots of people when it comes to his protagonists, but this was the first time I just really didn’t care about a main character in one of his books. I really and truly wanted more and it just sputtered out.

“With A Vengeance” had so much potential but never quite reached it. I’m not giving up on Sager after one misstep, but as someone who has been a staunch defender of him in the past, it was a disappointment to be sure.

Rating 5: While I appreciate Sager experimenting with other sub-genres of thrillers, “With A Vengeance” was too muddled and didn’t have enough well developed characters to really endear me to the story.

Reader’s Advisory:

“With a Vengeance” is included on the Goodreads list “Haunting Books For A Stormy Night”.

Serena’s Review: “The Rushworth Family Plot”

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Book: “The Rushworth Family Plot” by Claudia Gray

Publishing Info: Vintage, June 2025

Where Did I Get this Book: Netgalley!

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

Book Description: Jonathan Darcy and Juliet Tilney understand each other perfectly; it’s a pity their families do not. A series of misunderstandings, misplaced pride, and—indeed—prejudice, has led their parents to deem the pair unsuited to wed. Now, with the Season approaching, Juliet’s grandfather, General Tilney, has sent her to London with a new wardrobe and orders to prove herself worthy of someone better than the snobby Darcys. Meanwhile, Jonathan has been forced to accept an invitation to stay in town with old friends Edmund and Fanny Bertram at the house of Edmund’s brother, Sir Thomas. Oblivious to and undesiring of female attention outside of Juliet’s, Jonathan is at risk of being ensnared by Caroline Bingley’s previously rebuffed plans to make herself—or her daughter—mistress of Pemberley.

But when Mr. Rushworth, the former husband of Edmund’s sister Maria, is discovered dead in his home, Jonathan and Juliet find themselves with problems far weightier than the marriage market. In one of the greatest scandals of its day, Maria abandoned her new husband in favor of the notorious rake Henry Crawford, and when he wouldn’t marry her, was forced to flee to the continent in disgrace. Now Maria is back, accompanied by a daughter she claims Mr. Rushworth fathered after their divorce—and who he wrote into his will just before his death. To spare Edmund and Fanny further social shame, Jonathan and Juliet must unmask a killer before the drama surrounding the Rushworth family fortune claims another victim.

Previously Reviewed: “The Murder of Mr. Wickham” and “The Late Mrs. Willoughby” and “The Perils of Lady Catherine de Bourgh”

Review: Another entry in the Mr. Darcy/Miss Tilney mysteries and just as enjoyable as the rest! I went into this one both excited (because Claudia Gray has yet to set a single step wrong) but also a bit nervous (because the characters from “Mansfield Park” and especially the dynamic between Edmund and Fanny seem like the most challenging of Austen’s originals to re-create). But, as always, I shouldn’t have worried at all!

Let’s start with the mystery itself! Like always, Gray does an excellent job setting the stage for the murder at the center of this story. There are a number of excellent suspects and red herrings, and every time the reader (or Miss Tilney or Mr. Darcy, for that matter) feel as if they might begin to get a reading on the situation, another twist will be thrown in. I also enjoyed the other, smaller mysteries that made up many of the subplots, such as the Bertrams’ handling of the sale of their plantation in Antiqua.

The story also delved into Fanny’s character and her struggles with childbirth in a very deep way. Poor Fanny. She’s always getting the most rough end of the stick, both in her original story and now here with all of this tragedy. However, I think the way that infertility and miscarriage was handled was incredibly sensitive, and some of Fanny’s internal thoughts and struggles are of the sort that you don’t often see portrayed well on the page. On a lighter note, I enjoyed her interactions with Edmund, and it we even got a bone thrown to some of the Edmund/Fanny/Mary Crawford drama from the original book.

Of course, the main draw is, as always, Mr. Darcy and Miss Tilney themselves. Their relationship continues to be hindered by their ridiculous parents, but I was incredibly excited to see Catherine Tilney finally in person on the page! It’s also poetic justice that she immediately gathered a better reading on the situation between Jonathan and Juliet than her husband did in the last book. Their letters discussing the matter were particularly fun! Of course, as this is a series that is ongoing, sticks continued to be thrown in the cogs of them actually formally pursuing things (Darcy and Elizabeth really need to get their act together!). But the story definitely took a twist in this area that I wasn’t expecting and that lead to some of the major action at the end of the book.

Overall, I really enjoyed this one! It didn’t perhaps reach the highs of some of the previous books (mostly because the secondary characters are largely unlikable or fairly depressed through most of the book which lead to a bit less humor). But I really liked the mystery and I will be first in line to check out the next one!

Rating 8: Full of unexpected action and twists and turns galore, this is another incredibly showing in the series!

Reader’s Advisory:

“The Rushworth Family Plot” isn’t on any Goodreads lists but it should be on: Austen Retellings.

Kate’s Review: “The Whyte Python World Tour”

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

Book: “The Whyte Python World Tour” by Travis Kennedy

Publishing Info: Doubleday, June 2025

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

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

Book Description: It’s Los Angeles, 1986, and metal rules the world. For aspiring drummer Rikki Thunder, life is good—even if he is sleeping in a condemned paint store and playing with a band that’s going nowhere. But when he gets a shot to join L.A.’s hottest up-and-coming band, Whyte Python, Rikki’s young life turns up to 11. Soon he has a hit single scorching up the charts, and the new love of his life in the audience. Rikki couldn’t ask for anything more.

But good fortune can be deceiving. With the Cold War breathing its last gasps and American music blasting through the Iron Curtain, a youth revolution is taking hold – and a hair band is unknowingly playing host to the final battle for the hearts and minds of the Eastern Bloc. Rikki Thunder soon realizes there is a deeper web of influence propelling Whyte Python, and the stakes for his mission—to spread peace, love, and epic shredding across the globe—are far more dangerous than he could ever imagine.

Raucously funny and refreshing, The Whyte Python World Tour is a head-banger of a debut, steeped in ‘80s music culture nostalgia and international suspense.

Review: Thank you to Wunderkind PR for sending me an ARC of this novel!

In the past few years I have fully embraced my love for glam metal. My husband has been a big Motley Crue fan since we were teenagers, but it wasn’t until recently that I realized that I, too, love the over the top melodramatics of hair metal and the spandex and make up and androgyny that goes with it. So when I was asked if I wanted to check out “The Whyte Python World Tour” by Travis Kennedy, I couldn’t help but say yes. The idea of a tongue in cheek music story with hints of “Spinal Tap” and ‘Behind the Music’ lunacy mixed with a Cold War Espionage tale is so funny to me. Because why would you want a hair metal band involved in global politicking and coups?!

This may be a deep cut, but it’s too perfect to pass up. (source)

This is part espionage thriller, part raucous coming of age rock and roll tale, and while it doesn’t take itself too seriously it also never treads into cheap laughs or lazy tropes. We follow Rikki Thunder, a young hair metal drummer in L.A. right as the Cold War is starting to see serious cracks in 1989. He is recruited to be the new drummer for the hot band Whyte Python, but what he (and the band itself) doesn’t know is that everything is being manipulated by the C.I.A. in hopes of brining the rebellion of hair metal to the U.S.S.R. and starting a rebellion by the youth. We have Rikki’s POV, but we also follow members of the agency, including his handler who calls herself Tawny and presents herself as a rock and roll groupie. I really enjoyed both of these perspectives, whether it’s golden retriever and deeply earnest Rikki, or the Cold War politics and spy thrills of Tawny and the agency trying to pull off a glam metal fueled revolution. It’s a bit of a goofy premise. but Kennedy leans fully in and I found it entertaining and at times very suspenseful. It is also very funny at times, and I found myself laughing throughout the story at the ludicrous situations and musings that Rikki and his fellow cast members would get into.

But this book is also such a love letter to glam metal and its entire essence and aesthetic. Whether that is the Southern California roots that Whyte Python has, or the fashion styles described in this book, or the little nods to other legendary bands, be it directly or indirectly (I mean come on, Rikki’s love interest/handler gives herself the name Tawny. I said to myself ‘yeah, as in KITANE!!!’ when we first met her), this book clearly adores the entire oeuvre of hair metal. I enjoyed the moments of Rikki interacting with his bandmates, and even real life people (there is a scene between him and Brett Michaels that was practically killing me), and I also enjoyed the way that Kennedy shows how powerful and unifying music can be for people of many backgrounds and experiences. It’s just such a wholesome concept, and it really reminded me of the original premise of the “Bill and Ted” movies about how hair metal could change the world for the better. In a time where cynicism has really taken root and some really dark things have been happening, it was just a nice balm, even if for a moment.

“The Whyte Python World Tour” is an entertaining and heartfelt read that centers a healthy affection for glam metal music and the power it holds. I really enjoyed it.

Rating 8: A tongue in cheek, goofy espionage thriller with a glam metal sheen, “The Whyte Python World Tour” is entertaining, funny, and filled with heart and a love for the power of music.

Reader’s Advisory:

“The Whyte Python World Tour” isn’t included on any Goodreads lists a of now, but it would fit in on “Fiction Involving Rock/Pop Music”.

Kate’s Review: “Lady Or The Tiger”

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

Book: “Lady Or The Tiger” by Heather M. Hermann

Publishing Info: Nancy Paulson Books, June 2025

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

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

Book Description: A twisty, darkly seductive murder mystery, starring a teenage killer whose trial in the Wild West is upended when her first victim, her husband, arrives alive with a story to tell.

When nineteen-year-old Belle King turns herself in for murder, the last thing she expects to see is her abusive husband standing outside her Dodge City jail cell. He was the first man she ever meant to kill (but certainly not the last!). Somehow, though, her husband is there, hale and hearty, and very much not dead. With his arrival her plans in jail are jeopardized, and she’ll be forced to resort to all the tricks in her arsenal to prevent him from ever being in control of her again. But as a girl in the 1880s Wild West, the last thing anyone will believe is a woman—even when she confesses to her own crimes.

This story—of how Alice Springer, a mountain girl from Kentucky, became the infamous Belle King, of how she found the tiger in her heart, becoming the wickedest woman in the Wild West—is a love story that cuts through time and patriarchal ties.

Review: Thank you to Books Forward for sending me an ARC of this novel!

As a rule, I don’t usually like the Western genre. I have a few exceptions, of course, but that is usually when the conventions of the genre are flipped on their head. I’ve encountered this in books like “Lone Women” by Victor LaValle and “The Buffalo Hunter Hunter” by Stephen Graham Jones, and it has happend once again with the new YA Western “Lady Or The Tiger” by Heather M. Hermann. When I read the description of this book I knew that I really needed to check it out, and I am so glad I did.

We are following the story of Belle King, previously known as Alice Springer, as she becomes a sought out desperado in the Wild West, murdering men and living life on her own terms. We meet her as she has been arrested, and learn about how she became the fearsome villainess through flashbacks and jumping around timelines, showing how she became the hardened woman we meet at the start. Hermann takes her time unwinding this complicated, bleak, and at times absolutely maddening story, revealing the cost of being a woman during this time in a place that was almost wholly lawless, while also contrasting how it was STILL dangerous for women even if they were doing everything ‘right’. We follow Belle go from being orphaned, to being institutionalized, to being forced into the role of child bride, and then get to see her find her freedom, even if maintaining it means committing murder. This is not a romanticized Western by any means, and I loved how frank and brutal it was, with so many moments of tension just twisting up as I was reading it. We see violent misogyny, we see racism, we see classism and colonialism, and the realities of this time and place is on display in all of its nastiness. I was a bit shocked that this book is YA, but I like that Hermann trusts her readers to be able to understand it and take it on.

I also really liked our main character, Alice/Belle, because I absolutely LOVE seeing a morally grey female protagonist. It isn’t too often that women in fiction are afforded the opportunity to be unlikable, difficult, and sometimes unapologetically cruel, but Alice/Belle does a lot of really morally questionable things and I still found myself rooting for her. Hermann takes great care to give her a backstory without making her sappy or cloying, while also making her choices, both gook and bad, completely believable and in general easy to understand. Even in the times that I was taken aback by some of the things she did, her actions always fell in line with what I expected, and her circumstances were such that I never really questioned it. It’s so often in the Western genre that we get morally grey men to follow, so seeing a woman, when women are mostly sidelined or made passive in Westerns, take on the role of the desperado while also making it unapologetically feminist, was deeply, deeply satisfying.

“Lady Or The Tiger” is a relentless and angry battle cry of feminine rage. I am absolutely going to check out whatever Heather M. Hermann takes on next, because this was a stellar take on a genre I don’t usually enjoy.

Rating 8: Gritty, unapologetic, and brutal in all the right way, “Lady Or The Tiger” is a Western filled with feminine rage and proud defiance.

Reader’s Advisory:

“Lady Or The Tiger” is included on the Goodreads list “2025 YA Historical Fiction”.

Kate’s Review: “The Manor of Dreams”

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

Book: “The Manor of Dreams” by Christina Li

Publishing Info: Avid Reader Press, May 2025

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

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

Book Description: Mexican Gothic meets Everything I Never Told You in Christina Li’s haunting novel about the secrets that lie in wait in the crumbling mansion of a former Hollywood starlet, and the intertwined fates of the two Chinese American families fighting to inherit it.

They say what you don’t know can’t hurt you. But silence can be deadly.

Vivian Yin is dead. The first Chinese actress to win an Oscar, the trailblazing ingénue rose to fame in the eighties, only to disappear from the spotlight at the height of her career and live out the rest of her life as a recluse.

Now her remaining family members are gathered for the reading of her will and her daughters expect to inherit their childhood Vivian’s grand, sprawling Southern California garden estate. But due to a last-minute change to the will, the house is passed on to another family instead—one that has suddenly returned after decades of estrangement.

In hopes of staking their claim, both families move into the mansion. Amidst the grief and paranoia of the families’ unhappy reunion, Vivian’s daughters race to piece together what happened in the last weeks of their mother’s life, only to realize they are being haunted by something much more sinister and vengeful than their regrets. After so many years of silence, will the families finally confront the painful truth about the last fateful summer they spent in the house, or will they cling to their secrets until it’s too late?

Told in dual timelines, spanning three generations, and brimming with romance, betrayal, ambition and sacrifice, The Manor of Dreams is a thrilling family gothic that examines the true cost of the American dream—and what happens when the roots we set down in this country turn to rot.

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

Haunted house stories are one of my favorite sub-genres of horror fiction, and I don’t think that I will ever get sick of the trope of a family moving into a new home, unaware of the horrors that await. And we’ve been getting a few books like this as of late, with “The Manor of Dreams” by Christina Li being one of the more recent ones. And when I was reading about this one, it was pretty clear to me that not only were we going to get a haunted house story, but also a family saga with some shades of dysfunction and the racist undertones of American society. Which meant that I was even more on board to read it.

As a haunted house story, “The Manor of Dreams” is solid and effective. There is a slow build of dread as two families, Elaine and her daughter Nora, and Lucille, her sister Rennie, and daughter Madeline, start a legal fight over the inheritance of an estate that had been in Lucille’s family for years, but ended up being left for Elaine by the owner, actress Vivian Yin. Elaine’s parents had worked for Vivian and her husband Richard, and Elaine harbors enough resentment that she wants to keep the house, while Lucille is furious. But as both families decide to camp there while it all gets sorted, Nora and Madeline, and Rennie too, start seeing things, and realizing something is VERY wrong in the house. From weird images, to shadowy figures, to a very, shall we say, ACTIVE garden, the haunted house trope is alive and well in this book, with a rot seeping not only into the house, but into the women who are fighting over it. We start to learn the various tragedies and moments that may be contributing to the haunting, with a sad and devastating history of the house playing a role, but also with reveals that are well hidden and pulled off as the story goes on.

I also really connected with the ways that Li weaves in themes of racism, identity, and generational trauma into this haunted house story, making it about so many different things that can haunt a person. In the past storyline, we have Vivian, whose fame is growing as she establishes herself as a serious actress on the arm of her actor/producer husband Richard, making a splash as the first Chinese American actress to win an Oscar for Best Supporting Actress, but then finding the roles drying up due to a lack of interest in non-white actresses (amongst other things). We also have tensions relating to Vivian’s identity in regards to the history of the house itself, with Richard’s family estate having ties to the Chinese Railroad workers, as his ancestor was a magnate who had no qualms taking advantage of workers who were being exploited in dangerous conditions and cast aside. Add in the tension as Vivian’s marriage starts to deteriorate, and the complexity of Vivian oozes off the page. And in the present day we have Lucille and Rennie, who have darker memories of their childhood in the home and the terrible losses they endured, and the complicated relationship they both had with their mother, and how that informs both of them and their motivations. Which in turn passes down to Lucille’s relationship with her own daughter Madeline. And THEN we have Nora and her mother Elaine, with Elaine having her OWN motivations as the daughter of former staff to Vivian and Richard, and bitterness towards the family that lived there throughout the years. It adds layers to the supernatural haunting angle, and I truly enjoyed how well Li pulled out the family dysfunction along with the haunting itself.

Overall, “The Manor of Dreams” is a creepy and poignant horror story that touches upon family dysfunction and identity with a deft hand. If you like haunted house novels, definitely check this one out.

Rating 8: A suspenseful, creepy, and very poignant story about family secrets, generational trauma, and how bitterness can wreak havoc on the living and the dead.

Reader’s Advisory:

“The Manor of Dreams” is included on the Goodreads lists “Horror To Look Forward To in 2025”, and “Queer Releases May 2025”.

Kate’s Review: “Bochica”

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

Book: “Bochica” by Carolina Flórez-Cerchiaro

Publishing Info: Atria/Primero Sueno Press, May 2025

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

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

Book Description: A real-life Latin American haunted mansion. A murky labyrinth of family secrets. A young, aristocratic woman desperate to escape her past. This haunting debut gothic horror novel is perfect for fans of Mexican Gothic and The Shining.

In 1923 Soacha, Colombia, La Casona—an opulent mansion perched above the legendary Salto del Tequendama waterfall—was once home to Antonia and her family, who settle in despite their constant nightmares and the house’s malevolent spirit. But tragedy strikes when Antonia’s mother takes a fatal fall into El Salto and her father, consumed by grief, attempts to burn the house down with Antonia still inside.

Three years later, haunted by disturbing dreams and cryptic journal entries from her late mother, Antonia is drawn back to her childhood home when it is converted into a luxurious hotel. As Antonia confronts her fragmented memories and the dark history of the estate, she wrestles with unsettling questions she can no longer Was her mother’s death by her own hands, or was it by someone else’s?

In a riveting quest for answers, Antonia must navigate the shadows of La Casona, unearthing its darkest secrets and confronting a legacy that threatens to swallow her whole.

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

Anyone who knows me or has been reading this blog for awhile knows that I really adore Gothic stories, especially if they are within the horror genre. Isolated settings, tormented heroines, questions of hauntings or ghosts or hallucinations, I love it all. So obviously the book “Bochica” by Carolina Flórez-Cerchiaro really called out to me, given that not only is it a Gothic story with a mansion that has a haunting history, it’s also in the jungles of Colombia! In the early part of the 20th Century! All of this is just catnip to me, and I had been really looking forward to digging in once it was getting closer to review time.

I absolutely loved the setting of this book. For one, I really enjoyed the time and place, with the focus on Colombia in the 1920s and 1930s, centered mostly in a Gothic mansion nestled in the jungle by a large waterfall (based on an actual mansion that has its own history that somewhat mirrors this story). I love Gothic stories, and to have one centered with a Latin American backdrop and a rich and complex historical basis really compelled me. I loved the way that Flórez-Cerchiaro paints a portrait of this opulent hotel with a dark history, and how I could just see it all come to life as I read the book. I also greatly enjoyed the histories that this story touched upon, whether it was the Muisca mythology and folklore, as well as the ways that the book would touch upon colonialism and imperialism, and the role that the Catholic Church has played in such things ever since the Spanish-led conquest/genocide in this area. There are also some creepy and eerie moments that really unnerved me, with strange shadowy figures or weird moments in the dark.

On the flip side, outside of our main character Antonia, I wasn’t really blown away by our cast of characters, as everyone that wasn’t her didn’t really interest me or feel well expanded upon. Whether it was a complicated relationship between Antonia and her father Ricardo that felt limp, or a romantic connection between Antonia and her love interest/journalist Alejandro that never really crackled, or even an antagonist with secrets in Doña Pereira, who has a past connection to Antonia and her mother and has taken over El Salto as a hotel, none of the characters really did much for me, and the way that Antonia interacted with any of them just didn’t really take off. And because of that, my reading experience never felt very high stakes, and I wasn’t as engrossed with the story as much as I had hoped I would be. I think that going in with a lot of high hopes set it up for a bit of a free fall when they weren’t met, and while I would certainly recommend this book as a Gothic horror story with a unique POV, it doesn’t really stand out beyond that.

A bit of a mixed bag. I definitely suggest checking it out if you have been thinking about it, but the comparisons to other stories like “The Shining” and “Mexican Gothtic” aren’t quite on point.

Rating 7: The setting is eerie and very unique with great explorations of the history of the area, but the characters were kind of flat, and I was never fully pulled in. Overall, lots of potential, but it didn’t quite channel it.

Reader’s Advisory:

“Bochica” is included on the Goodreads list “Horror to Look Forward to in 2025”.

Book Club Review: “The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society”

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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. Re-visiting some of our past themes, we’re once again reading books that have had film/TV adaptations and then comparing the two mediums. 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: “The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society” by Mary Ann Shaffer & Anne Burrows

Publishing Info: The Dial Press, July 2008

Where Did I Get This Book: The library!

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

What We Watched: “The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society”

Book Description: January 1946: London is emerging from the shadow of the Second World War, and writer Juliet Ashton is looking for her next book subject. Who could imagine that she would find it in a letter from a man she’s never met, a native of the island of Guernsey, who has come across her name written inside a book by Charles Lamb….

As Juliet and her new correspondent exchange letters, Juliet is drawn into the world of this man and his friends – and what a wonderfully eccentric world it is. The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society – born as a spur-of-the-moment alibi when its members were discovered breaking curfew by the Germans occupying their island – boasts a charming, funny, deeply human cast of characters, from pig farmers to phrenologists, literature lovers all. Juliet begins a remarkable correspondence with the society’s members, learning about their island, their taste in books, and the impact the recent German occupation has had on their lives. Captivated by their stories, she sets sail for Guernsey, and what she finds will change her forever.

Written with warmth and humor as a series of letters, this novel is a celebration of the written word in all its guises and of finding connection in the most surprising ways.

Kate’s Thoughts

Hooray for book club! I genuinely feel this way all of the time no matter what the circumstance, but I also love how it will push me outside of my comfort zones when my fellow members pick our books each month. And that happened with “The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society” by Mary Ann Shaffer and Anne Burrows. Because while I do read historical fiction, I generally don’t read WWII historical fiction. But bring it on, book club! Give me a reason to stretch my reading muscles!

I hadn’t realized until I picked it up that this book was an epistolary novel, but it was a pleasant surprise because I really do enjoy epistolary stories. I enjoyed reading the letters between the various characters and seeing their personalities come out through their letters, and I liked how it made for an interesting way for the plot to come together. I can certainly say that this book had a lot of charming aspects, from quirky characters to a tight knit community bringing and outsider into the fold, to some pretty funny bits in the letters. It was a breezy read, and it was engaging enough.

On the other hand, World War Two books aren’t usually my go to for reading, fiction or non-fiction alike. While it was unique in the sense that the island of Guernsey was occupied by Nazis, and therefore the citizens had to actually live with their enemies, it just wasn’t really my cup of tea. It didn’t really help that I had a hard time with the mentioned romance between Society Founder Elizabeth’s romance with a German doctor named Christian, as while I did appreciate that the authors did their due diligence to make it feel the least amount of whitewashing of Nazis (and actually I liked the book’s approach to this more than the movie, as the book did portray Christian as actively resisting in his own small ways), it still felt clunky. This combined with just a general ambivalence towards the genre made it a middle of the road read for me.

All in all it fostered good book club discussion and had its charming bits. But I’m probably not the target audience for this book. But if you like WWII fiction that feels somewhat cozy, this would be a solid choice!

Kate’s Rating 6: It was charming and engaging, but it’s not really my kind of book at the end of the day.

Book Club Questions

  1. How did you feel about the format of this story, and how does it compare to other epistolary novels?
  2. There is a large cast of characters in this book. Did any of them stick out to you? How did you like and dislike?
  3. What did you think of Christian and how he was portrayed as a romantic interest for Elizabeth in the past despite the fact he was a Nazi occupier?
  4. If you have read the book and seen the movie, what did you think of the changes that were made? Were there any you liked? Disliked?
  5. There are many WWII novels out there. What kinds of genre and sub-genres do you like with these stories? Any titles you like best?

Reader’s Advisory

“The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society” is included on the Goodreads lists “World War II Fiction”, and “Foreign Lands”.

Next Book Club Pick: “Are You There, God? It’s Me, Margaret” by Judy Blume

Kate’s Review: “Blood On Her Tongue”

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

Book: “Blood On Her Tongue” by Johanna van Veen

Publishing Info: Poisoned Pen Press, March 2025

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

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

Book Description: The Netherlands, 1887. Lucy’s twin sister Sarah is unwell. She refuses to eat, mumbles nonsensically, and is increasingly obsessed with a centuries-old corpse recently discovered on her husband’s grand estate. The doctor has diagnosed her with temporary insanity caused by a fever of the brain. To protect her twin from a terrible fate in a lunatic asylum, Lucy must unravel the mystery surrounding her sister’s condition, but it’s clear her twin is hiding something. Then again, Lucy is harboring secrets of her own, too.

Then, the worst happens. Sarah’s behavior takes a turn for the strange. She becomes angry… and hungry. 

Lucy soon comes to suspect that something is trying to possess her beloved sister. Or is it madness? As Sarah changes before her very eyes, Lucy must reckon with the dark, monstrous truth, or risk losing her forever.

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

I gotta say, I love that we are kind of living in a horror lit vampire renaissance at the moment. We are getting a lot of really well done vampire stories as of late, with interesting and intriguing twists and perspectives, and “Blood On Her Tongue” by Johanna van Veen is a new tale to add to the list. I enjoyed van Veen’s previous novel “My Darling Dreadful Thing”, and when Poisoned Pen Press asked if I was interested to check this one out too I leapt at the chance. I love a Gothic story, I love a vampire story, and I couldn’t wait to see what van Veen had in store with this one. And it was overall a winner with twin sisters Sarah and Lucy, a bog body, and a nasty transformation of one twin while another has to decide if said transformation is a dealbreaker, especially with oppressive patriarchy making things all the more difficult.

The horror themes in this book were fairly unique blends of both folk horror (the idea of bog bodies being used in a supernatural way is SO great) and a take on vampirism vis a vis parasitism, and it all worked really well for me. I really enjoyed seeing the slow build up through Sarah’s deterioration, to letters that Lucy and Sarah have written each other, to Sarah’s notes in various books and research writings, and I thought that the pacing and the tension was taut and snappy. Lucy slowly realizing that her twin isn’t really her twin anymore was very nerve wracking and emotional, and van Veen isn’t afraid to have some really gnarly body horror moments as Sarah becomes more and more desiccated and monstrous in her appearance and behaviors. It’s also a more animalistic take on vampirism, bringing in some aspects of possession horror as well that blur the lines between the sub-genres and make them feel complementary to each other.

And while I was a bit flabbergasted at Lucy’s complete blind devotion to Sarah even when she was doing some REALLY crazy things (as mentioned above), I did think that van Veen did fantastic due diligence to make it fully believable that she would be terrified of Sarah being committed. As someone who used to work in a historic house with a narrative history that had a lot bleak tidbits regarding the way women were treated in a medical context, a lot of these aspects were believable and very disturbing. Whether it’s an aunt with a history of mental illness who suffered within an asylum, or the way that Sarah herself was treated as a menace when dealing with immense grief, or how Lucy and Sarah both are dismissed over and over again based solely on their genders (mostly by the men surrounding them), the way that Lucy wants to protect Sarah at all costs was wholly earned. It’s once again the real life horrors of misogyny and a lack of understanding of mental illness (and the approaches men took towards women who were suffering) that really gave this story a punch. God I wanted to throttle Sarah’s husband more and more as the story progressed. And it also raises some issues about Sarah’s transformation and the way that so many were trying to shove her away from everyone, and whether or not it was because they thought she was really dangerous, or because they thought she was becoming inconvenient.

“Blood On Her Tongue” is a savvy blend of folk horror, vampire horror, and the horrors of misogyny and ableism. I found it unnerving and deeply creepy.

Rating 8: Unsettling and angry, “Blood On Her Tongue” is a striking horror tale that has a lot to say about not only the supernatural, but also about misogyny and ableism for two sisters in the 19th Century.

Reader’s Advisory:

“Blood On Her Tongue” is included on the Goodreads list “Horror Books 2025”.