All Dragons Read

Today is September 22, the Autumnal Equinox, officially kicking off my favorite time of year!

This also marks the first part of my 31 Books for Halloween personal reading challenge.  After starting September 1, I had a few delays which cut into my reading time.  No worries, though, I believe I am back on track to complete my 31st book on October 31.

Let’s count down the 31 books as I finish them!

**Reviews may contain spoilers.**

What I’ve Been Reading

Lute by Jennifer Thorne — 3 out of 5 stars

(H 1/31)  Novel. “On the idyllic island of Lute, every seventh summer, seven people die. No more, no less.”  Nina moves to the island of Lute with her children and husband, who happens to be the Lord of Lute.  She has been told about The Day but has always blown it off as superstitious nonsense.  Then The Day arrives and she finds out what it’s really all about, as well as the secrets her husband has been keeping.      For something that was described as “Wicker Man meets Final Destination,” I was expecting a lot more from this story.  I was drawn in at the beginning (the author does know how to create an ominous atmosphere), but by the middle of the book I found myself really  not caring about any of the characters and counting the pages until the end.  The final chapter did surprise me a bit, which kept my rating at a solid 3 stars.  While the story didn’t hit the mark for me, I would recommend giving it a shot if you are a fan of folk horror and don’t mind a few violent scenes.

True Ghost Stories and Hauntings, Volume 3 by Barb Shadow — 3 out of 5 stars

(H 2/31)  Barb Shadow is a paranormal investigator who has collected stories from everyday people who have had unexplained encounters or sightings.  Whether you believe in the paranormal or not, I think it’s safe to say that we all have had some sort of strange event happen to us at some point.  However, not all of them need to be published (“I heard a strange voice when I was six.  I don’t know what it was.”  Yes, that is an example of what a few of the stories were like).  There were several that caught my attention as being genuinely unsettling, but, for the most part, most of the “experiences” either fell flat, read like urban legend retellings, or were so poorly written that I couldn’t follow what was trying to be described.

Miracles For Masochists by James G. Carlson and Michael R. Collins — 4 out of 5 stars

(H 3/31)  Short story collection.  This collection has a bit of everything, from the ghost of Elvis who loves to bedazzle in Sequined Specter, to an artist who becomes one with his art in Transformation of Hayden Connor, to a dark tale of trading places with Death in More Human Than Human (plus four other tales).  I loved the dark humor that was laced throughout some of the stories.  I thought this was a pretty strong collection, one that I would recommend, especially if you are new to these authors.

The Auctioneer by Joan Samson — 4 out of 5 stars

(h 4/31)  Novel.  “Just remember this.  Whatever I’ve done, you’ve let me do.” (pg 210).  Charismatic auctioneer Perly Dunsmore arrives in small town Harlowe, New Hampshire.  When his donation solicitations and auctions start to take a more sinister turn, the townsfolk begin to realize it may be too late to take back their town and themselves.      There is something truly unsettling and disturbing about this 1975 horror classic.  Perhaps because it could easily be set in today’s modern world.  I highly recommend this one, especially if you liked Shirley Jackson’s The Lottery.

Within These Walls by Ania Ahlborn — 3.5/4 out of 5 stars

(H 5/31)  Novel.  Washed-up true crime writer Lucas Graham is being given the opportunity of a lifetime:  exclusive access to cult leader/mass murderer /death row inmate Jeffrey Halcomb.  The catch?  Lucas must move across the country and live in the house where the grisly deaths took place.  Lucas immediately packs up and moves to the secluded area in Washington state, bringing along his twelve-year-old daughter.  Of course, the house (and Jeffrey) have their own plans for Lucas.        I love stories involving haunted houses, and I love stories about psychotic cult leaders, so combining these two things hit the mark for me.  The atmosphere Ahlborn creates is dark and brooding, and the ending brought some surprises I didn’t see coming.  I’ve only read three of Ahlborn’s books, and this story definitely makes me want to track down more.

Offspring by Jack Ketchum — 2.5/3 out of 5 stars

(H 6/31)  Novel.  This 1987 follow-up to Ketchum’s notorious cannibal classic, Off Season, is just what you would expect a book about a cannibal tribe roaming the Maine sea coast to be.  Lots of gore and violent sexuality make this a book not for the squeamish.  There are really no surprises with this story, other than the fact that I actually bought my copy.  Granted, it was only 25 cents at a used book sale, but still.

Pumpkin Spice Scare by Molly Maple — 3 out of 5 stars

(H 7/31)  Cozy mystery.   In book 4 of Maple’s “Cupcake Crimes” series, Charlotte’s cupcake business is taking off and she plans on leaving her job at the local diner.  However, the discovery of her coworker’s body may change things.      I haven’t read the first three books in this series, but I really didn’t have any problems picking up the storyline and character quirks.  It has all the standard cozy requirements (budding love interest, kooky but loyal best friend, some sort of animal sidekick).  Overall it was a sweet, fun, October-based story.  For me, it did verge on being almost too sweet.  At one point, I felt like I was one sugar cube away from going into a diabetic coma.  Still, this is a series that I wouldn’t mind indulging in from time to time.

The New Dead:  A Zombie Anthology — 3 out of 5 stars

(H 8/31)  Nearly 400 pages of zombie stories and I found myself…bored??  With a list of well-known horror authors like Brian Keene, Max Brooks, Tim Lebbon, and Kelley Armstrong, I was expecting a bit of a wow factor, or at least some stories that stood out enough for me to remember after I finished them.  Don’t get me wrong, I did like all the stories to some degree.  However, after a bit, they all seemed to melt together.  Two standouts for me were Ghost Trap by Rick Hautala and Twittering From the Circus of the Dead by Joe Hill.  While most of this anthology didn’t blow me away, I would still recommend it for anyone looking for some zombie reads for the upcoming spooky season.

Deerhead by Blair Cousins — 2 out of 5 stars

(H 9/31)  Short story.  It’s always a crapshoot when I pick up a bunch of freebies for my kindle.  Over the years, I have found some hidden gems as well as several clunkers.  Sadly, this short story is one of the latter.  It starts out well enough:  a young couple take off for a weekend of camping at a nearby park, that just happens to have a reputation for hikers disappearing on a regular basis.  At about the halfway mark, things take a dark turn for our young couple, and, for me, that is when the story started to fall apart.  I get what the author was going for in regards to dealing with past traumas.  However, I thought the ending was too rushed for the complexity of  what was being revealed, leaving me with more questions than answers.  Not terrible, but a little fine tuning would have kicked this up a star or two.

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It’s finally September, and you know what that means…

My annual 31 Books of Halloween is back!

I started going through my physical books and Kindle titles a couple of months ago, trying to make a reading list for the next two months.  As always, the list will likely change based on my reading moods, but here’s a sample of what I’ve picked out…

I have a large variety of short stories and novellas on top of the dozens of full-length novels on my reading list.  And don’t fear, not everything is creepy or gory!  In the mix, I have a couple of nonfiction titles, as well as a variety of cozies featuring neighborhood witches or mysteries taking place in October.

Make sure to watch for my reading mash-ups in the next few weeks.  I will be posting my updates and reviews as I read them!

Have I mentioned how much I love this time of year??!!

Stay safe, support your local libraries, and Happy Reading!

 

 

 

 

 

For July, I know I have several library holds coming in over the next few weeks so I decided to keep it simple with these two from my shelves…

I’ve read other titles by both Brom and Paula Hawkins.  Brom’s Slewfoot was hands down one of my top three reads of 2023.  After finishing it, I immediately ordered Lost Gods…then let it sit on my unread shelf all this time.  I put it on my “26 Books to Read in 2026” list and decided this seemed like a good time to start it.  I read a few pages tonight and my first impression is “I think I’m going to really like this one.”

From Goodreads:

“Fresh out of jail and eager to start a new life, Chet Moran and his pregnant wife, Trish, leave town to begin again. But an ancient evil is looming, and what seems like a safe haven may not be all it appears . . .

Snared and murdered by a vile, arcane horror, Chet quickly learns that pain and death are not unique to the living. Now the lives and very souls of his wife and unborn child are at stake. To save them, he must journey into the bowels of purgatory in search of a sacred key promised to restore the natural order of life and death. Alone, confused, and damned, Chet steels himself against the unfathomable terrors awaiting him as he descends into death’s stygian blackness.

With Lost Gods, Brom’s gritty and visceral prose takes us on a haunting, harrowing journey into the depths of the underworld. Thrust into a realm of madness and chaos, where ancient gods and demons battle over the dead, and where cabals of souls conspire to overthrow their masters, Chet plays a dangerous game, risking eternal damnation to save his family.”

When I read Paula Hawkins’ huge hit, The Girl on the Train, back in 2017, I went in with low expectations.  “Runaway hit bestseller” are three words that normally  make me avoid reading the book as I usually wind up disappointed, leaving me wondering why the hell the book is so popular.  I was surprised at how much I liked it, so when I found this copy of Into the Water at a used book sale I decided to see if it was just as good.  And, once again, it has sat on my shelf of unread books for God knows how long.  I’ve been in the mood for a good psychological thriller so fingers crossed that this one doesn’t disappoint.

A single mother turns up dead at the bottom of the river that runs through town. Earlier in the summer, a vulnerable teenage girl met the same fate. They are not the first women lost to these dark waters, but their deaths disturb the river and its history, dredging up secrets long submerged.

Left behind is a lonely fifteen-year-old girl. Parentless and friendless, she now finds herself in the care of her mother’s sister, a fearful stranger who has been dragged back to the place she deliberately ran from—a place to which she vowed she’d never return.

With the same propulsive writing and acute understanding of human instincts that captivated millions of readers around the world in her explosive debut thriller, The Girl on the Train, Paula Hawkins delivers an urgent, twisting, deeply satisfying read that hinges on the deceptiveness of emotion and memory, as well as the devastating ways that the past can reach a long arm into the present.

Beware a calm surface—you never know what lies beneath.

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As for my June and mid-year updates…

It’s hard to believe we have reached the halfway mark for the year.  Personally, it has felt like several years rolled into six months, with no relief in sight.  Between dealing with an elderly parent to the current global shitstorm, I am feeling exhausted all of the time, often having headaches or feeling sick for days.  Books were my escape as a child, and they continue to be an escape.  As of June 30th, I’ve read 71 books of my Goodreads goal of 125.  I actually finished all three of my June TBR, a high point since I usually get distracted with my monthly TBR goals and wind up not finishing them in a timely manner.  I’ve wanted to continue my reviews, but so many of my recent reads have been pretty mediocre…of course, that could be due to my current state of mind.  But never fear, I do have some reviews I’m working on, I just need to find my focus.

What are your reading goals for July?  Drop me a line and let’s talk books!

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Stay safe, and Happy Reading!

 

Happy Pride Month!!

Well, it’s the seventh of June and I’m already falling behind!  I hope that’s not a sign of how this month is going to go.

Over the past two months, I’ve had a bunch of library holds arrive that I prioritized.  This month, it’s all about my personal TBR library.

Eleanore of Avignon by Elizabeth DeLozier is one of my “26 for 2026” picks.  Set in 1347, this historical drama centers on Eleanore, a young woman skilled in the arts of herbalism and midwifery.  Add the Black Death and a disgraced. pregnant queen, this has the makings of a truly remarkable story.  Fingers crossed on this one!

I Died Too, But They Haven’t Buried Me Yet by Ross Jeffery is a book I have wanted to read since I bought it shortly after publication in 2023.  This is a story of a father grieving the disappearance/loss of his daughter, and the offer from a stranger to make contact with her.  “...A tale of deception and possession like no other.” (from the cover blurb)  I read Ross Jeffery’s short story collection, Beautiful Atrocities, in 2022 and gave it one of the few full five stars I’ve given to any anthology/collection.  I’m hoping the author brings all the greatness to this novel that he did to those short stories.

What Kind of Paradise by Janelle Brown is a story that caught my attention last year.  I actually finished reading this one earlier today, so I won’t say much more about it here (but I will be putting up a review in my next Reading Mash-Up).

There are a couple of other titles on my shelf I would like to start this month, including The Devil’s Star by Jo Nesbo and A Court of Wings and Ruin by Sarah J. Maas.  But, since I am a total mood reader, I guess we will have to see what mood I am in this month.

What are your reading goals for June?  Drop me a line and let’s talk books!!

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I believe I can sum up my reading experience for this month with two words:  Mediocre May.  As of today, May 27, I have finished ten books, with three current reads I should be finishing before the 31st.  Sadly, most of my reads this month were rather underwhelming, most getting three stars or less.  They weren’t bad, per se, they just didn’t grab me (with the exception of the 1.5/2 star book, that one was just plain ol’ bad).  I hope this isn’t the start of a dreaded reading slump!

There were a few that rose above the others…

What I’ve Been Reading

Nobody’s Girl:  A Memoir of Surviving Abuse and Fighting for Justice by Virginia Roberts Giuffre — 4.5 out of 5 stars

Virginia Giuffre was one of the many survivors of the Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell sex trafficking ring who came forward, most notably for her testimony against Maxwell and Giuffre’s role in exposing some of the world’s wealthiest men, including Prince Andrew.  Giuffre tells her story of horrific childhood sexual abuse, her “chance” meeting with Maxwell which led her down into the depths of hell as a victim of sex trafficking.  There were some brighter moments when she finally escaped, married, and had children.  There was hope among the horror, and her story was made even more tragic with her death around the time this book was published.  Not an easy read, but one I highly recommend.

All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr — 4.5 out of 5 stars

Historical fiction.  Set in France and Germany during World War II, this story alternates between Marie-Laure and Werner.  Marie-Laure is a blind girl who lives with her father, the “master of keys” at the nearby Museum of Natural History.  They are forced to flee Paris and find themselves living with a distant uncle on the coast.   Werner is an orphan, highly talented in building and fixing radios.  He is “recruited” by an academy for Hitler Youth, where his talents are nurtured, then exploited for war gains.  Add to this some unforgettable side characters and a precious gem thought to be cursed.  I don’t know what initially drew me to this book as I usually don’t read fiction set during WWII.  However, I was instantly engaged with the story, not wanting to put it down.  My only complaint:  there were a couple of things that, to me, felt “forced” into the narrative and wound up being a distraction.  Highly recommend.

The Drowning Woman by Robyn Harding — 3.5 out of 5 stars

A psychological thriller told through the voices of two women:  Lee, a former restauranteur who is currently homeless and living in her car and running from her past; and Hazel, the abused wife of a high-powered attorney who is rescued by Lee from her suicidal drowning attempt.  Then things get twisted and weird…   I love a good psych thriller, but this one left me feeling hot and cold.  The good stuff:  I thought the pacing was good, it kept me reading, and I didn’t see some of the twists coming.  For me, the down side was the characters.  One page I would be invested and intrigued, the next page I would be rolling my eyes at how fricking stupid these characters were acting.  I know, it’s fiction, but still.  Overall, I would recommend this to anyone who is looking for a quick thriller read.  It is entertaining, I just had issues with some of the actions and plot line.

The Book of Sheen by Charlie Sheen — 3.5 out of 5 stars

Memoir.   I’m sure we’ve all heard of Charlie Sheen, whether through his various acting gigs or his notorious lifestyle choices that used to make tabloid headlines.  I was never a huge fan but I will give him props for his acting in Platoon, Two and a Half Men, and Young Guns.  I found this book at my local library so I thought it might be interesting to check out.   The first half to two-thirds of this memoir was good.  He offered many entertaining anecdotes from his childhood and from his early acting years.  But once he hits the infamous Two and a Half Men years, he suddenly becomes vague, sidestepping many of the issues that made him tabloid fodder at the time.  His marriages are blips on the page, his out-of-control behavior barely addressed.  There’s something about the last third of the book that has me mistrusting his claims of long-term sobriety.  For the sake of his children and those he did hurt over the years, I truly hope he has been maintaining his sobriety and is working on repairing his relationships.  Overall, not bad as far as celebrity memoirs go, but not one that I would enthusiastically recommend.

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May already??  Time for another TBR goal!

Here are my picks for this month…

I’ve been reading a lot of longer fiction lately, so I wanted to pick some shorter stories or novellas to break things up a bit.  I chose Raise the Red Lantern by Su Tong, three novellas that showcase “…the brutal realities of…1930s provincial China – worlds of prostitution, poverty, and drug addiction…”  (from the back cover).   It may sound pretty bleak, but I’ve heard some good things about this collection so we’ll see.

My other pick is one of my “2026 List of 26 to Read” titles, Where I Come From by Aaron Sanchez.  As someone who obsessively watches reality cooking shows, I am interested to see how Aaron got his start and to read more about the inspirations behind his cooking career (things he has hinted at on various shows).

These are two of my current reads I am also planning on finishing this month…

You may remember that I had Wolf Totem as one of my April TBR selections.  Well, April turned out to be a very weird reading month for me so I didn’t get to start this one until April 29!  It is definitely one that I will be taking my time with as I’m already finding myself researching certain references, and I’m not even to page 100 yet!  Very mesmerizing so far.

I feel like I’m becoming the “Queen of Reading Celebrity Memoirs.”  When picking up some of my library holds I came across Charlie Sheen’s memoir, The Book of Sheen.  Yeah, I know.  But I’ve always had a soft spot in my heart for bad boys, so I just had to check it out.  I must say, so far, it’s not what I expected (and that’s a good thing).

I also mentioned last month that I had several books on hold through my local library that I figured would all start coming in around the same time.  Sure enough, they did!!  And these aren’t even all of them!!

I swear I’ve checked out Freida McFadden’s The Boyfriend at least three times but always wound up taking it back without even starting it.  I am determined to actually read it this time!!

I already know Nobody’s Girl by Virginia Giuffre is going to be a difficult read.  I just hope that this book will truly help all SA survivors (myself included), and give us all the courage to step forward to take these motherfuckers down.

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What is on your reading list for May?  Drop me a line and let’s talk books!

Support your local library.

Stay safe, and Happy Reading!

 

I want to start this by giving a huge shout-out to my big boy, Mister Sissy, who turned 16 on April 6th!  He was born to a feral cat under our house and spent his first 9-10 years living outdoors.  He is huge (well over 20 pounds), and now spends his days demanding scratches and taking over the entire couch.

Now, on to the books!

What I’ve Been Reading

PROJECT HAIL MARY by Andy Weir — 5 out of 5 stars

“Ryland Grace is the sole survivor on a desperate, last-chance mission – and if he fails, humanity and Earth itself will perish.”    I loved Andy Weir’s The Martian, both the book and movie.  For whatever reason, Project Hail Mary slid through my reading radar when it was published in 2021 (I’m guessing the whole global pandemic thing may have had something to do with that).  Anyways, after hearing nothing but praise about the movie since it came out March 20th, my interest was renewed and I picked up a copy.  I am so glad I did!!  I absolutely loved this story.  I really don’t know what more I can say without giving away a lot of the plot, so I will say this is definitely one of my top reads of the year, and one that I highly recommend to everyone.

A COURT OF MIST AND FURY by Sarah J. Maas — 4 out of 5 stars

Feyre, granted the gifts of the High Fae and haunted by her time Under the Mountain.  An upcoming marriage, a bargain with the Dark Lord…..    Okay, anyone who remotely knows me knows that I have never been a fan of romance, romantasy, etc..  If you had told me ten years ago that I would be reading this series and actually LIKING it (!) and looking forward to reading the next book, well, I probably would have laughed and went back to whatever genre I was reading at the time.  So why do I like this series?  Because there is an actual story that intrigues me and it doesn’t revolve around sex 24/7.  Plus the whole bad boy with a good heart named Rhysand.  God, I’m getting soft in my old age.

DIAVOLA  by Jennifer Thorne — 3.5/4 out of 5 stars

Anna, the black sheep of the Pace family, is not looking forward to the yearly vacation with the fam.  What makes it even worse?  The destination is a “modernized” castle-like home in a remote Italian village.  Locals warn the family about staying there, and there is the mysterious key that the caretaker insists should not be touched…ever!!  What could possibly go wrong??       I had some mixed feelings on this horror novel, but let me start with the positives.  I love haunted house stories, and this really hit the mark for me on that aspect.  I enjoyed the building sense of dread and certain imagery.  What brought it down for me was the cast of characters.  I did not like any of them, even the kids annoyed me for some reason.  I also felt that there were a lot of loose ends and unanswered questions.  However, I did round up to four stars on Goodreads simply because I really enjoyed the horror aspect, just not the dysfunctional family part.  A great read for Halloween.

Here’s some other titles worth checking out:

Welcome Home:  Travels in Smalltown Canada by Stuart McLean (Nonfiction)

Nightbloom by Peace Adzo Medie

Bat-Eater and Other Names for Cora Zeng by Kylie Lee Baker

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What have you been reading?  Drop me a line and let’s talk books!

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Stay safe, and Happy Reading!

In the past, I used monthly themes to plan my reading.   Then after a really bad reading slump last June or so, I started going through my unread books and prioritizing them.  Do I want to continue this series?  This title has been on my shelf for years, do I still want to read it?  And so on.  I pulled out a journal and started making lists of what I really wanted to read and wound up starting a monthly goal of two to four books from these lists that I wanted to tackle each month.  It helped tremendously with my reading slump…plus, I just love making lists, there’s something immensely satisfying crossing items off as they are completed.  I still plan on continuing my 31 Books of Halloween for September and October…I’m already putting together my reading list for that!

So, with that being said, here are my selections for April…

I have several library holds that should be coming in over the next few days, so I decided to keep my list down to two.  Wolf Totem by Jiang Rong is fiction “…drawing on the author’s experience during the Cultural Revolution of the late 1960’s and ’70’s” (from the cover).  A college student is sent to Inner Mongolia as part of a modernization movement.  His admiration for the nomadic herdsmen and his fascination with the Mongolian wolf will soon be tested by government policies.     I have been obsessed with Eastern Asia, especially Mongolia, ever since I can remember, and I’m really looking forward to this one.

I learned about Lenin’s Kisses by Yan Lianke through an online course I recently took, ChinaX Book Club.  The plot is pretty wild:  After a bizarre summer snowstorm ruins their crops, a village of mostly disabled people, led by their county official, start a traveling performance show to raise money to buy the corpse of Lenin from Russia so they can create a tourist attraction to compensate for the lost crops.  Like I said, pretty wild.  What really sold me on this book was the interview with the author that was part of the course.  It’s something that I would recommend trying to find if you are interested in reading this book.

 

This month, I also want to make some progress, or actually finish, my other current reads…

I’m about halfway through A Court of Mist and Fury, so I should wrap that up in a week or so.  I’ve been a bit disappointed with The Curse of Oak Island.  I’m not quite at the DNF stage yet, I just keep hoping something interesting will finally happen.  And as for Fucked Up?  I’ve been working on that one for several months now.  Not that it’s bad, it’s just been a lot to deal with.  Once I hit page 300 or so, it did seem to pick up more momentum so I’m hoping to finish it by the end of the month.

What are your reading goals for April?  Drop me a line and let’s talk books!

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Stay safe and Happy Reading!

This past Saturday, I was able to attend the annual used book sale put on by the local chapter of American Association of University Women (AAUW).  The volunteers collect thousands of used books over the course of the year for this three-day event, with all the proceeds going towards various scholarships.   (This photo courtesy of The Chronicle)

On the final day of the sale, Saturday, they have the best pricing of all:  fill a bag for $5.00!!  So, of course, my bookaholic self went a bit overboard…

And what treasures did I come home with?  Let’s take a look!!

First up, all the nonfiction…

  

Cookbooks, true crime, the arts, memoirs, natural science…I truly picked up a little bit of everything!  A couple of these are replacement copies that are in better shape than the copies I already have.  I am especially intrigued by 100 Great Operas and Their Stories, Boy from Karelia, and How to Get Run Over by a Truck.  Not pictured are two cookbooks:  The Exotic Kitchens of Peru by Copeland Marks and Dishing Up New Mexico by Dave DeWitt.

Now, for the fiction!

My top find was a brand new copy of Ocean Vuong’s new novel, The Emperor of Gladness (and my apologies to the ladies near me who may have overheard me say “holy shit!” as I was reaching for it).  Laird Barron and Cherie Priest were a couple of other authors I was surprised to find.  And one can never have too many epic fantasies on hand!

Now comes the task of reorganizing and reprioritizing my TBR shelves…

While this may seem excessive, it is probably the only chance I’ll have to splurge on books for some time.  And hey, you really can’t beat getting 70 books for $25!!

Have you brought home any new reads?  What’s the most surprising book you’ve found at a used book sale/store?  Drop me a line and let’s talk books!

Until next time, stay safe and Happy Reading!

 

 

The past year brought a lot of ups and downs, with seemingly more downs than ever.  But one thing I’ve always been able to count on is escaping into a good book.

When it came to FICTION, I found myself branching out from my usual horror and thriller/mystery choices.  I sought out lighter comedies, family dramas, even a few romantasies.  Thanks to the quarterly Goodreads reading challenge prompts (and my local library), I discovered some true gems that I probably would have otherwise overlooked.

When I was putting together my favorites from the past year, these are the first five titles that jumped to mind.

AFTERTASTE by Daria Lavelle — 5 out of 5 stars

Kostya has always been surrounded by ghosts.  While he can’t see them, he can make contact with them by eating their favorite foods.  He opens a restaurant devoted to helping others make contact with their late loved ones.  However, there is chaos erupting in the ghostly realm, and Kostya finds himself caught in the middle.        I went into this one pretty much blind, and wound up loving it so much!  The foodie in me enjoyed all of the wonderful food descriptions, while my inner horror and magical realism fan was caught up in the strange world Lavelle created.  At its core, though, this is a story of grief, acceptance, and love.  Well worth checking out.

BURY OUR BONES IN THE MIDNIGHT SOIL by V.E. Schwab — 5 out of 5 stars

A vampire tale set in three different timelines (1532, 1827, 2019), with three very different women and their interwoven stories.  I had been hearing a lot of raves about this one so I chose it for a Halloween read…and it definitely lived up to all the hype!  Haunting and mesmerizing are the first two words to come to my mind when trying to describe it.  The characters are well fleshed out, although I would have liked a bit more about Charlotte.  Highly recommend.

TO THOSE WILLING TO DROWN by Mark Matthews — 5 out of 5 stars

It’s difficult to describe this book without spoilers, but here are some key elements:  grieving parents, a mysterious pastor, and an unknown entity at the bottom of Torch Lake.  A blend of horror and folklore (one of my favorite combinations), this is by far my top read by Mark Matthews to date.

THE HOUSE IN THE CERULEAN SEA by T.J. Klune — 5 out of 5 stars

T.J. Klune has quickly become one of my must-read authors.  This delightful story of Linus, Arthur, and six magical orphans truly warmed my blackened, broken heart (and that is saying A LOT in this day and age).  I laughed, I cried, I loved every single character.  I can’t recommend this one enough.

THE GUNCLE by Steven Rowley — 4.5 out of 5 stars

When Gay Uncle Patrick, a 43-year-old former sitcom star, suddenly finds himself caring for his beloved young niece and nephew, well, you just know there’s going to be some hijinks, hilarity, and family bonding.  The whole “person without kids suddenly has to care for kids” storyline is not new to books or movies, but there’s something truly charming about The Guncle that has me still thinking about it several months after reading it.

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Some other titles I would recommend checking out…

WHEN THESE MOUNTAINS BURN by David Joy

THE BRIGHT YEARS by Sarah Damoff

THE UNWORTHY by Agustina Bazterrica

TOO OLD FOR THIS by Samantha Downing

COUNTRY by Michael Hughes

 

Now that I’ve caught up a bit, and with April just a few hours away, I’ll be starting back with my Reading Mash-Ups, monthly TBRs, and perhaps a few other surprises!

 

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Stay safe, and Happy Reading!