New Release Tuesday

Two years before the events of Stranger Things Season 4, Eddie Munson—Hellfire Club leader, metalhead, and Hawkins outcast—has one shot to make it big.
 
Hawkins, Indiana—for most, it’s simply another idyllic, manicured all-American town. But for Eddie Munson it’s like living in a perpetual Tomb of Horrors. Luckily, he only has a few more months to survive at Hawkins High. And what is senior year, really, but just killing time between Dungeons & Dragons sessions with the Hellfire Club and gigs with his band?
 
It’s at the worst dive bar in town that Eddie meets Paige, someone who has pulled off a freaking miracle . She escaped Hawkins and built a wickedly cool life for herself working for a record producer out in Los Angeles . Not only is she the definition of a badass—with a killer taste in music—she might be the only person that actually appreciates him as the bard he is instead of the devil incarnate. But the best thing? She’s offering a chance for him to make something of himself, and all he needs is to get her a demo tape of Corroded Coffin’s best songs.
 
Just one Recording costs money. Money Eddie doesn’t have. But he’s willing to do whatever it even if that means relying on his old man, Al Munson. His dad just stumbled back into his life, with another dubious scheme up his sleeve, and yet Eddie knows this is his only option to make enough dough in enough time. It’s a risk, but if it pays off he will finally have a one-way ticket out of Hawkins.
 
Eddie can feel 1984 is going to be his year.

HAPPY READING!!

The Closet - Reviews

Author: James Tynion IV

Genre: Horror / Graphic Novel

Format: Paperback

Pages: 104

Ever bought so many books that occasionally you forget you bought something? No, just me. Cool, cool, cool. So that's what happened with The Closet by James Tynion IV. I was digging through one of my shelves for something else and stumbled across a couple of graphic novels I forgot I owned. The upside is they're both pretty spooky. So it was the perfect little surprise for October! Even better was the fact I adore James Tynion's writing, so I knew I was in for a treat.

This story follows Jamie and the monster in his closet. Right from the start you know things aren't great at home for Jamie. Anytime a family is moving across the country for a 'fresh start' that's a red flag. A warranted red flag for The Closet. Because the parents are trying to work past the fact the father cheated.

I am shocked. 

Though this fresh start isn't just for them, but for Jaime who is becoming more and more scared of the monster in his closet. A monster they hope they're about to leave behind. 

All of this is told through the father's perspective. Which is disjointed, full of self-loathing, and him trying to somehow take responsibility for his screw-up and be the victim. Long story, short, he's very much the worst and I hated him. Which is fine because the way he's written I feel like that's the point. 

Because despite this trip he's with his son supposedly being about them. He seems to find a way to ruin and ignore his son the whole way.

This whole thing is heartbreaking from start to finish, with a cliffhanger of an ending. We never really find what the creepy, little, big-headed thing, is that is stalking Jamie. Though we're given a few options. Maybe it's night terrors from the trauma his parents have put him through, via their fighting. 

Though, I doubt it. There were a couple of things sprinkled in here and there that were odd. Like what happened to Jamie's luggage?

I'm a little bummed it looks like there are not any more issues to come with The Closet. I'd have loved for this to be a two-volume, six-issue, series. I was left with so many questions, no answer, and a need to triple just my closet was closed after finishing this. 

While I know that Tynion is working on other series, ones I'm also obsessed with, I will be keeping an eye out for any more issues of The Closet. 

HAPPY READING!!

Cover Runway Sunday

  

They say you shouldn't judge a book by its cover, but we all know we do it. Sometimes the cover initially catches our eye, drawing us to give a book a closer look. It's the first thing we see, our first impression. Every Sunday I'm going to post some of my favorite covers of books coming soon! 

Leah Jones has no hope for a future outside of Winston, Pennsylvania. She’s on the verge of dropping out of high school, barely balancing her job at the gas station with her duty to care for her baby brother, Owen. But when Owen is taken by the Lord of the Wood, Leah must face the dangers of the wood to write a song that will win Owen back—and the truth of how her life went so very wrong.

HAPPY READING!!

Big Bad - Review

Author: Chandler Baker

Genre: Horror 

Format: eBook

Pages: 59

I will say I'm really liking this collection from Amazon Prime. A fact I have a love-and-hate relationship with. Because Amazon. However, the authors have really brought their best to this collection. I feel like my only issues with these stories are all personal ones. Big Bad is the third of a six-book series. I'm definitely going to finish the whole series. I was actually excited about this one because I haven't read anything by Chandler Baker before, and this felt like a great way to jump into a new author.

Personally, there was a lot I liked about this book. Mostly Rachel's point-of-view and both of the girls' point-of-view as well. I loved that it was placed in Oregon. I can't think of a better place for a werewolf to lie low than in the Pacific Northwest. I also really liked the way that Baker allowed the story itself to unfold. There is a lot of foreshadowing, build-up, and also some easy clues to building your own theory one what's going to happen.

Werewolf stories still aren't my go-to creature features, but Chandler did a great job of keeping me pulled in with the little lifts of the curtain to this family's past. While we never got a full story, we got enough of a picture painted that we know why they had to leave their original home and head to the West Coast. It's enough of a teaser that you want to know more, but are satisfied with the fact that you didn't. And, it fits into the telling of the story perfectly. An explanation as to why this emotion, or this hesitation, was happening.

I will say Odie is my favorite part of this book. She had some of my favorite moments because she's so little and the world so new, and kids that age rarely have a filter. It also makes them unreasonably brave even when she's scared. I thought I had her begged from the get-go, but the twist at the end caught me entirely off guard. Now I want a book just about Odie like years later.

On that note, I really liked the relationship between the sisters. It felt real and solid, but not perfect. June and Odie are so night and day, but they love each other. And I liked watching them trying to protect each other as the night went on and got progressively more scary for them.

The only negative things for me are I wasn't overly fond of their father. I hated most of those sections and sped read through them. Trying to only pick up the parts that mattered. Throughout the whole short story, I just wanted to smack him. I'm pretty sure if I was Rachel I would have eaten him months ago. He does a solid job of trying to keep Harold away, but that leads to the other things I didn't like. The fight between the two of them fell flat for me. I don't even think I read it all. It was very weird. But, also Harold sort of seems like the world's worst werewolf hunter. I felt like the father (no I cannot remember his name) should have noticed way sooner what he was. I called in the first seconds of the man just showing up.

I will say the ending of this book was solid. That part had me on the edge of my seat because I thought for sure I had figured it out, but then nope, wrong. It was not what I thought. However, it was enough to bring this book back around for me. I definitely need to check some other stuff by Chandler Baker because as a whole I did like this story.

HAPPY READING!!

Mini Reviews

It's funny the things we remember from childhood. While I worked my way through most of the original Goosebumps series. This is the one that I remember the most, that I can remember where I was when I was reading, and how freaked out I was while reading. However, I couldn't remember anything about the book besides the ghost looking for his head. I had completely forgotten that this was based inside Hill House. Mostly because when I read this back then, I wouldn't have known the reference to Hill House. Knowing it now that was a lot of fun because the house itself, and the way the kids lot made more sense. Hill House is a living thing that is never the same twice. So I loved that the house exists in the Goosebumps Universe. The Headless Ghost definitely didn't scare me this time around, but it was still a lot of fun to revisit this story.

I'm so glad I stumbled onto the Bloodlands series by Harold Schechter. Firstly because I really enjoy the way he writes true crime, I just find his books so easy to read. Secondly, these are great ways to jump into these tales of true crime. I'd never heard of Albert Hicks before picking up The Pirate, but in sixty-seven pages I know who is now. I will say I didn't realize exactly what Hicks had done exactly, so I was a little shocked in the first chapter when you find out in great detail just how he killed three people. It was unexpected and gross, and I'm glad I had my headphones in while I was putting away the dry order at work. That being said it was an informative, quick, and easy read about the last act of violence Albert Hicks ever committed. It also had a little bit of history woven in. I enjoyed this read, and I'm looking forward to others in the series.

I found this little gem at my library while browsing the shelves. I've never heard of the author/illustrated before, but the idea of this book grabbed my attention. Lately, I've been adding a lot of found footage to my TBR, and this is a little bit in that vein. In the sense that is told through sketches and journal entries of a swordsman who has come upon this city, of the likes he's never seen, without his memories. So all of these entries about the city and him trying to remember who exactly he is, with a little bit of romance sprinkled in. I like this, it's definitely weird, but it was an interesting read. I like that see the city and its people through this swordsman's eye. Along with his journey to maybe getting his eyesight back. It's different, the illustrations are hands down my favorite bit of this book. I definitely want to pick up other works by Jeffery Alan Love, and I would definitely pick up other books that he's illustrated. But, just so very weird. Which was totally not a bad thing, I liked that it was weird. But, also I love how he managed to create what felt like a full story with so very little. It was quite lovely.

HAPPY READING!!

Waiting on Wednesday

Can't-Wait Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Wishful Endings to spotlight and talk about the books we're excited about that we have yet to read. Generally, they are books that have yet to be released but don't have to be. It is based on Waiting on Wednesday, hosted by the fabulous at Breaking the Spine.

Celia wakes up in a house that’s supposed to be hers. There’s a little girl who claims to be her daughter and a man who claims to be her husband, but Celia knows this family—and this life—is not hers…

Allie is supposed to be on a fun weekend trip—but then her friend’s boyfriend unexpectedly invites the group to a remote cabin in the woods. No one else believes Allie, but she is sure that something about this trip is very, very wrong…

Maggie just wants to be home with her daughter, but she’s in a dangerous situation and she doesn’t know who put her there or why. She’ll have to fight with everything she has to survive…

Three women. Three stories. Only one way out. This captivating novel will keep readers guessing until the very end.

Why I'm Waiting: Christina Henry is a favorite author of mine, one of the instant buy ones, so I'm really excited to see that she has a new book about hit shelves!

HAPPY READING!!

Library Haul

I've had the mighty need to go book shopping, but my bank account would appreciate it if I did not do that. So I compromised and went to the local library. Well, the local adjecnt. My actual library is under construction so I decided to head to the branch that was a little farther out of the way. Which actually turned out not to be as far as Google Maps made me believe it was going to be! Still, it was a good compromise because an hour later I came out with the smallest stack of books ever. I honestly was expecting more books, but only these three caught my eye.

I've seen Eric Larocca's books all over Instagram, and keep telling myself I should pick up one of his books. For one reason, or another I never did, but this seemed perfect for the Spooky Season. So I added it to my stack. Mary, Will I Die, has been on TBR for a minute, and seemed like a quick, creepy. As for Notes of the Shadowed City just seems like an interesting concept and Joe Abercrombie did a blurb on it. So I have high hopes it'll be good. 

So now my itch has scratched. There are new books on my shelves and my wallet is none the less for it. Though I really do want to be unleashed in a bookstore. Nothing brings me more joy, but this was a very close second. Because I really could just hang out our library branches. 

HAPPY READING!!

The Pram - Review

Author: Joe Hill

Genre: Horror

Format: eBook

Pages: 57

It has been a minute since I picked up a book by Joe Hill. Honestly, I think NOS4A2 broke me for any other book by this man. It's one that years later still lives rent-free in my head. The Pram is another that I think will simmer with me for a minute.

I knew this book was going to creep me out, and probably even make me slightly unhinged. Knowing what I know about the author's other works. But, I still wasn't prepared for what was laying in wait on these fifty-plus pages. This book could easily have been read in a single sitting.  The plot moves quickly, the story pulls you in, and for the first bit of the book, you really do feel for the main characters.

About a third of the way through the book, I set it down. Not because for any bad reason. Because I reached the point where I could feel, with my whole body, that I was not going to like what was about to happen. Not while I was reading, in the dark, quiet house, so close to midnight. There was that little voice, that little warning that was like, maybe not tonight.

So I set my Kindle aside to finish it the next day after work. Did that help? Nope, sure didn't. It was in fact as weird, creepy, and unhinged as I knew it was going to be. Did it help to read while my apartment building was awake and full of noise? Nope, still creeped me right out.

What Hill managed to create in under sixty pages is brilliant. And, while I wished we'd gotten a little more in the Sin Planters, or maybe more with the Pram. Maybe a bit more build to the night. As a whole, I think this story worked, and it creeped me the hell out. 

I really enjoyed this Creature Feature Collection from Amazon Prime. I'm definitely going to need to check the other books in this series. 

HAPPY READING!!

Cover Runway Sunday

  

They say you shouldn't judge a book by its cover, but we all know we do it. Sometimes the cover initially catches our eye, drawing us to give a book a closer look. It's the first thing we see, our first impression. Every Sunday I'm going to post some of my favorite covers of books coming soon! 

October 1993. One night. One house. One dead body.

When single mom Eleanor Mazinski goes out for a much-needed date night, she leaves her two young children —sweet, innocent six-year-old Ben and precocious, defiant twelve-year-old Mira— in the capable hands of their sitter, Amy. The quiet seventeen-year-old is good at looking after children, despite her anxiety disorder. She also loves movies, especially horror flicks. Amy likes their predictability; it calms the panic that threatens to overwhelm her.

The evening starts out normally enough, with games, pizza, and dancing. But as darkness falls, events in this quaint suburban New Jersey house take a terrifying turn —unexpected visitors at the door, mysterious phone calls, and by midnight, little Ben is in the kitchen standing in a pool of blood, with a dead body at his feet.

In this dazzling debut novel, Emily Ruth Verona moves back and forth in time, ratcheting up suspense and tension on every page. Chock-full of nods to classic horror films of the seventies and eighties, Midnight on Beacon Street is a gripping thriller full of electrifying twists and a heartwarming tale of fear and devotion that explores our terrors and the lengths we’ll go to keep our loved ones safe.

HAPPY READING!!

The Skull - Review

Author: Jon Klassen

Genre: Middle Grade

Format: Hardback

Pages: 112

My go-to book for baby showers is This is Not My Hat. It's such a fun book with really adorable illustrations, and now there is a whole series about this bear and their hat. So when my friend came home with this book after her vacation, I had to borrow it.

I had no idea that Jon Klassen had another book out. Let alone one with spooky vibes. And, I have to agree with so many reviewers. While I did enjoy this story and the illustration. The best part was the author's not about how Klassen came across this story, and the sort of magic that is embedded in folktales. 

Personally, I thought it added to the magic of the book. But at the same time, I'd love to read the original story that inspired, The Skull.

As for this book, I thought it was so cute, and everything I love about Klassen's stories. The story itself isn't too scary and I love our brave main character. Despite how scary the moment was, she was determined to save her new friend.

It's wholesome and fun, and a little bit creepy. But, like my levels of creepy.

The illustrations were amazing, I love the pastel palette that Klassen works with. Colors you'd see in a watercolor almost. Not muted, but not bright either. Solid colors lend to the background of the story, giving life to the characters and moments.

It all works together really well in a great spooky read that really enjoyed. The perfect little addition to my Spooky Season reads, and a book I will most likely be adding to my niece's library in the future.

HAPPY READING!!

Night Worms Unboxing

October Theme: Scared of the Dark 

We just did our annual rewatch of Hill House and talked about wanting another book about the house. Of another family, or group, staying there or squatting or something. Anything to learn about the house itself and the ghosts inside. I had forgotten about A Haunting on the Hill coming in this month's Night Worms box. Honestly, it's been a long couple of weeks at work, and if it's not right in front of me, it doesn't exist. So this whole package was a surprise! 

This was the perfect package for a spooky season! With the weather cooling off it's definitely been a tea in the evening sort of month. It is always a good prompt to turn off the TV, unplug, and go read. It also means I'm super excited to try the new tea that came with this month's package. It smells so good! Honestly, we can never have enough tea in our house. We drink a lot of it. 

Now to get these books added to my Spooky Season TBR, which thankfully last clear until December.  Because of lost control of this TBR pile.

HAPPY READING!!

Waiting on Wednesday

Can't-Wait Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Wishful Endings to spotlight and talk about the books we're excited about that we have yet to read. Generally, they are books that have yet to be released but don't have to be. It is based on Waiting on Wednesday, hosted by the fabulous at Breaking the Spine.

A heartwarming holiday picture book for children and adults featuring everyone's favorite flying cryptid from the New York Times bestselling author of How to Survive a Sharknado. According to legend, a strange moth-like creature lives deep within the woods of West Virginia. Few have seen Mothman, but everyone agrees nothing good happens when he's around-there always seems to be an accident or some other mishap. Is he really an unlucky charm, or does he get blamed for trouble just because of his strange glowing red eyes? When Rudolph takes an unexpected vacation one foggy Christmas Eve, Santa Claus comes to Mothman with a "Mothman with your eyes so bright, won't you guide my sleigh tonight?" Whether he saves Christmas or accidentally destroys it, one thing is for the holidays will never be the same.

Why I'm Waiting: Andrew Shaffer is one my favorite authors, his books always make me laugh. So even though this is a picture book, I have no doubt it'll make my day.

HAPPY READING!!

New Release Tuesday

Do you want to believe? Explore our fascination with UFOs and extraterrestrial intelligence through exclusive interviews, archival photos, and strange but true stories from history.

After decades of cover-ups and denials, in a June 2021 report, the US government finally admitted what many people already yes, UFOs are real, and no, we don’t know what (or who) they are. Writer and historian Marc Hartzman separates fact from fiction and provides a comprehensive tour through the skies,


Deeply researched and highly entertaining, We Are Not Alone will inform and enchant anyone who’s ever doubted that we are really alone in the universe.

HAPPY READING!!

Monsters on the Loose - Review

Author: Richard L. Carrico

Genre: True Crime

Format: eBook

Pages: 209

Thank you to WildBlue Press for an early look at Monster on the Loose. This is set to be published tomorrow, October 17, and this is one of the saddest books I read this year. What intrigued me about this book is I'd never heard of any of the three cases that Richard Carrico presents in this book. I have yet to learn much about San Diego in the 1930s. So I went into this with little expectation and an open mind. 

First, let me say the amount of information jammed into just over two hundred pages was incredible. Not only is this book dripping with research but it's presented in a way that never feels like too much. No info dumps if you will. However, the pacing on this is very quick. Carrico does move from point to point very quickly, and sometimes without looking back. This worked for me personally because then I don't get caught up in the little details. I'm focused on the cases and the outside forces hindering those cases.

Second, I don't think I can pick which of these stories is more heartbreaking. Some part of me even understands why they weren't solved, people were less connected back then before cellphones and the internet. It was harder to track people's movements as well when most didn't even have a postbox. Also, science was still new and fragile back then, not trusted really. But, the way the newspapers treated these cases was nothing but a money grab. Creating false leads, victim blaming, and doing everything they could to sell their paper.

It wasn't helping, it was hurting. And maybe none of the cases would have been solved either way, but you'd think brutal killing would sell enough papers...

Moving back into this book. Personally, I feel like Carrico handled all three of these cases as delicately as he could. He treated all three like humans, and tried to present their cases best he could with how limited it seemed the information pool was. I felt like each girl was treated as a victim and there were no wild jumps to who could have done it. Carrico presented facts as they were, and while he had opinions, he never tried to sway the reader one way or another. He allowed us to form our own thoughts.

This wasn't an easy read for me. Despite being so small it took me a solid week to read. I read each section about each girl, taking a break in between. Mostly because it was a lot of information all at once, and I wanted to make sure I could keep it all sorted correctly on top of a busy schedule. But, also because this isn't a light-hearted read I needed a break between little sections.

It was a good read in the sense it's well put together, full of information about the cases and day-to-day life of 1930s San Diego. So if you're a fan of true crime, definitely give this one a look. It is short, most people could do it in a day. However, it is a good one to sit with and read a little at a time. Maybe not before bed. Did I mention it's very sad?

So if this sounds like your thing, Monster on the Loose hits shelves tomorrow! 

HAPPY READING!!

Cover Runway Sunday

  

They say you shouldn't judge a book by its cover, but we all know we do it. Sometimes the cover initially catches our eye, drawing us to give a book a closer look. It's the first thing we see, our first impression. Every Sunday I'm going to post some of my favorite covers of books coming soon! 

Emma hasn't told her husband much about her past. He knows her parents are dead and she hasn't spoken to her sisters in years. Then they lose their apartment, her husband gets laid off, and Emma discovers she's pregnant―right as the bank account slips into the red.

That's when Emma confesses that she has one more asset: her parents' house, which she owns jointly with her estranged sisters. They can't sell it, but they can live in it. But returning home means that Emma is forced to reveal her secrets to her husband: that the house is not a run-down farmhouse but a stately mansion, and that her parents died there.

Were murdered.

And that some people say Emma did it.

Emma and her sisters have never spoken about what really happened that night. Now, her return to the house may lure her sisters back, but it will also crack open family and small-town secrets lots of people don’t want revealed. As Emma struggles to reconnect with her old family and hold together her new one, she begins to realize that the things they have left unspoken all these years have put them in danger again.

HAPPY READING!!

Ankle Snatcher - Review

Author: Grady Hendrix

Genre: Horror / Novella

Format: Kindle Book

Pages: 28

Ankle Snatcher is the second book, in a six-book series that Amazon has published. It's six short creature feature stories. That alone had my attention, but in one of my favorite authors and I was all in. So of course I had to start with Grady Hendrix's story.

Because who hasn't been afraid of the monster under the bed. In fact, I was one of those kids who used to jump into bed in the dark so nothing could grab my ankle. Looking back on it now, I have a feeling I know the person behind that. 

I really liked this story. Right from the start Hendrix grabs your attention by introducing you to the Ankle Snatchers. And before you know what's going on you are being introduced to the Ankle Snatcher itself.

This is one of those stories that works as a short story, in fact, I think it packs a bigger punch as a short story. Because you don't have to breathe between events in the next. The story moves quickly as Marcus starts to very quickly lose his mind. Only to realize it wasn't all just in his head.

On that note, I feel like this could be the start of a series of short stories around the boogeyman. The set is thereafter Marcus is arrested. All these other little stories that tie in but have very little to do with each other. But, also have everything to do with each story.

Ankle Snatcher is full of small jump scares, a story that has you on edge for twenty pages, and I love how this story ends. Because it just does and that is all you know, and I love a good open ending, especially when you know nothing good is going to happen.

HAPPY READING!!

Happy Friday the 13th

Honestly, today is just an excuse to use this GIF! But also, how perfect is it that a Friday the 13th falls in October. I adore it so much. On the agenda today is to go to work, survive that, and maybe squeeze in some time to dash to one of the tattoo shops doing Friday the 13th Flash Tattoos. Because I clearly do not have enough spooky season tattoos. Next on the list is to curl up and read my spooky book. Mostly because after a weekend shift at work, I know I'm not going to have the spoons to watch a movie. 

This also seemed like the perfect time for a reading check-in! With only about two and a half months left in the year, that alone is a lot to unpack. It felt like the perfect time to hold myself accountable for some of my reading goals. I know I'm crushing my BINGO board. I'm last three squares are proving the hardest to find books I want to read. The keyword is want, I refuse to read, finish, and hate a book just to cross off a square. There is a book somewhere, on my shelves that fits them! It feels statically impossible for there not to be!

Reading Challenges:

This month is definitely off to a good start with my reading challenges. I've already crossed off by A and C square from the A to Z Challenge, and Mother Horror on Instagram talking about Grady Hendrix's new short story through Amazon Prime Reading, I managed to cross off the Bookstagram/tok BINGO Square. I'm 53 books into my 65-book Goodreads Challenge. Twelve books in three months is totally manageable! Especially since I have at least three or four more books in me this month.

However, since I've been reading smaller books for the last few months, I'm definitely behind on how many pages I want to read. But, since I'm smashing all my other reading challenges, I'm less worried about this one. Fifteen thousand pages was a pretty lofty goal considering the last time I hit over fourteen thousand I had a low-stress job. Something I do not currently have, I took a promotion halfway through the year, which is a whole other story.

Truth be told I'm happy with where I'm sitting on all my goals this year. Mostly because for the first in history of Reading BINGO at least one of us (if not two) will manage to clear the board. The two of us are very close!

HAPPY READING!!