Waiting on Wednesday

Can't-Wait Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Wishful Endings to spotlight and discuss the books we're excited about that we haven't yet 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 folks at Breaking the Spine.

Nora Pacetti is a new stay-at-home mother, tired but coping while caring for her happy, healthy baby Olivia. But then one morning, something that looks like a feather starts growing out of Olivia's arm. Or at least, that’s what Nora’s mother, Giulia, thinks. Nora thinks her mother has probably spent too much time watching conspiracy videos on YouTube.

Nora’s husband thinks Olivia needs tests, specialists, hospitals. But Nora senses that whatever is happening to her daughter needs to be concealed—and a mother’s intuition is never wrong. Soon sinister people begin asking questions about Olivia, and Nora starts to wonder if there really is something wrong with her baby. But she’s determined discover the truth about her daughter…no matter the cost.

HAPPY READING!!

New Release Tuesday

 

Welcome to the dark. It has very sharp teeth.

Based on the internationally bestselling comic series, with millions of copies in print,​ the first full-length novel from the terrifying world of Something Is Killing the Children—a stunning collaboration between Eisner-winning co-creator James Tynion IV and #1 New York Times bestselling author Kiersten White

As a Black Mask, Erica Slaughter has a very straightforward job: find the monster, kill the monster, then do it all again. But when she arrives in Badwater, Idaho, nothing is simple. She can’t determine whether the horrific killer of a twelve-year-old was a bear, a person, or something much worse. Complicating matters is the charismatic doomsday preacher who is quickly leading the small town to the verge of hysteria. If Erica wants to save the surviving children, she has to figure out which kid’s fears might have summoned a monster—and fast. Erica must get to the truth before the Order and the town come to the same conclusion: to stop the monster, you have to kill the girl.

Hope Is a Knife is a chilling, original tale in SIKTC lore, where monsters are real and only the hunters of the Order of St. George are equipped to challenge them. Whether or not you’ve already devoured the Eisner Award–winning comics, this standalone vision of supernatural horror is a thrill ride of the highest order.

HAPPY READING!!

Cover Runway Sunday

  

They say you shouldn't judge a book by its cover, but we all do. Sometimes the cover catches our eye and draws us to take a closer look at a book. It's the first thing we see, our first impression. Every Sunday, I'll post some of my favorite book covers. Coming soon!

Long live the Faire! If you can survive it…

For Chloe, the Southwest Renaissance Faire is home. It's where she performs with her folk-punk band, Chloe and the Well Met, where she feels closest to her late mother, and where she imagines a life on the road, far from the rules of ordinary life.

Until a fateful final joust, when a staged fight turns real—and someone dies.

One year later, the Faire returns under new corporate ownership, bigger and more profitable than ever. Chloe's band lands a coveted spot on the main stage, but the magic feels thinner, the stakes higher. Beloved performers have vanished and longtime traditions have been gutted. Then a masked figure begins stalking the grounds, turning spectacle into something far more dangerous. Weapons meant for show draw real blood, and no one can tell where performance ends and violence begins.

As fear spreads and her community begins to fracture, Chloe must confront what's being lost—and what's worth fighting for.

Because this time, the Faire isn't just an escape.

It's a trap.

HAPPY READING!!

Vacation Time

 

Final big trip of 2026! I'm off to celebrate my Grandad turning 80! Which is a long time be doing anything, let's be honest. The rest of the time I plan on unplugging and reading and taking up space in my parents' house. Key phrase there is unplugging. Not being so on my socials. 

This also means no Book Club next Tuesday! More information on my Instagram about that!

I think I'm taking enough to read for 4 days... Still, I did pack my Kindle. You know, just in case.  

HAPPY READING!!

Waiting on Wednesday

Can't-Wait Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Wishful Endings to spotlight and discuss the books we're excited about that we haven't yet 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 folks at Breaking the Spine.

Three years have passed since the undead killer known as the Hungry Hare massacred the counselors at Camp Summer Fun. Each night, Sheriff Tom Bailey stands guard, ever watchful for its return.
 
As winter blows across the High Plains, most are ready to move on from the tragedy and enjoy the holidays. But then the night once again fills with screams. A family slaughtered in their home. A crime scene that looks horrifyingly familiar.
 
And the killings have only begun…
 
Tom will need every ally he can call on to fight the Hare—most important of all Deputy Laura Turner, Summer Fun’s only survivor. Together, Sheriff and Final Girl must find a way to destroy the monster haunting Cross County.
 
Because the Hungry Hare is coming to exact final vengeance on the town that made it. This time, it wants them all…

HAPPY READING!!

New Release Tuesday

 

Antigone is no stranger to death.

For the women of her family, death always comes in the form of a black dog.

When Antigone’s own black dog arrives, she isn’t afraid. She invites it inside, where it soon becomes a daily source of companionship and comfort. It also forces her to reflect on the life she’s led—the parts of herself she’s hollowed out for the sake of others, and the bone-deep exhaustion that’s hounded her every step.

Her Death’s arrival must be a sign, permission to finally let go. To rest. Because while mortality is inevitable, living is a choice.

But a good death comes at a price.

HAPPY READING!!

Cover Runway Sundays

    

They say you shouldn't judge a book by its cover, but we all do. Sometimes the cover catches our eye and draws us to take a closer look at a book. It's the first thing we see, our first impression. Every Sunday, I'll post some of my favorite book covers. Coming soon!

It wasn't easy for Angela Bell growing up on Possession island, the remote Pacific Northwest setting of her late mother's wildly popular vampire novel. When she returns home from college and her estranged best friend, Mo, is murdered, she's forced to reckon with yet another loss—and finds herself in the crosshairs of the bungled police investigation.

Sally Raleigh has longed to leave the island for years, but she's trapped by her father's declining health and her devotion to her charismatic twin brother Adrian. The last thing she needs is her high-school nemesis Angela back in town. But Sally is also devastated by Mo's death, and finds herself forging an unlikely alliance with her former enemy to find Mo's killer.

As Angie and Sally delve deeper into the island's sinister underbelly, they must confront just how far they're willing to go to protect the people they love. And they'll soon find that the secrets they've been keeping from each other won't stay buried for long...

HAPPY READING!!

Mini Reviews

I grew up in the Middle of the USA. So I've been around a cicada or two in my time. In fact, I've been informed that we had a dog that used to carry them around for fun. So I can think of a dozen different ways that these could be creepy and unsettling. Which meant I put this book on hold the minute I saw one of the libraries I use was getting it. The downside is it came as a PDF file, or a non-Kindle version. That means I can only read it on my phone. Normally, that doesn't work for me, but I had a trip ahead that was going to lead to a lot of standing in line. So I thought maybe it was perfect. When I say I couldn't put this down. I started it in line at Hollywood Horror Nights, reading it all night while in line. Read it back at the hotel until I fell asleep, and the read it randomly throughout the next day. I loved this, I loved this ending, and I love how everyone got exactly what they deserved! From the start, you know what's about to happen, but it's all the little stuff in between that keeps you reading. It's got some great jump scares, some really gross parts, but there's this sense of terror throughout the whole book thanks to the main character, which just pulled me in. I was rooting for her the whole book.

I snagged this as something quick to read on the plane/airport because I like other Legends and Lattes. So I figured I would like that. And it was a lot of fun! I love that we get dropped into the middle of the mystery. The monk has already died, Miss Gentle has been summoned, and there is a cat. We learn things about the world, people, and circumstances as the story unfolds, and it's amazing what Travis Baldree managed in under fifty pages. I thoroughly enjoyed this, and it was the perfect little quick read I needed to kick off my little vacation last month!

When I originally read this, I had no idea what was going on. I mean, I kind of knew what was going on. Fawkes is a creeping creeper, and I hope at some point, Lewllyn gets a hold of it. But there's this whole side plot toward the end that I couldn't figure out what was going on. What was the point of all this? There's only one book left; why are we adding things now?! Only a couple of days later, all the puzzle pieces came together, or at least I think they came together. And things from the first couple of books came back to me. Maybe, just maybe, I actually do know what's going on, and I think I might know who Lewellyn actually is. Or adjacent to, maybe. I have theories and thoughts, and I cannot wait for my library to get volume 6 in. Because now I have to know how much I figured out.  

HAPPY READING!!

October Spotlight

 

Welcome to the dark. It has very sharp teeth.

Based on the internationally bestselling comic series, with millions of copies in print,​ the first full-length novel from the terrifying world of Something Is Killing the Children—a stunning collaboration between Eisner-winning co-creator James Tynion IV and #1 New York Times bestselling author Kiersten White

As a Black Mask, Erica Slaughter has a very straightforward job: find the monster, kill the monster, then do it all again. But when she arrives in Badwater, Idaho, nothing is simple. She can’t determine whether the horrific killer of a twelve-year-old was a bear, a person, or something much worse. Complicating matters is the charismatic doomsday preacher who is quickly leading the small town to the verge of hysteria. If Erica wants to save the surviving children, she has to figure out which kid’s fears might have summoned a monster—and fast. Erica must get to the truth before the Order and the town come to the same conclusion: to stop the monster, you have to kill the girl.

Hope Is a Knife is a chilling, original tale in SIKTC lore, where monsters are real and only the hunters of the Order of St. George are equipped to challenge them. Whether or not you’ve already devoured the Eisner Award–winning comics, this standalone vision of supernatural horror is a thrill ride of the highest order.

HAPPY READING!!

September Wrap Up

It's officially SPOOKY SEASON! The weather has already turned cold, and the rain has come back. I have pulled out my sweater and all the blankets. We're still struggling to close all the windows. It's been so nice to have the living room window open and listen to the rain. I'm also not ready to give up my shorts. Socks and extra blankets for the win! Also, it's tea season, so I'm excited for reading and tea. Reading and curled up under a nest of blankets. And soon it'll be time to light a fire in the fireplace.

But until then, first there are the September Stats: 

  

Books Read: 10
BINGO Books: 1

Pages Read: 1872

By accident, I managed to mark off the New York Bestseller book. When I started The Lost Tomb, I had no idea it was a BINGO. It wasn't until I was done reading it and checking if it hit any of the challenges I'm currently participating in. 

HAPPY READING!!

Waiting on Wednesday

Can't-Wait Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Wishful Endings to spotlight and discuss the books we're excited about that we haven't yet 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 folks at Breaking the Spine.

Twenty nightmarish horror tales featuring folkloric beasts, apocalyptic disasters, and psychological terrors are brought together in a collection sure to keep readers up at night, from the very best voices in contemporary Nordic fiction.

Nightmarish tales of mystery and horror, from the best voices in contemporary Nordic fiction.

You know them from the stories whispered around the campfire. Sometimes, they’re dark creatures from tall forests or murky bogs, luring their victims to their death, or the apocalyptic roar of a volcanic eruption. Other times, they’re closer to home: an unsettling new neighbour, or the overly friendly people you meet on the train, or the bureaucrat who thinks he's saving the world.

Nordic Nightmares opens a window into the horror landscape of the Nordic countries, from Finland, Denmark, Greenland, The Faroe Islands, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden. The anthology is expertly curated to showcase the work of twenty modern masters of horror – the majority appearing in English for the first time – to keep you company during long, cold nights.

HAPPY READING!!