New Release Tuesday

 

In post–World War I England, a young woman inherits a mysterious library and must untangle its powerful secrets…

With the stroke of a pen, twenty-three-year-old Ivy Radcliffe becomes Lady Hayworth, owner of a sprawling estate on the Yorkshire moors. Ivy has never heard of Blackwood Abbey, or of the ancient bloodline from which she’s descended. With nothing to keep her in London since losing her brother in the Great War, she warily makes her way to her new home.

The abbey is foreboding, the servants reserved and suspicious. But there is a treasure waiting behind locked doors: a magnificent library. Despite cryptic warnings from the staff, Ivy feels irresistibly drawn to its dusty shelves, where familiar works mingle with strange, esoteric texts. And she senses something else in the library too, a presence that seems to have a will of its own.  

Rumors swirl in the village about the abbey’s previous owners, ghosts and curses, and an enigmatic manuscript at the center of it all. And as events grow more sinister, it will be up to Ivy to uncover the library’s mysteries in order to reclaim her own story—before it vanishes forever.

HAPPY READING!!

April Spotlight

 

I have read a couple of books of Hester Fox, and I enjoyed both of them. They are spooky, but never outright scary, the mysteries are always good, and I just enjoy her writing style as a whole. I always add her books to my TBR. I honestly need to read more of her stuff, and I really want to start with her newest book!

In post–World War I England, a young woman inherits a mysterious library and must untangle its powerful secrets…

With the stroke of a pen, twenty-three-year-old Ivy Radcliffe becomes Lady Hayworth, owner of a sprawling estate on the Yorkshire moors. Ivy has never heard of Blackwood Abbey, or of the ancient bloodline from which she’s descended. With nothing to keep her in London since losing her brother in the Great War, she warily makes her way to her new home.

The abbey is foreboding, the servants reserved and suspicious. But there is a treasure waiting behind locked doors: a magnificent library. Despite cryptic warnings from the staff, Ivy feels irresistibly drawn to its dusty shelves, where familiar works mingle with strange, esoteric texts. And she senses something else in the library too, a presence that seems to have a will of its own.  

Rumors swirl in the village about the abbey’s previous owners, ghosts and curses, and an enigmatic manuscript at the center of it all. And as events grow more sinister, it will be up to Ivy to uncover the library’s mysteries in order to reclaim her own story—before it vanishes forever.

HAPPY READING!!

Cover Runway Sunday

  

They say don't judge a book by its cover, but we all know we do it. Sometimes it's the cover that originally 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!

Astonishingly, The Hagley Wood Murder is the first book solely on the subject (other than a selection of privately printed/self published offerings) ever written on this murder, which too place eighty years ago.

In April 1943, four teenaged boys discovered a corpse stuffed into the bole of a wych elm in a wood in the industrial Midlands. The body was merely bones and had been in the tree for up to two years. The pathologist determined that she was female, probably in her thirties, had given birth and was just under five feet tall. The cause of death was probably suffocation.

Six months after the discovery, mysterious messages began to appear on walls in the area, variants of ‘Who Put Bella Down the Wych Elm – Hagley Wood’. And the name Bella has stuck ever since.

Local newspapers, then the national press, took up the story and ran with it, but not until 1968 was there a book on the case – Donald McCormick’s Murder by Witchcraft – and that, like others that followed, tied Bella in with another supposedly occult murder, that of Charles Walton on Meon Hill in 1945.

Any unsolved murder brings out the oddballs – the police files, only recently released, are full of them – and the nonsense still continues. The online versions are woeful – inaccuracy piled on supposition, laced with fiction. It did not help that a professional occultist, Dr Margaret Murray, expressed her belief, as early as 1953, that witchcraft was involved in Bella’s murder. And ill-informed nonsense has been cobbled together to ‘prove’ that Dr Murray was right.

McCormick’s own involvement was in espionage and his book, slavishly copied by later privately printed efforts, have followed this tack too. It was wartime, so the anonymous woman in the wych elm had to be a spy, parachuted in by the Abwehr, the Nazi secret service.

The Hagley Wood Murder is the first book to unravel the fiction of McCormick and others. It names Bella and her probable murderer. And if the conclusion is less over-the-top than the fabrications referred to above, it is still an intriguing tale of the world’s oldest profession and the world’s oldest crime!

HAPPY READING!!

March Reading Wrap Up

 This month was a mixed bag of reads. I had some really great books and a couple that was just sort of mid. Which sums up my month as a whole. It was a big ride in places, nothing too bad, but it could have done with the emotional ping pong. But, what can you do? Sometimes life smacks you in the face. It's one of those times when you hear yourself, at some point, things have to even out. Of course when I say that I mean hopefully we'll finally hire a couple of more people for the kitchen so we can keep doing these amazing days where there is a line out of my door.

It's the little things.

Other than that, nothing exciting really happened. I've been enjoying the fact that I've been needed a little more. So it's mostly been there and back home again. Though, April is gearing up to have me at the movie theater on my days off. I'm excited to see Dungeons & Dragons, Reinfield, and The Pope's Exocrists. The latter I will be seeing in the daytime, thank you very much.

Now onto some stats:

Books Read: 9
BINGO Books: 4 

A to Z Challenge: 1

Pages Read: 1423

Currently Reading: Hex by Thomas Olde Heuvelt 

I had a rough start to my challenges this month, but I managed to knock off 4 Reading BINGOs but only managed to knock off 1 A to Z Challenge.

HAPPY READING!!

March Favorite Read

This month there was no contest to my favorite read. From the first page, I knew that Legends & Lattes would be the favorite this month! It's inspired a whole shelf on my Kindle of cozy fantasy and has made it hard to go back to reading a large number of Horror books on my TBR. In order to avoid that stack, I dove into my Library TBR for some fun graphic novels to read. All because of this one book. 

From the characters, the world-building, and the writing style, Travis Baldree had all of my attention. The only thing that me putting down this book was a head cold that made it hard to do anything but sleep and eat. But, that didn't matter because the second I was feeling better I was able to dive back into this book. I loved how wholesome and full of hope this book was. There are so many great things about this book. Personally, I love a book with fun side characters and a morally grey main character. Which I got in spades with Legends & Lattes.

Add on, the short story of Viv first discovering coffee, that explosive first page, and the absolutely wholesome ending. I cannot wait for another book in this series. I don't care if it's a prequel or a sequel, I'd adore both. But, really I'd read another three hundred and plus pages of just Viv and her customers. Even after a long day of working in my own restaurant.

My review of Legends & Lattes can be found here, and its Goodreads profile can be found here!

HAPPY READING!!

Wynd Vol 2 - Review

Author: James Tynion IV

Genre: Graphic Novel

Format: Paperback

Pages: 117

I'm enjoying this series, even if this one was a punch right in my feelings. Wynd is one of those series where I'm tempted to buy the issues instead of waiting for the third volume to come out. Even though I prefer to normally read the volumes instead of waiting for each issue. I know that's not sound logical since that usually means I wait longer, but it's usually worth it to get the whole installment in one go. But, I'm attached to Wynd and others. 

Maybe I'm a sucker for a young adult, chosen one, trope. Because Wynd follows several tried or true fantasy tropes. James Tynion IV warps this tropes into a wonderful story in this magical land. I love that Oakley tries to be the voice of reason because she sees how dangerous this path is getting. I love that Thorn isn't just some big dumb muscles, but he has this huge heart. And, the Prince, he's trying, but he's not very good with people.

And, while I definitely liked Teek, I'm not totally sure I like the cousin. He's an eager beaver, and full of knowledge, but a little too eager in my opinion. No one wants to rule that bad. 

Volume Two picks up just a few days after the last volume is left out, and we don't get a second to breathe. The plot moves quickly two a double cross that ties back to the Bandage Man. We also finally get a look more of Wynd's backstory. I'm really glad we aren't really dragging it on who, and what, Wynd is. He may not know it yet, but the reader has been given enough clues through the panels to know what is what.

I like the story is telling us enough that we can start to put the pieces together. Do I know what's about to happen in the next volume? No, no I don't. Am I glad we didn't drag out Wynd and Thorn into this will they won't they situation? Yes, I am. Because that is one fantasy trope that I hate. Things are really dire and you have zero control, but that is one place you have control. Don't make me smoosh your faces together!

What I do know about the next volume is that isn't going to hurt. Oakly's father is probably involved somehow, though I'm not sure if it's the way I think. If it is, just so much pain. My feelings will go right into a wood chipper. But, I'm so excited for the third volume.

Between the story, the beautiful artwork, and the characters I'm hooked! I'm glad I finally jumped into this series.

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.

An anthology of fictional short stories that imagines dark events in the life of Marie Curie as a teenager. This collection includes stories and poems by headline authors, six of whom are New York Times bestsellers including Jane Yolen, Scott Sigler, Alethea Kontis, and Jonathan Maberry.

HAPPY READING!!

New Release Tuesday

Discover everything about vampires in this laugh-out-loud nonfiction handbook packed with spooky legends, fascinating history, and weird facts perfect for middle-grade readers and mythology fans!

Are vampires real? Who was Vlad the Impaler? Do vampire bats ever feed on humans? Find out in Hanging with Vampires, a field guide for the curious and the adventurous. Crack open the lid on this guide and you’ll get:

Bloodcurdling vampire mythology! What exactly is a vampire, anyway?
Spine-chilling history and science! Uncover how the vampire legend got its start in the medieval ages.
A who’s who of vampires! Get to know classic, iconic, and terrifying vampires in pop culture, from Dracula to Adventure Time.

Hanging with Vampires is the first book in the Totally Factual Field Guide to the Supernatural series, a hilarious and haunting exploration of how myths and legends shape our lives. Sink your fangs into vampire lore and literature with enchanting illustrations and fun activities, like making garlic bread. It’s a spooky world out there–grab your guide, and let’s go!

 

HAPPY READING!!

Cover Runway Sunday

  

They say don't judge a book by its cover, but we all know we do it. Sometimes it's the cover that originally 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!

Blythe and her friends—Gabrielle, and brother and sister Tucker and Tanya—have always been a tight friend group, attending a local high school and falling in and out of love with each other. But an act of violence has caused a rift between Blythe and Tucker . . . and unexpected bursts of aggression and disturbing nightmares have started to become more frequent in their lives.

The strange happenings culminate in a shocking event at school: Gabrielle is found covered in blood in front of their deceased principal, with no memory of what happened.

Cracks in their friendship, as well as in their own memories, start appearing, threatening to expose long-forgotten secrets which could change the group’s lives forever. How can Blythe and her friends trust each other when they can’t even trust their own memories?

HAPPY READING!! 

The Crows - Review

Author: Anders Fager

Genre: Graphic Novel

Format: Hardback

Pages: 104

I've struggled with this review. Not because The Crows was a bad read. It's very well done, and I think the setup of this book is perfect. The mix of storytelling and illustrations all work together really well. It's one of those times when one feeds the others. And, I felt this story would be lacking without these illustrations. 

They give a visual of what's going on in our main character's mind.

My struggle has been how to review this book without giving away too much information about the story, no one likes spoilers. But also, there is a lot to unpack about this book. A lot of struggles happen in a short amount of time.

I thought it was a beautifully done book. It was a sad book and left me reeling after I finished it. While I've been fortunate enough to not have gone through what our main character has. The author still wrote this in a way my heart hurt for them. 

This book made me feel a lot more than I thought it would. It was less scary in a jump scare sense and more trauma thriller maybe. I'm not sure. 

But it's beautifully written and illustrated. If you see this one, don't pass it up. I thinkit willl stay with me for a little while.

HAPPY READING!!

Sugar Hill - Review

Author: Autumn Barnes & Tom Lyons

Genre: Horror

Format: Kindle Read

Pages: 106

I found this while I was skimming through Kindle books on my Amazon. What started as me just unplugging from work for a second, turned into my snagging a few new books, Sugar Hill was one of those books. The simple, yet very creepy, cover caught my attention, and the premise had my attention.

I love a good ghost story, even more so when it's a haunted house. 

Sugar Hill doesn't sugarcoat anything. Right from the first page, it drops you straight into the story, and with horror novels, that's my favorite thing authors do. Especially with haunted house books. With Sugar Hill, you meet Autumn and her 'imaginary friend', who is very clearly a ghost who only she can see.

From there the story goes along the route you think it's going to go. Of course, the overworked parents don't believe her. Enter the kindly neighbors who want to give them advice and protect Autumn. But, again, they don't listen.

Until, all of a sudden they have no other choice but to listen. 

What I didn't expect from this book was how many actual jump scares there would be. I started this book while home alone stopped reading, and slept with twinkle lights on. Because I was done the second the Shadow Man made his first appearance. 

No, no thank you!

Now all of this is told through Autumn's point of view, who is five. So Sugar Hill isn't gory, but it is spooky. While the little ghost girl is tame and really does seem like she wants to be Autumn's friend. The Shadow Man is downright spooky. Like even days later it makes me twitchy. The idea of shadow people creep me out, it's worse when it's all stalker and watches you sleep. Just no.

I really liked the ending as well because it sucks in that way that doesn't really actually suck. By the time you get to the last, maybe twenty pages, you're in the thick of it. Focused on the downhill slide of bad things about to happen. The mother has seen something, the house is alive, and everything is amped up to eleven. Then right when it gets good when you know something terrifying is about to happen. No more books. No more!

I was so mad, but at the same time I was like, 'well, now I'm gonna buy Book Two because I gotta know!'

And, honestly, my only real issue with this book was the voice that the authors gave to a five-year-old Autumn. I kept forgetting how young she was through the first half, or so, of the book. She just sounds so grown up when she's in her own mind that I kept thinking maybe this book was being told by her older shelf. Only I don't think it was. So that threw me for a little bit because kept going this must be years later. Then someone would mention her age, and I'd get a little thrown off.

As a whole, this was a super spooky book, with smooth writing that kept me engaged, and packed those hundred and six pages with some quality scares. Book Two, Coffin Pond, is definitely going on my TBR. Because I really do need to know how it all plays out. I need to know how the Shadow Man is and why he's so creepy, and what happened to that poor little girl.

HAPPY READING!!