The nitty-gritty: Kimberly Lemming’s series opener is silly, spicy and doesn’t take itself too seriously. “It was funny—a few weeks ago, being so close to not one, but ten orcs would have absolutely terrified me. Yet here I was, showing my new friends Isaak and Baraku how to create the perfect dry rub for roasted […]
The nitty-gritty: A woman is thrust into a disturbing mystery when she loses all her memories, in this solid but sometimes confusing debut. “My name is Iris and I am thirty-five years old. My husband is called Marcus. I was born in Suffolk, England. I work at the London Research Institute. It is Wednesday, the […]
The nitty-gritty: Magic, art forgery and heists make up the plot of Gwenda Bond’s latest, a fun mash-up with mixed results. I ended up having a lot of fun with The Frame-Up, despite a few issues with pacing and some of the world building elements. Gwenda Bond has written a magical heist story with a […]
The nitty-gritty: A man gets more than he bargained for when he decides to go after his fiancé in this strange, compelling but uneven sci-fi tale. This was an odd one, folks. The tagline on the cover promises a sci-fi thriller, but “thriller” is not a word I would use to describe The Sanctuary. That’s […]
The nitty-gritty: A haunted museum is the setting for Luke Dumas’ latest, a solid mystery story with supernatural elements. If you’re a dinosaur fan, and I mean if you love scientific facts about dinosaurs, you’ll probably enjoy The Paleontologist a lot. I thought I liked dinosaurs, but I have to admit parts of this book […]
The nitty-gritty: Being a radio DJ is a killer job in this lively, bloody and humorous take on slasher movies. This might be the first horror story I’ve read that revolves around a radio show, and I thought Maria Lewis did a great job of taking the slasher trope and making it fresh and new. […]
The nitty-gritty: A sweet and sexy romance with plenty of humor, My Roommate is a Vampire isn’t perfect, but it is a lot of fun. “Mr. Frederick J. Fitzwilliam’s Google Search History – how do you kiss if it has been three hundred years since – how can you know if she wants to kiss […]
The nitty-gritty: The “cursed movie” trope is alive and well in Josh Winning’s latest, a creepy, madcap adventure that, while a lot of fun, falters when it comes to the characters and their actions. It pains me to give Burn the Negative anything less than five stars, since I really expected to love this. Josh […]
The nitty-gritty: Katrina Monroe explores the dark side of motherhood in this moody, psychological thriller. Everything about this book should have worked for me. Katrina Monroe’s atmospheric writing drew me in, creating a spooky, unsettling vibe and an intriguing mystery. But there’s barely a plot to grab onto, and once again I found myself reading […]
The nitty-gritty: Chana Porter subverts our ideas of food and sex in this unique dystopian tale. “This is normally where we would have sex,” teased Georgina. “But you’re the girl who doesn’t like sex.” “I like sex,” said Beatrice softly. I just like food more. The Thick and the Lean has one of the most […]