The nitty-gritty: Supervillains are super fun in this laugh-out-loud tale with sentient cats and dolphins, a secret lair and plenty of the author’s trademark social commentary. Scalzi takes on supervillains—sort of—in his latest comedic offering, and boy was this a bunch of fun. I think if I’d read this blind without knowing who the author […]
The nitty-gritty: An unexpected and bloody homecoming awaits the protagonist of Black Sheep, Rachel Harrison’s latest, a thoroughly entertaining surprise of a story. “All happy families are alike, I thought. Every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way.” Once again, Rachel Harrison has surprised and delighted me with an outstanding story that did not […]
The nitty-gritty: Horror, music and nostalgia combine in surprising ways in this chilling debut. “A sound unlike anything any of them had ever heard bloomed through the air like black ink on wet paper. It no longer came from the PA speakers; it came from everywhere. It came from the floor, the ceiling, from the […]
The nitty-gritty: Beware the month of September, when the ghosts come out and the walls bleed, in this outstandingly creepy and heartfelt story about coping with all of life’s challenges. “I put my hand in hers and saw the whole scene from the night she died—the candles and the dining room and the laughing man […]
The nitty-gritty: A weird and bloody tale with plenty of surprises, Hailey Piper’s latest is a nightmarish trip to Hell and back. This is my first time reading Hailey Piper, and I’m not sure why it took me so long! Cruel Angels Past Sundown has such an interesting mix of elements, and it did not […]
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: A heartbreakingly beautiful story with an unrelenting sense of danger, Whalefall surprised me in every possible way. “Hope collapsed every morning at six a.m.: Sleepers, arise! Jay began to see Dad’s siren as the opening punch of a boxing match, Mitt Gardiner versus his life. Dad didn’t want the house, not really. He […]
The nitty-gritty: A long-running, mysterious children’s television show is the catalyst for emotional trauma in this intriguing but uneven and confusing story. “What did Mister Magic look like? He was tall and enormous. He was slight and lithe. He didn’t have arms or legs. He was all arms and legs. He was a person. He […]
The nitty-gritty: A must-read, must-own book for lovers of horror fiction, 101 Horror Books to Read before You’re Murdered is both fun and informative. Sadie Hartmann, or “Mother Horror” as she’s known on social media, has been making a splash in the horror field for the past few years, and now she’s written a handy-dandy, […]
The nitty-gritty: Romance, history and horror combine in this well written and dramatic tale. After hearing so many good things about Isabel Cañas’ last book, The Hacienda, I was very excited to dive into her latest. And I can see what all the fuss is about! Vampires of El Norte is an engaging historical romance/drama […]