Month: May 2024

While I haven’t been in a reading slump lately, I am still dealing with a review-writing slump (going on a couple of months now!).  Is there a known cure for it?  If there is, I have yet to find it!

What I’ve Been Reading

Without a Map:  A Memoir by Meredith Hall — 4 out of 5 stars

When Meredith Hall became pregnant at sixteen in 1965, she was sent to live in exile at her father’s house and later had her newborn taken away for adoption.  This series of events (family abandonment, never seeing her baby) changed Hall’s life, and she shares her journey into adulthood while trying to deal with these traumas in this poignant and beautifully written memoir.  I know this couldn’t have been easy for Hall to relive some of these events, and I appreciate her candor about her feelings and choices.  I will admit, the “traveling” chapter felt more like a fever dream in comparison to the rest of the narrative, but hey, it was the 60’s/70’s.  High recommendation.

The Lost Man by Jane Harper — 3.5 out of 5 stars

One of my March TBR selections.  Set in the vast Australian outback, two brothers must deal with the mysterious death of their oldest brother, Cam.  While coping with this tragedy, family secrets and resentments are brought to light.  I’ve enjoyed books by this author in the past, but for some reason I just could not really get into this one.  Perhaps because I was expecting more mystery and less family drama?  I’m not sure.  But while it wasn’t my favorite by Harper, I would still recommend it.

The Prettiest Girl in the Grave by Kristopher Triana — 3.5 out of 5 stars

A great example of “final girl horror,” we have a group of older teen girls who meet at an abandoned cemetery to play a seemingly innocent game and investigate an underground crypt.  I mean, seriously, what could possibly go wrong?!  This was one of those “fun” horror stories that I could easily envision becoming a low-budget movie.  And this was one of Triana’s tamer novels, so if you’re not quite ready for the full splatterpunk experience but don’t mind some grossness then you might want to check this out.

Child of God by Cormac McCarthy — 3.5 out of 5 stars

Cormac McCarthy introduced some truly disturbing characters and stories into the world over the years (the Judge in Blood Meridian and the entire concept of The Road come to mind), but nothing really prepared me for the depravity of Lester Ballard in this 1973 novel.  Holy sh**.  I’ve read a lot of messed-up horror over the years, but this one really got under my skin.  When I picked this story for one of my May TBR selections, I was thinking of doing a comparison review between the book and the 2013 movie.  However, if the movie does stick to the story, I’m going to give it a hard pass since necrophilia is one of those horror tropes that I don’t willingly subject myself to.

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Here’s to hoping I can revive my excitement about sharing my thoughts on the books I’ve read!!  I know this will eventually pass, so if you do like checking out my reviews, be sure to check back.  I’m trying, I really am.  🙂

Until next time, stay safe, and Happy Reading!!

It’s always sad to hear about the passing of a favorite author, knowing that there will be no more new tales to be told.  Since May features the Memorial Day holiday here in the states, I decided to pick a couple of reads to remember authors who have recently left us.

Cormac McCarthy has written some true modern-day classics (Blood Meridian, No Country For Old Men, etc.) and I have loved every one of his that I have read.  I came across Child of God at a used book sale and I wondered how I hadn’t read this sooner.  Now is as good a time as any.  I also found the movie streaming on a free service so I think I may try a book/movie comparison for a review (of course, I still seem to be in a review-writing slump so we’ll cross that bridge when we get there).

I’ve wanted to read Brian Lumley’s Necroscope series for ages, and finally tackled the first book earlier this year.  After Lumley’s passing in January, I tracked down all of the remaining books in the series…so here’s hoping the next seven books are as good as the first!

As for my April goals, I finished Sati Mookherjee’s poetry collection, Ways of Being (beautiful, by the way), and am currently on page 134 of Tarantulas and Marmosets:  An Amazon Diary by Nick Gordon.

What are your reading goals for May?  Drop me a line and let’s talk books!

Until next time, stay safe and Happy Reading!

Another great month for book mail!

First up from my NightWorms and Fantastic Strangelings subscriptions…

The Fellowship of the Puzzle Makers is from F.S. and sounds kind of like a cross between Fredrik Backman and TJ Klune (maybe??).  NW’s monthly theme was “Echoes of Frankenstein,” so I’m expecting some good body horror from Thirst and A Botanical Daughter.

Several months ago, I placed an order with indie publisher Bad Hand Books that included a couple of preorders.  I had to patiently wait for the final preorder to get published, and it was worth the wait when these arrived in early April…

Shadows Over Main Street is an anthology of short stories described as “small town Lovecraftian terror.”  With authors like Clay McLeod Chapman, Laurel Hightower, John Langan, and Ramsey Campbell (to name a few), this is one of my highly-anticipated anthology reads for this year.  And speaking of small town terror, Hailey Piper introduces us to a place called Cranberry Cove, where a creepy old hotel is the center of some strange occurrences.

Finally, I was checking out Thriftbooks for some other titles and wound up ordering these two.  Wandering Stars is a follow-up to Tommy Orange’s There, There.  Actually, it’s more of a prequel, going back 100-plus years in the families who were a part of There, There.  I’ve had this one on my Kindle for a couple of months now as I was supposed to review it for Netgalley (oops!).  It will still get my review, just not before the publishing date!  I’ve enjoyed Ross Jeffery’s previous works, and his newest one, I Died Too… sounds like his trademark blend of family trauma and horror.  I can’t decide if I should read it immediately or save it for my Halloween TBR.

Did you get any new reads for April?  Drop me a line and let’s talk books!

Until next time, stay safe and Happy Reading!