Review: Demon's Bluff

Demon's Bluff by Kim Harrison
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Thanks to Netgalley and Berkley for the pre-release copy of Demon's Bluff by Kim Harrison. Below is my honest review.

What an emotional rollercoaster, and good grief, Kim, why do I have to wait for the next one???

This one definitely dredges up some historical events in the world of the Hollows, and rips open some old wounds for Rachel Morgan and crew. With the Coven breathing down her neck and a ticking countdown towards their punishment for her cursing Brad, a city to run, and all sorts of supernatural factions to keep in line, her plate is definitely full. Her attempts to find the item needed to uncurse Brad lead to a special trip, one that ends up including an uninvited and unwelcome tag-along. Back in a past where many of her allies were still enemies and where she can't depend on herself, she's stuck with a huge rival and has to look out for the unexperienced coven member.

But there's also the unexpected consequence of someone she cared about very deeply still being around then...

I loved this one, and really can't wait to see the ramifications of this story's events in the next book.

Highly recommended, but this one SERIOUSLY involves much of Rachel's history, so it's not the best place to jump in. Your best bet is to binge the series. It's fun, I promise! :D

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Review: You Better Watch Out: A Thriller

You Better Watch Out: A Thriller by James S. Murray
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Thanks to St. Martin's and Netgalley for the pre-release copy of You Better Watch Out. Below is my honest review.

If you weren't sure before, this novel would have sealed your understanding that these two authors are movie and television writers, because this book felt like a fun, cheesy, gruesome horror slasher flick. The pacing, the deaths, the reveals... all felt very reminiscent of what you'd find in a Hollywood blockbuster, but on the page instead.

The deaths are quite gruesome, but you knew they would be going on, so don't pick this one up if that's a trigger for you. There's a lot of fun reveals along the way as well.

My biggest gripe? The blurb makes it seem like Jessica Kane is the protagonist, but really we spend the majority of the book inside the head of a character named Eddie. Just a weird little quirk that threw me off kilter a bit.

If you're a horror movie fan, give this one a shot. It's not breaking a ton of new ground, but it's fast-paced and a lot of fun for what it is, and I'd definitely recommend it.

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Review: This Cursed House

This Cursed House by Del Sandeen
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Thanks to Netgalley and Berkley for a pre-release copy of This Cursed House. Below is my honest review.

Now that was a fun debut novel! I'm a big fan of gothic horror, and This Cursed House delivered. Was it perfect? No. There were some places where the story felt like it was hitting the same beat a few times in repetition, and during the first few chapters, the repeated use of "hazel eye" descriptions pulled me out of the story a bit. But it was a great novel nonetheless. I wanted to know what was going on, and hung on to every word in hopes of figuring it out, craving just another supernatural moment.

This book also made me feel very uncomfortable, but in a good way. As a white person, it's sometimes easy to forget the historical systemic issues surrounding race, and how that celebration of whiteness and devaluation of blackness even affected how lighter-skinned Black people treated darker-skinned ones. While being set in the past, this novel did a great job of reminding us that while some things might have gotten better, we still have a long way to go in repairing the damage caused by racism and slavery.

All in all, a great read, and I look forward to Del Sandeen's next book! Definitely recommended for fans of Southern gothic horror (light horror, really).

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Review: I'll Be Waiting

I'll Be Waiting by Kelley Armstrong
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Thanks to Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for the pre-release copy. Below is my honest review.

I really enjoyed Armstrong's I'll Be Waiting, but it wasn't as near perfect as so many of Armstrong's books usually are. This one had some predictable twists, and there were some parts that dragged and felt a little repetitive.

Overall though, this one built good tension, set up an interesting plot, threw some entertaining characters at us, and threw some fun twists at us. I give it four stars and recommend it to Armstrong fans and horror fans. :)

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Review: The Hitchcock Hotel

The Hitchcock Hotel by Stephanie Wrobel
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Thanks to Netgalley and Berkley for the pre-release copy of The Hitchcock Hotel. It was a fun ride! Below is my honest review.

What a super fun mystery novel! I loved the theme and the atmosphere. Hitchcock might not have been the best guy, but his movies were always top notch, and this novel really captured that style and modernized it.

The characters were complex, with fleshed out personalities and deep histories both together and as individuals. The story was paced well, with reveals being just when they needed to be. And while I guessed a bit of the twist, the ending still got me on some of the major points, which is hard for mysteries to do for me anymore, so I was thrilled!

All in all, really fun, great characters, great atmosphere, great pacing, great story. Highly recommended.

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Review: Sleep Tight

Sleep Tight by J.H. Markert
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Thanks to Netgalley and Crooked Lane for the pre-release copy of Sleep Tight. Below is my honest review.

I haven't read anything by JH Markert before, but I think he's definitely going on my "to read more" list.

This one opens the day of a criminal execution, and pretty much zooms forward at a breakneck pace the rest of the book. It was a lot of fun to read (not a lot of fun for the characters to live out LOL).

I think my biggest gripe was the not-so-likable main character. I mean, who knows they're racing to find their daughter, kidnapped and in danger, and still pops some pills, potentially lowering their own ability to do what is necessary to get their kid back?

All in all, it seemed to be a movie screen-play turned into a book, and I'd love to see the movie.

Four stars, recommended for fans of mystery/thriller, cults, and gritty cop dramas.

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Review: The Darkest Night: 22 Winter Horror Stories

The Darkest Night: 22 Winter Horror Stories by Lindy Ryan
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Thanks to Netgalley and Crooked Lane Books for the pre-release copy. Below is my honest review.

I'm going to be 100% honest here: I requested this ARC because of a handful of the horror authors in it: namely, Rachel Harrison, Josh Malerman, and Darcy Coates. They're all authors I really love! Luckily for me, so many of the other stories really grabbed me, so now I have a long list of potential new horror authors to check out further.

Rather than do an average of scores, I'm going to give this one an overall four stars, because even the stories that weren't my favorites were still fun, which is just what I wanted from this anthology.

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The Mouthless Body in the Lake by Gwendolyn Kiste
My Fan Status: New to me
Stars: Three and a half

Interesting concept and good writing, but not sure the ending hit for me. I'd say I'm intrigued enough to potentially check out more of her stories one day.

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Cold as Ice by Tim Waggoner
My Fan Status: New to me
Stars: Four

Oh, this one was fun!

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Children Aren't the Only Ones Who Know Where the Presents Are Hidden by Josh Malerman
My Fan Status: Big Fan
Stars: Three and a half

Love Josh Malerman, but I didn't feel like this one had much of a plot. The twist at the end was clever-ish.

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The Vermin Moon by Hailey Piper
My Fan Status: New to me
Stars: Three

I can't say I loved this one, but I didn't hate it either. It was... weird. But also heartbreaking.

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The Body of Lenora James by Stephanie M. Wytovich
My Fan Status: New to me
Stars: Four and a half

Can we get a full length novel of this please? Loved!

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Mr. Butler by Clay McCleod Chapman
My Fan Status: New to me
Stars: Four and a half

Albeeeeeeeee, Mr. Butler was creepy as heck! Loved the personal nature of this one, and really disturbed by Mr. Butler.

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Feast of Gray by Lindy Ryan and Christopher Golden
My Fan Status: New to me (Ryan) and Fan (Golden)
Stars: Three

I liked this one fine, but felt like it needed more.

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I Hope This Finds You Well by Eric LaRocca
My Fan Status: New to me
Stars: Three and a half

That ending though!

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The Buried Child by M. Rickert
My Fan Status: New to me
Stars: Three

Kind of confusingly written and muddled, brought me out of the story a bit.

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Father's Last Christmas by Lee Murray
My Fan Status: New to me
Stars: Four

Lots of fun (for us) and reminiscent of Gaiman's Stardust (in a good way)

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The Warmth of Snow by Cynthia Pelayo
My Fan Status: New to me
Stars: Three

Decent little shorty, didn't feel like much of a plot though

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Wintry Blue by Christopher Golden and Tim Lebbon
My Fan Status: Fan (Golden) and New to me (Lebbon)
Stars: Five

Absolute yes. I wanna see this made into a movie!

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Carol of the Hells by Kelsea Yu
My Fan Status: New to me
Stars: Four

Man, that ending tore me up!

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Full of Toys by Jessica McHugh
My Fan Status: New to me
Stars: Three

A poem on a creepy gross bloody Santa picture.

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Nice by Nat Cassidy
My Fan Status: New to me
Stars: Four

You know what? There's not much creepier than kids in horror. Yikes.

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Thaw by Rachel Harrison
My Fan Status: Devoted Follower/Obsessee/Stan/Fanboy
Stars: Five+

I'm a huge fan of Rachel Harrison's. This story is no exception to that. Nothing quite like dealing with a jerk of a significant other AND a possibly living creepy snowman hunting you.

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Candy Cane by Thomas Hutson
My Fan Status: New to me
Stars: Five

Sometimes it's best to write what you know. Insert devil emoji here.

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Eggnog by Kristi DeMeester
My Fan Status: New to me
Stars: Four

Don't mess with momma!

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Threads of Epiphany by Sara Tantlinger
My Fan Status: New to me
Stars: Four

I'd read this full length novel!

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The Ladies' Society for the Dead by Darcy Coates
My Fan Status: Big Fan
Stars: Four

Nice twist!

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Being Nice by Jeff Strand
My Fan Status: New to me
Stars: Four

Interesting play on the Naughty/Nice List and last minute makeup points lol

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Ghosted by Mercedes M. Yardley
My Fan Status: New to me
Stars: Three

Decent little ghost story about a partner who died who you didn't really know

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Bruiser by Jamie Flanagan
My Fan Status: New to me/Fan of his shows
Stars: Four

Weird but I'd watch this show!


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