Review: A Very Bookish Murder (Ally McKinley Mystery #3) by Dee MacDonald

A Very Bookish Murder (Ally McKinley Mystery #3)A Very Bookish Murder by Dee MacDonald
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

A Very Bookish Murder is the 3rd-book in the Ally McKinley Mystery series, which has quickly become one of my favorite, currently-running Cozy Mystery series.

These books, set in the Scottish Highlands, follow recent-retiree and widow, Ally McKinley, who fell in love with the village of Locharran while on a holiday. Shortly thereafter, she purchased the old malthouse and transformed it into a now successful B&B.

Ally has settled into her new life very well. She’s made many great friends, adopted a beautiful Labrador puppy, Flora, and has even found a charming new love interest.

Her quiet life in the Highlands is going better than she could’ve ever dreamed. Well, except for the fact that she keeps finding herself adjacent to suspicious deaths.

Silver lining: Ally has turned into quite the intrepid amateur sleuth. There’s no stopping her once she starts digging.

This mystery revolves around a group of women authors, who are all visiting Locharran to attend a Writers’ Retreat Workshop led by successful novelist, Jodi Jones. A few of the women, including Jodi herself, will be staying at Ally’s B&B, while the rest stay in the village at the local hotel.

The women who check themselves into Ally’s guest house are all pleased with the accommodations, and hospitality. They seem to take to her, and invite her to attend one of the very first sessions of the retreat, which is being held at the hotel, the Craigmonie.

Ally is certainly interested by all the goings-on, and is surprised to hear a few complaints lodged against the host, Jodi Jones. Jodi’s accused of stealing plots, and plagiarism, amongst other things, and then Ally finds the famous author strangled in the Ladies restroom.

The authorities, as well as Ally, believe that the culprit is most likely one of the other retreat attendees. Ally uses her past experience cracking cases to methodically work her way through the cast of suspects, discovering new evidence and plenty of potential motives along the way.

When another attendee is found murdered, hours after she told Ally she knew who the killer was, Ally is positive the murderer is close at hand. Will she be able to figure it out before they stop her snooping for good?

Another fun, fulfilling and engaging Ally McKinley Mystery book complete. Let the countdown begin for the next one. I can’t wait to see what mystery unfolds next.

As mentioned above, this has become one of my favorite Cozy Mystery series and I think a lot of that has to do with Ally. She’s a great protagonist. There’s something about her that’s just so thoughtful and comfortable. She’s like getting a nice warm hug from your Gran.

Additionally, the Scottish Highlands setting is a huge plus, as well as the quirky cast of characters and always intriguing mysteries. As soon as I finish one of these books, I want the next one in my hands.

I loved that this one revolved around this group of women writers. They were each unique and distinct, yet all of them could have had reason to get rid of Jodi, so there were plenty of red herrings swimming about.

There wasn’t as much focus in this one on the local characters, which I sort of missed, but there really wasn’t reason to be, because there were so many new characters in town for the retreat. With this being said, we still got Ally having interactions with her friends, like Hamish, her cleaner and other local business owners.

I have a feeling that perhaps the next mystery will be more village-focused. Either way, even if it’s not, I’ll be reading it, and I’m more than confident that I’ll be enjoying it.

Thank you so much to the publisher, Bookouture, for providing me with a copy to read and review. Dee MacDonald has a real gem on her hands with this series, and I hope there’s many more installments to come!

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Review: Black Flame by Gretchen Felker-Martin

Black FlameBlack Flame by Gretchen Felker-Martin
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

**2.5-stars rounded up**

Black Flame is a Horror novella from Gretchen Felker-Martin. I’ve read two full length novels from GFM, Manhunt and Cuckoo, both of which I really enjoyed.

Unfortunately, this is my least favorite work from her and I can’t even really express why. It just didn’t quite hit the mark for me. I never felt like I connected with the story enough to know what the hell was going on.

In fact, in the synopsis it’s described as being a historical horror novel, and I don’t even remember it being so. The story does follow a woman named Ellen, who works, I believe restoring, or archiving old films.

Ellen starts working on an infamous exploitation film called The Baroness, which was long thought destroyed in a fire by Nazis. As Ellen works on the film, the scenes, the essence of the film, begin to poison her mind.

She becomes convinced the film is real, and that it’s happening to her. She’s having visions, hearing voices, and unsurprisingly, her life begins to spiral out of control.

That’s a great concept. I love the sound of it. As I was reading this though, it was very hard to follow. I did get snippets of what’s described above, but it was a challenge to track what was going on, and difficult to visualize what Ellen was seeing, feeling and going through.

As always, Gretchen Felker-Martin includes very heavy and important examinations of gender and identity, and those were certainly an important piece of this story. Ellen’s character arc feels like a real transformation over the course of the action, and I did appreciate that as well.

In fact, I buddy read this one with a friend, and commented when we were done, how I wished this had been longer, because the final bits were where it really started to come together for me. I wanted more of that clarity, not just for me, but for Ellen as well.

I guess the best way I can describe my experience with this would be uneven. I’m used to feeling more drawn in, and connected throughout GFM’s works, so I think that’s why I walked away a little unsatisfied.

Nevertheless, Gretchen Felker-Martin will always get extra points from me for her insane-levels of creativity and the fact that she always brings something new to the table. While not my favorite from her, I am glad I read it, and look forward to Felker-Martin’s next release.

Thank you to the publisher, Tor Nightfire and Macmillan Audio, for providing me with a copy to read and review. The audiobook was very well narrated by Dana Aronowitz. They definitely brought it to life!

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Review: Welcome to the Ghost Show by J.W. Ocker

Welcome to the Ghost ShowWelcome to the Ghost Show by J.W. Ocker
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Welcome to the Ghost Show is a Middle Grade Horror novel that took me completely by surprise.

I’m not even sure I ever actually read the synopsis. It was offered to me, I took once glance at this cover and said, absolutely, I’ll read that!

This story follows Hazel, known as Zel, and her two best friends, Theo and Lucien, who are the only members of their self-created Creepy Club. The purpose of the club is ghost investigations, and the trio is always looking for evidence of paranormal activity.

When a entity called the Ghost Show arrives in their town, people hardly know what to make of it. What is it exactly?

Zel and the boys have no idea, but Zel is still one of the first in line to find out. After all, it’s hard not to be drawn to the 5-story black skull that has just suddenly erected itself at the edge of town.

The Ghost Show is run by an Amadeus Everest Mancer, a carnival barker-type, who claims to be a ghost catcher. As the kids roam through the Ghost Show, they can hardly believe their eyes. The whole experience is outrageous, leaving them wondering, is any of it actually real?

When Mancer offers to show Zel a real ghost, and in fact the only ghost she would give anything to see, Zel quickly finds she’s let her desires get her in over her head.

Soon the entire town is infected by ghosts and it’s up to the Creepy Club to banish the Ghost Show and save everyone they know, but will they be able to fight back against Mancer’s frightening creations?

I’ll admit, I wouldn’t say this is a perfect book, but I just had such a wonderful time reading it, and that’s how I rate my books, on the experience. The first couple of chapters, I was worried. It did take me a minute to get used to the flow of the author’s writing, but man, did it end up pulling me in.

I worked a full day today; a full stressful day, and I still ended up reading this in its entirety. Once I started to get to know the Creepy Club, and the dangers they faced with the Ghost Show in town, I couldn’t put it down.

I feel like Ocker successfully channeled the 80s/90s Spooky Middle Grades vibes that I’m always looking for. And luckily, the writing is better than the majority of those books, but it still gave me such a nostalgic experience, which I adored.

I enjoyed the dark carnival atmosphere created via the Ghost Show. It gave it all an air of mystery and danger that I liked watching our characters interact with.

Also, the characters were so well done. They each have their own personal issues they’re working through, and you see how the creation of the Creepy Club was sort of a way for them to maybe not be so alone during difficult times.

I felt like Ocker did a great job of exploring those issues, and the friendship, while still keeping the intensity of the Horror aspects. IMO, that blending of the two was very well done and made the story feel more multi-layered.

My favorite character was Theo. He pretty much saw the world through the lens of his video recorder. He was filming everything and he frequently self-narrated things, and I found those narrations hilarious. I was frequently laughing out loud at the things he was saying, which made for a great break in the tension.

Overall, I feel like this is such a fun Spooky Middle Grade story. I would definitely recommend this to any MG Horror Reader. It’s fast-paced, engaging and fairly unique in the plot and conclusion. I’m so glad I picked it up. I need more from this author!

Thank you to the publisher, Storytide, for providing me with a copy to read and review. Come for the cover, stay for all the nostalgic vibes!!

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Rereading A Murder is Announced by Agatha Christie

A Murder Is Announced (Miss Marple, #4)A Murder Is Announced by Agatha Christie
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This was my 2nd-time reading A Murder Is Announced, arguably one of Christie’s most beloved mysteries. I actually picked it up for a book club solve-along this time around and had a fantastic time revisiting the mystery and discussing it with a fun group of friends.

I’ve decided to give it the same rating this time around; a 4.5-star rounded up. I love this one. The village vibes and quirky cast of characters are standouts for me.

I highly recommend it for Readers maybe wanting to try out Christie’s work for the 1st-time, but also, of course, to already established Christie stans as well.

See my full thoughts below!

Original:

**4.5-stars rounded up**

As some of you may know, one of my 2023-Reading Goals is to read all of the full-length novels in the Miss Marple series in order.

A Murder is Announced is the third novel in the series and generally considered one of the best. I had been greatly anticipating this one and had so much fun with it.

Christie’s stories are complete nostalgia for me. They’re comfort reads and this one, the classic set-up, it felt completely her.

This one is set in the village of Chipping Cleghorn and follows the events that occur after the local Gazette runs an advertisement stating, A murder is announced and will take place on Friday, October 29th, at Little Paddocks at 6.30 p.m.

No one knows what it means, but the village is a titter about it. Many locals decide there is only one way to find out, thus arriving at the stated destination at the appointed time.

As they gather in the residence, without warning the lights are extinguished and a gun is fired. As the lights come back on, a gruesome scene awaits them.

Who is the victim? Who is the killer and why?

As with the previous novels, Miss Marple wasn’t in the house at the time of the crime, but gets consulted after due to her expertise in such affairs.

This had a big cast of quirky characters and it was fun trying to work out all the connections and varied relationships. There is also talk of an inheritance of sorts and I always love that trope.

I wasn’t necessarily trying to figure out the whodunit whilst reading this, but I will say, the reveal did surprise me. I feel like Christie succeeded in pulling the wool over my eyes; a misdirection, if you will.

Overall, I loved it. It was such a great mystery, with intriguing twists that did ultimately surprise me.

Also, I feel like we got more face time with Miss Marple in this one and she was in more danger than ever before. It was tense and intriguing. Well done!

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Review: Bat Eater and Other Names for Cora Zeng by Kylie Lee Baker

Bat Eater and Other Names for Cora ZengBat Eater and Other Names for Cora Zeng by Kylie Lee Baker
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

**4.5-stars**

Bat Eat and Other Names for Cora Zeng can officially be noted as the only novel that features the backdrop of the COVID pandemic that I’ve actually enjoyed.

Many have tried it, but none, IMO, have been able to pull it off with the power and creativity of Kylie Lee Baker. I’ve been impressed by Baker’s writing in the past, and the fact that she could pull me into this so easily, is a testament to her spectacular writing chops.

In Bat Eater we follow Cora Zeng, who recently lost her sister, Delilah, after she was pushed in front of a train in a vacant subway station. Cora witnessed the whole thing, and will never forget the murderer uttering, ‘bat eater’, as he pushed the unsuspecting Delilah onto the tracks.

In her job as a crime scene cleaner, Cora, is used to cleaning away the goriest scenes that you could ever imagine, but her sister’s end is one brutal scene that will forever be seared into her brain.

As the pandemic continues around them, Cora and her two coworkers, Yifei and Harvey, get called to scene after scene of brutalized Asian women, where they’re also finding the bodies of bats. This cannot be a coincidence, can it?

They start to fear a killer could be targeting their community, but even if there is, what can they do about it?

In addition to the horrid crimes occurring all around them, Cora failed to adequately honor the Hungry Ghost Festival as her Aunt advised her to, and trust me, she should have. Unfortunately, it seems Cora’s gonna pay the price for that.

This story is exquisitely told. I feel like it won’t be for everyone, just due to the whole COVID-backdrop, but for the people who try it out, I think you’d be hard-pressed not to get pulled into Cora’s world.

I really enjoyed getting her experience and perspective, which although fictional, I’m sure is very much based in true life. Her relationship with her sister, aunts and co-workers, was also so well done and I liked watching the evolution of Cora’s character over the course of the story.

This isn’t an uplifting story, by any stretch of the imagination, but it has a lot of powerful moments examining society and humanity. I also, as always, was very impressed with Baker’s horror imagery. The descriptions and scene-setting truly make the story come to life.

In a way, I almost wanted more. There were certain areas that I would have enjoyed built-out even more than they were. For example, Cora’s relationships and interactions with her Aunts.

With this being said, having this short and punchy also made it highly-effective. The mystery and horror were equally intriguing. I listened to the audiobook, and would recommend that format, as I feel the narration style fit the story quite well.

Thank you to the publisher, MIRA and Harlequin Audio, for providing me copies to read and review. I was a fan of Kylie Lee Baker before, but this has taken her to a whole new level for me. I can’t wait to see what she does next!

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Review: They Fear Not Men in the Woods by Gretchen McNeil

They Fear Not Men in the WoodsThey Fear Not Men in the Woods by Gretchen McNeil
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

They Fear Not Men in the Woods follows Jen Monroe, who returns to her hometown in rural Washington after receiving word that her father’s remains have been found.

Her Dad, a forest ranger and avid conservationist, went missing 7-years prior while out in the backwoods. He was a knowledgeable survivalist, and Jen has always held out hope that he was still alive somehow, but it’s hard to argue against a positive dental identification.

Jen returns home, not just to attend her father’s funeral services, but also determined to figure out what really happened to him after his disappearance.

The homecoming is awkward. She’s been estranged from her mother for years, and their reunion goes about as well as expected, but Jen also feels distant from her friends. She just feels so different from the girl she used to be.

Nevertheless, when her ex-boyfriend suggests a camping trip in honor of her father’s memory, Jen sees it as the perfect opportunity to get back into the forest and maybe find the truth about what happened to her Dad.

Unfortunately, the dangers lurking in the forest are darker and more dangerous than she ever expected and now all of their lives are at risk.

While this book started out fairly strong for me, in spite of how abrasive I found the MC to be, it was still looking like a possible 4-star read. Unfortunately, the farther I got into it, the more I started to dislike it, until it ended up falling off an absolute cliff for me.

By the end, I was just grateful it was over.

It’s impossible for me to really go into what I didn’t like about this one without giving anything away. The reveal of what was going on in the forest, that’s where my brain just turned off completely to this story. I hated it.

I feel like the direction this takes is going to end up being divisive for Readers. You’re either going to be into it, or you’re not. I don’t see a lot of room for middle of the road opinions on this one.

I know McNeil is a talented author and I’ve enjoyed her work in the past, but this was not it for me. I found it cheesy and a little lame as far as the Horror elements went.

I know this sounds harsh, but I need to be honest about my experience, and that’s honestly what I walked away feeling. This is just my opinion though, and you shouldn’t let it keep you from reading this one if you want.

The fact that this was a miss certainly won’t keep me from picking up more works from Gretchen McNeil in the future. We can’t love them all.

Thank you to the publishers, DAW and RB Media, for providing me with copies to read and review. Even though the story didn’t work for me personally, I would recommend the audiobook, which was well-narrated by Justis Bolding.

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Review: Julie Chan is Dead by Liann Zhang

Julie Chan Is DeadJulie Chan Is Dead by Liann Zhang
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

**4.5-stars rounded up**

Julie Chan, a supermarket cashier struggling just to survive, is surprised when she gets a phone call from her estranged twin sister, Chloe VanHuusen, a mega-social influencer.

After their parents were killed when they were very young, Julie and Chloe were adopted into separate families and they rarely spoke. The phone call is cryptic, and Julie rushes to her sister’s apartment where she finds her deceased.

It’s in the moments after this incredible shock, as the emergency personnel arrive that Julie realizes something, she and Chloe are identical. No one can tell them apart. This is her chance to seize an amazing life, and she does.

Before she knows it, Julie is swept up into her role as Chloe and all the glitz and glam that comes with that. It’s a surprisingly easy transformation for her, but as Julie gets pulled deeper into the influence circle, she discovers not all may be as perfect as it seems.

Wow, what a surprising delight this story was. I can’t believe this a debut from Liann Zhang. I actually just looked at the rating for this for the first time and am surprised that it’s currently under 3.5-stars.

I loved how creative, fresh and unique this felt. The biting social commentary, and tone of Julie’s narrative voice were both huge wins for me.

The plot does get a little wild in the 2nd-half, which I can definitely understand some Readers not vibing with, but I feel like with this type of social satire, you need that. I feel like Zhang did such a great job mapping out the action and character trajectory.

I also appreciated how dark Zhang took some of her imagery. As a Horror girlie, I’m always wanting dark stuff, and some of the descriptions in this, do toe the line into Horror territory, at least in the images they put into your mind. There were some legit cringe-worthy moments.

Overall, I had a blast reading this. I couldn’t put it down once I started. Going in, I was a little worried about it being too Literary-feeling for me, but it absolutely was not.

I would recommend this to anyone who enjoys Dark Social Thrillers, bonus points if you like to examine modern culture, including the reach and effects of social media.

Thank you to the publisher, Atria Books, for providing me with a copy to read and review. I cannot wait to see what Liann Zhang comes up with next!!!

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Review: Artificial Wisdom by Thomas R. Weaver

Artificial WisdomArtificial Wisdom by Thomas R. Weaver
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

**3.5-stars**

Artificial Wisdom is a near-future SciFi-Thriller set in the year 2050, a decade after millions of people in the Persian Gulf where killed by a unusual heatwave.

One of those killed on that terrible day was Marcus Tully’s wife, who was visiting family prior to giving birth to the couple’s first child. Back home in London, Tully, a well-known and successful investigative journalist, was devastated by her, and their unborn child’s, death.

Even all these years later, he is left with many unanswered questions and doubts. He seems one step closer to answers though after information he receives from a source indicates that the heatwave wasn’t actually a natural occurrence, but how is that possible?

With the world on the cusp of a ground-breaking election where they will elect a global leader for the first time, Tully finds himself swept along and up into all the political drama after someone he is closely-acquainted with is murdered.

Though it started out great, Artificial Wisdom was a bit of a mixed bag for me. It had moments where I was completely locked in; mostly those moments involving the murder mystery. Then other times I felt disconnected and wishing it would hurry up and get somewhere.

I did enjoy Weaver’s writing style, and found it easy to digest, however the plot moved too slowly for me and it was way too long.

With this being said, don’t take this as all doom and gloom. This did have a lot of positive aspects, and I know a lot of Readers are going to love it. The tech concepts and ideas for a potential future alone are worth picking it up for.

I would recommend it for SF-fans who enjoy a more literary type of story, set in a futuristic our world. There’s plenty of content here to sink your teeth into, and I actually think it could make a solid series. There’s definitely more to explore following where the author left off with this one.

At the end of the day, I felt this had great writing and strong SF-concepts, it just wasn’t a super good fit to my tastes.

Thank you to the publisher, Del Rey, for providing me with a copy to read and review. I would definitely be interested in checking out more work from this author.

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Review: Exiles by Mason Coile

ExilesExiles by Mason Coile
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Exiles follows a trio of astronauts, Gold, Chief and Kang, on a mission to Mars. Their goal is to prepare the 1st-ever colony on Mars for eventual human habitation.

Previously, three robots had been sent to set up the base these astronauts will be staying at for their mission. When they arrive though, they find the new base half-destroyed and one of the robots missing.

The astronauts are forced to quickly try to get their bearings and figure out what happened to the base. On an uninhabited planet, their only source for knowledge is the robots, and the things they are told are highly unsettling.

The robots seem scared, relaying things about possible dangers lurking outside, and what may have caused the damage. But it’s more than that, the robots have named themselves and have taken on surprising behaviors and characteristics. The whole thing is just off.

The astronaut crew have been handed a mess, and they need to figure out what’s going on ASAP. In an environment as unforgiving as Mars, the absolute security of their base is a life or death situation. They need to learn what threats they’re facing, so they can tackle them head on.

Mason Coile, pseudonym for Andrew Pyper, may he rest in peace, has penned a brilliant SciFi-Horror with Exiles. It is so intense, and I appreciated how the story came full circle. Coile pulled off a lot in this one with very few pages.

This book, the concepts involved, is the stuff of my nightmares. This is the type of futuristic scenario that absolutely petrifies me. Just thinking about being in the shoes of Gold, Kang, or Chief, is enough to make me shiver.

It’s not just the deep space setting, and all the unknowns involved with that for me, it’s also the robots and AI technology. That’s like a double-edged sword. Anyway you turn it, it’s dangerous with the potential to kill.

This has a phenomenal set-up. It pulls the Reader in quickly, and then just hooks you. There’s no turning back. The intensity holds throughout the story and truly feels claustrophobic and dangerous.

Some of the action, and twists, they were diabolical and brutal. I was getting so stressed, but in the best way possible. In an entertaining way. I couldn’t put it down. I refused until the very end.

Clearly, I adored this. No notes. I highly recommend this to anyone who may be searching for a compelling Horror novella, bonus points if you love SciFi-Horror.

Thank you to the publisher, G.P. Putnam’s Sons, for providing me with a copy to read and review.

Andrew Pyper, writing here as Mason Coile, was such a talented, talented writer. I’m going to miss getting new stories from him, but he’s certainly left an impact.

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Review: House of Monstrous Women by Daphne Fama

House of Monstrous WomenHouse of Monstrous Women by Daphne Fama
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

House of Monstrous Women is a slow burn Gothic Horror story set in the Philippines in 1986. We follow Josephine, who is living a fairly secluded life, seeing to her family’s property, del Rosario house.

Her parents were killed due to political strife within the country, and her older brother has since moved to Manila to try to make a name for himself. This leaves just Josephine to try to manage what’s left of their estate.

When she receives an invitation from her childhood best friend, Hiraya, to visit her, Josephine is surprised and excited. Of course she accepts. She’s missed Hiraya so much since Hiraya and her sister were forced to flee their village in the dead of night.

Hiraya’s family’s property is the infamous Ranoco house. There are many stories whispered about this island home, all of them involving Hiraya’s supposed family of witches.

Josephine has heard the stories, but she’s not afraid. She knows Hiraya too well to believe she would put her in danger. Josephine is anxious to reconnect with her, as well as her brother, Alejandro and his girlfriend, Gabriella, who Hiraya also invited to Ranoco.

Hiraya proposes they all play a game like they used to as kids. The winner of this game though, will be granted whatever their heart desires. Each person has something they deeply want, and they all agree it’s worth whatever risk to try to make those dreams reality, but how dangerous is this going to get?

With the house featuring as the ultimate playing board, the contestants settle in to try to seal their fates. As the rules are explained though, it soon becomes clear that they may have gotten in over their heads.

Will any of them be able to survive the game, let alone get what their heart truly desires, or is the house just going to seize them in their desperation?

‘Josephine felt stupid for thinking this place was like the del Rosario house at all. Its outer facade was just a mask of normalcy, hiding what lay within.’

As mentioned above, House of Monstrous Women is a slow burn, but one that I definitely feel paid off in the end. The beginning features a lot of character work, but also some genuinely spooky imagery. Once it gets to the game though, it really takes off.

I loved the setting. Ranoco house truly feels like a main character in this story. It was described so well, and even though it’s got some trippy vibes throughout, I still felt like I could picture everything vividly.

I would describe this story as being moody, gruesome, intense and jaw-dropping. There were moments in the beginning when I wondered if it was going to pick-up, and you might too, but trust me, just stick with it. It gets wild as it races toward the unpredictable conclusion.

I wasn’t prepared for the final scenes of this. It was just so good. I loved the themes Fama explored, and feel like she nailed the build-to-action ratio. It lulled me into a false sense of security, then ripped the rug out from under me and tried to smother me with it.

I would highly recommend this to Horror Readers of all varieties, but particularly to those who enjoy atmospheric, familial, or historical horror, with strong eco-elements, who don’t mind a slow burn.

Thank you to the publisher, Berkley, for providing me with a copy to read and review. I was really impressed with this and cannot wait to read more from Daphne Fama!!

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