Author: megs14malloy

Review: Court of Lions (Mirage #2) by Somaiya Daud

~ megs14malloy

Court of Lions (Mirage, #2)Court of Lions by Somaiya Daud
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

**3.5-stars rounded up**

Court of Lions is the second book in Somaiya Daud’s Mirage duology. This is a YA-Science-Fiction story following an ordinary peasant girl, Amani, who ends up being selected to be the body double for the Princess of their ruthless society.

Giving me Amidala’s handmaiden vibes from the start…

I really enjoyed the first book and knew immediately I wanted to continue on with the sequel. The story itself took me by surprise. For some reason I was expecting more of a blend of SFF, but this is definitely solid in the SF-category.

I found it to be fast-paced, drama-filled and enjoyed the writing style a lot. I also liked the cultural influence Daud lovingly-channeled into the story. Those details made it feel more unique compared to other stories in this genre.

This second book picks up not long after the first. Amani is still getting pulled in two different directions. She continues to want to help the rebellion; to try to make their world a more just place.

On the other side, she has started to build a friendship, however tenuous, with Princess Maram. Amani doesn’t want to betray her, but how can she possibly get Maram to see things from her perspective? More importantly, could she ever get Maram to use her power for change?

There’s also interesting romantic developments in this installment. Maram’s arranged fiance, Idris, of course seems better suited to Amani, but how the heck is that going to work? Their difference in stations would never allow them to be together formally.

And an intriguing new character ends up catching the eye of the thus far frosty-hearted Maram. You could cut the tension with a knife.

One of my favorite aspects of this story though, was the character growth displayed in both main characters, but in Amani in particular.

Amani grew so much in confidence and in the strength of her convictions. She became a leader over the course of the story; the kind of person even powerful people like Princess Maram could turn to for guidance and thoughtful advice.

I felt like Amani, as well as Maram, both were able to grow into the people they were destined to be and a lot of that was because of their unpredictable friendship/alliance.

It definitely felt predictable as we headed towards the final stretch, but honestly, it’s the outcome I wanted. It was a satisfying conclusion and I thought Daud did a great job with the overall arc of the story.

I’m glad I wrapped up this duology and am looking forward to reading more from Daud in the future. I hope she continues in the Sci-Fi space.

I feel like she did an exceptional job bringing a new creative voice to that genre. It felt fresh and fun, but also contemplative and layered. Well done!

View all my reviews

Review: Blaze Me a Sun by Christoffer Carlsson

~ megs14malloy

Blaze Me a SunBlaze Me a Sun by Christoffer Carlsson
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

💙🖤💛💙🖤💛💙🖤💛💙🖤💛💙

Blaze Me a Sun is a #1 Bestselling Crime Thriller in Sweden and it made its U.S. debut in early-January 2023. The premise sounded incredible to me, as I love a gritty Crime story and I was excited to get to it.

This lush, slow-burn Mystery definitely did not disappoint.

This story is told via various time periods, but the way Carlsson wove it all together was brilliant. We start with an author, who after a divorce, feels the need to return to his hometown, which he has been away from for many years.

Known since he was a kid as Moth, this author, befriends a retired police officer and begins looking into a infamous local case, that of the Tiarp Man, a serial killer who haunted the area beginning in Moth’s childhood.

We skillfully are shuttled back in time to the start of the Tiarp Man’s crimes. It’s 1986, and near Tiarp Farm, a young woman is attacked, raped and killed, left in her own vehicle. On the same night, the prime minister is assassinated. It’s a time of uncertainty and unrest.

For officer, Sven Jörgensson, who found the first victim, finding the Tiarp Man becomes his life mission. The killer taunts the police, there are more victims, but without much to go on, Sven is left spinning his wheels.

Years later in 1991, there are more, similar, crimes. Is it the same person?

By this point, Sven’s son, Vidar, has grown up to become a police officer himself and now it’s his responsibility to investigate these heinous crimes.

Finally, in the later part of the novel, we return to Moth’s perspective, as he wraps it all up for us. While at first glance, this may sound like it would be confusing, I assure you, it’s not. Carlsson has expertly told this tale in a way that makes it approachable and intriguing throughout.

I listened to the audiobook and highly recommend that as a format. I was concerned about pronouncing names and places correctly on my own, so felt it might be a good option for me. I would let a professional take the stress off.

The narration by Peter Nobel was fantastic. He has a classic storytelling voice, which was a perfect match for this tale. I really enjoyed it.

From the start, I was intrigued. It is a slow-burn, one that not only pays off, but is enjoyable every moment of its telling. I like how layered the narrative was. It was more than just brutal crimes and the subsequent investigation.

There was a lot involving the history and secrets that small towns keep, as well exploration of family dynamics. For example with Sven and Vidar. Vidar discovers things about his Dad, after his Dad’s death, that he didn’t know before.

I think that can be an interesting discovery for adults. That our parents sometimes keep secrets from us. We don’t know everything about them. They have their own distinct lives outside of us and they may keep things from us for varying reasons. Sometimes to protect us, but other times for reasons all their own.

I did occasionally have a difficult time keeping track of some details, particularly towards the end, but I take full blame for that. I’m not sure if I wasn’t paying well enough attention in the beginning or what, but some of the side characters towards the end got confusing for me.

With this being said, overall, I had a great time reading this and would definitely pick up more translated works from this author in the future.

Thank you so much to the publisher, Hogarth, for providing me with a copy to read and review.

I’m excited to have found a new Nordic Thriller author to follow and definitely recommend this to anyone who enjoys a nuanced Crime Thriller.

View all my reviews

Review: Out of the Ashes by Kara Thomas

~ megs14malloy

Out of the AshesOut of the Ashes by Kara Thomas
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

🧡🖤🔥🖤🧡🖤🔥🖤🧡🖤🔥🖤🧡🖤🔥🖤🧡

Out of the Ashes follows Samantha Newsom. Sam is 35-years old and works as a nurse in NYC. She hasn’t had an easy life, filled with early trauma that has had lasting repercussions.

When Sam was 13, her family was murdered and their home set ablaze. Sam escaped harmed, as she was at a friend’s house that night for a sleepover, but the rest of her family, her Mom, Dad and baby sister were not that lucky.

Sam was taken in by family after the tragedy, but her life was no longer filled with love, or warm relationships. Particularly, tenuous was her relationship with her Aunt Mitch. The two butted heads something awful.

Needless to say, Sam was eager to leave her small town of Carney, New York, behind when she got old enough. She’s rarely gone back since.

She still keeps in contact with her Uncle Gil though and when he dies, he leaves Sam his house, hoping she’ll keep it. Return to her roots.

Sam doesn’t want anything to do with Carney. The mystery of who killed her family was never solved, in large part due to the actions of local law enforcement. She doesn’t want to be reminded of all that.

When Sam is contacted by an Investigator, Travis Meacham, who has been assigned the cold case though, she sees a glimmer of hope for finding the truth.

Meacham reports he has a fresh lead. A prison inmate who claims that he saw Sam’s baby sister, Lyndsay, being removed from the home before it burned.

Could her sister be alive? Was she kidnapped, not murdered?

She needs to take care of her Uncle’s house anyway, it’s the perfect excuse to return to Carney. While she’s there, Sam plans to do some digging of her own.

Sam’s determined to get the answers she deserves about the night that shattered her life forever. With Meacham’s help, she just may be able to solve this decades old mystery.

I really enjoyed this Adult Debut from Kara Thomas. It’s the type of gritty Crime Fiction I tend to enjoy, the kind that feels a bit Hillybilly Noir, for lack of a better term.

The title of this book fits it to a tee. Sam literally feels like a phoenix rising from the ashes. She’s been through some things, it’s definitely had an impact on her adult life, but I felt like throughout this story, she grows and is sort of able to rebuild herself.

I loved Sam as a main character. This story is told entirely through her perspective and I appreciated that choice by Thomas. It felt fitting with the nature of this story.

I love the trope of a character leaving their small town in the dust and then returning many years later to investigate something that happened in the past. Luckily for me, that’s exactly what this is.

Out of the Ashes is a slow-burn, but I didn’t mind. Overall, I felt it easy to get swept up in the story. There’s a lot of drama in the town and with Sam’s remaining family.

At times I struggled a little trying to keep up with the dynamics between them all, but I feel like for the most part, it was really well done.

There is one really powerful family in the town, they own a large farm that employees a lot of people, and Sam and her family are quite involved with them. They definitely added a sinister, dangerous tone to the narrative.

The majority of the story is fairly bleak. There’s not a lot to be jazzed, or happy about, but honestly, there shouldn’t be. It’s not that kind of story.

The town is floundering, drugs have had a huge impact, like in many small towns in America. The locals seem a bit desperate and suspicious of outsiders.

They definitely view Sam as an outsider at this point. She’s been gone too long, has a fancy education and a solid career.

I felt for her. The jarring nature of her return to her hometown. That’s always something I enjoy reading about. I’ve been in that position, so find it easy to relate to. When I do visit my hometown, it’s like a completely different world.

There were some twists in this I didn’t see coming and I did like how Thomas continued to build the tension throughout. She also allowed Sam to gain strength and confidence as the story progresses. Sam’s a bit of a badass.

The conclusion almost brought me to tears. I was stunned. It was wrapped up really well. I’m impressed with Thomas’s ease of transitioning into the Adult Thriller genre. I hope she continues to write YA Thrillers too though, because she is one of my favorite authors in that space.

Look at you being all multi-talented, Kara Thomas!

Thank you to the publisher, Thomas & Mercer, for providing me with a copy to read and review. I think this is a great effort for an Adult Debut.

I definitely recommend this one for fans of dark, gritty Crime Fiction.

View all my reviews

Review: The Lake House by Sarah Beth Durst

~ megs14malloy

The Lake HouseThe Lake House by Sarah Beth Durst
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

The Lake House follows three girls who have just embarked on a summer adventure they’ll never forget.

Our main character is Claire. She’s excited to be going to the Lake House, an off-grid summer camp, but it’s definitely outside of her comfort zone.

On the boat ride to the remote location in Maine, Claire meets two other girls attending the camp, Reyva and Mariana. In fact, they’re the only campers on the boat. Although they’re quite different, they hit it off right away.

They get dropped at the dock and their escort, Jack, says his goodbyes. As he takes off, the girls realize this is it. He was their only connection with the outside world and he won’t be back for a long time.

This is it. It’s really happening. Their off-grid, roughing it, summer vacation has officially begun.

At this point, you may be wondering why these girls would sign themselves up for this? As it turns out, all of their parents were once campers at the Lake House and all highly recommended the experience.

Even though their motivations differ, each one of the girls has their own reasons for wanting to participate in the challenging summer excursion. You’ll hear a lot about those things over the course of the story. Be prepared.

As they make their way down the trail to the Lake House, all they discover is a burned out shell where the building once stood. Ashes all around, they find no one and worse, have none of the expected supplies that would aide in their outdoor survival.

After they find a dead body in the woods, they realize this was no accident. With no means of communicating with the outside world, and danger lurking around every corner, the girls will now learn the true meaning of survival.

Before I get into my thoughts on this story, can we all just take a moment and bow down at the alter that is this cover.

She is such a beauty; my favorite aesthetic. It’s giving me strong, dark 70s-Horror vibes and I am eating it up. I love the muted colors and haunting imagery. Honestly, I would hang this is as an art print above my bed, where I could behold its stunning glory daily.

Moving on though, we probably should get into my final thoughts.

I liked this. It’s good, but sadly, I was expecting more. I know a lot of people will love this. I wish I was one of them, but from the start, the set-up seemed off to me. It didn’t quite make sense. I had questions.

Around the 30%-point was my peak interest moment. There was some intrigue, after the girls find out their shelter has burned to the ground and they begin to really investigate their surroundings for the first time.

For a moment, it was channeling the same vibes I got in the early episodes of LOST. There was a lot of mystery and I was desperate to find out what was going on.

Unfortunately, for me though, while I wanted to dig more into that feeling, I kept getting distracted by the dialogue between the girls and the inner musings of Claire. I felt like I was a fly on the wall of a therapy session versus in the midst of a survival story.

There were a couple of interesting twists and I did appreciate the idea behind the Horror element, but for me there were holes that never got fully explored and as mentioned above, I kept getting kicked out of the story by the eye-roll inducing dialogue amongst the girls.

I know the above makes me sound bitter and maybe I am a little, because I was looking forward to this so much. I do want to be clear though, this is a good book. It’s a quick read and engaging overall.

I was just expecting a different, darker tone and wasn’t really psyched about what I ultimately got from this. Additionally, I may have enjoyed it more if I knew less about Maine, camping, or camping in Maine…

With this being said, just because it wasn’t a great fit for me, doesn’t mean it won’t be for you. If you are intrigued by the synopsis, you should absolutely give it a shot.

There’s a Reader for every book and book for every Reader. Please don’t let my slightly sour opinion sway you either way. I would love for you to come back and tell me why I’m wrong. I really want this to work for everyone else!

Thank you to the publisher, HarperTeen, for providing me with a copy to read and review. While this wasn’t a perfect match for my tastes, I really appreciate the opportunity to provide my opinion.

View all my reviews

Review: The Body in the Library (Miss Marple #3) by Agatha Christie

~ megs14malloy

The Body in the LibraryThe Body in the Library by Agatha Christie
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The Body in the Library is the second full-length novel in Agatha Christie’s beloved, Miss Marple series.

One of my 2023-reading goals, is to read all of the novels in this series in order. This is actually one of the ones I have previously read, but I was still so excited to pick it up again.

It has been a decade since I last read it, so I was due for a reread. It’s so funny, too, because somehow in the interim, I had totally rearranged the plot of this novel in my mind.

For example, I was thinking the body was found in the library at the tail-end of a dinner party, but that isn’t the case at all. I’m like, where the heck did I come up with that?

This story actually kicks off with Mrs. Bantry being awoken by her maid, Mary, letting her know, through sobs, that a dead body of a girl has been discovered in their library.

At first, Mrs. Bantry thinks she is dreaming. How the heck would a dead body have ended up in her home? She alerts her husband, Colonel Arthur Bantry, of the news. From that moment on, it’s off to the races.

Seriously, Christie wastes zero time with this one. The discovery of the body is announced on page 2.

Colonel and Mrs. Bantry have no idea who the young woman is. She certainly wasn’t an invited guest. From first glance, she doesn’t appear the type of girl who would be privy to their same social circle.

The authorities are notified, of course, but Mrs. Bantry also calls on her friend, Miss Jane Marple, who knows a lot about this sort of thing. A swift and vigorous investigation begins.

I really enjoyed getting to know the players involved in this one. There was such a great mix of people and getting to the bottom of the mystery was a wild ride.

Again, Miss Marple is sort of a side character at this point, but her reputation definitely proceeds her. She is known for being quite observant and knowing a lot about these types of things; crime and psychology.

I liked having Inspector Slack around again for the investigation and getting to know even more individuals in the greater-St. Mary Mead area.

This is such a classic. The vibe is just quintessential Murder Mystery set in a small village. It exudes what we’ve come to know as, Cozy Mystery.

Finally, I loved Miss Marple’s explanation of the hows/whys of this crime, and getting to that point was equally as fun.

Overall, I am certainly glad I reread this. It was fun to read hot on the heels of my read of The Murder at the Vicarage: A Miss Marple Mystery.

I am really looking forward to continuing on with this series and completing it all this year!!

View all my reviews

Review: Four Found Dead by Natalie D. Richards

~ megs14malloy

Four Found DeadFour Found Dead by Natalie D. Richards
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

In Sandusky, Ohio, the once thriving three-story shopping mall is closed. Only the attached movie theater, Tempest Theaters, is still in operation, or was.

At the start of Four Found Dead, Tempest Theaters has just shown its final movies. It’s the last night of operation before it will join the rest of the mall in closing forever.

Jo and her six colleagues have locked the doors and their final clean-up at the theater has begun. It’s bittersweet, but the friends are looking forward to going out and grabbing pancakes together after they leave.

Unfortunately, an unexpected altercation, involving their super-buff, jerk of a manager, Clayton, ends up putting their pancake plans on hold. They just want to get the heck out of there, but Clayton is spiraling and he’s not letting them out.

They’re literally unable to leave, as Clayton is the only one with the keys to the exit doors. After they finish their tasks, they quietly try to figure out what is going on with him. Maybe he has finally lost it? He seems dangerous.

Oh, also, the icing on the cake, Clayton’s no phones on shift rule, allows him to lock-up all of their phones in the office safe at the start of the night and he isn’t opening it now. Thus, the friends have no means of communicating with anyone outside of the theater.

As the tension and anxiety continues to rise, the power goes out. They are left in almost complete darkness. Then the screams begin.

One dead body in the employee locker room starts it all. It’s clear it wasn’t an accident.

The girl whose blood-curdling shrieks brought the others to the locker room to make the grisly discovery, is barely coherent. They can’t get anything out of her, but they all know who did this…

The remaining coworkers, Jo, Hudson, Quincy, Naomi and Summer, need to find a way to escape. Clayton is lurking in the dark. Their only possible way out just might be through the boarded up, abandoned shopping mall.

I started this book on Sunday morning and finished it Monday. I could not put it down. I considered calling in sick to work, LOL. I haven’t devoured a story like that in a while. It’s such a compulsive read.

I loved the setting of the theater and abandoned mall. It was easy to picture every single scene in my mind. The lack of power, boarded up doors and stores made in particularly eerie. I felt like Richards did a great job portraying that.

Personally, I think this would make a fun movie. I would love to see a Netflix or Hulu adaptation. There’s certainly plenty of abandoned malls around for them to film at…

I also really enjoyed the pace. The tension continued to build throughout as the characters became more and more desperate for escape.

Jo was an interesting main character, as we learned a bit about her past, which included another traumatic and terrifying event that truly shaped who she had become as a person. There was a lot for her to prove to herself in the current circumstance.

The entire drama has a real survive the night feel and while it isn’t mysterious per se, I definitely second-guessed some things and some character motivations.

What this is though, is definitely a high-stakes, action-packed, drama-fueled Thriller. I found it entertaining as heck and am so glad I had the chance to read it already.

Thank you so much to the publisher, Sourcebooks Fire, for providing me with a copy to read and review. This is the exact kind of story I have been craving lately!

View all my reviews

Review: Fractal Noise (Fractalverse #2) by Christopher Paolini

~ megs14malloy

Fractal Noise (Fractalverse #2)Fractal Noise by Christopher Paolini
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Fractal Noise is set in the same world as Paolini’s 2020-release, To Sleep in a Sea of Stars. I really enjoyed that fast-paced story of first contact, so was pretty excited when I heard of this release.

As with To Sleep in a Sea of Stars, I listened to the audiobook of this and it is incredibly well done. I cannot recommend it enough as a format choice for taking in this story.

Jennifer Hale is such a talented voice artist and truly is able to bring life to the characters and the story. Additionally, there’s great sound effects included, perfect for this high-tech SF-tale.

In a way, this is also a story of first contact. It’s not as intense, or action-packed, as TSIASOS. It has a lighter touch and focuses more on the philosophical side of our place in the universe, our purpose and what our relationship would/should be with other sentient beings.

Don’t get me wrong, it’s still gripping, emotional and full of tense moments, just overall, it’s a different focus for the SF-elements, IMO.

In Fractal Noise, our main character is Alex. Alex is a xenobiologist, who has lost his wife and at the beginning of the story, to say he is struggling emotionally would be to put it mildly. What even is the purpose of his life anymore?

In spite of his depression, Alex is an active member of the crew of a ship called the Adamura and this crew ends up discovering a giant hole, an anomaly, on the desolate planet of Talos VII. Perhaps, Alex has a purpose after all.

It’s unlike anything that could occur naturally. It’s too perfect. It has to have been created by something, or someone, but for what purpose?

The crew of the Adamura agree to partake in a mission to investigate the hole first hand. The truth of the anomaly could help to fill in answers for some of the mysteries of the universe. Who wouldn’t want to investigate that?

Because of the nature of the hole, they can’t touch down too close. They have to land some distance from the hole and then traverse the planet on foot in order to even get close. It’s incredibly dangerous. The four member team is ready to take it on though.

The other members of the team are Talia, Chen and Pushkin. Each of them specializes in a different area of science and each brings their own strengths and weaknesses to the table.

These individuals cannot be more different and their personalities definitely clash at times. It ends up bringing quite a bit of tension to the story. If you think their only threat would be aliens, or the hole itself, you’d be wrong. Humans can be volatile, whether on terra firma or in space.

The coolest aspect for me though was the hole itself. Once they begin their mission on Talos VII, it becomes clear very quickly that the hole is emitting a pulse of some sort. It’s so powerful that it messes with their comms and they can feel it through every fiber of their bodies.

If I am remembering correctly, it is emitted in a pattern, something like every 10.9-seconds. The closer they get, the more powerful it is. It gets to the point where it seems it is driving them a little mad.

Additionally, the closer they get to the hole, the higher and higher the tension gets amongst the team members. What is up, what is down? It’s hard to keep it straight. Who is in the right, and who is the evil one in their ranks?

I really enjoyed my time listening to this. I feel like Paolini is such a solid SF-writer. The story flows so fluidly and is full of fantastic sci-fi concepts and ideas, yet is so approachable and easy to understand.

I felt like I really got to know these characters and while I wasn’t crazy about all of them, or even most of them, I felt like I understood where they were coming from and why they made the choices they did. Their conversations did open up lots of avenue for thought into our place, and our greater role, as a species in the universe.

I would recommend this to people who enjoy SF-stories with a dangerous space-set mission, or stories of first contact. Especially if you like considering those types of scenarios for our own future, what that could mean. I felt really connected to this story and definitely hope Paolini continues writing in this genre.

Thank you so much to the publisher, Macmillan Audio, for providing me with a copy to read and review. I have nothing but the highest praise Hale’s narration and this audio production in general!

View all my reviews

Review: Nocturne by Alyssa Wees

~ megs14malloy

NocturneNocturne by Alyssa Wees
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Let’s start off this review with a little confession, shall we?

I participated in a Readathon this week where one of the prompts was to read the lowest rated book on your TBR. While this isn’t the lowest rated book overall, it was the lowest rate ARC that I currently had to read.

Always trying to check off some ARCs, I decided to give it a go, but I didn’t go in with high expectations.

Luckily for me, Nocturne turned out to be a pretty great example of why I tend not to look at ratings and reviews before I pick up a book. I know that goes against everything we’re doing here, but it’s the truth.

Reading is an incredibly subjective activity. Pair the right book, at the right time, with the right Reader and magic can happen. Read that same book when your in a certain mood and it can be a total flop.

I’m clearly the right Reader for this book. This story is set in 1930’s Chicago and seamlessly blends Historical Fiction with Dark Fantasy and light Romance.

Our main character is Grace Dragotta, who after being orphaned, ventures out on her own and joins a dancing company. A life she dreamed of. When we meet Grace, she is a teen and on the cusp of being elevated to prima ballerina within her company.

Unfortunately for Grace, raising to this rank is bittersweet. She only gets the role after her best friend, Emilia, leaves her spot as prima to be married. Grace is losing the closest person to her in all the world. She doesn’t know how she’ll get by without Emilia’s comforting presence.

Not long after her ascendancy, Grace receives word from her Mistress that she has caught the eye of a mysterious, wealthy patron. In order to keep her dance house afloat, the Mistress essentially sells Grace to this man.

Grace is forced to live at his estate, only traveling back to the studio to train and perform. There’s a lot of whispers about her new life, but Grace tries her best to just get on with it.

As she learns the shocking truth about her patron, it’s clear that the life she dreamed for herself will never come to be.

Y’all, I really enjoyed this. It’s not a complicated story. It’s pretty straight-forward, well-written and the concepts are easy to understand.

I should note that I grew up in dance and playing the violin, the two artistic pursuits that the main character engages in. Having my own personal experience and passions in those two areas did increase my connection to the story. I loved Grace and learning about her life.

This feels very much inspired by Beauty and the Beast. I loved those elements. I wasn’t expecting them and every time I would come across something that made me think of that classic tale, it would make me happy.

The relationship between Grace and her Master, was lush and evocative. I really enjoyed the truth of him and what he was offering her. Additionally, I enjoyed the evolution of her feelings for him and her place in his world.

Wees writing is quite beautiful and I liked the way she wrote the initial set-up and then progressed the plot. I thought the pacing of this was fantastic, it kept me engaged the entire way through.

Overall, I found Nocturne to be lyrical, dark and enchanting. Wees successfully swept me up and away into a whole other world. In a way, it felt like a love letter to the healing power of artistic expression. I’m so glad I finally made time for it.

Thank you so much to the publisher, Del Rey, for providing me with a copy to read and review. This was gorgeous and I look forward to reading more from Wees in the future!

View all my reviews

Re-Reading Stephen King’s Carrie, Review

~ megs14malloy

CarrieCarrie by Stephen King
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Carrie, Stephen King’s first published full-length novel was released in 1974 and at this point, I think it’s fair to say it’s a modern classic. This novel has been adapted to film four times, the most well-known being the original 1976-release starring Sissy Spacek as Carrie.

Incidentally, I did decide to listen to the audiobook for this reread, as I had only read the print copy before, and the audio was narrated by Spacek.

It was fantastic and I highly recommend that audio-version. Spacek clearly has an intimate connection with this story and with Carrie in particular. I felt like it made the audio experience extra special.

Assuming most people at least have a general idea of what this story is about, I will keep this short and simple. This story, through the incredible use of mixed media, tells the story of Carrie White, a bullied teen who lives in the small town of Chamberlain, Maine.

At the beginning, there’s an infamous scene taking place in the girls locker room at school, wherein Carrie experiences her first menstruation. Raised by a single-mother, religious fanatic, who believes only women who sin grow breasts, Carrie has no idea what a period is.

She’s frightened at the sight of the blood and panics. Her peers, who have already been bullying her mercilessly for years, are brutal in their reaction to the event, pelting her with feminine products and screaming at her.

It’s awful. The girls are awful. Carrie gets sent home for the day and the young women involved in torturing her are given a light slap on the wrist.

It’s at that time, under distress, that the first public signs of Carrie’s powers appear. At least since that rock incident when she was a child…

The plot progresses from there, advancing Carrie’s story from that point forward, as well as filling in some of her backstory, including her gut-wrenching, abusive relationship with her mother.

When one of the girls involved, Sue Snell, starts to feel remorse for the locker room incident, she concocts a slightly hair-brained and uber-naive plot wherein her popular, jock boyfriend, Tommy Ross, will take Carrie to the Spring dance instead of her.

Tommy isn’t crazy about the idea. Not because he has anything against Carrie, he’s not that kind of guy, but because he doesn’t feel like Sue’s tepid attempt at ridding herself of guilt will make any real difference in Carrie’s life.

Nevertheless, he loves Sue and is willing to do anything she asks. If only he hadn’t…

I had such a blast listening to this. I haven’t read this story in over 20-years and it was so great to revisit one of King’s earliest hits. Imagine reading and reviewing this in 1974, like ‘this Stephen King guy is an author to watch.’

I was struck immediately by the creative use of mixed media. I have read from other authors who have mentioned how this novel influenced them with that format and I can see why. It is so incredibly well done here. IMO, definitely still one of the best displays of that format published to date.

I think it is important to keep in mind how unique that would have been at the time of publication.

There have been numerous novels in the past few years that have embraced that narrative style, particularly if you think of all the ones including podcasting elements. It seems now an obvious choice as a way to tell a story, but it’s really not traditionally.

I’ll be honest, it did make me sad reading this though. I was reminded why I have never reread it until now. There are certain King’s, mainly this and Cujo, that are so good, yet so painful to read, because of how much empathy I feel for the characters involved, that I sort of avoid them.

As a Horror story, one could categorize Carrie as the ‘evil’, but you feel for her and I would assume that 99.9% of Readers will be on her side.

To me, it’s a bit like Frankenstein, another book I could only read once because I felt so damn bad for Frankenstein’s monster, and in a way, Carrie is the Frankenstein’s monster of modern times.

Carrie was created by the abuse of her mother and the constant harassment and ridicule of her peers. Sure, there’s an argument in the book that her powers are genetic and I get that, but having telekinetic powers doesn’t necessarily equate to killing hundreds of your peers and burning down your entire town.

I feel like there could have been other options for Carrie if she hadn’t been treated like complete trash her entire life.

I loved how this wrapped up too, how the speed that the mixed media jumped around in the aftermath of prom night increased the intensity of the conclusion. I just thought it was so well done and then that final little snippet, PERFECTION.

I’m so happy that I took the time to reread this one. Even though Carrie’s story is a painful one, it’s also powerful and absolutely one that will stick in your mind once your done.

View all my reviews

Review: A Heart So Fierce and Broken (Cursebreakers #2) by Brigid Kemmerer

~ megs14malloy

A Heart So Fierce and Broken (Cursebreakers, #2)A Heart So Fierce and Broken by Brigid Kemmerer
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

A Heart So Fierce and Broken is the second book in Brigid Kemmerer’s YA Fantasy series, Cursebreakers.

I finished the first book in the series, A Curse So Dark and Lonely, earlier this year and had a ton of fun with it. A creative take on Beauty and the Beast, Kemmerer did a great job delivering her own spin to that classic tale.

There’s a lot of information packed into that first book and although I didn’t find it info-dumpy in any way, I knew I wanted to continue on with haste. I didn’t want to forget all I had learned about the beautiful world of Emberfall.

For this sequel, I decided to try the audiobook and I enjoyed that format a lot. The narration was so good and helped to bring the story to life for me.

There is a focus shift in this one, as far as characters go, with us mainly following Grey, Prince Rhen’s right-hand man from book one, and a new-to-us character, Lia Mara, daughter to Emberfall enemy, Karis Luran.

Initially, I was worried I wouldn’t enjoy this as much as the first book because of this shift. I felt like I was going to miss Rhen and Harper too much, but then in a surprising twist of fate, I actually ended up enjoying it a little bit more!

A lot happens in this one, there’s a lot of continued political maneuverings and changes in alliances, as well as threats to the kingdom and our characters.

I am really hoping to continue on with the series very soon, as this one has a bit of a stunning conclusion. I’m excited to wrap up this story and find out what is going to ultimately happen to all of my favorite characters.

Will Kemmerer give me the happy ending I’m dreaming of, or shatter my heart into a million pieces? Honestly, I feel it could go either way…

View all my reviews