Author: megs14malloy

Review: Emily Wilde’s Encyclopaedia of Faeries by Heather Fawcett

~ megs14malloy

Emily Wilde's Encyclopaedia of Faeries: Book One of the Emily Wilde SeriesEmily Wilde’s Encyclopaedia of Faeries: Book One of the Emily Wilde Series by Heather Fawcett
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Emily Wilde’s Encyclopaedia of Faeries is the perfect, snuggled-under-a-blanket, Winter read.

A Cozy Fantasy with low-stakes, light romance, enchanting atmosphere and easy-to-love characters. This was exactly what I needed for January!!

This book follows Miss Emily Wilde. Emily is a Cambridge Professor, who specializes in the study of faeries. In fact, when we meet her, Emily is fastidiously researching her latest project, the first ever encyclopaedia of fairy lore.

Emily has traveled all over the world studying various culture’s magical beings and the legends and lore surrounding them. She has one destination left, a remote village in the Scandinavian country of Ljosland.

Emily is used to field work, so she’s not put off at all by the stark, isolated village life. However, she wasn’t aware that it would be so rustic that she would need to chop her own wood to keep warm.

Needless to say, Emily, along with her trusty companion, her dog, Shadow, have a bit of a learning curve to overcome in Ljosland.

As they’re settling in, Emily receives a letter from one of her Cambridge colleagues, Wendell Bambleby, that he’s planning to join her. He can’t be serious? Emily works best alone.

Alas, arriving as unexpectedly as his earlier correspondence, there he is. Wendell Bambleby on her doorstop, two student research aides in tow. Good grief.

As days pass, and Emily’s research deepens, she begins to suspect that Bambleby knows more about the fae than he is letting on and there may be an unconventional reason for that. Will Emily’s research be a success? Will she figure out the mystery of the Hidden Ones near her cottage?

Most importantly, will she figure out the mystery of the man residing within?

Emily Wilde’s was such a lovely, cozy, warm hug of a read. I’ll be honest, I teared up at the end. I just didn’t want to part from these characters. I’m so happy this is just the start of our journey with Emily.

There’s a lot to love about Emily as a character. She’s a true academic. Not one for small talk, she struggles a bit interacting with other humans. It’s not her favorite thing.

I loved the whole idea of her setting off into the great unknown, Shadow by her side, to complete her research. She is fearless. In fact, her life is in jeopardy more than once over the course of this story, yet she seems to navigate it all so well.

Emily has her ups-and-downs over the course of this story and I felt for her every step of the way. She’s definitely the type of character you would want to be friends with. I found it so easy to connect with her.

Wendell was so fun too. He’s handsome, charming and has a natural ease with people that instantly gets under Emily’s skin. Everything seems to come so easily for him and if you’re struggling, as Emily is with some of the villagers, that can definitely be frustrating.

I loved their sort of love-hate relationship. All love on his side, a little less so on hers. I wouldn’t say hate, but she definitely rolled her eyes at him more than once.

I really enjoyed the cold, barren setting with the backdrop of the magical faerie realms as well. There were quite a few whimsical scenes that I thought were done really well.

Additionally, I liked how Fawcett chose to format this. It reads like you are reading Emily’s journal entries. It felt intimate and real-time with her adventures.

There are footnotes though, just a warning, I know not everyone is crazy about those. I felt they worked here though by adding to the vibe of the story.

Overall, I think this is a fantastic start to a series. I am definitely attached to these characters and look forward to reading more about them in the future.

Thank you so much to the publisher, Del Rey, for providing me with a copy to read and review. I had a lot of fun with this one and definitely recommend it to fans of Cozy Fantasy and stories involving the Fae!

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Review: The Face That Must Die by Ramsey Campbell

~ megs14malloy

The Face That Must DieThe Face That Must Die by Ramsey Campbell
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I first stumbled across The Face That Must Die in Paperbacks from Hell: The Twisted History of ’70s and ’80s Horror Fiction, where Grady Hendrix discusses it on pages 122 – 123.

There was something about the way Hendrix described Campbell’s distinct brand of Urban Horror that called to me. I needed to experience it for myself, so I found this pristine edition and immediately gave it a go.

This story mainly follows John Horridge, a man who you can tell fairly quickly struggles with life. His thoughts are despicable in many respects, but it does set the stage nicely for the ultimate events that play out.

You also get the perspectives of two young women, Fanny and Cathy, who live in flats in the same building, along with a few other young folks mentioned.

The residents of this building, unfortunately, become involved with John Horridge after he becomes obsessed with another man living in the building, we’ll just call him by his surname, Craig.

Murders have been plaguing Liverpool and Horridge suspects that Craig is the culprit, mainly because he is homosexual, Horridge’s word choice, not mine. It’s clear to Horridge that Craig and his sexuality are a threat to the city and Horridge can’t rest until he has flushed him out.

We’re in Horridge’s mind as he considers how vulnerable he is and how he needs to protect himself, all while he is literally stalking and harassing Mr. Craig.

As this novel begins and we are introduced to Horridge, you can tell he is on a collision course with those around him. This can’t end well, but never did I expect just how wild it would get.

In the beginning, we get brief glimpses into his childhood through his musings regarding his overbearing father, the accident that left him with a permanent limp and the bullying he sustained at the hands of his peers.

Sometimes, when you get that sort of a background on a character it can maybe evoke sympathy or understanding for their actions. I can say, not really the case here.

I did really enjoy the stark urban landscape as the backdrop. It enhanced the feelings of our characters, those of desperation, loneliness and isolation, not just for Horridge, but for the young people as well.

Cathy and Peter especially, it was difficult for them. Cathy really wanted to get out, but the money just wasn’t there for them to buy a home. It felt like you were trapped with them. I was frustrated for Cathy, particularly because Peter didn’t seem able to get out of his own way.

Also, Miss Fanny, the artist. I liked her character a lot and her storyline really got to me. She has a run in with Horridge outside the building and even though she describes meeting him as making her feel more uncomfortable than she ever felt in her life, she invites him up to her flat!

She believes he is an investigator looking into one of the murders, but even so. She felt it in her gut, but pushed her thoughts aside so as to be polite, or not to seem disagreeable.

This was interesting to me. A perfect example of how women, not so much anymore, were raised to smile, be polite, help out, even if it meant going against their own instincts.

These are just a couple of examples of what I found so interesting about this story. I was glued to the pages. It was uncomfortable to be in Horridge’s mind, that type of paranoia fiction that makes you feel like you need a very hot shower after.

As the plot progresses, Horridge spirals more and more into his paranoid, repetitive thoughts. There were aspects towards the end that reminded me of Raskolnikov’s descent into, shall we say guilt-fueled madness, in Crime and Punishment.

Overall, I was impressed with how immersed I got in this story. Some aspects felt dated, but it was first published in 1979, over 40-years ago, so that makes sense.

I think in spite of that though, the horror of the story remains as impactful today as it would have been then. I was properly disturbed after this one and can’t wait to read some more from Ramsey Campbell!

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Review: Krampus: The Yule Lord by Brom

~ megs14malloy

Krampus: The Yule LordKrampus: The Yule Lord by Brom
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

All hail, Krampus, Lord of Yule!

In Krampus: The Yule Lord the Reader is taken on a stunning, horror-fueled holiday journey following Krampus, his Belsnickels, Santa and a low-on-his-luck musician, Jesse Walker, of Boone County, West Virginia.

On Christmas Eve, after Jesse witnesses a battle between Santa Claus and some demon-like entitites, Jesse is left with a lot of questions and Santa’s magical sack. What would seem a boon to many people ends up bringing nothing but bad tidings for poor Jesse.

Krampus wants that sack and now Jesse is in his path, but Jesse has other problems. He’s gotten on the shit list of some seedy men and is dodging threats from every side, including threats to his ex and daughter.

Once he and Krampus are brought together, Jesse can hardly believe what is happening to him. He’s literally been drawn into the quest of the Yule Lord, but is Krampus bad or good?

If you believe the story as Krampus tells it, Santa Claus is an evil fraud who must be stopped. Jesse really could care less, he just wants his estranged-wife, Linda, and daughter, Abigail, to be safe and it seems like Krampus will be able to help him with that.

Y’all, I absolutely adored this story. From the very first chapter, I was completely drawn into this lush, fantastical, emotionally-charged and brutal tale.

I loved getting the opportunity to read from Krampus’s perspective and those scenes were some of my favorite from the entire narrative.

I was blown away by the detailed folkloric elements that Brom included. The idea of Yule, Krampus, Santa and everything surrounding them was fascinating and definitely something I would enjoy reading more about.

We see a bit of the rivalry between Krampus and Santa, which was really fun. At one point, I mentioned in a status update that they felt like an old-bickering couple. We, of course, are treated to Krampus’s side of things, so I was totally behind him.

Another bit I really enjoyed was when Krampus and Jesse were traveling around and Krampus, having been locked up for half a millennium, was seeing the present state of the world for the first time.

It was interesting seeing Krampus be shocked by the horrors that modern man bring about, not just for themselves, but for others and on the Earth. That idea was explored in some detail and I found it sad and beautiful all at the same time. It was so well done.

Lastly, I don’t think I can write a review for this book without mentioning Brom’s illustrations. Are you kidding me? Never have more gorgeous illustrations graced the pages of a book.

Having the stunning depictions of theses characters, and pivotal moments of scenes, laid out in front of me absolutely elevated the reading experience.

I definitely recommend picking up a hard copy if you are planning to read it. I am so happy to have this remarkable book as part of my own collection. I cannot wait to pick up more from Brom.

I now officially have a new favorite go-to Holiday Horror novel!! 10-out-of-10 recommend!! I am kompletely krazy for Krampus!!

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Review: They’re Watching You by Chelsea Ichaso

~ megs14malloy

They're Watching YouThey’re Watching You by Chelsea Ichaso
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

Well, that didn’t go as I expected…

They’re Watching You was a highly-anticipated release for me. Unfortunately, this story and I did not get along.

In this novel we’re following Maren, a student at the prestigious Torrey-Wells Academy. Two weeks ago, Maren’s best friend, Polly, went missing from school. Prior to her disappearance, Polly said some cryptic things to Maren.

When everyone, including the police and school headmistress, assume that Polly has run away, Maren knows that’s not true. Polly was her roommate, she knew her better than anyone. Polly would never leave her hanging like that.

Thus Maren begins looking into it. To her it’s clear, her friend is in trouble and she’ll do anything she can to help.

When Maren finds an envelope hidden among Polly’s things, containing an invitation to a secret society, she knows this is a lead worth following.

Rumors have swirled at school about this mysterious Gamemaster’s Society for years, and as Maren digs in, she realizes there may be a lot of truth behind the whispers. Luckily, she finds out from classmates just the info she needs to secure her own invitation.

Before she knows it, Maren is elbow-deep in secret society craziness. There is a whole underground world at her school, one very few people get to see.

The games cooked up by the society are one thing, but Maren discovers she is playing a game of her own. For every win, she’s one step closer to finding out the truth about what has happened to Polly.

Y’all, I really wanted to love this and in the beginning, I thought that maybe I would. Sadly, this never got off the ground for me and the ending, easily anticipated, left me underwhelmed.

The set-up was intriguing. I liked the idea behind what Ichaso was building, but the execution did not fit my tastes at all. I found the characters to be flat and frankly, boring, especially Maren.

Maren’s personality was practically nonexistent. Besides her insistence on not giving up on Polly, I couldn’t feel anything from her. All these wild things are happening to her, yet her thoughts and actions are putting me to sleep. I felt zero intensity.

Additionally, the romantic elements felt so forced and out of place in lieu of all that was happening. I sort of get one of the connections, as she is working closely with a certain someone to try to gain the information she needs, but it still felt out of place.

Lastly, the person who appears to be running everything, our villain, was ridiculous. I just could not get behind that person as an evil mastermind. Nope, nope, nope.

It just wasn’t for me. The motivations, the romance, the fatuous games that everyone willing participated in for no truly logical reasons and the fact that our heroine is hypocritical and boring, just never allowed this one to connect for me.

With this being said, this is 100% personal opinion. I know that a lot of Readers will enjoy this and I am so happy for those that do. Everyone has different tastes, that’s one of the best things about reading, how subjective it is.

So if this sounds interesting to you, if the synopsis raises your eyebrows, you should absolutely pick it up and give it a go. I certainly wouldn’t be opposed to picking up more from this author in the future. Perhaps their next release will be more to my liking.

Thank you to the publisher, Sourcebooks Fire, for providing me with a copy to read and review. I appreciate having the opportunity to share my opinions.

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Review: From Bad to Cursed (The Witches of Thistle Grove #2) by Lana Harper

~ megs14malloy

From Bad to Cursed (The Witches of Thistle Grove, #2)From Bad to Cursed by Lana Harper

**3.5-stars**

From Bad to Cursed is the second novel in The Witches of Thistle Grove paranormal romance series.

For those unfamiliar with this series, the books are companion novels. They take place in the small, magical town of Thistle Grove following the same timeline, but each book focuses on different main characters.

In this installment, we’re treated to Isidora Avramov and Rowan Thorn in a classic enemies-to-lovers scenerio; one of my favorite romance tropes.

With the Beltane holiday approaching, the whole town of Thistle Grove is gearing up for the celebration. Unfortunately, before it even begins, their festival prep is sabotaged by a dark magical attack and a member of the Thorn family is seriously injured.

The four families end up selecting Issa and Rowan to investigate the mysterious attack. The two aren’t happy about the pairing. They have a bit of a past.

It involves a falling out at a local animal shelter that ended in Issa cursing Rowan with a batch of evil squirrels.

Nevertheless, as they begin working together, the chemistry is evident. Before long, they’re dropping their guard and getting to know one another better. Maybe they should have done this years ago.

This was a fun story. I love the feel of Thistle Grove. It’s cozy and magical, full of interesting characters and events. I will say that I’m not sure how memorable this installment will be for me, but I definitely enjoyed it.

There were some solid steamy scenes, a compelling mystery and charming magical elements. The plot itself is low-stakes, but that’s not a bad thing. It was a relaxing, fun read and everyone needs one of those occasionally.

Additionally, I appreciated the backdrop of family dynamics. Issa and Rowan both come from close-knit families, but the functioning of those families is very different.

I like how that was explored a bit. It was sort of a great example of how there is no one set way to be a loving family; it comes in all forms and functions. Every family is different, it doesn’t mean they love less.

I’m definitely planning to continue on with this series. I like returning to the town and getting to know different people every time, but also seeing a bit of the previous characters. It feels like meeting up with old friends.

Thank you so much to the publisher, Berkley, for providing me with a copy to read and review. I am looking forward to the next book, Back in a Spell.

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Review: Nine Liars (Truly Devious #5) by Maureen Johnson

~ megs14malloy

Nine Liars (Truly Devious, #5)Nine Liars by Maureen Johnson
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

School is back in session and Stevie Bell has finally hit her Senior Year. Unfortunately, with her boyfriend, David, overseas studying in London, Miss Stevie is that mopey, distracted long-distance relationship girl. We all know her.

Her friends are noticing the change and although they’re mostly supportive, they sort of wish she would just get back to being herself. Solve a murder, or something.

Soon enough, it’s David to the rescue, as he has hatched a fairly stellar plan. He invites Stevie, Nate, Janelle and Vi to come to London to do a study-abroad for a week. Each of them devises a schedule and specific course of inquiry for their time there.

David has secured them a place to stay. It should be easy. They just need to sell the Headmaster on the idea.

I think you know what happens because the group ends up there, in London, ready to study their little hearts out. Sure.

On their first night, they get introduced to Izzy, one of David’s closest London friends. As luck would have it, Izzy has a mystery. Stevie is winning all around, her hot boyfriend and a cold-case mystery all in one place!!

Izzy has insight on this mystery because her Aunt Angela was one of the individuals involved.

In 1995, Angela was part of a very tight-knit group of friends, collectively known as The Nine: Sebastian, Rosie, Angela, Sooz, Peter, Noel, Theo, Yash and Julien. They were all actors, artists and their lifestyle was a bit wild. They worked hard and played harder.

After their graduation from Cambridge, as a bit of a celebration, they took a trip to Julien’s family’s country estate. The morning after a drunken version of hide-and-seek, two members of the group are found dead.

It’s clear they were murdered. Very clear. Yet due to lack of evidence, no one was ever arrested for the crime.

Years later, under the influence of pain relievers following a hospital stay, Izzy’s Aunt Angela says some things to her that raise Izzy’s suspicions. Does her Aunt know what happened to her two murdered friends?

She asks Stevie to look into it and you know our Stevie, you are not going to dangle something that tempting in front of her and not have her bite.

Thus begins the London-installment of Truly Devious!

I love this series so much. This is the 5th-book and I have eagerly read them all. I’ve never been disappointed and will continue to pick them up for as long as they are released.

This was such a fun romp with Stevie and friends. I loved the change of scenery with them studying in London for a week and of course, the murder mystery solving.

Additionally, in this one, I really enjoyed the past timeline following Aunt Angela and her friends. It was such a dynamic, yet messy, group and I was living for the drama.

In the present timeline, there was also drama of course. Stevie and David navigating their relationship, taking it to new levels and all of them being focused on the college application process. I’m always interested in watching characters grow and begin to figure out their own path.

This is a bit of slow burn. It does take a while to really get into the intensity of the mystery and subsequent investigation. However, in my opinion, it was well paced and I think the payoff was worth the wait.

Ohhh, also, we’re definitely getting another book. There’s no way this is the end of Stevie’s story. Maureen Johnson wouldn’t play us like that.

I would absolutely recommend this to anyone who has been enjoying the Truly Devious series. For those who haven’t started it yet, and enjoy YA Mystery, what are you waiting for?! This is not a series to be missed!

Thank you so much to the publisher, Katherine Tegen Books, for providing me with a copy to read and review. I’m low-key obsessed with this series and hope for many more future installments!

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Review: A Ruinous Fate (Heartless Fates #1) by Kaylie Smith

~ megs14malloy

A Ruinous Fate (Heartless Fates, #1)A Ruinous Fate by Kaylie Smith
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Let me choose my own fate. Or ruin myself trying…

Calla Rosewood is a young witch essentially trying to outrun her fate. Due to a dangerous curse, Calla left her coven 4-years ago and has been living a life of secrecy with her best friends, Hannah and Delphine, ever since.

It’s a complicated history, but in addition to her curse Calla has marks on her skin that display her past rolls of the Witch’s Dice. These marks indicate Calla is very close to fulfilling the legend of becoming the last Blood Warrior.

After a horrendous night where she is betrayed by her ex, Ezra, Calla finds herself one-step closer to fulfilling her fate. Then she meets someone who offers her the chance to erase her previous rolls for good.

Of course she’s suspicious. She thought she was the only one with rolls this bad, but according to this guy, he has the same rolls. He’s heard of a spell that can be performed by the notorious Witch Eater that can erase their marks and clear the slate.

Gideon, the man with the enticing offer, needs Calla’s help gathering the ingredients needed to perform the spell.

He asks her to enter the deadly Neverending Forest with him on the mission. This is where the Witch Eater lives and unfortunately the only way they can complete their task.

We’ve got ourselves a quest, one of my all-time favorite Fantasy tropes. All aboard!!

Joining strong and sexy, Gideon and Calla, on their quest will be Calla’s charming ex-Ezra, as well as Hannah and Delphine. They can’t let Calla risk her life alone. They really are good friends.

The group enters the Neverending Forest and quickly realize this is not to be a simple journey. Nothing in the forest is as it appears, with the forest constantly changing and rearranging.

Luckily, Delphine, a siren, has magic that allows her to see past some of the forest’s trickery, but will it be enough to get them through to the end of their mission successfully?

I’m probably doing a horrendous job summarizing this complicated plot, but hopefully you get the general idea. For me, this story got progressively stronger as it went along.

Initially, you are thrown into this world and I was definitely floundering. There’s not a lot of explanation as far as the world goes. You’re just sort of dropped into it in a way that, honestly, felt jarring.

Eventually though, it does settle down and I ended up becoming extremely invested in these characters, their journey and the ultimate outcome.

I loved the darkly-magical forest atmosphere. It was the perfect backdrop for our protagonist’s quest. It gave a certain Alice in Wonderland feel with danger at every turn.

I liked learning about Calla and her friends, although I’m still not sure I grasp all of the nuance behind the magic system. There was a lot that I am hoping will be explored further in the second book; including the difference between the kinds of witches.

There is romance, including a tense love triangle. I liked the triangle, but I’m that way. I know a lot of people aren’t into it, so I will toss the caution flag here. In my opinion, this one had great drama. It was scandalous and I was here for it.

Additionally, there was a ton of action and as it got closer to the conclusion, I was definitely at the edge of my seat. I cannot believe how this left off. There were some events I didn’t see coming.

How long until the next book?

Overall, even though the beginning felt a bit chaotic, and I still have some questions about the world and magic system as a whole, I did truly enjoy this.

Seriously, the ending, oh my word, how am I going to wait!? So much went down and it was simultaneously badass, intense and heartbreaking.

I cannot wait to return to this world and group of characters. Yikes, there is so much story left to tell. This was well done by Kaylie Smith. I’m sold.

Thank you so much to the publisher, Disney-Hyperion, for providing me with a copy to read and review. I ended up having a ton of fun with this and definitely recommend it to fans of angst-filled YA Fantasy.

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Review: The Villa by Rachel Hawkins

~ megs14malloy

The VillaThe Villa by Rachel Hawkins
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

**4.5-stars**

A fantastic, paranoia-filled romp in Italy following two sets of women over two timelines. I really enjoyed watching the dual-dramas of The Villa unfold.

Villa Rosato, 1974: Step-sisters, Mari and Lara, are on an artist’s holiday along with Mari’s boyfriend, Pierce. The trio are staying at the lavish holiday home at the invitation of rock star, Noel Gordon.

Mari is a writer and both Lara and Pierce are musicians. There’s a lot of creating going on at the home, but also a lot of other things. It’s sex, drugs and rock-n-roll, baby!

It’s during her stay at the villa that Mari pens one of the greatest horror novels of all time, her magnum opus, Lilith Rising, with the opening words, ‘houses remember’.

This creative retreat ends with Pierce’s brutal murder. Will the house remember?

In the present, Villa Rosato is now known as Villa Aestas, a luxurious holiday retreat, in spite of the fact that it’s a murder house. For best friends, writers, Emily and Chess, it’s the perfect spot for them to go and reconnect.

Emily, the author of a Cozy Mystery series is in a bit of a rut after the recent separation from her husband. It hasn’t been easy and with him going after her money, she’s financially strapped and emotionally at wits end.

Chess is a very successful self-help author, who rents the villa in the hopes that her best friend, Emily, will join her there for the summer.

Emily is concerned, you know about the murder house part, but it does sound like a nice escape. Chess always seems to be able to make her feel better, so maybe it will good.

Once at the villa, Emily is taken with the house and its history; more specifically the events of 1974. She begins researching and believes that the truth may be more sinister than what is currently believed.

She also feels like the truth may lie within Mari’s writings. It becomes a bit of a project for Emily. She’s fascinated by the topic and begins writing about it.

The murderous events at the villa have already been of interest to True Crime aficionados and podcasters for years, but how many of them have actually had the opportunity to go live in the house.

Emily could have insight nobody else has ever been privy too before. It’s exciting to her and definitely reinvigorates her creative juices.

When Chess begins sniffing around the same story, Emily gets a little miffed. This is her thing. Doesn’t Chess have enough already? Why can’t she leave this alone?

The seclusion of the home and foreboding nature of the house itself seems to be having an effect on the women. They’re snapping at each other, running hot and cold, are they just going stir-crazy, or is there something more eroding their relationship?

More importantly, will they both be able to make it out of the murder house alive?

I was greatly anticipating The Villa and had so much fun listening to the audiobook. The narration was fantastic and absolutely channeled the slow-intensity of the story.

I loved the initial set-up. Getting to know the cast of characters, both past and present, kept me fully engaged and present. I was very quickly invested.

One of my favorite aspects was watching Emily’s character looking into the events of 1974; how those events intrigued her and gave her new focus.

Emily was at a place where she really needed somewhere to focus her energy outside of her failing relationship and bad financial circumstances. The villa helped with that.

The relationship between Emily and Chess was complicated, as many friendships are, but I found it to be 100% believable. Friendships can get messy and this one definitely had its moments.

The 1974-timeline was giving me heavy Daisy Jones & the Six energy and I wasn’t mad about it. It was interesting, with great characters and well-structured reveals.

Personally, I could have gone a bit darker in that time period, but I understand the choices made by the author. It didn’t need to get super dark to be effective and it kept it more evenly-balanced between the two time periods.

I also sort of wish there were more detailed excerpts from Lilith Rising included. I’m so intrigued by Mari’s book. I wish it actually existed in real life so I could read it.

That should giving you an inkling of how interesting it was, the whole concept of the ultimate Feminist Horror novel. This feeling also reminded me of Daisy Jones because I would have sold my soul for a copy of their nonexistent album.

I loved how this wrapped up. The influence of the one on the other; the permission granted in a way for the present to happen the way it did because of the past. It’s really difficult to talk about this without spoilers, so I will just say, I found this to be incredibly clever.

The final twist left me with that evil grin I love so much. It was just so well done.

Rachel Hawkins is crushing this gothic-infused mystery genre. I’m loving it. I cannot wait to see what she comes up with next.

Thank you so much to the publisher, St. Martin’s Press and Macmillan Audio, for providing me with copies to read and review. The Villa was a ton of fun and a great way to start off a new reading year!!

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Review: The Nightmare Man by J.H. Markert

~ megs14malloy

The Nightmare ManThe Nightmare Man by J.H. Markert
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

**3.5-stars rounded up**

Ben Bookman is a best-selling Horror novelist in the vein of Stephen King. Ben’s not afraid to get dark and growing up at his family’s spooky estate, known as Blackwood, certainly provided him with plenty of inspiration.

In fact, Ben returned to the estate for a weekend retreat to help him finish his latest book, The Scarecrow.

That weekend is shrouded in mystery. It’s mentioned a few separate times in the narrative, you can tell something fairly serious went down, but it’s unclear what. Even Ben can’t recall what happened there.

Regardless, the freaking book got finished and that’s the most important thing.

Unfortunately, before the book is even officially released, the terrible events from the story begin to occur in real life. It’s as if the story has crawled off the page and taken over Ben’s hometown of New Haven.

New Haven native, Detective Mills and his daughter, Rookie Detective Blue, are tasked with looking into the gruesome murders that become known as the Scarecrow Crimes. Unsurprisingly, Ben is their prime suspect.

How else would anyone know his text that well? It hasn’t even released yet. Perhaps it was a Netgalley Reader…

This story starts out with the first bloody crime scene. An entire family butchered, individually encased in cocoons made of corn husks and hung in their own barn.

Hey, I told you it gets dark. There is oozing blood, flies and let’s not even consider the smell.

Mills and Blue are in for the most startling investigation of their lives. Ben Bloom is just trying to save his family from harm and his reputation. If anyone can get to the bottom of these crimes, it should be the man who wrote them.

The build-up of this had me temporarily fooled. I thought this was going in one direction, a sort of predictable direction, but enjoyably, it was not that. This is actually a unique and twisted tale that definitely kept me engaged.

There are a lot of characters and I’ll admit, at times I lost track a bit. That was sort of a downfall for me. I had to relisten to some parts a few times. It’s the kind of story, if you aren’t 100% paying attention you are going to miss something; particularly towards the end.

Additionally, I felt this was a little drawn out. I think it could have been cut down a bit and it still would have had the same impact.

With this being said, I did really appreciate Markert’s creativity and the Horror imagery was well-presented. This is a big scope kind of story and honestly, I’m not completely sure I picked up on all the different aspects of it.

This was left off nicely though, where I could actually see there being a strong continuation to this story. There are definitely some things that could use further exploration. I’d absolutely be willing to go along for the ride.

I definitely recommend this to Horror fans, or fans of dark, potentially supernatural Thrillers. I think a lot of Readers will really enjoy this one.

Thank you so much to the publisher, Crooked Lane Books and Dreamscape Media, for providing me with copies to read and review. I am looking forward to more from J.H. Markert!

The Nightmare Man is releasing on Tuesday, January 10th, 2023!! You can preorder now!!

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Review: Star Wars The High Republic: Starlight Stories

~ megs14malloy

Star Wars The High Republic: Starlight StoriesStar Wars The High Republic: Starlight Stories by Charles Soule
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Star Wars The High Republic: Starlight Stories is a beautifully-arranged, collector-quality collection of short-stories and behind-the-scenes content for true Star Wars fans.

The short-stories come from veteran Star Wars writers, Charles Soule, Justina Ireland and Caven Scott. All are set on the Starlight Beacon, the incredible satellite station that plays a heavy role in the High Republic era.

I liked the stories a lot. They weren’t high stakes, but it was nice to see what life was like on Starlight Beacon and to see some recurring characters from the era.

Starlight Beacon is mentioned frequently in the books that I have read from this era, yet the stories don’t actually took place there. It was fun for me to see how the station was functioning and what a typical day would look like there.

The highlight of this, for me, though was actually the interviews with the contributing authors, which in addition to the authors listed above include, Claudia Gray and Daniel Jose Older. I have wondered since it was announced how they actually went about creating this all-new era.

It seems crazy complicated if multiple people are involved, but obviously it’s way too much for one person to do alone.

I really loved hearing how they all got involved in the project and the steps that went into creating it. The brainstorming sessions at Skywalker Ranch would be an absolute dream come true for me. Can you even imagine!?

I would definitely recommend this to serious fans, particularly anyone who has been enjoying the High Republic materials as much as I have.

In my opinion though, this is not a great place to start if you are interested in getting into either the High Republic era, or Star Wars in general. This is definitely more for longtime fans of this world.

Thank you to the publisher, Titan Books, for providing me with a copy to read and review.

I thoroughly enjoyed my time with this. The artwork was stunning, the stories fun and I love the insight I was given regarding the creation of this highly-entertaining new era.

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