audiobooks

Review: The Quiet Tenant by Clémence Michallon

~ megs14malloy

The Quiet TenantThe Quiet Tenant by Clémence Michallon
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The Quiet Tenant surprised me by turning into a much more powerful read than I anticipated. Initially, I was stumped on how to rate it, ultimately deciding on 4-stars.

I really enjoyed the way Michallon chose to tell this story. It truly transported me into the mind of our narrators and left me with a lot to think about.

This is the kind of story that I don’t want to say anything about really, as far as content goes. I only picked this one up because I saw a lot of high-rated reviews floating around from my book friends, and other reviewers I trust.

I never even read the full synopsis before I picked it up. I absolutely, 100%, definitely, totally recommend that as the way to go with this story. Go in as blind as possible.

Tense, pulse-pounding, sleep with the lights on, slower-paced, Psychological Thriller. That’s all you need to know.

I was hooked into this very early and after a few disappointing reads in row, it was exactly what I needed to kick me out of an impending slump. Listening to the audio, I was completely immersed with what was going on with these characters. I definitely recommend that format.

Small trigger warning: there is some content involving a dog in Chapter 44. I skipped the majority of that chapter, just preferring not to discover what was happening there. If you are sensitive to that type of thing, just bee-bop right over it. If you pick up at Chapter 45, you’ll be fine.

Overall though, I had a great time with The Quiet Tenant. I haven’t read many books like this as far as the narrative choices, so it will be a stand-out for me in 2023.

This is the first novel that I have read from this author, but I am looking forward to reading more!!

View all my reviews

Review: The Watchers by A.M. Shine

~ megs14malloy

The WatchersThe Watchers by A.M. Shine
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

A.M. Shine’s The Watchers kicks off quickly, with the opening section following a husband and wife, who seeking an adventure, go for a drive through the wickedly-enchanting lands of Connemara, in the West of Ireland.

The events of that drive set the tone, and also the stage, for the rest of the story. Needless to say, I was hooked.

We then meet our MC, Mina, who along with an unusual copilot, a beautiful Golden Conure, also goes traveling through those same wild lands.

Mina’s trying to make a quick buck. It should be easy, delivering the parrot safely to its new owner. When her car breaks down on the abandoned road though, her task suddenly becomes anything but easy. Mina exits her car, bringing the bird with her, as she searches for help.

The woodlands are eerie enough, but the screams make it all so much worse…

With no cell phone reception, or clue as to where she is, Mina has to keep going. There’s no telling how long it could take another car to come along this way.

Eventually she comes across a woman, shouting at her and waving for her to enter a concrete bunker. Scared out of her wits by the woods, Mina does as she’s told and enters the shelter. From there, she becomes captive to that seemingly safe space. A hostage of what’s lurking in the woods.

If you’re expecting answers quickly, don’t be. Part of the success of this story is the way that Shine builds that sense of uncertainty and unease. My thoughts were swirling as Mina entered the shelter.

What the heck was going on? The other residents of the shelter, Madeline, Daniel and Ciara, all seem like they’ve been there for a while, but just how long is unclear? And what is watching them? What are they afraid of?

I will say, about a third of the way through, it did start to slow down for me. We focus more on the characters at that point, and their forced interactions in the tiny shelter.

Part of me feels like that may have been intentional by the author. Perhaps as a way to lull the Reader into a bit of complacency, because just as you forget how much danger these characters are in, it rears its ugly head again and that fear and suspense is back.

Even with this pace change though, I was still intrigued and invested in finding out what the truth was.

This ultimately went in a direction I wasn’t expecting and there were a few reveals, as the conclusion approached, that I found to be so clever and disturbing.

I was definitely impressed with the atmosphere and horror concepts that Shine delivered here. This type of unsettling Folk Horror is something I tend to enjoy and this one will now live rent-free in my brain for a long time.

I recommend this to any Horror Reader, particularly if you enjoy unsettling atmospherea and Folk Horror that can get under your skin and stay there. I would also recommend this to anyone who enjoyed Pines by Blake Crouch, or Bird Box by Josh Malerman.

Overall, I really enjoyed this. The Watchers is a very solid story of Irish Folk Horror. I found it disturbing in the best ways. I’m looking forward to reading more from this author!

View all my reviews

Review: The Only One Left by Riley Sager

~ megs14malloy

The Only One LeftThe Only One Left by Riley Sager
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

**4.5-stars rounded up**

After a client overdoses while under care, home-health aide, Kit McDeere, finds herself suspended from her job for 6-months. That’s a long time to be out of work, stewing on her past mistakes. Kit doesn’t like the feeling.

When her suspension is up, her boss tells her about her new assignment. Oh baby, it’s a doozy!

Unfortunately, she’s lucky to even still have her job, so Kit doesn’t put up much of a fight though. Beggars can’t be choosers. At least it will get her out of her Dad’s house.

Kit is headed to Hope’s End, a once lavish estate on the rocky coast of Maine. Set high on a cliff, the home has slowly begun to decay over the decades, leaning ever closer to the sea below.

Even so, it’s not the mansion itself that disturbs Kit the most. It’s who lives inside it. Lenora Hope, Kit’s latest client, is the sole survivor of the Hope Family Massacre of 1929. As the survivor, Lenora was the main suspect and was accused of killing her father, mother and sister.

The crimes are so infamous in the local area, there’s even a creepy little song about it:

At seventeen, Lenora Hope
Hung her sister with a rope
Stabbed her father with a knife
Took her mother’s happy life
“It wasn’t me,” Lenora said
But she’s the only one not dead

Kit knows what it’s like to be accused of something however, so she tries to stick all she thinks she knows about Lenora Hope into the back of her mind. Regardless of her past, Lenora is now a woman in her 70s, who has been left mute and incapacitated by a series of strokes.

Confined to a wheelchair, Lenora is completely dependent on Kit for her daily care. Her only means of communication is pecking out her thoughts on an old typewriter.

One night, through her typing, Lenora makes Kit and offer. She wants to tell her everything that happened back in 1929. Is Kit ready to hear the truth?

There was something about the synopsis of this story that told me that I should read it via audio. I was interested to see how the perspectives would be done and how the audio could possibly elevate the overall storytelling.

In spite of the fact that I bought a hard copy on the day of release, I did actually hold out until I was able to get the audiobook from my local library. I’m so glad I made that decision. I loved this audio. It’s actually the first Riley Sager novel I have listened too.

I may have to go back and reread some of the others that way, if they are all done this well!

The narrators’ voices were perfect for the different perspectives they were portraying. It really helped to bring this story to life for me.

The setting of Hope Manor was also fantastic. With Lenora confined to her room, it’s really just the workers that keep the property afloat, flitting about interacting with one another. Kit, as the new girl, just tries to go about her work, soaking it all in.

There’s so much history in the house, and each individual there offers their own perspective on the past, as well as the present. Trust, there’s drama.

I loved the use of the typewriter as a way for Lenora to communicate and tell Kit her story. There was something so ominous about that act. Lenora watching each letter appear as the past unfolded before her.

There’s also some unsettling things going on around the house that provided a nice, is it supernatural, is it not supernatural-feel, that I tend to enjoy so much. Oh, and bonus, this is set in 1983 and I love the 80s!!

There were a lot of well done red herrings in this, as your mind works to try to figure out the truth. I suspected a lot of people; pretty much everyone, honestly. There were also a ton of twists and I enjoyed how Sager built the intensity as the story progressed.

It felt dangerous and definitely got my pulse racing. Right after I finished though, I did struggle a bit on how to rate it. Part of me thought, it was one twist too many, but then the other part of me thought, shut the f*ck up.

As you can tell, the good side won. I loved this. Another engrossing, memorable story from Sager. I cannot wait to see what he delivers next!

View all my reviews

Review: The Lodge by Sue Watson

~ megs14malloy

The LodgeThe Lodge by Sue Watson
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Deep, dark secrets and non-stop drama are certainly a family affair in Sue Watson’s The Lodge!!!

In this story we follow the Wilson family, who all get called to a weekend getaway at a remote lodge by the matriarch of the family, Angela. It’s a complicated dynamic, but Angela is ready to celebrate her 75th-birthday and she wants her whole family there.

Thus, she rents the Lodge and invites her son, Scott, his ex-wife, Fiona, his new wife, Danni, who once played the role of the other woman, and their baby, as well as Scott and Fiona’s two teenagers.

Thrown in just for fun is a young woman named Jenna, who claims to be a professional chef. As Danni and Scott react to Jenna’s presence though, it’s clear she may not be exactly who she’s selling herself as.

The story is told mainly through Fiona and Danni’s perspectives, but we do get some others in different sections. I found both women’s thoughts fascinating from the start and wanted to know more about their lives.

They’re both feeling self-conscious going into the weekend and they’re also bringing a lot of preconceived notions in with them. Both are mothers and also have a natural instinct to do whatever they can to protect their children.

When a terrible storm hits and the Wilson family is trapped at the Lodge, with no end in sight, tensions rise to an unbearable level. People begin to break and cracks are revealed amongst the many relationships.

Will anyone make it out of the Lodge unscathed?!

The Lodge was highly addictive and entertaining as all heck. It was actually my first Watson novel, but certainly won’t be my last. I look forward to many, many more in the future.

I listened to the audiobook and found the narration to be a perfect fit for the story. It drew me in right away and I felt like I was actually getting to know these characters; hearing their stories told their own way.

I vibed with Fiona immediately, and she continue to be my fave throughout. Although not perfect, I could see where she was coming from and definitely related to some of her feelings and motivations.

This story starts off rather quickly, throwing the Reader right into the enticing set-up, with all of the family coming together at the Lodge. You can tell right away that everyone is keeping secrets, but what are they and how big of a blowout are they going to make when they’re revealed?

In addition to the secrets, not a lot of great choices are made either and this definitely adds to the fun of the story. I just love characters making bad decisions.

The drama level just got deeper and deeper too as the story went on and more and more secrets came to light. It was freaking fascinating. I couldn’t get enough.

Towards the end, a couple details didn’t quite work for me, or felt a little too convenient, but overall, I think this was really well done. A great Winter Weather Thriller!

I definitely recommend this one to anyone who enjoys a dramatic story, particularly with an extended family involved who have a lot of secrets from one another. Also, I recommend this to Readers who enjoy closed-circle mystery/thrillers that feature inclement weather.

Thank you to the publisher, Bookouture Audio, for providing me with a copy to read and review. This was a ton of fun!

View all my reviews

Review: The Haunting on West 10th Street (Detective Maria Miller #1) by Helen Phifer

~ megs14malloy

The Haunting on West 10th Street (Detective Maria Miller, #1)The Haunting on West 10th Street by Helen Phifer
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The Haunting on West 10th Street is the 1st-book in the Detective Maria Miller Police Procedural Mystery series by Helen Phifer.

In this story we follow Detective Miller and her partner, Frankie, as they investigate a brutal crime in the attic of a Greenwich brownstone, where decades earlier a beautiful actress was murdered in the same way. The detectives are puzzled by the disturbing similarities between the crimes occurring in this house.

How could they be connected? Do they just have a sadistic copycat on their hands, or something more sinister?

Immediately upon entering the brownstone, Maria feels something dark. It’s a tickle in her senses; unpleasant and unsettling. The dramatic staging of the crime scene only enhances these feelings.

In both the past and present cases, body parts were removed from the victims and not recovered. Additionally, evidence of satanic rituals have been found. Who could possibly want to recreate something so evil?

This story is told using a dual timeline. We follow Maria and Frankie in the present, but we also get a historical perspective featuring the events leading up to the previous murder in the house. Lastly, we do get a modern perspective from an unknown individual, who appears to be our baddie.

I enjoyed getting the multi-perspectives, as well as the history. Although I did find the past sections a little slower-paced than the modern perspectives. With this being said, I still enjoyed the fact that it was told this way and I feel like it gave a lot of needed insight into the property and the characters involved.

The brownstone on West 10th feels like a haunting presence in this story. It becomes a character unto itself and I always appreciate when an author can provide us with such a vivid sense of place.

There is quite a bit of focus on the partnership between Maria and Frankie. They’ve been together for a long time and you can tell that they both care deeply for one another, but with Frankie’s marriage failing, could there be something more?

I know some Readers won’t care for the slight romance plot that’s woven throughout this story, but for me, I found it made the characters feel more realistic.

When you’re working with someone as closely as these two are, over a number of years, there’s bound to be some types of complicated feelings intrinsic to that relationship.

I didn’t feel like the author overplayed that, or let it overshadow the investigative aspects of the story. For me, it was blended in well and felt natural.

I did have the chance to listen to the audiobook for this one and I definitely recommend it as a format for this story. The back-and-forth between the timelines was handled well and the narration is fantastic.

Overall, this was super entertaining. I vibed well with Maria as a character and am definitely looking forward to going along on future investigations with these detectives. The ending was such a great set-up for the continuation of the series. I can’t wait to see what will come their way next.

I would recommend this to anyone who enjoys darker, Police Procedural Mysteries. Particularly, if you are a Horror fan like me, this may work really well for your tastes. Phifer definitely has a knack for incorporating some paranormal aspects into her mysteries.

Thank you to the publisher, Storm Publishing, for providing me with a copy to read and review. I can’t wait to continue on with this series!

View all my reviews

Review: Under the Smokestrewn Sky (Up-and Under #4) by A. Deborah Baker

~ megs14malloy

Under the Smokestrewn SkyUnder the Smokestrewn Sky by A. Deborah Baker
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

**3.5-stars rounded up**

Under the Smokestrewn Sky is the 4th-installment of Seanan McGuire’s, writing as A. Deborah Baker, Up-and-Under series. A magical Middle Grade series loosely-connected to McGuire’s Alchemical Journeys; an Adult SFF-mindblower.

While technically this is classified as Middle Grade Fantasy, it is actually perfect for Readers of all ages, containing quite a few philosophical and science-based elements.

Speaking of elements, each book in this quartet is constructed around one of the four classical elements: earth, air, fire and water. The first book was earth, the second, water, the third, air and then in this one, we feature fire.

The series follows two children, Avery and Zib, the A-to-Z of our tale, who upon a normal commute to school one day encounter a giant wall where it shouldn’t be. Together they decide to go up and over this wall, thus finding themselves in a magical world, known as the Up-and-Under.

Each story follows the kids as they journey through different lands in this world, journeying along the improbable road, trying to find their way home.

After a short recap at the beginning, we slip back into the story where we left off. It had a bit of a slow start for me and did seem more philosophical in nature, as far as the conversations between the various characters went.

Personally, I could have used more action, but Baker’s writing, per usual, was intentional and fluid. Every detail is there for a reason and I would love to go back at some point and read all four of these back-to-back.

I feel like I forgot so much about the functionality, history and politics of the Up-and-Under in between books, that I wasn’t able to appreciate the over-arching story as much as I could have. I would also love to reread Middlegame after I do so, to see if I can pick up more details in that as well.

And I guess this is it. I actually wasn’t sure if this was going to be the conclusion to this series, but it certainly felt like it. I’m sad to see these characters go. It’s hard not to grow attached to them after all we’ve been through.

I also have some thoughts regarding this series and a possible, or maybe even existing, connection to the Wayward Children series…

I would recommend this series to anyone who enjoys a fantastical Middle Grade Adventure story, or anyone who has enjoyed previous works from Seanan McGuire, including the Wayward Children series.

I feel like the concepts are similar to that and now that you can read the entire series at once, all the better. With likable characters, suspense, magic and intrigue, this series is sure to be a hit with Readers of all ages.

Thank you so much to the publisher, Tor and Macmillan Audio, for providing me copies to read and review. This is a great series and will live in my heart for a long time to come!

View all my reviews

Review: Christmas Presents by Lisa Unger

~ megs14malloy

Christmas PresentsChristmas Presents by Lisa Unger
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

**3.5-stars rounded up**

This was solid. I definitely enjoyed it light-years beyond Secluded Cabin Sleeps Six, so that’s a plus and makes me open to picking up more from this author.

I wish this could have been a little longer, honestly. I felt a little clipped. I would have enjoyed learning even more about this group of characters. Maybe their stories will be continued, or elaborated on, at another time?

In this story, we are following a few different characters. Madeline Martin is a bookshop owner in Little Valley, who in her teen years survived a brutal attack that left her best friend, Steph, dead. Madeline has been living with the shadow of that night looming over her ever since.

Harley Granger is a True Crime Podcaster, who arrives in Little Valley looking to speak to Madeline about the night she would just as soon forget.

It seems Harley has been in contact with Evan Handy, the man convicted of murdering Steph and plans to explore these crimes on his Podcast. Since Evan’s conviction, three other women have disappeared, casting doubts on whether or not he worked alone.

Finally, we follow Lolly, an exotic dancer who gets thrown into the drama unfolding in the small town. Even though we do get Lolly’s perspective, Madeline and Harley are definitely the stars of this show.

The story is comprised of current day sections, as well as glimpses into the past, in particular surrounding Madeline’s life and the night of the crimes.

I listened to the audiobook for this, and while I enjoyed it quite a bit, I do feel the story could’ve been better served by having two, or even three, different narrators. This is personal preference though, but I think it could have helped to delineate between perspectives.

With this being said, I did think the content and set-up were very interesting. The characters were well-developed and easy to follow.

At the same time, since this was so short, I feel like I could have been even more connected, and enjoyed it even more, if it had been a tad longer. That way, all facets could have been taken a little futher. For what is here though, it is well done and I think a lot of Readers are going to really enjoy it.

An added bonus was the setting. The Christmasy-Winter-feel was great and it definitely put me in the mood for some colder weather reads!

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

I definitely recommend this one to Unger fans, or anyone looking to try her work for the first time. I think this one would give you a great feel for her writing style.

View all my reviews

Review: Slappy Birthday to You (Goosebumps Slappyworld #1) by R.L. Stine

~ megs14malloy

Slappy Birthday to You (Goosebumps Slappyworld, #1)Slappy Birthday to You by R.L. Stine
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Slappy Birthday to You is the first book in the Goosebumps Slappyworld series by R.L. Stine. This book was first published in 2017 and features Stine’s iconic ventriloquist dummy character known as Slappy.

I decided to pick this one up because ventriloquist dummies, well actually, all dolls scare me. I wouldn’t be able to sleep in a room that had a doll in it, for example. That doll would find themselves shoved in a closet on the far side of the house. Preferably, a closet with a lock on it.

In this story, we meet Ian Barker, who is gifted Slappy on his 12th-birthday. He has wanted a ventriloquist doll for a few years now and can’t believe he finally has his very own.

We get the story behind Ian’s fascination with the dolls and then we follow what it’s like for him as the proud new owner of Slappy. Spoiler Alert: it doesn’t go well.

What do we know about Goosebumps? It’s nostalgic, it’s formulaic and it can be a lot of fun.

I decided to listen to the audiobook for this story and I do recommend that option. Slappy provides the Introduction, the Epilogue and some fun little observation sections in between. His voice is really well presented on the audio. It definitely sounds like it could be him.

It’s eerie and high-pitched and if I ever saw and actual doll talking I would die and then be resurrected so I could die again. So, thank goodness, so far, that has never happened.

Unfortunately, for me, Slappy is more slapstick than scary at this point. He tries to be witty and snarky, but mainly his bad puns and ill-timed one-liners are anything but funny.

That’s the thing that sort of irks me about this. I love the humor in Children’s and Middle Grade stories, and I feel like it is something that those stories in general should have. Stine’s humor just feels so out-dated and frankly, not good.

I’m not trashing him. He’s a freaking icon and we cherish Goosebumps, Fear Street and basically anything else he has touched over his decades-long career.

However, perhaps he should have someone help him with the jokes, cause these aren’t landing.

There were some fun, creepy moments in this and I did genuinely enjoy the ending. I thought it was clever and definitely gave me a little lift of the brow. It was good.

I will probably be picking up the next couple books in the series, there are 19 total, just to see if they get more engaging for me. I am actually interested to see how we transition into the next tale as far as Slappy’s character goes.

I would recommend checking out this series for hardcore Goosebumps fans, if you haven’t gotten to it already. For newbies, I recommend starting with the original series.

I could be biased, formulating opinions based solely on nostalgia, but so far, nothing touches those originals for me. Overall though, I always have fun picking up a Goosebumps books and will continue doing so for years to come!

View all my reviews

Review: We’ll Never Tell by Wendy Heard

~ megs14malloy

We'll Never TellWe’ll Never Tell by Wendy Heard
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Even though Wendy Heard and I have had a bit of a tumultuous relationship, after reading the synopsis for We’ll Never Tell, I knew I would have to read this one.

With a plot that sounded right up my alley, I decided on a whim to pick it up via audio from my local library. I’m so happy that I did. Not only is it fitting for this Spooky Season, it was also fast-paced and highly engaging.

This YA-story, set in Hollywood, California, follows a group of teens whose viral YouTube channel, We’ll Never Tell, features them trespassing into some of Hollywood’s most notorious locales.

The group of four, Casey, Zoe, Jacob and Eddie, run their channel anonymously and they each bring their own special skills to the table. Their videos are a bit dangerous, but they’re all passionate about it and their channel’s popularity is skyrocketing.

With their Senior year coming to a close, and everyone heading in different directions, they decide to end their journey together with one final banger of a video.

Their last video will feature their exploration of the infamous Valentini Murder House, home to a tragic murder/suicide in 1972.

As the teens are exploring, they’re getting some great footage, when suddenly the alarm is tripped. Knowing the police will be on their way, the teens flee as fast as they can, but unfortunately only three make it out.

Jacob is found in the home, having been stabbed numerous times. Jacob is in rough shape, barely clinging to life and he is rushed to the hospital.

The other three, concerned with getting into trouble if the police know they were there, decide to lie to everyone and tell them that Jacob must have gone there by himself.

The story follows the three remaining teens as they investigate what happened that night, as well as if it could be connected to the crimes of the past. There’s a lot of scrambling, lies and cover-ups, but feeling they have no choice, they plod on as best as they can.

I thought this was quite entertaining. I was hooked by the initial set-up and loved the Hollywood setting. That’s not generally something I would gravitate towards, but I feel like Heard did it so well and brought some of the mystery of old Hollywood glamour to the page.

The characters are highly dramatic and they make terrible decisions, but actually, it was pretty believable. I know I made some dumbass choices as a high school Senior. Don’t tell my parents…

Anyway, yeah. I got invested in this quickly. The mystery was fun. I wasn’t sure who I could trust, including our main girl, Casey. I also really loved the overall is it supernatural, is it not supernatural vibe Heard brought to the page.

I also enjoyed the use of mixed media. It’s not too heavy, but there were some newspaper articles, interviews, etc., that helped build up the intrigue and sense of reality.

The audiobook was fantastically narrated as well, and I would definitely recommend that format for anyone who has easy access to audiobooks. This story plays out quite well in that medium, helping to bring the characters to life.

I definitely would recommend this one to fans of YA Thrillers focusing on a tight-knit friend group and featuring local lore/mysteries. If you love those things, I don’t think this one will let you down!

View all my reviews

Review: Starling House by Alix E. Harrow

~ megs14malloy

Starling HouseStarling House by Alix E. Harrow
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

**4.5-stars rounded up**

💚🖤💜💚🖤💜💚🖤💜💚🖤💜💚🖤💜💚

Starling House is darkly enchanting. A perfect October read!

If you’ve read my review of The Ten Thousand Doors of January, you already know that Harrow and I didn’t get off to the best of starts.

I could see glimmers of greatest, but that story just wasn’t for me in anyway. In spite of that, I never write an author off after just one try, so have picked up other works from Harrow since then.

I had a ton of fun with her Fractured Fables novellas and was ready to try this one out upon its release.

This story is set in the small town of Eden, Kentucky, known for being the home to a reclusive 19th-Century author and illustrator, who mysteriously disappeared, leaving behind her gorgeous gothic estate, Starling House.

We follow a young woman named, Opal, who hasn’t had it easy. She cares for her younger brother and works hard every day to try to make ends meet. She wants a better life for him and sacrifices a lot.

Through a series of interesting events, Opal ends up with a job offer to work at Starling House. She’s to become the regular housekeeper for the estate; trust, a full-time job.

Opal knows better than to mess with supposedly haunted houses, but regardless of her trepidation, she sort of needs this. Bonus, the house-cleaning position offers her the chance to get to know the last heir to the estate, the handsome, yet prickly, Arthur Starling.

The story involves a lot of history of the house, the property, the Starling family, as well as the growing relationship between Opal and Arthur.

I enjoyed learning about all that. Harrow made it so interesting. I just wanted to know more. I will note, there are footnotes utilized in telling this story, and although generally I am fairly ambivalent about their use, I felt here they worked quite well for providing the Reader with extra information needed to truly connect with this story.

Starling House includes a trope, or maybe it’s more accurate to call it a theme, that I have seen pop up recently in quite a few other novels. Most memorably, Hide, These Fleeting Shadows and Episode Thirteen.

If you have read any of these, you may know the concept I’m referring. For me, this is BY FAR, the best that idea, or concept, has been brought to the page recently. I haven’t enjoyed it in any other case, but there was something about the way Harrow told this story that just worked for me.

I loved how dark and whimsical this felt, almost like a Dark Fairy Tale, but while also containing an ‘our world’ modern feel. It was almost a story out of time. It made me think about that television show, Once Upon a Time. Not because of the content, but just the overall vibe.

I became quickly invested in this. Early on I was hooked. I loved how Harrow chose to tell and build out this story. It was easy to get invested in the characters and while I wasn’t at the edge of my seat, I still didn’t want it to end.

I would recommend this to anyone who enjoys Adult Fiction with dark undertones. If unsettling atmosphere, potential whimsical monsters and dark fairy tales are your jam, you have to check this one out.

I’m so glad that I continued to pick up Harrow’s work and encourage every Reader to give authors a second chance. Delightful reads like this could be just around the corner.

View all my reviews