beat the backlist

Review: Goodnight Beautiful by Aimee Molloy

~ megs14malloy ~ Leave a comment

Goodnight BeautifulGoodnight Beautiful by Aimee Molloy
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I bought a copy of Aimee Molloy’s Goodnight Beautiful immediately upon its release in 2020. I didn’t know much about it, except I had heard that it was in some way influenced by Stephen King’s Misery.

I had no idea how, or how much of an influence that played in the actual plot, there was just some chatter and I knew I needed it. Anything even mildly King-related, I need.

Of course, like many novels before her, she came into my house and was promptly stuffed onto a shelf, where she’s been waiting to be read for all these years.

Recently, I did a huge unhaul, I’m talking over a 100-books, and I still held on to this one. I was still so interested, and I made a promise to myself, this was the year.

I’m glad I picked it up now. I was wildly-entertained. Luckily, I have never managed to spoil the plot for myself, so was taken by surprise with numerous twists and turns.

The first big twist, I was jaw on the floor, literally. Like, WHAT?! It made me stop to reconsider everything I thought I was understanding about this story.

I love that type of twist. Clever misdirection is something I always appreciate. I also enjoyed the direction the story went in. I wasn’t sure if that’s what we were doing, but when I figured out it was, it was still quite pleasing to me.

I just thought this was very well executed and although it won’t go down in history as a new FAVORITE book of all time, I can still recommend it to anyone who enjoys a twisty, popcorn Thriller.

If you’re like me, and you’ve had this one sitting on your shelves for half a decade, now is the time, girlfriend, give it a whirl; a fun and fast-paced Summer Thriller.

I’m looking forward to reading more from Aimee Molloy!

View all my reviews

Review: Gallant by V.E. Schwab

~ megs14malloy ~ Leave a comment

GallantGallant by V.E. Schwab
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Olivia Prior has never been a quiet girl. She has always made a point of making noise, everywhere she goes, in part to remind people that just because she cannot speak, does not mean that she is silent, and in part because she simply likes the weight of sound, likes the way it takes up space.

Gallant has been sitting on my bookshelves since 2022. Recently, for Disability Pride month, I was scouring my shelves to see what sorts of representations could be found.

I discovered via some research that this MC, Olivia, is mute, which I didn’t know previously. I’m so happy that I learned that and it that it finally provided me with the kick in the butt I needed to pick it up.

I know a lot of Readers weren’t crazy about this one, but it was exactly what I was hoping for. Darkly magical and the perfect escape for my recently overwhelmed brain.

In this story we are following, Olivia, who at the start of the story is living in a orphan group home. She was abandoned there by her mother, with a journal as the only clue to her mother’s identity.

One day she receives a letter from her Uncle, saying he has been desperately searching for her and wants her to return to their family estate, Gallant.

She’s quickly ushered there and introduced to a cousin, Matthew, she never knew she had, as well as the two caretakers of the property, Hannah and Edgar. It’s also there that she learns of the truly tragic nature of their family.

It’s not an easy time trying to settle in. Matthew is hostile, and she’s seeing ghouls around every corner. It’s clear Gallant is hiding many secrets, among them the truth of what happened to her mother, so Olivia is bound and determined to figure it all out.

When she discovers the door in the crumbling garden wall, she feels like she’s that much closer to learning the truth of her parents, originally laid out in her Mom’s journal.

I really enjoyed myself reading this one. I became completely immersed in Olivia’s journey. I loved her as a character. She’s smart and determined. Even in the face of the unknown and at times, great danger, she stood strong, gallantly, as a matter of fact.

I also loved the journal entries included, as well as the illustrations, which were just gorgeous and did bring that dark magic feeling to the page.

It’s actually a pretty tragic little story, but I like that Schwab didn’t shy away from making it so. Life doesn’t always deal you sunshine and rainbows, but that doesn’t mean there’s no hope for future growth and life.

I’d love to see this adapted to film. I feel like the gothic atmosphere and darker imagery could be translated really well into that medium. I’d definitely watch it. Paired with the right soundtrack? Yes, please.

Overall, I am so happy that I finally picked up this story. I found it to be beautiful and engaging, with a sympathetic protagonist I wanted to see succeed.

View all my reviews

Review: Trail of Lightning (The Sixth World #1) by Rebecca Roanhorse

~ megs14malloy

Trail of Lightning (The Sixth World, #1)Trail of Lightning by Rebecca Roanhorse
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

**3.5-stars rounded up**

🖤❤️🖤❤️🖤❤️🖤❤️🖤❤️🖤

Trail of Lightning is the 1st-book of the Sixth World series by Rebecca Roanhorse. While I believe this was originally slated to be a 4-book series, only 2-books were ever published.

After finishing this one, that makes me so sad.

In this story we follow Maggie Hoskie, who is imbued with clan powers that allow her to have superhuman speed and the ability to expertly kill her enemies. Maggie uses these powers in her job as a monster-hunter.

At the start of the story, she is called to a small village to help them search for a missing girl, who was allegedly stolen by a monster.

When Maggie comes across the monster, she’s surprised by its size, strength and taste for human flesh. It’s unusual.

Keeping its head, she takes it to a medicine man, Tah, she’s close to in a neighboring settlement. He comes up with a theory on the monster that sets Maggie on a new quest.

Tah also suggest that Maggie take his nephew, Kai, along with her. He’s training to be a medicine man, and Tah insists he is powerful. Begrudgingly, Maggie agrees.

We follow them as they traverse the reservation, uncovering clues and battling dark forces. Their relationship grows and shifts over the course of the mission, which is to be expected when you need to rely on one another for survival, and also you’re both hot as hell.

I enjoyed this one quite a bit. I liked learning about both Kai and Maggie. Both of them had very compelling backstories, and I had fun watching their relationship develop. I also enjoyed the initial mystery of it all, and the Indigenous Folklore elements woven throughout.

Where it fell a little short for me was in the execution of the overall mission, as well as the pace. It had ups and downs in intensity, whereas I would have enjoyed a more steady building throughout. Also, the theory that Tah had, what set these two out on their mission, for big chunks, it felt like that just faded into the background.

In that way it sort of lost its lane, as far as the monster-hunting went, but nevertheless, it was never boring.

The setting was well done. I felt I could visualize everything perfectly. The post-apocalyptic nature of it poured through the pages. It had a desperate feel that I really liked. Almost everything was a challenge for these characters, which makes sense due to the state of their world.

I would love to continue on with this series, and already own the next book. However, I know it’s going to break my heart when I get to the end of that one and there’s nothing more.

Either way though, I am really happy that I finally made time for this one. I think Rebecca Roanhorse is such a creative storyteller. I always have fun reading her work.

View all my reviews

Review: Descendant of the Crane by Joan He

~ megs14malloy

Descendant of the CraneDescendant of the Crane by Joan He
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

**3.5-stars rounded up**

Descendant of the Crane was Book #20 in my long-running TBR-Haul Project. I hauled this one in April 2019, and for some reason, just never got around to picking it up.

Since her initial haul, she’s survived many, many unhauls. Mainly, because of the beautiful cover, but also because I was still intrigued by the synopsis.

Happily, I was drawn into this story very quickly. We meet Princess Hesina of Yan. At the start of the story, we discover that her beloved father has passed away suddenly.

His death leaves their kingdom without a ruler, although it is assumed that Hesina will be next to lead. She’s always been happy to shirk responsibilities related to the crown, but now it looks like she has no choice. She’s gotta step up.

The situation is more complicated than it would initially seem though, as Hesina believes that her father was actually murdered. The official story is that he died of natural causes, but she’s not buying it.

Thus, she secretly vows to expose her father’s killer and bring them to justice. The kingdom deserves the truth.

Together with a few trusted confidants, she sets out to do just that. In order to kick off her investigation, she seeks out the aid of a soothsayer, an illicit act, as magic has been banned in their kingdom for centuries.

Using the sooth’s information, Hesina locates a brillant prisoner, Akira, who may be the key to helping her score the outcome she craves.

With the future of the kingdom at stake, will Hesina be able to achieve the justice she seeks for her dead father, or will the risks out-weigh the rewards?

As mentioned above, I found this story very easy to get into. I loved meeting Hesina and finding out about her kingdom and what was happening there through her perspective.

The prisoner, Akira, she ends up connecting with due to the soothsayer’s input, was my other favorite character. He was shrouded in mystery and I had fun trying to figure him out.

This story revolves around a lot of politics and court intrigue. That type of story generally works for me and I did enjoy it here as well.

Hesina has siblings, a Mom, and some half-siblings that play big roles in the narrative. I constantly felt like Hesina had to be watching over her shoulders. It was very hard to tell who was friend and who was foe.

I always had this sinking feeling that someone was going to betray her. I felt like that aspect helped to keep me fully-engaged with everything that was going on.

Hesina goes on a real roller coaster ride in this. She ends up exposing some secrets that once let out, can never be undone. It changes everything and I felt for her that she had to even go on this journey in the first place.

It would have been easy for her to just accept her father’s death and take over, but she didn’t take the easy road. I respect her for that.

Overall, I felt like this was a well-told story, however, when I reached the end, I still had questions.

Honestly, I’m not even sure I understood the Epilogue. I wanted more. I wish there was a sequel. I feel like there’s still so much left to explore.

I think maybe Joan He had intended for there to be more, but it was never written. Maybe someday it will happen. If it does, I would definitely be interested in reading it.

Nevertheless, this was a strong read, with great characters and a beautifully-intriguing world. Another great example of why you should never neglect your backlist!

View all my reviews

Review: Local Woman Missing by Mary Kubica

~ megs14malloy

Local Woman MissingLocal Woman Missing by Mary Kubica
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

**4.5-stars**

Local Woman Missing is a completely engrossing Thriller. I cannot believe I’ve let this one sit on my backlist for so long.

I actually hadn’t read the synopsis in years, so went into this audiobook completely blind. It wasn’t what I expected, for some reason I was thinking this was about hikers who all went missing from trails around the same small town.

Spoiler alert: that’s decidedly not what this book is about. I’m not sure where I came up with that alternative plot?

This book is about missing women though, hence the title. The first to go missing was Shelby. Then two weeks later, Meredith and her 6-year old daughter, Delilah, went missing too. Both women from the same community, but they were seemingly unconnected.

Desperate searches lead to nothing conclusive. The initial investigations creating more questions than answers. The cases eventually go cold.

11-years later, Delilah, now a teen, suddenly reappears, in terrible shape, both physically and mentally. She was apparently held captive this entire time, until the day she forged a miraculous escape. But what became of her mother, Meredith? And for that matter, Shelby?

Also, why would anyone hold this girl captive for so long? And under the terrible conditions that she claims? Again, more questions than answers…

This book was gripping from the start, as you follow Delilah making her re-entrance into the community. This story follows various perspectives, including Meredith and Shelby, over both past and present timelines.

The way it is all pieced together is quite masterful, as far as building suspense and keeping the Reader on their toes.

I was most surprised that we got Leo’s perspective. Leo is Delilah’s little brother, and he has had to live with the aftermath of the disappearance of his mother and his sister for all these years.

I thought that was so interesting to include, because Leo was too young to have anything to do with the disappearances, but he had a lot of complex feelings following the return of his sister, that’s for sure.

I felt like that was such a compelling aspect to examine, and I was pleased that Kubica chose to include that more personal side of these events, instead of focusing solely on the crimes.

Overall, this was such a wicked web. The deeper you get into the past perspectives, the more the lightbulbs start going off in your head. You begin to see connections.

Nevertheless, there were still things all the way at the end that were dropping my jaw to the ground. I just felt like this was so entertaining. Some aspects felt a little convenient, but overall, a wickedly-wild ride!!

View all my reviews

Review: Vampire Breath (Classic Goosebumps #21) by R.L. Stine

~ megs14malloy

Vampire Breath (Classic Goosebumps, #21)Vampire Breath by R.L. Stine
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Vampire Breath is the 21st-book in the Classics Goosebumps Reprint series; it was #49 in the original Goosebumps series.

I received the entire Reprint series for Christmas a couple of years ago and have been slowly revisiting these classic tales. They’re just so silly and nostalgic. I love picking them up every once and while as a palate cleanser.

In this story we meet Freddy and Cara. They’re around 12-years old, I think, and best friends. Their friendship-style is a bit combative, they are always rough-housing and trying to one-up each other with how tough they are.

For those of you who have read many Goosebumps books, this will not surprise you, as it’s something that Stine includes quite a bit. If you are newer to these stories, you may possibly read this and be like, wait, these two are friends? They seem more like enemies?

There’s not a lot of kind, supportive, non-contentious relationships to be found in the Goosebumps world. Nevertheless, to me, this is old hat, so I grew use to their combativeness fairly quickly.

On one particular day, they’re playing together in Freddy’s basement, and while rather aggressively wrestling around, they end up knocking over a piece of furniture, revealing a secret door behind it.

Unable to stifle their curiosity, they end up going through the door to explore. They stumble into a mysterious chamber where they find a bottle labeled, Vampire Breath.

Like the proverbial pandora’s box, when they crack that bottle open, a whole host of unexpected and problematic events begin happening to them. Will either Freddy, or Cara, make it through this Saturday unscathed?

I read this one in just under 2-hours. I was on a ferry to the mainland for an appointment and it was a great way to pass my very early morning travels.

It doesn’t require a lot of brain power, but I did find it engaging enough to keep me interested. It had a typical Stein ending, IYKYK, but nonetheless, an entertaining tale. We love a vampire story in this house!

View all my reviews

Review: Pestilence (The Four Horsemen #1) by Laura Thalassa

~ megs14malloy

Pestilence (The Four Horsemen, #1)Pestilence by Laura Thalassa
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

**3.5-stars**

Recently, I read Kaylie Smith’s popular dark-Romantasy novel, Phantasma, which I consider my first ‘real’ Romantasy experience.

I had so, so much fun reading it that I thought I had entered my Romantasy era, so I rushed out, and as you do, ended up purchasing like 16-books within that genre, including this ENTIRE series.

Pestilence was the first book I decided to pick up after that little **cough, cough** haul, and now I feel like I’m over my Romantasy era. I’m sort of kidding, but also, am I?

This book was interesting and for the most part, it kept me engaged, but it also began to feel quite repetitive over the course of the story.

This was published in 2018 and I’m sure for long-time Romantasy Lovers, this is old hat, and maybe the substance and style have evolved over the years. There wasn’t anything wrong with this really, it just failed to ever truly capture my full heart, although I will admit to being quite entertained.

I liked that the romance takes places in an apocalyptic setting, as that was certainly something I hadn’t read before, and I also liked how Pestilence wasn’t quite of our world.

Sara, as the MC, was likable as well. I liked her pluck and attitude. It was enjoyable being in her head, because she had a dry delivery and way of looking at the world, often snarky, which I personally enjoy.

A smaller gripe would be, Pestilence is sort of a long name to use to refer to someone all the time. I was constantly wishing she would just give him a nickname. My vote was for Pest, but the name thing didn’t ultimately get addressed until way too far into the story.

With this being said, I did enjoy how this concluded. I was confused the whole time how the author was gonna wrap it up, but she did succeed in that regard, and I’m intrigued enough to definitely continue on with the series.

Even though it’s slightly ridiculous, I’m still somehow enamored by it. Thalassa obviously knows what she’s doing, as she succeeded in making a fan out of me.

Bring on War, I’m ready for him!!!

View all my reviews

Review: We Hunt the Flame by Hafsah Faizal

~ megs14malloy

We Hunt the Flame (Sands of Arawiya, #1)We Hunt the Flame by Hafsah Faizal
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

**3.5-stars rounded up**

💙💛💜💙💛💜💙💛💜💙💛💜💙

We Hunt the Flame, like many novels before her, has been living, unopened, on my shelves since 2019. Recently, I decided to pick this up for a Buddy Read and I’m so glad that I finally made time for it.

I really enjoyed the complexity of this story, but admittedly, did get confused some trying to keep track of all the characters, and their motivations, but overall, a solid read.

I loved the setting, the quest of finding a powerful lost artifact, and getting to know our two main characters: Zafira, the Hunter, and Nasir, the Prince of Death.

This is an adventure story first-and-foremost, featuring a quest for both of our mains. We alternate back and forth between their two perspectives; a great way to build out the world in a way that felt natural.

The chapters were short as well, which made this move along quickly. I was surprised how fast I made it through, as one of the things that kept me from picking it up for so long was that I found it intimidating due to its size.

Sometimes larger fantasy books can be a daunting task to undertake, but I never felt that once I started this. While I wouldn’t say I understood all the nuance to the story, I still have a fun time with it.

The aspect of this story I connected with the least was actually the romance. I thought it was going to be one thing, then it didn’t seem to be headed in that direction, then we were there and I was like, what just happened?

It’s fine though. I’m never picking up this genre strictly for the romance. I’m much more invested in the quest, the dark magic, the relationship groups, but good romance can be a bonus when done well.

I also never really felt like I truly understood the magic system, but I did get the gist enough to at least recognize what was happening.

With all of this being said, Hafsah Faizal did her thing with this. It’s quite a detailed story, and she’s definitely intrigued me enough to pick up the sequel, which I hope to do soon.

I have a feeling the magic system will continue to develop throughout the 2nd-book, and I’m interested to see what the conclusion will be for these characters!

View all my reviews

Review: The Ex Hex (The Ex Hex #1) by Erin Sterling

~ megs14malloy

The Ex Hex (The Ex Hex #1)The Ex Hex by Erin Sterling
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

The Ex Hex is the 1st-book in an Adult Witchy-Romantic Contemporary series by beloved author, Rachel Hawkins, writing here under the pen name, Erin Sterling.

In this story we follow Vivi Jones, who 9-years ago had her heart broken by the handsome and charming, Rhys Penhallow. It was a whirlwind romance; the couple only dating for 3-months, but it left a lasting impact on poor Vivi.

Poor Vivi aside, it sort of had a lasting impact on Rhys too…

Of course that impact was caused by the drunken curse that Vivi may have placed on him. I mean, to be fair, she wasn’t certain it would actually do anything serious, and she was heartbroken. What’s a girl to do?

When Rhys arrives back in town, after 9-long years have passed, in order to recharge the town’s ley lines, and disastrous things begin to happen, Vivi starts to think perhaps that silly curse wasn’t so inconsequential after all.

Reunited, Vivi and Rhys actually start getting along again and there’s no denying the chemistry. They need to put that aside though when it seems the curse may have grown, with the whole town now being at risk.

They must work together to try to save the town and end the blasted curse once and for all. If they do, could they possibly have a chance at a normal relationship?

This was cute! It was a nice change of pace for me, because I have been reading nothing but Dark Fiction ((my fave)) lately, but I didn’t find it particularly compelling.

I do plan to continue with the series though. I like the idea of this sweet little town and all the witchy vibes that Sterling included.

I would equate my experience with this to that of The Witches of Thistle Grove series, which begins with Payback’s a Witch. While none of those books has ever blown me away, I’ve read all of them.

They’re comforting. I like the formula. I know what I am getting when I go in, so I’m able to pick the perfect time to read them. I’m looking forward to finding the right time for the next book in this series. Just let me get cozy!

View all my reviews

Review: The Violence by Delilah S. Dawson

~ megs14malloy

The ViolenceThe Violence by Delilah S. Dawson
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

**4.5-stars**

The Violence is a unique and compelling plague story. Dawson succeeded at so many things with this. One of the standout features for me was how attached I became to the three women we are following.

I loved the journey I went on when them, but also appreciated the themes explored. Their lives were really a reflection of our society; one that can be difficult to look at. It’s hard-hitting, and IMO, very impactful.

The world-wide plague in this story causes random acts of extreme violence. There seems to be no logic to it. It can happen at any time and to anyone.

The measures put in place to protect citizens mimic those of the COVID pandemic, but unlike other stories touching upon that horrendous time, this one didn’t annoy me, or make me want to put it down and never look back.

Dawson captured the stress and uncertainty of that time without getting repetitive or preachy. She wasn’t just repackaging that whole episode for us, she was creating something new here, and I was loving it.

This story unfolds for the Reader from the POV’s of three different women: Chelsea, her Mom, Patricia, and Chelsea’s daughter, Ella.

I love how Dawson chose three women from the same family. Literally, three generations of women battling violence, but maybe not the violence you’re expecting.

I would recommend anyone picking up this story pay attention to the Author’s Note at the beginning, as that will give you an idea as to what you are about to get into.

I really, really, really enjoyed this. It definitely exceeded my expectations as far as the quality and creativity of the overall themes explored. I became so attached to the women we were following. I felt like I was right there with them.

Additionally, there’s a pro-wrestling aspect to this which surprised me and that I found so fun. I’m not sure if Dawson is an actual wrestling fan or not, but it certainly felt like it.

My rating is only down a half star because ((content warning)) (view spoiler)

View all my reviews