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Review: Spark of the Everflame (Kindred’s Curse #1) by Penn Cole

~ megs14malloy ~ Leave a comment

Spark of the Everflame (Kindred's Curse, #1)Spark of the Everflame by Penn Cole
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Spark of the Everflame is the 1st-book in the Kindred’s Curse series by Penn Cole, and I feel like I’m the last person in our world to read it. I’ve been missing out.

This novel follows Diem Bellator, whose mother, a well-known healer, has gone missing. Diem, already primed to step into her mother’s footsteps, ends up taking over some of her healer responsibilities, which includes entrance to the royal palace to aide some of the descended.

The descendeds are the upper echelon citizens of this world. They’re actual descendants of the Gods and Diem, and the rest of her mortal peers, are basically treated like disposable garbage by these upper classes.

Her entrance into the palace opens up Diem’s eyes to a whole new world and perspective that she’s never considered before. She’s also constantly watched by the dying King’s handsome nephew, Luther.

Diem feels torn, with a mortal alliance recruiting her to their ranks, and with her new found friendships without the descended class, she just wants to do the right thing. She wants to protect her family, and life in general.

Why did I wait so long to read this!? My best friend read it years ago and raved about. I kept meaning to pick it up, but just didn’t. Admittedly, it’s a little outside my comfort zone, but I am so happy I finally picked it up.

I was completely invested, and the ending!?

I didn’t see where this was going at all. I don’t know if it’s because I’m not a well-versed Romantasy Reader, or what, but I was not expecting the path that it seems Diem’s character is about to take.

I knew nothing about this going in, but I think I may have enjoyed it all the more because of that. I think Cole did a fantastic job of laying out the structure and politics of this whole world. There was a lot to learn, but it didn’t feel info-dumpy. It all felt very natural.

I’m so excited to continue on with this series and find out what’s going to happen for all of these great characters. I appreciated the slow burn of the Romance and the fact that right now there just seems to be a lot of pining, and will they/won’t they energy.


It surprised me how invested I got in this story. I’m super excited to continue on with the series, and am hoping to do so as soon as possible.

Thank you to the publisher, Atria Books, for providing me a copy to read and review. I’m so sorry it took me so long to get to this one. Nevertheless, it was worth the wait; so good!

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Review: Disappearance at Devil’s Rock by Paul Tremblay

~ megs14malloy

Disappearance at Devil's RockDisappearance at Devil’s Rock by Paul Tremblay
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

**4.5-stars rounded up**

As a Reader, I focus a lot on new releases. In the majority of cases, if I don’t get to a book either before, or within like 4 or 5-months, of its release date, it’s going to end up languishing on my shelves, or Kindle, unread for years.

A month ago, I was browsing books that were past nominees for the Bram Stoker Awards, and this just happened to be one of them. I decided it was high time I get to it. I’ve owned this book since it’s release and am kicking myself for not picking it up sooner.

This story features a sort of classic set-up: three teen boys enter the forest, only two return. We follow the missing boy, Tommy’s, mom, Elizabeth, and his younger sister, Kate. We also get the perspective of the boys in the days leading up to Tommy’s disappearance.

There are a lot of moving parts to the narrative, but they’re all blended together so well that it makes for a seamless, emotional and engaging story.

I am huge Tremblay fan, so I wouldn’t say I was necessarily surprised at how much I enjoyed this, or how good the writing was, however, I do walk away feeling this is one of Tremblay’s best works to date. I can’t stress enough how incredibly well-told it is; completely immersive. I was drawn in quickly and couldn’t stop.

The inclusion of the boys perspectives, since they are just teens, had a certain Coming of Age feel that enjoy. That combined with various real world horrors, really played into my tastes. I thought the audiobook narration was perfect for the tone of the story as well. Overall, just exceptional.

At the end of the day, Disappearance at Devil’s Rock was a great reminder for me to not neglect my backlist. There are so many incredible stories lurking on the shelves just waiting to be discovered.

I would absolutely recommend this to people who enjoy genre-bending, emotionally-impactful stories, full of haunting imagery and real world horrors. I’m so glad that I finally made time for this one!

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Review: Divine Rivals (Letters of Enchantment #1) by Rebecca Ross

~ megs14malloy

Divine Rivals (Letters of Enchantment, #1)Divine Rivals by Rebecca Ross
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Divine Rivals is set in a world where long-sleeping Gods are now at war. Iris Winnow’s brother has been pulled into the fight, leaving for the frontline. His absence from their household has left a huge hole, one Iris isn’t sure her mother will ever crawl out of.

Iris misses him so much, but she tries to continue on the best she can. She’s currently fighting to secure a promotion at her work at the Oath Gazette, which would secure her a columnist position.

Her biggest competition, or should we say rival, for the position is her annoying and handsomely-roguish coworker, Roman Kitt. The sparks are flying around the workroom anytime they’re in each other’s orbit.

For reasons I will not go into here, outside of work, a magical connection involving typewritten letters, begins between Iris and Roman. One that starts to stir unexpected feelings within them, and they don’t know who they’re having this connection with. At least not initially…

As the pair are pushed out of their comfort zones and more towards the war zone, magical typewriters in tow, will they be able to withstand all the new challenges they must face? And will their bond grow stronger, or shatter like the world as they know it threatens to do?

I really enjoyed this and am so glad I finally picked it up. This is my 1st-novel by Rebecca Ross, and I’m super excited to pick up more. I love how real life the world she created feels, yet it had just the right amount of fantastical elements for my tastes.

I also loved the journey that our MCs went on in their relationship. They are both extremely likable and loved the dynamic and chemistry between them.

I will admit that the history behind the Gods and all the rest of that aspect of the story have completely left my brain. I did read this in September, and am just getting around to writing my review now, so you’ll have to forgive me for that.

But what I do remember well is how much I liked Iris and Roman. I’m looking forward to the next book, because I need to know where the story goes from here. They’ve left me wanting more.

I’m sure all the Gods stuff will come back to me…

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Review: The Stitchers (Fright Watch #1) by Lorien Lawrence

~ megs14malloy

The Stitchers (Fright Watch, #1)The Stitchers by Lorien Lawrence
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

**4.5-stars rounded up**

The Stitchers is the 1st-installment to Lorien Lawrence’s Spooky Middle Grade trilogy, Fright Watch. I have owed this book for close to 5-years, and am now kicking myself for waiting this long to pick it up.

I absolutely adored this story. Lawrence was able to pull me in and get me completely invested from the very beginning. I loved the MC, Quinn, and her friend/neighbor, Mike.

They made quite the dynamic duo.

Quinn and Mike both live on Goodie Lane. They’re both on the school track team and most days, go running together early in the mornings before school.

On these early morning runs, they frequently observe odd and slightly disturbing behavior from their neighbors; all elderly folks, they’ve dubbed The Oldies, who’ve lived on the street for as long as anyone can remember.

This behavior isn’t really anything new, as Quinn’s Dad, who fairly recently passed away, was a police officer and even he found their neighbors suspicious.

Why don’t they ever seem to age?

After her father passes, Quinn becomes even more focused on getting to the bottom of whatever is going on with the The Oldies. Mike seems like the perfect Robin to her Batman, and he’s more than willing to help out.

The neighbors seem to be on to them though, aware of the kids digging around. Are Quinn and Mike in real danger, or are they just letting their imaginations get away from them?

As things start to heat up on Goodie Lane, their situation escalates quickly. Quinn and Mike desperately search for answers, but will it be too little, too late?

This is such a great Middle Grade Horror novel. I loved how quickly it kicks off and how likable our main characters are.

The mystery of the story is puzzling and it gets top marks for the eerie atmosphere. There were some seriously creepy moments and I loved watching all the action play out.

The Oldies, as a group, are super creepy antagonists. Some of the interactions that Quinn and Mike had with them gave me literal chills. I was fearful in those moments for the characters I had come to love.

I also really appreciated the, shall we say, Beauty Horror, included in this one. Lawrence has some serious Horror chops, don’t let the Middle Grade categorization fool you. This is a good one and read under the right circumstances, it’ll get under your skin.

I loved this so much that I immediately started this 2nd-book after finishing it. And that’s saying something, because I’m terrible at committing to series.

I would recommend this one to any Reader who enjoys Spooky Middle Grade, but honestly, I would recommend this one to any Horror Reader in general. I definitely think this has something to offer individuals of all ages.

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Review: The Perfect Marriage (Perfect #1) by Jeneva Rose

~ megs14malloy

The Perfect Marriage (Perfect, #1)The Perfect Marriage by Jeneva Rose
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

**3.5-stars rounded up**

On paper, Sarah and Adam have the perfect marriage. The couple live in a beautiful home, and Sarah has an extremely successful career as a Defense Attorney in Washington, D.C., while Adam gets to pursue his passion in writing.

But in truth, Adam’s grown tired of Sarah’s focus on her career. She’s constantly working, and yeah, maybe he is even a little jealous of her success.

Adam begins to pursue another passion in the form of a young waitress named Kelly Summers. He uses their 2nd-home as a rendezvous point with his mistress, which is perfect because Sarah never goes there.

Adam’s other life gets suddenly exposed, however, when he is arrested for Kelly’s murder. The young woman was found murdered in the bed at the lover’s retreat, shortly after Adam was known to have been there.

Being the best in the business, there’s no one better to take on Adam’s defense than Sarah; conflicts of interest be damned. Even though he’s broken her heart, Sarah agrees to take on his case. He’s her husband and in spite of his betrayal, he still deserves the best defense. Doesn’t he?

The Perfect Marriage follows the deeply twisted lives of this power couple via both Sarah and Adam’s perspective. I loved the dual narration of the audiobook, and would recommend that format.

Initially, I wasn’t sure if I was going to round up to 4-stars, but after thinking about it for a couple of weeks, I really feel it deserves it. This was so fun. It’s so messy, but all the more engaging because of that. I seriously never knew what was going to come next

It’s true that the plot probably won’t be the most memorable long term, but Rose got so devious with it, I gotta give her love for that. There were so many twists, and although there’s not a ton of substance, it’s a hella good time.

I would recommend this for Readers who love fast-paced Domestic Thrillers, bordering on diabolical. Get your popcorn ready, cause you’re gonna want it!

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Review: Lakewood by Megan Giddings

~ megs14malloy

LakewoodLakewood by Megan Giddings
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Lena’s Grandmother was the matron of their little family, helping to take care of both Lena, and Lena’s Mom, who suffers from a chronic illness. So, when Lena’s Grandma passes away, it leaves a big hole in that regard.

Soon it’s clear that the family has a lot of debt and practically no income. Lena must therefore do whatever she can to try to make ends meet for her and her Mom.

Even though she’s enrolled in college, Lena knows she needs to get high-paying work as soon as she can, which may mean putting her studies on hold for awhile. Unfortunately, the job market is depressing as heck and not offering her a lot of opportunities.

Starting to despair, Lena then learns about a chance to participate in some sort of medical or psychological experiment. She’s intrigued. After pursuing it, it seems almost too good to be true.

The downfall, she’ll have to move from home, to the remote town of Lakewood. Her Mom would be alone, which makes her most nervous of all, but arrangements can be made.

With her participation, Lena will get free housing and the pay is very high, more than she could ever make anywhere else given her current options. Additionally, free healthcare for both her and her Mom. She can’t pass that up.

She has to keep her participation 100% secret though. She needs to lie to family and friends. She even signs an NDA to that effect. Luckily, they’ve come up with a believable cover story for her.

The heart of the story follows Lena moving to Lakewood and taking part in the program. She’s recording everything that happens each day, at least what she can remember, writing it down in a letter format and then hiding it, for reasons I won’t go into here.

I liked the way Giddings chose to format Lena’s perspective. It felt very personal, the way she was recounting all that was happening. I felt like that friend receiving the letters.

I also found Lena to be a very empathetic character. She was so honest about everything, and as the Reader, you see this young person struggling, she’s got so much on her plate, and she’s willing to do anything to help her family. Including potentially putting herself at risk.

She’s smart, she’s tough, she’s someone you root for through thick and thin. Lakewood is full of mysteries and the experiments continually get stranger and more dangerous.

The other people who are participating all add their own levels of drama and intrigue to the story as well. The way this softly intensifies throughout is chef’s kiss. I would realize in various moments that I was feeling fear, but I had no idea why. It made for such a cool reading experience.

While it did have a bit of a slow start, I think the pay off was well worth sticking with it. I appreciated the spotlight it shined on medical experimentation and the racial injustices historically witnessed in such practices.

Side recommendation for the non-fiction book, Medical Apartheid: The Dark History of Medical Experimentation on Black Americans from Colonial Times to the Present, that I feel could pair nicely with reading this one.

Overall, I think this is a stellar debut. It left me with a lot to think about. I loved the tone and mood of the writing, the topics explored, and Lena as a protagonist. I would recommend it to fans of When No One Is Watching and The Other Black Girl.

For me, it was the shadow organization feel that I really vibed with. The uneasiness of following Lena’s day-to-day existence in this strange place, with even stranger things happening to her, it was powerful. I’m looking forward to picking up more from Megan Giddings!

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Review: Spirit Hunters (Spirit Hunters #1) by Ellen Oh

~ megs14malloy

Spirit Hunters (Spirit Hunters, 1)Spirit Hunters by Ellen Oh
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Spirit Hunters is the 1st-installment in a Spooky Middle Grade series by Ellen Oh. This book follows Harper, a 7th-grader who has recently moved to a new town, along with her parents and younger brother, Michael.

As the Reader, you can tell that they’ve moved in part due to some sort of traumatizing event that’s happened in Harper’s life, but the truth behind that is slowly revealed over the course of the novel, instead of all at once.

This gives Harper a bit of mystery to her character, which captured my attention from the start. She’s a great character; one I was interested in getting to know.

There’s also mystery surrounding the new home they’ve moved into. Quickly, Michael starts acting strangely, talking about a friend no one else can see.

While his parents brush it off, children often develop imaginary friends during times of stress or upheaval, Harper is convinced something more is going on.

After making a new friend in the neighborhood, Harper then hears the stories of the house. It’s haunted. She knew it!

As Michael’s behavior continues to worsen, and living in the house becomes more disturbing, and even dangerous, Harper knows she needs to get to the bottom of the haunting and stop it, before it’s too late.

Spirit Hunters was such a fun and wild ride. This book, along with the next 2-books, have been sitting on my shelves for so long. I woke up one day in the mood for Middle Grade Horror, and decided it was finally time to give this one a go.

I’m so glad that I did. I loved all the characters and following along as Harper learned more about their new home, and about herself.

I loved how Oh created such a dark history for the house. It felt menacing, and I did feel a real intensity to the story as I began to fear for Harper and her safety. To me, sometimes MG authors may pull back, but I felt like Oh really dipped into Horror territory and I appreciated that.

The spirits in this story posed a real danger, and as the story raced towards the conclusion, I could not put it down. I had to know how it was going to turn out for Harper.

I also liked how this story explored Harper’s mental health in regard to a traumatic event that had happened in her past. It added depth to her character, and I liked how those details were included.

Overall, this exceeded my expectations, and I can’t wait to continue on with the rest of the series. I’m hoping to pick up the 2nd-book, Spirit Hunters #2: The Island of Monsters, very soon!

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Review: Goosebumps — Night of the Living Dummy (Goosebumps #7) by R.L. Stine

~ megs14malloy

Night of the Living Dummy (Goosebumps, #7)Night of the Living Dummy by R.L. Stine
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

**3.5-stars rounded up**

Many know Slappy the dummy as one of the most iconic Goosebumps characters of all time. And while I have read other books with Slappy as an antagonist, I’ve no recollection of ever reading this, Night of the Living Dummy, Slappy’s first appearance.

Recently, I needed a quick, fun, not too mentally taxing, audiobook while doing things around the house and decided to pick this up. I’m glad I did, as it fit the bill nicely.

In this story we follow twins, Lindy and Kris, who find a discarded ventriloquist’s dummy. Lindy decides to save it, brings it home with them, and names it Slappy.

Kris, never wanting her sister to upstage her, needs to get a dummy of her own, which she names Mr. Wood. In classic Stine fashion, the sisters battle it out, performing with their dummies, but are the dummies battling too?

Something weird is going on. Disturbing things begin to happen when the dummies are around, and it soon becomes clear there’s an evil lurking in their house. Will the girls be able to band together and figure out what’s happening, or will the dummies force them apart forever?

In my humble opinion, this is definitely one of the stronger Goosebumps stories. At this point in the series, regardless of the direction his character goes in later stories and series spin-offs, Slappy does indeed feel menacing here.

While Stine always loves siblings fighting and having rivalries, I liked how the twins did eventually put their differences aside, and worked together.

Overall, I would absolutely recommend this as one of the ‘must reads’ of the Goosebumps universe. I feel like it provides a solid foundation for Slappy’s character moving forward, and is also just a lot of fun!

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Review: Goodnight Beautiful by Aimee Molloy

~ megs14malloy

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!

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Review: Gallant by V.E. Schwab

~ megs14malloy

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.

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