Under The Book Cover: aron beauregard

F is for Friday: 21 July 2023

Hi hello and welcome to F is for Friday, hosted by Nomadic Worlds. With F is for Friday, you answer a few prompts that relate to your reading for the past week and even share some things that made you happy! This is a great post to do because it helps remind me of all of the good things I’ve experienced weekly, even if it doesn’t feel like anything good happened in the moment. Whether it’s book related or just life in general, I’m trying to remember to count the positives in my daily life! Let's get started!
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F – Feature your latest book obsession (it doesn’t have to be your current read)

My current bookish obsession is absolutely my current read! I’m doing a beta read for an amazing book right now and am loving it so much. The vibes, the characters, the pacing, everything about it is immaculate and I’m so in love. I won’t be sharing anything about the book out of respect for the author but just know that it’s incredible and I’m so grateful to be beta reading this beauty.

I – Indicate which book/s you are looking forward to reading this weekend

I’m definitely going to continue working on reading my beta read book but I also plan to start Playground by Aron Beauregard! Aron is one of my all-time favorite extreme horror authors and this book is apparently causing all kinds of a ruckus, so I’m really excited to see what it’s all about. I’ve been considering doing my first bookish TikTok and making it about this book so if you’d like to follow me over there, my username is @firehawkarts!

F – Favorite quote of the week/day

I have so many from the beta read book that I’m doing but as I mentioned above, I won’t be sharing anything about the book out of respect for the author! But I genuinely do have so many quotes that I’ve literally clutched my iPad to my chest over while reading them.

F – Five Things You’re Happy Or Grateful For This Week

1. My friend had a successful appendectomy and is safe at home! She’s one of my very best friends and I love her dearly, so knowing she’s taking steps towards reducing her pain and that she’s now able to start recovering makes me so happy for her. She’s been through a lot and deserves this win!

2. The bottom of my own surgical incision is almost healed! This has been the part that is giving me the most trouble with healing and I’m so happy that it’s finally more healed than not. I’m also relatively pain-free in that area and down my leg and I cannot explain what a relief it is. Now I can go back to my regularly scheduled post-cancer pains!

3. I’m going to be annoying about this but the book I’m beta reading is something I’m happy about. It’s been a while since I’ve felt like this about any book I’ve read, so I know I’ve found something special here. The way the author writes is so fluid and descriptive, but not overly so. And the plot? Oh my god y’all, the plot is so good. Just be prepared for me to be super vague about this but also constantly gush about how much I’m loving it.

4. I finally launched both shirt designs I made! I don’t talk about this but graphic design and digital art is a hobby of mine and I love to create shirt designs for the teams I volunteer at conventions for. I’m really proud of both designs that I’ve created and they have both been super well received which is such a relief. I was really nervous about if they would be liked or not but they are and I can’t wait to have them in my wardrobe!

5. A cosplayer that I really look up to, Sarah Spaceman, released her video on how she became best birb boi Tulin from Tears of the Kingdom and I loved it so much. A little fun fact about me, furries actually scare me. Like, a lot. But this costume is so cute and I love seeing how she made the whole thing come to life! Seriously, I learn at least three new things with every video of hers that she releases. It’s over an hour long but I promise you it’s worth getting a snack and sitting down to watch because the costume is amazing, but her process of creating it is so great to watch!

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And that does it for this F is For Friday post! I had a good week this week both reading and personal life wise. I’m almost done with a big crochet project, I’m making progress on Tears of the Kingdom, my reading has been very successful, and a new patch got released in Final Fantasy XIV! I’m looking forward to this next week and I hope it’s a good one. How has your week been? What’s something you’re looking forward to reading this weekend? Is there something that happened this week that made you happy? Are you also now grinding out the next step in the Manderville relic weapon line? Let me know in the comments below! Thanks for stopping by and I’ll see you in the next chapter!

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Top Ten Tuesday: Books With One-Word Titles

adalyn grace 6:00:00 AM

Hi hello and welcome to Top Ten Tuesday! This weekly post is hosted by the wonderful Jana from That Artsy Reader Girl so please be sure to go check out her post with all of the information about TTT. The topic this week is books with one-word titles and this was both harder than I thought and really fun! I never noticed before just how many books have multiple words in their title until I was searching for ones that only had one word. I think I picked out some good ones, though, and maybe one or two you've been thinking about picking up to read or will add on your TBR. Let's get started!
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1. Yellowface by R.F. Kuang

"Authors June Hayward and Athena Liu were supposed to be twin rising stars: same year at Yale, same debut year in publishing. But Athena's a cross-genre literary darling, and June didn't even get a paperback release. Nobody wants stories about basic white girls, June thinks. So when June witnesses Athena's death in a freak accident, she acts on impulse: she steals Athena's just-finished masterpiece, an experimental novel about the unsung contributions of Chinese laborers to the British and French war efforts during World War I. So what if June edits Athena's novel and sends it to her agent as her own work? So what if she lets her new publisher rebrand her as Juniper Song--complete with an ambiguously ethnic author photo? Doesn't this piece of history deserve to be told, whoever the teller? That's what June claims, and the New York Times bestseller list seems to agree. But June can't get away from Athena's shadow, and emerging evidence threatens to bring June's (stolen) success down around her. As June races to protect her secret, she discovers exactly how far she will go to keep what she thinks she deserves."

2. Playground by Aron Beauregard

"Three low-income families have been given a handsome retainer to join Geraldine Borden for a day at her cliffside estate. All the parents must do to collect the rest of their money is allow their children to test out the revolutionary playground equipment Geraldine has been working on for decades. But there’s a reason the structures in the bowels of her gothic castle have taken so long to develop—they were never meant to see the light of day.

When a band of dysfunctional children is suddenly thrust into a diabolical realm of violence, they must grow up instantly to have a chance at survival. Will they find a way to put their differences aside, or be swallowed up by the insidious architecture all around them?"

3. Chlorine by Jade Song

"Ren Yu is a swimmer. Her daily life starts and ends with the pool. Her teammates are her only friends. Her coach, her guiding light. If she swims well enough, she will be scouted, get a scholarship, go to a good school. Her parents will love her. Her coach will be kind to her. She will have a good life. But these are human concerns. These are the concerns of those confined to land, those with legs. Ren grew up on stories of creatures of the deep, of the oceans and the rivers. Ones that called sailors to their doom. Ones that dragged them down and drowned them. Ones that feasted on their flesh. Ones of the creature that she's always longed to become: mermaid. Ren aches to be in the water. She dreams of the scent of chlorine--the feel of it on her skin. And she will do anything she can to make a life for herself where she can be free. No matter the pain. No matter what anyone else thinks. No matter how much blood she has to spill."

4. Vicious by V.E. Schwab

"Victor and Eli started out as college roommates—brilliant, arrogant, lonely boys who recognized the same sharpness and ambition in each other. In their senior year, a shared research interest in adrenaline, near-death experiences, and seemingly supernatural events reveals an intriguing possibility: that under the right conditions, someone could develop extraordinary abilities. But when their thesis moves from the academic to the experimental, things go horribly wrong. Ten years later, Victor breaks out of prison, determined to catch up to his old friend (now foe), aided by a young girl whose reserved nature obscures a stunning ability. Meanwhile, Eli is on a mission to eradicate every other super-powered person that he can find—aside from his sidekick, an enigmatic woman with an unbreakable will. Armed with terrible power on both sides, driven by the memory of betrayal and loss, the archnemeses have set a course for revenge—but who will be left alive at the end?"

5. Sundial by Catriona Ward

"All Rob wanted was a normal life. She almost got it, too: a husband, two kids, a nice house in the suburbs. But Rob fears for her oldest daughter, Callie, who collects tiny bones and whispers to imaginary friends. Rob sees a darkness in Callie, one that reminds her too much of the family she left behind. She decides to take Callie back to her childhood home, to Sundial, deep in the Mojave Desert. And there she will have to make a terrible choice.

Callie is worried about her mother. Rob has begun to look at her strangely, and speaks of past secrets. And Callie fears that only one of them will leave Sundial alive…

The mother and daughter embark on a dark, desert journey to the past in the hopes of redeeming their future."

6. Mary by Nat Cassidy

"Mary is a quiet, middle-aged woman doing her best to blend into the background. Unremarkable. Invisible. Unknown even to herself. But lately, things have been changing inside Mary. Along with the hot flashes and body aches, she can’t look in a mirror without passing out, and the voices in her head have been urging her to do unspeakable things. Fired from her job in New York, she moves back to her hometown, hoping to reconnect with her past and inner self. Instead, visions of terrifying, mutilated specters overwhelm her with increasing regularity and she begins auto-writing strange thoughts and phrases. Mary discovers that these experiences are echoes of an infamous serial killer.

Then the killings begin again.

Mary’s definitely going to find herself."

7. Nightstrider by Sophia Slade

"Wren has spent her life doing the bidding of her cruel creator Para Warwick in the dream world known as the Reverie. When she learns of a weapon with the power to destroy him, she jumps at the chance to steal it. Her plan goes awry and she finds herself in the clutches of the rebellion and the rogue Alaric, a nightmare himself with twisted horns and dark magic. When a plea from a strange being known as a dreambreaker reaches them, the two ’mares find themselves thrown together in a desperate mission to save her before time runs out. Meanwhile, in the waking world, Caine Fallon, son of King Warwick and Prince of Wolfhelm, prepares to wed Ila Enevoldson, the young queen from the wild kingdom of Galesborough. But Ila is more than a queen. She is a weaver, a protector of the ancient Boundary that separates the Reverie and the Wake. Three nights before their wedding, Caine catches Ila in the act of opening a portal to the dream world and follows her, landing himself in a universe stranger than he could have imagined—a realm where his father is more monstrous than he ever could have fathomed. Now, the fates of four strangers will become intricately entwined, and the fate of their worlds will be sewn by their choices."

8. Bride by Ali Hazelwood

"Misery Lark, the only daughter of the most powerful Vampyre councilman of the Southwest, is an outcast—again. Her days of living in anonymity among the Humans are over: she has been called upon to uphold a historic peacekeeping alliance between the Vampyres and their mortal enemies, the Weres, and she sees little choice but to surrender herself in the exchange—again. Weres are ruthless and unpredictable, and their Alpha, Lowe Moreland, is no exception. He rules his pack with absolute authority, but not without justice. And, unlike the Vampyre Council, not without feeling. It’s clear from the way he tracks Misery’s every movement that he doesn’t trust her. If only he knew how right he was. Because Misery has her own reasons to agree to this marriage of convenience, reasons that have nothing to do with politics or alliances, and everything to do with the only thing she's ever cared about. And she is willing to do whatever it takes to get back what’s hers, even if it means a life alone in Were territory…alone with the wolf."

9. Rouge by Mona Awad

"For as long as she can remember, Belle has been insidiously obsessed with her skin and skincare videos. When her estranged mother Noelle mysteriously dies, Belle finds herself back in Southern California, dealing with her mother’s considerable debts and grappling with lingering questions about her death. The stakes escalate when a strange woman in red appears at the funeral, offering a tantalizing clue about her mother’s demise, followed by a cryptic video about a transformative spa experience. With the help of a pair of red shoes, Belle is lured into the barbed embrace of La Maison de Méduse, the same lavish, culty spa to which her mother was devoted. There, Belle discovers the frightening secret behind her (and her mother’s) obsession with the mirror—and the great shimmering depths (and demons) that lurk on the other side of the glass."

10. Belladonna by Adalyn Grace

"Orphaned as a baby, nineteen-year-old Signa has been raised by a string of guardians, each more interested in her wealth than her well-being—and each has met an untimely end. Her remaining relatives are the elusive Hawthornes, an eccentric family living at Thorn Grove, an estate both glittering and gloomy. Its patriarch mourns his late wife through wild parties, while his son grapples for control of the family’s waning reputation, and his daughter suffers from a mysterious illness. But when their mother’s restless spirit appears claiming she was poisoned, Signa realizes that the family she depends on could be in grave danger and enlists the help of a surly stable boy to hunt down the killer. However, Signa’s best chance of uncovering the murderer is an alliance with Death himself, a fascinating, dangerous shadow who has never been far from her side. Though he’s made her life a living hell, Death shows Signa that their growing connection may be more powerful—and more irresistible—than she ever dared imagine."

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And that does it for this Top Ten Tuesday! I don't think it was surprising that I had Yellowface on my list because of how much I've been talking about it ever since I read it. Vicious was honestly probably another unsurprising pick, simply because it's my favorite book! I'm really excited to see the wide variety of choices for the topic this week, mostly because I'll have new books to add to my TBR and that's never a bad thing. What books were on your list this week? Have you read (or do you want to read) any of the books that I listed? Be sure to let me know in the comments below and link me your post if you participated in the topic this week. Also, don't forget to visit That Artsy Reader Girl to see Jana's post and check out some of the other wonderful bloggers that have shared their links. Thanks for stopping by and I'll see you in the next chapter!

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Top Ten Tuesday: If You Liked This, Try This!

amélie wen zhao 8:00:00 AM

Hi hello and welcome to Top Ten Tuesday! This weekly post is hosted by the wonderful Jana from That Artsy Reader Girl so please be sure to go check out her post with all of the information about TTT. This week, the topic is Books for People Who Liked Author X where you pick an author and recommend a book or two that you think someone would enjoy based on their enjoyment of the author. It's basically if you liked this, try this, but with authors. Let's get started!

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Starting off with one of my favorite authors in the spicy romance genre, we have Katee Robert! You’ve probably heard of her Wicked Villains, Dark Olympus, or Deal With a Demon series and all of those are fantastic choices to read. One is spicy Disney villain retellings, another is spicy modern Olympus, and the last is, well, monster lover romance. She has a ton of books and definitely knows what she’s doing when it comes to writing books with great spice, lovable characters, and an addictive story! But if you’ve read all of her books, then what should you pick up next? I recommend Ashley Bennett and Kimberly Lemming. Whether you’re looking for cute, spicy, funny, or adventurous, all three of these authors have something to offer that you’ll absolutely devour!

Tracy Deonn basically exploded the book community with her amazing book Legendborn, which is still one of my favorite fantasy books I’ve ever read. Whether or not I’ll forgive her for writing such an amazing book and then making me wait a million years for the sequel remains to be seen, however. But if you were a fan of Tracy Deonn’s insane world building and writing, allow me to recommend Amélie Wen Zhao, author of the Blood Heir trilogy, and Sophia Slade, author of Nightstrider. All of these authors are fantastic at creating these incredible worlds that you’ll want to spend hours getting lost in and have writing that only amplifies the world they’ve built. These authors are absolute stars and you should definitely read at least one book from each of them so that you can experience their worlds!

Moving on to something a little more…spooky. If you’re a fan of how Catriona Ward writes books that are unsettling, creepy, spooky, whatever word you want to use, then you need to add T. Kingfisher and S.A. Barnes to your list of authors you should read. Sundial was my favorite book of 2022 and I loved how weird and wrong it was, wrong being used in a positive way which probably makes no sense unless you’ve read the book. T. Kingfisher made me so wonderfully uncomfortable with What Moves the Dead, and S.A. Barnes succeeded in making me pull my feet up from the bottom of the bed just in case while I was reading Dead Silence, and I think they both pair perfectly with Catriona Ward’s vibes.

And last, but certainly not least, this one is for my extreme horror fans! If you’re into the more, well, extreme side of horror books, then you’ll undoubtedly know the name Aron Beauregard. He’s an incredible writer who really brings the blood, guts, and gore to his books and I’m always impressed with each book I read from him. So if you’re looking for some new authors in this genre to check out, try Chandler Morrison and Duncan Ralston. Dead Inside is probably the most messed up book I will ever read (for now, at least) and I loved it so much. I wonder what that says about me? And Woom was just so wild that I couldn’t help but laugh because what even happened?! These three extreme horror authors are definitely some of the best in the genre and you won’t be disappointed by any of them!

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And that does it for this Top Ten Tuesday! I actually struggled with this one simply because I wanted to pick the right authors to pair together, and that was harder than I thought it would be. But everyone’s recommendations are going to be different and I’m so excited to see some of them! Did you participate in this weeks Top Ten aTuesday? What are some authors you would recommend? Let me know in the comments below and please be sure to link me your post so I can go discover some new books and authors! My TBR is crying already, I can hear it. Thanks for stopping by and I’ll see you in the next chapter!

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July Wrap-Up!

advance reader copy 12:00:00 PM

Hi hello and welcome to my July wrap-up! This month, I read 16 books and participated in Summerween, hosted by Gabby and Olivia. I finished reading every Charlie Nottingham book, discovered a new genre and author I love, and read a book that most people aren’t enjoying but I ended up having a great time with! July was a pretty successful reading month for me and I’m really excited to share my thoughts on all of the great books I read this month. Let’s get started!

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Title: Origins

Author: Charlie Nottingham

Pages: 908

Genre: Paranormal Romance

Release Date: 29 October 2021

From Amazon: "Véa has dreamed of becoming queen of the fae since she was a girl. But once she finally takes her throne, and her world is under attack by ruthless soul eaters, she's forced to watch it burn or marry a man she hates—Lux, king of angels. Nix is the half-Elvan, half-angel bastard prince of both the elvan nation and the land of the angels. When he takes his place as hand of the king beneath his brother, it becomes his duty to guard the new queen, Véa. Will Véa assimilate into a world where women are traded like cattle, or will she steal Lux's world out from under him with his brother at her side?"

Mini-Review: How can I adequately describe how excited I have been to finally get to the origin story of my favorite characters? This was everything I wanted and then some! I loved the slow build up of Vea and Nix’s relationship and seeing how they fell in love. And my hatred of Lux was confirmed a million times over. I knew he was evil but holy wow, he’s a true villain. This book was chonky and absolutely filled with the backstory I had been dying to read more of and I loved it so much!

Title: What Moves the Dead

Author: T. Kingfisher

Pages: 176

Genre: Horror

Release Date: 12 July 2022

From Goodreads: "When Alex Easton, a retired soldier, receives word that their childhood friend Madeline Usher is dying, they race to the ancestral home of the Ushers in the remote countryside of Ruritania. What they find there is a nightmare of fungal growths and possessed wildlife, surrounding a dark, pulsing lake. Madeline sleepwalks and speaks in strange voices at night, and her brother Roderick is consumed with a mysterious malady of the nerves. Aided by a redoubtable British mycologist and a baffled American doctor, Alex must unravel the secret of the House of Usher before it consumes them all."

Mini-Review: I have no idea what I just read, but I know I’m smiling after finishing it and that’s absolutely a good thing. This is my first T. Kingfisher book and it definitely won’t be my last! I was unsure about it at first and I felt a bit lost, maybe like I should have read the story this was inspired by first, but it picked up and kept me hooked until the end. I loved the eerie vibes I got while reading and I had the feeling like I should shower and brush my teeth like at least 80 times. Nothing was inherently off that I could pick up on but once I did, oh man did I get the creepy crawlies! I love subtle horror, especially subtle horror that builds, and this was definitely right up my alley with those two elements. I am definitely excited to read more from T. Kingfisher in the future after reading this!

Title: The Thrones of Ore & Ice

Author: Charlie Nottingham

Pages: 374

Genre: Paranormal Romance

Release Date: 11 January 2022

From Amazon: "Véa was never boastful of her crown, but she certainly missed it when she was forced to marry to save her world. Nix never wanted to be king. First born son or not, he was happy for his brother to take the throne - until Nix saw how awful of a ruler his little brother was. When Nix and Véa met, it was because she was marrying his little brother. But as her guard, he saw the ugly reality of how he treated her. One thing led to another, and before they knew it...

Now, Véa is pregnant with Nix's child, and he knows what his brother will do to her if he learns. To keep the woman he loves and his unborn child safe, Nix's only option is to take his brother's throne - and his wife - out from under him. Will Véa be able to stay safe in this war of crowns until her baby's born?"

Mini-Review: Thanks to the Eluding Destiny series, we already had a few glimpses into the lives of Vea and Nix. With Thrones of Ore and Ice, we get even more to fill in the gaps and continue learning about these past lives that Laila and Jeremy had! There was a lot of heartbreak and answered questions in this installment and as much as it killed me to, I absolutely flew through this. I’m so in love with the world-building that Charlie Nottingham has done with these books and it makes it so incredibly easy to get lost in the pages for hours and hours. This book bridged the gap between books one and three beautifully and I can’t wait to read the conclusion!

Title: Creation

Author: Charlie Nottingham

Pages: 498

Genre: Paranormal Romance

Release Date: 21 June 2022

From Amazon: "Véa and Nix have brought an ounce of peace to the cold world of Matriaza since they stole the crown. Their happily ever after required pain and suffering, but now, they're better than they've ever been. They're planning the wedding they should have had to begin with, lying beside one another in bed each night, and getting exactly what they'd like to out of life. Until trillions of souls are born, and the two of them must find a way to protect them from their own people, and their darkest enemy - the maalaichte cnihme. Matriaza and Morduaine are overpopulated already, and they have nowhere to put these infant souls. Nix and Véa must form an alliance with the only people they know with access to a land large enough to house so much new life. The maalaichte cnihme."

Mini-Review: This was incredible. I had so many feelings while reading this and so many questions that got answered! I can’t believe we finally got the beginning of their story from literally the beginning and got to follow it all the way to here. I laughed, cried, and everything in between while I made my way through this book. It was almost 500 pages of perfection and while I’m so sad that this side trilogy is over, I can’t wait to see what the future holds!

Title: Invoking the Blood

Author: Kalista Neith

Pages: 425

Genre: Paranormal Romance

Release Date: 02 August 2022

From Goodreads: "Faye agreed to her sister’s brilliant idea to sneak into the Hunter’s Moon ball. A night the vampires in attendance held sacred, lusting under the eerie glow of the blood red moon. Faye was no vampire. She wasn’t even a race that possessed magic. Her ceremony failed, marking her an Anarian. A mortal without magic. After a run in with the Shadow Prince, Faye begins dreaming of him. His yearnful gaze leaves her feeling cherished after she wakes. A pleasant daydream, since men like him didn’t exist. Not for women like her. But as days pass and the dreams intensify, the Shadow Prince comes for her. His gaze filled with the same yearning he held for her during their shared dreams. Until he realizes she’s an Anarian. Abducted and confined in his home in Hell, Faye is left only with his promise to release her after he breaks the tie binding his life to hers. But with each heated exchange she can almost see the man that longed for her in her dreams. The one who cherished her and tempted her heart."

Mini-Review: I'm so happy I got a chance to read an early copy of Invoking the Blood, oh my goodness. I have been so excited about this ever since I saw a video from the author pop up on my TikTok FYP and I just had to sign up for the ARC team.

She wasn't the queen raised in a dark court who would command and possess him, and he wasn't the simple, kind man she envisioned sharing her life with.

This book felt a little slow to begin with and I will admit, I did have a tough time really settling down into the world. But once I did, I really started to enjoy it! I am a sucker for a good vampire story and I think this was a fun read, for sure. The writing was a bit rough at times (just with some grammar/sentence structure/the way some things were phrased) but Kalista is a debut author so I'm not going to judge too harshly in that area and it didn't take away from my enjoyment of the story at all. I went in hoping for a good vampire story and that's exactly what I got with this book!

Faye was an interesting character to read about and I loved seeing her growth from the start of the book to the end. She was very timid and hard on herself but by the end, you could really tell that she had grown into a stronger and more confident Faye! Rune was a butthead, to put it nicely. He was incredibly classist against Faye and where she came from and it was big ick vibes every time he brought it up. Thankfully, he also experienced some growth and wasn't the most horrible person by the end. And the two of them together? Power couple for sure! But there's another side of Rune that he keeps under lock and key and he's just dying to come out and play with Faye. However, I won't say any more than that! I wasn't the biggest fan of Sparrow (Faye's sister), however, I will admit that she did have her moments. I did like Vashien (Sparrow's partner) because lord have mercy he had to put up with so much being with Sparrow and he was an actual hoot at times!

The story was fun overall and I am definitely interested in where the next book goes! I did feel a bit rushed at the end but it's possible that was because I was flying through the ending. I found myself smiling and laughing and reading ridiculous chunks of this book at once and it was a successful read in my opinion. Now Kalista, when is book two coming out?! <3

Title: The House Across the Lake

Author: Riley Sager

Pages: 368

Genre: Mystery/Thriller

Release Date: 21 June 2022

From Goodreads: "Casey Fletcher, a recently widowed actress trying to escape a streak of bad press, has retreated to the peace and quiet of her family’s lake house in Vermont. Armed with a pair of binoculars and several bottles of liquor, she passes the time watching Tom and Katherine Royce, the glamorous couple who live in the house across the lake. They make for good viewing—a tech innovator, Tom is rich; and a former model, Katherine is gorgeous. One day on the lake, Casey saves Katherine from drowning, and the two strike up a budding friendship. But the more they get to know each other—and the longer Casey watches—it becomes clear that Katherine and Tom’s marriage is not as perfect and placid as it appears. When Katherine suddenly vanishes, Casey becomes consumed with finding out what happened to her. In the process, she uncovers eerie, darker truths that turn a tale of voyeurism and suspicion into a story of guilt, obsession and how looks can be very deceiving."

Mini-Review: I already know I'm in the minority with this but I absolutely loved this book. I have yet to give a Riley Sager book less than 5 stars and that streak has not been broken by The House Across the Lake! I've seen so many people talking about this book and not a lot of them had good things to say about it, unfortunately. But I had such a good time reading this! I actually had my husband look up the ending and his reaction was, "Yeah, if I was reading this and it ended like that, I would be unhappy, too." And that made me wonder if I would join the group of people that didn't enjoy this newest release by the time I finished reading. I'm really happy that I ended up enjoying this as much as I did. Was it different? Yes. Can I see why people didn't enjoy it? I absolutely can! And I totally respect that he's not an author that everyone enjoys. But for me, this was a win!

Title: From Tormented Tides

Author: Val E. Lane

Pages:

Genre: Fantasy/Romance

Release Date: 25 July 2022

From Goodreads: "Unravel the past. Break the curse. Pass midterms. And don’t fall in love with dead pirates…

Katrina Delmar has no idea that Milo, the charming guy she meets at a college party, was supposed to have died at sea 300 years ago. She only knows that she's drawn to him right away. But she’s also caught the attention of his crewmate, Bellamy, whose mysterious allure is hard to resist. Falling for undead pirates is the least of her worries when there seems to be something sinister lurking beneath the surface. And when the ruthless captain of the ship discovers Katrina may hold the key to breaking the crew’s curse, he's hellbent on taking it from her at whatever cost. With time running out, Katrina must learn who she can trust and unlock the mysteries of the past before she and those she loves are pulled under by a curse of her own."

Mini-Review: I’m obsessed and I have a lot of feelings and every single one of them is about how much I loved this frickin book.

A huge thank you to the author, Val E. Lane, for giving me the opportunity to read an ARC of this book!

Pirates, mermaids, and curses oh my! From Tormented Tides is the modern Pirates of the Caribbean retelling you’ve been waiting for! From the very beginning, I was absolutely hooked and I devoured every page. I loved Katrina and how real she felt, and following her journey from the start of the book to the end was so much fun. I really enjoyed the storyline of her curse and how she went about figuring out how to end it was thrilling! I also, of course, loved the romance so very much. No spoilers here so you’ll just have to find out who Trina ends up with by reading!

“Last month, I was just an awkward art student trying not to get another hangover, and now I’m in the middle of nowhere with a 300-year-old pirate, hiding from other pirates. You expect me not to ask questions?”

Val’s writing was incredibly addictive and it really allowed me to get lost in the world that she has created. There were multiple times that I was reading and just smiled at how much I was enjoying myself. The descriptions were vivid and I was easily able to picture what was going on throughout the story. I loved how the writing effortlessly blended the stories of the past and present, and it really made me think that this could happen in our modern world! If I had to choose my favorite aspect of the book, it would definitely be the writing, hands down.

With the moon you shall rise

As the night calls the tide

By day, bound to the depths

Forevermore this curse shall be kept

Lest to the depths is returned

What was taken; the last of her.

Title: Woom

Author: Duncan Ralston

Pages: 138

Genre: Horror

Release Date: 07 September 2017

From Goodreads: "Warning: this book contains graphic violence and sexuality most readers will find offensive.

"I believe pain lingers," Angel said. "Do I believe in spirits? In the supernatural? Probably not."

The Lonely Motel holds many dark secrets... and Room 6 just might possess the worst of them all. Angel knows all about pain. His mother died in this room. He's researched its history. Today he's come back to end it, no matter the cost, once and for all. Shyla, a plus-sized prostitute, thinks the stories Angel tells her can't be true. Secrets so vile, you won't want to let them inside you. But the Lonely Motel doesn't forget. It doesn't forgive. And it always claims its victim."

Mini-Review: This is easily one of the wildest books I’ve ever read and I frickin loved it! I actually gasped and was laughing in shock at a few parts towards the end because while I did guess where the story was going, I didn’t see how we were getting there coming if that makes sense. I loved this crazy messed-up story.

Side note: While I did enjoy the heck out of how wild and extreme this was, I will say I did not agree with the use of the F-slur or N-word used a few times in this book. That did make me uncomfortable and while that may have been the intention, there are clearly plenty of other ways to go about making people squirm without using words like those.

Title: And Then I Woke Up

Author: Malcolm Devlin

Pages: 167

Genre: Horror

Release Date: 12 April 2022

From Goodreads: "In a world reeling from an unusual plague, monsters lurk in the streets while terrified survivors arm themselves and roam the countryside in packs. Or perhaps something very different is happening. When a disease affects how reality is perceived, it’s hard to be certain of anything. Spence is one of the “cured” living at the Ironside rehabilitation facility. Haunted by guilt, he refuses to face the changed world until a new inmate challenges him to help her find her old crew. But if he can’t tell the truth from the lies, how will he know if he has earned the redemption he dreams of? How will he know he hasn’t just made things worse?"

Mini-Review: Okay so this was a book. And I don’t know how I feel about it. On one hand, it had some really good quotes that I liked quite a bit. And it definitely made me think more than I’m used to with a book, I suppose. But on the other hand, it felt…pretentious? I don’t know if that’s the word I’m looking for or not. Almost like smart horror, maybe? Analytical horror? I struggled through this, to be completely honest. I don’t think it’s what I expected and while that doesn’t mean it’s a bad book, it just means that it wasn’t the book for me.

Title: Man, Fuck This House

Author: Brian Asman

Pages: 158

Genre: Horror

Release Date: 19 October 2021

From Goodreads: "Sabrina Haskins and her family have just moved into their dream home, a gorgeous Craftsman in the rapidly-growing Southwestern city of Jackson Hill. Sabrina's a bored and disillusioned home-maker, Hal a reverse mortgage salesman with a penchant for ill-timed sports analogies. Their two children, Damien and Michaela, are bright and precocious. At first glance, the house is perfect. But things aren't what they seem. Sabrina's hearing odd noises, seeing strange visions. Their neighbors are odd or absent. And Sabrina's already-fraught relationship with her son is about to be tested in a way no parent could ever imagine. Because while the Haskins family might be the newest owners of 4596 James Circle, they're far from its only residents."

Mini-Review: It’s like an amped-up version of Monster House. The title is pretty funny and definitely drew me to read this (it was also recommended on BookTok!) and I did chuckle when it was said in the book. I loved Damien, silly little demon child, and Sabrina wasn’t terrible. It kind of lost me towards the end, although I will say the visuals were making me crack up. I was hoping for a really scary haunted house story and got a modern-day Baba Yaga’s house looking for a touch-up. Which I guess isn’t bad but just not what I was hoping to read when I picked this book up.

Title: You've Lost a Lot of Blood

Author: Eric LaRocca

Pages: 236

Genre: Horror

Release Date: 11 March 2022

From Goodreads: "A disturbing new vision of terror from the author of Things Have Gotten Worse Since We Last Spoke.

"Each precious thing I show you in this book is a holy relic from the night we both perished-the night when I combed you from my hair and watered the moon with your blood. You've lost a lot of blood..."

Mini-Review: Okay this was pretty cool! Did I understand the combination of the book in a book? Nope. Does it matter? Nope, because this was awesome. I believe it was Katie Coulson who said this book is basically all vibes and that feels like an accurate description. I enjoyed both stories within this book, I think for different reasons, but the vibes were definitely chefs kiss. I think Eric LaRocca is quickly becoming a go-to horror author for me!

Title: Survivor's Guilt

Author: Aron Beauregard & Matt Shaw

Pages: 141

Genre: Extreme Horror

Release Date: 04 May 2022

From Goodreads: "Survivor's Guilt (noun): a condition of persistent mental and emotional stress experienced by someone who has survived an incident in which others died.

Connie (written by Aron Beauregard) and Ray (written by Matt Shaw) have both survived traumatic events where others were not so lucky. Whilst some survivors are grateful to have lived, others carry with them a heavy feeling of guilt. Why did I survive when others died? Could I have done something to help others escape too? For those with such uncomfortable and haunting questions, there are groups set up to help them find the answers they seek. Connie and Ray aren't like the other survivors though.

They aren't grateful they survived, and nor do they feel the same guilt weighing heavy on the shoulders of others sitting with them on a weekly basis. Connie and Ray have other thoughts and - brought together in this group, they realize that whilst the group might not be able to help them, they can help each other."

Mini-Review: This was my first experience with an Aron Beauregard book (and a Matt Shaw book!) and wow, I am not disappointed! I really enjoyed both points of view and how both authors voices felt distinct from each other but still managed to blend perfectly. I’m diving more into extreme horror and Aron is an author that I see mentioned frequently, so I wanted to finally read something of his and ended up choosing this one. Not only did it ensure I’ll be reading more from him, but I also found a secondary author to check out!

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Title: Die Tommy

Author: Aron Beauregard

Pages: 148

Genre: Extreme Horror

Release Date: 11 August 2019

From Goodreads: "Brutus and Tommy pick up dead bodies for a living it's a grim but interesting business to, say the least. Their normally nasty gig suddenly transitions into something even more disturbing than usual when they pick up a recently murdered stiff that's been stewing in the blazing Arizona heat just a bit too long. They soon find out this isn't just any ordinary cadaver, this corpse has a dark, horrific secret... A shocking, repulsive, detail-oriented odyssey that practically puts you on the coroner's cold definitive slab. You always hear that it's what's on the inside that counts and now it's time to find out. It's time to pick up the bodies..."

Mini-Review: Okay I think I can officially say that I’m a fan of Aron Beauregard. This was hilariously gross and weird and exactly what I expected after hearing about his books. The visuals will haunt my dreams probably forever and the illustrations are burned into my eyeballs. I’m now on a mission to read every book he’s written!

Title: Funeral Girl

Author: Emma K. Ohland

Pages: 272

Genre: YA Contemporary/Horror

Release Date: 06 September 2022

From Goodreads: "Sixteen-year-old Georgia Richter feels conflicted about the funeral home her parents run--especially because she has the ability to summon ghosts. With one touch of any body that passes through Richter Funeral Home, she can awaken the spirit of the departed. With one more touch, she makes the spirit disappear, to a fate that remains mysterious to Georgia. To cope with her deep anxiety about death, she does her best to fulfill the final wishes of the deceased whose ghosts she briefly revives. Then her classmate Milo's body arrives at Richter--and his spirit wants help with unfinished business, forcing Georgia to reckon with her relationship to grief and mortality."

Mini-Review: I don’t know how to properly convey just how much I loved this book. I went into it expecting one thing only to find out it was not spooky but absolutely heartbreaking in the best way possible. Georgia was such a relatable character and there were so many times that I found myself in tears with how much I could relate to what she was feeling. I loved Georgia so much and I just wanted to hug her whenever she was going through a hard time. This story was so well crafted and I just want to scream about it to everyone I know.

“Because those left with the memories die too, and the grass grows over them and trees fall on top of them and time passes to erase them until there’s no one to remember. We all inevitably forget.”

Title: The Slob

Author: Aron Beauregard

Pages: 146

Genre: Splatterpunk

Release Date: 18 November 2020

From Goodreads: "Raised in a household that was so filthy it was stomach spilling, Vera has become a neat freak. Her obsession with cleanliness sprouts the concept that her skills can be put to use in a unique way. In an effort to generate some income for her and her disabled husband Daniel just prior to the birth of their first child, she takes aim at the booming door-to-door sales business of the late 80s. All is going well until she arrives at the steps of a house she wished she never had. The steps of an evil that brings back the ghastly memories she so desperately tried to wash away. Nothing will prepare you for the nastiness, disorder and uncleansable horror brought forth by... The Slob."

Mini-Review: This was hilariously disgusting and vile in multiple ways. I’ve read some crazy books before but The Slob takes the cake, hands down. I try to take the warnings that are included in these extreme horror books with a grain of salt because my thoughts are always "how bad can it really be?" Well, The Slob deserves that warning for sure. I don't get disturbed easily and it takes a lot to make me want to put a book down, but this one absolutely shook me. Was I absolutely grossed out at some parts of this? Yes. Did I get my mom a copy to read so I can traumatize her as well? I absolutely did and I can't wait to see her reaction. Aron Beauregard is my go-to when I need a nice gruesome book to read and I'm so excited to read his entire backlist!

Title: Sew Sorry

Author: Aron Beauregard & Daniel J. Volpe

Pages: 159

Genre: Splatterpunk

Release Date: 06 October 2021

From Goodreads: "Henry’s mother has enough money to live more than comfortably. But the only comfort she can concentrate on is her bizarre obsession. She can’t help but constantly seek out the donation bins on the darker side of the city. The only problem is, she isn’t putting clothing into them, she’s taking it out. Until one frigid night when she accidentally unveils her selfish secret to everyone. After the revelation, the layer of shame left lathered on Henry becomes backbreaking. As Halloween approaches, macabre ideas manifesting in Henry’s head spark a series of events that will lead to sins far worse than stealing.

Garrison is hungry and cold. The only thing in his sights is finding a way to turn a dollar and his next foul meal. His own perseverance knows no bounds. His diabolical deeds are hidden in the shadowy alleys. He aims to survive, no matter who he has to trick or turn out in the process. But after burning too many bridges, he finds himself on an island. Alone, save for the salivating teeth of vengeance. When a tarnished teenager and a heartless hobo collide, the streets will run red. Rich or poor, we all rot the same."

Mini-Review: One thing that I’m learning as I read more extreme horror/splatterpunk books is that there are multiple ways to make a reader cringe. You could give the same general topic to several different authors and get completely different stories from each of them, and I love it. Reading the short stories from both Aron Beauregard and Daniel J. Volpe gave me such different feelings and I had completely different reactions to both! I absolutely love finding out how different and unique each writer I read in this genre is. These two authors together are fantastic and I loved how the stories were interwoven and we got to see how things went together for both stories. It was gross and fun and I loved the uniqueness of each writer.

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And that’s it for my July wrap-up! I really am proud of how many books I was able to read this month and I am super excited to see what August has in store for me. As for my favorite book that I read this month, I have to give that honor to Funeral Girl by Emma K. Ohland. It was so beautiful and heartbreaking and a book that I didn’t know I needed until I read it. I’d love to know what your favorite book that you read in July was so shoot me a comment below and give me another book to add to my endless TBR. Thanks for stopping by and I’ll see you in the next chapter!

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