Greenteeth by Molly O’Neill: Book Review
What an absolute delight! I just texted my sister to recommend Greenteeth to her. I wrote, “It’s an old school fantasy/fairy tale. It felt a little retro in a time when fantasies are either urban fantasies or sprawling epics with 50,000 characters and entire magic/religion/political systems […]
Enter the Detective by Mark Waid: Book Review
4 Stars. This graphic novel reminded me of a mashup between Sherlock Holmes stories and the TV series Penny Dreadful. It seems like an odd mix at first but it absolutely worked for me. I liked that the narrator of the story is a woman who is not all that she seems to be. I’m very curious to know more about her. The Sherlock […]
The Strange Case of the Alchemist’s Daughter by Theodora Goss: Book Review
4 Stars. I enjoyed the premise and the story, but there were a few too many interruptions from the characters in their current time as they were trying to tell a story about their past. The interruptions give us a better sense of the characters overall and allowed the author to insert several points of view into a scene easily […]
Hollow City by Ransom Riggs: Book Review
3 Stars. I enjoyed the second volume of this series but it didn’t quite grab me the same way the first one did. It’s been years since I read the first one so maybe the time lapse and/or my shifting tastes are to blame. I feel the creepy old photos are incorporated a bit more seamlessly than they were in the first book; however, […]
The Light of the Midnight Stars by Rena Rossner: Book Review
3 Stars. I listened to this on audio, narrated by Ana Clements, and it just never grabbed my attention. I don’t have any major complaints or praise for either the story or the narrator, I just found it easy to tune the whole thing out–and did. The story rotates between three different narrators–the sisters, Hannah, Sarah, and […]
Time and Again by Jack Finney: Book Review
3 Stars. I’m not a fan of New York. To be fair, I’ve only spent one day there and that was the day after my best friend’s funeral; still, nothing about the city has ever appealed to me. That said, Time and Again didn’t work particularly well for me but I think those who love New York and its history will relish it. I don’t […]
Flight of the Phoenix by R. L. LaFevers: Book Review
4 Stars. What a cute little book! I read it in about an hour but I enjoyed myself immensely. Nathaniel is a fairly complex character. He’s a timid little thing but Aunt Phil pushes him to face his fears. He has a kind heart that leads him to befriend creatures that Aunt Phil dismisses as pests. Most living things will respond […]
A Curse Dark As Gold by Elizabeth C. Bunce: Book Review
3 Stars. I really liked the first half of the book. Charlotte is feisty, if a bit too practical, and she’s creative in addressing the mill’s myriad problems. I wondered how the author was going to weave Rumpelstiltskin into the tale but she did it beautifully. The village of Shearing, like any self-respecting small town, is full […]
Circe by Madeline Miller: Book Review
4.5 Stars. Circe is every woman who has been treated as “less than” because of her gender. As a child, she accepts that everyone overlooks her. She’s not as beautiful as the other nymphs, so why would anyone pay attention to her? She’s starved for attention though, and makes some terrible decisions. But those decisions lead […]
Maplecroft by Cherie Priest: Book Review
We meet Lizzie and her sister Emma shortly after the notorious murder of their father and stepmother. The women are living in fear of an unnamed horror that is taking over their hometown. They’re trying to research it and combat it as best they can but Emma is an invalid and Lizzie is–well, notorious Lizzie Borden. The horrors […]
Daughters Unto Devils by Amy Lukavics: Book Review
Oh my goodness. This scared me to death! I got worried that I was going to have to put it aside. I gladly read most horror but one trope in particular seriously gives me nightmares and this book went there. I soldiered on though and holy cow, what a ride this was! I keep seeing it compared to a horror version of Little House on […]