Thanks to NetGalley and Canelo for the advanced copy.
Not going to lie, I was swayed by good reviews, particularly one that compared this story to MidsThanks to NetGalley and Canelo for the advanced copy.
Not going to lie, I was swayed by good reviews, particularly one that compared this story to Midsommar, Evil Dead, and the Stepford Wives. Yes, to the first and third, no to the second (aside from some questionable tree stuff that barely features, thankfully). Another review says it's like Black Mirror meets the Wicker Man, and that is also kind of true?
Barnett writes well, and I found myself getting lost in the story multiple times, until there was another startling time jump. The story jumps back and forth, and while, in the end, there was a reason for it that worked out, I still just don't like it. I find it takes me out of the story when we're suddenly in another time with another character, which is why I'm only rating this 4 instead of 5 stars.
Because the story is quite good. I had a sense of what the true mystery was by halfway through, just from reading so much - not just horror, but mythology and legends too. If you are the same, then you'll likely work out the ending far in advance, too, but I'll say it's still a satisfying story to read through and finish.
It's also upsetting at times. Bad things happen, people aren't punished (kind of), and while it's not relentless, there's this permeating sense of eerie darkness throughout the whole story. Like everything is just a little off... and I liked that! I loved the entire atmosphere Barnett develops throughout the story, and it really builds up to the climax. I won't claim a satisfying ending (again, kind of), but I think most will enjoy it or find it fitting within the world of the story.
This is a book I'd love to discuss with a group, to hear their thoughts and opinions on Withered Hill's traditions lol
4/5 stars, very good aside from constant time jumps interrupting me. I love a good folk horror!...more
Thanks to NetGalley and Little, Brown Books for Young Readers for the advanced copy.
This is one of the most autumnal, Halloween-y, cozy books I've eveThanks to NetGalley and Little, Brown Books for Young Readers for the advanced copy.
This is one of the most autumnal, Halloween-y, cozy books I've ever read. Like, it is up there with Ray Bradbury's The October Country as being alllll about the F A L L. In capital letters, yes.
Young Eve is an orphan in an undisclosed time period and location (which feels turn of the century New England at times, but there turn of the century England at other times). She is adopted by The Pumpkin King pretty quickly and the story kicks off with Eve's introduction to Hallowell valley and it's various undead inhabitants. This introduction reminded me heavily of the Diagon Alley chapter in the first Harry Potter, with that sense of magical awe and unique setting and unique background characters.
Banbury does great with his world-building. It's familiar but unfamiliar, and it makes sense for its inhabitants. All of the side characters are somehow distinct and interesting in their own right as well, which is another point for Banbury - the main character of Eve, her best friends Lyla and Vlad, and of course The Pumpkin King and Scrags the scarecrow are all the most fleshed out of course, but I am impressed that we get to know the smaller side characters as well. It really makes this world feel robust and real.
I cannot WAIT to read this to my niece and nephew this October. They will be obsessed. I am obsessed. I am hoping this is the start of a Halloween-y series because I want to go back to this world so badly. This would absolutely have been one of my favorite books if I'd read it as a 10 year old!
By the way, the whole time I was reading this I was picturing adapted in animation, in a style somewhere between Howl's Moving Castle and The Last Unicorn, both of which I was strongly reminded of vibes-wise while reading The Pumpkin Princess and the Forever Night.
Now, I'm off to build The Pumpkin King's farm in The Sims 4 lol look for it on the gallery soon, I guess! I'll hashtag the lot with the book title #thepumpkinprincess. I'm excited to share this book with everyone and cannot recommend it enough.
Thanks to NetGalley and St Martin's Press for the advanced copy.
Courtney Gould continues to impress with another atmospheric spooky tale! I honestly jThanks to NetGalley and St Martin's Press for the advanced copy.
Courtney Gould continues to impress with another atmospheric spooky tale! I honestly just love the vibes in Gould's work, there's something comforting in the way the she writes she just hits me in the feels every time. Teen me would've obsessed over her books and characters, but grown me can appreciate them critically from the distance of age.
The kids in this story are just that - kids. They may act tough and most have been through it and experienced more of the bad side of life than kids should but at the end of the day they are a bunch of kids and that really comes out, I think. Some people might find that difficult because it does mean the characters can be annoying at times, but I think Gould does well to make them feel real and multi-dimensional. We spend a lot of time with them and even Aidan and Sheridan, the two most annoying, grew on me in the end.
Without giving too much away, I will say I was surprised by the supernatural twist to this one, which was nice as I'm usually pretty good at predicting what's going to happen. Gould managed to surprise me a couple times but I think that's partially because her books are good at getting me to read so deeply I forget I'm even reading. I woke up this morning just intending to get a few chapters in and fully finished the book, with more than half left lol
While What the Woods Took isn't my favorite of Gould's novels, it's still great form and a chilling, tense story. All I wish is that there was more on the commentary of these survival camps troubled teens get sent to. It felt more surface-level, and the beginning was especially tense with it, and it feels like Gould wanted to get more into it, almost got more into it, but then would pull away. I think the only reason I'm giving this four stars is because I was hoping it might go as hard as Camp Damascus did, which was another novel with a similar-ish premise that really knocked it out the park. Don't get me wrong though - I recommend both, highly!
Courtney Gould reminds me a cross between Darcy Coats and Alix E. Harrow, for teens. I recommend browsing YouTube for an appropriately themed ambient video when reading her, as it will really enhance the fantastic atmosphere she always manages to craft in her stories.
Thanks to NetGalley, ABRAMS Kids, and RB Media for the advanced copy of the audiobook, narrated by Tamika Katon-Donegal.
What a rollercoaster. I was goThanks to NetGalley, ABRAMS Kids, and RB Media for the advanced copy of the audiobook, narrated by Tamika Katon-Donegal.
What a rollercoaster. I was going to give it 4 stars until chapter 47 when it struck me: this is an awesome game of DnD! 5 stars from this dungeon master! lol
I fully admit I was always going to check out Dead Girls Walking because the author, Sami Ellis, wrote probably my favorite story in All These Sunken Souls: A Black Horror Anthology, which was one of my favorite reads last year. Ellis wrote a spooky urban legend, The Teeth Came Out at Night, and it was the easily the scariest story in the bunch. How could I not follow Ellis after that introduction?!
Dead Girls walking features a cast that is almost entirely female, queer, and black and I love it for that and for being a classic horror story. It's not that who they are doesn't mean anything in the story, but Ellis addresses everything, well really presents it all, in such a way that even the old white man that is my dad could ingest with no complaints (while secretly pushing him more towards acceptance). It both embraces and subverts tropes, something Ellis is clearly gifted at doing.
Stories like this are some of my favorites because they're so good and so familiar that it's bound to change a heart or mind or two.
Outside of that though - I love a bunch of horror nerds! These girls are fun and smart and mean and brave and by the end Cali was my favorite sorrynotsorry
I don't want to spoil the actual narrative of this book though (aside from my DnD comment lol) because the summary does a great job of both telling you what this book is and isn't about lol I wasn't entirely surprised because I'd read Ellis previously and was already secretly hoping for something like what happens but I do think some folks may be in for a fun surprise.
And I mean that, truly - Dead Girls Walking is FUN. And gory. What a great YA horror novel!
I also highly recommend checking out the audiobook because Tamika Katon-Donegal is P H E N O M E N A L narrating this one! I got so into this it felt like watching a movie....more
I was completely unfamiliar with this author prior to this but I've seen a lot of positive reviews for It Waits in the Woods and decided to give it a I was completely unfamiliar with this author prior to this but I've seen a lot of positive reviews for It Waits in the Woods and decided to give it a shot - glad I did!
This is a short and very creep story that features an antagonist I did not expect. I also listened to this through Audible and the narrator (Lauren Ezzo) really did the absolute most and I was living for it. Creepy voices and sounds - yes, please!
Thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Random House for the advanced copy.
What a fantastic collection of stories! I started this last year but it got sideliThanks to NetGalley and Penguin Random House for the advanced copy.
What a fantastic collection of stories! I started this last year but it got sidelined for a cross-country move and job change and I had a hard time picking it back up again solely because of how excited I was to return, because my goofy brain was telling me that if I don't finish it, then it never ends!
I am a sucker for a themed collection of short stories, especially horror. Never Whistle at Night collects horror fiction with indiginous themes and written by indigineous authors. I don't think writers should be strictly limited to writing within their own experiences but collections like this show the importance of supporting writers who chose to do so, especially writers from minority groups traditionally under-represented or lacking in "mainstream popularity" (see: Capgras by Tommy Orange in this collection).
The horror in the featured stories aren't just monsters, spirits, or homicidal assholes - it's historical atrocities, racial tension, self-hate, microaggressions, theft of culture, erasure of history, assault, etc The stories vary between misanthropic, forlorn, and hostile for the most part as the writers share the generational trauma they or their friends, families, and loved ones have endured... which does make some of these stories hard to read. I don't know if it was intentional but I feel like most of the gut-wrenching ones are in the second half, if that better prepares more sensitive readers.
So, as a lover of anthologies and thus reader of many reviews of anthologies, I love it when reviewers highlight a few gems or duds. I swear I'm honest in saying this book has NO duds. Not a one. Each of these stories is a banger, truly, but here are a few of my faves:
Kushtuka by Mathilda Zeller - the first story in the book, and it's a strong one set in the far north featuring a young woman who encounters a mythological creature while in another, different but just as terrifying, situation. (MMIWG - Missing and Murdered Indigineous Women and Girls day is May 5th but is a cause that we should all be thinking of year-round. https://lakotalaw.org/news/2020-05-01...)
Navajos Don't Wear Elk Teeth by Conley Lyons - about young man with questionable taste in other young men, this one gave me serious heebie jeebies and had me sitting in my seat wanting to yell at the MC!
Snakes Are Born in the Dark by D.H. Trujillo - a fantastic Goosebumps, a classic dumb-ass teens messing with shit they don't understand and shouldn't be messing with! Totally gross and totally fun lol
Night in the Chrysalis by Tiffany Morris - a spooky haunted dollhouse story reminiscent of one of my favorite Are You Afraid of the Dark stories (take a guess which one lol). Also, just a fan of Tiffany Morris.
Scariest. Story. Ever. by Richard Van Camp - just a very satisfying read, and not in the way you'd expect.
Night Moves by Andrea L. Rogers - werewolves!! so fun, classic, love it
Capgras by Tommy Orange - about a writer lost in translation.
The Scientist's Horror Story by Darcie Little Badger - a decent scary story and then the actual scariest story ever. "Her friends didn't respond, instead choosing to drink." Me to, friends, me to.
Collections by Amber Blaeser-Wardzala - Terrifying. Jordan Peele approved.
Time well spent! I am still sad that I've finished it tho :( ...more
Thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the advanced copy of the audiobook.
This is the first Alix E. Harrow book I've devoured as an audiobook, anThanks to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the advanced copy of the audiobook.
This is the first Alix E. Harrow book I've devoured as an audiobook, and while I plan on buying the print copy because I am that big of a fan of Harrow and her beautiful words, I deeply enjoyed Starling House as an audiobook. Natalie Naudus is an incredible narrator who imbues so much emotion into the story she's reading that it feels like a friend telling you the most interesting story (which does have a lot to do with how great of a writer Harrow is as well).
Starling House is a romantic story told through the lens of a scary Wonderland and the poverty of coal country in Kentucky. It's a story of oppression, class warfare, racism, and sexism, and the fact that while things are better, they're still not exactly good for many people - because things like racism, sexism, and classism still exist. It's a story about how insular communities get stuck in their ways, needing to be forced to evolve and adapt by tooth and nail (literally, in the case of Starling House). Everything Harrow has written that I've read is absolutely gut-wrenching, but she always seems able to tie it in a pretty, if gritty, fairy tale bow, discussing hard truths of society through fantasy.
Harrow is one of the best writers out there today, and while I used to think I was biased saying that, the more I read from her the more I think that is an objective truth - Alix E. Harrow is just a fantastic story-teller who really does know her way with words, and this newest book shows how she is only getting better.
I'll be recommending Starling House to absolutely everyone and it is easily in my top 3 of 2023. I'm just sad it's ended... but can't wait to read it again!...more
Thanks to NetGalley and Mad Cave Studios for the advanced copy.
The story, and the mythology behind it, is interesting. There's a lot of implications tThanks to NetGalley and Mad Cave Studios for the advanced copy.
The story, and the mythology behind it, is interesting. There's a lot of implications though, which are all left open-ended. I don't like being told absolutely everything but this felt like being told nothing, which is just as annoying to me. And this is an interesting story! Tell us more! Show us more!
Then the art, again while not bad, is very much not my style. This seems to be the writer/artist's main style so I don't expect it to change but in a book that puts so much focus on people's faces, this is the wrong art style. The faces have no noses and all look the same, so when a panel focuses on a face... it's impossible to read? It's like a robot face. Clearly there are emotions being expressed, as indicated by dialogue being bold or italic or larger, etc, but it's not something you can tell by the panel, which for a visual medium like a comic...
Overall it felt like the Nun, if it were just the main character arriving in town, then arriving to the monastery, and then dying. No real in-between. No meat. But you can see what is there is promising. And the art really isn't bad - the environments are gorgeous. It could just all be better....more
Thanks to NetGalley and Scholastic for the advanced copy.
I knew Scarewaves would have some good monsters in it because that seems to be one of Trevor Thanks to NetGalley and Scholastic for the advanced copy.
I knew Scarewaves would have some good monsters in it because that seems to be one of Trevor Henderson's specialties - he did create the fantastically scary Siren Head, after all! And this book delivered. Boy, did it deliver.
This is the sort of scary children's fiction I absolutely adore. It's written perfectly for that middle grade audience, the language is simple and easy to read but it doesn't patronize and Henderson doesn't dumb any of his ideas or cheap out on the scares. It's very reminiscent of the scariest stories you'll find in Alvin Schwarz's Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark (and the whole vibes of the novel is very reminiscent of Alan Wake as well, which I adore). For that reason, I would definitely recommend this only for kids who truly love a scary story and can handle any potential nightmares resulting from reading Scarewaves - I was one such kid, myself!
And, honestly, I heartily recommend it for grown readers as well. Henderson starts the scares early and the story only escalates from there. By the last third of the book I was holding my tablet, white knuckled, needing to know how it ends and if our protagonists survive. Again, for a children's book, this was genuinely terrifying. The copy I have is an ARC so there are illustrations missing, but I am looking forward to reading this again post-release to check those out (I'm assuming they'll be of the monsters). Even without the illustrations though, Henderson does a great job at describing the creatures - I could easily visualize each creepy, crawly one of them.
I also enjoy the occasional interspersal of transcripts from the radio show that features as the plot device. As a kid in the 90s who listened to late night radio (sneakily, under my bed covers), it gave me nostalgia vibes, and also added an anthological air to the story... and I hope that's what this is the start of because I would absolutely LOVE to see more childrens' horror from Henderson. He's a fantastic story-teller with a vivid and demented imagination.
I think this will definitely be in my end of year top 10 for 2023....more
I enjoyed Slewfoot a lot, and while it's only the second Brom novel I've read, it's helped me realize that Brom is an author I need to read more from.I enjoyed Slewfoot a lot, and while it's only the second Brom novel I've read, it's helped me realize that Brom is an author I need to read more from.
However. This is not what I thought it was, same as Krampus (the other Brom novel I've read). Brom is frequently listed as a horror novelist and his books are frequently posted on lists of great horror novels, but for me they aren't horror. Dark fantasy/mythology for sure, with some horror elements to be fair, but not what I'm looking for when I want to read horror. I get why Brom is categorized as he is, because there isn't really a modern genre for "Original Brothers Grimm", outside of Fantasy OR Horror. And Brom is firmly in the middle.
Anyway, I've decided to start doing a thing for Brom's books - a "What Are They Like" section?
What Is Brom's Slewfoot Like?
Ferngully meets The VVitch, with some John Wick at the end (justice for Booker!!)
Slewfoot is a modern Grimm's Fairy Tale, with all the grusome lesson learning of the original stories. Brom is apparently known for writing about characters from struggling demographics and he does well at putting their struggles in focus in a relatable and sympathetic way. These aren't perfect, good people of course, but you root for them and you balk when they're treated like shit or life goes wrong for them.
Slewfoot in particular was a difficult read for me, unlike Krampus where the lead was a man living in rural poverty, because this is the story of a woman just trying to survive in a world doing everything it can to hold her down and "put her in her place". I had to take frequent breaks, especially since my own name (Tabitha) is so close to the protagonist's, Abitha.
I also consumed this book as an audiobook, like I did with Krampus, which meant I missed the beautiful artwork, but did get to experience two fantastic narrators. Slewfoot is read by Barrie Kreinik, who does a fantastic job as bringing Abitha and those around her to life.
Luckily, Brom gives us a very satisfying ending :) Overall, I loved Slewfoot. More than Krampus. Still disappointed it wasn't the horror story I was hoping for, but Brom knows how to weave a good story in general and left me happy with the book I chose in the end....more
2.5, rounded up because I love a slasher. The audiobook was on sale for $2, and I already had this in my to-read list so I thought, "why not?" I shoul2.5, rounded up because I love a slasher. The audiobook was on sale for $2, and I already had this in my to-read list so I thought, "why not?" I should have thought a bit harder.
This was a generic, boring slasher with a blah twist. It tries to be modern and diverse but tropes are tropes, and You're Not Supposed to Die Tonight is all tropes, while commenting on tropes, but not having anything to actually say about tropes... if that makes any sense.
Anyway, Dead Girls Walking by Sami Ellis did this concept but in a better and more entertaining way.
I also don't tend to comment on the audio quality of audiobook because it's not usually an issue, but the version on Audible is not very good and honestly had me wondering if this was an amateur production. It seemed as though the narrator recorded this all in one sitting and then just uploaded the unedited file. Just all around not a great listening experience....more
Thanks NetGalley and Redhook Books for a copy of the book.
Whenever I talk about my favorite types of horror I always mention: deep winter, outer spaceThanks NetGalley and Redhook Books for a copy of the book.
Whenever I talk about my favorite types of horror I always mention: deep winter, outer space, and underwater. But I also really, really like found footage. I like the immediacy and intimacy of the action you see on screen. So when I read the blurb for Craig DiLouie's Episode Thirteen, I was very intrigued, especially by how would the author write a found footage horror novel?
If you've read Dracula by Bram Stoker or World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War by Max Brooks, then you have an idea. Episode Thirteen is kind of an epistolary novel. I say kind of, because interspersed with each character's individual blog write-ups, magazine articles, text chains, and emails, are sections written as screenplays depicting what the camera footage covers. I have to say I really enjoyed the way DiLouie presented his story - the various ways of covering Fade to Black's ghost hunting tv show adventure keeps the reader engaged and presents the various character voices, setting, and action in an almost interactive way. It really felt like I'd gone down an internet wormhole on some mystery, reading Wikipedia articles and watching YouTube videos or something. It felt self-guided in a way that's similar to playing a video game (though an on-the-rails one - it is a novel after all, so there's only one path and one outcome - "the journey is the destination.").
I also have to say that I appreciate the story goes in an unpredictable direction. I really hope none of the other reviews spoil it because I was surprised and I hope if you read this, you're also surprised! It was a unique take on your typical ghost story, but I can see it upsetting/annoying some people... overall, though, I really appreciated the uniqueness of how the story was both presented and how it ended.
A well-earned five stars from this horror lover!...more
Thanks to NetGalley and Compass and Fern for the advanced copy. I'm wavering between 4 and 5 stars on this... was going to give it five but the unfiniThanks to NetGalley and Compass and Fern for the advanced copy. I'm wavering between 4 and 5 stars on this... was going to give it five but the unfinished ending (this is apparently going to be a series) happens just as you're finally getting some answers and about to resolve some things. I understand wanting a hook for the next book but argh! I can't wait! I need to know what happens with Siena and Holden!
I've been on a kick lately of forest-y/earth-y horror, with this and before it The Dark Between the Trees, The Sacrifice, and Mexican Gothic. I'm lucky in that they've all been really enjoyable, to be honest, but I think I may like this one best of all.
S.A. Harian is clearly writing what she knows: the book is set on the west coast, partially in Oregon, where she is apparently from. One of the characters is also a YouTuber who plays horror games, like the author. I can't help but wonder if the author is also really into hiking or has experience in geology (or geomorphology) because she also writes those characters very realistically. And the characters are one of the big draws - they all feel like real and unique individuals, and you really get to know them, even the smaller ones. I'm all about spooky settings and mysterious mysteries but without good characters they hold little weight.
But the author succeeds here too, because the mystery of the Briardark is fascinating and infectious. Like several of the other forest-y horror books I've read recently, this one also involves the concept of liminal spaces. It's a fascinating genre, almost cosmic horror in the confusion and inability to truly understand it... and I love cosmic horror. Without spoiling it, this story goes a step further, which peaks my interest even more.
I can't wait for the next book in the series!...more
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