en-US Wed, 05 Mar 2025 12:11:19 -0800 60 144 41 /images/layout/goodreads_logo_144.jpg 60911018
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.]]> 175 T. Kingfisher 1803360070 Elyse 4 3.87 2022
author: T. Kingfisher
name: Elyse
average rating: 3.87
book published: 2022
rating: 4
read at: 2023/12/31
date added: 2025/03/05
shelves: usa-publication-2022, retellings, acquired-2023, genre-horror, personal-physical, acquired-and-read-2023, series-started-2023, lgbtqia, stars-4, gr-challenge-2023
review:

]]> 62703226 At seventeen, Lenora Hope
Hung her sister with a rope

Now reduced to a schoolyard chant, the Hope family murders shocked the Maine coast one bloody night in 1929. While most people assume seventeen-year-old Lenora was responsible, the police were never able to prove it. Other than her denial after the killings, she has never spoken publicly about that night, nor has she set foot outside Hope’s End, the cliffside mansion where the massacre occurred.

Stabbed her father with a knife
Took her mother’s happy life

It’s now 1983, and home-health aide Kit McDeere arrives at a decaying Hope’s End to care for Lenora after her previous nurse fled in the middle of the night. In her seventies and confined to a wheelchair, Lenora was rendered mute by a series of strokes and can only communicate with Kit by tapping out sentences on an old typewriter. One night, Lenora uses it to make a tantalizing offer—I want to tell you everything.

“It wasn’t me,” Lenora said
But she’s the only one not dead

As Kit helps Lenora write about the events leading to the Hope family massacre, it becomes clear there’s more to the tale than people know. But when new details about her predecessor’s departure come to light, Kit starts to suspect Lenora might not be telling the complete truth—and that the seemingly harmless woman in her care could be far more dangerous than she first thought.]]> 383 Riley Sager 0593183223 Elyse 3 2.5 stars.

Well, that was disappointing. Plot device used was also used in a CoHo novel and I hated it then, I hate it now.]]> 4.12 2023
author: Riley Sager
name: Elyse
average rating: 4.12
book published: 2023
rating: 3
read at: 2023/07/29
date added: 2024/01/01
shelves: acquired-2023, usa-publication-2023, genre-mystery, genre-thriller, personal-physical, acquired-and-read-2023, buddy-reads-2023, ig-summer-shrink-the-shelf-2023, stars-3, gr-challenge-2023
review:
2.5 stars.

Well, that was disappointing. Plot device used was also used in a CoHo novel and I hated it then, I hate it now.
]]> 65916344 Holly Gibney, one of Stephen King’s most compelling and ingeniously resourceful characters, returns in this thrilling novel to solve the gruesome truth behind multiple disappearances in a midwestern town.

“Sometimes the universe throws you a rope.” — BILL HODGES

Stephen King’s Holly marks the triumphant return of beloved King character Holly Gibney. Readers have witnessed Holly’s gradual transformation from a shy (but also brave and ethical) recluse in Mr. Mercedes to Bill Hodges’s partner in Finders Keepers to a full-fledged, smart, and occasionally tough private detective in The Outsider. In King’s new novel, Holly is on her own, and up against a pair of unimaginably depraved and brilliantly disguised adversaries.

When Penny Dahl calls the Finders Keepers detective agency hoping for help locating her missing daughter, Holly is reluctant to accept the case. Her partner, Pete, has Covid. Her (very complicated) mother has just died. And Holly is meant to be on leave. But something in Penny Dahl’s desperate voice makes it impossible for Holly to turn her down.

Mere blocks from where Bonnie Dahl disappeared live Professors Rodney and Emily Harris. They are the picture of bourgeois respectability: married octogenarians, devoted to each other, and semi-retired lifelong academics. But they are harboring an unholy secret in the basement of their well-kept, book-lined home, one that may be related to Bonnie’s disappearance. And it will prove nearly impossible to discover what they are up to: they are savvy, they are patient, and they are ruthless.

Holly must summon all her formidable talents to outthink and outmaneuver the shockingly twisted professors in this chilling new masterwork from Stephen King.]]> 449 Stephen King 1668016133 Elyse 4 4.01 2023
author: Stephen King
name: Elyse
average rating: 4.01
book published: 2023
rating: 4
read at: 2023/10/27
date added: 2024/01/01
shelves: acquired-2023, usa-publication-2023, genre-mystery, genre-horror, personal-physical, stephen-king-and-family, acquired-and-read-2023, buddy-reads-2023, gr-challenge-2023, kingtober-reads-2023, stars-4
review:
Being set during actual Covid was not enjoyable. Would've rather it had been a fake 2021. I can also see why people were annoyed by all of the Trump antagonisms too. It was annoying. But Holly, Pete, Jerome, and Barbara really shone in this one.
]]> 36640942 456 Nigel Slater Elyse 4 4.42 2017
author: Nigel Slater
name: Elyse
average rating: 4.42
book published: 2017
rating: 4
read at: 2023/12/31
date added: 2023/12/31
shelves: xmas-books, acquired-2023, acquired-and-read-2023, gr-challenge-2023, genre-cookbook, genre-non-fic, personal-physical, stars-4
review:
I couldn't carry this over into the new year even though the entries go until February. So while I started it on November 1 and read each entry on its date, I read from December 31-February 2 today, December 31.
]]> 63933651 A teen girl looking for the truth about her missing mother forms a reluctant alliance with her former best friend...in exchange for hiding him from his cult-leading family.

Wil Greene's mom has been missing for over a year, and the police are ready to call the case closed--they claim she skipped town and you can't find a woman who wants to disappear. But she knows her mom wouldn't just leave...and she knows the family of her former best friend, Elwood Clarke, has something to do with it.

Elwood has been counting down the days until his 18th birthday--in dread. It marks leaving school and joining his pastor father in dedicating his life to their congregation, the Garden of Adam. But when he comes home after one night of after a final goodbye with his friends, already self-flagellating for the sins of drinking and disobeying his father, he discovers his path is not as virtuous as he thought. He's not his father's successor, but his sacrifice. For the woods he's grown up with are thirsty, and must be paid in blood.

Now on the run from a family that wants him dead, he turns to the only one who will believe him: Wil. Together, they form a reluctant partnership; she'll help him hide if he helps her find evidence that his family killed her mother. But in the end they dig up more secrets than they bargained for, unraveling decades of dark cult dealings in their town, led by the Clarke family.

And there's a reason they need Elwood's blood for their satanic rituals. Something inhuman is growing inside of him. Everywhere he goes, the plants come alive and the forest calls to him, and Wil isn't sure if she can save the boy she can't help but love.]]> 272 Skyla Arndt 0593526279 Elyse 4 3.54 2023
author: Skyla Arndt
name: Elyse
average rating: 3.54
book published: 2023
rating: 4
read at: 2023/12/31
date added: 2023/12/31
shelves: usa-publication-2023, genre-age-young-adult, genre-fantasy, genre-horror, acquired-2023, personal-physical, free-penguin-reader-rewards, acquired-and-read-2023, gr-challenge-2023, genre-mystery, stars-4
review:

]]> 61675933
Thankfully she has the other outcasts of the summer program, Team Misfit Toys, and even her twin sister Pauline. Together they ace obstacle courses, plan vigils for missing women in the community, and make sure summer doesn’t feel so lost after all.

But when she attends a meeting at a local university, Perry learns about the “Warrior Girl”, an ancestor whose bones and knife are stored in the museum archives, and everything changes. Perry has to return Warrior Girl to her tribe. Determined to help, she learns all she can about NAGPRA, the federal law that allows tribes to request the return of ancestral remains and sacred items. The university has been using legal loopholes to hold onto Warrior Girl and twelve other Anishinaabe ancestors’ remains, and Perry and the Misfits won’t let it go on any longer.

Using all of their skills and resources, the Misfits realize a heist is the only way to bring back the stolen artifacts and remains for good. But there is more to this repatriation than meets the eye as more women disappear and Pauline’s perfectionism takes a turn for the worse. As secrets and mysteries unfurl, Perry and the Misfits must fight to find a way to make things right – for the ancestors and for their community.]]> 396 Angeline Boulley 1250766583 Elyse 4 4.30 2023
author: Angeline Boulley
name: Elyse
average rating: 4.30
book published: 2023
rating: 4
read at: 2023/12/31
date added: 2023/12/31
shelves: acquired-2023, usa-publication-2023, personal-physical, acquired-and-read-2023, gr-challenge-2023, genre-age-young-adult, genre-contemporary, genre-mystery
review:
Not quite as good as The Firekeeper's Daughter but very enjoyable nonetheless.
]]> 85150686 Eighteen passengers. Seven stops. One killer.

In the early hours of Christmas Eve, the sleeper train to the Highlands is derailed, along with the festive plans of its travellers. With the train stuck in snow in the middle of nowhere, a killer stalks its carriages, picking off passengers one by one. Those who sleep on the sleeper train may never wake again.

Can former Met detective Roz Parker find the killer before they kill again?

All aboard for . . .  Murder on the Christmas Express ]]> 272 Alexandra Benedict 1728284414 Elyse 3 3.15 2022
author: Alexandra Benedict
name: Elyse
average rating: 3.15
book published: 2022
rating: 3
read at: 2023/12/16
date added: 2023/12/18
shelves: acquired-2023, acquired-and-read-2023, gr-challenge-2023, usa-publication-2023, genre-mystery, personal-physical, xmas-books, lgbtqia, stars-3
review:

]]> 63005207 Yellowjackets meets She Is a Haunting in this debut speculative thriller that follows a disgraced teen idol who comes face-to-face with the demons of her past in a glittering, cutthroat K-pop competition.

After a shocking scandal that abruptly ended her teen popstar career, eighteen-year-old Sunny Lee spends her days longing for her former life and cyberstalking her ex-BFF and groupmate, Candie. The two were once inseparable, but that was then—before the tragedy and heartache they left in their wake.

In the here and now, Sunny is surprised to discover that Candie is attending a new K-pop workshop in her hometown. Candie might be there chasing stardom, but Sunny can’t resist the chance to join her and finally confront their traumatic history. Because she still can’t figure out what happened that horrible night when Mina, the third in their tight-knit trio, jumped to her death. Or if the dark and otherworldly secrets she and Candie were keeping had something to do with it . . .

But the workshop doesn’t bring the answers Sunny had hoped for, nor a happy reunion with Candie. Instead, Sunny finds herself haunted by ghostly visions while strange injuries start happening to her competitors—followed by even stranger mutilations to their bodies. In her race to survive, Sunny will have to expose just who is behind the carnage—and if Candie is out for blood once more—in Linda Cheng’s spellbinding sapphic thriller that will have readers screaming and swooning for more.]]> 320 Linda Cheng 1250864992 Elyse 4 Won Finished Hardcover in BookishFirst.com Giveaway!

Gorgeous Gruesome Faces is not your average young adult novel. Far from it. It's so much more than I was expecting! It takes an Asian folklore tale, the celestial maiden, and contemporizes it with a horror twist! At first I wasn't sure about the plot. I don't listen to K-pop or watch K-dramas, they're just not something I'm much interested in or had much opportunity to delve into. So I wasn't sure I was going to like this book. But then my expectations were turned on their heads because strange goings-on start happening and the explanations are unraveling throughout the book. I enjoyed Sunny, Candie, and Minnie and the Now/Then chapters helped to put all of the pieces together. Some parts gave me chills! The cover is absolutely beautiful but also the naked hardcover is pink and has black end papers! A very aesthetically pleasing book!]]> 3.65 2023
author: Linda Cheng
name: Elyse
average rating: 3.65
book published: 2023
rating: 4
read at: 2023/11/09
date added: 2023/12/10
shelves: usa-publication-2023, genre-fantasy, genre-horror, genre-age-young-adult, lgbtqia, acquired-2023, books-i-won, personal-physical, free-bookish-first-books, acquired-and-read-2023, gr-challenge-2023, series-started-2023, stars-4, canadian-challenge-23-24
review:
Won Finished Hardcover in BookishFirst.com Giveaway!

Gorgeous Gruesome Faces is not your average young adult novel. Far from it. It's so much more than I was expecting! It takes an Asian folklore tale, the celestial maiden, and contemporizes it with a horror twist! At first I wasn't sure about the plot. I don't listen to K-pop or watch K-dramas, they're just not something I'm much interested in or had much opportunity to delve into. So I wasn't sure I was going to like this book. But then my expectations were turned on their heads because strange goings-on start happening and the explanations are unraveling throughout the book. I enjoyed Sunny, Candie, and Minnie and the Now/Then chapters helped to put all of the pieces together. Some parts gave me chills! The cover is absolutely beautiful but also the naked hardcover is pink and has black end papers! A very aesthetically pleasing book!
]]> 123177094
The Future is a few billionaires leading the world to destruction while safeguarding their own survival with secret lavish bunkers.

The Future is private weather, technological prophecy and highly deniable weapons.

The Future is a handful of friends—the daughter of a cult leader, a non-binary hacker, an ousted Silicon Valley visionary, the concerned wife of a dangerous CEO, and an internet-famous survivalist—hatching a daring plan. It could be the greatest heist ever. Or the cataclysmic end of civilization.

The Future is what you see if you don’t look behind you.

The Future is the only reason to do anything, the only object of desire.

The Future is here.]]> 432 Naomi Alderman 1668025701 Elyse 4
I received a paperback and e-book ARC from Simon & Schuster and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.]]> 4.07 2023
author: Naomi Alderman
name: Elyse
average rating: 4.07
book published: 2023
rating: 4
read at: 2023/11/11
date added: 2023/12/08
shelves: acquired-2023, usa-publication-2023, free-simonbooks-buddy-arcs, genre-science-fic, personal-physical, netgalley-approved-2023, netgalley-challenge-2023, acquired-and-read-2023, ig-autumn-lower-the-library-2023, free-netgalley-arcs, gr-challenge-2023, lgbtqia, stars-4
review:
I liked this a LOT more than The Power. I remember just not really connecting to The Power and finding it having an agenda. I didn't feel the push of an agenda as much in this one. The forum chats were a bit meh and those were very hard to read in e-book form but I also had the paperback so I mostly read from that. Some parts got bogged down but overall, I enjoyed the "mystery" of the rabbit and the fox and where this lead. I will be checking out Alderman's next novel.

I received a paperback and e-book ARC from Simon & Schuster and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
]]> 122772050
Unsure of what he could have possibly done to catch the eye of the boy who could easily have anyone he wants, Jay isn't about to ignore the surprising but welcome attention. But as everything in his world begins to heat up, especially with Leroy, whispered rumors over the murder of a young Black journalist and long-brewing territory tensions hang like a dark cloud over his neighborhood. And when Jay and Leroy find themselves caught in the crossfire, Leroy isn't willing to be the reason Jay's life is at risk.

Dragged into the world of the Black Diamonds--whose work to protect the Black neighborhoods of Savannah began with his father and now falls to his older brother--Leroy knows that finding out who attacked his brother is not only the key to protecting everyone he loves but also the only way he can ever be with Jay. Wading through a murky history of family trauma and regret, Leroy soon dis-covers that there's no keeping Jay safe when Jay's own family is in just as deep and fighting the undertow of danger just as hard.

Now Jay and Leroy must puzzle through secrets hiding in plain sight and scramble to uncover who is determined to eliminate the Black Diamonds before someone else gets hurt--even if the cost might be their own electric connection.]]> 416 Keith F. Miller Jr. 0063264927 Elyse 4 Received Paperback ARC from Epic Reads.

Oof. This was intense.]]> 4.02 2023
author: Keith F. Miller Jr.
name: Elyse
average rating: 4.02
book published: 2023
rating: 4
read at: 2023/11/26
date added: 2023/11/27
shelves: acquired-2023, usa-publication-2023, books-i-won, lgbtqia, personal-physical, genre-age-young-adult, genre-contemporary, genre-romance, acquired-and-read-2023, gr-challenge-2023, series-started-2023, stars-4
review:
Received Paperback ARC from Epic Reads.

Oof. This was intense.
]]> 64223045 In the sequel to Tracy Andreen's debut romantic comedy So, This Is Christmas, we follow Finley and Arthur back to Barrington Academy for a swoony semester.

Perfect for fans of Tell Me Three Things and Anna and the French Kiss!

Finley and Arthur are back at boarding school and neither quite knows where the other stands—are they couple? Are they not a couple? What does one magical Christmas Eve kiss in Oklahoma mean for their relationship status? This confusion isn't helped by the re-entry of old enemies into their school lives, especially ones that may or may not be crushing on Arthur. Finley is at a loss when navigating the complexities of her new (maybe) relationship, which could very well turn into love. . . if she doesn't blow it.

So, This Is Love is a perfect read for the Valentine's Day season, or for anyone looking for a delightful romantic comedy that has just a dash of drama. Once again, Tracy Andreen has proven that no one writes a holiday rom-com like her.]]> 365 Tracy Andreen 0593525426 Elyse 4 3.92
author: Tracy Andreen
name: Elyse
average rating: 3.92
book published:
rating: 4
read at: 2023/11/21
date added: 2023/11/21
shelves: genre-contemporary, genre-romance, usa-publication-2022, genre-age-young-adult, acquired-2023, personal-ebooks, acquired-and-read-2023, gr-challenge-2023, ig-autumn-lower-the-library-2023, series-read-completely-2023, series-to-finish-2023, stars-4
review:

]]> 112982043 Murder by Degrees is a historical mystery set in 19th century Philadelphia, following a pioneering woman doctor as she investigates the disappearance of a young patient who is presumed dead.

Philadelphia, 1875: It is the start of term at Woman’s Medical College of Pennsylvania. Dr. Lydia Weston, professor and anatomist, is immersed in teaching her students in the lecture hall and hospital. When the body of a patient, Anna Ward, is dredged out of the Schuylkill River, the young chambermaid’s death is deemed a suicide. But Lydia is suspicious and she is soon brought into the police investigation.

Aided by a diary filled with cryptic passages of poetry, Lydia discovers more about the young woman she thought she knew. Through her skill at the autopsy table and her clinical acumen, Lydia draws nearer the truth. Soon a terrible secret, long hidden, will be revealed. But Lydia must act quickly, before she becomes the next target of those who wished to silence Anna.]]> 304 Ritu Mukerji Elyse 4
I received a paperback and e-book ARC from Simon & Schuster and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.]]> 3.96 2023
author: Ritu Mukerji
name: Elyse
average rating: 3.96
book published: 2023
rating: 4
read at: 2023/10/29
date added: 2023/11/14
shelves: netgalley-approved-2023, usa-publication-2023, free-netgalley-arcs, genre-historical-fic, genre-mystery, gr-challenge-2023, ig-autumn-lower-the-library-2023, netgalley-challenge-2023, stars-4, acquired-2023, acquired-and-read-2023, personal-physical, free-simonbooks-buddy-arcs
review:
I really enjoyed this debut! I wasn't sure where we were going to be in terms of location and time period so I just assumed it would be England because most historical fiction I've read has been England. It's not! It's Pennsylvania in 1875. A female doctor working at Woman's Medical College. I found it fascinating and I'm glad the author didn't shy away from the gruesome side of death and autopsies. I also really enjoyed the mystery! Looking forward to Mukerji's next book.

I received a paperback and e-book ARC from Simon & Schuster and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
]]> 62919843
Marisa and Jake are a perfect couple. And Kate, their new lodger, is the perfect roommate—and not just because her rent payments will give them the income they need to start trying for the baby of their dreams.

Except—no one is truly perfect. Sure, Kate doesn’t seem to care much about personal boundaries and can occasionally seem overly familiar with Jake. But Marisa doesn’t let it concern her, knowing that soon Kate will be gone, and it will just be her, Jake, and their future baby.

Conceiving a baby is easier said than done, though, and Jake and Marisa’s perfect relationship is put to the test through months of fertility treatments and false starts. To make matters worse, Kate’s boundary-pushing turns into an all-out obsession—with Jake, with Marisa, and with their future child. Who is this woman? Why does she seem to know everything about Marisa and Jake?

In her quest to find out who Kate really is, Marisa might destroy everything she’s worked so hard to create—her perfect romance, her perfect family, and her perfect self.

Jake doesn’t know the half of what Marisa has created—and what she stands to lose.

For fans of Gone Girl and The Perfect Nanny , Magpie is a “tense” ( The Guardian ), “gorgeous” (Lisa Taddeo, bestselling author of Three Women ), “completely, terrifyingly brilliant” (Marian Keyes, author of Grown Ups ) novel about mothers and children, envy and possession, and the dangers of getting everything you’ve ever dreamed of.]]> 336 Elizabeth Day 1982187611 Elyse 4
I received a paperback from Simon & Schuster in 2023 for the paperback release and and e-book ARC from NetGalley in 2022 in exchange for an honest review.]]> 3.45 2022
author: Elizabeth Day
name: Elyse
average rating: 3.45
book published: 2022
rating: 4
read at: 2023/08/12
date added: 2023/11/01
shelves: netgalley-approved-2022, usa-publication-2022, free-netgalley-arcs, genre-thriller, genre-mystery, gr-challenge-2023, ig-summer-shrink-the-shelf-2023, mount-tbr-2023, netgalley-challenge-2023, stars-4, acquired-2023, acquired-and-read-2023, free-simonbooks-buddy-arcs, personal-physical
review:
I would have not been able to read this when I got the e-ARC from NetGalley a year ago. But things can change in a year and things have. I'm in a completely different mindset than I was a year ago. So I was able to really enjoy this book! Day definitely tricks you and turns you on your head! Half the time I didn't know what to believe. But what fun that was!

I received a paperback from Simon & Schuster in 2023 for the paperback release and and e-book ARC from NetGalley in 2022 in exchange for an honest review.
]]> 61159541
The mysterious plague known as Aurora has blanketed the world, and, to the men, all but a handful of sleep-deprived women seem trapped--cocooned--in seemingly endless slumber. In reality, their minds have been transported to a strange, utopic dream world. It's a world where small-town sheriff Lila Norcross and the other women can build their own society. And from which they might not want to wake.

In the real world of Dooling, West Virginia, Lila's husband, beleaguered prison psychiatrist Clint Norcross, is struggling. He's trying to protect the woman called Eve Black from the ill-thought-out actions of increasingly desperate men. But Eve, as the only woman capable of waking up, has her own plans: a test with global consequences. A test Clint will have to pass if he ever hopes to see his wife again.]]> 128 Stephen King 1684058473 Elyse 4
Read during Dewey's 24-Hour Readathon!]]> 3.40
author: Stephen King
name: Elyse
average rating: 3.40
book published:
rating: 4
read at: 2023/10/21
date added: 2023/10/21
shelves: acquired-2023, comic-graphic-novel, genre-fantasy, genre-science-fic, personal-physical, stephen-king-and-family, usa-publication-2022, gr-challenge-2023, deweys-readathons-2023, kingtober-reads-2023, mount-tbr-2023, series-read-completely-2023, series-to-finish-2023, acquired-and-read-2023, genre-horror, stars-4
review:
Definitely felt rushed in terms of story because it was wrapped up in 2 volumes but the artwork was amazing, the colors vibrant.

Read during Dewey's 24-Hour Readathon!
]]> 55725741 A princess in exile, the boy she left at the altar, six enchanted cranes, and a dragon from the deepest sea.

Shiori, the only princess of Kiata, has a secret. Forbidden magic runs through her veins. Normally she conceals it well, but on the morning of her betrothal ceremony, Shiori loses control. At first, her mistake seems like a stroke of luck, forestalling the wedding she never wanted, but it also catches the attention of Raikama, her stepmother.

Raikama has dark magic of her own, and she banishes the young princess, turning her brothers into cranes, and warning Shiori that she must speak of it to no one: for with every word that escapes her lips, one of her brothers will die.

Peniless, voiceless, and alone, Shiori searches for her brothers, and, on her journey, uncovers a conspiracy to overtake the throne--a conspiracy more twisted and deceitful, more cunning and complex, than even Raikama's betrayal. Only Shiori can set the kingdom to rights, but to do so she must place her trust in the very boy she fought so hard not to marry. And she must embrace the magic she's been taught all her life to contain--no matter what it costs her.

From the author of Spin the Dawn comes a breathtakingly original fantasy inspired by East Asian folklore and perfect for fans of Leigh Bardugo or Tomi Adeyemi.]]> 456 Elizabeth Lim 0593300912 Elyse 4 4.20 2021
author: Elizabeth Lim
name: Elyse
average rating: 4.20
book published: 2021
rating: 4
read at: 2023/10/10
date added: 2023/10/10
shelves: acquired-2023, genre-age-young-adult, genre-fantasy, personal-physical, usa-publication-2021, acquired-and-read-2023, gr-challenge-2023, series-started-2023, series-to-finish-2023, retellings, stars-4
review:

]]> 60784641 From New York Times bestselling author Rachel Hawkins comes a deliciously wicked gothic suspense, set at an Italian villa with a dark history, for fans of Lucy Foley and Ruth Ware.

As kids, Emily and Chess were inseparable. But by their 30s, their bond has been strained by the demands of their adult lives. So when Chess suggests a girls trip to Italy, Emily jumps at the chance to reconnect with her best friend.

Villa Aestas in Orvieto is a high-end holiday home now, but in 1974, it was known as Villa Rosato, and rented for the summer by a notorious rock star, Noel Gordon. In an attempt to reignite his creative spark, Noel invites up-and-coming musician, Pierce Sheldon to join him, as well as Pierce’s girlfriend, Mari, and her stepsister, Lara. But he also sets in motion a chain of events that leads to Mari writing one of the greatest horror novels of all time, Lara composing a platinum album––and ends in Pierce’s brutal murder.

As Emily digs into the villa’s complicated history, she begins to think there might be more to the story of that fateful summer in 1974. That perhaps Pierce’s murder wasn’t just a tale of sex, drugs, and rock & roll gone wrong, but that something more sinister might have occurred––and that there might be clues hidden in the now-iconic works that Mari and Lara left behind.

Yet the closer that Emily gets to the truth, the more tension she feels developing between her and Chess. As secrets from the past come to light, equally dangerous betrayals from the present also emerge––and it begins to look like the villa will claim another victim before the summer ends.]]> 279 Rachel Hawkins 125028001X Elyse 3 3.59 2023
author: Rachel Hawkins
name: Elyse
average rating: 3.59
book published: 2023
rating: 3
read at: 2023/07/29
date added: 2023/09/30
shelves: usa-publication-2023, acquired-2023, genre-thriller, genre-mystery, personal-physical, acquired-and-read-2023, gr-challenge-2023, ig-summer-shrink-the-shelf-2023, stars-3
review:

]]> 138069545 From the New York Times bestselling author of the Brown Sisters trilogy, comes a laugh-out-loud story about a quirky content creator and a clean-cut athlete testing their abilities to survive the great outdoors--and each other.

Bradley Graeme is pretty much perfect. He's a star football player, manages his OCD well (enough), and comes out on top in all his classes . . . except the ones he shares with his ex-best friend, Celine.

Celine Bangura is conspiracy-theory-obsessed. Social media followers eat up her takes on everything from UFOs to holiday overconsumption--yet, she's still not cool enough for the popular kids' table. Which is why Brad abandoned her for the in-crowd years ago. (At least, that's how Celine sees it.)

These days, there's nothing between them other than petty insults and academic rivalry. So when Celine signs up for a survival course in the woods, she's surprised to find Brad right beside her.

Forced to work as a team for the chance to win a grand prize, these two teens must trudge through not just mud and dirt but their messy past. And as this adventure brings them closer together, they begin to remember the good bits of their history. But has too much time passed . . . or just enough to spark a whole new kind of relationship?]]> 319 Talia Hibbert 0349436975 Elyse 4 Cuuuuuuuute 3.62 2023
author: Talia Hibbert
name: Elyse
average rating: 3.62
book published: 2023
rating: 4
read at: 2023/09/21
date added: 2023/09/21
shelves: acquired-2023, usa-publication-2023, genre-contemporary, genre-romance, personal-physical, genre-age-young-adult, signed-books, special-editions, uk-editions, acquired-and-read-2023, gr-challenge-2023, stars-4
review:
Cuuuuuuuute
]]> 63876557
Moonlight Bay is a magical place—or it was once. After a tragic death mars the town, the pink and lavender waters in the bay turn gray, and the forest that was a refuge for newcomers becomes a scourge to the townspeople. Almost overnight, the entire town seems devoid of life and energy. The tourists have stopped coming. And the people in the town are struggling.

This includes the two teens at the heart of our Yasmine and Rafay. Yasmine is a child of the town, and her parents are trying and failing to make ends meet. Rafay is an immigrant, a child of Willow Forest. The forest of Moonlight Bay was where people from Rafay’s community relocated when their home was destroyed. Except Moonlight Bay is no longer a welcoming refuge, and tensions between the townspeople and his people are growing.

Yasmine and Rafay have been friends since Rafay first arrived, nearly ten years ago. As they've gotten older, their friendship has blossomed. Not that they would ever act on these feelings. The forest elders have long warned that falling in love with "outsiders" will lead to devastating consequences for anyone from Willow Forest. But is this actually true? Can Yasmine and Rafay find a way to be together despite it all?]]> 304 Aisha Saeed 0593326466 Elyse 3 Won Paperback ARC in BookishFirst.com Giveaway!

**Happy Pub Day!**

This book has a beautiful cover! The Golub tree in the middle, Yas on one side and Raf on the other side, the colors on each side different. It all means so much once you read the book. And the book? It had such an interesting premise, such a good setup. But it suffered from being YA, I guess? And being categorized as 'magical realism?' I feel like labeling books magical realism really hampers the story. It's fantasy, just let it be fantasy and give it another 200 pages! Forty Words for Love needed a lot more substance, it needed a lot more background, it needed a lot more world-building. It felt very incomplete and that was really disappointing. The story had so much potential but wasn't given enough pages/time. It really could have been better than a short, mediocre YA love story. I was far more interested in the Golub tree, the leaves branding the Golub people, the abilities of the tree and the brands, etc.]]> 3.38 2023
author: Aisha Saeed
name: Elyse
average rating: 3.38
book published: 2023
rating: 3
read at: 2023/08/20
date added: 2023/09/19
shelves: acquired-2023, usa-publication-2023, books-i-won, free-bookish-first-books, genre-age-young-adult, genre-romance, personal-physical, acquired-and-read-2023, ig-summer-shrink-the-shelf-2023, genre-fantasy, gr-challenge-2023
review:
Won Paperback ARC in BookishFirst.com Giveaway!

**Happy Pub Day!**

This book has a beautiful cover! The Golub tree in the middle, Yas on one side and Raf on the other side, the colors on each side different. It all means so much once you read the book. And the book? It had such an interesting premise, such a good setup. But it suffered from being YA, I guess? And being categorized as 'magical realism?' I feel like labeling books magical realism really hampers the story. It's fantasy, just let it be fantasy and give it another 200 pages! Forty Words for Love needed a lot more substance, it needed a lot more background, it needed a lot more world-building. It felt very incomplete and that was really disappointing. The story had so much potential but wasn't given enough pages/time. It really could have been better than a short, mediocre YA love story. I was far more interested in the Golub tree, the leaves branding the Golub people, the abilities of the tree and the brands, etc.
]]> 55689030 In this searing indictment of the juvenile justice system, one incarcerated teen weighs what she is willing to endure for forgiveness.

All it took was one night and one bad decision for fifteen-year-old Violetta Chen-Samuels’ life to go off the rails. After driving drunk and causing the accident that kills her little sister, Violetta is incarcerated. As a juvenile offender, her fate is in the hands of those she’s wronged—her family. With their forgiveness, she could go home. But without it? Well…

Denied their forgiveness, Violetta is now left with two options, neither good—remain in juvenile detention for an uncertain sentence or participate in the Trials, potentially regaining her freedom and what she wants most of all, her family’s love. But the Trials are no easy feat and in the quest to prove her remorse, Violetta is forced to confront not only her family’s pain, but her own—and the question of whether their forgiveness is more important than forgiving herself.]]> 400 Jennifer Baker 0593406842 Elyse 4 Won Paperback ARC in BookishFirst.com Giveaway!

**Happy Pub Day!**

If I were to classify it, I guess it would be dystopian so science fiction? I asked my husband if all books set in the future, even the near future, or an alternate present are considered science fiction and we weren't really sure?

In Forgive Me Not, if you are a minor and you commit a crime, any crime be it bullying straight up to murder (whether accidental or intentional), the victim and/or the victim's family are the ones who decide the offender's punishment. That...is pretty wild. I was deeply concerned with Letta's family and why they think she should be punished over an accident. Yes, the accident killed her 7-year-old sister (not a spoiler) but it was still an accident and she's only 15 years old. Seemed very extreme to me. And one of the choices was to put the offender through Trials to atone for their crimes. I would have liked more detail into all of the available Trials and more about the rest of the of the justice system set up in this book.

Overall, it was a good read and still showed the penchant for harsher punishments or punishments on general for Black or Brown people. It was a very interesting book!]]> 3.86 2023
author: Jennifer Baker
name: Elyse
average rating: 3.86
book published: 2023
rating: 4
read at: 2023/08/12
date added: 2023/09/17
shelves: usa-publication-2023, genre-age-young-adult, acquired-2023, books-i-won, free-bookish-first-books, personal-physical, acquired-and-read-2023, ig-summer-shrink-the-shelf-2023, lgbtqia, stars-4, gr-challenge-2023
review:
Won Paperback ARC in BookishFirst.com Giveaway!

**Happy Pub Day!**

If I were to classify it, I guess it would be dystopian so science fiction? I asked my husband if all books set in the future, even the near future, or an alternate present are considered science fiction and we weren't really sure?

In Forgive Me Not, if you are a minor and you commit a crime, any crime be it bullying straight up to murder (whether accidental or intentional), the victim and/or the victim's family are the ones who decide the offender's punishment. That...is pretty wild. I was deeply concerned with Letta's family and why they think she should be punished over an accident. Yes, the accident killed her 7-year-old sister (not a spoiler) but it was still an accident and she's only 15 years old. Seemed very extreme to me. And one of the choices was to put the offender through Trials to atone for their crimes. I would have liked more detail into all of the available Trials and more about the rest of the of the justice system set up in this book.

Overall, it was a good read and still showed the penchant for harsher punishments or punishments on general for Black or Brown people. It was a very interesting book!
]]> 62052292 "A story of pain, injustice, love, resistance, and hope, this glorious book will lodge inside you and make you feel everything.” —Helena Fox, award-winning author of How It Feels to Float

A queer, YA Handmaid’s Tale meets Never Let Me Go about a dystopian society bent on relentless conformity, and the struggle of one girl to save herself and those she loves from a life of lies

Everyone hopes for a letter—to attend the Estuary, the Glades, the Meadows. These are the special places where only the best and brightest go to burn even brighter.

When Eleanor is accepted at the Meadows, it means escape from her hardscrabble life by the sea, in a country ravaged by climate disaster. But despite its luminous facilities, endless fields, and pretty things, the Meadows keeps dark secrets: its purpose is to reform students, to condition them against their attractions, to show them that one way of life is the only way to survive. And maybe Eleanor would believe them, except then she meets Rose.

Four years later, Eleanor and her friends seem free of the Meadows, changed but not as they’d hoped. Eleanor is an adjudicator, her job to ensure her former classmates don’t stray from the lives they’ve been trained to live. But Eleanor can’t escape her past . . . or thoughts of the girl she once loved. As secrets unfurl, Eleanor must wage a dangerous battle for her own identity and the truth of what happened to the girl she lost, knowing, if she’s not careful, Rose’s fate could be her own.

A raw and timely masterwork of speculative fiction, The Meadows will sink its roots into you. This is a novel for our times and for always—not to be missed.

"Evocative prose and worldbuilding shot through with equal parts melancholy and hope" —PW (starred review)
“Timely and gripping, [with] a new revelation always around the corner” —Kirkus Reviews
"Atmospheric and unsettling . . . Belongs in every collection" —Natalie C. Parker, author of the Seafire series
“Extraordinary” —Helena Fox, author of How It Feels to Float]]> 448 Stephanie Oakes 0593111486 Elyse 4 Won Paperback ARC in BookishFirst.com Giveaway!

This was my first Stephanie Oakes book and I was not expecting a dystopian book where life Before and life After are so different. Where life Before is life as we know it today (mostly), and life After is life where women are again treated as second-class citizens with far less rights than we have today. The "Turn" is when nature supposedly took back and righted itself. We don't learn much about the Turn, except that races, genders, and sexualities were deemed "against nature" and those are what supposedly caused upheaval (I assume flooding, starvation, climate change, etc etc, all the bad things essentially), per the Quorum, a nameless and faceless group of men.

We get to know Eleanor, a thirteen-year-old living with her adoptive mother in a rundown place called the Cove. She receives a letter inviting her to attend the Meadows, a school for the country's "best and brightest." She will attend for four years, then be introduced into society to meet a husband and fulfill her obligation to be a mother and housewife. But Eleanor knows there is something different about herself, though she has no words for it. She likes girls. But the algorithm has chosen her to attend the Meadows and off she goes to learn how to be a proper lady.

We watch Eleanor navigate two timeframes, while she is attending the Meadows and a year after she is released (graduated?) and is working as an adjudicator, checking up on fellow facility attendees who needed to be "reformed" and how they are getting along.

The book starts off pretty slow but once I hit about page 150, I was invested in Eleanor's past and present and wondering what exactly is going on in this society. I really enjoyed the book and where it went, what it had to say, how not very far we are in real life from this dystopia...]]> 4.06 2023
author: Stephanie Oakes
name: Elyse
average rating: 4.06
book published: 2023
rating: 4
read at: 2023/09/17
date added: 2023/09/17
shelves: acquired-2023, usa-publication-2023, books-i-won, free-bookish-first-books, genre-age-young-adult, personal-physical, lgbtqia, acquired-and-read-2023, gr-challenge-2023, genre-science-fic, stars-4
review:
Won Paperback ARC in BookishFirst.com Giveaway!

This was my first Stephanie Oakes book and I was not expecting a dystopian book where life Before and life After are so different. Where life Before is life as we know it today (mostly), and life After is life where women are again treated as second-class citizens with far less rights than we have today. The "Turn" is when nature supposedly took back and righted itself. We don't learn much about the Turn, except that races, genders, and sexualities were deemed "against nature" and those are what supposedly caused upheaval (I assume flooding, starvation, climate change, etc etc, all the bad things essentially), per the Quorum, a nameless and faceless group of men.

We get to know Eleanor, a thirteen-year-old living with her adoptive mother in a rundown place called the Cove. She receives a letter inviting her to attend the Meadows, a school for the country's "best and brightest." She will attend for four years, then be introduced into society to meet a husband and fulfill her obligation to be a mother and housewife. But Eleanor knows there is something different about herself, though she has no words for it. She likes girls. But the algorithm has chosen her to attend the Meadows and off she goes to learn how to be a proper lady.

We watch Eleanor navigate two timeframes, while she is attending the Meadows and a year after she is released (graduated?) and is working as an adjudicator, checking up on fellow facility attendees who needed to be "reformed" and how they are getting along.

The book starts off pretty slow but once I hit about page 150, I was invested in Eleanor's past and present and wondering what exactly is going on in this society. I really enjoyed the book and where it went, what it had to say, how not very far we are in real life from this dystopia...
]]> 63233607
" The Marvellers deserves the highest compliment I can give a I want to live in this world." ―Rick Riordan, #1 New York Times bestselling–author

Eleven-year-old Ella Durand is the first Conjuror to attend the Arcanum Training Institute, a magic school in the clouds where Marvellers from around the world practice their cultural arts, like brewing Indian spice elixirs and bartering with pesky Irish pixies.

Despite her excitement, Ella discovers that being the first isn’t easy―some Marvellers mistrust her magic, which they deem “bad and unnatural.” But eventually, she finds friends in elixirs teacher, Masterji Thakur, and fellow misfits Brigit, a girl who hates magic, and Jason, a boy with a fondness for magical creatures.

When a dangerous criminal known as the Ace of Anarchy escapes prison, supposedly with a Conjuror’s aid, tensions grow in the Marvellian world and Ella becomes the target of suspicion. Worse, Masterji Thakur mysteriously disappears while away on a research trip. With the help of her friends and her own growing powers, Ella must find a way to clear her family’s name and track down her mentor before it’s too late.

"A marvelous gift of a novel! With fantastical twists at every turn, Clayton has created a world that readers won't want to leave.” ―Angie Thomas, #1 New York Times -bestselling author of The Hate U Give and Concrete Rose]]> 432 Dhonielle Clayton 1250878845 Elyse 4 Won Paperback in BookishFirst.com Giveaway!

I was a bit scared to read this book. From the offset, I thought it would be some sort of Black girl magic HP knockoff. But I was also was hoping so much that it would be more than that! I haven't read much Dhonielle Clayton, just her first middle grade Shattered Midnight, part of a series where each book is written by a different author, which I enjoyed, and The Rumor Game which I did not enjoy at all. So this was really anyone's game. Well! I was so very pleasantly surprised! Just because it's about a school of magic does not mean it's like HP. Clayton did really well at making the Arcanum and the Marvellers entirely her own. I loved the two types of magical people, Marvellers and Conjurors and how there was something amiss between them that was teased out throughout the book. I liked the bad person and liked the snippets in between chapters of their POV and also mixed media to show what was happening outside the Arcanum. I adored Ella and her family so much! I will definitely be continuing this series.]]> 4.06 2022
author: Dhonielle Clayton
name: Elyse
average rating: 4.06
book published: 2022
rating: 4
read at: 2023/09/03
date added: 2023/09/17
shelves: acquired-2023, usa-publication-2023, books-i-won, free-bookish-first-books, genre-age-middle-grade, genre-fantasy, personal-physical, acquired-and-read-2023, series-started-2023, stars-4, gr-challenge-2023
review:
Won Paperback in BookishFirst.com Giveaway!

I was a bit scared to read this book. From the offset, I thought it would be some sort of Black girl magic HP knockoff. But I was also was hoping so much that it would be more than that! I haven't read much Dhonielle Clayton, just her first middle grade Shattered Midnight, part of a series where each book is written by a different author, which I enjoyed, and The Rumor Game which I did not enjoy at all. So this was really anyone's game. Well! I was so very pleasantly surprised! Just because it's about a school of magic does not mean it's like HP. Clayton did really well at making the Arcanum and the Marvellers entirely her own. I loved the two types of magical people, Marvellers and Conjurors and how there was something amiss between them that was teased out throughout the book. I liked the bad person and liked the snippets in between chapters of their POV and also mixed media to show what was happening outside the Arcanum. I adored Ella and her family so much! I will definitely be continuing this series.
]]> 53183549 Shannon Chakraborty, the bestselling author of The City of Brass, spins a new trilogy of magic and mayhem on the high seas in this tale of pirates and sorcerers, forbidden artifacts and ancient mysteries, in one woman’s determined quest to seize a final chance at glory—and write her own legend.

Amina al-Sirafi should be content. After a storied and scandalous career as one of the Indian Ocean’s most notorious pirates, she’s survived backstabbing rogues, vengeful merchant princes, several husbands, and one actual demon to retire peacefully with her family to a life of piety, motherhood, and absolutely nothing that hints of the supernatural.

But when she’s tracked down by the obscenely wealthy mother of a former crewman, she’s offered a job no bandit could refuse: retrieve her comrade’s kidnapped daughter for a kingly sum. The chance to have one last adventure with her crew, do right by an old friend, and win a fortune that will secure her family’s future forever? It seems like such an obvious choice that it must be God’s will.

Yet the deeper Amina dives, the more it becomes alarmingly clear there’s more to this job, and the girl’s disappearance, than she was led to believe. For there’s always risk in wanting to become a legend, to seize one last chance at glory, to savor just a bit more power…and the price might be your very soul.]]> 496 Shannon Chakraborty 0008381348 Elyse 0 4.26 2023
author: Shannon Chakraborty
name: Elyse
average rating: 4.26
book published: 2023
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2023/09/12
shelves: acquired-2023, usa-publication-2023, genre-fantasy, personal-physical, uk-editions, duplicates, signed-books, acquired-and-read-2023
review:

]]> 59366737
“DO NOT MISS THIS BOOK. Authentically terrifying.” —Stephen King on Sundial

In a lonely cottage overlooking the windswept Maine coast, Wilder Harlow begins the last book he will ever write. It is the story of a sun-drenched summer of his youth, and of the killer that stalked the small New England town. And of the terrible tragedy that forever bonded him with his friends Nat and Harper in unknowable ways.

Decades later, Wilder returns to the town in an attempt to recount that summer's events in his memoirs. But as he writes, Wilder begins to fear his grip on the truth is fading ... and that the book may be writing itself.

Looking Glass Sound is a book about the stories that shape us, and how easily they can escape us, in the vein of Stephen King's Stand By Me.

At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.]]> 345 Catriona Ward 1250860032 Elyse 2 NetGalley ARC.

Nope. Did not enjoy. I really liked The Last House on Needless Street and its twists, I skipped Sundial due to animal cruelty on the page, I've heard not great things about Little Eve. But the twists in this book were just dumb. Sorrynotsorry. It started out interesting enough but got too weird and confusing and I just didn't jive with it.]]> 3.51 2023
author: Catriona Ward
name: Elyse
average rating: 3.51
book published: 2023
rating: 2
read at: 2023/08/31
date added: 2023/09/12
shelves: netgalley-approved-2023, usa-publication-2023, free-netgalley-arcs, genre-horror, acquired-2023, acquired-and-read-2023, buddy-reads-2023, gr-challenge-2023, ig-summer-shrink-the-shelf-2023, netgalley-challenge-2023, genre-historical-fic, lgbtqia, stars-2, no-longer-own
review:
NetGalley ARC.

Nope. Did not enjoy. I really liked The Last House on Needless Street and its twists, I skipped Sundial due to animal cruelty on the page, I've heard not great things about Little Eve. But the twists in this book were just dumb. Sorrynotsorry. It started out interesting enough but got too weird and confusing and I just didn't jive with it.
]]> 61157639
Now, true crime author Amanda Bailey is looking to revive her career by writing a book on the case. The Alperton baby has turned eighteen; finding them will be the scoop of the year. But rival author Oliver Menzies is just as smart, better connected, and also on the baby’s trail.

As Amanda and Oliver are forced to collaborate, they realize that the truth about the Angels is much darker and stranger than they’d ever imagined, and in pursuit of the story they risk becoming part of it.]]> 416 Janice Hallett 1800810407 Elyse 0 3.90 2023
author: Janice Hallett
name: Elyse
average rating: 3.90
book published: 2023
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2023/09/07
shelves: duplicates, acquired-2023, acquired-and-read-2023, usa-publication-2024, genre-mystery, personal-physical, signed-books, uk-editions, genre-contemporary
review:

]]> 61150759
Once upon a time, a man who believed in fairy tales married a beautiful, mysterious woman named Indigo Maxwell-Casteñada. He was a scholar of myths. She was heiress to a fortune. They exchanged gifts and stories and believed they would live happily ever after—and in exchange for her love, Indigo extracted a promise: that her bridegroom would never pry into her past.

But when Indigo learns that her estranged aunt is dying and the couple is forced to return to her childhood home, the House of Dreams, the bridegroom will soon find himself unable to resist. For within the crumbling manor’s extravagant rooms and musty halls, there lurks the shadow of another girl: Azure, Indigo’s dearest childhood friend who suddenly disappeared. As the house slowly reveals his wife’s secrets, the bridegroom will be forced to choose between reality and fantasy, even if doing so threatens to destroy their marriage . . . or their lives.

Combining the lush, haunting atmosphere of Mexican Gothic with the dreamy enchantment of The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue, The Last Tale of the Flower Bride is a spellbinding and darkly romantic page-turner about love and lies, secrets and betrayal, and the stories we tell ourselves to survive.]]> 289 Roshani Chokshi Elyse 3 3.67 2023
author: Roshani Chokshi
name: Elyse
average rating: 3.67
book published: 2023
rating: 3
read at: 2023/08/31
date added: 2023/09/03
shelves: acquired-2023, usa-publication-2023, genre-fantasy, personal-physical, special-editions, signed-books, acquired-and-read-2023, gr-challenge-2023, ig-summer-shrink-the-shelf-2023, genre-horror, stars-3
review:
It started out feeling like Rebecca and then it lost me. *sob*
]]> 60784572 On the road to love, you don't need a GPS...

Carla Black’s life motto is “here for a good time, not for a long time.” She’s been travelling the world on her own in her vintage Jeep Wrangler for nearly a decade, stopping only long enough to replenish her adventure fund. She doesn’t do love and she doesn’t ever go home.

Eamon Sullivan is a modern-day cartographer who creates digital maps. His work helps people find their way, but he’s the one who’s lost his sense of direction. He’s unhappy at work, recently dumped, and his one big dream is stalled out—literally.

Fate throws them together when Carla arrives in Dublin for her best friend’s wedding and Eamon is tasked with picking her up from the airport. But what should be a simple drive across Ireland quickly becomes complicated with chemistry-filled detours, unexpected feelings, and a chance at love - if only they choose it.]]> 272 Trish Doller 1250809495 Elyse 0 3.72 2023
author: Trish Doller
name: Elyse
average rating: 3.72
book published: 2023
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2023/09/01
shelves: duplicates, acquired-2023, personal-physical, signed-books, acquired-and-read-2023
review:

]]> 52346471
After Daunis witnesses a shocking murder that thrusts her into a criminal investigation, she agrees to go undercover. But the deceptions—and deaths—keep piling up and soon the threat strikes too close to home. How far will she go to protect her community if it means tearing apart the only world she’s ever known?]]> 496 Angeline Boulley Elyse 0 4.31 2021
author: Angeline Boulley
name: Elyse
average rating: 4.31
book published: 2021
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2023/08/16
shelves: duplicates, acquired-2023, personal-physical, acquired-and-read-2023
review:

]]> 62296512 A swoony, heart-melting YA romance from beloved author Rebekah Weatherspoon about two awkward teens who decide to practice dating in order to be good at the real thing.
Perfect for fans of Nicola Yoon and Jenny Han.

Sixteen-year-old Bethany Greene, though confident and self-assured, is what they call a late-bloomer. She's never had a boyfriend, date, or first kiss. She's determined to change that but after her crush turns her down cold for Homecoming--declaring her too inexperienced--and all her back-up ideas fall through, she cautiously agrees to go with her best friend's boyfriend Jacob. A platonic date is better than no date, right? Until Saylor breaks up with said boyfriend.

Dumped twice in just two months, Jacob Yeun wonders if he's the problem. After years hiding behind his camera and a shocking summer glow up, he wasn't quite ready for all the attention or to be someone's boyfriend. There are no guides for his particular circumstances, or for taking your ex's best friend to the dance.

Why not make the best of an awkward situation? Bethany and Jacob decide to fake date for practice, building their confidence in matters of the heart.

And it works--guys are finally noticing Bethany. But things get complicated as their kissing sessions--for research of course!--start to feel real. This arrangement was supposed to help them in dating other people, but what if their perfect match is right in front of them?]]> 304 Rebekah Weatherspoon 059346530X Elyse 4 Won Paperback ARC in BookishFirst.com Giveaway!

**Happy Pub Day!**

So fun, so sweet. Fat positive, enby positive, race positive, gay positive, even parenting positive! If you love teenage fake dating, this is where it's at.

Bethany is a teenager with a dream. That dream is not basketball. Even though she is amazing at it. And her moms and sisters are all basketball legends or soon-to-be legends. Bethany wants to cook. But how do you tell basketball die-hards that you don't want to play ball?

That's just one aspect of this book. Another is that Bethany is known as "Cry-Baby Bethany" from a silly little incident freshman year that has carried through to junior year. But Bethany has discovered boys (and sex) aren't as icky as she thought and she's ready to discover more!

A plan is concocted between Bethany and twice-dumped-in-two-months quiet boy Jacob Yeun. A plan to figure how to be good girlfriends and boyfriends for other people. What could go wrong?

I laughed, I yelled, I cried. This was such a sweet YA romcom. The side characters were fun and enjoyable. This was my first Rebekah Weatherspoon novel but it surely won't be my last.]]> 4.00 2023
author: Rebekah Weatherspoon
name: Elyse
average rating: 4.00
book published: 2023
rating: 4
read at: 2023/05/21
date added: 2023/08/16
shelves: acquired-2023, usa-publication-2023, books-i-won, free-bookish-first-books, genre-contemporary, genre-age-young-adult, genre-romance, acquired-and-read-2023, gr-challenge-2023, stars-4, lgbtqia, no-longer-own
review:
Won Paperback ARC in BookishFirst.com Giveaway!

**Happy Pub Day!**

So fun, so sweet. Fat positive, enby positive, race positive, gay positive, even parenting positive! If you love teenage fake dating, this is where it's at.

Bethany is a teenager with a dream. That dream is not basketball. Even though she is amazing at it. And her moms and sisters are all basketball legends or soon-to-be legends. Bethany wants to cook. But how do you tell basketball die-hards that you don't want to play ball?

That's just one aspect of this book. Another is that Bethany is known as "Cry-Baby Bethany" from a silly little incident freshman year that has carried through to junior year. But Bethany has discovered boys (and sex) aren't as icky as she thought and she's ready to discover more!

A plan is concocted between Bethany and twice-dumped-in-two-months quiet boy Jacob Yeun. A plan to figure how to be good girlfriends and boyfriends for other people. What could go wrong?

I laughed, I yelled, I cried. This was such a sweet YA romcom. The side characters were fun and enjoyable. This was my first Rebekah Weatherspoon novel but it surely won't be my last.
]]> 128624877
Lara is convicted of thirty-two felonies and becomes inmate S32179. She learns jail is a class system with a power structure somewhere between an adolescent sleepover party and Lord of the Flies. Furniture is made from tampon boxes, and Snickers bars are currency. But Lara quickly finds the rules and brings love and healing to her fellow inmates as she climbs the social ladder to become the “shot caller,” showing that jailhouse politics aren’t that different from the PTA meetings she used to attend.

When she’s released, she reinvents herself as a ghostwriter. Now, she’s legally co-opting other people’s identities and getting to meet Oprah, meditate with The Dalai Lama, and have dinner with Archbishop Desmond Tutu. But the shadow of her past follows her. Shame is a poison worse than heroin—there is no way to detox. She must learn to forgive herself and others, navigate life as a felon on probation, prove to herself that she is more good than bad, and much more.]]> 320 Lara Love Hardin Elyse 3 Orange Is the New Black. It's been a minute since I read OITNB but white woman incarcerated, do we really need another one? I'd rather hear from women of color who have it a hell of a lot harder than a "model" mom turned drug addict who got caught but then learned from it and turned her life around (eventually). I had the same comments about OITNB, where I was expecting a grittier story and was kind of disappointed. Oops. Sorry fellow white woman. DJ was an idiot and utter trash and you were an idiot to keep going back to him and thinking he would save you (or his mommy). The whole thing was his fault and yet you kept falling for his tricks. I'm glad she turned herself around but being/turning into this white woman savior to incarcerated women of color was just blech.

I received a paperback and e-book ARC from Simon & Schuster and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.]]> 4.44 2023
author: Lara Love Hardin
name: Elyse
average rating: 4.44
book published: 2023
rating: 3
read at: 2023/08/06
date added: 2023/08/07
shelves: acquired-2023, usa-publication-2023, genre-non-fic, personal-physical, free-simonbooks-buddy-arcs, acquired-and-read-2023, gr-challenge-2023, ig-summer-shrink-the-shelf-2023, netgalley-approved-2023, netgalley-challenge-2023, free-netgalley-arcs, stars-3
review:
Having just finished a very harrowing, graphic fictional account of a man who was sex trafficked and abused (among other things) as a teenager, I was expecting this book to be a lot harsher than it was. It's basically Orange Is the New Black. It's been a minute since I read OITNB but white woman incarcerated, do we really need another one? I'd rather hear from women of color who have it a hell of a lot harder than a "model" mom turned drug addict who got caught but then learned from it and turned her life around (eventually). I had the same comments about OITNB, where I was expecting a grittier story and was kind of disappointed. Oops. Sorry fellow white woman. DJ was an idiot and utter trash and you were an idiot to keep going back to him and thinking he would save you (or his mommy). The whole thing was his fault and yet you kept falling for his tricks. I'm glad she turned herself around but being/turning into this white woman savior to incarcerated women of color was just blech.

I received a paperback and e-book ARC from Simon & Schuster and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
]]> 62919373 A fearless debut novel of resilience, transcendence, and the elusive promise of justice.

Growing up in suburban New York, Dylan lived through the unfathomable: three years as a victim of sex trafficking at the hands of Vincent, a troubled young man who promised to marry Dylan when he turned eighteen. Years later—long after a police investigation that went nowhere, and after the statute of limitations for the crimes perpetrated against him have run out—the long shadow of Dylan’s trauma still looms over the fragile life in the city he’s managed to build with his fiancé, Moans, who knows little of Dylan’s past. His continued existence depends upon an all-important mantra: To survive, you live through it, but never look back.

Then a groundbreaking new law—the Child Victims Act—opens a new way forward: a one-year window during which Dylan can sue his abusers. But for someone who was trafficked as a child, does money represent justice—does his pain have a price? As Dylan is forced to look back at what happened to him and try to make sense of his past, he begins to explore a drug and sex-fueled world of bathhouses, clubs, and strangers’ apartments, only to emerge, barely alive, with a new clarity of purpose: a righteous determination to gaze, unflinching, upon the brutal men whose faces have haunted him for a decade, and to extract justice on his own terms.

By turns harrowing, lyrical, and beautiful, Hertz’s debut offers a startling glimpse at the unraveling of trauma—and the light that peeks, faintly, and often in surprising ways, from the other side of the window.]]> 288 Kyle Dillon Hertz 1668005875 Elyse 4
I received a paperback and e-book ARC from Simon & Schuster and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.]]> 3.71 2023
author: Kyle Dillon Hertz
name: Elyse
average rating: 3.71
book published: 2023
rating: 4
read at: 2023/08/03
date added: 2023/08/07
shelves: acquired-2023, usa-publication-2023, personal-physical, free-simonbooks-buddy-arcs, acquired-and-read-2023, gr-challenge-2023, ig-summer-shrink-the-shelf-2023, netgalley-approved-2023, netgalley-challenge-2023, free-netgalley-arcs, genre-general-fic, lgbtqia, stars-4
review:
How do you rate and review a book that was terrible? Terrible in the that this book broke me and I never want to read it again. If you have had or are close to someone who has had any sort of childhood trauma (rape, assault, torture, abuse, drugs, sex trafficking), you will not want to read this. It was graphic (underage and adult sexual situations) and upsetting and it hurt my heart. And to know that the author wrote this based on his own similar experiences, it just...it's unimaginable. Horrifying. I need a Disney movie and a rom com stat. The author did what he set out to do, what any author sets out to do, make the reader feel something. I could not relate to a word of this book and I will feel it for a long time. I just didn't like one thing that's a spoiler - [spoilers removed] And I know that's not really what this book is about, it's about Dylan and his growth and bravery and facing his trauma and putting it in the past, but as an outside observer, I wanted, no needed, something to happen that didn't. But is also a reality for many abused children.

I received a paperback and e-book ARC from Simon & Schuster and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
]]> 188711280 Public radio co-hosts navigate mixed signals in Rachel Lynn Solomon's sparkling romantic comedy debut.

Shay Goldstein has been a producer at her Seattle public radio station for nearly a decade, and she can't imagine working anywhere else. But lately it's been a constant clash between her and her newest colleague, Dominic Yun, who's fresh off a journalism master's program and convinced he knows everything about public radio.

When the struggling station needs a new concept, Shay proposes a show that her boss green-lights with excitement. On The Ex Talk, two exes will deliver relationship advice live, on air. Their boss decides Shay and Dominic are the perfect co-hosts, given how much they already despise each other. Neither loves the idea of lying to listeners, but it's this or unemployment. Their audience gets invested fast, and it's not long before The Ex Talk becomes a must-listen in Seattle and climbs podcast charts.

As the show gets bigger, so does their deception, especially when Shay and Dominic start to fall for each other. In an industry that values truth, getting caught could mean the end of more than just their careers.]]> 338 Rachel Lynn Solomon 1405956402 Elyse 4 3.90 2021
author: Rachel Lynn Solomon
name: Elyse
average rating: 3.90
book published: 2021
rating: 4
read at: 2023/08/03
date added: 2023/08/03
shelves: acquired-2023, genre-romance, personal-physical, special-editions, signed-books, usa-publication-2021, genre-contemporary, acquired-and-read-2023, gr-challenge-2023, ig-summer-shrink-the-shelf-2023, stars-4
review:
Thankfully this was much better and cuter than Weather Girl and I liked that fact that no condom and no birth control actually meant no penetration. Yes, there are other things to do and they can be just as satisfying and hot! That was refreshing to read.
]]> 188701648 A TV meteorologist and a sports reporter scheme to reunite their divorced bosses with unforecasted results in this charming romantic comedy from the author of The Ex Talk.

Ari Abrams has always been fascinated by the weather, and she loves almost everything about her job as a TV meteorologist. Her boss, legendary Seattle weatherwoman Torrance Hale, is too distracted by her tempestuous relationship with her ex-husband, the station’s news director, to give Ari the mentorship she wants. Ari, who runs on sunshine and optimism, is at her wits’ end. The only person who seems to understand how she feels is sweet but reserved sports reporter Russell Barringer.

In the aftermath of a disastrous holiday party, Ari and Russell decide to team up to solve their bosses’ relationship issues. Between secret gifts and double dates, they start nudging their bosses back together. But their well-meaning meddling backfires when the real chemistry builds between Ari and Russell.

Working closely with Russell means allowing him to get to know parts of herself that Ari keeps hidden from everyone. Will he be able to embrace her dark clouds as well as her clear skies?]]> 334 Rachel Lynn Solomon 1405956410 Elyse 3 2.5 stars.

Wtf. It's so grossly out of bounds to matchmake your bosses. Crosses so many lines. [spoilers removed] So incredibly unprofessional especially when none of these characters are even friends outside of work. I love precocious book children so thankfully Cassie, Orion, and Elodie saved the day. Fat MMC was a nice surprise and also aftermath of teenage pregnancy.]]> 3.73 2022
author: Rachel Lynn Solomon
name: Elyse
average rating: 3.73
book published: 2022
rating: 3
read at: 2023/08/02
date added: 2023/08/02
shelves: genre-contemporary, genre-romance, usa-publication-2022, acquired-2023, personal-physical, signed-books, special-editions, acquired-and-read-2023, gr-challenge-2023, ig-summer-shrink-the-shelf-2023
review:
2.5 stars.

Wtf. It's so grossly out of bounds to matchmake your bosses. Crosses so many lines. [spoilers removed] So incredibly unprofessional especially when none of these characters are even friends outside of work. I love precocious book children so thankfully Cassie, Orion, and Elodie saved the day. Fat MMC was a nice surprise and also aftermath of teenage pregnancy.
]]> 54776522 From the author of The Witch Boy trilogy comes a graphic novel about family, romance, and first love.

Fifteen-year-old Morgan has a secret: She can't wait to escape the perfect little island where she lives. She's desperate to finish high school and escape her sad divorced mom, her volatile little brother, and worst of all, her great group of friends...who don't understand Morgan at all. Because really, Morgan's biggest secret is that she has a lot of secrets, including the one about wanting to kiss another girl.

Then one night, Morgan is saved from drowning by a mysterious girl named Keltie. The two become friends and suddenly life on the island doesn't seem so stifling anymore.

But Keltie has some secrets of her own. And as the girls start to fall in love, everything they're each trying to hide will find its way to the surface...whether Morgan is ready or not.]]> 247 Molly Knox Ostertag 1338540572 Elyse 5 4.21 2021
author: Molly Knox Ostertag
name: Elyse
average rating: 4.21
book published: 2021
rating: 5
read at: 2023/07/13
date added: 2023/07/20
shelves: usa-publication-2021, comic-graphic-novel, lgbtqia, acquired-2023, genre-age-young-adult, genre-fantasy, personal-physical, genre-romance, acquired-and-read-2023, gr-challenge-2023, ig-summer-shrink-the-shelf-2023, canadian-challenge-23-24, stars-5, retellings
review:
A sweet, adorable first crush/love coming into yourself graphic novel. Loved it!
]]> 39073365 320 Colleen A.F. Venable 159643709X Elyse 3 3.99 2019
author: Colleen A.F. Venable
name: Elyse
average rating: 3.99
book published: 2019
rating: 3
read at: 2023/07/16
date added: 2023/07/16
shelves: comic-graphic-novel, usa-publication-2019, acquired-2023, genre-age-young-adult, genre-contemporary, genre-romance, lgbtqia, personal-physical, acquired-and-read-2023, gr-challenge-2023, ig-summer-shrink-the-shelf-2023, stars-3
review:

]]> 62584265
Now he’s trading parties and beach days for community service at a seaside conservation center—fair enough. But thanks to his new reputation, the cute intern, Chip, won’t even give him a shot. Still, Zack finds himself falling for Chip between dolphin encounters and shark costume disasters, which means he suddenly has way more on the line than he ever expected.

Zack may be good at winning on the field, but can he keep up the lie without losing himself? 

 ]]> 352 Robby Weber 1335453644 Elyse 4 Won Finished Hardcover in BookishFirst.com Giveaway!

This was a sweet young adult contemporary gay novel about a teenage boy who has a lot on his plate. Becoming a senior, hopefully becoming soccer captain, falling in love, fighting with friends, it's all very nostalgic. I don't miss it! Ha. Zack seems to have it all so when the former soccer captain, and Zack's idol, Ryan, asks him to lie for him, Zack "takes one for the team" and bears the prank on his shoulders instead of his friend, Meyers's shoulders like Ryan suggested. What comes of that is community service at a marine research center, a cute new crush who happens to be Ryan's cousin and hates soccer, a fallout when he's honest with one friend over another, and more. I think Zack learns a lot over the course of the book and definitely starts growing into his adult self. He finally starts seeing people for who they really are instead of who they pretend to be and he finds some new friends along the way. A great sophomore novel. Now I have to go read Weber's debut!]]> 3.61 2023
author: Robby Weber
name: Elyse
average rating: 3.61
book published: 2023
rating: 4
read at: 2023/05/09
date added: 2023/07/04
shelves: acquired-2023, usa-publication-2023, books-i-won, free-bookish-first-books, genre-age-young-adult, genre-contemporary, genre-romance, lgbtqia, gr-challenge-2023, stars-4, no-longer-own, acquired-and-read-2023
review:
Won Finished Hardcover in BookishFirst.com Giveaway!

This was a sweet young adult contemporary gay novel about a teenage boy who has a lot on his plate. Becoming a senior, hopefully becoming soccer captain, falling in love, fighting with friends, it's all very nostalgic. I don't miss it! Ha. Zack seems to have it all so when the former soccer captain, and Zack's idol, Ryan, asks him to lie for him, Zack "takes one for the team" and bears the prank on his shoulders instead of his friend, Meyers's shoulders like Ryan suggested. What comes of that is community service at a marine research center, a cute new crush who happens to be Ryan's cousin and hates soccer, a fallout when he's honest with one friend over another, and more. I think Zack learns a lot over the course of the book and definitely starts growing into his adult self. He finally starts seeing people for who they really are instead of who they pretend to be and he finds some new friends along the way. A great sophomore novel. Now I have to go read Weber's debut!
]]> 55870275 "Gory and campy horror, perfect for the Halloween season."

-Kirkus Reviews




The #murder and mayhem continue in this prequel companion novel to the grisly, campy social media insanity that is #MurderTrending and #MurderFunding. Gretchen McNeil brings her signature wit and merciless kills to this gruesome yet hilarious, wildly topical young adult novel.




Escape rooms are all fun and games...until the contestants start dying gruesome deaths.




Seventeen-year-old Persey feels worthless much of the time. Her parents prefer her smarter, more enigmatic big brother to her, and she can't quite seem to succeed-let alone fit in-at school. But there is one thing she's good at: escape rooms. So when she's invited to compete in an escape room competition that carries a prize worth millions, Persey is all over it.




Persey enters the competition along with seven other young contestants, but while most escape rooms are about teamwork and collaboration, this one is all about being cut-throat-literally. When contestants start getting killed off, Persey must solve a series of bizarre and gruesome puzzles, riddles, and games to make it out alive. Along the way she learns the contestants are mysteriously connected-and someone is out for vengeance.




Twenty years before Dee Guerra and the Death Row Breakfast Club took down The Postman and Alcatraz 2.0 in #MurderTrending, long before Becca survived The Juggernaut and Who Wants to Be a Painiac? in #MurderFunding, the murder games first began with one awful day at Escape-Capades, Ltd.? And there's no telling who might have made it out alive, or what they may have later become.]]> 352 Gretchen McNeil 1368044026 Elyse 4 4.14 2020
author: Gretchen McNeil
name: Elyse
average rating: 4.14
book published: 2020
rating: 4
read at: 2023/07/03
date added: 2023/07/03
shelves: acquired-2023, genre-age-young-adult, genre-mystery, genre-thriller, personal-physical, usa-publication-2020, acquired-and-read-2023, gr-challenge-2023, ig-summer-shrink-the-shelf-2023, series-read-completely-2023, series-to-finish-2023, genre-horror, genre-contemporary, stars-4
review:
I liked this one a lot more than the first two!!
]]> 42781282
@morrisdavis72195: I hope she meets justice! She'll get what's coming to her! BWAHAHA!

@EltonJohnForevzz: Me? I think Dee's innocent. And I hope she can survive.

WELCOME TO THE NEAR FUTURE, where good and honest citizens can enjoy watching the executions of society's most infamous convicted felons, streaming live on The Postman app from the suburbanized prison island Alcatraz 2.0.

When seventeen-year-old Dee Guerrera wakes up in a haze, lying on the ground of a dimly lit warehouse, she realizes she's about to be the next victim of the app. Knowing hardened criminals are getting a taste of their own medicine in this place is one thing, but Dee refuses to roll over and die for a heinous crime she didn't commit. Can Dee and her newly formed posse, the Death Row Breakfast Club, prove she's innocent before she ends up wrongfully murdered for the world to see? Or will The Postman's cast of executioners kill them off one by one?]]> 368 Gretchen McNeil 1368013708 Elyse 3 3.81 2018
author: Gretchen McNeil
name: Elyse
average rating: 3.81
book published: 2018
rating: 3
read at: 2023/06/23
date added: 2023/07/02
shelves: acquired-2023, personal-physical, genre-mystery, genre-thriller, genre-age-young-adult, gr-challenge-2023, acquired-and-read-2023, ig-summer-shrink-the-shelf-2023, series-started-2023, genre-horror, stars-3, series-to-finish-2023, series-read-completely-2023, genre-contemporary
review:

]]> 49089016 WHO WANTS TO BE A PAINIAC?, the latest reality TV show on the hunt for the next big-hit serial killer. But don't worry-no one is actually going to murder anyone, as real as the fake gore and pretend murder may appear . . . uh, right?
Seventeen-year-old Becca Martinello is about to find out. When her perfectly normal soccer mom dies in a car crash, a strange girl named Stef appears and lets Becca know that her deceased mom was none other than one of Alcatraz 2.0's most popular serial killers-Molly Mauler. Soon, Becca ends up on Who Wants to Be a Painiac? to learn the truth about her mom's connection to Molly Mauler, but things turn sinister when people are murdered IRL. Will Becca uncover dark secrets and make it out of the deadly reality show alive? Or will she get cut?]]> 352 Gretchen McNeil 1368043887 Elyse 3 3.86 2019
author: Gretchen McNeil
name: Elyse
average rating: 3.86
book published: 2019
rating: 3
read at: 2023/06/30
date added: 2023/06/30
shelves: acquired-2023, genre-age-young-adult, genre-contemporary, genre-mystery, genre-thriller, personal-physical, usa-publication-2019, acquired-and-read-2023, gr-challenge-2023, ig-summer-shrink-the-shelf-2023, series-to-finish-2023, genre-horror, series-read-completely-2023, stars-3
review:

]]> 61431922 Enter the brutal and elite world of a war college for dragon riders.

Twenty-year-old Violet Sorrengail was supposed to enter the Scribe Quadrant, living a quiet life among books and history. Now the commanding general—also known as her tough-as-talons mother—has ordered Violet to join the hundreds of candidates striving to become the elite of Navarre: dragon riders.

But when you’re smaller than everyone else and your body is brittle, death is only a heartbeat away...because dragons don’t bond to “fragile” humans; they incinerate them. With fewer dragons willing to bond than cadets, most would kill Violet to better their chances of success. The rest would kill her just for being her mother’s daughter—like Xaden Riorson, the most powerful and ruthless wingleader in the Riders Quadrant. She’ll need every edge her wits can give her just to see the next sunrise.

Yet with every day that passes, the war outside grows deadlier; the kingdom's protective wards are failing; and the death toll continues to rise. Even worse, Violet begins to suspect leadership is hiding a terrible secret.]]> 517 Rebecca Yarros 1649374046 Elyse 4 4.55 2023
author: Rebecca Yarros
name: Elyse
average rating: 4.55
book published: 2023
rating: 4
read at: 2023/06/17
date added: 2023/06/26
shelves: acquired-2023, usa-publication-2023, genre-fantasy, genre-romance, special-editions, personal-physical, acquired-and-read-2023, gr-challenge-2023, ig-summer-shrink-the-shelf-2023, series-started-2023, stars-4
review:
A generous 4 stars. I don't get the Divergent comparisons. The Wings aren't broken out into personality traits or types of people so they're not like the factions at all. They're just broken out into squads like the military and this is a military-centered book. I actually felt it was more similar to An Ember in the Ashes where Violet is Elias/Mom is a high-level military figure. I haven't read ACOTAR so I can't comment on the Rhysand/Xaden comparisons. I got so sick of all of the "this has never happened/this hasn't happened in a century" ALL happening to the FMC. Like, pick one. This took "the chosen one" trope to a whole new level and it was cheesy. But I loved the dragons 1000%. And I'm sure I'll be continuing the series but I won't rush since it's going to be a quintet and that will take some time to publish. Though, two full-length novels for a series published within six months of each other (May and November 2023) is quite the feat.
]]> 60831918 From the internationally bestselling author of The Mountains Sing, a suspenseful and moving saga about family secrets, hidden trauma, and the overriding power of forgiveness, set during the war and in present-day Việt Nam.

In 1969, sisters Trang and Quỳnh, desperate to help their parents pay off debts, leave their rural village and become “bar girls” in Sài Gòn, drinking, flirting (and more) with American GIs in return for money. As the war moves closer to the city, the once-innocent Trang gets swept up in an irresistible romance with a young and charming American helicopter pilot, Dan. Decades later, Dan returns to Việt Nam with his wife, Linda, hoping to find a way to heal from his PTSD and, unbeknownst to her, reckon with secrets from his past.

At the same time, Phong—the son of a Black American soldier and a Vietnamese woman—embarks on a search to find both his parents and a way out of Việt Nam. Abandoned in front of an orphanage, Phong grew up being called “the dust of life,” “Black American imperialist,” and “child of the enemy,” and he dreams of a better life for himself and his family in the U.S.

Past and present converge as these characters come together to confront decisions made during a time of war—decisions that force them to look deep within and find common ground across race, generation, culture, and language. Suspenseful, poetic, and perfect for readers of Min Jin Lee’s Pachinko or Yaa Gyasi’s Homegoing, Dust Child tells an unforgettable and immersive story of how those who inherited tragedy can redefine their destinies through love, hard-earned wisdom, compassion, courage, and joy.]]> 352 Nguyễn Phan Quế Mai 1643752758 Elyse 4 I received a finished copy of this book from Algonquin Books and @mystery.book.club on Instagram in exchange for a feature post, an honest review post, and participation in a group discussion.]]> 4.24 2023
author: Nguyễn Phan Quế Mai
name: Elyse
average rating: 4.24
book published: 2023
rating: 4
read at: 2023/04/08
date added: 2023/05/31
shelves: acquired-2023, usa-publication-2023, books-i-won, acquired-and-read-2023, gr-challenge-2023, genre-historical-fic, stars-4, no-longer-own, buddy-reads-2023
review:
I received a finished copy of this book from Algonquin Books and @mystery.book.club on Instagram in exchange for a feature post, an honest review post, and participation in a group discussion.
]]> 61273856
It begins in an unnamed city nicknamed “the Fairest”, it is distinguished by many things from the river fair to the mountains that split the municipality in half; its theaters and many museums; the Morgue Ship; and, like all cities, but maybe especially so, by its essential unmappability.

Dora, a former domestic servant at the university has a secret desire—to find where her brother went after he died, believing that the answer lies within The Museum of Psykical Research, where he worked when Dora was a child. With the city amidst a revolutionary upheaval, where citizens like Robert Barnes, her lover and a student radical, are now in positions of authority, Dora contrives to gain the curatorship of the half-forgotten museum only to find it all but burnt to the ground, with the neighboring museums oddly untouched. Robert offers her one of these, The National Museum of the Worker. However, neither this museum, nor the street it is hidden away on, nor Dora herself, are what they at first appear to be. Set against the backdrop of a nation on the verge of collapse, Dora’s search for the truth behind the mystery she’s long concealed will unravel a monstrous conspiracy and bring her to the edge of worlds.]]> 480 Owen King 1982196807 Elyse 1 Ugh. 2.90 2023
author: Owen King
name: Elyse
average rating: 2.90
book published: 2023
rating: 1
read at: 2023/05/14
date added: 2023/05/30
shelves: acquired-2023, usa-publication-2023, stephen-king-and-family, acquired-and-read-2023, deweys-readathons-2023, gr-challenge-2023, genre-fantasy, stars-1, no-longer-own
review:
Ugh.
]]> 63272882
Elise Corto-Intel is an Intel Operative sent on what should have been a routine job to break into a luxury high-rise, crack open a safe, and take what’s inside. But as soon as she touches the tiny microchip, a voice crackles to life in her comms revealing an artificial intelligence named Bastion. In a city-spanning adventure, they must work together in a race against the clock to recover Bastion’s stolen chip, escape from a maniacal hitwoman, and untangle the web of players chasing this illegal artificial intelligence before Elise is terminated from the Corto Corporation, her employer that is also her home, family, and her life.

Chris Arnone’s work of cyberpunk science fiction, THE HERMES PROTOCOL, follows an intelligence operative with cybernetic enhancements as she races through the futuristic otherworldly Jayu City, on a mission that challenges her ideas of family, loyalty, and what defines life itself.]]> 351 Chris M. Arnone Elyse 2 Won paperback ARC from BookishFirst.com!

I wanted to give this a good, honest go. It seemed interesting from the excerpt. Futuristic science fiction. The cover was cool, I was into it. But the first thing that threw me was the extremely consistent use of they/them. Look, even if you're writing a futuristic novel, you have to remember that present-day people are reading it. Not people from the future. So when every character's pronouns are they/them, it gets very confusing very quickly. Even more confusing when several other characters are he/them. WHO ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT?! I would rather have read their names over and over again instead of they/them pronouns. That would have been less confusing. And every time Elise met someone new, she wasn't allowed to assume their gender based on appearance so every new character was they/them until there was any dialogue and the character confirmed their pronouns. It made it so hard to get into and really detracted from the story which was kind of cool but was bogged down by all of these gender neutralities.]]> 3.37
author: Chris M. Arnone
name: Elyse
average rating: 3.37
book published:
rating: 2
read at: 2023/01/31
date added: 2023/05/30
shelves: acquired-2023, usa-publication-2023, books-i-won, genre-science-fic, lgbtqia, free-bookish-first-books, acquired-and-read-2023, gr-challenge-2023, stars-2, no-longer-own
review:
Won paperback ARC from BookishFirst.com!

I wanted to give this a good, honest go. It seemed interesting from the excerpt. Futuristic science fiction. The cover was cool, I was into it. But the first thing that threw me was the extremely consistent use of they/them. Look, even if you're writing a futuristic novel, you have to remember that present-day people are reading it. Not people from the future. So when every character's pronouns are they/them, it gets very confusing very quickly. Even more confusing when several other characters are he/them. WHO ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT?! I would rather have read their names over and over again instead of they/them pronouns. That would have been less confusing. And every time Elise met someone new, she wasn't allowed to assume their gender based on appearance so every new character was they/them until there was any dialogue and the character confirmed their pronouns. It made it so hard to get into and really detracted from the story which was kind of cool but was bogged down by all of these gender neutralities.
]]> 61144954
The prestigious Urban Promise Prep school might look pristine on the outside, but deadly secrets lurk within. When the principal ends up murdered on school premises and the cops come sniffing around, a trio of students―J.B., Ramón, and Trey―emerge as the prime suspects. They had the means, they had the motive . . . and they may have had the murder weapon. But with all three maintaining their innocence, they must band together to track down the real killer before they are arrested. Or is the true culprit hiding among them?

Find out who killed Principal Moore in Nick Brooks's murder mystery, Promise Boys ― The Hate U Give meets One of Us Is Lying.]]> 304 Nick Brooks 1250866979 Elyse 4 Won finished hardcover from BookishFirst.com!

I really liked Promise Boys. I liked that it was short and it had a slew of POVs but more because it was a mixed media format than because you needed to keep track of who was whom. A principal is dead and three young men of color are the suspects. These young men were not the only men of color in this private preparatory school but they became prime suspects for various reasons, each having some sort of altercation with the white principal prior to his being found murdered. It's juicy. It's a juicy story. I love how not all that you think is true, in numerous ways, in how characters are relating to other characters in this book. This prep school though was abysmal. No talking in class, in the halls, at lunch, they had to follow a blue line in the hallway like they're five-year-olds. It was messed up. That's now how you get upstanding, fine young men. To not be allowed to communicate with their peers, how weird is that?! An important part of school, public and private, is socialization. So this control freak of a principal I already didn't care about in this book! But the relationships that the characters created and fostered despite being in bad circumstances and hard to relate to situations was what made this book for me. I really enjoyed it.]]> 3.94 2023
author: Nick Brooks
name: Elyse
average rating: 3.94
book published: 2023
rating: 4
read at: 2023/02/04
date added: 2023/05/30
shelves: acquired-2023, usa-publication-2023, books-i-won, free-bookish-first-books, genre-contemporary, acquired-and-read-2023, gr-challenge-2023, stars-4, no-longer-own
review:
Won finished hardcover from BookishFirst.com!

I really liked Promise Boys. I liked that it was short and it had a slew of POVs but more because it was a mixed media format than because you needed to keep track of who was whom. A principal is dead and three young men of color are the suspects. These young men were not the only men of color in this private preparatory school but they became prime suspects for various reasons, each having some sort of altercation with the white principal prior to his being found murdered. It's juicy. It's a juicy story. I love how not all that you think is true, in numerous ways, in how characters are relating to other characters in this book. This prep school though was abysmal. No talking in class, in the halls, at lunch, they had to follow a blue line in the hallway like they're five-year-olds. It was messed up. That's now how you get upstanding, fine young men. To not be allowed to communicate with their peers, how weird is that?! An important part of school, public and private, is socialization. So this control freak of a principal I already didn't care about in this book! But the relationships that the characters created and fostered despite being in bad circumstances and hard to relate to situations was what made this book for me. I really enjoyed it.
]]> 60840491 This exciting and adventurous start to a middle-grade trilogy follows a queer boy and his family as they try to halt the chaotic effects of a mysterious ring, drawing upon Jewish mythology to navigate magic, mayhem and the search for pride in one’s identity.

The little beachside town of San Pancras is not known for anything exciting, but when Zach Darlington buys a mysterious ring at the local flea market, his quiet little hometown is turned topsy-turvy by monsters straight from Jewish folklore and a nefarious secret society focused on upholding an apocalyptic prophecy.

Zach discovers that the ring grants him strange powers, and he’s intrigued; maybe he can use the ring’s strengths to halt the slew of anti-Semitic and homophobic bullying he’s experiencing at school. But soon the ring brings unexpected visitors—Ashmedai, King of Demons, in the guise of a preteen boy named Ash, and the local chapter of the Knights of the Apocalypse, a secret society intent on completing a creepy prophecy that will bring three monsters to Earth to start the events of the end of times.

Now responsible for the ring and its consequences, will Zach and his friends, with the help of Ash, be able to stop the Apocalypse and save the world?]]> 256 Aden Polydoros 1335428631 Elyse 4 Won finished hardcover from BookishFirst.com!

Aside from a typo or two and an inconsistency or two in the finished copy, this was a thoroughly enjoyable middle grade Jewish mythological retelling. I thought Zach, Sandra, and Ash made a good team but yikes, what these twelve-year-olds (and an ancient demon) got up to!!! Surprisingly intense and violent! I know nothing of Jewish mythology so it was cool to learn a little bit about it and then turn it on its head! I have never read anything by Aden Polydoros before, had never even heard of him before reading the excerpt for this on BookishFirst. I thought the cover did well at showing the contents of the book, making it look very thrilling and for any tween, it definitely is! Any tween kid could read this and feel comfortable in it. This definitely felt like the start of a series to me...! For fans of Rick Riordan for sure and I'll bet you learn something new along the way!]]> 3.91 2023
author: Aden Polydoros
name: Elyse
average rating: 3.91
book published: 2023
rating: 4
read at: 2023/02/25
date added: 2023/05/30
shelves: acquired-2023, usa-publication-2023, books-i-won, free-bookish-first-books, genre-fantasy, retellings, acquired-and-read-2023, gr-challenge-2023, lgbtqia, genre-age-middle-grade, stars-4, no-longer-own
review:
Won finished hardcover from BookishFirst.com!

Aside from a typo or two and an inconsistency or two in the finished copy, this was a thoroughly enjoyable middle grade Jewish mythological retelling. I thought Zach, Sandra, and Ash made a good team but yikes, what these twelve-year-olds (and an ancient demon) got up to!!! Surprisingly intense and violent! I know nothing of Jewish mythology so it was cool to learn a little bit about it and then turn it on its head! I have never read anything by Aden Polydoros before, had never even heard of him before reading the excerpt for this on BookishFirst. I thought the cover did well at showing the contents of the book, making it look very thrilling and for any tween, it definitely is! Any tween kid could read this and feel comfortable in it. This definitely felt like the start of a series to me...! For fans of Rick Riordan for sure and I'll bet you learn something new along the way!
]]> 61458888
Despite her uneasiness and misgivings from Calvin's friends and family, the two grow close and start to fall for one another. However, as her departure date nears, things between them start to change for the worse. Grace grows wary of Calvin as his infatuation for her seems to turn into obsession. Calvin fears that Grace is hiding something from him.

Told from dual points of view, You Shouldn't Have Come Here is a thrill ride and a cautionary tale of what can go wrong when you open up your house and your heart to a total stranger.]]> 292 Jeneva Rose Elyse 5 3.32 2023
author: Jeneva Rose
name: Elyse
average rating: 3.32
book published: 2023
rating: 5
read at: 2023/04/29
date added: 2023/04/29
shelves: acquired-2023, usa-publication-2023, books-i-won, personal-physical, signed-books, genre-mystery, genre-thriller, acquired-and-read-2023, deweys-readathons-2023, audiobooks, personal-audible, stars-5, gr-challenge-2023
review:
Jeneva, darling, WHAT have you done?! OMFG! Read during Dewey's 24-Hour Readathon!
]]> 123229266
Hank Dove is as big as he is quiet. He’s forty-five, divorced, depressed, and trying therapy for the very first time. When Esther blows into his quiet, lonely life with all the subtlety of a squall, Hank is left reeling by feelings and desires he thought were long gone. Maybe, just maybe, he’s not quite as stuck as he thought.

A one-night stand feels like so much more, but Hank discovers that he doesn't trust as easily as he used to. All of Esther's dangerous secrets don't help. How can he keep her safe if he doesn't know the truth? And how can he let himself love her if she won't stay?

Soft Flannel Hank is a contemporary paranormal romance with open door/explicit scenes. This book is intended for audiences 18+. HEA guaranteed.]]> 398 Eliza MacArthur Elyse 5 4.30
author: Eliza MacArthur
name: Elyse
average rating: 4.30
book published:
rating: 5
read at: 2023/04/16
date added: 2023/04/16
shelves: usa-publication-2023, genre-romance, acquired-2023, personal-physical, signed-books, acquired-and-read-2023, gr-challenge-2023, genre-fantasy, stars-5
review:
A one-day read. Cozy as fuck. Sexy as fuck.
]]> 61285758 Heartstopper, a must-have novella in which Heartstopper's lead characters, Nick and Charlie, face one of their biggest challenges yet.



Absence makes the heart grow fonder... right?

Everyone knows that Nick and Charlie love their nearly inseparable life together. But soon Nick will be leaving for university, and Charlie, a year younger, will be left behind. Everyone's asking if they're staying together, which is a stupid question... or at least that's what Nick and Charlie assume at first.

As the time to say goodbye gets inevitably closer, both Nick and Charlie start to question whether their love is strong enough to survive being apart. Charlie is sure he's holding Nick back... and Nick can't tell what Charlie's thinking.

Things spiral from there.

Everyone knows that first loves rarely last forever. What will it take for Nick and Charlie to defy the odds?]]> 153 Alice Oseman 1338885103 Elyse 5 4.20 2015
author: Alice Oseman
name: Elyse
average rating: 4.20
book published: 2015
rating: 5
read at: 2023/03/31
date added: 2023/03/31
shelves: acquired-2023, genre-age-young-adult, genre-contemporary, genre-romance, lgbtqia, personal-physical, acquired-and-read-2023, gr-challenge-2023, stars-5
review:
Oh my heart I love these two!!!
]]> 63024918
Life was good in the Neosphere District. I’d made a name for myself as a renowned supernatural bounty hunter, holding the record for most harpies slayed. But the best part about living in the future? Avoiding the other Olympian gods. Banishing a guy from Olympus because he was “imperfect” tends to make one hold a grudge. Go figure. And no other god possessed the means to time travel. But I did. Thanks to the portal hopping device I forged.

Yup. Life. Was. Grand.

Until a bounty popped up on a certain love goddess. Aphrodite and I had been friends since we were wee gods. I’d be lying to myself if I never thought our “innocent” flirting banter were real on occasion—kidding myself if I said I never wanted things to go beyond platonic. Hence, why I recently kept my distance. For my own sanity. So, of course, I made the grave mistake of taking the godsdamned bounty.


*The goddess of love…*

Since reconciling with my son Eros, after centuries of bad mojo, I’d decided it was time to clean up my act. Ride the straight and narrow. My companion service, Sans Solo, became just the ticket I needed. And it allowed me to use my powers in disguise in modern California under the name Vena Milo.

With the aid of my best friends, and fellow goddesses, the Graces, we ran a legitimate business. All was right in the world.

Until the volcano god showed up. Hephaistos. Heph—a lifelong friend who never failed to confuse me mind, body, and soul. Especially when he showed up with a magical pair of handcuffs. His audacity pissed me off, but the mere sight of him, the smell of him, made my stomach flutter. That…I couldn’t deny. And when Heph's plan goes to Tartarus things got even dicier and we became...the hunted.


-A cyberpunk fantasy Hephaestus x Aphrodite romance that defies myth but answers true love's call-]]> 397 Carly Spade Elyse 4 NetGalley ARC.

This was my first Carly Spade book. Enjoyable! Some cheesy parts but actually a lot more fun than I thought it would be! Spicy Greek mythology retelling, yes that sounds AWFULLY familiar but Spade really made it her own! The sci fi, time travel, cyberpunk aspect was really cool and unexpected! Time to go back and read the Contemporary Mythos series!]]> 4.11 2023
author: Carly Spade
name: Elyse
average rating: 4.11
book published: 2023
rating: 4
read at: 2023/02/18
date added: 2023/03/06
shelves: gr-challenge-2023, acquired-2023, acquired-and-read-2023, usa-publication-2023, books-i-won, free-ebooks, genre-fantasy, genre-science-fic, personal-ebooks, netgalley-approved-2023, netgalley-challenge-2023, bookstagram-tour-2023, free-netgalley-arcs, genre-romance, stars-4
review:
NetGalley ARC.

This was my first Carly Spade book. Enjoyable! Some cheesy parts but actually a lot more fun than I thought it would be! Spicy Greek mythology retelling, yes that sounds AWFULLY familiar but Spade really made it her own! The sci fi, time travel, cyberpunk aspect was really cool and unexpected! Time to go back and read the Contemporary Mythos series!
]]> 75496650 Duty comes before love . . . or does it?

Bryn has been thrust into the center of attention—and danger—as the heir to the Mir throne. She struggles with placing duty above love, as the entire Baer kingdom must reckon with Rangar’s wrath at her decision.

But winter brings a shocking tragedy that forces Bryn and Rangar apart. As he denies vicious accusations, Bryn must disguise herself as a commoner and flee the Baersladen, posing as newlyweds with Valenden for protection.

Bryn and Rangar’s paths return them separately to Castle Mir: one as a prisoner, one as a queen, on a collision course to overthrow the usurper Captain Carr and win back her kingdom.

SCARBOUND is Book Two in the Kindle Vella sensation beginning with SCARLIGHT--now available as an ebook and in paperback!]]> 350 Evie Marceau Elyse 4 3.95
author: Evie Marceau
name: Elyse
average rating: 3.95
book published:
rating: 4
read at: 2023/02/27
date added: 2023/02/27
shelves: acquired-2023, usa-publication-2023, books-i-won, free-ebooks, genre-fantasy, personal-ebooks, bookstagram-tour-2023, acquired-and-read-2023, gr-challenge-2023, stars-4, series-read-completely-2023, series-to-finish-2023
review:

]]> 60673107
When she was six years old, Bryn was saved from a wolf attack by a prince from a rival kingdom. Rangar Barendur’s people believe that a life saved is a soul owned, and ten years later, Rangar returns to collect his prize: Bryn. Yet Bryn is the youngest daughter of a ruthless royal family, and Rangar arrives on the night the Mir people rise up against their despotic rulers. With her castle on fire and most of her family dead, Bryn has no choice but to escape with Rangar's help.

Is she rescued…or abducted?

Taken to Rangar’s wild seaside kingdom, Bryn slowly finds beauty in the harsh Outlands. There, she discovers magic is not the sin she’s been led to believe it is. Magic can heal the sick and summon rain for the crops. As she learns the full truth of her own family’s tyrannical rule and plans to take back her kingdom by the sword or by marriage, Bryn falls under the spell of each of the three Barendur brothers. But which one will end up with her hand—and her heart—not even magic can foretell.]]> 332 Evie Marceau Elyse 4 3.82 2022
author: Evie Marceau
name: Elyse
average rating: 3.82
book published: 2022
rating: 4
read at: 2023/02/26
date added: 2023/02/26
shelves: acquired-2023, books-i-won, free-ebooks, genre-fantasy, personal-ebooks, usa-publication-2022, acquired-and-read-2023, gr-challenge-2023, retellings, stars-4, series-read-completely-2023, series-to-finish-2023
review:
Goldilocks and the Three Bears retelling. Who would've thunk?
]]> 59694078
By the winner of the YA Book Prize, Heartstopper is about love, friendship, loyalty and mental illness. It encompasses all the small stories of Nick and Charlie's lives that together make up something larger, which speaks to all of us.

'The queer graphic novel we wished we had at high school.' Gay Times

Contents:
• Introduction
• Profile Pages: Alice, Nick, and Charlie
• Heartstopper Moment: Pride
• The Art of Heartstopper
• Profile Pages: Tara, Darcy, Elle, and Tao
• Heartstopper Moment: Summer
• Quiz: Are You More Nick . . . or More Charlie?
• Mini-comic: The Teachers
• Profile Pages: Harry, Ben, Nellie, Henry, and Aled
• Heartstopper Moment: Halloween
• The World of Heartstopper
• Mini-comic: Moments
• Profile Pages: Tori, Sahar, Mr. Farouk, and Mr. Ajayi
• Heartstopper Moment: Winter
• Family Tree: The Springs
• Family Tree: The Nelsons
• How to Draw Heartstopper
• Mini-comic: Girlfriends
• Heartstopper Moment: Alternate Universes
• Author's Note]]> 154 Alice Oseman 1444968394 Elyse 5 4.39 2022
author: Alice Oseman
name: Elyse
average rating: 4.39
book published: 2022
rating: 5
read at: 2023/02/26
date added: 2023/02/26
shelves: acquired-2023, comic-graphic-novel, genre-age-young-adult, genre-contemporary, lgbtqia, personal-physical, uk-editions, usa-publication-2022, acquired-and-read-2023, gr-challenge-2023, ig-winter-shrink-the-shelf-2023, genre-romance, stars-5
review:
This was a fun bonus content book! Cute lol anecdotes and Oseman/Heartatopper's journey. Very enjoyable!
]]> 52858788 What the heart desires, the house destroys...

Andromeda is a debtera—an exorcist hired to cleanse households of the Evil Eye. When a handsome young heir named Magnus Rochester reaches out to hire her, Andromeda quickly realizes this is a job like no other, with horrifying manifestations at every turn, and that Magnus is hiding far more than she has been trained for. Death is the most likely outcome if she stays, but leaving Magnus to live out his curse alone isn’t an option. Evil may roam the castle’s halls, but so does a burning desire.

Kiersten White meets Tomi Adeyemi in this Ethiopian-inspired debut fantasy retelling of Jane Eyre.]]> 336 Lauren Blackwood 1250787106 Elyse 4 3.49 2021
author: Lauren Blackwood
name: Elyse
average rating: 3.49
book published: 2021
rating: 4
read at: 2023/01/12
date added: 2023/02/24
shelves: usa-publication-2021, genre-age-young-adult, genre-fantasy, gr-challenge-2023, personal-physical, genre-horror, retellings, acquired-2023, acquired-and-read-2023, signed-books, special-editions, stars-4, ig-winter-shrink-the-shelf-2023
review:
I really enjoyed this Jane Eyre retelling! It was familiar and new at the same time. I loved the dusty, hot setting of the deserts of Ethiopia (I think it took place there but it was never specifically said). I loved how the house was a character and how well it was done. I went back and forth between the hardcover and the audiobook but enjoyed reading it more than listening to it, though the narrator was very good. But this is a book you want to sink your teeth (eyes) into! I would've liked more time spent on the debtera, besides Andromeda and Jember, and more about the Evil Eye but overall, really enjoyed this one. Looking forward to Blackwood's next book!
]]> 76379805 This special Barnes & Noble Edition features exclusive new material from author Grady Hendrix, including an introduction to the book discussing why he wrote it and what haunts him, and an essay on the uncanny nature and history of puppets and dolls.

New York Times bestselling author Grady Hendrix takes on the haunted house in a thrilling new novel that explores the way your past—and your family—can haunt you like nothing else.
 
When Louise finds out her parents have died, she dreads going home. She doesn’t want to leave her daughter with her ex and fly to Charleston. She doesn’t want to deal with her family home, stuffed to the rafters with the remnants of her father’s academic career and her mother’s lifelong obsession with puppets and dolls. She doesn’t want to learn how to live without the two people who knew and loved her best in the world.
 
Mostly, she doesn’t want to deal with her brother, Mark, who never left their hometown, gets fired from one job after another, and resents her success. But she’ll need his help to get the house ready for sale because it’ll take more than some new paint on the walls and clearing out a lifetime of memories to get this place on the market.
 
Some houses don’t want to be sold, and their home has other plans for both of them…
 
Like his novels The Southern Book Club’s Guide to Slaying Vampires and The Final Girl Support Group, How to Sell a Haunted House is classic Hendrix: equal parts heartfelt and terrifying—a gripping new read from “the horror master” (USA Today).]]> 400 Grady Hendrix 0593549104 Elyse 4 4.03 2023
author: Grady Hendrix
name: Elyse
average rating: 4.03
book published: 2023
rating: 4
read at: 2023/01/26
date added: 2023/02/24
shelves: acquired-2023, personal-physical, usa-publication-2023, genre-thriller, genre-horror, genre-fantasy, special-editions, acquired-and-read-2023, buddy-reads-2023, gr-challenge-2023, genre-mystery, stars-4, ig-winter-shrink-the-shelf-2023
review:
This was my first Grady Hendrix book but it won't be my last! I was CREEPED OUT for most of this book!!! I would urge you to NOT read reviews for this one. Please go in blind. Only read the synopsis and go off of that! Please! I feel like a lot of reviews spoil the book with far too many details! This book had me scared, confused, and thrilled all at once! One thing I didn't like was that there wasn't an explanation for one piece of the puzzle: [spoilers removed] But overall, this was sad sad story about a highly dysfunctional family who did not handle grief and tragedy well AT ALL.
]]>