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#book recomendation
bookishfreedom · 9 months
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These are all amazing books, each with different but important representation, that I both loved and really needed in my life. If you’re looking for a contemporary read for summer time, this is a great place to start 🌈
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mrsmikaelsxn · 7 months
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GUYS!!
please comment any romance/romantasy (romance + fantasy) book recs you have 🙏😩
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thinkpink212 · 1 year
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Feed the mind to nourish the soul
Nonfiction Book recommendations
🌷 Fearing The Black body: thé racial origin of fatphobia By Sabrina Strings
🌷 13 Things Mentally Strong People Don’t Do By Amy Morin
🌷 Homo Deus: A brief history of Tomorrow By Yuval Noah Harari
🌷 Breaking The Habit Of Being Yourself By Dr. Joe Dispenza
🌷The Anatomy of Loneliness By Teal Swan
🌷 Thé Secret By Rhonda Byrne
🌷 Atomic Habits By James Clear
🌷 Why We Eat (Too Much) By Andrew Jenkinson
🌷 Pictures and Tears: A history of people who have cried in front of paintings By James Elkins
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leiturasdanoite · 5 months
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give me books to sufer :)
do you guys have any suggestions of books that have deep stories, that show the cruel side of relationships, family, life, that the characters are colorful in every way (depth, diversity, all of that)? books that makes you sob, that you simply can't put down until you finish. It can be fantasy, fiction, romance, suspense, horror, any type of genre. the only preference i have is that it has an english or portuguese edition (if not, share the title and I will see if it might be released in the future and I will also share it with you)
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fictionalhistorybuff · 6 months
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I need some artists to go read Awaken Online, by Travis Bagwell, like yesterday. The books are so good and fun and cool and I crave fan art 😖😖😖!!
it's set in a near-future capitalist hellscape, there is an isekai virtual reality game where roughly half the plot takes place, following Jason, a troubled young man desperately seeking a refuge from his shitty school, his shitty parents, and his god-awful rich-boy bully, and a growing cast of characters with complex and fascinating motivations. I am particularly fond of the spin off books (AO:Tarot) main character, Finn, who has the distinction of being a grown ass man in this sea of teenagers, who is just as ape shit banana crackers as all of them put together!
If you like fantasy novels with cool elemental magic systems, go read Awaken Online. If you like near-future SciFi with cool tech and sentient AIs, go read Awaken Online. If you like dystopian fiction, go read Awaken Online. If you like squabbling gods, go read Awaken Online. If you like clever strategies, harrowing adventures, and moral gray areas, go read Awaken Online. Have you been craving more necromancers in you fiction? Awaken Online!
It's just really very good you guys.
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Above is the timeline and suggested read order from the author, but feel free to mix it up as much or as little as you like. I think I read it 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 5, 8, 9, 10, 7, 11, 12, 13. Your mileage may vary. And book 14, Timeless, just came out! I thought I was gonna die reading it, and I cannot wait for the next one! Bagwell averages about a book a year, and each book is better than the last!! I cannot recommend them enough!
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betterbooksandthings · 4 months
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"The book has seen immediate success in 2023, debuting as a number one New York Times bestselling novel. Readers love the irreverent fantasy world and the witty characters trying to make a living in a villain’s evil lair. Sure, the villain equips the lair with a top-notch break room, HR, and healthcare, but there are still the trappings of a villain’s daily activities, reminding employees they work for a bad guy. If you, too, can’t get enough of this world, read on for eight funny, romantic, and fantastical books like Assistant to the Villain!
The following books like Assistant to the Villain give readers who are eagerly awaiting book two something to read in the meantime. They are a combination of fantasy romance books that have a dash of action, romance, and comedy to keep any Hannah Nicole Maehrer fan happy. I am head over heels for the odd little subgenre myself, so I guarantee these books like Assistant to the Villain will hit the spot."
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marcela-studies · 11 months
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22.04.23 || I just finished Jane Eyre! I'm so happy. Wuthering Heights is next.
//day 14/100 of productivity.
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ilovedamsels1962 · 1 year
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I'm always reading, and I recently picked up Rick Rubin's book "The Creative Act: A Way of Being". Rubin has been a musician for 40 years and is mostly known for producing artists from Run DMC to Mick Jagger to the Red Hot Chili Peppers. This book is simply his thoughts on the creative process, and these thoughts can easily be extended to life in general. A quote,
"We're not playing to win, we're playing to play. And ultimately, playing is fun. Perfectionism gets in the way of fun. A more skillful goal may be to find comfort in the process."
Highly recommended.
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icecream-doll · 1 year
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I wanted to know more male yandere books to read (not asian novels more like books, romance etc) to buy
So far I'm only aware of these:
Uma mulher no Escuro ( or A woman in the Dark) by Raphael Montes ( I have this one)
You by Caroline Kepnes
Stolen by Lucy Christopher
A escrava Isaura ( or Isaura the Slave( Idk) by Bernardo Guimarães ( I have this one)
The phantom of Opera by Gaston Leroux
Dias Perfeitos ( or Perfect Days ) by Raphael Montes
Red Queen Series by Victoria Aveyard ( The vilain is a bit yandere try to change my mind) ( I have the series)
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rowanlanecorner · 5 months
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Jay pauses, turning to face Stygian. "Did Techtra leak your secret identity?"
"I—yes. She did."
Green locks with red as hero and villain meet each other's gazes. Jay smiles, feeling something like exhilaration flutter inside him.
"Can we stop this farce, then?"
"I don't—farce?"
"I don't want to pretend to hate you anymore."
"...pretend?"
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avarice-n-spice-blog · 7 months
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The Shift Key: Book 1 of Key Connections
Summary:
Humans have long since roamed the Earth, but beside them there has always been... The Others.
As the first human to work for Ironside Security's cyber division, Raina knows she has a precedent to set. With a shiny new degree and the knowledge that she is the best at what she does, it should be easy so long as she follows the rules.
One assignment is all it takes to ruin her carefully made plans.
What happens when a stubborn techie and a surly tiger cross paths?
Soren had thought the hardest part about becoming the Warden of the Northern region would be keeping his temper in check. Then when people start mysteriously disappearing, his responsibilities put the one person he thought he'd never see again directly in his path.
One mistake could send her back into his memories.
Preorder:
This is my first book and as of right now I'm shooting to have it done by end of year! Please check it out, and enjoy the first ever excerpt below the cut!
Excerpt:
“Soren, just because no one else has physically touched the cameras, doesn’t mean that they can’t just hack the cameras.”
She was back around, hands flying across her keyboard before she could get anxious over how he would take that news. She was already in the midst of pulling up the information on each camera stream access when she heard the sound of something breaking.
Temen’s following gasp but lack of reprimand confirmed that it was probably Soren who had caused the ruckus, as Raina couldn’t imagine Temen letting anyone else get away with it.
Raina felt more than saw Soren come up behind her, her back heating with his proximity. His shadow fell over her shoulder, and she fought down a shiver when he gripped the back of her chair and his knuckles brushed her back.
“Rain, I need you to explain exactly what you mean by that.“
She hadn’t been so close to a man since her brief stint in the dating scene during her undergraduate studies, and she rationalized that was why her entire body suddenly felt like her skin was far too tight.
‘Oh I need you far, far, away from me,’ she thought to herself as she turned her nervous energy into her job.
“What I mean,” she started quickly,” is that if you wanted a truly isolated camera system you should have gone a little more old school and kept it to physical tapes. Downside to that would be the endless reels you’d need to keep confidential, but then,” she said, beginning to punctuate each word with a quick snip and enlargement of specific text-
“-you wouldn’t have this problem.”
Before them were a series of IP addresses that Raina had surmised did not match anyone currently allowed access to the feeds.
She had thought jumping ahead of the curve and showing him the problem would get him out of her space faster, but instead he leaned far enough in that she could feel his hard stomach against the back of her head. Suddenly he was close enough that she could smell him: clean, woodsy, and something that was utterly Soren.
The unexpected familiarity of it broke something in her, the crack beneath her rib cage as sharp as any bone. This was why she hadn’t wanted to come back. At sixteen she had been afraid she couldn’t live without him. Now she was twenty six, and once again she wanted nothing more than to turn into his arms and bury herself in him.
Worse, he wasn’t even in his furry form.
“You wanna translate for me?”
She could practically feel the bass in his voice, the rough under current of his near constant growl rolling through her and making her nipples peak against her will.
There was one haunting second where he leaned in impossibly closer, the heat between them suddenly stifling, everyone else forgotten to her human senses except for the shifter caging her in. She felt trapped in way she couldn’t decide if she loved her hated.
When she saw him brace a hand beside her keyboard, she fought not to think about how the too sharp tips of his claws would feel against her skin.
She was a scant second away from embarrassing herself in front of her entire team when she managed to find the will to bring her chair back in a hard spin, jumping up and knocking him off her.
He was, of course, staring at her with a shit eating grin. Those bright blue eyes of his were shining with the same heat currently burning through her body, so she opened her mouth and killed it as brutally as she killed.
“Translation? Those are all the times someone has accessed your security feeds without your permission.”
The smirk finally fell off his face, but it didn’t make her feel better.
“Who?” he questioned.
Raina eyed him for a second, trying to decide the best way to approach the situation.
“Right now I just know that the feeds were accessed, the who will take more time,” she told him truthfully. She had automatically ran the addresses as soon as they were tagged as unknown, but they had all been fake.
Evidently having finally decided it was safe to join the conversation, Temen said asked “How much time?”
Raina understood the severity of the situation given the fact that the creeps they were looking for where in the people snatching industry. It was a time sensitive situation, and as Raina ran through the possibilities in her mind, the options were not looking pretty.
She could do it for sure, though requesting the necessary access to certain databases would take time. That was what she couldn’t accurately gauge, as her first instinct was to bypass those databases to get to what she wanted. One route was right, and one was illegal.
She knew the right thing to do, though.
Her mouth had barely opened to tell them it would take 5-7 business days to get the proper clearences before Soren was once again demanding her attention. He was in her space in seconds, large body moving with grace.
“You can do it now cant you?”
From inches away, he looked down on her, gaze sure.
So she sidestepped towards her team lead like a coward and shook her head.
“No, I can’t-“
“Can’t or won’t?” he pressed, moving forward.
She threw up her hands in defeat, as if that would stop him.
“Soren its not legal for me to-“
“Legal?” he bit out, voice dropping into something less human, “Since when have the rules ever stopped you?”
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Hi guys :D I wanna ask if some of you have any recommendations on romance book? I have a friend that requested some and I wanted to help her :3
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waterlooletterwrb · 20 days
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I saw you love red, white, and royal blue and I've just gotta ask you: have you heard of Burn the House Down by Kenna Jenkins? It's an alternate history novel abt the 1st woman president and her secret sapphic relationship/bearded marriage with her mlm best friend. It also includes a subplot about arson at the White House, ft. An entirely queer main cast and really fleshed out characters, and has a really satisfying ending!
I actually never heard of it before but thank you for sharing this with me!! I'm 100% going to check it out (i love when they give us politics and queers in a book hahaha)!
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nonetoon · 1 year
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Hope you don’t mind me popping in to recommend this graphic novel that was recommended to me called Eight-Lane Runaways by Henry McCausland!
Been on the look out for it and finally got my hands on it just in time for New Year’s. It’s a fun story following a race between a group of some quirky characters. I love the amount of detail in this book, especially the full page spreads to show off the environments and the weird, lively world that surrounds these runners.
Once again, I’m a sucker for go-with-the-flow stories with great characters to catch up with! I can’t get enough of the fantastical being shown off in a very matter-of-fact manner. Definitely recommend grabbing this one of you can!
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haveamagicalday · 2 months
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Books read in 2023
Here is a list/short reviews of the books I read in 2023! My top ten can be found here.
4 Stars
All the Dangerous Things by Stacy Willingham - A year prior to the start of our story, Isabelle's beloved toddler was stolen in the night while she and her husband slept. Since then, Isabelle rarely sleeps and won't rest until her son is found. When a podcaster comes to town looking to interview her about the case, Isabelle sees this as a chance to dig up new clues that may lead her to her son. This is a great follow up to Willingham's debut and I loved the setting and overall vibes of the book.
Delicate Condition by Danielle Valentine- What's interesting about this book is it was released about a month before American Horror Story premiered their season that is based on it. So I don't know if it was commissioned to be written for that purpose or if Ryan Murphy got wind of it prior and sought to make the adaptation or what. I have not seen the new season and I've heard it isn't that good but I really ended up liking this book! Anna is a young actress determined to have a baby. After many rounds of IVF it finally happens. But then tragedy strikes and Anna miscarries the baby, or so she is told. She can still feel the baby inside her and the doctor's confusing answers and explanations are just a further mystery to the phenomenon. As her miracle pregnancy goes along, threats to her safety and strange instances  build up to a shocking conclusion. I was expecting it to be kind of silly but it was an engaging read with a surprisingly happy ending. It did not go in the direction I thought it would and I was pleasantly surprised by that. Would not recommend it if you are pregnant or trying to be though.
The Ghosts of Rose Hill by R.M Romero- Illana, a biracial Jewish girl, is sent to Prague to live with her aunt for the summer. Illana discovers a Jewish cemetery behind her aunt's house where she meets the ghost of a long dead boy, named Benjamin. The two become friends but their happiness is threatened by a mysterious man with no shadow that also takes a keen interest in Illana. Written in prose, this is a hauntingly beautiful fairytale.
Greymist Fair by Francesca Zappia- I didn't realize going in that this would be divided up into a collection of short stories rather than a linear story. However the stories are all connected and often explain things that may have happened in the previous stories and there is a conclusion at the end. I really enjoyed the take on some of these lesser known fairy tales. My favorite was Doctor Death and the Prince's Riddle.
I Will Find You Again by Sarah Lyu- This is Lyu's second book and I have to say that she does toxic relationships really well. Both of her books have a mystery to be solved but they both read more like a character study and deep dive into a tumultuous relationship that the MC has. Chase and Lia are best friends that are estranged but when Lia goes missing, Chase's world is turned upside down as she follows a trail of secrets and betrayals to find out the truth of what happened.
The Legacies by Jessica Goodman- Another fun teen thriller from Goodman! Eight students from a prestigious prep school are selected to join New York City's exclusive Legacy Club. But tensions rise the week leading up to their induction Ball leading to a shocking death. There are moments you have to suspend your disbelief but that doesn't take away from the story. My only complaint is that it is told in first person with three different narratives and at times they don't sound much different from one another. I still flew through this one and look forward to the next book from Goodman!
Lying in the Deep by Diana Urban- Jade is off on the adventure of a lifetime, a semester at sea visiting 11 different countries. But the presence of her ex boyfriend, now dating her ex best friend, leads to an obsession which spirals until a shocking murder takes place. Now Jade must clear her name and try to stop the killer from murdering again. I honestly enjoyed this way more than I thought I would. It was a page turner that was a lot of fun. I read after that it is apparently a loose retelling of Death on the Nile but for me it felt like murderous version of Suite Life on Deck lol
The Narrow by Kate Alice Marshall- Eden attends a boarding school haunted by a river that takes all who fall in. All but Delphine who fell in six years prior and somehow survived. Now Delphine lives isolated in quarantine for a mysterious illness and Eden is tasked with being her companion. But the more time Eden spends with Delphine, the more she feels haunted by a dark presence. This was a very engrossing ghost story with some gothic vibes. There was a sweet love story and I loved the complexity of Eden and her relationships with her friends. There were a few creepy twists throughout but the most interesting aspects were the human relationships, especially between Eden and Delphine. A real fun spooky read!
Out of the Ashes by Kara Thomas- This is going to sound bad but I really don't remember this book but I gave it 4 stars so I guess I enjoyed it. This is Thomas's first Adult novel and focuses on Samantha, whose home was burned down and her entire family murdered years prior. However, renewed interest in the cold case reveals the shocking revelation that Samantha's baby sister may have made it out alive. This turns Samantha's world upside down as she desperately seeks answers. I do remember the ending of this and it was pretty satisfying
Royal Blood by Aimee Carter- Evan is the secret illegitimate daughter of the King of England in an alternate history. Circumstances force Evan to spend the summer with the father she never met before and her secret is quickly found out. What was supposed to be a fun night out with her half sister and others turns deadly and Evan finds herself the main suspect. This is another book I enjoyed more than I thought I would. It's like the Princess Diaries if it were a thriller. I also love that despite being a series, the mystery and storyline was wrapped up in the end
The Sandman by ETA Hoffman- I had no idea the ballet Coppelia was based on this! The ballet is so cutesy and this is so dark and creepy. I would love to see a version of Coppelia that followed The Sandman more closely.
Thornhedge by T. Kingfisher- This is a retelling of Sleeping Beauty that tells the tale of Toadling, the fairy that was sent to bless the princess on her birth. Now that the princess is asleep, Toadling guards the tower but in a shocking twist, she is determined to keep everyone out of it. A fun and interesting take on a classic fairy tale!
The Villa by Rachel Hawkins- This is an interesting retelling based not on Frankenstein, but the story behind the novel's creation. Emily and Chess are two friends that are spending the summer in Italy at a beautiful Villa. The Villa just happens to be the same place that famed rock star Noel Gordon spent a summer in 1974. Along with Noel is Pierce Sheldon (an up and coming rock star), his girlfriend Mari, and her stepsister Lara. The summer turns deadly for the group which inspires Mari to write a prolific horror novel and then disappear from the limelight for the rest of her life. Now Emily is determined to discover what really happened that summer by using clues from Mari's novel. This was a really fun read and while the big mystery was honestly not that solid, the characters and unique premise were interesting enough to hold the plot.
3.5 Stars
Mister Magic by Kiersten White- A mystery children's show called Mister Magic was canceled and nearly erased from history 30 years prior to the start of the novel. Val was a child actor on the show but has no memory of it. When her fellow castmates find her, they bring her along for a reunion which is bound to expose dark secrets along the way. So, this had to be partly inspired by Candle Cove, no? I really enjoy all things to do with lost media and was super excited when I read the blurb for this book! For the most part, I think it lived up to expectations. The ending wasn't a let down but it did leave me wanting more. There was also an reveal about two thirds of the way through which I wish would have been made sooner. It wasn't really a twist or anything but it did add a lot of context that could have been used earlier. Otherwise it just felt really thrown in at the end.
The Night Shift by Alex Finlay- At the end of 1999, four teens are attacked during their shift at a Blockbuster. Only one survives and the killer is never found. Now it is 15 years later and a similar crime takes place at an Ice Cream parlor. A solid thriller.
The Quarantine Princess Diaries by Meg Cabot- A welcomed return to the diaries of Princess Mia. This was a fun read but it was also kind of tough to read about people dealing with the beginning of the pandemic. Not the best of memories to be honest.
Where He Can't Find You by Darcy Coates- When I started this I was expecting more of a mystery/thriller based on the blurb but it became apparent pretty quickly that this is a supernatural horror novel instead. A small Midwest town is haunted by a mysterious figure known as the stitcher. When someone goes missing, the town knows that there is no hope of ever finding them until the stitcher wants them to. And they'll always find them in pieces. When Abby's younger sister goes missing she is determined to find her no matter the cost. It becomes a race against the clock to find her with the help of Abby's friends. This was very reminiscent of horror like It or Stranger Things. TW: Body Horror, Gore
You Can Trust Me by Wendy Heard- I flew through this one but in retrospect, it was very cheesy and what I would deem a Fast Food Thriller. Fun, but you really have to dispense your disbelief throughout. Summer and Leo are best friends who swindle and pickpocket. Leo makes the mistake of going after a self made millionaire and when he offers her the chance to visit his exclusive island, she jumps at the chance. When Leo doesn't return, Summer is determined to infiltrate the island to get her friend back.
3 Stars
The Blackhouse by Carole Johnstone- I loved Johnstone's Mirrorland but this one was a let down in comparison. The book takes place in a small island town and I could not keep all of the townspeople straight. Plus the mystery just wasn't that interesting and it dragged in a lot of places.
Episode Thirteen by Craig DiLouie - A ghost hunting reality tv crew decides to make their thirteenth episode about the infamous Paranormal Research Foundation. Written as journal entries and transcripts, things get creepy real quick for the crew. I felt like this book started off strong but faded as it went along. I was not a fan of the last third but recognize that others might like the direction it went.
Loved by PC Cast- The first book in the Night of House sequel series. I decided to read this because the tumblr blog: @houseofzoey was making me feel nostalgic. It was not good but it was fun to revisit the characters and world. As always, the stakes are high but the conflict is resolved ridiculously easy. Zoey continues to be one of the worst characters in existence but the others are enjoyable in a dumb way.
Lullabies for Little Criminals by Heather O'Neill - This was kind of a tough one to get through. I love the author's later work and this had the same style of writing but felt lacking in comparison. I found both The Lonely Hearts Hotel and When We Lost Our Heads oddly whimsical despite the heavy subject matter but this was definitely just bleakness with no hope in sight TW: Child Abuse/Neglect, Pedophilia, Drugs/Alcohol
Midnight is the Darkest Hour by Ashley Winstead- Ruth is the preacher's daughter in a small southern town. Ruth's only friend as a teen was the bad boy Everett who she was bonded to with a dark secret. Now as adults, bodies are being found in the swamp and Ruth and Everett want to get to the bottom of things. This book had such a great premise but did not deliver. The religious town is portrayed as cult-like but the messaging behind this book was confused and all over the place. We are clearly supposed to root for Ruth and Everett but by the end of the book, I wasn't rooting for them either. Also there are way too many references to Twilight. At one point Ruth seriously thinks that Everett is a vampire and I don't know if that was just to be funny or if we were actually supposed to believe that as well.
Nothing but Blackened Teeth by Cassandra Khaw- People on Goodreads hated this. It has one of the lowest ratings I've ever seen and I really don't think it deserves that. It's not the best but it's not that bad. A lot of people were bothered by the "purple prose" but I didn't mind it (I also hate that phrase). However, it was somewhat confusing and anticlimactic.
Silver Nitrate by Silvia Moreno Garcia- Garcia's last few books since Mexican Gothic have been really disappointing to me. I was expecting a lot of spooks with the cursed film premise but there really wasn't much of it. When we finally did get some magic towards the end it was pretty cheesy. Neither of the characters were really likable and the ending with them was weird. Overall not my favorite of Moreno-Garcia's but also not the worst.
This is Why We Lie by Gabriella Lepore- I'm going to be honest, this was one of my first reads of 2023 and I don't remember a single detail. Two teens find a body in the lake and mystery ensues!
To Make Monsters Out of Girls by Amanda Lovelace- This was not my favorite of Lovelace's. I'm starting to notice she writes a lot of her poetry based on a past relationship and at this point it's like, girl move on!
We'll Never Tell by Wendy Heard- Another book I really don't remember. The official blurb describes it as a whodunit doused in Hollywood lore. I remember it being a fun little read but apparently not that memorable.
Winterset Hollow by Jonathan Edward Durham- The idea behind this was really fascinating but it lost its appeal one third of the way through. Three friends visit the island that an author wrote and based a children's book on in a similar vein to Watership Down or The Wind in the Willows. To their surprise, the characters in their beloved book are real and they want their visitors to celebrate the famed Harvest Day with them. Pretty quickly things fall apart and the majority of the book is the characters being hunted and it got old pretty fast. There were definitely parallels and themes of colonization but the colonized and mistreated characters were also the villains seeking revenge so... make of that what you will
Wolfpack by Amelia Brunskill- Written in prose this book is about nine girls who live together in a cult commune. It was a very quick read but nothing really happened. One of the girl's goes missing and the rest of the book is trying to figure out what happened. The book's biggest problem is that it's told from 8 different perspectives and they all blend together. When the reveal comes at the end it leaves little impact because we don't know or care about these characters.
2 Stars
Daphne by Josh Malerman- Daphne is a local boogeyman. A seven foot tall, denim clad woman who always has her face painted like Gene Simmons. That image alone was too ridiculous for me. Kit is a teen on the basketball team whose teammates start disappearing one by one. She believes Daphne is the culprit. The book was more so a metaphor for mental health struggles but it was just too silly and boring for me to enjoy. I couldn't picture any of the scary stuff that was happening very well and people seemed to under react to a lot of things. Plus I learned way too much about basketball.
Unrated
The Little Book of Manifestation by Astrid Carvel- I was going through it when I read this lol. Whether you believe that you can actually manifest things in your life or not, I do think positive thinking goes a long way and this was a nice little reminder of that.
Brother by Ania Ahlborn - Just a big bummer all around. I read this in one sitting but looking back some of it was kind of boring? The book was much tamer than how it was advertised to me. Don't get me wrong, there was a lot of implied gore and horror but we didn't see much of it. To give some background, the main character lives out in the Appalachians with his murderous family. He helps kidnap women, the mother tortures them and then they eat them. With a premise like that you think this would be horrifying. We are given very little backstory as to why they do this. Well, it turns out to be rather boring as Michael (our lead) spends most of the book feeling sorry for himself and trying to woo a girl at the record shop. He also has a tumultuous relationship with his abusive older brother, who he fears but craves approval from. Not much happens for the majority of the book and then we have an explosive ending in the last 1/3rd. And it's just a huge bummer. TW: Rape, Murder, Gore, Cannibalism, Attempted Incest, Abuse
Not Since Carrie: Forty Years of Broadway Flops by Ken Mandelbaum - A look into Broadway flops over the past 40 years. The flops are categorized oddly and usually there is only a page or two dedicate to each one which made it really repetitive. I think would have preferred a detailed deep dive into maybe 10 or so Broadway flops.
Slenderman: Online Obsession, Mental Illness, and the Violent Crime of Two Midwestern Girls by Kathleen Hale - This book doesn't focus so much on the crime but the aftermath. For those who don't know, Morgan and Anissa, two preteen girls, stabbed their friend (who lived) in an attempted sacrifice to please the popular Creepypasta character, Slenderman. Of course, all the coverage of this case focused on Slenderman and the dangerous of the internet but really this is a case of severe mental illness that went untreated for a long time. Anissa did the stabbing but ultimately it was Morgan that concocted the whole plan. Morgan showed signs of schizophrenia (a disorder her father was also diagnosed with) at a young age but this was ignored by the adults in her life. After the crime took place, Morgan was denied any kind of treatment or medication during her time in prison prior to her sentencing. Morgan was left to live in her delusions and hallucinations for over a year before she was finally given help. In a harrowing section of the book, Morgan describes "waking up" from her psychosis only to be flung into a nightmare where she had committed a terrible crime against her friend. No where am I saying that Morgan does not deserve the prison time she was given but the prison system's treatment of mental health was really highlighted here and was horrifying to read about.
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storyteller-aprendiz · 8 months
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