It's like the main character of The Invited has never seen a scary movie. Or, knows nothing about Lorraine and Ed Warren's Occult Museum. Or, seen an episode of -- or even a commercial for -- the Haunted Collector. Okay, okay. I realize many of you are scratching your heads right about now. I'm aware that I have a niche knowledge of all things supernatural thanks to my life-long obsession with the paranormal. But, still. I think we can all...
The Silent Companions is a damn good ghost story. Except, it’s not a ghost story. The house in which the main characters live is most decidedly haunted, but not by ghosts, per se. The things that go bump in the night are far less sinister at first glance, which makes their effect upon the story that much creepier. However, calling this a “bewitched wooden figurine story” just doesn’t carry quite the same weight. ...
Well, we made it to summer, everyone! If you’re like me, you're dreaming about what vacations you want to take. Warm weather always makes me think about jet-setting somewhere exotic -- or, really, to anywhere that’s different from what I see 24/7 in my daily routine. The past few years have yielded a lot more daycations than vacations for me, though, so I’ve been getting my vicarious vacation fix through books. Which brings me to this...
Welcome back to Ballybucklebo! *dances, throws four-leaf clovers in the air, and speaks with a laughably awful Irish accent* I mean, that’s pretty much what I do whenever Patrick Taylor releases a new book in the Irish Country Doctor series. I’ve been reading this series since day one, and, as you'll recall, several previous installments have made it into my Quick Look Books recommendations. The latest novel, An Irish Country Cottage, is set...
Another DNF. *sigh* This one pained me. To add yet another title to my Did Not Finish tally, and to have it be the third time I've had to do this in about a month. On the plus side, that TBR pile that looked so intimidating just a week ago is now looking pretty darn manageable. But, I mean...BARBARA KINGSOLVER. She's a legend who writes some damn fine novels. The Bean Trees was eye-opening for me when I read it the summer before high school....
Sometimes, the books we look forward to the most leave us the most disappointed. *cries* I’m sure I’m in the minority on this, but Melmoth has been put on my DNF list. You all know about my 50-page rule: the book has 50 pages to suck me in, or I drop it. Melmoth was kind of a backwards read for me. I started off really into this book. It’s very atmospheric, and I flew past the first 50 pages without even realizing it. I have no...
Love can be creepy. And The Dark Descent of Elizabeth Frankenstein, among many other things, is a love story. A twisted, gruesome, incredibly disturbing love story. AND IT’S AMAZING. What's The Dark Descent of Elizabeth Frankenstein about? The Dark Descent of Elizabeth Frankenstein is a re-telling of Mary Shelley's Frankenstein from the viewpoint of Elizabeth Lavenza, a woman who's taken in by the Frankenstein...
