drakaina16's Reviews (2.21k)

Thank you to the author for providing a review copy.

I always know I'm gonna have a good time with a Jon Cohn book. Kill Beth is like a trainwreck you can't look away from. Is Mike haunted? Is he crazy? Is it both? I couldn't help but feel for him. The behind-the-scenes descriptions of how stage productions are put together was also very interesting. The pacing is great, everything revealed precisely when it needed to be. 4.5 stars

Thank you to the author for providing a review copy. 

I'm not a big fan of AI. I find the implications worrying as it is, but a mentally ill AI, that may or may not be possessed? No thank you. There are quite a very genuinely creepy moments in the book, and parts of it read like a fever dream. Caleb Jones is fast becoming one of my go-to authors, as he consistently puts out interesting twists on old tropes. I was able to guess where the story was going sometimes, but that didn't affect my enjoyment of it. 4.25 stars

Thank you to the author for providing a review copy. 

The third installment of the Brimstone Chorus series is probably my favorite of the bunch. Elizabeth J. Brown's writing just gets better and better. Once things start really rolling in the book, the pace is near relentless. The action scenes are tightly written, and I was able to picture them in my head. We get to know some characters introduced in early books a bit better, and I've grown quite fond of Charlie. He doesn't always do the best thing for himself, but his heart is always in the right place. 5 stars

Thank you to Gloom House Publishing for providing a review copy. 

I jumped at the chance to read this anthology, made up of LGBTQ+ authors. Like any anthology, the stories were a mixed bag, but overall I enjoyed them. Additionally, 100% of the proceeds from this book will go to The Trevor Project, and I am definitely on board with that. 3.75 stars

The Ghost Girls of Waterbury by Rebecca Rowland ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Night of the Living Fascists by James G. Carlson ⭐⭐⭐
Mile-High by Bridgett Nelson ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Lackers by Leo X. Robertson ⭐⭐⭐⭐.25
It's Still Here by Angelique Jordanna ⭐⭐⭐.25
Chekov’s Eyeball by Jennifer Anne Gordon ⭐⭐⭐.75
Ethan is Following Me by Michael R. Collins ⭐⭐⭐⭐.25
Making America Straight Again by Chisto Healy ⭐⭐.5
Kimmy Gibbler: Glamour Shot of a Switchblade Romance by Phrique ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Taken Away by Denver Wheeler ⭐⭐⭐.25
Winter Festival by Arya Hyde ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
True Stories by L. Stephenson ⭐⭐⭐

Thank you to the author and Wicked House Publishing for providing a review copy. 

Ashes of August Manor proves once again why Blaine Daigle is one of my go-to authors. This is exquisite grief horror, wrapped up in a gothic bow. The pace is slow, but never boring. Things are revealed precisely on time, though. The atmosphere is top-notch, with the house and the grounds almost becoming characters themselves. The mystery at the heart of the novel had me trying to puzzle the story out the whole time. 4.5 stars

Thank you to the author for providing a review copy. 

As soon as I heard MJ Mars was adding a new volume to the Try Not to Die library, I was already in. TNTD In the UK was tons of fun. It also has the honor of being the TNTD book in which I have died the LEAST - only 2 times. 😂 Because I only died a couple times, the book does mean heavily in the dark fantasy realm. I always play the game honestly at first, then go back and read the ways I could have died. So I can say firmly, yes, this is a horror book. 4 stars

Thank you to NetGalley for providing a review copy. 

I'm always down for a good "deal with the devil" book, especially one with a gorgeous cover. The first 3/4 of the book had me questioning if it could really be called horror. It seemed to be more of a mystery with a supernatural slant. But then the last few chapters popped off, and it is definitely a horror book. This book has a lot of moving parts, and the fact that this book is a debut is very impressive. It's all handled very well, and the characters are people you care about. 4.5 stars

The beginning of Scream in the Dark perfectly captures the spirit of what makes Halloween so cool when you're ten years old. It brought back fond memories of my own past Halloweens. The proverbial shit then hits the fan, and the book morphs into part sci-fi thriller, part tribute to the movies of the late 70s and early 80s. It is part of a series, so go into it knowing that the book HAS an ending, but does end on somewhat of a cliffhanger. I had a great time with the book and I do plan on continuing the series. 4 stars