drakaina16's Reviews (2.21k)

Thank you to DarkLit Press for providing a review copy. 
I barely even know where to start with this book. All of the buzz I've been hearing around The Devil's Pocketbook is absolutely deserved. The hype is really, really real with this one. 
The prose is absolutely gorgeous, even when it's telling me terrible things. This book has the rare privilege of being one in which the villain actually made me angry. Scylla is one of the most vile antagonists I've ever had the pleasure/displeasure of reading. Grief permeates everything, and I felt so terrible for Erik and Lara. Everything they've been through, and now this? Heartbreaking. 
The Devil's Pocketbook is one of the best books I've read this year. I can't recommend it enough. 

If you love a good slasher, you'll definitely enjoy Field Trip. It takes about halfway through for the action to really ramp up, but once it does, it doesn't stop. The first half of the book is taken up by characterization and teenage shenanigans, but I enjoyed that part as well. Field Trip would make an excellent movie! I'm looking forward to reading more titles by Harrison Phillips. 

This is a very solid collection of tales. One of my favorite horror tropes are women getting their revenge, so reading an entire anthology dedicated to it was a treat. 

The Long December by Steven Pajak ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Take Heart My Child by Cara Fox ⭐⭐⭐
Sign Followers by Chris Contreras Bahnsen ⭐⭐⭐.5
The Door by Scotty Milder ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Predator by J.H. Moncrieff ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Chained by Scott Harper ⭐⭐⭐
Political Suicide by Bridgett Nelson ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Anika by Spencer Richard ⭐⭐.5
To Hell and Back by Mark Young ⭐⭐⭐.5
Forget Them Not by Claire Brown ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Fancy Dick McGuffin and the Case of the Recycled Hired Guns by Nikolas James ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Foundling by Lee Rozelle ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
The Returned by Natalie Sierra ⭐⭐⭐⭐.25
Lucy by R.E. Sargent ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Black Feathered Fury by Red Lagoe ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Soul Skeeter by M.P.T. Kray ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Thank you to the editor for providing a review copy. 
This is a very solid slasher anthology. A lot of them were pretty formulaic, most of them are well-written, and a few really surprised me with creative settings and deaths. 

Camp Hell and the Hot Tub Hotties by Patrick C. Harrison III ⭐⭐.5

Bad Party by Brian McNatt ⭐⭐⭐

Tall, Dark, and Rancid by Gerri R. Gray ⭐⭐⭐⭐

The Backwoods Decapitator by John Adam Gosham ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

The Handyman by Nicholas Stella ⭐⭐⭐⭐

The Children of Dagon by Carlton Herzog ⭐⭐⭐⭐

The Faith by Derek Austin Johnson ⭐⭐⭐

The Deathless by Vincent Wolfram ⭐⭐⭐.5

A Love To Die For by J.D. Kellner ⭐⭐⭐⭐.5

Work Retreat by D.W. Hitz ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Thank you to D&T Publishing for providing a review copy. 
This creature feature definitely gives off B-movie vibes. I almost feel like saying that is doing it a disservice, because the book is written exceptionally well. There is a whole lot going on here. Not only are prehistoric creatures rising from the deep, there's a murderer on the loose. I loved every second of this book and especially loved the ending. Highly recommended. 

3.5 stars, rounded up. It's been a long time since I last read Hamlet, but this book manages to stay true to the spirit of the play. I enjoyed the book quite a bit and thought it was well-written.

It's going to be hard for me to talk about Negative Space without giving away the ending. So I'll just say wow. This book is beautiful, lyrical, heart-breaking, and oddly familiar. I've known these characters, I've been these characters. Bored kids from a small town where the only thing to do is drugs, just so desperate to feel something. I cannot recommend it enough. 

Thank you to Cemetery Dance for providing a review copy. 
I'm not sure how Daniel Braum escaped being on my radar for so long, but rest assured, I'm paying attention now. The benchmark for a great short story is this: does it leave me wanting more? Would it keep my interest in a longer format? I can honestly say yes, each of these stories could be novella or novel length and I'd still love to know more. 

Music of the Spheres ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Hurricane Sandrine ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Mystic Tryst ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
A Girls Guide to Applying Superior Cat Makeup and Dispelling Commonly Found Suburban Demons ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Across the Darien Gap ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Spark ⭐⭐⭐⭐
The Ghost Dance ⭐⭐⭐⭐
The Green Man of Punta Cabre ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Jellyfish Moon ⭐⭐⭐⭐
The Night Marchers ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
The Moon and the Mesa ⭐⭐⭐
The Sphinx of Cropsey Avenue ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Thank you to Random House and NetGalley for providing a review copy. 
This absolute fever dream of a book surprised me in the best way. You'll find a cursed object, black ops, a band, criminals, and the threat of an apocalyptic event. The book is exceptionally well-written and when the pieces started coming together, I was blown away. I guarantee you've read nothing quite like Fever House before. I already can't wait for the sequel, and the first book hasn't even been released yet. 

I had so much fun with this book! Highbrow, literary horror definitely has its place, but there is nothing I love more than a good B movie gorefest. The drugs, the gratuitous nudity, the over-the-top bloody ridiculousness. This book captures that vibe perfectly, and also happens to be laugh out loud funny 4.25 stars