Behemoth by H.P. Newquist is a tale that centers around a biblical monster and a town that will do everything they can to appease the beast…

Full disclosure: I was given a free copy of this book by the author in exchange for an honest review. This did not affect my rating in any way.

When the story begins, we meet a man that is traveling between New York City and his cabin out in the country. As he stops for gas one day, he meets a young girl that is interested in the radio station he’s playing from his car. He’s struck by her charm and curiosity and stops in to the gas station each time he is driving through. One day, she isn’t there. Neither is her father. The man that has taken their place says he doesn’t know who they were.

Our main character is curious and senses something is very wrong. Shortly afterward, he becomes wrapped up in quite the dangerous situation.

Man, there is just something about horror novels centered around religion that gives me the willies…

I’m not religious, but I did grow up going to Sunday School. I know lots of the stories from the bible, I’ve sung many of the religious songs… But the second my parents gave me permission to stop going to Sunday School and church, I was done. Since then, I’ve been working on my beliefs and they all center around fate and karma rather than a specific religious icon.

Anyway, just thinking about what people will do in the name of their beliefs without a second thought or an ounce of empathy is truly terrifying to me… and that was certainly the case here.

My Favorite Passages
He almost got enough air into his throat to scream. Almost. The thing attacked him.

Don’t make light of something you don’t understand. That’s stupidity.

The shadow moved oddly, like a flock of birds or a swarm of bees. It was slithering and flying at the same time.

Information from the past was being lost every single day, all over the world. People were taking knowledge with them to their graves.

My Final Thoughts
This tale will make your blood boil, but you won’t be able to stop reading until the mystery is finally resolved. It was filled with horror, suspense, a deeply twisted mystery, sacrifices, and murder. Phew! What a roller-coaster ride this one was!

If you enjoy horror tales with a dark religious focus, I would very highly recommend this one to you!

Review up soon! I can't wait for this book to launch! You're going to LOVE it!!!

*Update*

If you're a fan of brilliant fantasy novels with wonderful characters, a dash of humor, and a splash of brutal violence, you need to snag a copy of Soul Render by T.L. Branson today!

One thing I will say right off is that I would definitely recommend checking out the short stories before reading Soul Render. It isn't necessary, but I thought that it was so fun to understand some of the things in this book on a deeper level thanks to the shorts.

To avoid spoiling any of the magic, I will keep this pretty high-level.

Like I said above, I knew this book was going to be great based on how amazing the short stories were. T.L. Branson is such a talented writer. Everything about this book was perfect; the storyline, the organization of the transitions, the character development, the dialogue, the action sequences, the humor, the history of the stones, the heartbreak... It was all just so wonderfully written.

The transitions were so smooth! For example, one scene ended with, "The throne room disappeared as his mind went back to that day." And then the next section picks up with, "Will was a little boy again" and then we dove into a memory that added another layer of emotion onto the current situation that the character found himself in. Transitions like this can be very tricky. Most of the time I feel like they are a bit too choppy or too cliched. But this one, as well a numerous others in the novel, were seamless.

The whole storyline was organized so wonderfully. Even though there were various characters, the story flowed between them flawlessly. AND THE CHARACTERS. I was so excited to see a few people from the short stories make their appearances. I loved this crew so much. Even the "bad" characters. They were all just so interesting. I loved each of their personalities and quirks. I especially loved how clumsy Will was. The dialogue both between the various characters as well as their inner dialogues when available was all so realistic.

The training process that Will and Evindal completed was very refreshing. Far too often in fantasy stories, the training is rushed and the characters jump into their powers much too quickly with easy perfection. This training sequence showed the struggles that Will had as well as the little details of the process.

I was so happy to totally immerse myself in the Soul Stone world for the length of this novel, but I didn't want it to end! This is definitely a book that I will be re-reading again soon, and then probably again before book two launches!

My favorite passages:
Will gaped up at the high spires of the castle reaching to the stars.

Will's fear grew tenfold. It had already jammed a foot in the door, through which despair flooded in, but as the king ran a finger down John's face and grabbed him by the chin, it kicked down the door and terror stalked in.

Will was in the throne room, but also hundreds of miles away and a lifetime ago. His mind retreated deep within himself and dissociated from his body.

Shaw blinked in wonder. How was this possible? How was any of it possible?
"I know what you're thinking," the king said.
By the gods, can he read minds, too?
"And no, I can't read minds," the king said.
He could have fooled Shaw.

After ten more minutes, he found the bookshelf containing history titles. There was A History of Aralith, Drygo: Rise to Power - Unabridged, and War of the Gods, but nothing like Soul Stones: Everything You Need to Know or So You Found a Soul Stone, Now What?

"And this here's Jade," Talon said, holding his hand toward the blonde. "She's our resident thief."
"I prefer 'acquisitions manager,'" she said, crossing her arms.

Any drunkard he ever knew had any inclination toward anything spiritual, unless the spirits were in the drink.

"Pinky-swear it?"
Red narrowed her eyes and said, "What are you, ten?"
"Just do it."
"Fine," she said throwing her hands in the air.
Red placed her pinky in Will's and they shook.

"I think it wants us to follow it," Red said.
"That's ridiculous," Will said. "Who would follow a bird?"
"Over here," Shaw shouted. "I can hear someone."
Will looked at Red, eyes wide. "All right, we follow the bird."

The man tried to stand, but as he got up on one knee Ocken separated his head from his shoulders.

The gap between the stairs was widening as a rent in the ground opened up like the jaws of a soulfiend waiting to devour them.


My final thoughts:
This is a book that I cannot recommend enough. This is definitely an author that you'll want to keep an eye on! I cannot wait to see what T.L. Branson writes next. I'll certainly be here for it!

I am SO pumped that the second book in the Our Final Halloween series is out! While I got this one in the mail awhile ago, I held onto it as I wanted to give it a read the week of Halloween.

It was well worth the wait that I forced on myself.

Oh my goodness. First of all, a moment of appreciation for the "Previously" recap section... I love when people include recaps so much!

When the comic begins, we pick up the morning after the group left the house. Still blood-soaked and totally exhausted, we follow one character as she arrives back home and showers. But it’s not long until we learn some devastating news…

As the crew gets together to mourn, they all agree that this battle isn’t over. They decide to go look for more clues, but the blood house isn’t what they were expecting… The fact that all of the blood was gone was the most concerning.

Over the course of this comic, the crew learns a bit more information. But before they do anything else, they’re going to need some help.

Gosh, I CANNOT wait to see what happens next!

Just like the first comic, the color palette and textures used were so wonderful. I loved how each of the panels were organized and how well the storyline flowed.

There was also some humor included that had me laughing right out loud! This one scene where a character was talking about a flashlight hit me especially hard… I just love a good pun!

This comic had plenty of action and intensity! But the majority of it was definitely getting us ready for what’s coming next.

I loved every second of this read and I cannot recommend it highly enough!

Creature by Hunter Shea is a gut-punch of a novel. It absolutely broke me. It also terrified me for a number of reasons. It is an incredible read that is going to stick with me for a very long time

I went into this one pretty dark, but Matt (TeamRedmon) sums up my thoughts wonderfully: This isn’t at all what I thought it would be. It’s so much better.

The very beginning of this story was absolutely heartbreaking. Seeing poor Kate try to stay strong while dealing with the effects of her illness both physically and mentally, as well as her strength when going to her doctors appointments and getting a series of injections that were experimental… She was a true superhero.

She also had her sidekicks that were heroes themselves! Her husband, Andrew, and their trusty fur-child, Buttons, were there to help in any way they can while keeping their little family together.

One day, Andrew announces that they will be spending the summer in a cabin by a lake in Maine. It sounds idyllic and Kate and Andrew are both really looking forward to it.

Once they arrived at the cabin, I was so excited for them to get some much needed relaxation time. But of course, with her luck, Kate was taken down by a nasty fever right on day one. But the fever wasn’t the worst that would happen within that cabin…

This tale was absolutely brutal and so sad. I really felt for all of the characters. Andrew and Kate were such a beautiful and strong couple. I loved seeing them interact with one another day in and day out. No matter what was thrown at them, they were there for each other with so much love.

The loyalty that little Buttons the Beagle showed for Kate was wonderful. What an amazing dog! He seemed like a trained support dog, but he was just a hound that they had adopted from a shelter. I’m so happy that Kate had this little guy by her side when Andrew was away.

The plot was definitely a slow burn, but when the action catches fire, there’s no putting out the flame until the very last page.

My god, when the action picks up… The gore was intense and written so wonderfully that it was very easy to imagine in your mind with vivid colors!

While reading I just wanted to scream because things just keep getting more and more creepy. Then when the violence begins, that too just gets worse and worse!

The last third of the book is absolutely impossible to put down. So just a heads up there if you find yourself reading close to your bedtime… if you hit that last third, it’ll be a long day the next day because you won’t be able to stop!

My Favorite Passages
“I’m not sure if you’re aware of this, honey, but I’m corporate America, accomplishing nothing due to a solid slate of meetings is classified as a job well done.”

Kate tried not to fixate on how shitty she felt, hoping Maine would somehow infuse her with the health, both physical and mental, that I’ve been slipping from her grasp like fine sand.

He did know he didn’t want to run into a moose. They were big and nasty and best avoided. He’d watched enough nature shows to understand that if he saw a moose, it was in his interest of self-preservation to skedaddle. He was pretty sure Buttons would have no problem beating a hasty retreat as well. The dog was no hero. Or maybe he was just old and wise.

Was there a scent to evil?

Nothing was more terrifying than people gone bad, their brains rotting like spoiled meat in the sun. Of all the atrocities Kate had been witness to during her life, all of them have been perpetrated by people, not monsters. The bogeyman didn’t shoot up schools or drive trucks into crowds of people. Ghosts didn’t hijack planes or murder families in their sleep.
People, bad people, did all of those things.
Was one of those bad people out there now?

A nightmare scared Kate awake. The second her eyes opened, the terrifying images faded, shattering like safety glass under a sledgehammer. Her heart was racing, causing pain to ripple out from the center of her chest. She felt the sweat at the back of her neck, her legs tangled in the sheet as if she’d been twisting and turning to get away from something… or someone. Her back ached, heat emanating from between her shoulder blades.

She had turned away, unable to face the grisly vision in the doorway. It was beyond horrible in the light of day. Monsters were only for the night. They were never supposed to walk during the daytime.

My Final Thoughts
I have such an appreciation for this novel. It was wonderfully written. The characters really came to life and immediately fell in love with both of them and just wanted them to have a beautiful and happy ending. I don’t think I have ever read something that was this heartbreaking and horrific with equal intensity.

I do highly recommend this one, just keep in mind that this one certainly isn’t for the faint of heart!

I personally gave it 4 cups of tea as it’s not a book that I could read over and over and over again, which is how I categorize my 5 cup of tea reads. BUT I will definitely be returning to it again at some point. This is such a powerful read!

Skinwrapper by Stephen Kozeniewski is a short tale about survival out in space. It’s a tale that plunges you right into the action without any delay and doesn’t let up. This novella is sure to keep you on the edge of your seat!

I picked up Skinwrapper after reading Esther’s review over on BiteIntoBooks.

Let’s dive in!

Holy cow… So. When the tale begins, we see a teenage girl talking with her two moms. Suddenly, there’s a pop. At first, it seems like there may have been an accident, but when the teenager calls it in, she learns that their biggest fear is happening. Skinwrappers are on the ship.

From there, it’s an all out mission for survival. But can our main character go undetected? Or will she be torn apart like anyone else that crosses paths with the intruders?

MY GOODNESS. This book started with just an everyday kind of conversation, and then boom! Suddenly we’re right in the middle of the suspense and terror!

You really felt for the main character and wanted her to survive! I loved that we saw everything from her perspective and heard all of her internal thoughts. It was really interesting to see her thoughts of panic, her thoughts to try to combat that panic, as well as a voice in her head that was guiding her which seemed to be from her friend, who was light years away.

Our main characters fear of enclosed spaces when she ended up in one really got me sweating! What a scene that was!

I loved that this book gave you just enough information to understand the main characters fears, but you still didn’t really know what was going on fully. We did learn small bits of information here and there as the story progressed, but I don’t think I ever fully understood the grand scope of things. I have so many questions! Why are they in space? What is the ship like? What is their overall world like?!

BUT. Not fully understanding made this one even more intriguing and more creepy to me.

My Favorite Passage
There’s shouting in the background. An then I hear it. That one, profane, almost taboo word that can strike a chill in the heart of even the saltiest ink surfer alive.
“…skinwrapper…”

My Final Thoughts
I would definitely recommend picking this one up! It’s a quick read. It’s so suspenseful and filled with body horror. If those things are up your alley, you will love this!

A Taste for Blood is a terrifying tale about a young man that wakes up in a room that he is told is a hospital. Once he meets the nurse, he senses that something is wrong…

Each time he wakes up after taking a pill, he has to start over. Where is he? What happened? Why isn’t his mom there? Why can’t he remember certain things?

Luckily, one day he finds a note of warning that he had written to himself. From there, he tries to make an escape plan, but can he outsmart his captors before it’s too late?

This tale was so spooky! How terrifying to be living a loop day after day without even knowing that it was happening!

If you enjoy YA Horror tales with vampires, then this is one I would highly recommend to you!

Nightmare Before Christmas: Zero's Journey by D.J. Milky, Illustrated by Studio Dice was a cute teaser into the 20-issue series that will be out soon.

I'm so excited to hear that they will be compiled into four graphic novels and one massive collectors edition manga. We all know I'm going to need that for my shelves!

Well, there really wasn't much to this one...

Jack has clearly learned nothing, and while mulling over his next scheme, he throws a stick and Zero chases after it. In a poorly timed accident, a button is pressed and Zero ends up heading to Christmas

Like I said in my intro, it's a nice teaser into the upcoming story, but it left me feeling just a little underwhelmed. Especially after how long I was itching to get my hands on a copy. I will say that I enjoyed the artwork though!

Of course I am still very excited to read the full length one when it comes out! I wonder if it will also be in color, or if it will go back to the black and white style of Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas by Jun Asuka, but fingers crossed the storyline is stronger in this one... And that they edit, the typo in the Mayors blurb was a little off-putting.

Hollow Kingdom by Kira Jane Buxton is an absolutely hilarious apocalyptic tale about a crow and a beagle. These two are are on a mission to save the other domesticated animals who are stuck indoors after all of the humans turned.

When the story begins, our main character, a crow named Shit Turd (or S.T. for short) is beating himself up for not realizing that something was wrong sooner than he did… S.T. then lays out the day where it all started, he informs the reader that he’s here to explain everything, and then we’re off and running!

The story line definitely kept me engaged. The plot followed an apocalyptic focus, but it had such an original twist! I mean… what does happen to the poor animals that are left inside when the world turns and their humans don’t come back for them? Seems like there’s an obvious answer there, huh? Thank goodness for S.T. and Dennis!

I loved that we got to see things from the perspectives of the animals throughout the story. The bond that S.T. had with Dennis was so wonderfully heartwarming.

The writing style was amazing. It’s definitely the most lighthearted and fun novel that I have read in quite some time. I loved all of the quick little chapters that we got from other animal’s perspectives! The cat was hilariously cocky, as was the poodle. The polar bear broke my heart!

I couldn’t wait to see what other creature S.T. would run into next on his journey! It was so fun to see which creatures were dangerous, helpful, or other such things. It was also wicked fun to learn the dialects and tones of each creature!

My goodness. You need to go pick this one up. It’s such a hoot! Or should I say… a caw?

My Favorite Passages
“Hello!” I squawked in perfect English. No response. “Hello there!” A goddamned talking crow and not even a raised eyebrow. Seriously? The world had gone to shit.

“Never presume to know the journey of another, friend,” he said.

I enjoyed the pleasantness of the moment, surprised to find myself giddy, as if full of beer bubbles that fizzed their way to freedom.

I got star struck at the sight of a snowy owl, because, I mean, Harry Potter. I had never seen these birds except for in pixel form, and here they were, shiny eyed and ruffling their magnificence.

“Don’t worry,” he said in a jittery whisper. “I believe in you.” They were tiny words from a tiny bird, but perhaps sometimes all you need is a speck of encouragement, an acorn of belief.

My Final Thoughts
While hilarious, this novel also has a whole lot of heart! I teared up so many times. This book was a home run for me!

I highly recommend this one to any reader that enjoys stories told from the perspectives of animals and for those that are looking for a read that will keep you laughing.

Boy in the Box by Marc E. Fitch is a slow-burning tale of horror. Centered around a group of adults who are haunted by the mistakes of their past in more ways than one, this is one you’ll want to read with a stiff drink!

Full disclosure: I was sent an ARC of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. This did not affect my rating in any way.

This story begins at a funeral. Our main character, Jonathan, is mourning the loss of his friend, Gene. However, the very first line is, Gene Hendrickson was not a good man,” so the dark tone had been set right then and there. From that very first page, it’s very clear that something is wrong… Something is haunting this group of men.

As the tale continues, we learn about an episode out in the woods when the group had rented a cabin to go hunting for Jonathan’s bachelor party. What happens out there in the woods changes their lives forever.

Though the men returned to their lives and tried as hard as they could to forget the incident, they receive news years later that force them to go back to the cabin. Their group of four had already been brought down to three. Would all three men make it back out of the woods alive?

I have to admit right off the bat, that I’m not a huge fan of slow-burning tales. During this COVID situation, my attention span is extra finicky. So while reading this book, I unfortunately kept losing attention as my mind would stray and think about something random. Many times, I had to flip back and page and re-read. There were just so many sections that were about the characters and their lives, their work, or their families that popped up suddenly. I know it was to help build the characters backstory a bit more, but they seemed so random and they were so drawn out that I didn’t care much for them.

I really enjoyed the authors use of description. I found myself both in awe and frustrated by how the use of description kept slowing the story down. On one hand, I loved how elaborate the description was especially when it came to the scenery. But on the other hand, I just wanted to get to the action! Though I will say that the description, whether done purposefully or not, actually added to the suspense for me!

There were many phrases or thoughts that the main character had that seemed pretty repetitive to me. But to put myself in the MC’s shoes, I would definitely be thinking the same thoughts over and over again, so it made sense! I just wish it had happened a bit less frequently to stay more focused on the plot.

This book overall made me feel very unsettled. I mean, to be out in the middle of uninhabited densely wooded areas with no one else around for miles and miles? Spooky!

There were many situations where the main characters felt that they were being watched and that made it really tense. I kept waiting for something to jump out at them or for something to attack them, but the fact that this “thing” was just something that was always on the periphery made it that much more suspenseful!

There were a few very haunting scenes that I LOVED. But I will let you discover those for yourself if you give this one a read. Let me just say… the one scene at the lake… that sends a chill down my spine just thinking about it!

My Favorite Passages
It wasn’t just hunters who shoot to kill; courts and newspapers can sometimes do worse than a gun.

A tree falling in the forest may or may not make a sound, but the death of a child reverberates the world over with or without a witness.

Conner was speaking in platitudes, Johnathan thought. Ripping lines he’d heard countless times in made-for-television movies or paperback thrillers. It made the whole notion of it more unreal, as if it were all scripted and they were just reading their lines. He had no choice but to continue.

The forest had retaken and everything, covered every previous step and trail, twisted and rearranged the landscape like a puzzle put together all wrong.

My Final Thoughts
I’m personally not a huge fan of slow horror, so this one wasn’t a major hit for me. When it all comes down to it, I wish that the story had focused more on the surrounding area and the supernatural beings in the woods. That was such an interesting element, but I felt that it was kind of buried under all of the characters and their repeated thoughts of regrets, their fears, and the dramas of their everyday lives.

That being said, I would still definitely recommend this one to fans of slow-burn novels with elements of the supernatural! Especially if you’re looking to read something unsettling!

The Sorrows by Jonathan Janz is suspenseful tale about two composers on a quest to become inspired. When they rent a month long stay at a castle on an island in the middle of nowhere in order to finish composing works for a horror flick, they had no idea what horrors were actually in store for them.

Full disclosure: I was sent a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. This did not affect my rating in any way.

First things first, I cannot believe that it took me THIS LONG to read a Jonathan Janz book. I have others on their way to me, so I’m hoping to dive into those soon!

My goodness… where to begin with this review! This is very much a book that you just need to dive right into, so I will keep this very light.

This novel had an awesome mix of likable and unlikable characters, each of which were very compelling in their own ways. Claire was my personal favorite and I couldn’t help but root for her and hope that everything was going to work out in her favor.

The writing style was wonderful;

- The dialogue was very realistic,
- The descriptions were vivid,
- The action was perfectly choreographed,
- The relationships between each of the characters was interesting,
- The pacing kept me hooked,
- And the overall plot was super captivating!

I’ll leave the rest of the discovery up to you!

My Favorite Passage
He’d shut the window. He knew he had. Christ, had he been able, he would have nailed two-by-fours over it.
And now it’s open.

My Final Thoughts
Going into this one dark was SO much fun as I had no idea where it was going. Of course, I had some guesses after looking at the cover… but what actually happened? Terrifying and heartbreaking!

If you enjoy horror with splashes of sex-related scenes, then this one will be a hit for you!

Just a heads up for those that need trigger warnings, there is some sexual assault that occurs or is thought about by a couple of characters.