I love the story that Marc Monroe has created with Ghosts of Black Bear Mountain. I was slightly nervous accepting such a large review book from the author since I have been reading a lot of novellas and short stories lately, but I am glad I let myself take the challenge and give this one a chance. I LOVED IT! It took me about 15-20 pages to get "into" this one, but once I was in it I never wanted to put the book down. I enjoyed following our protagonist on his journey in the middle of BF nowhere as he uncovered the secrets of his new job, town, and its inhabitants. There are three odd and ominous rules in the small mining town of Kentucky that you must follow if you want to survive. What are they? Well for that you will need to check this book out yourself!

5 stars! This book has your creepy, rural town, it has dark secrets, it has ghosts, and it is full of paranormal mystery and cover-ups! Highly recommended and I cannot wait for the second installment!

Many thanks to the author for sending me a copy in exchange for an honest review.

This book has so much going on - but in a good way! It never stops being entertaining while at the same time pushing the boundaries on what you might come to expect from a story with this synopsis. This book has creature feature elements (I mean there are kaijus, after all! OOOH and little parasitic bug monsters!), claustrophobic suspense, themes of trans acceptance and understanding, humor, sex, and LOTS of other sexy things! And all of these things DO end up going together quite nicely to tell one amazing bizarro story!

I definitely need more bizarro from Glasser! 4 stars - highly recommended for fans of bizarro and erotic horror!

Do not be fooled by the size of this one! What appears as a short novella is packed FULL of cosmic horror, violent racism, gory medical advances and experimentation, and has a touch of history, as well! This book is full of grave robbers and body exhumations, too!

One of the things I love most about this story is that the monsters encroaching on our existence aren't necessarily the biggest threat. The biggest threat to our lives is PEOPLE. People can be downright terrible. And the villains in this story are DOWNRIGHT TERRIBLE people. They are full of hate and thirsty for power.

I was also drawn to our protagonist, Salem Hawley, seeing him as the hero with integrity and discipline that we all need and could be. I am so pumped that this is the first book in a series because Salem is great! 4 stars to this one!

The cover is right.. this book is cute! I started reading Mellick this summer and the books I have read have been full of gore and sex that makes bizarro so... bizarro! But this story adds an element of romance and adorableness that I just loved! It still has many of the elements that make a story fit into the bizarro category, but this is one that I could recommend to someone to get their feet wet and not be totally slapped in the face with something wild, sexy, gory and out of control!

Admittedly, this was a title purchase pure and simple. I have about 15 Mellick books on my shelves and I did not NEED to get another one when I have unread ones already. But this title called to me and I just needed to know what the heck was going on in a book with a title as crazy as this. And I am definitely glad I did because I found myself laughing, smiling, and entertained the entire time I read this one.

4 stars! HIGHLY recommended for those wanting to dabble in the bizarro world and not get ALL the way in... YET!

I am always a little hesitant to read a zombie book nowadays. It seems that there are SO many out there and they all tend to tell similar stories. And when you pair the book industry with our saturtaed TV and film industry with things like Romero's series, The Walking Dead, etc then you can start to see where I am going with this. RABID HEART, however, does NOT fit into any of these categories. It stands out from the zombie stories and zombie lore that we have come to know and made a fresh impression with me. The way Wagner tells this story is so captivating and entertaining. Our main character is a total beast and I need more of her all the time! For those of you who may be burnt out on zombie books, I recommend checking this one out because you will have a renewed sense of faith in the genre and you may even find a new favorite author in the process! 3.5 stars rounded up to 4 on Goodreads!

The Cormorant is a book I may not have picked up on my own volition. But being part of a subscription package that includes books does have its perks! And one of those perks is introducing me to authors and stories that are slightly outside of my "comfort-genre" wheelhouse and allowing me to experience different things. I am so glad that The Cormorant found its way to me so that I could witness the dark terror that it brings.

AND YES - there is THAT scene that will leave you speechless and your jaw on the floor. It will shock you, scare you, and enthrall you at the same time. It's a scene that I will NEVER forget. And I can't say too much... but for those who have read the book... you know what I am talking about. And those that will read the book... you will 100% know the scene when it slaps you in the face...

Stephen Gregory's writing style is extremely descriptive and he has a way with details that continually pulls you deeper into the story. The way he can set up a scene is impressive to say the least.

3.5 stars!

Trigger warning: some animal violence

I enjoyed this book but there was nothing totally new from the 80s slasher genre in it for me. I always have a great time reading a slasher book like this, so my opinion may be slightly biased! This book has clear Friday the 13th connections as it relates to plot, characters, and setting. While it kept my attention I did hope for a little more but I still had a good enough time with it. This was a quick and easy read - a nice way to spend an evening if you are in the mood for some good ole comfy slashers!

3 stars!

The Girl Who Hid in the Trees focuses on a local urban legend with some coming-of-age elements mixed in along the way. I was hooked from the prologue. I wanted to know more about the urban legend instantly: what was it, how many people have died or suffered from it, what was the main character going to do, etc. I was not disappointed at all in this story. Twice I got goosebumps reading passages that seriously irked me. And once while reading my phone charger dropped from the side table, hitting the ground, causing me to jump and yell as well as launch my slumbering cat from my lap. And then I had to read the second half all by myself as the night approached and it just got darker and colder. HIGHLY recommended!

After The Girl Who Hid in the Trees the author gave us three more presents in the form of short stories! Each short story is different in style and theme. And one story, The Tooth Collector, is seriously freaking me out. Even as I write this review. I feel uneasy and vulnerable and I think that Stred totally succeeded! Few stories make me feel these things.

An easy 5 stars! And thank you to the author for sending an advance copy in exchange for an honest review. I have two of his other books, Wagon Buddy and Left Hand Path: 13 More Tales of Black Magick, unread on my shelves just staring at me now. I must fit them into my upcoming TBR pronto!

Tribesmen was a fun throwback to the 80s giallo cannibal style of horror movies. It is one of my favorite genres in film! In this story, we follow a group of people traveling to an isolated island to make a movie and what happens once they are there is shocking and horrific.

Adam Cesare did a great job at keeping me invested in the story and the characters. I gritted my teeth at some of the scenes just imagining what some of them were thinking and going through. If I can feel that kind of empathy for character in a book then the author is doing it right in my book! Cesare creates a story that, while being an homage to a gory cinema craze of the past, remains fresh and unique with its own spin.

4 stars for this one~ It's a quick read that will make your palms sweat!

Where do I even begin with this one? It was just so good! This story was fast-paced and went straight for the jugular with its coming-of-age aspects that are both heart-wrenching and brilliant.

What do we have? Two brothers. A crappy dad. A mom the boys long to be with. And a hunting event looming on the horizon. This is a recipe for suspense and lots of emotions! And I can't say anything else because it would be unfair to you, the reader, to rob you of going into this book semi-blind.

I enjoyed how seamlessly these authors wrote together as well. There are many times when a book is co-written that you can tell who's who as you're reading if you are familiar with each author. But Newman and Steensland are magic on paper and there's not a single hiccup or bump in the road of this narrative to indicate it's not one flowing story. 5 stars and HIGHLY recommended!