Rating: 3.5 stars

Thanks to Whole Story QUEST for the review copy of this novella.

This is a short tale but a really interesting one. I listened to it in one sitting, and while it had a slow-ish start, it built into something fascinating. This was something I really wasn't expecting, and I'm glad that a friend recommended it and that I was able to get ahold of a copy, There's a huge amount of depth and interest packed into this little novella, and I'm super excited to hear more from the Eden Book Society - a fascinating concept that I'd never heard of before. Holt House covers tangled issues regarding memory, the reliability of the narrator, guilt and purgatory, all hidden behind a creepy story involving otters and wardrobes.

Full review, August 12th: https://inkandplasma.wordpress.com/2020/08/12/the-only-good-indians-by-stephen-graham-jones-audiobook-review/

Rating: 4 stars!

Thanks to Whole Story QUEST for the audiobook review copy of this book, it has not affected my honest review.

Trigger Warnings: a LOT of graphic animal violence, graphic violence, alcohol abuse, hunting, murder, stalking (supernatural).

I listened to the audiobook version of The Only Good Indians, and I absolutely recommend this book as an audio experience. Shaun Taylor-Corbett does an excellent job narrating, and really brings all of the characters to life. I liked that he did a great job of making all the characters sound distinct enough that I didn’t need dialogue tags to be able to tell who was speaking, even in the high-tension moments. Throughout the entire audiobook I stayed engaged and I didn’t get too lost at any point, even with the perspective shifts. I did get confused during the basketball sections, but that’s more my complete lack of basketball knowledge than the book itself!

The atmosphere in The Only Good Indians is unbelievably good. It’s built up slowly and steadily, creating an eerie world where, for a good portion of the book, I just wasn’t sure whether there was something supernatural afoot or whether I was being drawn into the main characters’ paranoia. And when it does ramp up? This book goes hard. There was a point where I audibly ‘oof’d at a piece of vivid and horrible description. It is explained why the events of the book are taking place, ten years after Lewis, Gabe, Cass and Ricky illegally hunted in the territory reserved for the Elders of the Reservation. The way that the story unfolds; the past being revealed and then each of the men being hunted one by one; was incredibly well-done and I spent most of the book waiting and worrying about the consequences of their actions. And the way that they were haunted, the revenge that the entity chose to take, was absolutely brutal and made for a very slasher-esque horror, without any of the trope-iness I usually worry about with slashers.

I love the way the book tackles guilt and remorse, as well as a twisted and violent sense of revenge, but my favourite aspect was definitely the way that The Only Good Indians looked at the way the men were driven to madness by their fear, and how that could cause them to lash out. The main characters aren’t actually bad people. They’re good people who did one bad thing that they haven’t been able to shake, and that’s infinitely more compelling to me than just ‘bad people getting punished’.

The Only Good Indians is packed full of cultural references, some that I recognised but a fair amount that I, as a white reader, had to stop and educate myself about. I haven’t read much, if any, Indigenous horror before, but this was accessible enough to have me understand the folklore and superstitions that underpinned its plot, without feeling like it was pandering to readers who weren’t familiar with them. I really liked the way it tackled the way that cultural perceptions of Native American communities have been weaponised against their members, and how they’ve become embedded in the communities themselves. However, I am a white reader/reviewer, so be sure to take a look at ownvoices reviewers for any commentary on the rep.

DNF @ 63%.

Full review on August 24: https://inkandplasma.wordpress.com/2020/08/24/the-sin-eater-by-megan-campisi-review/

Rating: 4.5 stars

Thanks to Pan Macmillan and Mantle for the review copy of this book, it has not affected my honest review.

Trigger warnings: sexual assault, fatphobia, death (including child death), very brief reference to various confessions of different severity including child rape, child murder, murder, attempted murder. There is a list of ‘confessions’ available in the free kindle preview, and it might be worth checking that as there are many that are mentioned in passing.

I didn’t expect to be as into this book as I was. I started it as part of a buddy read, then kept having to stop myself skipping ahead because it was just so interesting. I will admit that I highly recommend a physical copy of this book if that’s accessible to you, rather than an ebook as it was a bit frustrating having to skip back and forwards in the book to find the list of foods and what sin they correlated with when one was referenced in the text. I ended up downloading the kindle sample onto my phone just so I could screenshot the list for easy reference.

The setting is absolutely fascinating and while I’m not expert enough to see any faux pas, it certainly felt meticulously researched. I could feel the love put into the setting of this book, and now I’d definitely be keen to read any more of Megan Campisi’s work. Historical fiction is the kind of genre that I forget I love, so I’m so glad I requested this one on a whim. The main character, May, is a delight and utterly, utterly relatable. She’s thrown into an awful situation, and her reactions felt heartbreakingly authentic. Reading about her struggling with her guilt, around her compliance with something she personally believed to be wrong versus what she has been taught to be wrong all her life, was incredibly emotional and I felt for her so hard. I felt genuinely excited as May started to grow in confidence and come into her own power, and I think that’s my favourite thing in a book like this – when I can feel so connected to a character that she feels like a friend. The supporting characters in this book were equally lovable (well, mostly) and the rag-tag crew that May supports in her sanctuary made the whole oppressive society feel a little more hopeful – they certainly weren’t all bad.

The plot itself was something I didn’t actually expect. It started a little slow, but I didn’t care. I was so absorbed in the world and in learning about the life of the Sin Eaters that I was in no rush to get to the mystery. And when I did, I was absorbed in that too. I liked the way it played out, and the way that May had to balance on a razor edge between pushing the boundaries to discover what was going on, and keeping quiet to avoid retribution. I actually didn’t see the ending coming at all, and it was a satisfying finish, I think. The ending itself was really beautiful too, and the messages this book sends about choice and free will were heartwarming.

DNF @ 20%

I feel bad DNFing this as it's a MG book and I'm hardly the intended audience but something about this just didn't work for me. I felt like Col's age was a little all over the place. He's supposed to be 10 or 12 (text wasn't totally clear) but at points he felt like he was 7 or 8 and at times he seemed older. It was a strange kind of inconsistency that made it hard to get to know his character as he felt a bit unpredictable. I also felt like everything was a bit simplistic. Every challenge they faced was immediately overcome, there wasn't much lasting difficulty.

However this book handled the emotional side of being evacuated very well, and Col's emotional responses to everything felt very authentic and well written. There were also lots of positive reviews so perhaps this was a case of the book and myself being incompatible more than anything else.

A solid mystery thriller with an interesting hook and fun investigation. I worked out what was happening about halfway through but still thoroughly enjoyed watching it all play out. A quick and easy read that's well worth picking up if you enjoy YA murder mysteries.

Full review available on my blog on September 19th: https://inkandplasma.wordpress.com/2020/09/19/the-beast-and-the-bethany-by-jack-meggitt-phillips-blog-tour-review/

Rating: 4 stars!

Thanks to Egmont Publishing for the review copy of this book, and to Write Reads for letting me join the tour – it has not affected my honest review.

This was such a sweet middle grade story that it actually pulled me straight out of a vicious reading slump as I read it in one sitting. Ebenezer Tweezer (best name ever, by the way) and Bethany had a delightfully Despicable Me dynamic that I adored. The development of their relationship feels really authentic and beautiful and I loved to see it happen. There’s something about reluctant caregiver turned found family that melts my icy heart!

Bethany vacillates between outright rude and hilariously cheeky, but I did feel like she was well-rounded enough that she didn’t feel like a naughty kid stereotype – and to be fair, her pranks were pretty funny at points. This book is actually far funnier than I ever expected. Other reviews called it hilarious, but for some reason I didn’t believe it. I was wrong. There were several laugh out loud moments, not least of them Ebenezer’s complete lack of awareness of the value of money. Big ‘It’s a banana, Michael’ energy, and I would thoroughly enjoy reading this to my nieces when they’re a bit older – great for adults and kids alike!

I didn’t actually know quite how Dorian Gray this was going to be, and as Dorian Gray is one of my favourite books, it was a great surprise. The premise is simple, Ebenezer will live forever, as long as he pleases the beast. The beast wants to eat a child. Ebenezer does not like Bethany. Sounds like an easy solution – but of course in the days Ebenezer spends with Bethany, things get a little complicated. The growing relationship between Ebenezer and Bethany is lovely to watch and while I think this works really well as a standalone, I’m excited to read the next book and see, hopefully, some wonderful and no doubt mischievous adventures with the newly created Tweezer family.

4.5 stars!

Loved, loved, loved this! Might write a full review at some point.

I requested this one after listening to the first of the Eden Book Society audiobooks, Holt House. This was equally short, at 2 hours and 30 minutes. I liked Holt House a lot, and this was equally fun. Judderman was much more of an atmospheric read, though that atmosphere is bleak and eerie. Judderman peeks at the darkness that everyone sees but nobody acknowledges, creating an in depth view of the things that lie in plain sight and the risks of acknowledging those things - be they metaphorical or paranormal. I liked the concept of the Judderman, I'm a sucker for monstrous spirits that lurk a little closer than you'd like, and the descriptions of the world were vivid and fascinating. I think the audiobook makes for a good way to experience this novella, as the journalistic aspects that felt so wild and on-the-edge felt even more so through the audiobook medium. I really love listening to the Eden Book Society series, and I hope they keep on coming!