roadtripreader's Reviews (357)

Steamy Indiana-Jones Style Adventure but make it Sassy with sexy  Dragons

Yep. I've come a long way from wanting to throw the first Mead Mishaps book right out the window when I'd first started reading it. The writing style had thrown me off completely and it seemed ridiculous having just come out of a heavy Sci-fi and SF bender. But I stayed the course and now I love this low-stakes series.

This can't be the end. There are more monsters onboard the Banshee who would love to find their mates. There are more adventures to be had. Alexis is still out there talking trash and slicing up enemies.

I can't deny I would read a few more Fallon or Dante lead adventures any day.

Spice level: 🌶🌶🌶🌶 in true Mead Mishaps fashion, the monster-men are delectable.

Plot/Storyline: The writing has changed just a little and although it's still not my favorite style I enjoy the actual story so that's a win. This glorious adventure is presented a few povs.

All the best characters from the Mead Mishaps Universe converge in this installment and it's enough to make the heart swell. Dammit Lemming! Now look my eyes are leaking.

Characters: Cherry is way more my speed than Cinnamon. Dante is adorable in that ancient clueless about everything except being a dragon kind of way.

Favorite scene/quote:

♡♡♡♡♡ Family Reunion!
♡♡♡♡“I can’t kill you; you smell like flowers,” (Dante on finding Cherry) oh and Stupid dragon slut venom
♡♡♡The Magic 3d holographic map of all things.
♡♡Unicorn medicinal and healing properties
♡Rebekah the little white cat

Unintentional Cringe Factor: -1 the snapping gators, jumping jaguars, Holy filé powder, hissing puma etc etc and other curse lines in all the books. Don't know why but it just grates my nerves.

There is a better, deeper, distressing more gothic story trying to get out of this one.  Solid 3.8

If you look just beyond the wailing, the watery deaths and the general horror-ness; there is a convoluted theme beneath. Could be the forlorness of time, of dying of being left behind and forgotten. The loss of innocence, children growing up,  graduating into uncertain futures and emerging into adulthood. Friendships improving and evolving or straining and breaking. That villages like Port Mercy, like the town of Norton - even houses like Spindrift were once thriving, young, so alive and now even the ghost of them is letting go. Maybe, that's the real horror The Shadow of Spindrift House.

Often times, a horror story is just that - scheduled screams and death and running (too much running) maybe some stabbing and chopping and stumbling or scrambling to get away - a thrill to the senses. Very rarely is it this. A true haunting.

Plot/Storyline: I don't not care for Harlowe, Kevin, Andy and Addison. They do pull at the strings leading to the heart lightly. To my surprise, my feet are firmly planted on the side of the sea and by extension Spindrift House.   I know, that's bloody horrifying. I can't help it.

Characters: There are three shadow characters here - earth and it judges us harshly. Time and we mean nothing to it. Maybe a legion of ghosts and Spindrift House is their hero song.

Favorite scene/concept: For all nature's railing against lines and sharp edges and geometry - the number 3is significant. There are three versions of Spindrift's birth. There are 3 things in nature that go against curvature and natural patterns. There are three things dying here - a way of life, a village going under and a house. Even the prose is structured in threes.

Favorite Quote: Spindrift House has had a great deal of time to decide what it wants to be, and what it wants to be is unforgiving. (Harlowe, Nature and Time on the nature of Spindrift's malevolence).

StoryGraph Challenge: 1800 Books by 2025
Challenge Prompt: 150 Horror Books by 2025

Unconventional ghosthunting - don't try this at home. No seriously.

As a longtime sufferer of insomnia - this book hits different. I mean at least this kid's subconscious mind takes over and drags his corporeal form around on eery terrifying adventures. Me, I'm stuck thinking, thinking and thinking. About what, you ask. Hell if I know, I once spent an hour thinking about the the innovation that lead to soft serve consistency which of course led me to google the invention of ice-cream timeline - at 2am. Suffice it to say, Dream/Sandman refuses to come drop some sleep in my eyes (I mean is he still stuck in the dungeon in the basement or what? What's his excuse?) So now I just read.

I digress, back to the kid who sleepwalks; Junior. His approach to observing the ghost of his father during one of his sleepwalking episodes is to go digging around for evidence of the paranormal occurrence in a structured, logical way which includes enlisting the help of his little brother on a measuring mission. I mean - color me impressed. I have yet to begin the hallucination phase of insomnia but I would hope I'd be as headstrong as this kid. No promises.

Plot/Storyline: The eery build up is punctuated so well by the presence of Dino and the potential presence of one particular spirit/ghost/apparition/otherworldy imprint/maybe zombie.
Characters: His father in death and in life is tragic. That was a whole person caught in the net of societal immobility on the Reservation. We never meet him but through Res-lore, our narrator's childhood memories and some horrifying subtext I can't help but mourn this character that’s how you talk about dead people, though, especially dead Indians. It’s all about squandered potential, not actual accomplishments. (Junior on his father)
Favorite scene: Junior on his second attempt at locating that elusive spirit/ghost/being/thing At 2:43, the skin on the outside of each of my feet started to tingle and pinprick. I hotfooted it back and forth without thinking, then just stood there looking down at what was happening. Circulation. It was ruining everything.
Favorite Concept: Deadfooting it to the next world. I'm a sucker for Otherworlds on this plane. So yeah, I want to test this theory. But how? I don't sleepwalk. How do I translate insomnia into the walk of the one's passed out soo deep that their hidden self takes over the motor functions? Might just be easier to summon a sleep paralysis demon.

StoryGraph Challenge: 1800 Books by 2025
Challenge Prompt: 150 Horror Books by 2025

 

 Talk about an opening. None of this damsel in innocence minding her own business and oops, falls on the devil's D. Nope, Keres is a woman on a mission and she grabbed me by the neck and dragged me on this whole journey with her.

You think your heart is wicked

This is the same author who managed to do some SICK worldbuilding in maybe three or four pages for Railed By The Easter Bunny. I've come to expect captivating writing, because yes we all know where it's heading but dang it I'm a sucker for some good prose. Davies has done it again to an extent.

Spice level: there was never any doubt this would be debaucherously hot.
Plot/Storyline: -1 Fast paced and sharp all the better to hook you with it. Also, how do I glean this location of Hellmouth - for science purposes. Do I need a grimoire, do I need to enlist the help of a hellhound? Shall I contact my local coven - I just want to ask for directions please.

I wanted it to be longer - I'd read a full length novel with this entire premise .

Characters: She wants what she wants and no white light or stairway to heaven is going to distract her. She is confident, laser focused, a whole force of nature. The Devil is a bit of a beefcake and not enough of that fallen angel - he's a bit two dimensional. Just a bit.

Favorite scene/quote: The Dance of the Devil sequence. All the "sinners yanked to hell. Between one blink and the next, I’m dragged to Hell and thrust into the arms of a sinner, twirling over the flames of the Devil’s ballroom. Hundreds of people in their funereal best spin around the dance floor beside me. All of us in the arms of false devils.
 

 This is the first book I've read which features a baby and night feeding and the strangeness of having a whole new person in the house. I mean yes, Nightbitch by Rachel Yoder featured a baby-to-toddler but by the middle of that story I had long forgotten about the kid. Anyway Charlie Asher has 2 new jobs, reaping souls and changing diapers.

The kid (Sophie) is going to grow up to become, shall we say, eccentric what with being read Slaughterhouse-Five as a bed time story at barely 2 months old and having a minion of Death for a father - eccentric is putting it mildly.
.
Plot/Storyline: a strange after effect of this book is that I am itching to by a ticket to New York again. Weird but I guess the notion that New Yorkers mind their business - Here's a guy going through a literal supernatural event and the streets of NYC just keep on filling up, people get to work, get off work, walk the streets, get on with the business of living. Excuse me while I try to put in for some vacation time.

-2 I did get annoyed with the Beta-Alpha running joke. It got old, diminished Charlie's personality to some nonsense at times and it was exhausting. Plus, it made me think of that turd Andrew Tate and then I ended up googling the imbecile to make sure he's still languishing in Romanian house arrest- so I guess it was a good joke?

Characters: I wanted to THROTTLE Lily the little thief. I want to hug Charlie Asher and hangout with Jane while she tries to finesse her way to a next date.
Favorite scene: Quite a few but his conversations with Jane were hilarious and I feel like the grief really brought out their family dynamic on the page really fast especially when both had zero clue what shiva is and how to do it.
Favorite Quote/Concept: He can see Death in the form of the color red. That and the fact that birth and death collide in the opening sequence beautifully.

StoryGraph Challenge: 1800 Books by 2025 and Top 22 Male Authors (Scifi/fantasy/horror)
Challenge Prompt: 150 Fantasy books by 2025 and Grim Reaper Series by Christopher Moore 

 You see people gather around - this is what happens when you answer the call to the void and let that intrusive thought run rampant. WTF.

I am once again petitioning for a Viking funeral complete with canoe, pyre, wailing hotties and archers with impeccable aim. Just skip the mortuary altogether thanks.

We've all had that terrifying thought that the mortician in the morgue might be an outright pervert right? Oh wait you haven't had that terrifying thought? I guess I'll blame it on watching Criminal Minds and L&O SVU when I was barely a teen. This book feels like looking into the mind of the rare beast - a female serial killer. Well she has the potential.


The author managed to do something powerfully frightening - keep the reader hooked on one of the most depraved stories of the decade.

Spice level: Noooooo we will not be calling it spice of any sort.

Plot/Storyline: started in the pits of hell. But then, there was this 2nd act filled with potential, hope and dare I say love story. Yeah it all ended in a further pit in hell.

Characters: Sadie Sadie Sadie smdh. I liked Rhys.

Favorite scene/quote: I can take an aspirin for mine. You need bedrest, plus, you’re probably contagious, and I don’t want to catch that shit.” It comes out a little harder than I intend, but seriously… gross. (Sadie on her boss's cold when just seconds before she was caressing and stroking a cadaver's junk. Cognitive dissonance). 

 Tag you're it- probably the grimoire in this book bouncing around like a hot potato.

So; I did a Pre-halloween thing to get me to finallyfinish this book. For the last couple of chapters, I hauled myself out onto the deck, turned off all the lights and just left a bunch of garden lamps on. Snuggled with a blanket, hot chocolate, cookies, my kindle and my mini border collie at my feet and read in the moonlight. Let me tell you - chills.

Spice level: strangely forgettable scenes but I remember there being heat🌶🌶🌶

Plot/Storyline: - 0.5 Commendable Lore-building. Nothing quoteable. Also I hated that Leon kept on calling her "doll" it was cringe not sexy. Also too many filler pages.

Characters: - 0.5 Let's be honest, Rae was written to be somewhat annoying right? She got on my nerves at least half of the time and it felt deliberate.

Inaya is the stereotypical cardboard cut out "best friend". The Hadleighs are this big looming threat and yet we hardly spend time with them. I guess that works, it was like hearing rumors about them whenever they were mentioned - credible rumors. Everly was worth of more page time - I was already rooting for her from the minimal interaction in the first few chapters.

Between Zane and Leon -I can't decide. I have a soft spot for both.

Favorite scene/quote:  Rae accidently summoning Leon at Saint Thaddeus is tied with that ULTRA creepy scene with Rae stuck in her car and petrifying tall bipedal-humanoid antlered creatures staring her down in the street.

 What ho! A lady Wizard!? Now the Discworld's gone and done it.

Can you imagine her poor husband if she marries?  Granny Weatherwax seriously threw that in Smith's face and you know what, I cackled.  That was almost all that mattered by the end of that conversation.  Still, Eskarina the first girl-child to be bestowed with elder-mage magic was; understandably, an eight year old handful. 

I didn't get the hit I was looking for with this book.  But, I did like it, like a nice cup of tea and a plain muffin with just a hint of some sugary goodness in the middle of a mid-morning rush. 

A solid 3.5

Plot/Storyline: -1 I get the feeling this one was not meant to be entirely hilarious. It started out well, took a nose dive in the first quarter and then came right back swinging.
Characters: - 0.5 My application to Granny Weatherwax's Ramptop cottage of headology with a side of Herbs is already in the mail. Folks, I'm going to learn witchery. I liked the other characters but I really didn't love them. Death's cameo was a whisper really - I mean not that I want Death to run rampant but you know, I held out my bowl for some more please.
Favorite scene:  Granny Weatherwax vs The Staff - take your pick, each showdown was hilarious. Immovable object meet Unstoppable force. Have at it.
Favorite Quote/Concept: Granny Weatherwax was speaking softly in what Esk thought of as her ‘just so’ voice. The old woman had a flat, measured way of speaking sometimes. It was the kind of voice the Creator had probably used. Whether there was magic in it, or just headology, it ruled out any possibility of argument. It made it clear that whatever it was talking about was exactly how things should be. (On the powers of Granny)
StoryGraph Challenge: 1800 Books by 2025 / Top 22 Male Authors
Challenge Prompt: 150 Fantasy Books by 2025 / Terry Pratchett's Discworld 

Latex-wearing bank robbers, Balloon People and a creepy Kid.

Carlton Mellick III is that writer you swear you'll NEVER ever read again because his books are like gateways to some tabooish-bizzare-WTF part of human brains. This is the same author who wrote about a gateway to hell via ... ahem, a body part way down south. Anywhoozle ; you try to stick to the thunderstorms and clues side of the library, maybe roam around the flowers and butterflies shelf, maybe visit the cozy coffee shelf. But then, a few trips to the screaming terror shelf and down you tumble into the bloody abyss.

And yet, you find yourself chuckling, clutching pearls, then trying not to puke, maybe grimacing and then conceding that this book (like his others) is damn good and you barely remember adding it to your cart and decide that maybe you have a very specific addiction that begins and ends with "What was that author smoking?" books and now you're at the tailend of a tale that has been one helluva depressing-enraging-is this where we're heading-WILD ride.

Also - the Health Insurance Industry in the US is literally a horror show. Nightmares to follow.

Plot/Storyline: Like a platoon of fire ants crawling up your skin and leaving blotchy red marks - the story is that fiery.
Characters: I bloody hate Kyle and I know I shouldn't. Can't decide who I love more so it's a tie between Johnny Balloon and the House of Cards.
Favorite scene: The balloon poppin-terrorizing-murdering little psychopath in the bank. That whole scene was way scarier because we've all seen someone like that at the supermarket, the bank - heck in line waiting for my order.
Favorite Quote/Concept: I can't get over this concept it's scary brilliant. Balloon People. Only the most desperate individuals shed their humanity to become balloon people. The procedure is free. They basically scoop out all of your insides and turn your mind into a sentient gas which is then put into a human-shaped balloon body. (Narrator on balloon-debt)
StoryGraph Challenge: 1800 Books by 2025
Challenge Prompt: 150 Horror books by 2025