shawna_reads's Reviews (471)

"Paradise died, and we looked into the devil's face." 

In the town of Milburn, New York, four old men gather to tell stories to one another. But one story comes back to haunt them. One that is giving them similar nightmares. Something that they did long ago.. 

I'm going to start off by saying I'm really glad I ended up listening to this on audio while following along with the book. It definitely would have taken me a long time to finish it otherwise (I don't have it in me to DNF books). It was a slooow burn, but it ended up being worth it. 

There was an abundance of characters that helped build the story. I loved the friendships between the men of the Chowder Society, but my favourite characters were definitely Hawthorne and Sears. Straub really shone a light on everyone's emotions as I felt the men's fear. The terrifying reality of what was going on, the intensity of the nightmares the men were experiencing, and how they all ended up facing their fears in the end was written so well. 

I won't lie, I did get bored sometime during the middle, but it was due to filler with it being so slow. Once the action picked up, I started enjoying it again. It was very atmospheric and the dialogue was wonderful.

"You have no idea how dark it is, living in someone else's shadow."

Carol Evers has a dark secret - she has died many times, but what looks like death is a coma lasting for days. Only two people know of her condition, her husband, Dwight, and her ex-boyfriend, James Moxie. As she falls into another coma, Dwight plans a funeral to get to her fortune. As Moxie travels to save her from an early grave, Carol is aware and terrified.

I really enjoyed this book! I like westerns as long as there's some kind of horror or supernatural element to it, and this one certainly delivered. The premise was unique and terrifying, creating a sense of foreboding and claustrophobia. A story of life and death, love and loss, intertwined with magic and subtle horror. It definitely held my interest throughout the story.

I wish there were more chapters from Carol's POV as she was awake in her coma, aware of her husband conspiring against her. However, the characters were well-developed and I enjoyed following along with Dwight's mischievous plans, the sheriff's investigation, her ex-boyfriend's journey to Harrows, and Smoke, a dirty outlaw hired to get rid of Moxie. 

It's a bit of a slow burn, but worth it. If you're looking for a horror mixed with thriller, suspense, and western vibes, then look no further!

"My mother always says the only way two people can keep a secret is if one of them is dead." 

Tricia and Ethan are searching for a house. When they go to view a manor that was previously owned by Dr. Hale, a renowned psychiatrist who went missing without a trace a few years earlier, a blizzard traps them there for the weekend. While looking through the house, Tricia finds a secret room filled with tape recordings of Dr. Hale's sessions. She begins listening to them, slowly unraveling the truth behind her disappearance. 

I liked how the story alternated between different point of views, from Dr. Hale in the past to Tricia in present day. I also enjoyed the transcripts of the tape recordings to add further insight into the psychiatrist's sessions and the slow build up to the mystery. 

I will admit that I thought I had the story figured out, but there were twists and turns that caught me by surprised. However, those reveals were what kept me going and earned an extra star because I was originally going to rate this book lower. The characters were dumb and annoying, and the reasoning behind Dr. Hale's motives and disappearance were ridiculous. 

Also, some parts of the story were repetitive. Tricia just loved cashmere sweaters, and if you didn't know she was cold, she told you 3 or 4 times on one page, and the amount of times she talked about how much she loved her husband, but how little she knew about him and his red flags made me so frustrated. 

Anyway, an average thriller 😅 

"Oh, sleep. Nothing else could ever bring me such pleasure, such freedom, the power to feel and move and think and imagine, safe from the miseries of my waking consciousness." 

The unnamed narrator has it all - she's pretty, a recent Columbia graduate, has an easy job, and a luxurious apartment in Manhattan paid by her inheritance. She should be happy, but there is a dark void in her heart. She decides to go into hibernation with the help of the worst psychiatrist. 

I loved everything about this book. The simplicity of it, yet the deep meaning of depression and societal norms. The obession with beauty standards and diet fads. The hatred, the envy, the absurd. It was bleak and funny and relatable. 

You got an antihero you either love to hate or hate to love, a sadomasochistic relationship with her best friend, a psychiatrist with unconventional practices, crude jokes, and prescription drugs. Having read a lot of books by Chuck Palahniuk, I couldn't help but compare the writing style to his. Maybe that's why I was so drawn to this particular fiction because I've seen a lot of reviews where people just didn't get the story, which made me love it even more. 

Wouldn't you love to have a year of rest? I sure would. I could use the sleep 😆 

"I wish it had been..."

After her father passes away, Miller and her estranged mother spend the weekend at a cabin to repair their relationship, however, Sylvie sees it as a fun getaway. Soon enough, Miller sees how toxic her mother really is.

At only 86 pages, Caitlin sure knows how to pack an emotional punch! I love how Caitlin explored the abusive mother daughter relationship and turned it into a gut wrenching psychological horror. I felt more and more tense the further I got into the story and feared for Miller's safety. The story is raw and the dialogue feels real. The atmosphere is unsettling, and that ending? Dark af! 

I'm glad I started 2023 with this amazing novella. I highly recommend it! 

"Clearly this monster was not of this world." 

A top secret project occurs below the Arctic ice. Something deadly is in the water, something that should have been left alone.. 

At only 39 pages, Andrew and Sam managed to write one hell of a story that flowed very well. I personally find aquatic horror terrifying and claustrophobic so this novelette was effective in creating a foreboding atmosphere. I enjoyed the unique premise, the characters' motives, and the kraken itself! 

That is all I'm going to say as it's a very quick read. I would have loved to see this as a full length novel to delve more into the history of the kraken and more evildoing of the top secret project. 

Happy release date! 😁

"Idle hands are the devil's workshop, so goes the saying. Particularly in my case." 

Season's Creepings is a collection of 10 festive horror stories. From a decorative skeleton to a frozen pond to creepy houses to spooky Christmas trees, you don't know whether these stories will bring you joy or dread. 

I rarely give short story collections 5⭐️ because there are usually a few stories in the mix that are average. However, I love every single story in this collection. They are all fun, creepy, and atmospheric. 

My absolute favourites include: 

🎄 Jingle Bones 
🎄 Heirlooms
🎄 The Winds Within 

Season's Creepings is a short collection that is perfect for the holiday season! 

"Horror took you right to the precipice, where you could stare into the darkness without falling in. Without losing yourself." 

Lussi Meyer is desperate to find a job in publishing after being out of work for months. Strange circumstances land her a job at Blackwood-Patterson, a prestigious but weird publishing company. When she gets there, she believes her coworkers are playing mean pranks on her until she opens her secret Santa gift containing a demonic looking object. 

Secret Santa was a fun, festive, horror book. The setting of the publishing company was atmospheric, and Lussi's new coworkers were mysterious and creepy. There were references to 80s horror culture and talk of Stephen King. I also loved the demonic object relating to ancient German mythology. 

As much as I had fun with it, some parts I didn't care for and I honestly thought it was going to be darker. My fault for having these expectations, but it was filled with humour and I still recommend it for the holiday season!

"Death is darkness, Hell is in the dark, fearful underworld. The Devil has always been known as the Prince of Darkness. And isn't evil expressed as the darkness in one's soul?" 

It all starts on a suburban street in an empty house that is haunted by a malevolent darkness. Chris Bishop, a paranormal investigator, is called to investigate the claims of the house. Soon the dark expands over the city and turns people into murderous savages. Chris, alongside investigators Jessica and Jacob Kulek, must stop it before the dark consumes them all. 

Right from the get-go, the story was action packed. Normal people were doing normal things until suddenly they were effected by an unknown entity causing them to kill their loved ones and strangers without any reason. The atmosphere was unsettling and the deaths were wild. I liked how this evil darkness emanated from the haunted house and how Herbert took the reader into each house on Willow Street and then expanded throughout the city describing all the ways every character was effected. 

I was certain I was going to rate this a 4⭐️ because everything happening was absolutely wild and I was here for it. However, I felt like the book could have been shorter because it started dragging on and on. I get it, the dark was making people go crazy and there was bloodshed, which I love, but then it became repetitive with more ways people were getting killed and it was like okay, let Chris and his colleagues figure it out already. 

Other than that, I did enjoy The Dark. It was my first book by Herbert and I look forward to reading more from him!

"The whole world was burning and tonight they had seen the devil, come to claim his kingdom of fire at last." 

A contagious plague called Dragonscale is spreading like wildfire across cities, marking their hosts with black and gold spots and causing them to burst into flames. There are fires everywhere, but no cure. A mysterious man known as The Fireman saves Harper Grayson, a pregnant nurse who becomes infected, from her crazy husband and finds refuge at a camp in the woods where people have learned to live with their Dragonscale. 

I wasn't sure how to condense the summary because there was so much going on in this book. Also, it initially felt weird to read a book about a pandemic after experiencing our own pandemic. The panic and chaos, the fear of the unknown, the battle between the sick vs. the healthy, etc. It all sounded too familiar! 

Despite the size of the book (and the fact that it took awhile for me to read/listen to 😂), I found it to be an easy read. The book was broken down into parts and the chapters were fairly short. There were a lot of characters throughout that I came to love and hate. I also got a bit of Lord of the Flies vibes as the people at the camp tried to govern themselves and some of them abused their power, eventually tearing apart the cohesion of the people. 

This book was full of hope, love, betrayal, relationships, crumbling societies, and death. I could probably go on and on, but I feel like this review is already long enough 😂 Other than being a little too long, The Fireman was an enjoyable read!