shawna_reads's Reviews (471)

"The unreal is more powerful than the real. Because nothing is as perfect as you can imagine it. Because it's only intangible ideas, concepts, beliefs, fantasies that last. Stone crumbles. Wood rots. People, well, they die."

Victor Mancini goes to restaurants and pretends to choke, creating heroes in people as they save him. They feel sympathetic towards him and compensate him, which he then uses to cover his mother's medical bills.

Leave it to Chuck to create an absurd yet genius idea like pretending to choke and making money off it. Who would have thought?? That is the main storyline, but there is definitely more to this book.

Victor is a character you dislike. He's an asshole, but at least he's honest about it. He is a medical school dropout but still intelligent as he spews medical facts at you throughout. He also attends sex addicts meetings, but instead of actually attending the meetings, he has sex with other addicts. Backwards, right? However, there is strong character development here, which is why I like him. We get glimpses of his childhood with his mother, and you can see what led him to his "dysfunctional" ways.

You will find yourself flying through this one. The chapters are short, it is humourous, and quite outlandish. I was invested in Victor and his mysterious self just as much as the first time I read this a long time ago!

"You tell yourself that noise is what defines silence. Without noise, silence would not be golden. Noise is the exception."

Carl Streator is a journalist investigating sudden infant death syndrome. He notices that all of the dead children were read the same poem called the "culling song", an ancient African spell for euthanizing sick/old people. He, himself, accidentally killed his child and wife with the same poem, and he finds a woman who did the same. Together, they go on a quest to destroy every book that consists of this poem. 

If you knew a certain lullaby that could kill people, would you use it? Out of sheer curiosity? For revenge? For the greater good? 🤔 

All of these questions arise when Carl and Helen discuss the ideas of having power as they're on their journey to destroy all the poems. One is for it and the other is against it, however when it comes down to certain circumstances or a simple annoyance, suddenly people are dropping dead. You begin to wonder whether morals are important anymore 😂

You either love or hate the characters in Palahniuk's books. I really liked Carl, just your average Joe. Helen, not so much, your rich, snobby realtor. Then there is Mona, Helen's secretary, and her boyfriend, who are also on this quest. This causes problems because at some point or another, they're all pitted against each other.

I forgot that I love the theme of repetition in his books. He will have certain phrases/words that are repeated throughout. Some people might not like this, but I do. It's his style and it works well with his flow of words. For example, "Sticks and stones may break your bones, but words can hurt like hell", but then it becomes "Sticks and stones may break your bones, but watch out for those damn words", and so forth.

I don't want to say anything else, but I love transgressive fiction. If you're into it, or want a starting point that isn't completely out there, then read Lullaby!

"The worm that destroys you is the temptation to agree with your critics, to get their approval."
 
Years after his escape, Hannibal has a new disguise living in Florence. On the other hand, Clarice doesn't have it so good when an FBI shootout goes wrong and she is suspended. Enter Mason Verger - a wealthy pervert left paralyzed by Hannibal years ago. He will pay anyone to catch Dr. Lecter and seek revenge.
 
This is going to sound like word vomit because I have so many thoughts and mixed emotions, and I don't know where to begin, and it may be spoilery so consider yourself warned 😂
 
The opening scene is action-packed, and shit hits the fan. I felt anger for Clarice because she's good at what she does, but then you get an asshole of a cop like Krendler that will do anything to take her down, leading to her suspension. During this time, she is introduced to Mason Verger who claims he has info on Hannibal.
 
Now we go to Italy, where Hannibal is literally living his best life as a composer. Like actually. It made me want to take a trip there to wine and dine with him 🥂 This is where the book drastically slows down because we are introduced to a whole new cast of characters - a washed up Italian cop, Mason's sister, and a bunch of guys all working for Mason for large sums of money. Oh, and a bunch of pigs that were continuously mentioned because someone needed to die by pigs 😂 I did not care for any of them. I feel like nobody really shined in this one besides Hannibal (he is a natural star, of course 💁🏾‍♀️), and I guess Mason in a way as he is seeking revenge.
 
I was not happy with the way it all ended. There could have been so many different outcomes that would have ended the series a lot better, but alas, it didn't. I won't say much more as to give anything away if you plan on reading the books, and I have no idea how the movies end 😂
 
This book isn't phenomenal compared to Red Dragon and The Silence of the Lambs, however it was still enjoyable. The action in the beginning and the end was definitely worth it.

"Life is solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, and short. It has no plan, no point, no hidden mysteries that make up for the oh-so-obvious miseries and banalities."
 
Sir John Franklin leads an expedition to locate the Northwest Passage on board HMS Terror. When he dies, Captain Francis Crozier takes command of the surviving crewmen. Plagued by scurvy and starvation, the men fear there is no escape and something is lurking through the wintery landscape.
 
This is a fictional account of the lost expedition to the Arctic between 1845-1848. Simmons created a very atmospheric and chilling story based on that real event, besides the monster of course. Imagine the fear whilst on an expedition stuck in ice tackling the cold weather, isolation, illness, and trying to survive while also battling a creature stalking you along the way 🥶
 
There was an abundance of likeable and unlikeable characters throughout this book. It was initially difficult trying to remember who was who, which ship they belonged to, who was loyal, etc. However, there were some prominent characters (whose names I've already forgotten 😂) I came to love, rooting for them all the way. And whatever that animalistic creature was sounded very grisly and creepy. I'm not going to lie, but the parts I enjoyed the most were the brutal, gory bits involving the creature!
 
This is in no means a bad book, but I personally feel like it was very drawn out and at times found myself uninterested. I was told that the story is about the journey itself, which I completely understand. It was a long, frightening voyage filled with hope, bravery, mutiny, and questioning morals (insert cannibalism here).

"It was wonderful what one could accomplish when one threw everything away."

Onna has incredible magical abilities. After being denied a place at the arcane academy because she's a woman, she sails to Hexos to find a university that doesn't look down on women in magic. However, she becomes drawn to the mysterious murders of 4 trolls. Then there's Tsira, a troll who doesn't fit in with her clan and decides to look for work in a human city. Onna and Tsira both end up devoting their talents to searching for the mysterious murderer.

I did not know how to make that summary shorter because there was a LOT going on in this book. I can't remember the last time I read a straight up fantasy full of magic, trolls, and hard to pronounce names 😂 However, the writing flowed seamlessly and had me hooked right from the beginning! This felt like two stories in one as the chapters alternated between Onna's and Tsira’s lives until they eventually came together. 

All of the characters were amazing and well developed. Onna was a brilliant magician who went on a daring adventure to use her abilities to its full potential. When she reached Hexos, she landed a job as Loga's assistant, the famous magician. I loved how whimsical he was because his character brought out the strength and resilience in Onna. And then Tsira! She was a tough troll with a badass attitude. She met a half-dead human soldier, Jeckran, whom she nursed back to health and created a bond with, eventually falling in love. Following these characters, you could feel all of their emotions and feelings.

I actually really, really liked this book. The magic system was intriguing, and the imagery was just wonderful. It was enthralling, adventurous, mysterious, and fun!

"Birch in the fire goes. Tell me what the Lady knows."

Laura and her father, Niall, live in a small village surrounded by the pine forest. One night as they're driving, a mysterious woman appears on the street and Niall takes her home. The next morning she is gone. In a town full of secrets, Laura cannot trust anyone and sets out to discover who the mysterious woman is and why a teen from the village has gone missing.

This is a slow burn, gothic thriller with a desolate atmosphere. The setting is located in the Scottish highlands with a lot of the events occurring in the pine forest so you could feel the isolation and fear anytime someone was in the forest.

I liked Laura as she was an inquisitive child who sometimes looked after herself because her father drank heavily and was often focused on his own needs and feelings. Sometimes I felt bad for the family dynamic because you could tell Niall loved his daughter, but had his own issues to deal with. As for the other characters, I felt like they weren't fully fleshed out, that there was a lack of depth into their personalities. Some of them could have had more background information to establish a motive for some of their actions later on. It was like "so and so did this" and that was it with no explanation as to why 🤷🏾‍♀️

My only other problem was the fact that there was a slow build up to such little action. I hate when everything is revealed within the last bit of a book with such an anti-climatic ending, especially when it's a slow burn. I want a smooth transition and all of my questions answered!

With that being said, I still found this book enjoyable. It was spooky and mysterious, and I really liked little Laura.

"The power of Satan flows through me. It gives me life, powers you couldn't even dream of, let alone comprehend. Only those who've drunk from the pussy of divinity could understand."
 
Sam West lives on the outskirts of Dennyville. He is about to celebrate his 70th birthday, and his granddaughter, Angel, is coming to visit. However, this year will be a party like no other when Sam and Angel are faced with a devil-worshipping biker gang called Satan's Burnouts. 
 
I started the year off with a bang because this book was one hell of a ride! Satan's Burnouts has everything you need - babes, blood, sex, devil worshipping, and violence. A biker gang comes to town and roughs up a bartender and her server. Sam decides to take things into his own hands and seeks revenge. This is where shit hits the fan!
 
I won't say anymore because it is a short book. At 200 pages, it is fast paced and full of action. It is dark and tense, a delightful homage to 70s occult horror. This one is for you if you enjoy extreme horror. I can't wait for the next book in the trilogy!