Amity
Nic Monroe's life has stagnated since the disappearance of her older sister, Kasey, 7 years ago: she still works the same job she did as a teenager, still lives in her hometown, still drinks too much to unwind. Jenna, the older sister of Jules, who went missing around the same time as Kasey, eventually reaches out to Nic with a proposition: the two of them know their sisters better than anyone, and if they work together, maybe they can finally solve their disappearances.
The premise was compelling, but the writing was rather bland. I appreciate that Nic was flawed and unlikable and there were a few moments where you really feel her grief, but other than those few moments, she and all the other characters felt very one-dimensional. As for the plot...well, I'm all for suspension of disbelief in these types of page-turners, but there were so many times that I was like...no? That did not happen like that? I don't know, maybe I'd appreciate it more if I wasn't an only child and understood the deep, unyielding bond between sisters. A very medium three shelter cats named Bansky out of 5 that might ultimately be closer to a 2.5.
Something is wrong with teenage Alice, something that has drawn the attention not only of the locals in her small village but also of journalist Sam Hunter. When Sam meets our main character, Mina, at a grief support group, he finds out that she recently graduated with a degree in child psychology, and thinks this could be a good opportunity for the both of them: practical experience for Mina to add to her resume, and an intriguing story for his newspaper. But when they meet Alice, the two aren't prepared for what's haunting her.
I was hooked from the beginning of this story and found Mina a sympathetic if somewhat passive protagonist. There is also some genuinely creepy imagery in the book and a great sense of dread throughout, but the last 10% of the book lost me. The big twists (if they were in fact meant to be twists?) were pretty obviously telegraphed earlier in the story and that made all the reveals seem to drag a bit. Still, I liked it well enough and wouldn't dissuade anyone from reading it or anything. 3 hagstones out of 5.
Calla may only be 25, but she feels decades older after gaining guardianship of her younger brother Jamie. Her other brother, middle-child Dre, said he would help, but he's rarely there for her. After misunderstandings leave Jamie in trouble with the law and Dre unable to return to his home, Calla does what she always does: she saves them. The three siblings find themselves staying in a remote cabin straight out of a horror movie as the two brothers try to figure out the mysterious circumstances that led them to run, and Calla deals with the recurring nightmare about Jamie and Dre dying.
The comparisons to Jordan Peele movies are warranted, and I could see his brand of filmmaking bringing this story to the big screen. Viel deftly manages a balance of fever-dream imagery, real-life horrors, and biting humor throughout this debut. Although I don't have siblings of my own, I bought the relationship between Calla, Jamie, and Dre, and thought it gave the novel enough heart that I was willing to stick through some of the uneven pacing of the first half. Some of the writing was confusing, some of it was beautiful, and a lot of it was funny despite the subject matter. Overall, an inventive and memorable debut and something you should read if you like surreal and/or sociopolitical horror novels. 3.5 Spongebob references out of 5, rounded up.
Contains spoilers
Although Nadya was born with only one arm, she never found herself lacking in any way. However, when she is adopted by American parents and taken away from her homeland of Russia, they deem it necessary to fit her with a prosthetic. Nadya has smiled politely and been obedient throughout all of the major changes that have happened to her, but the uncomfortable prosthetic is too far and leads her to wandering by a turtle pond, which is the only place she ever truly feels at peace. After trying to help a turtle with a strange message carved into its shell - Be Sure - Nadya finds herself in Belyyreka, a land of giant frogs, talking turtles, and water as far as the eye can see.
This was as well-written as the others in the series, and once again the world-building is incredible. It's such a short book, but it's so richly described and well thought out. I think this prequel could work as an entry point to the series, albeit a sad one, but I found it more rewarding having read the other books. Though I want to know what happened when Nadya returned to Belyyreka! How much time had passed? Was her husband still alive? More importantly what about her giant turtle??
Overall, not the strongest entry in the series, but still solid. 3.5 varying weights of water out of 5.
I read this back in high school and liked it fine, but I feel I have a better appreciation for it now. It's not particularly scary, exactly, but it does have a sense of foreboding even when you know what's going to happen. 4 buckets of happy funtime confetti and definitely not blood of any animal out of 5.
Contains spoilers
OH DANG I LIKED THIS SO MUCH! Exactly my type of story...just started the second volume and I'm hoping it sticks the landing, but you theoretically could take the ending of this one and have it stand as a self-contained, bleak conclusion. Bueno's art and Bellaire's colors were also lovely, though there were occasions when I had trouble telling a few of the characters apart due to the lack of clean, solid lines. It definitely fits the aesthetic of the story though, especially Walter's Melty Man look. 4.5 lovely little lake houses out of 5.
A year ago, Nan lost her three best friends to Saltcedar Canyon: their bodies were never found, despite the best efforts of the community to locate them. On the anniversary of the disappearance, during a lakeside vigil held in their honor, one of the girls is found injured but alive. No one is more shocked to see Luce than Nan, who doesn't share the town's excitement: after all, Nan was pretty sure she had killed all three of the girls. As Luce recounts her fractured memories of the past year, Nan and the reader are left wondering: how much does Luce really remember?
The plot was compelling, and the writing was solid; however, I did think it fizzled out at the end a bit. Thrillers often require some suspension of disbelief, which I have no issue with, but there were some parts to the story that didn't add up for me. Still, I was reading this every spare chance I had to see how everything unfolded. While there are things that are going to bother me as an adult reader, they probably won't bother the target audience, and I think it's an overall solid addition to the YA thriller genre. 3.5 earrings out of 5.
sick of living in the real world (terrible, filled with awful humans, my mail carrier isn't a platypus), moving to this world instead (cozy, everyone is cute and supportive, mail carrier is a platypus)
needed some comfort after this week and this provided. imagine a world where people cared about one another and everyone was considerate and empathetic and also everyone was an adorable animal...truly paradise. 4 overly-caffeinated penguins out of 5.
This had such a strong start and the premise is interesting but it just...ends? I don't mind a meandering narrative or even that the hook of the story becomes background to a character-based relationship drama but like...I shouldn't be checking to see if the copy of the book is missing pages. I dunno, maybe this is the fault of me, the reader! Either way, 2 content-moderated stars out of 5.
There are a lot of reasons John Carpenter's The Thing is a great film, like the incredible special effects that brought the creative and terrifying creature designs to life, but the truly scary aspects are the isolation, the dread, the paranoia. And while that is touched upon in this novel, it never reaches the heights of its inspiration. There's a bit of paranoia - and I liked how it tied in with Riley's history of panic attacks, how she couldn't trust her own mind - and the scenes where they're braving the Antarctic storms were effective, but it never fully came together.
Normally I would try not to directly compare the movie and the book so closely, but the book's story follows the plot of the movie so much that it's hard not to. I think the book could have done more to make it unique, like focus on the environmental/climate change aspect or flesh out the characters and make it more character-driven, but it was too short and too action-focused for that to happen. Also, a minor complaint but the pop-culture references also seemed more suited to millennials and older, which obviously works for me because I'm in that age range, but might be off-putting to the target YA audience?
Overall, I didn't hate this, and there were things I did like (especially that the billionaire tech weirdo is named Anton Rusk and is still somehow less cartoonishly evil than his real-life counterpart). I wouldn't hesitate to hand it to a teen looking for a fast-paced horror read, but this Elder Librarian would rather watch the cinematic masterpiece that inspired it. 2.5 Animorphs references out of 5, rounded up.
This was super fun! I didn't like it quite as much as [b:A Marvellous Light 53217284 A Marvellous Light (The Last Binding, #1) Freya Marske https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1634067514l/53217284.SY75.jpg 80535939] because there was less magic and more talk about textiles, but Luca and Matti were sweet, well-rounded characters and I enjoyed the banter. Overall, 3.5 broken pocket watches out of 5, rounded up.
I appear to be in the minority on this one, but it never clicked for me. I found the writing rather dry and the characters pretty flat, and the only thing that really kept me going was to get to the reveal, which was...meh. I didn't hate it, I just kind of nothing'd it. 2.5 lucid dreams out of 5, rounded down.
Hmmmm this one did not appeal to me quite as much as the others. I liked a lot of elements but it did not add up to a cohesive read to me. I'm certainly not one to be put off by death and violence and gore since I was raised on horror movies, but by the end even I was like, dude, Adam, chill. Still, it was hard to put the book down since I wanted to see where the bananas plot was going, and I adore the cover. Overall, 3 ICP references out of 5.
This was SO GOOD and the only thing really keeping it from a 5-star for me is the unnecessary romance. It added nothing! Especially since the focus was so much on Nora having new friends outside of Becca, the love interest could have easily just been another friend. But still, I loved the spooky atmosphere and pacing of all the reveals, and Melissa Albert's prose is so, so lovely. Overall, 4 jump rope rhymes out of 5.
