How to Make a Horror Movie and Survive by Craig DiLouie (ARC Review)

September 4, 2024

Horror isn’t horror unless it’s real.

Max Maury should be on top of the world. He’s a famous horror director. Actors love him. Hollywood needs him. He’s making money hand over fist. But it’s the 80s, and he’s directing cheap slashers for audiences who only crave more blood, not real art. Not real horror. And Max’s slimy producer refuses to fund any of his new ideas.

Sally Priest dreams of being the Final Girl. She knows she’s got what it takes to score the lead role, even if she’s only been cast in small parts so far. When Sally meets Max at his latest wrap party, she sets out to impress him and prove her scream queen prowess.

But when Max discovers an old camera that filmed a very real Hollywood horror, he knows that he has to use this camera for his next movie. The only problem is that it came with a cryptic warning and sometimes wails.

By the time Max discovers the true evil lying within, he’s already dead set on finishing the scariest movie ever put to film, and like it or not, it’s Sally’s time to shine as the Final Girl… Read More How to Make a Horror Movie and Survive by Craig DiLouie (ARC Review)

— Adult, book review —

Not Another Love Song by Julie Soto (Review)

August 28, 2024

Gwen Jackson and Xander Thorne are both musical prodigies, but each has had very different paths to success. Xander was born into classical music royalty, while Gwen had a natural ear for music that was nurtured by a kind shop owner.

After Gwen performs at his friend’s wedding, she’s mortified when she realizes Xander has no clue who she is—despite having worked together for a year at the Pops Orchestra. But she’s more furious that he arrogantly critiques her performance.

When Gwen is offered the role of First Chair of the orchestra, something Xander had secretly coveted for years, their existing hostility goes up a notch. But their respect for each other’s music is undeniable, and their onstage chemistry off the scale. As they begin to explore their feelings for one another, suddenly they’re box office dynamite and the fragile romance that’s growing between them is in danger of being crushed beneath a publicity stunt… Read More Not Another Love Song by Julie Soto (Review)

— book review, children's —

Dr. Color Monster and the Emotions Toolkit by Anna Llenas (Review)

June 26, 2024

Today, Nuna doesn’t feel quite right. So, she pays a visit to the Color an emotions doctor who helps diagnose big, challenging feelings. After he recognizes and gives a name to what we feel, this kind and gentle Monster (with the help of his emotions toolkit!) leads Nuna and readers down a path of mindfulness, self-healing, and mental well-being.

This vibrant companion to the international bestseller The Color Monster includes two giant foldout pages featuring more than 30 effective, accessible, and practical tools for soothing strong emotions—strategies for readers of all ages to calm and center hearts and minds. Drawing from her background in art therapy and featuring her endearing, standout artwork, Anna Llenas brings the bestselling Color Monster series to a whole new level with a story both reassuring and transformative. Backmatter for caregivers about understanding emotional regulation is included.… Read More Dr. Color Monster and the Emotions Toolkit by Anna Llenas (Review)

— Adult, ARC review, book review —

Just for the Summer by Abby Jimenez (ARC Review)

June 26, 2024

Justin has a curse, and thanks to a Reddit thread, it’s now all over the internet. Every woman he dates goes on to find their soul mate the second they break up. When a woman slides into his DMs with the same problem, they come up with a plan: They’ll date each other and break up. Their curses will cancel each other’s out, and they’ll both go on to find the love of their lives. It’s a bonkers idea… and it just might work.

Emma hadn’t planned that her next assignment as a traveling nurse would be in Minnesota, but she and her best friend agree that dating Justin is too good of an opportunity to pass up, especially when they get to rent an adorable cottage on a private island on Lake Minnetonka.

It’s supposed to be a quick fling, just for the summer. But when Emma’s toxic mother shows up and Justin has to assume guardianship of his three siblings, they’re suddenly navigating a lot more than they expected–including catching real feelings for each other. What if this time Fate has actually brought the perfect pair together?… Read More Just for the Summer by Abby Jimenez (ARC Review)

— Adult, book review —

Cyberpunk 2077: No Coincidence by Rafał Kosik & Stefan Kiełbasiewicz (Review)

March 22, 2024

This electrifying novel set in the world of Cyberpunk 2077 follows a group of strangers as they discover that the dangers of Night City are all too real. In neon-drenched Night City, a ragtag group of strangers have just pulled off a daring heist on a Militech convoy transporting a mysterious container. What do each of them have in common? Good, old-fashioned blackmail. Forced to do the job, they have no idea how far their employer’s reach goes, nor what mysterious object the container holds.

The newly-formed gang – consisting of a veteran turned renegade, a Militech sleeper agent, an amateur netrunner, a corporate negotiator, a ripperdoc and a techie – must overcome their differences and work together lest their secrets come to light before they can pull off the next deadly heist… Read More Cyberpunk 2077: No Coincidence by Rafał Kosik & Stefan Kiełbasiewicz (Review)

— Adult, audiobook, book review —

Labyrinth’s Heart by M.A. Carrick (Review)

March 22, 2024

Ren came to Nadežra with a plan. She would pose as the long-lost daughter of the noble house Traementis. She would secure a fortune for herself and her sister. And she would vanish without a backward glance. She ought to have known that in the city of dreams, nothing is ever so simple.

Now, she is Ren, con-artist and thief. But she is also Renata, the celebrated Traementis heir. She is Arenza, the mysterious pattern-reader and political rebel. And she is the Black Rose, a vigilante who fights alongside the legendary Rook.

Even with the help of Grey Serrado and Derossi Vargo, it is too many masks for one person to wear. And as the dark magic the three of them helped unleash builds to storm that could tear the very fabric of the city apart, it’s only a matter of time before one of the masks slips—and everything comes crashing down around them.… Read More Labyrinth’s Heart by M.A. Carrick (Review)

— book review, children's —

I Will Read To You by Gideon Sterer and Charles Santoso (Review)

September 14, 2023

A gentle blend of spooky and sweet, I Will Read to You is a unique rhyming bedtime tale about empathy, storytime…and monsters.

Once upon a time, there was a boy who loved stories—scary ones about skeletons and witches, giants and ghosts, vampires, dragons, mummies and goblins. But he wondered…do monsters have anyone to read to them ? Armed with only a book and a flashlight (and with his bemused mother in tow), he travels through the night, calling together every monster he can think of to make sure they get the bedtime story they need.

Delightfully spooky and surprisingly tender, I Will Read to You celebrates monsters, stories, and the way a good book can bring us together… Read More I Will Read To You by Gideon Sterer and Charles Santoso (Review)

— Adult, book review —

The Jasmine Throne by Tasha Suri (Review)

March 6, 2022

Imprisoned by her dictator brother, Malini spends her days in isolation in the Hirana: an ancient temple that was once the source of the powerful, magical deathless waters — but is now little more than a decaying ruin. Priya is a maidservant, one among several who make the treacherous journey to the top of the Hirana every night to clean Malini’s chambers. She is happy to be an anonymous drudge, so long as it keeps anyone from guessing the dangerous secret she hides. But when Malini accidentally bears witness to Priya’s true nature, their destinies become irrevocably tangled. One is a vengeful princess seeking to depose her brother from his throne. The other is a priestess seeking to find her family. Together, they will change the fate of an empire… Read More The Jasmine Throne by Tasha Suri (Review)

— Adult, book review —

The Unbroken by C.L. Clark (Review)

December 15, 2021

Touraine is a soldier. Stolen as a child and raised to kill and die for the empire, her only loyalty is to her fellow conscripts. But now, her company has been sent back to her homeland to stop a rebellion, and the ties of blood may be stronger than she thought. Luca needs a turncoat. Someone desperate enough to tiptoe the bayonet’s edge between treason and orders. Someone who can sway the rebels toward peace, while Luca focuses on what really matters: getting her uncle off her throne. Through assassinations and massacres, in bedrooms and war rooms, Touraine and Luca will haggle over the price of a nation. But some things aren’t for sale… Read More The Unbroken by C.L. Clark (Review)

— ARC review, book review, young adult —

Sister of the Bollywood Bride by Nandini Bajpai (Review)

December 13, 2021

Mini’s big sister, Vinnie, is getting married. Their mom passed away seven years ago and between Dad’s new start-up and Vinnie’s medical residency, there’s no one but Mini to plan the wedding. Dad raised her to know more about computers, calculus, and cars than desi weddings but from the moment Mini held the jewelry Mom left them, she wanted her sister to have the wedding Mom would’ve planned. Now Mini has only two months to get it done and she’s not going to let anything distract her, not even the persistent, mysterious, and smoking-hot Vir Mirchandani. Flower garlands, decorations, music, even a white wedding horse—everything is in place. That is, until a monster hurricane heads for Boston that could ruin everything. Will Mini come through as sister of the bride and save the day? … Read More Sister of the Bollywood Bride by Nandini Bajpai (Review)