Lori

This is not what I thought it would be. When I read the description I thought it would be a great slasher novel. Its not quite that. It was more of a rambling narrator for most of the book before a body count finally starts to build.

At first this book opened well with great atmosphere and felt like it was building up to the start of a good slashing novel. I like the main character at first but then it just went on. You get to hear her internal monolog about her encyclopedic knowledge of slasher flics. This was interesting at first but it never stopped. Not much happened in the story during this. As you trudge on you start to get annoyed with her. Just get on with the slashing.

There is mention of trauma and the story focuses mainly on the main characters terrible home life and its affect on her mental well being. This when on for so long that I thought the book was just going to stay that this was all in her head and she’s actually really messed up and needs help. Which the book sort of did.

Finally we get to the horror/slashing stage at about the last third of the book. As the body count builds up there is more questions of who is doing this and how are they doing it. Its not worth finding out. It was actually a little disappointing but I won’t ruin this for every one else. The major trauma event in the main characters life is finally laid out and she gets a sort of revenge.

This book didn’t really seem to address anything. It just wasn’t enough for me. I kept wanting more from the each part of the book. But this is not to say it’s an absolutely terrible book. The writing style is good and easily sucks you in. There are parts of the book with actual horror elements and the author nails these sections. It felt like it could have been a better book and that the author had the ability to do it.

I did place a hold on the next book of this series. I am not ready to give up on this. I might hate myself later but I hope it will work out.

This was an odd book, and I don’t quite know what to think of it. There were parts that were great in either energy or storytelling and other parts that were dragging and distortedly written. I don’t have too much experience with Straub’s works, only Ghost Story, which gave me a high expectation for this collaboration.

And collaborated they did as you can’t tell who wrote what part and with only some classic King style in there that’s all his own. This book blended great in some parts that made this feel like an effort of great companionship by both authors. On the other hand, the parts where it doesn’t blend so well are what make this book feel off.

The whole story built up a magical other world that we don’t get to see enough of. We spend so much time on the Real/regular world with the main character getting stopped at numerous pits of despair. I just want the story to go on. The book was part childhood loss and random torture. Some trials the main character/hero is put through were unnecessarily long. Other characters like Wolf and Richard could be a little annoying and only added to the trials of the MC.

All this is not to say this is a completely bad book. Although I maybe a sucker for King’s works since I have loved so much of his other novels. The feel of the book is part fairy tale but mostly dark fantasy and dark it does well. The evil and just mean for fun characters were done well and parts of the trials were good to read. It just should have been shorter and worked more with the magic of the Territories.

I am hoping that the next book fixes some of these issues as that would turn this into a great collaboration.

This is a romance book with out romance. The two leads develop a good friendship but not really a relationship. The was no build up to the romance. They are friends up to the point they kiss then they are just sort of together. Then parents as the secondary romance plot wasn’t great either since the focus was split. Both couples felt rushed and are together just because.

The women are too excited to be step siblings which just felt weird. Then they give up easily and somehow the last, last attempt just works out.

The friendship of the main leads was nice but I wish there was more longing, tension, or something else besides platonic friendship between the two. I wouldn’t know they are interested in each other with out the author just telling me they are.

After reading Speaker for the Dead, I thought this book would be just as captivating. It was not. It just went on for too long and over analyzed everything. I just kept waiting for the point in the book where it would take me in. The story was pulled in so many different directions that each part wasn’t given the attention it deserved. Interesting ethical debates are still apart of this book but it not enough.

Characters I had cared about before, I didn’t fee that same connection with. The emotional pull of the previous book was missing from this one. Most were unlikable and I don’t feel like that was intentional. Bad characters with no emotional gravity are what hurt the book.

I picked this book up due to a reading challenge and just couldn’t put it down. I loved how each section of the book was focused so you are not jumping around through multiple ideas at once. Most sections dealt with the story of one girl with her friends, family, and co-gymnasts/figure skaters to help speak where they couldn’t.

This book at times felt scarier than some of the horror novels I was reading. It was an interesting read and the author mixes stories, interviews, and discussions to give you a good understanding of what’s happening.

I would love to read a more updated book to see what’s hopefully changed in these sports. There are some sections and stories that I just can’t stop thinking about. It maybe an older book but it is worth the read.

I had picked up the authors other book Dead Silence and really enjoyed it. So, when I found out they had another book, I placed a hold as soon as I could. But this book is so different that I had to check it was the same author. Gone was the chilling atmosphere and the plot that kept you engaged.

This book was instead more focused on the characters mental well being. Which could have made for a great phycological thriller. But not this. I hated the characters and there was not much of a story in the background. There were a few parts that I had gotten caught up in that went no where.

The main character was not good. She didn’t even seem to be good at her own job and I can see why the others didn’t trust her. Was she really the person to send on this mission. There was a romance subplot that I kept saying no to.

This could have been better and based on the other story by this author it should have been. I am still going to want to read the author's next book, because the first was so good.

I was excited to read this as who wouldn't want to step into the world of their favorite rom-com story? It opened well with great cozy vibes but went down from there. I liked the idea of this character pointing out the flaws of classic rom-coms and trying to make the lives of characters from her favourite books better.

Nothing much happened with her "help" and she ended up making some dumb decisions as well. The romance for her was so, so, so bad. No build up just, bam! They are super into each other. Then there was THAT ending. It was horrible! I thought for a book that brought up not accepting bad character decisions that this book would try its best not to fall into any pits. Well, the ending didn't fall but jumped head-first into one. One that no one can come back from.

To save yourself, the ending had the male lead ditch the female to be with a character that looked like his deceased partner. Then he later shows up like my bad never mind.

This was not worth it and there was not enough to redeem it.

I saw that this book was available on Libby to borrow and though it would be an interesting read. This does contain spoilers for some of King's major works.

Throughout the book, there are sections by other contributors that were great to read as it wasn't all one opinion. Some of the contributors were able to clearly communicate and emphasize their points. That said I found some sections repeated ideas and only some of King's works were mentioned. As you read through each section some books show up in multiple areas and it's a little annoying when I know there are other examples they could have pulled from.

I did enjoy this book as a reflection of all the work and mastery that goes into King's works.

If you don't take this book too seriously this is a fun read. It was a bit goofy and Vera's constant inserting of herself into things that are none of her business. Was at times chuckle-worthy.

On the other hand, if you want a good mystery and character development this is not for you. Vera does everything she can to hinder the murder investigation while interrogating innocent people. Telling them directly that they are a suspect. Vera was written as if she was ancient through all of her scenes and I forgot how young she actually is.

The side characters all have their own issues that seem to be solved too simplistically by Vera's motherly advice or more like forceful intrusion into their personal lives. There is a romance in the background with two of the suspects who felt unpleasant due to all the lies they told, not just to the group but to each other. Then you have a toddler who talks about inflation in a really off-putting moment.

It kind of bothered me that the suspects are only suspects because they did something petty and felt bad about it.

I read this in a pretty upbeat mood, and I did end up enjoying Vera's meddlesome ways. There is a second story coming soon that I would like to read.

I wasn’t the biggest fan of this book as it was all over the place. It started off well enough as we were introduced to all the characters, but this constant flipping narrative got annoying as the book went on. Often, I had to stop my audio book and go back because I could not tell who was narrating now. This clouded the story then at times we got too many perspectives on what happened that over expanded a scene.

There were just little things that that added up to make me not like this book. Forced romance subplot, too many perspectives, characters that just happened to know someone or something that helps, and a haphazard ending.

After each “twist” I just though why bother with all of this? The ending really makes me question why this was marked as a mystery novel. The mystery is barely a part of the plot as we learn about so many characters but never get to fully get into any of them.

If the book wasn’t going to focus on mystery, then it should have been better with its characters. I am not going to continue with this series.

I can’t stop thinking about this book. I had read Ender's Game in high school and enjoyed it ever since. Now I needed a book starting with an X for a challenge and will read Xenocide after this. Although I picked this up just to get to the next book in the series, I am happy I did.

It is beyond different from Ender's Game (which I still enjoy). This one was more mature, deeper, and thought-provoking. The story took me in, and I could not put it down. The discussion of how we study other societies and the “Piggys” as a people was engaging.

The stories of the Piggys and the people researching them were captivating and emotional. I almost felt like crying as the Piggys understood what happened with Pipo and Libo. Human (a Piggy) was such a great character!

This is a must-read for anyone.

What a weird story, I loved it.

The book gripped me from start to finish. The way it's written as if someone is telling the story of the main characters life fits this odd story. It is both very detailed about the making of perfumes and engaging in the character’s views. Each part felt necessary to the whole of the story as it built up. The main character's ability is almost God like and reading about the reckoning of others that use/fight against him brought up questions of divine nature/work.

The ending is certainly odd but still enjoyable. That’s really how I felt about the whole book. I would recommend this book to others but not everyone. I think it's a little bit of an unserious book.

It's worth a read and the film is pretty good as well.

This book does much better in delivering the description of the plot than the last book (Horror Movie) that I read from this author. At that same time, I thought this would be a horror novel with scares in it, but this is not a scary book.

I loved the idea of seeing behind one of those ghost hunters' shows and learning more about the impact on the families they film. That is exactly what this book was. But if a supposedly good horror novel is more focused on the family dynamic, then it should also be a good character-driven novel but that’s not what we get.

The characters are part of a typical religious family trying to make a buck on a reality show that exploits people. There is nothing new with this and I wish it were written with a little more tact. The recurring issue of guessing if the sister has an actual mental problem or not is worked on enough. This could have been a great element to the story but is more of a background issue only used at times to make us question the TV show.

Having read Horror Movie and this one I will say that both have a similar idea of seeing behind the scenes, but both fall short of their intentions. Horror Movie shows the author's growth with the quality of writing (dialogue and over all writing) and the ability to make the reader creeped out. On the other hand, both books show a lack of character development or interest that is crucial to character-driven plots.

This was not a good book. It had a great idea for a horror story and that’s why I read the book in the first place but after finishing I wished I could take it back. The characters are simply the worst. There are none that you would root for in this book.

Their dialogue makes you hate them, and the book is mostly filled with it. You have to constantly deal with over-worded descriptions that sometimes leave you with no clue as to what the thing being described looks like. Even then there were so many stupid jokes in the book like all the characters are pretentious recent graduates who have to outwit each other.

Lastly, the horror element of this book falls flat as you are too confused to be scared, and I found myself hoping all the characters die.

I just did not like reading this. I had heard this would be a good messed-up book, but it focused more on grossness.

The main plot line which all the short stories are told through was interesting at first, but I stopped caring what happened to these characters as time went on. Most of the short stories were disappointing as well. I did like a few: Slumming, Swan Song, and Dog Years. The rest of the stories I just sat through waiting for the next good one.

What was good about this book was not enough to carry me through the rest of it. This is one I wish I didn't finish.

I really enjoyed this book. I thought this would be a mannequin slasher but that’s not really what it is. I was a little disappointed about that, but the rest of the book made up for it.

The narration is great as you get to understand the main character and even with some of the wrong things he does you can’t help but want to see this through with him. It had all the right vibes and was a great read after some of the other disappointing books I have read this season.

This book was not what I was expecting but was a great surprise. I already have another of this author’s books on hold.

I had heard the name Harlan Ellison but knew nothing about him. I don’t even have a clue where I heard it from. In any case, I am happy that a faint remembrance of this name made me pick up the book. I love the somewhat out their stories that are tinged with a sort of manic humour.

Some of these stories are instant classics to me now. I will say that the stories are defiantly dated but not so much as to make them unreadable. The way the author writes makes me think of an uncle who’s had a little too much to drink and is telling you a story. He’s a little loud and slightly politically incorrect, but they’re fun to hear anyway.

A few standouts to me were I Have No Mouth and I Must Scream, Jeffty Is Five, Mefisto in Onyx, Paladin of the Last Hour, and Shatterday.

This book doesn’t contain gore, there’s no animalistic monster, and for the most part, there isn’t much violence, but man does it scare me. The horror of this is creeping and is a notable example of show don’t tell. It's all the little things that build up that makes this so good. How could you force an entire town to give up their possessions? I now know and believe it could happen the way it did in the book.

As I read through this, I kept thinking come on fight back. This goes on for most of the book amplifying the feeling of helplessness the characters feel. It got to the point I wanted to put the book down, but the story was so good that I couldn’t. Which was a good thing, as after finishing the book I couldn’t stop thinking about it.

I wish there could have been more books by this author. It’s such a good book I went out and bought it afterward.

I was so thoroughly disappointed with this book. All the stories fell flat, and the writing was just horrible. Each story felt like a first draft making it confusing and quite annoying to get through. Often at points in the stories, I forgot why I was even reading about this or that. The characters are all flat to the point it feels like there are no emotions in this book. We were told how the characters felt but that’s not enough.

The story which is the main title of the book was probably the best of the stories. Even then the jump from somewhat eloquent letters to short DMs was jarring. The wording used was often cringy. The relationship has no build-up and is a straight-to-bastardized version of a BDSM connection. It was less BDSM and more punishment for no reason. I did like the line what have you done today to deserve your eyes. However, the impact of this is lost due to the lack of build-up or real human emotions.

This book was not worth reading though with each story getting worse.

The writing in this book is very good but the overall story is a little disappointing. I picked this book up since I loved the author's other book Lula Dean's Little Library of Banned Books. But this is quite different.

This book focused too much on hating men but at the same time, I liked how the author showed examples of how men are either placed over or take advantage of women. It's nice to have a female revenge fantasy but it's not great to have a hate on every man's story. This book walked a line and constantly fell to one side taking away from the main story that I came to read. If it pulled back from man blaming and hating the story could have been better.

As for the main story I wished they would focus on helping more ghosts get their revenge. That’s the book I came for. What we got was much slower-paced and not too much of a mystery. Although I loved Harriet. You go you badass! She is by far the best character, and I could have

read an entire novel about her alone. She had the best transformation into female power and the best lines. Honestly, by the end of the book I wanted to be her.

I enjoyed the writing and most of the story but wish it was better on some of its more serous subjects.

After finishing The Haunting of Hill House I wanted to read more by this author and this was a good book to follow up with. This one was less about horror and more character-driven. It's still good in its way. It's more of a weird story than anything else. Think a little about the film Corpse Bride. Not scary but eclectic.

The writing is just as good as the other book I read. You could say there’s not much of a point to this story but it's still interesting learning more about the family. Not what I was expecting but I liked it anyway.

I could not believe how good this book is. The characters are beautifully written out and the interactions between them feel real. The start of the book was interesting in that it was about a scientist trying to study the paranormal. From there we learn more about the other characters brought to the house to learn about the house itself.

The character-building is what makes this book so great. Each are real with their own motivations. Dialog didn’t feel forced, and characters were driven seemingly by themselves. The slow change from scientific to paranormal was breathtakingly well done. This slow change felt natural and horrifying.

This was such a great read that I only wish I read it sooner.

I hated this book.

The story is mostly told as a recapping of events by unreliable narrators. This removed all emotional connections with the main characters. Being told what these characters have done does not provide enough insight to be able to empathize with them. That and the fact that they all are callous people who make intentionally stupid decisions to hurt others.

This was so hard to get though. Love was not a great enough power to make anything these characters did forgivable.

So cute! The drawing style is so cute, and I love the colour choices they made for the book. The book on the other hand was just as good. This is a young adult read and I would have loved this when I was a teen.

It’s a light easy read that radiates comfort. The witchcraft in the book is charming and friendly. I just wish this were longer. I feel like there could have been more to explore about the characters. It's worth the read and one I would look at again.

I really liked the stories in this book although it might have been a bad idea to listen to the book at work as one of the stories had me in tears.

When I think about the about book the individual stories really stand out to me. They are interesting and had well done endings. On the flip side it’s everything else that is a little hard to take. The repetition of the rules, the café staff that lack standout personalities, and the blocky dialog.

I did get though this book and liked the stories, but the repetition of information and weak dialog would make me hesitant to read this again. Which is sad as the idea of the book and the individual stories were great.