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Title: How to Sell a Haunted House
Author: Grady Hendrix
Rating: 5/5 Stars
If dolls and puppets terrify you, think twice about reading this book.
So many people have been raving about this book, I had to get my hands on it. If you can, the audiobook is fantastic. All of the voices for the puppets, and characters come to life. Truly chilling.
The story is a rollercoaster, as soon as I thought I had the plot figured out, it would take a sharp turn. At one point I thought it was finally over, but looked down to see another 25% left in the book. Terrifying! At that point I had no idea what was going to happen next but I had to keep going.
Grady’s words draw you forward, the description, flashbacks, different perspectives on the same events. It’s all so real, I don’t think I’ll ever look at a puppet or doll the same again in my life. Every character felt like someone I knew, the family dynamic is so well laid out, my heart hurt for all of them. The pain running through them is palpable.
I love that the bottom line of this book comes back to communication within a family. The secrets always come back to haunt the ones we love, and a honest conversation could have saved a generation of trauma in this case. With each generation we get stronger at healing old wounds, and do better to set the mental health up for the next generation. This book is the perfect depiction of that generational growth.
You’ll enjoy this book if you love books that leave you with chills, and shine light on family trauma.
TW: Child Death, Child Pain, Downing Descriptions, Gore, Parent Death.
Title: Armadillos & Arson
Author: Rune Stroud
Rating: 5/5 Stars
I love this series more and more with each book.
The representation, the care put into each characters traits. It’s perfection.
This installment is a doosy, I was on edge for most of the book. Rowan is one of my favorite characters. He has such a big heart, and sense of justice, seeing him at the center of an investigation was hard. His need to tell his side and try and clear his name through honesty when everyone was telling him to keep quiet hurt me.
Every character grew a little, displayed a range of emotion, and brought this story to life. I can’t wait to see what is next for Autumn. I hope this isn’t goodbye to Monty, while it wasn’t right for Autumn, he is such a fun character. Rune does a great job at showing that even though the witches each have a power, it’s not all roses and fun. Getting both the good and the bad of it is refreshing.
The culprit reveal caught me off guard in a good way. Throughout the book I kept trying to figure out who could have done the things, while the sheriff was slimy he didn’t seem like the type to actually get his hands dirty, and with Autumn doing her best to stay out of the investigation, it made it hard to theorize anyone other than Rowan as guilty.
You’ll love this series if you enjoy cozy mysteries with animals and witches, plus a whole lot of family love.
Title: Love, Pamela
Author: Pamela Anderson
Rating: 5/5 Stars
It’s insane how much the media shapes our view of celebrities.
Any time you hear the name Pamela Anderson, you likely get a slew of labels instantly.
It’s also likely that many of them are false, built up by the press to sell their content.
So many aspects of this book surprised me. From how she got into ‘the business’ to what she values above all else, and even her personality. I thoroughly enjoyed listening to her tell her story.
If you’re able I recommend the audiobook, I’m glad she has this chance to tell her story, and give us a deeper look behind the scandals that the press go on about when it comes to her private life. It def. makes me wonder, if she had not had to deal with the photographers, would her relationship had ended differently? Why do we allow this stalking behavior? Can’t we allow people to create art, while also allowing them a peaceful existence?
It’s hard to not see the parallels in this book and Spare. Two completely different people, both having to tell their story to combat the lies spread about their lives by people invading their personal space for a photo, or the next headline.
How she kept her head above water, through all that she’s dealt with, is amazing and admirable.
TW: Child abuse, Domestic violence, Rape.
Title: From Here to Eternity
Author: Caitlin Doughty
Rating: 5/5 Stars
Caitlin makes death fun. That sounds morbid, but it’s true.
Her work to bring a better relationship with death in the United States is admirable.
Each time I read one of her books, or watch her on youtube, I leave feeling more in control of the conversation around death. The truth is, death is messy, but having the answers ahead of time helps.
You’ll love Caitlin’s works even if you are terrified of death. She is fantastic at making it PG, and easy to process for any person on the spectrum of death feelings. This book does not disappoint. She explores various cultures and their rituals around death while tying it back to the United States and making it relevant to a person not in that particular culture.
Death doesn’t have to be a horrifying time of decision making and expenses. It can be peaceful, and the proper farewell your loved one deserves. Check out her channel, read one of her books, it’s worth it to just have a better understanding of the options.
Title: What the Dead Know
Author: Nghi Vo
Rating: 4/5 Stars
The story has great bones, it’s just lacking in emotional depth.
Everything happened to fast for me to really emotionally invest in the characters.
Had their been more build up, maybe a job before this job, it might have hit differently.
I enjoyed the premise, and the paranormal aspect, plus the world build, the twist just didn’t hit hard enough for me.
You’ll enjoy this story if you enjoy the paranormal ghost hunter type shows.
Title: As Above So Below
Author: Dana Isaly
Rating: 5/5 Stars
There is nothing quite like the sweet taste of revenge.
This book doesn’t mess around, and it’s refreshing to read a story full of revenge that doesn’t have the ending message of taking some high road. Mess around, find out. That’s this books motto.
The story is a roller coaster of emotions, from depression to excitement and everything in between. Dana is a gift smut writer, that brings a story to life through deep connections, and intertwining souls. From the lore, to the plot, this book is a ride. Literally. HA. But seriously, the words bleed the emotion that she put into writing this story.
You’ll enjoy this story if you love witches, people getting their just desserts, and descriptive kinky sex.
TW: Suicide, Descriptive Gore
Title: The Radium Girls
Author: Kate Moore
Rating: 5/5 Stars
Why isn’t our corporate love affair with poisoning people with radiation discussed in school?
How can future generations learn from our past mistakes if we continue to bury it?
The stories of these girls matter. Even now, in 2023, they matter. The lies they were told, the companies they worked for, it’s all still poisoning us. Even all these years later.
I adored the format of this book. Told in a narrative, yet factual account, it brought each girls world to life. From the excitement they felt when they first landed their job as a dial painter, to the pain they felt as they could no longer function. It felt like the author took pages/paragraphs straight out of the girls diaries and hand written letters to each other from the time. Keeping the word choices, and descriptions accurate for the time period gave a deeper view of their lives. Like the girls wrote their own story.
Living dead is an understatement. Searching for the amount of deaths caused by Radium dial painting, it is listed as around 30, but that is laughable at best. The actions of these companies are directly responsible for hundreds of deaths. Preventable deaths.
This story is a must read, not only because of the importance of how it has shaped radiation and cancer across our country but also because it is a tale that repeats itself multiple times with many different forms of radioactive materials. When is enough, enough? Why wasn’t radium banned back in 1901 when it was discovered to be toxic to humans? Why are company profits always put above human lives? We still haven’t learned it seems, if you look into how we still are poisoning people with radium of all things. (Search Ohio, and radium for de-icing.)
The radium used for painting watch dials hurt more than just the girls that ingested it. It continues to cause the communities where the waste and building ruble was dumped pain. Plus, the family lines that are still passing down radiation poisoning from a relative working in the factory. Catharine’s daughter only died in 1990!ra
With each chapter, I was on the edge of my seat thinking it surely couldn’t get any worse, but it did. It kept getting worse, all the way up to the modern day ways of handling radium. This is a must read book for all walks of life. If you’ve ever known anyone with cancer. If you want more information about history that is still shaping the world we live in, read this book.
TW: Gruesome Descriptions, Miscarriage, Infant Death.
Title: A Grilled Suspect
Author: Eryn Scott
Rating: 5/5 Stars
I am devastated at how close I am to the end of this series.
Hadley and her community are one of my favorites to get lost in. Like the previous books we explore the main four characters personalities and lives deeper while getting to know another Stoneybrook local. Another cat is at the center of the mystery shenanigan’s, and other case is rocking the community.
As this series gets deeper into their world, the ties to their community really shine, as well as that of the town over. Living in a small town myself, near a bigger, colder, town, I love how on point these dynamics are. Feels just like home every time I start a new book in this series.
For the first time, Hadley is experiencing life without her beloved Jam shop, and it’s thrown her brain into a fog. While her store receives needed repairs she has nothing left to do with herself other than plan a wedding—oh and solve a case of course! *HADLEY FOR SHERIFF ANYONE?*
Her and Suze step in the thick of it, with both of their futures on the line, and this case has them diving deep in the the rival town. So many perfectly lovey moments between all of the cast, plus many hilarious moments from our favorite supporting cast.
I am going to miss this crew.
You’ll love this series if you enjoy family centered cozies, that have deep small towns with expansive characters to love and tolerate. Plus kitties! All of the kitties are in these books.
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