The Spooky Bookshelf

When I saw All Hope of Becoming Human by Lonnie Busch in the Edelweiss+ "to download" category, I thought it sounded interesting, so I decided to give it a try. I'm glad I did!

One of Mr. Busch's influences is Stephen King and you can definitely see that in this novel. He expertly crafted the kind of allegory that Mr. King uses - where the people are the problem, not the fantastical monsters that plague them. Not only that, but he blended science fiction and horror in a way that made them seamless, something that I've seen many other authors try and fail to do.

Mr. Busch has created a cast of characters in All Hope of Becoming Human that are not only likeable, but ones that you will genuinely care about. You'll grieve their losses, celebrate their successes, and sit in shock at what they endure.

Rebecca is an enigma for the majority of the book and it works. So many times I wondered what was going on with her - why she was acting the way she was. When it all came together toward the end of the novel, it not only made sense, but it made me glad it had happened that way.

I also enjoyed Demzey's character - he was one tough cookie who also showed emotion. That isn't something you often get from male authors - for some reason, the male characters just aren't that emotionally charged. I appreciated that with Demzey.

The plot to this one is obvious and not at the same time. You can see the tendrils of the plot but you're often left wondering where they are going, which is not a bad thing. You'll find points that you know are integral to the plot of All Hope of Becoming Human, but yet they seem to lead nowhere before being explained later. When they are explained, you'll see why they weren't explained to begin with - because it wouldn't have made sense then.

The ending made me a bit sad, a bit glad, and actually made me wish for a sequel - because I'd love to see what happens next after this book left off... hint, hint, Mr. Busch! All in all, this was a solid 4.5 star read and I highly recommend it to anyone who likes horror and science fiction mixed together!

I just want to thank HarperCollins for sending me this book - I got it late September/early October last year and just now got around to reading it. As per usual when it takes me awhile to get around to reading a book, I wish I'd read it sooner!

I could not put this book down. I think I started it around 8PM and finished it just after midnight. Ms. Lynch wrote this book with so many secrets, twists, and turns that I couldn't stop reading because I had to know what was coming next.

We have six main characters:

• - Rosalee - the bride-to-be
• - Tinsley - Rosalee's cousin
• - Mara - Rosalee's best friend
• - Bri - the soon-to-be sister-in-law
• - Elizabeth - the soon-to-be mother-in-law
• - Georgia - Rosalee's fiancé's best friend

All of them come with their own sets of secrets, reasons why they might be a murder victim or why they might have committed the murder. Oh, by the way, you don't find out who was actually murdered until nearly the end of the book... even though you start off with the crime scene. It's amazing!

Usually I have to try to guess who murdered the victim, but I know who the victim is. With The Bachelorette Party, not only did I have to try to guess who the murderer was, but who the victim was as well. I'm telling you, it makes the mystery even more fun when you don't even know who died!

Interestingly enough, as much as I loved the book, I can't say the same about any of the six main characters. None of the particularly spoke to me and frankly, all of them have something that makes them unlikeable. I will say my least favorite character was Mara - she rubbed me the wrong way from the moment she appeared. But I didn't really like any of the others either.

The setting though - New Orleans... a creepy old gothic mansion that is purported to be haunted? Yes please! I'll absolutely take that setting any day of the week.

Ms. Lynch's writing style is beautiful and easy to read. You won't find yourself bored or reading a ton of cliché phrases because the writing is exciting and doesn't rely on tired phrases like everyone's favorite "I let out a breath I didn't know I was holding".

I highly recommend you check out The Bachelorette Party by Carissa Ann Lynch if you are a mystery/suspense lover. You'll be glad you did!

I have to say - this book would have been a great read in October and indeed, I may have to re-read it for October. This book is perfectly creepy, what with a fog that covers the town of Warbler every evening. Even creepier when you discover where that fog originates from.

I loved Temperance. She is fiesty and protective of those she loves. Her insistence on making her own way and working as the lamplighter, as well as her troubles as the lamplighter because she is a woman are a grim reminder that even today, women are not always seen as equals to men.

Prudence is another character I was fond of. She is fiesty, loyal, and protective as well, but in her own way. The sisters have very different ways of living their lives, which is well played out in the book.

Gideon... well, at times I liked him, but most of the time I despised him. Which is probably what was intended.

Josiah was a sweet character and I wish we'd seen a bit more of him in the book. But alas...

The plot for this book is pretty amazing. A small whaling town overtaken by fog every night. If the lamplighter doesn't do his/her job, then people go missing because of the fog. This one is full of twists, turns, and will make you second guess yourself constantly.

While I loved the ending, it makes me hope for a sequel because... well, once you read the book, you'll understand why it is I hope for a sequel. Ms. Bell, if you are reading this, I beg you, please, write a sequel. Your ending begs for one!

I gave this 4.5 stars because it is an amazing book. I can't wait to see what other YA Horror gems she writes.

Another book sent to me by my contact at HarperCollins is **How to Kill Men and Get Away With It** by Katy Brent. The cover made me laugh because at the very bottom it says “For legal purposes: a novel”.

Characters

Kitty reminds me a lot of me. She’s vegan and she doesn’t care much for human beings for the most part. Oh she loves her friends, but that’s about it. Otherwise, she seems to find dealing with other people exhausting. I quite concur with her on that. However, I don’t share her penchant for murder.

Hen strikes me as just there for the most part. It’s almost like she’s the part of the friend group that is simply there for the purpose of providing parties and the like. Nothing particularly special about her, but I didn’t really care much for her either.

Maisie is an airhead of the highest order. She’s pretty much the vapid, stupid one of the group, but is also rather sweet and at least more cordial that Hen seems to be. I liked her well enough, although we don’t see all that much of her.

Tor is probably the friend we see the most of and I love her character. She’s sweet and she’s Kitty’s best friend despite Kitty not being a huge people person. Tor has her own issues and I think that’s why she and Kitty get along so well.

Charlie is an interesting character – he’s in love with Kitty, so there’s that. We don’t see much of him that isn’t related to something going on with Kitty. He’s a nice enough fellow and I like him well enough.

Atmosphere

I kind of like the atmosphere for this book. It’s actually quite normal – it isn’t creepy, it isn’t weird, it isn’t dark. It is just normal London. It makes for an interesting read because so many mystery/thriller novels will try to make the atmosphere creepy, but this is just…. normal.

Writing

I like Katy Brent’s writing style. It is easy to read, easy to follow along with, and makes reading the book a breeze. While I can’t say that I understood all of the British lingo (I’m American), I don’t think she really used enough British lingo to actually make it difficult to read the book. I’d be willing to read more of Katy Brent’s work.

Plot

This one had an interesting plot to it. Having a murderer who does so for a specific reason but who also has to deal with a stalker is quite the interesting plot. And the twists are perfection – trust me, you’ll never guess who the stalker is!

Intrigue

Honestly, a book has to have intrigue to be a proper mystery/thriller novel and this one has it. It isn’t who is committing the murders – we know that. But the intrigue is what other secrets does Kitty have and who on earth in her stalker? The intrigue here is more subtle than most books because usually a mystery/thriller is all about who is killing the murder victims. But in this case, we have a different focus for the intrigue.

Relationships

I think the romance between Kitty and Charlie is very sweet. It’s a bit rocky for a while, but it is very sweet. I liked it a lot. Not so much Maisie and Rupert’s romance, although some of the descriptions for it made me laugh out loud. It’s just enough romance to have something soft and not so much that it should be a romance novel instead.

Ending

The ending to this one contains a plot twist that you won’t see coming. It involves Kitty’s stalker and trust me, you’ll be surprised when you find out who it is. Or maybe not… anything is possible. I did enjoy the ending though because it seems like everyone got what they deserved.

Conclusion

All in all this one was a good book and I would recommend it to those looking for a mystery/thriller that is a little bit different. I gave this one 4 out of 5 stars. I will definitely check out Katy Brent’s future works.

By now we should all know that if a book is a horror, thriller, or mystery, I’m probably going to want to read it. So when HarperCollins reached out and asked if I’d like to read The Close by Jane Casey, I said yes pretty quickly. Thank you to HarperCollins for sending me this book and facilitating my honest review.

Characters

The Close has an interesting cast of characters, beginning with Maeve Kerrigan. I admit, I do quite like our main character and I love the leading man, Josh Derwent as well. They’re well written and even though this was my first encounter with them, I found myself full immersed in their story.

As for characters that should be unique to this particular book, my annoyance with Rhys Vonn has rarely been matched with other characters. Trust me when I say, he’s an ass. Not overly fond of Mike Knox, Tom Thwaites, or Brian[1](javascript:void(0)) either.

All in all, great characters that have enough background to keep you going. And special shoutout to Pippin… you’ll figure it out when you read it.

Atmosphere

I like the tiny suburb feel of the book. I don’t live in England and have never been to England, so I’m not sure if Jellicoe Close is meant to be a suburb, a tiny town, or just a neighborhood. But I love the setting so much. I love that it feels like one of those close-knit neighborhoods where everyone knows everyone, everyone gets along as well as they can, and everyone has a great time together. But it also has the feeling of being creepy, especially when an unknown person seems to be watching everything the neighborhood does. It’s great!

Writing

I really enjoy Jane Casey’s writing style. It is well paced, easy to read, and entertaining. I’m looking forward to finding and reading the first 9 books in the Maeve Kerrigan series and hoping there will be an 11th and beyond.

Plot

I really liked this plot. Posing as a couple to spy on one house because there may be wrongdoing going on, working a prior murder case at the same time, and then stumbling into even more trouble than they thought is a lot, and it works. It works very well. This plot kept me wanting to read more.

Intrigue

Well, it is a mystery/suspense/thriller novel, so obviously there is going to be intrigue! And it will keep you wanting more of it. Who is this mysterious lurker, whose thoughts we occasionally get to read? What is going on at number 7 in Jellicoe Close? What other secrets are the residents of Jellicoe Close hiding?

Romance

I know, it’s a mystery/suspense/thriller. But there is romance. There’s definitely a spark between Miss Kerrigan and Mr. Derwent. Even if they don’t really understand it yet and even if they don’t know what, if anything, they want to do about it. It’s very interesting and I want to know more. Again, hoping for more books…although leaving this budding romance this way makes me think there will be.

Ending

The book’s ending was a surprise but also quite satisfying. All of our cases have been wrapped up neatly and there are no strings hanging – except that pesky budding romance, of course. But this was a seriously great ending.

Conclusion

I gave this one 4 stars because it is truly a great read. It kept me on my toes and made me want to read the rest of the series, plus any that come out later on. I highly recommend it to my thriller lovers, especially if you like thrillers set in England.