abditoryalive's reviews
647 reviews

Now I absolutely devoured the first one, but this one didn’t hit the same marks for me for several reasons. 

🐙 The first one is brimming with evolutionary and psychological science, which I loved, however in this edition  it felt all too similar. Like trying to reinvent the wheel. The story felt so similar, I honestly felt like I was reading the same book again. Consequently, I do also feel like the plot is heading to predictable horizons. 

🐙 slow pacing - I was initially frustrated, followed by bored, despite trying to stubbornly push through my attention waned. Some of the plot came off disjointed, and less cohesive with different timelines. 

🦠 I loved all the little links from the previous book. 

🦦  Recently, I’ve developed the terrible habit of reading horror books at night—so much so that my husband close  to enforcing a strict daytime-only reading rule. I adore T. Kingfisher, and after What Moves the Dead didn’t spook me, I thought I’d be safe here. I was wrong.

I went in expecting something along the lines of cozy horror (is that a genre?). What I got instead was a creeping, insidious kind of terror that burrows into your brain and whispers unsettling things in the dark. There’s no blood-and-guts spectacle here—just a surreal, Lovecraftian nightmare unfolding beyond a mysterious hole in the wall. Possibly black-mold-induced, definitely spine-chilling.

Also, if you can make a Giant Otter terrifying, you have a rare and terrifying gift. Respect.

. 

🦦 The entire setting had such a distinct and immersive aesthetic, like stepping into a fever-dream version of Ripley’s Believe It or Not! museum. Set in her uncle’s delightfully bizarre establishment—The Glory to God Museum of Natural Wonders, Curiosities, and Taxidermy—it’s a place where taxidermied armoured mice and shrunken heads share space with eerie oddities, all curated by a man who firmly believes Bigfoot is the missing link in human evolution. Throughout,  Kingfisher’s prose made it all 

so incredibly vivid—I could see every dusty relic, every unsettling exhibit.

The descriptions of the Feejeean mermaids in particular - especially the description of 'clacking teeth', I could hear it - 

sent a chill down my spine, stirring up long-buried memories (and nightmares) of a third-grade field trip I had completely erased from my psyche. 
 

🦦  Kingfisher truly has a rare and wicked talent: making you laugh out loud right before something terrifying happens and you're reading between the gaps in your fingers. Her characters Kara and Simon’s were beautiful. They had such a dry, easy going humour followed by completely relatable panic. Their friendship felt  effortlessly real, with banter so natural and believable that it grounds the story even as the world around them descends into nightmare fuel. I've seen some critiques on this aspect, that it spoiled some of the horror with the wisecracking but I found it instantly relatable. 

🍃This is the second time I've seen a "Wonder Museum" or "Wonder Engine" in Kingfishers work. Such a minor critique but I'm still unsure if that was intentional or not. Is it a link to themes that places with "Wonder" in the name going to a place brimming with oddities and unsettling relics that hint at something far darker lurking beneath the surface? Or a creative shortcut, recycling. An interesting pattern, but not I can't unsee it.

🍃There are many cosmic horror elements to The Hollow Places, meaning that some things remain unknowable at the end. As such this might not satisfy some people who prefer a neatly wrapped ending. Full disclosure, this could be user error -  I’ll admit, I didn’t read some parts of the ending as closely as I would have liked— as I was too caught up in the tension, desperate for answers 

🍃 Fans of different dimensions, portals- stranger things-esque, nightmare at the museum, Cosmic Horror and "Narnia from Hell". 

(Thankyou to Net Galley and Pumpjack Press who provided me a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review)

Gates of Mars is the first instalment of the Halo trilogy in a gripping blend of genres - Dystopian sci-fi x noir detective mystery. The year is 2187 and Earth is a toxic wasteland filled with plastic, following climate events, corporate takeovers and war. Humanity is now being controlled by the all seeing AI Halo, programmed by the five ruling corporate families  ensuring the destruction of any privacy and complete obedience.  Enter Crucial Larsen, a world-weary, jaded police officer is reluctantly summoned to Mars to investigate the disappearance of his sister, Essential.  But in a society where privacy is extinct and Halo monitors everything, her complete disappearance shouldn't be possible. As Crucial digs deeper, he uncovers secrets the ruling families will do anything to keep buried, along with skeletons in his own family history —and the true extent of Halo’s power. 

🦒Fantastic World Building: Gates of Mars crafts a vividly unique vision of the future, blending dystopian decay with cutting-edge, futuristic innovation. The world is filled with fascinating details like myco cement -mushroom based building materials and architecture, deadly glitter guns, leech patches, anthrobots, cloned giraffes and gyro sheet meat (However see point below). The ruling Five Families operate like futuristic oligarchs, hoarding wealth and influence while keeping the rest of humanity trapped in a multi-generational debt system—a haunting reflection of modern economic struggles.

🦒 Thought Provoking:  Gates of Mars is layered with deep philosophical themes exploring power, control, and the ethics of AI—underscoring the age-old truth that "history is written by the victors." The narrative questions who gets to shape reality in a world where an all-seeing AI dictates every move and where corporate elites manipulate the narrative to maintain their dominance. It delves into the illusion of free will, the consequences of unchecked technological power, and the chilling ramifications of a society where the past—and the truth—are rewritten to serve those in control. I really enjoyed the nod to Plato's allegory to the cave, questioning reality and perception in a world where truth is curated by an all-powerful AI. 

🦒 Heartwarming relationships - My favourite duo - the camaraderie between Sanders,

a programmed cybanism,

and Crucial was a really fun highlight. I loved the banter, and how their friendship developed (I always have a soft spot for the robot character).

I especially enjoyed each time Sanders came back after having a spill and was reprogrammed with a new set of quirks—or even a fresh aesthetic—it felt like an unexpected yet brilliant feature, adding both humour and unpredictability to their partnership

.

🖲️ Sci-fi terminology - At times, the novel leans heavily into technical and futuristic jargon, which can make certain passages feel dense or overly complex. While all the innovative terminology adds authenticity to the world-building, it occasionally slows the pacing or creates a barrier to immersion, especially for readers unfamiliar with hard sci-fi concepts.

🖲️Readers who enjoy ethical discussions about AI: Detroit Beyond Human, Murderbot and dystopian futures: Hunger Games, Uglies may really enjoy Gates of Mars.



(Review published 1.02.25 to StoryGraph, Goodreads & NetGalley) 

🫚 Fun, imaginative, and lighthearted - That time I got drunk and saved a demon is a humorous read with a refreshing FMC. The cover is absolutely stunning, and the humor throughout the story had me laughing out loud in several places.

🌶️ It does read a little like fan fiction. The story is lively and fast paced, however it sometimes felt a bit two-dimensional and overly idealistic. The language while entertaining, leaned too heavily into modern social media brain rot for my tastes, which felt out of place in the fantasy setting. Additionally, the dialogue came across as choppy at times, making it harder to fully immerse myself in the world and characters

🌶️ The relationship between Fallon and Cinnamon developed very suddenly and intensely, without much logical buildup. It had a definite 'insta-love' vibe that felt rushed. The pacing of the romance was off—it almost seemed like grabbing two dolls, smooshing them together, and saying, 'Now kiss!'. I found myself wishing for just a little but more depth to plot (but it is a very short book). 

👻 I slogged through 46% and nothing actually happens.

Some doors slam, some lights turn up, our girls smell someone smoking and a kid died in a pool decades ago that nobody likes to talk about.

. Which is all kinds weird but nothing to be reading with the lights on yknow?
A subtle mystery , maybe too subtle / twilight zone for me. 

👻 This ghosts in the book impact the plot 0%. 

👻 Both the FMC, yes they’re related - don’t have distinct personalities from each other. Both pretty nosy, and running away from home. The pacing was too slow that I just lost interest and other things in my Libby pile called to me. 

👻 Closely follows themes of  powerlessness, everyday dangers women experience by existing, and the ick feeling when you’re holding your keys in your hand as you walk to your car in a dark parking lot. Very  eerie. 

👻 Might be one for the true crime girlies or Stephen king fans. 

🦊 Mixed feelings on this one, reads as very gay, folk lore inspired revenge romance? (Is that a genre?). Unapologetically Asian (good for them! 🥳) 

🦊 I really loved the premise, but I just got a bit lost and didn’t vibe with any of the characters. (Or drug fuelled LA orgies) 

🦊 a lot of really unexpected random sex scenes. (I think there was like 4, at 26 pages in). 

🌌 Actually Scary: Full disclosure I am a huge wimp - especially when it comes to horror movies (Horror video games seem to be another thing however, I love a zombie game). Still, this book terrified me. It became a daytime only read  because Barnes' descriptions were so vivid I could practically see and hear the excavation throughout the Aurora.  As everything quickly goes to shit I felt my own heart racing and  I couldn’t stop racing through the pages because I had to know what happened.   

🌌Tension. There is so much tension bleeding through the pages.  The atmosphere is stunningly creepy. Barnes nails the decaying opulence of the ship, making it come alive with an eerie sense of abandonment.  I'd almost say its apocalyptic core (except its in space).

Plus the blending the supernatural with a plausible scientific backdrop, which makes the horror elements seem even more unsettling. 

🌌One of the really compelling plot points (not sure what this says about my world view), was the

Corporate Horror cover ups. In this not so distant future,  where interstellar travel and space exploration are controlled by mega-corporations, it’s easy to imagine how human lives and morality take a backseat to profits and public relations. Dead Silence really explores some of the finer aspects of the dark underbelly of corporate greed and manipulation .  The mysterious disappearance of the Aurora decades earlier isn’t just a ghost story—it’s an expertly buried scandal. When Claire and her team uncover the ship, they realize the tragedy wasn’t just a tragic accident but potentially a catastrophic failure or experiment swept under the rug. The corporate response wasn't remorse, but cold calculation.

🌌Unreliable narrator.  Unreliable narrators aren’t usually my thing, I have found they frustrate me more often than now - but S.A Barnes nails it with Claire. Her perspective is a rollercoaster of doubt with additional layer from her 'lone survivor' backstory are fascinating. Claire is haunted by her history,

The screaming ghost/omen of her dead mother

and plagued by guilt. It is an absolute thrill trying to excavate the truth from Claire's slippery heap of memories distorted by hallucination, damage, amnesia, lies, self-preservation, and trauma. At time, helped by the setting you can't be sure what you're dealing with

Ghosts? Hallucinations? A Bio virus? Aliens? the list was endless

.
The way Barnes weaves in themes of exploitation and dehumanization feels all too real. Claire, with her troubled history, becomes a perfect scapegoat—disposable, undervalued, and easily discredited. 

 
🌌 Fans of: Titanic In space, Bioshock, Fallout vaults, Alien

⚰️No Notes

DNF 

💨Granted I don’t think I’m the target audience, but this hits every known YA trope/crime within 18 pages. It’s like there was a bingo card for how many you can tick off on each page. 

💨 The over exaggerated body language our heroine experiences and she struggles to even *think* about a man she’s never met is actually insane. Nobody hyperventilates and pulls down their night gown as they think about some dudes blue eyes. 

💨 Baldair what on earth name is that. 

💨 The “heartbreaker prince, and of course all the rumours are true” what rumours? How are they true ? How do you know they’re true if you’ve never met him????

🗡️Extremely layered with an abundance of red herrings (almost too many), unnecessarily complicated in some parts. 
🗡️Memorable female characters you can't help but love (or sometimes feel very frustrated with)
🗡️So many possible motives, it was difficult to predict
🗡️slice of life 1930s

🎭 the murderer outcomes left me kinda frustrated

it’s like it came at complete full circle

🧿 Short and sweet.
🧿The dialogue is heartfelt and contemplative - thought provoking themes behind what it means to be human as more AI enter spaces. 
🧿 Art is full of soft blending of colours and lines to portray emotive subtleties.