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catsandbookstacks's reviews
683 reviews
Phantasma by Kaylie Smith
3.0
*Thank you to NetGalley and Second Sky/Forever for the eARC.*
If Caraval and Alice in Borderland had a spicy gothic vibe baby...
Phantasma is a fun dark fantasy romance for those who enjoy haunted houses, deadly competitions, gothic creatures, and forbidden romance. The horror elements were fun and bloody, and the competition propelled the story along.
I enjoyed Ophelia's motivation to discover her family's secrets, as well as her relationship with her sister. I didn't completely believe in Ophelia and Blackwell, though with Ophelia's lack of world experience, her actions make sense.
I found the novel to be unfocused between the family secrets, sisterly relationship, Ophelia and Blackwell, AND Phantasma's competition. To be honest, I could've done without the majority of the sex scenes because then we could've focused more on the horror and fantasy. The worldbuilding is light (I assume this was set sometime between the late 1800s and early 1900s due to carriages and cars), but I did enjoy the New Orleans setting and the mansion Phantasma.
Phantasma didn't wow me, but was entertaining enough. I may or may not continue on with the series.
If Caraval and Alice in Borderland had a spicy gothic vibe baby...
Phantasma is a fun dark fantasy romance for those who enjoy haunted houses, deadly competitions, gothic creatures, and forbidden romance. The horror elements were fun and bloody, and the competition propelled the story along.
I enjoyed Ophelia's motivation to discover her family's secrets, as well as her relationship with her sister. I didn't completely believe in Ophelia and Blackwell, though with Ophelia's lack of world experience, her actions make sense.
I found the novel to be unfocused between the family secrets, sisterly relationship, Ophelia and Blackwell, AND Phantasma's competition. To be honest, I could've done without the majority of the sex scenes because then we could've focused more on the horror and fantasy. The worldbuilding is light (I assume this was set sometime between the late 1800s and early 1900s due to carriages and cars), but I did enjoy the New Orleans setting and the mansion Phantasma.
Phantasma didn't wow me, but was entertaining enough. I may or may not continue on with the series.
Killer of Mine by Alexis Grace
Did not finish book. Stopped at 36%.
Did not finish book. Stopped at 36%.
I was really intrigued with the story, but there's a plot hole that I unfortunately can't get past.
A Mask of Flies by Matthew Lyons
3.25
*Thank you to NetGalley and Tor for the eARC.*
A Mask of Flies has a fantastic concept and gripped me from the start. It had the crime and horror blend I love paired with a captivating writing style. Unfortunately, it lost me by the midway point due to the number of plates spinning for the narrative. I think Anne and Dutch would've been enough to explore against the supernatural entity before the big bad past starts unravelling. All the plates provided a random buffet instead of a cohesive multi-course meal.
If A Mask of Flies was adapted for tv, I would absolutely watch it.
My biggest question after finishing the novel—When did the cat have access to a litter box?
A Mask of Flies has a fantastic concept and gripped me from the start. It had the crime and horror blend I love paired with a captivating writing style. Unfortunately, it lost me by the midway point due to the number of plates spinning for the narrative. I think Anne and Dutch would've been enough to explore against the supernatural entity before the big bad past starts unravelling. All the plates provided a random buffet instead of a cohesive multi-course meal.
If A Mask of Flies was adapted for tv, I would absolutely watch it.
My biggest question after finishing the novel—When did the cat have access to a litter box?
The Gods Below by Andrea Stewart
4.0
*Thank you to NetGalley and Orbit Books for the eARC.*
A fascinating new world with politics, gods, gem magic, a cult, and lots of lore.
The novel follows five POVs that slowly unravels the complex world building. The regular POV switching on top trying to understand the world had me taking longer than I would've liked to finish reading, but by the end I was sucked in. Hakara, Rasha, and Mull's POVs were my favourite, and I look forward to how the others will intertwine.
Sheuan and Rasha's storyline left me scratching my head by the sudden events, and that just didn't really work for me.
I look forward to the next installment and will likely have to reread in order to stay on top of the characters, worldbuilding, and reveals.
A fascinating new world with politics, gods, gem magic, a cult, and lots of lore.
The novel follows five POVs that slowly unravels the complex world building. The regular POV switching on top trying to understand the world had me taking longer than I would've liked to finish reading, but by the end I was sucked in. Hakara, Rasha, and Mull's POVs were my favourite, and I look forward to how the others will intertwine.
Sheuan and Rasha's storyline left me scratching my head by the sudden events, and that just didn't really work for me.
I look forward to the next installment and will likely have to reread in order to stay on top of the characters, worldbuilding, and reveals.