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marshalls_library's reviews
180 reviews
Burner by Robert Ford
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Well then....
This book is soul crushingly brutal. It reinforces my belief that the scariest books don't need anything beyond the dark side of humanity.
This was a buddy read with @weepingreads, and I think I can defend that phrase in the context of this book. You know "the buddy system" right? The one where you have a buddy because it's dangerous to not have one. Imagine a teacher asking a kid on a field trip if everyone has their buddy. Reading Burner is that kind of buddy read, because reading this alone is too dangerous.
Books with vampires, ghosts, demons, etc., are great. I have plenty of them on my shelves. But those books don't make it hard to fall asleep, and they don't pop into your head when you see someone who might be watching you from a distance, or if there's a strange car parked inexplicably next to yours when you come back to it, even though there are plenty of other spots.
Burner will do that to you. And even worse (or better? I'm not sure how this should be gauged), it will make you question how well you REALLY know the people in your life.
Very much in the same vein as The Girl Next Door, this book could obliterate you, and I can't recommend it highly enough.
ππππππ
This book is soul crushingly brutal. It reinforces my belief that the scariest books don't need anything beyond the dark side of humanity.
This was a buddy read with @weepingreads, and I think I can defend that phrase in the context of this book. You know "the buddy system" right? The one where you have a buddy because it's dangerous to not have one. Imagine a teacher asking a kid on a field trip if everyone has their buddy. Reading Burner is that kind of buddy read, because reading this alone is too dangerous.
Books with vampires, ghosts, demons, etc., are great. I have plenty of them on my shelves. But those books don't make it hard to fall asleep, and they don't pop into your head when you see someone who might be watching you from a distance, or if there's a strange car parked inexplicably next to yours when you come back to it, even though there are plenty of other spots.
Burner will do that to you. And even worse (or better? I'm not sure how this should be gauged), it will make you question how well you REALLY know the people in your life.
Very much in the same vein as The Girl Next Door, this book could obliterate you, and I can't recommend it highly enough.
ππππππ
Mary: An Awakening of Terror by Nat Cassidy
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Benny Rose, the Cannibal King by Hailey Piper
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Benny Rose The Cannibal King is my third book from @haileypiperfights this year, and is right up there with Queen of Teeth (my favorite of hers so far).
This has all the makings of a perfect spooky season read. It's set in a seemingly quiet town with a legend of a horrible ghost, Benny Rose, who died in a hospital fire decades ago. You've got a group of high school kids wanting to haze the new girl in town on her first Halloween at her new school (with a prank that goes horribly wrong) a crazy storm that sweeps into town on Halloween night, and a bunch of super creepy oldsters.
Basically, it has it all, and good lord would this make for an absolute CLASSIC Halloween movie if executed properly and stuck to the plot and vibes of the book.
Hailey has a LOT of range across her books, and I'm saying that not even having read her new Splatter Western in the Death's Head Press series.
If you haven't read this, get it now, have it handy on October 1st, and be prepared to thank me for the killer recommendation
This has all the makings of a perfect spooky season read. It's set in a seemingly quiet town with a legend of a horrible ghost, Benny Rose, who died in a hospital fire decades ago. You've got a group of high school kids wanting to haze the new girl in town on her first Halloween at her new school (with a prank that goes horribly wrong) a crazy storm that sweeps into town on Halloween night, and a bunch of super creepy oldsters.
Basically, it has it all, and good lord would this make for an absolute CLASSIC Halloween movie if executed properly and stuck to the plot and vibes of the book.
Hailey has a LOT of range across her books, and I'm saying that not even having read her new Splatter Western in the Death's Head Press series.
If you haven't read this, get it now, have it handy on October 1st, and be prepared to thank me for the killer recommendation
Talia by Daniel J. Volpe
challenging
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Blood Suck by Judith Sonnet
challenging
dark
funny
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
The Poisoner's Last Ride: A Post-Apocalyptic Love Story by Kenzie Jennings
dark
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Spoiler Free
It's really easy to take the dystopian, post-apocalyptic trope and go really big with a doorstop of a book. And those books totally have their place, but sometimes, what you want is a short punchy story that gets to the point.
The Poisoner's Last Ride is one of those books that focuses on Siobhan as she tries to escape her city's draconian laws with her partner Seth, and make the dangerous journey across a Mad Max-style wasteland to find her mother.
Kenzie Jennings squeezes a truly memorable violent death scene inside a school (one that I desperately want to see on film π), in a book that takes the genre in a largely nonviolent direction.
Jennings hasn't let me down once, which makes me excited to read her collection of shorts at some point before the end of the year!
It's really easy to take the dystopian, post-apocalyptic trope and go really big with a doorstop of a book. And those books totally have their place, but sometimes, what you want is a short punchy story that gets to the point.
The Poisoner's Last Ride is one of those books that focuses on Siobhan as she tries to escape her city's draconian laws with her partner Seth, and make the dangerous journey across a Mad Max-style wasteland to find her mother.
Kenzie Jennings squeezes a truly memorable violent death scene inside a school (one that I desperately want to see on film π), in a book that takes the genre in a largely nonviolent direction.
Jennings hasn't let me down once, which makes me excited to read her collection of shorts at some point before the end of the year!
Jump Scare: a chilling novella by Judith Sonnet
adventurous
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Spoiler Free
It's been a minute since my last read from @fulltimehorrorjunkie, and dammit if she didn't go and write a ghost/haunting story that isn't really extreme horror!
I was thrown for a loop. But in a GOOD way.
Things start off with a group of youngsters who have been warned to stay away from an abandoned house in the woods, which obviously means it has to be explored right?
After things go horribly wrong (as is to be expected duh) we catch up to some of the kids as adults, where (as is to be expected duh), things are about to go horribly wrong again.
That's all I'll say to avoid the spoilers. This was a great and quick read that actually did have some jump scare moments that worked well (which typically only happens in film). There was also a great twist at the end, which is exactly what quick books like this need.
Huge fan of this one and I can't wait to read more from Judith!
It's been a minute since my last read from @fulltimehorrorjunkie, and dammit if she didn't go and write a ghost/haunting story that isn't really extreme horror!
I was thrown for a loop. But in a GOOD way.
Things start off with a group of youngsters who have been warned to stay away from an abandoned house in the woods, which obviously means it has to be explored right?
After things go horribly wrong (as is to be expected duh) we catch up to some of the kids as adults, where (as is to be expected duh), things are about to go horribly wrong again.
That's all I'll say to avoid the spoilers. This was a great and quick read that actually did have some jump scare moments that worked well (which typically only happens in film). There was also a great twist at the end, which is exactly what quick books like this need.
Huge fan of this one and I can't wait to read more from Judith!
Jawbone by MΓ³nica Ojeda
challenging
dark
mysterious
reflective
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Spoiler Free
"Being a coward has never been fashionable."
This is a book I probably wouldn't have been able to appreciate even as recently as the roughly year and a half ago it showed up in a @night_worms package. I can see myself finding it too dense, getting frustrated, and DNF'ing it.
Now though, I can appreciate Jawbone for what it is: a BEAUTIFULLY written (and translated), nuanced, layered, and incredibly dark book.
The top paragraph on the back of the book makes you think you're reading about a teacher who has kidnapped one of her students who has become estranged from her best friend. And that's true...that IS a component of the book. The kicker here is the sentence that asks "how did this happen?"
That question turns out to be incredibly loaded, because the HOW is really the heart and soul of Jawbone. The HOW is a coming of age tale of Fernanda's and Annelise's friendship and betrayal, Miss Clara's descent into madness, and the intersection of those two components. It's the most clear cut example of the journey being more important than the destination I can think of.
Briefly, the task of translating this must have been a massive undertaking. This book doesn't seem like it's a translated work at all, which in and of itself is mind boggling. TIP: read the translator's note before diving in.
This book DEMANDS your attention. The act of reading Jawbone should be active and deliberate, so put your phone down, hide the remote, and get started.
I'll tag a few people who I think should have this book on their radar, and finish how I started, which is with a memorable line from the book.
"We aren't going to adopt this place, we're going to be part of its neglect."
"Being a coward has never been fashionable."
This is a book I probably wouldn't have been able to appreciate even as recently as the roughly year and a half ago it showed up in a @night_worms package. I can see myself finding it too dense, getting frustrated, and DNF'ing it.
Now though, I can appreciate Jawbone for what it is: a BEAUTIFULLY written (and translated), nuanced, layered, and incredibly dark book.
The top paragraph on the back of the book makes you think you're reading about a teacher who has kidnapped one of her students who has become estranged from her best friend. And that's true...that IS a component of the book. The kicker here is the sentence that asks "how did this happen?"
That question turns out to be incredibly loaded, because the HOW is really the heart and soul of Jawbone. The HOW is a coming of age tale of Fernanda's and Annelise's friendship and betrayal, Miss Clara's descent into madness, and the intersection of those two components. It's the most clear cut example of the journey being more important than the destination I can think of.
Briefly, the task of translating this must have been a massive undertaking. This book doesn't seem like it's a translated work at all, which in and of itself is mind boggling. TIP: read the translator's note before diving in.
This book DEMANDS your attention. The act of reading Jawbone should be active and deliberate, so put your phone down, hide the remote, and get started.
I'll tag a few people who I think should have this book on their radar, and finish how I started, which is with a memorable line from the book.
"We aren't going to adopt this place, we're going to be part of its neglect."
Last of the Ravagers by Bryan Smith
adventurous
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
I don't know how or why Last of the Ravagers is only my second book from @bryan_smith, but after reading this and Merciless a while back, that needs to change.
Last of the Ravagers is a violent whirlwind of a book where otherworldly forces descend on a sleepy desert town, completely unaware of the other worlds that exist around them, as well as their place in it.
The crux of the plot revolves around Doyle, a god-like figure that speaks to and reanimates the dead, who also exerts powerful control over the living through charisma and magic. Doyle didn't travel here alone though, and he has a hunter hot on his tail...
Told through shifting POVs, this splatter western has it all and is definitely in the upper tier of the series from @deaths_head_press.
I'm very excited to stay on this journey with them and to dive into Smith's catalog π€
Last of the Ravagers is a violent whirlwind of a book where otherworldly forces descend on a sleepy desert town, completely unaware of the other worlds that exist around them, as well as their place in it.
The crux of the plot revolves around Doyle, a god-like figure that speaks to and reanimates the dead, who also exerts powerful control over the living through charisma and magic. Doyle didn't travel here alone though, and he has a hunter hot on his tail...
Told through shifting POVs, this splatter western has it all and is definitely in the upper tier of the series from @deaths_head_press.
I'm very excited to stay on this journey with them and to dive into Smith's catalog π€
Maeve Fly by CJ Leede
adventurous
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
SPOILER FREE
Maeve Fly is one of those books from a new author that pops up several times a year that seems unavoidable. You've seen this cover a million times probably, and you reach a certain point where you wonder if you can even attempt to read it without the hype irreparably affecting you.
For those who know my tastes and have a sense of what I tend to read, I can tell you that the totality of what I read impacted my feelings about Maeve Fly to a larger degree than just about any other book of recent memory.
I think if you read mostly mainstream horror (and there's nothing wrong with that), this book will seem WILD to you, and all of the blurbs seem totally justified and spot on.
If you're a casual, or avid reader of extreme horror (and go into Maeve Fly looking through extreme horror tinted glasses), the hype surrounding this book as starring a violent and unhinged female lead is going to have you walking away disappointed.
I tried to internalize all of that while reading this book. My final thoughts? It's fine. It's not a bad book, but it's not great either. There's a lot of build-up that arguably meanders around while building up to the guts of the book, and I was left thinking "ok, when's this going to start getting to the point?" That was 200 pages into a 271 page book.
I will say that I'm intrigued by where this author will go in the future. I think there are hints of some great things, but if book number two (whenever that happens) leaves me feeling the same way, I might just call it quits. If violence and dread is what you want, there are plenty of places to get it.
Maeve Fly just kind of flirts with the darkness but never really commits to it. For some folks, that's plenty. For me, it wasn't enough.
Maeve Fly is one of those books from a new author that pops up several times a year that seems unavoidable. You've seen this cover a million times probably, and you reach a certain point where you wonder if you can even attempt to read it without the hype irreparably affecting you.
For those who know my tastes and have a sense of what I tend to read, I can tell you that the totality of what I read impacted my feelings about Maeve Fly to a larger degree than just about any other book of recent memory.
I think if you read mostly mainstream horror (and there's nothing wrong with that), this book will seem WILD to you, and all of the blurbs seem totally justified and spot on.
If you're a casual, or avid reader of extreme horror (and go into Maeve Fly looking through extreme horror tinted glasses), the hype surrounding this book as starring a violent and unhinged female lead is going to have you walking away disappointed.
I tried to internalize all of that while reading this book. My final thoughts? It's fine. It's not a bad book, but it's not great either. There's a lot of build-up that arguably meanders around while building up to the guts of the book, and I was left thinking "ok, when's this going to start getting to the point?" That was 200 pages into a 271 page book.
I will say that I'm intrigued by where this author will go in the future. I think there are hints of some great things, but if book number two (whenever that happens) leaves me feeling the same way, I might just call it quits. If violence and dread is what you want, there are plenty of places to get it.
Maeve Fly just kind of flirts with the darkness but never really commits to it. For some folks, that's plenty. For me, it wasn't enough.