The Deep by
Alma Katsu
Published by Transworld
Digital on March 3rd, 2020
Genre: Horror Historical Fiction
Format: Ebook
Source: Netgalley
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HOLY COW!! I am so excited to find out I received this via Netgalley! If I see a mention of Titanic - I am like -
"I NEED THIS BOOK NOW"
Thank you so much to the publisher and to Netgalley for the free copy of this in exchange for an honest review!
Goodreads Synopsis:
Someone, or something, is haunting the Titanic.
This is the only way to explain the series of misfortunes that have plagued the passengers of the ship from the moment they set sail: mysterious disappearances, sudden deaths. Now suspended in an eerie, unsettling twilight zone during the four days of the liner's illustrious maiden voyage, a number of the passengers - including millionaires Madeleine Astor and Benjamin Guggenheim, the maid Annie Hebbley and Mark Fletcher - are convinced that something sinister is going on . . . And then, as the world knows, disaster strikes.
Years later and the world is at war. And a survivor of that fateful night, Annie, is working as a nurse on the sixth voyage of the Titanic's sister ship, the Britannic, now refitted as a hospital ship. Plagued by the demons of her doomed first and near fatal journey across the Atlantic, Annie comes across an unconscious soldier she recognises while doing her rounds. It is the young man Mark. And she is convinced that he did not - could not - have survived the sinking of the Titanic . . .
Brilliantly combining fact and fiction, the historical and the horrific, The Deep reveals a chilling truth in an unputdownable narrative full of unnerving moments and with a growing, inexorable sense of foreboding.
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Hopeless Magic by
A.K. Koonce
Published by Self-Published on Feb. 6th, 2018
Genre: Adult/Romance
Pages: 142
Format: Audiobook & Paperback
Source: SCRIBD
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My rating: 3 of 5 stars
GoodReads Synopsis:
If life really was a fairy tale, Zakara would never be the damsel in distress. She’d be a thief, and Prince Charming wouldn’t have a clue how to steal the heart of the conniving criminal.
Zakara saves not one, but three men locked inside the tallest tower. Her first instinct is to ditch them as soon as possible, but they have one thing that intrigues her more than wealth:
Magic.
Fae magic once ruled the world, until it disappeared without a trace. Only myths of the magic wielders linger in their destroyed society.
The three prisoners claim to be fae, but she doesn’t trust them.
She doesn’t trust anyone.
Can Prince Ryder convince the pretty thief to lead them to the Hopeless City? Or will she kill him before they even arrive?
This is a reverse harem serial. Recommended for readers over 18.
I will probably continue on with them because they are so short and because I bought the book set. Maybe the story will progress as it goes along and you will get more out of the story.
I met this author last week at Penned and I have seen these books on Scribd so I bought her books and decided to give them a listen on Scribd. The book is about 3 hours long but I finished it in about an 1 hour. I listened to it at 3X the speed.
This book was basically the beginning of a book. I would say all the books she had could probably have made one big novel. This was about 142 pages and in those 142 pages you basically got exactly what the Synopsis says and that is pretty much the book. Plus a few Adult scenes.
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Elizabeth Webster and the Court of Uncommon Pleas by
William Lashner
Published by Disney Hyperion on October 15th, 2019
Genre: Middle Grade
Pages: 320
Format: Ebook
Source: Netgalley
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ARC provided by Netgalley and the Publisher in exchange for an honest review
Goodreads Synopsis:
Welcome to Elizabeth Webster's world, where the common laws of middle school torment her days . . . and the uncommon laws of an even weirder realm govern her nights.
Elizabeth Webster is happy to stay under the radar (and under her bangs) until middle school is dead and gone. But when star swimmer Henry Harrison asks Elizabeth to tutor him in math, it's not linear equations Henry really needs help with-it's a flower-scented, poodle-skirt-wearing, head-tossing ghost who's calling out Elizabeth's name.
But why Elizabeth? Could it have something to do with her missing lawyer father? Maybe. Probably. If only she could find him. In her search, Elizabeth discovers more than she is looking for: a grandfather she never knew, a startling legacy, and the secret family law firm, Webster & Son, Attorneys for the Damned.
Elizabeth and her friends soon land in court, where demons and ghosts take the witness stand and a red-eyed judge with a ratty white wig hands out sentences like sandwiches. Will Elizabeth's father arrive in time to save Henry Harrison-and is Henry the one who really needs saving?
Set in the historic streets of Philadelphia, this riveting middle-grade mystery from New York Times best-selling author William Lashner will have readers banging their gavels and calling for more from the incomparable Elizabeth Webster.
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The Chain by
Adrian McKinty
Published by Mulholland Books on July 9th, 2019
Genre: Mystery/Thriller
Pages: 357
Format: Audiobook & Hardback
Source: Overdrive via Brooklyn Public Library
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My rating: 4 of 5 stars
TW: Child Abduction, Child Abuse, Murder and threats of murder, death of family members
Goodreads Synopsis:
You just dropped off your child at the bus stop. A panicked stranger calls your phone. Your child has been kidnapped, and the stranger explains that their child has also been kidnapped, by a completely different stranger. The only way to get your child back is to kidnap another child within 24 hours. Your child will be released only when the next victim's parents kidnap yet another child, and most importantly, the stranger explains, if you don't kidnap a child, or if the next parents don't kidnap a child, your child will be murdered. You are now part of The Chain.
If you struggle with these types of trigger warnings, I highly recommend not picking this book up. Some parts are disturbing as we imagine what is happening to each child.
This is a very strong 4.5 stars. I wanted to give it 5 for part 1 of this book, but part 2 fell behind some. I still highly enjoyed this. I read this with in 24 hours and could not put it down.
The chain is set up to never be broken. You must steal a child, pay a ransom, call someone and they must follow the same rules but if someone breaks the chain it could cause consequences to those previously in the chain.
Finally "The Chain" thought they picked the right person to do the job. They research and study them to make sure they choose the right person for "The Chain" and without fail the mother the picked will do whatever she can to save her child. But sometimes a mother will do more and try to also prevent it from happening to other families. Some chains are just meant to be broken or that is what she thinks. Can you find out who they are before they find out she is trying to reveal their secret?
I do recommend this book but only if you are able to deal with very strong "Trigger Warnings"
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The Furies by Katie Lowe
This page-turning, harrowing debut is the story of a girl trying to fit in, whose obsessive new friends and desperation to belong leads her to places she'd never imagined...dark, dangerous, and possibly even violent.
In 1998, a sixteen-year-old girl is found dead.
She's posed on a swing on her boarding school's property, dressed all in white, with no known cause of death. Whispers and rumors swirl, with no answers. But there are a few who know what happened; there is one girl who will never forget.
One year earlier: a new student, Violet, steps on the campus of Elm Hollow Academy, an all-girl's boarding school on the outskirts of a sleepy coastal town. This is her fresh start, her chance to begin again in the wake of tragedy, leave her demons behind. Bright but a little strange, uncertain and desperate to fit in, she soon finds herself invited to an advanced study group, led by her alluring and mysterious art teacher, Annabel.
There, with three other girls--Alex, Grace, and Robin--the five of them delve into the school's long-buried grim history: of Greek and Celtic legends; of the school founder's "academic" interest in the occult; of gruesome 17th century witch trials. Annabel does her best to convince the girls that her classes aren't related to ancient rites and rituals, and that they are just history and mythology. But the more she tries to warn the girls off the topic, the more they drawn to it, and the possibility that they can harness magic for themselves.
Violet quickly finds herself wrapped up in this heady new world of lawless power--except she is needled by the disappearance of a former member of the group, one with whom Violet shares an uncanny resemblance. As her friends' actions take a turn for the darker and spiral out of control, she begins to wonder who she can trust, all the while becoming more deeply entangled. How far will these young girls go to protect one another...or to destroy one another?
ARC provided by Netgalley and the Publisher in exchange for an honest review
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Dead Silence by
Wendy Corsi Staub
Published by William Morrow on July 23th, 2019
Genre: Mystery/Thriller
Pages: 366
Format: Paperback
Source: Goodreads
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UPADTE: 9/18 - Well I never got my ARC copy of this and was so excited that won book I was looking forward to I had one on goodreads. I waited since June and never got it. So disappointing. I reported I never got it on here on Goodreads but never got a response. I was so looking forward to this book. Oh well, this makes 2 books from this publishing company In 2 months that I never got my book. However, I did get some of the others. I don't blame them if they sent the item because it could have been my mail lady and she tends to deliver our mail to the wrong addresses. I am always loosing packages because she sends them to the wrong address but with out a tracking number the post office cant locate a package.
I am excited to find out that I have won the Goodreads Giveaway for this book! I can't wait to get this book in the mail. I have read so many great books the last 2 months. I love a good Mystery/Thiller book!!
Goodreads Synopsis:
New York Times Bestselling Author Wendy Corsi Staub is the master of psychological suspense. Here, she delves into the twisted mind of The Angler, who lures his human prey the way he catches fish. Sometimes, he gets one worth keeping . . . for a little while . . .
No Such Thing as Coincidence . . .
Staring into his frightened blue eyes, investigative genealogist Amelia Crenshaw Haines vows to help this silent little boy who is unable—or unwilling—to communicate his past. Though her own roots remain shrouded in mystery, she relies on tangible DNA evidence to help fellow foundlings uncover theirs . . . until a remarkable twist of fate presents a stranger bearing an eerily familiar childhood souvenir.
NYPD Missing Persons Detective Stockton Barnes has spent his career searching for other people’s lost loved ones and outrunning a youthful misstep. Now a chance encounter with a key player from that fateful night leads him on a desperate quest to locate the one woman he’s ever regretted leaving—unless a savage killer finds her first.
As Amelia and Barnes uncover intertwining truths—and lies—the real horror emerges not in crimes already committed, but in evil yet to come . . .
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Username: Regenerated by
Joe Sugg
Published by Running Press Kids on Nov 1st, 2016
Genre: Graphic Novel
Pages: 192
Format: Paperback
Source: Purchased online
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My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Evie is safe home, but her heart remains in e.scape. She's desperate to return, but the app that transports her has corrupted in the great reboot.
When besotted geek, Lionel, offers to help, he doesn't just restore the gateway as she had planned. He opens up a series of revelations that calls into question everything Evie treasures in life. With a momentous discovery to be unearthed in the virtual realm, and an e.scape fugitive on the loose in reality, can our sidelined schoolgirl save not one world but two?
I love this graphic novel set. The world building is so great. I don't want to give to much information as this is the second book in the series.
Evie returned home in book one but she is at it again. She has been missing e.scap and she will stop at nothing to get herself back there. Only this time she is searching for someone.
In the process of getting to e.scape the app version she needed to get back on her computer was corrupted so when she had a friend to work on it, he mistakenly added the original app version of the world but he wasn't aware the danger that version could cause.
When Evie enters into the app, she wasn't aware the app was the older version and soon chaos begins to break because danger from the other side invaded her world. With help from the other side war begins to rage.
Love this book!
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Tomie by
Junji Ito
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Published by VIZ Media on Dec 20th, 2016
Genre: Manga, Horror
Pages: 752
Format: Hardback
Source: Goodwill
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Tomie Kawakami is a femme fatale with long black hair and a beauty mark just under her left eye. She can seduce nearly any man, and drive them to murder as well, even though the victim is often Tomie herself. While one lover seeks to keep her for himself, another grows terrified of the immortal succubus. But soon they realize that no matter how many times they kill her, the world will never be free of Tomie.
TW: GORE, BRUTALITY, MURDER, HORROR, TONS OF DEATH
I really surprised myself reading this entire book. 752 pages or so but I really did enjoy it.
This book is full of short stories that follow Tomie, a beautiful young girl that can not die. She is so beautiful that men love her so much they cut her into pieces. She drives them mad with her beauty and she knows it. She ignores them but she uses them to get what she wants done.
The only thing is when Tomie is chopped up, each piece of her creates a brand new Tomie. The world is over flowing with Tomie's by the time this book end. There were some stories I enjoyed more than others but with that being said, I still highly enjoyed them all.
The Art work for this Manga was very easy to read. You understood the story in each picture.
I do highly recommend this book. I will be checking out other work by this author and if I am not mistaken Tomie has been made in to a movie. So I may have to check that out as well. This was a fun side read.
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Escaping from Houdini
by
Kerri Maniscalco
Published by Jimmy Patterson on Sept 18th, 2018
Genre: Historical Fiction
Pages: 416
Format: Audiobook & Hardback
Source: Audible.com
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My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Goodreads Synopsis:
Audrey Rose Wadsworth and her partner-in-crime-investigation, Thomas Cresswell, are en route to New York to help solve another blood-soaked mystery. Embarking on a week-long voyage across the Atlantic on the opulent RMS Etruria, they’re delighted to discover a traveling troupe of circus performers, fortune tellers, and a certain charismatic young escape artist entertaining the first-class passengers nightly.
But then, privileged young women begin to go missing without explanation, and a series of brutal slayings shocks the entire ship. The disturbing influence of the Moonlight Carnival pervades the decks as the murders grow ever more freakish, with nowhere to escape except the unforgiving sea.
It's up to Audrey Rose and Thomas to piece together the gruesome investigation as even more passengers die before reaching their destination. But with clues to the next victim pointing to someone she loves, can Audrey Rose unravel the mystery before the killer's horrifying finale?
TW: Graphic Deaths Scenes, blood, murder
Kerri Maniscalo did it again. However, Escaping From Houdini did fall behind compared to other books in this series but when you have a series that consist of several books you will find one book you don't love as much. But with that being said, I love her writing and her world building in these books. I am so ready to move on to book 4 (give me all the H.H. Holmes and I am good).
We still follow Audrey Rose and Thomas Cresswell and they aboard the RMS Etruria toward New York City attending the amazing Moonlight Carnival show. While on the ship, murders begin to happen and at each death a magic card is left to show the status of each death and they need to solve the mystery and what each card left behind stands for before they dock in New York or they could lose the killer forever. But with out dismay - there are always more secrets that become revealed not only by the killer but also among those solving the murders. How far would you go to keep a secret from someone you love to save someone else you love? How do you choose between the loves? Who do you love more?
If you have not read the series I recommend reading them. It is hard to speak about Audrey and Thomas because we are so far along in the series and I don't want to spoil for those that have not read this series.
But I will say my heart broke for Thomas at certain points but given the choice Audrey had to make, you couldn't help her for wanting to save her cousin.
“What a fortunate surprise, Miss Wadsworth." He took my hand in his, pretending to kiss it, and pulled an ink-blue rose from the air. "A rose for the lovely Audrey Rose."
"Oh, wonderful." Thomas said. "Satan has decided to claw his way out of Hell and join us. I had no idea he did subpar tricks, though.”
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The Turn of the Key by
Ruth Ware
Published by Simon & Schuster on August 6th, 2019
Genre: Psychological Thriller
Pages: 384
Format: Audiobook & Hardback
Source: Overdrive via Brooklyn Public Library
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My rating: 5 of 5 stars
GOOREADS SYNOPSIS:
When she stumbles across the ad, she’s looking for something else completely. But it seems like too good an opportunity to miss—a live-in nannying post, with a staggeringly generous salary. And when Rowan Caine arrives at Heatherbrae House, she is smitten—by the luxurious “smart” home fitted out with all modern conveniences, by the beautiful Scottish Highlands, and by this picture-perfect family.
What she doesn’t know is that she’s stepping into a nightmare—one that will end with a child dead and herself in prison awaiting trial for murder.
Writing to her lawyer from prison, she struggles to explain the unravelling events that led to her incarceration. It wasn’t just the constant surveillance from the cameras installed around the house, or the malfunctioning technology that woke the household with booming music, or turned the lights off at the worst possible time. It wasn’t just the girls, who turned out to be a far cry from the immaculately behaved model children she met at her interview. It wasn’t even the way she was left alone for weeks at a time, with no adults around apart from the enigmatic handyman, Jack Grant.
It was everything.
She knows she’s made mistakes. She admits that she lied to obtain the post, and that her behavior toward the children wasn’t always ideal. She’s not innocent, by any means. But, she maintains, she’s not guilty—at least not of murder. Which means someone else is.
This book was so engrossing! This was my first Ruth Ware book that I am aware of and I could not have started with a better book. I just knew from the moment when I seen this cover, I would love this book. I am hooked on any book or movie that surrounds itself with locked rooms and keys. AMAZING!
This book had all the scary and creepy vibes you wanted.
CREAK...CREAK...CREAK
We start the book with Rowan writing to Mr. Wexham about the death of a child and she is trying to plead her case. The cops won't listen. No one will listen. She needs someone to hear her story. The entire book is her writing Mr. Wexham about the story that took place at the Heatherbrae House. It was a very unique format and it worked so very well for this book. I loved it.
"Dear Mr. Wrexham,
You have no idea how many times I have started this letter and screwed up the resulting mess, but I've realized there is no magic formula here. There is no way I can make you listen to my case. So I'm just going to have to do my best to set things out. However long it takes, however much I mess this up, I'm just going to keep going and tell the truth."
Rowan starts her story by telling the attorney she is searching the internet one day and comes across and ad for a live-in nanny. She jumps at the chance to take this job. Hoping with everything in her that she gets this job, she takes off to the interview and dresses to impress.
"The Perfect Nanny"
When leaving the interview she gets a huge hug from an 8 year old, Maddie, that tells her to
stay away
and that the
Ghost would no like it.
Rowan is not sure what to think of that. "GHOST" she thought to her self but after getting the call that she got the job, She is advised by Sandra, the owner, that the other nanny's all left because they thought the house was "Haunted"
After getting the job and moving into the "smart" home that is powered by complete smart technology on the wall. There are not even key holes in the doors. All except the wash room and a locked door in her bedroom which is locked at all times and appears to have no key. But everything else is controlled by the smart home system that is controlled by the smart screens on the walls and the Happy App.
After her first night there Rowan soon begins to notice this house is not what it seems. She is woken up in the middle of the night with walking above her, or she thinks walking, but to her there is no attic above her and she is on the top floor. All she hears is the small creak...creak...creak... of someone or what sounds like some pacing above her. BUT how??
During the day she finds that there are some stories about the grounds that could be quite scary. When she takes the girls out for a walk and they take her to the locked garden - Soon Rowan finds out it was not just a garden but it was poisonous plants that were planted there by the previous owner. But the story has it that the owner killed his young daughter buy feeding her the plants. Not sure what to think - Rowan begins her own journey to find out what could have happened.
The next night she is woken by the music blaring over the intercom and the kids are wide a wake scared and crying not sure what to do. She soon finds out that she is locked out of the Happy App. Thanks to the rescue of Jack Grant which is the grounds keeper that lives on the grounds, he rushes over and helps save the day by rebooting the system.
Jack seems very trust worthy but then things begin to happen and soon Rowan finds her self wondering if she can trust him because he does have the same last name as the previous owner "Grant" but not sure who else to trust, she gives her to feelings.
After her 3rd night in the room and still hearing sounds above her she has made up her mind she will not sleep the rest of the night. After confiding in Jack - she sets out to see if he has the keys to the locked door in her room.
This story at this point was moving fast and my heart was racing with it. The plot twist that were happening, I never saw coming. The things that were revealed were shocking and left me at one moment with my hand over my mouth while it was open. My note to you DO NOT READ THE LAST LETTER BEFORE READING THIS BOOK! You will ruin the entire book for yourself.
I highly recommend this book and this will not be my last Ruth Ware book! Now I want them all!!! See you in the next book!
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Sweet Evil by
Wendy Higgins
Published by Harper Teen on May 1st, 2012
Genre: Young Adult Fantasy
Pages: 447
Format: Audiobook
Source: Overdrive via Brooklyn Public Library
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My rating: 3 of 5 stars
GOODREADS BLURB:
Embrace the Forbidden
What if there were teens whose lives literally depended on being bad influences?
This is the reality for sons and daughters of fallen angels.
Tenderhearted Southern girl Anna Whitt was born with the sixth sense to see and feel emotions of other people. She's aware of a struggle within herself, an inexplicable pull toward danger, but it isn't until she turns sixteen and meets the alluring Kaidan Rowe that she discovers her terrifying heritage and her willpower is put to the test. He's the boy your daddy warned you about. If only someone had warned Anna.
Forced to face her destiny, will Anna embrace her halo or her horns?
I really don't have a lot to say about this book. It was good but not great. I think I had read this in my high school years, I would have loved it. I honestly don't even know if I remember everything about it so give a few months I may not remember anything. I am not saying it was bad but not for me. I wanted to give this series a try since I am meeting the author in Sept. for a book signing so I am unsure if I will continue reading this series since it was just a 3 star for me.
We follow Anna on her discovery of who she really is and the love story was just okay. If you love fallen angel and you may like this. I love stories of fallen angels but I just didn't connect to the characters.
If you think I should continue on with this series, please let me know if it gets better. It had its moments but it was just very young.
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