Gorgeous Gruesome Faces by Linda Cheng

Pages: 320 

Publisher: Quercus Children's Books 

Released: 9th of November 2023 

Yellowjackets meets She Is a Haunting in this debut speculative thriller that follows a disgraced teen idol who comes face-to-face with the demons of her past in a glittering, cutthroat K-pop competition.

After a shocking scandal that abruptly ended her teen popstar career, eighteen-year-old Sunny Lee spends her days longing for her former life and cyberstalking her ex-BFF and groupmate, Candie. The two were once inseparable, but that was then—before the tragedy and heartache they left in their wake.

In the here and now, Sunny is surprised to discover that Candie is attending a new K-pop workshop in her hometown. Candie might be there chasing stardom, but Sunny can’t resist the chance to join her and finally confront their traumatic history. Because she still can’t figure out what happened that horrible night when Mina, the third in their tight-knit trio, jumped to her death. Or if the dark and otherworldly secrets she and Candie were keeping had something to do with it . . .

But the workshop doesn’t bring the answers Sunny had hoped for, nor a happy reunion with Candie. Instead, Sunny finds herself haunted by ghostly visions while strange injuries start happening to her competitors—followed by even stranger mutilations to their bodies. In her race to survive, Sunny will have to expose just who is behind the carnage—and if Candie is out for blood once more—in Linda Cheng’s spellbinding sapphic thriller that will have readers screaming and swooning for more.

 What I Have to Say 

This book was so good. It was atmospheric, it was gripping and I just loved the storyline. It hit what for me is the right balance of scary. It was creepy without keeping me up all night because I'm too scared to sleep. I'm a wuss when it comes to scary books, so this was just right for me. 

I loved the main characters, I could really see the friendship between Sunny, Candie and Mina in the flashbacks and I loved the chemistry between Candie and Sunny. I would maybe have wanted a bit more of the romance, but it would have been hard to fit in to the story. 

The plot was so interesting, combining the horror plot with the modern, high pressure career of K-pop idol was such a good idea and it really fit well with Candie's past as well. I think the combination worked really really well. 

5 star 

My thanks go to Quercus and Netgalley for providing me with this gifted copy for review. 

The Snow Ghost and Other Tales

Pages: 176 

Publisher: Vintage Classics 

Released: 17th of August 2023 

Enter the haunted world of Ancient Japan in this spine-tingling collection of ghostly tales told and retold across the centuries.

From Goblin infested caves and haunted Tombs, to vengeful spirits and strange, sinister happenings, Ancient Japan was a country and culture that lived with between realms: the world of everyday and the world of supernatural.

It was a time and place where men could be brought down by karmic forces or lured into deadly danger by ghostly apparitions, and where the land held sorrowful secrets or stories that long-awaited an opportunity to reveal them and seek reparation.

The Snow Ghost and Other Tales brings together some of the best and scariest tales that endured across centuries of folk lore in one new beautiful hardback collection. Finally commited to writing during the turn of the twenieth cenutry by a unique set of folklorists, the ghost stories presented in this new anthology will transport readers to a time of magic and mystery, and let them relish in the spine-tingling traditions of Japanese culture largely lost now to modernity.

What I Have to Say 

This was a really good, comprehensive collection of Japanese Ghost Stories. It gave a good look into the culture of ghost stories in Ancient Japan. It was really fun seeing what kind of trends there were across all the different stories and getting a real look into the culture. 

My favourite story was The Tongue Cut Sparrow, which though it had a moment of animal abuse, was a really sweet story about a man and his pet sparrow, with themes of greed and cruelty. I also liked the titular story, the Snow Ghost and the other story of the Yuki Onna as well. 

The only thing that I would have liked and maybe the finished copy will have it, is a more detailed bibliography. I wanted more details of where these stories came from so I could maybe look up the originals in the future when my Japanese is a bit better. There were intials at the end which supposedly say where the stories come from, but I couldn't work it out from that. I'm really hoping that the finished copy has a bibliography or something. 

 4 stars 

My thanks go to Netgalley and Vintage Classics for providing me with this gifted copy for review. 

Let's Play Murder by Kesia Lupo

Pages: 400 

Publisher: Bloomsbury YA 

Released: 13th of April 2023 

Video games have never been more murderous.

Veronica wakes up trapped with four strangers in a sprawling manor house in a snow storm with a dead body, a mystery right out of an Agatha Christie novel. It feels so real - but it isn't. This is VR and this is THE Game; a rumoured Easter Egg hidden in other VR games that draws you into a competition for a prize beyond your wildest dreams. And there's no escaping the VR world until the Game is won.

But while Veronica and her fellow players are trying to figure out the puzzle, something is not right in the VR world. Blackouts, glitches, NPCs acting strange, and a mysterious figure haunting their footsteps. Then when a player dies, and also dies in real life, all hell breaks loose.

Without warning, the game Veronica thought she was playing gets overshadowed by a much darker, and much more real, mystery: who is killing us?'

It may not be a game Veronica wanted to play, but it's one that she has to win - or die trying.

What I Have to Say 

This was such an interesting concept! I loved the blend of genres, how it was a mystery but it was also blended with thriller and sci fi themes with an heavy mix of horror added to the balance.  The concept gripped me straight away, but sadly it didn't keep me hooked. The ending completely felt flat to me even though I didn't really see it coming. 

I also really hated some of the characters. The worst was Charlie, she just rubbed me the wrong way from the moment she appeared. I don't think we were meant to like her honestly, but she just annoyed me. 

I was most put off though by the characters using the word "psycho" and "psychotic". These words have long been misused, especially in the horror genre and it's time we took them out of colloquial vocabulary for good. Psychosis is a very real condition and it doesn't even slightly make someone a serial killer.  

3 stars 

My thanks go to Netgalley and Bloomsbury for providing me with this copy for review. 

Whiteout by Gabriel Dylan

Synopsis (from Goodreads) 

Pages: 416 

Publisher: Stripes (Red Eye) 

Released: 10th January 2019 

‘She sat us all down and told us a story. About things that lived in the woods. Things that only came out at night.’

For Charlie, a school ski trip is the perfect escape from his unhappy home life. Until a storm blows in and the resort town is cut off from the rest of the world. Trapped on the mountain, the students wait for the blizzards to pass, along with mysterious ski guide Hanna. 

But as night falls and the town’s long buried secrets begin to surface, the storm is the least of their problems….

What I Have to Say 

A good old fashioned vampire story. I'm not ashamed of liking vampire romances, but I do feel this was a good way to start bring vampires back into YA. It's about time to get a few back in, in my opinion. I'm looking forward to seeing what comes next. But I do think, that bringing back scary Nosferatu inspired vampires was the perfect start. 

I was a little disappointed this wasn't a bit more creepy. I have to admit, I was in this for scenes of vampires creeping around in the blank whiteness outside while the characters were hiding and hoping not to be found and there was less of that and more of vampires trying to break down doors, but it was still really gripping. 

I loved the characters. It was good that the characters thrown together by the events were people who didn't know each other that well. It created great tensions between the characters and watching them come together and get to know each other, when they had only before known themselves in passing. 

I loved the vampire mythology they used too. This is definitely a great point horror vampire book. 

My thanks go to Netgalley and Stripes for providing me with this copy for review. 

Spooky Reads for Halloween!

If you've been a regular reader of this blog for a while, you might know that I'm a complete wuss when it comes to scary stuff. Books are easier for me than movies which tend to give me sleepless nights because I can't get the imagines out of my head, but some books still scare me so much.

That said, there are some scary books that I've really loved, so here are a few of the ones I'd recommend.

The Screaming Staircase (Lockwood and Co.) by Jonathon Stroud 

When the dead come back to haunt the living, Lockwood and Co. step in . . .

For more than fifty years, the country has been affected by a horrifying epidemic of ghosts. A number of Psychic Investigations Agencies have sprung up to destroy the dangerous apparitions.

Lucy Carlyle, a talented young agent, arrives in London hoping for a notable career. Instead she finds herself joining the smallest, most ramshackle agency in the city, run by the charismatic Anthony Lockwood. When one of their cases goes horribly wrong, Lockwood & Co. have one last chance of redemption. Unfortunately this involves spending the night in one of the most haunted houses in England, and trying to escape alive.

Set in a city stalked by spectres, The Screaming Staircase is the first in a chilling new series full of suspense, humour and truly terrifying ghosts. Your nights will never be the same again . . .

Some of these books have scared the life out of me and left me reading until daylight because I'm scared to turn the lights off, others have been milder, but it's still a series I really enjoy. The characters and plots are worth being so scared and yeah okay, maybe I enjoy it just a little. 

I tend to find these books alternate with the first, third ect. being super scary but the second, fourth ect. being a lot milder. I'm not sure if this is deliberate or if it has just happened to land that way, but for me it's helps me feel prepared. I prefer the milder ones, but they're all fantastic. 

The Name of the Star (Shades of London) by Maureen Johnson 

Jack the Ripper is back, and he's coming for Rory next....

Louisiana teenager Rory Deveaux arrives in London to start a new life at boarding school just as a series of brutal murders mimicking the horrific Jack the Ripper killing spree of more than a century ago has broken out across the city. The police are left with few leads and no witnesses. Except one. Rory spotted the man believed to be the prime suspect. But she is the only one who saw him - the only one who can see him. And now Rory has become his next target...unless she can tap her previously unknown abilities to turn the tables.

I read these so long ago now, it's high time for a reread! I didn't find these books particularly scary. They were more fantasy/ adventure to me. But there's ghosts so they totally count.

The Name of the Star was my favourite, mostly because of Jack the Ripper. I loved to see an American take on England though. It was interesting to see my country and the boarding school experience through a different perspective. Maureen really did her research well though and has been over here a lot so I would say they're pretty accurate in terms of Britishness.

As I Descended by Robin Talley

“Something wicked this way comes.”

Maria Lyon and Lily Boiten are their school’s ultimate power couple—even if no one knows it but them.

Only one thing stands between them and their perfect future: campus superstar Delilah Dufrey.

Golden child Delilah is a legend at the exclusive Acheron Academy, and the presumptive winner of the distinguished Cawdor Kingsley Prize. She runs the school, and if she chose, she could blow up Maria and Lily’s whole world with a pointed look, or a carefully placed word.

But what Delilah doesn’t know is that Lily and Maria are willing to do anything—absolutely anything—to make their dreams come true. And the first step is unseating Delilah for the Kingsley Prize. The full scholarship, awarded to Maria, will lock in her attendance at Stanford―and four more years in a shared dorm room with Lily.

Maria and Lily will stop at nothing to ensure their victory—including harnessing the dark power long rumored to be present on the former plantation that houses their school.

But when feuds turn to fatalities, and madness begins to blur the distinction between what’s real and what is imagined, the girls must decide where they draw the line. 

This one frightened me a lot. I read it during the day so I luckily was able to get the stuff out of my head before I had to go to bed, but there were some really creepy scenes. 

This a retelling of Macbeth but set in an elite boarding school and Macbeth and Lady Macbeth are both girls. It's lesbian Macbeth! I loved it so much: it was an amazing retelling and knowing the original play fairly well made me really enjoy seeing the way it was adapted to the setting and different versions of the characters. 

So that's just three of my top spooky reads.  Have you read them? Do you want to? What are your favourite books when you're in the mood for something a little creepy? Let me know in the comments! 

The Hazel Wood by Melissa Albert

Synopsis (from Goodreads) 

Pages: 359 

Publisher: Penguin Random House 

Released: 8th of February 2018 

 Seventeen-year-old Alice and her mother have spent most of Alice's life on the road, always a step ahead of the strange bad luck biting at their heels. But when Alice's grandmother, the reclusive author of a book of pitch-dark fairy tales, dies alone on her estate - the Hazel Wood - Alice learns how bad her luck can really get. Her mother is stolen away - by a figure who claims to come from the cruel supernatural world where her grandmother's stories are set. Alice's only lead is the message her mother left behind: STAY AWAY FROM THE HAZEL WOOD. 

To retrieve her mother, Alice must venture first to the Hazel Wood, then into the world where her grandmother's tales began . .
.

What I Have to Say 

This book was creepy. So, so creepy. The best way to describe it is that it had the atmosphere of a horror movie when you know something horrific is going to happen but it hasn't happened yet and you're just sitting there waiting for it to happen. Luckily for me, it never got into outright horror, though I don't know how horror fans will like this, it was perfect for me. I like creepy things but I get scared so easily and then can't sleep. 

The whole plot was full of mystery and suspense. It maybe had quite a long set up for how short it was when things actually went down, but there was so much to explore. From the book written by Alice's grandmother, the strangers stalking Alice throughout her childhood, to the story that shares Alice's name and the disappearance of her mother, there are so many different arcs to this story that come together beautifully at the end. 

Just be careful reading this on the train or you might end up missing your stop! 

My thanks go to Netgalley and Penguin Random House for providing me with this copy for review. 

The Creeping Shadow by Jonathan Stroud

Synopsis (from Goodreads) 

Pages: 542

Publisher: RHCP Digital 

Released: 15th of September 2017 

Lucy has left Lockwood & Co. A freelance operative, she is hiring herself out to other agencies – agencies that might value her ever-improving skills.

But now Lockwood needs her help.

Penelope Fittes, leader of the well-renowned Fittes Agency wants Lockwood & Co. – and only them – to locate and remove the ‘Source’ for the legendary Brixton Cannibal.

It’s a tough assignment. Made worse by the tensions between Lucy and the other agents – even the skull is treating her like a jilted lover!

What will it take to reunite the team? Black marketeers, an informant ghost, a Spirit Cape that transports the wearer, and mysteries involving their closest rivals may just do the trick.

But not all is at it seems. And it’s not long before a shocking revelation rocks Lockwood & Co. to its very core . . .

What I Have to Say 

I love these books. Even though they stop me sleeping sometimes, it's worth a bit of a scare to read the beautiful writing and adventures that Lockwood & co. partake in. I love the relationships between the teammates the best. The way they fit together as an oddball family with their thinking cloth and addiction to cake. They're quirky and work well together and the addition of Holly hasn't changed that. 

I loved the way that Lucy came back to the team as well. The way that she insists that she's not really back while helping them with cases, even though it's obvious right from the start that she's going to go back to them. Because what is Lockwood & Co. without Lucy? 

I also missed the sarcasm of the skull. As much as Lockwood & Co. isn't Lockwood & Co. without Lucy, it also lacks a lot without the skull's sarcasm. The time without it changed the feel of the book a lot. That was really the only downside to this book though. I enjoyed it just as much as the others. 

My thanks go to Netgalley and Penguin Random House for providing me with this copy for review. 

Thin Air by Michelle Paver

Synopsis (from Goodreads)

Pages: 288

Publisher: Orion 

Released: 6th of October 2016 

In 1935, young medic Stephen Pearce travels to India to join an expedition with his brother, Kits. The elite team of five will climb Kangchenjunga, the world's third highest mountain and one of mountaineering's biggest killers. No one has scaled it before, and they are, quite literally, following in the footsteps of one of the most famous mountain disasters of all time - the 1907 Lyell Expedition.

Five men lost their lives back then, overcome by the atrocious weather, misfortune and 'mountain sickness' at such high altitudes. Lyell became a classic British hero when he published his memoir, Bloody, But Unbowed, which regaled his heroism in the face of extreme odds. It is this book that will guide this new group to get to the very top.

As the team prepare for the epic climb, Pearce's unease about the expedition deepens. The only other survivor of the 1907 expedition, Charles Tennant, warns him off. He hints of dark things ahead and tells Pearce that, while five men lost their lives on the mountain, only four were laid to rest.

But Pearce is determined to go ahead and complete something that he has dreamed of his entire life. As they get higher and higher, and the oxygen levels drop, he starts to see dark things out of the corners of his eyes. As macabre mementoes of the earlier climbers turn up on the trail, Stephen starts to suspect that Charles Lyell's account of the tragedy was perhaps not the full story... 

What I Have To Say 

This book terrified the life out of me. I really need to stop reading ghost stories, especially when I'm doing most of my reading at night with all the lights out, but when they come from one of my favourite authors, how can I resist? 

Mountaineering is not something I'm interested in, so I wasn't sure whether it would take me some time to get into this book. But I should have trusted Michelle Paver more, because she made even the many technical parts of the book thrilling and a joy to read. The   actual mechanics of mountain climbing were woven in by the superstitions and culture of the native people to give enough foreshadowing to take the reader smoothly to the main action of the plot. 

And the ghostly happens on the mountain themselves were worth the build up. As I said, they were terrifying. The mountain itself and the loneliness and isolation that was described in the book due to the atmosphere and the snow added to this and made it the perfect setting. 

My thanks go to Orion and Netgalley for providing me with this copy for review. 

As I Descended by Robin Talley

Synopsis (from Goodreads) 

Pages: 384

Publisher: Mira Ink 

Released: 6th of September 2016 

Maria Lyon and Lily Boiten are their school’s ultimate power couple—even if no one knows it but them.

Only one thing stands between them and their perfect future: campus superstar Delilah Dufrey.

Golden child Delilah is a legend at the exclusive Acheron Academy, and the presumptive winner of the distinguished Cawdor Kingsley Prize. She runs the school, and if she chose, she could blow up Maria and Lily’s whole world with a pointed look, or a carefully placed word.

But what Delilah doesn’t know is that Lily and Maria are willing to do anything—absolutely anything—to make their dreams come true. And the first step is unseating Delilah for the Kingsley Prize. The full scholarship, awarded to Maria, will lock in her attendance at Stanford―and four more years in a shared dorm room with Lily.

Maria and Lily will stop at nothing to ensure their victory—including harnessing the dark power long rumored to be present on the former plantation that houses their school.

But when feuds turn to fatalities, and madness begins to blur the distinction between what’s real and what is imagined, the girls must decide where they draw the line.

What I Have to Say 

I think Robin Talley is one of my new favourite authors. I was gripped completely by Lies We Tell Ourselves and adored it completely. As I Descended was just as good. I was interested to see the interpretation of Macbeth, to see what take Talley would use. I think her beautiful writing combined with the spooky atmosphere of the book, made something wonderful. 

I wasn't sure at first whether I would like the switch that Talley made, from the three witches of Macbeth to Ouija boards and haunted lakes, but I found it really helped to make the atmosphere of the book. 

As perfect as it was and as beautiful  Lily and Maria were in the roles of Macbeth and Lady Macbeth, I wasn't as keen on the ending. I felt it didn't follow as closely to the play as it did. I may be biased, because Talley didn't reference the part I was most interested to see, the descent into madness of Lady Macbeth (although don't worry, there is plenty other madness in this book). I understand that it didn't fit so well into the book though, so I forgive it. I just would have liked more parallels. 

Despite that tiny point against it, I really did love this book. I would recommend it to everyone, it was fantastic. 

I'll Be Home For Christmas (anthology)

Synopsis (from Goodreads) 

Pages: 384

Publisher: Stripes Publishing

Released: 22nd of September 2016 

The UK's top Young Adult authors join together in this collection of new stories and poems on the theme of home. Contributors include: Tom Becker, Holly Bourne, Sita Brahmachari, Kevin Brooks, Melvin Burgess, Katy Cannon , Cat Clarke, Juno Dawson, Julie Mayhew, Non Pratt, Marcus Sedgwick, Lisa Williamson and Benjamin Zephaniah. GBP1 from the sale of every book will be donated to Crisis, the national homelessness charity. To find out more about Crisis, see www.crisis.org.uk 

What I Have to Say 

This book was beautiful and hard to read in places because of the nature of the subject matter. Some of these stories are tragic, showing teens living on the streets or with really homophobic parents. Other are beautiful and show that love doesn't care who you are or who you love. And then there was the surprise ghost story that I accidentally read in the middle of the night and didn't manage to sleep after. 

As with most anthologies there were some stories that I liked and some that I didn't, but with this one, I think it was only one or two that I didn't like. Most of the stories were were really good. And with such great names involved, that's only to be expected! 

This book truly highlights what it means to be a teenager and the struggles that they face in today's society. Also, buying this book will give a donation to Crisis and will help people living on the streets, so it's really worth it. 

My thanks go to Stripes and Netgalley for providing me with this copy for review. 

Knights of the Borrowed Dark by Dave Rudden

Synopsis (from Goodreads) 

Pages: 368

Publisher: Puffin

Released: 7th of April 2016 

Denizen Hardwick is an orphan, and his life is, well, normal. Sure, in storybooks orphans are rescued from drudgery when they discover they are a wizard or a warrior or a prophesied king. But this is real life—orphans are just kids without parents. At least that’s what Denizen thought. . . 

. 

            On a particularly dark night, the gates of Crosscaper Orphanage open to a car that almost growls with power. The car and the man in it retrieve Denizen with the promise of introducing him to a long-lost aunt. But on the ride into the city, they are attacked. Denizen soon learns that monsters can grow out of the shadows. And there is an ancient order of knights who keep them at bay. Denizen has a unique connection to these knights, but everything they tell him feels like a half-truth. If Denizen joins the order, is he fulfilling his destiny, or turning his back on everything his family did to keep him alive?

What I Have to Say 

I felt this was a good start to a series. With a series like this, the first book is always a similar story, so I find that it's best to look beyond the main story line and see what is there that sets it apart from the other books like it.

In Knights of the Borrowed Dark, the characters were the main thing that stuck out for me, there was a good range of characters with a variety of backgrounds that set them apart from each other and makes me want to know more about them. The other thing was the way that Rudden used words to evoke emotions in a way that few writers are capable. 

The only thing that really bothered me about the book was the orphanage, because orphanages don't really exist any more or at least not in the way that they were shown in the book. I can forgive it as a part of the world, but I would like to have had it explained. 

I think that this series could go either way, but that Dave Rudden has many great things in his future, I'm looking forward to seeing what he comes up with. 

3.5 stars 

Desolation by Derek Landy

Synopsis (from Goodreads)

Pages: 460

Publisher: Harper Collins

Released: 7th of April 2016 

Other Books in the Series: Demon Road

Reeling from their bloody encounter in New York City, Amber and Milo flee north. On their trail are the Hounds of Hell – five demonic bikers who will stop at nothing to drag their quarries back to their unholy master.

Amber and Milo’s only hope lies within Desolation Hill – a small town with a big secret; a town with a darkness to it, where evil seeps through the very floorboards. Until, on one night every year, it spills over onto the streets and all hell breaks loose.

And that night is coming. 

What I Have to Say 

I can't decide whether I like this book better or Demon road. At first I didn't like the fact that it wasn't about the road trip anymore, but then I started to like it because it was a road trip. There were bits about it I liked and bits that I missed about the first book, sometimes there were bits that I liked that I simultaneously was glad they were different and sad that they weren't the same as in the first book. I don't think I'll ever decide which was better, but either way, this didn't have the dip of quality that often ruin the second book in a trilogy. 

I loved the scoobie crew and their van. It was the perfect parody to bring into this series to make it wonderful. I'm especially glad that they came in this book rather than the first one. I also loved Amber's relationship. It was nice to see that despite the chaos of her life, she could find a person to flirt with in a way that didn't seem unnecessary to the plot as a lot of relationships in these types of action packed books seem. 

All in all, I felt it was a brilliant continuation of this trilogy. I think I'll be a little sad once I've read the next book, but at the moment I can't wait to see what happens next. 

My thanks go to Harper Collins and Netgalley for providing me with this copy to review. 

Shadow of the Yangtze by Julian Sedgwick

Synopsis (from Goodreads) 

Pages: 320

Publisher: Hatchette Children's Books 

Released: 7th of April 2016 

Other Books in the Series: Ghosts of Shanghai

Ruby - a Western girl who feels more Chinese than English - and her friend Charlie must follow the Yangtze hundreds of miles upriver, travelling by Chinese junk and rogue steamer, through bandit and ghost haunted countryside - doggedly tracking Moonface as he spirits Charlie's sister Fei off to his home village. Everything is in flux around them: civil war pulsing, with Nationalists, Communists and warlord bandits struggling for control. The river rises and falls, villages spring up and are gone again. 

Ruby and Charlie brave a shipwreck and a gunbattle and then take a perilous cliff path to Moonface's lair

What I Have to Say 

I think it's safe to say that my love for this series hasn't gone away. As soon as I got this book, I couldn't wait to read it. I was so excited to get back into Ruby and Charlie's world and find out what was next for them. 

Going back to the world felt like I'd hardly left it, although I always find it hard to remember where the last book left off. But Ruby is the same brave, determined girl that I remember and it was really interesting seeing her and Charlie growing apart. The racism that happens towards her in the latter part of the book shows how easily she can be offset as China changes and foreigners find they are no long welcome there. 

The mystery and tension in this book is spot on. Near the end, when certain things (which shall remain vague because of spoilers) were coming to a conclusion, it was hard to look away. It is always a sign of something truly special when a book can keep you transfixed like Shadow of the Yangtze did. 

I cannot /wait/ for the next book. Is anyone else reading this series? 

Monster by C.J. Skuse

Synopsis (from Goodreads)

Pages: 384
Publisher: MIRA Ink
Released: 24th of September 2015

At sixteen Nash thought that the fight to become Head Girl of prestigious boarding school Bathory would be the biggest battle she’d face. Until her brother’s disappearance leads to Nash being trapped at the school over Christmas with Bathory’s assorted misfits. As a blizzard rages outside, strange things are afoot in the school’s hallways, and legends of the mysterious Beast of Bathory – a big cat rumoured to room the moors outside the school – run wild. Yet when the girls’ Matron goes missing it’s clear that something altogether darker is to blame – and that they’ll have to stick together if they hope to survive.

What I Have to Say 

This was really good. Sometimes CJ Skuse's characters can be a little annoying. In both Dead Romantic and Rockaholic, the characters were very unobservant and didn't have much common sense. So it's nice to see a smart character in Monster, especially as she looks after the other characters. 

I really liked the way that elements of the boarding school life contributed to the plot to make the characters more isolated. The fact that Matron had the girl's mobile phones and had shut off the internet really added to the plot in a convenient way which added to the general atmosphere of the book.

The elements of this book really added up to form a perfect whole. The boarding school setting, the intelligent and resourceful main character and the mysterious Beast of Bathory really made a book worth reading. If I had to pick a negative, it's that the battle between the two girls to become Head Girl was such a small part of the book, when at the start it seemed like it would be a bigger thing. 

All in all, this is a great book. 

Darkmere by Helen Maslin

Synopsis (From Goodreads) 

Pages: 368

Publisher: Chicken House

Released: 6th August 2015

A castle. A curse. A dangerous summer. Leo has invited Kate and a few friends to spend the summer at his inheritance, Darkmere Castle: as wild and remote as it is beautiful. Kate thinks it will be the perfect place for her and Leo to get together - but instead, she's drawn into the dark story of a young nineteenth-century bride who haunts the tunnels and towers of the house. And whose curse now hangs over them all. 

What I Have to Say 

I love the combinations of this book, the teenagers going to stay in the castle (well technically not a castle) for a fun holiday, the creepy dark nights and the story of Eleanor, the original mistress of Darkmere interwoven throughout the story. 

A lot of my favourite parts were the ones with Eleanor. I like that period of history and the female side of things a lot, I mean who doesn't like a period drama? Also the relationship between Eleanor and St. Cloud was really interesting and had a wonderful Brontë-esque feel to it. 

I also loved the way it could transition so quickly between the fun, happy teenagers-on-the-beach scenes into the creepy haunted castle scenes.  It always felt very smooth even though they are such different types of scenes and atmosphere. 

This is an essential book for people who like dark, creepy gothic books. 

The Dead House by Dawn Kurtagich

Synopsis (from Goodreads) 

Pages: 440

Publisher: Orion Children's Books 

Released: 6th of August 2015

Twenty-five years ago, Elmbridge High burned down. Three people were killed and one pupil, Carly Johnson, disappeared. Now a diary has been found in the ruins of the school. The diary belongs to Kaitlyn Johnson, Carly’s identical twin sister. But Carly didn’t have a twin . . . 

Re-opened police records, psychiatric reports, transcripts of video footage and fragments of diary reveal a web of deceit and intrigue, violence and murder, raising a whole lot more questions than it answers.

Who was Kaitlyn and why did she only appear at night? Did she really exist or was she a figment of a disturbed mind? What were the illicit rituals taking place at the school? And just what did happen at Elmbridge in the events leading up to ‘the Johnson Incident’?

What I Have to Say 

I was worried that this book would scare me more than it did, which might be a negative point for some people but it made it better for me. I liked the question of whether it was real or mental illness too. It made it really interesting to read because you're constantly doubting things. 

One thing I really liked was Naida and her Mala practices.  I've not heard much about Mala before, so I was really interested in it from that angle. 

The style of it was really interesting too. I really like books that are written in a variety of styles like this. It mixes it up a little to be reading a diary extract followed by a video transcript.

Under My Skin by James Dawson

Synopsis (from Goodreads) 

Pages: 302

Publisher: Hot Key Books

Released: 1st of March 2015

Meet Molly Sue. Once she's under your skin there's no getting rid of her...

Seventeen-year-old Sally Feather is not exactly a rebel. Her super-conservative parents and her treatment at the hands of high school bullies means that Sally's about as shy and retiring as they come - but all that's about to change. Accidentally ending up in the seedier side of town one day, Sally finds herself mysteriously lured to an almost-hidden tattoo parlour - and once inside, Sally is quickly seduced by its charming owner, Rosita, and her talk of how having a secret tattoo can be as empowering as it is thrilling. Almost before she knows what she is doing, Sally selects sexy pin-up Molly Sue, and has her tattooed on her back - hoping that Molly Sue will inspire her to be as confident and popular as she is in her dreams.

But things quickly take a nightmareish turn. Almost immediately, Sally begins to hear voices in her head - or rather, one voice in particular: Molly Sue's. And she has no interest in staying quiet and being a good girl - in fact, she's mighty delighted to have a body to take charge of again. Sally slowly realises that she is unable to control Molly Sue... and before long she's going to find out the hard way what it truly means to have somebody 'under your skin'.

What I Have To Say 

I don't read many horror books, so I may be wrong, but I don't think that there are that many other horror writers that have the same sort of quirkiness to their writing and stories that James Dawson has. In this book you can see it clearly through Sally's friendship group and obviously Satanville (which I'm so a fan of now. I want to watch it!). It's the thing is probably going to make me end up reading Say Her Name too though it's going to traumatize me for at least a week. 

I could really see how Molly-Sue managed to play Sally so well at the start of the book. It made me really want a tattoo best friend (but um... without the horror stuff please!). Molly-Sue had character. At first I was worried she would be a bit of a cliché, but she was so much more than that. I absolutely loved her character. Though I did feel that the ending was a bit of a let down because of this. 

If you want a book with quirky characters and a cool plot and the awesomeness of sexy, psychopathic, Molly-Sue, then this would be a good choice. It's a fun read and only a little bit scary. Also, it has Satanville. 

Brood by Chase Novak

Synopsis (from Goodreads) 

My thanks go to BookBridgr and Mulholland Books for provide me with this copy. 

Pages: 320

Publisher: Mullholland Books

Released: 7th of October 2014

Two teenagers struggle with a horrific family legacy, and the woman who has adopted them fights for their lives--and her own.

Adam and Alice are reaching the age when some of the children created by the fertility treatment that spawned them begin to turn feral. Will they succomb to the same physiological horror that destroyed their parents? Every change brings on terror--the voice cracking as it changes, the swelling of the breasts, the coarsening of down into actual hair. Their aunt, Cynthia, oversees renovations to the Twisden family's Manhattan residence--torn apart by the children's parents at their most savage--and struggles to give her niece and nephew the unconditional love they never had. Meanwhile, in the world outside, the forces of good and evil collide as a troop of feral offspring threatens to invade the refuge Cynthia is so determined to construct behind the Twisdens' walls.

What I Have To Say

I had no idea that this was a sequel until about five minutes ago, so that shows I need to do more research into the books I review. But even so, it didn't read like a sequel. If books do then I normally stop reading until I can get the book before it. The issues I had with this book had nothing to do with it being a sequel as far as I can tell. 

I really just didn't get into it. The writing wasn't that thrilling to me, especially as there were a lot of characters to keep track of. But I think mostly it was that I wasn't in the mood for this sort of book. It was just a bit slow. 

I also thought that the children didn't show enough trauma. There was a sort of head nod to the trauma, but after what they'd been through it should have affected them and the other wild children, far more than it was in the book. 

This book wasn't bad, it just wasn't for me really. 

Lockwood & Co. The Screaming Staircase and The Whispering Skull by Jonathan Stroud

Synopsis of The Whispering Skull (from Goodreads) 

Pages: 322

Publisher: Doubleday Children's Books

Released: 25th of September 2014

SPOILERS FOR THE SCREAMING STAIRCASE

In the six months since Anthony, Lucy, and George survived a night in the most haunted house in England, Lockwood & Co. hasn't made much progress. Quill Kipps and his team of Fittes agents keep swooping in on Lockwood's investigations. Finally, in a fit of anger, Anthony challenges his rival to a contest: the next time the two agencies compete on a job, the losing side will have to admit defeat in the Times newspaper.

Things look up when a new client, Mr. Saunders, hires Lockwood & Co. to be present at the excavation of Edmund Bickerstaff, a Victorian doctor who reportedly tried to communicate with the dead. Saunders needs the coffin sealed with silver to prevent any supernatural trouble. All goes well-until George's curiosity attracts a horrible phantom.

Back home at Portland Row, Lockwood accuses George of making too many careless mistakes. Lucy is distracted by urgent whispers coming from the skull in the ghost jar. Then the team is summoned to DEPRAC headquarters. Kipps is there too, much to Lockwood's annoyance. Bickerstaff's coffin was raided and a strange glass object buried with the corpse has vanished. Inspector Barnes believes the relic to be highly dangerous, and he wants it found.

What I Have To Say 

Series in general

Lockwood is basically the Sherlock Holmes of ghost hunters. The books are written by his Watson, Lucy Carlyle, who I really, really like the voice of. She explains things well and has good insights on the other characters while being brave, dependable and keeps her head in danger. In short, she's wonderful. 

I can be very sensitive to horror, so I suppose it doesn't mean that much that these books terrified me. Though I think it was a mistake to read the first one late at night with all the lights off. In terms of horror, I think the fact that I'm slightly traumatised by it all is probably a good thing. I don't think I'm going to be sleeping properly for a while. 

The Whispering Skull

I felt this book was better in some ways than The Screaming Staircase. It was less scary, which is either a good or a bad thing depending on whether you like terrifying yourself. Though it was still lovely and creepy in many places, which I much prefer to outright horror. But it was also much more about humanity and obsession and even madness, which I always like more than murder and vengeance,

The whole basic of the story was around a haunted object and how the people around are drawn to it due to various reasons, the curse of the object itself, money ect. It was so much more interesting than the first book, which does make a lot of sense because a lot of first books in a series are kept quite simple to set up the series.

I also really loved the skull, who I'm honestly surprised they haven't named yet. He was so sarcastic a lot of the time and I loved the pure evilness of him, I don't know why, but I love it when evil characters help good characters because they want to get some thrill of satisfaction when they fail. Or any reason that isn't because they're secretly good or whatever. I just love a good evil character.

And that ending! When's the next book coming out?