Tag: horror

Waiting on Wednesday: ‘The Devouring Gray’ by Christine Lynn Herman

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Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly series hosted by Breaking the Spine that spotlights upcoming book releases we can’t wait to get our hands on.

This week’s Waiting on Wednesday pick is being pitched as Stranger Things meets The Raven Boys: The Devouring Gray by Christine Lynn Herman.

Part fantasy, part horror story, Herman’s debut novel is set in the small town of Four Paths, where superstitious residents live in fear of the Gray, an alternate dimension that contains a literal monster.

You can snag your very own copy of The Devouring Gray when it hits shelves on April 2, 2019.

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My Year in Reading: Cassie-la’s 2018 Wrap Up

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We’re almost halfway through January 2019, and in true Cassie-la fashion I’m just getting around to posting my 2018 wrap up … because this is what happens when you work full time and freelance on the side.

2018 was another dumpster fire of a year — not to be confused with all those other dumpster fires (cough2016and2017cough), but that didn’t dissuade me from reaching my goal of 100 books!

Head below the jump to check out some statistics I pulled from my 2018 book spreadsheet, and head over to Goodreads to see a visual representation of all the books I read last year.

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My Year in Reading: Cassie-la’s December 2018 Wrap Up

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The Dreamers by Karen Thompson Walker (★★★★☆½)

This super original novel — Walker’s sophomore follow up to The Age of Miracles — explores a mysterious illness that quickly infects residents of an allegedly cursed college town in California, trapping the infected in a perpetual state of sleep. With a premise that’s as intriguing as her first novel (if you’re not in the know, it’s set in a world where the earth’s rotation begins to gradually slow down), it’s no surprise that I was immediately hooked. Pick up The Dreamers for the unique story, stay for the beautiful prose.

Truly Devious by Maureen Johnson (★★★★☆½)

True crime enthusiast Stevie is determined to solve the decades-old murder and kidnapping at the prestigious Ellingham Academy boarding school. With a story that alternates between the present day and the events of 1936, when Albert Ellingham’s wife and daughter were kidnapped, Johnson’s new series is a fun-page turner full of a lovable cast of weirdos and several intriguing mysteries to solve. The only downside? The book ends on a major cliffhanger that will leave you wanting so much more.

My Boyfriend is a Bear by Pamela Robin (★★★★☆)

Much like Hot Tub Time Machine, you know exactly what you’re getting with this graphic novel. Starring a cutesy girl named Nora who happens to be dating a bear, My Boyfriend is a Bear is a surprisingly adorable story with even more adorable artwork from artist Cat Farris. A little weird at times (for obvious bear on human reasons), this graphic novel may be a metaphor for prejudices and the way that opposites attract … but also might not be a metaphor at all? ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

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My Year in Reading: Cassie-la’s October 2018 Wrap Up

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The Last Time I Lied by Riley Sager (★★★★☆½)

The suspenseful follow-up to Final Girls tells the story of Emma, another survivor of trauma (Sager’s forte). 15 years after the disappearance of her Camp Nightingale cabin mates, Emma returns to the hoity-toity summer camp to learn what happened to Vivian, Natalie, and Allison all those years ago. Perfect for fans of psychological thrillers, Sager’s latest novel will keep you guessing (and screaming) until the very last page. Adapt this for the big screen, please and thanks.

I Am Not Your Final Girl by Claire C. Holland (★★★★☆)

This debut collection from Claire C. Holland combines two of my favorite things: feminist poetry and fictional final girls. Written in response to the 2016 election and the #MeToo movement (among other unfathomable goings on in the world), Holland’s poems explore the perspective of 40 female horror film survivors throughout the decades. Deeply unapologetic, this debut collection is a fitting tribute to final girls and the society that shapes them.

You by Caroline Kepnes (★★★★★)

Kepnes’ debut thriller is an incredibly disturbing novel about obsession in the social media age, including the unhealthy fixation we have with curating our own online personas. Full disclosure, I should not have enjoyed this dark and deranged novel told in the second person as much as I did. And I especially should not have been rooting for the charming, literary loving stalker/kidnapper/murderer the entire time. But here we are. Insert Sorry Not Sorry joke here.

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