Binding of Bindings #32: Spooky Reads

November 8, 2019December 30, 2019 JenAcideByBibliophileLeave a comment

Come one, come all!

Into the land of the decaying, decrepit and dead.

We’re rounding up our potions, candles, crystals and knives to take a trip into the veil.

So pull up those tattered stalkings, grab a torch and maybe a friend.

Because there’s no turning back.

Just because it’s November, doesn’t mean we have to stop being weird.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~*~

~* Spooky Reads *~

~~~~~~~~~~~~~*~

1. Smoke & Key by Kelsey Sutton

Genre: YA/Fantasy/Romance/Paranormal

It’s dark.

It’s Gothic.

It’s Romantic.

And it’s about dead people.

What more could you ask for in a spooky read?!

Smoke and Key starts with a young woman waking up in a place of darkness. She learns that she is dead and has fallen out of her grave to a place called Under, a place that is neither Heaven nor Hell. Each inhabitant of Under is named by the possession they wake up with – Key, Smoke, Ribbon, Doll, Journal. But the problem is that nobody can remember their past lives, who they are, or how they died. Except Key. As she starts to regain the memories from her life, she begins to realize there is a much bigger reason for why she and the people of Under are stuck.

(See my review here)

2. Survive the Night by Danielle Vega

Genre: YA/Horror/Thriller

Survive the Night is another YA Horror from Danielle Vega, and one that has gone unread on my bookshelf…like so many others…

*cough*

It is about a group of friends who go to a rave called Survive the Night, only to end up being hunted by a deranged killer in the creepy and dark tunnels of the subway. In true Danielle Vega fashion, the reader is promised bloodshed, mind–f**kery and a whole host of wtf did I just read.

I can’t wait.

3. The Hollow series by Jessica Verday

Genre: YA/Romance/Paranormal

The Hollow series has been a favorite of mine since I was a teen, and a set that I plan to read again in the coming weeks. It is a series set in a town called Sleepy Hollow, and you can bet your ghoulish friends that it’s oozing with paranormal activity.

After the mysterious death of her best friend, Abbey is stricken with loss and grief for losing the person closest to her. But when Abbey learns a secret about the friend she thought she knew everything about, she begins to question everything in their past. And the sudden appearance of a strange boy named Caspian has Abbey rattled in more ways than one, especially when she learns the truth about who he is.

From what I can remember of this series, it’s full of romance and swoon–worthy sighs. So get ready to be swept away in the spooky love of this little number!

3. The Wicked Deep by Shea Ernshaw

Genre: YA/Fantasy/Paranormal/Witches

A 2018 favorite of many readers, The Wicked Deep is the perfect witchy story.

The legend goes that three sisters were drowned by the townspeople of Sparrow in the early 1800’s, and each Swan Season three girls are inhabited by one of the sisters who seek their vengeance by drowning one boy each. A witch–hunt ensues, there is possession and mystery, and even a little love. It’s a MUST read for this season, but also a must read in general.

(See my review here)

4. I know You Remember by Jennifer Donaldson

Genre: YA/Mystery/Thriller

I just received this book in the mail from Random House Children’s as part of their Wicked Reads Blogger Campaign! Each blogger had their choice of candies to choose from, and each candy represented a specific book!

Mine was Kit Kat, and it was I Know You Remember!

After three years away from her hometown, Ruthie comes back to the news that her once best friend Zahra is missing. But the Zahra Ruthie knew years ago isn’t the same person. Once a thoughtful, creative and timid girl, others describe Zahra as popular, outgoing and the first at a party. As Ruthie dives deeper into the girl’s life she once knew, secrets start to come up and she realizes she is in deeper than she would have liked.

This one was AMAZING!!!

If you want a spooky thriller that is going to blindside you, read this! It was so incredibly good, I cannot stop ranting about it!

(See my review here)

5. The Cemetery Boys by Heather Brewer

Genre: YA/Fantasy/Paranormal

I just finished reading this gem last week, and it was a great October read! It wasn’t too scary or gory, but it had the perfect amount of sinister and gothy outcast vibes that I am always looking for in a YA.

The Cemetery Boys is about a small town that believes in a curse where creatures called the “winged ones” bring about the “bad times“, and where a group of boys spend their nights partying in a cemetery. When his father forced him to move to this dull and backwards town, Stephen finds friendship with the weird guys who hang out all night. But the leader of this group of boys is hiding something, and Stephen wants to know what.

This book was just as good as I was hoping it would be, and I read through it SO quickly. I highly suggest you try it out if you’re looking for an only semi–scary book to read.

6. Fiendish by Brenna Yovanoff

Genre: YA/Fantasy/Horror/Paranormal

Fiendish is one of those books I countless bookstagrammers/book bloggers/book psychos and been pushing me to read. And I really should…

It’s just sitting on my bookshelf begging to be opened!

It’s about a girl who may or may not be dead that has been trapped in the cellar of a creepy old house for 10 years, in a town where supernatural and spooky magical things happen, with a guy her age that may or may not be a complete jackass?

Look, I obviously haven’t read it. But here, read this:

“What’s wrong with me? I never did anything to anyone.”

Fisher was quiet for a second and when he answered, he sounded strange.

“It’s not your fault,” he said. “They’re just nervous about how your eyes are sewed shut.”

7. Hotel for the Lost by Suzanne young

Genre: YA/Romance/Paranormal

I read this one earlier this year, and it has all the Disney Tower of Terror vibes you could ever ask for!

Now if some of you remember that epic Disney movie for the 90’s, you’ll know the spooky/regal vibes I’m talking about. If not, look it up and watch it!!!

Hotel for the Lost is about a girl named Audrey who arrives at the luxurious Hotel Ruby with her father and brother after breaking down on the side of the road. Thought the family only plans on staying one night, they find it incredibly easy getting caught up in the grandeur and alluring perks of the hotel. As Audrey begins meeting the guests and employees of the Ruby, she begins learning of the haunting past of the hotel, and what it truly means to be a guest there.

This was a pretty good read, and one I had devoured in hours on a Friday night. Though the romance may cause and eye-roll or two, it’s definitely a great read for those of you who want to sleep after reading.

8. Hex Hall by Rachel Hawkins

Genre: YA/Fantasy/Paranormal

I just got this series to read in October, got WAY behind in what I planned on reading due to ARCs, and am now pushing it into my November reads.

Because I’m going out of 2019 staying Spooky AF, and I’m taking you all with me.

Hex Hall is the YA supernatural reform school story for witches, fae and shapeshifters. After Sophie Mercer discovers that she is a witch, and makes a disaster out of a prom-night spell, her warlock father ships her off to Hex Hall in order to “straighten her out”.

It’s basically the typical high school series, with magical elements and romance! Woo hoo!! If you want some spooky fluff, look no further.

9. Maplecroft by Cherie Priest

Genre: Historical Fiction/Horror/Paranormal

This one is for all you Lizzie Borden fans out there!

Who doesn’t love an axe-murdering woman, am I right?!

Maplecroft portrays the events after Lizzie Borden is exonerated for the brutal murders of her parents, when she and her sister take up residence at a mansion by the sea – Maplecroft. In this tale, Lizzie explains that her parents’ souls were “consumed” by malevolent entities. So now, as she cares for her sickly sister, she spends her days ridding the world of these demonic creatures, one swing of her axe at a time.

Lizzie Borden took an axe and gave her mother forty whacks; and when she saw what she had done, she gave her father forty-one….

10. Ten by Gretchen McNeil

Genre: YA/Mystery/Horror/Thriller

Ten is another book I purchased during October, and perfect for you lovers of teen slashers ❤

It’s about a group of teens who go to an exclusive party on Henry Island. Their weekend getaway is promised to be one of drunken debaucheries and luxury, as they’re accustomed to. But when they come across a DVD with a threatening message on it, a storm suddenly cuts off the power and the killing begins.

11. Here There Are Monsters by Amelinda Bérubé

Genre: YA/Horror/Mystery

“The Blair Witch Project meets Imaginary Girls“?

I’m here for it.

The description for this one is vague, which makes me want it even more. Here There Are Monsters is about two sisters, Skye and Deirdre. Skye gets tired of having to look after and save her sister all the time, so she vows to let her handle things on her own. But when the girls move across the country, and Skye excels at making new friends, Deirdre becomes withdrawn and isolated. She begins traveling deep into the woods and creating strange sculptures from branches.

And then, she disappears.

12. How to Hang a Witch by Adriana Mather

Genre: YA/Fantasy/Paranormal/Witches

I have been wanting to read this little beauty for, FOREVER!

I know, it’s shocking that I haven’t read it yet. I’m a monster.

How to Hang a Witch is about a girl named Samantha Mather who moves to Salem, Massachusetts with her stepmother. Sam is the descendant of a man named Cotton Mather, who was involved in the Salem witch trials that claimed the lives of countless women. When a group of girls called The Descendants find out, they make it their mission to make her life a living hell. But when Sam comes into contact with a ghost, she begins to learn about the centuries old curse that affects every descendant of those involved in the trials.

I have heard nothing but amazing things about this book, so I am planning on reading it in the next week!

13. Harry Potter by J.K. Rowling

Genre: YA/Fantasy/Witches

Do I even need to explain this one?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~*~

The goal for the rest of 2019: Stay Spooky ❤

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Binding of Bindings #30: 10 Badass Female Leads…

September 20, 2019 JenAcideByBibliophile25 Comments

Murder, revenge, plotting, espionage, manipulation and sarcasm.

These ladies just don’t give a f**k.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~*~

~* 10 Badass Female Leads…

That Will Kill You in Your Sleep *~

~~~~~~~~~~~~~*~

1. Fortuna Sworn (Book 1) by K.J. Sutton

Genre: Fantasy/Romance

We’re starting this “Badass Bitch” list off with a true nightmare:

Fortuna Sworn.

Fortuna is literally a Nightmare – a creature whose face shifts and transforms in order to accommodate the onlookers tastes, but who can reach into your mind to find your fears, and make you think they are now reality.

Twisted, right?!

Not only is this lady FIERCE and lethal, but she says demented things like this:

“For a terrible moment, I considered snapping my brother’s neck.”

This Adult Fantasy is by the amazing Kelsey Sutton who has written a ton of fantastic YA novels, but this is her first adult Fantasy and it is hot, HOT, HOT! If you like a Fae story that shows off the evil side of those intoxicating creatures, then read this. It has ACOTAR and The Folk of the Air vibes ALL over it!

(See my review here)

2. Alarum (Walking Shadows, Book 1) by Talis Jones

Genre: YA/Dystopian/Sci-fi

Flinch, Vizsla, Kid, Fury.

All one person, and ALL total badassery!

Fury is the epitome of a ruthless, strong, sassy, resilient and dangerous woman. From being sold as a slave into a new world after the collapse of the United States, she is thrust into a simple lifestyle: kill or be killed. This tale tracks her childhood in a slave camp, her time working for a brutal family, and her transition into lawless renegade.

This lady is the shit!

Plus, Alarum will most likely make you cry…so that’s a plus.

(See my review here)

3. Serpent & Dove (Book 1) by Shelby Mahurin

Genre: YA/Fantasy/Romance

No list is complete without a Witch to spice things up, right?!

Allow me to introduce the one and only, both incredible and crude, yet arrogant and hilarious, Louise le Blanc.

Look, a woman that will scream a pub song called “Big Tiddy Liddy” at the top of her lungs is a winner in my book. But throw in some SERIOUS Witch heritage, insane abilities, and murderous tendencies…then I will just turn to jello.

Serpent & Dove is a newly released YA Fantasy about Witches vs Church. Our main character is forced into marrying a guard of the church, even though he is unaware that she is actually a Witch and is VERY good at gutting people.

A Witch marrying a Witch Hunter.

Romance.

(See my review here)

4. Glitter (Book 1) by Aprilynne Pike

Genre: YA/Historical Fantasy/Dystopian

Versailles, ball gowns and royals, high-tech automation and a courtier selling makeup with drugs in it?

Get it, girl!

Glitter doesn’t seem to be a super well-known series, and I am wondering WHY?! It has everything us YA book lovers need! Romance, scandal, an asshole young king and a leading female who just wants to take those bastards down…one jar of rouge at a time!

It’s a Historical Fantasy with a Science Fiction twist and it is SUPREMELY amazing!

(See my review here)

5. 13 Minutes by Sarah Pinborough

Genre: YA/Mystery/Thriller

Drownings, scandals, near decapitations…OH MY!!

13 Minutes is a slinky little YA Contemporary Thriller that will have you mumbling “wtf” while also grinning from ear to ear. I really can’t say who the badass is in this without giving EVERYTHING away, but just know…it’s delightful.

It follows Natasha as she wakes up in the hospital after being washed up on an embankment. Nobody knows how she got there, and worst of all, she can’t remember anything. Natasha links up with her friends and a former friend to find out what really happened, and the truth is…shocking.

But just know this, these girls are t–w–i–s–t–e–d.

(See my review here)

6. With Malice by Eileen Cook

Genre: YA/Contemporary/Thriller/Mystery

Want to be completely blindsided, infuriated AND appreciative of the truly devious acts of women?

You’ve come to the right place.

With Malice is exactly as the title describes: Malicious.

It is another story about a girl waking up in the hospital not remembering what happened to her. Slowly it becomes revealed that she was involved in a car accident, and there was someone else involved.

There are some serious Amanda Knox trial vibes going on here, and involves some cutthroat behavior by a female that I just can’t help but slow-clap for. This book has a twist and an ending that will make you just

(See my review here)

7. The Surface Breaks by Louise O’Neill

Genre: YA/Fantasy/Retelling/Feminism

You know what I love?

A feminist retelling of men being drowned for treating women like they’re nothing.

The Surface Breaks showcases a mermaid named Gaia who starts out as a meek and subservient daughter of the Sea King, but swiftly turns into a truly glorious character hellbent on standing up for herself and her sisters.

It’s a darker version to the original Little Mermaid tale you know, but one that NEEDS to be read!

(See my review here)

8. Wilder Girls by Rory Power

Genre: YA/Mystery/Horror/LGBT

I am obsessed with this book, and even more obsessed with the female characters that grace its pages!

Wilder Girls is a YA Horror/Mystery filled with a collection of girls who are as freakish as they are resilient. These girls will claw at each other for food and kill you on the spot, but their hearts are filled with immense love and loyalty for one another.

This breathtaking and eerie story is about a school on an island that has been quarantined after a Tox infiltrates their walls. The girls are mutated and dying, and it is downright DARK! But oh so good.

(See my review here)

9. Darkness of Light (Book 1) by Stacey Marie Brown

Genre: New Adult/Fantasy/Paranormal/Romance

Looking for another Celaena Sardothien and Rowan Whitethorn to swoon over?

Okay, technically this isn’t like TOG at all, but it’s Fantasy, it’s hot and I just love a female who can fight alongside some fantastical creatures!

Darkness of Light is an Adult Fantasy series filled with demons, fae, goblins and dark dwellers. This series is exciting and soooo romantic, but most importantly, it gives you a female lead who is SO saucy and fierce!

I am planning on reading it again this weekend, so jump on the train with me and let’s all just drool over this series together!

(See my review here)

10. Killing November (Book 1) by Adriana Mather

Genre: YA/Mystery/Thriller/Contemporary

Killing November is not high on my list of favorite books…at all, but it IS stuffed full and exploding with various characters who are all passionate about one thing:

Killing. ❤

Academy Absconditi is a school for assassins and spies in training. Classes range from poisons, knife throwing and plain old manipulation. So in this case, there is a whole host of badass females who will kill you in your sleep…literally.

(See my review here)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~*~

Stay Witchy ❤

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Binding of Bindings #17: April Book Wrap-up

May 3, 2019 JenAcideByBibliophile6 Comments

Another month, gone.

Deceased.

Extinct.

Dried up.

Blown away into a wind of little, to no, s**ts given.

It was fun while it lasted, but…

We’re

~~~~~~~~~~~~~*~

~* April Book Wrap-Up *~

~~~~~~~~~~~~~*~

1. White Rose by Kip Wilson

I started this month out in typical fashion…

…with a gut-punch to the heart.

White Rose is a YA Historical Fiction based on the inspiring true story of Sophie Scholl, who became part of an anti-Nazi resistance group. The group was formed in June of 1942 by a group of University of Munich students who protested the Nazi regime and Hitler, by drafting and distributing political resistance leaflets across Germany.

It is a story of bravery and conviction.

But one of the most beautiful aspects of this story is that it is written entirely in poetry.

It is heartbreaking and daunting, but it will make your heart soar and make you feel happy to know people like this exist in the world.

A REALIZATION

…

Our deaths
Will mean
Something.

The world will react,
And someday
Someone
Will punish
The people
Who are doing
These terrible things.

The ribbon widens,
Flooding
My mind
With a river of hope.

(See my review here)

2. Stars in the Winter Sky by Michael Duda

Michael Duda is one of my FAVORITE authors, and thank the cauldron, he is FINALLY writing a full-length book.

Michael is known for his dark, eerie and somewhat twisted short stories. They each shine a light on human nature, the good and the bad. But his latest short story, Stars in the Winter Sky, comes with a lighter tone.

It is about two women who venture into the woods in search of the Winter Revelers, a group of people that would come once a year to celebrate the Snowfall. But one year, only two people come back, and the others were lost forever.

Just like every Michael Duda’s story, Stars in the Winter Sky will make you think. This tale is beautiful and breathtaking, and definitely worth a read.

(See my review here)

3. Killing November (Book 1) by Adriana Mather

This…is where my April went from a fast-paced roller coaster…

to an aimless stumble in the dark.

Killing November wasn’t horrible for me, but it definitely let me down. I had VERY high hopes for this story, I even bought the hardcover on release day (even though I received a copy from Netgalley) because I knew it was a book I was SURE to love.

The story follows November as she arrives at Academy Absconditi, a place for students to train to be assassins and spies. Classes range from Knife Throwing, Poisons and the Art of Deception. But November has no idea why she is at this school, why her father would send her to such a place where every move and conversation is calculated and part of a game. So when dead bodies start turning up around the school, November is forced to learn more about her past and who she really is.

My issue with this story was the main character. She acted like a deer in headlights for 80% of the story, but during a class she would suddenly turn arrogant and pompous. It was such a confusing thing to have her go from timid to annoyingly confident, and back and forth. The romance had a strange pacing, and the entire story was sort of dull.

It was SO hard to get through this book, and it’s definitely the cause of why I didn’t get to read as many books this month as I hoped. Though I am in the minority on my opinion for Killing November, I’m sticking to my guns and my rating.

I mean honestly, 3 stars was generous.

(See my review here)

4. Smoke and Key by Kelsey Sutton

SMOKE AND KEY!!!!!!!!!!

It’s dark.

It’s Gothic.

It’s Romantic.

And it’s about dead people.

What more could you ask for?!?

It starts with a young woman waking up in a place of darkness. She learns that she is dead and has fallen out of her grave to a place called Under, a place that is neither Heaven nor Hell. Each inhabitant of Under is named by the possession they wake up with – Key, Smoke, Ribbon, Doll, Journal. But the problem is that nobody can remember their past lives, who they are, or how they died. Except Key. As she starts to regain the memories from her life, she begins to realize there is a much bigger reason for why she and the people of Under are stuck.

Smoke and Key is mysterious, creepy, sad, uplifting, depressing and just downright EVERYTHING! I am STILL so crushed that I can’t dive into this story to wear the corsets and creep around in Under. I am SO in love with this book.

Kelsey Sutton is life.

(See my review here)

5. Zombie Dog ( Book 3) by Doug Goodman

My last read of April, and it was a brilliant one!

This is the third book in the Zombie Dog series by Doug Goodman, and BY FAR, my favorite one yet.

The Zombie Dog series follows Angie Graves, who trained Cadaver Dogs to work with the police in searches. But when giant wasps are discovered to be attaching themselves to the heads of corpses, creating zombies, Angie transitions her field to train her dog Murder to be a zombie tracker. This installment follows Angie and Murder as they work in Houston, Ground Zero for the Zombies outbreak.

Zombie Dog is dark, gritty and twisted. I was sweating, I was cringing and I most definitely was flopping around in my chair wishing the horrors would JUST END!

But naturally, above all else, I was obsessed.

I am continually blown away by this author. The amount of detail and passion he puts into his writing is unbelievable. His knowledge screams through the pages, and easily immerses the reader in a world that feels all too real.

It was easy throwing five stars at this book.

(See my review here)

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April may not have been my BEST month ever in terms of numbers, but it was filled with almost all winners!

But April is gone, and May is bringing new stories!

I’m stuffed to the broom with exciting reads for May, and my current read is AMAZING!

Until next time my lovelies, stay witchy! ❤

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Book Review: Killing November (Book 1) by Adriana Mather

April 24, 2019 JenAcideByBibliophile10 Comments

Disclaimer: This book was sent to me by the publisher, Random House Children’s, via NetGalley for an honest review.

Genre: YA/Mystery/Thriller

Plot: It’s a school completely off the grid, hidden by dense forest and surrounded by traps. There’s no electricity, no internet, and an eye-for-an-eye punishment system. Classes include everything from Knife-Throwing and Poisons to the Art of Deception and Historical Analysis. And all of the students are children of the world’s most elite strategists—training to become assassins, counselors, spies, and master impersonators. Into this world walks November Adley, who quickly discovers that friends are few in a school where personal revelations are discouraged and competition is everything. When another student is murdered, all eyes turn to November, who must figure out exactly how she fits into the school’s bizarre strategy games before she is found guilty of the crime…or becomes the killer’s next victim.

Opinion:

You know those books you come across that sound AMAZING, like they will be an EXACT fit for you, and are already praised and LOVED by EVERYONE?

And then you start reading it, all giddy and excited for what’s to come…

…but then you get about 60 pages in and are just kind of like…

Yeah.

…

Killing November.

November assumed she had a normal upbringing, that was until she arrived at Academy Absconditi. Here, the students aren’t animated with conversation, worried about calculus tests and pining over who will ask them to homecoming. Their movements are deliberate, and they are masters at mind games and killing. So why would November’s father leave her in a place like this? Where the teachers enact an “eye for an eye” punishment system, family secrets are to be kept hidden for one’s safety and students keep turning up dead? Surrounded by people who assume she is weaving a clever game of innocence and daftness, November is thrust into a world she can barely navigate, all the while trying to learn the secrets of her family and who she is.

Killing November is a YA Mystery dripping in deceit, manipulation, darkness and brutality.

I witnessed all these themes and more while reading.

But in the end, all I was REALLY left feeling,

was indifference.

It started out great. November describes being named after a maple tree, how her father describes her as “too trusting”, and having awakened in dungeon-like room with little idea how she arrived there. Who wouldn’t be intrigued? As I started reading more, I learned that November is just like most of us readers – not entirely proficient in the art of deceiving and killing people via poisons, a bow and arrow or a set of freshly sharpened knives.

Woe is us for our normalcy.

She knows nothing of Strategia – an ancient secret society of spies and assassins, has barely heard a whisper about the Families of the Strategia who are responsible for pulling the strings behind MAJOR historical events throughout history, and has no idea how she fits into any of it. So as the story started picking up and November was thrust into her new lessons, I started noticing a constant theme of wishy-washiness with this character.

For most of the story, November is running around like a confused goose saying and doing the wrong things. I don’t blame the poor girl either, this school sounds like a nuthouse. But when November is given a task in lessons to steal a scarf off another player in the dark, or throw knives at targets…she becomes arrogant and cocky and just magically knows what she is doing.

Look, I love a confident character who has witty comments and a snarky attitude.

I know that she had a little training in these areas as a child.

But when the main character acts like a deer in headlights for 80% of the book, and has a few random and brief moments of god-awful one-liners boasting her perfection, it’s a turn-off. After the first instance of this, and the multiple continuances of her silly demeanor and confusing personality after, I became increasingly checked out.

I almost DNF’d this book about 15 times, but kept at it because so many other readers were telling me how much they loved it. So I forced myself to keep reading…and reading…and…reading. In the end, they were right in some cases. It DID get better. But it wasn’t amazing and unforgettable.

It was just okay.

I really wish I could have fell in love with this story more, because the suspense was there. The mystery and grittiness were shouting through the pages, but I just couldn’t connect with November or any of the other characters for that matter. The romance element was lacking in that it felt shoved together rather than formed naturally, and the friendship between Layla and November felt stiff. I just wasn’t invested in this read at all, and for that I am truly dismayed.