Book Review: Dalton Highway by Freddie Åhlin

September 1, 2020September 1, 2020 JenAcideByBibliophileLeave a comment

Disclaimer: This book was sent to me by the author, Freddie Åhlin, for an honest review.

Genre: Adult/Psychological Thriller/Horror

Plot: Forty-five-year-old truck driver Tom Richards is on the verge of losing everything. To save his marriage, and find a way out of crippling debt, he takes on the dangerous job of trucking across Dalton Highway, a 414-mile (666 km) long isolated passage through the Alaskan wilderness. By his side is his beloved five-year-old German Shepherd, Presley. It doesn’t take long before Tom realizes something isn’t right out on the road. First, he discovers a bulletin board filled with missing person posters, and later, he meets an elderly man who warns him about the powers of darkness. But desperate for the money, he refuses to turn back. When a storm erupts, Tom loses control of the truck and crashes in the middle of nowhere. Presley escapes into the deep forest, and Tom is forced to follow, only to discover the place is haunted by something more sinister than he could ever imagine. In a tense struggle against the clock and the wild nature of Alaska, Tom is forced to find his dog and a way out, before whatever is out there finds them.

Opinion:

“The fiery tongue licked after them.

The lights on the road were now in front of them.

Tom’s body collapsed, and all sounds faded to darkness.

The world silenced.”

“You’re going to die, Trucker.”

Tom Richards is hard-pressed for money and about to lose everything he holds dear. His wife is fed up and ready to leave him, and their money woes aren’t the only reason for the strain on their marriage. But Tom hopes that his job across the Dalton Highway will bring back enough money to invest in their happiness…so long as he makes it back alive. 414 miles is nothing for a trucker, but this highway that borders the vast and dangerous wilderness of Alaska can be daunting for any traveler. While Tom and his German Shepherd Presley start their journey, they quickly discover the abundance of disappearances that surrounds this vast and haunting area. But when they crash in the woods, they realize something else might be out there besides your standard predator.

Something is coming for them…

…and it might not be what it seems.

“He slapped away the flies. They fell to the ground and made the piles of discarded bones shake with false hope.”

Dalton Highway was a quick read and a great debut novel by author Freddie Åhlin. It’s a chaotic tale of a man and his dog trying to escape the horrors and predators of the Alaskan wilderness. One where reality quickly begins to morph into a conflicting state of paranoia and horror, causing the reader to question fact from fiction even after the story fades to black.

What the F just happened?

This psychological thriller is perfectly categorized, in that my brain is positively reeling from the cluster of wild and disorienting events I found myself engulfed in. If there’s one thing I love in any type of mystery/thriller, it’s a completely unassuming and totally unreliable narrator. These mysterious characters are always presented in a way that feels so genuine, so authentic. And by the time things start to shift around them, the reader is drowned in the slight thought of “is this character crazy…or did we just step into the Twilight Zone?”.

Tom Richards is your typical driven and hardworking middle-aged man who only wants to provide for his family. Throughout the story we are given more detail and looks into his personality, home life and even a bit of his childhood. As pieces start to unfold about who he is and his experiences, the reader can easily find themselves gravitating towards him. In most instances, Tom seems to be totally naive and easily worked up about missing persons posters or his slight isolation within just an hour of driving. He comes across as a good guy, but one that is easily rattled and who has an overactive imagination. I quickly found myself deciding that Tom was a bit of a drama queen. That he was reading far too into every tiny instance and trying to make little details into epic signs of impending doom.

Well…color me shocked when I reached the end.

But EVEN with this ending, I am still wondering what the actual truth is! WHO IS TOM?! How much of this was real? Was it all real?

Did this REALLY happen?

Or is this another one of those ‘Lost‘ situations?

Because the reader never really finds out. Even after you read that last sentence and close the book, you are still caught between an even line of plausible reality and solid fiction. The line doesn’t even blur. It is cut right down the middle, and this book rests smack dab in the middle. And though I love not knowing the truth of what really happened, I still find myself wishing I had gotten more than just one flashback into Tom’s childhood and a bigger sense of what that entire situation entailed. Because I LOVED it. But of course, every time I find myself wishing for more information on this book, I find myself preferring to be left in the dark.

In the end, all I can really express is what a feverish and chaotic blend of reality and psychosis this story is. It has an unhinging sense of time that is practically nonexistent, and characters that may not even be real.

To be honest, this book might not even be real.

I really can’t be sure.

But what I do know?

Dalton Highway is a fever dream.

Book Review: The Memories We Bury by H.A. Leuschel

April 21, 2020 JenAcideByBibliophile2 Comments

Disclaimer: This book was sent to me by the author, H.A. Leuschel, for an honest review.

Genre: Fiction/Psychology/Suspense

Plot: An emotionally charged and captivating novel about the complexities of female friendship and motherhood.

Lizzie Thomson has landed her first job as a music teacher, and after a whirlwind romance with Markus, the newlywed couple move into a beautiful new home in the outskirts of Edinburgh. Lizzie quickly befriends their neighbour Morag, an elderly, resourceful yet lonely widow, who’s own children rarely visit her. Everything seems perfect in Lizzie’s life until she finds out she is pregnant and her relationship with both Morag and Markus change beyond her control.

Can Lizzie really trust Morag and why is Markus keeping secrets from her?

In ‘The Memories We Bury’ the author explores the dangerous bonds we can create with strangers and how past memories can cast long shadows over the present.

Opinion:

“Why is it I seem to remember events that hurt me better than experiences id rather hold on to because they make me happy?”

The Memories We Bury is the first full novel by Helene Leuschel, but definitely not her first dive into psychological fiction. After reading her last collection of short stories, Manipulated Lives, I became obsessed with her ability to showcase the countless ways of manipulation that a person can find themselves victim to, or wield. Whether the manipulation is in a form of an abusive partner, a con man/woman, or a friend or family member being able to coerce their loved one into doing what they want, this author delivers a realistic and frighteningly detailed portrayal of such scenarios.

In this story, a young mother struggles to navigate parenthood with a reluctant and mostly absent husband, but finds friendship and guidance in her elderly neighbor. Together the two form a fast bond where the young mother, Lizzie, is able to find a mother figure in her neighbor, and where the neighbor, Morag, is able to feel of sense of purpose as a stand-in mother and grandmother. But as the two become closer and their lives begin to intertwine, the complexities surrounding motherhood and their pasts lead the women to a place that will be almost impossible to come back from.

What I love about H.A. Leuschel is her dedication to the development of her characters. They have distinct personalities that gives each of them a soft uniqueness, but are given a detailed background of family dynamics, trauma and experiences that adds to the overall framework of who they become. None of them are perfect, and they are all surely flawed in many ways, which makes them feel as genuine and raw as both you and I.

Lizzie is one of two women that this story focuses on. She is a young woman in her late 20’s who has just married a man who is walking confidence and charisma. Lizzie however, is an introvert and prefers to lose herself in the keys of a piano. They are a mismatched pair, but upon being introduced to them they seem to compliment each other well and bring a balance to their relationship. But as the story goes on, we quickly learn that her husband, Markus, is not Mr. Perfect. He is the typical arrogant and archaic type of salesman who talks down to his wife through quips and jokes, expects her to sit at home and run their household, and who always has a phone glued to his ear. Upon marrying, they discuss putting children off until they have had time to enjoy each other. But then, Lizzie gets pregnant.

Markus is reluctant to become a father and not ecstatic about the news, which leaves Lizzie to go through her pregnancy mostly alone. But with Markus working long hours or away on business trips, Lizzie begins to strike up a quick friendship with her sweet elderly neighbor, Morag.

“‘There are no half measures with you, Morag’ I heard Pete’s voice in my head. ‘You switch from confidence to paranoia in a heartbeat.’”

Morag is a fun lady. Very opinionated, very knowledgeable, and VERY matter-of-fact. She is always on the go and more than happy to spend time with her neighbor, as her children very rarely visit and her husband had passed. Her career was working as a nurse with premature babies, where she developed her love for children and for helping new mothers and fathers experience the joys of new life. It is through her hospital work that she eventually met her late husband Peter, and started a family of her own. But though Morag seems to be a very caring and heartfelt woman, hints of her tumultuous relationships with her children are hinted throughout the story.

It is after the birth of Lizzie’s son that things start to develop and change between Lizzie, Morag and Markus. As the story unfolds and describes the days and months after the birth of Lizzie’s son Jamie, the reader is also given insight into the childhood of Lizzie growing up with a cold and rarely comforting mother. It is there that Lizzie wishes for a mother figure, someone who will love her unconditionally and be there as a support system for her. But her need for someone to fill this role is ultimately where things begin to get rocky between Lizzie and Morag.

There is a lot of character and background building that takes up most of this book. The first half really dives into who Lizzie and Morag are. Their wants, desires, pasts, fears and qualities. It was a little slow for my liking in this first half, but everything blended together nicely to set up the REAL plot of this story. Once things really started to roll about halfway through, I was hooked. My mind was reeling about what might happen, where I thought the story would go or how the characters might end up. It was the perfect mix of suspenseful twists that didn’t feel fabricated or overly fictitious. The turmoil felt authentic, the forms of manipulation were realistic, and the outcome was shocking.

Overall, The Memories We Bury was another enjoyable story of dark human behavior. I am so excited to see what else this author comes up with, and what other types of personalities will grace the pages of her next stories.

Binding of Bindings · Wrap-Up

Binding of Bindings #42: March 2020 Book Wrap-up

April 13, 2020April 12, 2020 JenAcideByBibliophile12 Comments

I may be slightly behind in posting my March Book Wrap-up…

…but come on. It’s practically the apocalypse around here.

So.

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

~* March 2020 Book Wrap-Up *~

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1. Frozen Beauty by Lex Hillyer

Genre: YA/Contemporary/Mystery

Definitely not my most favorite read of March, but also not the worst.

Frozen Beauty had all the promise in the world to be a dreary and eerie, femi-powered contemporary mystery laced in sorrow and sadness. But instead it was just a bit…

It centers on the Malloy sisters and the strange and sudden death of the eldest, who is found half-naked and frozen to death. The sisters thought they knew everything about one another, but as they begin digging into what really happened… the secrets start to unravel.

I wanted to love this, especially because of that cover art, but I just didn’t care for it much. I was able to get through it quickly and easily, but the characters just felt so BLAH. The ending was a bit predictable, and there was some weird/awkward insta-love that happened that I don’t even need to get into.

(See my review here)

2. All Your Twisted Secrets by Diana Urban

Genre: YA/Mystery/Thriller

THIS BOOK!

W–O–W!

All Your Twisted Secrets is a YA blend of The Breakfast Club and Saw. Six teens are invited to a scholarship dinner in a banquet room, where they are locked inside. On the table are three items: a syringe filled with a liquid, a bomb with a countdown clock, and a note indicating that they must pick a person to kill…or they all die.

Yeah. I know.

But just when I thought I had this little beauty figured out –

Oh yeah. Epic.

(See my review here)

3. All the Pretty Things by Emily Arsenault

Genre: YA/Mystery/Thriller

….

…there’s just not a lot to say here.

All the Pretty Things STARTED as a mystery set at an amusement park where an employee/well-known kid in town dies. It had a little bit of the Adventureland vibes that I was hoping for, but what it turned into was just…

…it’s not good.

If you like reading books where your face is scrunched up the whole time like this:

Then yeah, be my guest. And enjoy that father.

He’s a real gem.

(See my review here)

4. Sparrow by Mary Cecilia Jackson

Genre: YA/Sci-Fi/Feminism

Beautiful.

Sorrowful.

Stunning.

Sparrow is a YA twist on Black Swan that will surely cause tears to flow down your precious cheeks. It is about a ballerina who finds herself in an abusive relationship, and and shows the what lays broken on the ground after things go too far.

Books on abusive and manipulative behavior are so important and I am a big advocate for them, especially when they showcase different forms of abuse. But what makes this story truly important, is the fact that it doesn’t just show our main characters POV and how she is affected. It sheds light on the emotional toll it takes on her family, friends and those close to her.

It is beautiful, and though there were some parts that I found unnecessary to the story, it is a book worth reading.

(See my review here)

5. Girls with Sharp Sticks (Book 1) by Suzanne Young

Genre: YA/Sci-Fi/Feminism

I have been ranting about this AMAZING book for a year!

Every chance I get I am recommending it to my bookstagram girlfriends and begging them to read it! And since the sequel to it released in March, I decided to reread it to get a refresher before starting my ARC! Girls with Sharp Sticks is a YA Feminist tale with a twist that will blow your mind, while simultaneously making your heart rip itself apart because your feelings will be feeling FEELINGS.

It’s about a group of girls who attend Innovations Academy. Here they are bred to be obedient, to listen to the male figures in their life (because they know best) and to stay as beautiful as possible. If the girls misbehave, they are redirected and given therapy immediately, until they have been…realigned.

The story is about the girls waking up from their fog, and realizing that the place they are in does not have their best interests at heart.

(See my review here)

6. Girls with Razor Hearts (Girls with Sharp Sticks, Book 1) by Suzanne Young

Genre: YA/Sci-Fi/Feminism

I had SUCH high hopes for the second book to Girls with Sharp Sticks, and I devoured Girls with Razor Hearts in such a short time. But it wasn’t because it was amazing and held my attention to the point that I couldn’t eat or sleep without knowing what would happen.

No…it was more like I kept reading in the hopes that SOMETHING would happen. But nothing really did. It was just a bit of a blah read next to the first book where the author focused way too much on shoving toxic patriarchy down my throat. This sequel just felt like preaching. It felt forced and didn’t have the same flow and heart behind it’s message as it did before.

The story just lost its way a bit here, and I am hoping that it will come back around in the next book. This seemed more like a “buffer book” or a stepping stone to set up for the next installment, so fingers crossed that it improves!

(See my review here)

7. Thorn (Dauntless Path, Book 1) by Intisar Khanani

Genre: YA/Fantasy/Retelling – The Goose Girl

THORN!

Ah, what a GEM of a retelling!

I know I’m not the only one that has been overjoyed with these countless fairy tale retellings coming out, so when I saw Thorn I knew I had to have it. And after reading Bloodleaf last year and not liking it, I was hoping that this Goose Girl retelling would be better.

And ohhhhhh child, it SO was!

You know the story: A Princess is married off to a Prince in another kingdom, and upon traveling there, her handmaid steals her body and poses as her, which forces the real Princess into a new life as a goose girl.

In this rendition, the same happens and so much more! The story keeps the atmospheric old-timey feel to it and spins in a layer of eeriness that perfectly blends with the poetic nature of the tale. It was a fantastic read and one I was fairly surprised by, because though I was hoping this would be a win, I had my doubts.

But here I am, DYING for the next book!

(See my review here)

8. House of Earth and Blood (Crescent City, Book 1) by Sarah J. Maas

Genre: New Adult/Fantasy/Romance

Only 60 pages in and SJM had me, and everyone else, like

And then we get a little farther and it’s a whole lot of

A ton of

And then back to

Beyond. Epic.

9. The Places I’ve Cried in Public by Holly Bourne

Genre: YA/Contemporary

As I said above, a book that focuses on the several other types of abuse and manipulation that go on, are stories that need to be read.

The Places I’ve Cried in Public is in the style of Thirteen Reasons Why where a girl recounts the pivotal moments that lead to the end of her relationship with her boyfriend. They are all moments that she has cried, either from joy, despair, or confusion. But each place, and each moment is a clue into how they broke up and what happened between them.

This story was like a punch in the gut for me, because so many aspects of it were familiar or sparked a memory. For those of us who have experienced relationships like this, and for those who haven’t, the importance and reminder to look for signs of hurtful and manipulative behavior needs to be shown. This book does just that.

Every teenager needs to read this.

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

Stay Witchy ❤

Binding of Bindings · Book Promo · Upcoming Releases

Binding of Bindings #43: My Top 5 Anticipated April 2020 Book Releases

March 20, 2020March 20, 2020 JenAcideByBibliophile13 Comments

getting to you?

Don’t fret, my child.

April has releases that’ll keep those precious jeans high and tight.

But no…it’s not a video game.

Books, my friends. Books.

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~* My Top 5 Anticipated April 2020 Book Releases *~

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1. Chosen Ones (Chosen Ones, Book 1) by Veronica Roth

Release Date: April 7, 2020

Genre: Fantasy/Sci-fi

A thrilling new fantasy by Veronica Roth (author of Divergent), Chosen Ones is about five young people who had been tasked with destroying the “dark one” ten years ago. They completed their mission and went on to live mostly normal lives. But then on the day they were to celebrate their victory from all those years ago, one of the five has a premonition that darkness is coming back.

My only hope is that there will be a character like Klaus from Umbrella Academy. Because he is positively everything.

2. The Lucky Ones by Liz Lawson

Release Date: April 7, 2020

Genre: YA/Contemporary

OF COURSE I’m going to include a book that will most likely have me flooding my apartment with tears.

Like, who do you think I am??

The Luck y Ones is the story of two teens lives that come together after living through the same horrific experience.

Eleven months ago, May’s twin brother was shot and killed at their school during a shooting where she was the only one to walk out of the band room alive. Unable to cope with the loss and the trauma of that day, she struggles to move on.

Zach, whose mom defended the shooter, has lost all of his friends except for one. Everyone quickly cut him off after his mother voiced her opinions, and now Zach is a social pariah. But as much as Zach wants to disappear, his best friend keeps him from losing it completely.

Then one night, May and Zach meet and they learn how to survive their past together.

3. Deeplight by Frances Hardinge

Release Date: April 14, 2020

Genre: YA/Middle Grade/Fantasy

I LOVE Frances Hardinge’s brain!

This lady comes up with some of the COOLEST book premises I have ever heard, and I don’t even care if they are middle grade ones…like this.

Deeplight is a re-release (originally came out in October 2019) but I want to read it just as much! It’s set in a fantastical world called Myriad, a place once terrorized by powerful gods that come from the depths of the ocean, until one day they vanished. Since then, the remains of these gods are traded and highly sought after. For Hark and Jelt, scavenging for “godware” is their life, and they soon set out on an expedition that will change their lives forever.

4. The Memories We Bury by H.A. Leuschel

Release Date: April 17, 2020

Genre: Fiction

I had mentioned this book in my last Bindings post as a newly gifted ARC, so naturally I am going to mention it again as it comes out in April!

The Memories We Bury is about a bond that forms between a new mother and her elderly neighbor. It highlights the motherly habits and traits that both Lizzie and her neighbor Morag have learned through personal experiences, but it also dives into how that relationship and the relationship between Lizzie and her husband changes.

That’s basically all I know about this book. But knowing this author, I know it’s going to be an emotional doozy wrought with raw human nature that isn’t always pretty. I’m expecting some sinister and twisted stuff!

5. A Breath Too Late by Rocky Callen

Release Date: April 28, 2020

Genre: YA/Contemporary

This is currently available to request on both Netgalley and Edelweiss+…though for some reason my requests are still pending…

A Breath Too Late is about seventeen-year-old Lizzie who dies by suicide, but is still able to linger in her home and around her friends observing and watching what she has left behind. She is not able to communicate with anyone, or interfere with the living in any way. Instead, she must experience the ramifications of her choice.

I have read the reviews of this on Goodreads, and man oh man…it’s definitely going to be a heart smasher. But you know me, I’m ready AF.

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

Stay Witchy ❤

Binding of Bindings · Book Promo · Book Wrap-up

Binding of Bindings #41: February 2020 Book Wrap-up

February 28, 2020February 28, 2020 JenAcideByBibliophile4 Comments

Do…do you hear that?

Someone’s knocking…

And its name is MARCH!

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~* February 2020 Book Wrap-Up *~

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1. How I Live Now by Meg Rosoff

Genre: YA/Dystopia/Romance

“I was dying, of course, but then we all are. Every day, in perfect increments.”

“Staying alive was what we did to pass the time.”

This book…Ugh!

I love it.

I had first found out about this book after watching the movie (2013) and for some reason didn’t realize it was a book. I have watched the movie COUNTLESS times, so I knew it was about time I actually sat down and read the original tale.

How I Live Now is a story of how five cousins live after the world falls into war and they are forced to fend for themselves. It is told by our main character, Daisy, a girl from New York that is shipped out to stay with her cousins in the countryside of England. What starts out as days of ultimate freedom and zero adult supervision where the teens are free to do what they want, quickly changes when they are separated and forced into different camps for their protection.

It’s a story about war, about fighting to get back to those you call family, and it’s also about a forbidden love that blooms between Daisy and her cousin Edmond.

Yeah, I know how it sounds. Just trust me, you need to read it.

(See my review here)

2. A Curse So Dark and Lonely (Cursebreakers, Book 1) by Brigid Kemmerer

Genre: YA/Fantasy/Retelling

I had heard SO much about A Curse So Dark and Lonely all over bookstagram and through other bloggers, and I had a copy, but I had just never gotten around to reading it!

So in anticipation for the release of book 2, my good friend Shannon at Reads & Reels (Bookstagram: @shanannigans_of_readsandreels) and I did a buddy read! And let me tell you, we DEVOURED it!

It’s a Beauty and the Beast retelling set in modern times about a prince in a land called Emberfall who has been cursed to repeat the autumn of his eighteenth year over and over and OVER until he can get a sweet little lass to fall in love with him. Enter: Harper. Our feisty little heroine is taken to Emberfall, against her will of course, and so ensues a tale of princely wooing and a REALLY smoldery/attractive guard named Grey.

3. A Heart So Fierce and Broken (Cursebreakers, Book 2) by Brigid Kemmerer

Genre: YA/Fantasy/Retelling

So naturally, as soon as we finished ACSDAL, we annihilated A Heart So Fierce and Broken!

In this installment, our poor baby Grey is gone from the palace, his googly eyes with Harper is ceased, and he is basically hiding. Why, you may ask? I’m not telling you! READ ACSDAL!

But anyways, though I wasn’t AS in love with this as I was book 2, it was still a great book. I loved that it followed Grey instead of Harper this time, but I was also upset that Harper’s character was kinda thrown off to the side. Like hello, I liked that broad.

But it’s fine, cause Grey is life and I am all about him!!

4. Red Hood by Elana K. Arnold

Genre: YA/Fantasy/Retelling

This is NOT your typical Little Red Riding Hood retelling.

It’s uncomfortable, gritty and gives a painfully realistic look into how a lot of women are treated, viewed and labeled.

Red Hood is one of the most raw retellings I have come across. It’s unhinging how forceful it pushes your comfort zone into submission and forces you to eradicate those tainted ideas instilled in us of how a female should act at. It’s a story of female empowerment, sisterhood, and loving the body that you call home.

And also about boys/men who turn into wolves when they want to harm a woman.

And periods.

(See my review here)

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

Genre: Adult/Fantasy/Paranormal

If you guys have been with me for a few years, you know I just love my girl Kelsey Sutton! She’s an indie author who primarily writes YA with SUPER wild and creative topics like Gardenia: a girl who can see “countdown clocks” above everyone’s head that shows when they will die or Smoke and Key: set in a place called “Under” that is neither Heaven nor Hell, and is beneath one’s grave where souls wander and are named after the possession they carry into death, like Smoke or Key.

Well Fortuna Sworn is her FIRST Adult Fantasy series, under the pseudonym K.J. Sutton. I first read this last year after Kelsey sent me a copy (I just about DIED I fangirled so hard) and let me tell you, it was Uh–Mazing.

Check it:

Fortuna Sworn is one of the Fallen – supernatural creatures descended from angels. But she is also one of the last of her kind, Nightmare’s – a creature of intoxicating beauty whose face shifts and transforms to accommodate the onlooker’s tastes. A creature that can reach into your mind with a gentle caress, find the fears that lay delicately in the folds of your thoughts, and turn them into a horrifying reality.

But when Fortuna is captured by two goblins who intend to sell her to the highest bidder, she is freed by a strange faerie that offers her a deal she can’t refuse. He knows where her brother is, who disappeared two years prior, and he can take her to where he is being held if she agrees to just one thing: to be his mate.

It’s loaded with dark faeries, twisted games, manipulation, and guys…it is HOT!

(See my review here)

6. Restless Slumber (Fortuna Sworn, Book 2) by K.J. Sutton

Genre: Adult/Fantasy/Paranormal

OH.MY.SHIT.

This series and this author are going to KILL ME!!!!!!!

If you want your heart ripped out of your chest, read this. If you like having your brain constantly messed with and want to feel completely unsure of who you’re rooting for, read this. If YOU, like staring off into space for 45 minutes after reading a book….READ THIS!

I…I have no words.

Kelsey Sutton is a beautiful monster.

(See my review here)

7. Asking For It by Louise O’Neill

Genre: YA/Contemporary/Feminism

I have wanted this book for SO long guys. SO LONG!

You know I can’t help myself when it comes to books that will make me crumble, but I especially can’t help myself when said books are feminist fiction. It’s like a nicely aged bottle of heroin, I just want it and I want it now.

Asking For It is about a girl named Emma O’Donovan who wakes up on her porch after a party with little memory of the night before, or how she got home. After messaging the boys she recalled being with, and getting no reply in return, Emma soon finds out there explicit pictures and videos of her online from the night before.

Hoping that everything will go away and not wanting it to become an issue, Emma claims that she was in on it all and the boys are innocent. But as time goes on, Emma’s feelings on the night changes, and everyone has an opinion on what happened.

*Sigh*…this one hit the feels.

(My review will be up tomorrow – 2/29)

8. One Foot in the Grave (The Mortician’s Daughter, Book 1) by C.C. Hunter

Genre: YA/Fantasy/Paranormal-Ghosts

I’m sure most of you, like me, had read the Shadow Falls series by C.C. Hunter and loved it. A camp for supernatural teens with murder and romance? Perfection!

So when I saw that she had released another YA Fantasy/Paranormal series about the daughter of a MORTICIAN *happy squeal* I just knew I had to read it! One Foot in the Grave was about how ghosts follow Riley Smith’s father home from the morgue in search of her, asking for help.

And going into it, I totally expected the mushy forbidden romance and the dramatic teenage angst riddled banter between characters. I was ready for a hot ghost boy, a girl with some home issues and a little murder/mystery to spice up my week.

But UGH! I’m surprised my eyes don’t have a permanent twitch to them due to the constant eye-rolls and half-lidded cringes that were racking through my body while reading.

Definitely targeted for the pre-teen rather than the young adult.

9. The One Memory of Flora Banks by Emily Barr

Genre: YA/Contemporary

So I am currently demolishing The One Memory of Flora Banks and it is SO good, guys!!

Flora Banks developed anterograde amnesia when she was 10 after having a tumor removed from her brain. She can remember everything up to the surgery, but now at 17, she has trouble retaining any information/people/places. She relies on her best friend Riley who she knew before her surgery, and writes messages on her arms and leaves post-it notes everywhere of things she needs to remember.

But one night she kisses Drake, her best friend’s boyfriend, and she can remember it.

I am fully expecting this to end in a really sad and heartbreaking way, because I’m less than 100 pages in and I am already wanting to snatch Flora up and give her a hug! The author completely captures the confusion of Flora’s situation and the struggle to lead a normal life.

But I suspect foul play from everyone! I swear, if someone hurts her, I am tearing the world apart.

(Keep a look out for my review)

10. Bone Crier’s Moon (Bone Grace, Book 1) by Kathryn Purdie

Release Date: March 3, 2020

Genre: YA/Fantasy

I am also currently in the middle of Bone Crier’s Moon which releases March 3rd, and it is amazing so far!

Here’s the scoop if you didn’t see my last Bindings post: There’s this group/family of women called Leurress who are tasked with escorting the dead by ferry to the Heavens or the Underworld. But in order to have the strength and power to do this, they must acquire three “grace bones” that they must take from animals they kill themselves. From these bones the Leurress are given the graces (powers) of the animals, such as their strength, speed, sight, etc.

Once the Leurress has all her grace bones, she THEN has to lure her “amoure” with a bone flute. Once she snags them, she either has to kill them OR she can stay with them for a year, and THEN kill them.