Near the Bone by Christina Henry

 

I received an ARC of this book thanks to NetGalley and publisher Titan Books in exchange for an honest review.

Christina Henry is back in full form! After being a little disappointed by The Ghost Tree, I am pleased to report that Near the Bone is a truly fantastic creepy tale.

It tells the story of Mattie, a young woman who lives with her husband William in a remote forest cabin on a mountainside. A strange creature appears on the mountain one day, something which is like a bear and not. It soon becomes clear though that things have not been right long before that. William is a very controlling person and he doesn't like that the arrival of the creature appears to be affecting his tenuous hold on Mattie.

I was utterly mesmerised by this story. Henry knows how to build tension and there were absolute piles of it in this book. The relationship between William and Mattie is one of the main driving forces and it was harrowing to see the unpleasant reality of it slowly unfurl as I read on. As with many of Henry's books, Near the Bone has a strong focus on feminism and gender roles and this is handled extremely well. I felt such a strong connection to Mattie and everything she goes through broke my heart a million times. Every character was so real to me and they all had depth which made you either love or hate them.

So I have covered the characters and relationships side but what about the horror? Well rest assured, this book has plenty of that. There are some particularly gruesome scenes here and also a lot of the slower, more tension-based horror that I mentioned earlier. I think this book is particularly effective because it has both domestic horror (from the threat of William) and the horror that comes from being hunted by a supernatural creature. It provides a variety in the kind of fear you feel as a reader and as a bonus it appeals to all tastes.

Christina Henry is one of my favourite authors and with books like this, it isn't hard to see why. If you want a tense, absorbing horror with brilliant characters and a heartbreaking plot, I urge you to check this book out. You will not be disappointed.

Overall Rating:

 .5

Our Little Cruelties by Liz Nugent

 

I received an ARC of this book thanks to NetGalley and publisher Penguin Books (UK) in exchange for an honest review.

Our Little Cruelties is the story of three brothers. In the present day, we know one of them is dead but we don't know which one. Most of the book focuses on flashbacks told from each of the brothers' POVs, building up the relationships between them and the various things they have gone through  in their lives. Luke is a famous popstar, Brian is the deadbeat son with money problems and Will is a filmmaker. Their mother was also a famous singer in her day which albeit was a long time ago. Between all this there is a lot of drama, both public and within the family.

I'm gonna be honest, I was pleasantly surprised by this thriller. I read a lot of thrillers and it's quite hard for one to stand out, but this managed to do it in a really interesting fashion. It is very much a domestic exploration of one family and the intricacies of their relationships to each other. You learn how they respond to each other and betray each other, and this deep character exploration is really what makes this stand out. It's the kind of book which can sound very basic on the surface but it's all about that excellent execution. There were some predictable story beats here but also a lot of unexpected stuff, and it was all woven together nicely.

I will say, I listened to the audiobook and I can't fully recommend it. While it was enjoyable, the similarities between the narrators' voices made it incredibly hard for me to tell when POV swapped, which in turn made the story much harder to follow. For this reason, I only really connected with Luke as a character because it was easiest for me to tell when he was narrating. I'm sure this is entirely down to how I listen to audiobooks though and I think with a physical/ebook version, it would be easy to tell them apart.

There's not much else for me to say except that this book is well worth checking out. It's a strong story with even stronger characters and its sure to hold your attention.

Overall Rating:

.5

The Boyband Murder Mystery by Ava Eldred

 

I received an ARC of this book thanks to NetGalley and publisher Penguin Random House Children’s UK in exchange for an honest review.

I was a little worried when requesting this book that it would be a bit too ridiculous but thankfully, The Boyband Murder Mystery hit that sweet spot between fun and good storytelling. This is the story of Harri, a megafan of the the fictional boyband Half Light. When one of the members of the boyband is arrested on suspicion of murdering his best friend, Harri and her friends take it upon themselves to try and clear him of the crime by using their fandom expertise and skills.

There was a lot I really liked about this book. I'd say it leans more on the contemporary side than mystery, and the tone remains light and fun throughout. I wish a little more emphasis had been placed on the friendships of the girls within the fandom (only Harri and her best friend Jasmine really get much focus) but the characters are decent and you do get some nice friendship moments. One aspect I really liked was that Harri was at university. I feel a lot of these stories feature high school protagonists so it was nice to both see the uni environment on the page and also have a protagonist who could be a bit more independent without plot issues.

My only real issue with it is that it sometimes goes a bit overboard on the worship of fan culture, which wasn't unexpected and fit with the general tone and plot of the story. I will say there is a surprisingly poignant and heartfelt part about letting fandoms go and how that feels, and that was an incredibly strong bit of writing. I felt genuinely quite moved and I think it's something a lot of people can identify with. It adds a deeper sense of emotion to the book and it was very welcome.

Overall, this is a fun YA romp with a lot to like. It's perfect for not only fans of boybands, but fans of all kinds. If you want a deep or super detailed mystery, then this isn't the book for you but if you're looking for a decent and enjoyable contemporary with some fun heist elements, then give this a go for sure.

Overall Rating:

Ruthless Women by Melanie Blake

 

I received an ARC of this book thanks to NetGalley and publisher Head of Zeus in exchange for an honest review.

This was so close to being a fun, if totally ridiculous romp. Then there was a healthy dose of transphobia and no thank you.

Most of this book can be described as a bunch of women working on a soap opera, backstabbing each other and having a lot of graphic sex. It's very ridiculous but not in an offensive way. Almost every sexual encounter starts with the woman not wearing underwear and the man noticing and then they bang. I was fairly engaged in the story and I enjoyed it a lot for what it was.

Unfortunately this book was ruined for me by a scene where someone is revealed as trans, and then the other characters proceed to threaten to out them. Every character is morally grey so it's not entirely portrayed as a triumphant moment, but the narrative does suggest we are meant to be on the side of the people doing the blackmailing. The trans character is what I would consider to be the most villainous presence and so it left me feeling very unhappy that in 2021, someone could write this with zero consideration for all the 'trans people are evil' tropes the media has used for years. It was bitterly disappointing.

Without that, the book could have easily gotten a 3.5 star rating from me. I am giving it 2 stars in an attempt to be fair because it could have been worse but dear god, it's such a shame.

Overall Rating: