My Darling by Amanda Robson

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

My Darling is a confusing, messy story about two women and (sort of) two men. Jade is married to Tomas and she is delusional, rude and unpleasant. Emma has just begun dating Alastair, a man who starts to show controlling tendencies. Emma herself is pragmatic and honestly, she doesn't have a second personality trait. Jade becomes convinced Tomas is cheating on her with Emma and decides to take matters into her own hands, resulting in a multi-layered murder plot where everyone is framing everyone else.

This book was so painful to read. I initially started with the audiobook but that was far too confusing, so I swapped to the e-arc which was a bit easier to follow. The characters are quite bland. I expected there to be more going on with Jade but no, she is just delusional and horrible to everyone. I expected there to be more going on with everyone to be honest. We learn more about Emma but it doesn't really translate to anything meaningful in terms of how we view her. Alastair has an ex-wife who shows up a few times and is described in a huge amount of unpleasant detail, but why? What does it add?

The plot itself is very melodramatic and a bit tedious. I wasn't surprised by anything that happened. I am not someone who needs a huge twist in my thrillers, but it almost felt like it was written to contain twists but there just weren't any? I won't give the details of the ending but it is framed like a standard ominous thriller ending where we are meant to feel dread at what the protagonist might do next, except I feel like everything she did was reasonable given the world and people she was dealing with. This is a side effect of the melodrama. Everything becomes a potentially reasonable response because the actions themselves are so extreme, and the people so one-dimensionally unforgiveable.

I was so disappointed by this book. The one saving grace is that this is quite an easy read, so I did finish it rather than abandon it halfway. Unfortunately I can't recommend it though

Overall Rating:

I Love Romcoms and I am a Feminist by Corrina Antrobus

 I received an ARC of this book thanks to NetGalley and White Lion Publishing in exchange for an honest review.

This was a super fun read and pretty much exactly what I wanted from a book with this title. This is a light exploration of 100 romcoms through the lens of 'feminist lessons learned'. I loved the mix of famous romcoms and lesser-known films. It meant I have a few new movies to check out, which is always great. The amount written about each film was about perfect. It's a good book to casually flick through, and it's the kind of thing I love to read on Christmas day inbetween all the bustle. If you're a fan of romcoms, this is definitely worth a read!

Slasher Witch at the Waterpark by Penny Moonz

 I received an ARC of this book thanks to NetGalley and Victory Editing NetGalley Co-op in exchange for an honest review.

What an absolute blast this book is!

Slasher Witch at the Waterpark is a farcical horror comedy book about a witch killing a bunch of people at a waterpark. It is equal parts ridiculous and fun, with a lot of creative deaths and details which made this book such a delight to read. An ancient witch getting drunk off frozen margaritas whilst she murders dozens of people? Timeless.

There's honestly not much else to say about this book. The title tells you what you are in for, and it certainly delivers. I will say, I genuinely did love the range and creativity behind the deaths and the horror. Parts of the waterpark start coming to life, sea creatures reign terror and the skies open up to meteorological horrors. There are a few gross moments to be aware of but I am usually quite sensitive to certain elements (bodily fluids etc) and I found it manageable. If you're looking for a fun horror read that is goofy in all the right ways, I cannot recommend this more!

Overall Rating:

.5

The House That Horror Built by Christina Henry

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

It should be no surprise that I absolutely love everything Christina Henry writes at this point, and The House that Horror Built is no exception. This book tells the story of Harry, a single mother who begins cleaning the home of famous horror movie director, Javier Castillo. This involves cleaning all of the creepy props which adorn his home and following a very strict set of rules. Harry manages to successfully keep a professional distance from her boss until one day, she and her son are forced to move in with him due to her limiting financial circumstances. She then has to balance maintaining her boundaries whilst also suspecting there is something very odd about the house...

This is a hard book to pinpoint. If I had to, I'd say it was a slow-burn ghost story with a few psychological elements. Most of the book is focused on a creeping sense of dread, with only minimal horror 'stuff' actually happening. This was more than enough for me as a reader though. I found the characters interesting and I wasn't really sure where the story was going to go. I think the climax more than makes up for the slow pace of the beginning. The story gets very intense and troubled, and I enjoyed every minute of it. I am a huge fan of horror as a way of exploring human emotion and trauma, and this book does that very well in my opinion. I also like books which keep you on your toes. Which characters can you trust? Are things are sinister as they seem? This book plays with that well, and that's where the more psychological aspect comes in.

It should also come as no surprise that I am going to recommend this book. It's admittedly a little different than Henry's other, more-action filled works but I think that's a strength rather than a detriment. I think there's a lot here for horror fans to love

Overall Rating:

An Unlikely Proposition by Rosalyn Eves

I received an ARC of this book thanks to NetGalley and publisher Macmillan Children's Books in exchange for an honest review.

An Unlikely Proposition is the second book in the Unexpected Seasons series, although you can read it without having read the first one and pick up on most of the story beats. This book focuses on Thalia (from the first book) and Eleanor (new) as they navigate romance and their livelihoods on the London marriage scene.

I'm going to be honest, Thalia was not the character I particularly wanted to read more about. She was my least favourite from the first book and I wasn't really looking forward to spending more time around her. Having said that, she is much less infuriating this time around. She still makes some bad decisions and I still found her poetry stuff a little annoying. 

Unfortunately though, the main takeaway was this book didn't really make me feel anything. I only read it about a month ago and already I can remember so little about it. Eleanor is fine as a protagonist but she is quite flat. She is prim, to the point where I found it really hard to buy that she is only 17. I had to keep reminding myself that she was a young woman because it was almost jarring when she started doing what Thalia was. I kept mixing up the two love interests and now I couldn't tell you a single thing about them. I don't want to be mean, I just generally can't recall even their names.

Overall, I unfortunately can't recommend this book. The first one is still a good time for most of it so I'd give that a read, but this didn't really offer me anything new

Overall Rating:

.5

Black Sheep by Rachel Harrison

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

I read Rachel Harrison's debut novel The Return and thought it was really enjoyable but a little unpolished. I am happy to say that Black Sheep is that book with all the polish and so much more.

Black Sheep is the story of Vesper, a young woman who escaped her upbringing on a cult-like religious farm and is now struggling to get by. One day she receives an invitation to return to the farm to attend the wedding of her favourite cousin, Rosie. It just so happens that Rosie is marrying Vesper's childhood sweetheart and so despite her better judgement, she decides she has to go back to find out what is going on.

This book embodies all the best aspects of horror for me. Horror as a metaphor for trauma can be such a powerful tool, and Harrison uses it impressively here. Some of the themes present in The Return can also be found here, but this time they feel fully explored and the metaphor is far stronger. I loved going into this book almost blind and I encourage other readers to do the same. I simultaneously felt like I knew exactly what was going to happen but also I wasn't quite sure, which is a great position to be in as a horror reader.

The characters are also really strong. Vesper in particular stands out, but I loved the hints of complexity surrounding her mother. Other characters like Rosie and Brody are less complex, but it feels by design. We don't get to know much about them and why should we? Vesper views them a particular way and we are limited by her narration.

This book has convinced me to read everything Harrison writes forever. I didn't think this was really a topic area I was hugely interested in going in, and I fell in love with the writing and style. Her other books similarly aren't about things I would normally seek out (witches, vampires) but now I can't wait to read them. If you're a fan of horror used to explore human emotion and depth, I strongly recommend giving this a try

Overall Rating:

.5

Twisted Tales Anthology by Multiple Authors

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

I adore the Twisted Tales series. There is something so delightful about official Disney fanfiction and I was particularly excited to learn there was a short story collection. As I sometimes do with anthologies, I'm going to talk about stories individually. I can't remember the story names so I will do it by film instead. I am also going to spoil things a little because it's hard to talk about them otherwise:

Beauty and the Beast: What if Belle went to the fair instead of her father? Well, she never meets the Beast, the castle dwellers presumably are doomed and she ends up running the bookshop in the town which hated her. She's perfectly happy though. This one is a little weird because while it's nice she has an alternative for a good life, it does raise some questions.

Lion King: What if Mufasa survived the fall? This story was one of the ones I disliked the most just because it felt so out of character. Mufasa becomes a helicopter, overprotective parent when he was quite open and honest with Simba in the movie. He also still trusts Scar, so you can't even argue that the accident changed him. It was decently written but didn't really ring true.

Ratatouille: What if Remy met Colette instead of Linguine? I skimread this one as I'm not hugely into Ratatouille, and as far as I could tell, not much changes from the film. Colette still meets Linguine and they still end up owning a restaurant together, so any changes are a little superficial.

Little Mermaid: What if Eric met Ariel as a mermaid? This one was kinda cool. It has some of the same stuff as the live action remake, where Eric and Ariel get to bond a bit more because she can talk to him. However, this was another one were things didn't really change much. Rather than look interested, Ariel can now say 'that's interesting'. The story goes in a different direction but it's not super exciting.

Rattle the Stars & Fates Three: I skipped both of these as I have only seen Treasure Planet once and Brave not at all.

The Reluctant Prince: What if Bambi didn't know he was meant to be the Great Prince? And what if he didn't want to be? This was kind of the opposite of the Lion King story. I enjoyed it because I got to imagine Patrick Stewart as Bambi's dad again and that was fun. Bambi is a little whiny here but it was mostly fun.

A First Mission: What if Mulan took the job with the Emperor? This was a really strong story and a great way to end the anthology. A lot is different from the film/sequel, and it's nice to see that alternative world. I wish more stories were as bold as this

Overall Rating:

.5

Disney Villains: Happily Never After Gaston by Lorie Langdon

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

Of all the villains who deserve a sad origin story, Gaston is not one of them. Still, I was super excited to read this retelling/prequel/exploration into Disney non-canon. And I'm so glad I did!

Happily Never After Gaston is the story of Gaston from Beauty and the Beast, reimagined as an ugly and unpleasant teenager. Living in his brother's shadow and hated by his family, his luck starts to change when he meets an enchantress named Agatha and they form an arrangement of sorts. If Gaston can prove himself to be a good person, she will make him attractive. It's a simple premise and one which is extremely well-executed.

This book can't have been easy to write. Gaston is intentionally a flat and unpleasant character in the original film. He has to be compelling enough here to half-lead a book, but not so sympathetic that it doesn't fit with his portrayal in the film. I'd say the author does a great job of this. Is this Gaston from the films? No, but he's close enough. And honestly, it was a lot of fun as a Beauty and the Beast fan having this alternative version of Gaston and that world.

Fun is the main word I'd use to describe this book. It has the same kind of enjoyment as the Twisted Tales books and is worth checking out for any Disney fans who like exploring the characters from new and different perspectives. It has some nice nods to the original film, good writing and characterisation, and an interesting plot

Overall Rating:

Gone Tonight by Sarah Pekkanen

 

I received an ARC of this book thanks to NetGalley and publisher Orion Publishing Group in exchange for an honest review.

It is difficult to describe the plot of this book spoiler-free. Gone Tonight centers around Ruth and Catherine, a mother and daughter who live together and have a fairly close bond. Catherine's world comes crashing down when Ruth reveals she might have Alzheimer's, ruining Catherine's plans to move away to a new city. But soon Catherine starts to suspect that Ruth is lying to her and it becomes clear that Ruth has additional reasons for not wanting Catherine to leave.

Gone Tonight is a thriller that sheds its skin many times and becomes many different things. It's a very interesting book and it is carried by the strength of the two main characters. Ruth in particular is well-written and could've honestly been a real person. I liked how I never knew where the book was going to go or what the characters intentions were fully. It's a hard balance to keep characters mysterious whilst not losing reader interest, but this book does it masterfully.

I did feel this book lost some of the steam near the end but I am not quite sure why. Perhaps the focus shifted a little too much off the main two leads and their psychological and interpersonal struggles were really what I was interested in. That isn't to say that the book ends badly and I was still invested throughout, but it became clear to me what was going to happen and it lost some of the magic as a result.

Overall, this is a solid thriller and one of the better examples of the genre. Pekkanen's solo work is just as gripping as her books with Greer Henderson, and if you enjoy cat-and-mouse style thrillers, then this is definitely worth checking out

Overall Rating: