Trick or Treat Round the Block Book Tag


It’s that time again, time for some Halloween themed posts and why not with book tags? This tag was originally created by The Bookish Porcupine but I saw it around the blogosphere – most recently on Dinipandareads. Check their blogs out!

Creepy house on the corner of the street:
Book with a creepy cover

The Haunting of Hill House is a book that I’ve been meaning to for years!


Lights out (party poopers):
A book you want to read when you want to escape

I like escaping into fantasy books and Throne of the Fallen takes you to Hell, a Vampire stronghold and Faerie!


The house that gives out the cheap candy:
Guilty pleasure book

I like a good strange small town, spooky story! I don’t know if that’s a guilty pleasure but sometimes I just liked to be weirdly spooked. I think Together We Rot fascinated me because stories about cults always have interested me!


The house with the best decorations on the block:
Best haunting/Halloween-themed cover

I haven’t read Delicious Monsters but I want to – but yikes look at that cover!


The house that gives out the best candy:
#1 Halloween recommendation

If you like a little history with a haunted house then you’d enjoy The Hacienda!


SPEED ROUND

Corn Maze or Haunted House?

I used like Haunted Houses but that was in my younger years! I’d go with a corn maze now.

Classic or Unique Costume?

I love both but I’ll go with Unique because my kids are always picking unique costumes. This year my daughter will be Sailor Moon and I’m Luna (the cat) lol.

Sexy or Scary Costume?

Scary because I can’t pull off a sexy one lol

Comedy or Horror Halloween Film?

I was forced to watch horror films all during my childhood because my older male cousins picked the movies! So now I go for comedy.

Chocolate or Sour Candy?

Definitely chocolate!

It’s a fun and easy tag to do so try it out. ☺️ Happy Halloween! 👻🎃

WWW Wednesday | 10/25/23

WWW Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Sam over on Taking on a World of Words.

The idea is pretty simple, every week you dedicate a post to the three W’s:

What are you currently reading?

What have you just finished reading?

What are you going to read next?

I feel like I am just slow in reading this month! It’s taking me days to finish books I can usually finish in one night. But I’ve been sleeping earlier – maybe it’s just age catching up to me! lol…anyway this is what I’m reading and what I’ve finished the last couple of days.

What are you currently reading?

Plot Twist by. Erin La Rosa – I’m about 10% into it. I didn’t make any headway this week on this.

This Cursed Light by. Emily Thiede – I’m only 4% into this one.

Didn’t See That Coming by. Jesse Q. Sutanto – I’ll be finishing this one this week I think.

The Woman in Me by. Britney Spears – I just bought this one yesterday and I’m 8% in. It’s a quick read but definitely fascinating so far! I always did love Britney – her songs bring me back to my late teens and early twenties which was such a fun time in my life.

What have you just finished reading?

Two Twisted Crowns by. Rachel Gillig ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Starling House by. Alix E. Harrow ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

What are you going to read next?

Artifacts of an Ex by. Jennifer Chen

Her Dark Wings by. Melinda Salisbury

What are you reading right now?

Two Twisted Crowns by. Rachel Gillig | Book Review

My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Title: Two Twisted Crowns (The Shepherd King, #2)

Author: Rachel Gillig

Format: ebook (own)

Pages: 368

Publication Date: 10/17/23

Categories: Fantasy, Romance, Series, Gothic, Dark Fantasy, Magic, Young Adult

In the luscious, dark sequel to One Dark Window, Elspeth must face the consequences of what she’s wrought – perfect for readers of Hannah Whitten’s For the Wolf and Alexis Henderson’s The Year of the Witching.

Elspeth and Ravyn have gathered most of the twelve Providence Cards, but the last, and most important one remains to be found: The Twin Alders.

If they are going to find it before the Solstice and cure the kingdom of the dark magic infecting it, they will need to journey beyond the dangerous mist-cloaked forest that surrounds their kingdom.

And the only one who can lead them there is the monster that shares Elspeth’s head. The Nightmare. And he’s not eager to share any longer.

Content Warning: violence, death

Two Twisted Crowns is the sequel to One Dark Window and the last book in this duology. It is a fantastic conclusion to this dark gothic fantasy series.

+ Everything comes together. Ravyn and Elm are close to finding the Twin Alders card but they have to deal with the horrific realization that Elspeth has now been possessed by the Nightmare. It’s a story full of political intrigue, a quest to find the last card and protect the others, and needing to save Elspeth. This book is like seeing all the puzzle pieces coming together which was really well done.

+ Ravyn and Elspeth’s romance takes a backseat because that would be awkward with the Nightmare inside her. So the new romance in this book is Elm and Ione and I LOVED it. Elm has a reputation and before Ione wielded the Maiden card and became “beautiful” he was curious about her. But they get more time together it this book and they have chemistry, tension, passion and I love how they helped complete the quest together.

+ The ending made me emotional. Even though the Nightmare was a villain for most of this series, we learn his history and he honestly grew on me and Elspeth it seems.

+ The author does a wonderful job capturing the gothic, dark vibes and I still say the magic in this series is so unique. I’ve never read a book with magic cards quite like this and I love the lore and the questioning of the consequences of having too much power.

~ I hate Hauth – what a villain he is!

~ I did miss having Elspeth be her own person but I did love her interactions with the Nightmare who was almost like a dad to her – in a strange way.

My Final Thoughts:

It took me a little longer to read this one because Elm and Ione becomes the main characters and I was waiting for Ravyn and Elspeth to take the spotlight. But I’d say everyone had a chance to shine since this is told through Elm, Ravyn and Elspeth’s perspectives. I was emotional about the ending because I really loved the Nightmare as a character and it was tough to say goodbye to him. Overall this duology has everything – romance, dark fantasy, gothic vibes, a quest, unique magic, a villain, court intrigue and I highly recommend it if you like any of the things I mentioned!

Book Links:

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

One Dark Window by. Rachel Gillig ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Happy Book Birthday | New Releases | 10/24/23

Happy book birthday to these new releases! Check out this list today:

A Curse for True Love by. Stephannie Garber

Two villains, one girl, and a deadly battle for happily ever after.

Evangeline Fox ventured to the Magnificent North in search of her happy ending, and it seems as if she has it. She’s married to a handsome prince and lives in a legendary castle. But Evangeline has no idea of the devastating price she’s paid for this fairytale. She doesn’t know what she has lost, and her husband is determined to make sure she never finds out . . . but first he must kill Jacks, the Prince of Hearts.

Blood will be shed, hearts will be stolen, and true love will be put to the test in A Curse for True Love, the breathlessly anticipated conclusion to the Once Upon A Broken Heart trilogy.

Goodreads | Amazon


King of Greed by. Ana Huang

He had her, he lost her…and he’ll do anything to win her back.

Powerful, brilliant, and ambitious, Dominic Davenport clawed his way up from nothing to become the King of Wall Street.

He has everything—a beautiful home, a beautiful wife, and more money than he could spend in a lifetime. But no matter how much he accumulates, he’s never satisfied.

In his endless quest for more, he drives away the only person who saw him as enough.

It isn’t until she’s gone that he realizes there may be more to life than riches and glory…but by then, it may be too late.

***

Kind, intelligent, and thoughtful, Alessandra Davenport has played the role of trophy wife for years.

She stood by her husband while he built an empire, but now that they’ve reached the top, she realizes he’s no longer the man she fell for.

When it becomes clear that she’ll always come second to his work, she finally takes charge of her life and puts herself first—even if it means leaving the only man she’s ever loved.

But what she didn’t count on was his refusal to let her go…or for him to fight for their marriage, no matter what it takes.

King of Greed is a steamy marriage in trouble/second chance romance. It’s book three in the Kings of Sin series but can be read as a standalone.

Goodreads | Amazon

Are you getting any new books this week?

Happy Reading!

Atmospheric Books  | TTT | 10/24/23

Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and the Bookish in June of 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January of 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together. Please check out her website for more TTT topics!

This week’s topic is:

Atmospheric Books

(The Novelry explains this concept as: “A novel feels atmospheric when the setting and the narrative are deeply involved with one another; when characters and plot are physically embedded in their surroundings, and a near-tangible mood lifts from the pages and wraps itself around the reader.” Study.com explains that, “The atmosphere is how a writer constructs their piece to convey feelings, emotions, and mood to the reader. The atmosphere in literature might be tense, fast-paced, mysterious, spooky, whimsical, or joyful and can be found in poetry, stories, novels, and series.”)

Have you read any of these books? Are any of these on your TBR? What’s on your TTT?

#5OnMyTBR: Title Starting with an ‘E’

Hi everyone! Whoops looks like I forgot to do a whole month of these! 😅 Let’s get back to it…

I saw this one Chonky Books and thought it would be a fun add to my blog. #5OnMyTBR is a bookish meme hosted by E. @ Local Bee Hunter’s Nook and you can learn more about it here or in the post announcing it. It occurs every Monday when we post about 5 books on our TBR.

This week’s theme is: Title Starting with an ‘E’

Title: Empire of the Vampire

Author: Jay Kristoff

From holy cup comes holy light;
The faithful hands sets world aright.
And in the Seven Martyrs’ sight,
Mere man shall end this endless night.

It has been twenty-seven long years since the last sunrise. For nearly three decades, vampires have waged war against humanity; building their eternal empire even as they tear down our own. Now, only a few tiny sparks of light endure in a sea of darkness.

Gabriel de León is a silversaint: a member of a holy brotherhood dedicated to defending realm and church from the creatures of the night. But even the Silver Order couldn’t stem the tide once daylight failed us, and now, only Gabriel remains.

Imprisoned by the very monsters he vowed to destroy, the last silversaint is forced to tell his story. A story of legendary battles and forbidden love, of faith lost and friendships won, of the Wars of the Blood and the Forever King and the quest for humanity’s last remaining hope:

The Holy Grail.


Title: Extasia

Author: Claire Legrand

Her name is unimportant.

All you must know is that today she will become one of the four saints of Haven. The elders will mark her and place the red hood on her head. With her sisters, she will stand against the evil power that lives beneath the black mountain–an evil which has already killed nine of her village’s men.

She will tell no one of the white-eyed beasts that follow her. Or the faceless gray women tall as houses. Or the girls she saw kissing in the elm grove.

Today she will be a saint of Haven. She will rid her family of her mother’s shame at last and save her people from destruction. She is not afraid. Are you?


Title: Elektra

Author: Jennifer Saint

The House of Atreus is cursed. A bloodline tainted by a generational cycle of violence and vengeance. This is the story of three women, their fates inextricably tied to this curse, and the fickle nature of men and gods.

Clytemnestra
The sister of Helen, wife of Agamemnon – her hopes of averting the curse are dashed when her sister is taken to Troy by the feckless Paris. Her husband raises a great army against them, and determines to win, whatever the cost.

Cassandra
Princess of Troy, and cursed by Apollo to see the future but never to be believed when she speaks of it. She is powerless in her knowledge that the city will fall.

Elektra
The youngest daughter of Clytemnestra and Agamemnon, Elektra is horrified by the bloodletting of her kin. But, can she escape the curse, or is her own destiny also bound by violence?


Title: The Empire Gold

Author: S.A. Chakraborty

The final chapter in the Daevabad Trilogy, in which a con-woman and an idealistic djinn prince join forces to save a magical kingdom from a devastating civil war.

Daevabad has fallen.

After a brutal conquest stripped the city of its magic, Nahid leader Banu Manizheh and her resurrected commander, Dara, must try to repair their fraying alliance and stabilize a fractious, warring people.

But the bloodletting and loss of his beloved Nahri have unleashed the worst demons of Dara’s dark past. To vanquish them, he must face some ugly truths about his history and put himself at the mercy of those he once considered enemies.

Having narrowly escaped their murderous families and Daevabad’s deadly politics, Nahri and Ali, now safe in Cairo, face difficult choices of their own. While Nahri finds peace in the old rhythms and familiar comforts of her human home, she is haunted by the knowledge that the loved ones she left behind and the people who considered her a savior are at the mercy of a new tyrant. Ali, too, cannot help but look back, and is determined to return to rescue his city and the family that remains. Seeking support in his mother’s homeland, he discovers that his connection to the marid goes far deeper than expected and threatens not only his relationship with Nahri, but his very faith.

As peace grows more elusive and old players return, Nahri, Ali, and Dara come to understand that in order to remake the world, they may need to fight those they once loved . . . and take a stand for those they once hurt.


Title: Everywhere You Want to Be

Author: Christina June

From author Christina June comes Everywhere You Want to Be, a modern tale inspired by the classic Red Riding Hood.

Matilda Castillo has always done what she was told, but when she gets injured senior year, she watches her dreams of becoming a contemporary dancer slip away. So when Tilly gets a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to spend the summer with a New York dance troupe, nothing can stop her from saying yes–not her mother, not her fears of the big city, and not the commitment she made to Georgetown. Tilly’s mother allows her to go on two conditions: one, Tilly will regularly visit her abuela in New Jersey, and two, after the summer, she’ll give up dancing and go off to college.

Armed with her red vintage sunglasses and her pros and cons lists, Tilly strikes out, determined to turn a summer job into a career. Along the way she meets new friends … and new enemies. Tilly isn’t the only one desperate to dance, and fellow troupe member Sabrina Wolfrik intends to succeed at any cost. But despite dodging sabotage and blackmail attempts from Sabrina, Tilly can’t help but fall in love with the city, especially since Paolo, a handsome musician from her past, is also calling New York home for the summer.

As the weeks wind down and the competition with Sabrina heats up, Tilly’s future is on the line. She must decide whether to follow her mother’s path to Georgetown or leap into the unknown to pursue her own dreams.

Are any of these on your TBR list?

>>>>>

October

  • 02/10/2023 — Murder
  • 09/10/2023 — Gothic
  • 16/10/2023 — Apples & Pumpkins
  • 23/10/2023 — Title Starting with an ‘E’
  • 30/10/2023 — Halloween Freebie

Goodreads Monday: Witch of Wild Things

Happy Monday!

Goodreads Monday is a weekly meme where you chose a random book from your Goodreads TBR and show it off. This meme is hosted by Budget Tales Book Blog.

Title: Witch of Wild Things

Author: Raquel Vasquez Gilliland

Pages: 320

Links: Goodreads | Amazon

Publication Date: 9/12/23

Synopsis:

 

Legend goes that long ago a Flores woman offended the old gods, and their family was cursed as a result. Now, every woman born to the family has a touch of magic.

Sage Flores has been running from her family—and their “gifts”—ever since her younger sister Sky died. Eight years later, Sage reluctantly returns to her hometown. Like slipping into an old, comforting sweater, Sage takes back her job at Cranberry Rose Company and uses her ability to communicate with plants to discover unusual heritage specimens in the surrounding lands.

What should be a simple task is complicated by her partner in botany sleuthing: Tennessee Reyes. He broke her heart in high school, and she never fully recovered. Working together is reminding her of all their past tender, genuine moments—and new feelings for this mature sexy man are starting to take root in her heart.

With rare plants to find, a dead sister who keeps bringing her coffee, and another sister whose anger fills the sky with lightning, Sage doesn’t have time for romance. But being with Tenn is like standing in the middle of a field on the cusp of a summer thunderstorm—supercharged and inevitable.

Do you have plans to read this book? Let me know in the comments below!

Weekly Wrap Up | 10/22/23

Aloha friends!

I didn’t have a busy week but I don’t know where my time went! I think my heart has been heavy with all the things happening around the world. 😔

Also I am busy planning our Osaka, Japan trip which is in 4 weeks. My mom is having her procedure to remove her cancer (they found it on her ureter) this week so I’ve been thinking about that and wondering if she will be okay to come on the trip. Oh and I’m trying to get back to working out and eat better because my blood pressure was a little bit higher in my last doctor appointment. SO yeah I gotta work on that – self care and all that! That means I’ve been more tired so I think I finished only one book this past week. I’ve been reading slow…

I’m hoping I get get through more reading this week, but we shall see. Anyway, hope you have a good week!

Blog Posts:

Books I Read:


Currently Reading:

Shows/Movies/Music I Watched/Listened To:

+ Baseball – Phillies are still in it!

How was your week? Did you get a lot done? Watch anything good? Read any amazing books or books you didn’t finish? What are you reading?…Leave me a comment below!

Swarm by. Jennifer D. Lyle | ARC Review

My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Title: Swarm

Author: Jennifer D. Lyle

Format: eBook (NetGalley)

Pages: 336

Publication Date: 11/7/23

Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire

Categories: Young Adult, Horror, Survival

Disclaimer: **I received this book free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.  All thoughts and opinions are my own.**

Thank you to Sourcebooks Fire for giving me a chance to read this eARC in exchange for an honest review!

Sixteen year-old Shur is one of the first to see the creatures. While staring out the window in history class, she spots one floating over the soccer field. It looks like a monarch butterfly—but it’s huge. Within minutes, her classmates’ phones are buzzing with emergency alerts. These things are everywhere, and though nobody’s exactly sure why the alerts are telling them to take cover, Shur knows it can’t be good. It’s only when she’s left school and headed home that she what the creatures do: they attack.

By the time Shur, her two brothers, and their two best friends make it back to her house, it’s clear the five of them must survive whatever comes next on their own.

As the “butterflies”—new hybrid creatures thought to be created by climate change—multiply and swarm outside, anxiety-prone Shur focuses on what she can control: boarding up windows, stocking food, and preparing a shelter in the basement. They lose internet and power while vigilantes create terror outside. Meanwhile the creatures begin to fulfill their ultimate purpose: multiplying via parasitic load, and before long, the butterflies aren’t the only thing trying to get in. To protect her family and survive the invasions, Shur must find the strength to protect their sanctuary at any cost.

Content Warning: body horror, violence, big bugs

I was so curious about this book because of the cover and title. Scary butterflies? How?! Butterflies are such beautiful creatures!

And then I read the book and yes I can imagine huge, people sized butterflies being creepy and scary especially with their legs and other body parts that isn’t their wings. Shur, along with her family and friends rush home after seeing a swarm of these butterflies in the sky at school. But it’s not only at their school – apparently it’s taking over the world and being bit from you makes you turn into a very scary, nasty creature. They get holed up at their house trying to survive without adults, without electricity, and just whatever they have.

I think teens who like horror and survival stories will love this books. It’s got some gory parts especially when they have to fight off whoever is trying to come into the house. I felt like how the kids survived was realistic and brave of them really. There was definitely a reference to COVID in here and we all remember how the world basically went on lockdown in 2020 and that’s what this book kind of felt like, minus scary butterflies outside out doors. COVID was the scary butterfly for us.

There wasn’t much explanation for the creatures in the book but I just went along for the wild ride this story took me on.

My Thoughts:

This one definitely gave me flashbacks of being in lockdown during COVID but I think I’d rather deal with that than carnivorous butterflies! The teen characters did a pretty good job surviving without any adults around. The story has scary butterflies, zombies, and killing said creatures with whatever they go, so if you like some gore, you will like this one. This one will appeal to teens, the younger YA crowd who likes horror and survival stories.

Book Links:

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

Books About Haunted Houses

You know, I don’t mind horror but I think the one thing that terrifies me is a book about a haunted house. Monsters I can deal with, murder I can deal with but haunted houses awaken that fear of me I had as a child watching Poltergeist and yes I watched all of them (mostly because my older boy cousins loved horror and we lived all in one house so they picked the movies!). I did read The Shining by Stephen King, but that’s a hotel so I was fine with that. But haunted house stories I kind of stay away from but maybe one day I’ll be brave to read these..🏚🎃


Delicious Monsters by. Liselle Sambury

The Haunting of Hill House meets Sadie in this evocative and mind-bending psychological thriller following two teen girls navigating the treacherous past of a mysterious mansion ten years apart.

Daisy sees dead people—something impossible to forget in bustling, ghost-packed Toronto. She usually manages to deal with her unwanted ability, but she’s completely unprepared to be dumped by her boyfriend. So when her mother inherits a secluded mansion in northern Ontario where she spent her childhood summers, Daisy jumps at the chance to escape. But the house is nothing like Daisy expects, and she begins to realize that her experience with the supernatural might be no match for her mother’s secrets, nor what lurks within these walls…

A decade later, Brittney is desperate to get out from under the thumb of her abusive mother, a bestselling author who claims her stay at “Miracle Mansion” allowed her to see the error of her ways. But Brittney knows that’s nothing but a sham. She decides the new season of her popular Haunted web series will uncover what happened to a young Black girl in the mansion ten years prior and finally expose her mother’s lies. But as she gets more wrapped up in the investigation, she’ll have to decide: if she can only bring one story to light, which one matters most—Daisy’s or her own?

As Brittney investigates the mansion in the present, Daisy’s story runs parallel in the past, both timelines propelling the girls to face the most dangerous monsters of all: those that hide in plain sight.


How to Sell a Haunted House by. Grady Hendrix

Grady Hendrix takes on the haunted house in a thrilling new novel that explores the way your past—and your family—can haunt you like nothing else.

When Louise finds out her parents have died, she dreads going home. She doesn’t want to leave her daughter with her ex and fly to Charleston. She doesn’t want to deal with her family home, stuffed to the rafters with the remnants of her father’s academic career and her mother’s lifelong obsession with puppets and dolls. She doesn’t want to learn how to live without the two people who knew and loved her best in the world.

Most of all, she doesn’t want to deal with her brother, Mark, who never left their hometown, gets fired from one job after another, and resents her success. Unfortunately, she’ll need his help to get the house ready for sale because it’ll take more than some new paint on the walls and clearing out a lifetime of memories to get this place on the market.

But some houses don’t want to be sold, and their home has other plans for both of them…


The Amityville Horror by. Jay Anson

28 Days of Terror in a House Possessed by Evil Spirits

In December 1975, the Lutz family moved into their dream home, the same home where Ronald DeFeo had murdered his parents, brothers and sisters just one year earlier.

The psychic phenomena that followed created the most terrifying experience the Lutz family had ever encountered, forcing them to flee the house in 28 days, convinced that it was possessed by evil spirits.

Their fantastic story, never before disclosed in full detail, makes for an unforgettable book with all the shocks and gripping suspense of The Exorcist, The Omen or Rosemary’s Baby, but with one vital difference…the story is true.


The Haunting of Hill House by. Shirley Jackson

It is the story of four seekers who arrive at a notoriously unfriendly pile called Hill House: Dr. Montague, an occult scholar looking for solid evidence of a “haunting”; Theodora, the lighthearted assistant; Eleanor, a friendless, fragile young woman well acquainted with poltergeists; and Luke, the future heir of Hill House. At first, their stay seems destined to be merely a spooky encounter with inexplicable phenomena. But Hill House is gathering its powers—and soon it will choose one of them to make its own.


Our Share of Night by. Mariana Enriquez

A woman’s mysterious death puts her husband and son on a collision course with her demonic family.

A young father and son set out on a road trip, devastated by the death of the wife and mother they both loved. United in grief, the pair travel to her ancestral home, where they must confront the terrifying legacy she has bequeathed: a family called the Order that commits unspeakable acts in search of immortality.

For Gaspar, the son, this maniacal cult is his destiny. As the Order tries to pull him into their evil, he and his father take flight, attempting to outrun a powerful clan that will do anything to ensure its own survival. But how far will Gaspar’s father go to protect his child? And can anyone escape their fate?

Moving back and forth in time, from London in the swinging 1960s to the brutal years of Argentina’s military dictatorship and its turbulent aftermath, Our Share of Night is a novel like no other: a family story, a ghost story, a story of the occult and the supernatural, a book about the complexities of love and longing with queer subplots and themes. This is the masterwork of one of Latin America’s most original novelists, “a mesmerizing writer,” says Dave Eggers, “who demands to be read.”