Every night, while the rest of the world is sleeping, five people working the late night shift meet in the cemetery for a smoke and a break from the mEvery night, while the rest of the world is sleeping, five people working the late night shift meet in the cemetery for a smoke and a break from the menial labor they do. One night, they find a shallow grave has been dug, and a sleep-deprived investigation begins. This novella, spanning only 24 hours, expertly creates an atmospheric, spooky story that is only enhanced by the masterfully done full-cast narration of the audiobook. While there isn’t a ton of substance here, this novella reminded me just why I love Rio so much. She achieves a general unease through unnerving facts and questionable ethics of mad scientists and leaps made from sleep deprivation and it feels almost like an adult episode of Scooby Doo. This is the perfect novella to read when you want to immerse yourself into the spooky atmosphere of fall and makes me excited for whatever Rio does next. I really hope inspiration strikes for some more spooky novellas like this one.
Thank you for the arc. Book out: 09/24/2024...more
gollancz (uk artist) cover reveal and I'm SCREAMING I cannot wait to have this beauty in my handsgollancz (uk artist) cover reveal and I'm SCREAMING I cannot wait to have this beauty in my hands...more
I love when a book I’m reading for the first time makes me nostalgic for another era of my life, and Come Out, Come Out catapulted me back to being 16I love when a book I’m reading for the first time makes me nostalgic for another era of my life, and Come Out, Come Out catapulted me back to being 16, discreetly buying queer books in order to better understand a part of myself that wasn’t necessarily accepted. I just know that this book would’ve meant so much to that version of Liv.
While this is classified as horror, I found it less scary (as a bit of a wimp) because of how tied to societal issues the horror is. This is a really heartfelt book about accepting yourself when others around you won’t accept you, the power of queer community (especially in less accepting places), and what it really means to love someone, yourself included. It is aptly named as it focuses on the coming out of our two main characters, who are both queer people--one nonbinary and bi, the other a lesbian, both need to come out to themselves and the world. The coming out and acceptance of oneself is the meat of this book and I found it to be quite emotional. The horror aspects were done in a way that enhanced the story too. I think going into it pretty blind is the best way to approach this book because the characters themselves are starting out pretty blind, but I really loved this one and found it to be incredibly heartfelt. I’d recommend this to anyone, but especially recommend if you’re queer and have been/are still in a place that is keeping you in the closet.
Thank you NetGalley for the arc book is out on August 27, 2024 <3 ...more
A sapphic rivals to lovers taking place over the length of a folkloric expedition in order to find a magical spring sounds so up my alley that it was A sapphic rivals to lovers taking place over the length of a folkloric expedition in order to find a magical spring sounds so up my alley that it was soul crushing that the best thing I can say about this book as a whole is that I’m relatively ambivalent towards it. Where I was expecting a more fleshed out expedition rich in magic and folklore I primarily got a not-so-well fleshed out whodunnit murder mystery that checked so many formulaic boxes and investigated so many people that were just random cut outs instead of fully realized characters that I just got bored. Lorelai, our main character, is also so frustrating to be in the head of that I wanted to rip my hair out. Being in the head of someone who hates other people so much and also refuses to feel her full range of emotions makes it incredibly hard to care about any of the side characters, which was disappointing as I think I would’ve liked the book a smidge more if I cared. Even the folklore, which I was most excited for, felt so crammed into the story that I was getting annoyed every single time a new, random story was brought up. The whole of this really was boring and I felt as there was no reason for me to care about anyone or anything. Maybe I’m just having a bad day, but nothing about this surprised me and almost nothing made me feel anything. It's an incredibly sad day for me when I have to say that atmosphere doesn't hold a book together.
One thing I think was handled really well was how Saft used Lorelai’s heritage (fantasy Jewish) to discuss antisemitism and hatred that is still incredibly rampant. The most hard hitting moments were memories from Lorelai’s life where her and her family had to deal with so much hate anywhere they went and the way that she had to go through with this mission so she would hopefully be seen as a citizen with full status, something her people were not readily given.
I don’t like how the villain(s) or resolutions were handled and found the message to be… weirdly pro-colonialism? Or at least accepting of colonialism? It left a bad taste in my mouth, especially as we were shown all the harm that the conquering nation did. Maybe it was just a bit half-baked, but it left a sour taste in my mouth as our “good” characters were so anti-revolution. I think this was an attempt to flesh out everyone a bit more, but it fell flat with the end message.
I think I may be being extra harsh on this because it sounded so perfectly up my alley and I am now sitting here, a bit heartbroken that it wasn’t. This wasn’t a bad book, I’m just completely ambivalent towards it.
I picked this arc up because I love a good short story collection, but I found that I felt nothing except boredom while reading this. While the writinI picked this arc up because I love a good short story collection, but I found that I felt nothing except boredom while reading this. While the writing was fine, the plots of the stories fell flat. While I love the no plot vibes in full-length books, the lack of real plot in these stories left me unsatisfied and completely indifferent.
Thank you netgalley for the arc, book is out on August 06, 2024! ...more
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