Book Review: The Cabinet of Dr. Leng by Douglas Preston & Lincoln Child
Posted on January 30, 2023 10 Comments
I received a review copy from the publisher. This does not affect the contents of my review and all opinions are my own.
The Cabinet of Dr. Leng by Douglas Preston & Lincoln Child
Mogsy’s Rating: 3 of 5 stars
Genre: Mystery, Science Fiction
Series: Book 21 of Aloysius Pendergast
Publisher: Grand Central Publishing (January 17, 2023)
Length: 416 pages
Author Information: Website
I have read a few Preston & Child novels in the past, but never any in the Aloysius Pendergast series. Needless to say, I’ve always been drawn to its mysteries which often feature elements of horror and the paranormal from what I’ve been told. So even though The Cabinet of Dr. Leng is the twenty-first book in this impressively long-running sequence, I was excited at the opportunity to read it when offered a review copy.
That said, I soon realized that what I’ve done is jump unknowingly into the middle of a mini-arc and that much of the events of the story was already in motion, having been set up in the previous book Bloodless. Fortunately though, the authors do such a good job catching you up that the entire experience felt practically seamless for a newcomer like me. The book introduces Aloysius Pendergast and his love interest Constance, who has made a bold move in trying to change her past. Amazingly, her quest has brought her to late 1800s New York City where she plans on tracking down Dr. Enoch Leng, the monster who had taken everything she loved and destroyed her life. But even after disguising herself and covering her tracks, her enemy is a formidable foe who won’t be long fooled.
Meanwhile, back in the present day, Pendergast is determined to give Constance all the advantage he can. Enlisting the help of his friend NYPD Lieutenant Commander Vincent D’Agosta, they try to find a way back to her. And in the FBI, Pendergast’s colleague Special Agent Armstrong Coldmoon is assigned to a bizarre case involving a murder and an attempted theft at a museum.
There are many threads unfolding here, and for the most part they remain separate, as expected for a larger story arc in progress. This simultaneously made things easier to follow but also was a source of confusion wondering how all the pieces are supposed to fit together. As I said, the authors are considerate in keeping the separate plotlines as straightforward and simply as they can, but there is another factor in play here: Time travel.
The Cabinet of Dr. Leng is a mixture of mystery, thriller, and science fiction. I knew this this wasn’t going to be your typical series, but I confess I was still taken by surprise when time traveling came into the picture. Now, time traveling stories and I have a tricky relationship. I’m usually all for them, but they almost always come with a caveat to ignore any plot holes or absurd explanations that might arise. I feel the book handles the logistics behind time travel and the concept of multiple universes well enough, but without spoiling anything, I also thought that in the process of laying everything out there were sections I felt were too drawn out or completely unnecessary. Sometimes it’s better to let your readers’ imaginations do the work, but that’s just my opinion based on personal preference and I do tend to nitpick a lot when it comes to time travel stories.
Also beware that once you start this book, you’ve pretty much committed yourself to reading the next one as well, as this is pretty obviously the first half of a two-parter. That would also explain how Coldmoon’s thread sort of just hangs there, and I assume his character will take on a much greater role in the follow-up. But there’s plenty more I also want to know, given how the book ends. Preston & Child have created a simply diabolical and creeptastic villain in Dr. Leng, and just thinking about what he did to Constance and her family makes my skin crawl. Some of our characters were left in quite a bind, and I will be waiting with curiosity to see what plot developments will emerge, what solutions will present themselves.
Bookshelf Roundup 01/29/23: Stacking the Shelves & Recent Reads
Posted on January 29, 2023 22 Comments
Bookshelf Roundup is a feature I do every weekend which fills the role of several blog memes, like Stacking the Shelves where I talk about the new books I’ve added to my library or received for review, as well as It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? where I summarize what I’ve finished reading in the last week and what I’m planning to read soon. Mostly it also serves as a recap post, so sometimes I’ll throw in stuff like reading challenge progress reports, book lists, and other random bookish thoughts or announcements.
But first, THORIN UPDATE! Puppy is getting so big now!
Received for Review
My thanks to the publishers and authors for the following review copies received, and be sure to click the links to their Goodreads pages for more details and full descriptions!
Some interesting new books hitting my mailbox earlier this month. With thanks to Tor Books for an ARC of The Warden by Daniel M. Ford. “For fans who have always wanted their Twin Peaks to have some wizards” is how this was described, and I also recently found out the author was local. Looking forward to checking it out.
Also thank you to Del Rey for a finished copy of Nocturne by Alyssa Wees, an unconventional retelling of Beauty & the Beast set in 1930s Chicago. This is one of my must-reads for February (wow, where did January go?!)
My thanks also to William Morrow for an ARC of City of Dreams by Don Winslow, the follow up to City on Fire which was the first book of a fiery crime trilogy about the Irish and Italian gang wars in New England during the 1980s. I expected a second book of course, given how the previous one ended, and I can’t wait to find out what happens next.
With thanks to the brand new imprint of Entangled Publishing, Red Tower Books, as well as Kaye Publicity, I received an ARC of Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros, described as an epic love story set to the backdrop of war and a military school for dragon riders. It’s always exciting to see a new fantasy imprint launch, and this New Adult “romantasy” sounds like a lot of fun!
From the amazing team at Minotaur Books I also received a surprise copy of The Last Orphan by Gregg Hurwitz. My one and only experience with the author had been a YA horror novel about zombies, so I’m curious to try something of a different flavor by Mr. Hurwitz. This one is listed as the 8th book in the Orphan X series but many reviews report that it can be read as a standalone.
I also want to thank the kind folks at both 47North and Wunderkind for sending me a copy of Meru by S.B. Divya, the first book of a new space opera series about humans restricted to earth while their space-faring posthuman descendants discover a new Earth-like planet.
One new eARC in the digital haul this week, with thanks to Angry Robot for an early copy of The Judas Blossom by Stephen Aryan, the first book of a new fantasy saga which reimagines the Mongol Empire’s invasion of Persia. I’m excited to start it!
Reviews
What Lies in the Woods by Kate Alice Marshall (5 of 5 stars)
Children of Memory by Adrian Tchaikovsky (2.5 of 5 stars)
Roundup Highlights:
What I’ve Been Reading
Have you heard of or read any of the books featured this week? What caught your eye? Any new discoveries? I hope you found something interesting for a future read!
Thriller Thursday Audio: What Lies in the Woods by Kate Alice Marshall
Posted on January 26, 2023 19 Comments
I received a review copy from the publisher. This does not affect the contents of my review and all opinions are my own.
What Lies in the Woods by Kate Alice Marshall
Mogsy’s Rating (Overall): 5 of 5 stars
Genre: Mystery, Thriller
Series: Stand Alone
Publisher: Macmillan Audio (January 17, 2023)
Length: 11 hrs and 16 mins
Author Information: Website | Twitter
Narrator: Karissa Vacker
I’ve never read any of Kate Alice Marshall’s YA books, but should she ever wish to make mystery thrillers her full-time thing, the genre would be lucky to have her! Her adult debut What Lies in the Woods was nothing short of amazing; my heart was in my throat from practically the start to finish of this enthralling read.
The story follows Naomi Shaw, one of three women whose lives were changed forever when they were just eleven years old. That summer, Naomi was stabbed seventeen times and left for dead. Along with her two friends, Cassidy and Olivia, who were also in the woods at the time, the trio provided the eyewitness testimony that put serial killer Alan Michael Stahl behind bars for life. More than two decades later, Naomi gets the news that Stahl has died in prison, reawakening many unpleasant memories. Needing to talk to her two best friends again, she travels back to her hometown of Chester to see Cass and Liv.
But upon her arrival, Liv is distraught, going on in an almost desperate panic about needing to come clean about a secret. Ever the more levelheaded of the group, Cass convinces her to wait until all the dust has settled surrounding Stahl’s death, but that very night, tragedy strikes. As Naomi’s emotions threaten to spiral out of control again, she must go back to that awful summer and relive the memories of what really happened in the woods that day, because the truth is, not all of it will match up with the evidence she and her friends provided in court.
Marshall handles the pacing of the plot so expertly, it’s like she was born to it. Sure, there were some predictable twists along the way, like when you sense something is wrong and expect the other shoe to drop, knowing it probably will. Still, most of what happened genuinely surprised me. Besides, the last half of the book was so packed with bombshells that ultimately you reach the point where surrendering yourself to the unrelenting madness becomes inevitable, and the feeling was simply euphoric.
It’s clear also that the author put her experience writing YA and middle grade to good use, though fair warning, things do get kind of dark. The backstory for Naomi, Cass, and Liv was done very well, focusing on the bond that was formed between the three of them when they were just young girls with vivid imaginations. Marshall does for them what Stephen King does for his characters with his stories about boyhood camaraderie. Outcasts in their own right, the girls had an obsession with Greek goddesses and pagan rituals, leading to a major discovery in the woods one day that will become their greatest secret and the lynchpin to this entire novel.
There’s so much more I could say, so much more praise I could give, but What Lies in the Woods is absolutely the type of psychological thriller where the less you know going in, the better. I also can’t say enough positive things about the audiobook. The amazing Karissa Vacker was the narrator, and she was also the voice behind another fantastic thriller I listened to recently, All the Dangerous Things by Stacy Willingham. Well, it looks like this was another winner!
All told, I highly recommend What Lies in the Woods. It was at once exciting and unnerving, exhilarating and paralyzing. The story had me hooked and hanging onto every word.
Waiting on Wednesday 01/25/23
Posted on January 25, 2023 8 Comments
Waiting On Wednesday” is a weekly meme that first originated at Breaking the Spine but has since linked up with “Can’t Wait Wednesday” at Wishful Endings now that the original creator is unable to host it anymore. Either way, this fun feature is a chance to showcase the upcoming releases that we can’t wait to get our hands on!
Mogsy’s Pick
A Twisted Love Story by Samantha Downing (July 18, 2023 by Berkley)
“From the bestselling author of My Lovely Wife comes a reckless, delicious thriller about a young couple that gives a whole new meaning to the dangers of modern dating.
Wes and Ivy are madly in love. They’ve never felt anything like it. It’s the kind of romance people write stories about.
But what kind of story?
Because when it’s good, it’s great. Flowers. Grand gestures. Deep meaningful conversations where the whole world disappears.
When it’s bad, it’s really bad. Vengeful fights. Damaged property. Arrest warrants.
But their vicious cycle of catastrophic breakups and head-over-heels reconnections needs to end fast. Because suddenly, Wes and Ivy have a common enemy–and she’s a detective.
There’s something Wes and Ivy never talk about–in good times or bad. The night of their worst breakup, when one of them took things too far, and someone ended up dead.
If they can stick together, they can survive anything–even the tightening net of a police investigation.
Because one more breakup might just be their last…”
Book Review: Children of Memory by Adrian Tchaikovsky
Posted on January 24, 2023 20 Comments
I received a review copy from the publisher. This does not affect the contents of my review and all opinions are my own.
Children of Memory by Adrian Tchaikovsky
Mogsy’s Rating: 2.5 of 5 stars
Genre: Science Fiction
Series: Book 3 of Children of Time
Publisher: Orbit (January 31, 2023)
Length: 512 pages
Author Information: Website | Twitter
We have now reached the third book in the Children of Time series. If we travel back to the spring of 2017 when I read the first book, which incidentally was also my first novel by the author, I had to this to say: “Children of Time is one of the smartest, most remarkable and innovative science fiction novels I’ve read in years and now I can’t wait to read more by Adrian Tchaikovsky.”
Fast forward to today, and I find myself struggling to put my feelings into words about this latest installment. Because the truth is, if I was rating it solely on my enjoyment, I would be forced to rate this book much lower than I want to. As much as it pains me to say this, and I have a feeling this will be an unpopular opinion, but the story just didn’t do it for me. While the writing was superb, which is nothing less than I would expect from Tchaikovsky, I can’t say I really enjoyed myself. The most I can say about Children of Memory was that it was okay.
Set many years after the events of the previous book, Children of Ruin, this third volume in the sequence once more focuses on the different species of uplifted creatures as well as a line of enhanced Humans who have bonded closely with the arachnoid aliens known as Portiids. The octopoids have also come into their own to feature in a major role alongside a new race of life form discovered from the planet Nod, and the joining of these disparate spacefaring species has amazingly created a new society in which all of them coexist in relative peace. Together, they now look outwards to the greater universe beyond in search for even more civilizations and intelligences.
In their explorations, they come upon a colony where thousands of years before, their ancestors had arrived on the spaceship Enkidu carrying its precious cargo of sleeping passengers preparing to settle the planet. Instead of paradise though, the colonists found hostile conditions and hardship. Generations later, the descendants of a small cohort from the original crew of the Enkidu have still yet to make the planet completely habitable, but then that’s when the visitors arrive. They have come to help humanity’s colonies, or so they say, yet there’s more to them that meets the eye. But then, perhaps not all is as it seems with the colony either.
So, what made this a miss when the first book was such a hit? To be honest, I felt the series was already in decline with Children of Ruin, a sequel marred by uneven pacing and heavy exposition. Unfortunately, these issues have only gotten worse in Children of Memory. I felt the main plot dragged and was encumbered by over lengthy descriptions and too many meandering side discussions and other distractions. Ultimately, as much as I wanted to like this book, the story was made to feel unnecessarily complicated and difficult to follow at times.
Also more diluted in this installment was the “biopunk science” which put the first book on the map, especially with regards to the population biology and social organization aspect. The evolution of human culture took on a more central role, an intriguing topic in its own right, but just a little too off the track from what got me interested in the series in the first place. In as much as there is a main character, I was also not too impressed with Miranda. On the surface, the potential for this unusual character would appear to be limitless, but without spoiling anything, I suppose it shouldn’t have come as a shock that the character development might be on the weaker side.
Will there be more books after this? Well, seeing as the announcements of the sequels to Children of Time actually came as a surprise to me both times, I think it will be hard to say. But then, personally I saw little point in trying to improve or expand upon the already perfect, and we all know what they say about quitting while you’re ahead. I write all of this as someone who is a fan of Adrian Tchaikovsky, but as Children of Memory has proven to me, there’s little doubt that we are straying farther and farther away from everything I loved about the first book. If it does turn out we’ll get another sequel, I expect I’d probably be nervous instead of excited.
More on The BiblioSanctum:
Review of Children of Time (Book 1)
Review of Children of Ruin (Book 2)
Bookshelf Roundup 01/22/23: Stacking the Shelves & Recent Reads
Posted on January 22, 2023 18 Comments
Bookshelf Roundup is a feature I do every weekend which fills the role of several blog memes, like Stacking the Shelves where I talk about the new books I’ve added to my library or received for review, as well as It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? where I summarize what I’ve finished reading in the last week and what I’m planning to read soon. Mostly it also serves as a recap post, so sometimes I’ll throw in stuff like reading challenge progress reports, book lists, and other random bookish thoughts or announcements.
Received for Review
My thanks to the publishers and authors for the following review copies received, and be sure to click the links to their Goodreads pages for more details and full descriptions!
With thanks this week to sister imprints Redhook and Orbit Books for ARCs of a couple exciting upcoming releases this spring! First up is The Fairy Bargains of Prospect Hill by Rowenna Miller. I know I should catch up with her previous series before jumping on board something new, but this historical fantasy sounds so good. Next up is The Bone Shard War by Andrea Stewart and for once I’m actually caught up on The Drowning Empire trilogy which is amazing, so you can imagine how excited I am to read this final installment.
From the kind folks at Tordotcom I also received an ARC of The Archive Undying by Emma Mieko Candon, which first drew my attention because the author also wrote the Star Wars Visions: Ronin novel. But then I found out this one also has giant robots. From Nightfire, I also received Sister, Maiden, Monster by Lucy A. Snyder, a novel of eldritch and cosmic horror.
And finally, After the Rapture by Nany Stohlman is something a little different. I’m not usually one for flash fiction, but all the ones in this make up a larger narrative and can be read like a story. It’s a post-apocalyptic collection, of course. With thanks to Mason Jar Press and Roger Charlie for the review copy!
Some exciting new audiobooks in the digital haul this week! With thanks to Penguin Random House Audio, I received The Drift by C.J. Tudor which I dove into right away. I also picked up The Shadow of Perseus by Claire Heywood because I am always up for some mythological fantasy, and Such Pretty Flowers by K.L. Cerra, a southern gothic thriller that also has a dash of horror.
Reviews
How to Sell A Haunted House by Grady Hendrix (4 of 5 stars)
Finlay Donovan Jumps the Gun by Elle Cosimano (3.5 of 5 stars)
What I’ve Been Reading
Have you heard of or read any of the books featured this week? What caught your eye? Any new discoveries? I hope you found something interesting for a future read!
Thursday Thriller Audio: Finlay Donovan Jumps the Gun by Elle Cosimano
Posted on January 19, 2023 7 Comments
I received a review copy from the publisher. This does not affect the contents of my review and all opinions are my own.
Finlay Donovan Jumps the Gun by Elle Cosimano
Mogsy’s Rating (Overall): 3.5 of 5 stars
Genre: Mystery, Thriller
Series: Book 3 of Finlay Donovan
Publisher: Macmillan Audio (January 31, 2023)
Length: 9 hrs and 45 mins
Author Information: Website | Twitter
Narrator: Angela Dawe
I thought this series was insane before, but somewhere along the way, things took a turn for even more crazy and wildly over-the-top shenanigans. But to that I say, BRING IT ON! These books have gotten so incredibly entertaining that it’s hard to mind too much.
Finlay Donovan Jumps the Gun is a continuation of our eponymous protagonist’s epic journey with writer’s block as she struggles to complete her overdue novel for her publisher while trying to raise two kids on her own. On top of that, she is now in debt to the Russian mob after they helped save her ex-husband, and as they like to remind her, she’s not off the hook just because mob boss Feliks Zhirov is in prison. After all, he’s still capable of pulling all the strings behind bars and knows exactly how Finlay can repay the favor owed to him.
Lately, a contract killer only known by their online handle “EasyClean” has been causing problems for Feliks, and the person may secretly even be a police officer. Given Finlay’s closeness to hot cop Nick and the fact that her sister is also on the force, she may be in the perfect position to squirrel out this mysterious assassin. Together with Vero, her nanny and partner-in-crime, they sign up for the police academy’s citizens program in the hopes of sleuthing out the identity of the contract killer. It’s also a win-win situation for Finlay who gets to tell her excited agent that it’s part of the research for her next book, not to mention being at the academy is probably the safest place she and Vero can be while hiding from the mob.
Or is it? What follows next is a hilarious and thrilling week of police training for our characters which include learning how to fire a gun, make an arrest, secure a crime scene, and more—all the while trying to figure out who the mysterious EasyClean might be. But although the plot is humorous, I wouldn’t go quite as far as calling it cozy. Finlay is under a tight deadline in more ways than one, and the consequences of disappointing Feliks would be dire. It also turns out that Vera has a secret and hasn’t been entirely honest with our protagonist about her past.
Then on the lighter side of things, we have the romance. For the last couple of books Finlay’s love life has been a mess, and not going lie, but it was something of a relief to see that the series has finally settled its focus on her and Nick. Let’s face it, the love triangle with Julian thrown into the mix (or even a love square if you count her ex-husband Steven?) would have gotten old and annoying rather quickly. Because these character threads are clearly ongoing and their relationships evolving, I would also recommend against reading these books as standalones because you will be missing a lot, but when they’re this much fun, why wouldn’t you want to start at the beginning?
That being said, I hope the next book will bring some closure to the current arc because I can see there being only so much craziness you can throw at the series before even the fun gets stale. In fact, it might even force the plot into becoming even more ridiculously far-fetched, more unbelievable and extreme, and we all know how too much of a good thing can be bad. Case in point, although I had a great time with Finlay Donovan Jumps the Gun, out of the three books so far, admittedly this one also felt the weakest. While the police academy idea was a stroke of comic genius, it limited Finlay and Vera’s involvement and the potential of the plot by putting them into a holding pattern, in contrast to the previous books where the prevailing feeling was that everything was unexpected and that anything goes.
Still, at the end of the day, Finlay Donovan Jumps the Gun leaves readers with a satisfying conclusion, but there is still the greater mystery to be solved. I’m very eager to find out what happens next. Once again, much credit goes to narrator Angela Dawe for giving voice to our protagonist and making the audiobook a blast to listen to, and I would not hesitate to continue the series in audio.
More on The BiblioSanctum:
Review of Finlay Donovan Is killing It (Book 1)
Review of Finlay Donovan Knocks ‘Em Dead (Book 2)
Waiting on Wednesday 01/18/23
Posted on January 18, 2023 10 Comments
Waiting On Wednesday” is a weekly meme that first originated at Breaking the Spine but has since linked up with “Can’t Wait Wednesday” at Wishful Endings now that the original creator is unable to host it anymore. Either way, this fun feature is a chance to showcase the upcoming releases that we can’t wait to get our hands on!
Mogsy’s Pick
The Book That Wouldn’t Burn by Mark Lawrence (May 9, 2023 by Ace)
“A boy has lived his whole life trapped within a vast library, older than empires and larger than cities.
A girl has spent hers in a tiny settlement out on the Dust where nightmares stalk and no one goes.
The world has never even noticed them. That’s about to change.
Their stories spiral around each other, across worlds and time. This is a tale of truth and lies and hearts, and the blurring of one into another. A journey on which knowledge erodes certainty, and on which, though the pen may be mightier than the sword, blood will be spilled and cities burned.”
Book Review: How to Sell a Haunted House by Grady Hendrix
Posted on January 16, 2023 19 Comments
I received a review copy from the publisher. This does not affect the contents of my review and all opinions are my own.
How to Sell a Haunted House by Grady Hendrix
Mogsy’s Rating: 4 of 5 stars
Genre: Horror
Series: Stand Alone
Publisher: Berkley (January 17, 2022)
Length: 400 pages
Author Information: Website | Twitter
Grady Hendrix has made a name for himself for writing horror novels that are slightly bizarre, a little off kilter. As he never shies away from the strange and unexpected, each of his books also tend to possess a unique gimmick or hook, as well as the quintessential ingredient of a thread of dark humor. His latest How to Sell a Haunted House is all of this and more, which is sure to delight his readers and win him new fans.
As the book opens, we are introduced to Louise Joyner, a 39-year-old single mom who has always prided herself on being hardworking, independent, and resourceful. But one night, her entire world unravels with a phone call from her younger brother Mark who informs her that both their parents had just died from a car accident. Filled with shock and grief, Louise reluctantly leaves her 5-year-old daughter Poppy behind with relatives in San Francisco in order to travel cross-country back to her childhood home in South Carolina. There’s much to be done, including helping Mark with the funeral preparations and deciding how to sell their parents’ old house.
But when she arrives, Louise is furious to find that Mark has already set in motion his own plans, many of them against the wishes of herself, other family members, and even those set forth in their parents Eric and Nancy’s will. An epic fight between brother and sister ensues, escalating when it turns out that Mark has been bequeathed almost the entirety of their parents’ estate. Mark, the spoiled and entitled baby of the family, who has always had the world handed to him because he was so helpless, while Louise is the responsible one who has had to work for everything she ever wanted! And now, all she’s left with is Nancy’s substantial “art collection” which spans decades of her mother’s creations, including her vast hoard of handmade dolls and puppets. None of it was fair, and Louise was not about to stand for any of it.
However, while feuding about what to do with the house, both Louise and Mark start noticing something off about the place, and it’s not just the weird sounds coming from the attic. The house is giving off a malicious energy, or so claims their eccentric cousin Mercy who believes it is haunted. And while Louise is tempted to dismiss this as utter nonsense, she also can’t deny that strange things keep happening, and somehow, a part of her just knows it has something to do with her mom’s puppets.
So, anyway, I hate dolls. I can’t stand their frozen blank faces and glassy eyes that just give me the creeps. When I was younger, I couldn’t sleep after the first time I watched the movie Child’s Play and to this day I will not abide any dolls in my house and my daughters understand that they’ll just have to make do without American Girl or Our Generation in their lives.
But now, puppets. In some ways, they’re worse. As anyone who’s ever seen a Punch and Judy style show can probably tell you, they are the stuff of nightmares. For the puppets in this book, my assumption was that most would have been from Louise’s mother’s time with the Christian Puppet Ministry and be no less disturbing with that hair-raising muppet look to them. Dial that creepiness up to eleven and that’s certainly how I pictured Pupkin, the favorite of all of Nancy Joyner’s puppets but who is also the source of so much vexation and sheer terror for our poor protagonist Louise. I’m not going to spoil anything, but suffice to say, if you carry as much antipathy for dolls and puppets as I do, you’ll have a jolly good scary time with this book.
But what I loved most about How to Sell a Haunted House is that it’s not just horror-filled fun and games. I enjoyed the deeper layers of story which offers commentary on the darker side of familial relations. If you think your family is dysfunctional, just wait until you meet Mark and Louise! And yet, while the Joyners’ situation might be a bit extreme, it’s also easy to see how certain aspects of their sibling rivalry can be relatable.
This book also reads so much like a movie, complete with a third act that brings everything together while going full-bore into horror thriller territory. Just when you think things can’t get any crazier, whoops, there’s more!
In sum, How to Sell a Haunted House is very much the horror novel you’d expect in a lot of ways, but also a little more substantial than just shocking violence and cheap frights (though you’ll get plenty of that as well). Once more Grady Hendrix delivered an insanely entertaining novel, and I had a lot of fun reading it.
Bookshelf Roundup 01/15/23: Stacking the Shelves & Recent Reads
Posted on January 15, 2023 12 Comments
Bookshelf Roundup is a feature I do every weekend which fills the role of several blog memes, like Stacking the Shelves where I talk about the new books I’ve added to my library or received for review, as well as It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? where I summarize what I’ve finished reading in the last week and what I’m planning to read soon. Mostly it also serves as a recap post, so sometimes I’ll throw in stuff like reading challenge progress reports, book lists, and other random bookish thoughts or announcements.
Received for Review
My thanks to the publishers and authors for the following review copies received, and be sure to click the links to their Goodreads pages for more details and full descriptions!
Big thanks to Subterranean Press for a couple of surprise ARCs. Great Work of Time by John Crowley is a reissue of the award winning novella which first appeared in the author’s collection Novelty published in 1989. Then there’s The Dispatcher: Travel by Bullet by John Scalzi which is the third book in the sequence. This one sort of came out of nowhere until I remembered that the book was originally released as an Audible original last year, and soon the print will be released in the spring.
Also thank you to amazing folks at Berkley, I received a finished copy of How to Sell A Haunted House by Grady Hendrix. I’ve already devoured this one and a review is planned for next week. It was pretty intense!
With thanks also to Gallery/Saga Press for sending me a finished copy of Don’t Fear the Reaper by Stephen Graham Jones. Very excited to start this follow-up to My Heart Is A Chainsaw very soon!
Just one audiobook in the digital haul this week. With thanks to Macmillan Audio for a listening copy of Hell Bent by Leigh Bardugo. This is the sequel to Ninth House and I’m looking forward to continuing the series.
Reviews
Episode Thirteen by Craig DiLouie (5 of 5 stars)
Roundup Highlights
What I’ve Been Reading
Have you heard of or read any of the books featured this week? What caught your eye? Any new discoveries? I hope you found something interesting for a future read!
The BiblioSanctum 