Yolanda Sfetsos's Blog, page 5

It's August!

Hey! Can you believe how fast the year is going?! Yikes. 😳
So, how are you? I hope you're having a cool week. Here, in Sydney, the weather took a turn for the miserable on Wednesday. And it's been raining since. It's also freaking cold. I dislike being cold. At least it's the last month of winter.
After a week full of editing, I wanted to take a mental break. You know, a bit of reading and sorting. Maybe taking story notes. Instead, I started writing a new short story on Sunday night and kept addi...

THE THREE LIVES OF LYDIA by Delilah S. Dawson & A DUET WITH DARKNESS by Allison Pang

Carniepunk: The Three Lives of Lydia by Delilah S. Dawson
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This is a story set in the Blud world, so I was excited about checking it out. And wow, glad I did!

When Lydia wakes up in a strange and dangerous, but exciting world, she meets Charlie Dregs and agrees to become the Tattooed Lady. But nothing is as it seems...

Like I said, this is an amazing short story. First, I got swept up in the mystery of how Lydia got to Sang. Then, I was captivated by the mutual attraction be...

THE COLD GIRL by Rachel Caine & THE WEREWIFE by Jaye Wells

Carniepunk: The Cold Girl by Rachel Caine
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I have to start this review by saying that I miss Rachel Caine. She was such a brilliant author and a lovely person, too. I don't think I've ever read a story of hers that I didn't enjoy, and this is another one to add to the awesome list.

Kiley's story starts out average enough. A teenage girl who loves her boyfriend is eager to go to the carnival with him. But everything soon falls apart when it becomes obvious that her perfect r...

Another Busy Week!

Hey! How are you today? Hope you had an awesome week. I can't believe July is almost over.
A few weeks ago I completed the first edit of my upcoming novel, Fallen Destiny. And this week, I read the proof. From start to finish. Yeah, I worked really hard on this edit. I enjoy smoothing out stories, especially when the editor's cool suggestions push me to make the book even better. Smoother. I was obsessed and totally distracted all week because it's all I could think about. LOL
This is what I said ...

Watching, Revising & Reading

Hey, how's it going? I hope you're having a great day.

This week turned out to be great, as far as my writing goals and spending time with my husband, but it was the worst for dealing with people. I seriously hate that the general population doesn't seem to understand common courtesy anymore, or manners. Even customer service appears to be a forgotten thing. And I hate how most people don't understand the concept of criticism. Too many thin-skinned assholes out there who like to act like rotten b...

CRANBERRY COVE by Hailey Piper

Cranberry Cove by Hailey Piper
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

After I finished revising one of my stories, I decided to reward myself with this novella.

Emberly and Conner are partners sent to investigate what happened at the derelict hotel called Cranberry Cove, but what they find is a lot darker than either expected...

Eerie. Tense. Mysterious. Entertaining.

Yeah, I really enjoyed this story. It's full of dark supernatural goodness that hints at what lies beneath the fabric of reality, lost within limin...

Sorta Break

Hi, how are you today?
I hope everything is okay in your corner of the world. I know it's hard at the moment because there are so many crappy things going on all the time, but that's why it's important to find happiness.
So, after spending last week doing an intense round of edits, I enjoyed a nice mental break. Which is actually a good thing because not only was I mentally exhausted, but the weather has been so shit lately that I caught a cold. I felt pretty shitty most of this week. 🤧
And yes, I ...

SUNBURN by Laura Lippman

Sunburn by Laura Lippman
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

After reading a great book the other day, I wanted to get stuck into another story, so I went through my Paperwhite... and started reading this one yesterday.
When Polly walks out on her husband and daughter during their summer vacation, she ends up in Belleville, Delaware. And inside a tavern, she crosses paths with the alluring Adam. Both are apparently passing through on their way to better places, but the secrets they hide bring them together. A...

THE NIGHT GUEST by Hildur Knútsdóttir

The Night Guest by Hildur Knútsdóttir
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I've been busy working on writing, revision, edits, and a whole bunch of other stuff. But this week I wanted to get stuck into a bit of reading, and started with this novella.

Iðunn is desperately trying to find out what's going on with her. She's always tired, wakes up with bruises and knows there's something wrong. But doctors can't help her and won't even take her seriously. Until her life starts to unravel when she figures out she...

Busy Week Full of Words

Hey! How are you today? I hope you're well and finding some happiness and fun during the shittiest timeline ever. 🙄
Every single morning there's a new stupid and cruel thing happening. It's awful to watch. I wish people had paid proper attention and saw exactly what we did. But hate means more to some people than anything else. It's a shame.
See this lovely demon to your left? This is Destiny, and she's a demon. She's also the main character in my upcoming novel from Brigid's Gate Press. Why am I ...