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October 29, 2024
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Reading Roundup: Spooky Season!
I meant to get this post out in September, but better late than never! In any case, this post makes for better October reading, since it looks at a few books that are most definitely appropriate for the Spooky Season. As you may know, neither Tanita nor I are particularly inclined to read horror (at least, not on any kind of regular basis) but I do occasionally read a fantasy or paranormal or thriller that could also be classified as horror. I guess, in certain moods, I’m fine with spooky, and occasionally even creepy…
First, a couple of reads in the “can you stay alive to tell your horrifying tale” category. I was pretty excited to read Under the Surface by Diana Urban, a tale of terror about being lost in the Paris catacombs. My husband and I missed seeing the catacombs in Paris because they were closed both times we were there, but we did recently see the UBER CREEPY (but also kinda cool) catacombs in Palermo, Sicily, so I was definitely in a mood to read a thriller in that type of setting. And it did not disappoint on that score—while on a senior class trip to Paris, main character Ruby and her best friend sneak out one night to a super-secret party in the catacombs. Everything seems deliciously spooky…until they get lost down there. And until someone—or something—starts chasing them….
Also a fun read, and definitely inspired by horror classics, was What Stalks Among Us by Sarah Hollowell. I’m not sure what made me pick this one up, given that it’s set in a scary supernatural corn maze where the two main characters keep finding dead versions of themselves. (I had a traumatic experience as a child when I accidentally walked in on my parents watching Children of the Corn, so you’d think I would stay away from haunted cornfields and such.) But it actually sounded sort of cool, more thriller-esque, and it’s not like I never EVER read horror, so I thought I’d try it out, because I liked the author’s earlier book A Dark and Starless Forest. And, well, I did end up enjoying it, and I didn’t think it was TOO terribly scary (fortunately)—to me, it was fun-scary and thriller-scary, and the speculative aspect turned out to be a really interesting part of the story. Anyone who enjoys scary movie tropes might want to check it out.
Last but not least, I particularly liked The Invocations by Krystal Sutherland, a serial-killer story packed with demons, witches, and occult goings-on. There are three main characters in this one: Zara, whose singleminded purpose is to raise her sister from the dead so she can find out who murdered her; Jude, who bonded herself to a demon but botched it—so now her soul is slowly going necrotic; and Emer, a witch and curse writer who lost her family to a group of mysterious killers. Zara and Jude are both in search of the only one they think can help them—Emer—and, in the process, they find out that someone has been killing Emer’s clients, the women who have been buying protective curses from her. Reluctantly, since they are all rather prickly and focused on their own agendas, the three team up to identify the killer before they end up in his sights. This one was rather dark, but I really enjoyed it, and the ending was quite satisfying (not to mention, it was a scene of spectacular destruction).
Here’s to Spooky Season!
Source: Dispatches From Wonderland
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Reading Roundup: August 2024
Greetings! This is certainly not everything I’ve read in the past six-ish weeks since my last roundup, so if I’m particularly industrious there may be a Part Deux…but anyway, here are a few highlights from my late July/early August reading:
If you’ve followed this blog for a while, you’ll know how much of a fan I am of Jaclyn Moriarty’s YA books—I find her both hysterical and delightful, whether she’s writing realistic fiction or fantasy/magical realism (or the occasional adult book). Well, I hadn’t realized that she’s also dived into middle grade, with a series called Kingdoms and Empires. I found this out by accident because one of the books, The Stolen Prince of Cloudburst, was in my library’s ebook app. When I finished reading, I realized that A) the book was part of a series! Yay! And B) I had managed to read the third book out of five! Ooops!
Well, anyhoo, I of course went back and read the other ones (in order this time) and just tore through them. The land of Kingdoms and Empires is in many ways much like our world—if technology had frozen sometime in the period when telephones and automobiles were new and people still used horses and carriages, too. Oh, and there’s quirky magic, and plucky heroines, and outlandish adventures, and situations that made me laugh out loud—but also characters that feel very real, that you wish you could jump into the book and meet. This was one of those series that I kind of wanted to start reading again as soon as I finished. Hot tip: start with the actual first book, The Extremely Inconvenient Adventures of Bronte Mettlestone.
Speaking of characters who feel very real—another book I really enjoyed recently was Cemetery Boys, by fellow Mills alum Aiden Thomas. Yes, I know, I’m late to the party reading this one—my towering TBR pile and I are suitably embarrassed. In any case, I’ve been meaning to read this one for a long time, and it did not disappoint.
Yadriel, a trans teenage boy, is the narrator, and he is determined to become a brujo and defend the cemetery against rogue ghosts like his dad and older brother—the problem is, because he’s trans, they think that he won’t be able to access the type of magic traditionally gifted to men when he comes of age. His family is throwing a wrench into Yadriel’s following his calling, so Yadriel takes matters into his own hands—and events soon spiral out of control, of course, with mysterious disappearances, a handsome ghost boy, and everything coming to a head on Dia de los Muertos.
The fantasy elements—the world of the brujx that Yadriel inhabits—is terrific and fun, but what really stood out for me was the character development. The characters were so fully realized, so relatable and familiar, so funny and lovable, that I just wanted to hug them. I thought the family themes were especially meaningful, that you can have blood family and chosen family, both precious, and even though your own family has the ability to betray you in the worst way possible, they can also surprise you with the depth of their love and support. Yes, it’s important for books to show trans kids that they can persevere through difficult situations, but it’s also important to show those situations where a trans kid has a loving, supportive family—not without its struggles, but willing to listen, change, and grow.
It’s not often that an author gets an opportunity to re-release a book the way THEY wanted it written all along, but Cheryl Rainfield has done just that with her/their book Visions, which I reviewed a number of years ago in its first incarnation as Parallel Visions. The author always wanted this story to be full-length with queer characters, and the new version has accomplished that: Kate is still the main character, and her asthma still triggers psychic visions, but now there’s a subplot of her crushing on (and getting to know) the beautiful Desi, her nonbinary classmate and, as the story progresses, her ally too.
Kate is empowered to take matters into her own hands to try to save the people she loves, even if it puts her in danger—but she also learns to trust and stand up for herself. Readers will find not only a detailed portrayal of a queer teen coming into her own, but also a wealth of resources at the end for those dealing with abuse, domestic violence, asthma, and much more. The author’s unabashed support and love for their/her readers shines through in this book.
Source: Dispatches From Wonderland
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