Sarah M. Cradit's Blog, page 6

RED HOT HOLIDAYS | 17 ALL NEW Holiday Stories to Spice Up The Season!

Forget shopping. Forget wrapping. Spend the holidays with these 17 gorgeous alpha males.

They have something they’d like to put in your stockings, because they’re definitely on Santa’s naughty list in these 17 all-new stories.

AVAILABLE NOW

About the Book:

NYT, USA Today, and top-selling authors have banded together to bring you 17 all-new, sweet to sexy books about love, romance, and the holidays.

Take a break and rip open this boxed set to cuddle up with these romantic comedy, paranormal romance, and contemporary romance books. These authors have pulled out all the stops, bringing back some of your favorite characters from their bestselling series for one more bite at the fruitcake or penning stories about new characters and new love!

For a limited time, you can pick up all 17 of these naughty men for a really great price! Over 1000 pages of love, laughter, and romance! From billionaires and filthy rich rock stars to undercover police and bear shifters, we’ve gathered all 17 passionate stories in one big box with a bow on top. This heart-pounding collection is filled with confident, sexy, and romantic men you’ll want to spend the holidays with.

AVAILABLE NOW

Stories Included Are:

Perfectly Kissed ~ Lacey Silks Mistletoes, sneaky best friend and an old lady, coerce best friends and former lovers, Millie and Dave, to reunite for Christmas Holidays.

Montreux ~ Blair Babylon Wulf von Hannover and Rae Stone are about to marry in Montreux, but Wulf’s aristocratic father makes one last attempt to derail the wedding.

Home Bound ~ Olivia Rigal and Shannon Macallan Trapped by a storm, a voluptuous architect and a sexy TV news reporter melt the ice by a roaring fire.

A Band of Heather ~ Sarah M. Cradit Colleen and Noah belong to two very different worlds, but a band of heather changes their lives forever.

Christmas on the Run ~ Daizie Draper Wannabe rock star Tristan runs from a dangerous bookie and falls for the girl he’s only using as his perfect escape.

Noel: A Blue Collar Christmas ~ J.C. Valentine Nurse Noel Walker doesn’t date patients, but Officer Hunter Davis won’t give up until he slaps the cuffs on.

Black Christmas ~ JC Andrijeski Quintin Black vanishes, leaving Miri alone after a harrowing ordeal in Thailand. Will she forgive him in time for Christmas?

Winter Tryst ~ Mira Bailee One destroyed marriage. Two broken hearts. When Sean visits Lyla to say goodbye, winter’s magic forces the lovers to face the painful truth.

Give and Take ~ Daisy Prescott You never know who will show up at the Sip ’n Stroll in Langley. Someone’s pregnant. Someone’s engaged. And someone’s getting a puppy.

Slow and Steady ~ V. J. Chambers When danger interrupts Christmas shopping, Leigh and her husband Griffin sizzle.

Take Me Home ~ Alison Foster All my Christmas wishes were snatched away by an evil brute. What can you do when the man you hate most makes your mouth water?

Bearfield Snowed In ~ Jacqueline Sweet A hunter tracking her prey finds herself snowed in with a sexy shifter. Is he her mortal enemy or her fated mate?

My Cowboy Soldier ~ Gillian Cherry Holidays draw lovers and families together, except when war tears them apart.

A Cub for Christmas ~ Ella Dominguez This May-December romance burns up the pages when Aricelli realizes that unwrapping her Christmas package is only half the fun.

Rosy Cheeks ~ Amity Wilde Good things sometimes come in unlikely packages. When an online flirt stumbles into Karen’s very real life, he might be just what she needs.

A Beary Merry Christmas ~ Jazzmyn Wolfe After a season of frustration and pain, will curvy Kassandra and Brendan finally have a beary merry Christmas?

Alec’s First Christmas ~ Felicia Tatum Daphne and Zander welcomed their baby Alec, and his first Christmas has magical surprises.

Order Now and Start Your Celebration Early

Book Review: House of Leaves by Mark Danielewski

Nothing I ever say about this body of work (I hesitate to call it a novel. No other work of fiction exists like it.) will come close to offering up the sum total of my thoughts. I’ll do my best.

It took me a couple years to pick this book up. While I cherish my physical books, I often buy unknown (to me) authors in Kindle format, and take the books on my travels. The lack of a Kindle option kept me passing it over on my reading list, until it didn’t. Heading into my annual New Orleans trip, something told me this was the book I had to have with me. So I ordered it.

This is not an easy read. Nor is it a page turner. It certainly isn’t a book you can or should pick up when you’re sleepy or distracted. But it is, hands down, the most ambitious work I’ve ever held in my hands. And yes, I’ve read (and love) War and Peace.

The Navidson Record, or the story that everything else in this book centers around, is, at its core, with all the loveliness and exquisite detail stripped away, a tale of found footage. Especially disturbing footage, from narrators who don’t have the funds for special effects of the nature required to create their extraordinary experiences within the house, leaving behind years of speculation by critics, experts, psychologists, paranormal hunters, authors, and all nature of individuals.

Pulling back further, telling the story is Johnny Truant, an incredibly unreliable narrator who has come across a collection of analysis on The Navidson Record, and, as he begins to assemble and make sense of it, his own reality spirals further out of control. Most of his contributions to the story are a collection of nonsensical ramblings, sometimes for pages and pages on end, with seemingly no connection to the narrative. In the back of the book, there is also a collection of letters from his institutionalized mother, known as P, whose exact diagnosis is never given but evidence leans toward schizophrenia. As with P’s words to her son, it is unclear how much of what she relays to him is the result of her paranoia and hallucinations, and what is real (if anything). Similarly, It is unclear how much of Johnny’s rambling is a retelling of reality and how much is simply from the fabric of his imagination. After all, he tells (and shows us) what a practiced liar he is (not to mention his relationship with drugs).

As Johnny adds footnotes to The Navidson Record, he continuously tells the reader that most of the sources don’t actually exist, and his research turned up no evidence of any of the people involved in the project. Again, it is unclear if this is because it does not exist to him, or to us, or both.

At the center of the tale is, of course, The Navidson Record itself, a story told through Hi 8 footage, cassette recordings, interviews, journal entries, and critical analysis. Will Navidson, his family, and all those he brings into his terrifying discovery of a house with continuously shifting dimensions and intentions, all react very differently to events, both at the surface and deeper down, where the house leaves its mark. Deeper still, the Navidson Record is really two stories: that of the wonders of the house and what it means/where it came from, and the enduring relationship of Will and his partner Karen. Taken separately, they are both fascinating, rewarding stories, one relying on the supernatural, and the other, something more sublime. Taken together, the tale seems to send a deeper message, about the restorative and unshakeable nature of love itself. Will and Karen are not necessarily sympathetic characters, but your sense of what drives them toward one another is nothing short of magnetic.

Layered in through the 700+ pages were exhaustive source notes, quotes, psychological analysis, and all manner of detail that, while overwhelming to the reader, helped to bring this into something cohesive. Dare I say it, real. Was it all necessary? Not to tell the story, no. But I suspect the author wanted to do far more here than simply tell a story. He wanted to leave his readers changed. Questioning.

I could dive in further, but, truly, this isn’t a book I can explain effectively to others. My husband asked me what it was about, and I started to tell him, then came up short. Read it for yourself. Push past the slow parts and rest assured, every detail, every word, every layer is part of this tremendously powerful and delicate dance.

Bravo, Mr. Danieleswki.

Pick up a copy here.

The Myths of Midwinter (House of Crimson and Clover #6) by Sarah M. Cradit @thewritersarah #bookreviews

Originally posted on Books & Such:

Quillan Sullivan lost his twin brother two decades ago, a tragedy he never fully experienced due to his unusual ability to see and talk to Riley when no one else can. He believes this “gift” is a fluke, until the haughty, vainglorious love of his life, Estella, returns after several years abroad, and rips his world apart.

Estella Broussard loathes Quillan. He’s the last person on Earth she’d ever bless with her presence. To her great dismay, he alone holds the key to achieving her deepest desire. She will do anything to reach her aims, no matter the warnings… no matter the cost to Quillan.

Nerys guides Finn and Aleksandr on their mission to find Anasofiya and bring her home. Finn accepts her help, on the condition she keep no secrets. She relays what she knows… all except the visions her old companion has sent her, regarding a terrifying menace…

View original 257 more words

Book Review: 6 Classic Horror Novels (Halloween Edition)

In honor of the best holiday ever (Halloween, obviously), I’m sharing my reviews of 6 classic horror novels: The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson, Terrifying Tales by Edgar Allan Poe, Frankenstein by Mary Shelley, The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde, The Great God Pan by Arthur Machen, and Ghost Stories of An Antiquary by M.R. James.

My reviews of the individual titles are below.

The Haunting of Hill House

True haunted house horror that doesn’t rely on gimmicky bumps in the night. Many of the scares come from within a series of intangibles; the questionable history of the house, the unusual and unsettled minds of those who show up. Most of all, and what best sets the story, is Jackson’s unique command of prose, which makes otherwise unlikeable characters sympathetic, and sets every seen on edge, while also giving it dimension. Real horror at its finest. 5 stars.

Pick up a copy here.

Terrifying Tales

This is a great collection of stories from Poe, each showcasing his varied talents in storytelling. While I typically prefer his stories which more of a horror-bent (Telltale Heart, Pit and the Pendulum), his gift to literature is the strong ability to get inside your head, both with his writing style and with his love of description. Was great to revisit stories I already knew, and discover some new to me. 5 stars.

Pick up a copy here.

Frankenstein

I have to say… I read this book as a kid, forgot about it, and then subsequently allowed popular culture to drive my impression of this old tale. The truth is, the pop culture version is far less interesting. THIS is compelling literature. A classic. Unlike the tropes in the typical Frankenstein movies out there, this is a true horror story, from beginning to end. Chilling. Horrifying. This is what horror is supposed to be. I only wish I’d revisited this sooner. 5 stars.

Pick up a copy here.

The Picture of Dorian Gray

I have a love/hate relationship with Wilde’s writing. It is some of the most lush, dimensional, colorful prose I’ve ever had the pleasure of reading, while also being, at times, a painful slog. His observations on society and humanity, as seen through the eyes of his characters, are fascinating and well-fleshed. Harry, in particular, makes so many interesting, thought-provoking observations (if not entirely self-indulgent), that you could write a book about him alone.

My one complaint about this book is the very element I also loved about it; it is roughly a third too long, and some of the meatier themes are buried in pages and pages of description that add minimal to the story, bordering on purple prose.

That said, there are few stories, then or now, that could hold a candle to the thematic masterpiece of The Picture of Dorian Gray. 4 stars.

Pick up a copy here.

Great God Pan

I can no doubt see how this disturbing short tale inspired many a horror writer, including Lovecraft. From the composition of the story, to the shocking ending, the only fault I can find in this tale is that I wish it had been longer. Will definitely read more from Machen. 5 stars.

Pick up a copy here.

Ghost Stories of an Antiquary

I am a sucker for a good ghost story… especially one which comes in the wrappings of a 19th century British scholar and the assertion the tales are real events he’s come across in his studies. I loved all the stories, but The Mezzotint stayed with me the longest. I’ve even gone as far as to research the print. 5 stars.

Pick up a copy here.

Book Review: The Plantagenets by Dan Jones

I can’t say enough good things about The Plantagenets. As a junior scholar of the time period, I’m always looking for new and fresh perspectives to add to the tried and true names. Dan Jones is quickly establishing himself among those tight-knit ranks, and he’s done so by taking history and making it compellingly told without taking away from the salient details. He presents a mostly unbiased perspective, allowing the reader to take in the facts and form their own opinions. And though it was written as non-fiction, the narrative is strong enough, and so well-written, that you forget you’re not reading fiction. Read well into the night over several nights. Jones has quickly been added to my list of authors I’ll buy from no matter what he’s writing about. 5 stars.

Pick up a copy here.

Book Review: In Cold Blood by Truman Capote

One of the first and most successful crime fiction novels, knowing the chain of events and how it ends doesn’t take away from the narrative. While dry in places, the insertion of anecdotes and quotes, as well as trying to use a third person narrative to get inside the head of the killers, keeps it fresh. You can read in Capote’s words his interest and passion in this case. What I liked most of all was that he took a murder case (something, in and of itself, not so rare, unfortunately) and turned it into a case backed with the reasons we should know more. Great re-telling, if a bit slow at times. 4 stars.

Pick up a copy here.

Flower Sack Dresses From the Flour Mills (Historical Kindness)

Originally posted on Kindness Blog:

In times gone by, amidst widespread poverty, the Flour Mills realized that some women were using sacks to make clothes for their children. In response, the Flour Mills started using flowered fabric…

With the introduction of this new cloth into the home, thrifty women everywhere began to reuse the cloth for a variety of home uses – dish towels, diapers, and more. The bags began to become very popular for clothing items.


As the recycling trend looked like it was going to stay, the manufacturers began to print their cloth bags – or feedsacks – in an ever wider variety of patterns and colors.

Some of the patterns they started using are shown below


Over time, the popularity of the feedsack as clothing fabric increased beyond anyone’s wildest expectations, fueled by both ingenuity and scarcity.

By the time WWII dominated the lives of Americans, and cloth for fabric was in…

View original 243 more words

Myths of Midwinter ~ The House of Crimson and Clover Vol VI by @thewritersarah #book #review

Originally posted on :

Author: Sarah M Cradit
Published: October 2015
Category: Saga, Fantasy, Paranormal

Dive into the secret, ancient, powerful world of two New Orleans families, the Deschanels and the Sullivans…

From USA Today bestselling paranormal author Sarah M. Cradit comes Myths of Midwinter, Volume 6 in the bestselling witches family saga, The House of Crimson & Clover. Not a standalone story, Midwinter’s plot makes the most sense only after having the prior volumes.

The threads of fate weave the Deschanels and Sullivans down perilous paths, as a centuries-old warning emerges: Seduction to sinners. A legacy in splinters. Beware, the myths of midwinter.

The author’s note at the beginning of this book explains that although there were cliffhangers at the end of the previous story, this is as series and as such sometimes needs storylines to evolve in order to drive the story forward. In this story, characters who weren’t centre stage previously…

View original 649 more words

Thrills & Chills: Sarah’s 13 Favorite Scary Books

It’s my favorite time of year: Fall. Samhain. SCARY MOVIES AND BOOKS. In honor of all things creepy, I’m counting down my thirteen favorite horror stories, listed by category. Feel free to add your own in the comments!

Favorite Classic Horror: Frankenstein by Mary Shelley

Forget everything you know about the spinoffs and mishmashes of Frankenstein. Shelley’s original is absolutely horrifying. Frankenstein’s monster becomes the embodiment of fear, revenge, intent to take everything from his creator.

Runner Up: The Great God Pan by Arthur Machen
Favorite Scary Books Growing Up: Christopher Pike and RL Stine’s Fear Street

By the time I was in middle school I’d graduated to Stephen King, but before that, I DEVOURED all the Fear Street books, and anything by Christopher Pike (who, by comparison, was just a little bit dicier, and I  was all about dicey). I was a few years too old for the Goosebumps books, but my sister read them.

Runner Up: Some of those Choose Your Own Adventures got pretty real, y’all.
Favorite Horror Fantasy Story: Eyes of the Dragon by Stephen King

The story goes, King wrote this for his young daughter who thought his other books were too scary for her. The result is something that is half-fantasy and half-absolutely terrifying. It may have been written for his daughter, but the undercurrent of evil running through this story has stayed with me all these years, and remains one of my favorite books of his.

Runner Up: The Silmarillion. Arguably not horror, but some of those stories really mess with your head.
Favorite Horror Story of 2010s: N0S4A2 by Joe Hill

So, I find it really interesting (and maybe unfair) that Stephen King’s son has a talent for spinning a scary yarn as well. Even more surprising is that he is FAN-EFFING-TASTIC at it. He writes unlikeable characters and makes them sympathetic and relatable, and heroes you’ll be thinking about for months. But he also craps all over them. My kind of author. In fact, the hardest part of this post was trying to decide which of his books to pick for this category.

Runner Up: The Vines by Christopher Rice
Favorite Ghost Story: The Mezzotint in Ghost Stories of an Antiquary by MR James

The Mezzotint is one of a handful of short stories in Ghost Stories of an Antiquary by MR James. Touted as the non-fiction of an antiquary, all the stories within the collection are unique, but none so much as The Mezzotint, which involves a picture that, shall we say, changes each time you look at it. Not in good ways, either.

Runner Up: Beloved by Toni Morrison. This one deserves its own category, honestly.
Favorite Stories About Witches: Mayfair Trilogy by Anne Rice

This series changed my life, both as a writer, and as a reader. Anne’s mythologies around her witches are rich and carefully woven, bringing forth a contemporary family of witches you secretly wish you were related to. But with a tantalizing past, and a family ghost that is not the protector he claims, it’s not all fun and spells.

Runner Up: Deborah Harkness’ All Souls Trilogy
Favorite YA Horror: The Mrs. Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children Trilogy by Ransom Riggs

If you’re not familiar with these, Riggs came across a collection of ridiculously creepy old photos, and spun a story around them about “peculiar” (read: supernatural) children under the protection of time loops and powerful female avian shifters. The stories and approach are unique, riveting, and just so different from anything else out there. And despite being for children, there’s no shortage of scary.

Runner Up: Book of a Thousand Days by Shannon Hale
Favorite Supernatural: The Heavens Rise by Christopher Rice

Rice has a gift of language (another family with talent running rampant), and storytelling. Together, this makes for compelling work in any genre he operates in, but his first supernatural book, The Heavens Rise, was a damned masterpiece. Equal parts terrifying, gothic, lyrical, and devastating, this book has stayed with me since I read it.

Runner Up: The Talisman and Black House by Stephen King and Peter Straub
Favorite Scary Novel That Kept Me Up for Days: Salem’s Lot by Stephen King

This is not even in my top 10 of my favorite King novels, but it shows the power of the storytelling and imagery here that I did not sleep for days. No exaggeration. These are not sparkly vampires. They are not moody, or interesting. They’re unrepentant killers, they’ve done this before, and escape is looking like less of an option. Oy.

Runner Up: It by Stephen King. In fact, this one might even be tied, because, clowns.
Favorite Scary Story Involving A Building: The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson

I think the most interesting thing about Jackson’s story is that it isn’t overtly scary. Everything that happens is subtle.. from the nuances of the house, to the slow decline of the inhabitants. The ending feels tragic, and inevitable. Her beautiful use of storytelling and language brings this one home for me, and you don’t even realize until after you’ve put it down what she’s done.

Runner Up: The Shining by Stephen King.
Favorite Gothic Romance Horror: Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier

Strange category, I know. But there are books you won’t find in any horror category that are terrifying, nonetheless. Rebecca is one of those books. The mood throughout the book never allows you to put your guard down. Every word keeps you dangling. As with Shirley Jackson, du Maurier plays on subtleties to the extent you don’t realize you’ve arrived until you’re there.

Runner Up: Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte. (In another category, such as classic romance, this would actually win for me).
Favorite “This Could Happen, OMG” Horror Story: Lord of the Flies by William Golding

Dude. We all know this level of raw savagery exists in all of us. Its at the core of our species. And, in the right circumstances, it may be forced to the surface. A whole ‘notha level of horror exists when it plays out among children. Just give him the damn conch already!

Runner Up: Run by Blake Crouch
First Adult Horror Story I Ever Read: Pet Sematary by Stephen King

My very first horror books were the Fear Street books, and Christopher Pike. But those were aimed at teenagers. My mother was a huge King fan and had a stack of his paperbacks. She was a fantastic storyteller, my mom, and would often tell me about the books, leaving me more and more curious. But could I handle that level of scary? I picked up Pet Sematary and my entire life changed. I was horrified, and addicted all at once. When I finished all her King books, I moved on to John Saul, Dean Koontz, and Peter Straub. I’ve had a love affair with horror ever since.

Sound off in the comments with your own favorites!

Book Review: The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins

I wasn’t sure what to expect from this book. The premise wasn’t something that drew me, but the fact that so many of my friends recommended it made me curious.

Immediately I was struck by the similarities to Gillian Flynn’s novels (mostly in the writing style and the use of mysterious and unreliable narrators). Not at all surprised to come here and see other reviewers are making the same comparisons.

The storytelling in the novel was tight; Hawkins tells the story at the right pace, in the right order, revealing different timelines in tandem in a way that unfolds the story wonderfully. I figured out the “twist” about halfway through, but only because of her use of misdirection on every character EXCEPT the killer. I wouldn’t say it was predictable, though, and right up until the end I still thought things could shift another direction. Everything feels possible.

My one beef with this story was (and this is also keeping in tune with Flynn), that every character was unlikable, to the point of being grating. I love a good antagonist or antihero. I love divisive characters. But Rachel’s tics and issues became tedious and grating by the end of the book. Megan was an interesting character who warranted further time and explanation because, I suspect, she’d have been incredibly more dynamic than her limited narrative allowed and perhaps more sympathetic as a result. Anna wasn’t given enough page time to separate what appeared to be her sociopathic tendencies vs. her love for her child. And the men suffered from similar treatment. Like in any Flynn book, you walk away feeling as if there is no clear winner.

That said, this book kept me up all night reading, which is rare for me nowadays, so I can’t say the challenges above had a significant impact on my enjoyment. The Girl on the Train is a tightly woven, excellently-paced thriller that I’d recommend to readers who love a great suspenseful read. 5 stars.

Pick up a copy here.