Katherine Harbour's Blog, page 2

No One Gets Out Alive by Adam Nevill

No One Gets Out Alive
Set in a low-rent boarding house in contemporary England, this is a horror story told in two parts. The first part is a haunted house/human predator narrative, where a young woman has to fight for her survival in a house drenched in evil. It is harrowing and gory and a slow burn. The second half is folk horror, and the young woman must battle a truly creepy, eldritch horror that may be an ancient child sacrifice gone demonic or a fairy-like fertility goddess called Black Maggie. Don't let the page count fool you--this is a page turner and essentially two books in one. DO NOT read this at night!

Tricks for Free by Seanan Mcguire

Tricks for Free
Antimony Price is on the run, a young woman hiding out in an amusement park in Florida. Her roommate is a gorgon and, it turns out, Lowryland is run by a cabal of modern magicians. Antimony is a survivor and has supernatural helpers, the two most fascinating being a highway ghost named Mary, an auntie of sorts, who died as a teen, and Rose, who also died young and also carries on the legend of road ghost.
Lowryland is a fabulous creation, more than just an alternative Disneyland, with its landscapes of Candyland, Fairyland, Metropolis, Chapter and Verse, the Deep-Down, the Drowned World, and a ride called the Midsummer Night's Scream.
With it's fantastic setting and Antimony's navigation of Lowryland's mysteries--and a creepy entity called the Crossroads--this is a rich and entertaining read.

The Graces by Laure Eve

The Graces
River is a teenage girl obsessed with the wealthy Grace siblings, Fenrin and his twin, Thalia, and the youngest, Summer, who is River's age. They're rumored to be witches. Lonely River maneuvers her way into their good graces and they become like a second family to her. Her crush, Fenrin, begins paying attention to her. When a mysterious boy named Wolf shows up, a friend of the family, things begin to change and River's secrets and true nature are revealed. A twisty story with an unreliable narrator in the morally gray area and an interesting and mysterious family.

Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo

Shadow and Bone
What can I say? Alina and Mal, the spirited orphans who have grown to love one another. The Darkling, who seems far more menacing in the book. The story is a girl's quest to learn her place in the world, a world with fabulous settings and historical merit. Alina's introduction to Grisha culture is scattered with awkwardness and intrigue. I loved learning how she maneuvers through the court of the Little Palace, her careful dynamic with the Darkling. Each character has their own agenda and I loved the little details.

The Iron King by Julie Kagawa

The Iron King
Meghan is a teen with an ordinary life on a farm. But when her little brother is taken and a terrifying changeling put in his place, her best friend Robin reveals that he's a faery, Puck to be exact, and so is she, daughter of the faery king.
He brings her to the NeverNever, where she encounters a Cheshire cat-like talking cat and Ash, prince of the dark sidhe. Meghan must travel back and forth, in faery-inhabited worlds, to rescue her brother.
I loved the characters and the world-building elements, making familiar tropes uncanny and original. The past history between Ash and Robin is a fun reveal. A fabulous addition to the faery genre.

We Hunt the Flame by Hafsah Faizal

We Hunt the Flame
A gorgeous and original fantasy set in a world based on Middle Eastern history. Zafira is a huntress in an eerie and dangerous forest. She is soon asked to locate a magical book by the sultan. Accompanying her is her best friend, a soldier named Deen.
Nasir is an assassin for his cruel father. He and the young general, Altair, are sent on the same mission. The four characters collide and the quest is sidetracked.
With a knock-out villainous reveal toward the end and a team-building exercise in perilous encounters, this desert tale is driven by Zafirah and Nasir's broken lives. I loved the worldbuilding and the character interactions, the lyrical writing.

The Thief by Megan Whalen Turner

The Thief
Gen is a thief in a world beautifully inspired by ancient Greece and Medieval Europe. He's part of a band of travelers seeking a talisman that will prove the power of whoever owns it. I liked Gen, who is a tough and clever character, and the band of characters was pretty interesting. I'll read the sequels because of the main character and the world building. It's a very simple story, and more for Middle Grade readers maybe? My favorite part is when Gen's agenda is revealed, and in the middle, when he has an eerie encounter with gods and goddesses.
Young readers might want to try this before attempting The Lord of the Rings:)

House of Hollow by Krystal Sutherland

House of Hollow
Three sisters have survived a traumatic and mysterious childhood kidnapping in contemporary Great Britain. Grey is the eldest and most successful and is now a celebrity. Vivi, the eldest, is a musician and an adventurer. Iris is the good girl, who has remained with their mother after their father committed suicide--claiming the girls who were returned to him weren't his daughters. When Grey goes missing, iris and Vivi search for her, encountering weird and gruesome obstacles while being pursued by a man wearing a bull's skull. They're accompanied by Grey's model boyfriend, Tyler, who provides the humor. This is absolutely horror, especially when the truth is revealed, and these elements come to play in an eerie, decaying underworld. With strong and unique characters, gorgeous and creepy settings, this was a fantastic dark fairy tale. I wait impatiently for the sequel.

The World of Lore: Dreadful Places by Aaron Mahnke

The World of Lore: Dreadful Places
Delving into the dreadful places of the world, well-researched and scary and tongue-in-cheek, this book explores some infamous and not-so-notorious sites of tragedy and terror, where disappearances, murders, and bizarre accidents have occurred. New Orleans, Peoria, cemeteries, castles, lighthouses, ships, and forests . . . all have their strange horror stories.
Edinburgh's Greyfriars Cemetery, the Bell Witch, a murdered sultan in New Orleans, a red dwarf, an Irish monster, and poltergeists make appearances here. It's a fascinating read, revealing that, sometimes, truth is stranger than fiction.

Firekeeper's Daughter by Angeline Boulley

Firekeeper's Daughter
Daunis Fontaine is a teenager in Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan. She's active in her community on the reservation, volunteering for the tribal elders. She also runs, and was once a star on the school hockey team. Her father was Ojibwe and her mother is white.
Her world turns upside-down when her best friend is murdered by her ex-boyfriend, whose promising life has descended into drugs.
Daunis has befriended the attractive new boy at school, Jamie, only to learn his secret is about to drag her into a dangerous investigation that involves her community and people she's grown up with.
I loved how Daunis's Ojibwe community is beautifully rendered, rich with meaning and a support system for Daunis. She joins the ranks of Nancy Drew and Veronica Mars as she seeks the meth dealer causing death in her world.
A great read for anyone who wants to submerge themselves in a mystery and the complicated life of a young woman who has to navigate a maze of familiar faces and find the treacherous hearts.