Murder at Haven's Rock

 Murder at Haven's Rock
Author: Kelley Armstrong

 

This book is the first in the new Haven's Rock series. If you haven't read the Rockton series, I recommend you read those books first, as this is a continuation-of-sorts of that prior series. 

A town is under construction in an isolated area of the Yukon in Alaska. Haven's Rock isn't an ordinary town...the project is secret and its isolated location was chosen on purpose. Haven's Rock will be an oasis in the wilderness for people who need to disappear. A safe place. A prior town with a similar set-up just failed, and its leaders Casey and Eric are re-locating, starting over with a new town in a new place. They hope to avoid the problems they encountered in Rockton. But, just as they arrive to check out the new location ahead of allowing residents to arrive, there is already trouble brewing. There's only one rule in Haven's Rock -- stay out of the forest. Two members of the construction crew broke that rule. And, now they are both missing.....

I loved the Rockton series, and I was incredibly happy to see this new series! Characters from the Rockton series are present, and several new characters introduced in this first book. I love the concept of a town where people can go when they need to disappear. Casey and Eric are strong, intelligent and motivated main characters. I can only imagine how difficult it would be to manage a town in the middle of nowhere that has to maintain secrecy. 

Loved this book! I am definitely going to continue reading this series! Kelley Armstrong never disappoints!! 

I listened to the audio book version of this novel. The audio is just over 10.5 hours long and narrated by Therese Plummer. She does an excellent job of narrating and brings the story to life. Enjoyable listen! 

I can't wait to see what happens next in this series! 

REVIEW: Chapter and Curse

 Chapter and Curse
Author: Elizabeth Penney

Molly Kimball and her mother, Nina, move to Cambridge, England to help run the family bookstore. Thomas Marlowe Manuscripts & Folios has been in business for more than 400 years, but Nina's Aunt Violet needs help to keep the business going. Molly & Nina quickly start helping give the shop a better online presence and even schedule a poetry reading by a local famous writer. When a woman is found dead outside the shop right after the poetry reading, they find themselves doing a bit of amateur sleuthing to clear Aunt Violet of suspicion in the murder. 

I enjoyed this book! I love the concept - the idea of a 400 year old family bookstore! Love it! The characters are engaging, and the mystery developed at a nice pace. There were a few surprises I did not expect, and a couple I saw coming. I'm definitely going to continue reading this series. Very enjoyable! 

REVIEW: The Writing Retreat

 The Writing Retreat
Author: Julia Bartz

5 lucky winners. A writing retreat with a famous, but eccentric, horror author at her very remote estate. Alex feels this is her chance to finally get published. But, it turns out there is a reason why everyone says never meet your heroes......

I listened to the audio book version of this debut novel by Julia Bartz. The audio is 11.5 hours long and narrated by Gail Shalan. Gail is a skilled narrator with a pleasant voice. She read at a good pace and brought each character to life.

I'm not going to say a lot about the plot to avoid spoilers. But, this book went in some directions I didn't expect...and a few I did. The story dragged in the middle for me and I almost stopped listening. I stuck with it because I wanted to know the ending. But, I was disappointed - the ending was a bit of a mess, in my opinion.

The story was interesting, but this book overall missed the mark for me.  I didn't really believe the characters or the events. It just seemed a bit too contrived and odd in places. I felt there were some plot points that were just dropped and never given a satisfying conclusion. 

I'm glad I finished the story, but I wish I had enjoyed it more. 

REVIEW: It Found Us

 It Found Us
Author: Lindsay Currie

I love middle grade horror books! Every fall, I read as many as I can leading up to Halloween. I previously read Scritch-Scratch and What Lives in the Woods by this author and enjoyed them both. So jumped right on this one! 

First of all, the cover art is awesome! And, the story had all the elements for a creepy, ghostly story!

The Basics: Hazel Wood is always investigating things around town. She has a knack for following clues and getting to the bottom of things. But when her brother's best friend, Everett, goes missing after a game of hide-and-seek in a cemetery, Hazel discovers the whole thing may be tied to something that happened a century in the past. 

A graveyard. Ghosts. A spooky disappearance. Perfect!! 

I loved this story! The tale is spooky,but also age appropriate for middle grade readers. As an adult, the story kept my attention the entire time because I love ghost stories! 

Another great book from Lindsay Currie! I'm definitely looking forward to her next book! 

**I voluntarily read a review copy of this book from Sourcebooks Kids. All opinions expressed are entirely my own.**

REVIEW: The Stranger Upstairs

 The Stranger Upstairs
Author: Lisa Matlin

Sarah's life is getting a bit chaotic. Her marriage is having trouble, and she has a lot on her plate with her career as a social influencer and therapist. So she and her husband embark on a project -- to renovate a house. But not just any house -- a murder house. A house infamous as the site of a murder/suicide. Even after 40 years, the house still has a sinister vibe. And, then strange things start to happen. Construction workers acting strangely. Weird accidents. Foosteps in the attic.....

I'm not sure I could buy an infamous house and renovate or live in it. I think I would constantly be thinking a person died in this room or that room, or imagine how scared they were, etc etc. My feelings about how I would react in a similar situation really made this story ultra-creepy for me. I ended up not being able to put the book down once I got into the story. I spent an entire Saturday binge reading this story!

I'm not going to say anything else about the plot. I recommend avoiding any spoilers. Go into this book like I did with very little information and just let the story unfold. 

Great, creepy and twisted story! I loved it! It would make a great movie! This was a perfect book to read as I begin my annual Spooky Season Reading. :)

**I voluntarily read a review copy of this book from Random House/Ballantine. All opinions expressed are entirely my own**

REVIEW: Hemlock Island

 Hemlock Island
Author: Kelley Armstrong

There are scary stories....and then there are Scary Stories.  For me, I find the creepiest thriller/suspense stories are ones that keep me thinking "This could happen." I found myself frequently stopping while reading this book to think "Holy crap - something like this could actually happen to someone."

Going through a divorce during/after the pandemic isn't an uncommon thing. I'm going through one myself right now. Losing almost everything you own during a divorce and trying to hang on to the one thing you have left -- a house, property, whatever it may be -- is a common occurrence. But throw in being forced to rent the property to strangers and then having odd/creepy things happening that pulls in your ex, friends, relatives, etc.

For that house to be on an island. And, for all those people with awkward history to be trapped there together. Possibly with a killer. 

I was seriously creeped out by this story. 

At first I was pulled in by this new book because I enjoy Kelley Armstrong's writing. I've been a big fan of her Rockton series since it started, and just read the new novel in the spin-off series, Murder at Haven's Rock. But let's get real, if Kelley wrote it I would probably read the Encyclopedia of Stereo Instructions and love it. She's one of my favorite authors. 

Once I got started reading, I couldn't put the book down. Binge read time! The story seriously pulled me right in and creeped me the hell out. I love mysteries and thrillers that involve locked doors or a group of people not able to escape the situation. Ever since I read Agatha Christie's And Then There Were None, I have loved this sort of story! 

Well done, Kelley! I loved this book!! 

**I voluntarily an advanced review copy of this book from St. Martins Press. All opinions expressed are entirely my own.**

REVIEW: Hansel & Gretel

 Hansel & Gretel
Adaptation: Neil Gaiman
Illustrations: Lorenzo Mattotti

I didn't realize that this graphic novel existed until I was searching around online for cool creepy reads to start my spooky season reading. Neil Gaiman is one of my favorite writers, and Hansel & Gretel is a freaking nightmare of a fairy tale. I went onto my local library's online site and found they did have it listed, but that their copy had gone missing. I requested they replace the copy.....flash forward about a month and I had a fresh new copy of this dark graphic story book in my hands. 

Wow! I remember this story of a witch kidnapping two children abandoned in the forest creeping me out as a kid, but done in Gaiman and Mattotti style it takes on an even darker edge. The illustrations are done all in black and Gaiman added war to the already dark themes of this classic Grimm Brothers tale.

Loved it! At 52 pages, it's a very quick read. There are many very dark illustrations. 

This was a fabulous graphic art book to start my spooky reading season! Gaiman keeps the original dark feeling of the story and expands on it a bit, making a war and impending starvation the reason why the children are abandoned in the forest. 

Mattotti's illustrations are fabulous! They definitely fit the dark theme of this story. I love the lines and dark simplicity of the drawings.

The last two pages of the book give a bit of background and history on the story of Hansel & Gretel. Very cool! 

Definitely a great book to kick off my annual Spooky/Halloween season reading!