Tag: Horror

Review: Lucky Day

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Title: Lucky Day
Author: Chuck Tingle
Pages: 240
Release: August 12, 2025

Mr. Tingle, I was not familiar with your game. What a wild ride this was. 

The blend of absurdism and horror is beautifully done. Tingle’s twisted imagination shines brightest in the breathless sequences of gore and surreal terror. There’s a scene in a wave pool so gruesome it will make me think twice before dipping my toes into the deep end ever again.

Some of the broader, more otherworldly strokes – e.g., cosmic centipedes and literal voids in spacetime – kept me from fully embracing the premise. But the slick pacing ensures that no beat overstays its welcome, propelling the story forward with relentless energy. 

Count me as a Tingle fan from here on out. This was a bloody good time.

★★★½

My thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

Review: Absolution

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Title: Absolution
Author: Jeff VanderMeer
Pages: 443
Series: Southern Reach #4
Release: October 22, 2024

Crossing the border into Area X again feels like slipping back into a strange, hypnotic dream.

A decade in the making, Absolution is the fourth installment in Jeff VanderMeer’s Southern Reach “trilogy.” Thankfully, this isn’t an Indiana Jones 4 situation—Southern Reach purists won’t have to hold their noses and pretend this story doesn’t count as canon. Instead, it complements the original three novels nicely, both in tone and by further expanding the mysteries of the Forgotten Coast without feeling like a tacked on, cash grab.

While you won’t find fan service or tidy answers to long-standing questions, you will find a unique story that builds on the lore of Area X in exciting ways. The book is divided into three distinct sections, each offering its own flavor. Your mileage may vary, but for me, Part 1 stood out: Spooky, ethereal, and steeped in disquieting mystery, the story unfolds through captivating first-person journal entries. Part 2 is a slower, more meandering spy tale, while Part 3 goes fully off the rails—VanderMeer at his most unhinged, with intense, creative flourishes. The volume knob is turned up to 11 a bit too long for my liking, but others will find this grand VanderMeerian fireworks show well worth the price of admission.

If you’re new to the series, you will find yourself a bit lost starting here. Even so, VanderMeer’s sharp, electric prose makes it a journey worth taking for anyone craving some madcap science fiction fare. Much like the original trilogy, Absolution isn’t for everyone. Not all of it resonated with me, but the highs are well worth the ride, and this installment is a worthy addition to an already iconic series—which we can now safely call the Southern Reach quartet, without reservations.

★★★¼

My thanks to the publisher for an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

Review: Authority

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Title: Authority
Author: Jeff VanderMeer
Pages: 341
Series: Southern Reach #2
Release: May 6, 2014
Audio Narrator: Bronson Pinchot

As I continue my Southern Reach trilogy reread, I revisited Authority for the first time in a decade. This time, I experienced it in audiobook form. Initially, Bronson Pinchot took some time to grow on me as a narrator, but I ended up really enjoying his character voicing and overall narration style.

While the main thrust of the book is an interesting character study of Control, a new Southern Reach employee with considerable baggage, the book suffers from being on the outside of Area X looking in. The Southern Reach campus feels reminiscent of the Lumon Building in Apple TV+’s “Severance,” but its oddities struggle to measure up to the true uncanniness found within Area X.

★★★★

Review: The Eyes Are the Best Part

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Title: The Eyes Are the Best Part
Author: Monika Kim
Pages: 288
Release: June 25, 2024

Feast your eyes on this…a young woman with an insatiable hunger for human eyeballs. Truly revolting and captivating in equal measure.

Not for the squeamish nor the faint of heart, The Eyes are the Best Part draws us into Ji-Won’s downward spiral from a floundering student with family troubles to a full-on psychotic murderous madwoman by journey’s end. It’s very satisfying, and I found myself rooting for Ji-Won even as her psyche unravels. The more she indulges in her worst impulses, the stronger her will becomes. 

The abrupt ending left me wanting more, though. There was more meat on the bone here to explore, and it felt like things were tidied up too quickly and without enough fanfare. Perhaps a sequel is in the offing?

★★★¼

My thanks to the publisher and Edelweiss for an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

Review: Annihilation

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Title: Annihilation
Author: Jeff VanderMeer
Pages: 195
Series: Southern Reach #1
Release: February 4, 2014
Audio Narrator: Carolyn McCormick

In anticipation of Jeff VanderMeer’s 2024 return to Area X with Absolution, I decided to journey back to the book that started it all. I credit Annihilation with reigniting my love for speculative fiction as an adult, after seeing its bright green, tendrilled cover on an end table at Barnes & Noble a decade ago.

This time, I listened to the audiobook, beautifully narrated by Carolyn McCormick. The book is just as creepy and mysterious as I remember, and McCormick’s mellifluous voice adds another layer of intrigue to the plot.

I’ve yet to encounter another book that captivates the imagination quite like Annihilation does – a compelling mystery, a brilliant setting, and vivid descriptions of nature in its most unsettled form.

★★★★★

Review: Thirst

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Title: Thirst
Author: Marina Yuszczuk
Translator: Heather Cleary
Pages: 256
Release: March 5, 2024

An evocative read that is ultimately unsatisfying in its execution. 

The prose is quite pretty, especially in Part I, which vividly depicts the tumultuous life of a 19th-century vampire lusting for blood and leaving a trail of bodies in her wake. However, Part II fails to deliver a satisfying conclusion, abruptly jumping to the present day and losing the momentum of the first half. The writing here feels stilted and uninspiring, lacking the sorrowful beauty of the first half. 

The integration of the two plotlines is awkward, and the plot sometimes reads like a series of disjointed events rather than a cohesive narrative. While vampire enthusiasts will have plenty to sink their teeth into here, this book fell short for me.

★★½

My thanks to the public library for providing me with a post-release copy in exchange for a promise that I’ll return it within 14 days. (I did).

Review: House of Bone and Rain

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Title: House of Bone and Rain
Author: Gabino Iglesias
Pages: 352
Release: August 6, 2024

A pulpy, blood-soaked, and rain-drenched tale of brotherhood and revenge.

This was a fun, fast-paced thrill. I enjoyed the blend of revenge and supernatural horror in a locale (Puerto Rico) that doesn’t get the limelight in contemporary fiction too often. That said, the tone and writing style didn’t always land with me, and some of the violence is so cartoonishly over the top that it distracted me from the narrative. I still think it’s a worthwhile read, as it’s stuffed to the gills with exciting action set pieces.

★★★

My thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

Review: Walking Practice

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Title: Walking Practice: A Novel (March 14, 2023)
Author: Dolki Min
Translated by: Victoria Caudle
Pages: 176

Being a human is awkward. Dating is awkward. Pretending to be a human, whilst dating, whilst satisfying your insatiable alien urge to consume human flesh? Yep, also awkward. Walking Practice takes us inside the mind of such an alien, who cobbles themselves into some simulacrum of a human before seeking out its prey. 

I spent an amusing afternoon zipping through this story, as it’s written in a breezy, conversational way. It’s titillating, graphic, and occasionally grotesque. And while there are some interesting observations about gender politics at play here, I’d imagine this novella would be more effective as a short story, as the alien’s constant inner monologuing started to lose its luster and focus after the first section of the book.

I’ll be sure to check out the print version of this book when it comes out, though, as the black and white line illustrations are really fantastic looking.

★★★¼

My thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

Review: Prosper’s Demon

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Prosper's DemonTitle: Prosper’s Demon (2020)
Author: K.J. Parker
Pages: 112

The protagonist makes it very clear right off the bat – he’s unlikable…and that’s by design. Of course, his self-deprecation, supposed misdeeds, and biting wit make him lovable, nonetheless. This is a short and sharp story that turns in several unexpected directions. For instance, I was not expecting the casting of a giant bronze horse statue to become such a central plot point! Ultimately, I enjoyed this novella for its brevity and its distinct voice.

★★★¼  out of 5

My thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.