CoreyReads
156 points
I really enjoy what I remember from reading this. Unfortunately because I had eye surgery I had to switch from eyeball reading to audiobook and I just don't remember half of what I listened to. We be re-reading in 2027 so I can get the proper feel and feel better going into the next book.
I want to thank NetGalley and Blackstone Publishing for providing me with this Advance Reader Copy in exchange for an honest review.
#VanDeath follows the current trend of VanLife that is thriving right now online. Only instead of everything being perfect, things go bad real quick.
Jasper and Morgan are a VanLife couple that for all appearances seem to be living their best and happiest lives. But what you see online isn’t always what is really going on behind the scenes. Morgan has been struggling with her relationship with Jasper, while Jasper feels that everything is super fine. When Jasper receives an email for an ad opportunity for some serious money, he can’t turn it down and has to talk Morgan into this next excursion on the road. But this trip is going to be a little different.
I personally watch a couple of VanLife youtubers and was instantly intrigued by this book. Instantly within the first chapter I was hooked. Most of the chapters are pretty short, which makes this read super quickly and wanting to get into the next chapter. The first half of the book is some build up, but even that has plenty of parts that keep you on the edge of your seat. Once you get to the 50% mark though, you are end for a non stop ride that gets more intense. You get to see the evolution of Jasper and Morgan’s relationship, and what each of them is hiding from their past. I really enjoyed the bits of Jasper’s backstory that we got and the relationship with his father.
#VanDeath does a good job of keeping you on your toes, and hitting you with surprises. While not quite a 5 star for me, I had a blast reading this and will definitely pick up a physical copy when this is published. If you want a VanLife/Road Trip kind of horror, pick this up!
First I would like to thank the author N.A. Betts for sending me this advance reader copy of Don’t Let It Out.
Don’t Let It Out is an ECO Horror Novella following Dani Rojas and Cade Mercer as they are put on assignment together with little to no information about what they are in store for.
Overall I did enjoy this novella, this is the first N.A. Betts' book that I have read as the other stuff I have seen from him is more fantasy and that isn’t something that I typically enjoy. I felt like the prose is a bit clunky at times and directions changed so often that I was often lost in the plot. I feel like this started to balance out more as the book progressed, but it was something that took me out of the story on more than a few occasions. I had to re-read several sentences and paragraphs because I felt that we changed midway through where we were story wise. That may have been the intent of this book though. I found Dani’s story much more intriguing than Cade’s. I think if this would have been longer, we could have fleshed out both characters quite a bit more. I wanted to learn more about Cade and Dani both. There was also weird time things going on and memory things, and while that did seem very intentional, it caused me so much confusion in reading this.
For my actual rating I would put this around 3.5 stars I think, I didn’t love it, but I enjoyed my time with it for the most part. If there were to be a follow up of some sort, or some short stories to give more of a background to the characters or more of what went on in this area that they are assigned to, I would pick it up.
First I want to disclose that the author did reach out to me directly and send me an ARC of this book, but my review is my honest opinion of what I read.
In Their Eyes follows Gracie Boone as a first year college student getting away from her small town home for the first time. While this college town isn't big by most standards, to Gracie she might as well be in a big city. From the start you get a sense of her relationship with her father Hank and his struggle with letting his Graciebear go off on her own. While she is getting settled in she meets her across the hall neighbors and is invited to party. From that moment this story is pretty non-stop.
I found this so easy to read and addictive. While there were some slow moments, they weren't slow enough to take you out of the story. We get a nice steady build up to the insanity that is taking place and really feel what Gracie is going through. Gracie really struggles with being a people pleaser, and I think there are a fair amount of people that can relate to that. At the 60% mark everything shifts into high gear and I couldn't put the book down after hitting that point. Anytime I thought I had the story figured out, I was proven wrong and the twists kept coming.
While this is a horror/thriller, I would definitely say it leans more thriller with horror aspects, but I really enjoyed reading this and would recommend to anyone looking for a solid addictive story.
CoreyReads finished a book
6w
In Their Eyes
Simon F. Godin
Gracie Boone’s small-town life has always felt safe and comfortable. She has a doting father, a steady relationship, and a promising future at university. But the illusion of security begins to crumble the moment she moves into her new dorm room. Before long, a motionless figure looms in the darkness outside Gracie’s window, silent and watching her in the night. But no one else sees it, and no one else believes her. Gracie’s world further unravels when she faces evidence suggesting she may have been abducted as a child by her hometown’s police chief, the man she calls Dad. Driven by her rising paranoia, Gracie must unearth the truth about herself and determine who keeps watching her in the dark. But she has to tread lightly, as alerting her father could ruin their relationship forever, or even put her in danger. Most of all, Gracie fears uncovering her darkest reality, that she’s been manipulated for years, and that her life is nothing more than a carefully constructed façade.
CoreyReads started reading...
8w
In Their Eyes
Simon F. Godin
Gracie Boone’s small-town life has always felt safe and comfortable. She has a doting father, a steady relationship, and a promising future at university. But the illusion of security begins to crumble the moment she moves into her new dorm room. Before long, a motionless figure looms in the darkness outside Gracie’s window, silent and watching her in the night. But no one else sees it, and no one else believes her. Gracie’s world further unravels when she faces evidence suggesting she may have been abducted as a child by her hometown’s police chief, the man she calls Dad. Driven by her rising paranoia, Gracie must unearth the truth about herself and determine who keeps watching her in the dark. But she has to tread lightly, as alerting her father could ruin their relationship forever, or even put her in danger. Most of all, Gracie fears uncovering her darkest reality, that she’s been manipulated for years, and that her life is nothing more than a carefully constructed façade.
Thank you Netgalley and Ateia Books for this Advanced Reader's Copy in exchange for an honest review.
I really enjoyed this collection of Latin Horror stories. As with any collection some will hit better with you than others. Usually of there is a story that just isn't hitting I will DNF that story, but I didn't have anything that I didn't enjoy. Two big standouts for me personally was LUZ Y FER and We are Gathered here Together. Those for me offered the most surprise. I also really liked the story Fidelity, but I feel like it didn't hide the twist very well.. I overall for a short story collection, I would say it's worth picking up if these kind of collections are your thing. I would recommend and I found a couple at those that I would like to explore more of their writing, and for me that is the joy I get from these collections.
CoreyReads started reading...
9w
Toy Soldiers: Of Monsters and Men, Vol. 1
D.D. Ward
Don't blink. Don't move. It's the 80s, but the Cold War is no longer the only threat offering mankind's extinction. Something else, some...things stalks in the night. But what will humanity find in themselves once they're given the power to fight back?
CoreyReads DNF'd a book
9w
Empire of Silence
Christopher Ruocchio
Hadrian Marlowe, a man revered as a hero and despised as a murderer, chronicles his tale in the galaxy-spanning debut of the Sun Eater series, merging the best of space opera and epic fantasy. It was not his war. On the wrong planet, at the right time, for the best reasons, Hadrian Marlowe started down a path that could only end in fire. The galaxy remembers him as a hero: the man who burned every last alien Cielcin from the sky. They remember him as a monster: the devil who destroyed a sun, casually annihilating four billion human lives—even the Emperor himself—against Imperial orders. But Hadrian was not a hero. He was not a monster. He was not even a soldier. Fleeing his father and a future as a torturer, Hadrian finds himself stranded on a strange, backwater world. Forced to fight as a gladiator and navigate the intrigues of a foreign planetary court, he will find himself fighting a war he did not start, for an Empire he does not love, against an enemy he will never understand.
CoreyReads finished a book
32w
The Mermaid
Christina Henry
From the author of Lost Boy comes a beautiful historical fairy tale about a mermaid who leaves the sea, only to become the star attraction of history's greatest showman. Once there was a mermaid called Amelia who could never be content in the sea, a mermaid who longed to know all the world and all its wonders, and so she came to live on land. Once there was a man called P. T. Barnum, a man who longed to make his fortune by selling the wondrous and miraculous, and there is nothing more miraculous than a real mermaid. Amelia agrees to play the mermaid for Barnum and walk among men in their world, believing she can leave anytime she likes. But Barnum has never given up a money-making scheme in his life, and he's determined to hold on to his mermaid. Author Biography Christina Henry is the author of the national bestselling Black Wings series (Black Spring, Black Heart, Black City), featuring Agent of Death Madeline Black and her popcorn-loving gargoyle, Beezle. Christina lives in Chicago with her husband and son.
Well, that was something else. I have to say, going into this I was worried because of all the hype around this book, but I was thoroughly surprised. I don't often read a book in just 4 days, but I struggled to put this down. Honestly I probably could have finished this sooner if it weren't for the fact that reading makes me sleepy.
I'm a 5 star slut, and I'm giving this 5 stars. The whole time I was on the edge of my seat and I don't want to give away any of the plot, so you get my incoherent rambling, you are welcome.
I know that most people rank Wayward lower than Pines, but I don't get it. This is a great continuation of the story of Wayward Pines and seeing how the town came to be, how it is ran and the operational side of it was so intriguing to me. Ethan is not the most likeable character, but seeing his struggles with his new role, having to walk the line, but also not wanting to shift from his ideals had me just gobbling this up. I can't wait to dive into the last book of the series.
CoreyReads finished a book
34w
’Salem’s Lot
Stephen King
Thousands of miles away from the small township of 'Salem's Lot, two terrified people, a man and a boy, still share the secrets of those clapboard houses and tree-lined streets. They must return to 'Salem's Lot for a final confrontation with the unspeakable evil that lives on in the town.
